Merry Christmas!!

First of all I would like to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas!! To most people it's the time to give and for most children the time to receive some presents. Of course they wouldn't think that it's their parents that would put their presents under the Christmas tree. It would be none other than the wonderful Santa Claus which is also known as Saint Nicholas or Father Christmas.

 

However, when I went for dim sum a few weeks ago with some of my old schoolmates Wan Shin told me something quite interesting. Her friends tried to prove that Santa Claus does not exist through some scientific reasoning. For those of you who used to believe that Santa exists, and some of you who still do, here are some facts. enjoy. =)

1. There are no known species or reindeer that can fly. But since there are plenty of unknown organisms yet to be discovered, there would probably be flying reindeers. We just haven't discovered them yet. So one point for Santa and zero for Science.

2. There are about 2 billion children (under 18) in the world, and increasing. But since Santa doesn`t appear to handle Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist and Jewish children, that reduces the workload to 15% of the total- 378 million or so. At an average rate of 3.5 children per household, that's 91.8 million homes. That's if there is at least one good child in every house.

3. Santa has 31 hours of Christmas to work with at maximum, thanks to time zones and the rotation of the earth, assuming he travels east to west. This works out to 822.6 visits per second. This is to say that for each Christian household with good children, Santa has 1/1000th of a second to park, hop out of the sleigh, jump down the chimney, fill the stockings, distribute the remaining gifts under the tree, eat the snacks, get back up the chimney, get back in the sleigh, and move on to the next house. What a workout, but he's still described as 'overweight'?

4. Assuming that each of these 91.8 million homes are distributed evenly (which we know to be false but for the sake of these calculations we will accept) we are now talking about 1.3km per household, a total trip of 119.34 million km, not counting bathroom stops. How he can hold his bladder wei, if he has to eat the cookies and drink a glass of milk for every house he visits.

5. This means that Santa`s sleigh is traveling at 650 miles per second, 3000 times the speed of sound. For comparison, the fastest man made vehicle, the space probe Helios 2 moves at a poky 67kmph; the average reindeer runs at 25kmph.

6. Assuming that each child gets nothing more than a medium sized Lego set (2 pounds), the sleigh is carrying 321,300 tons, not counting Santa, who is invariably described as overweight. On land, conventional reindeer can pull no more than 300 pounds. Even granting that "flying reindeer" (see point one) could pull TEN TIMES the usual amount, we can not do the job with 8 or even 9 as we would normally see in pictures. We need about 214,000 reindeer. This increases the weight, not even counting the sleigh, to 353,430 tons.

 7. A mass of 353,000 tons traveling at 650 miles per second creates enormous air resistance. This will heat the reindeer in the same manner as a spacecraft reentering the earth's atmosphere. The lead pair of reindeer will absorb 14.3 QUINTILLION joules of energy. Per second. Each. This is for you Physics people.

8. In short, they will burst into flame almost instantaneously, exposing the next pair of reindeer, and creating deafening sonic booms in their wake. So much for giving presents to children quietly. The entire team will be vaporized within 4.26 thousands of a second. If that's the case, Santa would be totally burnt up even before he leaves the North Pole.

9. Santa, meanwhile, will be subjected to centrifugal forces 17,500.06 times the force of gravity. A 300 pound Santa would be pinned to the back of his sleigh by 4,315,015 pounds of force. Again for you Physics people, you'll know what this means. =p

So that's why Santa Claus does not exist. But if you still believe that he exists, then he might be. At the same time I would also like to wish my friend Leow Li Ying a very Happy Birthday. It's been over a year since we've had a really nice conversation like what we used to. I know I've made some foolish mistakes in the past and yes I do regret them. But to me you'll always be a friend, a friend unlike any other who cannot be replaced by anyone. So, Happy Birthday. =)

The facts about Santa above are taken from here. =)

Ahoy There Matey!!!

As a kid,what's the first thing that will come into your mind when it comes to pirates? Most probably it'll be a hook as your hand, an eyepatch, a stick for a leg and so forth. But what about show's related about pirates? I'm sure most of us would have seen Peter Pan with Captain Hook and his men. To be honest, I can't really remember much about this character except that he is always trying to capture Peter Pan but always fail to do so.

If traveling across the seven seas is not your type, then how about traveling across the galaxy? That's Treasure Planet, a Disney animated version of "Treasure Island". It's certainly a very unique perspective when it comes to looking at pirates. It's certainly more that you're average pirate movie of men with a map trying to look for a giant 'X' on an island.

