FOOTBALL: ANELKA IS BACK, MCCLAREN IN TROUBLE

Anelka is back! Who ever say we had seen the best of him? He has shown that he should be given a place in the French squad, especially in the starting eleven. McClaren is in trouble as England can only manage a draw with Israel. They have 10 shots on goal against just 1 from Israel. The English fans must be furious but still they are third in the table ranking for Group D. They are 3 points behind Russia and 5 points behind Croatia with 7 more matches to play.

Spain finally won with goals from Morientes and Villa. I am glad for Morientes to be back again in the squad. I am sure just like Anelka, he still has a lot to offer to Spain. Portugal also won but very convincingly with two goals from Cristino Ronaldo, one each from Nuno Gomes and Quaresma to beat Belgium. Germany beat Czech Republic 2-1 with goals from Schweinsteiger and Kuranyi. In a friendly, Brazil beat Chile 4-0 with Ronaldinho finally scoring after nearly 2 years for Brazil. Two goals from him through the penalty and a free kick and one each from Kaka and Juan.

FOOTBALL: 998 GOALS

Romario, I remember fondly the 1994 World Cup in USA when I heard his name. Many will remember Roberto Baggio too for that penalty miss. I like Romario and I will always call him the master in the penalty box. He is not the type which depends on speed ultimately to score goals. No, he can be as slow and steady and still be able to maneuver around inside the penalty box with all the time on earth to still score a brilliant goal.

That's what I like about him. His skills of dribbling and intelligence to control the ball until it is scored in the penalty box is so incredible. People like him don't fall easily like Cristino Ronaldo or Wayne Rooney to get a penalty. This is someone who can claim that he is too good but never did. Many claimed that Pele played in an era where there are no other great players and therefore he could score so many goals with ease. He never played in many of the top leagues in the world. There were not many well known players during his time. Well, we can all debate about that.

He can score his 1000th goal this weekend when Vasco meet Flamengo. Well, he once did say that he wants Pele to be there when he scores his 1000th. Of course, the 998 goals are not fully competitive football goals. Still, just to be able to score so many goals in your life is already an achievement to be reckoned with. I will celebreate when he gets his 1000th goal. He deserves it.

FOOTBALL: CRISTINO RONALDO THE DIVER SAID HE IS TOO GOOD!

We watched how he dived through the years. Now, he claimed that people said he dived because he is too good. Oh my goodness, vommit blood, hide my face in great disgrace.

How on earth did someone like him claim that he is too good? Is his skin too thick? Has he no humility? Does his recent form get the better of him? Does he ever think that people believe he is not a diver as only Alex Ferguson and himself claimed that he is not and the rest of the world is wrong? Oh my goodness, can somebody collect all his diving clips and compiled it into a video and send it to him as well as upload it all over the Internet?

Are we all blind? He and Wayne Rooney are the biggest divers in modern football. It is not a myth, it is a fact. Only Manchester United fans, the coaching staffs and anybody related to Manchester United think otherwise. I think he is the biggest diver in this era, regardless of how good his form is right now.

THE RISE OF KOO KIEN KEAT - TAN BOON HEONG

Malaysia are almost dead in the badminton world, not to mention any other world sports like football until the doubles partnership of Koo Kien Keat and Tan Boon Heong emerged. They ended the 25-year drought of the All-England double title and just won the Swiss Open last Sunday. They also just won the Asian Games gold medal in Doha last December as well as the Malaysian Open not too long ago. To me, the victory is not because of the efforts of the Badminton Association of Malaysia. They alone won't achieve anything. To me, there is only one reason why they can become so good so unexpectedly.

The reason to my strongest belief lies in their coach Rexy Manaiky. Many forgot about him but I remember him very fondly. His contribution seems to be not given praise for the pairs' great achievement but instead falls on BAM and the Malaysian government's effort to progress it. If so, why only this pair is strong now? It does not make sense if the sports ministry takes all the credit.

