...inner chirps of a stranded bird with broken wings...

Sadness

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There's been a huge gap between the last entry and this one, my very sincere apology! I must admit that Its hard to keep your promise but easy to break it.

What I have learnt from this is never to make promises when you are not sure that you can hold on to it.

I thought if I left my job, things would turn around for me, but.....the reality is, it took turn for the worst.

I am battling serious sleeping problem and because of that my life is in the mess, coming apart into pieces.

That's why by travelling I find that those pieces are coming back together; patching up themselves!

Deep down there I feel lonely! I have been working on getting something to fill the lacuna but I haven't found it yet.

With no job the situation is getting bad but I assure myself that sooner or later I will land back on my foot.

This is supposed to be an update for my last trip to Jakarta, I have decided to postpone till the next one.

Thanks guys for your support!

Unclear Road Ahead

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Despite the obstacles that come in the way, my faith remains that everything will be back on course sooner or later.

All I need is a tad of time on my own.

Today marks the second week right after I tendered my resignation with the company, and never to the slightest I regret of it.

What lies ahead is still unclear but at this point of time I am willing to take whatever chances there are and sort of go with the flow.

Nobody is pleasant with the decision I took, being called stupid is making myself stronger. Just what I need to go on with my life.

As the saying goes, time flies fast! I am picking up my pace! 

Comes with me now is a great responsibility to look after the family as at the end of this month my big brother is getting married.

Being the second and perhaps the only man in the house the job is being handed over to me to take care of my family.

And of course I am more than thrill knowing that I be travelling with one of my buddies.

Catch with you guys later!

Jakarta

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Lack of sleep either the night or day before is one thing I hate dealing with. As when you wake up it pushes you way off the limit into a deep ravine of mood swing.

I am in the middle of recovering from pains of the past; adjusting my body clock and sleep pattern are two important tasks I am up to for now.

Getting rid of the pasts is like releasing a balloon seen as the symbol of pains and tears, by letting go of it, your pains are flying off along.

The truth is, it has not been that easy.

This idea came about out of nowhere but in a week times I be off to Jakarta for a few days mainly to chill.

After Perhentian and Pangkor, I have this one crazy vision with a budget of just 1000 MYR from the leftover of the last trip I will fly to Jakarta with someone.

I know for the fact that now is never the best time to visit Jakarta given from my research that during the month of December till June are the wettest season of the year in Indonesia and KL is no an exception.

Nothing stops me!

Your brain needs food!

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I neither write to impress nor to gain more followers, my blog is the sphere which I can claim all mine.

I did say this before, but I am gonna do it again just so that we are clear!

You see the joy and sober.

This is the pot in which I spit, fart, poop in.

A journal where I chronicle my life so does the journeys I start off.

Where I draw the past and frame it for the future.

The place where my rants go unnoticed.

The stinks might get weird and unbearable at some point, readers discretion required!

Never once it crosses my mind that I blog for money.


I killed some of the ads on my blog and left only a few I thought that could benefits you all my readers.

Do me just a tad of favor, will you please not to spam my chatbox with those business messages ever again! I am not interested....

Thank you!

Pangkor

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Another journey ended, so did my journey at the company. I just got back from a not so bad holiday with a nephew of mine for the very first time.

It was great! what's more is that we stayed in a rather exclusive resort in Pangkor,

Can you believe that I have never set my foot on the islands all my life. What an experience I must say! But at the same time I was quite unhappy given the location of the resort which is too close with a small airport on the islands.

We had to bear the noise produced by the aircraft's engines when it takes off and comes in to landing.

But one and all, it is yet another vacation to remember.






The resort was way too private that we could not even do the things that people were looking to do there.

My nephew and I rented a bicycle for RM 10 per hour thought that we could explore the islands all by ourselves but later disappointed to find that we were not allowed to go out of the resort's area.

This is what I call a rip-off!

Too bad! What a joykiller!

