Fortress Max....err.. Fortress Penang ?!

Today’s Star headline is intriguing and gives me a good excuse to use Fortress Maximus.

On one side are the police, who have vowed to keep the situation at the four countdown venues in Penang — the Esplanade, Gurney Drive, Queensbay Mall and Auto-city Juru on the mainland — under control by putting 4,000 personnel on standby and mounting surveillance by helicopters.

Hmmm....guess I have to avoid these places tonite.

BTW, Happy New Year to all.

Password, please ?

We're locking all cartoon channels on Astro to control the kids from watching too much TV. Besides, we're just starting to teach Amir to read. One day, Amir got hold of the remote and tried his luck to break the password to unlock those channels. After he had exhausted the three attempts, it prompted "Next try in 30 minutes". I wanted to laugh at what happen next. Amir entered "30" as the password repeatedly. Finally, he gave up and asked me, "Abah, TV kata use three zero. Apasal tak boleh ?". His mother teased him, "If you can read, you'll know that's not the password."

Banyak sangat nombor, mana satu untuk password ni ?

Adibah masuk paper Star

As we're driving in Tanjong after a Roti Bakar breakfast at Hutton Lane, my wife received an SMS from her friend. "U're in The Star today". Terus carik paper and search for the article.

This is the second time Adibah masuk paper, last year pun masuk The Star on the Malaysia Babywearers event.

Adibah and my wife participated in the Babywearers' "fashion show", which was held at Little Penang Street Market across E&O Hotel last Sunday on 27 October 2009. After that, we ronda-ronda around the market. Adibah got a kiddie bracelet and necklace. We quenched our thirst with one of the best Orange Juice we ever had. Very thick pure orange with no sugar added. Someone was selling them by carrying a tray of them around the market. It reminded me of those great ideas you see in "The Apprentice". We also got the whole family photo taken.

Our Movie List

Ari ni bawak Dibah tengok her first movie, "UP". Teringat masih bawak Amir for his first movie, "Ratatouille". Abah naya kat Amir tak beli tiket untuk seat dia. Ingat tengok cite ari weekday tak ramai orang, boleh curi seat kosong. Ha..ha..nak ambik kesempatan bcoz children under 3 tak yah beli tiket. Lepas tu, mak dia je lah yang rajin bawak dia tengok wayang (i.e. Horton, Wall-E and Geng). Ari ni pasal kesian kat anak2, Abah beli lah tiket untuk semua orang.

UP : Our first family movie.

We've decided Adibah is old enough to go the cinema without annoying other movie-goers. So, we went to see "UP", our first cinema trip as a whole family. Kakak Anis and Mama tagged along since it's a school holiday. Thankfully, both Amir and Adibah did not make any big scene during the movie.

At first, I doubt a story about a flying house could better any of the previous Pixar movies but I was proven wrong. The storyline is interesting and fresh.

The talking dogs are hilarious. Plus, they can pilot old Bi-planes. I guess Ransack got his big break in this movie after being left out from "Transformers : Revenge of the Fallen". Ha..ha..ha

X-Men Origins : Wolverine

Went to see the movie last weekend. Of course, I’m going to whine a lot. I'm an X-Men fan and I've read the 6-series Origins storyline.

### SPOILER ALERT ###

What don’t I like :-
- How could you make Wolverine and Sabretooth as brothers ? I mean, I heard of sibling rivalry but not to the extent that these two always get into.
- The Weapon X program doesn’t have the covert-op feel. Come on, their only mission was to get the adamantium meteor.
- Gambit is not cool enough. The way he handle the cards is ridiculously too fancy.
- Totally mess up Deadpool, Wade is much cooler during the Lagos Ops. That's before he become Deadpool and when he talk too much. They should have let Deadpool keep the Samurai swords.
- Wolverine memory loss is due to a bullet in the brain. Wait for a minute ... didn't he got shot in the head during X-Men 2. Ahh !!! I see. This time they use an adamantium bullet. I guess Wolverine can't rely on his brother to remind him of who he is.

What do I like :-
- The intro which shows Wolverine participated in each major war (from the Civil War to the Vietnam War). Hey ... How come he never makes it as a General ?

BTW, Hasbro made a Wolverine figure that can transforms into a kinda of 4WD truck. The Transformer Wolverine drawing is from here

Kucing Gaduh

Amir and Adibah went to Nani’s with scratch marks on their faces.

Nani  : Apasal muka cucu aku sampai luka-luka ni ?
Mak   : Depa gaduh ... sampai cakar-cakar.
Nani  : Hangpa ni gaduh macam kucing. Siapa jadi kucing ni ?
Dibah : Adik kucing, Nani. ... Adik, cat!

