In lieu of "Enjoy the Moment..."

Tues 16 Sept 08

Wishing ALL true Malaysians a Happy Malaysia Day! Yup, today is the official Bday of our country, Malaysia...
May there be Peace, Goodwill & Prosperity in this young nation of ours...an uncertainty now with all the political turmoil happening from day to day in these recent times...our future depends on what's gonna happen next! The latest episode being the ISA arrests & the dignified & responsible reaction from our de facto Law Minister, compared to the lame excuses by the Home Minister.

For more down-to-earth news (your decision, of course!) of the political scene, you can try accessing http://www.malaysiakini.com/

Well, let's push these looming clouds of myopic politicians heading to a probable disaster ( Man-made ones, as a matter of fact!) into the background.

And... join hands together for a better Malaysia...better than the superficial peace, tolerance & harmony that has been the norm in its 51 years of Independence. We are all God's creations, no matter what colour of skin or background. 1 Life is all we are given. And Life is only temporary...

Yup, we have but only 1 Life. Go to any hospital. Ask those who are sick. What is their one wish? To get well. To be able to continue to live. Nothing else matters.
It's only those who are young, strong & healthy (at the moment!) who forget that fact of Life. That to be able to see the start of another new day is a Miracle of Life itself!

Enough philosophical thoughts for now.

For good news, our niece, YL, who underwent an ops recently, is finally home. Discharged. A folow-up is scheduled for 18th Sept. Happy for you, YL!!

On the home front & with various factors in play, it was time to make amendments to our Astro (satellite TV) subscribed package. Our latest package was a simple one. A main group, Dynasty, plus 2 mini packages namely, News & Learning.

We subscribed to the Learning package cos at that time one channel abt home, health & children, was included. However, that channel (altho a Discovery channel, too) was later removed & put into another package. Only Astro knows why. As a result, that channel is now hardly accessed.
With the very special 1st time Night Race for F1 GP in Singapore and, the preparations & inconveniences me had to undergo each time an F1 GP race is on, subscribing to the Sports package was inviting!

And, my other half's Taiwan Hokkien serial is coming to an end soon. So, the Hua Hee Dai (HHD) channel, with its numerous Hokkien serials & whatever, is another attraction.

A final list came to one with Dynasty, Sports & News mini packages plus the Gold Package which includes the HHD channel. Total subs? RM107.90 instead of the previous RM89.95. Just RM17.95 more per mth. Worth it? A matter of opinion...hehe...
Considering our "Enjoy the Moment" philosophy? Of course it is...worth every sen of it!! Ha ha!!

Moreover, I could now remove the long, long cables connecting my PC upstairs to our TV in the lounge. A sight for sore eyes! A possible danger & risk item, too. Not forgetting the much lower quality of images that me had to endure while watching the F1 GP races via streaming online.

A word of advice here. If anyone of you intends to make such subscription changes in your Astro packages, do use the Customer Helpline at its 1-300 number. Don't think that by doing so online via its website, would ever be faster! You'd be so DEAD wrong!!

Yup, me learnt that the hard way! And yup, me tried submitting my upgrade changes online. Called the Cust Helpline abt 1 & 1/2 hrs later after the online form submission. No one had received my online request at all!! I was told that it would take at least 24 to 48 hrs by the online method.
So, me requested for the changes there & then on phone. Changes were effective after less than 30 mins!! See? Phew...

Btw our new LG TV has been serving us well in the dining area. Nothing to complain about. the 7-day 1 for 1 replacement warranty has passed. Now, meal-time is so informative & entertaining even. Didn't realise what we'd missed before the change until after the replacement!

Feel Chinese sayings are from generations of experience. Yup, I now truly believe in the "Beh Chak Kee" quote.
So, do Enjoy the Moment, won't you?

Updates...

Fri 12 Sep 08

Update #1 : Our niece, YL, had a successful ops ( Entry dated 110908) & is now on road to recovery. Congrats, YL!! Have a swift recovery...

