MENSA Treasure Hunt 2008

We took part in the MENSA Malaysia Treasure Hunt 2008 on Sunday. It was yet another iteration of Team Teh Tarik, with our fourth different teammates in as many hunts. After the hunt though, it seems that we have finally got a permanent team!

Anyway, the hunt, organised by Laurence Hie, was themed "Planet Green". The questions were almost entirely environment-based, and every single treasure item also had something to do with conserving the environment, which included bringing in at least 20kgs of old newspapers before the flag-off!

This is our first hunt that's not organised by Time Out, and I have to admit that the clues, though fair, were easier than Time Out's. Some of the clues were solveable even before we reached the relevent sector! There were surpringly a lot of general knowledge clues, but thanks to my trusted iPhone and Iskandar's 3G-enabled MacBook Pro, we managed to Wiki our way through them. However, we were stumped by a couple of clues, as the answers were really really small(!) or we just didn't do enough research on the Wiki.

This was also the very first time we managed to get ALL the treasures! As we the final hunt sector was in the Mutiara Damansara/Damansara Perdana area, we all thought that we could easily get everything at Tesco Mutiara Damansara. How wrong were we. They didn't have the right brand of garbage bags, nor did they have the EXACT type of light bulb that was specified! So ala Amazing Race we sprinted next door to Ikano to try our luck at Ace Hardware and Cold Storage. We managed to get the correct brand of garbage bags, but still no light bulb. In the end, considering that at 8 points, each treasure was worth almost 3 whole clues (3 points), we decided to drive around to look for a specialist lighting store. We managed to find one in Uptown, and were we happy when we found the exact brand and type at the very first store!

We went back through some of the final sectors to search for some answers we missed, but in vain. We decided to cut our losses and since we had less than half an hour to the deadline, we decided to go back to the checkpoint at Sri KDU School. As we had a wee bit of time left when we got there and we weren't happy with our answers from the first sector, we dropped Nini off at the checkpoint with our answer sheet and treasures and headed to the sector again. With two minutes to spare, I had a hunch for one of the tie-breaker clues and called Nini to give her the answer. The answer turned out to be the correct one and it proved vital as we were tied on points with another team!

In the end we managed to finish among the prize-winners in a respectable 18th place, which out of 40-odd teams may not seem as a great achievement at first. However, considering the who's who of the Malaysian treasure hunting scene took part in the hunt (including Cornelius Koh who flew all the way from KK just for this!), we did feel rather proud of ourselves in only our 4th ever hunt (and the very FIRST hunt for Iskandar & Kamariah!). Indeed, the MENSA Hunt is regarded by many as one of the four "Grand Slams" of local treasure hunts, so you can see just how respectable our 18th place was.

As I said at the start of this post, we think that we finally finalised the lineup for Team Teh Tarik. Everyone did a very good job, and we are raring to go for our next hunt together, with high hopes of climbing swiftly up the rankings. Watch this space!

More details of the MENSA Treasure Hunt 2008 can be found at Michael Pang's site.

Jack Bauer's back!

Yup, after taking a break for one year due to the Hollywood writers' strike, 24 Day 7 is finally upon us! The "pilot" for Day 7, a 2-hour special called 24: Redemption, was aired in the US over the weekend and is already on the torrents. This time there's no CTU as Jack's now relocated to Africa, on the run from the US government who hold him responsible for the numerous killings and tortures Jack has done to protect the US of A. But this being Jack, he can't hide from action for long, and we soon see him embroiled in a coup.

To celebrate the new season of 24, The Independent has written a really good critique of the whole 24 phenomenon, pointing out the obvious plotholes (how can ANYONE go a whole day without sleep, food, drink or even a quick visit to the loo?), and the numerous torture techniques that Jack has done for the "greater good". It also has some interesting little-known facts about the TV series. Really good piece which I recommend to all Jack Bauer fans.

iPhone 2.1

So I finally took the plunge and installed firmware 2.1 on my 1st-gen iPhone. The update's been out for a few months now, but I wanted to wait until a stable and reliable "hack" becomes available. And also an easy and foolproof installation method. I did ask around at Low Yat Plaza though for fees charged for them to do the upgrading - RM200 is the common quote. So I did some research on the net, found in QuickPWN a simple GUI based installation "program", and a really helpful step-by-step guide (with screenshots!), and went ahead. It was a smooth process alright, and apart from a small problem where the iPhone did not recognise my DiGi simcard after the process was complete - solved after doing some Googling on the problem - it was perfect!

The result? Well, I now have an iPhone 3G!! Apart from actually having 3G and GPS of course. But then, the reason why the iPhone 3G is such a hit is not the 3G capability itself (no significant increase in speeds), nor GPS (at least until applications from Garmin, TomTom and the like make it to the iPhone). The single reason why iPhone 3G is such a huge improvement over the previous version is the opening up of the iPhone platform to thousands of 3rd-party programs via the iTunes AppStore. Yeah, people have been installing programs onto jailbroken iPhones before. However, this "legal" method of installing means that big corporations with huge budgets, experience and resources are now developing iPhone-specific programs.

There are a MULTITUDE of apps available on the App Store - free and paid - but here are a few of my favourites so far:

• PocketMoney - The application I use most. I'm one of those who records EVERY single transaction I make, and PocketMoney lets me do this, separating the entries for the various bank accounts and credit cards that I have.
• EPL Live! - A must-have for all English Premiership football fans! Latest standings, fixtures, results. The killer feature - LIVE text commentary and match stats!
• Remote - Free app from Apple that lets you use the iPhone as a remote control for the iTunes library on your iMac or MacBook!
• midomi - Ever wondered what song is on the radio, but missed what the DJ said? Or have that tune in your head that you just can't remember who sang it? Well fret no more. With midomi, either put the iPhone to the radio speaker, or SING/HUM the tune into the iPhone, and within seconds midomi will give you the name and artiste of the song! Seriously, it works! Try it yourself at the website.
• Facebook - An iPhone app with virtually all the features of the FB website - including FB chat, and the ability to snap photos using the iPhone camera, tag your friends and upload it straight to FB - closest thing to a fully-dedicated FB camera! A must-have for those who don't have access to FB in the office (me!).
  

