There probably is a good reason why there aren’t many books about Christians managing their finances (and/or debt) in there market, but I don’t know them. Walk into any bookstore and the most of the Christianity section is stacked with books on Christian Living while books on Money are all in the business section far at the other end of the shop. This book is definitely unique (well, for me anyway), in that it talks about money matters like debt and overspending from a biblical point of view, and from the experience of the writer. The best thing about the book is that the writer tells it as it is.…

Didn’t want to listen to RedFM on the drive to work this morning, so i started singing old Sunday School songs that I can still amazingly remember 20-25 years on. Don’t ask me why, I just do. Came to the song “I’ve Got a Home in Gloryland” – remember that rousing tune? Guaranteed to lift your spirits on a dreary Friday morning. But when i got to verse 2 where it goes “Do, Lord, oh do you remember me?” it got me thinking – what did the writer mean? In what circumstance can God forget you? Or inversely, what if we forget God? The last question is only too real…

Those of you on Facebook know that I’ve been moseying up to a new hobby (or rather rediscovering an old one) – water colour painting. Since I didn’t want to be mooching off the my daughter’s paint equipment (most of which were given to her by my mother), i decided to get my own. After doing some shopping around, I got it from the shop near my house, run by this lady we call ‘Shrek’ (long story). So i spent like RM70 for a basic watercolour set, a few starter brushes, and an A3 artblock. I actually earlier tested colour wash on 160gsm paper – holy crap! paper turned pulpy…

So, yeah, just when i was a little caught up with all the problems of work and finance, i was given a small reminder about priorities in life. It started out last Thursday, the day before the Hari Raya holidays. I asked our tea lady if she was going home for the holidays. Our tea lady is the nicest and most hardworking person you’ll ever meet. She said of course not, with only 3 days off its impossible for her to get home and come back (she comes from a very small island to the east of Jawa). She says she’ll stay in KL and spend the weekend with her…

Found this photo while looking for something else. They are the three books i bought when i went to London/Paris recently. The left one is The Old Man and the Sea (GBP6/RM30) i bought from Waterstone’s on Oxford Street. It was the only book I bought retail. The other two, I from a second hand stall in Portobello Market. The middle one is Kurt Vonnegut’s Breakfast of Champions and the right one is The Time Traveler’s Wife by Audrey Niffenegger. Both cost about GBP4 each (RM20), still a lot cheaper than buying new here. Didn’t have time to check out Charing Cross. Maybe the next time i’m in London.

Who’d knew this trip back to Ipoh, I’d end up in Menglembu for supper. Menglembu (or as locals pronounce it, “Meng-ge-lembu”) is famous for many things, including peanuts. Now you can add ‘fried chicken’ to the list. The stall is somewhere in town, just ask around where good stalls are (someone brought me there). I think this one is called Jalan Tranchell. At a busy road corner, you’ll see the stall just next to a DVD shop. The sign says that in two weeks time, they’ll be moving to a proper shop just a few doors away. What do they sell? Delicious fried chicken, and honey roasted chicken. And lots…

Here’s an old trick with a calculator that my dad showed me when i was small. Works with any digital LCD calculator (not your handphone one, though). 142 (key in ‘142’) Americans are battling 154 (then key in ‘154’) Arabs over 69 (and then key in ’69’) Gallons of oil times 5 (multiply by 5) trucks that are carrying it. What oil is it?? Press equals for the answer and turn the calculator upside down for the answer. Haha. The things we amused ourselves with those days before the Internet…

It all started a few semesters ago during PT, when I learnt from Ron about Menyelek I and the African Jews. The legend goes like this – back in the days of the Old Testament, When Queen Sheba visited King Solomon in Jerusalem, the legend goes that she went back to Ethiopia pregnant with the good King’s baby (wow, this Solomon is one smooth player). The kid, Menyelek (or Menelik) grows to inherit the throne of Ethiopia, goes back to Jerusalem to find out the truth from Solomon. Solomon tells him the truth, and Menyelek manages to steal the ark of the Covenant back to Africa with him. Its a…

I’ve lost my reading mojo a little in the past 2 months. Partly due to lethargy, partly because i was stuck with this book. I tried to power thru the first few chapters, but the description of the mundane life of kids in a privileged English boarding school was too inane to get my interest going. There was something special / weird about them, but the hints were to scarce it was getting a little infuriating. After leaving it for a month or and spending my time watching TV series and old movies of my hard disk, i decided to finish the book 2 days ago. Conclusion – yes, the…

You know what a pawn shop is, right? Whenever you’re short on cash, you bring something valuable to the shop, the old man at the counter assesses its street value, lends you some money, keeps the item as collateral. If within a period of time you don’t come back to redeem the item, he keeps the item. At least that’s how they used to work here. In some other countries, pawn shops, instead of dying out like a sunset industry, have mushroomed by becoming second hand item traders and antique restorers. I’ve been watching a series called Pawn Stars (cool name, eh?) about a family run business in Las Vegas,…