Back in January 2010 I wrote about creations of God that can be found just outside and quite often INSIDE my house in the village.

The whole idea of taking photos of these things started with my first post in April 2009.

So we are now at part 4.

On 21st February 2010, around 6pm, I walked into the upstairs toilet, and when I was about to place my left foot inside the small room, I was greeted by this skinny, hairy critter:

A few minutes later, it had become:

So as you can see, I am not that fond of spiders, especially when they suddenly appear as you’re doing your business. Blame it on my experience years ago when I was chased around in near-darkness by a big one after I killed its mate. That was a real scary experience.

Not that there’s a shortage of spiders in the house. At any one time, I could see literally dozens of them, but they don’t really bother me as they are all quietly waiting for their victims in their web.

Still, exactly a month later, the following medium-sized beauty was close enough to be photographed with my dying-to-be-upgraded-PnS camera:

I had to take a few shots, with flash to get an acceptable result – luckily the arachnid didn’t get startled and jumped ON me.

Well, after reading through all 4 parts, do you think my life insurance premium should be increased due to the enormous hazards living in a village entails?

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UPDATE 31st March 2010

It did not rain at all, at least in Kota Kinabalu on the 30th and today there was a little rain. Nothing like what happened on Monday though. So it would seem that what happened then was merely a respite.

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UPDATE 29th March 2010

Yes, it definitely seems to have ended. Rain started falling at 10am in Kota Kinabalu. As I drove home to Penampang during lunchtime, it was pouring. The rain was so heavy that the next day, accidents caused by it were reported – websites like www.carinsurancelist.com must’ve seen a jolt in the number of readership.

The contrast between yellowed roadside grass and heavy rain pouring on it was a magical sight. The switch was so radical that apprehension towards prolonged drought quickly turned into apprehension towards the possibility of flash floods!

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After about 2 months of searing heat and very little rain, is it going to rain cats and dogs soon in and around Kota Kinabalu? As pointed out by Lee this afternoon, according to the BBC, the weather forecast for Kota Kinabalu for the next few days is as follows:

Then, if you type “kota kinabalu weather forecast” or similar on google, you’d get:

The following forecast by CNN seems more accurate, as I didn’t see any rain during lunchtime today – instead it was extremely warm:

Well, what do local meteorologists say? The weathermen at Jabatan Meteorologi Negara were less optimistic about rain falling today and tomorrow, but they did predict that it would rain every afternoon after that.

Whatever it is, we are surely looking forward to water from the heavens.

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Prior to 4th March, I had never done a plane trip going north of Kota Kinabalu before: it was either West or East.

So on a direct flight to Shenzhen, a few minutes after taking off from KKIA I was treated to the following mesmerising sight, where Mount Kinabalu and the coastline are visible at the same time:

A closeup of the mountain, with clouds at the bottom of the photo:

So awe-inspiring was the sight that I momentarily forgot to eat my breakfast, now how about that for a natural appetite suppressant?

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Last year Ethan was page boy (sounds better than flower boy, and he’s not the ringbearer) at an in-law’s wedding. I thought he looked fabulous in this photo taken just before making the trip to church:

As a BrideOnline mentioned:

… Pageboys (ring bearers) add an element of innocent childlike charm and warmth to any wedding ceremony. The gorgeous sight of your niece dressed in a flowing pink dress with ballet slippers is enough to melt even the most cynical of hearts.

In other words, one could say they make perfect wedding accessories, but at the same time, at the very end of the church service, where there are countless group photos being taken and the kids are expected to be smiling angelically throughout the whole ordeal, one could see the transition of angelic to monstrous, or at least smiley to grumpy.

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There are many private dentists in Kota Kinabalu, but it seems only a few of them are listed in Yellow Pages. I am sure some are better than others when dealing with kids or those suffering from odonthophobia, can vouch for that from personal experience.

A few days ago I visited one to do what I think 2 rather minor things, not really dental implants Mexico style, only took a few minutes, and it cost me RM150!

When I was a student overseas, I dealt with 2 dentists, both I’d rate first class, and with one of them I underwent the fearsome root canal.

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On 19th November 2009 I went to have lunch at one of the small coffee shops at Kepayan Ridge which I haven’t visited in quite a while.

They served drinks in recycled bottles, or perhaps more accurately, glass containers:

Personally, I haven’t seen any other place doing this – perhaps I need to go out of the country via Branson vacation packages in order to do so.

Are there any guidelines as to what eateries can use to serve food to their customers? Is what the proprietor doing allowed by law?

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For Chinese New Year 2010, as usual we had a family reunion dinner on CNY eve.

Sometime during the evening, angpau (red packet containing money) giving out sessions would commence. Some would say it’s better to give than to receive, or even giving is the best anti aging product due to the warm buzz and general wellbeing it generates.

That night, everybody who is single gets something, even the kids of the Indonesian workers:

They even got presents during Christmas!

But what happens to the money given afterwards is another story.

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I think the ultimate school reunion would be if you got together with people in the same class as you during Primary / Standard I. A second best would be revisiting the place where you spent your earliest years at school.

I went to primary school at SRK Rangalau Baru (established 1959) which is in Tuaran district and nearer to Tamparuli than Kiulu. During those days I walked about 2 miles daily to and from school. The world seemed so big then: Kg Malangang Baru, a mere few kilometres away, where we had our annual inter-school sports meet felt a world apart.

I left the school at the end of 1981.

During the afternoon of 7th November 2009 I managed to spend about 20 minutes visiting it. It was eerily quiet – it was just me and the school. This was not my first visit in 28 years, but it truly felt like it.

The building where I went to for Primary I classes was still there:

So was the other building where I had my primary 3 (or was it 4?) to 6 education. The corridor’s view as I came out of the primary 6 classroom was still very much the same:

Read the rest of this entry »

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Since last year I suspected that there’s something wrong my car’s fuel intake pipe. I first noticed it at one particular pump at the Shell station near Donggongon – its behaviour is rather peculiar – you’d have to keep it horizontal, otherwise it’ll just stop operating.

Everytime I use this pump fuel could be seen spilling out onto the ground next to the inside of the back left tyre. But if I use other pumps where you can keep the pump vertical, there’s no spillage.

However, peering into the fuel intake pipe, I could not see any holes. Nor did I notice any degradation of mileage, or any petrol smell when sitting inside the car.

On the 7th of January 2010 I decided to really check it out, and true enough, the pipe’s severely corroded and there’s not one but several holes near the top.

Got an RM35 replacment from the 76 at Kolombong. Would this be covered by any mechanical breakdown insurance?

Epilogue: after replacement, I didn’t notice any improvement in mileage!

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Nowadays my head is full of matters related to my ongoing house project. It has reached the stage where I’m looking for doors and related accessories, amongst many other things. I have visited many hardware stores in and around Kota Kinabalu, but have not seen any that sells Baldwin hardware.

Anyway one weekend I needed a break after scouring Kolombong, and dropped by Inanam to visit Kedai Kopi Jeong Hin which can be found opposite Milimewa Supermarket.

[photo source]

The coffee shop is well-known for its super-delicious home-made, fresh-off-the-oven buns.

You can choose from several fillings – tausa (red bean), pineapple, peanuts, kaya & butter.

All tastes good – guaranteed.

It’s no surprise that everytime I go there the place is almost always full.

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