Adibah loves cat so much that one day, in Borders, she forced me to buy a cat encyclopedia. I'm still not allowing her to have a real one yet. I still have to pick-up her poop so I don't want to add the cats' one to list.
Got this photo of Device Label Ravage and Tigatron from this blog.

Burung Tukang

One day, Amir showed me a picture.

Amir : Abah, what is this, abah ?
Abah : That's a toucan.
Feeling excited, he went to show it to his mom.
Amir : Mak, this is burung tukang, mak !!
Abah : Toucan, Amir.
Amir : Hah !! Yes, mak. Burung tukang.

Guess what ? There's a "Burung Tukang" which is the Malay word for "NightJar". "Toucan" is a type of "Burung Enggang".

… and the result is 2-1

That’s not a football game result even though we (MUG FC) played one yesterday. Ha..ha..ha.. . That’s the result for yesterday triple showdowns. It’s a rare tri-by-election. Hey, it’s sounds like “Try Buy Election” ….. just kidding. The Opposition defended two hills, Bukit Gantang and Bukit Selambau, while BN held on to a river bank, Batang Air.

Result taken from The Star. Springer, Ultra Magnus and Soundwave are taken from Matt Moylan's Lilformers.

Michael Jordan inducted to class of 2009's NBA Hall of Fame

Michael Jordan was elected to the Hall of Fame on April 6, 2009. Read about his induction and the rest of 2009’s Hall of Fame Class.

I was fortunate to be in the US when Michael Jordan returned from his first retirement in 1995. The next season, Chicago Bulls went on to set a 72-10 record on their way to win their 4th NBA Finals. Besides, having phenomenal individual skills, what I admire most is how he could rally and boost the rest of Bulls’ performance. I had great times watching each Bulls’ game while I was in the state.

For those who don’t know Michael Jordan, well you have miss watching one of the greatest athletes in action. Here's my tribute to his airness taken from the NBA website.

Michael Jordan
By acclamation, Michael Jordan is the greatest basketball player of all time -- although a summary of his basketball career and influence on the game inevitably fails to do justice to the man. A phenomenal athlete with a unique combination of fundamental soundness, grace, speed, power, artistry, improvisational ability and an unquenchable competitive desire, Jordan single-handedly redefined the NBA superstar.
Full Name: Michael Jeffrey Jordan
Born: 2/17/63 in Brooklyn, N.Y.
College: North Carolina
Drafted by: Chicago Bulls, 1984 (third overall)
Honors:
- Six-time NBA champion (1991-93, 1996-98);
- NBA MVP (1988, '91, '92, '96, '98);
- 10-time All-NBA First Team (1987-93, 1996-98);
- All-NBA Second Team (1985);
- Defensive Player of the Year (1988);
- Nine-time All-Defensive First Team (1988-93, 1996-98);
- Rookie of the Year (1985);
- 14-time All-Star; All-Star MVP (1988, '96, '98);
- One of 50 Greatest Players in NBA History (1996);
- Two-time Olympic gold medalist (1984, '92).

Top Ten Memorable Moments:
1986: Michael Jordan’s 63 pts NBA playoff-record.
I've to disagree with what Boston's Larry Bird described he saw on the night Jordan scored an NBA playoff-record 63 points against the Celtics. MJ is still a human despites his phenomenal skills.
1988: Jordan and Wilkins Battle for Dunk Title
The 1988 Slam Dunk contest came down to the wire as Dominique Wilkins and hometown favorite Michael Jordan faced off for dunk title honors.
1989: Jordan Hits "The Shot"
It is known, in Chicago and especially in Cleveland, as "The Shot," and Michael Jordan's game-winning jumper was among the first of his numerous clutch shots.
1991: Michael's Most Amazing Move?
In Game 2 of the 1991 NBA Finals against the Lakers, Michael Jordan made a spectacular move that seemed even more unbelievable every time it was replayed.
1992: Jordan Blazes Away From Long Range
They said three-point shooting wasn't his forte, but Michael Jordan was 'in the zone' in Game 1 of the '92 Finals vs. Portland, burying six first-half treys.
1992: The Original Dream Team
Jordan teamed with legends Magic Johnson and Larry Bird to form perhaps the greatest team ever assembled at the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona.
1995: Jordan Back Big-Time; Drops 55 on Knicks
Five games into his comeback, Michael Jordan shook off the rust and showed he's still got big-time game by exploding for 55 points against the Knicks.
1996: Jordan Leads Bulls to League Record 70 Wins
The Bulls' 72-10 record during the 1995-96 regular season was the best in NBA history, and Chicago made its claim as one of the best sports teams ever.
1997: Flu Doesn't Stop Jordan in 1997 NBA Finals
Ravaged by the flu, Jordan scored 38 points in Game 5, including the tie-breaking three-pointer with 25 seconds left to lift the Bulls over the Jazz 90-88.
1998: Jordan Jolts Jazz in Game 6
With Chicago trailing by three points, Michael Jordan scored on a drive, stripped the ball from Karl Malone, and then buried the game-winning shot with 5.2 seconds to go.