Anyway, I've literally got a brand new phone with the 2.1 update. Am still browsing the web for recommendations on which apps to install (especially those worth paying for!). I'll hope to rave about more apps I've found in a future post.

Apple Malaysia Online Store is open for business!!

Apple have FINALLY launched an online store for Malaysia! No big deal for many, as almost every major shopping mall in the Klang Valley has at least one Apple reseller. But it's significant to me, for various reasons:

• We can now browse the latest Apple products and accessories online, with actual prices in RM. Prices would include for various customisations - additional RAM, HDD, etc.
  
• It's another "player" in the local Apple market, and there could be good deals to be enjoyed. At the very least, the brick-and-mortar resellers are now encouraged to come up with good deals of their own to counter the perception of the advantages of purchasing from the "official" store.
• This is THE most important reason - could this be the precursor for the official launch of the iPhone in Malaysia? Fingers crossed!!
  

Top 10!

Ladies and gentlemen, Team Teh Tarik has arrived! In only our 3rd ever hunt, and with our 3rd pair of teammates, we have managed to finish a very respectable 9th out of 50 teams.

The Top Gear Malaysia Motor Hunt 2008 was the least stressful and, dare I say, easiest so far. Well, for the latter I guess our experience in the past two hunts have helped us tremendously in knowing how to solve the clues and what to look out for in the answers.

The hunt took us via the North-South Expressway to Hulu Bernam, Tanjung Malim, Ipoh, Butterworth and to the final station just before the Penang Bridge. As there were only 50 teams and the hunting areas were well spread out, we didn't have to battle for room and space with other teams and the morning breakfast crowd. Busy Puchong on a Sunday morning this certainly is not. Most of the clues were found without stopping and searching on foot. Which is just as well, as some of the hunt sectors were along the main road. And the distance between sectors - more than an hour at one point, provided ample time to recharge our batteries and wring our brains to solve the treasure clues.

I did my homework on the hunt sponsors the night before, and boy was I glad I did! Quite a few of the clues (including the treasures) assumed knowledge of the sponsors - nothing too detailed, basically just based on stuff in the goody bags. In the end, we got 30 out of 35 answers right, but only got 1 treasure right. Must work harder on the treasure clues!

During the prize-giving ceremony, each team's points total was not mentioned, so we really didn't know what to expect. As other teams' numbers were called out as the finishing positions got higher and higher, we honestly didn't know what to expect - on one hand it is a good sign that we have a better chance of finishing higher, but on the other hand, maybe we did so bad that we weren't even classified! 20, 19, 18... the positions got higher and higher, and still no mention of our team. 13, 12, 11... then we got to the magic number of 10th position, STILL our team wasn't called out. And then for position number 9, FINALLY we were called to the stage! 9th! And all we wanted at the start of the day was to finish in the top 20! Only bummer though was that our reward were these steam facial sauna thingamajigs. Yeah, I hear you laughing. And to think that teams BELOW us won cufflinks and Ray-Bans!

All in all, a great weekend in Penang. And we even brought back RM200 worth of DVDs back as souvenirs! Our next proposed hunt would be the MENSA Hunt on 14th December - apparently one of the Grand Slams of Malaysian treasure hunting. Now, getting Top 10 in that hunt would be REALLY special.

Treasure Hunting for Dummies

After joining my first two treasure hunts, I've learnt a lot of tips on getting the answers and treasures right from my experience. I'll write them down as a Treasure Hunt 101 for other newbies and potential hunters.

1) Look out for the indicator word

Most of the clues you need to solve are cryptic clues, where a lot of time and skill is required to decipher the clues before you even start looking for the answers! The first step to solving these cryptic clues is to look out for the indicator. The main ones are:

• anagram indicators (Change, mix, sort, could be, perhaps, awkwardly, perm, chaos etc)
• backwards indicators (returns, recall, etc)
• rhyme indicators (sounds like, I hear, etc)
• initial indicators (Firstly, initially, etc)

Once you've figured out the indicator, then you're already halfway there. Most are obvious, but the hardest to spot are the anagram ones, as they can be ANY word that can carry the meaning "to change" or "mixed up". But usually when the clue doesn't make sense grammatically, then it can either mean two things - (a) it's a cryptic clue and you need to play around with the words/letters to find the answer, or (b) the clue-setter just has a poor grasp of the English language!

2) Know the sponsors

Well the sponsors did not pour in so much of their money for nothing - they do want some publicity in exchange. I have found that for some of the clues, really knowing about your sponsors (or at least being aware of them!) would really help. The name of the sponsor itself could be the answer, or you may need to know the business or motto of the sponsor. Even the treasures themselves could be one of the sponsor's products (it may even have been included in the goody-bag all along!).

3) Know your Roman numerals

This is really important. There would be clues which may contain the words "hundred" or "five" or even "a number" where you're actually needed to substitute these words with the corresponding Roman numerals. So do look out for any reference to numbers, especially if they're specific single digit Roman numerals such as below:

I - One
V - Five
X - Ten
L - Fifty
C - One Hundred
D - Five Hundred
M - One Thousand

4) Every. Word. Counts.

Yup, do not dismiss or overlook ANY word. And this goes for both the answer as well as the clue. If you think you get an answer, try see if it can somehow fit in with the clue. If only part of the clue describes the answer, then chances are the answer is wrong. If only part of the answer fits in with the clue, then chances are that answer is wrong too.

5) Mind your language

Having a decent command of the English Language is imperative! You no speaking England, you no win Treasure Hunt.


So that's all the beginner tips I can think of for now. I'll add more in the future as I gain more experience in this new hobby/sport of mine.

Top half!

