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| Absent Minded Genius |
| 09.29.05 (5:41 pm) |
Two days ago I forgot where I park my car. Standing like a stunned rabbit in a parking lot of cars I experience a mental black out.
Earlier in the day, I had driven off campus for lunch and reparked my car. I forgot all about that trip and ended up walking from one end to another end of campus in search of my car.
Today, my mind is slow. I slept at 2am and woke up at 6am. I started writing a short book for a workshop that I will be conducting next week; late last night and finished it at about 10.30am this morning. 30 pages of ideas and instructions on how to set up an internet business.
I'll probably continue to work on it for the next few days. The general content is there just that I have had no time to edit it. I had to submit it for printing this morning. I can only hope that there are no spelling mistakes or missing words.
Well, I have a meeting today. Hopefully I don't enter the twilight zone by then. Right now, I am a zombie.
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| Bug my brain |
| 09.27.05 (3:52 pm) |
I'm again waiting. No, not for a plane but rather a bunch of students who want to pick my brains.
They were suppose to arrive at 8 am, now it is 9:30am. So where are they? Have aliens taken them for mucus transferance experiments? Has Atlantis been found and are now being populated with hormone charged university students? Or am I merely wasting my time waiting for them?
I'll wait another half hour, then I'm off for brunch.
For the past few weeks a certain lecturer has been bugging me to the point its freaky. What I don't understand is why it is of such importance when no-one else pays much attention to it anyway.
The story begins when this lecturer, lets call him J; wanted me to do some updating on the uni website. I initially made the first mistake of updating the wrong page but that was rectified quickly and the proper updated information is now available on the website. So problem solve...so I thought.
J has been bugging me, saying that the updates are not up yet. I've given him instructions to force-refresh his browser but still he says the updates are not there. So I'm planning to see for myself what he is seeing on his screen, tomorrow.
J has been rather vocal lately for all the wrong reasons. I've heard that at one time he asked to leave a meeting because those there were of the opinion that he was not contributing. I must admit that he is an odd ball, often talking at the wrong time and picking out issues that are irrelevant to anybody.
What bothers me is the fact that he is bothering me. The updates are of no real importance but to himself. It is his one claim to fame by publishing these updates online. He is treating these updates as a matter of life or death. That his very existance hindges on these updates being made available for all to see.
Such is the quest of man for acceptance and recognition. It is a need to appear better than the one next to you. Probably steeming from a child-hood where the father was an authoritarian figure that demanded they prove their worth.
But for the moment, J will continue to bother me. Bugging me much like a little boy in a candy store. Trying to get free candy, treating it like death would come if he does not taste sugar at that very moment.
Oh well, thats my lot in life...for today.
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| My Flight is delayed: 23rd September 2005 |
| 09.25.05 (11:15 pm) |
Written while on my way back from Kuala Lumpur.
There is nothing worst than to find out that your flight is delayed while sitting at the departure gate. Delayed from 8.50pm to 9.25pm. What a bummer, plus I am hungry and shivering. Forgot to wear a jacket. Mental note to myself – always wear a jacket for night flights.
I writing this from departure gate A9 of Kuala Lumpur International Airport. I have not been able to get online for the past few days.
So I am sitting here trying to do something that is at least seems intelligent. In most cases that means either read an e-book or finishing some work. That means no gaming, as that will deplete my iBook’s battery. The no gaming is easy to apply since I only have four games loaded on my iBook. No it is not a self-imposed exile on games but rather those are the games that came with the iBook and I have had no time to actually go game hunting. Well, at least I get this written out.
Its good to at least see the plane that you’re suppose to board from the gate but right now the plane is nowhere in sight. Yes, I staring at an empty plot of airplane parkway. Where is the plane? Is it because of bad weather? Or gremlins playing catch in the engine bay? Sigh, this is playing on my phobia of plane-take-offs.
The guy to my left is watching me type this while talking on his hand-phone. Obviously telling someone that he’ll be late. The lady on my right is reading a book, so is her daughter. Across the room from me the flight crew is chatting away. They too share the space with the rest of us. I sometimes wonder if they ever get sick of flying. Probably not if you treat every assignment as a business trip. It’ll be great to fly the whole world and get paid for it. Reminds me of the time I harbored a dream of becoming a pilot. It was a good dream, a dream that was shattered the day I got spectacles. There are some men behind me discussing the Real Madrid match being shown on the television. Nuts, I can’t watch it without straining my neck.
