March 2010

The Archives

Travel With RV
03.28.10 | Permalink |Uncategorized| Comments Off

I always wanted to visit New Zealand. I heard there are many beautiful sight seeing places. I dislike joining tours because of the rush from one place to another. It will be so cool if I can travel on a RV around the country. I could save on hotel bills too.

I heard some RV rentals that cover emergency road service like motorhome towing. I won’t want to be fixing a RV when I am on vacation. It will be cool if I can get a straight replacement on the spot.

I will have to start planning and saving for a long trip to NZ.

Popularity: 2% [?]
2010 Earth Hour
03.26.10 | Permalink |Uncategorized| Comments Off

2010 Earth Hour has arrived!! Do your bit to make the earth greener.

Date: Sat 27th Mar 2010
Malaysia Time: 8:30-9:30pm

Popularity: 2% [?]
Forgetful Me
03.24.10 | Permalink |Work| Comments Off

I missed a meeting yesterday night. With my current job, I get a lot of those late night meetings because that’s when US time zone wakes up.

I double check my digital calendar and I was so sure it was today. You see when I am working the normal hours, I have my notebook or the iPhone to remind me there is a meeting coming up. When I am off work, relaxing on the coach or in the bedroom, no reminder. Yeah I don’t carry my iPhone around the house except when I play games.

When my PC started up this morning, a reminder can up saying “Your meeting is X hours overdue!” Sigh!

Popularity: 1% [?]
Upgraded this Blog
03.23.10 | Permalink |Blogs| Comments Off

From Wordpress 2.1.1 to 2.9.2

Yesterday, I finally upgrade this blog to the latest version of Wordpress 2.9.2. Although I would love to stick to the classic version but I cannot because my web host wants to upgrade the PHP. The new PHP version does not support the classic Wordpress version. Secondly, the security for the old version is not as good.

The user interface of the new version looks complicated. I think I jumped from 9 steps up. The tabs on the top move to the left side. The outlook is different. I suppose it has more features. I haven’t made my way in some of them.

Ooh, the way I upgraded it, you can never believe it. I just click a link and it does it for me. I didn’t have to crack my head. It only took 2 minutes.

Now I just have to get use to the new version until it gets really old.

Popularity: 1% [?]
Wedding Invitations
03.19.10 | Permalink |Living, PP| Comments Off

There used to be a time that I received wedding invitations every other month. It has been slowing down last year and this year. I probably get 1 or 2 in a year. Maybe most of my friends are married.

I have to wait for another generations to rise up and get married. Probably it will be during my children’s time. It will be a long way to go. However I don’t mind being a wedding planner for them if they want me too.

Now there are so many great wedding invitation designs and I love browsing them. Some couples really go all the way out to send a creative invitation. It is not necessary a card.

Popularity: 1% [?]
Beautify Your Garden
03.19.10 | Permalink |Living, PP| Comments Off

A pair of wall sconce would be nice for my garden. It will give my garden a nice romantic light. By the way, a couple of birds have come and make nests in my garden. How lovely.

Recently I got a couple of solar energy lights in my garden. Yeah I am going green. It is cheap, I got them for USD$3 in Walmart.

It gives a nice shine to garden path. Now I need to plant more flowers there.

Popularity: 1% [?]
Hard Rock Collectibles
03.17.10 | Permalink |Collection, Uncategorized| Comments Off

I got some free Hard Rock collectibles from the hotel. The shape of the mineral water bottle is very unique. I took 2 home.

I browse the Hard Rock shop but most of the stuff there are quite costly for my pocket. I am not a fan of Hard Rock. I used to collect Planet Hollywood T-Shirt but not anymore. I love to collect stuff like hotels shampoo, soap bars and toiletries. I still have a lot of those at home. I better not collect too many stuff else I will end up living in a dump.

Popularity: 2% [?]
Hiking Up
03.17.10 | Permalink |Health, PP| Comments Off

Lately, I am easily tired, not matter how much I sleep. Maybe age is catching up or caught up with me. I may need some hgh supplements to help me to energize.

I always wanted to go back to hiking. Before having children, after work I used to hike up the BJ hills. It is refreshing and when you are at the top, you can get a good view of Penang Island. Maybe I should revive this with my kids. My family needs the exercise and so do I.

