Saturday, June 24, 2017

2017 Hello PhD

Its been 6 years since my last post!!

Im surprised to see the blog still exist...I always assumed it got closed for being inactive.

Since Google conquered the internet it seem...I get logged in automatically.

Anyway, what am I doing now?

I have embarked on a new journey...a PhD at the Australian National University, at least half of it.

To sum up, I left MEMC in 2013 to continue my Masters back at Adelaide Uni for a year in Petroleum Engineering. It was a brief one year coursework. It was good to be back in Adelaide but it was different, the people that I knew during my degree were not there and hence it was not the same Adelaide. My nenek also passed away in September 2013, hence, I went straight back to Malaysia on 25th November 2013 as my soul got crushed and I went mental. At least I spent Raya with her before she passed on.

As you may guess, I didn't get any job in the oil and gas industry as the oil price tanked starting 2014 from the high $100/barrel to almost $20/barrel in 2016. Its still bad in 2017 after 3 years.

As opportunities in the industry was not there, and me being me, not wanting to waste my degree and masters doing something weird like song MLM or work at a call center. decided to do a PhD in Geology after hooking up with my ex-supervisor Dr Ralp Kugler at University of Malaya who managed to get me into a dual degree program with the ANU. I will get into more details in my next blogs.


Currently I am in Canberra doing my second half of my PhD and currently waiting for my rock samples to arrive from Malaysia. Its been 3 months since I set foot in Canberra. I though Adelaide was kampung but Canberra is waaaay desolated. 300k population and with a lot of concrete buildings with character and personality and very little things to do for a PhD students with little money. Regardless, I am still grateful to be a student of Australia's no.1 university under a scholarship.

Its not a holiday and there has been problems with my PhD which have caused me to lose sleep at night and motivation. But I'm working to manage them and get a balanced life.

I am also writing this on the last day of Ramadan. I cooked  a Shan rice pilau biryani chicken to makr the last day of Ramadan which was excellent despite not following the instructions 100%. it was a good sign from above, hopefully I get to write something interesting in the coming days.

What has changed about me
-lost 20kg since started working out since September last year.
-Because I lost wright I can now wear clothes with size L..I can finally fit into Uniqlo clothes...
-Have a scuba diving license
-Dunno if it matters, but I have bough an Iphone 5S rather than inheriting old iphones from my mom. It was a on sale!

What hasn't changed
-Still have my Canon 1000D.
-Still Single..by choice
-Very erratic

What I want to do
-Scuba in the Great Barrier Reef...will go alone if I have to
-Travel more to Indonesia and Thailand since these countries have beautiful beaches, Have visited Tioman, Perhentian and Mabul last year...so running out of Malaysian destinations in my bucket list.
-I really need to visit my cousins in Swiss..and their beautiful country/

I will write some new posts once a while...as therapy. To whoever reading this and knows me, thanks for dropping by!!!

Friday, December 31, 2010

2011 come!!

A new year, a new cycle, anew beginning?

We will just move on, everyone with their own lives, every nations to their own ambitions.

Celebration? Stayed at home as I am still tired from the MEMC company dinner.The event was quite generous, telematch, bowling and a quite decent lunch. Very physical and the bowling took a toll on my hands which I have not been exercising much. Too much attention on hiking which only benefit my elephant legs.

Today spent the whole day sleeping, felt feverish so didn't go to Friday prayers. I used camphorated oil and paracetamol to relieve the discomfort.Thankfully I felt much better after waking up at 7pm.

Since I felt rather messy did'not join my familty for a New Year dinners.KL gonna be jammed and that would give me headaches.

Instead of the pyros, I will join a gaggle of friends , all ec-Adelaideans on a hiking trip at Bukit Tabur, a quartz ridge at Taman Melwawati. I know the view gonna be awesame and Insya-Allah we'll see our first sunrise in 2011!!

Happy New Year. No resoltion decided yet besides keeping myself fit and not gaining any weight.Perhaps a trip to Nepal? Hahah..so many plans.

Sunday, December 19, 2010

Broga conquered

The Broga hill was successfully conquered. Some pictures later.

It rained when we climbed but nature and the sun never disappoints us. Sunrays breaking through the sun, mist, clouds below our eye levels and the vivid green rainforests overlooking the valley below.

What a wonderful day!!








































Friday, December 17, 2010

Broga Hill

Plan became bullet proof yesterday. A random SMS sent to Arep was replied with a yes made it came true. Syuk was on the way from Perlis and he seems interested. One car should be enough. May will ask Arif to invite Logen or me invite Acap!!!The objective, to hike up Broga hill at Semenyih to bath in the morning sunrise.To allow our eyes to enjoy the beauty of yet another corner of Allah's creation.

Looking forward to this.

















Pic: Broga Hill(Stolen from another blog: http://casualzone.blogspot.com/2008/12/broga-hill-semenyih.html)

Tuesday, December 07, 2010

Maal Hijrah Holiday

New Year,

It is now 1431 of the Hijri calendar, 1431 years since Prophet Muhammad emigrated from Mecca to Medina. A paradigm leap spiritually and physically that catapulted Islam into the forefront of civilization.

The Hijri calendar is shorter, as it is based on the lunar calendar. The lunar calendar is about 50 days shorter, so it has only about 300 days in a year. Every year, the Hijri calendar creeps 50 days closer to the Ano Domini calendar. With a gap of about 600 years, it will take about 7000 years before the Hijri calendar overtakes the AD calendar numerically. These are rough estimates, too lazy in details. But it is interesting.