Update #2 : Re Emergency Lamp replacement, a similar, but appeared to be a better system type ie with an overcharging protection circuit by the same company, was found to be offered at Tesco here for RM85. That's way higher than what me had paid for the present "faulty" unit! If me remember correctly, it was only abt RM60...
Oh well, let's check out the price of that unit offered by other electrical outlets in town. A decision will be made then. No urgency as present "faulty" unit is still able to function...although not 100%.

Need to keep fingers crossed that there'd be NO power failure in the meantime...hehe...not a long failure session, anyway!

Update #3 : Received an invite for a "Nasi Lemak" dinner do at a former colleague's place, just at the end of our block while we were at Tesco shopping around for the emergency lamp. Turned out to be a small celebration of her daughter's 13th Bday. Food was great. Not just "Nasi Lemak lo..." Lots of choices including home-made chocolate "cookies"...yum yum, my fav kind!!

Today : 12 Sep is the Bday of our fav cousin, KS. As mentioned in my post yesterday, we'll be making a sp trip for a dual celebration of sorts. Until then, this morning, a sp personal call was made to wish our Bday girl a very Happy Bday!! So, Happy Bday, KS!! Have a nice day today... we'll see you on the 19th, ok?

Also made a call to MBB to make a request for the Annual Fee waiver for my credit cards. A nuisance really. Most banks are already issuing "No Annual Fee" cards. However, at such lean times, any $$ that can be saved will certainly go a long way in one's budget. Agreed? In my case, it amounts to abt RM200...which is no small sum, right? With that settled, I was also told that it is possible to request to be emplaced with an auto-waiver facility but I need to write in officially for that. An email would suffice. No prob, right?

Now back to the usual routine of a normal Friday, another day in Lot 10...

What a new day brings...

Thu 110908

A new day. A new entry. New News.

For starters, 1 of our nieces, YL, was admitted to KMC in AS for removal of fibroids yesterday. Ops scheduled for this morning. We wish her all the very best & a successful surgery, followed by a swift recovery!!

Also a tiny electrical-based "explosion" occurred yesterday in our dining area. I was switching on the switch on the 4-gang extension unit for power to our new TV and there was this sudden "pop" sound with a flash of light at the said switch! Never had this happened before...on any of my power extension units. On opening up the ext. unit, black burnt marks could be seen. Only a faulty or short-circuited connection could have caused that. Pics below show clearly the burnt areas...
Can you see the charred mark just below & to the right of the red switch? Also the blackened mark on the unit cover?

In 2nd pic, note the blackened section of the yellow-coloured wire?
So a new replacement ext. unit was bought & duly replaced. Hope this new one (see pic) would not go "pop" soon...haha!

At around the same time...after the "pop" incident but before the replacement unit was installed...our Emergency Lamp (shown in same pic - above the new 4-gang ext. unit ) for the dining area, using the same ext. unit for its power supply, started to blink. At that time, I thought, "Oh well, it might be due to the faulty ext. unit..." However, after I'd replaced the ext. unit, it was still blinking! Intermittently.
Me opened the lamp housing & on checking, it was found that one of the connectors to the rechargeable battery inside was not fully pushed in. Remedied. Then refitted. Later in the evening, it started blinking again albeit a lot less. The only possibility now is a faulty internal circuit in the lamp itself. That is, however, beyond my capability to resolve. Except, of course, getting a new replacement Emergency Lamp! Ha ha again!

Have to KIV that for now...God knows why! Sorry. Besides, except for the slight intermittent blinking, the lamp still functions fine as an emergency lamp, namely, it switches on when power is cut off. Good enough, right? For now, that is...

Finally, this month appears to be a month for trips. To Penang. Again. Tomorrow is the Bday of my other half's cousin to whom we have been making regular visits. And a few days later ie 19th Sept, is the Bday of another cousin's hubby. We just cannot be travelling that much with the dates being so close to one another. So, since we just came back from a very recent trip, we'll most probably go celebrate both on the same day ie the 19th.

