Sunday, August 31, 2008

the article that got MalaysiaToday blocked by the government

Malay, The Enemy of Islam

If you really, really have nothing to do with your time, then you should attend the noonday Friday prayers at the mosque and listen to the imam lament about the enemies of Islam who all have an agenda to destroy Islam. If not, then don't waste your time. Do something else instead.

Yes, non-Muslims are the enemies of Islam, according to these imams, and they are all united in their effort to 'kill' Islam.

Actually this is not true at all. The enemies of Islam, at least in Malaysia, are the Malays themselves. The only thing is the Malays are just too bodoh (stupid) to realise this. Malays say that there are two types of bodoh. One is bodoh sepat - you pretend to be stupid but are actually very devious. Malaysian Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi would probably fit this bill. He pretends to be bodoh but is actually very crafty. The second is bodoh sombong - you are actually very stupid but are too stupid to realise that you are stupid and think you are very clever.

Most Malays fall into this category of bodoh sombong.

On 17th and 18th January 2008, a case is going to be heard in the Kuala Lumpur High Court. I was told this is the new courthouse near the Wilayah Persekutuan Mosque along Jalan Duta in Kuala Lumpur. A woman is suing the Malaysian government, the Federal Territory Religious Department (JAWI) and RELA (a volunteer paramilitary force that is infamous for extorting immigrant workers of their hard-earned money), plus one or two other Malaysian government agencies. Karpal Singh is the solicitor for the plaintiff, which promises to be a very exciting case indeed considering Karpal is known to take no prisoners.

It seems this woman, a Muslim, was arrested during a 'vice raid' on a certain disco in Kuala Lumpur. She was an employee of that disco and, according to the 'rules', Muslims are not supposed to work in any establishment that sells liquor. So, for that 'crime', she was arrested together with about 16 or so other Muslim men and women.

Now, when the authorities issued the disco its licence, it was not stipulated anywhere in that licence that any establishment selling liquor is prohibited from employing Muslim staff. If this is the law then certainly our national airline, MAS, would have to retrench all the Malay staff and employ only non-Muslim Chinese, Indians, Portuguese, Dayaks, Kadazans, etc., because MAS serves liquor. Not only the cabin crew would have to be sacked but the entire staff including the ticketing staff, administration staff, accountants, managers, board of directors, and so on, would have to go.

The 'haram' ruling would not only affect those directly involved in serving the liquor on-board the flights but anyone whomsoever even remotely linked to the organisation. I mean, the 'criminal' is not only the stewards and stewardesses who serve the liquor but anyone who may be 'collaborating' with the stewards and stewardesses to make it possible for the stewards and stewardesses to serve liquor on-board the flights. So, those who sell the tickets and those who check you in and those who handle your baggage and those who usher you to the plane and those who sit in the office to count the money and those who sit in the boardroom to conduct meetings, and many more, are 'partners-in-crime' and would also have to leave the organisation.

If you drive the car that the bank robbers used to rob the bank you too would be arrested for bank robbery although you just sat in the car and did not walk into the bank to rob it. If you lent the bank robbers the car that they used to rob the bank then you too would be arrested for bank robbery although you did not follow them to the bank but just stayed home. If you lent the bank robbers the guns they used in the bank robbery you too would be arrested for bank robbery although you did not follow them to the bank but just stayed home. If you gave the information to the bank robbers on when and how they should rob the bank so that they can maximise their takings and make a successful getaway you too would be arrested for bank robbery even though all you did was just offer them information and did not actually take part in the robbery.

Yes, all of them would be regarded as being part of the bank robbery ring even though their only role was to assist the bank robbers in pulling off a successful bank robbery and did not actually take an active part in the robbery and were not even there.

So, are Muslim waiters and waitresses who work in discos committing a crime?

Yes, according to the Federal Territory Religious Department who arrested 17 or so Muslim staff who were working in a disco in Kuala Lumpur. And all except one pleaded guilty and paid the RM400 fine. One, however, decided to sue the Malaysian government, the Religious Department, RELA and two other government agencies for RM5 million. And Karpal Singh is handling the case.

According to the police report that this Muslim woman made, which is the basis of the suit, she plus all the others were handcuffed and placed in the police truck. After some time she needed to answer the call of nature and requested permission to go to the toilet. However, they refused to allow her to go to the toilet and asked her instead to just pee in the truck.

This woman could not hold her bladder and had no choice but to pee there and then. Her colleagues helped guard her modesty by placing a scarf in front of her so that she could at least have some privacy. But the RELA officers pulled away the scarf and started taking photographs of her peeing, of course with her private parts fully exposed.

In the police station, the men were separated from the women. The women were then taken to a secluded part of the police station and photographed. But they were not photographed in the normal 'criminal' way with their numbers on their chest and so on. Instead, they were told to assume sexy positions -- bend forwards, backwards, sideways, etc. Basically, they were asked to pose in erotic and sensuous positions for the benefit of the cameras, sort of like the centrefold of Playboy or Penthouse, if you know what I mean.

Then the women were told they could avoid getting charged by settling the case 'outside court' in exchange for sexual favours. All they had to do was drop their panties and after a quickie they would be allowed to go home without any further action taken against them.

Actually, this sort of thing is not new. This has been going on for more than 30 years. Why do you think these perverts fall over each other and rush to sign up as RELA guards? And they would drop everything and volunteer their time free-of-charge to participate in a 'vice raid'. Of course, they will tell their wives and children they only have the interest of Islam at heart in arresting 'immoral' Malay men and women who work in discos that serve liquor. Their interest is only to protect the dignity of Islam. Yeah, sure, and I with five children and four grandchildren am still a virgin.

