The jackass gang

One of the five items i mentioned in the previous post has been been realised.Yeah,i've gotten myself a pair of nike total 90 futsal shoes.The unique feature is its side shoe lacing.A refreshing departure from the conventional centre shoe lacing that has been so ubiquitous nowadays.

It's a real kick-ass shoes,it's so lightweight,i literally feel like i'm walking bare-feeted.Considering the amount of money i've parted,they better do otherwise i'll erm,sue?!It can pass of as sneakers too.Honestly,it has the 'cool' factor which is definitely suitable for casual outing.

Meanwhile,jian hua bought a kick-ass nike tee.Both of the items are on discount so we think we got ourselves a good bargain.Fast forward to salam corner,jian hua,yue meng,vooi and i were there to have a few glasses of teh tarik.We were having a conversation bout football and yue meng suggested doing something insane - a futsal game at 11.30pm!

All of us agreed in unison cause this was like something that we've not tried before let alone think of it.Then we started hunting for our friends.Rather surprisingly,almost all them liked the idea and were willing to come.And my newly acquired futsal shoes can have its debut barely two hours after i've bought it.Nice way to find out how well it does in the kicking department.

We had a great game but it was spoilt by some hiccups between the team mates.Overall,the game was very fast-paced no thanks to those speedy indian guys.The condition of the ball didn't help neither.It's so freaking light,all it took was a slight pressure and the ball will fly off like a kiddie plastic ball.

Consequently,everyone was using a lot of head and chest to block the ball.Damn troublesome,ideally the ball should be kept at waist level,of an average height man that is.My futsal shoes did a commendable job,yay!no more slipping or spraining my ankle while dribbling.I used to wear running shoes.

A lesson learnt indeed.The sole of running shoes is definitely not meant for indoor futsal.I actually played through the whole game without getting injured.Oh,i just love that injury-free feeling and my futsal shoes!

Later on,we had another round of teh tarik at a mamak stall.This time it was at first garden.By then,it was already one something.We chatted quite a fair bit,laughed ourselves silly and soon everyone parted ways.I'm knackered now and i want to sleep.Gotta wake up early tomorrow as usual.Darn!

The buying impulse strikes back

Oh,i just love sunday.I can practically wake up late without my mom or grandma nagging me.But no matter how,i can't force myself to sleep any further after 12pm.That's when the humidity and warmness start building up in my room.As if it's not bad enough,the sun will be shining directly on my bed.Talk about being attacked on both fronts!

In case you're wondering,there are no curtains on my room's windows and i don't intend to install them neither.My grandma thinks it will do me more harm than good.She thinks it's just the perfect excuse for me to sleep more.Whereas my mom says it's an utter waste of her time.What she means is there will be extra work for her to do(washing the curtains).So the idea of installing curtains should well be confined to being urm,an idea.

As we have planned earlier,jian hua,chun kit and i went to have our breakfast at greentown.Brunch to be exact cause all of us woke up at noon.Jian hua being the driver of the day again as he has always been(Thanx buddy!Guilt haunts so i'll volunteer to drive more often in the future.Hehheh.).Chun kit just came back from genting a couple of days ago.Speaking of which,i was invited to go but it didn't turn out that way.It was a couple trip,if u know what i mean.

Naturally,i'll feel kinda left out but not after he told me there were actually some single guy friends as well when he returned.Damn,he should have let me know BEFORE the trip.I've been raring to go on a trip like this especially with friends.No amount of cursing will change the past now.After the meal,mun ho came over to have his lunch with us.He's working at an optical shop nearby.

We chatted quite a bit and suddenly the topic of going to bukit merah was brought up.All of us got excited,jian hua and chun kit started gathering prospective members for the impromptu trip.Well,rather expectedly,none was interested.They're either busy with work or study.We said our goodbyes to mun ho and off we went to parade.It was one and a half hours of pure window shopping and i already had five items in my imaginary shopping cart.Here's a peek into what's inside:

1) Adidas superstar 35th anniversary shoes --> RM329.90
2) Nike total 90 futsal shoes --> RM169
3) Nike 'bicicleta' tee --> RM69
4) Chelsea jersey-shaped pillow with lampard 8 --> RM49.90
5) Miniature figurines of chelsea players --> RM49.90

Power-packed stuffs with equally 'powerful' price tags.Buying on impulse hurts.Everytime i buy something expensive,the guilt will sink in.I feel like i'm wasting away the money aimlessly.Parents say money isn't easy to earn.Every ringgit and sen must be spent wisely.They have a point so after giving a hard thought,i should cut down on the number of items.I guess no.1,4 and 5 gotta go.But the pillow is like the only one left.I'll not be able to forgive myself if i'm told that it has been sold out next time.Hmmm,real headache.

