Archive for February, 2009

Posted on February 26, 2009 - by Abner

Skiing in Malaysia?

Received a friend request in Facebook from someone who is planning to setup an indoor ski field in Malaysia. It’s in proposal and crossing finger stage for now. It got me wondering, where will the location be? Prime location or some ulu area? Will there be snow? I have never been to a country with four seasons let alone ski. The idea seems fun. Supposedly a blog has been setup too but it’s not being revealed yet. Everything is still under wraps. We will see how it goes ya.

Posted on February 26, 2009 - by Abner

ClimbStation – Rock Climbing Simulator

It’s a treadmill, only that it’s vertical. Haha…
Never thought of it before… seems amusing but seeing a cute chick on it got me concentrating. Come to think of it, they are using a lot of females in their promotional campaign. Sex sells theory, tried and true.

The ClimbStation is the child of Joyride Games based in Finland. From what I observed, exercising on ClimbStation is like bouldering on a moving vertical platform. It takes up a width of 3.0m x 4.8m which is considerably small. But wait up, it has a touch screen monitor for you to login, check performance, display statistics and save top scores too. It enables you to link up to 6 machines for competition. Speed climb whatever. Betcha there is a speedometer to gauge how fast they are going too. Hahaha.

As for difficulty level, I don’t think it could come close to bouldering. ClimbStation could be used for endurance training because it keeps going on and on and on. Would be a nice workout no doubt, but the height factor is not there. Would love to give it a try if given the chance. I will be like a hamster on wheels.
They have a new full flash website launched yesterday, the 25th of February 2009. Interested to have it in your home? Buy one and let me in for the fun ok?

Posted on February 26, 2009 - by Abner

Rubitone

What do you get when you mix Pantone® colors with the Rubik’s Cube.
You get Rubitone of course!
A concept by Ignacio Pilotto, an industrial designer. I have no idea where he is from, but he sure speaks Spanish. Correct me if I am wrong. I like the hybrid result but alas it is not intended to be a commercial product. Never fear or give up hope my dear friends, for all you know, some understaffed, child filled, illegal plastic factory with atrocious working environment smacked right in some Asia country may already be churning out original pirated versions of Rubitone. Such actions fails to take me by surprise anymore. Raised my eyebrows a little, admittedly yes.

He is rolling my man. Love to see more designs.

Posted on February 26, 2009 - by Abner

Pepsi Throwback – Made With Real Sugar

Weird name to go by huh. Throwback…
Anyway, it’s a new gimmick Pepsi Co. is coming up with. It’s like going back into time when times were better. On the tagline issue, here is a snippet from BevReview.com:

listing “inverted cane sugar” as the primary sweetener in the ingredients. This has sparked some conflict as well regarding just what is considered “sugar” these days. In the case of the Pepsi Throwback and Mountain Dew Throwback lines, is pure cane sugar going to be used (which is preferred by beverage enthusiasts)? Or will beet sugar, which is cheaper and pulled from sugar beets, not exactly on the same level as cane sugar. These questions remain to be answered…

My interest though is on the old school logo with the weathered label look. The design will go under the knife again as suggested at the bottom. All there is to do is just sit back and wait till it hit the shelves. Wonder if it will reach our shores.

A comment I read in a post was that each bottle contains 9 teaspoons of sugar. That’s a lot for such a small bottle.

Posted on February 21, 2009 - by Abner

Lizten Up.

Sad. To be brought down by such underhand tactics. When it does not really matters.
She could have tried the “It looked like me. It sounds like me. But am not sure if it’s me.” Get 2 experts in for verification.

Nah… she bloody well know it’s a waste of time. Morons would take that path to further delay the reckoning that was to be. The 2 experts would feel so idiotic. I know I would. 5 minute spent on the poor quality video would be enough to reach a crystal clear conclusion. I expect they get ridiculous amount of money for being expert on that case. Come to think of it, what ever really happened.

I wonder what else her nemesis have up their sleeves or was it really an act of a spiteful ex. What did he gained from exposing his previously treasured personal artifacts. To shame her when all his blackmails for money and sexual favors got turned down? To gloat when he sees close ups of his ex splashed across the local prints when he walk pass the friendly neighborhood vendor? Is that suppose to earn him pats on the backs and get free rounds of beers among his peers? Free flow of peanuts and “You are the man!” shout outs? Talk about sleeping with the enemy or musuh di dalam selimut or similar crap. Or is there a hidden agenda? Where is the big picture? I am not liking the shit the media feeds me. Or is the media themselves being fed crock load of shit? Apparently the voice of the people accounts for very  little things. Power of the people being silenced slowly. Now we know what they do day in day out. It’s good as anybody’s guess.

