An Italian Girl

A woman goes to Italy to attend a 2-weeks company training session. Her husband drives her to the airport and wishes her to have a good trip. The wife answers, "Thank you, honey. What would you like me to bring for you?"

The husband laughs and says, "An Italian girl!!!" The woman kept quiet and left.

Two weeks later he picks her up at the airport and asks, "So, honey, how was the trip?"
"Very good, thank you." she replied.
"And, what happened to my present?"
"Which present?" she asked.
"The one I asked for - an Italian girl!!"
"Oh, that," she said.

"Well, I did what I could, now we have to wait for nine months to see if it is a girl!!!"

Lesson learnt: Be careful with what you asked from a woman!!
Tags: Italy, Company Training, Italian Girl, Jokes, Funny, Humour

Beetle Car in Subang Jaya

* Correction - Jane of CHEbeh Expression brought me to my senses. The car's design was supposed to reflect a LADYBIRD. What was I thinking when I was typing this post. My friend was working with the Ladybird children's book those days and they presented this car to him. Though it's still known as a Beetle Car worldwide.

Original posting:
I think I could say that this is only real Beetle Car in Malaysia. It's still in running condition and it belongs to my friend who's staying in Subang Jaya. Went over to his house over the past weekend. Cute isn't it? I bet it attracts more attention than a Ferrari. Tags: Beetle, Beetle Car, Volkswagon, Car, Ladybird

Uncivic Minded Residents

Human beings being human beings but some are worse than a human being. If you are staying in the same condominium, where's your sense of cleanliness. Just look at my condo's ground floor. When I came down earlier, the rubbish bin was already full but people continued to pile it up and I supposed it fell as it was too high by then. The orange coloured plastic was left on the floor instead since it was full.

You might say that the rubbish bin was too small. A bigger rubbish container (fit for the whole condo population to throw their rubbish) was located about 10 steps away, just behind the lifts. That's how terrible these human beings are. I recalled the same thing happened on my floor too. I printed a notice (in both English and Bahasa Malaysia languages) and slipped it under their doors (10 units per floor only) excluding my next door neighbour who was equally pissed off. My notice sounded like this:-

"If we found out that you were the one who just dumped the rubbish on the floor at the lift area, you will find all the rubbish in that bin being dumped right at the front of your door in the morning!!"

After that notice, everybody's mindset had changed.
Tags: Civic Mind, Rubbish, Dumping, Condominium

How Fair is Fair in Malaysia?

The Malaysian Prime Minister mentioned that "I have been fair, I want to be fair, I’ll always be fair" during MCA's general assembly yesterday. How fair is fair? Fair compared to what? What's the percentage or ratio like in this so-called fairness?

Well, based on this statement I'll note down any unfair statements, actions, rules and laws imposed / to be imposed in future right in this blog. And then we'll see what sort of fairness is it later on. Such statements are common in a particular political party's general assembly in order to garner votes/trusts. Wait for a few days later.

I have been living in Malaysia right from when I was born in the heart of Kuala Lumpur and I have heard of such statement numerous times. I'll see what sort of actions will be shown in order to reflect this statement of "I have been fair, I want to be fair, I’ll always be fair". Cakap-cakap and just a mere statement is lame. Walk the talk please!!!

Reading: Have you really been fair, Pak Lah?
Tags: Malaysian Prime Minister, Fair, Fairness, Walk The Talk, Malaysia

Try the TV Game - Deal Or No Deal!

There is this TV game show being televised in Malaysia's NTV7 channel during the weekend called Deal Or No Deal in the mandarin language. I found it quite boring as it was just a game of chance or pure luck selecting the right baggage and tikam-tikam (poke here and there) while hoping that the bag you have chosen was the one with large amount of money.

It seems that this TV game show originated from UK and the craze spread across Europe, USA and throughout the world till it reached Malaysia's shore.

