Be Grounded in the Word of God

A 'friend' whose real intention is to sell Kangen alkaline water system to me, pretended to invite me for a bible study time or sharing time with her which I politely refused. I know her real intention and not so much about spiritual stuffs. She is using God and church to earn $$$ from gullible friends and members. I am already strongly grounded in the word of God that I don't need human approval for friendship. And best of all, I have Leia, my 5 months old Pomeranian puppy to keep me company - my most loyal friend without any ulterior motive!

Interview Tomorrow

I have to wake up at 5:15am tomorrow in order to leave the place by 6:00am to catch a flight with boarding time at 7:35am to Kuala Lumpur. My partner has an interview with an architect and on Saturday, we will head off to Mandarin Oriental Hotel to stay using the last 50% Elite Club Voucher that expires in February 2017. My spouse has already renewed the Elite Club membership for $888 for another year. After checking out, we will head to my small condo in Rhythm Avenue to rest before catching a plane back to Penang in the evening. I just pray for journey mercies and that the interview would be successful.

Never Underestimate the Power of Positivity

The world is full of darkness and the earth is fallen since it was cursed by Adam's fall, eating from the wrong tree and disobeying God. There are wars, pestilences, murders, robbery, conning, thieving, etc. Which is why, man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God. We need the scriptures to stand on solid ground, especially when the hurricane strikes the house, we will not be uprooted. Those who build their castle on sinking sand will be blown away. Therefore, read empowering books and the Bible, especially the New Testament to stay positive in this world full of darkness. We should put on the Armour of God in the spiritual battle against the evil one.

Attended Church Once in a While

I don't intend to attend regularly and be marked since I am considered bad influence to my partner who is giving regularly of RM 1k per week. Personally I think he gives too much, but then again that is his choice. I noticed things are happening whenever I am around and it does not bode well for a big church such as G e o r g e t o w n B a p t i s t I m p a c t. At times I ponder and consider of switching to a Catholic Church nearby like Lady of Sorrows along Macalister Road. After all, dad and two younger sisters are Catholics while mum is Methodist while I am currently a nominal baptist. I am more of 50-50 catholic-protestant since in my younger days before going to Singapore to study, I had attended Catechism classes for almost half a year.

Christmas Buffet Dinner at Quayside

Last night, I went for Christmas buffet dinner at the playground of Quayside Condo where tents were erected and tables with red and green table cloth were placed. There was Christmas turkey with mixed vegetables and gravy, chocolate log cake, fish fillet, nestum prawns, thick mushroom soup, desserts, fruits and ice-cream besides drinks, etc. to feed everyone with surplus for taking back home. Santa Claus was there to dish out red and green candy sticks and presents for the children. We were entertained for 2 hours with lively music of line dancing, rock and roll, Christmas carols, and the like. At 10pm sharp, the lucky draws were announced with 15 draws for the taking. The 4 of us has our numbers called out except they were all 10 units more. Apparently a family with the serial numbers must have been very lucky to get something each.

Merry Christmas 2016!

Christmas is drawing near and now it is the month of December - the time where you get your bonus and school holidays are here and you get more time to spend with your kids. Everywhere I go, it seems to be crowded and packed with cars. I would like to wish all my readers here a Very Merry Christmas in 2016 that is drawing to a close. It is time for season's greetings and merry-making. It is also a time to give and to receive. Let us celebrate Jesus' birth on 25th December who came as a Saviour to mankind and defeated the evil one, once and for all. The resurrection power on the cross gave us eternity in heaven when we are called to be with our Maker.

Christmas is less than a Month Away

It's that time of the year again where people go shopping, travel, take a short break with their families and just enjoy Christmas. I plan to travel but haven't decided yet within Malaysia. It is the time you get your bonuses to save up for retirement or just splurge a bit to pamper yourself like getting a new bag, go for that spa or facial massage, etc. At this time also, I normally get a Christmas gift from my youngest sister like a bottle of perfume or something. She is thoughtful and will spend buying and wrapping up Christmas gifts for her family and church friends. I don't follow this tradition but rather spend the time with my partner perhaps in Genting Highlands or go for a cruise to the high seas.