1431 years after Hijrah, the West is in decline, economically, UK is now a trashy power at the international stage, from a superpower whose domain stretced from the UK ro Africa and Asia, it is now a fucked up economy.It was amusing when I saw cartoon in late 19th Century where they showed a Mountbatten look alike cartoon stretching its legs from Africa to Asia.Now it can barely hold a grip on Ireland and Scotland and ended up a backwater power in the EU, dwarfed by France and Germany that it once defeated in two world wars. From a navy that once ruled the 7 seas, as protrayed in the silly Pirate of the Caribbean movies, it is now a bathtub navy of 19 combatantships, dwarfed by new superpowers like India and China.

The US will have its fall. Despite being such a great nation in the fields of science of technology, corrupton, ironically is its downfall. Lobbying and personal and group interests such as the evil Zionists infested AIPAC ensure that the US is enslaved to the Zionist cause to reign in the world's goyim particularly the Muslim as to enssure they continue to plunder Palestine.Unfortunately, the Muslims fought tooth and nail to expel the US and Zionists from their lands. But thanks to their corrupt deals, US bacame weak as these looteres sapped the US economy of its industrial base which killed off its trade. The US now owes the world US$54 trillion dollars, half of its currency reserves is in Asia. The US can't control its currency and ended up printing more causung the US$ to be worthless.Nations around the world are angry and refuse to allow the US to become weaker to continue exports to the gullible US citizens. Too late, US can never compete with Asian exports and it is still losing.Obama just came back from a tour begging Asia to buy its weapons and ended up selling too many warplanes to Saudi Arabia much to the horror of the Zionists.And China even offered to modify the US planes so the Arabs could bomb the Jews into the sea. US attempt to mobilize the world to tut China ended up the world heckling at Obama over his QE2. Obama is in deep shit, a doorman for the Zionist Netanyahu and disrespected by Asia. US in downward trend folks. It will still be a rich country, but the wealth is probably in the top 10% of its people who continue to plunder the country. The middle and lower class of the US are no more than peasants, perhaps worse.

The EU, the model supranational entitiy that transcends language and cultures, but refuses Turkey over religious differences. But with the current situation, Turkey should be glad it is out of that big mess, the EU that is. The Europeans, propped by their own sense of superiority, over leveraged their economy and gave out too many loans and supported bubbles in the stock market.When all the bubles popped, there was nothing left.Property collpases and too many money lost, another Subprime crises ala EU. Ireland, Spain, Greece, and Portugal, most who used to be poster boys of EU economic management, is now in deep trouble with debt equivalent to France's GDP. If France goes bankrupt, there goes the EU, that is how bad it is. If the Asian Crisis was bad enough, the EU econimic crisis is of biblical proportion, after the US that is. Thailand in 1999 borrowed from IMF US$17 billion to fis its economy. Ireland, with only 4 million Irish compared to Thailand's 70 million people, just borrowed US$85 billion from the IMF and Germany.Now the irish will have a taste of the inhumane minds of the Jewish bankers running the IMF. To them, Thai or irish, they ae now just peasants or better Goyims to be looted. Ireland will now have to cut spending, and the peasants will suffer as the Jewish bankers in the IMF squeeze education and welfare out of any juice, and giving money to themselves and the irish bankers who caused the shit.Another potato famine in the making, and we'll probably see Irish prostitutes around Asia soon, Male and Female, at leats these Irish are hot. Not to forget, Greece already went the same drama, but Greece was a drop in the ocean of the EU economy. Next we have Spain,a major economy on the brink of collapse with 20% unemployment and debt 130% of its GDP!! ANd then there is Portugal and god how many more European pig holes with financial blackholes. Only Germany remains the healthiest economy and ended up having to bail out these countries.Ironically the nation that tried to destroy Europe 50 years ago is now its inly savior. The EU countrues cannot control their economy as they have no currency to devalue and the unaffacted nations like Germany and France is againts develuing the EURO.So now they have prepared US$1 trillion of bail put funds, but many believe it is not enough. We thought that the 2008 economic nightmare ended in 2009, but we are just seeing domino effects, first, small bamks, then huger banks, then investment firms like the jewsih run ponzi scheme Madoff Trust that stole US$65 billion(at least it revealed this cheating scheme, too late for the victim!), then countries and now supranational entities like the EU. EU is just demonstrated the weaknesses of a supranational body and many countries now give sighs of relief they have their own currency.Now with Eu and the US in the decline, thanks to overleveraged financial systems and failing wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, Asia emerges as the most stabile power on Earth spearheaded by China withh India trailing by and a very rich Middle East.

It will be interesting to see how this century turned. The West dominated the Earth sphere for centuries, enslaving Asia and Africa, looting tour resources and later on held our necks with knives that are nuclear weapons. But thanks for te fact we are all humans, Asians too have nucelar weapons, and are now richer than the West.

This will be an interesting century, Many bad things may happen, but many good things can happen too.

