Beastly weather

Two days of rain rain rain that almost washed away all the fun fun fun

Ukulele master

Outside the ukulele world, few people have heard of the man, Herb Ohta. Now more than 70 years old, he's probably the most prolific ukulele recording artiste in the world with more than 60 albums to his credit.

I've read that no one in the last century had done more to explore the musical possibilities of the ukulele than Ohta, a native of Hawaii. His performing, recording and teaching career spanned five decades and inspired more players than any other living ukulele virtuoso. Indeed, Ohta still has an incalculable impact on the stature of the instrument worldwide and in 2006, he was inducted into the Ukulele Hall Of Fame Museum. His biggest selling album was this, Song For Anna, which was recorded in 1972 or 1973.

Star education fair

The Star's education fair hit town last weekend, so I went to have a look with my family. To say the very least, it was interesting. I met several old friends there, such as Peggy Lim from the British Council, Dr Chong from KDU Penang and Uva from Sentral Technology College.

But first, we stopped by the booth of The Star. For a lark, my wife tried one of their activities at their booth and discovered that she fell into the group of people who would be good at influencing others. It may be true but guess what: a job that may be good for her (in the future, I told her, in the future) would be that of a .... politician! I'm not kidding. That job was listed on the bookmark, albeit it was way, way down the list.

Anyway, at the Sentral College booth, I was flicking through a brochure when I happened to notice this little graphic tucked in a corner. My jaw dropped. What was my photo doing in it? Looked rather familiar, me in my JobStreet.com sweat shirt. Yes, I was at the college last year to talk to their graduating students on writing a resume. I wonder how many of them took my tips to heart. Or was it "in one ear, out another ear"?

Albert Hammond: taking a train to southern California

I thought that I'd spend the weekend listening to Albert Hammond. Lately, this has become one of my favourite albums because of the nostalgia. But of course, there's It Never Rains In Southern California. Hammond sung about failure, the difficulty of making a success of oneself away from home and not letting the folks back home know about it. Sad lyrics but with such an upbeat tune, who hasn''t sung together as it played over the airwaves?


As for this album below, I picked it up from a flea market quite some time ago. When I heard it for the first time, I mistook it for something from Paul Simon's own solo efforts. I still believe Simon's Graceland took some inspiration from Hammond's style.

I should have better things to think about on a Friday (the sixth of March)

....but with the never-ending, daily political muck being thrown around in Perak, there's only one thing I can think of today (thanks, Ted, for this inspiration):

It's a Mad Hatter's Mad Tea Party going on over there!

(Excerpt from Alice's Adventures in Wonderland with something extra from me):

The Hatter was the first to break the silence. 'What day of the month is it?' he said, turning to Alice: he had taken his watch out of his pocket, and was looking at it uneasily, shaking it every now and then, and holding it to his ear.

Alice considered a little, and then said 'The fourth.'

'Two days wrong!' sighed the Hatter. 'It's the sixth of March, stupid!'

Uncle Simon

I'm not going to comment anything much about what you should or should not do when you go for job interviews except to say that this is a novel way to try for a job. Surely, he can't be so stupid? Or can he??

Anyway, the full story can be read here. Incidentally, that's not "Uncle Simon" in the photo.

Sunset over Penang island

With the country terribly insane enough as it is, let me share with you a little brief respite that's sure to lower your blood pressure and indignation of everything that's happening wrong around us. A dirty lens contributed to this image but otherwise, this was one of the nicest sunsets I had viewed recently from the Penang ferry.

McNair Street (2)

There used to be houses on this small plot of land at the junction of Magazine Road and McNair Street right in the middle of the city and a stone's throw from the imposing KOMTAR tower. However, the land is now abandoned and there are lots of undergrowth. Not so long ago, someone erected this sign board which proclaims George Town as a UNESCO world heritage city. Whoever approved it must have a warped sense of humour because this signboard simply draws people's attention to the poor condition of the nearby derelict houses. Yes, we may be a world heritage city but several parts of the inner city are big eye sores and falling apart. For example, do we want tourists to see this?

Learning something new everyday

 I was feeling a bit dazed after walking down from the Bukit Mertajam hill at Ceruk To'Kun late Friday afternoon. No, it had nothing to do with my blood pressure. I felt fine except that I had one of the most mind-blowing casual conversations with two fellas I met at the foothills.

If you are a regular BM Hill trekker, you will see quite a number of people who ride their bicycles up the tarmac road. You see them huffing and puffing away as they slowly make their way up on their spiffy looking mountain bikes. Of course, coming down is a different matter: always a breeze for all of them.

I've long admired these bicycles. They look so different from the ones I used to ride when young. They also look different from the bicycles that I bought for my children. These new bicycles come with front suspension forks, disc brakes and even rear monoshock systems. Great looking mountain bikes! How I wish that I can have one....

So last Friday when I came down from the hill and found two chaps at the foothills talking about their bicycles, I went up to them. One had his brilliant blue bicycle on the ground. I asked how much it cost. Cheap only, he replied, only RM2,000-plus. Then he added, his friend's bicycle was more expensive.