You can try out the game itself. First click the picture below and you'll be directed to USA's version. Then follow the instruction as provided by selecting one briefcase first.

In Malaysia's version, you have 26 beautiful ladies holding a bag each (the main attraction for the TV viewers and live audience). Maybe it's the same for other countries too....hehehe

Tags: Deal Or No Deal, NTV7, TV Game Show

Could You Live Without China?

During my younger years, Japanese made goods flooded my house literally - Hitachi fridge, Sony TV, Sony audio player & Sanyo air-cond, rice cooker.

But nowadays, anything could have came in from China even the Japanese products/goods - my Nikon digital camera, Harmon Kardon pc speaker, Sony Ericsson mobile phone's power adaptor, Nokia mobile phone's power adaptor, HP office laptop, mouse, Altec Lansing pc microphone, pc webcam, slow cooker, remote control car, chopsticks, stapler, birthday candles, normal batteries, small TV antenna and most of the items being displayed in the cabinet.

What about your home?

There is this author, Sara Bongiorni and her family, who tried to live without China. Did her family succeed? They tried it out in 2005 and noted down their life for that year and out came a book entitled "A Year Without Made in China".

Summary - at the end of the year, the family was relieved it was over....haha. They found it difficult to avoid, their life was nothing close to normal and too time consuming in seeing their labels each time. It could be part of Fear Factor too as without those China made goods, our life could be quite inconvenient.

Reading: Deadly and Dangerous Products Made in China - Newsweek

Tags: Made in China, China Products, China Made, China, Japanese Made, Sara Bongiorni

Between Believing and Not Believing

A good reading that I have found in Zonaeuropa:-

When I was younger than 20 years old, I believed in many things. Later, one after another of those beliefs was overturned.

I used to believe in patriotism, but I later found out that the definition of 'country' was problematic. The standard 'country' that we were instructed to love was not necessarily lovable, it was not necessarily worthy of our love, and it even deserved to be overthrown.

I used to believe in history, but I later found out that half of history was fabricated. The history of the preceding dynasty was always written by the people of the succeeding dynasty, who will always negate their predecessors. In turn, their succeeding dynasties will always negate them.

But double negatives do not necessarily end in a positive and we are just accumulating the successive distortions and twists so that the truth will always be covered up and never restored. It is one thing to say that "history must not be buried in ashes," but history often wind up in ashes. It is possible to win by distorting and misinforming.

I used to believe in the power of civilization, but I later found out that the stupidity and barbarity of people do not disappear as a result of any progress in civilization. It is just that stupidity and barbarity take different forms: simple peasant workers, reflective intellectuals, self-confident politicians and righteous leaders may bring out even worse stupidity and barbarity. Between barbarity and civilization, there is only a subtle and easily erasable difference.

I used to believe in justice, but I later found out that there exists two kinds of justice that are in irreconcilable conflict with each other. If you choose one, then your justice implies injustice. You won't be able to tell that when someone advocates a particular kind of justice at a particular moment, there is a hidden and unobservable injustice underneath.

I used to believe in idealists, but I later found out that idealists cannot pass the test of power: once they obtain power, they could become the "evil" that they had vowed to fight, or else they are utterly feeble in reality and are brought down immediately by the power mongers without being able to achieve their ideals. The idealists must have character and morality in order not to be corrupted by power and the idealists must have the capability to turn their ideals into practice. But it is rare to find any ideals who have both character and capability.

... Before I was twenty years old, I believed in many things. I still believe in some of them even today.

For example, even though the country may not be lovable, but the its earth and people can still be loved. For example, if history cannot be trusted, but there is no end to the pursuit of truth. For example, civilization may be weak and vulnerable, but we have actually nothing else to rely on. For example, justice may be extremely suspect, but caring about justice is better than not. For example, idealists may not be able to accomplish much, but our society will be different without them ...

... There is great deal to ponder deeply about what to believe and not to believe.
Tags: Beliefs, Country, History, Civilization, Justice, Idealists