At night,jian and i went yum char.It freaked me out knowing the sheer number of food he ordered.Boy,can he eat?!Ironically,he's not putting on weight.Respect!Must be in the genes and i could do well by having some of those.

Revenge of the kop

Let's kick off today's blog with some anecdotes on football(no pun intended).Perhaps you have sensed this coming.Yeah,i'm gonna talk about how in the freaking blue hell did liverpool,despite trailing milan 3-0 at half time,could manage to tilt the game to their balance and wrestled the cup back.Unbelievable isn't it?Being thrashed 3-0 usually mean you can start heading to the dressing room and pack your boots.

Some of you might argue,'dude,this isn't the way man,we must never give up without a fight.We still have our dignity to play for!'.Not that i'm discouraging it.In fact,i'm a staunch believer of,as cliche as it sounds,the 'never say die' mentality.But this is different,we're talking bout an opposition of such impeccable quality that is ac milan - the granddaddy of champions league.

One of the most experienced club in these modern days when it comes to european cup competition.One that will strike fear in the eyes of their opponents and causes their legs to get all wobbly (okay,so this is a tad over the top).Nonetheless,they're serious cup contenders,the real deal.With all these accolades,surely it would be a task of gargantuan proportion for liverpool to stage a comeback.Even the bookies(legit or otherwise) dared to offer generous amount of cash for those who were brave enough to bet on scousers winning it.

What more with them conceeding 3 goals,they needed something more,something monumental in nature - a miracle.And yes,miracle did happened.So our mighty milan threw the game away in just under six minutes.The men in red equalised in that short crazy period in what nesta called 'a blackout'.What's even more unbelievable was the manner they let in the three goals.Come on,being professionals they should know better to solidify their defence and preserve their lead.

And they say this is the competition of the highest order,where have all the crafty strategies gone?A huge mistake like this should never occurred.And i thought such amazing comeback is only possible in mediocre quality leagues.With all respect to liverpool,that was the greatest comeback i've ever witnessed(not quite though,cause i've fallen asleep after half time.hehheh).Not since the miraculous comeback by manu in the 1999 cl final against munich.

On the flip side,liverpool have restored the dignity of english clubs in general.Yay!They have proven that english clubs are not 'has-beens' and very much up there with the spanish and italian football giants.So,congralutions to liverpool and i hope their wish of defending their cup next season will come true.

Okay,now on something more closer at home.I wanted to watch madagascar today but it was not meant to be.No thanks to my uncle who loves ordering people to do things at the last minute.I normally don't give a hoot if i'm free but not when it is 15mins before the movie starts!No use complaining,someone gotta do it anyway and that person is yours truly.

It would be rude to ignore his order.We're dealing with an elder asking the young the do the things now.No compromise or whatsoever.When i finally got it done,we were already running late.Jian hua and i decided to postphone it and went to fetch siew kham instead.We went for lunch at deli france.Apparently,it was the third or fourth time i had a proper meal at deli france.They serve wonderful sandwiches but it beats me why i didn't go there often.

I ordered black pepper crab sandwich but that fella heard me wrong and gave me tuna and mayo sandwich instead.Bummer.Hey dude,i remember you!You livestrong band wearer!A manly conversation followed.You know,usual stuff like chun chicks,close friends,sex(mild),bachelorhood(except that siew kham is already attached so he had no say bout this matter for now.haha).

After hogging the table for an hour,off we went for window shopping.Sports being the theme of the day.Went looking for futsal boots,all were like potential wallet burners.I saw an adidas track bottom that i really like but there is no 'M' size in sight.It's alright,i'm pretty confident i can find it in the future,before it has been sold out that is.With that being done,we headed straight back to home and rot for the rest of the day and night.For me at least.Lolz.

Resuscitated

At last,i can heave a sigh of relieve.My pc is back to working order again with a new cd burner to boot.Undoubtedly,all these come with a price - they cost me a whopping RM630 in total.Quite a heavy price to pay if u asked me but this particular pc still has a good 3-4 years ahead of it.Hence,i don't mind forking the extra dough.I'm not a hardcore gamer,all i need is a pc that can let me online and is able to handle basic entertaiment like playing music/movie.