No, if you have free time on your hands don't waste it by going to the noonday Friday prayers to listen to the imam scream, rant and rave about the enemies of Islam plotting against Islam in their secret agenda to destroy Islam. Instead, go to the Kuala Lumpur High Court at Jalan Duta on 17th and 18th January 2008 and hear the case that Karpal Singh is going to argue. Hear how the 'moral police' -- officers of the Federal Territory Religious Department and RELA -- round up women and photograph them nude and demand sex as out of court settlement.

Yes, these are the upholders of the dignity of Islam.

These are the defenders of Islam. These are the officers of Islam Hadhari, the new Islam, the invention of Abdullah Badawi. Now do you know why the non-Muslims fear the prospects of Malaysia being turned into an Islamic State? Hey, I don't blame them. If this is the Islam they are talking about then I too fear Malaysia being turned into an Islamic State. I fear my wife and daughter getting picked up by these perverts because they are perceived as dressing too sexily and then being asked to grant these 'officers of Islam' sexual favours as out of court settlement.

Hmm, this reminds me of another RELA officer from Terengganu whom I personally knew who raped and murdered a Malay schoolgirl. They eventually hanged him of course but this did not bring the unfortunate schoolgirl back to life. I suppose after getting horny from photographing waitresses in the nude they need to let off some steam by raping schoolgirls and then murdering them after that to prevent them from talking.

Yes, let us all go to the Kuala Lumpur High Court at Jalan Duta on 17th and 18th January 2008 and take a good look at the defenders of the dignity of Islam, those 'moral police' who arrest Malay girls and boys who work in discos and then photograph them in the nude and then demand sex as out of court settlement.

Saturday, August 30, 2008

post hari ini

さっきテレビをつけたら

9歳の子供の死を使って

感動させようっという番組がやっていて

なんと

KIROROがBEST-FRIENDを生で歌っていた!

本当に歌声がいい!

KIROROの歌が終わったら

今回は両腕のない9歳の子供が

水泳するらしい

よく考えたね。。。テレビの人って

つまらなかったから、パソコンで映画を見た

「ハンコック」 (英語版:HANCOCK)

そんなに面白くはなかった

*ちなみに、そのテレビ番組は24時間テレビだと思う。

Friday, August 29, 2008

the iphone girl

aahh... the internet. another example of how a random 'accident' or small events involving a pretty asian girl with technology could generate such interest that turns into a global news story.

iphone girl is the newest internet celebrity, but like all the other internet celebrities, no-one knows who she is.

a briton purchased an iphone, activated it for the first time and were surprised to found that the 'home screen' had already been set with pictures of a chinese girl who looks like she was working in an assembly line in a factory. it seems like the employers at the testing department were testing the iphone, and forgot to delete the pictures.

click here for the details from yahoo!

i wonder if the pictures were different, would this 'accident' generate as much interest? for example, instead of a smiling chinese girl doing peace-signs, what if it's an angry looking middle aged assembly-line worker that looks like an old men because she's been doing a lot of hard labor all her life?

anyways, someone actually made a website dedicated to her and track her story.

the discussion board that originally generated this story, is now full of people discussing about who she is, how old she would be, would she be fired and so on.

it's interesting to notice that apple are actually using microsoft windows (could be clearly seen on the lcd on the back) to test the new iphones.

Monday, August 25, 2008

being a hooker is something that Sufiah Yusof loves

..

a math-prodigy, a child genius.

Sufiah Yusof (now known as Shilpa Lee), once the pride of her Malaysian mother and Pakistani father, brags about her high-paying job as a hooker in this shocking interview.

This is probably a very old news already, but I just knew about this; and I am shocked to hear how fucked-up she has become to even went on to say that having bad impression about prostitution is… out dated!

“I’ve had the best sex working in this job”
“I got my needs fulfilled through my work”

She maybe a math genius, but she knows nothing about how to choose a good career that won’t get you sexually-transmitted-diseases.

Saturday, August 23, 2008

back to reviewing movies !

Caramel – 8.6

A really good film, like Caramel, is one of the few reasons why I never gave up searching for no-name foreign films that came out of no where, in this case, from Beirut, Lebanon. The film might remind you of Beauty Salon and Sex and The City, in a good way that is because Caramel is a lot deeper and real than both of the mentioned films could ever imagined, combined. The theme of the movie is love, and how the woman in the film deals with it; helping each other to cope with cultural constraints that has been framed upon them. The thing that I like the most about the movie is how each and every character in the movie has their own detailed story with their own interesting personalities and background, and each one of these qualities could be interpreted later by the viewer in many ways that they see fit. This is a gem of a movie. Caramel is indeed, bittersweet. Highly recommended. * The director Nadine Labaki, played Layale, the saloon girl trying to get love from a married men. *

The Dark Knight – 8.8

You’ve probably heard this thousand of times before: apparently, Dark Knight was an awesome movie! Yessir, I strongly agree! Everyone was talking about how awesome Heath Ledger is. Well, to me, Heath Ledger does not exist at all in the movie. What I did saw though, is the most bad-ass portrayal of The Joker, in any Batman movie ever made. The Joker in The Dark Knight will not be forgotten for a long, long time. I like Christian Bale too, but he still fights like a robot in this one, nothing special. It is interesting to see how this movie has finally made the efforts to try to tell the Dark Knight story as parallel as possible with the Dark Knight comics, the darker version of Batman. The Dark Knight may not be 2008’s best movie, but it’s sure as hell is the best superhero movie, EVER. Go watch this, now. Please.