Rexy Mainaky and Ricky Subagja was a pairing of legendary perfection. Their presence alone in the court brings fear to their opponents. They won anything the badminton world has to offer. They can start a serve smashing continuously until the opponents give up with fatigue. They can defend smashes after smashes with ease. Their speed, stamina and sharpness is scary. In fact, Malaysia should be overjoyed that Rexy is willing to be a coach for us.

Malaysia used to have a great pair too in Cheah Soon Kit and Soo Beng Kiang, who are slightly an earlier generation than Rexy-Ricky. It is because of Soon Kit's well-known temper that split the pair. During their prime, they were also world's best. Still, I live to see the best, fastest and formidable doubles pairing ever in Rexy Mainaky and Ricky Subagja. They are still the most entertaining and exciting pairing I have in memory.

I wish this pairing the best, hopefully they will last long and won't split as well as not being hit by injuries. As long as the legendary coach, Rexy Mainaky is staying at the helm to coach the doubles, I will not be able to see anything stopping them.

HOW TO GROW COCONUT TREE INDOOR IN A POT?

Have you ever thought of growing coconut trees indoor? Well, my PRC friend who never really seen how a coconut grows into a tree was so curious that he took a coconut home from the roadside and decided to plant it in a pot inside our research office!!!



Since he loves to grow small plants, I gave him a wild idea of growing his plants on top of the coconut by cutting a hole and inserting earth. He did just that and to my surprise, both of them survived and keep on growing.



The coconut tree is now extremely tall so he has to bring it outside the research office. Since we are at the second storey, he decided to place the pot at the corridor just in front of the rows of windows in my office. I can see the tree everytime I look through the windows.



Imagine what will happen in the future when the roots outgrow the space the pot is having as well as the limited soil it contains.

MOVIE REVIEW: BRIDGE TO TERABITHIA & 300

Watched both movies recently.

Bridge to Terabithia

Fantasy movie. The trailer cheated me, it was not as great as it seems. Poor ending of story and the build-up of the story was rather slow and too repetitive of everyday same adventures.

The boy and his new neighbour went for an adventure across a small river some distance away from their homes. The rope tied on a tree branch enables them to swing across and with their imaginations, created the whole fantasy story with the surrounding. The female lead died so suddenly and the story seems to go nowhere. I was quite disappointed with how the story got stuck with the same everyday stuff without much progress. The death of the lead was a shocker because I thought the friendship could have developed far more. Oh well.....

300

Battle art movie worshipping the beauty of spilling blood. Makes Kill Bill and SinCity into child plays. It gives a brand new meaning to Bullet Time that The Matrix invented. It is far more beautiful than V for Vendetta. The trailer convinced me to go and watch it. It did not disappoint. Love it!

300 depicts the story of the Spartan king, Leonidas who brought the 300 selected best men for war against the Persians. Their loyalty and honour to fight for their king and country is something being greatly portrayed in the movie. How much they love to battle and how much they wish a greater opponent will come by to challenge their skills has shown us how much Sparta is a Greek military state. Betrayals caused their downfall but it was their spirit of defending their people that spurred the Greeks to fight back the Persians.

I recommend this movie to you all! Get an uncensored version too after watching the censored version in the cinema.

FOOTBALL: INTER MILAN VS. AC MILAN

Barcelona 3-3 Real Madrid and Messi grabbed a hattrick! Impressive! That ends the catch up chance for Real Madrid and they have 18 matches left to play for. Will Capello be sacked as all the rumours going around been talking about? I wonder. Real will even have difficulty qualifying for next season's Champions League as they struggle to hold on to the 4th placing in the league.

The derby in Italy will be another entertaining match for the weekend. This is special because Ronaldo is back at the other side of another Milan team. How will the supporters of Inter react to his arrival to the rivals? It will be interesting to watch the outcome. Milan have been having splendid form of late in the league, winning matches after matches. Inter however lost their consistency.

