Tuesday, March 30, 2010

Accident in a Petrol Pump Station?

Read the news about an accident at a petrol pump in Cheras earlier today.

As I was reading, my bro showed me a video of the accident. So I watched it. As I was watching the accident unfold, I can't really believe what I saw. Apparently, a guy was killed as a result of the freak accident.

Then it got me thinking, this could happen to anyone. Arwah maybe were just coming from work and stopping by the petrol station to get some fuel. Perhaps, he's married and his wife and kids were waiting for him to come home. And suddenly, this happened. It sux and it saddens me. It seems, despite our wonderful roads and what have you, this kind of accident happen.....

AL-fatiha to dead....

Monday, March 29, 2010

Weigh-In....wk 3

After exactly 3 weeks, I have managed to reduce my weight to 79.9kg. A reduction of 5.6kg. Not bad ehh? If I can continue doing what i'm doing now, I hope to reduce my weight to 75kg by next week. ANother 4 kg to go!! Woohooo.

I'm super duper happy with my efforts so far. Not as intense as I wanted it to be, but it's ok. Nowadays I walked about 1 and half hours every day covering a distance of about 7-8kms with some hilly slopes along the way. I've also started jogging a little bit but I'm still way off of being fit. At least I sweat every day!!!

In terms of my food intake, since I'm taking the herbalife's shapeworks F1, I now eat a full meal only once a day which is during lunch time. I don't take rice actually. Well, not totally. I only eat 3-4 tablespoon of rice with some white meat. I also now drink loads of water and it is highly recommended that all of us should drink at least 1.5l of water everyday.....

Last night though, was the first time in 3 weeks that I drank coffee and I tell you this, I can't sleep till at about 1am. Dammn....no more coffee for me...

have a good week ahead...

Tuesday, March 23, 2010

OD Part 3...Approved.......and Signed!!!

Yeahhhhhh.......Finally got the offer letter signed!! ...and the bank decide to charge RM10 for preparation of LO...the banks really know how to take money from the masses ehh?....

Anyhoos, I got no choice...btw...the BLR rate now is 5.80%....urghhhhh......it used to 5.55%...wonder why it has increased.....

Monday, March 22, 2010

Weigh-In Part II

Woohooo....another week has gone....my weight now is 82.8kg...errrr....only 200 gms difference from last week?....errrr....I wonder why lah....well...it's still a reduction...

No doubt that i've walked/exercise more for the last couple of days but I think, something is wrong with my food intake laahh....no worries....let's see how it goes for the next seven days....

The difference between the first week and the last week was, I felt healthier & fitter this week compared to the first week I started....

Btw, I bought that shapeworks nutrition drink from a friend yesterday. Had the first consumption earlier this morning after my walk...It is said that it could be a better meal replacement for breakfast....And have to agree to a certain extent...my stomach felt full but my 'throat' felt like wanna eat a whole load of bananas....hahaha...

Anyhoos...late yesterday evening, my wife and I went to view a condo at Shah Alam. Nice little place. As of now, nothing is concrete yet. We're still considering. I'll make my decision later in the week...

OD Part 3...Approved...

Speak of the devil....just earlier today I wrote about why the bank hasn't got back to me with the offer letter yet. Well, right after lunch just now, they call me up and said that it has been approved!!

That's a good news...So tomorrow, I'm gonna head down to the bank and sign and let's see how long it will take for them to disburse the money!!!

Btw, it took them exactly 22 days to approve my application. Is it a norm?

Sunday, March 21, 2010

Plain Weekend............

I had a normal weekend.Exercise, Walk, Sleep, Eat, played golf, jamming..... Nothing extraordinary.

Health wise, I've been doing about 3 to 5 kms on average for the last couple of days, but earlier today, since I gotta send kecik to school, I only managed to cover 2.5kms (perhaps 30 minutes of walk)...anyhoos, at least I sweat...perhaps, later after work, I'm gonna hit the road again....No wait....This evening I believe I have an appointment to view a condo that I plan to purchase....hehehe...Let's see how it goes lahh....

It's almost April and it's been a month since I applied the overdraft application. No news till today. I emailed and call the person in charge, the answer was...''in the process''....I wonder why it took so long just to approve less then 30k worth of OD application....

