29 May 2007

Meeting Bloggers

Last night was brilliant, simply brilliant. After a long day of not-working-so-hard at work; a tedious workout at the ever-packed gym; and rushing through heavy traffic to meet a friend I seldom have the opportunity to meet, I still found time to stop by The Curve’s beyond popular Laundry.

The SMS invitation I received from Robert – “Laundry@9pm tonight Presenting unkaleong. Ticket priced at 1 jug of beer. For limited time only.”

Hey! UnkaLeong worhhh… talk of the town. Didn’t want to pass up the chance to pick his brain just a little more with regards to getting abs like King Leonidas of 300. I gladly bought the 1 jug of beer.

The highlight of the evening wasn’t just meeting up with Robert, Chee How & UnkaLeong. I also got to meet some notorious bloggers who are constantly mentioned at UnkaLeong’s blog. Strangely, we were all introduced as our blog names rather than our real names. So to be fair to them, I’ll allow the anonymity by introducing this delightful bunch as:
You Get What You Give
Kampungkayell
Jade(D) Poetry
A Whiff of Lemongrass

A Whiff of Lemongrass has already blogged about our impromptu gathering of bloggers. I just love her comment about me, simply because no one has ever said that about me before. If you want to know what she said, click here.

A peculiar observation I made is that though I am by far the youngest of the lot, we don’t look far apart in terms of age. The 40-yr-olds look like they’re in the early 30’s. The 30-yr-olds look like they’re in their early 20’s. And then there’s me – the 25-yr-old who, well, I guess I just look my age. I concluded that in order to look younger than I really am, I will have to blog more. Too bad for you guys who have to suffer the torment! Wahahaha!

Oh, another thing. Not to gloat or anything, but I’ve always felt that I speak pretty good English. Yet these people’s command of English made me feel inferior. Bah!

Overall, it was a refreshing experience. I totally enjoyed meeting these people and look forward to getting acquainted with others in the community of bloggers.

21 May 2007

Wedding Bells

A previous post of mine mentioned someone very close to me is getting married. I attended the marriage registration last Saturday which took place at Thean Hou Temple, just off Federal Highway.

I got the time wrong apparently. When she first announced it about 3 weeks back, she told me - “11am, go a little earlier”. I made a mental note – “noon, go a little earlier”.

I decided to do a last minute check just to see exactly what time she and her fiancé would be there. When I called her at 10.25am, she told me she was already on the way and I should try to be there by 10.45am. Shit! I was still in my pajamas goddamnit!

I took a really quick shower (more like a sprinkle), threw on some decent clothes and rushed out of the house. Thank goodness I live where I live. SS2 is like 10 minutes drive from ANYWHERE (assuming smooth traffic). I reached the temple at 10.47am. I was there even before the groom arrived *damn proud*.

It’s a good thing I decided to check... else I’d have arrived at the temple just in time to leave for lunch instead.

*Note to self: Stop taking mental notes and start writing them down instead.

Dearest Jane, congratulations! Would you prefer Mdm Ching or Mrs Chai?

18 May 2007

Some Truths Are A Hassle

Funny thing today – it seems work in our office has slowed down so much that we can even afford the time to have a nice meal (Nasi Lemak & KFC) in the office before lunch hour… and then follow through with a DVD show in the conference room using the Sales GM’s notebook and our LCD projector.

An extended lunch break is rare indeed. We resumed work at 2.45pm – never before.

The interesting thing is that it wasn’t just any other show out of Hollywood. This one was special. It was meaningful. It was impactful.

How many of you have seen the documentary “An Inconvenient Truth”? If you haven’t yet, this is seriously a must watch. It was truly enlightening for me and I will most definitely be looking at our world in a different way from now on.

You must watch the documentary – period.

Visit climatecrisis.org if you want to make a difference. We HAVE to start making a difference.

17 May 2007

Meaning Of Life

I believe there's more to life than just "existing". I hope to one day achieve something worth being remembered for, even if that remembrance is only for a short period after I’m gone.