If it wasn't for the package I bought from a friend that it'd have not been possible.

She sells it cheap from the actual price!

Overall it was not what it cracked up to be, if you are planning on staying without a package, the resort charges you up to RM 300-400 a night in my opinion is not worth a penny!




The toilet was not properly maintained again, this is my main priority whenever I choose a hotel,

The wall including the bathtub were mouldy! You wouldn't even want to step in!

The first room was pretty dusty! On the second day we had a power problem, the electricity in our room kept on tripping.

We had a technician come down to the floor to check what the problem was, apparently the issue was bigger and going to take time to be fixed and the resort offered to change the room where it is farther than the room we were presently staying.




A perfect gateway for me!

More pictures on my instagram!

Follow me!

Me and my book! Always!



Untitled

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With a clear direction comes the determination, I have fully tendered my resignation with the present company!

I am still in mixed feelings as to whether the decision that I have come to is the right one or perhaps the other way around but most often is not.

Was it done in haste?

Pretty much!

I can't bare another second thinking of that!

What's all in my head is trying anything possible to get out of there sooner!

But so long as I have done it, that be good enough for me!

Everyone at the office be it from my own team leader up to the manager was baffled!

They didn't see the signs coming that I would be leaving in such short notice not to the slightest.

When I was pulled in to a meeting, I decided not to break the truth and in fact I just kept the precious little gem all to myself.

I am sick and tired of getting stuck in the similar situation over again. What's wrong with you people?

Anyway,
It will likely take up a great deal of time till I get back to normal life fully, some adjustment is required here for my body clock to be back to the way it was once.

In the meantime, where shall I go next for my holiday?

I really wanna you guys to check out this amazing journey! I have been following this fella for awhile now!

His journey seems to be endless with spectacular stories in each step of his way.

The video is somehow blocked by BMW and can only be accessed by an invitation link!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QDlzTAJ5mvw

In quest to find the answers to his starving inner voices.

He took a sudden turn that in many ways would not turn up the way he expected.

But he succeeded!

In his first journey crossing Asia from China with his little bicycle was just amazing beyond words in which has been neatly documented on his blog.

He left his career and a normal life behind not to mention his own family and wife to be a nomad, cycling around on his bicycle in search of the signs of THE ALMIGHTY!

He is one of my friends on Facebook!

I am inspired! Truly!

He has been nominated and shortlisted for

BMW Shorties 2013 Top 10 Finalists

CAST YOUR VOTE HERE!


more about him can be found here!
www.malaysiannomad.com

zahariz.wordpress.com


Calvin and Hobbes

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I grew up with these funny yet amazing characters, an adventure of a young boy accompanied by an imaginary tiger of his that never failed to put even the slightest smile on my face to this day.


Its never just a comic strip, it is story of a little boy with full of life and has a knack for everything.

He is smart!


Who'd have thought a young boy could live with an imaginary tiger he creates on his own. This has been sensational!


In each strip, it is loaded with positive vibes, and I feel sometime that I wish I were the boy, Calvin.


I recently stumble upon this article:



