Boyz II Men Concert

As some of you might know, Boyz II Men came down to Malaysia to perform for 2 nights in Genting's Arena of Stars. Since we're quite big fans, me and some friends decided to watch them live on Saturday night.

So here we are, me, Anand and Murni all raring to go. We all agreed to meet at my place since I'm the designated driver.

Agreed meeting time = 3 pm
Actual arrival time = 5 pm

Heh, Malaysian timing! =)

The drive up the Genting slopes was rather uneventful, the peace only broken by the occasional moan of pain from Anand. Heh, the dude gets carsick! Hahahahaha! Sorry bro, just had to share your pain with the world. Next time, we should try some crazy roller-coasters! ;)

We reached Genting at about 6.30 pm, I think. The way up was a bit slow. Moments like this increases my desire for a sports car! I was driving a Wira 1.5 and the car was carrying 2 big fellas and 1 little lady. I'm 75 kg while Anand is between 85 to 90 kg. Murni's weight? She'd kill me if I post it here. Heh!

Man...Genting is HUGE! Each time I go there, I keep getting lost...When I was checking on the status of our concert tickets, I actually walked one giant circle! If I took a right turn instead of a left turn, the ticket counter was actually about 10 metres away. Sigh...I need to get a bloody map for this place!

Anyway, after a quick dinner at KFC, we're picked up our tickets at the Arena of Stars itself and got to our seats. As I looked around, there was a lot of people! The venue was closed to full. Only the really crappy seats to the far left and far right of the stage was empty. No way in hell am I gonna embarrass myself so I planned to act cool and distinctly nonchalant when Boyz II Men were performing.

All those macho plans went out of the window once Boyz II Men started their performance with "On Bended Knees". Oh MAN! As soon as I heard the opening melody to that song, I was on my feet, cheering like a mad man with a huge grin on my face! Ahh...those music sure brings back nostalgia. I was listening to them when I'm in my secondary school! That's like more than 10 years ago! I have to admit I behave shamelessly like a little kid. I don't think I sat down much during the show. My throat was hoarse from all the shouting and my hands were a little numb from all the clapping. Heh, the show was REALLY good! I thoroughly enjoyed all the 1 hour and 30 minutes the concert! :D

The Boyz II Men ended their show with the song "End of the Road". It's an excellent song and a rather appropriate ending to an excellent show. Of course, when they left the stage after that song, none of the audience were ready to go back yet. We were all shouting for an encore! Being wonderful people that they are, they obliged with an excellent funky number. I have no idea what's the title to the song. Heck, maybe it was just some jamming but the effect was electrifying! Put a funky dance song and a HUGE audience who's out to enjoy themselves together and you'll get one MASSIVE party! Everyone was grooving to the music. It was EXCELLENT! I was very satisfied with the 100-odd bucks I spent for the tickets. :D

The drive back from Genting was rather tricky though. It was drizzling so the roads were a quite wet. Coupled with some thick fog and the fact that it's already night-time, driving down was way more challenging than driving up. Visibility was so bad, I think I could only see about 5 metres in front of me, max! For the next 30 minutes or so, I think I was only driving using the 2nd gear with a max speed of about 40 kmph. This time though, no moans from Anand since he was sleeping while we're all heading down the twisting road of Genting Highlands. Heh, smart fella!

We all reached my place at about 12.00 am, bringing back some really wonderful memories of a truly magnificent performance by Boyz II Men. :)

Heavenly objects!

God is truly the greatest artist. As we move through our daily lives, we are blessed with visions of one of God's greatest masterpieces, women! ;)

Of course, that's a story for another time! Heh heh! When I mentioned heavenly objects, I'm referring to celestial ones, not the angels (and devils!) on Earth.

Tonight as I came back from dinner with my cousins, the sky was rather clear above my house. Not missing this opportunity, I dumped my gym bag in my room and proceed to chill at my balcony. I dunno about you all but stargazing is actually one of my hobbies. I'm forever fascinated by the possibilities presented by the stars.

The size of the universe boggles the mind. I find the concept that Earth is the only place supporting life in our universe to be rather ridiculous. To me, that sounds like a massive waste of space! Somewhere out there, I bet there are sentient beings just like us looking at the stars and wondering who else is out there. While it'll never happen during my lifetime, I keep dreaming that one day the human race will initiate peaceful contact with another sentient race. Blame the Star Trek fanboy in me, I guess!

