We are MOVING away .....

Hope the title didn't " GOTCHA "

Nope, not moving house, not moving overseas, still slaving around ....

Just that my blogspot is about to explode anytime, yes i've used up 85% of the allocated free space!! That was the result of being such a lazy dude....i uploaded all my photos directly from the camera without whatsoever adjustment, every single piece is above 1MB...damn it!! So before i ended up having to salvage the explosive, i better get a new home !!! Don't know which idi*t snatched my .com domain so i've got to be contended with .net instead.

Here you go, please welcome to my new virtual home.....i promised to put you in a SMILE with my newly created header !!! enjoy....

http://jacss.net/

do update your link ya ...

8TV_ULTIMATE POWER GROUP - LIVE (22/3/09)

It was our first experience watching the shooting of a LIVE TV Singing contest organised by 8TV, namely the ULTIMATE POWER GROUP at SRI PENTAS, Shah Alam tonite !!! As the name denotes, it is a singing competition that features group singing instead of individual. Each of the candidate entered the contest on a solo basis, after which those who are eligible to go for the final are then 'grouped' together to form individual group based on compatibility criterias!! So Tricia (the twins' little aunty/huby's cousin sister) was grouped together with 2 cutie pie girls & formed a group called "YA TOU" (or nga tao in cantonese)!!

all 18 - 20 years old.... " pok pok chui ahh "

Sean with the 'leng lui' ....

yeah.... that's her, the cutest lar i must say!!

The competition begins with the selection of 12 groups of finalist!!

Tricia's mom has been extremely supportive of her princess that she constantly reminded her contacts in Facebook to support her.....that was so sweet of a mom, doesn't she?? Of course we were invited to join this wonderful show & luckily my huby was keen to go. I even persuaded my mom to follow since she is a long time 'fans' of such singing show (she has attended numerous times on those organised by Astro)!! Our atmosphere became more merrier when my dad & younger sis also joined us.

sorry for the poor photography skills :(

It was only the 1st round of competition yet the number of audiences that turned up for the show was so shocking. We gathered outside the studio waiting for our group to be called for entrance. Luckily that we got the privilege as family members to enter the studio yet we were seated very far from the stage as others family members had filled up the front seats!!
I was immensedly amazed when the supporters of YA TOU were extremely large....in fact it was the 2nd largest crowd if not the 1st!! It was great feeling seeing such a big crowd of supporters!!

I must say it was pretty interesting to learn & encountered some of the "back stage" actions during a live show like this!! These were things that we don't get to see in front of the square box i.e. TV. The 2 hosts came out to interact with the audiences before the show went on live with the objectives of reaching some consensus to put up a good show together!! The hosts would tell us when are the appropriate time to applaud, shout & scream.....then they would asked us to practise putting up the respective banners to check that the judges or some important scenes were not blocked.....and they also seeked that we don't turned on our camera flash just so that the contestants' vision, hence performance were not affected !!! During commercial break, the hosts will appeared again to provide us the feedback of our behaviours & so on .....
I really enjoyed the show!!

I must agreed that my heart went bumping when YA TOU was called out as the 1st group to perform. It turned out that their performance was absolute CUTE....fantastic & excellent, i must reiterate that i did not exert any exaggeration.....as the judges instantly fell in love with their performance, thus given them a very very good & encouraging comments, phew....i even sighed a relief!! Moving on with the performance of the remaining 5 groups, it was obviously that YA TOU was ahead in the show!!

When the results were released, YA TOU was the ONLY group that gained the special "PASS" from panel of judges to proceed to the next session without having to be subjected to elimination session. All supporters of YA TOU were spared from sending any SMS.....phewwww !!! I was tremendously proud, feeling very thrilled over the victory....though there are still a long journey ahead to reach the final stage!! Can't begin to imagine the feeling of the parents.....

great job & good show YA TOU !!
after the result was released, being the winning group, they were like super 'STARs' posing for photography & being interviewed, LOL !!!