‘Dear Mr. Watterson’ Celebrates the Glory of Calvin and Hobbes on Film


A new documentary, ‘Dear Mr. Watterson,’ explores the undimmed greatness of the long-gone comic strip through interviews with fans and other cartoonists.
I’ve never met anyone who didn’t like Calvin and Hobbes and I hope I never do. It would be like meeting someone who didn’t like music, or ice cream. And what would we have to talk about?
Bill Watterson’s Calvin and Hobbes comic strip began its syndicated run in American newspapers in 1985 and continued for a decade. The last strip ran on Sunday, January 1, 1996. In that ten-year span, the strip came as close to perfection as a comic strip can, ranking with Krazy Kat, Pogo, Peanuts, and Doonesbury, with nods (for the drawing) to the various strips of Alex Raymond and Milton Caniff.
Dear Mr. Watterson, Joel Allen Schroeder’s mash note documentary (and his first film), is a lovely tribute to the strip, assembling fans and Watterson’s fellow cartoonists (also fans) to talk about what the strip meant to them. It contains no shocking revelations, no strange (or strained) interpretations. Rather, it’s like an on-screen fan club, only with girls allowed—sorry, Calvin. There’s also no appearance by Watterson, a man who likes his privacy, but hats off to Schroeder for respecting that.
Lest this sound rather tame, let me hasten to say that it’s a surprisingly pleasurable film. It would have been worth it just to see shots of Calvin, his parents, Susie, Miss Wormwood, Rosalyn the baby sitter, and all the products of Calvin’s overactive imagination—the dinosaurs, the space aliens, the malignant snowmen—but listening to Watterson’s fans speak about how much they loved the strip was a reunion of sorts, a sweet reminder of how much fun it was to get up every morning and scan the funnies to see what a boy and his tiger were up to. It’s been almost two decades since we last had that pleasure, and as cartoon historian Charles Solomon says, the demise of this strip left a hole in the comics that’s never been filled. Or ever will be. And Bill Watterson is still missing in action.
“No one has ever used real estate in the funnies to better advantage than Watterson did”
There are surely many cartoonists as funny as Watterson, but I’d argue that almost no one has ever drawn a comic as well as he did. Even in the incredibly shrinking scale of modern newspaper comics (three years ago Calvin and Hobbes wound up on a commemorative postage stamp, and size-wise, that’s a sadly logical leap), Watterson worked miracles, especially on Sunday. He had to fight for half a page but you like to think that he got it not just because his strip was so popular but because someone recognized that he deserved it.
Sunday was when the dinosaurs came out in force, and the intergalactic landscapes zoomed over by Spaceman Spiff, another of Calvin’s several roles. When Calvin was forced to play house with Susie, Watterson drew the entire comic in the style of one of the comic soaps like Mary Worth or Rex Morgan, M.D. Best of all were those occasions when Calvin imagined himself an eagle or a songbird—if Watterson hadn’t gone into cartooning, he could have made his fortune as a naturalist painter.


131115-jones-hobbes2-embed
A scene from the documentary "Dear Mr. Watterson." (Gravitas Ventures)
The draughtsmanship and the inking in those Sunday strips is loose but precise, laid in with an impressionist’s knowledge of just how much drawing is necessary to convey a tree, a brook, or a red wagon barreling down a hillside.  As Berkeley Breathed (Bloom County) says in the film, “The guy’s making it harder for the rest of his. He’s setting this impossible standard.”
Tell me about it. A few years ago I was working on a memoir about my childhood and at one point decided to incorporate drawings in the text. Calvin and Hobbes had always been one of my touchstones when writing, because the strip, while it never gets very dark, never sweetens the idea of childhood. The anarchy, the disconnect between the adult world and the world of the child, the idea that fantasy—especially fantasy manufactured by children themselves and not that borrowed from books, television, or movies—is more real to a child than the lamp posts and sidewalks of his own neighborhood. All these elements thrive in Watterson’s world, and I hoped, if I was lucky, to capture a bit of that.
So for a couple of months I drew some of the events I’d written about, assiduously copying Watterson’s style, particularly his knack for landscapes. I learned a lot, and I’d love to say I put what I learned to some use. But all I learned was just how good Watterson was and the pointlessness of trying to match his inimitable accomplishment—it was of a piece, complete in itself: you couldn’t just break off a chunk or borrow here and there. And my estimation of that accomplishment grew and grew the more I put pen to paper. In the end I abandoned the idea of art in my book, but my appreciation of Watterson and his creation had deepened immeasurably. If you put a gun to my head, I can do a pretty fair imitation of Krazy Kat, but if you ask me to copy Calvin and Hobbes, you might as well just go ahead and shoot me.
I miss that kid and his tiger like I miss being six years old. Dear Mr. Schroeder, thank you for bringing it all back home.