Reading Herald Magazines have Uplifted Me

My dad passed me several copies of the weekly Herald magazines, a publication by the Catholic Churches in Malaysia. It was edifying and uplifting for my weary soul, considering what had happened by attending my local baptist church. I like writings by Anil Netto on the second page of Herald. It is written in 3 languages - namely English, Bahasa and Mandarin. They are more organised compared to my baptist church who hardly or never produce any magazines but play politics like a spoilt child when they don't get their weekly RM 1k tithes from my partner because of non-attendance due to business or other reasons. At the moment, I am contributing RM 50 per month for a Catholic church building fund, passed through my dad while my partner contributes RM 200 monthly.

Such Audacity!

We did not go to church about 4 times and missed the wedding of one of the elders' son. So, in effect, the church did not get RM4k as tithes from my spouse who is far too generous for his own good to the point of politicking. How dare, they condemn people with mental illness instead of praying and giving edifying sermons. Now, they are quick to condemn like the Old Messianic Testament filled with Law and punishments. I had been contemplating for a long time to change to a Catholic church where the message is universal and similar around the world. And not specifically targeting some members who they think is a nuisance.

Skipped Church

I haven't been to church for the last 6 months due to pressures from the authorities to 'force' you to join small groups and singling you out for not wearing a name tag while others get off scot free. Just because my spouse is giving RM 1k per week, they think, they can lord over me for not giving so much or think that I am bad influence to his generosity. Hello, I was the first person to ask my spouse to give in the first place for some wisdom from God in his finances. But little do I know that he was a bankrupt but currently dishing out tithes like a multi-millionaire. All thanks to my innocence and lack of information!

Uber CPM

There is a new publishing company like Google Adsense and is a good alternative with many adverts on its banners placed at your sites. To join this network, click on http://ubercpm.com/index.php?rp=5377 where you can join immediately but never click on your own ads. It is good to leverage on your various blogs via this network should you be banned permanently from Adsense. I don't know how good the conversion rates are but you can withdraw via Paypal when you hit USD 10, unlike USD 100 for Adsense. Though it is lower income, but nevertheless, something is better than nothing at all, don't you agree? Don't be greedy and don't cheat. Honesty is the best policy!

Look for Job Online - MauKerja.my and RiceBowl.my

There are 2 websites that you can look for jobs online: They are maukerja.my and ricebowl.my. Maukerja.my is catered more to the English speaking and Malay speaking job seekers, while RiceBowl.my is more for Mandarin speaking community. They offer jobs in Paparich, SakaeSushi plus many other companies that seek staffs without degree at the minimum. Who knows, in my retirement years, I might just seek out such jobs that do not require using your brains like hard coding and the like. But at the moment, I am quite satisfied with my current job in a home office with EPF and SOCSO benefits.

By the way, uncle Ernie David's funeral wake was yesterday and the mass will be held at Cathedral of the Holy Spirit. He's Nicol David's uncle. He passed on at the ripe old age of 82.

We have been together for 13 years

Even though we are not married, we have been a couple for 13 long years! It is a win-win partnership as we work together as a team in a small company travelling together by car and by plane shuttling back and forth between Penang and KL for business. Most of the ideas come from discussing in the car while he drives as he leads the company from strength to strength and victory to victory. We enjoy doing things together as a couple and as business partners. We also give each other room for personal space and do our own things to recharge and rejuvenate. I have accepted him as he is just as he has accepted me as I am. Two heads are better than one as they say. He loves to watch wrestling or WWE, NXT while I love to read books in my room and sometimes join him in watching Astro.

Dinner at Thai Food Cafe

A few doors away from Tan Jetty, is a popular Thai Food cafe hidden along a small road. Above is the ambience of the place where is it usually packed with diners, but don't worry, there will always be an empty table or two for the taking.

This is the chicken 'lorbak' or spring rolls with cut vegetables and chicken inside which were deep-fried to taste. The outer layer covering the ingredients was crispy.

Above is Chinese kale stir fried with oyster sauce and minced garlic. This is one of my favourite dishes.

These are the remnants of white tomyam soup. If you order the red tomyam soup, it is spicy with red oil floating on top which is the usual tomyam in any Thai restaurant. White tomyam does not have the red oil and you could request for less spiciness if they put less bird's eye green chilly.

The liquid is finished and you can see that they put lots of herbs and minced garlic with lemongrass and lemon leaves, etc. It is one of the signature dish not to be missed.

Here is fried meehoon with prawns and shallots (fried onions). The dishes are enough for 2 persons, where I dined last night with my partner. Thai food is popular amongst the locals for its unique spiciness and ingredients like lemongrass that is ubiquitous of the food.

