The all time fav superhero - Superman!

Superman Returns was entertaining. I enjoyed the movie, kinda reminded me when I just a kid. My dad took me to watch the old Superman movie in the cinema when I was a kid. It was like a big treat for me back then.

I like especially the part where the bullet crumpled up when it hit Superman's eyeball. How cool is that?

And the new star of Superman, Brandon Routh, who has the similar look like our good ol' Superman - Christopher Reeves, is pretty cute.

Ok, Hollywood entertainment of 2 hour of Superman saving the world being destroyed by the villain aside, this superhero is uncannily seems like a potrayal of Jesus Christ. Funnily, the Catholic church did not make any noise about this, like how they did for Da Vincci Code.

Well, the movie tell us that Superman was sent to earth by his father. In the bible, Jesus was sent to earth by God, whom is the Father. Superman has super ordinary strength. And Jesus can perform miracle powers.

And the names...
Martha, name of Superman's mother starts with M, like Mary
Lex Luther, the evil villain, starts with L, like Lucifer

And there is this part in the movie where Jor-El says to Clark, "Even though you've been raised as a human being you're not one of them. They can be a great people, Kal-El, they wish to be. They only lack the light to show the way. For this reason above all, their capacity for good, I have sent them you... my only son"

Doesn't it sound like what we have been taught in Christianity where God send His only begotten son to us?

Clark, with his Superman front, says to Lois in one nite... "You wrote that the world doesn't need a saviour, but every day I hear people crying for one."

Did I hear Saviour? Isn't Jesus the Saviour too?

In the movie, Superman died for brief time and was alive again. Jesus died too and was resurrected.

And the movie poster, where Superman is floating has the same kind of pose like some pictures of Jesus. Well, it kinda reminded me of Jesus. See below...



Anyhow, I would still suggest that everyone free some time to go watch Superman Returns. For me, I felt like a kid again, cos Superman was the "IN" superhero during my childhood. It is also a nicer experience to watch this movie on the big screen.

And they dedicated this movie to the late Christopher and Dana Reeves. Nice, isn't it?

One Post Fame in k*a's blog ~ Seanie

This is Sean. I call him Seanie. This is a picture of Seanie being naughty or a monster he saw in Ultraman.

He is 3 years old. He is very cute. I like the way he call his Mommy, very nice to hear. And the way he speaks is very interesting too, with an accent not quite Malaysian.

He is the most caring and thoughtful 3 y.o. I ever know. Yes, he is very thoughtful, like an adult kind of way. Remind me to tell you the story of him in a Taxi, the instant noodle and when I was sick with gastric, if you are interested.

He is friendly. Very friendly. He is friend with all his mommy's friends.

He can't pronounce some words that start with L but he pronounced them like W. For e.g. Lynn will be Wynn.

He has a small mechanical dog (broken now) which he carries around. I think this is his favourite toy although he seems to like his purple Ultraman figurine too.

He loves swimming and swim like a fish and he swims in adult pool without floaters.

He thinks money can be bought. So are boobs.

He waves goodbye to his daddy each time the aeroplane flew across his home. He would run to balcony and shout to his daddy, who works elsewhere.

I like dancing with him. He loves being twirl around.

He is Juni's son. Now, meet Juni and Seanie in his monster act. (In fact, I believe the thoughtfulness, friendliness and caringness in Seanie come from Juni)


Seanie, the little monster who thinks he is a huge fiesty monster, is tearing Shardy apart, like how a monster will stomp Tokyo city into pieces in Ultraman tv shows.

Debut appearance - One Post Fame in k*a's blog

I am starting a new thing to my blog - One Post Fame in k*a's blog, where I post up people I meet, can range from friends to family or even strangers or perhaps people that passed by or through my life.

I will post up a new personality for the One Post Fame today, right after this post. He is a charming and cute boy, so make sure you check him out.

If you wanna be featured, let me know. Would gladly post you up :)

Or let me know if this is a good idea. And please give me suggestion if you have any, need that to improve.

Brazil is indestructible!