He Was A Quiet Man – 8.4

After further investigation, I have found out that the boob that you saw in the movie is not the real boob of the lovely Elisha Cuthbert, but a tit-double. Yeah. That’s a real bummer but thankfully, the story and how they progress it was really interesting and they keep you engaged with little weirdness coming from the imagination of he main character, and how he reacted to it. Bob Maconel (Christian Slater) was a quiet man, secretly planning to go on a homicidal and suicidal rampage against his cruel co-workers who treated him like he was a complete loser, an ignored soul as he put it. His plans took an unexpected turn when he became the hero who saved the day, instead of the opposite. The movie invites you to open your mind to bloody raw emotions that a stressed and paranoid man has and how we as a society, put too much pressure on being successful and how our blatant ignorance and hypocritical social masks were the clogs in a machine that made those ‘quiet man’ into homicidal social fuck-ups that we saw on tv. Highly recommended.

Arranged – 8.2

A story about two beautiful, intelligent school teachers who are being put through a traditional ‘arranged marriage’ practice by their family. One is an Orthodox Jew, and the other is a Muslim. And they're not trying to kill each other!!! Now you have to watch this film! Seriously though, this is a touching movie, and sometimes funny too. Muslims and Jews should watch this film, together, while holding hands.

In Bruges – 8.4

The film starts slow by introducing two hit man; one grumpy oldmen while the other a wise-crack noisy young miserable bastard, being sent to Bruges in Belgium to hide and wait for further instructions from their boss after a fucked-up assassination mission in London. The playwriting in the movie was extremely well done, blending crude humor and all range of human emotions successfully; something that you won’t find in Hollywood movies. Then the story ramps up the pace when the real reason they were sent to Bruges were made known by their boss; from there on, the tension doubles every 10 minutes, reaching for a superb climatic ending. The acting was good (Colin Farrell did well in this one), the story was very interesting and this is truly a new, fresh take on hit men movies. Highly recommended.

L Change The World – 6.5

A spin-off sequel to the popular Japanese thriller ‘Death Note’, but this time the story focuses only on L and how he spent the last days of his remaining life. I loved the Death Note mangas and I thought the movies were a pretty well done. The problem with this movie is that they didn’t touch the most important theme that made the manga and film interesting: The freaking death note itself! Story was really mediocre the only thing that stands out is the cute girl and the weirdly cool L.

The Love Guru – 7.0

I really like Mike Myres in all the Austin Powers movies, he was pretty darn funny. Mike Myres in The Love Guru on the other hand… was pretty darn LAME. OK there are some funny scenes that made me laughed, but the story was boring as hell that I slept through half of the film. Anyways, I think people who hated Mike Myres’s brand of comedy, would NEVER enjoy watching this movie, seriously. It’s pretty heavy with Myres Jokes. The part when Jessica Alba dances ala Bollywood was pretty funny, and worth watching though.

恋空 (Koizora) – 7.5

As a tragic teen love story, this film is pretty watchable, IF you really, really like watching a heroine with a really pretty and innocent face; but you really don’t have to. The story had been done countless of times before in other mediocre teen movies and you don’t even have to think to successfully predict the ending. Aragaki Yui is extremely pretty though, and that is the only reason I stayed watching to the end.

P2 – 6.0

A workaholic executive businesswoman works until late night and is pursued by a psychopathic security guard after being locked in a parking garage on Christmas Eve. Some jumpy moments here and there but overall: pretty boring and not scary at all.

Where In The World Is Osama Bin Laden – 7.6

Morgan Spurlock from the brilliant Super Size Me fame, went on to various places, even to really dangerous spots in search for Osama bin Laden. What he really finds is some muslim people acting like normal people, not like the evil, blood thirsty, uneducated savages like they were portrayed in the American media. This so-called-documentary brings nothing new to the table, but the humorous road it took with the presentation, the cartoony graphics and all make this ‘already a little bit too late’ documentary a watchable one. A light reminder of Osama’s existence and how muslims all over the world, really wants the guy captured and his balls bitten by a gay priest.

Hellboy 2: The Golden Army – 6.0

The first movie sucked. The second one sucked even more. I fell asleep out of boredom. I woke up in the middle of the movie, watching a white guy doing kungfu like he’s chinese. Then somehow Hellboy tries to be cool by saying some cheesy stuff. Don’t waste your time with this movie, I have. The CGI and the credits was pretty good though.

What Happens In Vegas – 7.0

Bla bla bla like I give a fuck about the story. The film got Cameron Diaz and Ashton Kutcher in it. I thought this is going to be such a horrible film that I’m going to laugh all the way, but surprisingly, it was quite an entertaining one, in a mindless kind of way. I think I have a soft spot here. If you’re in the mood for a dumb, unserious movie, this movie might not be such a bad choice. Really.

City Of Men – 7.5

In line with Kitano Takeshi’s Brother and 血と骨(Blood and Bones), City of God was one of my favorite films of all time. No doubt about it. Although City of Men has the same theme about Brazilian gangster culture, it was never as shockingly gruesome as City of God. The story revolves around two youngsters in a search to discover things about their missing fathers' pasts which will shatter their solid friendship, in the middle of a war between rival drug gangs from Rio's favelas. Although disappointingly not as good as City of God, City of Men is still a gritty film and it still manages to shock you with its realistic portrayal of the problematic favelas in Rio de Janeiro.