Hopefully YA TOU will continue to be consistent in their performance moving forward. We shall be back to Sri Pentas to support you !!! Keep up the good work....

Tricia on far left.



To catch them, please note:

Every Sunday, 8:30 pm on Channel 708 ~ 8TV !!
btw, if you like them....do give support ya !!

The "aftermath" of my 2009 birthday .....

It's just another passing of "A" BIRTH date....at an age you won't probably feel great anymore sigh !! :(

... am not really expecting ...

yet i'm so glad, so blessed, so happy that i have LOVED ones that remember this supposedly ordinary day, what's more having a few good old frens to throw a little small celebration at my place to commemorate d occasion......

** the aftermath ~ i have these to cherish **

tempura prawn...

steam fish...

scallops with mix veggies...

minced meat on tofu...

AND how can i forget to snap the photo of the all-time-HIT sweet & sour POPcorn chicken???

agar-agar mix jellies...

set of earrings & bracelet with ....... errrrggg.......a baking book ????
my fren certainly knew my latest passion, LOL !!! and u know what was the change?? a change from giving me "sexy lingerie/pyjamas" to a "COOK BOOK", i can't believe it *laughing* !!!

a yearly 'treat' from my pal, a cousin sister..... we had a change of taste this time & tried Korean food !!!

from my ...... ahem .....

btw, not forgetting the many greetings & wishes from friends at facebook/MSN/email/ via sms, it really does make a different !!

THANKS folks from the bottom of my heart !!

A GIFT to " Yours Truly " ....

I had always wanted to do a LIFE JOURNAL of myself
(even if it's only photos with very minimum text).....
u know .....those that u used to see in a wedding reception ..... (fr baby till who you are today)???
actually during our wedding, we did had one which was a lot simplified & even it was only like 8 years ago, i can't seemed to locate the file anymore !!!
Furthermore, in those donkey days, anything to do with internet & PC was literally very very "green" to me !!
Can't believe what i'm actually up to today .....internet, various forums, blogs, various softwares & applications (flickr, slide, facebook just to name a few popular ones) are all part of my life.

And it was after much persuasion & persistence that i managed to pick up the courage to fulfill this wish of mine !!!
Moreover, having it done up on a JOYOUS occasion would be auxiliary meaningful !!!
However, i had very little time to do scanning of all the photos, hence re-shooting them using my digicam was the fastest & easiest way. So please bear with the poor quality of the photos.

Btw, as Slide only allowed 50 photos in each slide, i had to break them up into a few slides ...

30+ years ago, a little girl was born on this day !!
Enjoy her grown up !!

CHILDHOOD & TEENAGE
2nd DD of a 5 girls siblings

born in ipoh & moved back to PJ at the age of 3. life then was pretty poor where mom even reckoned that i came at the wrong timing but it turned out that i actually brought much joy & LUCK to my parents!! 2nd of the siblings, my birth cert no. ...then i/c no. & any other numbers that associated with me, all brought lottery winnings to mom !!! at one point, the winning came in time to replenish milk powder for me.....awww, so pity & sad !!! then mom said i was also an easy baby as if knowing life was difficult...feeding, sleeping & caring all came with no problem !! due to the 'large' head, round big eyes & chubby face, it was common that i was mistaken as a baby BOY....until one day, a contractor uncle that was waiting for his lunch (cooked by mom who was a freelance cook then) helped to change my soiled diaper & was greeted with REAL surprise when it was not 'birdie' that he saw, hahaha LOL!!
as a student, i was also blessed with a little smart genes (i mean academically)...not much guidance & force was required whether in homework, revision or studies!! received very little attention from both mom & dad who has to work full time!! with many other things in life to mend as well as having 4 other siblings to divide their time, i don't really blame !!