Brazil 3 - Ghana 0 last nite. What a game! Favourite against Underdog. Would be even more interesting to see Brazil against France this Saturday morning. The worry is that Brazil has 3 unfavourable records against France. They lost to France in 1998 Finals and 1986 Quarter Finals.

But I am so keeping my fingers crossed that Brazil is gonna beat France this Saturday.

Some trivias on Brazil

Ronaldo became the World Cup's all-time top scorer by netting his 15th goal in the finals. He thereby surpassed Gerd Muller's tally of 14, in his 18th successive World Cup match, the longest streak by a current player.

Cafu set a Brazilian record by playing in his 19th game. The competition record is 25 World Cup matches by Lothar Matthaus.

Adriano's goal was Brazil's 200th in the World Cup. They are the first nation to reach this milestone.

Ze Roberto became the seventh Brazilian goalscorer at the 2006 World Cup. No other nation has more than six different goalscorers.

Brazil won their 11th straight World Cup match, extending their all-time record. They're also on an 11-match unbeaten run, which is two shy of their own competition record set between 1958-1966.

Brazil is the only country to win the World Cup outside its own continental territory, which it achieved on three occasions, in 1958 in Sweden, the United States in 1994 and four years ago in Japan/Korea.

Brazil is the only nation to have played in every FIFA World Cup tournament and the first to win it five times (1958, 1962, 1970, 1994 and 2002). Because of this status, Brazilians often refer to the national side as the Pentacampeão, literally meaning "five-time champion." Considering the two second places (1950 and 1998) and the two third places (1938 and 1978), as well as many other honours, it is considered the most successful national football team in the world.

The Royal Couple

Awww...

Princessy Wedding

My dear good friend whom was an ex-colleague, Bobo tied the knot in the most double R way...that is Royally Romantic!

She was gorgeous all day and nite. It was really heartwarming to see her and her hubby looking so happy and glowing on their big day. This gotta be my Top 3 weddings I have attended.

I must also say that the Heng- tais and groom had been very sporting and participated in all the "torturing" session in good spirit, in fact, did very well in all the tasks given by the Chi-muis.

I took a lot of photos with Miki-C's camera. I was hogging her camera all the time :P Will share some of the pix when I got them from her. Meantime, enjoy the wedding photos I posted here, which Bobo sent me.

What I love most were all the slide shows shown on the big white screen. They were so nicely done.

Her wedding theme song was by Jennifer Avalon - Two Hearts that Beat as One. Her friend sang this song and another strummed the tune during the church service and the banquet. It is a very meaningful and lovely song. Click to this link to listen to the song :)

And to Bobo and Hubby, here is a special dedication from me to both of you...

Your wedding... more than a long-awaited day, it is the beautiful beginning of all the days of your life together.

Your vows... more than solemn words spoken before family and friends, they are promises made and kept within your own hearts.

Your love... more than just a wonderful feeling, it is a bond that deepens with time, growing stronger and surer from this day forward.

As you celebrate your wedding, your vows, your love, know that others share in your joy and in the hope that all your married days will be as happy as this one.

And remember, the best stories are the one you write together with love.

How are you, k*a?

If you are wondering how have I been these days...

- My body is aching. Every muscle seems tight. Too much monkeying around the wall and splashing in the water.

- My face is infested with pimples. Maybe too much saltwater, maybe too much sunblock, maybe no more Refine drink, maybe too much chocolates.

- I am dark :( Some people love to be tanned, but I don't like it at all, but I can't help it. Things I do keep me under the sun always.

- I still attend my F language class but it is the end of the term. No class for the next 3 weeks. Yay!

- I wish I had more money! Who wouldn't, eh?

- I miss my family a lot. I do, really, altho' I seem so carefree and care-less.


If you still want to know more, oh well, call me lah :) or treat me to a dinner.

KL is rude :P

In the local News Straits Time today...

...go read about a survey on common courtesy conducted by Reader’s Digest in 35 of the world’s capitals.

An excerpt...
"It wouldn’t surprise anyone who drives, parks, shops or uses public transport here, but Malaysia’s capital city has emerged the third-worst in the world for sheer rudeness.

