Maligayang Bagong Taon

Happy New Year

This would be my last post for the year 2007 as I will be leaving for the gym in a few minutes time.

So, I would like to wish all my friends and blog readers a very happy 2008, may God bless all of you, and protect you, and keep you from harm and heartaches.

May the crap of 2007 cease to exist at 11.59pm tonight.

Maligayang Bagong Taon.

Goodbye 2007 – Welcome 2008

2007 has been quite a year. A lot has happened and I am now no longer the same person I was at the beginning of 2007.

Personal

I have loved and lost 3 most wonderful women. The last impacted me a lot. Although there is much hurt in me, I do love her still. There is someone who is interested in me, but I am not ready to love again, even though friends encourage me to open up: I’ve been bitten, chewed, puked out, swallowed again, regurgitated, left by the gates of hell…broken, torn and tattered.

In another 20 years maybe, if I live that long at all.

My daughters Hana and Fazira did well in their major exams and I am proud of them. My son, Farhan, is no longer the shy boy, but is now filled with confidence that I never thought I would see so soon in him. He is so attached to me I didn’t think he would have survived going to kindergarten without having me wait for him there. My daughter Nisaa speaks very well and sounds like a grown up when she speaks. I can have normal conversation with her without having to do baby-speak.

Although my parents show their love for my children, I have spoken to neither since 23rd June of this year. I can only pray that God will grant them long life, happiness, and His protection. I do love them but I have my point to make, and I must be heard.

This is also the first time in 10 years, that I did not celebrate a single Hari Raya at all.

Health

Half a year ago, when I did my full medical, my test results were so wonderful that even my younger brother, who is a keep-fit addict, was put to shame. He has a 20% damage to his heart because he smokes (those who smoke, or plan to smoke – women especially, please take note). A mere two weeks later, I became hypertensive. Two months later, I started having asthma, and two months after that, I became pre-diabetic.

See how emotional turmoil can really screw up one’s body system.

Don’t worry: be happy may be the order of the day, but, let me just let you all know, despite the exercises, the control etc, my hypertension is getting worse, my resting heart rate is still above 110bpm. My fear is that one day I will suffer from stroke or simply myocardial infarction, and the only way to minimise the damage, which is by taking Aspirin, is something that might kill me too – I’m allergic to Aspirin.

So people, I may not have the opportunity to say goodbye when the time comes: it will come as a sudden, and it will be swift.

Diving

I achieved nothing much except that I have done more than 500 dives in total to date. I have completed my Assistant Instructor course and will be going for my Instructor Development Course in the first quarter of the year.

I am still in want to reach that 200-meter depth mark.

My dive destinations for 2008 would include: Pulau Payar, War Wrecks, Bunaken, Walea, Lembeh Strait, Similan, Richelieu Rocks, Mantanani, Anilao and at least 3 trips to Sipadan.

Outlook

I am not going to set high goals for now until I am well enough to pursue the things I want to do, but come October 2008, prepare for a surprise…or shock, whichever way you will look at it.

HAPPY NEW YEAR 2008 people, from a very sceptical and pessimistic person.

My Heart Reeks With Pain

Early yesterday morning, an old friend of mine sent me a YM message asking me how I am etc. I told her I am fine despite my health which I think, in spite of all the training and conditioning, is simply slipping and going down the drain. I then asked her how she is and if she was going to celebrate the new year. Her reply came as a shock.

“I’m packing my stuff to get ready to move out of this house.”

One of the most romantic couples I have ever known, the couple who prayed for me day and night when I was going through one of the most tumultuous emotional episodes of my life, went through a divorce during the fasting month; and she was packing her clothes and personal belongings because it is coming to the end of her “iddah” period, and there is no light at the end of the tunnel for both of them. They simply will not get back together.

My heart weeps for her, and him.

And now, my dearest best friend, the best of best friends, is going through the same process. No matter how prepared I was, as it seemed imminent enough throughout, I begin to question life once again, of its unfairness.

And I feel helpless…

Nothing I do or say may help much, but all I can offer is probably solace, in any form it may come.

To that friend of mine who will be leaving my former neighbourhood with no chance of turning back, you have a friend in me should you need anything. Just look to the horizon.

To my dearest best friend, you know who you are as you read this blog often: you will always have my love and assistance should you need anything…anything at all. One SMS is all it takes and I will be there with no strings attached…anytime at all. As I have pledged to you once, that pledge remains, I will not let a single grain of harm anywhere near you for as long as God allows me to roam this earth on my own two feet, for as long as I continue to breathe.

Take this opportunity to start anew, and always remember your friends who hold you close to their heart.

And I am one of them.

Just don’t treat me like a stranger in times of need.

I will always shelter you

I Am Supposed To Sing

After making Icecool and Metalized sing in front of an audience at Bisik on Christmas Eve, I have been requested by Metalized in one of my previous postings (Countloon – The Suami Mithali (or Menyesali?) Or Claudius The King?) to sing some Tagalog songs.

Metalized wrote:

“O.K, punta ka sa legend nxt year at kantahin mo yung request mo..o.k..ano pang tagalog song na alam mo? kailan ka punta at kakanta?” (Ok, you go to Legend next year and sing your requested song. What other Tagalog songs do you know? When are you going to sing?)