However in 2003, the release of Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl was such a big hit. Who can forget the main character, Captain Jack Sparrow played by Johnny Depp, who is just hilarious but serious cunning at the same time.

Though Captain Barbossa was the antagonist in the first movie, he soon became an ally after he 'died'. That role was then taken by none other than Davy Jones, the man appointed by Calypso to ferry the dead to the next world.

Not this guy...

But this guy...

At the end of the third movie, it is seen that Jack Sparrow is sailing from Tortuga using a sampan small boat to find the Fountain of Youth. So there's bound to be another movie right? No doubt about it. 

This time, the journey of Jack Sparrow continues as he searches for the mystical Fountain of Youth. Meeting a woman from his past(Penélope Cruz) and the feared Blackbeard, it's definitely a must watch movie eventhough I'm in Upper 6 next year. It also seems that Orlando Bloom and Keira Knightley would not reprise their roles as William "Will" Turner and Elizabeth Swann. Here's the trailer, enjoy! =)

Guai Lou Curry Noodle?

If you want good food, you gotta find it. That's what I would always say when it comes to food. After all the effort of looking, searching high and low, with growling stomachs and circling around an area till you're dizzy, it's always worth it when you've finally found what you've wanted. Food! Mouth-watering, finger licking good food that's not just delicious but also cheap priced reasonably. For those of you that love to have curry noodle, this is the place for you.

 

Yes, the name's MC Curry Noodles. The first thing that came into my mind was you guessed it, McDonalds. However, the owner is a man that goes by the name of Mcculloch, hence the name 'MC' on their signage. His grandfather is a Scottish that married a local Chinese. It is common to see a local cooking western dishes but not a foreigner cooking local dishes. If you're having any doubts about his cooking, don't. The shop not only sell curry noodles but also curry chicken rice and pork noodles. As for me, I ordered

Dried Curry Noodles

The portion was not too big, not too small. The gravy was very thick and went well together with a squeeze of lime juice. Together with generous amount of chicken meat, fried shallots, black sauce, it was a very satisfying meal.

This is a cartoon drawn about the shop and it's owner if he were given a Chinese name. You can find it at the shop. The place is usually packed during lunch hours and since it's located at Glenmarie, it's advisable to go early if you want to get a seat. Though it's only my second time there and it's been quite awhile since I've had a meal there, the quality of the food is still as good as always. At just a little over RM5 for a regular size curry noodles and a cup of Teh C Peng, it's really reasonable and I would surely go back for more.

Restoran MC Curry Noodles

No.7 Jalan Juruaudit U1/37

Section U1, 40150 Shah Alam Selangor

The pictures are taken from here.

For One More Day

I like to read. No doubt about it. I just don't like reading boring Sejarah textbooks that can get you sleeping faster than sleeping pills. If it was about world history, then it'll be quite good. But Malaysian history? I don't think so. Reading about people running around with keris fighting around, it's just not for me. Most of us would only read these books not because we like them or anything but it's because we have to. I'm sure most of you know the reason why. Maybe some of you might find it interesting or in some cases, hilarious but not for me.

I think I'm quite fussy when it comes to picking a story book. If you want to read a book, go for a book that you'll keep you going. Not to read it for fifteen minutes and chuck it away after that. So most of the time if I were to be at MPH or other bookstores, then I'll most probably be there for quite a while. Not because I'm reading, but picking a book. Such a waste of time right? But that's just me.

Ever since Form 6 started in May, I rarely had the time to read any story books. It's all about studies, studies and more studies. Meeting lots of good friends along the way, just made the journey towards STPM less stressful. Thanks guys. Despite my lack of decision-making skills, one book managed to catch my attention.

Sitting at the very top of the shelf under the Fiction A-Z section in MPH, this book caught my attention. It's a very small book, not very thick. But don't let it's small size impair your judgment. Remember the saying, "you can't judge a book only by it's covers"? Looking at the synopsis only increased my curiosity. From what it says, it's basically a book of a mother and a son. Being a typical Malaysian, the first thing that popped into my head was, 

"Waa, a book lidat also can wan ah??"

But in the end I still took the book, went to a seat and start reading as curiosity starts creeping in. From that moment on, I've never regretted reading a book like that. To be more exact, it's about the relationship between a mother and son that stretches over a lifetime and beyond, as in death. The story mainly revolves around the question,  

What would you do if you could spend one more day with a lost loved one?