Btw, looks like more clear DVDs are coming in now eg Iron Man, Wall.e, the latest Batman & X-Files movies. Lots of choices now for this coming Cine Nite on Saturday! Pls pass the popcorn...thanks!

Another weekend is here, too. So, have a great weekend! Me will sure try to...

And they lived happily ever after...

Tue 100908

Once again 2 ole inmates of Lot 10 OFH flew from their nest. And this time for a couple of days. 2D1N, to be exact.

Well, we had this wedding dinner invitation from a cousin's family in Penang, to be held on Mon 090908 at a restaurant in a hotel there. Arrangements were earlier made for both to put up for the night in our fav niece's place in Tanjung Bungah area. Mainly cos the dinner was held, of course, at night and it would be late in the night by the time it was over. You see, this ole guy has lost confidence in travelling late at night...sorry but growing old does have its minus points...in my case, that is.

As usual, we left AS after a late breakfast at our corner coffee shop. Kwan Lo mee. Reloaded our T&C card for toll payments and off we went.

Plan was to go for walk-walk in Gurney Plaza on arrival on the island. It was a lucky walk-walk session. My other half found a blouse she liked enough to replace what she brought along to wear for the dinner event. A happy event!

Lunch was in its food court. It was Indian Fried Mee for my other half & Eco Rice for me.

After lunch we proceeded to our fav niece's place. Had a long chat session. My bday came surprisingly well ahead of time...my fav niece had ready a present for lil ole me! Now not only my other half but me, too, had a new "wardrobe" for the dinner function!
Also had fun playing a few games of what I call "Football in a Box?" with my fav grandnephew. Guess what? Me lost all games... Me first timer la. Congrats, ET...

Before we knew it, time came to prep for the dinner do. We then joined our fav niece & fmly for the trip to the dinner venue...a great ride it was.

The Wedding Dinner? It was a grand affair. Too many tables to count! Here is pic of bride & groom during the "champagne-pouring" ceremony....
And this is a special one of me & my...grandnephew?



In red "pirate" headscarf...??


Surprisingly, beer & even whisky was served during the dinner. Me had a few glasses...hehe...me not driving that night, you see...


After breakfast the next day, we were invited for an early lunch. Special Fish-head Curry at a location one would not expect...one of the sidelanes of Carnarvon Street. Yup, the curry was special (with giant prawns & squids, too) & both enjoyed it. Besides the main dish, we also had prawn "crackers" with real prawns. Thanks a meg, KI!!

Later in the afternoon, we sidetracked on our way to the Penang Bridge to make our regular stops at a fav relative's house. After a long chat and a promise to return to celebrate the sp day of 2 of them, we headed for home.

A stop was made at SP for a quick dinner. Nothing special. Usual hawker fare. We reached Lot 10 just in time before it rained cats & dogs!! Phew...

Good News, Bad News...a matter of perspective!

Sat 060908.

Good news. Bad news. It's actually a question of perspective. A point of view. Depends on how one looks at it.

Now what am I trying to say here?

Well, on the morning of the day before ie yesterday...5th Sept, me switched on the TV in our dining area. ( And yup, we have one old tv there...a "National" 22in unit...it's as old as our house...so that we could keep in touch with the outside world even while we were eating...haha! ) The day was like any other day. Routine. Switch on TV...have breakfast. But, that morning was gonna to be different...

Yup, the TV was switched on. But, nothing came on. Waited. Still nothing. Tried switching it on & off a couple of times. Still a dark screen. Then my other half came. "Hey, there's a burning smell...", she said. Me tried inhaling hard...really deep breaths. Yup, the smell of something burning was there! On tuning my ears up, I could also hear some kind of "zzzzzzzz" sound. The smell of something burning became stronger! "Switch it off. Switch it off!", she exclaimed. I did.

As there was an AVR connected to the power socket inbetween the TV, I disconnected that and plugged in the TV directly to the power supply. The smell came back! That eliminated the AVR as the faulty unit. It was our ole TV in its "self-destruct" mode! Trying to cremate itself at the end of its life...wish we could do that to ourselves! Haha....

