Valley of the Dolts

http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap050318.html

Something mysterious was happening in the South Wales recently.

Control: "South Wales Police, what's your emergency?"

Caller: "It's not really. I just need to inform you that across the mountain there's a bright stationary object."

Control: "Right."

Caller: "If you've got a couple of minutes perhaps you could find out what it is? It's been there at least half an hour and it's still there."

Control: "It's been there for half an hour. Right. Is it actually on the mountain or in the sky?"

Caller: "It's in the air."

Control: "I will send someone up there now to check it out."

Caller: "Ok."

Officers were duly dispatched to the scene and were radioed by the expectant controller.

Control: "Alpha Zulu 20. This object in the sky, did anyone have a look at it?"

Officer: "Yes, it's the moon. Over."

Hope you readers had a laugh.

Cheers.

BMW 3-Series Convertible

So it is the first BMW with a retractable hardtop. Introduced in 2007, there is no major changes in 2008. This convertible is perfect for 2 persons to go for a drive around or a vacation when the weather permits. It's available initially 325i and 335i guises, and followed by smaller engine variants and diesel-powered models. The engine and chasis are the same as the 3-series coupe, what is different is, it gives up a little weight and luggage room in return for the 'fun of top-down motoring in an all-season automobile.' Both the 325i Convertible and the 335i Convertible come as standard with a 6-speed manual gearbox. A new 6-speed automatic transmission featuring steering wheel-mounted gearshift paddles first shown on the 3-series coupe can also be specified.

This 3-series features BMW's first electronically operated folding hard-top roof. In 2009, the 328i model is being introduced. It is also the first car to be offered seat-cooling leather and a brace of all-new power plants. Ergo, the only difference between 328i and 335i is the power plant. The 328i uses BMW's normally aspirated 3-liter inline six, offering 230 hp at 6,500 rpm and 200 foot-pounds of torque at 2,750 rpm. Power is transmitted to the rear wheels through a standard six-speed manual transmission - a six-speed automatic with rapid-action Steptronic gear selection is optional.

The 335i uses BMW's new 3-liter inline 6-cylinder with twin turbochargers, high-precision fuel injection, and all-aluminum crankcase. Producing an enviable 300 hp and comparable 300 pound-feet of torque, the 335i is capable of zero to 60 in a very sporting 5.5. seconds and cruising at 75 mph at half its red-line limit (I'm in the clouds).

BMW said that storage space is being maximised, with the roof up, the boot provides 350 litres of storage and 210 litres with it down (the folding hardtop adds circa 500 pounds to the car compares to the 3-series coupe - but fret not, this has no impact on fuel efficiecy, so as they say).

The interior offers the same functional elegance for which BMW has become known. The front seats are exceptionally comfortable and supportive on corners, while the rear seats are adequate for two adults for short distances. The folding mechanism takes up a little trunk space, however the the back seat can be folded down to offer a kind of luggage shelf.

Here are some images.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not getting all soft on luxury cabriolets. Just happens that a friend of mine is thinking in getting one of these babies.

Cheers.

2007 Honda Civic FD2 Type-R

Listed as one of my must-have cars, is THE Civic Type-R. This design, 'R', is primarily fitted for race conditions, which means minimising the weight, maximising performance level (focused on tuning, suspension), bla bla bla. These were done with Civic Type-R predecessors, NSX and Integra. But Honda decided that since there were much promised dealings (and sales), they created a sedan. Released (and on the market) on March, 2007, the FD2 was sold as a four-door sedan (instead of the original 2-door). Since it is NOW a 4-door sedan, it's bigger and heavier (like duh~).

With 2.0 litre engine, 222hp is being produced at a peak torque of 6,100 rpm. This figure is not at all great though. The handling itself is 50% harder than previous Type-R's (NSX, Integra). The red bucket seats are not from Recaro, but built in-house by Honda (cheapskate!). 