Thierry Henry will be out until the end of the season. It is a difficult season for Henry. He has been hit by injuries after injuries. People were saying how lucky Barcelona were for not signing him. Oh well, you just never know how things will turn out if he did sign for Barcelona then.

FOOTBALL: BARCELONA VS. REAL MADRID

There is nothing left but the league to play for so Real Madrid have the last chance to get anything out of this season. Barcelona are still in the Spanish Cup. Normally, the clash of these two will be in the headlines for few days before the real match. This time around it seems like it is pretty quiet after both ended their Champions League campaign journey. Real Madrid are in the worse condition than Barcelona so if they lose this match, the league is as good as over for them.

Roberto Carlos volunteered to resign at the end of this season probably under too much pressure from the fans and press for his mistake in that earliest goal scored in Champions League competition. Real Madrid are having one problem after another this season. It is just getting complicated by the day. One wonders what else could happen next.

Whoever wins tonight will have a better chance to get over the defeat of their Champions League matches and move on - in the hope of capturing the La Liga crown.

CHAP GOH MEH

Lunch at Ajisen Ramen, Plaza Singapura.







The shisyamo with the eggs inside. Yummy!





The soft shell crab. Nice as always.



They have great ramen. Wife ordered the cray fish ramen while I got the special cha shu ramen.



Late dinner at Crystal Jade Kitchen, Holland Village.



The mango pudding. Really nice with the milk!





The fried pork cutlet. The spices that come with it is good!



Beef tomato and tomato sauce rice, surprisingly good and I love it much!

FOOTBALL: REAL MADRID, LILLE, CELTIC AND ARSENAL OUT!

I am hating Capello for his decisions! What on earth is he thinking putting Robinho out until the 75th minute? I really cannot stand him! Within 6 minutes, he earned the side a penalty! Well, 4 shots on goal with 13 tries while Bayern had 8 shots on goal with 23 tries. There is no reason why Bayern Munich do not deserve to go through. Earliest Champions League goal scored at 10 seconds. What a joke!

As for Arsenal, they didn't score as the draw was from an own goal and da Dias Costa scored again for his side in the 83rd minute at the right goalmouth. Larsson scored for Manchester United and they went through after the controversial first leg. AC Milan needed an extra time goal from Kaka to win!

FOOTBALL: CHAMPIONS LEAGUE HOLDERS KICKED OUT!

Liverpool did it again against a giant, this time against Barcelona as they kick them out of the competition! Valencia go through with a 0-0 draw at home which means the end of the road for Inter Milan. Chelsea came from behind for a win, courtesy of goals from Robben and Ballack. Roma went through after beating Lyon convincingly at 0-2.

Looking at tomorrow's fearure, Celtic, Real Madrid, Arsenal and Lille will all be in a dangerous position to be kicked out. Milan are in good form now so Celtic will not have it easy at San Siro. Real Madrid have been playing so desperately to even win matches. Scoring goals seem like a big task to them nowadays. I am sure they will have a hell of a time in Munich's Allianz-Arena. Manchester United should have the edge to beat Lille with their fine form like AC Milan. Finally, Arsenal returned from Holland with a goal disadvantage against them. The advantage is on PSV Eindhoven. Captain Henry's presence is placed at uncertain. If he does play, that will add a lot of experience and quality up front.

THE ART OF THINNESS

Kuih Kapit or love letter is a traditional snack which is famously eaten during Chinese New Year. Most people nowadays will just buy it commercially from the market. Those sold in the market has few flavours apart from the original. They evolved through the years with many varieties which include seaweed, black sesame and pandan versions.

Since the goodness of achieving the best love letter requires the use of hot charcoal heating yourself up and guaranteed long time spent to make them, not many of the new generations are doing it anymore. Once it is ready, you must fold it fast before it gets hard, eventhough it is still extremely hot from the charcoal burning. The money earned per tin sold is also not much. Therefore, it is just not worth your time.