The plane is now in sight. It was probably delayed from its point of origin. Most likely the city of Kuching. I can actually see the technicians swarming around the aircraft. I know that they are now pressured to make a quick turn-around. You’ve got passengers here who are too eager to get on it. Delays are not good.
Will there be a mad rush to get onto the plane? Well, I’ll just wait till everyone else boards, my seat is situated at the back of the plane, seat 22F. That’s 6 rows before the planes tail section. It not too bad, I once sat at the last row, the last row has the only spot in the plane where you can’t recline your seat. It also is the nearest to the toilet, so you can monitor who goes to the loo and make a calculated guess on what they did inside.
I hope they serve something hot on board. I hope they actually serve us food and beverages. The national airline – Malaysian Airline Systems (MAS) announced last week that they have made a lost in revenue for the last financial year. This promptly kicked their CEO out, I heard from the spinners in the capital that he hand a direct hand in MAS loosing revenue. It is common practice for large organizations like MAS to created child subsidiaries to handle tasks like food catering or ground maintenance. The problem was that the Fired-CEO owned most of these child-subsidiaries, which in turn over-charged the parent company. So instead of circulating the money back into the parental organization, these child-subsidiaries siphon those funds out. Smart guy but in the end he sent a whole company from profit making status to debt making status.
Well, I have to board.
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| Songwriter's Round :: 18th September 2005 |
| 09.18.05 (9:45 pm) |
Last night after the Manchester United and Liverpool English Premier League match, I went to a gig that was hosted at Denise Wine Shop,partly because I was handed a free invite which included a complimentary glass of wine and partly because I was curious.
The flyer, given to me in morning, provided writeups on three young Malaysian song writers who would be showcasing their original songs during the night event. The flyer painted a glowing mention on their abilities as song writers. So I was curious, could the hype be as great as the actual thing?
Knowing that the lighting would be dim, I packed my 50mm and turned up at Denise Wine Shop at 9.30pm. The gig was to start at 9.30pm but like all things Malaysian, things never start on time.
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So which one is my bottle?
As I suspected the lighting was a challenge but my 50mm was up to the task. I met an acquintance - Tim a young Malaysian film director. He was there with his trusted video-camera. Wonder how he handled the lighting?
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Tim
We started at 10pm. Yup, by then I was hungry. No peanuts just wine....sigh.
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Gary Leo
First up was Gary Leo. Gary is a member of Evenstarr, a local endie band of which my brother is the bassist. I'm familiar with his music and lyrics. No surprises for me since I've heard most of his songs. Though at times I could not make out what he was singing.
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Rueben Maran
Rueben Maran is someone new to me. The writeup says that he grew up in Kuala Lumpur and recently moved to Kuching to take advantage of the peace and quiet of Kuching so he could write material for his debut album. His music is dark and provoking. I find the topic of his songs bordering depression and the anxieties of living. Much like Kurt Corbain. There's a sense of teenage anguish in his songs. Themes like asking for an Umbrella to cover him from life's stresses and a song called Starlight which seem to talk about hope.
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Owen Nicholas
Owen Nicholas has a nice clear voice, suited for a small room gig like this one. I find his lyrics have a pinch of English poetry which may be s style he picked up during his time in London. Again the subject of his songs, like Rueben, sways towards lost love, handling death and something about bridges. I know that at least one young lady (from the audience) admitted that she cried while listening to him sing. I too had tears in my eyes but from all the cigarette smoke in the room.
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Owen and Christy
I like this impromptu presentation of Ironic by Christy. She stepped up to the microphone and just sang it well. She had fun and it showed. I like that in a performer. They sing for fun and not to prove anything but just for fun sake.
This is my favourite shot for the night. Why? Well, it looks like a shot in an out-of-town bar by an inter-state highway in America. By the way "Keluar" means Exit.
Overall, I had a good time. Being the first time that an event like this has been held at Denise Wine Shop, I can't be too critical. The setup can be worked upon especially the sound system. The ambience was suitable. My only complaint to the manager, Gerald, was that there was too much smoke in the room.