AS A YOUNG ADULT

(most rebellious stage....& nightmares for dearie MOM)

apart from being a 'bully' among the siblings, i don't gave mom much of problems during the 1st half of my teenage life!! but things took a turn in life when i reached the peak of my teenage hood. i became 'wild'& rebellious .... wasn't sure if it was the influence of friends. i like going out & hate to be confined at home ....the desire for freedom was so extreme... very much against the wish of any parents!! the mother_v_daughter arguments & struggles became the weekend affairs!! during high school, party was a favourite !! started visiting 'picadilly disco' tea party at form 5 without parent's knowledge....hahaha!! used to get the blame (for the bad example) when younger sisters misbehaved (coz my elder sis was totally the opposite of me, she's the very angelic type)!!!
so i'm the 'tai kuai tao' !!!
at times in order to "TRADE" for the permit to go out, weeks of household chores are the price to pay for!! there was even once i went out taking with me the ONLY set of keys to the house & coincidently the door to my parents' room was accidently locked from inside..... resulting them having to sleep in the living hall while waited for me to come home with the keys. disaster isn't it but worst thing was, i BROKE my promise of reaching home before 12 midnight. so the moment i slided the door ajar, i saw mom standing right infront of the door 'receiving' me with a 'fling' of her hand....yes, supposingly a 'slap' but i managed to avoid it, thus landed on my arms instead.....did i said i was then already a 20yrs old????

anyway, i sort of got the 'licence' to go out at night after finishing form 5 but very much with restriction still. i could still vividly remember my virgin visit to a night disco on the day spm exam finished....phew......it was like a bird finally got loosen off from the cage!! mom has to endure much worries raising the teenage me....i've yet to even mention puppies loves !!
the only PLUS point i see in myself was despite the many 'child problems' in me, i rarely had my parents to worry about my studies!! i never got myself slack in studies. i hate reading but i read 'seriously' for exams!! 'red marks' in exam never happened, i'm not any top student yet i absolutely had no idea how i managed to pick up 8As in spm. mom was extremely proud....the only time she was seen swollen with pride over me. but i was not all time consistent, didn't do that well in pre-u, hence not getting into local U but moving on to college, i gained back the fame for winning 2 consecutive years' book prize (best academic performance) !!

COURTING & MARRIAGE

(mom letting out a SIGH OF RELIEF....)

the past rel/ship right before huby ended in a sad 'tragedy'....leaving much torments & suffers in mom, yet again....sigh....sob!! btw, both huby & I were introduced thru friends in 'modesto'..... surprise??? LOL !!!! huby is not any regular...it was 'fate' lar!!
i think.....the constant worries of a mom finally came to a halt when i finally tied the knot with a man that mom deemed to be a 'good man' that takes good care of me for the rest of my life (& changed me too...hahaha) guess....there was some truth in it as few of my fellow school/college friends turned good friends today kept asserted that i had changed 180 degrees.....ooh yakah?? well, not really giving credits to anyone but i do believe those rich, thick & bitter experiences in different phases of life DO contributed & led to the next phase of life, hence forming an entirely different characters/behaviours in a person, no??!!
In fact, yes i heard mom said it clearly :
"she finally could put down the 'burden of me' off her shoulder (wink) "!!

btw, now i can see my wed. photos here since they had been lying under the bed for ages!!

BIRTH OF MY CHILDREN

now, having my own children, i'm all prepared to go thru what my mom has gone through raising me up.....except that it is 'BOYS' that i have to handle which could give rise to entirely different problems, arghhh.....so sked !!! sometimes i do wonder if 'god' would punish me (at least with what mom has to endure) if i ever have a daughter to raise in the future, LOL !!!

FINISHED ???? thanks for your time !!!

Pheww....hope u didn't suffered any shock seeing the transformation of me !!
Yes, i was NOT the lucky one that could maintain my youthfulness, I aged so much, didn't I?? .....much to my heartbreaking BUT somehow....'someone' once knock on me that :

With much integrity & dignity, "ONE SHOULD GROW OLD GRACEFULLY "
And i'm so gonna stick to this principle!!

mom the most 'wai tai' one, 'man sui' !!
" from now onwards, my birthday would mean bringing mom out for a good meal "


happy birthday once again !!