We went to Bukit Mertajam, Penang for house visiting and we came across some of the thinnest you could ever see. The one shown here is the thinnest of the thinnest.



This particular version is so thin that when you put it into your mouth, it will just 'disperse' into pieces and melt in your mouth. It is still crunchy enough to break into pieces before it melts, releasing nice aroma of smell for your enjoyment.



I show some shots of how it looks like in full without folding. There are different ways of folding. Most of those sold in the market are rolled like a long cigarette. Well, it doesn't matter how it is folded, as long as the taste is good.



The Star KUALI section has the recipe of how to make kuih kapit or love letter. If you are interested to try yourself, you can follow the instructions. I have no idea whether this is a good one.



This macro shot shows how I termed it 'It is raining bullets over here!' from the Mechcommander gaming days. The surface seems like it had been shot seriously from invasions of millions of bullets. This kuih kapit or love letter is the thinnest I ever seen.

CNY 2007: KUALA LUMPUR 20-25th FEBRUARY

It took us 8++ hours instead of the normal 4 hours to reach Kuala Lumpur from Penang. Bumper to bumper traffic jam most of the way with rain here and there. It was no fun surely but at least we boarded the bus equipped with personal movies and music selections to enjoy. I watched around 3 movies, so bored even to watch a Doraemon cartoon movie version and listened to a few songs before we reached Kuala Lumpur. We were so exhausted and some more I had my sorethroat with me. From 3pm, we reached KL almost midnight. Incredible!



Chinese new year was rather quiet in KL. When we arrived on the 20th, you could hardly see any vehicles on the road. There were hardly any fireworks or firecrackers exploding around. We visited the Curve and Ikano earliest for some shopping. I like the good maintenance of the Curve as everything is very clean. IKEA at Ikano is filled with people as always. We went there purposely to try the hotdog since the Singapore one does not give any onions. Later, we went to 1Utama to shop since it is so near to uncle's house. Even if you walk there, it will take you just 5-10 minutes maximum. I posed with wife with this ugly Johor Bahru haircut. I was out of ideas how to comb my hair.



1Utama is still one of my favourite shopping centers in Selangor. It is just so spacious and friendly. It is 1KM long and around 4-5 storeys high so multiply that by 1KM you have 4-5KM to cover. It will take you at least 1 day to really looking through the whole place.



I had my haircut in Kuala Lumpur. I was very satisfied with the haircut at a hair saloon in Low Yatt so I decided to visit the place again after 1 and a half years ago. Eventhough my hair was cut by a different person, I am still very satisfied with the cutting. It is much better than a few I tried in Miri, Sarawak and Johor Bahru, Johor. There are some really bad hair stylists out there who can't even balance out the hair they cut. Seriously I end up having more hair on my right than my left side of the head to some extents that I even give up on combing my hair as you are out of ideas of how to present it! Sometimes I just use the gel to lump them up like a bush!

I was amazed by the cheap pricing of computer parts in Low Yatt. I got my Apacer 4GB thumbdrive for only RM120 but I saw some selling below RM110! Kingston 4GB thumbdrive selling at RM110 and some others selling just slightly over RM100. Man, this place has better bargains than anywhere in Singapore! I was helping uncle to get a laptop hard disk to be an external hard disk and the Hitachi 120GB 5400RPM none SATA hard disk is only RM300! Dammit I paid much more for all these when in Singapore! Therefore I went for a shopping spree buying some computer parts. Things like the Mitshubishi DYN-AZO 50 discs of DVD+R 1-16X media costed me only RM68. Some people joked that the pricing is so good because the supply was from the giant robbery in Penang a few months back and some of them ended up here. Haha!



Uncle brought us to eat steamboat one of the nights when we were there. We came here before last time. They gave you a choice of original soup and tom yam soup. As my sorethroat was not getting any better, I had to resist eating anything from the tom yam soup.



