Watches

Its one of those things that men have nowadays...
Well, I got started on watches after stumbling upon a local website selling new and pre-owned ones. Before that, a watch for me is just a time piece to keep time, and occasionally as a dress accessories.
My watches were pretty ordinary with brands such as Tissot, and Swatch. Yup, that's pretty cool already to my standard as each of them cost around a grand plus.
Well, I would love to own a piece of Omega or perhaps an Oris Meistemaster but it is exorbitantly priced in the range of RM8k and RM5K respectively. For me, these pieces are the holy grail of watches. Until I visited the website.
It opens up entirely my perspective of watches. For once, I realised that I could now own an Omega or Oris with just a mere fraction of the original retailing price. Now, my range of wanted watches suddenly expanded. From Azimuth to Zenith, A to Z.
More so when I later stumbled on to Malaysia watch forum, and Singapore's watch exchange forum.
Although the opportunities are more pronounced now, I would need to be careful and be very selective of my choice of watch to get.


I now know such thing such as automatic and quartz. I know what is jewels in the watch. I now know what's a movement and who manufactures them. So now, I have learned to appreciate watches and the value of it.
Now my view of an Omega has change. It is no longer my no.1 desire to own wrist watch. And why is that? Simple. I go for originality. Now, don't get me wrong. The genuine Omega is genuine Omega, but its movement is not. Its mechanism are bought from world renowed movements makers from Swiss such as ETA, and Unitas.
These movement makers provides a wide range of mechanism to suits its customers. They could be upgraded and refined by the customers themselves to create some uniques in their own brands.
So, an Omega that cost probably RM7,000 may have the same movement as to an Edox that probably cost RM5,000 in retails.
So now, if I were to plonked in a couple of grands or more, I would read up the history of the watches, and identify its movement whether the pieces are made in-house or it is a mass produced movement that are refined by the brand owner.
Of course, in-house made movement watches would generally cost more, but then, the values' there.
The genuine  of it is there.

Now I owned some pretty nice and reputable watches..and I am finding more wrist time for them. As I typed away this post, I have with me each watch on both hands...hahaha automatics..you need to move them ..

So, if you can't afford to own one now, then save up for one.

Hari Malaysia Hari Merdeka

We celebrated our 54th. Independence yesterday, and in conjunction, the forming of Malaysia as well.

Many general public took this public holidays to stay home or go for a holiday. None so much a local would really usurp up the atmosphere of Independence day and the fanfare of it. For most of us, its just another day. The love for the country have dwindled. This is evidently shown in the numbers of flags being flown out there whether in buildings or on vehicles.

Most of the extraordinary big Jalur Gemilang out there are either GLCs or as one of the corporate policies. Nothing more.
Vehicle donning flags were glaringly missing from the streets as compared to before PRU12. Those days, the achievement of Tun in wrestling with IMF and the economic downturn, have turned everyone into extra ordinary patriotic and folks were going around petrol stations seeking for such mini flags to be donned on their cars. But that was then, and presently there is no such feel anymore.

It was some time ago where the folks generally believed that the best time to call for a general election is when you see flags everywhere, on cars and buildings. That will be a good sign that the citizen's sentiment towards the ruling government is good.
If you see otherwise, it is best to just delay as long as possible the general election while finding ways to restore the good feeling of the country's citizen.

Sometimes we asked ourselves, what are the issues out there that are making us flaming mad about the government? What have they done or not do that have affected our ways of life and that of our younger generations to come?
Simply what's the matter with the government that you are mad about?

Well for one, the living expenses nowadays have increased so much as compared with the pay that one get. The government's report of 2-3% inflation rate is stupendously unbelievable as a plate of char koay tiow now cost RM4.50 for a small plate, and RM5.00 for a big one.
In January 2011, it would have been RM3.50 and RM4.50 respectively. So the maths worked out to be 28% increase !
Electricity bills are slowly creeping up, and thank God for the subsidising of water bill, otherwise we would have to slave our entire live just to earn a living.

What's so great about Merdeka if we are still terbelenggung with low income and high living cost?

My merdeka wish would be to abolish income tax (at least by half), and free medical benefits. That would be the best Merdeka any Malaysians would have !!

Salam Merdeka..

Mat Sabu - Komunislah hero negara...

Mengenai perkara tersebut, ia amat mengejutkan apabila Mat Sabu menyatakan atau bersaran bahawa anggota-anggota polis yang terkorban di Bkt.Kepong bukanlah hero dan kumpulan komunislah sepatutnya hero negara.
Kita rasa tersinggung dengan kenyataan tersebut dan rasa pelik juga kenapa Mat Sabu sanggup mengeluarkan kenyataan tersebut. Apakah dia sudah ke tandusan idea untuk mendapatkan sokongan atau agenda untuk berdialog dengan penyokongnya?
Adakah dia sebenarnya “trojan horse” parti pemerintah yang diselitkan dalam PKR untuk membuat hal dan kecoh supaya penyokong tersebut akan memulaukan parti tersebut?