Japan - KAMUKURA

continue from here

7 Dec 2008
China Airline
Flight from Taipei Int'nal Airport to Narita Int'nal Airport, Tokyo
Departure Taipei Airport - 9:25 am
Arrival Narita Airport - 1:20 pm
Boarded limousine - 1:50 pm
Arrived VILLA FONTAINE Hotel - 4 pm

With a companion (taiwanese colleague, JEN) the 4hours++ flight passed by like a blink of eyes!!! The very 1st breathe of air in this land of the rising sun gave me tremendous excitement!! Weather was really surprisingly good (10-15 degrees), i could take it so much better than i had initially thought!!
However, something got me feeling so inferior (being a malaysian) at the airport, thou passing thru the japanese custom was a bliss process!! u check out below .....

don't u feel it too....arghhh !!

then, being the 'jakun' that i am, 1st thing while waiting for the arrival of the coach, i quickly go release myself or rather check out the japanese toilet that was much talked about !!!

apart from being simply amazed, astonished & impressive with such 'luxurious gadget' to a m'sian (despite a common thing in japan), i spent QUITE a few minutes in there....ransacking every buttons that i can read....bwahahaha !!!

in the midst of checking into the hotel, our dearest japanese colleague (Sach) arrived to greet us. thank god with her presence to handle the conversation, we managed to bargain some discounts for 2 nights of our stay, phew !!! then we got our luggages settled down and that's when Sach offered us some of her winter clothings & accessories....just in case we didn't bring enough, so thoughtful of her !!!
and i have stories here.....u know what, the japanese has been well renowned for their great fashion but to what extend it reaches, i've yet to uncover....until it became a reality right in front of my eyes!!! the ladies i came acrossed thru the journey from the airport to the hotel were enough to make me see the elevated level of their fashion taste!! everyone was in suit/jacket/coat with 3 colours seen mostly (black, white, brown)...so smart, can die!!

all the men looked like "ah mark kor"
all the ladies dressed up like they were a CEO/MD here...LOL LOL

seeing how the japanese dressed up, my self esteem suddenly plunged down, i continued to feel inferior & hated the bulgy jacket that i borrowed from mom !! I even instantly told myself that i'm not gonna put that on....and as if god knows, Sach brought me in time a long black smart jacket..... phew..... without hesitation i put that on, hahaha (so vain)

Sach & I

by the time we were done with our luggages, it was nearly 6pm...so time for dinner!! it was a sunday, so Sach had reserved a place for our very 1st night dinner of shabu-shabu. our hotel is located at SHIODOME, a business area which Sach chosen bcoz it was one of our corporate hotels & other guests had given a fair review of it. and it just happened that Shiodome is quite near GINZA, a prestigious area of the Tokyo city i suppose...just like our KLCC area in K.Lumpur. so it was Ginza that we had our shabu-shabu. the 1st night was usually the most excited one....with everyone having so much to update & talked about....boy... both Jen & I were so exhausted that night !!

.... fresh beef slice, shabu-shabu & sake .....



the night ended pretty fast.

Moving on to the following day (a Monday), Sach has arranged us to join a local tour while she had to work:

" KAMUKURA WALKING TOUR "

btw, before proceeding with the tour, we had our breakfast in the hotel.
below are snap shots of the spread of our breakfast which we had to swallow for a freaking long 4 days....no change of menu at all !! can die eating breakfast like this...but no choice, foods are awfully pricey there!!

eeokkk.....

"KAMUKURA, which can be reached in just one hour from Tokyo is an interesting place to visit for people interested in history, going on a hike through the green hills, or to enjoy water sports. Kamakura was once the capital of Japan and remained so up until about the 14 century".
"Kamakura has an interesting mix of shrines and temples making it a good place to visit, especially if you are unable to visit the more historical city of Kyoto".