It seems using the sex channel, many outspoken individuals in this country are being ousted and backbenched. Sensational. Truly front page materials. No other pressing matters at hand than showing pictures of people sleeping? If you badly want to enjoy photos of respected individual a clown sleeping shamelessly at international conventions and important meets there are so much out there. Ridiculous and utterly disappointing. Wonder if the leaders of other countries took photos and MMS to their ministers and family for a instant good laugh. I would place bets on how long it took for the clown to fall asleep. Pukimak-lah. Enough said.

Lastly, motherfucker, great job for taking the photos ya. Spend the money wisely. Times are bad. And don’t forget to share the story of your magnanimous deed another 30 years down the road with your grandchildren sitting on your fragile old bones with your dick playfully tracing their tender derriere crack line. Bastard. Hey if you do have your own children, make sure you tastefully capture nude incriminating Kodak moments of them when they are young and innocent… document till they are old enough to question your actions. Take it as an insurance policy where you can blackmail and threaten them when they want to send you away to senior citizen’s garden or force you to sit away from the dining table and use a coconut shell for a bowl.

Posted on February 17, 2009 - by Abner

Hike : Gunung Stong, Kelantan Part 2

Previously known as : I Just Got Stong-ed Part 2

A week has gone and I am still a little tanned. Cuts and scratches healed. Aches gone. More than enough sleep. Over ate too.
Damn… I do miss the short lived days where I have absolutely no communication with the outside world at all. No mobile phones, no computers, no tv, no cars, no air conditioning, no mad crowds, no bright lights… just the simple form of civilization. Though I was not in the very deep jungles but it’s good enough.

Let me take you back to the scene where the thick morning fog was still swallowing the railway track below while the sun peeks timidly from behind a curtain of thick woolly clouds. I had just managed to stumble down onto the railroad with the weight of a dead secondary two student behind me. On second thoughts make it an overweight primary five student from Johore.
I had earlier splashed water and wiped off some grogginess in the tiny train washroom before heading to extract my backpack. I was still in a blur daze. I woke up ten minutes before the train stopped at Dabong, a small train station stranded in the outskirts. With lightning speed I repacked my stuff, double checked and put on my shoes. Washed my face, saw the group leaving the train and I followed, and before I left my bunk I flicked the curtain of the guy sleeping opposite of me. The one that I borrowed my carabiner to. Damn I should have gotten it back then and there. He was still doing it slow motion, unpacking and repacking his gears. I mumbled to him that they all got off and I am getting down too. Better hurry. And off I went. It was when I landed on the platform that I saw the two dozen plus people are already there… some posing for photos and others walking up and down the platform checking out the place. I straightened my specs and walked towards the platform while the train picked up momentum.

Managed to squeeze myself in for a photo.

Then someone in the group asked where the guy sleeping opposite me was… and they started to run around looking for him. Hell to think that he has a group of friends and they totally forgot about him. Later during the trip, I realized that it was his character to sometimes wander off on his own once in a while. The train has barely left the station before it came to a screeching halt. No one knew what happened. Neither did I. Before long, a few of them was running towards the end of the platform. Then I heard “Someone jumped off the train!”. Bloody hell, it appears that my bunk neighbour did an Indiana Jones scene. Shit, let’s hope that it does not spoil the party… and with every steps I took, I repeated myself. Shazaam, there he is… lying on the cold dusty concrete… not moving much… a bit bloodied. He cut his finger and scrapped his knees during the non-choreographed one take action scene that Harrisson Ford himself chickened out. It looked bad and everyone crowded around. He sure know how to make an entrance. Everyone there got smacked and that woke them up, instantly. I wanted to ask him then and there about my carabiner but it seemed inhumane. Cold blooded. So I just walked away, and confronted some roti canai instead. After much deliberation I decided to have toast and near raw eggs at the opposite stall. The station master kindly sent our failed action star to the nearest clinic. All’s well while my new carabiner just chugged away. Motherfuck. No more borrowing gears to anyone. Get your own. He was lucky that he survived the fall with only minor cuts and bruises. He could very well end up under the metal wheels and that would definitely spoil everyone’s appetite for scrambled eggs. Make it dinner as well. Would be a nightmarish ride home witnessing that.

Fortunately, the drama ended there.

One of them had a tripod setup after this shot but the group just dispersed. Leaving the photographer all alone. It was just too hot to pose for more. For the record, no complete group photo was taken.

What entails are unfamiliar territory of caves, forestry and mountains. Beautiful landscape. But to enjoy it we have to sloughed through unchartered terrain. We ascended with small stone steps which gradually turns into damp loose earth. No, not muddy yet. Performing this feat with a big backpack is a killer. Being my first I tried to sit and conserve my energy while letting a comfortable distance grew between. I find it more stressful when I had to huddled behind them, inching my way. Drains me. The journey to Baha base camp could take less than an hour but we spent a little more time on the mouth of the waterfall. Photo session people. My camera was buried deep inside my bag, so I did not bother. Haha… this happen throughout the trip. I was just lazy, really. The sight and sound of it was mesmerizing. Never had I seen a waterfall this high in person. I reached the base camp beaten. It’s certainly no joke to hoist such a weight.