Well, what was there for me to do? A replacement became so urgently needed. What would meals be without the luxury of staring into the idiot box? I wouldn't even try to imagine that. Something so very much a part of our daily life would be missing. Life, from then on, would be incomplete!

So, off we went to our now fav "Sundry Shop". Yup, Tesco. Where else? I had in mind (for some time already) to get a Samsung set should that tv KO. But there was this offer at Giant. A Haier unit. Checked the price at Tesco. RM499. It's going for RM399 at Giant! RM100 is a lot of difference these days, right? But when compared to a Samsung Slimfit TV, the display was not so good. Difference in pricing between them only RM69. Not much, right?

Decision was fast. A Samsung it should be. As originally planned. A sales guy was asked about the features. He confirmed there was stereo sound with AV stereo connections. His assistant was called to get a unit & do the testing. Me looked & looked. No stereo connections anywhere to be found! Asked. Confirmed NONE! That sales guy "BS" us!! With an experienced reminder that we were the "paymaster", I rejected the set, with apologies, of course. Told them that we were misled by said sales guy...no stereo...not the set we wanted. End of story.

After lunch, it was off to Giant. Second choice...Haier unit on offer. At the electrical section, we found more choices of similar pricing. Found a Philips model just RM39 more. Philips (being a well-known brand & moreover, we still are enjoying one 29in unit since umpteen years ago.) caught our eyes. Ok. Get a Philips instead. Called the sales guy. When asked how was the Philips model, he recommended an LG model...only RM30 more for many more features & with good reliability, too.

Our "fren" took us to view both sets at their demo area. Yup, the LG looked better...richer colour tones...most importantly, sharper images...besides the extra features. Decision was made on the spot! An LG it would be...

Paid for it. Carted to our car. Brought it home. Installed. Here it is...

Had a bit of problem trying to get a sharp image from our Astro unit via its second RF output connector. After some elimination attempts, it was found to be due to either the cable &or connectors used, or the quality of output from the module itself at that connector.

Redirected existing AV connecting cables originally connected to our old VCR directly to the AV connectors on the LG. Perfect images! Great...

Now life is so much better. Why? Old one was kinda blurry already...also dark. Like everyone on screen was a darkie! This is a feast for the eyes! Watching TV while having meals in our dining area would never be the same again!! Haha!

So was what happened to be considered bad news? Or good news? YOU tell me...

To me, what is important is the ending...to me, the ending is GOOD! Cheers!

An Update...

Thur 040908

Remember my earlier post (24th August) abt my ole junk's suspected ageing condition? Oil-fouled spark plugs? Possibly due2 "severe" wear of its engine?
Well, I was told by 2 reliable sources...a mechanic that I met at a car spare parts shop & my own SIL...that it was probably caused by just leakage of engine oil into the engine via the oil seals of the valve stems in the cylinder head. And, since those oil seals had never ever been changed before at my ole junk's age, it could be the culprit. Therefore, it would be advisable to check that out before investing unwisely in an overhaul or change of engine attempt!

Furthermore, both added that it is now possible to replace those oil seals right on the engine without any cylinder head removal! And, the whole process could be easily finished within the day itself! Now, that's music to my ears! Don't think me could be separated from my ole junk any longer than that...

Estimated cost? Abt RM200 or so. Affordable, right? Esp if & when compared to the cost of an engine overhaul? At least 10Xthat. RM2k+?

And so, being not loaded these days, that advice was, in my best interest, not to be ignored. Preferably the first choice to be considered!
And so it was to be. Me called up the mechanic who made the suggestion but unfortunately, he was not contactable. His workshop responded not too favourably, too. Well, he lost a good-paying job. I was also reminded that me am the "paymaster"...a lesson taken from a page in "The History of my Life"! No guilt in making my decision...