Yup, after a TIRING day spent hunting, we managed to finish in 100th place out of 240 teams. Top half, which is a marked improvement over our bottom half finish in the Lexis Nexis hunt, and especially as it was only our SECOND EVER hunt! But to be fair, we did get 12 questions out of 35 wrong, and the fact that most of the other teams were newbies did contribute to our position. Encouraging achievement, anyway, and keeps our hopes up for the Top Gear Motor Hunt this coming weekend - only 50 or so teams, so we have an excellent chance of finishing in the top 10!

Anyway, Philips were the prize sponsors and the winners won a 37" LCD TV - for EACH team member! Our prize for coming in 100th? A Philips steam iron each. Well, it is something, and is waaaay much better than going back empty handed! Onwards to Penang and the Top Gear Hunt!

Maradona the gaffer?

Seems that Argentina have PANICKED and have made the seemingly BAFFLING decision to appoint one Diego Maradona as the new head coach of the national team. Yup, the same Maradona who single-HANDedly won the 1986 World Cup for his country, and the same one that ballooned into a cocaine-addicted ikan buntal after his retirement (and we always thought that drug addicts were all skin and bones!). He has almost ZERO EXPERIENCE as a coach, but at least he would have Carlos Bilardo, the man in charge of that 1986 triumph, as his right hand man. So expect most of the more important decisions to come from Bilardo, then.

Some may argue that Argentina are full of great individuals, you can put any Tom, Dick or Juan in charge and they'll still come out winners. Well just take a look at England then, 10 Englishmen started the 2008 Champions' League Final, but with a muppet like McLaren in charge of the national side, they still managed to fail to even qualify for EURO 2008. And look at them now under the guidance of Fabio Capello - their best EVER start to World Cup qualifying with 4 wins out of 4, including 2 tricky away games.

But then, Argentina haven't done too well themselves in their own qualifying campaign so far. I guess all they needed was some sort of inspiration, some sort of MIRACLE. And to most Argentines, Maradona IS God, so all fair to them for turning to him. But I do secretly hope that it all goes balls-up and Argentina fail to qualify for World Cup 2010, as this would mean that Carlos Tevez would have a proper rest before the 2010-11 season - provided he's still with us!

Spa Retreat!

The missus and I went on a deserved weekend break to Avillion in Port Dickson. Really nice and scenic place, staff were very professional, and the place was really clean - even the beach (surprisingly for PD!).

Anyway, the highlight of the trip was our couples session at the Avi Spa. A spacious building set on stilts right above the water, with an unrestricted panoramic view of the Straits of Malacca!

The Hunting Season Begins!!

We really enjoyed our first ever hunting experience, so we decided to sign up to two back-to-back hunts in November! The first one is the all-famous theSun Motor Hunt, where there'll be a total of 250 teams! Well, actually more than 250, as we registered after the maximum number of teams have already applied, but received a call yesterday confirming our late late participation! It's on this Sunday 2 November, flag-off from Sime Darby Convention Centre in Bukit Kiara. So with the huge number of teams involved, those of you early birds on Sunday look out for stickered vehicles on the road, and expect HEAVY traffic at the designated hunt sites, with lots of people wearing the same tshirts STARING at the shop signs looking for the answers!

The next one we've signed up for is the Top Gear Malaysia Treasure Hunt. An interesting one this, as it starts in the Klang Valley but ends in Penang, with a night's stay at Tanjong Bungah inclusive! This is Top Gear Malaysia's inaugural hunt, and with ONLY 50 teams, I expect really attractive prizes - and the goody bags should be interesting too! Only snag with this hunt is that two sets of couples who agreed to join had to pull out due to unforeseen circumstances, so anyone who's interested to have a fun weekend, please do email me ASAP!

I'll let you know how we did in the above two hunts in future posts.

WISH US LUCK!!!

Bahasa Jiwa Bangsa

Ingin saya ketengahkan satu gejala berat yang menular masyarakat kita dewasa ini. Masalah ini adalah berkaitan dengan penterjemahan beberapa istilah Bahasa Inggeris ke Bahasa Melayu. Penterjemahan yang langsung telah dilakukan ke atas istilah-istilah Bahasa Inggeris ini walaupun terdapat istilah-istilah Bahasa Melayu sedia ada yang sudah cukup memberikan maksud yang sama dengan istilah-istilah Bahasa Inggeris tersebut.

Contoh terbaik pada fikiran saya adalah "informasi". Jelas kepada kita semua bahawa "informasi" adalah penterjemahan langsung perkataan Bahasa Inggeris "information". Istilah ini sering digunakan dalam media massa, malah kebanyakan daripada kita tidak berfikir dua kali untuk menggunakan istilah ini dalam percakapan harian. Sebenarnya tidak ada sebab untuk kita menggunakan istilah "informasi" kerana penterjemahan "information" ke dalam Bahasa Melayu adalah "maklumat". Apa salahnya dan apa kurangnya jika perkataan "maklumat" digunakan berbanding dengan "informasi". Sebenarnya banyak lagi istilah lain yang pada fikiran saya tidak perlu digunakan, sebaliknya istilah Bahasa Melayu yang sedia ada sudah cukup sesuai. Senarai contoh istilah-istilah ini adalah seperti berikut:

Informasi - Maklumat
Konsumer - Pengguna
Bajet - Belanjawan
Final - Perlawanan Akhir
Opsyen - Pilihan
Fokus - Tumpuan
Global - Sedunia
Transformasi - Penukaran, Perubahan
Program - Rancangan
Rasis - Perkauman

Saya pernah membangkitkan perkara ini kepada teman-teman. Alasan atau sebab yang diberikan selalunya:

1. Bahasa Melayu sememangnya bukan satu bahasa yang asal, dan kebanyakan istilah Bahasa Melayu berasal dari bahasa-bahasa lain - Indonesia, Inggeris, Portugis, dan sebagainya.

