Tuesday, October 25, 2011

My shopping experience

The market is now flooded with products made in China. Some are of reasonable quality and some are simply badly made. Yet the prices can be very close, or in fact, expensive!
First, I changed the braking switch for my car. It cost RM28 for a switch. Every time I pressed the brake paddle, it made that "click" sound. We all thought that it was good. The thing looks solid. But it lasted for only 3 days! I was told that an original unit would have costed >RM200.
Last few days, I went to every known office supplies shop or stationary shop in Miri looking for a cutter...
The price ranges from RM62 to RM100+. Mostly, the base is made from a piece of thin plywood. The last stop was Popular and to my surprised, the sales person told us that the last unit has been sold! By chance, we saw one unit on the shelf... exactly what I was looking for, a 7 inch cutter with a steel base. The price was RM45 and with a borrowed discount card, the price went down by 10% to RM40.50!
So, it pays to shop around. Especially in Miri, don't just pay for any item with any price stuck on it.

Monday, October 24, 2011

Nikon J1 and V1 prices

These are my Nikon J1 and V1 prices:

Nikon 1 V1 Mirrorless Digital Camera with:

  • 10-30mm and 30-110mm Lenses (Black/white) RM3,498 
  • 10-30mm Lens (Black/white) RM2,898
  • 10mm and 10-30mm Lenses (Black/white) RM3,298 
  • 10mm Lens (Black) RM3,098 


Nikon 1 J1 Mirrorless Digital Camera with:

  1. 10-30 mm VR Zoom Lens (Black/white) RM2,150 
  2. 10mm and 10-30mm Zoom Lens (Black/white) RM2,598 
  3. 10-30 mm / 30-110 mm Lens (Black/White) RM2,698 
  4. 10-30 mm / 30-110 mm Lens (Pink) RM2,798 
  5. 10 mm lens (black/white) RM2,399

Inclusive of 8GB memory in each of the above package

For J1 series, only black/white/pink available. Pink is available in limited stock
Pink package is inclusive of wrapping cloth, hand strap, 10-30mm lens hood

Prices subjected to change. Please call me if you are interested.  (012 878 2007 or 012 302 0178)
Order now for early delivery which will start next week in Malaysia.

Sunday, October 23, 2011

My new toy

ok, my new toy is not a new camera or photographic equipment but rather a trimmer set. I have been cutting my children hair for a long time and decided that I need to be able to do thing faster...
... So, this new set of Remington trimmer should do the job. It is super sharp and can cut down trimming time by half. However, being a first timer in using this tool, the cut is nowhere near to perfect. In another month time, I have two more guinea pigs to sharpen my skill.
I found that it is very good for cutting people with thick hair.

Thunderstorm

Tonight thunderstorm lasted for almost one hour. Ah Jon could see all the lightning streaking across the sky from his room. So I gave him the challenge to capture the lightning! If he could get one good one, he will make RM5 from me. Looks like he managed to get this nice one after some 20 tries! See that the lightning actually went across the sky!
Camera setting:
ISO: 125 F (A):7.1 EV:+0.7 Shutter speed (S): B (This means that you need to press the shutter release and wait for lightning to strike!) Mode: Manual. EV is not strictly necessary. I forgot to mention that the focus must be on manual also. Focus it to a distance lightning and then mount it on a tripod.

Saturday, October 22, 2011

Krokop Chung Hua is winner!

Yesterday evening, we saw the closing of the under 13 basketball challenge trophy. It was Chung Hua Krokop vs Chung Hua Miri. I can see that the players were tired and they didn't perform as well as compared to their first game. Whatever, here are some of the dramatic photos.
Never underestimate the boys from primary four and five. They were small in size, but they run in the air! See number 13 from Krokop!
Their smaller frame doesn't mean that they can't jump high!
See how they leap into the air!
The winning teams from Krokop. They won so many medals.
For more photos, click here.