As a person that've made many mistakes in life, there are moments which are filled with guilt and regretting some of the decisions that I've made. This book really brought back memories, makes you think twice about what you're doing and to be more sensitive to the emotions of others. I think it's something that people can relate to, not about the lifestyle of the characters but the decisions made if you're in their shoes. Overall, it's a really good book. Another book that I'd like to read is The Five People You Meet In Heaven by Mitch Albom as well. =)

‘Mitch Albom sees the magical in the ordinary, giving character Chick Benetto the opportunity of having one more day to go back and share a moment in his life with his mother’
 —Cecilia Ahern, bestselling author of P.S. I Love You

Light Hill

It was on a cool Monday morning when all of us gathered at Andrian's house to make thing easier for us, since not everyone knows the way there. Some of us gathered at around 7 and relaxed at his house while waiting for the rest to arrive.  Just so you know, there are only 12 participants for this camp. Me, Andrian, Robyn, Kelvin, Soo Yin, Wei Wen, Kim Poh, Esther, Fauziah, Yan Lin and her 2 brothers. Since it's held during the holidays, most of us are still sleepy and not used to waking up before 7.

After that all of us went for breakfast at a small mamak shop located at SS15 where the guy who took our order looks strangely similar to one of our classmates, Thiyban.

Though it was on a weekday, there wasn't much traffic jam on the federal highway and we're able to reach the forest reserve with plenty of time to spare before lunch. It is known as Bukit Cahaya Sri Alam Agricultural Park which is the world's first agro-forestry park with flora and fauna stretching for about 1,258 ha.

With mosquitoes surrounding us by the millions we decided to head to the pool to get away from the mosquitoes and also the blistering heat. We managed to play frisbee and swam a few laps at the pool. Andrian have no problem in swimming but ironically he couldn't float vertically. So some of us gave him some advise on floating vertically. As he continued practicing he unknowingly moved towards the deeper end to the pool. Since he couldn't float vertically, his feet would instinctively reach for the base of the swimming pool to keep himself afloat. But that was when he encountered some cramp at his feet. Luckily, Robyn managed to grab hold of Andrian and dragged him smoothly across the pool towards the shallower area. It seems that Robyn's uncle is a lifeguard and had taught him some lifesaving techinques which came in handy for times like these. Keep on practicing Andrian!! We all know you can do it and practice makes perfect. =)

However, with thunder clouds rolling and it started to drizzle, all of us head back to the campsite. Expecting it to be a heavy downpour, we kept all of our bags inside the tents and kept all of our handphones and cameras in zip lock bags to keep them dry. It was about 3 p.m. when we went to a warung which is about a kilometer away for some maggi mee goreng which is very good and cheap considering that it's the only stall with the next one a few kilometers away. This just shows that you can have good food wherever you go. =)

After that we just take a slow walk back towards the campsite just taking in the scenery and also, the mosquitoes. We even managed to stop by at a lake which looks like the perfect place to go fishing. =)

As we reached the campsite, the girls immediately went off to take a shower first and the guys started smoking the area to get rid of the mosquitoes.  Also, some of our food were stolen by the local inhabitants of the area, a.k.a. MONKEYS. Flour, ramen noodles, seasoning, garlic, onion and many others were gone. Milo seems to be their all time favourite according to Robyn and Andrian. Robyn, Andrian and Kelvin started to light up the campsite with 3 fluorescent lights thanks to Andrian's extension wire. It seems like a great achievement as it was really getting dark andall of us could use a little light. 

However, as we solved the dark problem, another problem cropped up. Bees. They're attracted to the bright lights and also the heat from the fluorescent lights. Chun Yeet accidentally stepped on the bees and was stung. He was screaming and shouting as it was unbearably painful and jumped into the tent. Soo Yin immediately rushed to aid him but unfortunately was stung by a bee at the foot as she stepped into the tent.  Andrian and Esther went to find out what's going on. Followed by me, Robyn and Kim Poh. The bees are all over the ground but the couldn't fly as their wings are all wet due to the rain. Esther was going around killing the bees on the floor. Kim Poh and I went to help Soo Yin and Chun Yeet to get rid of the bees in the tent. Robyn and Kim Poh helped to carry Soo Yin to the auditorium nearby while I shone the way. It was already very dark and the pathway is very slippery. Despite all the pain they're in, they still managed to put on a smile. =)

 

Whenever there is a bee sting, The best way to reduce any reaction to bee venom is to remove the bee stinger. There's no need to scrape off bee stingers, just remove them. It's ok to pull stingers out with your fingers, though pulling them out using tweezers would be much better. The longer bee stingers are allowed to remain in the body, the more severe the reaction will be. Conventional wisdom says to scrape bee stingers away from the skin because pinching the venom sack could push extra venom into the victim. In fact, as quickly as possible. how fast you get the stinger out is much more important than how. After that, just wash the affected area with soap and water. Used ice or cold water for about 10 to 30 minutes after the sting. This is to numb the affected area and reduce the body's allergic response if you're allergic to bee stings.