2. Tidak ada sebab perkara ini perlu dibangkitkan kerana jika kita menonton rancangan dari negara jiran kita, penggunaan istilah-istilah Bahasa Inggeris yang telah diterjemahkan secara langsung adalah berleluasa.

Alasan-alasan di atas pada fikiran saya tidak dapat diterima sama sekali, dan seharusnya tidak digunakan untuk menyembunyikan kemalasan masyarakat kita untuk menggunakan istilah-istilah Bahasa Kebangsaan kita ini.

Senarai di atas akan saya perbaharui dari masa ke masa. Saya juga mengalu-alukan apa-apa cadangan atau pandangan pembaca, samada hendak menambah kepada senarai istilah ini, atau pun hendak mempersoalkan istilah-istilah yang sedia ada. Saya mengaku bahawa penguasaan Bahasa Melayu saya sendiri tidaklah begitu sempurna, malahan di peringkat PMR dan SPM pun saya tidak pernah sekali pun mendapat tahap "A" dalam peperiksaan. Oleh itu, saya amat berbesar hati jika pembaca dapat sama-sama memberikan pandangan terhadap masalah yang berat sebegini.

In-ger-landd!!!!

None gave them a chance. Justifiably so, given they lost both ties last time round. And with the miserable performances under Capello so far, some even hint that they just should've stuck with McLaren and saved a lot of money in the process. Even Bilic, the Croatia coach, was critical of England's struggle to a 2-0 win over part-timers Andorra on Saturday, and was confident of his own team's success. I wouldn't blame him, after all, they are unbeaten at home FOREVER (well since they were formed in 1990), and have let in a measly ONE goal in their last 10 home games. For England, merely getting a draw would be a huge achievement, and noone really took Capello seriously when he said he wanted to go for the win.

It was a convincing 4-1 MAULING of Croatia.

Forget Beckham, forget Wright-Phillips. With his awesome display in Croatia, Theo Walcott has made the right-side of midfield his own. Yes, his crossing may not yet match the best in the business. But then Walcott's business is scoring, and he's someone who has a real chance of hitting the target when he gets a chance in the area. But despite his hattrick, it's not all Walcott. Rooney, under heavy fire so far early in the season for his lack of scoring, ran Walcott close to be the man-of-the-match. His 2 assists and 1 goal showed they you do not neccessarly need to score in every game to be a great striker. Lampard showed his club form, and it's not a mere coincidence that every time Gerrard does not play, Lampard excels. In fact, the first 11 is the most balanced and settled England have been in quite a while. Ideally a naturally left-footed player is needed on the left, but with the inconsistent Downing the only contender, swashbuckling Joe Cole would do for now, though I would prefer him more as a supersub, which he has proven with devastating effect with his 3 goals in the previous 2 games.

England now have to build on this win, and hope that in the time to the next qualifying game, they don't get too over-confident and cocky. They haven't won the World Cup yet. Problem for Capello ultimately is how to fit Gerrard into the first 11. I say, if both Lamps and Barry are fit, the balance of the team should not be upset, and Stevie G can provide some company to Defoe, Downing, et al on the bench.

Anyway, this win is Capello's "Munich" moment. Munich here referring to the famous 5-1 AWAY win over Germany in Munich in the 2002 World Cup qualifiers that marked the start of the Sven-Goran Eriksson era. I just hope and pray that the Capello era ends on the highest note for England.

England til I die!
I'm England til I die!
I know I am, I'm sure I am,
I'm England til I die!

Introducing.... Honda Civic 2.0s - Nighthawk Black

After more than 2 months of waiting, we finally got our new car! It's something I can finally be proud of driving. Don't get me wrong, my trusty 'ol Wira's contributions in the past have been immense. But now, for once I'm not envious of other drivers on the road. It's a really FAST car, which is evident even in the current running-in period when I try not to exceed 3000 revs. Getting behind the wheel, with its two-tiered dashboard and the LCD speedometer feels like you're in the cockpit of a jet fighter. And I just love changing through the gears with the paddle-shifts located behing the steering wheel - ala Formula 1. An additional extra is the "Aux in" jack, which means I can listen to stuff on my iPhone without headphones (don't get me started on those FM radio iPod transmitters - they SUCK). The only problem so far is that you can NOT see the front of the chasis from inside the car - means that I have be extra careful when manouvering through tight spaces and even when parking the car. Getting used to it now, but may still opt to install front bumper sensors, just to make sure.

I'm also a fully-fledged member of the 8th-Gen Civic Club of Malaysia, and with the help of my new brethren, our Civic would be slowly but surely transformed into something special. Watch this space!

Fergie gets a Bulgarian

So, there ends the summer transfer window. And after a day of high drama (Spurs accepting a higher offer from Man City), United finally sealed the deal for Berbatov at the very last minute before the window shut. Going out the other way were Saha to Everton (how on Earth did he pass his medical test?), Silvestre swapping the United reserves for the Arsenal reserves, and Frazier Campbell going on loan to Spurs.

Rooney, Ronaldo, Tevez, Berbatov. Now THAT'S a strikeforce to be reckoned with. Can't wait for the chants from the Stretford End, though I honestly can't think of anything that rhymes with Berbatov! And the Bulgarian has the perfect opportunity to make himself an instant legend with the Old Trafford faithful in his very first game - Liverpool at Anfield. With both Gerrard and Torres out of the game, I'm really really looking forward to 13th September.

For now, I just hope that Berbatov doesn't get crocked in this week's World Cup qualifiers. Speaking of which... COME ON IN-GER-LAND!!!!!!

Flying Murder

Read this interesting article on The Independent online. To SUCCESSFULLY kill a fly, youshould ANTICIPATE where the fly would fly away when you attempt to swat it, rather than swat exactly at the place it was resting. This is because of flies' super duper reflexes.

This is true, as I usually do the same thing, which is to clap my hands OVER the fly rather than hitting the table. Try it - it works!



(graphic is the copyright of independent.co.uk)

Coming soon......