I sure hope that even now my existence adds value to the lives around me. I know a good many of my family and friends have that effect on me. I live quite a fulfilling life at the moment, and I must say that a great part of the fulfillment is owed to you. Thank you all very much! *hugs*

I hope that everyone in general has the opportunity to find a sense of fulfillment. It maybe in the things you’ve achieved, the people around you, or the passions you have. Whatever it is, once you’ve found it don’t ever give it up without a fight.

Though I may be doing well, but why stop here right? It’s time to set out on a new adventure – to add value to the lives around me.

What sort of hopes and dreams do you have? What adds meaning to your life?

14 May 2007

On A Leaf

Some many years back during my younger years, I never steered my life's course. I simply let the winds of change and tides of influence determine my path and I was content to stand wherever I wound up, like a falling leaf. This went on for such a long period that I soon found myself lost in the labyrinth of life.

When I was about 19 years of age, some 5 to 6 years back, I set out on a personal campaign to find myself. I initiated little quests to figure out the kind of person I had been, and still was. After much pondering and deep thought, I came to the conclusion that I was still lost in the life's amazingly vast maze.

I grew tired and gave the campaign a rest. I went back to being a leaf whose destiny would be determined by the winds, content with whatever the outcome.
Now, years later, I reminisce on these moments where I went looking for myself but found nothing so much as a map or a guide. I believe that I've finally figured it out without even realizing it.

The things I have done in the past one year have really defined me. Instead of looking for myself, I should have created myself. Instead of aiming to be content, I should have aimed to be happy and proud of where I would end up standing.

The lesson was learnt a little late, but better late than never. Now I know.

Are you a leaf? Or are you the captain steering your ship across the seas of life, charting your course and choosing your destination?

If you are the the captain, remember to modify your ship with the improvements and enhancements necessary to face the different sea conditions you'll come to face on the way to your destination.

11 May 2007

books@me Achieves 10,000 Hits

books@me is a blog by UnkaLeong to keep his friends and family updated on his life while he’s away living and working in Thailand. His updates are like entries of a personal journal with his views and opinions on anything which catches his attention. I generally enjoy his point of view. Makes for an interesting read when I have nothing to do in the office.

UnkaLeong’s blog got hit for the ten thousandth time yesterday afternoon at 2.30pm. When I realized his blog’s counter was showing “10,000” while I was reading, I decided to send him a screenshot as a souvenir.He rewarded me in return by posting a shout out to beingmervs@blogspot. Thanks bro!

He also touched a bit on my goal to gain some weight this year so I feel obliged to give an update just in case you guys are curious.

When I first started at the gym, I started each workout with a 2km jog for warm up. I couldn’t jog faster than 7.5kmph if I wanted to keep a constant speed for the whole 2km. That’s actually the embarrassing transition range between a fast walk and a slow jog. Four months later, my threadmill session comprises of the following:-
First 100m – 5kmph
Next 900m, up to 1km mark – 10.0kmph
Next 750m, up to 1.75km mark – 11.0kmph
Final 250m, 12.0kmph
Cool down phase – 6.0kmph

I’ve come a long way since I first started. I’m happy.

I also improved my diet by watching my food intake and getting on a nutrition shake (with lots of protein) program. Effectively I’m taking 5 meals a day on average, not including snacks & the occasional supper.

The results:-
When I first started: 54.5kgs, waist size 24 inches (yea, embarrassing for a 1.75m tall guy)
Today, 4 months later: 60kgs ± 1kg; waist size 29 inches (think I grew a belly because not enough emphasis on abs at the gym)

Six kilos + five inches, I’m proud. Most people don't see any obvious change. Only Robert has mentioned noticing a difference so far. I know my wetsuit is getting overly tight and I'm starting to suffocate in it.

Going to stretch my target and get to a range of 63kgs - 65kgs; waist size about 31 or 32 inches. Hopefully my results will be more obvious by then. Maybe I’ll even find my 6-pack again soon. Once I get there, I'll reward myself by buying a new wetsuit to fit the my new size.

Anyway, once again a big congrats to UnkaLeong for reaching the 10,000-hit milestone. I’m a long way away but I’m sure it’ll happen too. Hopefully I’ll get a screenshot when the time comes.

