A Couple Missed Free Throws

Darius McNeal

In the sort of story line that happens in movies, Darius McNeal missed his free throws, his team lost the game and everybody got together for a pizza dinner after the game.

I'm not going to say much about this sypnosis since the original article is here, but the fact that it's reported indicates that it's something that rarely happens in the competitive sports world. I'm talking about the competitive sports world, not the casual sports world that most of us inhabit. A world where stats, trophies, chicks and (ultimately) money flow to the young men and women who are able to make the grade.

Hmmm..... maybe they'll make a movie out of this.

Celtics position themselves for the stretch run

Just before the trade deadline on 1st March, the Celtics have signed free agent Mikki Moore to shore up their front line rotation. Dude's 7 foot tall and they've been looking for somebody that tall to slot into the P.J. Brown role that proved so crucial in their winning the NBA title last year.

Now, Mikki Moore's nowehere near as talented or experienced as P.J. Brown, but other than Joe Smith, there is no other free agent big out there more valuable than him right now. Since Joe Smith had not yet reached a buyout agreement with his club, the Celtics decided that they couldn't wait any longer and grabbed Moore from a clutch of other contending teams.

However, the more interesting name that keeps popping up with the Celtics is Stephon Marbury.

Stephon Marbury - Boston bound ?

A two time All-Star described by J.A. Adande as having a "reputation for being a destructive force on teams, considered so toxic by the Knicks that they paid him most of his $22 million salary just to stay away from the team". Yes, it looks like Danny Ainge is prepared to roll the dice with a player generally acknowledged as the worst locker room influence in the NBA. A player whose last team pretty much said : "Here's your money. Go play far, far away". That's $22 million a year, which is pretty much the maximum that Marbury can be paid under salary cap rules in the NBA.

Danny Ainge - will lightning strike twice ?

I guess that's why Ainge gets paid the big bucks to make the big decisions. He's been right more often than he's been wrong, and he's built a championship winning team so who am I to argue with him ? Besides, with 30 teams in the NBA and only 1 winner a year, it's almost a prerequisite that one must take risks to have a chance to end up on top of the pile. And since the Celtics will be paying Marbury only a few hundred thousand till the end of the season, and can cut him from the squad anytime they want to, downside risks is minimal.

Which brings us to the sociological part of the equation. Will the infamous locker room killer aka Marbury prevail, or will the Celtics renowned team spirit overcome the negativity ? Only time will tell, but if it works, the Celtics would have gotten themselves a very talented player on the cheap to help them in their quest to retain the NBA title.

Alfie

I've just finished dancing with Catriona to this tune :



It's got such a jaunty beat and has a really happy melody - perfect for kids - but check out the lyrics. Well, maybe not all the lyrics. This is the cleaned up version.

Day 1 of Michelle in Singapore

I had just finished my shower and was getting out of the bathroom when I stopped in my tracks. There was a naked girl in my bed.

So I asked : "What are you doing naked?"

And eventually, the answer came : "Take photo."

It seems like Catriona is shedding her clothes every so often nowadays. I walk away from her for a while and the next thing I know, there's a naked girl wandering into the room. I've been informed that the entire getting naked philosophy is influenced by the younger babies at her nanny's place. I just hope that it's a phase she'll grow out of. The getting naked philosophy might be a tad inconvenient if she ever becomes a politician.

(MACC) Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission

Perhaps it was unintentional but it seems like Badawi has hit the nail on the head when naming the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (short-form MACC or alternatively, ma cchai which is Cantonese for lackey).

Take a look at this article on the MACC from Citizen Nades - Let's have updates on all graft cases.

In it, he congratulates the MACC on the speediness of their investigation into Selangor Mentri Besar Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim's abuse of power case. He also reminds the MACC of the many, many, many other cases which are still outstanding - no prizes for guessing that all of them involve the BN directly, or the administration under BN. Nades doesn't criticize the MACC for their intention to indict Abdul Khalid - in fact, he commends it. But take a look at the list of reports that have not been acted upon by the MACC and you can draw your own conclusions on whether the MACC is impartial and independent.