Anyway, tomorrow is my weigh-in day for Week 2...Again, no expectation but I can really feel the difference since I first started about 2 weeks back...Spoke to a friend whether I need to increase my intensity (jog & run), he said, just go with the flow and as long as you sweat and do it often, I'll be back to where I belong. I've covered slightly more then 30kms for the last 6 days....perhaps cycled about 15 miles....

Btw, last night, a friend introduced me to his friend. So this guy actually sells, some weight-loss powder kinda stuff. So he brought a long a special weighing machine. I'm impressed actually. The darn machine can actually calculate your bone mass index, your fats %, etc....it can even calculate your inner body age!!.ANd guess what, my inner body age is 29!!!...Woooohoooo....but my visceral fat is like 11 point. (you can read about visceral fat here) That's not good!! Between 9 and 12 is not good at all. A friend of mine got a point of 18!! That's like mega dangerous!! You need to see a doctor la bro!!



Nyways, after all that weigh in, I'm wee bit happy with my efforts so far. Based on the calculations made by the machine, it states that I'm generally sporty and fit (thank god and maybe because i've start exercising for the last 2 weeks)..I just need to reduce my weight to about 79kg for a start and lower down my visceral fat to about 8. Hence, I have about 5kg to go. The powder mix drink is supposed to be helpful in helping you reducing your weight, detoxing your body and burn those unwanted fat...I'm contemplating of purchasing actually but this guy who sells this product looks fit too me. Perhaps, i'll try and see how it goes...

What ever it is, drinking the powder or what ever, it won't help in reducing your weight if you don't sweat. Nothing secret about it!! It's not a matter of reducing your weight...it's a matter of being healthy and reasonably fit...I'm glad that I started and I pray that I won't stop doing it!!!

Have a good week ahead...

Wednesday, March 17, 2010

A trip to up north...


On Tuesday afternoon, after months of searching the 'right' tenant for my condo in Desa Melawati, I finally found a lovely couple who were deeply interested in renting our condo. So, I met up with the husband, he signed the agreement and gave me the deposit. I'm a happy man!! Wooohoooo....

After a quick coffee, I went to the bank to lodge the money and then I gave him the keys to the condo. After saying our goodbyes, I straight away make my way to the PLUS highway for my yearly branch visit to Sg Petani. Driving alone on the highways can be pretty dull but I thought the traffic was smooth. Quite strange considering it was school holiday week.

Anyhoos, I arrived at Sunway Seberang Jaya about close to 530pm. After checking in to the room, I found out that the tv wasn't working. Damniit!! So after a quick call to the room service, they then replace it with another tv. Not that I wanna watch the whole night but still, I need to watch em to catch the latest news...hehehe

After relaxing for about half an hour, I get pretty bored so I went down to the car and took out my pair of sneakers and headed to the hotel's mini gym. I was hoping I could walk or run on the treadmill but there was none. The only thing functioning was the 'bicycle'. I'm a wee bit sceptical to be on the bicycle as for the last few days, I've only done walking. Anyway, I need to sweat a little bit so I decided to cycle. And guess what, I did about 25 minutes and a total journey of about 7.8 miles (according to the mini-computer on the bicycle lah). Again, I was sweating like hell and then my knees begin to hurt. Perhaps, it's been a long time since I last do such thing and that's the reason why it hurts.

After that rather short exercise, I went to the sauna where I spent about 20 minutes. Man!!! That was an experience, It was hot and for me I think it was some form of a detoxification process. Hahahaha. My shorts was practically soaked with my sweat and I've never seen myself sweat that much.

Then, after all that was over, I went to the other room for a steam bath. I have to be frank, I can only last about 10 minutes in that room as the time goes on, I found it rather difficult to breath. Again, with all the sweat I decided to chill at the lounge area and head up to the room. By the time I reached my room, I was knackered. Maybe due to the long drive or the cycle or detoxification process, I wouldn't know.....

Later at about 8ish, my staff came over to the hotel and we had a chat over some very delicious chapati. I think, chapati is one of the safest food in the world. No cholestrol at all. Hehehe...After chatting about an hour I decided to call it a day as I have a long day the next day...