Apparently Reader’s Digest magazine sent reporters into the principal city of each of the 35 countries in which it publishes to conduct a survey of local politeness. Three tests were employed: Dropping papers in a busy street to see if anyone would help; checking how often shop assistants said "thank you"; and counting how often someone held a door open.

And they found that Asian cities generally fared poorly in these rankings, eight of nine of them in the bottom 11, raising the notion that what is considered courtesy in the West — holding doors, helping strangers, service with a smile — is culturally alien in Asia.

Of course it is of different culture here in Malaysia in terms of courtesy. If so, how to compare one city to another.

Want to find out more, go read NST today or click here to read online.

So fellow KL-rians, u may choose to open doors and smile beginning today. Start greeting someone in the lift, for a start.

Good ol' Sunny

The ever constant experience...

the sun rises and the sun sets...everyday.

Just so beautiful, just like how each day suppose to begin and end.

Serene sunrise at the busy Dungun jetty where fishermen were busy with their catches. Pix taken by Shardy :)

Sunset in Tioman. Photo courtesy of Ismail. I wanna go there

Sunset by the beah somewhere in Australia. Photo taken by CP, my childhood best friends. Can't see the sun but you know it is dusk.

Sunset somewhere in Thailand, captured by Gary

Bintang

Kelesuan dan kemengantukan
Namun masih terjaga
Berbisik dalam gelam
Perjalanan sepanjang malam
Pabila mendongak ke langit
Kelihatan berjuta bintang
Bertaburan dan berkerdipan
Keajaiban yang hilang di kota
Ku menatap anugerahNya
Bukti masih ada harapan

*** *** ***

Terbaring diriku di atas pasir-pasir halus
Dapat ku rasai kedinginan dan kelembutannya
Di dalam malam bulan makin menghilang
Ku lihat terpegun dihadapanku
Beribu bintang menghiasi angkasa
Aku tenang sambil ditiup angin laut lembut
Bersama lagu ombak menghempas ke pantai
Aku mahu senantiasa begini
Dimana diriku hanyut ke mana langit dan laut bertemu

~ K.A

The happy bunch

Girl power on a early Friday morning

The Allo gang in Perhentian

Away on a boat, all ready to dive

In rubber suits

Our baby. Freddy Kruger's Pétale

Highlight of every nite in the island. Thanks, Pele for the portable Mahjong set

The 3 monkeys. Hear, Speak and See No Evil


Mosquitos feeding time

Isle of Stop

Perhaps this is a stop or a place where one transit or simply just a station...as its name implies...or it could be simply just a name.

An isle not too far from the hustle-bustle of the city, where one can walk bare foot on the pristine soft sand, surround oneself in the bluish clear water and under the gentle wavy trees...

Pulau Perhentian.

This is where I came before several years ago. Where my life has changed since, taking me into one after another roller coaster rides of my life.











These amazing photos are taken by talented Delphinus :) Thanks so much for letting me upload them in my blog. Click on any of the pix to view it bigger.

Baby Dylan a few months later...

For CP, the small koko and Uncle Mao...

Don't you just love his smile? So cute and lovable!

Bye-bye Fish :(

Mon poisson rouge est mort hier soir. Je suis tres triste.

Au revoir, mon petit poisson.

Bar Shiori

To Shardy, Kaiserin, Banker and of course, myself...
An accidental place, stumbled upon by us, on a slow quiet nite...
Our little secret place, where laughter starts and never ends...
It's the Bar Shiori, a place that is not what it seems to be...


And Rajulkabir wrote this, how apt...

"Wherever people are laughing, sharing, and having fun, that is Bar Shiori.

Wherever dreams come true, that is Bar Shiori.

Wherever the spirit of humanity reigns over darkness and despair, that is Bar Shiori.

There is Bar Shiori inside each one of us. Be true to yourself and you too will find your way there. Now that Shardy has reached his own inner Bar Shiori, his guiding light can be a beacon to all lost and searching souls."


Shardy, Banker and Delphinus, may we dwell in our little Bar Shiori eternally. Cheers and to Bar Shiori forever.

