Life Expectancy Calculator......

For those who are curious and want to know their life expectancy, try this....

After painting ......

Magical 3- dimensional illusions.............

Before painting..............

Am I in a catch 22 situation...???

Waking up this morning with a sprain neck..!! sheeshh !! .... what a start to the day, ... well I thought that was bad until I started purging .... not once, but twice..!!!

In fact, it has been a routine like this for a couple of weeks , and if I can recall. ..... it might have started from the time when my doc put me on some extra medications..... namely...

a ) Iron(II) fumarate, also known as ferrous fumarate is the iron (II) salt of fumaric acid, occurring as a reddish-orange powder, used to supplement iron intake. It has chemical formula C₄H₂FeO₄.

b ) Ascorbic acid is an organic acid with antioxidant properties. Its appearance is white to light yellow crystals or powder. It is water soluble. The L-enantiomer of ascorbic acid is commonly known as vitamin C

c ) folic acid or folate Organic compound essential to animal growth and health and needed by bacteria as a growth factor. Part of the vitamin B complex, folic acid is necessary for synthesis of nucleic acids and formation of the heme component of hemoglobin in red blood cells.

ok...... enough of those medical jargon ..( wish they are not so confusing to a layman like me!)

Now , these are, in addition to the regular 4 I have to take , .. so all in all a total of 7 ....wow.!!!

That started me pondering .....

Did these extra medications put unnecessary stress on my liver and kidneys ... ?
Are they a form of toxins which my poor and weakened kidneys need to filter out...?
Are they doing me more harm than good ...?
Is the purging ...... a sign that my kidney functions have deteriorated ... ?

If... the answer to the above is a resounding ' Yes !!' , than am I in a catch 22 situation ..??
To take or not to take .... that's the question....

Of course, the most logical thing to do ... is to ask our doc during our consultation period ....
..but... hey, they are supposed to be the professionals... we are supposed to take our medications as prescribed, ... right ?

Do we follow blindly and put our trust in modern medical science, ... do we seek a second opinion ..or do we just follow our instincts......

I had a few brushes with .. eh ..not so competent docs... there was a time I was prescribed with 6 types of high blood pressure pills at one go until I fainted at the office and got to be hospitalised..!

Another ... so-called expert on fertility who recommended me to have my scrotum operated on..!!
..... on the assumption that the veins around the area is overheating and affecting the production of sperms.
Luckily, ... I seek a second opinion and went through a programme at the Subang Medical centre and walla..!!! that's how my daughter was born..

As human beings ...we are not infallible .... life is always a gamble .. make the right decision.. good for us ... wrong... it's bye bye!!

ok.. back to my kidneys..

Just to put on record the latest test results .......

1) Urea .... 14.3 mmol/L ( normal betwn 2.5 to 6.4 )
2) Creatinine ... 322 umol/L ( normal betwn 80 to 132 )
3 ) Uric Acid ... 652 umol/L ( normal betwn 210 to 420 )

Is that human nature...???

I am dumbfounded and find the reasons given by those vested with powers , at very least..... perplexing. They would go to all lengths to explain their actions in an effort to vindicate themselves .

At a time when the people are undergoing economic hardships coupling with high inflation, ...
.. once again they have astounded us with their " fine stewardship, good financial practice and prudence."

One classic example is , the Terengganu State Government's recent purchase of 14 nos. of E200 Mercedes at a whopping cost of RM3.43 mil of tax payers' money. They are supposed to replace our national cars ( Proton Perdana Executive series ).

The reasons given were ...." in a move to cut cost... ",

...... Is buying a more expensive model ... a move to cut cost ?

...." that the Proton Perdanas go through continuous long-distance journey...... costing us a lot of money...high cost of maintenance.."

.......Were there any proper studies carried out in terms of suitability,
reliability, durability, and cost of maintenance before procurement ?

...." In the long run, Mercedes cars are cheaper to maintain and could also save us fuel costs...

...... Is there really no other better options..?
If this kind of logic is the norm of the day, than I can foresee another financial debacle in the making.

Ahhh... how I wish the above statement is true, so we can all take this advice and change all our little cars for Mercedes !!!

.... " we are farsighted " ....

..... I am farsighted too , ...'cos I know when to "tighten my belt" during
economic downtime and live within my means , ...... but , I do have
high expectations of those in the corridors of power to show exemplary tact , considering the present circumstances .... as failure at that is a travesty in good governance itself.

