Happy Single Awareness Day... or not

It's Valentine's Day today and with the hoo ha about "banning" celebrations (to quote PAS, for Muslims and also in the northern states, so the rest of us can sin in peace :P). If you've got plans with that someone (or something... :D) - good on you. But as far as I'm concerned, it's just Monday for me and it'll be just another day for me for a very long time. 

I would say this - I wouldn't mind celebrating it even if it's just once, just to get it out of the system and out of the way. But as I'm also not getting any younger, and any grand gesture would also be just plain embarrassing. Scratch that - grand romantic gestures are embarrassing at any age :P

Am I bitter? I like to think I'm not as I've never been in a relationship, so what do I know and how to be bitter about something I've not experienced personally? I'm not exactly painfully single because it's the only life I know. 

But alas, I'm way too obtuse when it comes to matters of the heart and the only way anything in that department were to improve would be to get clubbed in the head macam caveman, or someone just comes out and say something. I'm not about to, and that's that. Which is why I think I'll be single for a very long time, haha. Unlike TV and movies, it's just not that obvious. 

To my fellow singletons slowly running out of single friends, I know being the third wheel is not fun. To be stuck in conversations about other people's relationships, relationship problems (when you can't exactly relate or contribute to anyway how), wedding plans, pregnancies, babies and kids would also lose its shine after awhile, even if you were initially mildly interested (or were just being polite). For some reason or another, most of the people that I still talk to are still single, so I can't complain too much.

Oh well - have fun, whichever way it goes.

The Acmamall.com saga - Now I hate Pos Malaysia

It's been at least 3 weeks since I paid for a book that I probably will never receive and is definitely lost in transit somewhere along the way.

I usually have no bone to pick with Pos Malaysia, but I blame them for this, as well as for some of the other stuff I never received through the post. Fuckers. Now I understand the complaints about Pos Malaysia.

And yes, I just got off the phone with their customer service - got Iqmal (Ikmal?) again, who told me that I'd be refunded for the (non) purchase. They also saw the blog post I posted on FB from their marketing team. It really is not customer service's fault, but the people who are supposed to get our shit from Point A to Point B.

I should be so lucky to see the money again.

Related articles

• Acmamall - Decent customer service, sucky delivery of goods (lifeasacynic.blogspot.com)

The Browsers I Use

Image via Wikipedia

With most of the planet is STILL using IE exclusively (which I used to back in the day, but now I know better :P), but I don't think that's even possible these days - most people would need at least one other browser just in case. I have Firefox, Google Chrome, IE and Opera (which I don't know why I have it, I hardly use it) on my laptop.

My primary internet browser is Firefox. I tried it pre 1.0 way, way back and it was nothing to shout about and I went back to using IE. Picked it up again later on and I've been using it since. For the longest time it was the only known browser with tabbed browsing (until IE caught up eventually), which is great for people with short attention spans and hates having too many browser windows going in the task bar.

I also like that it's also highly customisable with the various settings and third party extensions to enhance the Internet experience - you can block ads, change the look of your browser, etc etc so no two people's Firefox browsers are alike.

Version 3.5 came out last week - it might be the Internet connection or the extensions I have going on (which I fail to cull because I do use all of them at some point), but I find it a little slow.

While I use it most of the time, I find it a bit terrible for watching online video, streaming or otherwise: it seems to take longer than usual to load. With the Flash blocker installed, I have extra clicking to do if I want to watch anything on YouTube, for example. Which is where Google Chrome comes in - it's really fast in general and even better for YouTubing.

The only time I use IE when some random dumbass site demands that it be viewed in IE (yes, I know there are ways of going about it without actually using IE, but...) and Opera when all the other browsers seem problematic, the last ditch browser. That is how I find myself using several browsers simultaneously.

I've tried Flock, the browser for social networking, but it's too much work and another browser I don't really need.

Discovery Channel logo change

(Excuse the pointlessness, but I had to get it out of the system)

If you've been watching Astro's Channel 551, or otherwise known as the Discovery Channel, you would've noticed these spots about the major change which happened on Sunday, 29 March 2009. One would think that it's a change in lineup or maybe Mythbusters is finally ending (CHOI!!), but no. The spots merely announce the change of logo. A bit anticlimatic and a waste of time and money on their part.

I would've been a beeettt more excited if I hadn't already seen the new logo from watching the latest Mythbusters and Dirty Jobs (shows you at least have to watch on Discovery) stateside. I guess it takes the South East Asian version of the Discovery Channel to adopt the "new" logo...