Boxfish

They are such cute lil' buggers. They are small. They are squarish. They are super fast. They have polka dots. They come in various colours. They have tiny pouty mouth.

They are my favourite marine life. Box fish!

I just simply love 'em.

Patrice found this photo of a cute yellow polka dotted box fish for my new avatar. Here it is, take a look. Hope you'll like 'em too.



p/s: I think you can see 'em in action in Aquaria KLCC!

Not forbidden place anymore.

For a while ago, this place could not be mentioned, and was off limit to me. Back then, I never thought I will ever visit this place again. I had not wanted to come back to this place again. I had wished that this place never existed in my memories.

But now, who cares if I went to this place again for a million times.

I am going back there again. I am leaving on a bus tonite, to this place, which I told myself that I never want to set my foot there ever again.

I had a weird feeling. Some part of me feel guilty of going, but I know I am free to go. Like a chain, I am bound to it, without me realising it, without anyone actually doing so. How very weird. Scary, isn't it?

Yummy Snickers bar

I am pigging on Snickers Almond bar at 2.15am.

How sinful!

Yummy snickers will be deposited on my tummy.

I was hungry. I tried to resist the Snickers bar but the moment I saw Dr Miranda Bailey ate a choc bar, I knew I had to eat mine.

Yeah, I am tv binging on Grey's Anatomy too... and House M.D. and Desperate Housewives and The Shield and Lost and ... and ...

I am addicted to addiction :Z

Bimboz gathered once again

I wish Metria is still here in Malaysia. If she was here, the bimboz group will be meeting very often. I missed those meet ups in Spicy Kitchen at Sri Hartamas.

Last evening, I was happy to be in the company of my good friends - Miki C, Bobo and Meloncrap, whom I barely meet these days. It was really nice to see you girls again. May our friendship last forever.

Well, we missed Cherub, Wan and Chinoz.
And Ah Beng too, yes, your fans miss you heaps and was dissapointed not able to take any photos or get hold of your signatures.

Nevermind, we will all meet again in Bobo's wedding next month.

And I hope that we can meet frequently, perhaps at least once a month. OK, girls?

The Prayer for my friends

A song from my heart for Juni...

A dedication for Banker...

A comfort for sweet Sweety...

A pillar for Chinoz...

A light for Justin...


*** *** ***

The Prayer

I pray You'll be our eyes, and watch us where we go.
And help us to be wise in times when we don't know
Let this be our prayer, when we lose our way
Lead us to the place, guide us with Your grace
To a place where we'll be safe

La luce che tu hai
I pray we'll find Your light
nel cuore resterà
and hold it in our hearts.
a ricordarci che
When stars go out each night,
eterna stella sei

The light You have
I pray we'll find Your light
will be in the heart
and hold it in our hearts.
to remember us that
When stars go out each night,
You are eternal star
Nella mia preghiera
Let this be our prayer
quanta fede c'è
when shadows fill our day

How much faith there's
Let this be our prayer
in my prayer
when shadows fill our day
Lead us to a place, guide us with Your grace
Give us faith so we'll be safe

Sognamo un mondo senza più violenza
un mondo di giustizia e di speranza
Ognuno dia la mano al suo vicino
Simbolo di pace, di fraternità

We dream a world without violence
a world of justice and faith.
Everyone gives the hand to his neighbours
Symbol of peace, of fraternity
La forza che ci dà
We ask that life be kind
è il desiderio che
and watch us from above
ognuno trovi amor
We hope each soul will find
intorno e dentro sé
another soul to love


The force its gives us
We ask that life be kind
is wish that
and watch us from above
everyone finds love
We hope each soul will find
around and inside
another soul to love
Let this be our prayer
Let this be our prayer, just like every child

Need to find a place, guide us with Your grace
Give us faith so we'll be safe
Need to find a place, guide us with Your grace
Give us faith so we'll be safe

È la fede che
hai acceso in noi,
sento che ci salverà

It's the faith
You light in us
I feel it will save us

Illusions

When loneliness is your only motivation,
When leaving is your only choice,
Isolation can seem like freedom,
Contact can seem like comfort,
Talk can seem like intimacy,
Attraction can seem like love,
And nowhere can seem like home.