Since 2008, it has been given facelifts. Oh just minor changes. Don't get too excited now, the changes are only cosmetic. Performance ouput and engine are still exactly the friggin' same. More colour scheme ranges are added including the Premium Purple Pearl, Crystal Black Pearl (oooooohhhhhh~), and the Premium White Pearl apart from the other standard colours. Slight changes were also done to the rear lamp clusters.

BUT! According to MY inside source (from car journalists), Type-R is pretty darn hard to manoeuvre. My bet is, passengers at the back are going to need a full 2-day rest after a drive. It is indeed, not a good sign. So, my conclusion is, forget Civic Type-R (still can't get over this... sigh sigh sigh... sob sob sob...). Next choice, no no, not touring cars, but maybe the Civic 1.8 or 2.0 (depends on the world economy and my current financial state by early 30's - fingers crossed.. or maybe an Evo... duit maner nak carik???). A friend of mine told me to consider a beemer or a M-B. I told him, "Nah.. they are to prim and proper for a rough-racing chick like me."

Cheers.

Aston Martin V8 Vantage

Just finished watching the latest episode of 'Chuck': Chuck versus the Best Friend. So this Jack Yang (Grey's Anatomy, Cashmere Mafia) drove the Aston Martin V8 Vantage (image #1, a refined version in image #2) in said episode.  With the new aluminium light-weight wheels, the driving experience takes the driver to another level. The V8 Vantage is embedded with a Jaguar-derived 4.3 litre quad-cam 32-valve V8 that develops 380bhp at 7000rpm. It's build with a dry sump form of lubrication to make the engine sits deeper in the bay and lowers the centre of gravity for better handling. Aston's boss said this is the best production yet out of the company. What not to agree? The interior is better than the Vanquish or DB9 by a mile. The sensual architecture, thetasteful aluminium accents, the hand-stiched leather seats are as best as the designers could be.

Mary Mary Shackles

Class was from 12-1pm today and one question comes to mind: Where to eat? We've already bored of Sweets, Subaidah, and Family Heritage. Fast food?... Too unhealthy. So we (Sherin, Adelin, Anna, and Me) headed to Laksa Shacks located in Melaka Mall. Nasi Briyani Ayam Masak Merah, Lontong Johor (mesti from Johor gak budak nih.. ishk), and Asam Laksa were our choices for lunch. They certainly fill our empty tummy. But, I would rate my Nasi Briyani Ayam Masak Merah a 5/10. That will be the first and last time for me. 'Nuff said.

After that very-high-calorie meal, I told myself I need to burn more. 2-3 hours post-lunch, I started lifting weights in the gym, and spent 30 minutes on the what I call 'walkator'. One hour's up and it was time for my aerobics. Another 70 minutes spent here.

Result: Body aching like hell.

Cheers.

Discovery Channel Mag Issue 7

I just finished reading my latest issue of Discovery Channel Magazine and these images represents interesting articles.

Image #1: Detox Your Home - home plants are great candidates for counteracting organic pollutants in the air. Examples are golden pothos (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Epipremnum_aureum), philodendrons (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philodendron), chrysanthemums, gerbera daisies (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gerbera), areca palm (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Areca), corn plant, and Janet Craig dracaena (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dracaena_deremensis). Oh, and another thing, keep your windows closed at night and in the early morning (when air pollution is usually at its worst).

Image #2: Herod's Triumph - King Herod of Judea is usually remembered for his biblical slaughter of innocent children, but he did some good stuff too. Like building one of the greatest man-made structures of its time - the enormous artificial harbour at Caesarea. It's the size of approximately 25 football pitches aged 2000 years old. Ruins are being preserved and constructed along with modern renovations.

Image #3: Jeff Lieberman's shot of chalk hitting water. A host for Discovery Channel "Time Warp", Lieberman's crews use 2 different video cameras: the Photron Fastcam SA1, which can capture up to 675,000 frames per second at reduced resolution, and the Phantom V-10 (macam kereta plak), which can shoot HD quality up to 1,000 frames per second. Each camera costs approximately US$100,000.

Till then, cheers.

