Living in a fantasy world

I have a friend who lives in a world on his own. All he knows is just his family, his friends, his work and about making more money. Ask him about current issues and he will just turn to me with a blank look on his face. His lives in a world, not so perfect, but created just for him without a care of the real world. Politics, environmental issues, government policies, crime, events are of no concern to him and bears no consequences to his life. And he is living blissfully… Oblivious to the chaos around him...

Sounds familiar?

Do you know how many people are stuck in their fantasy world? They live in a world of their own with just their work, friends and families, without a care of the real world. A world that is so real that thousands of others fight and cried and sweat over it. Current issues, politics and world do not concern them.

I believe that this is a norm among younger people. Just ask around and you get your answers. “Ong Ka Ting?” “Who is that?” What is Earth Hour? You got join ah? For what?” “What’s happening in…?” “Oh that dude? I think he us some minister from somewhere dunno doing what.” “ Aiyah, who cares?’ Yeap, that’s right, living in a fantasy world.

Well, to tell you the truth, I used to be like that. I lived in my own world, with just my friends, my activities and my work. “Got earthquake meh? I dunno la” “Erm, where is this Giza place?” Haha… It’s really funny thinking back about how innocent I was. Until my dad got me hooked onto The Star newspaper and now I read it every day withour fail. And I realized how much I was left behind, how peaceful and blessed my life was at that time. Knowing all this widen my eyes and broaden my knowledge of the whole big world out there. And sometimes this real world gets too overwhelming and it frightens me. It changed me and made me realize that the more I know, the less I know.

And I am just a tiny person is this whole big picture..

There is no right and wrong to this. Some live in a fantasy world and stay there till they leave us. Some are too caught up with the real world that they forget how to live their lives. And some blissfully living without even knowing that there is a real world out there.

And life goes on….

Mexican anyone?

Eating have always been a center of my life. I enjoy going places and trying out new food. Hence, the expanding waistline :(

But please do not feed me anything exotic like weird seafood or snake or some funny animals then we do not eat.. A big NO NO!!

Anyway, back to topic. Just the other day, Clem decided to take me for a treat of Mexican food. We headed all the way to Subang to check out this place which many have talked about their great food.

And here we are, at "Las Carretas". Since I wanted to have seafood, I know, you must be thinking "Seafood? In a Mexican reataurant?". Hehe.. Anyway, the very helpful and cute waitress recomended the 'Broiled Fillet of Norwegian Salmon'. Sounds yummy right? And Clem settle on the 'Costilla De Cordero'. Its sounded so Mexican but its N.Z Lamb Loin Chops served with their special dip, the 'Chimmi-Churri Dip'.

While waiting for the food to arrived, I took a few pictures of the place.

It was quite quiet, which is great for me as I do not like noisy restaurants. But it seems a great place to hang out with your friends too, judging from the number of people that headed upstairs for a party.

And so, the food arrived. The salmon was perfect. Non of the fishy taste that I sometimes get and soft enought that it melts in my mouth. And the gravy that came with it wasn't enough for me and I almost lick my plate clean. Delicious! It was 1 of the best salmon i've ever tasted.

RM29.50

Clem's lamb chops was good too. The lamb was well done and the meat was soft enough without you havinge to chew and chew and chew on it. The sauce that came with it was a tad to weird for me as it was a mixture of spicy and sour taste. However, if you want something different, then its a must try.

RM29.90

And after paying the bill, the very nice waitress offered to take a picture of us. Here it is!

So if you have cravings for Mexican food, head to Las Carretas.

Las Carretas Subang Jaya

No 29, USJ 10/1F,

47620 Subang UEP

Malaysia

03 - 5639 3058

Service was great and don't forget to try the salmon.

Till then...

Life on my own..

I just had a gathering of old colleagues from my old job. Time flies and it seems all of us are doing ok. However, all of them seem to think that I'm the free-iest, richest, travelling the most and seem to be enjoying life the most. Hmm.. they are wrong!