Anyway, I'm hoping to see more of these events in the near future and maybe, just maybe I'll sing too.
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| Lightning Strike |
| 09.18.05 (8:04 pm) |
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Lightning burned my home modem and switch. What a bugger!
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| So some do dislike Mawi |
| 09.14.05 (5:47 pm) |
Even the political parties in Malaysia are using him as ammunition to take a swipe at each other.
Pas ulamas objected to Mawi performing in Kelantan saying that his win was based on non-religious guidelines.
I am just waiting to see what the ruling government has to say about this in particular UMNO.
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| One up for iBook |
| 09.13.05 (10:40 pm) |
objectzero.tblog.com looks so much better on my iBook then on any windong machine...
Ok, shoot me...
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| Batik Day |
| 09.13.05 (10:10 pm) |
Tomorrow is Batik Day.
Every 1st and 15th of the month, civil servants are to wear batik. My problem is...I have no batik shirt. Never owned one before and I thought I never have to own one. But tonight I need to get one since I am attending an official function tomorrow.
It'll make me look old, heck it'll make me feel old. In the spirit of instilling a Malaysian identity we all have to wear batik.
It probably helps the cause when the PM's wife is the patron for all things batik. Sigh and it has to be Malaysian batik, though I did come across batik made in Paris.
I thought batik was an asian thing...
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| I need a long holiday from work. |
| 09.12.05 (5:29 pm) |
I've been running a User Acceptance Test for my departments new online education system. Not actually new but rather an upgrade to the one we currently have.
Today is the last day and I'm baby-sitting some students who are taking the test. I am not feeling well, having woke up with a slight cold.
My iBook ghost-in-the-machine problem has disappeared. My battery indicator is running normally. It may surface again, I am sure of that. Till then I'm hoping it is not the dreaded logic-board problem that has plagued the G3 iBooks. Its a problem that can be fixed but really expensive to do so.
I've finished two chapters of my book. I actually started writing three(3) books but only one(1) has really kept me excited and interested. Its an approach that combines both fantasy themed writing and self-improvement; meaning I am giving life lessons in the form of a fictitious setting, with characters that are imaginary. Told from a first person point of view, its a take on the Old-Man on the mountain scenario. The Old-Man who gives out words of wisdom while sitting on his mountain. In my book that mountain is a tree.
I am planning ten(10) chapters of stories and at the rate I am writing, should be done by end of month. I''l post a blog about this when I am done.
Now, I am getting sleepy. Thanks to the medication I took this morning. Cold medicine is a great sleeping aid.
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| Ghost in my iBook |
| 09.11.05 (12:23 am) |
My power adapter shows that my battery is fully charged.
Note: The iBook adapter has a built in light around the pin that turns orange to show that its charging and then green to show that the battery is fully charged.
But my battery indicator on my desktop shows 95%. Hm...I have a rouge battery giving out weird signals. A search via google has not turned up much.
This is freaking me out. My less then one week old iBook has a ghost in its system. The notebook gods are surely hitting back at me for going against the normal teachings of Mangosoft base instruments.
Sigh
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| The monster under my bed |
| 09.10.05 (11:13 pm) |
There is a green ogre under my bed. But this green ogre only wakes up in the afternoon after I have taken an afternoon nap.
I am a grumpy afternoon-nap person. Waking up after an afternoon nap is an ordeal for me. My brain takes a while to re-align itself and speech is reduced to slurs and grunts. I am just down-right grumpy in the afternoon.
It is also not a good time for anyone to engage in intellectual discussions with me. I am rude and sarcastic, at times I surprise myself. The green ogre awakes and for a brief moment runs amok.
Classic black and white situation. We have two sides of a personality, much like the evil twin theory. My evil twin seems to surface after afternoon naps. Considering the fact that I don't normally take afternoon naps, given the chance, this evil twin would make the most of his freedom.
While others may have monsters under their beds, I have an afternoon-nap-evil twin.
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| Show Me the Monies |
| 09.08.05 (9:17 pm) |
So would Bank Negara give out money to struggling writers who have to pinch lunch-money just to purchase their notebooks?
Full News report here.