By now I was quite intrigued. Gosh, if RM2,000 was cheap for a bicycle, how much would the other one be? I turned to the other fella and looked at him, then at his strikingly white mountain bike. Fantastic looking machine. How much, I asked.

Without blinking an eye, he remarked: RM5,000-plus. That was when I stopped hearing the birds singing, the cicadas chirping and the wind blowing. I felt dazed and then I slowly walked away. It was just too incomprehensible. Now, come to think of it, maybe I should have told him that the bike I used at home cost me $150.

My pal, Eric, said that I should have asked to test ride his bicycle. Take a ride on it and understand the difference. Nah, I told him, no way was I going to tempt myself.

A Malaysian city like no other

"Getting George Town a city status like Ipoh and Kuala Lumpur is not important as it was already made a city by the British on 1 Jan 1957. Most of the recognised cities in the country obtained the recognition because of political reasons. George Town is already the first city in the country and Penang is the first state to have a fully-elected local council in 1956 and first mayor in December 1957. We were also first to have elected people’s representatives in government in 1857.”

Dr Goh Ban Lee
Fellow, Socio-Economic and Environmental Research Institute, Penang

Invisible man

I received an email yesterday. It said that I had been tagged in seven pictures posted up at Facebook. Funny, I don't remember anyone taking that many photos of me in recent memory. In fact, even I don't take pictures of myself often. I was intrigued. So I went into Facebook and found that, yes, indeed, I had been tagged.

Still, I was puzzled. There were 10 photos in that particular Facebook photo album but I just couldn't see me in any of them. Maybe I happened to be bending down to pick up something from the floor and the photographer missed me altogether. Maybe, I was hiding behind the table. But then I remembered....the Dato Arthur Tan Chess Centre is new. It's so new that I haven't had the chance to visit it. Yet, when I moved the mouse over certain parts of the photos, my name cropped up.

The only possible answer? I had become the Invisible Man.

Anyway, the Dato Arthur Tan Chess Centre evolved from the previous The Chess Network. This new chess centre, like the old one, is still located at the Wilayah Complex in Kuala Lumpur. Looking at the photographs in Facebook, I know that this is going to be a GREAT central location to hold chess tournaments. There is enough space to hold at least 120 chess boards. Great place. Can't wait to visit it one day when I'm in KL.

Stirring show

Did this movie win eight Oscars recently? I'm not surprised. Mighty good show.

BM Hill's continuing decline (Part Three)

After my hike up the Bukit Mertajam hill at Ceruk To'Kun on Friday, I had wanted to say something positive about my continuing experience along the hill track around the foothills but then decided that maybe I shouldn't say anything at all and just let these photos do the talking:

Tattered flag, tattered country

In slightly more than a week's time, it will be one year since the last General Election. It was an election of great significance to Malaysia because for the first time, the opposition Pakatan Rakyat was successful in capturing five states and denying the Barisan Nasional a two-thirds control of Parliament.

But what has happened in the one year since the election? The worsening global economy shows no sign of improvement and yet, the Barisan Nasional-led federal government is in great delay over its effect on the country. A wise university professor once said that delay was the deadiliest form of denial. So it is. In this case, the Barisan Nasional politicians, hell bent on regaining control of the states they have lost, are simply not paying enough attention to the crisis. On the hand, the Pakatan Rakyat politicians are equally pre-occupied on taking control at the federal level. This leaves the ordinary folks as the victims of their politicking: ordinary folks who are caught in between the devil and the deep blue see, and finding it difficult to make an honest living as jobs are affected by the economic downturn.

There are only three words that I can think of to describe the outcome of the politics in this land: Malaysia In Tatters. This phrase came to mind yesterday evening as I was returning from my regular hike up the Bukit Mertajam hill. As I was waiting to cross the busy road, my eyes strayed to this flagpole and the flag that was fluttering. Yes, the flag was torn and tattered. And my country too is torn and tattered. Such a poignant reflection of Malaysian politics. Here's another useful phrase for you: Bugger The Politicians!

At the same time, I just want to mention that it takes a brave and exasperated man to articulate the desperation of the people to the public. On Thursday, businessman Anas Zubedy took out a full page advertisement in The Star to swipe at the two warring sides and asking them to put aside their differences and work towards pulling the country out of the economic mess.


“Someone has to give in. Take the nation to heart. That's why you are in politics in the first place. Focus on the people. Focus on the economy,” he appealed to them.

“Whether Barisan Nasional or Pakatan Rakyat leads is meaningless if Malaysians have no job to go to, no money to pay rent and no means to put food on the table. Pakatan Rakyat, please stop your attempts to take over the federal government and just let go. The nation can wait until the next general election if they want change. Barisan Nasional, please stop any attempts to take over PR states and win over PR lawmakers. You have proved your point with Perak. The nation can wait for the next general election if they want your party.”

Anas Zubedy, I truly respect you for your action and effort. While I can only hope that the politicians will take heed of your plea, do you really think that they will? A vicous streak of head strong stubbornness runs through our political system. When do you think they'll even stop to listen to themselves, must less us, much less you, much less I?