Never Back Down – 8.0

I’m so glad they still made movies like this. Noticing references from Jackie Chan’s training scene from Drunken Master, a little bit of Rocky and Fight Club etc. is inevitable; but it was done is an acceptable taste, not insulting. Forget about the story, the main dish is the fighting. And it was good. If you like movies with dumb story lines but awesome fighting scenes, you’re going to love this one. And oh, I think it’s also female-viewer-friendly; IF that female viewer likes to see sweaty teenage boys kicking each other’s ass with style.

Si j'étais toi aka The Secret – 7.8

When a mother and daughter are in a car accident, the soul/spirit of the mother was transferred into the daughter’s body; while the body of the mother stays dead. The story is basically about how the mother (being inside her daughter’s body) copes with teenager life, having to deal with peer pressure, drugs and sex. This frustrates the loving husband because he got confused on how to deal with the situation, like he wants to have sex with his wife, but can’t because physically it’s his daughter etc. Olivia Thirby did a good job doing two different characters; there is definetely a pool of talent there.

俺たちの世界 (This World of Ours) – 6.0

This Japanese movie tries to evoke the viewers to think about how pathetic it is for a human being to put himself into the frames of society and live a boring life; but then it backfires and tried to lay down an example that people who think this way are just losers in his/her philosophical bullshit.

Flash Point – 7.0

This is what I would call a pretty decent Hong Kong action movie. The story was forgettable but the action sequences were really entertaining, and the fight scenes are spectacular and detailed. If you like Hong Kong action movie, you’d probably enjoy this movie.

The Mummy 3 The Tomb of The Dragon Emperor – 6.4

The first and second Mummy movies were one of my favorite action adventure films of all time, and I can’t hold my excitement moments before watching the third installment. The previous movies had interesting stories, funny dialogs, exciting tomb riding with its fair share of deadly traps and wicked sick mummies and the all too fitting combination of the brilliant Brendan Frazer-Rachel Weisz duo. It was not the greatest movie ever made, but it was good and fun. Unfortunately, the same things cannot be said about The Tomb of The Dragon Emperor. The writers’ desperate attempt at humor is...laughable. Being a Rob Cohen movie, the CGI and action sequences were very well made and screamed for a label of being‘epic’. Unfortunately, the weak juggling stories, horribly boring dialogues, and the absence of Rachel Weisz made this movie barely watchable. This is what I would call a decent mindless entertainment.

Thursday, August 21, 2008

urbanisasi dunia tidak lah seburuk yg anda sangka

現在の地球の人口の半分以上は都会に住んでいると言われている。そして、毎年都会に住んでいる人は増え続くと予想されている。この「田舎から都会に」という変動は「自然から逃げる」とも呼ばれている。この「自然から逃げる」という言葉は、非常に悪いイメージを持っている。その悪いイメージが付く理由としては地球の表面を都会化にするため自然を壊して環境を変えなければならないからだと考えられる。

  しかし、地球の工業化と都会化の成長の一般的な過程は環境に影響を与えるが、あらゆる問題について、かならずしも都会を非難すべきではないと思う。都会は汚い廃棄物を出す工場ではない。都会は高密度における人々の集まる、かなり環境にいい場所である。なぜなら、田舎のように広まった所で住むより、都会で一緒に群生する方がはるかに少ないエネルギーを使用することができるからである。

  人間がより多く都会に住めば住むほど、効率の高いレベルのエネルギーの使い方、そしてより低い無駄遣いを抑えることができる。減退しているコミュニケーションと輸送のコストで、都会はこれまで以上に重大になった。都会は知性の扉になり、新しい技術の開発をより早く、そしてより効率よくできる。そういうものとして、都会は人間資本(human capital)と革新を作り上げる知的な接続を創造する。

  市街化の普及は途方もないほど有益な過程である。都市の人々はより経済的でそして生産的で生活と仕事をすることが出来る。都市の密度は何百年間もの革新の源泉だと思う。都会には貧困、汚染、および病気のような問題が悪評につながりはあるが、その問題の原因は都会だと言えない。

  言い方悪いかもしれないが、都市が人々を貧しくするから、貧民がいっぱいであるのではなく、都市が貧民を引き付けるから、都市は貧民でいっぱいである。都会は悪いから来るのではなく、都会は良い環境性質を持っているから何百人もの人々が都会に集まりに来る。取引と振り合いの機械を求め、郊外に来る農村からの出稼ぎ労働者にとって都会とはより輝く未来を提供する場所であろう。また都会は、他には手に入れない公共輸送と最低生活保障福祉計画などもある。

  我々人間は社会的な種であり、そして私たちの最大級の実績はすべて協力的である。都市は、協力的である共同作業をより簡単にするためのマシンであり、人間類の発展に欠かせないものになっている。

  人間は非常に強い柔軟性を持ち、環境の変化に合わせて自分の習慣を変えていく。よりいい生活の性質を掴むには自然に戻るのではなく、このまま地球が都会化的に進むべきだと思う。しかし、原料として使えるものは自然の中にたくさんあるから、自然の回復と調整して、自然を効率よく使用するべきだと考える。自然は人間のためにあるから、その逆ではない。

Wednesday, August 20, 2008

Sasaki Nozomi

It’s still summer holiday and I’ve been doing a lot of meaningless traveling and short trips to weird but fascinating places; but unfortunately I can't blog about it because it would basically ruin my reputation and future prospects.

In doing that, I’ve also lost the time and will to write anything new on this blog, so I apologize to those who said that they come to this blog because I update it frequently.

Anyways, I’m taking a break from going to weird places doing stupid things because ramadhan is coming up and I want to start focusing on my presentation that I’m going to give next week.

