Bliss

Happiness is when you have this

$$$$$$$$$$$$$

Steady.. A few more years of experience, and that should be in my grasp.
Plan, plan, plan! That is what I should do.
Time is essence and can't afford to waste any more time.
Gotta learn all about planning while I am here in Lumut for the next few months. Dig into Primavera and everything about being a planner.

Yeah, I believe this would be my career path. I strongly feel so.

Apologize - Timbaland feat. One Republic (not live)

Isn't this one much more better than One Republic's original version?

Bonne Année 2008!!

Exactly one more hour to go before the arrival of a brand new year and I'm sitting here in the cybercafe trying to think of what my new year resolutions would be. Been spending the past one hour trying to draft the plan for the brand new year, but nothing came out.

*blink blink*

Still can't think of any. Maybe my brain is shutting itself and refuse to let me access it. Perhaps it is programming itself to clear off all the memory and cache in it? Maybe it's trying to archive the old storage spaces so that there will be more space to accomodate new informations in the coming year? Whatever it is doing, I can't come out with the resolutions!!

Oh crap! What a lame excuse.

To tell the truth, I am just plain lazy.
Lazy to think of this stupid resolutions (Who is the smart ass who came up with the idea of making new year resolutions anyway??)
Lazy to make good use of my brain.
Lazy to do anything.
Maybe I am too exhausted from working too much. Hey, I have been clocking in every day for the past one and half months (with only 5 days of rest so far).

But that should not be an excuse. I don't like giving excuses for didn't get things right.
It makes me feel so irresponsible and shows as if I am tyring to shirk from responsibility.

There is a proverb saying "If one fails to plan, then one plans to fail". How true. And to say that I am the planner for this project I am attached with now in Lumut, it is indeed shameful as I can't even come up with my own plan! Shame, shame, shame!!!

This is my life and I should take charge of it.
It's me who should be should be doing planning for my ownself.
No one will be responsible for my life, other than my ownself.
Hence, it's me who should chart the road for myself.

That is, to be responsible for my ownself. I need to take charge of my life and be answerable to actions that I take. There is no time to waste. And no more coming up with lame excuses.
I need to get rid of words such as "I am tired .... ", "Lazy-lah.... ", "No time to do this lah.... " and etc. These are negative words which I must avoid at all cost as it's like black hole which sucks all the energy out from my life.

Yeah, it is pretty vague and quite difficult to quantify the achievement, but nevertheless, it's me myself who should be judging if I did keep to the resolutions, or otherwise.

Well, it's not that bad after all. The last one and half hours wasn't really a waste.
I did indeed came up with my very own resolution, at last.

It is now 11.50m and it's time for me to log off. Need to get a good night rest before embarking on a new journey (and also going to clock in at office tomorrow morning). Looking forward to a great year ahead!

Hereby wishing you all a very happy spanking new year 2008!!!

Goodbye 2007

The clock is ticking down. 2 more days left in the calendar year before ushering the start of a brand new year. Looking back into the past 363 days, let's take a walk on what happened to my life throughout the period.

1. Change of job. [Jumping from one shit to another, almost...]

2. Moved from Puchong and back to Kepong. Woo hoo!! [What other places which has pasar malam every night other than Kepong?]

3. Transfered to Lumut. [Feeling energetic for the first time while at work]

4. First trip to offshore. [Spending 5 boring days on the platform and the accomodation vessel, all surrounded by waters. And it took me 5 days to readjust and balance myself to the ground condition]

5. First time on a helicopter ride. [What other air transportation mode I have not tried, other than chopper and plane? Hot air balloon seems tempting]

6. Almost drowned while attending a underwater escape training. [It was freaky all right. The few seconds of breathlessness seems like eternity. And I swear the incident is still fresh on my mind, even though it happened 5 months ago]

6. Delta Rover burnt to the ground. [No signs of the owner rebuilding the climbing gym again. Had to go to that super expensive Camp5 to satisfy my climbing craving. Crap!]