On Wednesday morning, I head down to the gym again and this time I cycled for about 35 minutes and managed to cover a distant of slightly over 10 miles. And yes, exercising early in the morning is always a good think...

After washing myself and check out, I went straight to Sg Petani for the branch visit. I had a chat with my staff about work and things in general. I thought it was a good visit and I can talk to them personally and see how they are doing. Compliance wise they are doing very well and the office is tidy. Just the way I like it. I think, it was almost 1 went I decided to call it quits as I had to head down to Ipoh to visit another branch.

Arrived in Ipoh slightly before 330pm just nice as everyone in Ipoh's office were there. It was nice to actually be there after all these years. Have to admit though, the last time I went to Ipoh office was like 5 years ago. This branch actually had several managerial changes. One character after another. Hehehe. Perhaps, I'll write about these characters later.....

Anyway, at Ipoh, a lot of concerns and issues were brought up to me and some of the things being said were settled and some of it requires further action from the head office. Unlike Sg Petani office, Ipoh's office is slightly bigger. The only drawback was their filing room. It was a total mess. Perhaps, I need to ask the filing manager to have a trip to Ipoh and show them how to file these files correctly.

After some drinks with them, I head back to KL and reached home at about 8pm. It was hectic but I thought it was worth every single mile of it. Personal relationship sometimes can be difficult but being in the managerial level, you'll just have to talk to your staff and see and hear what they want and have to say. Sometimes, they give you bigger and better ideas then you can ever imagine.... Hehehehe

I did not manage to do any exercise during the night as I was tired from all those drivng...But, will do it again and again until I reach my ideal weight which is 69kg!!!

have a good week ahead

Monday, March 15, 2010

Weigh-In....

In my posting yesterday, I said that today is my 'weigh-in' day. And guess what, as of today, I have managed to reduced my weight to 83kg. That's good isn't it. Not much...but still, a reduction....A total of 2.5kg of reduction...To be frank, I'm happy that with the minimal efforts that I've done for the last couple of days, it bears a result...

Anyhoos, i hope to increase my level of intensity this week. I did 5 kms fast walk earlier and I was sweating like nobody's business. But hey, I felt good. When I was doing my walk earlier, I pass through several nasi lemak stalls. Dennng, I miss eating all those good stuff even though it was only a week....Nevermind, I need to reach my aim in April. If I can continue reducing an average 2kg per week, come April I'll be in the region of about 73kg. Wow....I wonder how I look...

THe part that I hate, which I dread to confess is my tummy...urghhhhhh!!...it's not a good sight at all...hahahahha....

Anyway....have a good week to everyone...I'm off to Penang later...

Sunday, March 14, 2010

.......inspiration from the biggest loser....

I think, last week I posted something about me being overweight and close to become an obese. Hence, after perhaps months of non-existent exercises, I've started my own 'diet/lose weight' program last Wednesday. Nothing fancy actually. For a start, I'm gonna focus on gaining some momentum. I spoke to a friend who apparently has the experience in helping people like me who wants to shred some pounds.

Those glory years when I was a little bit younger, I was very active in sports. However, since I started working, perhaps things change and I became less and less active. Every time I wanna buy new pants, I have to buy an inch bigger. Although I realised that I was gaining weight, I was lazy to exercise.

Anyhoos, come last Tuesday when my wife and I were watching the Biggest Loser Asia. I somewhow was inspired by some of the contestant efforts. If they can do it, I certainly can.

So what I did was, I spoke to this friend of mine and seeks his advice. We both came to an agreement whereby, I need to tone down before the end of April. The last I checked, I was at 85.5kg. Hopefully, by the end of April, I can go down till about 74-73kg. That's like 5 weeks from now.

Anyhoos, like i mentioned, I started last Wednesday. It was tough although it was only a 2.5kms walk. My friend also mentioned about watching my food intake. So for now, I'll be eating every 3 hours but in smaller portion.

Have to admit though, although I only started last Wednesday, I can actually feel the difference. For example yesterday, I had a game of golf. Prior to that game, I walked for about 5.2kms. And then, in the afternoon I had a game of golf. I felt good during the game and guess what, although I've not played the game for about 3 months, I even scored better then I was playing regularly last year. Heheheh.

