Coloring Contest

Yesterday I’m involved in a coloring contest organized at a complex nearby. Seeing those tiny kids, it brings back some memories. I remember during my time entering those contests. Kids cramped against each other sitting, meniarap, bersila sambil tertunduk, surrounded by onlooking parents. Back then it’s not that I’m really eager to enter, it’s just that I have to. Otherwise both my parents will think I am a loser who is afraid of competition. I am not. Believe me, please.

Entering those coloring contest, have you ever suffer the torture of losing before it’s due? I am concentrating on my coloring, and when I try to take a peek at the contestant next to me, he got something like this.

How do this 7 years old kid know about color tone?

It really demoralize me, man. Big time. I have a plan though. First, I tried to emulate his idea and coloring technique (yeah, it exists and I just realize about it), and then found out it’s too late because mine are already colored with this technique.

You are not going to win. Hehehe.

Next, I am cursing myself with “I am not going to win” profanity repeatedly before I’m starting to look around to past my time, coloring with less than half a heart, and catch a glimpse of my parents smiling at me. They practically send me for suicide. These kids around me have their coloring classes (I just know those classes existed, yesterday). Sure enough, I lost. I am not even close to get my hands on the saguhati. Next thing I know, whenever Mama buy me Majalah Mickey, Asuh and many more magazines I can’t even remember, I will try to grab and steal coloring ideas from the winners of previous months contests. Surprisingly (for me), it does not take me anywhere. I’ll end up in a cycle. A complete cycle that never ends up with me winning.

Ahh, the ‘good’ old days.

Picture credit: Big Brothers Big Sisters Society of Edmonton & Area.

Why Should I Hire You?

There is an opening for a position in a company. All shortlisted applicants are called over for an interview session.

Interviewer: Why should I hire you?

John Doe: You should hire me because I’m a competitive person. I can work independently with little guidance, but I don’t feel awkward working in group either. I am dedicated, I don’t mind working outside the agreed period if I’m asked to. My communication skill is exceptional. I’ll be your best employee if you give me a chance and hired me.

Meanwhile the interviewer take notes of all the positive pointers of John Doe. It goes like this:

1. Competitive
2. Can work alone
3. Effficient team player
4. Dedicated
5. Don’t mind overtime
6. Communicate well
7. Future best employee

After that, a meeting is conducted between all interviewers and the HR Manager to assess all the candidates interviewed.

Interviewer A: My candidate is Collins Johnson. He is competitive, he talks fluently, and he doesn’t mind working overtime.

Interviewer B: My candidate is Sarah Gerrard. She is bubbly, pleasant, punctual, and she’s excellent during her college years.

Interviewer C: My candidate is John Doe. He said he is a competitive person. He told me that he can works alone, but he can also works in a group. He told me that he is a dedicated kind, he doesn’t mind working overtime. Besides, he said that he communicates well. What’s more, he promises to be our best employee!

HR Manager: Say no more. Call John Doe, tell him he’s hired.

Bullshit.

Maxis oh Hotlink

I've been duped into clicking this link. Click to enlarge.

What a lame answer to a simple ‘why’ question. Click to enlarge.

When Celcom introduced UOX and SOX, Maxis become so tak senang duduk, they launched Hotlink Youth Club. Interesting rates. The only thing on UOX and SOX they cannot counter is the 0.5 cent per SMS rate. That’s OK, because up until today I still think the 0.5 cent rate is insane. But Hotlink make that up with a 5 cent rate per SMS to other networks, a cent less than their Xpax counterpart.

With Maxis being Maxis, I know that is too good to be true. But I’m mistaken. It is true. Really. But only until 19 March 2010. Hahaha.

Stated on the website, Hotlink is saying that they will revise the rate. And they provide a WHY link besides the (rather small for me) announcement (see Image 1). Funnily, when I click on the link, there are not any answer provided. Nothing at all (see Image 2). First they pledge to give their absolute best to the customers, and then they brag about being the largest telecommunication communitiy compared to only-they-know-what.

I cannot understand why so many users choose Maxis. Clearly Maxis do not aim to give the best value to their customers (no business aim that, really, but at least Maxis don’t have to expose that they don’t care). If you are old enough to remember, Hotlink’s starter pack would not be as affordable as now if not for DiGi’s RM9.90 pack (TimeCel is the first to offer affordable prices for starter packs but even back then, nobody lives on the PLUS highway). Maxis capitalizes on their unnoticed loyal customers, from day one. That is sick.

