I could never handle your curves
Or your many no-entry signs
You are one of my many loves
But you won't let me off the lines
And as I hit the walls nearby
I ignored gravity and flew
Dancing aimlessly in the sky
Before getting reborn anew
I wanted to be in control
To have a grip and not lose it
I wanted to just reach my goal
With a boost, just a little bit
I'll be on magazine covers
So give me a day around town
I've been in circles for hours
In endless pursuit underground

And as I shriveled my tongue to Carolyn's "McDonald's never puts enough salt on their fries" fries, I said:

"Beware my brother's legion of '4D puzzle' animals!"

A puzzled Hanna then asked, while sipping through her balloon-stick-made-into-straw straw, if she could buy it from me.

I said no, and drank my Vanilla Coke merrily.

I woke up late on a Tuesday, and as my mom was sending me to the LRT station, she asked what present I wanted for my birthday.

"A haircut?"

She was heading to Midvalley anyway, and I got my haircut. It wasn't worth it - for every Ringgit spent all he did was rewind it a day. The colleagues couldn't tell the difference! (It was, of course, much lighter... so maybe he did some hairstyling magic to cut off loads but keep the volume?)

The Streamyx (ADSL broadband) installer called me when I was in Tower Records listening to CDs. I told him we'd be home at 8pm. Of course, I later realized that my lovably-bullyable colleague Kay-Li was in a play (Me, Myself and Pulau Belakang Buaya) that night, and it was the only screening, at 8:30pm!

My parents could handle the installer, I thought. Or not. My mom assumed that the Alcatel Speed Touch 510 ADSL broadband modem/router box in the plastic bag near the computer was for my friend. The phone line was dead anyway, so the installer couldn't do anything.

My delightful enjoyment of the play poking fun of Malaysia was marred by a stern mother saying the installer needed to speak on the phone. I reached home for some parental frying pan.

On Wednesday, an appointment was set at 3pm, but he came at 2pm. Santa he was indeed.

As he checked the cables, Santa asked for the filter thingy, and I took it out of the box, revealing the old Lantech 5-port 10/100 Fast Ethernet switch. He asked how much it was, and I said it was RM105 when I bought it, but PC Fair was selling such at RM75, so I'd sell it at RM50. He bought it.

The night before, I set the ADSL modem's mode to PPPoA (which could give me 2Mbps if they forget to uncap my bandwidth) instead of PPPoE. However, it refused to connect until I switched it back to PPPoE, at a stable 384kbps.

The best part was, the router passed every test in Gibson Research Corporation's ShieldsUP! tool.

I just hope I can maintain such enthusiasm (jakun!) It's not like I haven't tasted broadband at the office before...

Regretfully, DJ Phuturecybersonique told me of a Linksys wireless router/modem going for RM220... with wireless networks, the chances of the modem getting struck by lightning and passing the current to the computers are virtually nil.

Flush The Evils

Me and my family were in the family van, coming home from my grandma's. I wound the window down to reach out to the toll system's Touch N Go.

We were just looking out for signs to home. Soon, the two lanes converged into a highway, and at that point, there was a huge puddle. My dad slowed down, on the deeper end, the left side.

An idiot zoomed past on the right.

I wanted to wind the windows up, but I just closed my eyes and winced.

The huge wave splashed on my sister, mother and I.

I felt like horning at that fella, but all we could do was laugh loudly. What more from a van window that was higher than usual!

Seasons Greetings

Oh yes, Merry Christmas. I hate typing it because my fingers go all over the keyboard. So don't be offended if I type "Same to you" instead. :P

Friday

Jing dragged me to Kelana Jaya for a birthday dinner. The place had plenty of funky curry servings, but to be safe, I would pick a less stomach-contorting fish and chip meal. Turns out the coleslaw was cold and funky.

Later at Midvalley, Syefri and I queued for entry into the Lord Of The Rings Marathon at 11pm. Nope, there were no pajama-clad people trying to win free stuff. However, before the movie started, some dude said the Subaru ticket winners would have a free buffet... Supper? Clap! Hooray!

What say me?

