some of you may or may not know that i’m in love with photography..

and its true that everywhere u turn these days,
there’s a ‘photographer’ here or there..
its like how the TMC, Bangsar birds like to shit everywhere and will definitely kena your car whether u like it or not…

anyhow, i’m not so much bothered about that
and its not like the cameras are getting any cheaper..
ppl must be getting richer

whatever, i’ll let my photos speak for themselves..

mind you that this is the FIRST time i’m using a DSLR
and its not even mine..
(here i’d like to thank WILL CHUA for being SO SUPER KIND to me… i really really appreciate it)

this picture makes my heart stop everytime i see it..
its the love i reckon…
the love

there’s always beauty everywhere u look or go or in whatever you do
its the matter of whether u choose to stop long enough to appreciate the simplest things in life

and a smile to brighten up your day

all the roads that leads us there are winding..
so happy with so little..

the longing for a better life
one that does not include being on the lake for the better part of available daylight

the throngs of people having a quiet family picnic on the lake..
and i mean, literally ON the lake.. haha

the grass is always greener on the other side…

to work, to sift, to gather…

to wonder about a life never lived

he looks a little weird to me..
his body shape i mean..
but he’s got the look of a man who has gone through a tough life..
and he’s not that old either..
priviledged men his age still have baby skin compared to him

a means to an end
thats what happens to innocent war victims!

u get to rent these boats by the hour and they’ll take u upstream..
a very calming experience
one for reflecting and setting yourself straight
or to just be thankful and grateful for the simplest things

an elf-ish grin under the hot cambodian sun
(i use to look a little like him when i was younger… hahaha)

one of my absolute favorite picture..
he was being carried around by his mom while she bags for money

a son who’s future is forever lost honoring and loving his dad

abandoned the minute he was born,
she’s the only mother he has ever known,
never wonders far,
never trying anything new,
for fear to be abandoned, again.

two cheeky yet loving 4 year olds..
they are damn tiny for a 4 year old!

cheeky little kid..

“damnit… why are u staring at me?!”

she was little,
she was sleepy,
she was scared

the lonely

okay thats all the pictures i’m gonna post now..
i’m going nuts staring at the screen the whole day!!

oh btw, i was ironing a shirt again today..
it was nice to me

DISCLAIMER: all of what i am about to say are just JOKES and are NOT TRUE! if u take it literally, u’re a dumbass

okay.. not exactly me..
but kenny sia’s

okay maybe not this picture
but he’s so adorable!

i guess thats what happens when u get naughty with a cambodian girl
kekeke
(see disclaimer)

cute right?!
little karatae kenny

his name is Jacob…
pronounced as Ya-Kob thou
apparently its the Khmer way of pronouncing Jacob..
sounds a little like BM right?

anyways, he can speak pretty decent english for his age..
he’s only 3 btw..
super adorable kid right?
always cheerful..

when u ask him to kiss anyone else,
he’ll take his t-shirt collar,
wipe his mouth,
and then slowly puts his face close to your cheek with his eyes closed,
and then kiss u..
that gets everyone all the time!

how can u not love such an adorable kid?!

also, when there’s music, he’ll have his left hand in the air,
and his right hand strumming his tummy!
SUPER CUTE!

i think he agrees with me

the next day, we changed resorts to Mirage…

Mirage is to the right of the jetty..
they have the best food on the island
the homeliest bar
the cutest huts
and the friendliest people running that place!

if anyone’s thinking of heading to pulau besar,
i’d strongly recommend Mirage resort and the Pirates Bar
(d’ coconut inn is waaaaaaaaaay too overated)
just look for the friendly Hulk Hogan looking guy called Rhino and his wife Brenda
they’ll sort u out
food, transportation and if u’re lucky,
and u happen to go when their son is there,
he’ll bring u hiking to the other side of the island!

okay, lets face it,
the island aint that big
BUT, if u are the adventurous kind,
the best way to get to the other side of the island is thru the hills
besides, u get a good view
what more can u ask for?!

