If you are in Malaysia and you are staying at the 28th floor of a hotel, it does not mean that you *really* are at the 28th floor. For example, at Cititel Mid Valley, the lift buttons look like this:

There is no 4th floor (disliked by some Chinese), in fact there is no floor that has the number 4 in it, meaning there’s no 14th floor and no 24th floor. And of course there’s no 13th floor. So actually the hotel is only 24 storeys tall. Business valuation of the building could be affected…

Around the same time, I was attending a course at Phileo Damansara, and the lift buttons look like this:

Here, the building owners are clever. Instead of throwing away the number “4″, they simply replaced it with a “3A”, hence we can be sure that the building is really 9 storeys tall.

For private hospitals at least, you can be sure there’s no 4th floor, as shown by this lift button panel at Sabah Medical Centre, Kota Kinabalu:

But some buildings couldn’t care less, like Wisma Perindustrian in Kota Kinabalu:

Warning: Proceed at your own risk. Some words / phrases used are not suitable in polite company. If you find toilet humour funny, then this is for you.

I have no idea who dubbed this, but obviously (a) Sabahan(s). Originally received via bluetooth forwards.

P Ramlee would’ve been aghast!

Click here to see the video

Imagine if someone SMSed you at a dead serious corporate meeting, and your SMS ringtone is this one:

[audio:Use this SMS tone at your own risk.MP3]

My favourite Michael Jackson song is Dirty Diana (off his 1987 album Bad).

Being a live music enthusiast, I like it more when it’s performed live, with Steve Stevens and Jennifer Batten onstage!

What is your favourite MJ song?

Incidentally, yesterday was my birthday; unfortunately the last time I *really* celebrated it was years ago when I turned 21, of which the highlight was when we went to see Judas Priest in concert. Nowadays, my birthday invitations list is much shorter: it usually comprises of the wife and kids only…

Click here to see the video

I wrote about the above topic back in June last year, and I would like to make an addition.

I should blame the Edison Chen-Gillian Chung-Cecilia Cheung-Bobo Chan scandal for this. On youtube, one thing led to another and came across S.H.E, a Taiwanese 3-girl group’s music video “Wo Ai Ni” (I Love You). It was off their 7th LP Encore, released Nov 2004, and apparently one of their most successful singles. Encore is apparently their highest selling album, 2 million+, and the
first million was sold in its first week of release!

Unfortunately, it seems like the song was not written by them (as are most of their songs).

Anyway, here it is:

Click here to listen to the song

Answer: make up the lyrics, on the spot.

In the following video taken more than 20 years ago, this guy showed how it’s done.

At that time, a popular Kadazandusun song was Billy Gatong’s “Rozelin pili’on ku.” This guy apparently is very familar with the melody, yet apparently have forgotten the lyrics, so he did the next best thing: improvise your own lyrics as you go along, and keep repeating them!!!

You’d have to understand the Dusun dialect in order to see the funny side of this video, but even if you don’t know what he’s on about, some of you could guess that he looks like he’s in dire need of a drug rehabilitation program…

Click here to see the video

I think I’m a rock star in a previous life, or rather, if I could live my life again, I’d be one. One of my circle of friends are made up of music enthusiasts – not merely listening to music, but making it. I used to teach them some tricks, but now they astound me with their virtuosity. But as I always tell them, the most important is the song itself, not how fast you can play a solo, or how progressive / complicated an arrangement you can make. At the end of the day, you want people to buy your music. If it’s too complicated, not many would buy it. If you can be pleasing to the ears of the masses AND please the critics, that would be really something, but it’s not necessary to please the critics in order to make it big in music.

Today I’d like to highlight what I consider a pop masterpiece: “Kau Pergi Juga”. It was written and performed by Mackley George a.k.a. Bodidi several years ago. Yes, he sung and also played most, if not ALL the musical instruments. All were recorded at home, using a humble PC, therefore if you thought you heard air tools humming in the background, I don’t blame you. AFAIK, it has never been released as a single or part of an album.

Give this guy 4 minutes of your time & listen to this.

What would happen if he had the budget to record this in a proper studio and for promotion? I think it would be a massive hit.

He has also written and recorded (at home) quite a few other songs, all in his inimitable style. Contact me for more info.

Lyrics:

1 aku membelai halus rambutmu
mengurai ditiup angin bayu
kita berpelukan mesra bersama
indahnya di waktu itu

2 mana kah menghilangnya cinta
yang kau berikan padaku
kau berjanji untuk setia
akhirnya kau pergi juga

3 sanggup kau melukai hatiku
kau tinggal aku tanpa pesan
aku hulurkan tanganku
memohon cinta darimu
tapi kau tolak aku
jauh darimu

yeah

[guitar solo]

4 hancurlah sudah impianku
yang selama ini ku pendam
inginku jadikan kau ratuku
tapi kau tolak cintaku

[3]

Up to at least 10 years ago it was very difficult to get approved to get credit cards. You practically had to beg the banks to let you have even their lowest-level cards. Nowadays it’s the total opposite – banks would send their marketing people to invade offices – at my department they’ve done so at least twice.

All kinds of carrots are dangled; where things like zero annual fee were a rarity then, it’s common place now as competition has reached an intensity like never before.

Of course credit cards are also status symbols; last time a gold card was enough, but now platinum cards are replacing them.

So basically, credit card with rewards stand to get the most signups.

They lost, but they keep the torch of democracy burning:

P174 Penampang

It was always going to be an uphill battle. Independent candidate Dr Anthony Tibok faced big guns Tan Sri Bernard Dompok and PKR’s Dr Edwin Bosi. Tibok got 696 votes and lost his deposit.

The other candidate for the Penampang parliamentary seat, Pasok’s Levired Misih @ Willybroad Missi got even less: 404.

But PKR’s Dr Edwin Bosi (10,337 votes) must have given Tan Sri Bernard Dompok (13,400) a fright:

P172 Kota Kinabalu

Independent Kong Yu Kiong faced heavyweights in PKR Sabah Deputy Chairperson Christina Liew (he was reported to be a former aide to her), Kota Kinabalu DAP Chairman Dr Hiew King Cheu, as well as the BN’s Chin Tek Ming. If ever there’s a group of death in Sabahan politics, it would be here. How tougher can it be for Kong? He managed 341 votes and lost his deposit.

Click here to see more pictures

The following are some of the more interesting posters during the campaign period of GE2008.

The PKR supporters of N19 Kapayan were very active:

Click here to see more pictures