For example, with the Zionists and Jewish bankers deprived of their traditionally rich banks, the US and EU, countries around the world are no longer afraid of these hooked nose bankers infecting their economis. Now they can freely support Palestine like Brazil and Argentina just did.......pity the Israelis, their days are numbered. They forget that 4/6th of the world are not christians who believe in rapture while 1/6th is hell bent to see it emploded or exploded as long as it is wiped off the face of the Earth..they were better in hands of the Nazis..at least they used humane gas chambers that turn Jews pink..but we use scimitars and cut heads off painfullly...hahaha.

Today is the New Year of the Hijri calendar, 1431.

Friday, December 03, 2010

Intellectual scum

Such word does not exist,

People who use this word should use it on themselves.Because only they know what it means and it takes one to use it.

End of the year..are things getting any better

UniFi

One thing for sure, we have first world class broadband..muahahhaa..10Mbps, 60gB, internet tv and internet phone. With our household income....we can very very afford it and it's worth it..just decreases the time I stalk people browsing their photos.I am so thrilled that I dunno what ti watch on Youtube..or what anime to stream!! Guess I grew up too fast..sigh.

QIP

FFucking crap they, the Keparat,I mean corporate gave us...10%..sheesh!!!

Money

I am accumulating money, not bad considering I ate 3 times at work, pay two tolls everyday. I can actually go to Europe If I want to!! After this 13th month bonus!!! Money money..come come...come.Hope I dun buy a car next year..dem u Inspira..Ford Fiesta get out of my head..stay away from my money!!

Aswad's wedding

Finally I ventured beyond Ipoh or not as far as Singapore. Teja,Mastersilat Robot..Besut(just Besut) and I drove to Penang to Teja's fantastic 5 star crib in Kepala Batas last Friday. It was a really awesome night drive that Friday. The next day, Teja became our guide and took us practically through the land of the paddy fields, Kedah, Penang and Perlis in one go including Aswad's fabulous wedding.We sojourned Teja's alma mater, Syed Putra School in Arau. SPM was going on with student either studying or reading Kreko(so I noticed) at the school field while the school undergo repairs following floods several weeks ago that hit the North.Teja was really happy to be back.After a drive through the nation's sugar bowl(ladang tebu) , Arau, and paddy fields we arrived at Aswad's wedding at a school, just in time to see him drive by in his 'mini' convoy. How on Earth he fitted in, only god knows. It was a joyous event and I share his joy..he was such a nice chap in Adelaide..best wishes to him. That afternoon too, we went to Penang, just to waste time exploring and eating this Norther world of Malaya with our eyes.One interesting place we visited is the government quarters where Teja's family used to live. It was totally bizarre neighborhood of rows of silent ancient looking colonial houses with an old looking school and a Red Crescent center. A quiet corner of hectic Penang, trapped in the past.If you see the place you'd understand why Teja is so serious,poetic and old..haha. Afterwards we went to the island via bridge, prayed at Kapitan Keling Mosque and hey..we got free Nasi Kandar from the Kapitans and they were delicious....took the ferry back to the mainland, bought some legendary Kuey Teow Telur Ayam Basuh and hadsecond dinner at Teja's crib at Kepala Bata. One short day but we saw alot of Teja's world, paddy fields, sugar cane, cities old and new and Aswad's wedding.

A good and equal substitute to a midsummer's day in the chersonese of Fleurieu.

An awesome weekend. Looking forwards to more trips with these guys..Arep,Besut and Syuk!!!

Looking forwards to new experience to add to my cornucopia of life's lessons.

Overall..it's a good month. Just got a free ticket to KLIMS from our Maintenance Engineer Saiful.Now who wants to go with me..can take nice picture with hot babes and hot rods!!

Sunday, November 21, 2010

Hello Paris..I dunno what's hello in French.

A momentum of excitement has coursed through my vein when Air Asia finally announced that their Paris flights will start next february. The Europe trip has finally become bullet proof.

Weak RM

Because our beloved RM is pegged to the loser US dollar, our exchange with the EURO took a beating, falling from 3.9 in September to 4.3 this month.

My initial plan is to crash to Switzerland(probably 4 nights) from Paris(3 nights) and Venice(3 nights).But after considering the expenses in EU countries, I decided to axe Venice and concentrate in Switzerland9probably 5 nights) where the Swiss Franc is 30% cheaper than the EURO.No worries, there are loads to visit in Switzerland and we plan to go therer during November when winter starts,.hello snowy Swiss Alps and Jungfarubahn.

When.

As I hinyted November. My annual leaves starts after 16th August, I am so gonna screw my plant and take a full 2 weeks leave and they are not gonna stop me.Would love to go earlier, we'll see, for now it is November.

Backpacker mate

Fendi will probably commit as he has $$$$. Have been pestering Tawakal to join since his family has $$$ and good chance he'll get a good paying job in Adelaide. I have learned it is best to travel with people with $$ or have acces to their parents $$$ load plus these two people are the best people to travel with based on experience.

Plan to keep the company small. Dun wanna crash too many people at my uncle's place in Zurich.Maximum 4 people.

Cost.

I estimate to bring 2000 EURO not including the cost of the flights and train. I plan to enjoy as much as I can when I get there.heheheh...so I will have to start saving and build up at least RM8000 inr reserves. So all bonuses and QIP will be saved.

This plan have given me a new momentum for the next 12 months. Lets hope everything goes well!!

Oh...got a map of Paris metro from my sisters' rench language centre. I will probably plan to spend 3 night in the so called city of romance..hahhaa..as long as I get a pic of the Eiffel tower.it'd be enuff.