Pelbagai reaksi kesangsian dan kontrovesi terhadap Mat Sabu kini telah tercetus apatah lagi dengan tuduhan penyelewengan perbelanjawan perubatannya baru-baru ini. Ia sedikit sebanyak memang memberi persepsi buruk terhadap PKR dan PAS yang berlaung-laungkan ketelusan dan keadilan.
Akan tetapi pada pendapat saya, penyokong dua-dua parti tersebut tidak mudah berpindah kem, tetapi lebih bersikap ingin tahu daripada mahu mengambil tindakan memulaukan parti tersebut.
Mereka kini mesti berpendapat bahawa Mat Sabu ini sebenarnya agen parti pemerintah. Mahu tak mahu, saya rasa inilah sentimen golongan penyokong parti lawan ini buat masa kini.

Kenyataan yang dikeluarkan Karpal Singh memang dilihat sebagai “damage control” buat parti PKR. Memang diketahui suatu kenyataan akan dikeluarkan PKR untuk mengawal situasi daripada menjadi lebih teruk. Tetapi, seperti biasa adakah kenyataan tersebut sememangnya jujur? Adakah ianya suatu daripada pelbagai cara untuk memperbetulkan suatu perkara atau percakapan yang terlanjur batas kefahaman dan perjuangan parti tersebut?

Walau bagaimana pun, kenyataan Mat Sabu ini adalah sangat tidak bertanggung jawab dan tidak sepatutnya diungkapkan oleh seseorang pemimpin rakyat yang kononnya memperjuangkan hak-hak kebebasan dan kemerdekaan rakyat.
Tidak kira fahaman apajua pun, perjuangan oleh anggota keselamatan negara kita untuk mempertahankan kemerdekaan negara ini tidak dapat dipertikaikan.

Bernama TV crew killed

Its quite unfortunate that a Bernama TV crew was killed by a stray bullet while covering the Putra1 organized humanitarian aid in Somalia.

I think its pretty reckless of the team to have risked their lives in hot zone such as Somalia, and I think the organisers should be responsible for the death of the TV crew.

It was reckless because they did not take precautionary measures to safe-guard themselves in a still rife war zone areas. They travelled in unmarked cars and with little personal protections.

I hope with this incident, folks will be more aware of the danger that they are in, and not too be too naive to believe they are immortal and that no harm will come to them.

At the mean time, a prayer of Al-Fatihah to the late Noramfaizul Mohd.Nor.

Laws in Malaysia

In short, Malaysia is never in anyway shortage of basic laws, thanks to our colonial masters during the yonder days.
However, as our masters' country continue to propagate good law governance and arbitrations, our very own country's law and its advocators have bits and pieces begin to squirm back to the dark ages. The advocators of true laws no doubt are good. They are learnt and some even have traveled to the master's country to un-cobwebs even more remedies and suits. But when they arrive home to Malaysia, they knew immediately that the law that was of the colonial days and just last decade or so, is no more relevant. It is because the current laws that we have are politically linked laws. Laws that are cock-tailed by greedy politicians. Laws that are goreng-ed up by bands of ali-babas. Laws that are bread-crumbed and dipped in butter fry by half witted bench warmers that timed their nap time the same as the parliament sittings sessions.
So, with such long list of "laws" enacted and enforced, learnt law advocators finds themselves in primary school once more when it comes to understanding the written rules and regulations. They is practically not able to do anything intelligent to try to dispute any concerns at all. 
More so if the presiding lawful person is also on the menu arrangement committee.

So you see, law in Malaysia is law in Malaysia. If you need to challenge them, you need to be one of them. But then if you are one of them, why then you need to challenge them? ah...???

Truckers be warned...

Now, I may not represent the many disgusted normal motorist out there, but I think I could fairly count on a handful of my mates who would agree with me on this, that trucks aka pickups are an inconvenience to other road users, the normal motorist. Hahaha..

Now, trucks / pickup / 4wd are naturally a tall vehicle. It obscure our front view and we hate it when they hog the road especially when at the lights. We almost always not able to judge whether to speed up, follow through or stop at the lights because the back-end of these vehicles is as big as the Chinese aircraft carrier.

So that made us a bit annoyed and frustrated.

Next on the list of grouses is, such trucks is always almost never fast. They come lights blaring through your rear windscreen, but almost never able to move on rapidly when you let them pass. This annoys us normal motorist who by then have ran out of free space upon catching up with slow cars and it spoilt our smooth drive home after a hard day's work.

When caught in the jam, and where everyone jostled for space, more than often such trucks will take space the size of a Metro bus, willingly or not. As other motorist preferred to distance themselves from the huge bulgy rubbers. And this angers us because its taking more space than necessary and we can't hardly move out from our junctions to join the main road.

It is especially annoying to have follow such trucks on a newly tarred road or on any road spilled with gravels because you will get a plentiful of loose projectiles hitting your bonnet and windscreen. You could also imagine the smirk on the driver's face by now.

When comes to parking, normal motorist would circle and rather wait for another parking space rather than parking it next to the trucks. For the simple reason of not trusting the driver or occupants of the trucks to respect the well being of private properties.