10 May 2007

Drama on Flirty@10.30

My car stereo is usually tuned into Fly 95.8fm. Last night as I was on my way back from a mahjong session, I managed to catch a portion of Fly FM's Flirty@10.30.

For those of you who don’t know, this program is to help people who are shy get a date with someone they are interested in. What you do is write in to Fly FM with your details as well as the name and phone number of the person you want to ask out on a date. If you’re chosen, they get you on the line, and then they call up the other person and tell them someone’s interested to date them. They drop a few hints about your identity and hopefully your eye candy will be able to guess who you are. They then ask if he/she would like to go out on a date with you.

I’m not a huge fan of the program but sometimes the candidates’ stories can be quite interesting. Last night’s episode was one of them.

I missed the first part where Deejay gets Jane to tell her story. Jane wants to ask her ex-boyfriend Johnson out on a date, because she still has feelings for him, and she thinks that he also still has feelings for her.

Here’s where I tuned in…
Deejay calls Johnson up and asks if he knows what Flirty@10.30 is all about. Johnson is familiar with the program so they cut to the chase.

Deejay starts dropping hints and Johnson figures out whom his admirer is – Jane.

Deejay says: So Johnson, Jane still has feelings for you and she thinks that you also still have feelings for her. Would you like to go out on a date with her?
Johnson says: Yes, I’d like that a lot (very enthusiastically)
Deejay says: Well Johnson, Jane’s on the line. Say hi guys.
Jane says: Hi Johnson.
Johnson says: Hold on, you’re not Jane…
Jane says: No I’m not. I’m your girlfriend Tasha.

(WHAT THE F@%K?!?!)

Deejay says: huh???? Wait a minute! What???
(awkward silence)

Deejay says: I don’t know what to say.
Jane (Tasha) says: There’s nothing left to be said. Bye. (hangs up)
(awkward silence)

Deejay says: What just happened here?!?! That wasn’t Jane? That was your girlfriend Tasha pretending to be Jane?
Johnson says: Yea, that was actually my current girlfriend Tasha.
Deejay says: I don’t know what to say man. I really didn’t know.
Johnson says: That’s alright, I completely understand. I should get going.
Deejay says: Ok man. I hope you have a nice night... urh, hopefully your night will still be ok. urh.. you know what I mean.
Johnson says: Yea. Thanks. Bye. (hangs up)

And then the station starts broadcasting advertisements. How clever!

After hearing what I just heard, I sat at the red traffic light with my jaw dropped and face numb thinking – “like that also can?!?!”

What sane person would think that Johnson is still going to have a nice night after what just happened? It's like throwing a guy into a pot of boiling water and then saying "i hope you have fun swimming around in there".

Can't blame the Deejay either. Johnson screwed up big time.

And then again, it was really mean of Tasha to do that over national radio. She has trust issues, and she totally handled it the wrong way. Good luck to her in finding another boyfriend.

These days even radio stations have their fair share of drama. Amazing!

07 May 2007

Hitting Rock Bottom

Boy oh boy! I didn't realize it's been so long since I last updated. Enjoying life a little too much I guess! Haha!

A recent training conducted by one of the top network marketing companies taught me something new. When some of the most successful people in the industry spoke of their background, I realized that although each has his/her own distinct story about the hardships faced before starting in this business, they all have one thing in common – hitting rock bottom before climbing their way to the top.

Don’t be surprised if you ever hear one of these self-made millionaires relating his/her story of bankruptcy in their not too distant past. The impressive thing is how they have turned it all around and today they earn some hundreds of thousands of Ringgit each month.

Their successes are very inspiring and I want to succeed like they have. But I don’t want to wait till I hit rock bottom before making positive changes to my life.

If you want things to change for the better, you have to change for the better.

If you’re looking for an opportunity to change your life for the better, drop me a mail at gooihup@hotmail.com. What we have to offer may or may not be what you’re looking for, but be pro-active and find out for yourself!

Remember - we’re ALWAYS at “the right place, the right time”. You just have to have open eyes and an open mind.