on the turn of a Doosra

Like many Indians and Pakistanis, I'm sat in front of the laptop following live coverage of the India vs Pakistan World Cup semifinal.

Oooooohh, the thrill of it ! The nervous tension, the fingernails bitten to the quick.

Not that it matters a jot to me who wins, but the air-cond here is making me numb.

Cat's in the Cradle

Over the past two months, every Saturday afternoon has been punctuated with "Can we go to the swimming pool ?", and then, "Pleaseeeee ?"

I admit that it does take time away from what I want to do but I keep remembering that line from Harry Chapin's 'Cats in the Cradle' (here) :

He'd grown up just like me

My boy was just like me

And then I remember that I like playing with my girl. It's just that I like playing with her when it fits my schedule - but it never really works out that way, does it ?

Kids ask for your time and attention when they want to and not when it fits your schedule. And while I sometimes ask her to wait, there are also many occasions when an immediate response to a request leads to a short (or sometimes long) period of play and laughter and lots of tickling.

And then there are times when I remind myself that she's growing up and that I will have to play with her and read to her and love her while she still wants my company. Cos it won't be long before she becomes a Teenager.

Catriona's play list

For the past two weeks, Catriona's requests have been for Atilia's "Angel". Hardly a surprise really, as she had liked this song before and - since I put it on the play list - she's been reminded of the song.

This particular video is from Yasmin Ahmad's "Talentime" movie, which I liked, but not as much as the Orked/Sepet trilogy. It's also got Pamela Chong plonking on the ivory keys and lip synching but it's actually Atilia singing.

The difference in Catriona's request this time is that she doesn't mind Pete Teo's "I go" (here) and Fateh Ali Khan's "P Re Priya" (here) to be played as well. We play it in that order, back-to back- to back. Both of these songs are also featured in "Talentime".

Yasmin Ahmad made beautiful movies. She made some great ads too. She is sadly missed.

the City of Angels

Some photos from Dream's working trip to Los Angeles last week. She didn't have a lot of free time so there wasn't much opportunity to wander around and get lost in the Entertainment Capital of the World.

Route 66, The Main Street of America

the Adopt a Beach bin

I don't know if this was made in China but it sure looks like it

Venice Beach is in the background

bird - at beach, which is not even in the background

I almost, kinda like this (and don't you even mention about the beach)

Real Love

Following on from Julian Lennon's Saltwater, my past week has been filled with The Beatles "Real Love". Seriously, this sounds just like The Beatles all over again .... which it is.

Apparently John Lennon has a few versions of this song floating around - two of which can be found here and here.

People say that you can have too much of a good thing. That isn't the case here.

Notre Dame Cathedral, Paris - May 2010

When we walked into the Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, we were mainly interested in looking at the Gothic architecture, with a special focus on the stained glass windows. Being tourists, we were totally inconspicuous as the cathedral had tourists by the bus loads.

The building - and the stained glass windows - were grand. We walked around like unschooled children in a library. We knew that we liked the cathedral, it's just that we didn't know how to appreciate it.

It was quiet, though - being a house of worship. Quiet, that is, until we heard a stirring at the main altar. A service was starting, and since we had already stumbled into it, we decided to stay a while.

So while details of the Gothic architecture and stained glass windows are a little fuzzy in my mind, I do remember that I once heard the pipe organ at a service at the Notre Dame Cathedral.

vol. VIII

It's kind of blurry, isn't it ?

Just a few weeks ago, one of my friends admitted that she takes photographs through her car window even when it's raining. Not the journalistic, for-record-purposes kind of photograph but the type where she deems the photo 'artistic'.

Now, I do the same thing. So this led me to wonder whether we were one of a minority and also whether there was a branch of photography called 'Photos taken through a car/train/subway window when it's raining'.

As such, I was happy to see this particular image by renowned photographer Jay Maisel today.

I guess we're not nuts after all.

an Alternate View through the Lens

It was at the Sony World Photography Awards exhibition displayed at KLCC in Feb 2010 (here) that I first realized how much could be achieved with black and white photographs. Half the photographs there seemed to be in black and white.

Since then, I sometimes look at my old photographs and there are occasions when I wonder : "would this work ?" Quite a number of times, it does.

But looking at this photograph also makes me realize that there has probably been a ton of images which I did not capture simply because they did not looking interesting enough 'in colour'. That Sony Photography Exhibition was a real eye opener.

I use a Nikon.

7 Defenders ?

I can't believe that Arsenal, who played the strongest team they had available,


just got beaten by a Man United team with this team list :


That's 7 defenders in the team, with 6 of the team being squad members.

My first thought on seeing the team list was "what in the world is SAF thinking ? Seven defenders ??"

But it worked. And it was fun watching it work :-)

vol. VII : random photos on Travels

Street dance in Paris. Pose inspired by Eric Cantona.

Mount Kinabalu. I'd do it again.

this could be anywhere - but it's Langkawi

Langkawi. I was only using a compact camera at that time.

She was on Langkawi

Saltwater

I would like to introduce to you today a Beatle's son.

Julian Lennon may not have had a musical career anywhere near as accomplished as his father, and I certainly haven't heard much of his stuff, but when "Saltwater" first came out in 1991, I was instantly enamoured by it.