Roughing it out at Sepayang Dam

Over the long weekend, I spent 3 days 2 nites at a reservoir in Endau which is called Empangan Sepayang where a group of 8 other people (minus me) went fishing for Tomans. I just doesn't like the idea of killing or hurting any other living object, so no fishing for me.

It was indeed an experience for me to be there. The weather was really hot and staying indoors equal to a sauna room meanwhile staying outdoor will risk a sun burn. The huts on the rakit (raft) is very basic, with no electricity or clean waters. Besides building a camp, our lifestyle for the 3 days stay there was exactly like camping. I bet you can imagine what it was like. It just reminded me of my scout days back in Uni.

Lucky Samurai did feel so bad asking me there. And I am sorry for making him feel that way. I did not whine, but I guess from the perpetual frown on my face, everyone can sensed that I wasn't enjoying myself there. Actually I did, but just the heat and the dirty-ness bothered me. Other than that, I was quite happy to be there and am proud of myself that I actually managed to cope being there.

Yes, the place is beautiful. Nice scenery and nice sunrise. Here are the pictures, guess they speak a thousand words.

If Layang-layang has beautiful sunset, then here has the most vivid sunrise. I watched the sun rised slowly from the horizon of calm water, partly hidden behind clouds and then to its full glory.

Perfect full moon, glistening like a strip of gold on the surface of water. The nite was so bright and alive. Full moon just bring back so much memories of someone.

The hut that me and 3 other guys lived in. Pathetically, it looked and actually felt very much like a rumah setinggan. I was actually worried that it might just fall apart. Sigh!

Inside the hut. Not very appealing either. Loads of lizzie's shit everywhere. I was traumatised when I first stepped in. But that blue camp bed was very comfortable to sleep in.

Early in the morning. Mist over the mountains. So peaceful.

Rays from Heaven. Very inspirational.

The view from the toilet. It was very picturesque and calms you down while you do what you need to do. The so-called toilet is in the open, with a big square hole in between the wooden planks where you release the unwanted into the water. Yup, the same water where you bathe, swim, wash and fish in.

Live on Raft

Like what you see in this photo. I am heading off to this place for the long weekend. I will tell you more when I get back. This time, it is really no electricity at all, which means no telephone line and no internet. Total cut off to the outside world. And I have no freaking idea where it is. All I know I am going to live in a raft either in a river or a dam.

Love

The Bible tells us again and again that we should love one another. Love is like the glue that holds us all together. The apostle John wrote, "Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God" (1 John 4:7).

Well, don't focus so much on what love is, but on what love does and does not do. The love that we are to demonstrate toward one another is not merely feeling or emotion. Nor is it abstract or passive. It is active. It engages. It works. It moves. Love does not merely feel patient; it is patient. Love does not simply have kind feelings; it does kind things. Love is fully love only when it is active. Let us not love in word or in tongue, but in deed and in truth.

Finally, as we all have already read many many times, I am putting it down again, in this blog, verses from 1 Corinthians 13...

Love is patient, Love is kind and envies no one.
Love is never boastful, nor conceited, nor rude;
Never selfish, not quick to take offense.
There is nothing love cannot face;
There is no limit to its faith,
Its hope, and endurance.
In a word, there are three things
That last forever: faith, hope, and love;
But the greatest of them all is love.

Pix from midst air

The Plane! The Plane!

The French couple on the same flight back to KK - Karine and Christophe



The blue sky

A nearby island from Kota Kinabalu

Kota Kinabalu from the top

From midst air

Right now I am in KK. My flight back to KL was delayed as expected from Air Asia for an hour. They won't let us enter the departure hall so I have to hang out in an open air cafe facing the carpark. It is very hot here. I am sweating buckets since I came to this part of the world, kinda like sauna.

As I flying back from Layang-Layang on a really small plane that can only fit 8 passengers, I must say that the view from the window is nice. There were only 3 of us in the plane, me and a friendly French couple that I have made friends with. They were also on the same diving boat as me during the past 5 days.