my holiday on the island was made excellent thanks to Brenda and rhino!
i’ll post up the contact number to Mirage soon
(forgot to bring the brochure out today~)

if u’re planning to go to pulau besar,
do put aside around 1500 to 2k
(this includes fuel if u’re driving and everything else from transportation to lodging to food)
dont complain its expensive all..
its the price u pay for privacy!
and privacy is what u get
coupled with home-like hospitality
oh and do bring your own snorkling gear!
u wouldnt wanna miss out on the great ocean life
the corals aint dead like the ones at tioman
if u get bored of this island,
u can always go island hopping!
its more worth it if u go in a big group thou..
but u wont regret it!
clearer waters, more colourful fishies, a nice quiet picnic..
bliss~
oh, one word of caution thou,
if u decide to go for a night ‘walk’ by the beach,
do shower and change your clothes before u sleep
dont think u’ll appreciate it if a snadfly hides in your clothes and bite u to death, literally (go google it)
and dont bother bringing heaps of clothes..
u can wash and hang them out to dry overnight..

okay enough of talk..
lets get down to pictures!

this is the double bed..
see the doors behind?
thats to the cutest lil bathroom ever!

thats the single bed/sofa

u need to walk down 2 steps to get down there
nice place to have a quickie

the A shaped huts..

our hut

creative right?
the tap was embeded into the log

thats a bigger chalet

thats the view from our little hut..
thats the Pirates bar to the right..
and the beach after that

this is the makan area
or part of it.. haha
thats the pool table
like duh~

comfy couch..
u can have dinner there.. or drinks after
or u can always op to sit by the beach or outside the bar

the makan area

the bar

okay now for the people and adventures of Pulau Besar

first of, we went over to Aseania for a drink with the manager, Jasbir..
talk about bhai love..
went all the way to a tiny island just to find another bhai fella there..
hahahaha..
i think my life revolves around them!
not that i’m complaining..
rav’s the nicest bhai fella around..

thats Khai and his brother on the left..
they own one of the resorts after Mirage..
very nice people..
thats Jasbir
he’s a pretty quiet man..
friendly but reserved
and he likes his gin and tonic

okay, this picture does no one justice!
to be fair, we were all tired la……

right after this picture was taken, we had a visitor!

mr. snake was stealing eggs..
kesian the poor hen..
she was trying to shoo him away but it was swollowing eggs like there was no tomorrow!

looks big and scary huh..
one of the guys who’s working there made a madeshift hook with a pipe and some rope
he went under the bar to search for the snake..
no one let me go anywhere near the bottom of the structure, damnit!

oh btw, did i mention that we saw a sea snake that afternoon while snorkling?
Brenda says we bring the adventure hehe
she’s never had stuff like that happen before in all the years she’s been working there

okay, back to the story at hand..

heh heh…
u thought the snake was big didnt u?!
mwahahaha
tiny je…
these cats were super curious..
okay lets zoom in..

he’s so cute..
the kitten i mean

okay zoom in more

now i know why they say “curiousity kills the cat”

the island holds a secret!
every year the european survivor is held there..
well, not on that island per se
but on one of the neighbouring islands
two of their ‘tribal council’s were built on pulau besar thou..
here’s proof

thats the plane crash site..

close up..
looks kinda real right?

.. and then i got a little side-tracked
(when have i not, right?)
well, i saw pwetty lil mushrooms!

and another

hehehe…
shrooms

this was last year’s tribal council site
a small part of angkor wat..
looks real right?!
made out of plaster, wood and styrofoam
sorry no close ups
stinky didnt allow me to go anywhere near that place
takut the bridge break la,
snakes la,
dont know what la….

interesting kan?!
bet u didnt know all that

spot this on the way back to the resort..
do u see coconuts?
do u?
DO U?!

this was taken half an hour before we had to leave…
and as luck would have it, the weather was AMAZINGLY PERFECT!
its always like that dont u think?
whenever u wanna leave, the weather is perfect..
grrrrrrr ….

honey, can we stay here forever?

facination with the boat, again!

saying my last goodbyes
Rhino, Brenda and i…

brenda…..
i miss her so much..