A wet day

I was asking my mum yesterday night, "Me, lama tak buat fish head bee hoon ek?". She replied, "Ha.. mo? Mummy ada fish head tu ha.". I said, "Mo, for lunch la, tomorrow my class will be late in the afternoon." So, that was how I received the pleasure of savouring one of my favourite mum-cooked dishes: Fish Head Bee Hoon. Nyum nyum nyum.. An image to accompany this story.

And so, 45 minutes into my class, it started raining. Precisely at 5.45pm (MMU, Bukit Beruang). I had to use my innocent file to shelter my very valuable head (ehehehehe... =P). Got into the car, received a text message from Anna and she said, "Guess what? ........" I went, "What???!!! Ala.." It was a disspointment nevertheless, Anna said ........ (censored words.. hahahah) *beaming*.

On my way back, I was bored looking tunggu lampu isyarat yang forever 99 seconds tu at Pantai Hospital, so I decided to take a rainy, wet shot of King's hotel.

Another post coming up..

Cheers.

A trip to Neelas

Guess what? I saw a Civic freaking HYBRID!!! Thanks to Neelas, I spotted this Singapore plated car at a traffic light. I was right behind it, what can a girl ask for more. 

As soon as I arrived at Neelas, I saw these advertisement on banners. It says, "Bantu Kami Mencapai RM 2, 500, 000 Untuk Pendidikan Cina" with alcohol bottles at the bottom. (Picture taken while waiting for 2 other friends to join for lunch.

And I forgot one thing: to snap a photo of my lunch. Banana leaf at Neelas. Anyhow, the curry was not as thick as my friends claimed to be. Other than that, it was a fine lunch. Perut kenyang hati senang. But I have to wait for at least 3-4 hours before I set my foot in the gym.

Cheers. =)

February 17th

Since I've registered for this 10 km charity run (tak jauh pun), 'to jog' is added to my workout list. Besides gym and aerobics, a satisfactory hard-flat surface has become my playground. I chose MMU's field. Why? Well, like most people, I need motivation in order to keep myself rooted to what I'm doing. So, in my case, I prefer complete stranger(s). (lagi lawa lagi bersemangat).

At 6pm, footballers started to fill the field. Warming up and kicking balls (no pun intended). So, I've decided to put my 15-minute jog to rest. Went to a nearby shady tree and started stretching. Out of nowhere, this chinese guy (hensem la gak, bukan nak memuji tarikan muka yang berjerawat nih, but, above average la =P) stopped near me. Hovering like a sick puppy.

As he was pacing the track, he shyly turned back to peek at me. I caught him red-handed and it was mentally awkward. I said to myself, "Oh shit, this guy wanna talk to me". He kept looking urging himself to 'be a man' (curik from russell peters) to say something. I didn't know what to do but I just hoped that he didn't come and talk. Tak tau la kenape but I didn't want to talk to a stranger that evening. I just wanna have a warm bath and rest my ass (pardon me, my ass needs more resting that time than any other muscle/body part).

Standing there feels like FOREVER. But it was only for 10 minutes. A miserable 10 minutes. While he kept looking, I can feel myself turning red (muka dah memang merah pun from the jog) because of his shyness (dier yang malu, aku plak yang rasa kepanasan). At last, he gave up and he walked defeated by his major shyness issue. The moment he started walking, I said, "Shit, he's walking my path.". So I gave him like a 2-minute head start (ye la, kang dier cakap I stalker). After a safe distance, I started walking the same path he'd taken a couple of minutes ago to get to my parked car (takkan kete bergerak la plak kan). To my surprise, he stopped before the stairs and looked back and saw me walking towards his direction. My heart started pumping again (tadi dah cool down nih naik balik.. aduhai). "No no no, shit, walk la dumbass, I'm not stalking you.". He didn't. He just paused seeing another opportunity to start a small talk. "Walk slower bitch, he ain't walking, walk SLOWER!". But he soon started walking, chickened out again I guess. 

I tell you, even though I show reluctance in speech that day, I found myself smiling the whole way.

Cheers.