RIFLE RANGE BOY

About the Atacama Crossing 2011 (6 - 12 March 2011)  -  http://www.atacamacrossing.com The Atacama Crossing is one of the four races that comprise the world renowned 4 Deserts series of 250km, rough-country footraces. The race takes place in Chile’s stunning but brutal Atacama Desert, which is the largest cold coastal desert, and the driest place on Earth. The Atacama is a rainless plateau hemmed in between the Pacific Ocean and the Andes, and is a unique landscape of salt lakes, volcanoes, lava flows and sand dunes, that challenges even the best runners. The Atacama Crossing is grueling not only because of the forbidding terrain which is rarely flat underfoot, and a harsh climate, but also because of the altitude that averages 2500m (8000ft) during the race. Thanks to Suresh for highlighting this endurance race which is part of the world renowned 4 Deserts rough country foot-race. Trust our mainstream newspapers to announce to Malaysians the success of its sons who have ...

donplaypuks Mar 29, 11 3:24pm I recently stumbled upon the fact that there is in the possession of the Sultan of Perak and the Perak Royal Family some astounding relics of antiquity that in all probability have an extremely significant bearing on the question of Malaysian identity and history. One such astonishing artifact is the sword Cura Si Manja Kini or Chora Samanda Kian mentioned in John Leyden's 1810 'Malay Annals' or 'Sejarah Melayu' (published in 1821 by Sir Stamford Raffles). The same sword is said to have been used during the installation of Parameswara as ruler of Malacca in 1400. But in fact, its origins go further back, possibly 200-400 years earlier than 1400. The sword was part of the regalia of a Indian/Hindu prince linked to the Chola Kings (Raja Cholan) from South India, i.e. Nila Utthaman/Sri Tri Buana/Sang Nila Utama (founder of Singapore) narrated in the 'Sejarah' as havin...

It always gives a funny feeling at the back of the throat when we hear of families going for each others' throat over family matters, what more if it is over property and worldly matters. Three recent events that struck a familiar chord were published in Malaysian newspapers recently. The first involved the case of the infidelous Daphne Iking and her treacherous bedroom activities. See, I can only remember the starlet's name, not her husband and her boyfriend. For those in the dark about this legal wrangle, the boyfriend was charged under an old law for enticing a married woman. During the court proceedings, which was packed with curious onlookers, just to add spice to their mundane lives. Anyway, this was soap opera in real life as many dirty linens were washed unashamedly in the roving eyes of the public. At the end of the day, the newspapers had brisk sales, Daphne became a bigger household name, the two blokes were taken a royal ride (who later reconciled) and the daughter...

We are not convinced of the reduced crime rates as reported by the Home Minister and the patting of the shoulders of the men in blue for a job well done. This was exactly the sentiments expressed by the joint residents' associations recently when they finally proposed to have joint security services in 3 other housing estates. Our Taman had been the envy of the adjacent estates as our crime rate has been zero with the introduction of gated security. One of the residents in another Taman is passionate about having this service after losing his mother to head trauma following a snatch thief incident. Another elderly lady had her chain pulled by a pillion rider of a motorcycle while plucking flowers for her morning prayers. I wonder if she is still plucking flowers? (I do not know if she was plucking somebody else flower or God just could not receive her offering!) The leaders of the neighbouring association had a dialogue to coax us to join forces to control safety and the worseni...

As far as I can see, the Earth Hour this year was a non-event! At the said time, I was finishing my meal at a Chinese Restaurant enjoying the chef's freshly cooked cuisines. Apparently, the owners were also enjoying brisk business and the last thing on their minds was to off all the lights and chase away all the customers or potentially  hungry patrons to his shop. It was bad for business if someone were to choke on his fish bone! earlier just before leaving the house to go off for dinner, my younger son was all excited about contributing to the Earth Hour by dimming all lights. Little did he realise that in the rush to rush off for dinner, he had left his room light and fan on. So, as a responsible parent, I had to educate him on bare facts about preserving Mother Nature. Just like buying expensive gifts on Mothers' Day does not proof your undying love to your mother, saving Mother Nature and reducing carbon footprint is a ongoing daily sacrifice. It is not about shutting dow...