Sometimes, as I looked out the plane window, the sea merged to the sky and clouds, forming a beautiful bluish gradient as you look up and into fluffy white clouds.

At times, I can see the orangy shades or even purplish shades over the horizon, with soft cottony clouds hanging in the sky, creating interesting hues as the lights sneaking on the side of the clouds.

As the plane flew across the South China Sea, it is rather comforting to see speckles of boats and ships on the sea, knowing there is life going about the surface of the sea. I saw 2 oil platforms too. And straight lines across the sea made by speed boats, kinda like patterns made by plane across the sky.

Patches of coral beds underwater can be seen, where shallow waters are in soft and lighter blue, where no divers go to and these are peaceful and undisturbed sanctuaries for the marine life. I wonder what are swimming in there and what treasure can you find.

Although It was sad to see oil spill as we are nearing to the main land. The colourful metallic gradient on the surface was very worrying, and I wonder how do one clean up this mess. I wonder how many marine life has been affected :(

And you know you are leaving all the slow easy happy moments behind as you approach the mainland, leaving the blue sea below and behind you and looking at roof tops and maze of roads.

But of course, the touchdown. The little aircraft door opened, the hot humid air gushed in, and the lowering noise of the aircraft engine...and stepping on the hard landing strip, oh well, back to reality again in the next few hours. Back to work, back to the traffic jam and back to classes.

Till the next island, and the next diving trip...

P/S: Will post photos of sky taken from the plane windo in my next post :)

More Pix from Kite Kite

From the jetty

Birds on the little isle

View of the pool in the evening

The diving gang over the past 5 days

Last nite at Kite Kite

My last nite in Kite Kite. It was quite sad to clean up my gears this afternoon, after my last dive. Anyway, I did 2 dives this morning and in my first dive, I was lucky to see a school of hammerheads passing by us. It is estimated to be 40 of them. I can only say WOW! Asther said she had good dream last nite and she could feel good vibes. And yeah... it was indeed good karma.

Only no mantas to be seen. But never mind. I am happy. Also saw a big fat grey reef shark, a cute box fish (black with yellow polka dots) and I was right smacked in the center of a big school of Jacks. I float among them for a bit. That was amazing.

Visited a really small island where the birds migrated there during this time of the year to lay eggs and nurture their youngs. It was stinky due the birds' droppings and it was noisy as there are so many birds. But it was beautiful to see nature at its best.

Last nite, I was thrown into the pool by a French diver unexpectedly. It was their last day today for all the 30 divers from France. That's the only time I actually swam in that pool. Luckily, the water was warm. The only problem is my wet hair and I went to sleep with wet hair. Anyway, I impressed the French with Maxime de la Forrestier's songs, which was given to me by Pele.

Tonite, we are having a big BBQ dinner. Now just hanging out at the bar, with some DMs and divers, while blogging. It is so humid and warm here and I am sweating.

And overlooking a beautiful sunset, I sat next to a Japanese lady with really short hair that came with me to Kite Kite on the same day and found out that she came here alone too. She has been diving with her husband all these while until he passed away in January this year. Since then, she has been diving alone. She told me that she sometimes get lonely. I could sense that she was missing him so much as she gazed into the horizon. I wonder how many sunsets they have watched together over the years during their diving trips. All I did was said sorry and gave her a hug. And she gently said "Arigato".

Pix from Kite Kite

Huge jellyfish in the deep blue.

Meet Asther, my friend and currently a divemaster in Layang-Layang

Hammerhead nudibranch. A specialty in Layang-Layang.

The dolphins next to our dive boats, jumping and leaping in and out of the water.

Sunset from the resort. Very serene.

Pix not taken by me but by other divers.

Diving tales

Diving is really nice here. Easy going. 3 dives a day. Nice weather. Eat, dive, eat, rest, dive, eat, rest, dive, eat, rest and sleep. Met a lot new friends, nice people here and they take care of me, which I am grateful.


