Hawaii Five-O

A good TV show is one that is so popular that it lives on in syndication, watched by different generations over different decades. It pervades into our pop-culture, and easily recognizable. Like Happy Days. Or Chips. Or X-Files. Or the Simpsons.

One step above is a show that is has all of the above qualities, plus a memorable theme song. A song that is people remember forever, pay tribute to it, cover it and parody it.

Like Hawaii Five-O.

Who can forget the catchy intro music?

I watched it as a very very young kid (probably pre-school) on SBC5 (what is now known as Singapore’s TCS5), my dad and brother were fans of the show, so the whole family followed. I remember waiting for 10pm waiting for it to start (I believe it was on a Tuesday night). If you watch the clip of the intro below, you’ll notice the first scene show crashing waves. Back then there was a Pepsi ad with an almost similar scene, so each time the Pepsi ad came on, we’d become excited but then it turns to disappointment… (at least until the actual show starts)

Honestly i was much too young to remember much of the show, except Jack Lord uttering the famous line “Book ‘em, Dano” (then I’d go ‘who’s Dano?!’) until i caught back with it a few years ago when Astro started re-running the series.

***

Was reminded of the song last Sunday at my daughter’s kindy graduation concert when another class used it as a soundtrack. It’s amazing how excited some parents can get at the sight of their kids shaking their bums in unison to music.

What Is It With ‘Pan Mee’ Restaurants These Days?!

No seriously, what is it with ‘Pan Mee’ restaurants sprouting up everywhere recently?

And how has it become like a pseudo-gourmet meal?

(sori ah, lilian, i curi your foto. too lazy to take my own)

Years ago ‘pan mee’ was just a dish you get at the hawker stall, the same place we get our chicken rice or wantan mee. Now they have specialized restaurants serving pan mee with 1,288 different varieties like dried chilli, spicy, spinach or Emperor noodles. Around my office there are no less than 5 restaurants dedicated to this dish, really, how much of it can you eat in a week.

OK rant over. Now can someone tell me where to find awesome wantan mee in PJ/Puchong?

Story of The Malaysian 100 Meters Sprint Record

With all the interested in the 100m world record held by Usain Bolt (9.58s) recently, does anyone know what the Malaysian record is and who holds it? Anyone? Without googling it?

Before we get to that, let me tell you what the record was back when i was a kid in the 80’s. Back then everyone in school knew the record was held by the legendary Dr. M. Jegathesan (now Datuk). I can’t remember his time, but he still holds the 200m record until today, set 41 years ago in the Mexico Olympics back in ‘68. Back when i was a kid, the older generation and my teachers spoke of ‘The Flying Doctor’ in legendary terms, he was the first Malaysian to reach 2 semifinals in an Olympic event.

During the years when i was in school, the fastest Malaysian was this guy called Abdul Rahman Koyakutty. I can’t really remember much about him (except that he had an extravagant pre-race ritual while on the starting line). But you have to remember during the mid-80’s we had lots of sporting greats like Nordin Jadi, M. Kumaresan, Josephine Mary, G. Shanti, Nurul Huda Abdullah, Rabuan Pit and M. Ramachandran. Of course these were the days before weekly live EPL games on Astro, so all we had was RTM2.

Some 12 years ago in the late 90’s talk of Dr. Jega’s record in danger of being broken resurfaced when two young sprinters emerged, Watson Nyambek and Azmi Ibrahim. I wasn’t really following athletics by then, but one of them obviously did better than the other who sort of fizzled out despite the hype.

And so coming back to the earlier question, what’s the current national record? It’s 10.30s held by Watson Nyambek. Yep, the Flying Dayak did manage to break the record. It’s nice to know Malaysian men can still run faster than American women… (Florence Griffith Joyner’s world record is 10.49s) but of course being Asians we’re disadvantaged genetically when it comes to running.

Will we see the record broken again soon? Who knows.

Memorable Langkawi Ten Years Later

So… 10 years ago after getting hitched, i went to Langkawi for honeymoon. This was the days before AirAsia, and since we were flat broke Langkawi was probably the only option for us (Port Dickson wasn’t even considered)

So fast forward EXACTLY 10 years ahead… I’m back there with the wife. And two kids in tow.