Friday, October 21, 2011

Dr George Chan Challenge Trophy

This morning, we saw the Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Dr. George Chan Challenge Trophy under 13 Basketball competition kick off at Rain Road Secondary School indoor stadium.
Six Chinese medium primary schools participated. I managed to watch the first game, Chung Hua Miri and Chung Hua Pujut. Some players are so small in size and yet they played with so much skill. So, if you enjoy watching basketball, do go to the school tomorrow to watch the semi finals and final.
Saturday 22 Oct 2011
8:00AM Ladies  Krokop A vs Krokop B
9:00AM Ladies  Pujut vs Tudan
10:00AM -noon Men semi final
Noon Ladies Krokop B vsTudan
1:00PM Men semi final
2:00PM Ladies Krokp A vs Pujut
3:00PM Men final
4:00PM closing
More photos... click here.

Wednesday, October 19, 2011

You Gotta Cowboy Up!

http://wwweng.uwyo.edu/societies/asce/

Milwaukee Iron

http://uwm.orgsync.com/org/uwmasce/Steelbridge

SiUe

http://www.ce.siue.edu/asce/index.asp

San Jo Still Knows

http://www.engr.sjsu.edu/asce/

Rose Hulman

For what it's worth, nice site:


http://www.rose-hulman.edu/ce/asce/index.htm

RPI

http://rpiasce.weebly.com/steel-bridge.html

Beaver Fever

http://groups.engr.oregonstate.edu/ASCE/steelabout.html

Sota

https://sites.google.com/site/uofmsteelbridge/

M I C H I G A N

http://www.engin.umich.edu/societies/sbt/

Lafayette, sorta

http://ce.lafayette.edu/2011/06/21/asce-%E2%80%93-%E2%80%9Camerican-society-civil-engineers%E2%80%9D/

Watch Out For KSU

Somebody has their stuff together in Manhattan.


http://www.engg.ksu.edu/asce/steel%20bridge



Cyclones Up To Speed As Always...

http://www.stuorg.iastate.edu/asce/Steel%20Bridge.html

Tuesday, October 18, 2011

Mutton ...

Many years ago, I brought Janice and Esther to UK for a "preview" before they actually went there to study. I remembered that Stephanie was already in UK doing her first year.
When I was in Leeds, I brought them around town to do shopping. I bought a piece of mutton ...
... like what is shown in the above picture. Now, this piece cost about GBP6-8 per kg. It is true that this cut was expensive but the quality was good, tasty and tender.
Few days back, I bought some lamb shoulder from a big hypermarket in town. It was on offer at about RM17/kg, or GBP3+. When I brought back to have it cooked, the meat was so tough and we need to sharpen our teeth to eat! It is as if the lamb was a hundred years old!
I notice that the hypermarket also prepack a few slices together and to my horror, the bottom two slices, hidden from view were almost all fat! It was most discouraging for us.
The above was cooked by the girls! Thanks for remembering that we like mutton.

p/s: Meat from lamb is called mutton! Even I got it wrong at times!

Saturday, October 15, 2011

Friday, October 14, 2011

Many Firsts for Nikon Mirrorless

I talked about the newly announced Nikon Mirrorless camera, the J1 and V1. These cameras have  a few firsts:
  1. Nikon 1 J1 is the world’s smallest camera among competing interchangeable lens digital cameras equipped with image sensors larger than 1 inch. As of August 5, 2011. 
  2. Nikon 1 V1 is the world’s smallest and lightest camera among competing interchangeable lens digital cameras with an integral EVF. As of August 5, 2011. 
  3. The world’s shortest shooting time lag (as determined by Nikon performance tests). Measured when using the single-point AF mode and the shortest focal length of a standard zoom lens (1 NIKKOR VR 10-30mm f 3.5-5.6). As of August 5, 2011. 
  4. World’s fastest continuous shooting: max. 10 fps in subject tracking AF mode (when the aperture value is f/5.6 or smaller with the shutter speed 1/60 or faster) and max. 60 fps in full high definition, fixed-focus mode. As of September 5, 2011. According to NIKON measuring system.
If you are keen to buy one, you may place order with me

Wednesday, October 12, 2011

Use Once Only Mouse Trap

Have you ever wonder why your mouse trap can catch only one rat/mouse? After that, the mice seem to be smarter to know that the trap is a danger to them!
We were told by expert yesterday that we must wash the trap with hot followed by cold water after every successful catch. He told us that when a mouse was trapped, it will go into distress and will urinate around the trap to warn other potential victim. That is why other mice will keep away from the trap.

Monday, October 10, 2011

Birdwatching in Bakelalan II

Cikgu Sang Sigar encouraging birdwatching as a hobby amongst his students at SK Bakelalan.