I stayed well awake for the interesting Fellowship Of The Ring (3 hours 30 minutes), anticipating each scene with just the right amount of enthusiasm. (No ARWEN!!! giggly screams...) I read attentively up to the part where the hobbits bump into a Nazgul, and read somewhat until they meet Strider, so it wasn't so bad.

The Two Towers (3 hours 44 minutes) was a bit too subdued at the beginning, and I was waiting for the scene to change. Syefri snored. Hear that, Ed!

Proud to have stayed awake so far, I bought Teh Tarik, having the sleepless dragging torture of the second.

That did not help. Figuring I'd be able to see it again soon, Return Of The King (3 hours 20 minutes) had me sleeping during the starting war (and preparing-for-war) scenes. I didn't know who or where or what anymore. Some dude would just take a horse to this kingdom/country/place and call for reinforcements, and he would be the heir. I'd even confuse Eowyn for Galadriel.

I'd catch some winks when I hear whooshes, and open my eyes when the sound changed. Gollum and gang would still be in the same place, so I knew I didn't miss anything!

What about the ending? Why would ghost pirates suddenly come out so conveniently? (Orlando Bloom was in Pirates Of The Caribbean too... coincidence?) Why didn't they just call upon them and wipe out the KISS-inspired Uruk-hai?

Someone said the war scenes were emotionally draining, but alas, they were all too fast for my eyes. All that motion blur! All that registered in my head were the whooshes.

It wasn't butt-numbing, it was leg-cramping. I wished I had more leg room. This, coming from a vertically-challenged person.

Please don't convince me to watch any part of the trilogy again. It was too daunting in one seating! (Okay, so maybe a Gold Class ticket might convince me...)

At 10:20am, I walked out, a free man, welcomed by the huge queue for the movie I just watched. Syefri and I complimented each other loudly and proudly about our 680 minute adventure.

I went home, slept like 15 minutes, and headed off to SAITO to meet Dustyhawk. We bummed around a bit before I went to KLCC Park for Rock The World 4.

The ticket-less crowd hovered over the barricades, toppling it over impatiently. We waited until their technical difficulties were over, and I greeted Hassan the All-Access-Pass-bearer. "Hassan! Shaz was in Pangkor so he didn't get us media passes!"

Pan Global Insurance gave out bright neon-colored T-shirts for the moshers, but I took a blue one nevertheless to add to my free-T-shirt wardrobe.

There was no noticeable problem with the sound throughout the show. Fantastic! OAG's show, starting with the must-jump 60's TV, ended right after that song as the front stage barricade crashed.

Syefri, Aznin, Michelle and I ate a long dinner at KLCC, to come back much later to discover that the show was still on hold.

Highlights? Prana having the jumpiest funk mosh-core, causing some poor dude to twist his leg. Butterfingers, for something new. Of course there were many other notables, but that shall be reserved for a proper review.

Sunday

I bought an Alcatel SpeedTouch 510 ADSL modem and router with 4 ports for RM300 at PC Fair 2003, PWTC. No comment on it, since I had yet to test it. :(

Monday

Er, I blogged about my weekend.

Many things make me smile.

1) Winning a Lord Of The Rings Marathon ticket, which was screening on my birthday night, was one of them.

2) Getting the 19" Princeton monitor back, and finding it does 1600x1200 at 85 Hertz more healthily than before.

3) Checking the ATM machine to find a long overdue payment was one of them. I could now get myself an electric guitar! Of course, I'd have to get a router/broadband modem and DVD writer first...

4) Finishing the final exam, and coming out on 30 minutes. Hopefully, no more reruns of subjects.

5) Going for more addictive tangy goodness, in a half-chicken flaming hot peri-peri Nando's set. Yesterday, PY caught me on a moment of self-expression in the KLCC tunnel to the LRT station. What can I say? I wanted to do something stupid on the last day before turning 20.

6) Updating my About Me! page with updated links. Neatness!

7) Presents. Oh wait, I haven't gotten any. ;)

/zimages/lotrilogy.jpg

Nope, I will not bother shrinking the image any more, it's already heavy and big as it is to add impact. Image was also intentionally skewed to appear lower-quality at the bottom.