Found my camp buddies and we chose the one nearest to our bags. My mates for the trip, Sean and Jensen. They proved to be good camp buddies and it made my trip more fun. Mark, Julia, Parth and Anu certainly added more flavor no doubt. Our camps were the nearest and reason being that we did not have a particular group made it easier for us to get around. But soon, we got to know everyone better. And since it was still Chinese New Year we gambled and I continued to give money away. Not much though. A few ringgit but the crappiness and jokes that it paid for was worth it. Sorry Say-Li for turning your nice camp into a makeshift gambling den.

Later in the night we adjourned to the edge of the huge waterfall. Not much stars to see though. It was too cloudy. Photo sessions continued and several girls really go all the way out for nice pictures. It scares me and I could see the horror in others too. Nuts I tell you.

The first night officiating my sleeping bag could not be anymore eventful. The floor was cold and hard and a stone embedded at my waist area made matters worse. And how can you call a four man tent when it barely fits three snugly. Ventilation was no good so we decided to have it open concept. Up went the zippers. Much better but the sleeping condition showed no signs of improvement. I tossed and turned and barely slept a wink. The ever gushing of water drowns out all the sound that the jungle has. Flushes away my dreams as well. First night sleep… negative. It did not bring my mood down though. In fact I woke up cheerful and filled with anticipation for what lies ahead. The Stong Peak.

Posted on February 11, 2009 - by Abner

Hike : Gunung Stong, Kelantan Part 1

Previously known as : I Just Got Stong-ed Part 1

A little tanned, a little cuts and scratches, a little aches on the thigh and calves, a little lack of sleep, a little bit hungry and it was worth every little damn little of everything. Did I get you a little bit confused?

I had a great experience in outdoor last weekend with more than 2 dozen of strangers. I had been striking out the days anticipating the hiking + camping trip since last year. No, the idea of surrounded by total strangers do not bothers me. The state of being outdoor, surrounded by trees, crashing gallons of revitalizing water on centuries polished rocks and taking in cool fresh air outweighs all those silly questions. Honestly, I preferred it that way, not having known associates around me, as it forces me to socialize a bit more. Come out of my shell. Think it took me more than 24 hours before I eased up and moved around.

I was the first to arrive at the rendezvous point, McD, KL Sentral at 730pm. Sat the dead weight I had on my shoulder on first empty table I found. Rested while my eyes darted around the room looking for anyone who has a bloody huge backpack eating at their shoulders. Nope, none yet, just a couple of cute chicks. I ordered myself Spicy McDeluxe and waited. A handful of french fries and two bites into my burger later, I could make out a huge frame accompanied by a much smaller individual appear at the narrow entrance. Each have big bags and they so happen to be the organizers for this trip. Met them once last year when I went for the Gunung Irau, Cameron Highlands trip. Waved, offered seats and introduced myself. It was after 10 minutes before others arrive. And man, did they pack… I was intimidated of course. These guys know their stuff. All look seasoned and polished. Of course, they looked clean. Guys are shaved. Girls hair tidy. Too many people and I did not approached them. Just linger by the side smiling if eyes met, but looked the other way soon after. Time was 820pm and there are several person who have not arrived. The train leaves at 830pm. Dang… but luckily our train system could be depended on – arrival delayed. The party was formed and we crowded around the tv checking out the mini riots and hoo haa that took place earlier in view of Perak’s unstable political state.

Finally the gates opened and we flooded the stairs and got on board the train. I have not got on a train for years and this would be a first where I have to sleep 10 plus hours on it. Got the top bunk for myself. I brought 2 carabiners with me and I used them to hook up my bags. Eventually offered one of my carabiner to the person opposite of me when he seemed to have trouble keeping his backpack in place. A brand new one too. The carabiner I borrowed him never returned. And I regretted borrowing it. More about it later though. First, here’s some tips for people who would like to take a long arduous journey on Malaysian train.

• The odd numbers are for top bunks and even number for lower bunks.
• The top ones are a little low, I can’t sit up straight when I am on it, and I am about 174m. Lower ones, has a little more vertical space.
• Lower bunks are supposed to be RM10 extra.
• A pillow and a sheet is provided. Reading lamp too.
• Those who can’t sleep in brightly lit room better bring sleep masks/eye covers, the compartment lights are on 24/7.
• Toilets have bare necessities. Option for squat or sit. For the sit ones, I prefer to hover.
• Leg space is limited after you put your bag on your bed.
• The arrival and departure time are merely estimation. Most of the time they are late.