The new PSP!!

Other than my iPhone, the other device that I almost always have with me is my PSP. And being the Winning Eleven/Pro Evo Soccer addict that I am, the ONLY game that I have on the PSP is of course Pro Evolution Soccer 2008.

Anyways, Sony have just officially announced the PSP-3000. Admittedly it looks EXACTLY the same as the "slim and lite" PSP-2000, but what excites me about the new version is that Sony claim that the screen is better, and is actually useable OUTDOORS.

One thing that I don't like about the current version is that it's just useless outdoors, and on more than one occasion has led to me making the stray pass or failing to make the last ditch tackle on an opposing striker. Now if only the new PSP has built-in DualShock than it would be PERFECT!

Premier Fantasies

FINALLY, the new season is upon us! For some less succesful teams (Arsenal and Liverpool) you could say their season starts tonight with the Champs League qualifiers.

Anyway, I've joined the OFFICIAL fantasy league at http://fantasy.premierleague.com and set up my team for the season. Hopefully you can join me there, with just a few simple steps:

1. Register a team (it's FREE!!) at http://fantasy.premierleague.com
2. Choose your players - make sure to just choose all the stars as you have to stick within a certain "budget"
3. Join my league - my league ID is 568355-171013

That's it! Easy peasy lemon squeezy.

My very first treasure hunt!

I've always wanted to join a treasure hunt. And no, I'm not talking about real treasure here, the kind associated with pirates and Indiana Jones. But rather, the more urban type of hunt where teams drive around "hunting" for answers to riddles in a set amount of time. It's become a popular pastime here in KL, where even "professional" teams of hunters exist. I've had experience with a "walk-hunt", and also entered the The Sun hunt a few times (even managing to win myself RM100!), but when the opportunity arose, I made the leap to enter my first ever PROPER treasure hunt.

So there we were - me, the missus and another couple - at the flag-off point somewhere in the USJ area at SEVEN in the morning. The hunt's organised by Lexis Nexis and the KL Bar and unfortunately for us, there wasn't any separate Masters category - so it was a baptism of fire for us as we had to compete with the "professionals".

For those of you who haven't joined these hunts before, the questions are mostly "cryptic". The hard part really is to decipher the questions. Once you have (sort of) figured out what the question wants, it's then just a matter of looking out for the answer amongst the multitude of shop signs along the specified route. As an example, the first question that was asked was as follows:

Some trial with its logics revolutionized.

Some of you may be thinking "huh?????". Well this a typical cryptic clue, and you need to know what words to look out for to solve it. There are actually 2 parts for the answer here:

1. "Some" is a partial indicator, which means that a portion of the next word forms the answer. The next word is "trial", so the answer could contain "TR" or "IAL" or even "AL".
2. "Revolutionized" in the question is an anagram indicator, which says that the answer is made up of the jumbled up letters of other words in the question. In this case, "its logics" is the anagram.

Once you've deciphered the question, it's then up to everyone to stare at all the shop signs looking for a name or phrase that fits the question. Lo and behold, the answer was:

IAL LOGISTICS (MALAYSIA) SDN BHD

See how the answer fits the question? "IAL" is part of "trial", and "LOGISTICS" is an anagram of "its logics".

So actually, a LOT of thinking has to be done on the day. Worse still if you have NO IDEA on what the question means, and you end up trying to scrutinize EVERY single shop sign to see if it fits the question in some way!

So how did we do? Well, we got 30 answers out of 40 correct, but didn't get any of the four required "treasures" - more on the treasures in a future post. Including some bonus points, we had a grand total of 95 points. There were prizes for the top 30 out of a total 60+ teams. And guess what? Even the team that finished in 30th place got more points than us!! BOTTOM HALF!! All that effort for nothing!

Well, this is just a start, and there are a few more hunts on the horizon. For the next ones, hoping to enter a Mercer team with the name "The MERCERnaries". Hopefully some luck from our 5-year winning streak in the annual Actuarial Society of Malaysia quiz would rub off!

Staying put - for now

Well, well. Who would've known. Seems that the Ronaldo-Madrid transfer saga has ended - at least for now. And seems that he's staying at Old Trafford - at least for now. The full transcript of his interview with a Portuguese paper can be found at Guardian's football site.

Short of a press conference with Fergie by his side, the interview is the closest you can get to a concrete statement from Ronnie on his future. He says all the right things, that he takes full responsibility for wanting to move, that he didn't want to move because of money, how he's "grateful" to United (reason why he sees a potential world-record transfer fee as his "gift" to the club), and his denial of his support of Blatter's slavery comments (though it was said during a TV interview), bla bla bla bla bla.

Personally, I still don't forgive him for the way he has handled this. To be fair, I accept and understand his reasons for leaving, as I've pointed out in an earlier post. What I CAN'T accept is the timing of him letting us know of his intentions - on the triumphal night of United's Euro win in Moscow itself. The whole summer (or at least the couple weeks after Moscow), the backpages of newspapers worldwide should be filled with praises, analyses and reports of United's unprecendented double triumph. However what we get are "will he or won't he?" articles on Ronaldo. So much so that - together with the Euro tourney - people have all but forgotten the TEAM'S achievements. The least Ronnie could do was to wait until the Euro started, better still AFTER Portugal were kicked out. You get this feeling that the transfer saga even affected his own performance at the tournament.

In the meantime, even if he is staying - say it with me, at least for now - he's still crocked until October, and United have an injury crisis for the first few games of the season. Nani's still banned for that stupid red card last season, Rooney and Carrick both have a "mysterious" African virus, Hargreaves, Saha and Park are all injured (what's new?), and Anderson's at the Olympics. And it's been quiet on the transfer front with United and Spurs stil not agreeing on a price for Berbatov. Oh well, at least we're only playing unlucky Newcastle at home on the first day - my outside bet for relegation this season.

