WeddingChannel.com says that “weddings are often one of the most stressful, complex, and expensive endeavors people undertake.” Having gone through it before, I can definitely agree with that. It’s one of the things that you can’t help but enlist other people for assistance: it simply can’t be handled by only you and your other half! Months of preparation would not guarantee a hassle-free wedding and reception.

I have attended countless weddings and receptions since then, and sometimes I would think “I should have done that during MY wedding!” Well, if I had known about WeddingChannel.com then, I could have been better prepared, as WeddingChannel.com was established before I got married.

They are a Los Angeles-based wedding planning specialists.

Their website is divided into 2 broad categories: one for the people getting married (Bride & Groom Section), and the other one for wedding guests (Guests & Gifts Section). Going into the Bride & Groom section would reveal a wealth of free-to-use features, including a check list, a budget calculator, Guest List Manager, even a wedding website! These things might be obvious to those already married, but during those frantic preparation times, it would be very easy to overlook things, especially seemingly small things.

Even by browing the front page of the website, you’ll already get Wedding Ideas: what you’d like your wedding gowns, flowers, cakes, favours, tuxedoes and many many more to look like.

There is also a list of the most common questions about weddings, answered by the experts at WeddingChannel.com.

If you’re thinking of getting married some time in the foreseeable future, this is worth bookmarking.

The 2007 squash season is over.

Nicol David showed why she’s one of the few truly world-class athletes Malaysia has to offer apart from in badminton and bowling by defeating arch-rival Natalie Grinham 3-0 to win the Hong Kong Open.

By winning it, she has now won 8 World Tour titles this year, the most she has ever won in one year. She participated in 11.

Not bad at all, but of the 3 she lost, 2 were the top squash tournaments in the world:
- she lost to Rachael Grinham at the British Open final
- she lost to Shelley Kitchen at the World Open second round

The other one is the Seoul Open where she lost in the final to Natalie Grinham.

She’ll have to pick herself up again next year, in the quest to be regarded as one of the all-time greats of the sport. As a comparison, she now has 2 World Opens and 2 British Opens.

Michelle Martin had 3 World Opens and 6 British Opens.
Susan Devoy had 4 World Opens and 8 British Opens.
Sarah Fitz-Gerald had 5 World Opens and 2 British Opens.

Her current great rival Rachael Grinham already has 1 World Open and 3 British Opens.

Source

I am sure any music lover knows this song by heart. Thanks to Wombat and YouTube, finally I heard the Heavenly Version again after almost 20 years! I heard the single, which contained at least 2 versions of the song when it first came out in the UK in late 1987 (it was number one for several weeks then). I’ve always thought the Heavenly Version is much better than the original, rock version which is normally how it’s broadcast.

Tell me what you think.

Click here to listen

I remember that 10 years ago it’s quite difficult to get credit cards, even for someone who’ve been working for a few years.

Later it was the total opposite - credit card marketing executives were hounding me left and right, with all sorts of tricks up their sleeve to entice me to join, including low-interest balance transfers, free-for-life (no annual fee), free handphones and such like. On the pavements, outside hypermarkets, in our offices, on the phone - they are absolutely everywhere!

Credit cards can definitely make it too easy to get into debt - especially if you got one for the first time. I still remember that time: I had the illusion that I had unlimited buying power and could worry about the repayments later. Was I totally in the wrong - fortunately I managed to cut down the number of my cards to two now.

At the same time, credit cards have gotten me out of tight spots before: times when I simply did not have enough cash and need to settle something quickly. It is also essential for online shopping - not all merchants accept PayPal.

I would say one needs to have a high level of discipline if one were to hold credit cards. Only use it when absolutely necessary - and if you do use it, pay it back in full promptly. Always try to keep the balance to zero.

You also need to look out for special offers like 0% credit cards, where you basically get an interest free loan for a certain time before the standard APR kicks in. Of course, once you clinch that, don’t do what most people do : slip back on payments, or merely pay the minimum.

Recently I got a song I haven’t heard in more than 25 years. I was looking for Noraziah Ali’s “Chi Bi Dhi, Bi Dhi”, but went one better: I got the original version by Mahani Mohamad:

Think that’s long? Well, earlier this year I heard Agnes Chan’s Sweet Dreams again after a gap of about 34 years!