*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^

Anyways, this is Nozomi Sasaki (佐々木希), the Akita Bijin (秋田美人) slowly rising to fame in the Japanese entertainment world. Her first prominent tv appearance is on a comedy show, and she got tremendous attention afterwards when the cameramen loses his concentration and tried to constantly zoom in to her face only, ignoring the other guests present. Then she got called「鬼のように可愛い」by the M.C., which means cute as a demon.

Here’s a quick profile:

のんちゃん Non Chan
1988/02/08
Akita City
168cm
80 - 58 - 82 cm
Fashion magazine model + gravure idol

There are better pictures that you could find on the internet. I recommending Really Cute Asian, they got tons of great pics!

Friday, August 15, 2008

Malique ft M Nasir - Mantera Beradu

from Malique's latest solo album: OK

Malique with M Nasir. Can't get any better than this. I just hoped his next project would be with Joe Flizzow, returning as the best hip-hop duo Malaysians ever known, Too Phat.
. .

Sunday, August 10, 2008

The Top 5 In-Demand Majors

(pulled this one from yahoo!)

by Elizabeth Weiss McGolerick, ClassesUSA.com

What's on employer wish lists? Based on the latest job-offer facts and findings, the most in-demand bachelor's degrees may surprise you, or even have you reconsider your chosen field of study.

The following list highlights the top five in-demand bachelor's degrees according to the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE) Spring 2008 Salary Survey, with starting salaries. Job descriptions are based on details provided by the Bureau of Labor and Statistics.

1. Mechanical Engineering

Mechanical engineers are curious about how things operate. Professionals in this broad discipline research, design, develop, and test tools, machines, and mechanical devices. Along with a knack for science and math, engineers need strong oral and written communication skills.

While most entry-level mechanical engineering positions require a bachelor's degree, continuing education is critical -- protecting engineers from potential layoffs or cutbacks.

Job outlook: As more engineers retire, and many professionals transfer to managerial positions, job opportunities are good.

2. Accounting

For those who delight in number crunching, a bachelor's degree in accounting can lead to occupations in financial and investment planning, budget analysis, tax preparation, bookkeeping, payroll services, and auditing. Opportunities are often best for CPAs, MBAs, or professionals proficient with accounting software.

Accountants ensure that a firm is run efficiently and records are kept accurately. Expect long hours -- especially around tax season.

Job outlook: Thanks to retirees and a faster-than-average job growth due to new business and changing financial laws and regulations, accountants can enjoy favorable job opportunities.

3. Finance

Financial analysts and personal financial advisors gather and analyze financials and provide investment guidance to businesses and individuals. They must feel comfortable with money markets, tax laws, and the workings of the economy, and have good communication skills to explain complex strategies and concepts.

A bachelor's degree will get your foot in the door, but additional certifications or an MBA is a plus. Many finance professionals opt to open their own business; almost a third of personal financial advisors are self-employed.

Job outlook: Personal financial advisors are projected to be among the 10 fastest-growing occupations. Though job growth is strong across the board, competition is still keen for finance positions.

4. Business Administration/Management

Business administration professionals may work as contract administrators, facility managers, or administrative services managers in the private industry and government, where they keep offices running efficiently, conducting records management to administration to telecommunications to support services.

Leadership and communication skills are as valuable as flexibility, and being detail-oriented, and decisive. Experience can get business administration professionals promoted in smaller organizations, while formal education credentials -- including advanced degrees -- are beneficial to advancement in larger organizations.

Job outlook: Jobs are projected to grow as quickly as average among all occupations. Competition for top-level business administration management jobs will be high while more opportunities will exist for lower-level management jobs and facility managers.

5. Civil Engineering

Civil engineering is considered one of the oldest engineering disciplines, attracting those who are analytical by nature. Civil engineers design and supervise the construction of highways and byways -- from roads and bridges to tunnels and dams -- and work in fields such as water resources and structural concerns.

These professionals must simultaneously be inquisitive, detail-oriented, and interested in the big picture. In their designs, civil engineers must consider potential environmental hazards, construction costs, and government regulations that can affect their creations. Bachelor's degrees are required for most entry-level jobs and continuing education is critical as new technologies emerge.

Job outlook: Employment growth for civil engineers is expected to move at a pace that is faster than the average for all occupations.

Tuesday, August 05, 2008

hokkaido summer trip day 4

The ferry we boarded this time was different from the one we came with. On the previous ferry, we were divided to 3 separate rooms. This time, all 36 of us were forced to share the night in one big room together. There seemed to be a slight problem with the tickets so we got no other choice.

I’m pretty tired at this time, so I tried to sleep. Unfortunately, this is quite impossible because when you put 36 people in one big room, noise is going to be a problem. The Chinese are playing dices, the Koreans are playing Korean cards, the Taiwanese were watching Korean soap dramas on tv... it’s like in a fishing market in there.

I felt a little dizzy so after taking 2 pills with water; I decided to go to the ofuro located at the 7th level for a warm bath.

The ofuro was not so big, and at the time I first arrived, it was already full with naked people with their dicks hanging around like it’s a merry dick fest. I cannot stand the excessive content of dicks and penises, so I got out; and decided to wait it out and go to the ofuro later, when there are not so many penises walking around.

So I went for a walk outside. It was quite windy and dark but the cool breeze of the ocean wind made me stay. I don’t know how long did I stand there, not thinking about a thing, just hearing the sound of ocean; but eventually I got bored. So I went to level 5 to chat with the information center chick. She was not doing anything anyways so I guess I’m doing her a favor.

When I felt that I’ve taken enough of her working time, I decided to went and check out the ofuro again. I’m in luck, there was only one guy in there!