It may sound outrageous but i can confidently say you can hardly find me in the cyber cafe blasting terrorists or 'pawning' a certain drew ranger,medusa,etc.All those online and pc gaming hardly entice me.A trait that i've no answer for.It's in the genes i guess.Of cause,i don't shut myself totally from it.Once in a while,i'll be in cyber cafe upon my friends' request.But i used to be an avid gamer when i was a kid.Micro genius,nintendo,sega and ps1 were the names that struck a chord with me.I can keep myself pretty occupied whenever those consoles were within my reach.

There was an occasion when i sneaked into a neighbourhood arcade centre to have a few rounds of street fighter.Actually,i was forbidden to do so by my mom but i ignored her rule nonetheless.Luck was not on my side that day,my mom soon found out about it and caught me red-handed.The first thing she did was to pull my ear,hard.What's worse,it was done right in front of public!My reputation as an innocent kid to the strangers had been tarnished!Never had i been so embarassed in life.Right at that moment,i was worrying bout where i'm gonna hide my face the next time i'm in the neighbourhood.I was seven when it happened.

Yeah,my broadband connection has been restored as well.After bout like a fortnight of frustating wait.Funnily enough,the modem jolted back to life minutes before mr.tmnet arrived(i obviously didn't know mr.tmnet works on sunday too).The lan light has reappeared.I was freaking worried he would treat my complaint as a hoax and refuse to change the faulty modem.However,when i hooked it up to my laptop,it didn't work - just the perfect problem i needed!

I did a fine job in convincing him to change it in the end.There was no way i'm gonna use back the crazy modem which had the tendency to switch between working order and failure effortlessly.Anyway,all the tmnet modems especially the current 'made in china' batch,are of questionable quality.Time will tell when my newly changed modem will start to wreck havoc.

Another thing,lamps' bungalow had been burgled last week.The burglars had carted off two of his sports car and some electrical items,among other things.Luckily,he and his gf were not harmed in any way.At time of blogging,almost all of the stolen items including the cars have been recovered.Lamps is now pleading the burglars to return back his custom-made adidas predator football boots.On a brighter note,lamps is gonna be a proud father soon as his gf is pregnant with his first child.

Here comes the pain

It has been more than 48 hours but still no signs of the tmnet personnel i've been waiting anxiously.Realising the fact that i can't online but they're still charging me as usual,is really getting on my nerves.Customers like me who pay a premium to get a decent broadband connection shouldn't be subjected to this kind of sub-standard treatment.

Tmnet,please forget about making malaysia a broadband hub if you can't even get the basics right.I don't want to sound harsh but i seriously think tmnet should really improve their service's efficiency.If this continues,it's time for the long-intended second call from me then.

Another futsal game came along yesterday.Wanting to make up for my absence previously,i grabbed this opportunity by the neck.To psyche myself up,i went for an 1 hour jog around the neighbourhood,right before the game started.Call me insane,but i feel that am really pushing myself to the limit yesterday.

My curiosity to find out my endurance level got the better of me i guess.And i think i did well in this aspect - no signs of fatigue,post-game.But yesterday's game was very physical.The most aggressive yet in fact.I suffered multiple injuries consequently.Here's the breakdown:

1)a bruise on the left elbow
2)a sprained left ankle
3)a sprained on the neck.
4)pain on the lower head.At time of blogging,the pain has subsided.Both 3 and 4 are resulted from the collision with jian hua's pelvic bone.
5)Family jewels being hit by the ball.Not once but twice.Ouch!

Frustratingly,the opposition's last man was standing in front of the goal all the time.Since we were playing with small goals,it's an offence to stand in front of the goal.Time and again,he has denied us clear-cut goal scoring opportunities.I wanted to tell him off but since it was a friendly game and he's like 2-3 years older,it's wise not to kick up a big fuss bout it.I'm not the only one complaining though.

Right now,i'm having a hellish time.My swollen ankle has reduced me to the point of limping.I just hope that there will be no heavy cartons for me carry these few days.

Patience is virtue

My pc has officially entered the final stages of its lifespan.It has been more than three years and that's nothing my pc hasn't encountered.From being attacked by malicious virus to being struck by lightning,my pc is a perfect example of the adage - 'Been there,done that'.The diagnosis report has come out last tuesday and it said the motherboard has broken down.To computer owners,a problem with the motherboard usually spells trouble with a capital 'T'.