I have not watched a single movie from the trilogy, so it would be all the more fitting! On the night of my birthday, to add! (I'd stink for Rock The World 4 on the evening after... and perhaps FFK some people.)

My partner in crime Syefri shall numb our gluteus maximuses together.

My apologies to Kristin, whose surround-sound DVD home theater system will be unparalleled to this.

I'd have updated sooner, but the PUTRA LRT had central computer glitches from Taman Bahagia to Taman Paramount, causing train-crossing heroes and crawling trains. Plus I was testing out my Ernie Ball 9/42 guitar strings, but with the 2nd and 3rd string from the previous set as the 5th and 6th, downtuned, to give an bright, octaved airiness to the bottom end.

*enters guitar geek mode*

After my first string (high E4) broke from tuning it back from an Open D tuning, I decided to play around with the tunings. What about a guitar that had the chord sound of a piano? A regular guitar chord can span 3 octaves in open position.

I removed both E strings, and took the original set of strings from New Strings Attached, and arranged them like so:

DGBDAB (from 6th to 1st)

The underlined strings were from the old, thick set.

I then tuned them to regular B, or regular E up a fifth, taking the octaves of certain strings, so it became:

B2 E3 A3 D3 F#2 B3

To tune the guitar, the following chords should have the same note, same octave:

b |---------0-
F#|-5---------
D |-------0---
A |-----0-5---
E |---0-5---2-
B |-0-5-------

It feels funny, because the 2nd and 3rd strings are now wound, and the 4th and 5th ones are not. It makes low power chords sound airy and twangy, while high-pitched solos sound low, and unison bends on the 1st two strings will sound (somewhat) like 12-string guitars.

Regular open position chords, like the D major, sounds less high now.

And now, for the compulsory sound demo, with the song every guitar store despises, because every beginner plays it when testing their guitar:

Octave B Tuning Test, octavebtuning.zip, 365 KB (I don't know what else to call it...)

Perhaps, when I get a new set, I'll string it like EADGBe (where the EAD strings are dropped GBE's, respectively.)

Oh, and I was walking past Central Market yesterday, to see two brilliant buskers - one with a regular green cheap Kapok with chipped off pickguard, and a Morris 12-string! Now I wouldn't know the price of a 12-string Morris, but I'd think it would be beyond the range of a busker...

There was a wall socket vacancy
And a plug that dangled free
A trained eye could analyze
That both were the right shape and size
But why should we waste electricity?

I have learnt many things the hard way. Like how you do not use the same porportions for making Milo, for making coffee!

I usually make myself a cup of Milo at the office pantry, but the Milo was finished, so I tried to make coffee instead. I unassumingly put in 4 scoops of coffee (just like for Milo.) I then doused it with some sinful condensed milk.

I thought the flavor was a bit too thick, so heck, I poured in more condensed milk. That didn't help. Sugar? Nope, still as black as ever. (I'm fine with black coffee, but this hadn't reached the sweet spot of white coffee, so it was icky.)

I drank halfway before giving up. It was too thick-flavored.

Water never tasted so good. I went to the toilet, and smelt the caffeine in the stream!

I was as sleepy as usual, though. Odd odd. I wasn't even jittery or anything.

It was still in the stream this morning. How do you detoxify yourself of caffeine?

I met Dide for dinner last week, so that she may take a picture of my cool shirt with not so cool blurry text:

/zimages/tmr3shirt.jpg

Her friend working at this ice-cream shop pestered her to buy ice-cream, so Dide got me this vanilla-wannabe yogurt cone and asked me to blog about it. Sadly, I don't remember the name of the shop. :(

/zimages/icecream.jpg

Bring on Friday, where I watched Mystic River, a who-did-it thriller with some big names like Sean Penn. That name alone carries so much weight, that the movie becomes not everybody's cup of tea.

I bumped into old schoolmate John and two others.