7. Blogging. [Only meagre 68 entries in this year. How lame~~~]

8. Had a pet dog of my own, almost. [Hope Lil' Russell is happy being back with his mummy]

9. Attended M.A.N.Y weddings!! [And I foresee more to come. Any wonder why my pockets are full of holes?]

10. Signed up with the National Library. [Only RM1 for membership and loads of books to choose from. What a bargain!]

11. Actively following the political senario in Malaysia. [I feel so disgusted! I am ashamed to call myself a Malaysian]

12. Attended a rally for the first time. [And it made me feel even more disgusted! Our government is worse than Talibans! I seriously thinking of migrating. There is basically left little hope in this country with the current leadership>

13. First time riding on a horse. [Yii harrr!! Feel like a cowboy. Thanks to Ho Sang and his wedding gimmick]

14. Reading books!! [Borrowed 30+ books, but only managed to finish reading less than half of them. Sigh]

15. Jamming sessions! [I have to brush up my guitar skill and to learn to play more songs! And I hope the rest of the band members will do so coz it's embarassing to play out-of-tempo]

16. Facebook.. And Scrabulous. [I am basically addicted to this game. Have to secure more victories!]

~~~~~

As the new year approaches, I guess the norm for everyone is to come up with new year resolutions. And what would mine be? Should I make up a list like other people do? One lazy side is telling me that there is no point in making a list which will never be fulfilled, while the other part of me is crying for a plan to guide my way through 2008.

Let's see. I have two more days to decide which side should I listen to. Tummy is growling like mad now, and I haven't have my dinner yet (It's 8pm now. Been working full day at site today)

Till then, happy holiday and a very happy new year to everyone!!

The Knight And His Bride

Once upon a time, there lived a knight and a lady in the kingdom of Far Far Away. Both of them were studying in the same school. It all began on one faithful day, where they met each other for the very first time, and love sparked the minute they laid their eyes on each other. After years of courtship, the knight promised to the lady to take her as his woman. And this is the story of his journey to fulfill his promise....


The knight in shining armour with his mighty stallion ready to fetch the maiden bride, living in a castle faraway.

However, the knight apparently got confused with his own identity and thought that he was a cowboy instead. Donning the cowboy hat, he cried out to his mighty stead to start moving. But the stead did not make a move.

He cried out again and kicked the stallion, hoping that it will gallop its way ahead. Still, no movement at all. Frustration appeared on the knight's face.

It was now apparent that the knight, or cowboy wannabe, does not have the horse riding skill. Later, he had to be led to his maiden bride by the horse trainer. He could only laugh to cover his great embarrassment.



And the knight's loyal comrade laughed at the mighty knights incompetency.



After hours of treading along the torturous path, they finally reached the destination.

Upon reaching the maiden's castle, the knight and his loyal comrade had to face with the 4 guardians.



They had to undergo tests, failing which would render the knight unable to produce offspring to continue his legacy. Nevertheless, test such as crossing over gigantic gate, eating the 4 deadly food, dodging the cursed staff, chanting love hymns did not weaken the spirit of the group.

Eventually, it was bribe of a thousand gold coins to the greedy 4 that cleared the path.

The knight quickly made his move and finally succeed in reaching the maiden's chamber.

Taking the hand of the fair lady, the knight kissed the bride and embraced her in his arm.

And the lady reciprocate and an exhange of bridal vow took place.

The knight and the lady were now officially known as Mr and Mrs Chan.

Congrats to both Ho Sang and Yee Lee.
May you both live the many years of joy and happiness together!

Disputes with Bitches

Cool place. Nice view of Lumut river from my place. Walking distance to the town. Amenities such as banks, 7-11, sundry shops, KFC, etc is just a walking distance away. Long stretch of waterfront with nice view of the river bank (nice place to jog, by the way). Greenery and nice landscape around. Ample parking space. Nice swimming pool below. Astro readily available. Cool ambience of the living room. Air conditioned rooms. Water heater for shower. Fully furnished kitchen. What is there for me to ask for? When I started being comfortable with the place and the surrounding, now you want me out?