Eli

Here's a profile of Elizabeth Wong, currently one of Malaysia's most infamous politicians for unfortunate reasons. It gives one a rather favourable impression of her and details a lifestyle practised by many social activists.

The line that caught my eye was this :

"Her house usually looks as if it has been hit by a typhoon with her things sprawled everywhere. But the only two things that stand out as they are neatly arranged are her books and her photos."

Sounds like my home, all right. Only, in our case, the typhoon has a name. And it's name is Catriona.

NB. For the record, losing a committed and able lawmaker like Eli for a dumbass reason as in her case is unfortunate and unnecessary. And yes, I totally blame UMNO for it.

The Lake

For the past few weeks I've noticed a lake that's become visible right beside the phase 2 wing of IOI Mall. The fence around that piece of private property had been dismantled as the construction work nears the end. My curiosity about how photogenic the lake was was satisfied as I finally got around to taking the photos :

It's a picture of tranquility that's deceptive as right behind me, as I was taking the photos, were six lanes worth of motor vehicles.

Of Independents, Nude Photos, Cars and Cows ...

Do you get the feeling that Malaysia is a country in crisis ? While countries all over the world are dealing with the financial crisis, we in Malaysia just cannot get past the political crisis that started from 08.03.08. In that context, the financial crisis has been relegated to the background as far as our political leaders are concerned. Yes, while our politicians are fighting over the riches that is ship Malaysia, they don't seem to have noticed that the ship is sinking. Maybe they don't care that it's sinking.

The way I see it right now, and the way it's been for quite a while, is that Malaysia isn't really one unified country, but is instead a coalition of four distinct and interlocking states :

* urban Malaysia

* rural Malaysia i.e. the Malay heartland

* Sabah & Sarawak

* UMNO Nation

A cursory read of the news would suggest that some of the actions and comments of politicians are meant more for UMNO Nation than they are for the good of the nation, or honest opinions for that matter.

And while we're on this, doesn't it seem like the actions of the PDRM, MACC, A-G, et. al., favour the BN ? Well, at least it seems that way to me. Cases like the super fast-tracking of an UMNO lawyer to be Malaysia's Chief Justice only serve to reinforce the notion that many of Malaysia's instituitions have been compromised by UMNO.

I would like to think that the ramifications of all that's been going on will be reflected in the next General Elections, but I wonder if there will be an Opposition left to vote for. Or will they all be in jail ? Or independent but friendly to BN ? Or sleeping in the nude ? (I've done it before, haven't you ?)

The Third Nipple

In growing up in the 80's, my musical education was greatly influenced by the British music scene. It was the period of New Wave and Modern Romantics and Boy George. And the creativity and diverse influences that emerged from that period I found truly fascinating, and continues to enthrall me today.

Since then, I've expanded my musical horizons quite a bit but the Brits still hold a special place in my heart. Maybe it's just me, but I've always felt that since that time, the British music scene was more likely to produce music that was creative and embraced multiple influences when compared to their counterparts in the USA.

Maybe it has to do with the fact that Britain being a smaller market, it's easier for the esoteric types to climb the music charts and thus be noticed. I mean, where else can you find Bob The Builder hitting #1 on the music charts ? Certainly not in America where the prevalence of rap or soul/r&b types has left little room for other musical influences. Of course, the flip side of this diversity of musical influences is that quite a fair bit of dross gets thrown up as well. But since we get to pick what we listen to, this isn't really a problem.

Anyway, what's been on my play list at the moment is Lily Allen. She's built up quite a decent body of work, but 'The Fear' is the current #1 in Britain.



If you're wondering what the title of this post is all about, it refers to the well known fact that Lily Allen has a 3rd nipple.