Star gazing also gives me a sense of connection with humanity's ancestors. The stars we see tonight are the same stars that Muhammad, Isa, Abraham, Moses, Buddha and many others gazed at during their quiet moments of contemplation. These are the same stars that the Polynesians used as a map while they guide their rickety boat of weeds across oceans, the same stars that the Chinese used as they explored the entire planet. These are the same stars that populated the skies as the human race left the African continent and ventured outwards, populating deserts and tundra, tropical forests and temperate forests. These are the stars that bore witness while the dinosaurs reign supreme during the age of reptiles. Finally, this are the very same stars that our very first ancestor (Adam and Eve or some evolved monkey, depending on your beliefs!) gazed upon in wonder as they claim this world as their own.

If the stars could talk, imagine what stories they would tell!

Whew...

Man, I had a close one today!

Earlier this evening, I went to gym for a bit of workout. Heh, part of my new year's resolution to get a Baywatch body by the end of the year! ;)

Anyway, arrived at gym at around 7 pm or so. Did my usual routine of stretching, cardio, stretching and weights. I finished about 9 pm or so and headed to the showers. After changing back my normal clothes, I discovered that my wallet and car keys were NOT in my locker. Ever had that sinking feeling in your stomach when you realized that you're totally screwed? Well, that feeling washed over me during that time. Earlier on when I arrived, I was using a different locker but I found out that I can't seem to lock that locker. I then moved my stuff to a different locker. However, I apparently forgot to also move my wallet and my car keys to that new locker. Argh!!

My mind was already running through the list of stuff I have to do. Cancel credit cards, report lost IC and driving license, report lost company tag, get a new access card to customer site, apply for new bonuslink...ugh, the list was endless!

With not much hope, I approached the gym counter to see if they found any wallet and car keys. Amazingly enough, some guy DID find my stuff and passed them to the wonderful gym people at the counter! Man, I was ready to treat the fella to a drink but the people there just told me the person who returned it was just some honest gym member. Well, to whoever you are, I'll be donating to some charity or something in your name! Since tomorrow's Friday, I'll also be praying for your long and healthy life, great happiness and whatever good things I can think off during Friday prayers! Thanks a lot!

Damn! I was sure away from office for a LONG time!

My presence was so rare in the office for the past 4 months, some of my colleagues actually thought I left the company! Hahahahahahahahahaha!

WoW stuff

Recently I was at Zaki's place for some free food (his sister's b'day actually). As usual, meeting the sucker will always involve him telling me WoW rox and asking me to join. Anyway, during our conversation he mentioned the following which made me double-up in laughter! :D

"Amir, I've created a new guild! Name of guild - DownDiagonalFront Punch. Name of guildmaster - Hadouken. It rocks, man! Hahahaha!"

PS: Only people who played Street Fighter will understand this one. ;)

Wonderful...

Ahh...what a way to start the year! Ladies and gentlemen, let me now inform you that me and a close friend of mine has something new in common. Hmm...how shall I start?

For the past 2 years or so, I've been seeing this girl. Well, not continuously for the entire 2 years. It's more of an on and off kinda thing. She's into rock music and japanese anime, which was what got my attention initially. Heh, I guess I have a slight weakness for rocker chicks. Start talking about rock music and I'd probably worship the ground that the girl walks on! :P

Anyway, this girl I'm seeing keeps giving me inconsistent signals. She blows hot and cold. I mean, ok. It happens all the time for every single guy out there. Women are weird creatures, no? But in this particular instance, it's so extremely hot and cold, it's beyond normal women behaviour range! This is also the main reason for the on and off thing between us.

Anyway, I haven't heard from her for quite some time and was happily enjoying my less complicated but duller life when I met up with that close friend of mine for lunch about two days back. Anyway, after talking crap for a bit, the topic veered and we started talking about my love life. We couldn't really talk about his since he's a married sucker. Heh! Anyway, the conversation was something like this (relevent parts only!):

"Eh Amir, remember ?"
"Sure. Man...she's weird. I could never figure out what the heck was going on..."
"Yeah well, during that time she was a very confused person."
I look at him blankly. "Huh?"
"Anyway, she's now fine. No longer confused. She has a significant other."
"Oh, good for her! Lucky guy, I guess."
"Girl..."
"WTF!?"

An interesting start to the year, eh? If this is any indicator on what this coming year's gonna bring, at least I'll be laughing as much as I'm crying. Heh heh!

PS: No offense meant to all alternative lifestyle people out there. I don't really give damn which direction you all swing. It'll be nice if you could decide before hand which direction you wanna swing though. It'll save people like me from unnecessary headaches! ;)

A new year, a new beginning.

Woohoo!! New year! Actually, maybe I shouldn't be celebrating too much. Last year was a pretty decent one for me. I mean it could be better but then, every one of them for the past 26 years of my life could be, eh? Still, last year wasn't so bad. I've had worse!

