She Makes Babies ...

Gotcha!

It's NOT what you (most likely Willie) may be thinking.

Camille Allen (left pic) creates tiny babies sculptures out of polymer clay - these are not pictures of real babies! She is 25, married but has no children of her own yet and lives in Powell River, in British Columbia, Canada. I think her creations are pretty amazing.

Just take a look at her amazing creations! Not to mention simply adorable and cute! And for the rest of us - please share with us whatever amazing or interesting experiences and things we come across in this our wonderful daily lives! Remember that life is beautiful. So - share!

Tuesdays with Morrie

Deb's humorous post yesterday reminded me of a book I read years ago - "Tuesdays with Morrie" by Mitch Albom; a 'must-read' book about life and how to live it.

In the words of Morrie - "To learn to live, one must learn to die."

I cannot recommend this book highly enough. It's quite thin and one should be able to finish it in one seating. But you would want to read this book slowly; ponder and reflect on your own life for all the wisdoms contained in it.

ABOUT THIS BOOK

Maybe it was a grandparent, or a teacher, or a colleague. Someone older, patient and wise, who understood you when you were young and searching, helped you see the world as a more profound place, gave you sound advice to help you make your way through it.

For Mitch Albom, that person was Morrie Schwartz, his college professor from nearly twenty years ago.

Maybe, like Mitch, you lost track of this mentor as you made your way, and the insights faded, and the world seemed colder. Wouldn't you like to see that person again, ask the bigger questions that still haunt you, receive wisdom for your busy life today the way you once did when you were younger?

Mitch Albom had that second chance. He rediscovered Morrie in the last months of the older man's life. Knowing he was dying, Morrie visited with Mitch in his study every Tuesday, just as they used to back in college. Their rekindled relationship turned into one final "class": lessons in how to live.

Tuesdays with Morrie is a magical chronicle of their time together, through which Mitch shares Morrie's lasting gift with the world.

Just a little Christian Humor

Jesus and Satan were having an on-going argument about who was better on the computer. They had been going at it for days, and frankly God was tired of hearing all the bickering.

Finally fed up, God said, "THAT'S IT! I have had enough. I am going to set up a test that will run for two hours,

and from those results,


I will judge who does the better job."

So Satan and Jesus sat down at the keyboards and typed away.

They moused.

They faxed.

They e-mailed.

They e-mailed with attachments.

They downloaded.

They did spreadsheets!

They wrote reports.

They created labels and cards.

They created charts and graphs.

They did some genealogy reports.

They did every job known to man.

Jesus worked with heavenly efficiency and Satan was faster than hell. Then, ten minutes before their time was up, lightning suddenly flashed across the sky, thunder rolled, rain poured, and, of course, the ! power went off.

Satan stared at his blank screen and screamed every curse word known in the underworld.

Jesus just sighed. Finally the electricity came back on,

and each of them restarted their computers. Satan started searching frantically, screaming:

"It's gone! It's all GONE! "I lost everything when the power went out!"


Meanwhile, Jesus quietly started printing out all of his files
from the past two hours of work.

Satan observed this and
became irate. "Wait!" he screamed. "That's not fair! He cheated! How come he has all his work and I don't have any?"

God just
shrugged and said,

"JESUS SAVES"

words of wisdom for 50 going on 100

Buah Talap

During our kayak outing with Francis Ho recently we met one of the natives carrying rambutan and "buah talap" . I was quite surprised to hear that Francis had never seen or eaten buah talap before . The ones we saw were quite small and probably not ripe and i promise Francis that I will take some photos of the fruit and put on the blog if/when the opportunity arise. Apparently the buah talap are hard to come by nowadays in Kuching . My brother happened to come across them while out in the 10th mile area and bought a couple.
For the benefit of those who have not seen/eaten one .... the fruit is about the size of a coconut. Opening the outer layer of the fruit reveals the edible part of the fruit . Not sure how to describe the taste ... it is sweet with its own fragrance and divine. Maybe others in this group might be able to describe the taste a bit more .

Singapore's Crazy Horse Topless Cabaret to Close

SINGAPORE: One of Singapore's high-profile initiatives to shake off its straight-laced image has fallen flat, with the promoters of the topless Crazy Horse Paris cabaret announcing Thursday that it will close due to poor attendance.

Eng Wah Organization Ltd., which introduced the famous Parisian cabaret - known for its scantily dressed dancing girls - to Singapore a year ago with the support of the government, said it will book losses of 7.1 million Singapore dollars (US$4.6 million; euro3.5 million) because of the closure.

Eng Wah managing director Goh Min Yen said Singapore may not have been ready for the show.