(yep, the customary shot at the massive eagle. Makes you wonder about the size of the bird’s droppings…)

Before going I wasn’t really keen on going back to the island, thinking there isn’t really much to do in the island. But it turned out much much better than expected. Langkawi has changed a lot in the last 10 years, much of it for the better. The island is still (relatively) clean and sparse, the dining options are great, and the stretch of Pantai Cenang is turning out into something like Kuta and Patong, but in a good way. There are loads of shoe string backpackers’ motels along Pantai Cenang and Pantai Tengah, but finding a mid range hotel/chalet in the area was a little more difficult.

So we settled for this place, Sunset Beach Resort.

(Resort is much smaller than it looks. No, really.)

Its about 20 numbers of chalets surrounded by greenery and shrubs and chickens (no, really! Live chickens! I’m surprised none of the hotel guests have caught them and barbequed them considering the price of food here).

(Very nice ambience. The mosquitoes, well, that’s a different story though…)

The beach is small but spectacular. Its secluded from the main public beach of Pantai Cenang by rocks, so only about 4 resorts share this private area.

(Crazy gweilous/mat sallehs sunbathing and swimming at 1pm in the afternoon not seen in photo.)

(OK, yes. Now you can see them.)
The four days we spent there were packed with activities. The first thing we did was drive around Kuah town and then Langkawi island. That took like all 40 minutes. Much of the island is still jungle and paddy fields spotted with little kampungs. And lots of water buffaloes. And cows.

(Daisy pondering the deeper questions of existentialism… while ignoring the annoying tourists with their cameras.)

My daughter asked me, “Daddy, why do you keep saying ‘Holy Cow!’ each time we pass a cow?!”

The second day we took an island hopping trip with a bunch of fellow tourists. It was pretty awesome (the trip, not the fellow tourists), simply the best RM35 i spent while on holiday.

First stop was the Geopark in Pulau Dayang Bunting.

(My kids dipping their feet in the freshwater lake. No, their feet weren’t clean to start with, yeah yeah i know.)

Then the eagle feeding. The boatmen throw pieces of chicken into the water and the birds come down like lightning.

(Does this pic remind you of the old Marlboro ad?)

At first i thought there gonna be like a few of them, but there were dozens! Watching them circle and swoop down like a conveyor belt was one of the most spectacular sights in nature.

Then it was on to Pulau Beras Basah, with its pristine sandy beach and crystal clear water. I kid you not. I didn’t think a place like this existed in West Malaysia.

(Paradise on earth. Except for the scorching 11am heat.)

(Crystal clear water. And my beautiful legs.)

(Colourful fish greet you when you get off the jetty. Doesn’t this pic remind you of that scene in Finding Nemo?)

I sat down to eat a cheese bun i brought in my bag and suddenly out of nowhere, a little friend appeared beside me.

(”Quick. Hand over the food and NO ONE GETS HURT…”)

In the afternoons, we’re usually back in the chalet. This was ours. Yes, that IS my laundry hanging out to dry. They actually provide hangers for you to dry your clothes outside.

(In a few years time, the plants will overgrow the entire chalet…)

And inside the room. Quite simple.

(Pic taken 4 seconds before my kids ransacked the sheets.)

And every evening, it was at the beach. True to its name, the sunset view is spectacular here.

On the third day we went up the Cable Car. View from the top is excellent, if it isn’t too cloudy.

On the 3rd day we went hunting for an Irish Bar that we went 10 years ago. We found it in Pantai Tengah alright, but unfortunately it looked like it recently closed. What a shame, would have loved to try their Irish coffee again…

(Everything’s green. so typical)

Of course being duty free, Langkawi’s the place to buy booze and chocolate.

(We finished the cheap beer before the photo was taken)

And so, yeah, it was a memorable trip to the island, great to see so much has changed in a decade. Not sure if we’re coming back in 10 years time though, it’ll be very expensive then…

(Selamat tinggal, pulau lagenda…)

Happy 6th Birthday, Hannah!

My 2nd kid turned 6th yesterday! Even though it was a busy busy month for all of us, we managed to have a small celebrated for her classmates in school and at home. She was cheerful and happy throughout the day (or so I was told) and was telling everyone that ‘today’s my birthday!’

This was the cake my wife baked for her classmates.

And a kindy class photo… probably the last one before graduation soon…

Kids aren’t fussy eaters. They’ll lap up anything with cream on it.

Party packs for all the kids. Some of it was courtesy of my mom.