Normally,changing a motherboard means you have to change the display card as well.And both of them don't come cheap.It will set me back for about half a thousand.Not forgetting,i have to buy a newer processor too.Basically,i have to change everything which isn't compatible with the new motherboard.Right now,i have two options:

1)change the motherboard and other items but use back the same pc
2)buy a new pc

The second option looks more enticing to me.A wiser choice too.Nothing beats having a brand new pc right?Before that,i need to find a way to transfer my favourite collection of mp3s as my pc doesn't have a cd burner.I won't forgive myself if i have to part with the mp3s that i have pain-stakingly downloaded from the net.But then again i don't think i will buy a new pc as i already have a laptop.Well,indecisive me.

Here comes the mother of all bad news - my broadband modem is condemned.The tmnet-appointed contractor has come over this morning to troubleshoot the problem.Initially,i thought he was gonna exchange the modem for me,on the spot.Turned out that he's not in the capacity to do so as that job is undertaken by tmnet's service personnel.What the fuck!The excitement of being able to online again just fizzled off when he told me that.

And he charged me a bloody RM30 for the troubleshooting fee which took less than 10mins.Bugger!If i have known earlier,i would have call tmnet directly.I was thinking that the problem could be resolved faster by calling the contractor.Boy,how wrong was i?!Now tmnet asked me to wait between 24-48 working hours for the faulty modem to be exchanged.All these things are really testing my patience now.

Checking out

Haven't been able to blog in the last couple of days.My pc has gone kaput.It refused to start.Normally,the pc will do just fine with a few random knocking on the cpu.But now,no amount of knocking or kicking can get it to work.Maybe the physical abuse has taken its toll on the cpu.And so it just shut itself down completely for good.

The same can be said for my broadband connection.I tried connecting the cable to my laptop but all i got was a msg stating that no lan connection is established.They say bad news comes in double doses - hardly raises my eyebrow last time.But since i'm a casualty myself,i'm a firm believer now.Great,no pc and no internet connection,things couldn't get any worse!The feeling is unbearable.It's like i have lost a very special friend.Although it has been only two days,it felt like two decades to me.For the time being,i have to satisfy my daily internet fix at my father's office.

Anyway,i have sent the pc for repair.The broadband problem gotta wait as i'm still unsure of the root of the trouble.Need to verify whether it comes from the lan cable or my laptop.Therefore,the pc has to be returned before i can take further action.You see,everything in life,be it animate or inanimate,is sort of inter-connected.I can get pretty impatient sometimes.When i want something,i want it right there and then.If i can have it my way,i want the pc and the broadband connection in working order in a day's time.

Fortunately,i will be taking a short break.Timely opportunity to put my mind off the internet for a while.I will be travelling to singapore tonight.At time of blogging,the return ticket has not been bought.Most probably i will be back by wed morning.With that trip,i might be missing two important chelsea matches - blues v addicks(sat evening) and red devils v blues(tuesday morning).The former is the crucial one as the lads will be lifting the premiership trophy.If all goes well,i hope i can be in front of telly to watch at least one of the matches.

Can we do it?

Tonight,the blues will be facing their toughest hurdle yet.Scousers are well known for their vociferous home supporters,better known as the kop.The lads won't be intimidated, as they will be going into the match with the confidence of champions.There's one bad news though,duffa and robben might not be playing as they are plague by fitness problem.Without the two wide men upfront,i'm afraid there will be less bite in the attacking department.If last weekend's match at the reebok was anything to go by,they should be fine.

Undoubtedly,they want to exorcise the ghost of the previous cl semis more than anything.Last season,they lost by a goal margin to monaco.A result caused by the disastrous tinkering of ranieri.Now the second shot has arrived.With the wise guidance of mourinho,it's bout time for chelsea to improve on their european performance.An improvement that will take them beyond the semis.

The futsal match that wasn't

What an activity-filled sunday it had been.First up was the praying session at my grandfather's grave.I had to wake up at 8am.It's blasphemous to wake up at such an early hour on a lazy sunday morning.I wish i could slumber a few hours more.As i'm working for my family right now,sunday is the only day other than public holidays that i can wake up late.But when i realised i'm doing this for my late grandfather(more on him on my future posting),it's all worth it.

Heck,i will even wake up at 4am for him!According to the chinese calendar,yesterday was the third anniversary of my granpa's death.Most of my family members were present.Everything was done according to the chinese tradition.From the burning of incense to the praying of my late grandpa with his favourite food and drink.After the praying session ended,everyone went back to have a rest while preparing for the next destination.