Tuesday, November 09, 2010

A hectic day and more to come

ST Test wafers

Dumb customer asks for impossible wafers with an exact diameter which caused me to waste hours on 25 wafers on Deepavali, got myself screamed ast a crazy Chinese bitch whom I felt like drowning in the KOH/HCL bath and had most PEs screeching at me. Malas citer..done already and took my revenge by staying away from the office and just lepak2 at the line trying hard to understand sawmarks.

Fucking delegators

Spent 20 mimutes with one and understand why everyone hates her besides her ugly chink face and high pitch annoying voice

Went home early

I dun care if I am bottom 50% if I go home early..Wyatt is now a doomed citizen of a collapsing superpower and pity his children because they are surely gonna be jobles soon..I dun care. I went home through the canteen to avoid the silly corner office near the front entrance..wich fits the ignorance of an insular American..too fucking pissed off to hear Wyatt making comments I dun cc emails to him la or I make the paperwork slow...he can't even read the MPR and says he can't understand Malay while the fucking document is in English smart ass...okla..I am already home..too tired to swim tonight..just gonna relief myself as usual,..lepas steam skit

Sunday, November 07, 2010

LCD- Low Cost Dumbbox

I am talking about LCD TVs. Too bad it is LCI..other itwould be Low Cost Idiotbox...more appropriate

Yes, as you may have seen, prices of LCD TVs have jumped off the cliff due to high inventories.

Imagine there are 50+ million LCD TVs waiting to be sold off. With the steam of the World Cup dying down, demand dropped while customers move on to LED TVs which use LED lights instead of a fluorescent light in LCD TVs to provide a background light making LED TVs super slim.

This is bad for LCD TV manufacturers as their stock just lie there and lose value.

If you think it is cheap enough, wait till next year, it is bound to be cheaper.

But those buying LCD TVs after this may buy one for the last time. Soon we'll have TVs that could surf the internet and the traditional idiot b0x including LCD and LED TVs will be too outdated.

Perhaps the next generation will be the true idiot box. At least with the current situation I move between the living room and my room to watch TV or surf the internet.Soon I will just sit at one spot!!! Hahahaha

Friday, November 05, 2010

What I think about things.

-Malaysians drive like stupid assholes that if they get into horrible accidents they probably deserve it.

-Malaysian are probably the most tolerant racists in the world. At least we dun have white supremacist death squads exterminating illegal Mexican illegal immigrants in the US....yes so many shit happens in the US and they also deserve it.

-Americans are very stupid and insular people..if you meet any americans in Malaysia chance is he will live in secluded gated comunities, never eat at any local restaurants and drink only bottled water.That is why they are so fucked up...very liberal but very racist in nature actually.

Sunday, October 31, 2010

Looking for the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow

I know in life there is a rainbow..it is nice to look at and we gravitate towards it...expecting a pot of gold at the end..but is there.

To many people..the rainbow and pot of gold is many things ..same hair color..different intention

I dunno what my rainbow is....but to me..the pot of gold is life contentment

What is life content
-free of debt
-have a good home
-Good and reliable friends
-a son..i really want a son

Where am I now

Job
-I can brag that I work at an MNC but I am so ashamed to show people my workplace..ahahaha..not the dreamjob I expected 5 years ago..but beggars like me can't be choosy..not in this economic climate.

House
-Can't afford the super duper expensive but small houses in KL..I wanna live in KL or have a house in Selangor...worse Ipoh. But my mom and aunty bought a really big house in Shah Alam when it was not 40% overpriced as now in 2007. The loan is very2 long and I guess I will have to chip in some day. I dunno..see la..maybe they sell it for good money but then what can they buy after that...a flat? Better to keep the house.At least it is landed.

Son

I have to tell the truth..I have difficulty investing interest in women around me..maybe because..as I am now..I am the only man of the house..my mom, sister,nenek,bibik and aunty.gosh..and the girls that I have met..are...'blank'..well.dunno what to say. But have no money for that responsibility yet.I have other plans for my money.
But I am no queer..I'd like to have a family..a child...likely a son,..I dun even mind adopting but in our system,..you need to be married to adopt..damn..susah jugak takde mak nanti jadi pelek anak nanti..entahla..just wait for some spark to happen.

EMotional downturn

Another reality.I am not actually happy. I am getting mood swings. I know I dun have what women have once a month bit at some times I get very emotional and angry and yang kene family aku. I am rather rude to my mom and grandmother especially when they get fussy(biasele perempuan)..so I when I get that swing I try to to stay in my room and just lie there..playing with the hamster and relieving myself.I am usually able to pent up these swings at work by indulging in some simple pleasures and keeping myself busy..dem what is wrong with me.

Dissatisfaction

I am actuallt not happy with my life.some parts of me. My family is middle class and educated. My mom and dad divorced but we got over it. One thing I am not happy despite being a RM20 000/month household..but this is recent as I have started working and my mom promoted twice 3 years and her salary doubled and my aunty get steep salary hikes every year..we were probably poorer by 50% in 2006..despite this 'durian runtuh' in income elevation..we are financially insecure My mom us still tied to the relatively new house loan(while people her age had already paid off theirs) plus the commitement to the shah alam house,and the car loans, I owe MARA some 10% of the total SPC scheme which I am grateful considering the other 90% is free and my brother's is saddled with his own study loan after he bungled up in his radiotherapy course after which he went into marketing in which he is doing quite well thank god.I now have my sister to worry about. I'd like her to go into into a field with job security. No engineering or biotech..either she takes accounting, pharmacy or medicine. She is smart but playful..but I am sure she'll do fine but i'd like to be there to help in any way so that she does not go through the shit I went through.