If you close your eyes when the song is playing, you might think that it's John you're listening to. It certainly reminds me of John's solo work.

There's a Doctor in the House ...

So Dr. Mahatir has had his memoirs published, and in it .....

Seriously, would having Lee Kuan Yew as Prime Minister of Malaysia been such a bad thing ?

Just take a look at Singapore today. And compare Singapore to Malaysia. Economically, Singapore is so much better off than Malaysia. And Singapore does not have any natural resources. Malaysia has got natural resources pouring out of it's ears.

Based on their track records, don't you think that Lee Kuan Yew would have done a better job than Dr. Mahatir if he had been the Prime Minister ? The principles of clean government, meritocracy and developing human capital could have been used to harness Malaysia's natural resources but ........ darn, Lee Kuan Yew's a Chinese, you know ? And a non-Malay cannot be Prime Minister of Malaysia. It's not in the Constitution, but it's understood .....

on Steel, Bricks and Mortar ....

This is from a construction site near my home.

The image I was trying to capture was the one I saw in my side view mirror as I drove to work. The construction site looked misty .... mystical .... with sunlight streaming through the dust.

But then again, the side view mirror isn't that big, and I only ever stole a quick glance at it. I made trips on two Sunday mornings in an attempt to capture what I saw in the side view mirror but couldn't get quite the shot I wanted.

Work on the building has since progressed so that particular photo op has expired.

Somebody please tell me Again why I am paying a Toll for This ?

This is a Standard Operating Procedure every working day.

I blame Dr Mahatir for this.

Instead of using Malaysia's oil money to build a decent public transport system, he went about setting up a car making industry. A car making industry that :

* Raises the prices of other cars so that Malaysia's local Proton cars are cheaper by comparison. This is called Protectionism. This also means that Joe Public has to pay relatively more to own a car. Relatively a LOT more.

* 20 years after they were set up, it was gratifying to hear Proton say that the quality of many of their local vendors were not up to par. Seriously, it took them 20 years to realize that and take some action ? It's also nice to know that Joe Public has been paying for sub-standard quality for 20 years.

In Proton's defence, their poor quality has been an open secret. Joe Public simply kept on buying because the other cars were so much more expensive.

* led to more roads being built (haphazardly), more toll plazas set up (Yo, Samy!), and yes, more traffic jams. All in the interest of selling more Protons, of handing out more APs, of collecting toll.

As much as I would like to take public transport to work, there is no way I can do it because .......... there is no public transport from my home to my work place ! Driving to the nearest LRT station would take longer compared to my driving direct to my work place. That traffic jam you see in the photos ? That's between my home and the LRT station.

I could go on and on about Malaysia's lack of a decent public transport system but I have to go to sleep. Have to wake up early as I have to allocate additional time to navigate my way through a traffic jam.

I Started a Joke

I just heard this on the radio :

Every time I hear this song, it reminds me of the time I was a teenager spending 4 weeks in an Outward Bound course at Lumut.

Imagine the sounds of a jungle at night, walking in the near-darkness on grass, the muted sounds of conversation and one single strumming acoustic guitar coupled with one voice softly singing "I started a joke...."

It was most affecting - and ever since then this song has been my favourite Bee Gees song.

Standard 1 registration procedure for Selangor 小学一年级报名程序

The registration only open for children born in the year of 2005 and 2006 for this year.

First step:
Log into this link: http://apps.moe.gov.my/esppsel/ and do online registration. But before that make sure you know the district which the school is located before you start. To check on the district, log into this link http://www.moe.gov.my/jpnselangor/jkict/indexTS.php and key in the name of the school which you wanted to register.


The online application software has 4 pages, fill in the necessary information and click "send". If the web page is too overload, it will skip page 3 and 4, instead there will be a statement noted as: "Tiada sekolah dipilih, hubungi pejabat pelajaran daerah yang terdekat untuk maklumat lanjut." The best time to log in is after midnight.

After that, the parent still need to go to the selected school for dossiers verification. Dossiers need to bring along when confirm the registration at selected school:
Sila bawa bersama dokumen seperti di bawah semasa penghantaran borang：
－已在网上填妥完毕并打印出来的申请表格 (2 份) Cetakan Borang Permohonan Penempatan (2 salinan)
－正本孩子报生纸或领养孩童证书 Surat Beranak anak yang asal atau Sijil Anak Angkat.
－复印孩子报生纸 （ 1 张 ) Salinan sijil beranak anak ( 1 salinan)
－复印父母身份证（各1 张） Salinan kad pengenalan ibu bapa ( 1 salinan)
－电费单据或水费单据或门牌税单据 。( 最新的) Bil elektrik atau Bil air atau Bil cukai pintu. ( terkini )
－复印父母结婚/ 离婚证书（ 1 张 ) Salinan surat nikah / cerai ibu bapa ( 1 salinan)
－正本及副本租约,如果住的是租屋。 Dokumen perjanjian sewa rumah asal dan salinan fotostat jika menyewa.
－白色信封 4X9 (贴上60仙邮票), 不须写上地址 4 X 9 Sampul surat bersetem RM 0.60 . Tidak perlu tulis alamat pada sampul surat.

