....and the good, the bad, and the ugly side of KL

Kuala Lumpur is a lovely place.

My first trip there was a reward from mum and dad, for doing well in my 1971 MCE (today's SPM, the high school examinations). The 12 hour over-night train from Butterworth reached KL in the wee hours of the morning with Cheekiat and younger sis Siewpoh tagging along. We stayed at Cheecheng's place at Jalan Alor, right in the midst of the city!

It was lovely. BB Park (an amusement park, like Penang's New World Park with cabaret joints, strip-tease acts, joget & rongeng clubs and open-air theatres) was just across the road. Perfect! ...and Cheekiat quickly gave me a nudge.

Taxis were everywhere!...amazing, and they are very efficient; picking you up from anywhere you want to step in! Fares were very reasonable, every cabbie used the meter to charge. I had an enjoyable time with my siblings.

But KL has changed, and I have always thought that KL is now a lovelier place, for since that trip I have been there countless times on business trips in my career spanning 37 years. Each time, however, there were kind customers who will pick-me up and drive me around to various destinations.

The traffic situation now is quite another issue - so I usually have my meetings and visits arranged at places where I do not have to lose time, going through all those unproductive hassles with the traffic jams. 

The average man-in-the-street either gets his friends or relatives to help him move around when in KL, or if he is "brave" enough - drive into the city for some "adventure of being lost on the roads of KL". There are already many, many woeful experiences related - just too many from visitors of other states. So, since generally many are not ready for that, they choose to get into KL by air or coach. Then what happens?

This is what happened on my recent trip to KL when I had to move around by myself. The good, the bad and the ugly happenings.

I was at the mercy of the taxi-drivers...........

Not all, but a big majority of the taxi drivers. The taxi drivers who will fleece and squeeze as much as possible from their customers, with their "metered taxi" including a new catch, a merry go round in the city. What a disgraceful way to earn a living - a way that tarnishes not the name of Malaysia, but the image of the city of Kuala Lumpur and the taxi drivers of KL in particular.

....and if you decide to move around using the rail (not a "real" alternative, really), you have to sweat, I mean really sweat it out at ticket dispensers with a lot of frustrations and in the heat of a number of badly insulated and non-airconditioned ticketing stations.

Now you are at the ticket dispensers mercy! Nobody is going to help you except those other waiting in line, behind you, for their tickets.

The staff at the station consider this a normal process. If the machines are slow, you may as well queue in the long line at the manual ticketing booth. How wrong was I to understand that machines will replace manpower in dispensing jobs. This concept obviously doesn't work here!

Since most of the machines are not seen to be working, and even those opened for business cannot efficiently dispense your ticket on first touch (they are touch-screen technology, mind you) after you have put in the ringgits and sens for the ticket, many passengers buying tickets have to "touch", then "press", then "press harder" umpteen times only to curse and hit the machine. And yes, I mean hit as in "HIT!" Maybe then will a few others in line behind you come to help you "get your ticket out" .....even when they know they will encounter the same difficulty. Strange people huh, or was I a stranger in a strange land?

Sometimes you may get to observe a few ticket buyers helping a frustrated ticket buyer in front of them. Why? Simply because if you don't help, he is not budging from the machine and you cannot get your ticket. ....and after all, only two ticketing machines are working out of the dozen or more available! This is good stuff for you-tube!

....so when you finally decide to walk around when you reach your destination in the city, you have to swerve (not "surf") through grossly uneven pavements populated with rubbish, broken pavement tiles and holes, yes, holes!

If one is elderly, this is one of the better areas to fall and injure himself at least. I reiterate, at least. Fall at the wrong place, hitting the right place of the body may land any elderly maimed or worse!

Enough said about the rail and the pavements. I just hope that with all the mega projects going on in KL, there won't be a mega hole on the roads to take in a taxi like this...........