I guess there are many factors I am not happy
-Many things in 2009 made me angry..I have never gotten over it and I felt like killing several people.But I was at fault too..but I want to believe it is totally their fault.
-I am aerospace graduate..but stuck in a electronics factory..guess I take this as a personal and career failure and my position at MEMC is not confirmed yet till February. Guess that will be the test in my career direction.
-My stupid father went missing. He still gives his pathethic dumb amount of a money for our upbringing but he is totally useless.We are not sure he's still living at his old place and he will only talk to us via SMS..won't even pick up his phone for us. But we are fine even without his stupid monthly contribution.Up to him la...10 years ago he made a decision to leave us and even disappeared for 6 months..I am not surprised with him as it is now but still seriously upset with my old man.Maybe I am bitter because of his genes..gosh!!!
-There are many things...which I dun bother to share..coz people don;t care...hahha..don't worry..I'll figure something up..I have had too many surprises to give up now. I still have a family and some good friends I can rely on..not the shithead fake friends I had and pretentious cousins who wish to see I fail.

Sunday, October 17, 2010

End of 2010

Time flows like water into a deep ravine..never coming back

Work
'
As usual. Still a noob and bugging Dwe to pass on his knowledge. More and more people bugging me about the microscan and lasermark machines which I still have no idea about. More or less, I am still on a tight learning curve. Problems come intermittently and I try to understand them..failing at which I will blame the operators.

Weddings

Went to Suraya's sister's wedding.Makan best. Went with Arep and Acap . Nice change for a while.Ayik dok unah je time weekend.

Budget 2011 and ETP

Biug big project means election is just aroud the corner. MRT, 100 storey buildings but no bonus for civil servants. Kesian my mom..really needs the momey for the new house in Shah Alam.

Accidents

There has been alot of horrible accidents lately. The bloody bus accident and later an accident just near my house. DId not have the guts to watch. But I noticed people on motorcycles stopping and rushing to the scene eventhough an ambulance arrived..the motherfuckers must want the plate number fot toto...

Future plans

Still dunno. EASA is out of the question...where the fuck am I gonna get RM50k and it will take ages to get certified as an LAE..I dun have luxury like the elites.

So guess I will be stuck with MEMC for a while. Probably the worst MNC around but they pay my salary on time. Not the next logical plan is to save up for something.Marriage? Nahh..takde jodoh yet. Buying a house? Too bloody expensive nowadays. Travelling? Now that is an idea..cheaper than marrying and buying a house Kereta tak nak beli...the Kelisa will be fine for now.

Thursday, October 07, 2010

EASA

I really feel like quitting MEMC and enrol into the EASA program. Long years before I become an LAE but it is better thab being stuck at a factory for 20 years..

Saturday, October 02, 2010

Friday Night...dinner with the TexanBoss makan pizza

Wyatt, the Texan guy who headed the Process team invited us to his house at Desa Citypark for a pizza dinner. He just brought over his wife and four kids from Texas so his wife could not prepare an american dinner and we settled for pizza hut.

Wyatt is an American engineer for MEMC for 10 years already. He looks young, good looks with big jutting chins but his hairline is receding, I give him 3 years before he is bald in the middle. As I observed, the mat salleh age really fast, really pity them. Not sure about age but he's about 40 but a strong lean soldier like body but his 4 kids are only between 2-8(3 girls 1 boy, the are all so cute, hope they get jobs when they grow up)!! His wife is the same age as they met at school at their small town, Gaiasville(his litte girl showed me on the map), Texas I think. Like any Texan familty, they are very conservative. So don't imagine his wife like Lady Gaga or his children like the kids at that stupid Kimora show or worse like in Family Guy. They are country people with strong family and Christian values based on the children's bible strewn around the house.The children even sent their own dishes to the sink and make their own beds!! Very nice family. Wyatt did not come from a rich Beverly Hills family or the son of a Houstan business baron, so he worked hard to get where he is. He is not much different from my mom but my mom travelled around the world more than he does.Pretty good to have a boss like him but I still have to watch out and not let my guard down..for office politics purposes. At the plant, i didn't bother Wyatt much as my processes were stabile and I try to solve the problems by myself as much as possible.So this dinner was a good warming up session with Wyatt and the other 6 engineers some of them I barely spoken to since I came in!!

