As usual, Christmas mood started way back in August with the annual sale at KK Toys.

In no time, the tree’s up, and with the usual things underneath, each kid had to take a vow not to even think about touching them until Christmas Day:

15th December 2011

Gaya Street Christmas Carnival was on for 4 days starting on the 12th of December, brought the family there after on the last day after coming back from an outstation trip.

The life-size nativity scene, complete with soap-bubble-blowing machine:

… and an early encounter with Santa:

Christmas Eve

After the monthly primary grocery shopping, had time to sneak in quite possibly the last Cooper Test run before rushing off to mass at St Thomas Kepayan, but the visit to the crib has to wait another day because everybody’s starving by the end of it.

Christmas Day

Another yearly ritual is to share the Christmas cheer with neighbouring Indonesian workers’ kids:

Afterwards, attended 2 open houses in Tamparuli. Spent some time with my mum.

26th December 2011

Visited 1Borneo, the mall with the perhaps the best Christmas decorations in the state (Fanta-Sea).

27th December 2011

Finally fixed the car aircon (which cost a small fortune) and did some back-to-school shopping.

28th December 2011

The car aircon acted up again (fixed – loose compressor connection), did more back-to-school shopping, attended a wedding reception one hour’s drive away, and still managed to catch a movie with the kids in the evening.

29th December 2011

Attended daughter’s briefing / school equipments distribution in the morning, then rushed off to possibly the last official engagement of the year at Promenade Hotel, an appreciation event cum handing over of duties of a departmental body of which I was the secretary, followed by sumptuous buffet lunch, then in the evening attended a church fundraising dinner.

30th December 2011

In the afternoon, more shopping and entertaining the kids.

In the evening, a wedding reception’s afterparty at a popular nightspot in Tamparuli.

New Year’s Eve

The annual NYE family bash at home.

HERE’S TO A BLESSED CHRISTMAS AND PROSPEROUS NEW YEAR.

Dubbed the world’s largest floating book fair, Logos Hope stopped by in Kota Kinabalu from 18th November 2011 to 11th December 2011.

The ship as seen from Suria Sabah. In the background is Penaga Hill, Sepanggar

[photo credit: thienzieyung]

It claims to have more than 5,000 titles on offer and a local daily reported that it’s expected that 100,000 would visit the ship during its stay.

We went there on the 26th of November.

Everything was as expected, even perhaps a bedroom vanity set, except this:

Of course it’s there as part of a message.

The ladies of my life had their fingernails and toenails tarted up for Christmas, done by the usual lady from a neighbouring country.

Yes, even the smallest lady of the house did all her nails, her fingernails of exactly the same design as mummy’s.

Luckily my boy wasn’t around, otherwise my iPaid look would’ve been even more obvious.

There were two total lunar eclipses in 2011, the first on 15th June. The best view was definitely the one in December which justifies the need to get those duracell procell 9Vs ready to power those cams to capture the moment.

From Kota Kinabalu

What you could see if you were on the moon during the eclipse [from a painting by Lucien Rudaux]

Lunar eclipse from moon

This seems to be the best viewing of a total lunar eclipse from Sabah since the one on 16th July 2000.

The one on 24th March 1978 was very special, it passed almost directly over Sabah.

There will be no more total lunar eclipse until April 2014, and even then it won’t make for good viewing from Sabah. The next total lunar eclipse that looks good from Sabah seems to be on 31st January 2018.

Borang mula diedarkan pada 10 Disember 2011.

Pemohon yang berjaya akan mendapat wang pada pertengahan Januari 2012.

Menurut pegawai yang memberikan borang kepada saya di Dewan Hasil, Wisma Hasil, Kota Kinabalu, seorang boleh mengambil satu borang sahaja, walaubagaimanapun ia boleh difotostat.

Borang Permohonan BR1M – muka hadapan – borang ini hanya mengandungi 1 mukasurat yang perlu diisi; mukasurat di belakang adalah panduan mengisi.

Borang ini juga boleh dimuat-turun dari sini (muka hadapan dan belakang).

Lokasi kaunter BR1M adalah termasuk berikut (semua buka 10/12/2011 – 10/1/2012, 8 pagi – 5 petang):

- Dewan Hasil, Wisma Hasil, Kota Kinabalu
- Bilik Mesyuarat, Bangunan Urusetia, Tuaran
- Bilik Mesyuarat, Bangunan Urusetia, Penampang
- Bilik Mesyuarat B, Bangunan Urusetia Kecil, Tamparuli

Jenna O’Grady Donley, 25, of Sydney had completed her 7-year study in veterinary science at the University of Sydney, and was due to graduate with first-class honours next week.