I went around One Utama after that to buy Jasmine a birthday present. Linkin Park - Live In Texas (with DVD) was selling at RM63 at Tower Records and RM56 at Rock Music. I walked into (insert unnameable record store here) and found only one copy of it, at RM51! Speedy Video didn't have it, so I confirmed with Brian and KJ that we'd be splitting our money on that one, for RM51.

As I lined up at the counter with John, he spotted the same DVD set opposite the counter, where all the new releases were. It was at RM63. I told him to keep it low as I paid for the DVD set with the RM51 price tag. As the guy keyed the number, he realized that there was a problem with the price. He said sorry, and said it was wrongly priced, walking over to the new releases rack to double-check.

I stood there, half expecting to pay RM51. He said it was RM63 anyway. We left.

Now John was studying law, and he told me that I couldn't argue about them not honoring their prices... something about contracts and acceptance. Gah. Should've hunted for a sign that said, "We will honor the lower price in case of any discrepancy."

I got the RM56 one instead, and it came with a free poster.

Later, I met up with Brian. We bumped into Caryna, who was on her way to work. She stared down the rolled poster in curiosity, and I could not resist hitting the other end of the poster in her bimbo-ish expression.

Brian and I walked at least a good half-hour to Taman Tun Dr. Ismail to try to get a cab. It was raining, and One Utama's taxi stand was congested. By the time we gave up and walked back, we found a taxi who just rejected some dudes who went "Taman Megah 10 bucks? (Insert profanities here.)" We paid the price and more, but didn't mind.

Needless to say, Jasmine's house was big, and the party was more than worth the time taken for the taxi to get lost. Happening? I'd say so, especially when you get a lap dance.

Syefri lent me his Animatrix DVD. I told him very well that I didn't have anything that could play DVDs. Evil! If I bought a DVD-ROM drive, I'd end up buying loads of DVDs.

"And after all that text, here's more for Saturday!"

I went to Berjaya Times Square with movie-spoiler-in-a-cinemaless-place Patrick and rode the most worthwhile rides - the rollercoaster, DNA Mixer and carpet ride clone. On the DNA Mixer, I noticed a stick of green apple Mentos - the kind that already is more nauseating than the ride. Whoever it is would have been lucky indeed to have dropped that! I believe I got the extended version of the DNA Mixer. It did a lot more tilting, and a lot less rolling in the first round.

We then went to Ezone to find nobody playing Unreal Tournament 2003 or Battlefield 1942. That would be disappointing, since we'd definitely lose in Counter-Strike.

I then met Jing and her KL-welcoming-entourage at Brewball, a pool center, nearby. Someday, if I practice enough, I shall earn the title, "Your kai-ness" (kai is a Chinese term for a lucky shot...)

Boring! I know you sleep on Sunday so spare the details...

Well I didn't. I went to KL Sentral to drink overpricedly with Grace, Minishorts, Ryuu, Wena, April, Nicholas and Irene. Ah yes, I am glad when I can link people and not just type their names, expecting you to know who they are (or expecting me to explain who they are.)

There was a replica of the Petronas Twin Towers, made of books, measuring 12 meters high in KL Sentral. Funny indeed. The sign said it was contending for the tallest book tower in the world. (Of course, they cheated since the books aren't stacked literally but being placed in a rack display...) Malaysia has lost the tallest tower record... but we'll beat them at tallest book tower record. Ironically, one of the many books up there were the Dare To Fail series.

The crowd was back from their hometowns, and thus Sunday evening was a crawl on the roads, so Irene, Wena and I detoured to Sunway Pyramid.

Woe betide the Nando's fan in me, as they ran out of Flaming Hot and Hot flavors! How else to show Wena (a famous food reviewer), the full glorious tangy sour zing that turns faces red? (She had not tried it before.)

As I got on the PUTRA LRT at Kelana Jaya, I bumped into Ronald, whom some of us happened to talk about earlier. On one of the seats, I spotted a snake puzzle. You know, the one made out of triangles that turn, forming shapes like 45-degree-cut cubes? (I wish I had a digicam now...) This would be one of those fads from the 80's, like Rubik's Cubes. I adopted it... and broke it. :(

So you were saying...