Old logo - admittedly so, as it's the only one I've seen on Astro...

The new logo, which is more sans serif and a bit erm, streamlined.

Honestly, it's a bit of an overkill (for lack of better term). You had to be BLIND not to notice the change. Anyhow, it's about time I see the new logo on Astro lah...

That time of year again... Holiday Gift Sets

The holiday season is almost upon us and Christmas has made it's annual November appearance - Christmas decorations in the malls, Christmas goodies in the supermarkets, and of course, Christmas gift sets. As someone who doesn't celebrate Christmas, I enjoy looking and drooling over them. Sometimes I get one for myself just because no one else is gonna get it for me.

At the moment I'm looking at this...
Pure White Linen Light Breeze To Go
Limited-time collection includes these Pure White Linen Light Breeze essentials, all in an exclusive gift box:

• Eau de Parfum Spray 1.7 oz.
• Body Lotion 3.4 oz.
• Eau de Parfum Spray Pen .27 oz.

Local retail price: RM235

There's also the other version of the set without the spray pen for RM160. Decisions, decisions. Thing is, I just started using the 50ml that I bought last month and am not sure if I want to get this set.




Then there's this...


Bobbi Brown Copper Diamond Deluxe Mini Brush Set, with 6 different brushes: Face Blender, Concealer, Eye Shadow, Eye Shader, Ultra Fine Eye Liner, and Lip Brush with cap.

Retailing locally for RM300.

Steal or not? Hmm... I'm not sure. I DO HAVE a set of brushes (notice I didn't say "brush set") - a mish mash of bought and received. I just like to have a set where all the brushes match.

What's the Deal with Movie Trailers?

I don't know what's the big deal about movie trailers. Seriously.

People discuss at great length about the teaser trailer and the many trailers for a movie that's not gonna be out for many moons more like they've already seen the damn movie. I know it's just a way for the movie studios to titillate the audiences, to build excitement for the product. A marketing tool.

I just think that it's a waste of time (and bandwidth, if you're on a cap). I like to watch the whole movie in its entirety without having seen the best bits in the trailers (come on, you know that much is true).

I don't seek out trailers; I usually watch them where they're supposed to be shown: in the cinema while waiting to watch another movie I paid money to see, or on TV, with the 30 second spots.

I miss Don LaFontaine already.

Vista suck so bad meh?

I may not be a full on techie or a geek, but frankly I don't think it's fair that Vista's been getting a lot of flack for, of all things, being nothing like XP (well, DUH). It supposedly sucks so bad that Dell's giving their customers a choice to downgrade back to XP. How can you say something like that before you've used it, even for a little bit? I'm not just saying that just because I use Vista at home and I'm all for moving forward. I get that not every single game, program and application are not compliant with Vista (yet) and the different versions of Vista are not cheap - then again, what Microsoft or Windows product is?

Even people who have not used it say that it sucks, but when told that it wasn't called Vista, they thought it was pretty great (the Mojave experiment).

Microsoft has already mentioned that Vista is more resource intensive than XP - however, I couldn't help but notice that the people that say Vista sucks run it on the bare minimum 512 MB or 1GB RAM, which OF COURSE IS NOT ENOUGH LAH! It takes 2GB, which is pretty standard in most new Vista loaded computers these days. Even if it's not, you could upgrade it yourself.

I don't know if people are getting the message that like Windows 95, 98 and the rest, but XP is gonna join them in some years when Microsoft stops giving consumers updates and that they should either get used to Vista, switch to Linux or get a Mac.

To counter the bad press, Microsoft launched a new ad campaign recently to match the Mac vs PC ads, spending $300 million dollars and hiring Jerry Seinfeld for $10 million. Why Seinfeld, I really don't know. The first TV spot was out recently and here's the video for the benefit of the lazy...



There's also a new one that's four and a half minutes long - but it's three and a half minutes too long for me.


There's plenty of mixed reactions ("the ad about nothing") to it. Frankly, I'm indifferent to both the message or the delivery, because it wasn't trying to sell anything, not blatantly anyway. Hearing the tech podcasts go on about it has been pretty interesting - this week's TWiT (This Week in Tech) tried deciphering the "symbols" in the ad, which is not a bad attempt.

Got my Visa card...

Not credit, debit. No, I don't care what you think.

So anyway... got my PB Visa Electron card in the mail last week via PosLaju (which someone at home thankfully signed for), open the sealed enveloped, ooh-ed and aah-ed at it for a little bit, signed the back panel, put the rest of the paperwork away.

