BE, EAT, SLEEP, GARDEN, SHOOT, SCUBA

Ooooh... been tagged by UNKALEONG...

He asked... what are the five things that I enjoy doing while I am not out there enjoying cycling and fishing?

Hmmm...

1. Just being with my missus, spending time and 'tokking cock' with her. Without her, I am just another goondoo in town, aimless and hopeless. When I got married twenty years ago, a good pal advised me: 'Lrong, listen to your wife!' That sucker of guy is still single and he will be touching fifty in a while, but I must admit he gave excellent advice. Men, like yours truly, can be real goondoos sometimes, so listen to your wives, guys...

2. Eating. Yes, I love to eat, as opposed to drinking (alcohol, that is). And eat means, eating in, and eating wife's home cooked food. Not to say that she is the best cook in the world although I would like to believe so... it is the warm, comfy 'at-home' atmosphere... just the two of us, toasting on Japanese sake or red wine and chewing on peanuts before the main meal... lovely...

3. Sleeping. Yes, I love to snore in my warm futon. I normally hit the futon at around 10:00 and snooze off while listening to the news on radio... oooh, heavenly... normally get up at between 05:00 to 05:30...

4. Gardening. I can never get enough of this. It feels so marvelous and rewarding to see plants grow, and that you are the grower. What more, you get to eat them. I am into vegetables and fruit trees while my missus is into herbs... of course, failures overwhelm successes... but it is the joy of touching the soil that counts...

5. Photographing. Especially the head and shoulder portraits. Been fooling around with photographing for over two decades. Have tried the guitar. No cigar. Played the Japanese flute. Pooh, gave up after 8 years. Tried singing. Awww, the toads fled. But photographing, I just love it...

6. Bonus point... scuba diving of course... this is one activity that I enjoy tremendously with my buddy a.k.a. missus... just dived the Roach Reefs off Tawau... see here for some pics... am now contemplating on the next dive destination...

IS IT THE GENES OR THE ENVIRONMENT?

This issue of the Chinese man, Zulhaidi Omar, who was raised as a Muslim after being accidentally swapped at birth presents a pretty curious case...

Apparently he was not well treated by his accidental Malay-Muslim family...

He did not feel comfortable, having been teased and poked at his 'Chinese-ness' during his formative years...

At 13, he had enough and decided to move out of the family...

But, he is (or was) a so-called 'bumiputera'...

He could have seek out the 'privileges' accrued to his 'bumiputera' status...

But no, he chose to leave the family and now, the Islam religion...

In other words, at 13, he became independent, and started to work to support himself...

(I am shaking my head just to think of what great things I did at 13... probably zero...)

Now, is it in his Chinese genes that got him to strive and persevere despite the hostile circumstances?

He has been with his real family since his sister accidentally discovered him at a supermarket years ago...

His 'partner-in-victim'... the Malay boy, Teo Tian Fa, who was mistakenly switched the same time...

He of course, has been raised by his equally accidental Teo family as a charsiew-loving Chinese boy...

He apparently has no intentions to return to his 'real' Muslim family...

Hmmm... could it be the Teo family 'environment' that he was brought up in, that leads him to decide so?

Or perhaps, in this case, the 'genes' are not so big a contributive factor as Zulhaidi's case?

I know, I know... I am probably stretching my imagination a bit too far...

Anyway, I hope that the so-called religious authorities will leave them alone to decide for themselves if they want to continue lavishing the lard-laden, cholesterol-packed char koey teow or whatever...

Good luck to both Zulhaidi and Tian Fa...

FEELING MARVELOUS ON A SUNDAY MORNING

As usual, crawled up at a little past 5 this morning...

Outside temperature was a warm 10 degrees...

Quick little breakfast... left the house at 06:19 hours...

Really nice to drive on roads devoid of traffic...

Think I should do this more often...

This morning, we sent off the 19 students from Taiwan plus their good-looking lady chaperon teacher...

This was the 5th undertaking with regards to our intensive two-week Japanese Language Program...

Not too shabby a record in a span of two short years, eh?

Despite the early morning hours, numerous Japanese students and several host families came along (with their children as well) to bade them goodbye...

Was really touched by the host families' gesture...

It probably meant that they had an enjoyable time hosting the students...

So, tears (not mine but that of the students' and the host families') flowed freely as I clicked my camera away...

Man, I am again reminded of how lucky I am to have this job...

It feels wonderful to see people hooking up to one another...

People from different backgrounds, different languages...

And that, ahem... to know that yours truly is part of the team that is responsible for putting them together...

It is 08:42 hours on a really nice Sunday morning...

Now that the students are gone, yours truly is about to resume his real work researching on Japan's international student policy...

I should be going fishing, really...

WOMEN... CHILD BEARING MACHINES

Yes, you heard me right... women are but child bearing machines...

Women's groups are jumping mad at a Japanese politician for mumbling those words...

Now, what would men be, then?

Seed disseminating machines?

Expectedly, rival politicians are having a ball of a time scavenging...

They are going for his scalp...

See full report

MENTALLY CHALLENGED

Yours truly may sound like a broken record, but wooh... I have never been so busy in my life before...

I have to work 'smart', rather than only working 'hard'...

So, need to use my numbskull brain cells more to save energy and time...

Am currently hosting 19 students from Taiwan...

Only three guys, and the girls... sixteen of them...

Quite taxing, but loads of fun to mingle around them...

*** *** ***

Lately, there have been some terrible murders in Japan...

In a spate of days, three or four cases of bodies being chopped up and disposed...

Some Japanese friends asked... you don't have such gruesome murders in Malaysia, do you?

Hmmm... the Mongolian lady case immediately came to mind...

Errr, we do... in fact, we detonate the body up beyond recognition...

*** *** ***

On the New Straits Times suing the two bloggers...

Would be very interesting to watch...

Can't say much about the bad blood spilled among the parties involved, but the alleged plagiarism...

Would have solved quite a bit of problems if the NST writer just added a footnote saying the he took the idea from a certain blog...

The two articles do appear like they are twins... slightly un-identical in parts, but still, twins...

*** *** ***

Meanwhile, our prime minister is still in dreamland...

His words, actions... continuously riddle the mind...

As one writer aptly says, it is rather impolite to label him 'stupid'...

The prime minister, says the writer, is but 'mentally challenged'...

Hmmm, I really have to work 'smart' now....