Dinner was very simple, fried rice cooked with oyster sauce, sausages, eggs, and chicken pieces. Baked beans with eggs and fried chicken marinated with eggs. There's no vegetables for dinner as the monkeys too them away as well. We then just chatted and laze around before it was light out for most of us.

It was cold at night, even without any wind blowing which is something that you'll hardly get it Subang. You can be in a air-conditioned room and you'll still sweat. I don't think that I've slept at all throughout the entire night, just resting my eyes. Can hear people talking and walking around, just too blur to realize what's going on around me. Thankfully I didn't get a face full of toothpaste like Andrian even though I was sleeping right next to him.

The next morning all of us just went and start packing up everything, clothes, cutlery, table and the tents that we never even slept in. We just put all of our stuff back into the cars and went back into the park. We rented bicycles from a stall to cycle around the park and to the 4 seasons building. At that time it was winter, but Soo Yin said it's always having winter and she'd always wanted to enter when it's spring or autumn. Maybe they should change the name to 1 season building.

As we entered the building we just stayed by the door just to cool off at a standard 16 degree Celsius. But further inside, it was a chilling 0.6 degree Celsius. Since my father worked in the ice-cream department, it's seems ok for me as their freezer is at a numbing -25 degree Celsius. To make matters worse, most of us we're wearing just shorts, a T-shirt and slippers there. Before we rented our bicycles I saw a group of girls wearing jackets to cycle around Bukit Cahaya which is very ridiculous thing to do under the blazing sun. When we're at the 4 seasons house, guess what..they're there as well. Guessed they're more prepared than we were.

 Me, Soo Yin , Fauziah

Pretending to be cold?

 

Brrrrrrr....

 Clockwise from top left: 

Steven, Robyn Tung, Wei Wen, Yan Lin, Fauziah, Soo Yin, Me, 

Esther, Kim Poh, Andrian, Chun Yeet, Steven's brother.

After leaving the building, we cycled to a walkway which resembles an off road biking trail though Andrian said it's just a very basic one. The walkway leads to a large watchtower which had a very nice view of the lake below and a garden. The steps are very narrow and you've got to be very careful. As we took a break there, Soo Yin spotted a shedded skin of an salamander or lizard between the grooves of the planks of the tower.

Cycling back was a little tiring so we stopped by a warung which Soo Yin likes to have a drink. After a short chit chat, we just cruised down back to the stall to return the bikes and it was quite exhilarating. Soon after that we left the place and headed to McDonalds for lunch back in Subang Jaya. Sorry Soo Yin. ><

Pictures are taken from Andrian Tam and Kim Poh. Thanks guys. It's also my 1st time adding speech bubbles to pictures. Do give some feedback. =)

Harry Potter

Went to watch Harry Potter with Jian Yao and Re On at Summit before going to Bukit Cahaya. Managed to catch up after not seeing each other for almost a year. Overall, it's quite a nice show though the previous few were kind of boring? But I'll definitely watch part 2 after seeing this one. Just a short post. =)

Will blog about Light Hill next. :)

Food!!

Went to Penang a few days ago for a 3 day 2 night trip to visit my grandma and relatives. As you know Penang is known as a food paradise. Food in Penang is just awesome compared to what they have here in Subang. However, since it's just a 3 day 2 night trip I can't enjoy all the food but there's always next time. Tourists would normally go to place like Gurney Drive to look for good food but I wouldn't go there if I were you. It's just a place for you to eat most of the food available in Penang and the food there's definitely not the best there is.If you want truly delicious and mouth-watering Penang food, then you'll have to search for it. Most of the time if you want to eat a specific food, such as char kuey teow, you'll have to go to a certain stall or kopitiam to have it. Unless you're too lazy to walk or drive in Penang. But where's the fun in that?

Here are some of the delicious food in Penang. Too bad I didn't get to take a picture of most of them since they have a tendency to disappear from the plate and into our stomachs. =/