So far, I've covered about 25.5kms (an average of about 4.25kms per day) since last Wednesday. I sweat like a pig everytime I walk but I like it. I really wanna shred some pounds as I wanna be healthy and fit!!! It's another 5 weeks to go and I really do not know whether it can be done or not. My friend said, it can be done but I do not want to over-do it.

For this week, my plan is to continue fast-walking with a distant of about 4-5kms everyday. Perhaps, during my 3rd week, I'm gonna start to jog when ny stamina has improved.

Btw, tomorrow is my weigh-in day. I can't actually wait to see the result of my week No 1 effort. What ever the result tomorrow, I'm happy that I started as I felt good and my eating habits has also changed....

Have a good week ahead.

Thursday, March 11, 2010

next aim....

Now that everything has settled, I am now in the process of purchasing my next property. Where? Well, we'll find out in a few weeks time. Hehehe.

I felt that there's a butterfly in my stomach. Buying a property for me is like a boy asking a beautiful girl out for the very first time. Full of anticipation, questions and what have you. Obviously, it's not the first time I'm purchasing one but the feel is always the same. Be it a flat, a condo or a luxurious one....

earlier, I did state somewhere in my blog postings that I am aiming to get another 2 properties for this year and if I can add one within the next few months, I'll be a happy man!! Some of my friends asks me why am I buying properties...Well...there are tons of reasons....one of it is to 'secure' my daughter's future. Hehehehe....actually how do you relate your daughter's future and properties?

it's a simple equation actually. Just assume the property is a form of insurance. You buy something that is worth X amount today and the prices of properties increases every year. Perhaps, with good amount of luck and of course some work, I might be able to sell the property with a profit, of which, the money will be used to put in my daughter's education fund.....

This weekend I'm gonna take another view of the place. I've been to the place a couple of weeks ago and it's a vibrant place. Obviously, it's not cheap...

Btw.....I do have some doubts...

Would you buy a property that is on the auction list for RM77k, with an outstanding amount of about RM5k (excluding unpayable cukai taksiran for about 7 years). The bank clearly states that they won't pay the outstanding charges-which means you have to pay on your own...The condition of the house is pretty bad. I would assume the total repair cost will be around RM10,000. Not to forget the legal fees that you have to pay (which comes to about RM5k) and valuation fee-which is rm500.

Let's see the cost involve:

RP: RM77,000
Deposit 10% = RM7,700
Outstanding = RM5,000
Cukai Taksiran=
Legal Fees = RM5,000
Valuation Fees= RM 500
Repair = RM10,000

Total cost involved: RM28,200. (Excluding cukai taksiran and other stuff)
Market Value of the place: About RM120,000

Or, which you rather purchase a newly built condo with a price of RM200k?
Which gonna costs you about RM20k (maybe)?

Which one you gonna choose?

Of course, there are so many other factors like location wise, etc..etc...Just assumed that these 2 properties are located in a hot spot and easily tenanted!!

Tuesday, March 9, 2010

What the..............

Ladies & Gentlemen,

Tonight, for the first time in my life that I'm gonna admit that I'm close to become an obese!!! Denggg!!! For some strange reason, I step on the weight scale and I couldn't believe my eyes. My weight is 85.5kg!!! And I'm only errrr.....5'7''.

That's it!!!

This has got to change. I have to admit that for the last couple of months, maybe years, I've not done enough exercises. I've been eating everything (except porks laahh!!) like there's no tomorrow.

I don't feel healthy. I need to be and feel healthy. I need to be fit. I don't even play golf nowadays!! Darn it!!!

This has got to stop!! From tomorrow onwards, I'm gonna start exercising by walking 20 minutes before I go to work. I'm gonna eat the correct foods, bla bla bla.....Nahhh....I will just walk for a start tomorrow!!!!

Anyhoos, today at 11.55pm 9th March 2010, I pledge to be a healthier guy!! 1kg at a time....

Wooohooooooooooo

Sunday, March 7, 2010

another big week ahead

yeap...as the title goes, it's gonna be another big week for me.....why?...

well...I'm thinking of taking out my Account II in my EPF to reduce one of my properties loan balance. Perhaps, if all goes well...I might refinance it. Again...if all goes well....if my application for the refinancing goes thru, I could use the money to 'expand' my investments.....hehehe...

let's see how it goes....