Apart from this, I managed to catch some shut eye on the ride. It was much better than I had imagined. I slept through all the swishing and swashing but woke up every time we stopped at a station. Perhaps the swaying and rocking reminds me of my infant days. Chilling on my baby bed. Downed a bottle of chicken essence before I slept.

We reached Dabong at 730am. Drama ensued on the foggy railroad while most were still rubbing the sleep off their eyes.

Posted on February 6, 2009 - by Abner

Sweetness Of Doing Nothing

I had a long holiday. 8 days plus. Spent it at home of course. It was Chinese New Year, so it was, I think. The atmosphere is getting thinner. Celebration of the Lunar New Year seems to be waning… it’s like sitting on a reclining chair set at 150 degrees. A little more then it will go flat.

Did not meet up with any friends at all this year, and none of us organized any too. Only the one who came back from Singapore asked to meet up. Guess everyone wanted to stay home and away from crowds this year. Managed to meet up with 4 friends the night before I got back to the city.

I think the long holidays is just too long. If holidays meant staying indoors and at home. Shall consider hauling my ass to somewhere next year if I have a long CNY holiday for a day or two.
I had too much computer, TV and sitting around. The long hours spent on gambling hurts my back but I won. When we made it to the table my luck dwindled. I lost what I won. Easy comes easy goes. Poof!

Nearly 2 weeks off the rocks makes me a dull boy. Am feeling lethargic. My lazy bone starts to repopulate. A good thing though is that the corn on my toe is getting better. I already started running again, once. Just about 3km. My muscles are a little sore now. But it feels comforting. Neglected my running shoes for more than 3 months. Should have dealt with the corn bastard earlier. It looks ugly. I first bought a lotion for corn and a pumice from Scholl. It worked like… crap. Expensive and yields no result. Shit decision for taking the painless way. I think it might even aggravated it and made it worst. Then I sought the use of corn plaster. And assumed just sticking it on is enough. I ignored the direction to cut away at the white skin and clip at the monster. Naturally my assumption led to further fuck ups. It bloody hurts by now. Soon I was on my second pack of corn plaster that I started cutting away. It did not hurt that much when I clipped and peeled away the flapping dead skin. Shit hit the fan when I move in for the bullseye. Scraping and partly digging at the infected area was not a fun thing to do. Having it grow at the bottom of your big toe and bending over for a long period of time hurts the inner thigh, back and neck. The hole you get after each excavation just keep my spirits hollow. Thank goodness the increase cutting and scraping with the third pack seems to be working much much better.

Right now I am wearing my Inov8 with my backpack sitting patiently behind me. Me going to get me some fresh air this weekend. Me is excited about it but me think the 10 hour train ride is a bummer. Hope this trip will be worthwhile of my 20 hour train ride. The bag is heavy. I packed several light pieces of clothing but brought quick a lot of food in the form of Snickers and Nature Valley bars. Let’s see, I have :

• 3 regular Snicker bars
• 12 mini Snicker bars
• 12 Nature Valley bars (8xPeanut, 2xCinnamon Apple and 2xHoney Oats)
• 2 Maggi Cup Noodles (least nutrition but got it for the taste only)
• 1 Ayam Brand Chilli Tuna
• 2 Instant Nestum Packet
• 1 Pack of Glucolin
• 1 Pack of Organic Protein
• 1 Bottle of mixed Vitamins
• 1 Packet of Salt (in case there are leeches)
• 3 bottles of Brands Chicken Essence
• 1 Vaude Sleeping Bag
• 1 Set Mess Tin, Spoon and a pair of bamboo chopstick
• 1 FavourLight Luxeon Rebel 90
• 1 First Aid Kit (Plaster, Charcoal Pills, Panadols, Deep Heat, Counter Pain, Ho Yan Hor, Scissors, Nail Clipper, Finger Tape, Safety Pin and etc)
• Toiletries
• 1 long pants, 2 shorts, 4 boxers, 1 hand towel, 4 tshirts, 2 singlet and 3 pairs of socks. 1 jacket too.
• 1 Lowe Alpine backpack
• 1 daypack
• 1 Canon camera (don’t think the battery it will last for 2 days)
• 1 Sea to Summit Dry Sack
• 1 3litre Camelbak Hydration Reservoir

Basically that’s it.

Am leaving for Dabong, Kelantan tonight with 27 strangers. Well I met the organizers before once when I went for the Gunung Irau, Cameron Highlands hike last year. Tamil and YY. But did not talk much with them. As for the others, blank. Well, that’s part of the fun right?

I suppose it will be a bit hard for me this time because I have not been running or hiking for 3-4 months. No endurance and low fitness level. Oh yeah…