Frustration

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I've come to believe that all my past failure and frustration were actually laying the foundation for the understandings that have created the new level of living I now enjoy.
Tony Robbins 

Don't be so uptight about it, calm down! There will be time in life where it pushes you to the edge and have to make choices. I just made another tough decision that I had no upside about it whatsoever.

It might be another mistake again but I should never let it take the better of me.

I have done a lot of thinking about it and made up my mind, so I sent an email informing about my leaving from the company today straight to my team leader.

You've done it before and you can do it now. See the positive possibilities. Redirect the substantial energy of your frustration and turn it into positive, effective, unstoppable determination.
Ralph Marston 


But the funniest part is that I haven't got any replacement job as of now! Admittedly it is kind of in hurry!

The longer I stay the heavier the burden I feel on my head!

At this point of time I can at least breath a little sigh of relief.

Comes this monday, no one at the office will ever see me again! I am pretty sure that is just what they pray for! 

They can't wait to get rid of me at any possible opportunity.

I guess, this is it! Your wish is coming true!

Expectation is the mother of all frustration.
Antonio Banderas 


In the interim, I will relax at home or probably leave for somewhere.

It sorts of bothers me too, given that I have no plan to fall back on but as I mentioned, moving on is something we do all day.

I am sure I'll get another job.

Wish me the best luck!

Quotes

When times are tough and people are frustrated and angry and hurting and uncertain, the politics of constant conflict may be good, but what is good politics does not necessarily work in the real world. What works in the real world is cooperation.
William J. Clinton 



Stay calm and start reading!


Life is Good!

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I have seen grows everywhere and things change over the time, just last week another friend of mine left for Geneva to pursue his dream of becoming a life changer. I wish him all the best in anything including his future endeavours.


Geneva

But as for me, at this point still in quest for my own future, trapped in uncertainties.

The more I give it a thought, the more I realise that if I stay the same and afraid of facing the challenges, I won't go anywhere.

I am making sure the direction I am heading to is the right one. I am tired of feeling guilty.

And another would perhaps be leaving too.


Amsterdam

On the same floor as where I work now, we have another process just joined in to serve Japan and that is one more important and big market for my company.

I have nothing at all against it but, if you have been up on that floor, you can tell for sure how limited the space is! It is getting crowded and shrunk to the point that I feel it is never a good idea to have them share the same floor.

The pay is super darn good though! That could be another reason why I don't like seeing them up there.

I have done some thinking, I would probably be taking Japanese classes given that as of now unfortunately they do not have anything for German.

Yes, I do speak German!

Could anybody who speak Japanese tell me a little bit of how hard to learn the language in term of grammatical and pronunciation contexts?

Where would be the best place I can go to to study Japanese here in KL? 

Even if it is to the extent of having to fly off to Japan, I'd definitely do!


Japan

I have No Idea!

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I neither blame the present nor my life, but it has reached the point where I feel like I have missed out on so many things.

Life can be unexpected at times or any time at all!? and that sums it up.

To say the truth that no matter what I am never good at making the correct choice or decision in life.

Too often I ended up regretting the choice I made when it was way too late already.

As we speak, I am browsing around the job ads all over the internet to find the new one.

I really think that I can no longer stay here with my present job.

The stress I carry, the situation I am in now is getting out of hand.

This is proven to be true, did you remember in my previous entry that I did mention that I was gonna upload the video of my last trip from Perhentian Islands?

When would that be? Shouldn't it be in this one already?

Consider the time, this shows my true weakness!

My time management is kinda sucks!

End of this month I will flee off to Pangkor!

Stay tuned!

Perhentian Islands

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In the news everywhere, just so much for politics and killings, we have come to a point where it is no longer safe to even take a step out of your home.

There is too much goings on, I fee like nothing's thrilling anymore! I find waking up early morning is nothing like many years back when it was much fun then.