Other than my parents,all of us were heading to kamunting.It's my grandmother's hometown.Kamunting is a tranquil and peaceful small town.Bout one and a half hours ride from ipoh.My grandma has expressed her wish on visiting her siblings who live there.This particular trip has been long-time coming.I had memorable moments there when i was small.One of them was quite sombre in mood.I attended the funeral of my great-grandmother.

The funniest one was when i had a brush with a rather nightmarish experience.It happened when i was around 5-6 years old.I drank something along the way.The drink must be contaminated or something as i ended throwing up like nobody's business when i arrived.The visit couldn't get any worse than this.To rub salt to the wound,my grandma scolded me for carelessly buying a drink from the roadside stall.

Back to the jaunt,we went sight-seeing at taiping zoo next.It was raining most of the time.My uncle suggested seeking shelter at the snake gallery as it was the nearest.Not that i'm afraid,but i didn't like the feeling of being surrounded by snakes.Anyway,it did not materialise as we managed to find a proper alternative.We pretty much spent the rest of the time in the zoo,under the rain.I also had a rare opportunity to see a female chimpanzee on heat.Judging from her chilli red ass,i guess the mating season has begun.

With all those walking and travelling,all of us were tired and hungry.So we went searching for good food at larut matang.A town famous for its eclectic mix of seafood.Some of the delicious ones that deserved mentioning were crab porridge,sweet and sour prawns and spicy squids.All washed down with a refreshing coconut drink.

It's a great experience visiting all these small towns.They have so much to offer in terms of sights and food.The chance to see some of the poor rural folks living in shabby wooden houses and with zero entertainment was an invaluable experience.It reminds me of how some of us often take the little luxury in life for granted.

However,all of these were in expense of the futsal match with my friends.It was to kick-off at 7pm.I couldn't make it back on time though.Previously,i had a clean track record of being present in every futsal match organised.It was supposed to be a match of my friends and i against jian hua's brother and his team mates.To add insult to injury,jian hua was raving how he had single-handedly trashed his bro's team by netting 6-7 goals.I knew it was gonna be a great match but i missed it.What a wasted opportunity.Bummer!



The house where my grandma grew up.


The compound outside.


The sundry shop next to the house.This is where my grandma's siblings make a living.

Ever seen chelsea win the league?

Finally,for the first time in 50 years,chelsea have won the league!To make it all the sweeter,the league is won during our centenary year.In the first half,i thought this was gonna be another frustrative draw for the blues.Bolton dominated the first half and looked far more superior.They were winning plenty of set-pieces.Playing long balls and getting goals from set-pieces are what bolton are famous for.At the rate they were going,i was worried that they will come into the second half with a one goal lead.

But never ever underestimate the perseverance of an altered chelsea side.Mour made a few changes from the squad who faced scousers on wednesday night.Bearing in mind that he needs fresh players for the cl return leg at anfield.The blues began to show more strength and determination.They started to play the sort of championship-winning football they have ever so consistently shown throughout the season.They were threatening and pressuring the bolton's defence.

Somehow they have yet to find the back of the net.Enter lamps,now this is what i call a world class attacking midfielder.Time and again,he has proved to us why he is the best in the business.He netted two crucial goals.A couple of goals that will help chelsea to seal the premiership title for good.The goal celebration was ecstatic.Lamps celebrated it like he has just scored the first goal of his career.The camaraderie was again evident in the squad.Maka and willie pulled him down to the ground and every chelsea players simply thrown themselves at him - priceless blues moment.

Optimism was certainly flowing in the veins of every single chelsea player.Robben can attest to that.He was already wearing the champions tee when there were still 5-6mins left before the game ended.Once the final whistle has been blown,all the members of chelsea fc joined in the celebration.It's time to party indeed.And boy,party hard they did!The players chanted 'ole ole ole' while running towards the area which hold 3000-strong travelling chelsea supporters.Champagnes are popped.That was the moment i have been waiting patiently.Nearly moved me to tears,realising this is the first time in my life witnessing chelsea winning the premiership.

I wasn't ever born when ted drake's boys won it way back in 1955.The atmosphere in the dressing room was no less electric.I will definitely cherish these winning moments for a long time to come.We have finished the job at last.Now the blues can rest easy knowing that they can now concentrate solely on cl.Hopefully we can go on and achieve an unprecedented treble.I guess it's about time for me to start saving for a TERRY 26 chelsea home jersey.Wear it with pride,i will.Congrats chelsea!We gonna make this a blue day that will forever be remembered.