When people start barging in and claim that the place is theirs, I am definitely pissed!
Reasons such as can't stand smoke scents, unable to share place with the opposite sex, religion issue, bad feng shui, to god-knows-what-else excuses, THAT IS NOT ACCEPTABLE.

Trying to kick me out of my place, and relocating me to a second grade house with no amenities nearby and no greeneries in sight, THAT IS NOT ACCEPTABLE. And worse still, there is no internet access and no cybercafe nearby. And to drive a few kilometres away to get online, or just to buy food and stuff, that just pisses me off. Never mind if I have forked out money for the annual membership (it cost only RM10 anyway), but being unable to access internet, that just make my blood boiling like mad.

I don't bear any ill feelings towards the female (other than some gender/sexist remark blurted out from me sometimes, sorry to say), but this incident made me feel that being a female is (100%) equivalent to a BITCH. You have to know that you are here for a construction job and you should know that it is an on-site job. There is bound to be lots of guys around, especially smokers too. If you cant bear working with guys, and smokers, than I suggest you to go back home and go play masak-masak. Or you can go play with your barbie dolls.

And being here on the job doesn't mean that you have the right lay your rights on people's belonging. And don't try to bitch around with the boss complaining about being uneasy staying with guys. If you don't feel comfortable with guys, then why take up the offer to come here in the first place? And if you don't feel comfortable with guys, then why the fuck do you share the company's van with us? Didn't the religious fanatics in Middle East (your religion, that is) banned women from sharing transportation with men who are not of the same blood? Why don't you raise this to the boss too and ask for an all-bitch-only car?

Fuck it. I am now offering you my comfy room, and I am willing to sacrifice myself and moving to a much smaller room with only a wall fan. Let's see if we can work out a thing or two here. But let me make myself clear. I don't fucking bother to see your "spectacles" hang dry, and I don't fucking bother to know what you wear during the night when you sleep. No, I don't want to know whether you are a lesbian or bisexual. Spare me from letting me know if you have shaved or not. I am not fucking interested on you, on your family, on your ancestors, on your pets, etc etc. In fact, I don't even fucking bother to know whether you are indeed a woman or not.

Look, you have bulldozed your way onto my territory and kicking me out, but I am on the other side willing to accept an unfavorable position (to me). All I want is to continue to stay in this place of mine, and continue with my life, while you continue yours. Once this project is completed, you go your way, and I go mine. Period.

Now, if that also you are not willing to accept, then to the hell you go, you BITCHES.


(taken from here)

The Idea of North Coming To KL~~

WHy would they choose to come to KL when I am not around~!
*curses repeatedly*

Wonder when will be the next time they will be coming to KL again. The vocal harmonization is just perfect!

Do check out some of their performances in youtube here, here and here.

Title :	'The Idea of North' Live in KL & Penang
Venue :	Various Venues
Date & Time :	KL: Wed 28 - Thu 29 Nov 2007 (9.30pm) Penang: Sun 2 Dec 2007
Tickets :	KL: RM25 (includes 1 drink) Penang: RM50per day (part of Penang Island Jazz Festival 2007)
Phone :	03-4260 2288
Email :	info@alexis.com.my
URL :	http://www.alexis.com.my