For starter,


This is the hotel or resort where we stayed! The surroundings are overall just stunning, a great combinations of sea and nature which I really look forward to. Getting up back to the room every single day was challenging I've to say! It is hilly! We had to climb up a flight of stairs and what would make it worst if it was raining! Pretty slippery!

Now lets take a peek inside!



Caution! Don't be fooled by the pictures! It was by far the horrible experience I encountered for every hotels I ever stayed in.

Check out the next photos below.



I'd definitely check and find out the toilet first thing as I step in, the first photo shows how badly the toilet is maintained! To my greater disappointment, I was appalled to find that there was not hot shower at all in it! Looks like its been removed out of it.

The porter who took us in to our room said that he would ask someone to come and have the dirt cleaned! 
But! Be my guess!

The ac unit was not working properly either, it made some creaking noise and the fan on the ceiling was hopeless!

No electric kettle people! Can you believe it? So you might as well forget about the instant coffee and noodles at night! To get hot water, you must walk out to a so-called mini bar (it does not look one) outside in which they claimed running 24 hours but apparently not!


Here what they have got on the outside, based on the reviews from the website I book the room some says that the resorts has a private beach but where is it? Is that the one in that photo? I could not even walk what's more swim in it...the bottom is stony!





Up to 98 % of the staff are not local, they could neither speak english nor malay well therefore communications are tough!

We arrived at the beginning of monsoon season, it had been wet and rainy in the morning and stopped later in the afternoon, and continued back at night. 

Cold and chill.

I recorded some video, that I save for later, should go in the next entry.

Wait!

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My journey has evidently come to an end, well its nonetheless been a terrific one despite all the obstacles that get in the way!

A short trip that brings along thousands of sweet memories!

stay tuned for a more complete story.

Wait!
So here goes the story...

Could we start off with something else beside the trip?

If you have ever followed me on twitter or done it by accident, you probably notice that (in the most humble way) I have quite a lot following me there.

One of which in honor is this supermom I'd call her.

She blogs pretty much about anything she sees, feels and experiences in her daily life.

But of all, fashion is sort of the central theme for her gorgeous blog.

What intrigues me mostly is the way she puts life into perspective. Quite extraordinary I must say.

I used to be a write addict but then again given the circumstances, I guess time is all it needs!

I write to share, am a bird with broken wings trying hard to get back on his feet.

In that pain, he chirps randomly, cries for help silently.

One mistake is all it takes that could lead to catrastophic regret.

I'll share the sweet and sour moments of my last trip in the next post.

Must Haves for Men

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This is must haves for men when travelling :

Most people look forward to taking a vacation from the stressful duties of work. Unfortunately for some individuals, the only memories they return home with is how horrible their travel experience was. 

This year, make sure you have the best vacation ever by packing the following must-have travel accessories. They'll ensure a safer, smoother, more comfortable and enjoyable path to the paradise island of your choice. 


Top 10 Travel Accessories
Click here for more
10. Medication 
Traveling long distances can surely put a damper on your trip — especially if you're going from New York to Australia. The last thing you need is to be running to the washroom every five minutes during a 20-hour flight. Get it here.
Click here for more
9. Camera
It's a good idea to carry a light and easy-to-store camera. You never know who you might bump into while traveling, or what spectacular scenery might come in your path. Don't be one of the many people who regret having no memories of their vacation. Get it here.
Click here for more
8. Language Translator With Organizer & Travel Alarm
The next time your Parisian waiter says, "C'était mon plaisir de vous servir espèce de sale canard Américain," wait before you smile and thank him. You never know what you're thanking him for. Pull out your English, Spanish, French, German, Italian, and Portuguese translator, and find out what he actually said to you... you may be surprised.