Peeve

What is it about Malaysian drivers and their seeming inability to use indicator lights while driving ? Today on my way to work, I had one car cutting right across me without the indicator lights being used – and yes, I was irritated. It’s not like I was that far away from the car, maybe about 5-10 meters. Does the driver expect me to be able read her mind ? Not only that, does she expect me to read her mind when she’s in another car ?

I also saw a lorry going across four lanes within 150 meters without the driver using his signal lights at all! Mind you, this was in a busy area with quite a fair amount of traffic, it being the tail end of rush hour traffic. Once again, the expectation is that the drivers of some 20-30 cars are expected to know what the lorry driver intends to do.

And most shocking of all, when I was on the ELITE highway, one of the highway workers started running across the 3-lane highway in a direct collision path with my car! I was in the middle lane and had to shift one lane to avoid hitting her. Granted that mine was the lone car in front and that there were a bunch of cars further behind, and crossing a 3-lane highway is difficult to do, but running in a direct collision path with my car is simply throwing any notions of safety out the window. In a collision between steel vs flesh, guess which is going to win ?

I may not have been speeding, but what if I were sms-ing at the time ? If people are going to do something as stupid and dangerous as this, they shouldn’t assume that the other party is not doing something as stupid and dangerous as well.

Just Once In A Very Blue Moon

Amongst all the news items about recession, defections and whatnot, this little nugget could escape notice :

Drug giant GlaxoSmithKline pledges cheap medicine for world’s poor

In a major change of strategy, the new head of GlaxoSmithKline, Andrew Witty, has told the Guardian he will slash prices on all medicines in the poorest countries, give back profits to be spent on hospitals and clinics and — most ground-breaking of all — share knowledge about potential drugs that are currently protected by patents.

Witty says he believes drug companies have an obligation to help the poor get treatment. He challenges other pharmaceutical giants to follow his lead.

I mean, WoW!

What this Andrew Witty is proposing changes all the ground rules in the pharmaceutical industry. It's not so much the cheaper medicine made available in developing countries (he's proposing huge cuts in prices) - the proposal to make GSK's research available for sharing is mind-blowing ! I mean, can you imagine Microsoft saying that they'll share all their research with you ?

Andrew Witty - will his proposals make him a marked man ?

What is Courage ?

With thanks to my cousin Darren for sharing the meaning of courage with me.

What is the meaning of courage?

Is it to fight a bull in a bullfight?

Is it to drive a formula 1 car?

Is it to fly a fighter in combat?

Is it to practice free falling parachuting?

Is it bungee jumping, wild water rafting?

Is it to gamble your salary on a coin toss?

Is it to insult the doorman in a bar?

Is it to insult your boss?

Is it to go on a defective ferris wheel?

Bullshit…that is nothing… THIS is COURAGE!!!

a Vacancy that's Difficult to Fill

With Malaysian politics in the state it's in, I decided to check out the definition of a statesman (i.e. a respectable politician, and no, it's not an oxymoron).

This is what Wikipedia has to say :

A statesman or stateswoman or statesperson is usually a politician or other notable figure of state who has had a long and respected career in politics at the national and international level. As a term of respect, it is usually left to supporters or commentators to use the term.

Statespersonship also conveys a quality of leadership that organically brings people together and of eldership, a spirit of caring for others and for the whole.

Anyone elected to office is a politician but only a few consistently manage to work as disinterested promoters of the public good with integrity. There is a huge difference between the two.

And this is what Sir Winston Churchill has to say :

"A politician thinks about the next elections - the stateman thinks about the next generations."


So, how many of Malaysia's politicians would you call a statesman ?

Perak

There isn't anything I can say about the Perak situation that hasn't been covered in greater depth and insight elsewhere. My personal thoughts :

* Najib totally outfoxed Anwar in this matter. And while this indicates that Najib may have more brains than some people give him credit for, the lack of morality and ethics shown throughout the affair scares me because ...... isn't Najib supposed to be Malaysia's Prime Minister-in-waiting ?