PC Fair

Went to the PC Fair today, first time in a couple of years in fact. Needed to get me some proper speakers for the iMac, as everyone knows that the built-in ones just dont cut it. So after Friday prayers at the KLCC mosque, straight I went to the Convention Centre, thinking going then would be the best time with the less crowd, and should be a half hour, MAX one hour trip. Oh, how WRONG was I.

• Punters were treated like MICE, we could only go in through the main entrance and were guided through all the exhibition halls using a combination of barriers and OVERZEALOUS "jaga"s.

• To make things worse, nowadays the PC Fair takes up a whole TWO floors from one end of the convention centre to another.

• There were just too MANY promoters, at least on this first day, seemed that there were more promoters than visitors. Saying that, I have NO PROBLEMS AT ALL with the skimpily dressed doll-faced promoters (well most of them anyway) who are happy to pose for any old FART with a massive dSLR.

• Speaking of which, I just DESPISE all these promoters who stick leaflets into your face asking if you have broadband. In the past, it only used to be Streamyx, but now we have to face wave after wave of ATTACKS from Maxis Broadband, Celcom Broadband, etc etc etc. And then there are the mobile phone companies promoting their postpaid plans and banks asking us to SELL OUR SOULS by signing for a credit card for a stupid free bag/cap/umbrella. They should sell signs for people to put round their necks saying "I HAVE STREAMYX!!!", or "I'VE GOT A MOBILE PHONE NUMBER ALREADY, HOW MANY FREAKIN' NUMBERS DOES ONE NEED?!?!?!". Maybe that would stop getting bugged by these PESTS.
  

So did I get the speakers then? Yup, bagged myself a set of Edifiers. As you can see, the satellite speakers are not too big and go well with my iMac, yet give a more than decent performance. The subwoofer - not seen in the photo as it's on the floor - though not massive, still manages to RUMBLE MY INSIDES so much that makes me want to use the toilet! Not bad for a set that costs less than RM120, eh?

Bangkok Dangerous

Been some time since my last post. Have just been plain busy lately - work, weddings, photo edits, creation of a new homepage (more on that later), and the odd holiday to Bangkok thrown in. Bangkok was supposed to be a balanced trip of sightseeing and shopping, but it somehow turned into a shopping and cinema trip instead. Go figure. Anyway, didn't get too many keepers from the 100 or so snaps I took in Bangkok, but then there are other things that I learnt from the trip:

• Compared to their Malaysian counterparts, Thai AirAsia flying-waitresses are more decent, refined and professional (read: less slutty).

• I may be an L in K.L., and can even get away as an M in London, but I'm MOST definitely an XL in Bangkok - witness the nice t-shirts that I haggled for at Chatuchak market only to find out upon returning to the hotel that they were so small that our previous PM looked way better in the skintight cycling jersey during the Tour de Langkawi some years back!

• Bangkok really is Toyota city. If you are contemplating dropping RM110K on a new Altis, do yourself a favour and visit Bangkok - it's just teeming with bright PINK full-bodykit Altis' turned into taxis!

Vegetarian KFC?!?!??!?

Terrorists? Bah!!!! We should be afraid - nay, we should be VERY AFRAID - of VEGETARIANS!! According to kypost.com, it seems that KFC Canada has given into pressure by offering VEGETARIAN CHICKEN!! And guess what this "chicken" is called - UNCHICKEN!! I really do not get these VOLUNTARY vegetarians (I'm cool with those who are vegetarian for religious/medical reasons). I mean, it's BLOODY OBVIOUS - if you don't like chicken, then DON'T GO TO KENTUCKY FREAKIN' FRIED CHICKEN in the first place!!! I think it's fair that a restaurant called Kentucky Fried CHICKEN only sold CHICKEN. I mean, I wouldn't pop into the local Baskin' Robbins and expect to them to serve cendol, would I? Or on a similar note, I wouldn't go to TGIF expecting them to serve a hot glass of TEH TARIK to go with my MAGGI GORENG???

If you don't want meat, then TOO BAD. After all, there's always the VEGGIE BURGER for your kind. Or have a double helping of the COLESLAW. All us NORMAL PEOPLE (i.e. us meat-eaters) should unite and be weary of this new threat that we face. If ignored, I wouldn't be surprised if one day killing an animal for its meat would THROW YOU IN JAIL and you end up having to play "pick-the-soapbar" with your fellow inmates in the shower!

MEAT-EATERS RULE!!!

Steamed over steamboat

The Missus took me out for dinner tonight at this steamboat place at Ikano. Forgot the name of the restaurant, but it's the one at the basement level, with tables that go almost right into the P1 parking. If you're lucky, you can get a parking spot literally next to your table. Like going to your favourite Mamak, just that it's underground and the air is much more polluted with car exhaust fumes. The food itself was okay, I guess. We ordered the 2-person combo which had a bit of everything, with tomyam soup which was spicy, even for my high pedas threshold.

What I really want to rant about is the whole concept of "steamboat". I mean, when I eat OUT at a RESTAURANT, I expect the food to be COOKED. Instead I'm given a plate of raw fish, chicken and vegetables and am expected to cook it myself. And some places add insult to injury by charging a bomb for this "privilege". I mean, if I'm supposed to boil the food myself, I might as well get the raw stuff at my local Tesco, bring the food home, set up a rice cooker in my living room, fill it with water and pop in a few tomyam cubes, and eat while watching the latest downloaded episode of Family Guy!

I personally think that of all the possible options to open a restaurant, opening a steamboat restaurant would hands down be the most profitable. I mean, you don't need to hire skilled cooks to cook, as there's NO COOKING INVOLVED. You just need to get your supplies in, and chop them up into bite-size pieces, and serve them to your gullible patrons together with a boiling pot of cubestock water.

My precioussssssss

After months and months of saving up, I finally got myself the new iMac - 24" version, no less. I've already pimped it up by getting these LED strips from Ikea and sticking them to the back of the screen! Gives the iMac an aura befitting of something so freakin' sexxayyyy.