OH! i forgot to mention,
the next time any of u are planning to go to pulau besar,
do bring along your guitar or any portable instrument..
brenda loves music but sadly there arent much live music on the island..
so do bring them along,
sing a song or two
cheer her up, okay?
its just a small favour compared to their hospitality fit for the king!
thanks u bunch

one last look..
snif snif
i miss the sea
(but i’m afraid of the deep blue ocean thou.. hmmm.. sharks!! no no no cannot cannot..)

leaving good memories behind

so far away…
snif~

excited kid on the boat

OMG the water is SO FREAKING DIRTY near mainland!
back to reality

okay, before u go “eyeeer… why pulau besar? isnt that the one with all the spirits wan?”
my answer is NO!

this Pulau Besar is before Tioman..
you’ll need to get to Mersing, Johor, and take the speed boat over to the island

u’ll not regret it that i can guarantee u!
below are some of the pictures (ok fine.. not some) that were taken during my short trip there

me being facinated with the fishies

all chickened out..
its unstable okay……

again, some facination with the fishes

and again…
really ‘bo kang zo’ (nothing better to do)
what to do.. waiting for the ferry..
there was only one boat going over cos it was the first day of raya…

the compulsory camwhore picture

so cute right?
his smile i mean hahahahaha

finally on the ferry..

being on a holiday didnt take away my urge for photography

one of the few old private docks on the island..

mind u there are only about 5 resorts there
2 of which are small and more personal resorts
2 of the resorts had their own private dock
nobody is allowed to build their own docks anymore
but for those who previously owned a dock, they are allowed to keep them

nice so far?

who could resist camwhoring?
kekeke

and then we went to check out our room

the couch by the porch doors

thats how the resort looks like..
well, part of it haha

two single beds..
quite comfy
this is Aseania
the manager allowed us to stay there even though they were closed for raya break
got the beach view for cheaper than normal

me sitting on the porch..
cant see the beach in the picture but its where the light is

the beach view ‘hut’ from front view

lonely leaf…

the relaxing life..

already beaming with happiness
and its only the first day

check out the colour difference!

awww… scho shweet

now lets go explore!!

i fell in love with how clear the water was
thats probably 2 meters deep
if u squint at the screen, u can see there are small black dots in the water..
those are fishes..
there were HEAPS of fishes
all sorts of colour
shapes…

can u see can u see?
blind la u!
ish~

clear right?
i love the colour of the water

cant help but camwhore
kononnya wanna show the world how the colour of the water looks like..
excuses excuses

love this picture

an then my facination was focused on the sea… again

nice kan?!
okok more more..

me loves the sea green colour!!!
i miss the sea…
i miss pulau besar..
i miss brenda and rhino

u need to bear with me..
i’ve got an obsession with the sea

okay… enough of ‘eye-sore’ pictures..
sakit hati only..
can u see the fishies now??!

ahh the bliss
this is life i tell u..

was trying to burry stinky’s feet in sand
stinky has never played with sand or built sand castles prior to that day!!!

its no fun when u realize that your little fun escapade turned your bikini bottom into a sand bucket!

just some logs on the beach..
stinky took this picture after i told him to
mwahahahahaha
(dont kick me!)

this was taken when a storm was brewing from mainland..
the lone green tiny boat on the beach
waiting to be taken out to sea

again another picture by stinky..

this is what an unsteady hand creates

to be continued……..

i think ironing shirts is the most tedious thing to do..
u know how when u lay the shirt out like a canvas,
waiting for the iron to heat up,
and when the iron first touches the shirt,
it feels good to be able to iron out all the wrinkles,
having the iron weave in and out through the corners, between buttons, under the collar..
SUDDENLY the shirt decides to fold without u noticing and u run your iron over it
and it creates this short lines of crease
and u think, “well, lets just iron it out”
but nope, it wont go away!
and the more u iron, the more frustrated u get…
u run your iron over the crease..
over and over and over again but its just SO STUBBORN and it wont straighten out!

dont u think creases like these are THE pain in the ass when u’re rushing to iron your shirt and u’re running late for work?
(ok maybe not for most ppl.. but more for the OCD ppl hahaha)

well, i was doing that this morning,
and i realised that ironing a shirt is like a frienship..

its just like when we meet a new person,
we start by getting to know each other..
and as the friendship deepens, we start to understand and know more and more about the person
be it their past, present and future aspirations..
and its just like how the iron weaves in and out of all the corners and buttons..
and like how the wrinkles get ironed away,
the unknown becomes known
and the mysteries surrounding that person fades away..

and like how, on a good day, our shirts decide to be kind to us,
some friendships lasts forever without much problems..
but like certain very annoying shirts,
some friendships are just as hard to ‘maintain’
and the crease created by the iron is like how a betrayal is by a friend (or yourself)..
and no matter how much we try to make the ‘crease’ go away,
it hardly ever gets smoothen out..
the lack of trust is like the lack of starch.

dont u think?