Here's some summary of last year:

Proudest Achievement - I'm WAY more fit now than beginning of last year. When I first joined gym, my stamina was SO bad that I lasted for only 4 minutes on the treadmill at gradient 0 and speed 4. It was THAT bad. I'm seriously not joking! These days though, I'm doing speed 8 to 10, with gradient varying between 3 to 6. I do those for at least 15 minutes non-stop and generally continue up to 30 minutes.

Saddest Moment - My cat passed away late last year. Heh, I really loved that cat. Been a constant companion for me (and the entire family) for the past 17 years. Some might ridicule the feelings people have for an animal but that cat shared a helluva lot of history with me. Rest in peace, cat. We'll meet again in the next life.

Best Purchase - A bluetooth headset which I connect to my handphone. Allows me to listen to MP3s while jogging and also acts as a handsfree for my phone. Simply terrific!

Worst Purchase - Signing up for a personal trainer at the gym. The gym has excellent facilities and the personal trainer is very professional. The only stumbling block is that I HATE being tied to some schedule and I prefer to go to gym when I feel like it, not because I have an appointment with my personal trainer. I need to do something about this though since I still have TONS of sessions left in my contract...

With all those behind now, I guess I do have some changes I wanna make for the coming year (sorted based on how difficult I think it'll be).

Not so difficult/Doable with a little bit of effort

I plan to watch more plays at theatres, go for more concert and attend more rave parties. Theatrical plays for the *ahem* cultural growth, concerts to feed my great love for good music (NO DANGDUT!!) and rave parties for the chicks wearing bikinis (oh, the music's pretty good too)! Oh yeah, I should add going to the MPO into the list too. Some of the classical music by those long dead composers are quite good and MPO has an excellent orchestra! Hmm...I might need to cut down the clubbing part a bit to balance my accounts if I do all this though. Besides, traveling all the way to KL is kinda tiring and I keep getting lost coming back home after clubbing!

Next on the list is to get even more fit. I plan to go to gym very regularly. I'm hoping to reach a pulse rate of low 70s or high 60s at rest by end of this year (very ambitious but doable, I think). It's true about what people say. The healthier and fitter you are, the more prepared you are to face life's challenges. While it's true that my line of work doesn't really require strong muscles and amazing stamina, a fit body keeps the mind alert. With the coming year, I think I'll definitely need an alert mind. As I grow with my current organization, I suspect more responsibilities and challenges will be coming my way and I plan to be prepared when that happens.

Moderately difficult/Might need a bit of luck

This coming year, I plan to prove myself beyond any doubt on my abilities as an engineer and reach for the coveted title of Senior Engineer. Ericsson don't hand out those titles easily and the Senior Engineers in my department are all REALLY good! Not sure whether I'd achieve it or not but I'm really gonna give it a go. That means no more muddling around. It also means that when it comes to my competence area, I know what's the issue. "I think I know" will not cut it. I must really know my area, inside out, backwards and forwards. Not only that, I must also really know not just my current competence area, but also another area such as radio networks or transmission. My technical knowledge must not only be deep, it must be broad as well. I'm still not sure about this part so I guess I probably need to talk to my manager about my path. Beyond the required technical competence, I must also demonstrate sufficient leadership qualities since Senior Engineers are expected to lead and mentor other engineers. A heavy responsibility, but one which I'm aiming for.

Next on the list is probably getting to know my religion a bit better. By better, I mean a helluva lot better. Nope, I don't plan to be those sanctimonious bastards who are purer than pure and whiter than white. To be honest, I think I've got better things to do than to go around telling other people how to live their lives. I've got my own personal demons to deal with anyway. By getting to know my religion better, I plan to focus on knowledge. Some people do Bible study. Me? I plan to do some Quran and Hadith study. There are many reasons for this being one of my plans for the new year. Partly, I've always been curious about the world around me, both in the physical and metaphysical sense. Secondly, there seems to be too many idiots calling themselves religious leaders and spouting nonsense about the faith. I hate those people and I plan to arm myself with the correct knowledge to avoid being misled by stupid propaganda and also present a more accurate interpretation of Islam during any discussions. Thirdly, if I continue going around screwing up my responsibilities as a Muslim, I might as well find out exactly what I'm screwing up at. Heh! Nope, the plan does not include me being a better Muslim. If that was part of my new year's resolution, I'd put this plan in the category below. :)

Very difficult/Needs divine intervention or a miracle

I need to be more honest with myself and start dealing with certain issues that I've been purposely ignoring/avoiding ...Y'know? I don't think I'm ready to write this part of my blog posting. Maybe some other time.

Happy new year 2007, y'all! :D