It was almost a year ago that a bunch of us dropped in on Bakelalan to do a bit of birdwatching. Though there was a bunch of us, there were perhaps 3 birdwatchers among us intent on birding in the area. We were actually there to trek GunungMurud Oct 2010, the birders however were quickly roped into giving a crash course on birds and birdwatching to SK Bakelalan through Sang Sigar, assistant principal and proprietor at the guest house we stayed at.

It's always pleasant birdwatching in Bakelalan, by the time we left after scaling Gunung Murud, Yeo Siew Teck compiled a list of 123 birds but not all restricted to the kampong area. Ashy Drongo, Black-headed Munia, Orange-breasted Flowerpecker, Striated tit Babbler were ticked just around the village paths. The rest were ticked along our trek to the summit and back. It remains that at least more than half of the birds on our list were acquired in the easy places around the settlement.

The potential for birdwatching in the surrounding area has not been adequately explored, many past birders to the area has expressed exasperations over the lack of knowledgeable bird guides in the area. It's still a very recent hobby here as far as the locals are concerned. The question then arise : who are the best persons to bird the area other than the very persons living there 24/7. The proposal was simple : teach the local youngsters about birds, in time they will be our new resource for birdwatching and bird conservation locally in the area. After all Gunung Murud, Batu Lawi and Pulong Tau are all within walking distance from Bakelalan.

Thus started the ad-hoc preliminary initiative to teach the local children about birds and the wholesome hobby of birdwatching. Introducing the birds to these young people could very well increase their awareness of our feathered friends and ultimately their appreciation and conservation. Yeo, Nazeri, Sara, Chris and Faye initiated the first basic lessons back in Oct 2010; this year Peter, Nazeri, Amer and Ali embarked on exposing a second batch of students to birds and birdwatching.

In any rural setting, any available resource is quickly associated as food resource. The time is now if not 70 years ago to make the people of places of conservation value like Bakelalan, Bario and others more connected with the conservation work that are taking place elsewhere in bigger less bird diverse area. It might not be too late for the rural children to appreciate birds on a higher aesthetic level rather than quickly to associate it to a bowl of soup at the dinner table. Once these youngsters value birds more than just as a food resource, it will become clear to them that conservation is the only right path to follow.

Black-headed Munia, found in abundant numbers near grassy areas of Bakelalan.

Perched in the paddyfield.

Looks to be a perfect spot for early morning and last afternoon birdwatching, high up in the hills.


White-breasted Waterhen looking wary by the edge of the paddyfield.

With sufficient investment in time and effort from the school, its teachers and birdwatching fraternity, we hope that one day there'll be more birders in Bakelalan both in the form of a local as well as in the form of the paying tourist variety.

Bird list of Ba’Kelalan from 18th till 21st October 2010 (not limited to Bakelalan village) by Yeo Siew Teck