Monday, March 1, 2010

od'd again..n again....

yeahh....finally....after days of procastinating...i finally managed to drag myself to the ever-reliable bank to increase my OD facility....as usual, gotta fill in all those blanks in the papers, handed them my 3 months salary slip and this time, I'd make sure that they didn't screw up like the last time.

If I can remember correctly, the last time, it took them 3 months to disburse the money. First, they say that OD using ASB has been stopped...or tak terima or something to that extent....then, wrong 'wording' letter offer....believe me...all that can go wrong...went wrong that time...no wonder it took them 3 months...talking about the No 1 bank in the country ehh...Well, i choose them as they're only a few steps away from my office as I refuse to drive to bangsar Telawi area due to the daily traffic madness....heheh...

Perhaps, when my OD reaches 200k, I'll go somewhere else....RHB maybe...hahaha....

Alright then...now...that's done and dusted, let's wait and see how long it would take this time.....

He talks to rainbows.....


Last night, after coming home from work. I felt a wee bit tired. Maybe for the last couple of days, I've been sleeping rather late. Perhaps, about 4-5 hours of sleep. I'm a person that needs 8 hours of sleep everyday. Otherwise, I'll go apeshit!!! Hahahaha.

Anyhoos, after dinner as I lay on my comfortable bed, something struck my mind. I don't know what it is but something tells me that I'm not doing enough, in terms of my life, achievements and so forth. Maybe my mind is playing tricks on me. For instance, it tells me that dude, you need to buy more properties man!!...It is now March and you've done nothing....As my mind slips away, another voice keeps on telling me...you know, you could've done better doing something else....You have your investments in place and you need to think of something else....by the way, you are now overweight...do something about it....!!

Another example happened earlier today in the LRT. As I was looking through the window with the wonderful view of KL city...another voice popped in my head...it said something like this...Dude...Do you wanna stick to where you are now for the next 10 years? Of course not egget!!!

I guess, some of the questions that were ask, some of them are important questions and questions that I found it hard to answer. Perhaps, it is time to re-allign my targets and aims. Well, it is not as if that I don't have an aim but some things has just gotta wait. Waiting process is not good. I know my self and I can't stand waiting. Maybe that's the problem with some of us. When we want something, we want immediate result. Maybe, we know what we want but we are not prepared physically, mentally & financially to get what we want. Or maybe, we ask so many questions and gives too many excuses. Too many maybes ehhh.........

Errr....have I gone ''coockoo''? Am I talking to myself? Nahhhh...it's just that my ''Mr Positive'' in my brain starts talking and asks me to buck-up and get serious....Perhaps, it is also time for me to take out that piece of paper and start scribbling my plans for the next 10-20 years...Somebody asks me an interesting question about that actually. My answer is to play golf everyday without worry about anything especially in terms of work and financial....Can I achieve that? I know some people who has done it but what people see is always the end products. They don't always see the 'process' in getting things done....Sometimes, people wish they could have a nice life, big houses, nice cars, holidays and so forth. Hence, a wish will remain as it is, a WISH if we do not do anything about it....

So, it is always important to have an aim. It starts with an aim. Once u have it, your brain will start working and asks questions how do you get there, where you wanna go, etc....then comes the most important part...which is...ACTUALLY doing it. I remember an incident a couple of years ago. AFter my failure in getting my professional qualification, I kept on blaming myself and I felt sick inside. There I was, with a wonderful opportunity of working abroad and having a professional qualification, I ended coming home. Of course, I regretted it but it thought me about something pricelss. After a few years, I decided, to take up my MBA. And guess what, I passed with no repeat papers. During those 2 gruelling years, with marriage and and a kid, I manage to do it. How was that possible? I kept on telling myself that the end result doesn't matter and I just have to do it. I guess, what I'm trying to say here is, you won't get anywhere if you dwell on your past. But what matters is, just go ahead and do what needs to be done.

Sometimes, I just hate the word plan as a plan will remain a plan unless I do something about it. I now learnt that while it is important to have a plan, I try to break it up into small plans so that I know, at the back of my mind, I will achieve it little by little. Hehehehe....

So here's to life!! Enough of excuses and just gotta do it...

Have a good week ahead....