Translation: "It was my pleasure waiting on a dirty, rotten American duck." Get it here.
Click here for more
7. Iomega Digital Audio Player 
Traveling can sometimes become a little dull, or even noisy. Why not soothe your ears with some of your favorite music while traveling? But traveling light is important, that's why you should leave your tapes and CDs at home, and consider storing digital audio files on 40MB PocketZip discs instead; 2 discs come included and provide 80MB of storage. Get it here.
Click here for more
6. Magazines
When traveling, taking a few of your favorite magazines along for the ride can be a very good idea. Instead of sitting around fiddling your thumbs trying to figure out why the French waiter called you an American Duck, pull out a magazine and enjoy the articles and interesting pictures. You'll be amazed at how quickly time flies. Order them here.




Top 10 Travel Accessories
Click here for more
5. Travel Neck Pillow 
If you think you might enjoy a snooze while traveling, bring along aTravel Neck Pillow. It will ensure a more comfortable ride, while sparing your neighbor the scare of finding your head on her lap.
Click here for more
4. Deluxe Personal Care Kit
The Deluxe Personal Care Kit allows you to take along all the essential items to help keep you well-groomed without having to pack your medicine cabinet. The kit includes the Rapid Groomer™ for nose hair; the Five O'Clock Shaver for quick touchups; cuticle scissors; finger and toenail clippers; twin-blade razor with 3 blades; tweezers; file; lint brush; toothbrush; penknife; comb; and more. Get it here.
Click here for more
3. Luggage
Losing your luggage while traveling will lead to big headaches that can ruin your vacation, especially if you're traveling for one week, and it takes three days for the airline to locate and deliver your belongings. I always recommend a carryon bag for all the essentials including underwear, bathing suit, T-shirts, pants, sweaters, and your personal care kit. Get it here.
Click here for more
2. Undercover Passport/Money Belt 
Each year, thousands of tourists have the delightful pleasure of running into a friendly, welcoming mugger. If you want to reduce the chances of having your wallet and cash so kindly taken away by one of these lovely individuals, you will need to be a little more discreet with the Undercover Passport/Money belt. Get it here.
Click here for more
1. DISCOVER — Wherever You Go!
Traveling can lead to a lot of unexpected expenses. You never know when you'll need a little extra purchasing power in order to buy gifts for the family back home, or take advantage of lower prices due partly to a strong exchange rate. Don't take a chance; always travel with a credit card. Get it here
Source : click here



Basically all these are just random items a man would carry along with him but its all a different story for me.

The stuff that are needed the most in my case as follows:

1. Enough sleep prior to boarding (I could be cranky all the way if I hadn't have ample sleep the night or day before, it'll spoil your journey I tell you!).

2. Full tummy (I hate in-flight meals, its a big NO way for me, arrive at the airport as early you can and enjoy whatever you like before boarding, get yourself all charged up! and ready to board!).

3.Sufficient and proper clothes, do not overpack your bag with stuff that is not part of your travel, save the space for later when you buy something such as souvenir (you can always wash the used clothes later).

4.Medicines are the most important things I must have especially of that prescribed to you!

5.Reading materials like novels, mags or anything that can occupy yourself while waiting.

6.Camera, ipad or any communication devices.

7.A free mind, leave your work, stress and whatever behind (or it will ruin the entire holiday).

8.Be prepared as early as possible (I had an incident in which I almost missed my 6 hours flight, oh boy! The memory still lingers on).

Different people have different items that they must have while travelling.

I can't wait any longer!


Kick Off

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You could only imagine how long its been since I started joining the present company! Finally I had a chance to take a few days off just to unwind and relax.

I have had almost 70% of the entire preparation ready! The next journey is kicking off on Oct 25.

The moment I have been waiting for! I am kind of excited, why would I not be..as I'll be flying again after months in an unclear battle.

I had all this well planned before but as I always say in any of my posts that things will not usually turn out the way we all expect.

Especially given the circumstances that we both work on rotational shift and as for me it is always at night no matter what, to have it planned out in advance is rather a challenge.

But nonetheless, we all made it!

Where would the next destination be, I will only reveal as we set off the journey.