First picture taken: 2 hours old

Name: Ermelinda Juliette
Mother admitted: 2nd November 2007
Date of Birth: 3rd November 2007
Time of Birth: 2.36pm
Week of Pregnancy: 35th [slightly premature, should be 36-38 weeks, in fact expected date was a full month ahead]
Birth Weight: 2.33kg [below average due to above]
Length: 46cm
Head circumference: 31.5cm
Method of delivery: LSCS
Discharged: 5th November 2007

To any prospective parents out there, here’s a reason to treasure your photos:

In early September 2003, the big sister is posing with her newborn brother:

Fast forward 4 years to early November 2007, now it’s the turn of that brother (together with his now much bigger sister) to pose with his newborn sister:

Cute or not?

According to the Meteorological Department, the rain and cool wind experienced in the last 2 days were caused by Typhoon Peipah which struck northwestern Philippines, and which is now moving away.

This is its path tracking:

I sure hope it doesn’t make a sudden left turn though…

Source

I think many girls would say the guy above looks rather handsome.

He is 18-year old Pekka-Eric Auvinen of Finland.

Apart from the gun in his hand and the motto emblazoned on his shirt, if your daughter brought such a guy to your house you would probably welcome him warmly.

But beneath the exterior something is seething, and he did a terrible thing to others and to himself yesterday.

When I was a student overseas many years ago, my foster mother there, Mrs Johnson (assigned by JPA) sometimes brought us to Devon, a beautiful place in southwest England to visit her octogenarian mother who lived there on her own. Of course she had nurses coming but I didn’t think they’re stayed with her in the house.

Devon is quite far from where we lived in Essex - on the other side of England.

I shall always remember her 90th birthday party, complete with ninety candles, and the sight of her blowing each and every single candle out!

In Sabah, at least at that time, that kind of thing happening would be very rare.

It struck me that this might be an isolated case, but when Mrs Johnson herself, who is now 79 years old moved to a smaller house a few years ago instead of going to live with her children, I realised that they like to be independent.

Of course, they take excellent care of their health and I can learn a thing or two from them in this area. For example, Mrs Johnson still goes on cycling holidays well into her seventies!

This is not to say the UK doesn’t have care homes, as going to such a home would be unavoidable in certain circumstances.

My point is, by living among them and observing you’d notice differences in attitude and thinking - this could be a clue in answering the question of why Great Britain, once a world superpower is far more advanced than us.

I spent 5 years in the United Kingdom as a student, and believe it or not, never even once went over to watch Football League First Division (predecessor to the English Premier League - EPL today) match.

However, this is not to say I never went inside their stadiums. I was a hard rock / heavy metal music fan and even with my limited student’s budget, went to see world class rock bands in various locations.

Of all of them, one particular concert stands tall. It was the Monsters of Rock festival at Castle Donington, located between Nottingham and Sheffield and happened on 17th August 1991.

The concert was an 8-hour marathon, starting 2.30pm. There were 5 bands, all world-class: if you’re a hard rock fan, you’d surely recognise these brands: Black Crowes, Queensryche, Motley Crue, Metallica and AC/DC. I doubt any of the last 3 bands would ever be allowed to perform in Malaysia.

There were about 72,000 in the crowd. The nearest we could get to the stage was about 200 metres. The speakers were stacked up a few storeys tall. 500,000 Watts of power could be heard from 10 miles away. Lars Ulrich’s snare drum soundcheck sounded like shotgun. I was in ecstasy: my idols were right there in front!

After screaming myself hoarse, AC/DC, the mother of all rock bands made their entrance. Their 2-hour, 18-song show included the Hells Bells, an inflatable Rosie and inflatable Angus.

So what could be the greatest finale to 8 hours of solid rock and roll? Only one song would be worthy, and AC/DC delivered “For Those About To Rock (We Salute You)” with their usual panache. The 21 gun salute used real cannons.

Strangely, I never found out that AC/DC’s concert DVD was released in 2003. So imagine my delight when recently, I finally saw the DVD to this concert which I attended 16 years earlier! The same memory of sights and sounds came flooding back, only this time I was right next to the band looking out at the audience. I can only imagine myself among the masses

To film the video, they used 26 cameras that included one situated inside a helicopter. The DVD also has audio commentary by band members Angus Young (lead guitar), Malcolm Young (rhythm guitar), Brian Johnson (vocals) and Cliff Williams (bass).

Then there’s the option in which you can focus on just one member for the length of a song. For example, you can watch Angus Young for the duration of “Thunderstruck,” “Back In Black,” and “Highway To Hell”.

Someone posted “For Those About To Rock (We Salute You)” as performed during the concert at youtube:
Click here to watch the video