More details on shot above at its flickr site.

Ashbil & Fatimah

A photo from the wedding of my friend Ashbil and his wife Fatimah. More photos of the newlyweds taken by moi can be found at the link below.

Ashbil & Fatimah

Beware the lady with the SUV

Now I've always been very apprehensive whenever I see a lady driving a big SUV, specifically Toyota Harriers/Lexus on Malaysian roads. I'm sure you agree with me that some (most?) of them act as if they're driving small Kancils and there are no other motorists, barging their way to change lines or cut queues.


Well seems that things are not so different in other parts of the world. In Belfast, Northern Island, a lady driving a Lexus SUV somehow managed to drive her car over both a Porsche AND a Toyota Celica! I forgive her the mistake of changing into the wrong gear, but she must have floored the pedal really hard! I mean, as the SUV was originally static, even if you did go the wrong way, you surely would've realised it long before you're suddenly parked on top of two other cars!!!

You can read more at the BBC site here.

The MOST expensive iPhone accessory ever!!!

For all you iPhone lovers, you can now get your own Merc for your iPhone, available in a range of shapes, sizes and colours. This is surely one iPhone accessory you can't get at Low Yat Plaza!

The Sun articles on Ronaldo

Two very interesting takes on the Ronaldo saga by The Sun - the best source for all the latest footy news and gossip.

Let Him Go

Big-time Charlie has most to lose


Word of warning though, The Sun is also well-known for its Page 3 girls, and celebrity paparazzi snaps, so do exercise extreme caution if you are at work!

Wake me up before you go go!

So is Ronaldo going? Or to be more precise, do I care? On one hand, he’s been United’s ayam tambatan the past couple of seasons, breaking so many goalscoring records (made all the more impressive considering he starts most matches on the wing), and sweeping all awards before him. I remember during the couple of times I was lucky enough to see him play at Old Trafford, each time he had possession of the ball, you can hear the noise made by 74,000 seats as everyone stood up in anticipation of something great. And if he has a good Euro 2008 (based on Portugal’s matches so far, it indeed looks likely), I honestly can’t see anyone else getting this year’s European and World Player of the Year Awards.

BUT on the other hand though, there are his OTT spoilt-little-girl theatrics. To be fair, he has to a certain extent cut down on his diving, and has survived the post-World Cup 2006 jeering all the better. But you just can’t help feeling that this is a boy who really really loves himself, and each time he misses a shot or is fouled, he makes all these facial expressions that would make Jim Carrey envious, knowing too well that the cameras are all trained on him. Hey, even when United were presented with the Premiership Trophy for their 2006/07 triumph, apparently the squad were held back in the dressing room for some time as they had to wait for Ronaldo to gel his hair! What I personally don’t like about him though is his high propensity to MOAN and SULK every time he is fouled, or at least every time he THINKS he is fouled. Just get up and get on with it, boy! Rooney might blast a four-letter tirade to the referee, but he would only do so once play is stopped. Even Giggsy in his younger days would just get up and get on with it, and I’ve never recalled seeing him once pound his fists into the ground, like some 5-year-old who is forced to eat his veggies, something that you would expect at least 3 times from Ronaldo in EVERY SINGLE GAME. It’s mainly because of this that, despite his many wonderful and important goals and assists, I’ve never considered him a favourite of mine. Honestly, if he played for Chelsea or the Scousers, he would probably be the player I hate the most.

Saying all this, I would prefer him staying at Old Trafford for the foreseeable future. But if it’s true that his heart is set on leaving for Madrid, then all the best to him, as long as United get paid considerably for his signature. After all, he’s already achieved everything in England, and for someone hailing from Portugal the sunnier skies in Madrid would be more than a welcome change to the perpetual rain in Northwest England. Plus, I don’t blame someone for changing careers for a better pay, regardless of whether or not the “job” at his new employers would be any better.

So how would it affect United? Well I’d be lying if I said that Ronaldo’s goals and skills would not be missed. On more than one occasion he single-handedly gave us crucial victories. He did miss his penalty in Moscow, but remember that he gave us the lead in the 1st half with that thunderous header. But then, the 60 to 75 million pounds that Madrid are rumoured to offer for him would surely go a long way. Fergie’s targets like Berbatov and Benzema whom were seemingly priced out of the market are now much more viable, with lots of change to spare for a decent winger. Ribery, Simao, Ben Arfa? Kaka and Messi might seem improbable, but any substantial bid would surely be tempting for their current clubs. There’s the cheaper option of David Bentley, who’s itching for a move away from Ewood Park. Don’t forget that United still have other attacking midfielders on their books - Nani and Park Ji-Sung (who was preferred to Giggsy in Fergie’s first XI in the final weeks of the last season). No t to mention good 'ol Hargreaves, whose both goals last season were exquisitely taken freekicks, proving that not only Ronaldo can score them.

At the end of the day, in this day and age of player power, it is ultimately up to Ronaldo himself to decide. If (and when) he formally says that he wants to leave, then in everyone’s interests he should. As long as United get properly compensated with a world-record fee, and any deal is done early enough to give United ample time to use the money wisely, then I’m happy.

Happy dolphins

Regardless of whatever certain quarters say about the authenticity of its contents, the online portal of Malaysia's The Star newspaper has always been my main source of local news. However recently I can't help but getting distracted by an overeager dolphin everytime I'm there. Well, the dolphins are actually part of Malaysia Airlines' banner promoting their "cheap" fares to Brisbane, but it seriously has changed my view of the suuposedly pure and innocent sea mammals. Take a look for yourself by browsing through The Star Online.

iPhone 3G is here!

