Oct 30, 2010

0 Property advice an average me can do without

Buying a home costs a bomb these days and I blame it on ill-informed buyers or investors who fork out an obscene amount of money to buy sub-standard properties all because they can. I blame it on banks who approve long term loans for huge amounts for the average Malaysian, who can ill-afford to purchase that decent house or car.

They're putting many ordinary Malaysians into huge debts and they're doing no favours for the future generation. 

Without serious intervention from right-minded people, it's likely that Malaysia will be a haven for low cost quarters because that's going to be what the majority can afford.

Here's one advice I can certainly do without..seriously.

Feature story in Property Buyer issue 22 (Nov 2010), last page - Where will our children live?

"So what can we do if we would like our children to even have a chance of buying a house in the area where they grew up? You have to buy the house now, and hold it until they come of age, otherwise, short of a windfall, it will be most unlikely that they will be ..."

My two cents, although I don't have kids.

Buying a home is an important life experience that children should have the opportunity to go through. It teaches them to manage their finances, to stand on their own, to express themselves and it teaches them about responsibility. It is going to be their pride and joy, with neighbours they chose, a location they're comfortable with, a home built together with a life partner of their own.

You're taking away a big part of their growing up process. This is another case of, "Mommy and Daddy will take care of everything." And you wonder why kids are getting more and more detached from the family these days. Parents have degraded themselves to mere ATM machines. Society is encouraging it.

And what makes anyone think that their kids would want to live in the same neighbourhood once they've spread their wings. It's a risky take. 

Where the neighbourhood was relatively crime free then, it may not be now. I would want my kids to find a safer place to live. Years before, the house had a great view. Next thing you know, there's a huge elevated highway right in front of your balcony. True.

It's already a sad fact that most Malaysians have insufficient funds to take them through their retirement years. Now, you're telling people they have to buy homes for the kids too, on top of their already hefty financial commitment.  

What's there for the average Malaysian, other than lifelong debts.

Oct 29, 2010

0 Family and Friends - How can I not love you?

I'm really happy today, and it's not because I won another contest. Funnily, my usually low-key Facebook friends and family members stepped up to congratulate me openly today.

People make mistakes all the time and I did just that with a less than perfect slogan....I willingly gave the prize up and that was that. Well..I thought that was that!

And then it started,  the comments slowly trickled in..congratulatory messages and heartfelt support...awww.. I ♥ these guys. They didn't have to, but they did and they even turned a blind eye.

I know that should I ever fall..and I mean seriously ;) , I can always depend on these guys for moral support. This could've been just another good day, but it was made great by their heartfelt actions.


Oct 27, 2010

2 We're all takers..

How very true....Just a line off a movie I recently watched, "Takers". Reminded me how we all love to take more than we give.

Anyway, this movie's about a group of professional bank robbers, betrayed by their fellow member, Ghost (Rapper T.I.), who had just been released from jail. It turns out that Ghost had only revenge in mind when he convinced the gang to take up a "job" with millions at stake. Why was he mad? They bailed on him when he was caught by the police and his girl got engaged to one of the other members.  

An interesting plot and it could've been a great movie, but I just couldn't feel the chemistry between the cast. It felt a bit forced and unnatural. Too many stars in the movie, not enough time to build solid characters. There's Zoe Saldana, Hayden Christensen, Matt Dillon ..!

My favourite scene was the chase in the subway where Jesse (Singer Chris Brown) went on the run when he was recognised by the cops. It was a commendable effort and it made me forget my prejudice against singers who act.

The trailer:


Tickets courtesy of Galaxie.

Oct 21, 2010

0 Adam Lambert - The glamour and the clamour

At the end of the concert, I was sure I lost some of my hearing. That's what you get when Adam Lambert's 10,000 strong Malaysian fans scream in euphoria.

Peace, was when he sang an acoustic version of "Whataya want from me". The crowd sang along and I felt as though we were all falling under a magical spell from the doe eyed looks I could see on everyone's faces.

It was a good crowd with a mix of all ages. No worries about being the old lady trying to fit into the young fold, like some of the concerts I've been to.

As the stadium fills

Digi balloons being bounced about 

Seeing his live performance was an out-of-this-world experience for me. He was one of those guys who could really sing the highs and the lows comfortably. Never would you have to worry about paying money for a squawk on the mic.