Off her Facebook account, taken in Africa several years ago

But before that, she decided to come to Tabin Wildlife Reserve, Sabah with a friend, Ashley Kelly, to celebrate the end of her studies. The place is about 100km from Tawau town.

By all accounts, she knew what she was in for, but what happened next can be deemed proof that anything can indeed happen, even if everything has been prepared as precisely as an inside micrometer set could help to.

On 7th December 2011, around 6.30am, she, Ashley and a local guide were making they way back to the resort after visiting a mud volcano. They then went off the trail when they spotted a pygmy elephant, believed to be a single bull. They inched closer to it, then started to take photos from 10m away. The recommended safe distance from wild elephants is at least 50m away.

Pygmy elephants can grow to 2.5 metres (8.2 feet) tall, are unique to Borneo and is an endangered species, with about 2,000 left in Sabah’s forests. The one that attacked Jenna is believed to be almost fully grown.

Single bull elephants are usually solitary and their behaviour is unpredictable.

Camera noise and light from their torches apparently agitated the animal, which then charged at Jenna who happened to be standing closest to it. The short distance between her and the elephant made it impossible for her to escape. The animal then gored her in the stomach, killing her.

Ashley and the guide escaped unhurt.

The elephant then took off and has not been seen since.

Her remains have been sent to Lahad Datu District Hospital for a post-mortem.

Pekeliling yang paling ditunggu-tunggu oleh warga perkhidmatan awam Malaysia, iaitu Pelaksanaan Saraan Baru Perkhidmatan Awam (SBPA) bagi Pegawai Perkhidmatan Persekutuan telah dikeluarkan secara rasmi hari ini melalui Pekeliling Perkhidmatan Bilangan 11 tahun 2011, berkuatkuasa 1 Januari 2012.

Jika anda tidak dapat memuat-turun (download) pekeliling tersebut melalui laman web JPA, anda boleh juga membuat demikian dari sini:

Pekeliling Perkhidmatan Bilangan 11 tahun 2011: Pelaksanaan Saraan Baru Perkhidmatan Awam (SBPA) bagi Pegawai Perkhidmatan Persekutuan

Lampiran B2: Senarai Skim Perkhidmatan Di Bawah SBPA: Teknologi Maklumat (F)

Lampiran B4: Jadual Pemindahan Gred Jawatan Dari SSM Kepada SBPA: KUMPULAN PENGURUSAN & PROFESIONAL

[lampiran lain tidak disertakan]

Walaubagaimanapun, bahagian yang paling menarik perhatian ramai iaitu Lampiran C belum diterbitkan oleh JPA dengan notis: “Sila rujuk Bahagian Sumber Manusia Kementerian/Jabatan/agensi masing-masing bagi urusan mengenai Lampiran C.”

Perbandingan awal gaji SSM dan SBPA:

Pemandu (gaji + elaun)
Minimum SSM: RM1,222
Minimum SBPA: RM1,425
Maksimum SSM: RM1,882
Maksimum SBPA: RM,2965

Gred 48
Minimum SSM: RM4,431
Minimum SBPA: RM4,520
Maksimum SSM: RM6,439
Maksimum SBPA: RM8,840

Menurut KPPA pada 6 Disember:

SSM J17 = SBPA J4-1, RM980-RM2805, Kenaikan Gaji Tahunan RM95
SSM J22 = SBPA J4-3, RM1935-RM3545, Kenaikan Gaji Tahunan RM115
SSM J26 = SBPA J4-5, RM2290-RM4040, Kenaikan Gaji Tahunan RM125
SBPA JA3-1, RM1410-RM4185, Kenaikan Gaji Tahunan RM145/150
SSM J29 = SBPA J2-1, RM1565-RM4340, Kenaikan Gaji Tahunan RM145/150
SSM J36 = SBPA J2-4, RM3035-RM5555, Kenaikan Gaji Tahunan RM 180
SSM J38 = SBPA J2-5, RM3410-RM6140, Kenaikan Gaji Tahunan RM 195

I saw the following from my house around 9.20pm on the 7th of December 2011.

Couldn’t snap the full circle.

Jupiter looks like the second/minute hand of a giant clock in the sky, doesn’t it?

The white water flows rather fast, and looks rather tempting.

But look everywhere in or around it, there’s nobody having a picnic near it, let alone bathing in the river.

Right next to the river stands the answer:

Such a pity, such a waste. I wonder whether it will ever be safe to dive in or to have motorhome insurance if one decides to bring one’s mobile home anywhere near it.

You’ll have to go over the polluted river when you visit Poring Hot Springs, Ranau, Sabah.

TIME is allowed to be sold openly in Malaysia. But if the authorities deem that a photo is too risque, the following will happen:

Of course the uncensored version is easily seen by merely typing “time october 2010″ on google image search.