Absolutely a pain to drive around the neighborhood when such metal on wheels are parked at road corners and junctions. You can't blardy look out for strolling aunties with their veges walking along. You can't really judge if there's a P labeled car is hurling towards you just as you exit the junction. That's bcos you have this huge awkwardly shaped metal with rubbers blocking your view of the entire world !

Especially disgusted is when such trucks are installed with aircraft search lights as their driving lights. Somehow owners of these vehicles forgot that their vehicle is slightly taller than the normal car, and fixing any obscene HID lights will actually burn a hold through the skull of the driver in front. 

More than often, the trucks are driven recklessly. Perhaps being most of the time not their own trucks, drivers tends to sped along with huge plume of black soot with tools and stuffs hanging on precariously on the flat bed behind. Oh yeah, not too close. You never know when one of this will turned into Malaysia's very own rocket projectile when it launches from a badly tarred road.

Oh yea, since you have joined the gang of mini truckers, do tell fellow truckers that you don't need anymore to warm that thing up. Start up, and drive on, man !

Well, that's about sum it up on trucks or anything larger than cars. Take this as something we should be aware of when we drive such vehicles. There's no pun directed, and I do really hope to have a SUV when Malaysian's roads starts to have periodical floods.

Peace all..

Culture influenced driving styles...

Different culture, different way of driving. As Clarkson blamed UK's recent increase in fatalities and injuries were partly contributed by immigrants congregating onto British roads and messing up the system. I think he is partly right. I think immigrants contributed a small percentage in the statistics of accidents. I think the British themselves are to take a larger blame on the increase. Now, take Malaysia now for instance. We have little of such foreign influence to say that they have contributed to the increase of road simply because they are pretty much restricted from getting licenses to operate motor vehicles. So, it is too negligible to count them in. In my opinion, the contributors are in fact ourselves. Our relatives from other states. Our brothers and sisters from hometown,  and our neighbors.

Let me explain. Many well travelled Malaysian would have to agree with me that the driving styles of the motorist differs from states to states. I personally travelled quite a lot and every each time I crosses certain state, I will change my driving style in accordance. Probably pushing my imaginary "corsa" or "strada" buttons in my brain to activate that mode of driving style. Let's say I am traveling from KL to Ipoh, and then to Penang.

Now, along the highway I will be putt-ing along well within the speed limit. As I entered Ipoh township for some good food, I will then switch to "extra strada" mode. That is not to exceed 70 kmph at any given road in Ipoh. Failing which, you will end up rear-ending someone, and complimented with a high blood pressure certificate. So gently negotiating your way out of Ipoh township, you enter the highway once more and speeding within the speed limit. Blissful until some hour later, you cross over to the Pearl Island of Malaysia, Penang. Just as I am about to finish the length of the bridge, I switched my driving mode to "corsa". Yup, fast and furious.

From here on, I kept my gears in low, foot near brake pedal in full alert, and eyes double-timed concentration. This small island is actually a whole race track in disguise. Folks are always in a hurry and if you use your super strada mode, you will end up being rear ended, looked at in disgust, and honked at so much so that you thought were actually in India instead of Penang. 

You see, you need to be in the same speed as the cogs that were in the states mentioned. Any wrong speed or cogs sizes, you end up wrecking everyone's lives and yours too. You need to learn and adapt to the way of motoring life there in order to stay alive ! Just like folks from these states. They need to learn the motoring culture of the host states and adapt to it as soon as possible.

And don't think you could influence them with your own culture because such moves would only make you the outstanding one, the negative one. 

Spot any cars that were haphazardly parked in your area, check out the registration plates. Most likely you will see a different state registered car. Likewise when someone hogged your favorite road to work. More than likely you will see some foreign state vehicles, with or without a GPS!

Can some one input in such data into the GPS like what they do to warn of police speed traps etc?

So, don't be naive to think that calmness, good driving skill and what's not will ensure you get through the day there, as the understanding of one's environment and adjusting to it is as important as the mentioned attributes.

Iranians flocking to an un-utopia Malaysia

I wondered what the government got from this granting of visa to immigrants? Do they contribute positively in terms of investment to the country and as well as adding to a more divest lifestyle and culture to the already rojak society?
I sometimes feared for our country not knowing what are the plans when it decided to be loose on immigrations just like the visa on arrival (VOA) system practiced just recently. This system have been abused so much so that we have more than 1/2 million illegal Bangladeshi and others in the country. "Tourist" have been flocking to the country in droves wanting to visit the country with a mere hundreds of rupees in their pockets !?
Not forgetting that such system ultimately have open another door for possible illegal soliciting of funds.

I am one of the many that are happy that the Aussie-Mal trade on illegals are blocked. This arrangement clearly portrayed Malaysia as a non-humane 3rd.world country, a near lackey of the imperial Australian is blardy shameful. And our Home Minister is oblivious to this..as usual.
I wondered again, what did Malaysia actually got out of this? Come on, what is the udang behind deal-lah...? 

hampa betui kat gomen ini..koblok!