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| iPod Nano |
| 09.07.05 (2:35 pm) |
iPod fans are spoilt for choice. We have the iPod, iPod Mini, iPod Shuffle and now, introducing the iPod Nano, which replaces the wildly popular iPod Mini. Macworld posted news concerning the iPod Nano release along with the iTunes phone.
Heres a first look on the iPod Nano from Playlistmag.com.
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| Calling The Mothership |
| 09.07.05 (6:08 am) |
I'm getting clingy to my iBook. It might get notebook-napped or worst; defiled by those who attempt to seek out and click the Start button.
I've been searching the web for a suitable case or backpack to house it in. Found one on Apple Store Singapore. Cost SD99, roughly MYR223, with free shipping. It has a Apple logo on the front flap. Seriously thinking of ordering it over the net but better survey the market before diving into this purchase. Having a cute Apple logo on the front may not mean the insides have the best padding.
Again my dad asked me whether my iBook was good. Dad, its only been three (3) days; its still looks brand new and very much okey. Say the word, dad and I'll get you one.
Ha ha will my dad switch to Apple from Mangosoft base life-forms? The story is yet to be written.
Managed to networked the iBook to my iMac. For pure simplicity I now name my iMac, The Mothership. This was to help me identify both my machines since both were christianed objectzero.
By being able to network these two together I have now elevated my status from mere Apple User to bonafied Mac RoadWarrior. Shall I now tatoo my new found status on my arm or spread it wide over my chest, much like a sailor?
Nah, Wifey hates tatoos....
She thinks I'm sexy since I've got no tatoos. I'm not complaining.
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| Open Blog to tBlog |
| 09.05.05 (6:33 pm) |
Please administrator get your act together.
I've been unable to even get a stable connection to your blog server causing me to loose my data when I press Publish This Post. I cannot count the number of times I've been cut off mid-sentence by a Connection Lost Error. At first I thought it was the network at my place but then why are the other sites I'm surfing moving along well while yours stumbles along.
To say that you are getting too much traffic is not a good reason since it is actually a good thing that you have traffic. I imagine bloggers moving off to Blogger.com rather then setting up house at tBlog.com.
Maybe you should separate the real-time message posting from the blog posting engine on your website template so that your fantastic chatters don't kill off the bloggers sessions.
What ever it is, make some changes or you will loose your bloggers.
Thank You.
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| Me and my iBook |
| 09.05.05 (3:39 am) |
My iBook arrived today.
In fact I am updating this from my iBook. Yup, I plugged it into my ethernet switch and it was up and running. I did not have to configure anything, it just read all my router settings and got me online. Such is the power of the Tiger.
It pulled a surprise on me when I realized that this little 12" wonder comes with Bluetooth. Yup, I'm wireless ready and also Bluetooth ready. The very reason it is Bluetooth is tempting me to go out there and purchase a Bluetooth ready mouse.
Throw in a Combo drive (CD writer & DVD-ROM), enough multimedia software to give me a migraine and a beautiful shell; it's worth every penny.
I had someone remark to me today, "So what, my notebook can do all that."
"I know but my iBook cost less than Ringgit 4K (USD999)".
Silence....
I will now see how long I can keep this baby alive without having to reboot it. Yup, I've heard some reports that Apple Powerbooks have been left turned on for about a month without having any side-effects. I will try that with my iBook, if it crashes; well I'll just complain to Apple.
Now, to kick start that book I've got floating in my iMac.
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| Fighting A Cold |
| 09.04.05 (2:43 am) |
I've been fighting a cold for the past week.
Just when I had it beat, it came back again on friday. Today my body has sent signals that it is really tired. Problem is, this coming week will be a busy one at work. This cold may drag on for another week at this rate.
I need a long vacation just to recover from this cold.
I've still got 12 days to the day I'm suppose to get myiBook. I'm like a little boy waiting to open his christmas present, only problem is christmas is 12 days away. This is a good time for time to speed up.
Speaking of time, I managed to get hold of a watch that is the replica of the one Tom Cruise used in Collateral. I have not watched the movie but I like the watch. It should be arriving tomorrow at about 3pm.
Its a beautiful Tag Heuer-Carrera automatic watch. I also came across the Omega watch used by James Bond in his movies. Interesting but I'll pass on that piece of movie memorabilia.
Now, Luke Skywalker's light-saber would be a nice addition to my collection...
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