I do not know whether it is just me, being the fussy, good at finding others' fault type of a person or is it universal to get annoyed when you are the third person and the only other two persons in the room start talking to each other in an incomprehensible language. Being the sensitive person that I am (blame it on horoscope -Cancer) and one with inferiority complex (blame it on strict upbringing and humble beginnings in early life), and maybe grandiose feel of being the centre of attraction, I sometimes think that they are secretly having a laugh at my expense, cursing or ridiculing me in sly! (Something like: "Hey, see that short ugly guy. His fly is undone and he is wearing red polka dot undies!" Not that I have one. Maybe my body may be enjoying the benefits of capitalism but my soul is socialistic deep inside. Empathy and considering the plight of another is the crux of difference between these two ideologies. Capitalism is the pinnacle of selfishness and onenes...

Finally my children managed to speak with their cousin in Canberra via Skype. Wow! Star Trek technology has materialized within our lifetime! Maybe asking for Scotty to beam us up (i.e. teleporting) is asking for too much! So there he was, my nephew, proudly showing to his cousins, with the web cam a guided tour around his one room studio apartment. His parents do not mind paying a bomb for his education. They feel that it is their god-sent duty to ensure the best for their eldest son. They also know that they have 2 other kids to educate. Beam us up, Scotty! Now, coming back to our hero in the limelight, as any other affluent non-bumiputera Malaysian student, the last thing on the mind of these 18 year olds is to do STPM (A levels) at the public school. After reaping the benefits of an almost free Malaysian education with its highly competitive surroundings (depends what you want to achieve, really), the children, whose path is tailor-made by the equally combative parents and...

So, it has come this. Two girls who obtained 10As and 8As-2B respectively in the recent SPM (O-levels) examinations sobbing away because they did not manage to squander 10A+ in it. And the guy at the tail end of the form, is screaming in rapturous delight with his Cs and Ds! Looks a scene from Lat's (Malaysian legendary cartoonist) Kampong Boy comic! For those who are in the dark about Lat, (where were you?), Lat is our favourite cartoonist who draws caricatures of our leaders, pokes fun at them and draws flak at our style of doing things and gets away with it. In fact, he is held in high esteem and had been honoured with various medals. There is even a musical extravaganza in the pipeline of his 'Kampong Boy'. In one of his books, he was reminiscing his school days. A school teacher had challenged one of his boisterous students that the student would surely fail in his LCE examinations, promising to eat his shoes if the results showed otherwise. By twist of fate and sheer ...

FG, after having worked with many female colleagues, superiors and subordinates have come to the unshakable belief that increasing the female workforce in the country to 55% by 2015 spells trouble. It would definitely be trouble for him at home and would probably have to sleep in the kennel for the rest of his life. And definitely would not be in favourite lists of feminists who are still in the euphoria of celebrating 100 years of being deemed intelligent enough to vote for their own leaders. And they are still going on listing trying to list down their 100 best female heroes of all time. International Women's Day was celebrated the world over on 8th March 2011. I do not know when the original idea came on celebrating the success of the women from their non-existent status in the Middle Ages or whether they meant to include transsexuals and cross-dressers in the regatta but BFM radio had interviewed many of these trapped souls and they seem to be rejoicing too! As FG easily ...

So there was this nurse trying to call out a child's name to enter a doctor's surgery but she was rather confused. The name she was about to call out (Chezhian) sounds Chinese but the only child waiting was Indian. She rectifies the crisis only to be enlightened that it is indeed a Tamil name! I wonder how many times this child will have to undergo this kind of embarrassing moments before he steps into adulthood immune to this type of queries. Then there was another boy named Arhoaran (named after the victorious call of success in the name of Lord Muruga) - Looks pretty mind boggling for a non-Tamil to decipher. What about my sister's class mate name, Mangayakarasi, which her teachers found a torture to pronounce. They would drag the words trying to spell out the name in a sing-song fashion. There was a boy I knew in childhood whose parents decided to name their child after the legendary Tamil king whose name was synonymous with fair, competent and just rule, King Pandya...