Photo credits :
- MJ in Bulls’ center court. By Andrew D. Bernstein/NBAE/Getty Images
- MJ in 1987’s NBA All-Star Dunk Contest. By Andrew D. Bernstein/NBAE/Getty Images
- MJ’s “The Shot” against Cleveland in the first round NBA playoff in 1989. By Manny Millan/SI
- MJ’s playoff-record 63 points in the Bulls' 135-131 double-overtime loss against Boston in 1986. By Dick Raphael/NBAE/Getty Images
- MJ hugging Chicago Bulls first NBA championship trophy in 1991 while grabbing regular-season and Finals MVP awards on the way. By Ken Levine/Getty Images
- MJ’s first game against Indiana in May 19, 1995 after his first retirement, when he briefly donned the No.45. By Nathaniel S. Butler/NBAE/Getty Images
- MJ slammed from the free-throw line in what's widely regarded as the best dunk contest of all time in 1988. By Andrew D. Bernstein/NBAE/Getty Images
- MJ’s game winning shot before his second retirement. as the Bulls wrapped up their six title and second three-peat. By John Biever/SI
- Tantrum, a Predcon from TF Gen.1, trying to pass as a Chicago Bull.

Malaysia gets her 6th Head of Government.

Well, there's already a lot of media and blog coverage on the news. Let's hope with the change of guard, Malaysia will get better things in future. Thank You, Tun Abdullah. Congratulations, Dato’ Seri Najib. Borrowing from Spiderman’s Uncle Ben, “With Great Power, Comes Great Responsibility.”

Earth Hour 2009

A lot of people turn of their lights on Saturday night from 8.30 - 9.30 pm. I made a rather brief participation myself. I was on my way to dinner and didn’t realize my headlights were off after I’ve been driving for 5 minutes. Ha..ha..ha..

Earth Hour is suppose to create awareness but seems most are in for the hype. As TNB pointed out, "Demand peaked almost rapidly at 9.30pm, to follow the normal Saturday evening demand pattern.". Well, if people are really serious can they participate a bit longer.

Hmmm…looks like TNB is trying to find excuse in case of having another dismal financial year. You could read TNB comment on Earth Hour here.

Also, I wonder what’s more harmful to the earth, having your lights on for an hour or burning bunch of candles for an hour. Sigh !!! doesn’t it depletes the ozone layer.

Sydney, where the Earth Hour event started in 2007, had an involuntary prolonged Earth Hour (more like hours) the next Monday. Read about the blackout here.

Anyway, for those who are serious about protecting the earth, my hat (should be light) is off to you.

Scardy Thundercracker is taken from Matt Moylan's Lilformers and the KL background photo from The Star.

Political Tsunami : One year later

So, one year has passed. Do you see any positive changes ? Honestly, I didn’t but people told me it’s too soon to tell. Hopefully, we will see it coming within the next 3 – 4 years. It doesn’t matter if it’s from BN or PR, as long as we’ll enjoy the benefit. However, I do not mean the usual goodies 2-3 months before the next elections. :)

Ha..ha.. actually, I just need a reason to make this photo shot.

I’ve got an idea to do a one-to-one showdown between an Autobot vs a Decepticon for each of the state but it will take up too much of my time. Probably will update and add them later.

Keta Hijau FC transforms to MUG FC

Huh !!! MUG FC ??? Mug in BM, "Koleh". So, Persatuan Futsal Koleh ke ? Ha..ha.. Actually, MUG FC stands for "Meet Uncle GDee Futsal Club". Sempena nama Kapten kami yang dah tua lagi cengai. Mamat yg pakai baju orange.

It all started as a joke when we tease poor old Uncle GDee which leads to a suggestion that our old Keta Hijau FC change to a newer and hipper name. So we went for a vote, and the result is,
- Meet Uncle Jidee FC (MUJFC), 6 votes, 60.00%
- Kekal Keta Hijau FC., 2 votes, 20.00%
- Meet Ayah Dee FC (MADFC), 2 votes, 20.00%
Slight change in spelling so it will become MUG FC. Senang nak sebut sikit.

Our group plays futsal every Tuesday at Bukit Jambul.

The green car, Skids, will be in the "Transformers : Revenge of the Fallen" movie.