My next choice was a Proton/Eon Franchise workshop that I do send my ole junk to from time2time. A call was made & it was confirmed that they could also do the same procedure ie with a special tool to compress the valve springs in-situ, namely without removing the whole cylinder head (as it was done in the old days...).

So, me made an appointment to send my ole junk there after their lunch break as it was almost their lunchtime then. So sorry but feel that me would bore you with all the technical details of the procedures that were carried out when the mechanics came back to work after lunch.

Anyway, to cut a long story short...after confirming that the oil-fouled plugs were probably caused by worn or hardened valve stem oil seals, their replacement, with original parts, was carried out & completed after abt 3 hours. Altogether 12 pcs. Yup, my ole junk was a 12-valve engine model. As a precautionary measure, I also requested for a rocker cover gasket change when the mechanic was abt to close everything up.

The final bill came to RM326.87. More than the estimates but partly due to my extra request above...and my being billed (kinda the norm, huh?) for adjustment of the valve tappets separately when that process is part of the assembly procedure. Otherwise it would have been abt RM200 something...heheh...

Well, me happier now. My ole junk is purring now. Me checked the spark plugs this morning. They were CLEAN!! NO more oil fouling! $$ worthwhile spent. Nice feeling.

Now, there is that intermittent knocking sound from time2time...coming from the back...

A Belated Bday celebration...

Tues 020908

Lot 10 OFH is back to normal once more. Yup...after 2 wonderful (although hectic & tiring) days! Yup again. KL's bid to celebrate her grandma's birthday this year finally bore fruit...

Sun 31st Aug. Also Msia's Merdeka Day. That long-awaited day came. And finally, the visitors came! What can I say...KL no longer takes Lot 10 to be a strange new place anymore! She took to Lot 10 like it was her 2nd home...the chime, her fav fridge magnets, Mickey & Minnie Mouse & everthing else that's part & parcel of her monthly visits to grandpa & grandma. A home away from home. A friendly...happy place to be.

A couple of pics of her to share...

KL in red ( KL here appears to be asking, "Yes?"...) was taken on 31st Aug while the other pic, a happy KL, was on 1st Sep.

Frankly both are very happy to note KL is so much more responsive & interactive than during her last visit. The best was when she imitated me & literally chased after me while doing my special "on butt & hands" routine!! What she did then was way beyond my wildest expectations! Well done, KL!!

Anyway a special video here for you all to judge how much fun it is now to "play" with KL...

You can't see me cos me was the one taking the video. Just listen to her laughter! And this vid was taken only after a few rounds of the same activity, mind you! Just imagine what it was like in earlier rounds...Phew!

Well, back to the main event...Grandma's Bday celebration. KL & fmly could not make it earlier due2 several reasons. Most importantly is all came happy, stayed happy & went home happy! That's the best that one can ever wish for, right?

A simple celebration. Simple cos a bigger one has been planned months before, to have later as a combined one. Yup, for both of us.

So, it was a fmly dinner at my other half's fav place. And a birthday cake. Here's me & my other half...with the cake!

Yup, another happy day...another "bonus"!

Designated a "bonus" becoz it is a common philosophy among retirees that every new day of life (esp happy ones) is a "bonus" day in one's life.

Well, besides those events mentioned above, there was the usual visits to the local malls. The crowds were huge, with long lines at all the payment counters. Me had to drop off a "potential" purchase cos of that! Sales at such times (special public holidays) are the only times that ppl thronged the malls...which are, in these days of economic uncertainty, usually empty.

Well, as always, good times really pass so much quicker than unhappy times. In fact, all too quickly! And.. it was soon time to wave goodbye to KL & fmly...KL must have been wondering why her Kong Kong & Ma Ma did not get into the car this time around...

Nowadays, we need more good times...cos life is now another week shorter for us now. The happy times that we had just gone through, is another proof of what life is all about. The true meaning of a family & what a family needs to be. As is, we need to enjoy all the happy moments we can get. They would go a long way to cushion the disastrous & hurtful ones that had befallen us along life's journey.

May God bless us with more such nice times & memories.