If you come out from the small road into the main one and a few doors away is Tan Jetty, where you can find another gem; a different Thai food café with ‘kelong’ and a good seaview. But parking is limited to about 5 cars.

Read the book of Proverbs

I woke up at 4am this morning and switched on the lamp to read the Bible. There are 31 chapters of the book of Proverbs, 1 chapter for each day! It contains lots of pearls of wisdom and right believing which will lead to right living. I have always read Proverbs for a long time for its timeless wisdom that spans through the centuries and it is God-breathed word from heaven. For instance, it tells you to follow the habits of the ant, storing up food in summer for winter and a lazy hands will lead to poverty. Another, too much sleep also leads to poverty. And don't make companions of prostitutes, or you will squander away your wealth. It has short stories that we can easily relate to and identify to our daily lives. This is so that our lives will be smooth sailing guided by the Holy Spirit.

Skipped Church Today to Write

Today, I skipped church service and decided to write and do charity at the same time in the comfort of home. I found a blogging or rather writing opportunity online and had already written 9 articles for USD 5 per article of 250 words minimum and 3 photos. For charity, I will donate USD 1 per article to any establishment of my choice like Doctors without Borders, National Kidney Foundation, orphanages and other charities. My second sister in UK just ran 5km to raise funds for cancer research by getting herself muddy, having to climb ropes and slide down an inflated giant slide for the fun of it while doing some charitable work. She also used Facebook to raise the cancer research funds and managed to collect Great Britain Pounds of 300 together with her course mates.

Got paid by Eastasy

I have written 5 articles for Eastasy already and got paid by them. I have chosen 20% of the post of USD 5 to be donated to various charities like National Kidney Foundation, Doctors without Borders, and orphanages. It is doing a blogging social responsibility for a win-win basis for both writers and charities. You get paid while donating a portion of your earnings to the needy. You can write as and when you like and there must be a minimum of 150 words with 3 photos that do not infringe on the copy right. Sometimes, I submit 4 photos with at least 200 words for my article. It is based on food and drink, culture, travel, and more in Asian countries. Eastasy started in Singapore to serve the readers looking for traveling tips and the needy.

Went for Star Walk

Last Sunday, I attended Star Walk 2015 with my partner for a 7-km walk around the heritage area in Georgetown. It started at 7:00am with 20,000 participants plus lucky draw provided you complete the walk to qualify for a number. There were several sponsors for this mega event and free drinks dished out to the thirty walkers by 100 Plus, and other drinks sponsors. During Star Walk, I also signed up for UOB Credit card and got a free umbrella and Hello Kitty lunch box as sign up gifts. As it was held in Penang Times Square, it was very convenient for me and my partner to just take the lift upstairs for a much deserved bath and change of new clothes. This was the second time I participated since last year and we intend to walk every years for better health and mobility. It will also strengthen the bones and the muscles.

We also took a break in E & O hotel and had a short drink in a nearby coffee shop just before the finishing line. A couple even brought their pet Shitzu along in a stroller during the walk. Though the free gifts are less this year as compared to last year, nevertheless, it will not deter us from participating in future walks.

Skipped Church Yesterday

I skipped church yesterday as I was just not in the mood to attend a service that condemns the congregation. The pastor thinks he has the upper hand to belittle people who pay offerings and tithes to listen to messages on law instead of grace. I don't mind the other pastors, but this particular pastor happens to preach yesterday and I decided to skipped his service. It is more relaxing to sleep at home under my silk comforter. But my partner, who is a newly converted Christian, was very gungho and will try to attend every service and dishing out a thousand each service. He gave away so much, leaving next to nothing for himself.

Mother's Day?

Yesterday, I celebrated monster's mother's day. I felt like I just invited a bunch of hungry ghosts who won't hesitate to create a soap opera until the head of chef, a Caucasian, came out to see what the brouhaha is all about. I personally gave $50 ang pow and my partner gave $100 ang pow plus 2 stalks of carnations tinted with purple and white petals. I also gave this fella a thick felt green bag with a bottle of mineral water, a thumb drive and a leaflet that I got it free from Ecoworld. So far, Ecoworld has been having road shows week after week with different sets of gifts, from tea bags to notepad with a nice felt pen and finally a thumb drive per bag. The colour of the bag also changes from black to forrest green and it was pretty.