*it is the rule of every ofuro (hot bath) in japan for the customer to strip naked when entering the bathing room. you were only allowed to bring a small towel to cover your penis. so even if you have a big dick, you are only allowed to bring the same small-sized towel, sorry.*

Ofuro is an awesome thing, especially when you’re tired. I felt lighter after spending 20 minutes in there. I felt refreshed and fully recovered from the headaches and dizziness.

I returned to the group room and everyone has already started to prepare to go to bed. I just got back from a hot bath, so in no way am I sleepy! The Dato Seri Najibian girl (let’s call her najib) also couldn’t sleep yet so we decided to go to the café to have a drink.

She noticed the huge scar on my right hand, so I told him how I got it. In return, she showed me her scars, and started to tell me the story of each scar. Pretty scary stuff. She got knifed, burn injuries from iron, fell from horses and all sort of other painful injuries that left scars all over her body. Well, not ALL over her body, but for a girl, she got lots of scars.

We’re still not sleepy enough, so we decided to go outside, hoping that the darkness and the cold breeze of wind might help. My brilliant strategy worked, so we went to bed.

We finally arrived at the Hachinoe Port at 04:45am, and then we’re on the bus again. We stopped at the Hachinoe Train Station to eat our bento breakfast. Everyone else got the pig bento, while I got the special seafood one. It was pretty delicious actually, with the exquisite combination of squid, saba, shrimp and clamp.

We arrived safely at the university’s main gate at 10:30am, and the people from the foreign students’ office were waiting for our arrival. I said my goodbyes and rushed home because I got a seminar to attend to that afternoon.

Overall, I think it has been a great trip. Hokkaido is such a beautiful place to be. The air is cleaner and the food tastes better. I’m definitely going back!

Monday, August 04, 2008

hokkaido summer trip day 3

Day three was filled with lots of sightseeing, flower gardens and nature. We left the Asahikawa Washington Hotel at 9:00 am and arrived at Yoshide Hill (美瑛の丘) to see Ken & Marie’s Tree (ケンとメリーの木). The huge tree was used in Nissan’s Skyline ads during the early 70’s and got it’s name from the characters used in the ad. The huge tree stands tall and huge all alone and there was no other significant tree around the area, making it such a sight to see.

It was written on the pamphlet.

Next is the The Color of Four Seasons Hills (四季彩の丘) located just 10 minutes from Yoshide Hill. The hills here are filled with flowers of various color and scent, stretching to as far as my eyes could see. Everything is so colorful, and I don’t know how to say this without sounding gay; the hills are really pretty and it made me happy inside.

The yellow flowers smelled like chicken shit, though.

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「ねぇ。。。アリ君、あたしの写真ばっかり撮らないで、自分の写真も!撮ってあげるよ!」

*いや、別にいいよ。俺は花に似合わないし。。。

「何言ってんの!ほら、早くぅ!」

*オッケー。。。こんなポーズはどうだ?

I like to take pictures, but I have no sense when it comes to posing for the camera.

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As I was taking poses for the camera, my phone rang. I looked at the caller id, and my heart stopped a beat: it’s from nifco, the company that I went for an interview last week. This might be the result of my final interview!

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「doki doki」

My heart beats faster. I took a deep breath.

「This is ***** from the Nifco personnel department, and I am going to give you the result for the final interview that was conducted at our Tokyo headquarters last week. Are you ready?」

*Yes sir, please.

「Here is the result. You passed. You got the job. Congratulation. We are going to send you the necessary documents and your professor will also be informed.」

*Oh, ok. Thank you very much… wait a minute. I passed!? Woot!

「Bla blab la」

*Bla bla bla! I’ll do my best!

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This is an awesome feeling.

Alhamdulillah.

I’m back on the right direction again.

Alhamdulillah.

I clenched my fist and punched the clouds, screaming

YATTA ZE \(^O^)/ !!!

Alhamdulillah, I did it. Another burden, off my shoulders.

Now I felt like taking pictures. Goody-feeling pictures! The picture above was taken seconds after the phone call.

On the way back to the bus, I bought a special vanilla-lavender flavored soft ice-cream; it was so good; especially when it’s hot outside. I managed to finish it in just minutes!

On the bus, the Dato' Seri Najibian girl sitting next to me was eating the same soft ice-cream. I don’t know why, but I think girls should be banned from eating dripping soft ice-creams, especially when she is sitting next to me on a bus. The licking is one thing, the sound that they make when slurping all those thick, creamy, white ice-cream… is uncomfortable to my innocent ears.

「You want some? It’s really yummy! 」I must agree, it tasted better this time with her saliva on; and believe me, that is NOT the most perverted sentence that I have ever written here in this blog.

I was forced to think about other happy thoughts until the bus arrived at the Furanoburu Matsuo (ルラノーブル マツオ) restaurant for lunch. We ate seafood sukiyaki (I guess?) for lunch, and it was not so bad. I just hoped that there were not so many bean sprouts!

After lunch, I went to the souvenir section of the restaurant to buy some memorabilia of hokkaido’s most famous cartoon character: Mari Mokkori kun (まりモッコリ君). The most intriguing quality about Mari Mokkori kun is that even though he is famous with children, he never failed to keep a raging, hard BONER every second of his appearance. I don’t know what gave him the raging hard boner, but this cute guy has guts. You don’t find many people who bravely show their boner to everyone, and are able to pull in the cute factor, all in the same time. Mari Mokkoki kun, you are my idol. I guess he teaches his fans to not be afraid of displaying your true self, even with a hard-rock boner.

