rocky's bru: Petrol, diesel prices to go down

23.8.2008.

I made a little speech in a certain gathering at the Primula Hotel in Kuala Terengganu on 25th. July that mentioned, among other things, the incredibly thoughtless decision by Dollah  to increase the pump price of petrol by 41 %. So, now he sees some sense in his senseless decision ? I'm sure I speak for countless Malaysians when I say that this fellow is getting bad advice from the idiots that he has surrounded himself with. As they say, you are the company you keep with. And by the way, I have not seen his face in Permatang Pauh. I hope he won't claim credit for any miracle that takes place on polling day. His being PM for more than 1 term is miracle enough !

.....................................................................................

Weekend snippets.

18.8.2008.

29 th. Olympiad, Beijing.

One American swimmer, Phelps, won 11 golds. Malaysia won 1 silver. A number of African atheletes were bought over by Arab and other countries and have won medals for their new host nations. Even Singapore, not known for its sporting prowess ( in fact not known for being sporting) managed to put up a show by parading their imported sportsmen. Maybe this is the way to go, these games. 

During the closing ceremonies ask Tunku Imran to carry the flag, followed by the officials. At least that way they work for their trip.

Wedding receptions. 

'Tis the wedding season - what with the school holidays and the approaching Ramadan. Most hosts resort to putting up canvas tents and setting buffet lunches in the sweltering midday heat. So guests mostly quickly pile their food plates high, consume about half of the food, and hightail it back to their air-conned cars without bothering to see the blessed couples. The wedded pairs might as well have been dressed in singlets and sarong. The one air-conned hall available, MPS, is booked to 2010. The new air-conned hall in the form of an indoor stadium lies unused away in Nilai, one world away. So much for thoughtful planning. Last heard, the white elephant is looking for a sucker to buy it.

Permatang Pauh. 

BN might as well give up the seat. Anwar may be guilty as sin. That's not going to stop the voters. In Malaysian politics, truth doesn't count. Perception does.

The UMNO elections. 

After 5 months, UMNO leaders are still talking as if they won the last GE. Worse, UMNO members can't seem to be bothered. At the Branches' meetings, the AJK Bahagian assigned to officiate these meetings don't come prepared to discuss the aftermath of the 12 GE disaster. Instead they mumble the usual stupid, meaningless platitudes that have been uttered countless times in the past, thinking the branch members are as stupid as they are. It seems like business as usual. I assured them at one of these meetings that if this state of affairs remain, they can just wait for UMNO's complete demise in the next GE.

The state of the economy.

Who's minding the store ? The inflation rate is at its highest in 20 years. Prices are all going up. The ringgit is weakening. Interest rates are going up. Businessmen are complaining. Who's minding the store? 

.....................................................................................................

Aziz & Nok-in"s kenduri.

13.8.2008.

Finally Aziz & Nok-in's "olek" came to a successful close last Sunday, 10th. August. Azrin the bride is the youngest of four children - three girls and a boy. In reality the wedding reception took years to complete, what with the match-making, and, sadly, death in the family. 

Kak Long Iza succumbed to breast cancer last year, single and only in her early 30's. I had tears during the final prayer. The three girls all completed their tertiary education. Now there are two.

"Boy" didn't continue his schooling beyond Form Three, choosing to move to KL to work, and ,secretly, got married. Eventually the prodigal son returned home with two children, a girl and a younger boy, but without their mother. She apparently sued for divorce and the family hasn't seen or heard from her again.

Not much is known about Aziz's family because they're in Rembau and don't visit much, nor do Nok-in and the children visit Rembau much, as far as I know. But I'm sure Aziz maintains contact.

Nok-in has only one other sibling, a younger brother, Mat Cit. He was also the caterer for the wedding feast - that's one of his businesses. I did mention the fact in my acknowledgement address, but forgot to say that if the guests found the food unsatisfactory Mat Cit would not get paid. 

Nok-in and Mat Cit lost their father a long  time ago, due to food poisoning and delayed medical treatment. Their mother, my mother's younger sister, also passed away a long time ago, also because of medical problems. Nok-in now occupies the ancestoral home, while Mat Cit and Mok, his retired-teacher wife, has a house in Batu 46.

Mat Cit has an interesting history. He wasn't very keen in his schooling, spending a lot of time playing on his home-made guitar that he painstakingly made himself and painstakingly taught himself to play, and hitch-hiking to  towns like Johore Baru during the long school holidays. He was always restless, spending a lot of his out-of-school time in Dioh where his late father kept a separate house from the family. Attending a Malay school, naturally Mat Cit only spoke and wrote that Language. His footloose ways later found him hitching a ride all the way from Bukit Temensu to Germany. For many years his late mother would pine for him, receiving no news of his whereabout or his welfare, except once when he sent some money but no contact address. Then after several years he came home, for a break, he said. By that time he had not only learned to speak passable English, but also passable German, which he put to good use when a German Volunteer Worker posted to Kuala Pilah came visiting. 