Synopsis :	Consisting of four very talented and experienced musicians, The Idea of North has developed itself as one of the most original and entertaining acapella groups in the world. Described by James Morrison as ‘the best a cappella group in the country’, the ensemble combines contemporary classics with original material and their repertoire is an eclectic mix of standard cabaret through to jazz, big band and pop into acapella classics – arrangements of Sting, the Bee Gees and James Taylor side by side with traditional gospel and blues. They are performing here in conjunction with My.Oz, the Australian High Commission’s year-long cultural program to commemorate 50 years of diplomatic relations between Malaysia and Australia. The Idea of North will perform in both: Kuala Lumpur: Dates: Wed 28 - Thu 29 Nov 2007 (9pm) Venue: Alexis Ampang, Lot 10 & 11, Great Eastern Mall, 303, Jalan Ampang, Kuala Lumpur. Admission: RM25 (inclusive of 1 drink) Table bookings for diners only. Contact: (T) 03-4260 2288 ; (E) info@alexis.com.my Penang: Date: Sun 2 Dec 2007 Venue: Penang Island Jazz Festival, Bayview Beach Resort Garden, Batu Ferringhi, Penang Admission: RM50 per day (for main stage performances on 1 & 2 December) Limited 2-day tickets available at RM80 per ticket. Contact: (T) 07880 7999; (E) www.ticketpro@com.my RECOMMENDED! Last I heard, tickets for this were going fast. If you liked a capella favourites like "The Song Company" (another astonishing Aussie a capella export) and "The Wicked Pitches", you'll like this one.

(copied from http://www.kakiseni.com/events/misc/MTAwNDc.html)

Greetings from The Jetty...

It's my third day here in Lumut on a long term assignment. The project I am involved in is scheduled to finish in June 2008, but I am betting that it will be delay till late July or August. Call me a pessimistic, but from the current outlook, there is basically no progress at all even after almost one month plus had passed since the project was awarded to my company.
Nevertheless, will do whatever I can to assist and expedite this.

Left KL with a heavy heart, especially when I was asked to mobilize in less than 24 hours notice, with no preparation at all. (mental preparation, that is) :( No more mamaking with frens, no more rock climbing, less time going back home to visit mum, no more going lepaking at The Curve. Sigh... And the heavy drinking session the night before departure to Lumut didn't really help at all. No thanks to Philip, Ho Sang and Kah Wee.. Drove over 240km to Lumut the next day with the high level of alcohol in my blood. Thank god a colleague accompanied and keeping me wide awake along the journey.

Anyway, came to Lumut with a heavy heart and things in my mind. Thought that I would not be able to adjust well. After all, I wasn't really close to my colleagues except for a few. Yeah, pretty sucks to feel alone after spending about 4 months in a company. And a boss who keeps on intimidating and terrorizing most of the time doesn't really help in boosting one's self morale and motivating one to excel.

Oh well, enought of complaints.

So far, my third day at the fabrication yard went well. Apartment where I stay is nice, fully furnished. Cable TV (astro), air conditioned, heater, kitchen, swimming pool, and serene environment.. Well, what else can I complain?

Though Lumut is a small (it take less than half and hour to walk around the town), but I have a feeling I will love this place. I took a stroll around town jsut now after my dinner and I covered the waterfront area (the jetty area) in less than half an hour. The tourism minister have spent quite an amount of money to decorate this place. I shall take photos tomorrow and upload them here. THe waterfront area are nicely decorated. Not much cars around, and there is traffic jam at this town happens only once in a blue moon. Just nice for someone like me who detesté traffic jam. The only places recognizeable are KFC, Maybank, 7-11 and CIMB bank. :)

Oh well, will stop for now. Will explore more of this town this weekend. And not forgetting Manjung and Setiawan town which is 15 minutes away from here. These 2 towns are much more "happening" compare to Lumut. Shall jog around town tomorrow and take some snap shots of this beautiful place. I have a feeling the shots taken will turn out nice.

Cheerss....

Malaysia's New Nursery Rhyme

Fungus appearing on the walls of hospital buildings.
Crack on the bridge columns.
Leak in the Parliament.
Collapsed roof in the Court Complex.

And what do we have in store now?

BELUM SHOCKER!!!!

Yes, by all mean, please support Barisan Nasional if you want to see more building collapse!!
Perhaps we should create a new nursery rhyme on Malaysia.
"Malaysia is Falling Down" would be a very suitable title (think of a nursery rhyme which is about a bridge in London).
And Fergie would be selected as our ambassador and remix this song and promote us to the eye of the world.
Malaysia bolleeehhh~~~

March For Fair and Just Election

A peaceful assembly, organized by the Coalition for Clean and Fair Elections (BERSIH), will be held as part of our campaign for clean, free and fair elections in Malaysia. BERSIH representatives will also hand over a memorandum to HRH the Yang Dipertuan Agong.