According to 訳GO.com, mokkori (もっこり) means: 1) penile erection 2) the ‘tent’ an erection makes against pants or bedsheets.

We got on the bus again and arrived at Tomita Farm (ファーム富田) at 12:35pm. There was nothing much to do here but this farm is famous with its juicy orange melons (real melons!); so we went straight to Tomita’s Melon House. And I must say, although it was quite expensive (250yen a slice), it was worth it, every single yen. This has got to be the juiciest, most delicious melons that I have ever tasted. And I’m talking about real melons, not human melons, my dear friends.

I also bought a sweet scenting perfume made out of lavender. I knew that the perfume is probably made with women as the user in mind, but who knows... I might be lucky enough to attract two or better, four lesbians. Hmm... Hmm... Mari Mokkori Kun tought me to be a dreamer.

Next stop is the Northern Horse Park located in Tomakomai City. Other than the expected horse rides, they also has other activities like archery, golf, cycling etc. This time I joined the Taiwanese group and went to the horse barn with them. As I was talking to this horse named Blonde Streaker, I could see one of the Taiwanese girls stepping on a pile of horse shit. HUGE horse shit. She noticed that I was the only one looking, so she asked me to keep it a secret. Hell, even if I do keep it a secret, everyone would know just by the smell and how the textures of her knickers changed color. Girls, please be more careful of animal poop when walking.

After that, I took the horse-cart ride before doing some archery. Then it’s dinner at the park’s restaurant. The meal was simple and nothing amazing. The Taiwanese girl who stepped on a HUGE pile of horse shit earlier was sitting next to me. I tried to focus on my food. Horses only eat small plants and grass, so their shit is not a big deal. Even if it’s fucking HUGE.

The Northern Horse Park was our last tourist attraction for the whole trip, so it’s time to say goodbye to the great Hokkaido. We arrived at the Tomakomai Port at 07:10pm and the ferry departed for Hachinoe at 09:15pm. Sayonara Hokkaido. It has been an awesome experience, and I'm not sure whether my grammar is correct or not .

Sunday, August 03, 2008

hokkaido summer trip day 2

I ate my first breakfast since February at the hotel restaurant. It felt a bit weird having food in my stomach at this early morning after such a long hiatus. Then we left the hotel at 8am and arrived at the Otaru Unga Craft Museum (小樽運河工藝館) at 9am.

The craft museum specializes in glass craft and there were thousands of uniquely hand crafted glass pieces on display and on sale. The main purpose of visiting the museum is not to just look at glass art, but to try to make one!

We were given a clean glass as a canvas for our first glass art. I don’t find doing all this any fun at all, so I came up with some random designs that should reflect my emotions at that time: bored. They say that it would take them 3 weeks to finalize and polish our glasses. I think by that time, I will totally forget about this.

After finishing my art, I went downstairs to have a look at their souvenir store. Everything was so very shiny and glimmery, especially when I look at the price tags.

Our next stop is the Otaru Music Box Museum (小樽オルゴール堂). As the name implies, they display and sell all kinds of music boxes, ranging from traditional looking ones to the more metallic look.

Otaru City is a really pretty city. The whole feel of the city is more European than Japanese. No wonder it’s a pretty famous tourist spot here. For lunch, we stopped at the Otaru Sea Port Market. They’re serving crab! It was said that crab in Hokkaido taste the best, and I guess it was not a lie. The dish was delicious!

After lunch, we went straight to the main attraction of the day: the Asahiyama Zoo! We arrived at 03:15 pm, it was raining and there were lots of people. The tour guide said that we could only stay for 2 hours, so we waste no time by going to the lesser panda first. The little bastard is really cute, even during rain.

..
Then we went to see the penguins, the north pole white bears, orang utans, fucking chimpanzees, seals, giraffe, rhinos etc. I liked the penguins and the white bears the most because at the time when we went to see them, there were not so many people and we could see them from a very near distance.

This might be my first time being in a zoo in Japan, and surprisingly, it was not so bad. It might be a better experience if it was not raining, but I’m more than satisfied because this is the first time that I got to saw lesser pandas, white bears and adorable penguins. Penguins, I want a penguin pet! But that might be a bad idea because I would probably lost interest in it after a few days and it will probably die a terrible, painful death from malnutrition and dehydration.

After the zoo visit, we went straight to the place where we are going to stay for the night, the Asahiyama Washington Hotel. I stayed at Yokohama Washington Hotel once, and it was a really nice hotel. The same thing could be said to the Asahiyama one.

I was quite tired after the zoo visit so after having my dinner at the hotel’s restaurant, I went to my room, took a long warm bath, shampooed my hair, brush my teeth, took a crap, went through the adult channel catalogue, smell the bed sheets and played with the air-conditioning.

It was quite boring so I went to the Dato Seri Najibian girl’s room to ask her out. Right after we left the hotel, it started to rain again so we decided to just take pictures in front of the Asahiyama Train Station and went back to our hotel.

Then I went to sleep; nothing funny happened.

Saturday, August 02, 2008

hokkaido summer trip day 1

Its 5:00 a.m. in the morning and I’m riding my bike. I stopped at the Lawson konbini to buy a bottle of energy drink and a shake (salmon) onigiri for breakfast, before reaching to the university’s main gate. The bus that is going to take us to the Akita Marine Port is already waiting.

This is a trip for foreign students, conducted by the university. We were only required to pay 20000yen, the remaining 26000yen is taken from the university's international activities fund. That covers everything from the ferry fares, bus rental, food, entrance fees to various places etc. Pretty good deal to me.