Dinner with the family at night

And for desert, more cake.

after dinner was presents time!

One pic with sister. How time flies eh…? She’ll be starting primary school in December.

10 Years And Counting…

Last Friday WY and I celebrated out tenth wedding anniversary.

10 years in the old church, we got married by Reynold, amidst friends and family.

This was my present to her. It isn’t something to last another 10 years, but it was something she really needed. Its a Sony Ericsson C510, nice or not?

She got me this large (about 1m x 1m) display of Simpsons characters with poses from the Simpsons Movie. Cool eh?

For our anniversary, we wanted to celebrate it on the day itself, which was a Friday. Because of the traffic problem, we couldnt really go anywhere far, so we settled on somewhere familiar - Tony Roma’s.

Later that night we also got some presents from friends including this box from Cupcake Chic, thanks!

Looking forward to our holiday next week.

Where To Buy Marine Fish in The Klang Valley

During the 2 month or so I spent researching before buying setting up my saltwater aquarium, I spent lots of time reading the forums and visiting the local fish shops (LFS). For easy reference of other beginners, here’s a list of shops that sell marine / saltwater fish and equipment in the PJ/SJ/Puchong area that I have personally visited.

First of all, you may know of a aquarium / LFS near your house, but the thing to note is that NOT ALL aquariums sell saltwater/marine fish, they usually ONLY sell freshwater fish. Actually very few of these shops actually sell saltwater fish because of the expertise required.

The second thing to note is that besides LFS, some pet stores sell saltwater fish, too, especially the larger ones. Pet Stores are as the name implies - they sell all kinds of pets and pet paraphenalia. Dogs, cats, birds, reptiles, and also fish.

Now that we’ve got that clear, let me list the LFS first:

Oceanic Aquarium
Where: Behind the Chinese temple in Taman Bukit Kuchai, Puchong
Call: 03-80702273
This is where i bought my tank from and it has one of the best range of equipment that I’ve seen. Their are cheap and variety is excellent. The boss is very knowledge and pretty honest.

Aquatropics Aquarium
Where: Opposite Petronas in Jalan Anggerik Eria, Kota Kemuning
Call: 012-2817188
Recently moved from Anggerik Vanilla to the new shop here. So far this place has the best selection of fish (they even have the Moorish Idol) and its where i bought my fish from. However, limited equipment here. Boss is a nice guy.

Marine Fresh Aquarium
Where: new shophouses near CIMB Bank, The Strand Damansara
Call: 019-3847019
Recently moved from Damansara Utama. Quite good equipment and fish available.

Eco Sealife Aquarium
Where: Behind Columbia Asia Hospital in Bandar Puteri Puchong
Call: 012-2817188
Same owner as Aquatropics, decent selection of equipment, but not many fish.

Pusat Akuarium Batu Karang Laut
Where: Same row as EON Bank SS15 Subang Jaya, facing apartments
Call: 03-5633 1743
Has got the best selection of corals and live rock, fish and equipment selection not bad, too.

There’s another small aquarium at Bandar Kinrara BK5, can’t remember the name, signboard has a big shark. Not many fish, but they have two awesome sharks on display.

And now some decent petstores:

88 Marine Aquarium Centre in SunwayMas
Where: One of the inside roads of SunwayMas. Got big sign one.
Call: no idea. Website has a trojan horse.
This is a pet shop, and its pretty big. They even have a fish spa upstairs. If you want to get everything at one place, check it out.

Pet Safari
Where: Ikano Power Center.
Call: 03-7724 1578
The biggest pet store in Malaysia, but the substore that specializes in fish products is run by East Aqua. Its also one of the most expensive places to buy stuff here, but the range is quite impressive.

Pets Wonderland
Where: MidValley, Great Eastern Mall, Subang Parade.
Call: 03-8024 9508
I’m sure you’ve been to one of their branches. Nice place to gawk at the pedigree cats and dogs.

True Blood Season 2

Finally finished the second season of HBO’s True Blood. Short review? Quite disappointing.

Above: Sookie and Jason Stackhouse are back. And so is that vampire without a sense of humour.