Hot java

Will you join me today for a delicious cup of hot thick local coffee?

McNair Street

McNair Street ... a stone's throw from the old historical market - now foreceably abandoned - in Prangin Road (or Sia Boey, as the Penang Hokkiens would call the place). This road has seen better days. The rows of pre-war houses here are in a bad shape. However, this little altar outside one of the decrepit houses suggests that people are still staying in it.

Going mad

Whose fault is it that they cannot face up to reality? Is it the teacher's fault? Or was it the federal government's fault in the first place? Yes, by all means, please promote the national language but at the same time too, we cannot avoid that the world is getting smaller and everyone needs a common language to converse whether in the fields of business, academia or whatever.

In my opinion, the teachers were the victims of past governments bent on nationalistic ideals but see where those ideals have led to: a half-past six grasp of the English language, the lingua franca of the world. I know it's a struggle for teachers such as these but looking at the bigger picture, don't let small difficulties stop our children from seeking their rightful places in this world. It's their future at stake now. If we reverse the decision to teach science and mathematics in English, I fear we'll just be doing a greater injustice to the country than before.

Road toll rates increasing on Sunday

It is so ironic that a day after the DAP had proposed a way for the Federal Government to turn the North-South Expressway toll-free by 2016, the Works Ministry announces that the toll rates for travelling on this very expressway will be going up on 1 Mar 2009. That's just three days away!

I am so bloody disappointed that the government is allowing this to happen. Of course, they have their excuses. It smacks of poor governance by the people in power and it suggests greediness by highway concessionaires who wants to continue squeezing people during the economic downturn.

It's not only the North-South Expressway that we'll see a toll rate increase. The others will be the New Klang Valley Expressway, Federal Highway Route 2, New Pantai Expressway, Sungai Besi Highway and the Damansara and Kerinchi links of the Sprint highway.

And who are these concessionaires? PLUS Expressways Bhd, IJM Corp Bhd and Lingkaran Trans Kota Holdings Bhd (Litrak). Blood suckers!

North Malaysia Internet User Group

Over lunch yesterday, I was talking with a colleague about the good old Internet days, long before TMNet came into the picture. Before TMNet, there was JARING, and while JARING still exists today, their services are now totally overshadowed by TMNet's Streamyx. But way back in the mid-1990s, JARING was the main window to cyberspace. At that time, the use of cyberspace was mainly confined to emails, mailing lists, newsgroups, file transfer protocol, gopher and telnet. Surfing the world wide web came later.

I cannot recall when exactly I had my JARING account. It could have been in 1992 or 1993. In those days, it was so difficult to even sign up to JARING. In the application form, I had to give reasons why I needed an account and I had to ask my senior manager at Ban Hin Lee Bank to confirm that I was a staff there. You can imagine the questions I was asked when an inquisitive and suspicious manager wanted to know what JARING was and why I needed it. Today, as long as you can afford to pay, you don't need to ask anyone's approval to get an Internet connection.

The cyberspace community in those days was very small and closely knitted. Almost everyone in the community in Penang knew one another. Somehow, when a new JARING member came on board, we would know. In 1994, we decided to have a first face-to-face meeting at the YMCA. We called ourselves members of the North Malaysia Internet User Group although I can't understand why we adopted the acronym NOMIS instead of NOMIG.

Anyway, it made no difference to the people in the user group. We agreed to hold regular meetings to exchange ideas and more often than not, we used the facilities at the Universiti Sains Malaysia to get connected to their "always on" 64kbps line and surf. In those days, a 64kbps line was a Big Thing for us dial-up users to get excited about.

I'm writing this because my colleague and I were wondering where all the NOMIS people have gone. Through time, the NOMIS group dispersed once the Internet became more popular, commercialised and accessible. But in my office today, I can still count on Mark Chang, Ted Targosz and Teoh Eng Soon in my NOMIS fellowship ring.

The ones that I still keep in touch with are Jeffrey Chew, Palaniappan, Andy Yeoh, Eddy Lim and Nanis. Once in a long while, I still bump into NK Lim and two of my old pals, Lim Kean Chuan and Tan Wooi Tong. But as for people like Gerald Tan, Goh Swee Hem and a host of many others, I wonder where they are now.

[UPDATE: Ted suggested that NOMIS could mean the North Malaysia Internet Society. That may be correct but I would still dispute the use of the word "society" as it implies a properly constituted and registered body which we were not.]

TMNet's Internet service sucks big

As far as I'm concerned, TMNet users are getting a very raw deal. Doesn't matter whether it's their "broadband" or dial-up service, it's lousy. For about a week already, I've been experiencing bad connections to some websites. Especially, getting through to my emails on Yahoo! was terrible. Even my wife complains about the (lack of) speed of the connection. Although she's not even a regular surfer, she notices the drag.

And then yesterday, after days of complete silence, TMNet finally issues a statement saying there has been a disruption to their Internet services since 18 Feb due to "circuit faults on the Asia Pacific Cable Network 2 (APCN2) between Malaysia and the United States." Why can't they announce it faster? That's very efficient of TMNet, isn't it?