1 Cinnamon Bittern Flying over / In flight
2 Little Egret Feeding
3 Black Eagle Flying over / In flight
4 White-breasted Waterhen Heard and seen
5 Common Sandpiper Heard and seen
6 Spotted Dove Perched
7 Lesser Coucal Heard call only
8 Glossy Swiftlet Flying over / In flight
9 Gold-whiskered Barbet Feeding
10 Mountain Barbet Feeding Endemic
11Bornean Barbet Heard call only Endemic
12 Rufous Woodpecker Heard call only
13 Crimson-winged Woodpecker Pecking
14 Banded Broadbill Heard call only
15 Black-and-yellow Broadbill Heard call only
16 Golden-bellied Gerygone Heard and seen
17 White-breasted Woodswallow Perched
18 Ashy Drongo Perched
19 Pied Fantail Heard and seen
20 Pacific Swallow Flying over / In flight
21 Yellow-bellied Prinia Heard call only
22 Yellow-vented Bulbul Heard and seen
23 Rufous-tailed Tailorbird Heard and seen
24 Ashy Tailorbird Heard and seen
25 Black-throated Wren-babbler Heard and seen Endemic
26 Asian Fairy-bluebird Heard call only
27 Oriental Magpie-robin Heard and seen
28 Yellow-vented Flowerpecker Feeding
29 Orange-bellied Flowerpecker Heard and seen
30 Plain Flowerpecker Perched
31 Brown-throated Sunbird Heard and seen
32 Crimson Sunbird Feeding
33 Little Spiderhunter Heard and seen
34 Eurasian Tree Sparrow Feeding
35 Dusky Munia Heard and seen
36 Black-headed Munia Flying over / In flight
37 Grey Wagtail Heard and seen
38 Red-breasted Partridge Heard call only
39 Cattle Egret Feeding
40 Crested Serpent-eagle Flying over / In flight
41 Little Cuckoo-dove Perched
42 Thick-billed Green-pigeon Feeding
43 Banded Bay Cuckoo Heard call only
44 Greater Coucal Heard and seen
45 Bornean Frogmouth Heard and seen Endemic
46 Whiskered Treeswift Hawking for insects
47 Rufous-collared Kingfisher Heard call only
48 Stork-billed Kingfisher Heard and seen
49 Rhinoceros Hornbill Heard call only
50 Helmeted Hornbill Heard call only
51 Maroon Woodpecker Heard call only
52 Banded Broadbill Heard call only
53 Black-and-yellow Broadbill Heard and seen
54 Golden-bellied Gerygone Heard and seen
57 Scarlet Minivet Heard and seen
58 Bornean Whistler Foraging Endemic
59 Spangled Drongo Heard and seen
60 Spotted Fantail Heard call only
61 Black-headed Bulbul Heard and seen
62 Black-crested Bulbul Heard and seen
63 Red-eyed Bulbul Perched
64 Ochraceous Bulbul Heard and seen
65 Ashy Bulbul Heard and seen
66 Arctic Warbler Foraging
67 Yellow-bellied Warbler Heard and seen
68 Black-capped Babbler Heard call only
69 Chestnut-backed Scimitar-babbler Heard call only
70 Grey-throated Babbler Heard and seen
71 Striped Tit-babbler Heard call only
72 Chestnut-hooded Laughingthrush Heard and seen Endemic
73 White-browed Shrike-babbler Heard call only
74 Brown Fulvetta Heard and seen
75 Chestnut-crested Yuhina Feeding Endemic
76 White-bellied Yuhina Heard and seen
77 Pygmy White-eye Feeding Endemic
78 Rufous-winged Philentoma Heard call only
79 White-tailed Flycatcher Perched
80 Grey-headed Canary-flycatcher Heard call only
81 Greater Green Leafbird Feeding
82 Bornean Leafbird/Kinabalu Leafbird Feeding Endemic
83 Olive-backed Sunbird Heard and seen
84 Grey-breasted Spiderhunter Heard and seen
85 Crested Serpent-eagle Flying over / In flight
86 Blue-crowned Hanging-parrot Flying over / In flight
87 Drongo Cuckoo Heard call only
88 White-crowned Hornbill Heard call only
89 Whitehead's Broadbill Perched Endemic
90 Bornean Treepie Heard and seen Endemic
91 Bar-winged Flycatcher-shrike Hawking for insects
92 Black-and-crimson Oriole Foraging
93 Black-naped Monarch Heard call only
94 Crested Jay Heard call only
95 Scaly-breasted Bulbul Heard and seen
96 Temminck's Babbler Heard call only
97 Rufous-fronted Babbler Heard call only
98 Black-capped White-eye Feeding
99 Velvet-fronted Nuthatch Foraging
100 Dark-sided Flycatcher Hawking for insects
101 Verditer Flycatcher Perched
102 Ruby-cheeked Sunbird Perched
103 Wreathed Hornbill Flying over / In flight
104 White-throated Fantail Heard and seen
105 Short-tailed Green Magpie Heard and seen
106 Sunda Bush-warbler Foraging
107 Mountain Blackeye Feeding Endemic
108 Flavescent Bulbul Perched Endemic
109 Yellow-breasted Warbler Foraging
110 Mountain Wren-babbler Heard call only Endemic
111 Eyebrowed Jungle-flycatcher Heard and seen Endemic
112 Barred Eagle-owl Heard call only
113 Brown-capped woodpecker Drumming/Pecking
114 Grey-chinned Minivet Heard and seen
115 Bar-winged Flycatcher-shrike Hawking for insects
116 Blyth's Hawk-eagle Flying over / In flight
117 Pink-necked Green-pigeon Feeding
118 Indian Cuckoo Heard call only
119 Red-billed Malkoha Foraging
120 Chestnut-breasted Malkoha Feeding
121 Scarlet-rumped Trogon Heard call only
122 Orange-breasted Trogon Heard & Seen
123 Grey-cheeked Bulbul Heard call only

Last year we donated 2 Susan Myer's Birds of Borneo Fieldguide to Cikgu Sang and the community. This year we left another copy to the teachers who will be the torchbearers for this rural birdwatching effort.