At the school, the teacher will chops at the back of the original birth certificate and also writes down the ID of the registration.

After the online registration, you will received a confirmation letter from Jabatan Pelajaran Selangor. The email will have the user name and ID stated, keep that for future reference.

The period for school verification varied from school to school, do check with the school for the time and period allowed.

Giggsy

Hard to believe that Ryan Giggs made his first team Manchester United debut against Everton all of 20 years ago today. 20 years of consistently excellent, frequently brilliant football. 20 years worth of memories in which that man Giggs has graced.

There were many highlight moments, of course, but like most Manchester United fans, my abiding memory of Giggs will always be THAT goal against Arsenal in the 1999 FA Cup semifinal replay (here). I must have been jumping and shouting and screaming when he scored that goal cos I don't remember much about what I did then.

So I'll raise a glass tonight for Ryan Giggs. Thanks for the memories and I hope that there will be more to come.

How to apply nonimmigrant US visa for Malaysian

Now that I had got my visa, I can shared a little bit how it was done.

First of all, of course you need to have a valid passport (at least 6 months validity). Than you need to register online at this link, http://www.ustraveldocs.com/my/index.html. Please note, the official embassy website of US in Kuala Lumpur also content some information about the visa application but it is not very clear. So, to avoid any confusion just refer to this link. The website homepage will look like this. To understand the whole visa application better, just click on the Nonimmigrant Visa Information page.

In a nutshell the process go like this

Step 1 Pay the visa application fee.

Step 2 Complete the Nonimmigrant Visa Electronic Application (DS-160) form.

Note: If you pay your visa application fee in cash at a Standard Chartered Bank, then you can schedule your interview within four hours of payment. If you pay online at Bank then you can schedule as soon as 3:00pm on the first banking day following the date of payment.

Fee Payment Options

Cash at Bank

Any nonimmigrant visa applicant can pay their visa application fee in cash at any designated Standard Chartered Bank branch. You must bring your passport or a copy of your passport's bio page to the bank when you pay the visa fee. At the bank, you must write your passport number, fee payment amount and your telephone number in the U. S. visa fee collection slip available at the bank. After receiving your payment, the bank will give you a receipt.

Online Payment

If you have an account with Standard Chartered Bank you may choose to pay your visa application fee online using Standard Chartered Bank's online bill pay service.

Note: It is important that you correctly type your payment code (also called a UID) into the online payment form when you pay your fee online. The payment code is created after you create your online profile at the beginning of the online payment process. This code verifies your payment and allows you to schedule your visa interview. Please note the UID number is consists of 8 numeric number, it is NOTthe confirmation number after you filled in the DS-160 which consists of numeric number and alphabet. Should you fill the UID number wrongly, the verification process from bank and agency will take 7-10 working days.

Step 3 Schedule your appointment. You will need three pieces of information in order to schedule your interview appointment:

• Your passport number.
• Your fee payment receipt purchase date (due to banking regulations, this date may be later than the date you actually paid your fee).
• The ten (10) digit barcode number from your DS-160 confirmation page
• Your UID number

Step 4 Visit the U.S. Embassy in Kuala Lumpur on the date and time of your visa interview. You will need to bring a printed copy of your appointment letter, your DS-160 confirmation page, one recent photograph, your current and all old passports, and the original visa fee payment receipt. Applications without all of these items will not be accepted.

Step 5 Your passport and visa are returned to you by courier to the address that you gave when fill in the DS-160, 2-3 days after your interview.

The location of US Embassy in Kuala Lumpur is as below. Note the traffic in this area is normally a nightmare, go there early. The embassy is kind of secretive with no sign board or any flag to be seeing. So just watch out for the entrance along a white cement wall. There will be a guard there to guide the crowd.

You can only bring along handphone, no other electronic items are allowed. You will need to leave handphone, car keys or any paper spray at the gate. After that you will be giving a calling number. First there is a counter (no.2) to check your dossiers, than another counter (no.3) to do the fingers printing and finally the other counter (no.4 or no.5) for the interview. The whole process can take about 2-3 hours, so get ready some books to read there. If the application is successful than the official will give you a visa pick up card and asks you to wait for your visa. It should be arrived at your door steps soon.

If you really need to, can contact the agency at this number for assistant.

• Malaysia Callers - If you are in Malaysia, please call 603 2302 3988.
• International Callers - If you are calling from the United States, you can reach a customer service representative at (214) 571-1600. Hours of operation in the continental U.S. are 7pm-7am EST / 6pm-6am CST / 5pm-5am MST / 4pm-4am PST.

Everything but the Girl

Here's an interesting little photo.

It's a furniture shop in Hull, England called Turners. You can see beside Turners, the sign "Everything but the Girl". What's significant about that is that it is the inspiration for the naming of the musical duo

The original caption at Turners was a window sign that read "for your bedroom needs, we sell everything but the girl". Ha ha, pretty amusing, no ?

I've got some of their stuff but strangely enough the one that I play most often is not one of their hits. It's actually a cover of a Simon and Garfunkel song.