Venue: Dataran Merdeka, Kuala Lumpur
Date: 10 November 2007
Time: 3:00 pm

Note:

1. Participants are encouraged to wear yellow as a symbol of protest.

2. Bring flags and banners depicting the BERSIH logo and relevant messages (themes of democracy and human rights, clean and fair elections, etc).

For further information, please visit http://www.bersih.org

1 + 3 + 1 + 1 + Infinity

1 wedding invitation last month.
3 wedding invitations this month (for 3 consecutive nights)
1 wedding invitation next month.
1 more next 2 months.

And I foresee there will be more coming my way.

My wallet is screaming for help!!! Perhaps I should get away from Malaysia for the next few years!! Yeah, its time to consider working oversea.

Meet Uncle Hussain - Lagu Untukmu

I feel like rocking!!
Need to release all the andrenaline in me!! I want to go for a gig session!!

--------


Tiada bintang
Dapat menerangkan hati yang telah dicelah
Bagaiku lumpuh tak mampu berdiri
Aku tetap begini
Takkan berubah kerna aku tetap aku
Dan lalu rindumu bukanlah aku

*
Guna hati, akal dan fikiranmu
Berbeza
Kau dan juga aku
Dua hati yang tak mungkin bersatu

Apakah aku
Hanya boneka yang sering engkau mainkan
Yang dikawal oleh jari-jarimu
Ku punya hati dan perasaan
Pernahkah engkau fikirkan
Cukup cukuplah oh cukuplah

(ulang *)

Tak faham tak tahan
Sabarku tak tertahan
Melayan sikapmu perawan
Berbeza-berbeza
Kau dan aku berbeza
Kita memang tak serupa
Bebaskan bebaskan
Ku ingin dilepaskan
Kita tidak sehaluan
Cukuplah sudahlah
Sampai di sini saja
Hubungan kita berdua
Hoa…hoa….hoa…..

(ulang *)

--------

A Wedding and A Gathering

What a hectic weekend it was.. Drawings + weddings + trips to KLIA + insufficient sleep + drebar = one tiring me..

But glad things have slowed down for a while. Finally, I managed to finished up the drawings that Kenny wanted. Cheers.. Apologies to him for not able to complete it earlier, and for the mistakes/errors that I made. My designing skills are definitely not up to standard even though have been working for 2 years plus in a consultant firm. :/

Though had lots of things to do all within a short span of time, but the feeling was jsut great. Never felt so alive, especially ever since started working in the new company few months ago. All the work just keep me occupied and alive. Never mind if I had only 3 hours of sleep for the past 2 nights. The feeling of doing something productive jsut keep my andrenaline rushing into my brains.

Hope to get more of this kind of work more often.
--------------

Another friend got married. To be exact, two friends got married (to each other). So happy that both of them finally tied the knot. After all, they are one great couple.

Sessions of "food tasting", quizes, singing sessions, professing I-Love-You in ten languages, the golden vows that Juin Mei "force" Chee Sing to sign, and the 60-minutes-course-to-become-a-SUPERHUSBAND, were just hilarious!! ...Poor Chee Sing had to get parents-in-law signatures and had to answer questions before Juin Mei allows Chee Sing to open the door. But nothing can stop Chee Sing though, and upon getting the signatures, he was bestowed with a cert duly signed by his parents-in-law, and of course, he finally get to open the door. Sweet..

To both Chee Sing and Juin Mei, wishing both of you happiness forever till you grow old. :)

Had a great time meeting up with old friends at the wedding dinner. It has been ages since we last met after our graduation. Ann Mei said that this was the only time where old friends reunion can take place. I couldn't agree more. Friends that I have not seen in 4 years plus, old choir members, old taekwondo friends.. Friends came from as far as Johor Bahru, Penang, Kuching and Miri to attend the wedding. Eugene the Horny Conductor, Belinda (my cute lil' sis), Irene the Dancing Queen, Valerie the Petite, Wendy the AngMoh Hokkien Charbor, Kok Wai the Singing Machine, Chee Siong the Contractor.. some of the friends that I have not seen in years.. Glad to see you guys again!!

Went to Luna Bar right after the dinner. The place was awesome!!!!
Cool interior decoration, with a swimming pool right at the front of the place, and with the magnificent view of KL with KL tower at the background. But RM50 for cover charge (inclusive of a drink) is a bit expensive though. Nevertheless, it was my first trip there and I did have a great time there, especially hanging out with some old buddies.. Not forgetting messing around with Jo Eee. Hey dude, you sucks in everything!! Hahahahaa....