*10 Korea, 19 China (1 Hong Kong, 3 Taiwan), 1 Myanmar, 1 South Africa, 1 Mongolia, 1 Malaysia*

I’m quite nervous for this trip. For some inconvenient reasons, I’m the only Malaysian (and Muslim) on the trip, and I’m afraid that I would be alone because everybody else came with their group of friends. I knew some of the Korean and Chinese students, but they’re sure are going to be with their own countrymen; just like Malaysians, the Koreans and Chinese stick with their own.

I was all alone, and the seat next to me was empty. Everyone has their own seat partner except me. The also lonely South African and Burmese student  (I knew them just well enough) was sitting together, so I’m all alone.

Then there comes the (also alone) Mongolian to save the day. I knew it from her swaying eyes, that she was just like me, alone and didn’t really knew anyone on the bus. So I asked her to sit next to me. Her face lit up.

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We left Akita by ferry at 6:00 am.

It was a very big ferry; complete with a restaurant, game room, hot bath, jacuzzi, mini-theatre etc. Right after boarding, I immediately took several pictures before I got sea-sick and spend the rest of the time on the ferry sleeping.

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We arrived at the Tomakomai Port at 05:30 pm and then went straight to the Sapporo Beer Park to have our dinner. It was such a nice place and the food was ok. Everybody had Jingisukan (a Mongolian mutton barbeque) while I’m the only one having a seafood version of the popular dish. It was not so bad, as long as it’s halal and I don’t have to pay extra, I’m good.

On the way back to the bus, I took some pictures and then bought the creamiest of all soft ice-cream that I have ever tasted; it was so rich with the thickness of milk and vanilla, I don’t know how to describe how good it was.

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We arrived at the Susukino Green Hotel in Sapporo at 08:40 pm and were given each a single room, which is quite awesome.

The night was still young, so I went out with the Mongolian girl for a quick night-trip around Sapporo City. The city felt like Tokyo, except the roads are wider and the buildings are lined up a lot nicer. The air was better too.

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Then we found ourselves walking through this street full of street performers. One performer caught out attention: a four-person troupe of dancers wearing yukata and matching black fedora hats, with garbage picker as their samurai swords.

Before we went back to our hotel room, we decided to take a break at a coffee shop. I ordered the very sweet almond caramel latte. I don’t know how it went down, but somehow our conversation turns into a deep history lesson about why the Mongolians hate the Chinese. It’s really weird and hard to understand racial hatred, but it is the truth.

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I took a nice, warm bath before going to bed. At first, I thought about watching the paid channels, but after coming to my senses that people nowadays watch these stuff for free, I performed my solat jamak and went to bed.

Friday, August 01, 2008

N*I*F*C*O Final Interview

I got through my first interview, so I was summoned upon to go to their headquarters in Tokyo for the second one. This is going to be the final and deciding interview. So yesterday, I went to Tokyo to have my final interview with the boards of directors.

I left Akita by Shinkansen (the Japanese Bullet Train) at 7:00 a.m. and arrived at Tokyo at 11:00 a.m. During the 4 hours inside the shinkansen, I couldn’t sleep because I was thinking and rehearsing about the things that they might ask during the interview.

The interview starts at 01:15 p.m. so I used the small time left to eat hiyashi soba (冷やしそば - cold buckwheat) for lunch. Then I went to a coffee shop to put my thoughts in paper, and to relax a little bit.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
I was welcomed by the human resource lady and she asked me to follow her to level 12. She said that before the final interview, I had to complete another test: the creativity test. Bring it on.

The creativity test is divided into two parts: the first one involves problem solving, investigative skills and data management. It was quite hard actually, and I don’t think I did well. The last part is, and my favorite, is about turning 2D sketches into 3D, and vice versa. I haven’t done this since my days at the technical collage, but I think I did pretty well for myself. It was quite fun.

Then I was brought to level 8 for the final interview.

They let me take a break first, so I went to the toilet to take a piss. I never knew that a long, warm piss is such a great stress reliever.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

KNOCK KNOCK.

I always knock two times, and two times only.

“OK, you can come in!”

There were 3 interviewers. I introduced myself and then I was asked to sit on the chair situated about 3 meters from where the boards of directors were sitting.

I don’t quite remember it all, but here are some of the questions that were asked:

“Why do you want to be an engineer for our company?”

“Tell us why you put Production and Quality Assurance as your first choice.”

“Do you mind if we sent you to other countries, like the United States or Canada?”

“Why do you think that it is beneficial for us to hire you? Try to sell yourself.”

“Which language do you think you excel more? Japanese or English?”

I tried to answer each and every question with confidence. I have to make an impression that I am a smart person, so I tried my best to use polite and ‘educated’ Japanese. I hope they bought it. One of the interviewers said that he was impressed with my Japanese. I hope the other two agrees. I needed to posses, or at least, appear, impressive to keep the interview smooth.

It was a short 15 minutes interview, but it felt like 5 minutes!

I excused myself from the interview room and packed my bags to get ready to go home. Then the guy who interviewed me last time and brought me to his favourite izakaya where there was a girl who claimed her panty-less status (refer to the July 29th post), showed up and pat my back.

“So, how was the interview?”

I said it went ok. I hope I get the job.

“You did great on the creativity test. Let’s hope that the same thing could be said about your final interview.”

Well said.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
My shinkansen leaves at 06:00 p.m., so I still got plenty of time left. So I went to Ueno to eat Kebab and buy a new Polo shirt, a designer underwear and a guard-rope for my wallet. Ueno is such an awesome place to shop.

On the shinkansen home, I can’t keep my mind off imagining how awesome my crotch area would look with my new designer underwear.

;)
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