I have a confession to make - I own a sim-unlock, jailbroken 16GB iPhone, and boy do I love it! For all its weaknesses - and there are many - the two things that make it the killer phone for me is:

• It's an iPod - I can just connect it to my MacBook Pro and my podcasts are updated automatically
• It's simply the BEST mobile web-surfing experience

Now my major gripes about the iPhone are:

• it's not 3G - a shame considering the awesome mobile internet browser
• Bluetooth is not EDR nor AD2P - in other words, no syncing wirelessly with your computer, and no wireless stereo music streamed to your stereo Bluetooth headseat
• 16GB may be a lot of memory for most people, but to be taken seriously as an iPod it needs way more than that - heck, even my last-generation iPod has 60GB!
• no support (yet) for MS Office documents
• does not sync with Outlook - so I can't transfer calendar entries and tasks from my office PC

So, El Jobso announced the iPhone 2 a.k.a. iPhone 3G a couple days ago. To be honest, with 3G (finally!), GPS and the new 2.0 software (officially supporting 3rd-party apps and compatibility with Microsoft Exchange servers, amongst others), it is certainly a better machine. But would I go out and get it? Errrrrr, not really. 3G and GPS are good, but to me AD2P bluetooth and bigger memory size are more important. I was seriously expecting a 32GB version, as there's already a 32GB iPod Touch in the market.

But then, even if I did want to get one, it does look like Apple are doing their best to stop people from unlocking the iPhones en masse. I might wait until it's officially released on these shores, but that looks highly unlikely to happen in the near future as Malaysia is not even in the list of SEVENTY countries to get it by the end of the year. I can live with Malaysia not being in the top 100 footballing nations, but not even among the 70 countries to get the iPhone? You must be joking!

An England & United fan's dilemma

Ever since that black day in November when England were cruelly (if deservedly?) denied a place in Euro 2008, one thing has been on my mind – whom to support in the absence of Rooney, Rio, Hargreaves et al. Naturally for me, it would have to be a team that contains one or more of the recent double-winning players. Here’s a brief look at the relevant countries:

Portugal

United players : Cristiano Ronaldo, Nani
The obvious choice to some, but not really. True, in Ronaldo Portugal have probably the most exciting United player since a young Giggsy burst onto the scene, but chances are Ronaldo would not still be a Red for too much longer. Nani too in his first season has not really made himself a hero with the Old Trafford faithful yet, and that red card against West Ham certainly puts him in my bad books.
The Portuguese under Scolari are a pretty decent bet to win Euro2 008 though, and despite the passing of the Golden Generation of Luis Figo, Rui Costa and co, they still have a very well-rounded squad. It’ll be ironic if I choose Portugal though, as they knocked out England in the last two major tournaments!

The Netherlands

United player : Edwin van der Sar
They say that politics and sports don’t mix. Not so in this case. Due to the recent controversy involving a Dutch director and the Quran, I’m still boycotting all things Dutch.

France

United players : Patrice Evra, Luis Saha. Mikael Silvestre
Evra’s struggling to get a place in the starting 11, while Silvestre and Saha are not even there. A certain no-no for United supporters. Unless that is, we can snag that boy Benzema before the tournament ends (with some of the Ronaldo money, perhaps?).

Serbia

United player: Nemanja Vidic
The Dolph Lundgren look-a-like is fast becoming one of my favourites, but again politics means that I don’t see myself cheering for Serbia.

So that’s it then. Ironic then, that with the recent controversy surrounding the abundance of foreign players in the Premier League, the best club in England and Europe relies heavily on British and Irish players. Take them out, and the squad does look a bit threadbare.

Who to support then? Really hard choice based on the above. All depends on Ronaldo though, which at writing does not look good at all. Compared to previous World Cups and Euros, where I become a “neutral” after the quarterfinal stage, looks like this time round I just have to be a neutral from day one. Bring on August!

Review: Iron Man

Director : Jon Favreau
Main Cast : Robert Downey Jr., Terrence Howard, Gwyneth Paltrow, Jeff Bridges

Not another comic superhero flick!

I was enticed by Iron Man ever since the first time I heard about it during pre-production because of the fact that:
(a) it's a comic movie directed by Jon Favreau (well, anyone OTHER than Michael Bay), and
(b) with Robert Downey Jr, Gwyneth Paltrow, Jeff Bridges and Terrence Howard, it's got "proper" actors in the cast.

As a result of the above, I expected something more akin to the Spiderman films and Batman Begins, rather than, dare I say, Transformers.



So did it live up to the expectations?

Well happily it did, though at the same time it didn't actually exceed them. The action sequences were great, a lot of emphasis was put on using real costumes and effects rather than use CGI all the time. And when CGI was used, it did look as realistic as the robots in Transformers (come to think of it, the final fight between the two "suits" on the traffic laden highway was a bit of a deja vu moment).

Acting wise, Robert Downey Jr was perfectly cast, lending his natural charm and humour to the role. Jeff Bridges was decent in an unfamilar role as the arch-enemy, though he did ham it up a bit at the end. But then, what are superhero filcks without OTT villains, eh? Gwyneth Paltrow though was a bit wasted for my liking, as she had the typical blonde damsel in distress role, albeit an older version so as to not make Downy Jr come up as a paedo. The dialogue too didn't make you cringe, but you would expect that from a people-director such as Favreau.

Eh?

There were some "Eh??" moments in the film, the most memorable to me being:
(a) Everyone seems to stay only a couple minutes away from each other, ala 24. Especially so in the scene when Potts (Paltrow) finds out who the actual villain was. I presume she phoned Stark (Downey Jr) as soon as she could. But when she did, the villain had already managed to make his way to Stark's mansion, and then back to his lab long before Potts and the federal agents (who were in a nearby building) could make their way over to arrest him!
(b) The villain's suit was at least 3 times bigger than Iron Man's (which itself is larger than life). Question is, how the heck the the villain have long enough arms and legs (not to mention head and torso) to properly control the "suit"?

Don't leave early!

I read somewhere that there is some additional footage at the end after the credits roll. So I stayed and waited. And waited. And waited. And when it did come, was it worth it? You could say so, as it gave a taste of the future instalments of the movie franchise, in the shape of a well-known actor. Bring on Iron Man 2!!