Popularity: 1% [?]
Natural Method to Combat Eczema
03.17.10 | Permalink |Living, PP| Comments Off

Lately a lot of children are getting skin problem such as eczema. I am wonder is it due to pollution or the chemical we used? The other day an elderly lady told me a secret recipe to help get rid of it. I am not sure whether it works but it is worth the try.

She told me to take bitter gourd and cut it. Boil it in the water for 5-10 mins. Wait until the water cool down and wash the area with eczema. You can try it at a small area first to ensure there is no allergic reaction. Let me know if it works.

Popularity: 1% [?]
Stomach Upset
03.17.10 | Permalink |Health, PP| Comments Off

The other day I had taken the wrong food that gave me an upset stomach. For a few days, I was purging. It feels like I have taken colon cleanser stuff that is listed in the colon cleanser reviews. It is good too, once and for all it cleanse my bowel system. I hope it is all clean now.

For bad purging, usually I would take in 100Plus to provide the energy required. I also have to drink lots of water to hydrate myself. It is also good to take in good bacteria to help regain back a good digestive system.

Popularity: 1% [?]
Hard Rock Hotel Penang
03.16.10 | Permalink |Hotel, Penang| 1 Comment

It was a pretty cool hotel. My family loved it. It was really crowded because of the school holidays. Rooms very fully book. Yeap, there were some walk in guests whom were really disappointed. During the evening, the car park was closed for outsiders.

CheckIn & Check out

Firstly I empathize with the staff working there, the front desk or lobby is non-air condition. Both the staff and the customers have to bear with the heat. It took a long time for check in because there were no rooms available. Funny, the guests’ latest check out time is 12:30pm. I went there at 2pm, still no room. I wonder how long it takes for the room to be clean. Maybe short staffed in the housekeeping area.

Next, while I was checking out, one customer was smoking. No non-smoking sign around, really bad for us non-smokers who has to bear with unhealthy environment. It took long wait for me to check out.

The Room

It has a very spacious room and fun for every age group. I got a room with a good view of the beautiful sea. The room decoration was just ok, nothing to shout about. However the bathroom is a little small and no bath tub.

The Pool

The swimming pool is the highlight for children with 3 slides. For children below 4 feet, it is advisable to wear an arm float. There are rooms by the pool, just like a personal pool. Very convenient for some.

There were dancing at the pool and water ball organize by the hotel. Something to rock their guests there.

Teens Club

There is a teen club room for teenagers or children to have fun with Xbox, play stations and computers. However there is no queuing system. Most children were hogging the stations and left others waiting. I even saw a dad hogging the computer. I saw many disappointed kids there.

TV Program

Lastly, I do wish the put Cartoon Network on. It is a MUST have, especially kids.

Rates

Will I go back there again? Yeah, if they reduce the hotel rate or provide more value for my money!

Cleanliness:

Service:

Facilities:

Overall:

Popularity: 2% [?]
Relax
03.16.10 | Permalink |Living, PP| Comments Off

In the world of rat race, one has to distress himself and relax. I can see a lot of people are all stress up with work. Hey it is only work, don’t treat it as your life. Maybe you need to take a break from it all. The other day I just witness a guy who ran amok in the office because of stress. He gave us all a fright. Fortunately he didn’t get a heart attack.

People need to learn to relax, take deep breath and take a break. Maybe enjoy some oliva cigars with a glass of Champagne

Or one can go on a vacation, enjoy the sea breeze. Come back refresh. Maybe you get lower blood pressure too!

Popularity: 1% [?]
Oh Pizza Hut
03.10.10 | Permalink |Food, Service| 1 Comment

Do you believe it that twice I went to Pizza Hut here in Penang, Malaysia, twice they do not have what I ordered? They are always running out of food. I am very curious how they do they inventory management.

I ordered pasta, they told me no penne pasta.

I ordered salad, they ran out of coleslaw and another time, ran out of thousand island sauce.

I ordered ice-lemon tea, they ran out of ice.

I ordered ice-cream, they ran out of strawberry or chocolate flavor.

Management if you are reading this blog, you better upgrade your food inventory. If not, you are just chasing your customers away unless you don’t bother. I wonder if one day, you will run out of pizza to sell.