Taxi drivers tried to fleece me, taking me near to my destination only to steer away saying there is a serious accident ahead. Their modus operandi is to bring you back close to your original point of embarkation, and start the journey all over again saying the road ahead to your destination is now clear.

Twice this happened. Twice I had to forcibly disembark myself in the middle of the road after merry-go-rounds of 30 minutes. Twice I make them take a consolation five ringgit for wasting my time. Twice I could have been dead, but I took a calculated the risk because I know con-men do not kill, they only want to cheat you of your money, and laugh at you behind your back. I will never be the easy meat, or the free lunch they think they have. By now, KL's image is badly formed in my mind.

Kuala Lumpur is not a lovely place anymore.

But once I met this man, this kind and helpful man in Mohamad Safee Bin Adin, I changed my mind. Kuala Lumpur is a lovely place after all. Not only did he gave me the directions courteously after I was forcibly "disembarked" from a taxi, he happened to notice me after 20 minutes later still walking in the wrong direction, and waiting to cross the road to "re-calculate" as a Garmin would do. He pulled over to my side and invited me into his car.

Mohamad Safee was on baby-sitting chores. With his two little lovely children in the backseat, he was driving them around the city "makan angin". His wife is away attending a course out-station, and he has to be on a few days annual leave to take care of their children. He checked the destination again with me, and promptly drove me to my destination, in barely less than 8 minutes!

Mohamad Safee, a sous chef with Shangri-la KL, is the kind of person who make your day. All the negativity about the transport system in Kuala Lumpur formed by actual experiences were quickly set aside by this wonderful and absolutely delightful experience with a man who will not even accept a simple gift from me in return for his kindness. His employer must be absolutely delighted to have an employee who go beyond his call of duty in the hospitality business they excel in.

I am proud of him as an honest and helpful fellow country man. The whole country should be too, and I look forward to meeting him again. Hopefully, not in the middle of the road. This time, it will be on me to be hospitable.

Mohamad Safee, and may you continue your good deeds and be blessed with an abundance of good luck, good health and great prosperity!

You are the good side of KL that makes it a great city. Everybody just wanna meet more of your type in Malaysia! Syabas!

....and the truth about talent

This is really some very serious stuff to talk about this week. The results of season 9, American Idol spoke the truth about talent competitions.

....and talking about talent, I may think I have lots of it. But the truth is, what I think is not what everybody else thinks. But dad was such an inspiration about what I think I have, a good "right-side" brain. I draw, paint, write some poems and songs, a big love for education, and I have too many hobbies, in fact too many for one guy to handle!

I remember taking part in a talent show with my neighbourhood chum Keechoo. We did a lot of practices and went in as a duo in an "unplugged" act, playing the guitars and singing "Something" to try pass the preliminary round at Radio Malaysia Penang in 1971 (I was then 17)

The results?...kekeke...we were knocked out. LOL!

But it was a good try and we trodded out wee bit depressed, because we thought we were better than many others who made it!

On reaching home dad commented, "It's not only talent you think you have that counts. It's the other things, even though that was a talent contest. Look at how you dress?...how you react with the results?....how young and inexperienced you are?...the people selecting you out of the race feels that you need more time and you have lots of it!'

How ironical.

"Why didn't you tell us earlier?" ...and a quick, stern answer shot back, "'because I don't want you to be in this business." Period.

Many yearly winners of that talent competition became hugely popular like The Beads

 (who later rename to The Alleycats, and my ping-pong mate at the Penang Youth Centre, Khoo Fooksin - was their keyboardist!), Salamiah Hassan, Sudirman (he was the music icon of Malaysia then - very much like the artist in MJ!) They all had something else I don't, and hmm... I surely missed out.

 ...and looking at what turned out, dad was right. Besides talent, one school of fans need the personality, charisma, a down-to-earth attitude that exudes from the performer to blend with them, together with a 'help-me-make-my-day-and-your-day" appeal.