Its been almost 6 months since I took a leap of faith and left my job in the corporate world. Well, so far its there are ups and downs but no regrets. Absolutely no regrets.

Working on my own gave me the opportunity to make my own decision and take risks. It allows me the flexibility to work whenever I want to. I can travel and not bother about the number of annual leaves I have. I can start work whenever I want to. I can meet all kinds of people and learn to handle different kind of job scope.

However, this does not meant things are easy. Working on my own is a tough job. I need to learn to take risk and deal with all kinds of issues. There is no other "departments" that I can forward my problems too. When business is not so good, money does not come in and I have learned to give up alot of things that I used to enjoy :( I need to prioritize my time and sometimes even working up 12-15 hours a day. When things goes bad or wrong, I have to bear full responsibilities. There are no bosses to cover my ass.

Then why did I do it? Why on earth did I give up a high-paying, great benefit, good career prospect to something that is so unpredictable?

Well, I wanted to do something different and I decided that it will be the best time to move now. Some people are so stuck with their stable job and stable income that they are not willing to take the risk and give it up. And before they know it, its time to retire. Taking the first steps is always the hardest. If you wait till you have the money or the time, well, it might never come.

"The first step towards getting somewhere is to decide that you are not going to stay where you are."

All I wanted was a chance to do something with my life. And yes, amidst sweat and hard work, I'm heading towards it..

Visit to I-City, Shah Alam

As a V-day celebration, clement and I visited the I-city @ Shah Alam. But alas, it was pouring when we arrived and had to wait for the rain to stop. But even after it stop raining, some of the lights could not be switch on due to safety reasons. So disappointed..

But anyway, we manage to catch the rest of the lights and it is really beautiful. A sight not to be missed... As it was getting dark, it was quite hard to take pictures. Check them out!

We started with the indoor area. It was decorated with a Christmas theme and a Chinese New Year theme!

Snowman greeting us at the entrance

Inside the snow room

Inside the Chinese New Year room

A photo taken by a very helpful staff

Outside the building.

Then we headed towards the open air park.

This is 1 of my favourite picture. I like the way the sunset glows against the rows of colourful trees.

Close-up on cherry blossoms. So pretty..

Tiny white lights

Lighted swans and frogs

Peacocks

Beautiful isn't it? Its worth a visit..

Blackout & Cupids

Just a few days ago, my house has a black out. And you can imagine the agony of sleeping without the fans and aircons. What more with the heat wave that has befallen us. *sob*sob*

But I manage to put to full use my new prez from Clem. A candle holder. An amazing replica of cupids dreaming under the flickering lights from the candle. Awww, so sweet...

It looks really nice right? And nope, I don't mind the extra heat it gives out :p

After all, whats life without a little romance *winks*

Trip up East Coast

Took a trip with family up east coast during the CNY break.. and I realise its such a beautiful place. So peaceful and rustic. Makes you feel like you are back in yesteryears..

My aunties and mum were haggling and comparing prices over some salted fish. Standing there waiting for them, just looking around when I notice that the clouds look so near that I feel I could almost reach out and touch them :)

Took a drive up towards kemaman for their very famous roti bakar. If you are ever there, drop by the Hai Ping Kopitiam and try their food. Delicious!! You could even tell by how fast the packets were grab of the trays by people.

Can't really take credit for this shot as I am in the picture. My bro took this perfect shot with just 1 take. Amazing right?

Such pretty cats all sitting in a row..Waiting for someone to take them home and love them..

Caught this little cutie staring at me as I took her shot :)

And since this is the east coast, here is a picture of the sea.. endless blue sea, cloudy blue skies, sitting there hearing the waves breaking against the shore, bliss...

God's creation is so beautiful.. Look around you and you'll find it. Took this at 1 of the rest stops along the highway as my family stop for a toilet break..

When I saw this, the first thought that came to my mind its "God's blessings is upon us. Protecting us as we drive home.' Cool huh??

So that's sums up my trip to East Coast (Kuantan, Kemaman, Cherating). Till then..