DNA anybody ??

I just could not understand what's all the hoo-ha and politicking regarding "DNA specimens" that's front page news in our main stream newspapers these days.....

Here, we have opposing sides ( our so-called MPs' and politicians ) casting aspersions on each other's sincerity , more interested in playing to the gallery, ramping up empty political rhetoric, which, not only are disdainful but a pure waste of time . All these political shenanigans must come to an end and the myopic refusal to act now will undoubtedly cause serious and irreparable damage to our credibility and image internationally.

Precious time and energy could very well, be channelled to more meaningful policy making decisions and activities for the benefit of the people at large.

We need concerted effort and sincerity from all quarters to put this alleged nefarious activity to closure and salvage whatever dignity left in us and stop lending credence to unsubstantiated hearsay.

Let me put in my two cents worth of suggestion.....

Firstly, in all sincerity, the complainant should subject himself to a full medical examination to ascertain whether there is any presence of foreign DNA in him.....

If there is, then DNA profiling must be carried out in a transparent and neutral environment.....
( Independently verified, without any interference from unseen hands..)

Secondly, once the detected foreign DNA profile is done ( on the complainant) and made known to both " interested" parties, .. then only....

Thirdly, the accused will be called up to give a sample of his DNA for comparison....
( Of cause , this has to be agreed by the accused, to proof his innocence )

All these, I stress again, must be free from interference, professionally done and transparent from beginning till end..... simple isn't is , so what's all the fuss about !!!!!

Please do enlighten me , if I'm wrong.....

I humbly rest my case....

and now this......

Ahh.... this is really the icing on the cake, " ACA man held for trying to rob hotel cashier..."( Star.. N16 , 16th. July )
....did I read it right? was I dreaming, ... on further scrutiny, it was a relief that the so-called ACA man was only an employee attached to the ACA office in Port Dickson.

But the thing is, don't these people ..be they, investigators or mere employees be vetted thoroughly..? before they are employed.. .??

What adverse publicity and bad image to the Agency, when you have this kind of news hogging the pages of our newspapers.

.... in time of needs, ...who do you call ........ ????
...the Police ?, the ACA ? .. no! no! no ! ...... it's ... The Ghost Busters !!!! I think ...sigh......

My Lord , my saviour..........

When I read the front page of the Sun today , I had a strange feeling of deja vu....
My God ! 1,600 policemen on duty at Parliament......just in anticipation of a rally to contain just 2,500 so-called people?
Is that somewhat in a ratio of 1 policeman, .... to say approx: 1.5625 people ????

What a waste of human resources , .....while previously, the police top brass were complaining of insufficient personnel to service the ever-growing population, but here, they were quick to act on mere rumours and were willing to send in the whole police force!!

No wonder crimes were committed with impunity, y-o-y statistics were higher and continued unabated. They should get their priority right in the first place .

The police force should be mobilised on crime- prevention rounds in residential areas where it's most needed and should not play the role of the riot police, ... i.e. for crowd control...

..and to top this up , what I read in the Star newspaper, really amaze me..... " that a policeman has lodged a report pertaining to his dissatisfaction of not getting his share of bribes .."
the irony of it, what audacity ! ..... and this is against his superior..!!!!!

It's such a sad situation that, the very people whom society have entrusted with powers, not only failed in their duty, blatantly abused it for their selfish ends , but have not hearken to the needs of the masses.

Oh my God!.. what is happening to society... and are we supposed to be protected by these so-called " law-enforcement officers "???


Who will be the people's saviour.......?????

This yearning for...........

Reminiscences of the days in the sixties, when I was only 12, full of naivety with carefree thoughts, ..flashes of the good times I had with fellow classmates Aziz and the lovely Asmah ( of with I had a crush on) and it all happened way back in good old Penang

I remembered vividly the day Aziz invited me to go over to his kampong for a spot of fishing, catching kingcrabs and frolicking all day long on the beach. We had such a good time. Ahh... those days "race" was never on our mind.......... we were just classmates!!
Through our eyes we saw each other....... as just another person although we knew that we were from different faiths. It was of secondary importance.