Lil' sis and Val came all the way from East Malaysia to attend the wedding. Had to chauffer them around. Bad bad girls!! Sorry for not being able to bunk in together at Jason's house. Or else it would be a great time catching up with stories of what's happening around and what's not. By the way, the rice biscuits that you brought is nice. Shall gobble them up, don't you worry. hehehehe..

With reality sinking in, it's the begining of a new week, and everyone was back to do their own things. Wonder when will we have the chance to hang out like this again.

Beheaded. Confirmed. Extended.

Yeah, my head has been chopped off by Karen. :(

But on the brighter note, PJ has contributed to my winning stats. Cheers. :)
-----

After 3 months in this company, ladies and gentlemen,..
I am now a confirmed staff.

DAMN~~~~

----------
The dateline for tender I am working on has been extended to 31st December. Woo hoo.. Can afford to slack a bit. :)

The Hunter and The Hunted

The Hunter
My third day of playing scrabbles, and I got myself 3 easy prey - Mel, PJ and Wai Hong. These 3 are easy kills. They were slaughtered alive and their head chopped off. These heads are shrunk into peanut size like how the headhunters in Borneo did in the old times.

The Hunted
Karen is hunting me down and I have nowhere to hide. It's not even halfway into the game and I am lagging behind by over 90 points. I can smell the chopping board. Mercy!! Mercy!!

Scrabbles and DVDs

I am hooked to scrabulous in facebook. Nothing feels better than beating your opponent in a game of scrabble. Melissa and Wai Hong were my first two victims. Anyone else care to be on my chopping table? Hehehe..

-------------

Gonna ask Michael boy to buy me DVDs for the following movies. Cost only RM4 per DVD in JB. What a bargain!!
1. Amélie
2. Chocolat
3. The Twilight Samurai
4. The Hidden Blade
4. Les Choristé
5. Million Dollar Baby
6. The Cider House Rules
7. Elizabethtown
8. Babel
9. Pride and Prejudice
10. Sepet
11. Gubra
12. Mukhsin

Let's pray hard that those pirates have these movies in their collection.

Acapella....

The Idea of North

I need to get my hand on all their songs!!!
Can anyone help me to download the songs please? Would buy you a meal in exchange. :/

Ichi Rittoru no namida mv

Offshore Again..

Posted some of the photos that I took while I was working at offshore last few days. Normally, one would require a permit from the OIM (also known as Offshore Installation Manager, the big boss) to take photos while at platform. You see, the platform is a highly hazardous area and a single flash could trigger an explosion in the worst case. Therefore, flame detectors are installed throughout the platform to detect any unwanted sparks. If you are using flash while taking photos, then detectors will detect these flashes as fire and false alarm will be triggered.

But as the whole platform was not in operational due to shutdown for upgrading, I was allowed to take snapshots. No need to go through the hassle of applying permits.

Cakerawala Cluster of Platforms
(left to right : Wellhead platform, CKR platform and CKP - Central Processing Platform)

There are 3 platforms in this cluster, each having its own function. I worked at CKP or the central processing platform whereby all the gas produced from fields will be treated and processed here.

Bridges adjoining CKR and Wellhead platform

For my project, there were 2 accomodation ships for almost 600 plus workers working on board. One is Jascon 28 which I was staying in, and the other was Beta. The condition at Jascon 28 was pretty clean and well maintained. It was able to withstand the sea waves and therefore, not much rocking on board. Thank god for that as I didn't vomit throughout my stay.

Jascon 28 aka J-28. The ship where I stayed.

My bunk. 4 person sharing in a room. Nice, comfy and fully air conditioned

Not much activity at night, other than watching TV at the TV room, or going for a movie at the mini cinema. Other than that, one can also go to the galley for makan. It's open 24 hours and you can eat till you drop!! Internet was available at the office, so lucky me. However, the connection is not very reliable as the signal kept breaking. Nothing much can be done as it uses satellite to transmit data.

View of CKR at night. A pipe-laying ship is at the background