Tuesday. Day 1 in Layang Layang.
Woke up at 4.15am, showered and had breakfast in the hotel then to the airport. They serve breakfast starting at 4am in the hotel. That was so early. Had nasi lemak and bubur. Then to airport by taxi.

When I arrived in the airport, I met Eugene, the person in charge of the Layang-Layang Dive Resort. After, I met Dr Kurt Svacula, the author of "Diving in Malaysia" book. I thought to myself, that is a good start. Fly in a really small plane where it can only fit max 12 people, depending on the weight. They weigh all our luggage and all the passenger before boarding us to the plane.

Did 2 dives today, one before lunch and one after lunch. Very nice corals landscape. Best I've ever seen. Well, not that I have seen a lot or enough to even give that kind of comment. No hammerheads, no mantas. I will not ask that question coz I have been warned not to. Have a german guy the name of Ramin, by who is lawyer that specialised in Mergers and Acquisation of company as a buddy. He is all over the place. So hard to keep up with him. Very cute, nice eyes, soft spoken, very funny...ahh... never mind.


Wednesday. Day 2 in Layang-Layang.
It only got better being here. I am glad I came. Met new friends and that is really cool. Asther been taking good care of me. It is Wednesday and it is a working day. But I am in an island, not working. How nice is that?

Did 3 dives and was dissapointed coz yet to see "it". But am keeping my fingers crossed.
The highlight of today was that I saw dolphins as we are going back to the island on the last dive today. They were jumping out of the water next to our boat. One did a double somersault. It is such an amazing experience to see them playing.


Thursday. 27 April 06.
Day 3 in Layang-Layang.
Amazing day. Happiest day. Saw a hammerhead in the first dive, out in the deep blue. Oh yes, we dive to the deep blue in most of our dives to search for hammerheads and mantas. It is such liberating feeling to dive to the deep blue. Nothingness, surrounded by the blue water all around and floating in it.

On second dive, we saw a school of devil rays. So beautiful to see them swimming in formation. 12 of them. So graceful. Saw unicorn fish, leaf fish, octopus, a reef grey shark, school of Jacks and barracudas. But I had seasick and feeling really awful but seeing the hammerhead made it worthwhile. I did not take Nuvomin yesterday and today.

On third dive, it was a bit cloudy and visibility ain't that great. It was a wall diving. Nothing much but saw a moray eel, a juvenile file fish and four sharks. So cute, really tiny and I like it.


I hope tomorrow will be another good and lucky day for diving. I want to see Mantas. I will try to post some pix up :)

In a hotel in KK on Mon nite

Phew...finally got online. Made friends with the guy running the resort in the island and my divemaster friend helps too in gaining access.

Here is my post which I wrote in the hotel on Monday nite. Will post more on what's been happening here.

*** *** ***

In a hotel room now in KK. It is very boring. Was watching some local Malay drama and then some el cheapo English speaking but with Mexican accent movie on TV2. Crap! Not much choices for channel surfing.

As per advised by Arizona, I am writing a journal whenever I am bored or got nothing to do. That's what I am doing now exactly.

And I so wish there is an Internet access here. But no, the only place with Internet access is the Business Centre and it is closed. But at least I have my computer with me where I can listen to music while I journaled. By tomorrow, I will lose all communication means as there is no Maxis signal or Internet acces there, unless I pay a bomb to contact anyone.

Asther just called me to check I am ok. Sweet isn't she? And right now, I am sms-ing Delphinus and Rob. Delphinus told me that Gervais was stuck in the traffic for 2 hours after sending me to LCCT. Oh dear, I am so sorry. Bak Kut Teh on me when I am back to KL. I must say that Gervais is so sweet to send me from my office to the airport this afternoon. I gladly accept his offer coz I have 1 huge bag, 1 bag pack and 1 small bag. Gervais also lend me his digital camera for this trip as I don't have any. I can't take any underwater photography but will take some pictures of the island and perhaps birds.

I have to go to bed early tonite, which is too early comparing to my daily go to bed schedule, cos I need to wake up at around 4.15 am tomorrow for breakfast and then leave to airport. My flight to Layang Layang is at 6.30am. Maybe I'll watch an episode of Out of Practice before I sleep.