The other school of fans will be at the other extreme welcoming totally outrageous characters like the Keith Moon of The Who, Jimi Hendrix, Freddie Mercury, Madonna, or the pop world's latest icon, Lady Gaga, and all of them don't even have to compete to gain recognition. They sheer talent, nothing else.

Today I want to see how true those words of my dad worked in the results of the battle between Crystal Bowersox & Lee Dewyse in the American Idol competition.

Crystal Bowersox has been my favourite since the first round, Lee Dewyse was never in my head, a hard contender. He should have just survived at the top 5. But he won the competition, and considering that Crystal blew everyone away and out-did Dewyse in the final! Crystal even made many shed a tear or two as she performed with her mind and soul...

Lee Dewyse?

...to me, he's going out, crackling pitchy lines and he never even rendered a smile when singing a happy song like "Beautiful Day"....but he won.....ridiculously, I would say!

So that went back to what dad said.....and I asked myself what quality, besides talent, did Dewyse have that Crystal don't?

Dewyse has sympathy from the voters, a young paint salesman

looking for a break. He's unattached, good looking and a good voice (that's the only natural "talent" he has, his other status has nothing to do with talent).

 

Crystal has great talents built up over the years, plays many different musical instruments, fantastic vocals, writes her own songs, worked very hard from a tender age with music as a performer..even busking for some buck$..

She's got all it made when it comes to talent, but she's a mother (that status has nothing to do with talent, but the americans who voted for her to be second best must have felt that she is attached already, a mother of a mysterious someone else's son, her being a bit lofty when she's actually too seasoned and experienced as a performer.)

Fans want their idol to be theirs, not already attached to someone else. You can ask Andy Lau. He kept his marriage a secret for years just not to disappoint his fans, or lose them when they start committing suicides if they know he's already married!

So in this limited choice selection, unattached Dewyse with the sympathy garnered since the top 5 got the votes over Crystal - someone portrayed over and over and over again as a single mum until it drummed into the heads of the voters that they should be voting for an "ideal" idol to worship, not a committed "mama".

I feel that she has been discriminated against as a single mother by the Americans who voted, and Dewyse emerged champion because the sympathetic voters thought they are kind people by giving him the break he's aiming for. They forgot it is a talent show!

Strangely, the voters never gave serious thoughts as to Crystal needing a big break too! I rooted all the way for Crystal (even though I'm not eligible to vote), and I'll continue to root for her when her album's out. Personally, I believe Crystal will do much better in post-American Idol than Lee Dewyse. so let's see what happens when it comes to talent, when it stands alone.

...and having said that, my dad was quite right in his comments about me & Keechoo in that talent competition, even though it was just the first round.

....and Simon Cowell seems to disagree with the results too! He wants no part of it. He wanted a kiss on the lips, but now he's just getting the kiss on his cheek. So Simon is saying bye-bye gracefully. Such kind of voting bias has been slowly but surely, pulling the popularity of the show down and simple Simon knows just when to stop. Kudos, Simon!

It's not just the talent you think you have, it depends on the other things you don't have, and what the others perceive as unable to get from you. In this case, Crystal has been portrayed as being more committed to her family, than will be to her fans.

Even the nick-name churned out by the press for her, "Mamasox", speaks for itself. It killed "mama", but it won't be long before Mamasox sock-it-to-them!

So, my dad was right. He may have been gone for 35 years, but he was so dead right!

Those were my thoughts on the results. Share yours!

....and now, another journey.

What journey?

Well, I have been away and I was too busy to write more blogs for the past 7 days.

I would like to thank you for logging in to this blogspot, and some of you followed this blog almost "religiously"!

Some of you logged in a few times, some visited a number of pages at one entry, like you just wanna read more. ....and you are from good old Penang, Ipoh, KL, Singapore,  Hong Kong,

Istanbuland yes, Fort Lauderdale in the US!