I had a great time in Kuala Lumpur. I spent most of my time updating some new softwares and resources with uncle and just went for 4 shopping centers - The Curve, Ikano, Low Yatt and 1Utama, which were my intentions of going there in the first place. We had enough rest and it was just the sorethroat that spoilt a perfect holiday.

CNY 2007: PENANG 16-20th FEBRUARY

We headed to Penang on the 16th February night or I should say early 17th February morning. Our bus which was an extra bus was suppose to depart at 9:30pm. The massive jam caused it to arrive at about 1:00am and the journey to Penang took us 20 hours! A normal trip will take 8 hours but because of the massive jam as serious as bumper to bumper all the way with rain and accidents here and there, we reached Penang at almost 5:30pm. I went there to celebrate Chinese New Year for the first time as I failed to obtain air tickets back home. The price for the available tickets are so disgustingly overpriced at around RM400 per trip, it is ridiculous to buy them.



Uncle and auntie have 3 boys, Joshua, Mark and Malcolm. We spent our time in Penang with them fully. Surprisingly it was quite quiet during Chinese New Year. Auntie told me they were very strict in catching all those firecracker and firework sellers. We ended up playing some small scale children fireworks with the kids. Uncle did bring us around town to scout for some. We failed to find any from some of the prominent areas but finally managed to find one selling in front of a motorcycle repair shop. We went down and we were just 1 step slower. Up came 3 custom officers who asked the seller to put all the stuffs into the boxes! We were parking just 2 meters away from the shop. I was sure then that they knew we were potential customers. Haha!



We had breakfast all the time at home. Uncle always prepare some nice breakfast. This for example is a pasta meal he cooked up.



It looked so attractive that everybody wanted to take photo with it.



They just could not control their delight seeing the nice dish. It did not just look nice but tasted great!



The children just wanted to pose differently with the dish.



Auntie has this nice flower at the front of her balcony at the top floor. I saw it when we were there as we discussed some ideas for the extension of the car porch rooftop which is linked to the balcony.





We went visiting relatives mostly at the mainland at Bukit Mertajam. It was a nice experience since they have some of the best traditional recipes for titbits. One example is the love letter or kuih kapit. House after house the quality just got better. One of the best was so thin that when you put into your mouth, it just melt into pieces as it released its nice aroma as you eat it down! Oh my goodness! My wife stole some back and I shall take a macro shot of it and show it in the next post. Those traditional made titbits put all those mass produced commercial ones in the market to shame. I assure you that once you take that kuih kapit, the rest in the streets you bought are of terrible quality.



My wife took the chance to take photos with the kids.





Mark is the most enthusiatic one among the rest as he posed for many photo shots. He even wanted to take a photo of me on his own. You just could not stand him as he adjusted the camera with his hand, asking me to shift left and right as he rotated the camera in landscape to portrait profile as he looked at the scene behind me to take a shot! My goodness, this boy took like 1 minute to compose a shot! People will think that he is a pro!



We went to this 'Genting Highlands' of Penang. Auntie told me this place was mostly crafted and built by the Thais. You will see many great craftmanship work done all over the place. The details you see and how they used all the timber from the site cleared to build this place creatively just keep me amazed.









Mark posting with the rocket!



This is the watermill where they have some nice connecting parts. You will be fascinated by how they make use of the materials around to build the whole place up.









Uncle was relaxing himself in one of the creations fully built in timber with some bolts and nuts as joints.











The roof detail is nice too. The arrangement of the leaves was very well done.





They use anything to create anything. Even the soft drink aluminium cans.







The elephants were made of some thin fabric. They looked like lanterns to me.



The scenery is breathtaking too. You will see the beautiful blue sea and islands faraway in the horizon.



The kids were just so excited to pose with all the manmade insects and animals around the place.



We were at quite a high altitude from the sea level.



Finally, this giant rooster we posed with at the entrance.