Wyatt is posted at KL for one year. So he'll be gone by September 2011. That is bad as it getting a new Process boss is always unpredictable..you don't know what kind of guy will replace Wyatt!! So MEMC rented a house at the award winning Desa Citypark township(the cheapest unit is RM1.1 million!!) for a year and also got him a Perdodua Alza which must be an awkward car to these Americans with their big cars/SUVs. Their unit is a three storey townhouse with three rooms. Very roomy but not a house to a Malaysian liking but the township is really amazing and first class with 9 feet walkways, a central park with a wetland, a lake and a central shooping complex with a supermarket and restaurants but soo unMalaysia.Prefer the Malaysian neighbourhod with the mango and banana trees and the red tokongs under big trees.But Wyatt and his family are not Malaysians..so what the fuck do they care. A very confined township with first class facilties and wide open spaces. A good choice for Wyatt and his family as they come from the wide open Texas country(imagined it like the Australian Bush..haha). After the pizzas, talked here and there, It was kinda awkward. We talk and then pause until someone talk about the weather or durian or something, Wyatt's wife was pretty quiet and in Australia the white women are very talkative and based from Family Guy I thought American women would be talkative,but she is Texan. Engaged her several times and gave up after seeing how nervous she is in coping with 7 asians with different racial background and english accents(we are 2 Malays, 2 chinese,1 Tamil and 2 Sikhs). We must be as good as aliens to her..haha. But Wyatt was a very good host and took us on a stroll around his squeaky clean township. Some of us wanted to go home but we dared not protest out of politeness.Some of us worked hard the whole day and would just lie down that night to watch Astro or jerk off.In the end, some of us had ice cream at the nearby mall and we ended up circling the central lake and watching Wyatt's cute children playing around before we parted ways.It must be exciting for them to stay at a foreign country. I know how that felt. Hope the Malaysian experience will have a good impact on their lives!!!Hope Wyatt will give the green light for my probabtion result in February!!

Things fall into place 2

Sambungf before saya melalut
Ok..where life threw me after highs school..no proms unfortunately...sekolah miskin!!

-Matriculation. One mont stint at Gopeng,.nothing much..my first time being away from home. hated it.
-INTC,Best 1.5 years of my life. Had some good friends, joined a Hiking Club, which took me camping at the beach, Taman Negara and climbed my first Mount, G.Jerail la tapi but these were all new things and I was so thrilled and prouds to have performed them. Life at INTEC prepared me for Australia. It built my confidence and as a consequent I had a very adventurous spirit.. I like to travel and plan to travel the world!!
-University of Adelaide. Good and bad times, The transition to adulthood! Was kinda study focused dring the first 2 years as we had fucking difficult subject, ade la supp sini sane but I worked hard and stayed at CATS for hours so that i never failed a single subject throughout the four years!! I also made sure I travel during the semester break. Went to Melbourne(total 12 times!!), Sydney, Perth, Tasmania, Brisbane, Sunshine Coast,Gold Coast(two times,Movie World, Seaworld, Wet n Wild) and even New Zealand covering Christchurch, Queenstown, Milford Sound and the Fox Glaciers. But my favourite place is still South Australia, the most awesome state!!! Even at SA I always try travelling here and there. Covered Fleurieu peninsular countless times, barossa valley(once in 2008 went there twice in 2 weeks when received two visitors from Melbourne, terpaksa jadi tour guide adoi), Yorke Peninsular, Kangaroo Island(3 times during Summer and Autumd, awesome!!) and even the amazingly large Murray River with its sheer cliffs. because of this travelling, I really fell in love with South Australia.Curse the day I left Adelaide. Sometimes, I really want to save up and apply PR, hope to get someone there to sponsor me..(takpe ihsan aku tak kacau kau.aku tau kau busy gile).Besides that, love also blssomed in Adelaide for me.To tell the truth I had a very insane crush on someone at Adelaide, who that is, for you to find out..kept thinking about that person from time to time..makes me crazy sometimes..but we are on separate ways now..doubt we'll cross paths ever again.!!Adelaide was a really crazy growing up process, and I changed in many ways for better or worse.

Working Life..a new chapter

After the happy endings at the gradyatuon ceremony where I sojourned Adelaide, Melbourne and Gold Coast possibly for one last time..I entered adulthood and got a job.

After doing some stint at UniKL doing marketing and a small engineering firm as a project engineer, I finally settled in at MEMC, a manufacturer of silcon substrate used for semiconductor products. I firmly believed that this multinational company, with a German onwer but US based Global HQ would provide me with valuable engineering experience and they did not disappoint.8 weeks passed so quickly and I felt as if I worked there for months. The plant with round the clock shfts is constantly alive with activities. Going home at 8pm is considered normal.

As a process engineer, I was in charge of the process of 17 edge profiling machines. At this stage, silicon wafers, are grinded at the edges for easier processing at the upstream stages. This process is considered stabile with very high yield but for time to time gets affected by defects due to machine problems or the specifications from the customers are too tight.Nothing I can't handle but I find it really challenging working with different engineering teams(manufacturing,production and quality) with different ways of doing things..But it seems MEMC does not like things too easy for their engineers and I am now having the priviliege of adding 48 more machines into my babysitting lists thanks to the inefficiency at an upstream pricess team which require the senior engineer from my team to go there to help things out. Worse of all, I am not getting any pay raise for triplling my work load. Pray that only a handul of machines gets fucked up at one of a time!!

But this may be good in the long run. I get loads of technical experience and develop soft skills(meeting stuff, dealing with documents, presentations) and office politics skills(be quiet, smile and listen alot)..no kidding. My plan is to stay between 1-2 years before moving on. the downside of a MNC is that you are nobody to them.i HATE THAT. So maybe sometime later, I'll go to another smaller company or somewhere nearer my KL home or better,try to apply for jobs in Australia and get PR,......it is a plan..not bullet proof yet but on goin!!! Insya-Allah. Life has thrown me so many surprises and I am grateful..I look forward to my future!!

Saturday, September 18, 2010

Things fall into Place

My life is so typical.Thinking back, it was OK and pretty much interesting. I do have a life..