I was informed by a colleague that I could climb up to the flare tip (shown in the photo below). The flare head was not in operational so this was the only chance one could go on top of it. The overall height from the top to the sea level is approximately 30 storeys high. It was said that the whole structure would sway at least one foot apart when you are at the top.

How I wanted to climb to the top!!! But I only gotta know about this half an hour before I was scheduled to depart back. I could not afford to spend 15 minutes to climb to the top and miss my chopper. One had to pay USD500 if he/she misses the chopper. So, I had to forget about trying out the climb. This would have been one hell of an experience but sadly I didn't have the chance to do so. And I doubt if I would have the chance to do again as chances like this (especially when we have a total plant shutdown and no flaring) doesn't come often. Sigh...

Flaretip which is about 15-20 storey high.

Nothing much to see other than water in the 360 degrees view.

Water water everywhere, but not a drop to drink.

After spending 4 days surrounded by water, it is indeed pleasant to see greenery again. And the best part is that you don't feel giddy spending your time in the rocking ship.

Green green grass of home.

It's already past one day since I reached onshore, but my head is still feeling heavy and giddy. Thought that I would fall sick anytime soon, but my boss told me that this is perfectly normal as my body is trying to adjust itself to the steady condition onshore. You see, the inner ear which functions to balance our body, which has adjusted to the rocky environment on board the ship will now have to readjust itself to the ground condition again. Hence, my body does not feel right. However, this short term giddiness will soon be gone in a few days time.

Though the trip was short, but nothing beats the experience of riding on a helicopter, living in a ship and working in a platform in the middle of the vast ocean. Wouldn't trade the experience with the money in the world. :)

Life On Board

I am now typing this on board of a ship. Its the starting of the monsoon season here at South China Sea, and the wind is getting stronger with each passing day. Heard from the announcement today that the wind speed reached 40 knots per hour. I had to make effort to climb the stairs when the wind blew, and i had to grab onto the handrails as I walk. Another few knots more and it might blew me overboard!

The platform which I am working on is called Cakerawala or CKP and it is situated somewhere along Malaysia-Thailand border in the South China Sea. Work here starts at 7am in the morning and ends about 6 or 7 in the evening. Nothing much for me to do everyday, other than walking around and pretending to be busy. And this is pretty boring in a sense. But nothing beats the experience of being onboard this gas processing platform.

As for accomodation here, I stay on board of a ship by the name of Jascon 28. This vessel is dynamically positioned, and instead of using anchor to hold her afloat, she uses propellers to keep her on the spot. There are currently about 400 plus people on board. Life on board is kinda ok i guess. They have mini cinema here and food is greatly taken care of. 6 meals a day, can you believe that? Breakfast, follows by morning tea break, lunch, afternoon tea break, dinner, and supper. You can choose to have a second supper in the midnight if you want to. These guys really put effort to ensure that you won't die of hunger. Food is nice (but my colleagues who have been here for weeks would beg to differ!) and they had asian and western food. They had variety of drinks to choose from (syrup, packed fruit juice, hot drinks - tea, coffee, milo, etc) and they even offer ice-creams and fruits. Apart from that, they have a small gym room. Other than that. you basically don have much things to do other than admire the 360 degrees of seaview and ships and platforms distance away.

From a rough count, there are about 7 or 8 platforms nearby. And there are barges and vessels which is visibly seen.

Sea is starting to get rough, and its causing me motion sickness every now and then from the boat rocking. Staring at the computer screen while the ship is rocking, is making me pretty dizzy and disorientated. Time to lie down and take a good night sleep.I definitely need a rest especially when I have screwed up big time today. Will write on this embarrassing incident later..

Chiaw..