"We may have brought it a little early. I believe that Singapore has the potential to support a vibrant nightlife and there will be future opportunities that we can explore,'' she said at a news conference.

Singapore was the first city in Asia to host a Crazy Horse Paris cabaret, ahead of several other Asian cities, including Tokyo and Hong Kong, that have bid for rights to the show.

As part of a strategy to become a vibrant international city, Singapore has in recent times loosened some of its strict social controls.

Bar-top dancing is no longer illegal, chewing gum can be bought from drug stores and two casinos are being built.

The last show in Singapore of the cabaret, which has been running for 55 years in its Paris home, is scheduled for Jan. 31

Note: Would Ed or Willie be attending the last show?

Or maybe this "leave of absence" from the blog is because Willie is so devasted (and driven crazy) by the closing of his favourite show? Or it could be why Ed is "so busy?" - busy catching all the shows before the final curtain comes down? Hmmm ... ;o)

100 Years

We are at a very special juncture of our life - the "half time" of the game of life. A time to pause, reflect, enjoy and lived our lives to the fullest extent. And here's a very special and nice song to share with all of you as we reflect on this. Be Well!



It would certainly be interesting to have your thoughts/views/comments with regards to this.

Girl Produce Coloured Stones from her Toes!

ALOR GAJAH, MALACCA,

---

A small town girl has become an overnight sensation. She produces colourful crystal-like stones from beneath her toenails.

Rubber tapper Kamariah Koning, 52, said since her 23-year-old daughter Siti Suhana Saadon was featured on TV3 yesterday, people have been coming to her Taman Cempaka Dua, Durian Tunggal, home from far and wide. And the telephone has not stopped ringing.

"People just want to know how the stones grow from my daughter's toes," said Kamariah. “We are not looking for publicity, but we want someone to research on this and heal my daughter," she said.

He mother told reporters that the skin under Siti Suhana's toe nails opens up, releases a stone and then closes itself.

"I don‘t work as I have to care for my disabled brother. Also, I feel weak when the stones are about to come out," said Siti Suhana.



COLOURFUL: The stones (at left) produced by Siti Suhana's toe.
NST PIX BY Nashairi Mohd Nawi.



CLOSER-LOOK: Kamariah looking at one of the crystal-like stones from her daughter's toe.

ATTITUDE

There once was a woman who woke up one morning,
Looked in the mirror,
And noticed she had only three hairs on her head.

Well," she said, "I think I'll braid my hair today."
So she did And She Had A Wonderful Day.

The next day she woke up,
Looked in the mirror
And saw that she had only two hairs on her head.

"H-M-M," she said,
"I think I'll part my hair down the middle today."
So she did And She Had A Grand Day.

The next day she woke up,
Looked in the mirror and noticed that she had only one hair on her head.

"Well," she said,
"today I'm going to wear my hair in a pony tail."
So she did And She Had A Fun, Fun Day.

The next day she woke up,
Looked in the mirror and noticed that there wasn't a single hair on her head.

"YEA!" she exclaimed,
"I don't have to fix my hair today!"

Attitude is everything.

Be kinder than necessary,

For everyone you meet is fighting some kind of battle.

Live simply,

Love generously,

Care deeply,

Speak kindly.......

Leave the rest to God

With love
source: unknown.

We'd Checked ... and Willie's Alive & Kicking!

We were a little concerned and had checked and are pleased to inform you folks that William is still very much alive and kicking but just not blogging! That's all. Probably getting fat and lazy with all that eating, working and no exercising ... *sigh*

Rain, rain go away ...

It has finally stopped raining yesterday after nearly 3 days of continuous rain causing floods in the low-lying areas of Bau. Even though we can take the occassion peeks of blue skies through the thick clouds; they still look threatening and hopefully we wouldn't get a flood situation like the ones in West Malaysia.

Liew Lian, and more liew lian

While looking for something on the net, I came across this website www.durianpalace.com, and have extracted from there

Rare Durians of Borneo!
 
Shunyam Nirav has this to say about the durians:

All Thai durians and most Malaysian durians are varieties and clones of only one species, Durio zibethinus, the common domestic durian, which has been bred and selected for centuries in southeast Asia for various desirable qualities. However, D. zibethinus has many other lesser-known siblings in its plant family — approximately twenty-seven Durio species exist, of which about seven produce edible fruit. And these edible seven all are native to durian's original native home on the planet — its "center of diversity"— on the island of Borneo. Many still grow wild in the rainforests of Sabah, Brunei, Sarawak and Kalimantan ... but only rarely anywhere else.