I've not tried it out yet - haven't bought anything on it yet.

However, I did sign up for Paypal (after a long spell) and they accepted the card, and it needs to be verified by means of entering a transaction code of sorts in my card's account (not hard to miss cos it's USD 1.95).

Only snag is, I can't check for the verification code because stupid me haven't gone and signed up for internet banking for THIS card (which btw, is not linked to my existing PB account for "security reasons"). Which means I need to go down to the bank and sign up for it in person because I don't trust the customer service people on the phone and I hate long phone conversations that I have to pay for.

Oy vey.

Mamma Mia! The Movie

To be honest, people breaking into song when they're supposed to be speaking in movies annoy me.

I know Mamma Mia! is also a stage production on Broadway (at least). I'm not so sure about London West (or was it East?) End.

The chances of me paying to watch it on stage in New York, NY is pretty slim.

But I guess I could settle for watching it on the silver screen right here in Malaysia.

Why would I watch Mamma Mia! the movie?

1. I heard that Pierce Brosnan cannot sing and I needed a good laugh.
   
2. Ditto for Colin Firth.
   
3. And I also want to know if I could identify all the songs being sung in the movie despite the fact that I wasn't born in their hey day.
   
4. I need to challenge myself and see how long I could last without wanting to kill myself.
   

Stupid China girls.

Last night before the movie, I took 20 minutes before it started to get myself a popcorn combo. Figured I might go sit in the screening room and lepak lah you know?

I should've known better when I saw a line at the concession stand shorter than the rest.

Another red flag was when I saw that the guy behind the counter's a trainee.

And the mother of all red flags was three girls who would seamlessly blend into the Sungai Wang-Times Square crowd, up at the counter, getting their shit together.

When it was getting longer than the "one-combo-please-pay-get-change-and-receipt" routine, I went "Oh fuck" to myself. The three guys after than and before me were also restless. The Malay guy with a young family was also restless. The one thing the rest of us in that line had in common at that exact moment was:

"WHAT THE HELL IS TAKING SO LONG?"

ONE - they were taking too long in deciding what the hell they were gonna get.

TWO - trainee also sesat, also not much he can do but ride the wave out.

It's not like the rest of us weren't already hissing at them to hurry up and get lost already - they didn't seem to get the fucking hint that they were supposed to be done and gone ten minutes ago.

Choose also take so long.

Pay also take so long.

IN THE END... all they got (each) was bottled water and instant mashed potato.

I wanted to kick those bitches BACK to China. Particularly the quake disaster area.

AND...they didn't even apologise for holding up the line!! Fuck them!!!

Best part was, they didn't get the sarcasm thrown at them when they walked away. Stupid bitches.

By the time it was my turn to get my stuff, I told the guy that my movie was starting (really what) and was really in a hurry.

[Disclaimer: This doesn't mean that I hate said group of people, but I needed to rant - blog wouldn't be called The Ranting Cynic if it wasn't, right?].

Martha Ambivalance

I used to watch the Martha show in America whenever I was not napping (which was not very often), or if I happen to come across it while channel surfing.

Don't get me wrong, I'm glad that NTV7's showing it (a couple of years behind, but who cares?), but as it's a daytime show, so the broadcast hours are not convenient for a talk show junkie like myself (10 in the morning when I'm at work, or 12.15 a.m., when I'm supposed to be asleep for work).

I mostly watch the show for fun, and if I learned anything useful, good for me; otherwise, I'm not too fussed. Sadly, I don't remember anything once I wake up, and I don't really have to since the stuff's available online at the website.

I'd try to get tickets for a taping just for the free stuff (haha). While I'm not a big fan of the woman, I certainly don't hate her enough to not watch the show or take any of the tips. That said, I have to give the woman props for....

• For keeping her ex-husband's last name after the divorce for publicity reasons. I don't think her maiden name (Koystra) is as catchy, memorable or as American. Jon Stewart might agree - and no, they're not related.
  
  
• Her company MSLO (Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia) - the woman's got her name on everything, from books to bed linen to paint. Like Donald Trump, but for the homemakers.
  
  
• She covers just about everything domestic on the show: cooking, housekeeping, decorating, gift ideas, gardening (which I usually don't bother with), etc etc.
  
  
• Insisting that everything must be "perfect". Sure, and I'm the Pope.
  
  
• How the phrase "Good Thing" is associated with her.
  
  
• The website IS informative - just that it takes a while to load stuff :P
  

But come on...

• The tee shirt folding thing - Didn't the Japanese came up with that first?
  