It is hoped that by Jan 2012, we will have at least one AWC survey conducted in Bakelalan and by later by June a "MY Garden Birdwatch" event executed by the students and teachers with help from the birdwatching fraternity. Next trip : "How to enter Bakelalan bird sightings to BIW!"

Write-up and photo by
Nazeri Abghani, MNS Miri, Oct 2011

Saturday, October 8, 2011

Good reasons to cook with cast-iron

Cast-iron cookware is perhaps the oldest form of metal used for manufacturing cookware. The good old wok was originally made from cast iron. It is cheap and it is proven to be of health benefits.


1. You can cook with less oil when you use a cast-iron pan.
2. Cast iron is a chemical-free alternative to nonstick pans.
I just realise that the nonstick material used for making nonstick pan is actually poisonous! 
3. Cooking with cast iron fortifies your food with iron.


Read the whole article from here.

Friday, October 7, 2011

Trees growing too big?

Wonder why there is a massive traffic jam from Lutong to Miri at the moment? The local authority is currently busy chopping down massive trees between Pujut 8 and 7.
Safety concious in carrying out the job is simply not there.
They are also bringing in heavy equipment to do the job!
Huge trees were being chopped down. The local authority is spending lots of money to plant them, maintain them and finally spending money  to have them removed.
Very soon, this segment of road will be bared of trees! A real pity!

Wednesday, October 5, 2011

Steve Job 1955-2011

On Apple web site today:
Steve Jobs
1955-2011
Apple has lost a visionary and creative genius, and the world has lost an amazing human being. Those of us who have been fortunate enough to know and work with Steve have lost a dear friend and an inspiring mentor. Steve leaves behind a company that only he could have built, and his spirit will forever be the foundation of Apple.

I remembered Steve from the early year of personal computer, ie, around 1977. He then built and sold Apple 1, which lasted for a short while and then Apple II. It was Apple II computer which was cloned by so many people. Later Apple III and Lisa, etc. Click here to read an interesting commentary about the company.

Monday, October 3, 2011

"Floating" Permy-Senadin Road Design

The dual carriageway expansion for the Permyjaya and Senadin road is now under construction. This segment of road is to be built over land, which I would call it ...
... swamp and peat (or soft soil). Even though there is no rain, the place is generally quite wet. I saw a similar kind of road currently being built just across the border in Brunei. They dug deep and literally remove all the top soil. Rock was then poured in to form the foundation. The traditional method of construction is therefore high cost and slow. In Miri, about 50cm-1 meter of the top soil were removed...
.. and then, bamboo (initially used) and now solid wood timbers are used to line the "foundation".
Piles of solid timber can be seen!
... then a layer of Tencate PE Polyfelt was laid over the timber.
More information about the lining material can be found at Tencate.
Back to this discussion about this method of road design, it seems that they are being used overseas to great success! Instead of using bamboo and timber, tyre bales were also used. Perhaps, used tyres can now be put to good used instead of being a nuisance.
The cost of such road construction is definitely low and I would call it clever. Therefore, we shall see how long the surface can remain smooth.
More information about this type of road construction can be found if you google "Floating Road Construction". Click here for an interesting article on floating road construction.

    Sail Sporting Goods Coming To Oshawa

    There's a new Sporting Goods Store coming to town sportsfans. Thats right Sail is opening a store in Oshawa Ontario. Opening the first of December. Everything I've heard, and seen this is going to give outdoors enthusiasts one more place to shop; and all of their employees are experienced in the departments they are employed in............fantastic! Their prices are more than competitive, their products are all top notch and they are always having sales and other great incentives..........Here's the link to their information; check out their catalogue online, but remember this is only a small portion of what they carry, and the prices in the catalogue are not necessarily what you'll pay in store.......sometimes much lower. http://www.sail.ca/

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