We visited many produce markets and roadside vendors in small villages, towns, and cities, as well as agricultural research orchards and forest reserves, in quest of these rare and beautiful "other" wild durian species. We eventually did find fruits of five of these species, and they were a total delight! with surprising differences in form, appearance, color, fragrance, and flavour from common domestic durian (D. zibethinus). The complex rich unique flavor of durian known and loved by millions of people is in fact not the only durian flavor — these other species have completely different flavors equally or even more exotic and incredible than common durian!

                            —Shunyam Nirav



Durio oxleyanus


*small green beautiful fruits with very long sharp spines, smooth creamy flesh with an excellent unique durian flavor that includes undertones of banana and grape










Durio graveolens

*small yellowish-rind fruits with sharp spines, flesh ranges from yellow to bright red; pudding-like flesh has a very distinctive, different, alien but enjoyable flavor resembling burnt almonds blended with carrot juice! 











Durio kutajensis

*small fruits with yellow rind and soft flexible small spines, flesh is bright orange, dry and almost chewy, 
with a complex agreeable flavor like a combination of orange, celery, and basil, with a hint of garlic





Durio oblongus

*very ornamental with yellow rind and bright red seed skins; the aril has a pleasant plum flavor but as it is only a very thin skin around the seed, this species is not considered edible


 




Durio testudinarium




photo by Markku Hakkinen, Kotka, Finland



*The rare and famous durian species that bears its fruit low on the trunk, in the manner of jackfruit. Only small seedy fruits were happening in January so I did not get to taste one, but reportedly they are very strong-flavored and enjoyable only to the most enthusiastic durian-lovers.
 


*three rare Durio species together

from left to right: 
D. kutajensis - D. graveolens - D. oxleyanus 
(Kuching, Sarawak, Malaysia, 10 January 2003)



Something from Lat about durians. http://www.ecst.csuchico.edu/~durian/lat/index.htm

Health Questions and Answers

A friend sent this to a friend who sent it to me. At our age, maybe this should be our philosophy. INDULGE. The good doctors out there will probablt disagree.

HEALTH QUESTION & ANSWER SESSION

Q: I've heard that cardiovascular exercise can prolong life; is this true? A: Your heart is only good for so many beats, and that's it... don't waste them on exercise. Everything wears out eventually. Speeding up your heart will not make you live longer; that's like saying you can extend the life of your car by driving it faster. Want to live longer? Take a nap.

Q: Should I cut down on meat and eat more fruits and vegetables?A: You must grasp logistical efficiencies. What does a cow eat? Hay and corn. And what are these? Vegetables. So a steak is nothing more than an efficient mechanism of delivering vegetables to your system. Need grain? Eat chicken. Beef is also a good source of field grass (green leafy vegetable). And a pork chop can give you 100% of your recommended daily allowance of vegetable products.

Q: Should I reduce my alcohol intake?A: No, not at all. Wine is made from fruit. Brandy is distilled wine, that means they take the water out of the fruity bit so you get even more of the goodness that way. Beer is also made out of grain. Bottoms up!

Q: How can I calculate my body/fat ratio? A: Well, if you have a body and you have fat, your ratio is one to one. If you have two bodies, your ratio is two to one, etc.

Q: What are some of the advantages of participating in a regular exercise program?
A: Can't think of a single one, sorry. My philosophy is: No Pain...Good !

Q: Aren't fried foods bad for you?A: YOU'RE NOT LISTENING!!! ......... Foods are fried these days in vegetable oil. In fact, they're permeated in it. How could getting more vegetables be bad for you?

Q: Will sit-ups help prevent me from getting a little soft around the middle?A: Definitely not! When you exercise a muscle, it gets bigger. You should only be doing sit-ups if you want a bigger stomach.

Q: Is chocolate bad for me?A: Are you crazy? HELLO Cocoa beans! Another vegetable!!! It's the best feel-good food around!

Q: Is swimming good for your figure?A: If swimming is good for your figure, explain whales to me.

Q: Is getting in-shape important for my lifestyle? A: Hey! 'Round' is a shape!

Well, I hope this has cleared up any misconceptions you may have had about food and diets.And remember:"Life should NOT be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in an attractive and well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways - chardonnay in one hand, chocolate in the other - body thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and screaming "WOO HOO, What a Ride!"

Singapore's Definition of 'Guts'

Once during the gulf war, the President of USA, and the Prime Ministers of UK and Singapore were travelling on a warship that was cruising near S.Arabia.

The 3 were talking about how brave their soldiers were; their discussion soon turned into an argument where each wanted to prove the bravery of their own soldiers.