Popularity: 2% [?]
NeckTies
03.10.10 | Permalink |Shopping| Comments Off

I have no experience in choosing mens ties because my partner does not wear them. Therefore I do not buy any. However I did browse through a online site called www.ties-necktie.com. Wow I like the neck ties there.

I am tempted to get some as a gift. They have simple yet elegant design which I like. It stands out with a pastel color shirt. Very chic!

Popularity: 1% [?]
Decorating Homes
03.08.10 | Permalink |Furniture, PP| Comments Off

I have an interest in interior decorating for new homes. In fact, I almost took this course and make a career out of it. However at that time, I didn’t have any portfolio. In order for me to get into the course, I need to draw some interior designs. I wasn’t prepared for it. I went into computer science instead and did graphics design. Career turned out to be totally different from my thesis.

Recently I renovated my apartment with some of the designs I had in mind. I was so satisfied with the outcome. Ooh, I didn’t have much budget to work with. If I had, I would have gotten some contemporary furniture to go with it. The thing with contemporary furniture, it brings out the warmth or cozy feeling in the home. You are able to make full use of the space too. Space is very limited when it comes to the property here. We need to be able to make it look spacious, yet having enough furniture to cater for our needs.

If you need to decorate your home, look at the designs in boconcept.us. Something for your new home.

Popularity: 1% [?]
Coach Coupon
03.05.10 | Permalink |Coach| Comments Off

Now coach keep sending me coupons. If you are in the states, here is something for you. Offer valid 3/3/10-3/7/10 in Coach Factory stores in US, Canada and Puerto Rico only. Cannot be combined with any other offer.

Link here: Coach Coupon

Popularity: 1% [?]
Employment Market
03.05.10 | Permalink |Jobs, PP| Comments Off

I am wonder how is the employment market out there. I been in my company for more than 10 years and haven’t really survey the jobs market. I did sign up with an online job searching site. I like the site because it has a space for me to update my CV. Besides that when there are jobs matching my CV, it will send the position to me.

I am always hearing fresh grads having difficulty in getting a job. The other side of the story from the employer side is that the fresh grads are choosy or demanding. If ever, you cannot get a job, maybe it is time to upgrade your skills or take a stepping stone job to gain experience.

Time for me to update my CV. *blowing off the digital dust*

Popularity: 1% [?]
Maids
03.01.10 | Permalink |Service| 2 Comments

A lot of us have bad stories about their maid but for some of us, we may have some good ones but never bother to tell.

I must say I had a maid who drove me up the wall and I decided to let her go back. Then I went for a part time maid. How did I find this part time maid agency? They drop in info to my mail box and I called them up. At first the maids they send to me were not good, one took a long time to clean 1 room, another practically took down all my stuff from the shelf to wipe but don’t know how to put it back and one didn’t have a clue what cleaning was all about. Finally, they sent one which I stick until she went back home. The agency sent another one which is as good. So far, I am sticking with this agency because they trained them well. The rate is RM9 per hour, minimum of 5 hours.

We do have bad impressions of maid, probably from horror stories we heard from people. Or it is us that we set high expectation of them. If they do not meet it, we get angry and scold them. When they are scolded, they perform worst and it is a vicious cycle. End of the day, both losses. Extreme cases end up in newspaper headlines. I can safely say, most of them are not trained at all. Who is to be blamed? The agency and not the maid but the maid kena left and right.

Anyway, I want to say good things about my part time maid. She does her work very well, everything she does is clean and tidy. She is honest, she returns back the money she found in pockets while doing the washing. One day, I had to leave her at home alone because I had another appointment. I know I shouldn’t but I have no choice. When I return home, everything was done accordingly. She didn’t even take the opportunity to be lazy. Only complaint is, often I have to remind her of certain places to clean. She does it when she is reminded. I am pretty please with her. I do reward her with bonus and gifts. End of the day, she is happy and I am happy.

Popularity: 2% [?]
Motor Homes
03.01.10 | Permalink |PP, Travel| Comments Off

I always wanted to own a motor home but it is not suitable in our country. If I ever go to New Zealand or US, I would buy one. Now they come with an extended service plan for maintenance too. Great savings there too.

Motor home is good way to travel around the country without worrying about hotel bills. I really admire those countries that provide facility to park the motor homes. Maybe when I retire, I will go get one of these.

Popularity: 3% [?]