Mat Cit only went back for about two or three years. Soon he was back home again. Apparently, all this while he had been living in Germany "underground"  without proper travel documents, thus the elusive existence his mother had worried for in the years of separation. No real reason for returning was offered by him, but I suspect he was caught in an immigration ambush and eventually got deported. 

Azrin's wedding is the first in that family. We are happy for them. At last it can now expand. There's still Juli who remains unattached. The late Iza was also in the middle of a relationship, but we should respect her memory and abstain comment on it.

Fuad, Din, Basit and I are responsible for the choice of the type of reception that was eventually held. The common practice nowadays in Malay weddings is for the buffet-style feast that I so dislike, as I have remarked in my older postings on this blog. The same arguments were successfully made this time - that a proper sit-down lunch with everyone together under one roof watching the Bersanding and then partaking the feast, and the speeches, to have a real sense of a formal reception- must be held.

Being chosen as the MC for the wedding day, I was determined that the entire festivities would be completed in good time. And although the target starting time of 12 p.m. was missed, on my urging, between the ceremonies and the feast, I was able to get the blessed couple back to the hall entrance as a signal for the end of the reception by 2 p.m.

Many lingered because old family members have not met for a long time. And in my haste, we forgot about the wedding cake left uncut on one side of the stage ! But my bowels were making complains and I quickly made my exit after informing Aziz, without telling Nok-in. May God bless the family, Amin.

.......................................................................................................

Anwar: I hold Abdullah responsible

6.8.2008.

But Anwar was in the Government in 1988. How can you burn the forest to save the lone tree ? 

It seems that everybody but Anwar is at fault. If there is a conspiracy, then half the country must be in it because they all seemed to have ganged up on him. Why didn't he cooperate with the police and the doctors ? Why did he run in the middle of the night to a foreign embassy ? Why didn't he swear by the Quran ? Why has he behaved like someone guilty ?Why would Dollah , stupid as he is, resort to the same charges that were made 10 years ago ? If Anwar wants people like me to vote for him, he has to convince me that he respects the Law, and would let the Law decide his case. He can be full of praise for the courts when they decide for him. A true leader must show his true character when in distress. If you, Anwar, didn't become the Deputy President of UMNO within 17 years of joining it  nobody would have noticed you.

Monday blues.

5.8.2008.

Tuesday, 5th. August. I used to get Monday blues - when I worked. I didn't think the affliction would affect me when I'm retired, but it did yesterday, so I mooched around and made some trivial notes.

The trains are very popular now - they're always full, especially on weekends and school holidays. The KL Central-Kajang stretch is standing room only, as is the KL Central-Subang portion. But I notice it's mostly under 50s. Wonder why. 

The constant fixture is that the trains are NEVER punctual. KTM could mean "Keretapi Takikut Masa", and MRCB should mean "Malaysian Railway Class B". 

Hamzah "Hank" Pilus should read the article making the case for control of swiftlet farms. It said putting them near homes could pose a danger for humans because of the presence of the fungus cryptococcus neoformans in the bird droppings which is blown up in the air when the droppings dry. This fungus can attack the central nervous system and cause swelling to the brain and the spinal cord. Needless to say,it can be fatal. So, you London visitors (Malaysians always flock to London) don't open your mouth when stopping at Trafalgar Square, or you might join Lord Nelson sooner than you expect ! 

Students benefit the most from the modern user friendly buildings. You see many plug points on the walls. I saw a student happily pecking on his console, with his pc plugged in one of these terminals - free power courtesy of the landlord. 

The foreingners are taking over the country ! They're everywhere. You see them, you hear them, you even smell them. You go to a restaurant, and who serves you ? Brother Bangla. You say you want the croissant and he gives you a blank look - because you pronounce it like a Frenchman. You go to the mall, and who's the security there, a Nepalese, unsmiling, unspoken. You sit in a train, and you hear all kind of languages spoken except Malay or English. And when the musical cell phone tone rings you hear all kinds of songs you don't even know exist. I go to one golf club where they still have caddies - it's a dying breed - and it's all Indonesian. I go to another club and it's mainland Chinese. At least all of us understand Indonesian. The Chinese caddies speak only Mandarin.  Malaysian Chinese speak only their own dialects. And the reason for these foreigners here ? Young Malaysians can only work where the hours are daylight ones, and the ambiance is air-conditioned.

In the meantime I linger at the Indian bookstore, looking for "best buy" golf magazines. The magazines maybe old, but the golf lessons are ageless. This time my browsing is fruitless. Just like my search for a working cash deposit ATM in the premises - I found 4, but all signed "off line". And it's only 3 p.m. Monday.

..........................................................................................................