.. to dream?
to want to reach for the moon
and not have anything hinder or slash your dreams?

i’m finding it increasingly hard to do that..
to dream.

an experienced person once told me,
“Never stop dreaming, or life stops.”

i find that to be rather true.
that is because we then have got nothing to look forward to
nothing to aspire to be..
nothing to work towards.

and thats when your life falls apart
your soul starts to slip away from u like jell-o sliding off a spoon
and at the end of it, all u see around u, are just remnance of the past, of other people’s future and what others expect of you.

dont u think it was so easy to just sit and dream,
dream of what u want of yourself for the future?

this cruel world, however, tends to block our vision of the sky
every step we take only adds a brick to the wall at the corner of your eyes
so that at the end of it, all u see is a tunnel vision

but every now and again, u meet people or come across things that takes a brick or two away
and those are really precious moments where a little extra bit of light seeps thru

speaking of dreams,
i had a nightmare
it aint any ordinary nightmare.
let me story you….

“i enter a room, and the room looks familiar.. i’m searching for something.. something that is very important and i’m impatient to find it.. but yet its not anywhere to be found.. and a friend walks in and tells me, its right there in the room.. and she points to a short bookshelf at the foot of the bed..
suddenly, i find myself outdoors.. there’s an old shed beside me… trees around me but i’m in a clearing.. i see myself being blindfolded by a group of kids.. there were boys and girls.. and we start playing a game of Blindfolded Catch.. i hear the kids’ laughter, i hear them running, i SEE them running.. and then i feel myself being back in my body reaching out to catch the little children running around.. i can hear them.. i know they are near.. i hear a little girl right in front of me.. so i reach out to grab her.. but there was nothing there.. and i suddenly realize that, i am all alone.. the children were spirits.. but i still hear them laughing their happy little laughter..
i’m suddenly back in the room, and i find the thing that i’m looking for.. it is a magazine..”
thats when i got up..

somehow in my dreams, when i realized that there were no children there but i could still hear them, my spine went COLD
its not how u feel a shiver running down your spine..
literally, my spine went cold..
from the inside out
and that was the freakiest thing i have ever felt..
nothing has ever freighten me more than that dream
and when i open my eyes, i see 3 white water like streams running down the left side of the air con..
it looked like the air con was bleeding something white..
they were not shadows.. i’m on the 16th floor..
and i had absolute certainty that i needed to burn that particular magazine..
coincidentally, the mag was just brought into the house by me earlier on in the day.
from the room, i could feel a figure squatting over the bag that contained the magazine
it was cold, grey, blue and bald with odd long legs..
it looked as though it was tied up and thrown into some place that was water based
its not the first time i’m seeing this figure..
the last time i saw it in the room was when it used its fingernail to scratch the bottom of my right feet at 7 in the morning…
the bedside lamp was quickly turned on..
the white streams went away.. just like that..
and just when i pulled myself up to a sitting position,
the bed broke in half..
from head to foot, right down the centre..
the screws that were holding the bed was split clean in halves
the only way anything like that could happen was if there was super heavy weight on the bed..
(i’m not that fat, damnit)
the spirit had climbed onto the bed..
i went into the hall, the cat went still and stared at one particular spot in the hall..
so did the fishes in the small fish tank..
i go to the couch, and i smell strong incense (like someone burning potpourri)
i switched on the tv..
blasted the volumn and waited for sunrise..
thank god sunrise was only half an hour away..
every time after that, when i looked at the bag that contained the magazine,
i get goosebumps all over my body..

sounds like fiction huh..
well it happened to me
so, as expected, i wont be sleeping anytime before sunrise for the next few days..
i’m afraid to sleep..
a kind of fear that’s so new its scary in itself..

apparently, i’ve got a spirit clinging on to my ankles
and it wants help

GOD HELP ME!

do u know why great whites kill surfers?

its because they look like seals from bottom up..

………………..

-.-

jeez.. what a freaking compliment~
u’re being called fat by a shark!
must be the ultimate insult ever!

ahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha

*choke*

okay i’m retarded