The local tour covered 2 places of interest:

Great Buddha

Hasedara Temple

The coach that we boarded brought us from our hotel to the travel agency office where we gathered & waited for other tourists joining in the tour! In the tour was an Aust. family of 3, a chinese couple from America, local japanese guy plus 2 of us making a total of 8 people, small group. The tour guide was a polite & nice lady in her end 40s who spoke quite decent english!! After finishing the tour, i realised why it was named a walking tour....bcoz there were quite a bit of walkings involved in the tour. From the travel agent's office, we walked to the nearest train station then it involved several transit of trains before boarding the Enoden-line to Hase station where another 7 minutes walk would take us to the GREAT BUDDHA. The tour guide has to repeatedly flagged the flag so that none of us would get lost amidst the crowd at the train station.

Once alighted from the train at Hase station, this was what i saw right beside the station :

u say i become thrill or not??

but then it was big dissapointment after visited this 100yen shop...not a place for bento gears, blek!!

Since the weather was extremely cooling, the walks became so relax & such a chill-out thing to do!!

THE GREAT BUDDHA

"The Great Buddha or Daibutsu in Japanese was constructed in 1252 A.D. It was originally housed in a building but it was destroyed by a tidal wave in 1498. The Buddha is 13.35 meters tall and weighs 121 tonnes, making it the second largest Buddha in Japan. The largets statue being Todaiji Temple in Nara".

Jen & I enjoyed the beautiful scenics


here, the tour guide performed a 'ritual' of 'self-cleansing' before entering the holy temple


One of the many highlights around Tokyo city during the season was this type of huge & tall GINGKO tree with very GOLDEN yellow leaves !!!
JEN was extremely amazed & felt in love with these gingko trees that she took so many photos of them !!!

with the tour guide & spotted some kids eating BENTO.....geee, so cute!!

After finishing with the the Great Buddha, we proceeded with a lunch!!

our bento lunch (a very simple one though)



Next, our stop would be at :

Hasedera Temple

The Hase Kannon Temple - Kamakura

The temple is set in beatiful Japanese gardens complete with carp ponds and water falls. It is also elevated enough to provide some great views of Kamakura and Yuigahama beach. Entrance is 300 yen for adults and 100 yen for children.

Be sure not to miss the cave or "Benten-kutsu". You can buy candle sticks and put them on the altar after lighting them. There are 16 statues all carved into the walls of the cave. For tall foreigners, be sure to watch your head as teh ceiling gets very low.

On a usual account, i hate walking....esp. with our hot weather BUT somehow in this walking tour, i enjoyed so much walking along the streets to our destinations. Take a look and you should be able to understand why .....

With the cold weather, unique scenes, smart & beautifully dressed up japanese around (thou some might be riding bicycles), how can i not enjoyed the strolls?? There were simply too many sights that captured my eyes & melted my heart !!!

Finally reaching the entrance. Don't you just love the BONSAI tree??

As described by the definition above, it was indeed a beautiful japanese garden...... yes definitely with an authentic taste!!! Despite not being a very green person & don't usually appreciate gardening, i can't deny how much i admire, adore & value the exquisite scenery of this garden....it was really beyond words could tell !!!

just look at these marvelous huge spread of RED LEAVES .... don't they just made u went awwww !!!???




finally a 'real' japanese garden with koi fishes ... it was just amazing how it made me feel that the air i inhaled was so god darn refreshing !!!


there was also an open dining area where many elderly local folks were seen savoring their breakfast with a sea fronting view ....


this was the view that could be captured from the dining area


By the time we finishes with these 2 locations, it was nearly 3pm. Along our way back to the train station, we were allowed 1/2 an hour of browsing along the souvenir streets as well as the 100yen shop (for those interested)!!

We reached our hotel shortly before dinner time so we had a quick wash, short rest & headed off to GINZA again for ramen dinner. The restaurant was just a random pick in one of the shopping mall as Sach could not accompanied us that night.

Sach had taken the next 3 days leave to accompany us to several popular hotspots around Tokyo and hosted us to many mouth-watering meals for which were really worth sharing here, so stay tune ya !!!

so 'paiseh' that it took me so long to get these updated....i was so afraid that my memory would failed me in treasuring these wonderful vacations i had in life, thus far!!

more photos here