My schools
-SRK Raja Muda Seksyen 4, Shah Alam.Kononnya Elite school.Not much memory. had to take the dusty bus, the teachers were garang coz the school is very elite so homework piles up quickly. But I schooled there for only ayear before I was hurled into the other side of the world for a year.
-Sunyside School. Followed my mom to Nottingham,UK at the end of Darjah 1 where she did her 1 year of Masters in English Literature. All I can remember are greay sky, cold weather, wiping my snot on my jacket's sleeve and morning assembly in the school gym singing to the piano and ducking my head as a teacher heaped praises on Jesus and the Lord. But there were good things like snow and new friends(mosltly Pakistani and jamaicans,yes, I went to school with lots of immigrants) and lots of UK school drama like the principal went beserk and threw his jacket onto the floor and parents having shouting matches in the school corridors, very First World, Hail Brittania. My mom was an education freak then and was very stern.I had lots of reading lessons so that I can keep up at the school and she likes to take me to museum as they loads of them there for loads of crap. The best ones were a Paleantology Museum where we huge black dinosaur bones and since them I became quite infatuated with dinosaurs and was convicted that they still exist!! Another favourite museum is the train museum I went on a school trip...it was really2 awesome and we got a free ride on a steam engine!!!! Haha..we travelled quite alot too..I still remember the rolling green meadows whenbtravelling interstate, the calm lakes and the lots and lots of gardens. We also went to London to see the Queen on her birthday, it was really criowded and hot and I didn't like it.We even went as far as Scotland where it is damn cold and empty with great green meadows strecthing for miles so I was pretty lucky for an overseas experience at such a young age.
-SRK Section 18 Shah Alam. Returned to Shah Alam. SRK Raja Muda is so elite that I can't enter again so had to do with the nearest school which was OK. Nothing much.Adapted easily and had the best years of my childhood during my schooling there until Standard 6 and the worse when my parents divorved,also at Standard 6. I had so much fun, cycling to sekolah agama with friends, eating ice cream after schools, wading through the rain and puddles after school, playing with tadpoles, buying snacks and dadih at the Section 18 Saturday pasar, playing mercun and bunga api during puasa. Shah Alam is probbaly the best pace for children because they have alot of empty fields so we played lots of field based games, so I was pretty healthy.There I learned how to play baseball(called rounders), kejar2, konda kondi and baling selipar and seasonal games like guli, getah, tutup botol and best of all gasing and I was pretty good at it..pangkah!!!!!. Things that my sister don't get to enjoy at our condo..too bad. It was sad that I left Shah Alam at Standard 6. I never had the same fun friends at KL where they were more interested in Game Boys and eating at KFC after school..so LAME!!!!
-SMK Section 5 Wangsa Maju. When I arrived I hated it. It was so dense and we had no field and my mom was so protective that I rarely ventured beyond the guard house. The school was OK, smallish and not well known. The rich urbanite Malays at Section 5/6 prefer to send their children to elite schools and VI and St John although I know those papmpeerd boys do very badlybut get to go overseas anyway because they're rich.So my school consist of students from areas like Setapak, Air Panas, and Section 2 where the public schools there are already full so I had classmates and friends from different backgrounds. Some of them insanely rich and some quite poor. In 5 years at that school I have met many students of various talents and backgrounds and of various races which I am proud of as I still keep in touch with former Chinese and Indian classmates. Going to school together is very good for different races!!! I was quite a low profile student. My parents divorce was emotionally challenging for me and I stayed at home alot and gained weight but I was very tall and big so no one bulied me. I retreated to books. i started reading heavy novels quite late, at Form 2, the first one is 'The Hobbit' by JRR Tolkien.It was an amazing book, from there I ventured into Lord of The Rings, Agatha Christie novels which my mom loves and of course Harry Potter and lots of Isaac Asimov novels from my dad's collection. My house is kinda like a library!! So books saved from going nuts I guess and fueled my ambition to become an engineer and be somebody!! PMR was a breeze and I thought it stupid, could have gone to MCKK as my dad was an old boy but I didn't want to to his disappointment. So waded 2 years through school, as usal, low profile until I got my SPM and became one of the 6 students at my school to get straight As...haha..to the bewilderment of my classmates and even teacher..seriously. 2003 was a good year for my school as after two years of drought, some students actually scored some straigh As.My school gained alot of attention and considered an elite school in the coming years with a student in 2004 became the best SPM scorer(12As) in KL and more rich people send their children to my school. The school I heard, has changed alot.

To be continued

Sunday, September 12, 2010

Raya and updates

Work

OJT as usual. The 2week before Raya, there were less problems until Wednesday when the plant lost power at 4.30pm. It was so surreal. Our plant is very noisy and then out of the blue it went pitch black and totally silent. Curses were thrown at TNB but the following day it was discovered that a machine at CNI tripped. The CNI section(where the silicons conductivity is customiyed using chemicals and electromagmetic treatment) uses alot of power and since the stupid greedy americans want to double production, I guess the tired machines cant handle it. Despite having a shutdown for maintenancre on Friday night they still resumed production that night. It was so stupid.They should just commence shutdown and give the workers a break. Yes, production resumes onSaturday night during Raya, so some people will have to work but I heard the workers plan MCs, so in the end, the production time is wasted due to shortage of manpower.

