Buddha baby

There is a temple on our block that I have never stepped foot in, until last Friday. I am truly amazed that we have gone that long living here and have never seen it, but I am pretty sure it's because they keep banker's hours. By the looks of the place too I can't imagine they'd keep it open past 4, as to keep out the riff raff (it is the single cleanest and nicest temple I have ever seen). I would eat off of the floor. So the vegetarian restaurant that occupies the back half of the temple property is probably going to be a little cleaner than the place we at at last week and we look forward to trying it out.

I think the wide angle doesn't do the scale justice. The gold buddha in the middle of the picture is about 20 feet tall

I hung around long enough that I saw a chant that was also the most beautiful I have heard in a temple, and there were virtually no other attendees but the monks so it was quite surreal. Hard to think this little gem has been under our noses for so long. Reminds me of how I worked next door to the Air Force Museum in Dayton for 2 years and never stepped foot inside.

A little risqué for Malaysia?

Sidewalk cobbler

I see these guys everywhere. I stopped and talked to him about fixing some heels for Jamie. I mean this guy was sewing a tennis shoe back together so I think he can handle pudding a pad on a heal. Oh, and this is the second time I passed him, an hour in between and he had a cig hanging out of his mouth then too. One of those guys that can tolerate a constant stream of nicotine to the eyes and have that slight squint down pat, eyes just open enough to see. I wonder if he's caught himself on fire with all the smoking and the shoe glue.

Aftermath

Where do you go for dinner at 10pm? Jalan alor. I have murdered 2 cockroaches thus far, paid a giutar-playing dude 10 ringgit to go away, and am currently hoping that my hep B titer is in full effect.

My friday off

So, we don't work Friday because it's this guy's birthday. THE Sultan of Selangor Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah. That's a mouthful. Happy birthday to you, um dude! (Hari Jadi ke awak, um dude!)

What do I know about this guy? He had heart surgery in the U.S. in May and owns a moleskin jacket. Wouldn't it take a lot of moles to make a whole jacket -- sounds expensive? Come to think of it, I think it would take a lot of thread too. I mean I used to find moles in the pool skimmer at my parent's house and they seemed pretty small. One of the dead ones my friends and I used in a video to commemorate mol day [the celebration of Avagadro's number and all things molar OCT 23 and my b-day!] and get extra credit for science class. We ended up cooking it on film with an acetylene torch. Eric still has the video. We just watched it in October. We did get extra credit. Newark schools...what can I say? Its small size may have been that it shriveled up from floating around int he pool skimmer for too long. Or it could've been a runt. I've never really seen other moles that close. I saw this thing on the discovery channel how they were making a giant mole with CGI for some movie. It was cool.

Anyway, moleskin sounds too hot for Malaysia if you ask me.


Also, the second page of google images for "sultan of selangor" has this on it which is just, well, toilet and just right for this blog:

This week's craziness

Well, what can we make light of this week? For starters we can make light of the fact that we have acted like it's Friday every day since Sunday:

Report writing drives people to drinking copious amounts of Heineken eating pizzas with "chicken ham" on them on Sundays -so I hear. I am starting to like "chicken ham". It's an acquired taste like Brussels sprouts, except the MSG makes it better than Brussels sprouts so this is not a fair comparison at all, never mind.

Mondays are good for Jacob's Creek Brut Champagne, and some spaghetti. Season 5 of "It's always sunny in Philadelphia" goes well with brut.

Tuesdays are ripe for pan fried fish, wine and Tiger beer. Pepper that with some sing along karaoke (Kings of Leon mostly) in the ole' apartment and you have got yourself the makings of a party for 2.

In other news:
I also think that I caught a cold from the lower temps (we are getting down to like low 70's lately). I told someone this (from the states) and they think I am nuts. Whatever, I am wearing jeans and long coats when it dips into the 70's at night.

Enjoy the snow!

Long and beefy

The simplicity of the Malay language leads to awesome english slogans...

Butter balls - free balls

Nothing like going from the swiming pool to the Thanksgiving table, but that's what happened. A few gin and tonics, a couple beers, some wine and margaritas happened before that.

Let's see what else happened:

• I told the company driver many times over that he was my brother and I loved him. He's a little awkward at work now.
• Convinced one of our company admininistrators that we were going paintballing and to set up the plan for the group. I have no recollection of this conversation.
• Made gin and tonic, and then spilled gin and tonic on my boss.
• Remember hearing about why my friend's littlest child just didn't like me "well, I'm taking it as a good sign that he doesn't like a strange man with whiskey on his breath".
• My friend (C.M.) bruised and cut his arm on the kiddie pool slide.
• I ate more than I think I have ever eaten at any Thanksgiving ever. Even the ones where I've eaten at two different relatives' houses.

December 3rd KL skyline

Camera phone works now!

The blog will either get a whole lot more interesting, or not at all. You decide.

O christmas tree

I can't think of a better place than IKEA to get our Christmas tree. I actually can't think of any other place I have ever seen Christmas trees. But at any rate the IKANO power center mall and the Curve (two malls which sit right on top of each other which deserve different names for reasons I will never undertand) were a beehive of activitiy. There was a Chinese christmas carolling group beling out familiar favs, and huge cut outs of tropical fish with santa hats hanging from the ceiling.

Then there was this kid making love to a pony in the parking lot. I have no idea, so don't ask.





Once we got the 8 foot tree from Ikea, I dragged it out. This is the top of the tree. The trunk is in the trunk. It is a wonder I didn't wreck becuase I couldn't steer the car.


We finally got the blasted thing in the apartment and cut the trunk put it up and suddenly got thirsty for a beer. 3 hours later, a lot of sushi eaten, and a failed attempt at buying more lights (like more lights could make the tree look less ugly) we came back home and finished the job, along with a bottle of wine.

Awesome quotes by Jamester

1. "Carrots and mustard, that's where it's at" (9 pm)

2. Me: "are you going down by the pool in your pajamas?"

Jamester: "yeah, I don't give a ___, who is going to see me at 2am?"

Prior to this, we dined on poor excuses for curry and lasagna. The fact that a restaurant claims to do both should have been a tip off. We mostly had wine. The toilet needs documented at a later date. 6 locks and a peep hole. No glory hole.

Prior to that, we contemplated and tested the various theories on boiling eggs for deviled eggs. Turns out boiling the water and then turning off the heat and setting eggs in the water for 20 minutes at that point is the best for cooking hard boiled eggs in Malaysia.

The house smells like eggs.

Good nite!