Reading the reviews online, most people are saying its bigger, better, sexier (and obviously more violent) than Season 1. I didn’t think so. I was a little disappointed with the direction of Season 2 after the first few episodes, and by the end of the season, my mind hadn’t changed. Bigger, yes. More violence, definitely. Sexier? I didn’t think so. As Seinfeld says, there’s good naked, and then there’s bad naked. Most of it is the latter here. Unlike in Season 1.

Above: Maryann sizes up Jason Stackhouse.

The whole season centred on the introduction of Maryann Forrester (maybe the primary reason why i disliked this season), a Maenad who wrecks havoc in Bon Temps, while Sookie Stackhouse and Bill Compton goes to Denver to find a missing vampire. Maybe it worked well in the book, but the storyline seemed strained in a 12 episode drama format.

Above: Bill Compton goes to see the Vampire Queen of Louisiana.

Above: Eric meets his maker, literally, Godric.

OK some good points. I like Eric Northman (Alexander Skarsgård) with a bigger role this season, his camp-cool is so much better than the moping Bill (yawn) Compton. Of course, my favorite character Lafayette is back (didn’t think they’d kill him anyway) but a little more subdued. And so is Jason Stackhouse, still funny and ripped like a Greek god.

Above: Lafayette’s back! Spoiler for those who haven’t started watching.

Let’s hope the writing gets better in Season 3.

Annoying Habits in the Gym

I’m not the complaining type, but certain things really take the cake. Like in the gym, for example. See, i spend a lot of time in the gym. After home and work, there’s the place I spend the most time (driving in my car doesn’t count in the list). And like any other place with lots of people, certain things peeve certain other people.

So here goes.

Using the hairdryer in the locker room to dry other things than your hair.
My gym has hairdryers at the dressing table in the locker rooms, see. Obviously, for drying for hair. But some guys use it for drying other things - armpits, privates, toes, slippers. I mean, eeeeew man. And that, is the one reason i don’t ever touch them hairdryers.

Chatting while on the machines.
Every gym has them. These people sit on the weight machines, do one set, spend 10 mins talking with their friends / trainers / on the phone. Then do another set, continue talking. If you want to talk, go to the juice bar and don’t hog the machines.

The Staring Guy in the Locker Room
See, there’s this cleaning guy in the locker room. When he’s not cleaning, he likes to sit on the benches facing the lockers, and… stare. At other guys. Changing. If that is not creepy enough, he has this disturbing slow smirk when he looks at you.

The Loud Guy.
Everything about him screams ‘look at me!’. He grunts while lifting, drops weights on the floor and talks loudly. Even his protein farts are loud.

The Naked Gym in the Locker Room
The highlight of the day for the staring guy above. Guys that strip naked and walk around the locker room. I’m not discriminating, but its ALWAYS the gwailou!

The Auntie Fellowship at the Juice Bar
See there are big groups of aunties and si-lai’s that congregate at the juice bar after their workouts (if walking 10 mins on the treadmill at 4.0 actually counts as a workout). That’s fine but NOT when they start chattering like they are in the coffeeshop. While eating popiahs and McDonald’s.

Wonderful Tonight by Eric Clapton

One day during my Form Five school holidays, I was at a youth camp when i heard this guy from Kuantan play this fantastic riff on the acoustic guitar. When he saw me watching, he just smiled and said, “Clapton”.

The only Eric Clapton fan i knew back then was my own brother. He was a HUGE fan, had all his tapes and posters. So when i got home from the youth camp, I dug out my brother’s Clapton greatest hits cassette (he was on holiday in KL at the time) and played it until I found that riff again.

Didn’t take me long - I found out that it was the opening riff of a song Wonderful Tonight, which I later my brother told me was a ‘very famous song’. Later I learnt the story about the song, Clapton wrote for his then wife Pattie Boyd, while waiting for her to get ready for a dinner appointment.

Clapton has always been known as a guitar virtuoso, especially during his time with Cream and Derek and the Dominoes, but for me this song really personifies Clapton’s gift for songwriting. Listening to his sublime lyrics about Clapton’s love for his woman never fails to amaze me.

Wonderful Tonight
Its late in the evening
Shes wondering what clothes to wear
She puts on her make up
And brushes her long blonde hair
And then she asks me
Do I look alright
And I say yes, you look wonderful tonight

Its time to go home now
And Ive got an aching head
So I give her the car keys
She helps me to bed
And then I tell her
As I turn out the light
I say my darling, you were wonderful tonight
Oh my darling, you were wonderful tonight