Raya

As a new kuli, no early raya break for me. No annual leave till next Ausgust. So after I got back from work on Thursday, went home and showered and scampered to Ipoh. Oh....forgot to mention that my Swiss relatives came. Uncle Yan(my moms bro), Aunt Nitchie, Aileed,Kevin and his baby daughter came to Malaysia the week before.My other Swiss cusins Keziah,Kavita qand Alana are in Switzerland schooling and working so they cant come this year.So meriah sikit la instad of just my mom,bro,sis and nenek. Uncle Yan went to Ipoh earlier to kemas rumah while his children went to Terengganu trill Wednesday. Aunt Nitchie arrived on Wednesday Night. We departed in two cars to Ipoh after I got home from work...joining the solemn procession of vehicles..heading home to our respective kampungs.Alhamdulillah we arrived safely. Al Fatihah to the 100 plus poeople who did not make it. Raya could be a dangeroius affair.

Hotel were booked full so my cousins have to stay at neneks dusty place but they coped well. Raya was pretty chaotic but it went well. We stuffed cookies after we arrived at Ipoh and arrange the plates and punch bowl. The next day, as usual, our house was the first target. At least 4 families came. When I say four it include several generation. So by midday all our rendang stock habis. I guess since we were the first house they eat more. We didnt go Rayaing at other house since they all came to our house anyway..haha.

ALl in all, it was a nice Raya. The first proper Raya in 5 years. The last one in Malaysia was before the SSABSA exam and we celebrated in KL as I had to study for the exams. The following years were in Adelaide, although the Rayas there were fun but they were quite pointless without family.Syukur dapat Raya kat Malaysia. The higlight of Raya when some kids played with my DSLR and they were very interested.Had a tough timĂȘ giving them turns taking pictures and preventing them from destroying my camera..but they were so damn cute....that I really hope Ill have boys of my own...maybe it is a sign from Allah..hahhaha..tgkla.

Saturday, August 28, 2010

Rezeki Murah

Iftar Hidayah Centre

Mongger invited us to attend the charity iftar. I banked in the donation quite late, soooo busy with the new factory job but at least I fulfilled my promise.

Meeting old friends

The rezeki murah I meant was meeting old Adelaideasn..Mongger, Cham,Kak Aini, Bang Din and Rezuan. Arip and Intan pun ade..always good to see these two familiar faces.

Mongger and Cham are fine and healthy. Cham gila kurus..dunnno what is his secret....Barney the Dinosaur is no more..hahaha.

After the iftar, Arep and I went and do Teraweh at the amazing Steel Mosuque or Masjid Tengku Mizan. There kebetulan met Abang Din.We also met Rezuan who had arranged to meet us there. It was good to see more ex-Adelaideans and see how they are going on in life. They seem to be doing fine. Bang Din is going into properties agressively and Rezuan has many plans ahead....a businee possibly...bile die nak kawen tatau..lepak dgn awek pandai.Haha. Arep went back around 11pm while Rezuan,Bang Din and I went pekena mamak at Bangi..hah..until 1am...borak2.

Anyway..semalam memang rezeki murah..jumpa ramai kenalan yg baik2..Alhamdulillah..maybe good things come with charity..will try to contribute more in the coming years.

Thursday, August 26, 2010

Updates and a long weekend

Orang Gaji lari

Dah cakap dah..these are not stupid Indonesians. The agent will replace our housekeeper after Raya.Sabar..sabar.

Gaji setengah bulan






















Figure 1: The reality of companies mata duitan..especially cinapek company. Note Genting after decades robbing Malaysians are now ditching Malaysia for Singapore where they are expected to make SG$1 billion in 2010.And the DAP and Chinese are calling Malaysia stupid for failing to retain these cinapek company like Genting and Robert Kuok(the guy does not even live in Malaysia yet making billions out of Malaysia)...I say good riddance..leave this swamp and balmy weather and leave us in the jungle thank you.


Surprised...agak best la MEMEC bg gaji walau keje tak sampai seminggu sebab first days dok diri kat line ke. Blondal the Evil Polar Bear has not sent me the check they promised for the two weeks I worked with them..just shows what kind of fuck up cinapek company they are..I was right to leave them....expansion ke Indon konon..gila duit company...but MEMC also gila duit...

Keje





















Figure 2: Factory work..work2...'the factory is your life'.....says Hany Tamim,.the ang moh motivator of MEMC.Last year the Malay engineers were forced to work until the night shift of Raya..so they can only leave the line at 7am on Raya morning!!! The workers retaliated by taking multiple MC leave and taking replacement leaces..but the cinapek manager took Indon but still the same coz Indon is also brown like us.




MEMC despite being ang moh is run by cinapek..our manager..the guy who actually runs the company is an ah pek whose father has a food factory in Johor..so biasele..gila duit. They push2 us to work.....fed up that we brown natives go for hari raya hire Indon at cheap wages so that less brown natives work for them and the factory run 24 hours the whole year enabling MEMEc to gain US$1 billion profits per year...the ang moh not complaining but if this is the case in US I am sure MEMC is violating many work laws and human rights laws.

Reality bites..why I am complaining....I knew working in Malaysia will be like this.... tough and crazy..If Im not with MEMC I will be with an underperforming government agency or GLC and I'll be bored to death too.So syukurlahhhhhh...nak wat camne..kalau takde rezeki tak lepas probabation gi Jobstreet lagi!!!

At least I got this job on my own..takde cable2.