Well, as for pretty Asmah, her demure smile (when our eyes met) in class, made me fell head over heels for her. There was a time when she invited a few of her classmates (me included ) to her place for a gathering and it was a unique opportunity for me to strike up a conversation with her. Oh! those lovely times....

My, my, my....... there was also naughty bala ( always the cheeky one ), Min Sin ( he is the so called.. the snorbbish one ) , and Rashid , he is always top in class !! never had a chance to beat his standing.

We had a good mixture in our class consisting of malays, chinese , indians and also some, what we termed as " eurasians" too!

All these were just only good distant memories .........

Fast forward, after the unfortunate incident of May '69 , things have changed, and the way I see it , it's definitely not for the better.

We are poles apart in the ways we think and interact now then before, and for us to foster good relations amongst ethnic groups and as a united, truly cosmopolitan entity, sacrifices have to be made for the good of the homeland.

I, fervently wish that championing of race, faith and intolerances do not play a primary role to the detriment of a united, strong and cohesive society, instead , the government of the day has the moral obligation to come out with pragmatic, well- thought out but not superficial policies, that will unite the people rather than divide them.......

I pray for the day to come that we all can live as ONE........ it might not happen in my life time, God willing, for the sake of the future generations...... a white knight will come along (so to speak ).....

IF only..................

This morning while perusing the pages of the newspaper , I came across a page that attracted my attention.
This is none other than the page that readers send in their views, opinions, suggestions and comments to the editor, yes you guess it right............ they are the SMS, letters and e-mails from people of all walks of life on issues affecting their lives.

What I like to read most are those that's positive, useful, well researched articles that are not bias or prejudiced but serves as a valuable conduit of information to the authorities concerned on improvements to their delivery system .

If those in authority, truly have the dedication, commitment and a passion to strive for a more efficient system, they will not hesitate to accept constructive criticism instead of circumventing the issues.

The question that begs an answer is ............. " Is there a will ? "

Now what.....?????

It was a short while ago , in the midst of my dinner when my door bell rang . A voice reverberated out " security service !! sir, collection please ! "
There were two dark figures standing at my gate and they were from the security service in my area.

Ok, here's the problem, why is it that the security personnel collecting the service fees by themselves ?

"Where's the committee? what happen?" I asked
"No committee sir, so we collect"

Now here comes the best part..........
No committee, then who's representing the residents? Is it right of the security firm to go door to door soliciting ?
Don't it tantamount to a sort of veiled form of extortion?

To add salt to injury ( so to speak ) each household have to cough out RM50 per month and if you multiple that by say, 80 paying units the sum comes up to RM4K per month!!!
But, the deal was for ONE security guard at a fee of about RM 2.5K per month.

So, are we being overcharged or short-changed ????

while here I'm still grappling with the rising cost of living, pondering over my health, worrying over
extra expenditures, out of the blue these pair of idiots came shafting another whammy down on me!!!

Sigh........................

My thoughts and fear..............

Today I came across an article in the newspaper..." Senior citizens face hard times " It dawn on me that I am under this category.
Now, with the rising cost of living, we the poor old folks ...I am referring to those that are living off their savings, EPF and with no fixed income are in a dilemma as how to cope in this kind of situation.
What led to this predicament, only God knows......as for me , with two young children one in Uni and the other still in college and financially dependent on me ...Oh! I dread to calculate the costs!

I really sympathies those who are worst off than me, cause at the moment I am still able to "cope"
Let me elaborate ...........
You see, I'm a sufferer of gout, kidney disease, high blood pressure and god knows what else!!!
and I pray hard that the dreaded day will not come to drain me financially the funds I put aside for my children's education.

Every few months when I see my doctor , the very first few words that pop out from my mouth is..............

" is my creatinine level ok?" "how much is it now?"

My very fear is that if the inevitable happens ...... what next?

My very First Step

Finally! after hesitating for sooo-oh long I found enough courage to enlist my daughter to help me
put up my blog
All this because of the nagging and prodding from my wife. " Hey, everybody's blogging , why don't you put your blog too!" She continued, " just say what's on your mind "

Well, for a man of 57 and rather not so computer savvy, what else can I say.
So, here I am !
You know what? I'm at a loss as what to do next!! There is so much to learn but I'll try my best...
Anyway, there is always a first time. I'm rather a slow typer because I'm a one-finger typer-lah

ok , let say that's all for the time being as for my pioneering step into the world of blogosphere , taa daa!!