I replied:

“Metalized…mariming salamat. Susubukan ko ding kantahin yung “Ikaw Ang Buhay Ko” ni Piolo Pascual…hehehe. (Metalized…thank you very much. I’ll try to sing “Ikaw Ang Buhay Ko” by Piolo Pascual too…hehehe.

The other song I asked for is my favourite, “Hanggang” by Wency Cornejo.

Here’s “Hanggang” for those who have never heard the song:

And here’s “Ikaw Ang Buhay Ko”:

I hope to invite some of my close blogger friends to when it happens. Then they can witness for themselves the horror of my singing.

HAHAAHAH!

The SMS

Honey, I read your blog and I am alarmed. You are not seriously considering the job without the postponement are you?”

I was caught off-guard. Sitting alone in our little abode sipping a glass of Château Petrus Merlot while watching the drama in Pakistan unfolding itself on the TV.

I read the SMS thrice, digesting its meaning and quickly thought of a response. Obviously she isn’t happy. I typed away:

“What do you think I should do about it? Would you say no to it and not let me go?”

The response came a few minutes later as the SMS server polls for her number internally before roaming outwards internationally:

“Am I in any position to do so?”

I gave a quick and definite reply:

“Yes!”

Her reply came later:

“Honey, I would only consider seeing someone who is rational with occasional drive of taking calculated risks. You decide, baby.”

Ahhh…how do you argue with women like that?

I’ll never be able to become like Chauncey Gardiner in Jerzy Kosinski’s Being There.

K.Oed in the first round itself.

Gladly.

Time With Tissot

Tissot a.k.a SuperfluousBabe finally agreed to meet me for dinner. So I rushed to meet her and she waited for me at some coffee shop. We then adjourned to a nyonya restaurant where not a single nyonya was to be seen.

It was a good meet; I now know more products of one particular boarding school than I know the members of Pak Lah’s cabinet.

Towards the end of the meet, I told Tissot that I needed to go to the gents, but did not see any as we walked out to the carpark. After saying goodbye to her, I rushed back inside to look for the gents because I felt like bursting already.

I got there and flopped my dick out. It must have been so heavy with urine that it flopped onto the urinal and the urinal dislodged itself from its wall mounting. That was how heavy my dick was.

Wow, am I great or what?

We were here

Tissot's vegetarian fried rice

My Assam Laksa

My Earl Grey Tea

Tissot on the line

My dick caused this

Nisaa Goes To MISA

Aye, it’s the Malaysian International Space Adventure expo in Putrajaya’s Precint 5, near the PICC.

I took all the kids with me. Cost me a bomb, and after that they bought t-shirts and other souvenirs. I must have spent close to RM600 just at this place. That is one dive trip!

Fazira, Nisaa and Hana climbing up the stairs
Fazira, Nisaa and Hana climbing up the stairs

Cosmonaut suit
A Cosmonaut’s spacesuit

Kids at the Apollo LRV section
The kids at the Apollo LRV display section

Iqa and Hana at the model of the ISS
Iqa and Hana looking at the model of the ISS

Arianspace
A model of the Arianspace’s vehicle

Farhan with the Buran STS
Farhan by the Russian’s Buran STS model

Kids with the Buran STS
The kids with the Buran STS model

Kids with the Mars Rover lander model
Kids with the interactive Mars Lander rover model

It was money worth spent. At least the kids were happy with the outing.

Kemaman Update

Stormy seas

I have just received a weather advisory. The outlook is NOT good.

Even Snafu, a seasoned commercial diver, is now back in KL after just over a week of doing his job. The sea condition makes commercial work, let alone recreational diving, next to impossible.

Here’s the weather advisory I received:

THIRD CATEGORY WARNING
WARNING ON STRONG WINDS AND ROUGH SEAS

WARNING ON STRONG WINDS AND ROUGH SEAS (THIRD CATEGORY)
(Updated on 30 Dec 2007 at 2.45 pm)

The strong northeasterly winds of 60-70 kmph and rough seas with waves up to 5.5 metres are expected to occur over the coastal waters off Kelantan, Terengganu, Pahang, East Johor and Sarawak from 2 January 2008 and expected to persist until 5 January 2008.

This condition of strong winds and rough seas is dangerous to all coastal and shipping activities including shipping, ferry services and oil rigs activities.

WARNING ON STRONG WINDS AND ROUGH SEAS (SECOND CATEGORY)
(Updated on 30 Dec 2007 at 2.45 pm)

The strong northeasterly winds of 50-60 kmph and rough seas with waves up to 4.5 metres over the coastal waters off Kelantan, Terengganu, Pahang, East Johor and Sarawak are expected to persist until 1 January 2008.

This condition of strong winds and rough seas is dangerous to all coastal and shipping activities including shipping and ferry services.

WARNING ON STRONG WINDS AND ROUGH SEAS (FIRST CATEGORY)
(Updated on 27 Dec 2007 at 4.13 pm)

The strong northeasterly winds of 40-50 kmph and rough seas with waves up to 4.5 metres over the coastal waters off FT. Labuan, Kudat and West Sabah are expected to persist until 5 January 2008.

This condition of strong winds and rough seas is dangerous to small crafts, recreational sea activities and sea sports.

Updated on 30 Dec 2007, 3.00 pm

I have advised the client to further postpone the job. He will in turn ask his client. If he says I have to dive, then I will have to dive, even alone, as I cannot risk the life of others, unless they volunteer.