http ://www.sify.com/news/indian-origin-malaysian-athlete-now-varsity-don-news-international-ldupOgefcdb.html Indian-origin Malaysian athlete now varsity don 2011-03-20 15:50:00 (from sify.com) Kuala Lumpur, March 20 (IANS) M. Jegathesan, an Indian-Malaysian known as the 'flying doctor' for winning this country's first gold at the Asian Games, is the new pro-chancellor of a prestigious university. An appointment scroll to the Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) was presented to the ethnic Indian by university chancellor Raja Perlis Tuanku Syed Sirajuddin Syed Putra Jamalullail at the university's 43rd convocation. USM vice chancellor Dzulkifli Abdul Razak said Jegathesan's appointment would give a boost to sports development, as well as the university, the New Straits Times reported Sunday. Jegathesan responded by saying: 'I aim to do my best to help bring USM to greater heights through holistic development of its staff and students.' Jegathesan, 67, who ...

Everybody has something they are good at. They can kings at whatever trade they chose to do. Just watch this one!

The friendly neighbourhood illegal DVD pedlar who converses with difficulty in disjointed conversational Malay is an honest film critique and reviewer. Although all his recommendations may not be your cup of tea, (you can give a go to his suggestions of movies related to wrestling, aimless pyrotechnic display type of action drama and gruesome blood splashing type of teen Friday 13th horror), his knowledge on relatively unknown title from independent production houses are worth a gamble. The service also comes with a replacement if there were any defect in print, not up to the viewer's liking. Two of his recommendations that captured my heart were 'Gran Torino' and 'Everybody's Fine'. Unlike their counterparts in India where thespians of yesteryears refuse to age but don primary roles with liberal help from make-up artists and well fitting toupee, these two legends who graced the above two movies wore roles befitting their age. In 'Gran Torino', Clin...

No, your eyesight is not playing tricks on you. No, the word PDA is not misspelt. No, this is not about the dinosaur of a gizmo called PDA (personal digital assistant). Who needs PDA when you can BlackBerry, Blue Berry or even Strawberries? And it is not about p ublic d isplay of a ffections (Y-generation lingo). No, PDA is not patent ductus arteriosus, either! PDE denotes public display of emotions - an abbreviation I coined just to make heads turn. Whilst browsing through the channels of TV (it is a guy's thing that ladies would not comprehend, what would we do without remote controls?), I come across many cable news channels showing the rescue efforts at full force in Japan at an orderly and 'cultured' manner. People are struggling with thirst and hunger but have so much trust and confidence in authorities that they just do as they are told. Some of them have their houses swept away by the wave of a tsunami and some with missing relatives whose whereabouts are unkno...

Our hearts feel for the Japanese victims of the tsunami in Fukushima. May tranquillity be restored in the shortest possible time. I am not here to tell them 'serves you right for the atrocities you created in Nanking and Malaya in the 30s and WW2. That is another time and at another generation. Let bygones be bygones. What I am mainly perplexed is that when the news of the 8.9 Richter scale quake was announced by our radio, within the same breath, in the next sentence, the newscaster mentioned that all Malaysian students in Japan. Then over the next few days, slowly like the peeling of the onion skin, one by one all the problems unveil. After being hit by the earthquake, tsunami and now fear of radiation exposure, the issues unfold. It has revealed that 2,100 Government-sponsored students in Japan are uncounted for. Interesting. This seems to a standard answer of officials for any malady. During the Egypt debacle, he heard the same. This was also echoed during the haze ep...

dripping faucet! What has a bathroom and kitchen fittings company (Bareno) has in common with running? Well, their water faucets stop running water effectively! And long distance leaves a trail of dripping sweat! I suppose that why they have been organising a medium scale running race (5,10,21km) around Bukit Jalil for at least for the past 2 years. This time around, I was left to run on my own (anyway nobody else can run for me!). I was deserted by my running buddies. Suresh is still nursing his foot injury that  he sustained during the LSD run in Putrajaya, while the rest of the gang is gearing up for big kahuna in mid April at the Energizer Run in Putrajaya where the F1 circuit is part of the track. Like the old cowboy adage would say 'A man got to do what a man got to do', I got up at 4.15am and got all geared up to face the enemy, i.e. 'the naysayer and negativity within me'. The race started on time at 5.30am as scheduled. It took us from Bukit Jalil Stadium ...