MUSE is So Gay

I am a little bit late in knowing the band Muse. I first heard them during my diploma years, around 2004. Then I’ll make it up by catching up to them, digging for their old hits, and I even listen to their tracks that did not become singles. Man, I love them at the time. The riffs, the lyrics, the melody. But I really dig Bellamy’s solos. It played some part in inspiring me to learn how to play guitar.

Some time in 2006, my positive feelings about Muse changed a little bit with the release of their hit single Supermassive Black Hole. It’s so hit it often being played on radio. As far as I know, Muse songs do not usually being (or never have been) played on radio up until that time. And then came Starlight. By this time I realize that Muse followers have multiplied. Even people who did not even know Muse before said that they love Starlight.

Black Holes and Revelations

I dislike this album because it’s just not Muse I once knew. There are less guitar solos, there are more musical effects produced by synthesizers, and then the vocal style of Bellamy becoming more meleweh-leweh. Even a pal of mine who once loved Muse to death called Supermassive Black Hole as some sort of gay song.

The Resistance. Resist yourself from buying this if you're a real Muse fan.

And then suddenly came The Resistance. Things that are classified as BAD in Black Holes and Revelations have now become worse. Synthesizers are now being used beyond control to the stage where I’m wondering what is Bellamy doing carrying his guitar around during live performances, and the meleweh-leweh vocal styling is now despicable. Muse has now a new generation of followers with the older generation are now gone (hopefully it’s not only me), for good.

Picture credits: muse.mu & Wikimedia.

Sportscenter Malaysia: One Big Joke

Have you ever watched Sportscenter Malaysia? It’s a sports news program produced by ESPNStar, aimed at Malaysians. The news is delivered in Bahasa Malaysia, and its contents are localized instead of simply translating international sports news.

Being a couch potato, I watched this program almost everyday, whether on its live telecast or during its numerous delayed telecast (well, its satellite TV). Recently this program is delivered by Reem Shahwa and Lisa Wong (her name suggest she is a Chinese but her tanned skintone suggests otherwise. Weird). Man, are they some sort of jokers. Every audience can see that they are frequently tersasul-sasul. OK, I know that Sportscenter Malaysia is a localized program, but at least they should hire people who can actually deliver in Bahasa Malaysia instead of asking their existing excel-in-English presenter (I have seen Reem Shahwa doing a broadcast for Star Sports in fluent English once). Cost-efficient? That should not be an issue, because by using incompetent Bahasa Malaysia speakers, they actually will be losing their audiences (if any). It’s really an insult to our Bahasa Malaysia. Audiences will be better off watching TV1’s Info Sukan.

Besides their incompetent presenters, I actually see this one slot earlier this week. It’s about the result of the Fifth Round of FA Cup tie between Crystal Palace versus Aston Villa. Hating Aston Villa, I don’t bother staying up late to watch the match, so I naively rely on the news on Sportscenter Malaysia. This program told me that the result was 1-1, complete with the footages of a goal scored by each team. So I think, “OK, Villa drew 1-1″. Then I went on to watch Edisi 7, and I saw the result stated was 2-2. I was shocked beyond belief. Edisi 7 doesn’t have any footages to convince me, so I really thought that they were mistaken. I went on the net and search for that particular match result and how wrong I am. It was 2-2. Sportscenter Malaysia has the guts to tell me a lie. Man, am I disappointed. I mean, how could they? They got (or should I say “should got”) the actual news first hand as ESPNStar is the broadcaster! Even if the news are misleading (could it being prepared and then presented by the same Reem Shahwa and Lisa Wong?), they should have someone checking on the credibility of the news, then correct them. They got more than 12 hours to do that. Idiots. I don’t bother watching Sportscenter Malaysia since.

Update: There are two new advertisements for Sportscenter Malaysia, starred by Reem Shahwa and Lisa Wong each. In Reem Shahwa’s edition, she did mention Bahasa Malaysia as “bahasa yang kami semua minati”. I love that joke.

Update: The show’s gone! Good riddance.