Adam Lambert didn't disappoint his fans. As good on the telly as he is live! He's an outstanding performer with great stage presence. Glamour? He dressed the part, without the diva attitude. 

A short clip:


Some photos :
That's how far I was from the stage

Looks at those muscles

Good thing they have the big screen

But not all of us are fans. Outside the stadium, was a clamour of protest against his gay lifestyle.

The police kept the protesters in check

Received this flyer from a protestor

Oct 16, 2010

0 Adam Lambert Rock Zone Tickets, but did we rock it?

Awww...my best friend bought us tickets to Adam Lambert's Glam Nation concert in Stadium Putra. He knew how much I wanted to see Adam sing live. Most of the tickets were sold out, so he had to make do.

The ticket counters:

It's all sold out, ma'am. How bout these way back here?

What I didn't expect was a phone call from Mix FM the day before the concert, "Hi, Congratulations! You've won 2 Rock Zone tickets to Adam Lambert's concert tomorrow!", a warm and friendly voice said to me. I was hard pressed to refuse. So I said, " Reaaallly?!! Thank you! Thank you so much, William!". The contest? Click here

I gave these tickets to my cousin Jo. I wasn't gonna disappoint my best friend - those tickets he got were as great and it came with heart :)

Omigosh! Mix FM Roadrunner, they're here!

Oh wait..wait for me..!

Finally caught up with them. Rock Zone tickets!

Freebies for the fans

Rock zone or not, I was just happy to be there.

0 Adam Lambert GlamNation Tour Malaysia 2010

It was the day of the concert - 14th October 2010

A queue hours before the concert!

Booths to keep fans happy

A&W's a popular choice

All glammed up - think she won meet n greet passes. Lucky girl!

What's this?

Look! Up in the sky!

Police has arrived, no thanks to the Protesters

Satu Police! Membanteras jenayah!

Oct 11, 2010

0 Look Out Point, Ampang

We just felt like doing a bit of sightseeing, so we headed out to Look Out Point, Ampang one fine afternnon. The weather was fairly gloomy throughout our journey, but bless the sky for not sending heavy rain down upon us. Alleluia!

Location was an easy find thanks to the very detailed description they left on the website. A note of caution though, the last couple of kilometres leading to Look Out Point is a winding road and I have my doubts about it being brightly lit at night, as is common for most roads out of the main hub of the city.

There are carparks located up the hill and down, we chose the former. You can see why, it's a heck of a climb up.

Stairway to carpark

Restaurants in a row - Gasoline, Haven and LookOut Point

Western/Local cuisine at LookOut Point Restaurant

A bird's eye view of KL

Nice ambience with lotsa greenery

View from the back of the restaurants

Heading up to Panorama Restaurant

Panoramic view at Panorama Restaurant

Taking your meals to a higher level - cramp though

That's right - KLCC and KL Tower

Not known for good food, just a great place to chill.

Oct 8, 2010

0 I can cook - Black Chicken Herbal Soup

You betcha..but I'm not one for complicated methods, nor do I cook by the book. My love for the slow cooker is absolute. It cooks for hours, without much intervention on my part.

Black Chicken Herbal Soup in da house!

Throw all the ingredients in and wait

Smell the aroma wafting in your kitchen

A bit of garnishing and ole!

The recipe? You can throw in whatever you like - tomatoes, mushroom, etc. 

Ingredients:
- Black chicken (whole)
- Large onions (quartered)
- Cabbage (sliced)
- Baby carrots (whole)
- Goji berries
- Salt n Pepper to taste (feel free to experiment)
- Water (enough to fill the pot)

Method:
Throw ALL the ingredients into the slow cooker, on high heat. Come back in 3-5 hours, depending how soft you want your chicken to be.

Devour as is, with rice or noodles.

Oct 1, 2010

0 A Twitter account!

Yes, that's right - I finally signed up for a twitter account @snoringsheep to see what the buzz was about. Wasn't as user-friendly as I thought. It took me a couple of hours to figure out why my background wasn't updating to the one I selected.

You're looking at someone who isn't into a lot of techy stuff and IT mumbo jumbo.The only thing I'm crazy about in the tech world is Dilbert.

Dilbert.com
 

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