How Not to Start the Day, Part II

My project manager entered the office, and by way of greeting, recalled the gory details of an accident site she passed by this morning (probably the one I heard on the radio, the one near Bandar Utama).

"It was so terrible," she went. "The body was pinned under the lorry, there was blood everywhere... the victim's organs were scattered all over..."

Good morning to you, too.

"...there was blood and organs on the floor, and the policeman had to use newspapers to scoop it all up and take it away..."

Forget what I said earlier. Skip breakfast if you want to.

How Not to Start the Day, Part I

One 21 June, the Minister in the PM’s Department blew his top in Parliament in such a way that defies belief.

The MPs were debating the Malaysian Medical Council's decision to no longer recognise medical degrees issued by Ukraine's Crimea State Medical University. The decision unfortunately affected a number of Indian students. The discussion got somewhat heated, and said Minister, Datuk Seri Mohamed Nazri bin Abdul Aziz, added fuel to the fire with outbursts (which I translated) such as:

"Yes, sit, sit, sit, sit, racist, this Ipoh Barat (refers to M Kula Segaran, DAP and MP of West Ipoh) is racist, sit, sit."

"Sit, racism, racism, racism, this is racism, sit, enough."

"Bloody racist, racist, racist, racist..."

The MP being harangued spoke up, only to be told by Nazri, "Sit, racism, you are racist, racist, you are racist, you have got no place in this country. Malaysia doesn't want racists, you are racist."

The drama starts at the end of page 127 of this document. I'm surprised this was actually on public record.

And that is why, you should never, ever skip breakfast.

Ah, Cats

Interesting creatures, cats. Carefree, cuddly, nice to have around, they're a favourite choice for people who want a low-maintenance animal companion. There's a reason why they're so low-maintenance.

Cats are built to kill. Agile and nimble, with sharp retractable claws, silent footsteps, quick reflexes and excellent night vision, they are the ninjas of the animal kingdom. (In an English suburb, domesticated house cats that have been allowed to roam freely at night actually threatened the local bird and rodent population.)

There have been reports of pet cats "sharing" their kills with their owners. If it's happened to you, it's no compliment. Cats are predators, and hunting skills mean a lot to them. It's their way of saying, "Hey, here's my catch of the night, you bald useless ape of a den-mate. When are you going to start pulling your weight?"

Because of their self-sufficiency and excellent survival skills, cats are solitary by nature (who needs humans, anyway?) - unlike dogs, who are much better at schmoozing.

So action, right? It has every right to be - it's an efficient and effective hunter. (Why do you think Jessica Alba's Dark Angel was spliced with cat genes?)

When you meet a sweet, mewling, cuddly furball of a kitten however, your heart melts and you'll forget all that I've just told you.

Ah, cats. Eat your hearts out, fellow humans.

A New Beginning...?

"Hello World!"

My, that was so cliché... (if you're a programmer, chances are you'll get it).

And that's that. Now leave me alone while I fool around with this new toy of mine.