Let's have a meeting under the tree

I'm not a constitutional law expert. So, I won’t comment on who's right or wrong but you can read the news here.

Two things that I find are interesting. First, Earth Hour will be coming on 28 March. Maybe we should have more “under the tree” meetings, so we could switch of air-conds, lights and etc, to save our environment (and electric bills). The meetings have to be valid, though. Second, a friend commented regarding “Laksamana Do Re Mi” but I didn’t get it at first. I finally recalls that there is a scene in the P.Ramlee’s movie where the government of “Pasir Dua Butir” convenes under a tree.

Finally, I got to use my TF Classics/Henkei for a group shot. I was trying to imagine a relaxing outdoor meeting. My assembly consists of
- Prowl (The chairperson.)
- Bumblebee
- Mirage (Sitting on a rock. Too bad, it’s not clear from the shot.)
- Hound
- Sunstreaker ( Enjoying his field day. Ha..ha..)
- Sideswipe

A Fight And A Plea

Anas Zubedy has put up a full page ad on today's Star, appealing Malaysians' politicians to get their focus right. Although, I applaud his effort, I found it ironic that on the same day a scuffle (fight?) breaks out in Parliament. It doesn’t give you much hope, does it ?

Anyway, as this blog main purpose is to showcase my Transformers’ collection, let’s get to the photoshot. I use a bunch of TF Legends, small, about 3-inch, figures.

The frustrated newspaper readers.
- Optimus Prime, TF Movie
- Warpath, TF Classic
The rakyat, all from TF Classics, are making a plea to the politicians.
- Jazz
- Hound
- Bumblebee. Hey, that's me, the Yellow Robot.
- Brawn
- Beachcomber
- HotZone (formerly known as Hotspot)
- Wheelie
- Rodimus (formerly known as Hot Rod)
- Silverbolt

A Transformer stalled on Penang Bridge, causes massive traffic jam.

A 30-tonne hydraulic crane toppled over at the 3rd kilometer of the Penang Bridge causing traffic to snarls for more than 13 hours and congests more than 5 km long. The crane, used by UEM to construct the bridge’s third lane, overturned at 3.15 am but was only carted away at 11.00 am. (Summary from The Star, 21 Feb.2009)

Many bridge users comment that the toppled crane looks like a transformer. The crane model looks the same as Hook, from TF G1.

Unfortunately, I can’t use him for the picture as he and my other constructicons are stored at my parent’s place. Instead, I have to settle for Smokescreen, from TF Armada.

Pak Lah Sangkut Dalam Lif

Found this in today's Star. Read the full article here.
Wildrider, a member of the Stunticon, is drawn by Matt Moylan.

PAKATAN FALLS IN PERAK

nake, abah ...

This morning Adibah saw a worm wriggling just outside our apartment.

Abah  : what's that, adik ?
Dibah : nake.
Abah  : no, it's a worm
Dibah :(As she hid behind me.) nake. Abah, nake bite.
At this point, I'm contemplated to answer. I'm afraid if she sees a snake the next time and she thinks it’s a worm. However, I decided to continue.
Abah  : no, adik. That’s a worm, not a snake. Worm doesn’t bite.
Dibah : wem...

Sunstreaker and Ironhide are drawn by Matt Moylan.

Lion Dance

Adibah was intrigued by the lion dance’s troupe whom is paying a visit to Unite Asmah's neighbor.

Lio Convoy, from Beast War II, and Leobreaker, from TF Galaxy Force, photo is from www.seibertron.com

GONG XI FA CAI

To our friends, we like to wish you for a very prosperous year.
Happy New Year. Gong Xi !! Gong Xi !!

p/s: The Transformers caricature are from Matt Moylan's drawings.

P36 KUALA TERENGGANU BY-ELECTION

Another seat goes to the opposition. What a perfect timing too !!! Just got this Henkei Hound to use for the shot.
Of all the figures, the most important one is holding the pensil. Ha..ha..ha..

Siapa suruh ....

This conversation occurs this morning. Amir had just completed his first week of school for 2009. He started last September and just had a long break in December.

Amir : Why Amir have to go to school, mak ?
Mum  : Because, your school holiday is over.
Amir : Holiday ??? But Amir didn't go anywhere.
Abah : There's no money for holiday.
Amir : Apasal ? 
< Asking more since he's not satisfied with the answer. >
Abah : Because, I spend the money buying Ben 10.
Amir : Siapa suruh ... 
< Usually, he will go on "Siapa suruh buy Ben 10 ?". However he suddenly paused, realizing those Ben 10 stuff is for him. >

p/s: The Transformers caricature are from Matt Moylan's drawings.