The President of USA said, “let me show u what is guts”, where upon he called his Colonel and said “Jump into the sea and swim 3 rounds around this ship!”. The Colonel replied “Anything for Uncle Sam, Sir”, jumped into the shark infested sea and swam 3 rounds around the ship, with the sharks chasing him like mad! After the successful 3 rounds, the Colonel came up to the deck and said, “I did it for Uncle Sam Mr. President!”.

The proud US President replied “That’s what I call guts!”.

The Prime Minister of UK was pissed. He had to show. He called his 3-star General and said “General, jump into the sea and swim 10 rounds around This ship!”. The General replied “Anything for the Queen, Sir”, jumped into the shark infested sea and swam 10 rounds around the ship, with the sharks chasing him like gila!(lunatic). After the successful 10 rounds the 3-star General came up to the deck and said, “Long Live the Queen!”.

The proud UK PM replied “That’s what I call guts!”

The Prime Minister of Singapore cannot tahan. He had to show that his soldiers have it too. He called one of his Private, Ah Beng and said “Soldier, jump into the sea and swim 50 rounds around this ship!”. The Private replied “Oi, you siao(crazy) izzit? I juz bought my condo and I Am paying through my nose. Now, U want me to jump and die? If u want to Hao lian (show off), you jump into the sea yourself ! @#*&%F!……..

The Singapore PM grinned and said “Now,that’s what I call guts!”

The Atheist

An atheist was taking a walk through the woods. "What majestic trees! What powerful rivers! What beautiful animals!" he said to himself.

As he continued walking alongside the river he heard a rustling in the bushes. Turning to look, he saw a 7 foot grizzly charging towards him. He ran as fast as he could up the path. Looking over his shoulder he saw that the bear was closing in on him. His heart was pumping frantically and he tried to run even faster. He tripped and fell on the ground. He rolled over to pick himself up but saw the bear raising his paw to take a swipe at him.

At that instant the atheist cried out: "Oh my God!..."

Time stopped.

The bear froze.

The forest was silent.

It was then that a bright light shone upon the man and a voice came out of the sky saying:
"You deny my existence for all of these years, teach others I don't exist and even credit creation to a cosmic accident. Do you expect me to help you out of this predicament? Am I to count you as a believer?"

The atheist looked directly into the light.

"It would be hypocritical of me to suddenly ask you to treat me as a Christian now, but perhaps, could you make the BEAR a Christian?"

"Very well," said the voice. The light went out, and the sounds of the forest resumed.

And then the bear lowered his paw, bowed his head and spoke:

"Lord, bless this food which I am about to receive and for which I am truly thankful, Amen. "

Kong Eng Ewa

Some of you might know that a Liberal MP, Lembit Opik, dumped his long term girlfriend for half of the Cheeky Girls, Gabriella Irima. She and her sister Monica were from Romania, and this is their song that was in the UK charts a few years ago.



As a result, he is now aka Lembit Opik (touch his bum).

Floods Situation in West Malaysia

I guessed some of you must have read about the floodings in West Malaysia. But do we really know how bad it was with over 120,000 people in Johor being evacuated from their homes? To be honest I did not make too much of it being safe and dry in Kuching until that is; I saw these pictures ... of the floods in Kluang (above) and Kota Tinggi (below) and realised the gravity of the situation and thankful that Sarawak has been spared. And sad at the same time that bad news are being suppressed due to the "Visit Malaysia Year 2007". You read almost nothing about this disaster in the local dailies here.

PRISON VERSUS WORK

Just in case you ever get these two environments mixed up, this should make things a little bit clearer.

IN PRISON	V AT WORK
1P. you spend the majority of your time in a 10X10 cell,	1W. you spend the majority of your time in an 8X8 cubicle.
2P. you get three meals a day fully paid for,	2W. you get a break for one meal and you have to pay for it.
3P. you get time off for good behavior,	3W. you get more work for good behavior.
4P. the guard locks and unlocks all the doors for you,	4W. must often carry a security card and open all the doors for yourself.
5P. you can watch TV and play games,	5W. you could get fired for watching TV and playing games.
6P. you get your own toilet,	6W. you have to share the toilet with some people who pee on the seat.
7P. they allow your family and friends to visit,	7W. you aren't even supposed to speak to your family.
8P. all expenses are paid by the taxpayers with no work required,	8W. you get to pay all your expenses to go to work, and they deduct taxes from your salary to pay for prisoners.
9P. you spend most of your life inside bars wanting to get out,	9W. you spend most of your time wanting to get out and go inside bars.
10P. you must deal with sadistic wardens,	10W. they are called managers.
THERE IS SOMETHING SERIOUSLY WRONG WITH THIS PICTURE!!!!

Now get back to work. You're not getting paid to check emails