Erm, nothing. Forget it. I just feel like telling you my whole weekend and not bothering to connect the dots. If you were looking forward to wasting your time online, I think I have done my job mighty well. Until I feel strongly about something, this shall remain dull.

I was at a major music store, looking through the discounted section, to see a CD I had never seen before - The White Stripes' self-titled album! It was at RM9.90, so I bought it there and then, considering the usual price is RM35 to RM45 for a single audio CD, and a RM29 controlled price next year.

It had an original holographic sticker, but the guy at the counter said it was a CD-R reprint. He opened it up to show me that it was indeed a masquerade. To heck with it, I got it anyway because I loved headbanging to them. (Besides, their latest album, Elephant, looks very pirated-looking...)

Similiar rare, original albums can be found around the older part of town. At least they're albums which just aren't found anymore and not pirates of new albums. (I have never purchased a pirated Audio CD before this.)

Oh, and I've added the psychedelic-layout-owning Doey to my links section in my About Me! page.

I have restored happiness into a young heart, at the ironic karmic cost of my own. Coincidence. The movement.

The truth never hurts. One's inability to handle it does.

It confirmed what a fool I was. I budged before but no more. I shall release the belt, and let fly!

Again, I am a pharmacist, dispensing drugs I shall never use.

Sometimes, the worse medicine can come in a prepackaged tablet. What more than a recycled line of advice? Some sentences just do not console; they irritate.

Anyway, more wordy goodness can come from a linkable lady, Scherzquin.

It's been a while. Freedom for a short while! I handed in my Director project on Friday, meeting the ever elusive lecturer. I then walked to Imbi. Yay! My 19" Princeton monitor was done with repairs! Sadly, I would not be free to pick it up in the next two weekends, so it would stay at the shop as a display model. Bentley also had all these new axes (well, rather, old axes that were not on display before.) I can imagine licking and shredding it already.

The next day, I went to Aznin's open house. (Yes, I finally mentioned your name. Yay.) I went in a crammed Kancil, with 3 people at the back. (4 people are very much doable, but short and skinny people ought to be in the middle, while long-legged people sit on the side!) We spun a few rounds, looking for house 28. The corner house was 24, while the next was 22... I checked my phone reminder for the address, and the memorable genius Fazri got it wrong. It was 24!

We sat, we ate, we stoned. The sleepy people gelled into the sofas.

Fazri's Kancil-riding gang went off to Ezone at Low Yat Plaza first. It wasn't until Fear Factor was on that we sat up - Playboy Playmates were the contestants! With all the advertisements, Syefri and I decided not to wait till the underwater challenge and keep them waiting.

Upon reaching Bintang Walk, we called Fazri. He wasn't there! The jams stopped them from going. Ah well. We went to Bentley and then Combo Mix, but he had to leave. Ezone would not be as fun without anybody to watch me reap players in anything but Counter-Strike.

Sunday would be even more interesting. I walked out at noon, waiting for a bus. I figured I'd be late for Syefri's open house at Shah Alam so I took a cab to the Kepong KTM Komuter station. The cabbie, an old Chinese man, was telling me how he beat an Indian can collector who went from there to Jinjang. He had RM10 in his hands but he refused to pay the RM4.50 fare because he said it was all he had left. I could just "um" and "uhuh", knowing I had no small change, careful not to provoke him. :(

At KL Sentral, the wait was less than 15 minutes, and the trains I took were on time! Too much on time, indeed, that I arrived at the Shah Alam station an hour early.

We sat, we ate, we stoned. The sleepy people gelled into the sofas.

We then went to Wangsa Maju for Ed's open house. Met Choo Ki and Shaz there, among other local celebrities. Why am I mentioning them? Just so I have something to link to. :P Yes, some of these links can get really interesting...

We sat, we ate, we stoned. The sleepy people gelled into the sofas.

Oh yes, Iris the iristated phish is also linked from About Me!

How about today? A whole load to read since I hadn't been in the office. A depressing load, even. Move I will!

This has to be the most uninteresting talk-about-your-weekend post ever. :(