  
• Who wants to make, bake and cook from scratch anymore? We're in the 21st century - less time wasted, the better. Cheap is good, fast is better.
  
  
• Speaking of Trump, The Apprentice: Martha Stewart was not renewed for a second season cos how bad it tanked, Ms Stewart says on her show (when Dawna the winner was on), it was only supposed to be a "one time thing". RIGHT.... if that was true, why the feud with the Donald?
  
  
• What kind of a dumbass name for a dog is Kublai Khan Paw Paw Chow Chow Chow? (Don't ask how I still remember - my capacity for useless information like this is limitless)

Frankly, I think she scares the shit out of not just her employees, but also the guests on the show and also the children that she likes to have during certain segments. But that's just me.

Malaysian Dreamgirl - Ep. 13

Three words to describe this latest installment of Malaysian Dreamgirl...

WHAT.

THE.

FARRRRRKKKK.....

Sorry, need to get that out of the way.

They showed what went on when the Final Six went on NTV7's The Breakfast Show (which, coincidentally, judge Elaine is a host of). The brief glimpses of the segment appears pretty ho-hum.

Then in Part 2, they show the girls at the gym (once again, I understand they gotta show the sponsors) doing some class (which I wouldn't know what, as I'm no gym rat), throwing punches and kicks in the air. I'm sorry, but what's the point in showing this footage? For the fetishists?

After that, they get to entertain some more guys (won't say who, otherwise who will watch?), which must be the only decent packages of testosterone they're exposed to for all the time they've been there (aside from the crew). Then I had to hear about how half of them had a dream featuring JP. Lucky I wasn't eating or I would've puked. I'm not saying the guy very ugly or what, but come on!!

I really hate the choppy, awkward segue in the elimination scene. I'm like, okay, so Nadia's first on the chopping block, then you see that Jay is next and then...

"Aiyah, why stop there?! VERY POTONG STEAM LEH!"

The Ah Lian is on the chopping block again for her lack of expression in her photos. Sazzy then proclaimed that she's safe, I'm like "WHAT THE?!"

Then Nadia is proclaimed safe. Another round of WTF.

Lepas tu nampak macam Jay dah out lah, manalah tau Sazzy pun cakap yang Jay juga "safe". Then more la-di-da about how they're safe until next week, this week's and next week's votes are accumulated, where THREE people are leaving and the rest are in the finals.

What larrrr....

I feel so cheated - I wanted to watch more bitchy phone conversations lah! Especially the ones Cindy has with her father... those are damn funny leh!

P.S. Nuffnang bloggers, try the bloggers' contest again - this time, first prize is RM500 of Escada perfume!!

My phone is not my life

There, I've said it.

For someone my age, I only use my phone for

- Making and receiving calls
- Texting
- Calling friends or family in crowded areas to ask where they are (you know that much is true)

Like orang tua only.

And to think other people use theirs as like it's another appendage.

Unfortunately mobile phones are so much a necessity these days that even school children have them.

I'm not one of those people who give their number out willy nilly: I don't fancy getting calls at all hours of the day. Then again, my phone is on silent most of the week in the office (I don't believe in annoying people with loud and annoying ring tones, although the same can't be said for the cow-orkers), and I tend to forget disabling it when I leave work. I try not to fall for the telco's money wasting attempts in the form of contests, voting, etc etc, but it happens from time to time.

I don't need an MP3 player in my phone, that's what my first generation overpriced thumbdrive of an iPod shuffle is for. I also don't need an Internet-enabled working computer in my phone either - I'm already home in front of one anyway.

However, I DO need a built-in camera in the phone because I'm not one of those people who brings a camera wherever they go. As long as the pictures are of decent quality and you can tell what's in it, I am not complaining. A built-in radio and some games are also nice.

Speaking of phones with built-in useless shit, the iPhone is the most overrated thing ever. I guess it's a pretty phone to flash if you're a character on a TV show (I've seen it on CSI: NY and NCIS), but come on: it's pretty damn difficult thing to text on, for one. As a texter, this makes it a no-no for me.

Another Thing I Don't Get...

... is the male and female er, disagreement of whether the toilet seat should be left up or down.

Women want the toilet seats down because they need it as they don't do their business standing up. Well they COULD pee standing up - but I don't think it's possible to crap standing up. Men OR women.

Guys put the toilet seat up because they don't need it, except to make a "huge deposit".

Personally I don't give a rat's ass about whether it should be left up or down - if it's up, I'll put it down. 'Nuff said.