* The execution of the entire plan, including the ransacking of MB Nizar's office, indicate a degree of ruthlessness and use of force that I'm not comfortable with.

* The Pakatan Rakyat (PR) government contributed greatly to their own demise by not dissolving the state assembly when they still could. By the time they decided to do it, it was too late and was akin to closing the barn door after the horses have bolted.

* I don't have much sympathy for the PR government as it was Anwar who publicly started the whole 'katak' hopping between parties issue. Having said that, I greatly symphatize with the Perak people who now have a state government that they didn't vote in.

* We are now left in a situation where BN could 'persuade' enough state assemblymen in the remaining 4 PR states to defect to take over those state governments. If this were to happen, the very least that the BN could do is to pay me for my vote. In fact, they could just pay me every 5 years so that we won't have to go through the charade of a General Election.

* Mitigating factors for PR embracing defections are the actions of the BN federal government since the March 8th elections : lack of cooperation with PR state governments, freeze of funds to PR states, etc.

* Maybe this affair will force Anwar to concentrate on fixing the cracks in the PR coalition rather than trying to unseat BN.

* Karpal Singh has to learn to count to ten before shooting his mouth off. Like it or not, Anwar is the only one holding the PR together. You may not agree with all of Anwar's policies or intentions, but asking for Anwar's head is throwing out the baby with the bath water.

* While we're at it, don't these 3-4 defections merit a serious look from the authorities for corruption ?

* And since it's been confirmed by witnesses that Najib met a PKR Perak assemblyman a mere 2-3 days after the GE on 8th March, what does it say about who actually started the party hopping issue ? Or perhaps said assemblyman needed some assistance with a scholarship and Najib was only too willing to help ? Or maybe even said assemblyman needed some advice from Najib after being sodomised ?

* How can UMNO be serious about eradicating money politics after this episode ?

* The fact that UMNO is refusing to hold state elections as a way of breaking the impasse speaks volumes about what their stand is with regard to the wishes of the rakyat. Or alternatively, what they think of taking their chances in a state election.

Well, the events only go to show one thing :

MALAYSIA BOLEH

Obligatory CNY Traditions II

The latter portion of our trip to Penang showcased.

Catriona with her immediate uncle and aunty.

Tossing the yee sang. A delicacy 'invented' in Singapore.

With some of her cousins. The little girl's name, Kayleen, has the same meaning as Catriona.

Catriona's grandmother pointing out the common denominator in all the photographs.You don't have to be up close to guess who it is.

Her grandpa spent an hour with her at Borders while the parents were at Starbucks. Obligatory trip to bookshop when at shopping complex is a tradition for us.

We found ourselves with 30 minutes to burn so we spent it at a playground.

Catriona proving that size doesn't matter on a see saw.

Bridge at the garden of the playground. The thing about photos is that you can't smell the stink of the stream below the bridge.

Michelle with aspirations to be a Bollywood star.

A new waterfront has been revealed with the opening of Queensbay Mall.

You can create your own private world if you concentrate hard enough.

Taking the Bollywood angle to the streets.

With her cousin Ashley. They started really interacting on this trip as Catriona has learnt to play together with Ashley. As opposed to playing beside Ashley. In fact, I overheard them discussing the various methods of drinking a yoghurt drink.

The future's so bright, I gotta wear shades.

Ashley getting in on the act.

My father getting in on the act.

and Catriona finished off the sessions with a few poses.

Sunday morning, 4 am

It's 4 in the morning.

I've just watched Man Utd notch yet another 1-0 victory, I've got Jason Mraz's "I'm Yours" on the stereo and I'm wondering what this girl is doing disturbing her uncle and stopping him from getting his beauty sleep.






I don't know whether it's 100 Plus or Energizer that she runs on, but it seems like staying up late isn't something that she struggles with.