Oh yes, note to self. I must not leave anything behind as I have this bad habit of forgetting to take my things and leaving them everywhere.

Gotta record this down. As I was watching TV2 just now, the sight and sound brought back a very familiar yet distant feeling. I can't help but having this nostalgic feeling of me back in my grandma's home in Melaka. It reminded me of the typical night back then, where there are only 3 channels to watch and the TV is on every night. Grandma will be watching the drama on TV with a very loud volume coz she was a bit deaf. I could almost see the entire surrounding of my grandma's home in Melaka quite vividly and I felt as if I was still that teenager who live there. At that moment, I miss my grandma, I miss those times, I miss my sister, I miss my dad and I miss the familiarity of a home which I have lived in for 20 years.

Off I go

I am off to an atoll for diving for 6 days. I am leaving this evening. My bags are packed.

I am excited because I am hopeful to see hammerhead sharks and manta rays. I am going diving. I am going to be in an island. I don't have to work.

But I am a bit heavy hearted coz I am going there all alone. I dunno how I am gonna cope with that, but I shall take it as a challenge. It was a wonderful plan initially but it fell through and it is a hard decision to still go. I am broke.

There won't be any Internet or Maxis there, so I am cut off from my everyday world. But I'll be back in a week's time. Meanwhile, take care, have fun and smile.

Never leave till tomorrow

A couple of hundred years ago, Benjamin Franklin shared with the world the secret of his success. Never leave that till tomorrow, he said, which you can do today. This is the man who discovered electricity. You think more people would listen to what he had to say. I don't know why we put things off, but if I had to guess, I'd have to say it has a lot to do with fear. Fear of failure, fear of rejection, sometimes the fear is just of making a decision, because what if you're wrong? What if you're making a mistake you can't undo? The early bird catches the worm. A stitch in time saves nine. He who hesitates is lost. We can't pretend we hadn't been told. We've all heard the proverbs, heard the philosophers, heard our grandparents warning us about wasted time, heard the damn poets urging us to seize the day. Still sometimes we have to see for ourselves. We have to make our own mistakes. We have to learn our own lessons. We have to sweep today's possibility under tomorrow's rug until we can't anymore. Until we finally understand for ourselves what Benjamin Franklin really meant. That knowing is better than wondering, that waking is better than sleeping, and even the biggest failure, even the worst, beat the hell out of never trying.

~ Meredith Grey of Grey's Anatomy


I just wish I did it. But I was too afraid and too worried :(

Month of choc cake & breakups

Chocolate Cakes. I ate so much of it lately, for the past few weeks. One of my colleagues found a simple recipe to bake chocolate cake without butter. She attempted it and we all love it. Inspired by her success, three other colleagues tried the recipe too. They even have a competition on who bake the tastiest chocolate cake. And I get to eat everyone's chocolate cake. Almost everyday.

Pele too has been baking brownies. Yummylicious brownies. And I was lucky to eat them on both times he baked them. I even took home some. Earlier, he introduced us to L'Opera and Royal cakes from Chef Jerome. My goodness, the taste are heavenly.

So, I guess for while now, I will avoid chocolate cakes. But I believe there will still be continous supply of chocolate cakes for a while. Oh, I just ate 4 pieces of brownies baked by Pele :D Yum Yum.

Breakups. Very disconcerting. First time in my life, I have so many friends broke up with their partners in one month. Sad!

Early this morning, a friend called up to inform me of a bad news. Both parties are my friends. Sad. They were so in love, but circumstances posed as a hurdles they cannot jump over.

Two other unfortunate friends have lost contacts with their boyfriends. The boyfriends stopped calling, leaving them wondering in sadness. But love is so great that it leaves hope for both of them, that perhaps, the calling stopped due to a very good reason. The hope and the trust for that someone in good faith, all because of the love in the heart. And hope springs eternal.

A few more suffer silently... Hang in there, buddies.

When there are breakups, chocolates are good for the soul. Now I see the connection.