Thank you guys. If reading my blog makes you happy, I'm absolutely delighted. Please comment at the end of this blog or write to me (just click on my facebook badge on the right side of this page) so that I can make it even better when I return.

....when I return?... from where?

OK, I've started on another journey in a quest for more knowledge and to create new knowledge for educational & practical use. I'm now working out my proposal to the University in my first stage towards a PhD. ....a journey of a thousand mile begins with a first step.

It's gonna be a long 4 year journey, tough and mentally challenging. But I'm enthusiastic and I'll fill the journey with my type of fun and enjoyment. Wish me well, I don't want to be sent out of class like when I was in Primary 3.

In between the 4 years I have many researches and personal interests

to pursue, and I'll definitely make full use of my time - to put the blog up too, albeit in not such a break-neck pace.

This is my 24th blog in 46 days and I thank you once again, you're my inspiration. I wish you well, and just keep logging in before each weekend is about to start. In case you missed my earlier blogs, just go to "older posts" and happy reading...be tickled.

....and thanks! gosh, we still have Fridays! (((don't we?)))

...and where were you May 13 ?

For me, today is a sad day in Malaysian history - the anniversary of the racial riots that rocked the nation in 1969.

I have nothing much to say about it except that it was one of the most traumatic experience any Malaysian could have gone through.

I remember waking up on May 13 1969 ready to go to school, but I can't. I'm not allowed to - all schools have been closed!...and hip, hip hurray!

...the radio began playing music non-stop. And so there it was, our Phillips radio doing the stuff it's supposed to do - broadcast really good music non-stop. Really nice.

Jay & The Americans came on with "This Magic Moment"...what an irony, and then "Baby, Make It Soon" by The Marmalade. But reality sank in as the announcements came...announcing the curfew hours. Gosh!..we're on a round-the-clock curfew!

A curfew being in place, and a State of Emergency declared (heck, I don't even knew what that meant then) - riot police and the army in full gear, equipment and combat vehicles were just outside our front door, ...as I peeped through tiny holes in our run-down wooden windows.

Next to us is the Kampung Mesjid Jamek in Acheen Street....and how I dread my friends and classmates who live there will get into trouble. Or my getting into trouble ending up possibly badly injured or dead.... that would leave them one mate less for our kite-flying, top-spinning or sling-shooting sessions.

Even though I was already 13, I had always thought that such kind of widespread and open violence only happen on the silver screen - to the Roman Empire in days of yore!

It was, however, very fortunate for us - the malays, chinese and indians in our neighbourhood to go through that blotched period in history peacefully without any serious or untoward incident worth mentioning. The Penang Heritage Trail was kinda peaceful, compared to the news and "rumours" we get about what's happening at other places.

We were already the 1-Malaysia then,

everyone was worried about each other. In fact, my chums in Aziz, Ahmad, Huan-choo, Thi-Looku, "Botak" Singh, Aru...we were so concerned for the safety of each other. On every break of curfew a few days later, we'd go to the backlane of Aziz's house to find out if everyone's doing OK.

Yes, that was a real bad blotch in Malaysia's history, and I think this was just about the unhappiest time of growing up besides the 1968 Penang Hartal, when all businesses closed intentionally to protest against the devaluation of the currency. Man, at that time, I couldn't even get my regular Wrigley's Chewing Gum! .....I didn't even know what currency devaluation meant!

We have learned our lesson well, and I have learned what caused it - although there are many versions of why and how it happened. Most importantly we should not let our emotions and actions be made use of by unscrupulous, vile and WIIFM (what's-in-it-for-me) people in politics.

They have 2 faces sometimes 3, and they like and unlike, friend and unfriend, quit and unquit, and then quit and unquit again, more than 30 years before we're doing it on social networking sites,  .....only that they have become better. Not all, but the ones not doing it must be angels. But angels are not people in politics.

Keep the history books open with historical facts. This will prevent us from repeating bad history.