The Happy Herb

Highland Towers Tragedy 1993: Is Section 95(2) of the Street, Drainage and Building Act 1974 a righteous clause?

2009-04-14T11:36:00.007+08:00

The report compiled above is in regards to the Highland Towers Tragedy that took place in 1993 and is considered one of the worst collapse tragedies that occurred in Malaysia. The Highland Towers was an apartment building (condominium) that collapsed on December 11, 1993. It is located in Taman Hillview, Ulu Klang, Selangor, Malaysia.
There were originally three blocks of 12-storey apartments, each block respectively named Block 1, Block 2 and Block 3. Block 1 collapsed when 10 continuous days of rainfall led to a landslide after the retaining wall at the Tower's car park failed. The collapse of one block caused the deaths of 48 people and led to the complete evacuation of the other two blocks due to safety concerns. After the tragedy, The Highland Towers memorial was placed at the site of Block 1. The Highland Towers still stand today, although they are now almost completely overgrown by the Jungle. In recent years, they have been the site of much vandalism and the buildings are now in almost complete disarray and ruin. After the collapse, Over 1,000 residents in two other blocks were made homeless.
The 3 apartment blocks of Highland Towers were built on elevated land with a relatively flat base. Directly behind it was a steep hill. Though some witnesses have described the gradient of this hill to be 10 to 20 degrees but, by my estimate from various photographs tendered as exhibits, I perceive it to be far steeper. This hill was terraced, supported by retaining rubble walls made of boulders and cobbles of rock of varying seize placed together by mortar at a random fashion. Some of these walls had collapsed and were buried in the soil at the time of the Highland Towers tragedy. Those left are still standing, either in part or as a whole, but in a dire state of repair. From a physical survey was commissioned by MPAJ soon after the collapse of Block 1 on the affected area, covering the Highland Towers Site and the Arab Malaysian Land, it is apparent that these retaining walls were constructed in a hap hazardous manner. Some were located on the Highland Towers Site with the rest in the Arab Malaysian Land. Both the Highland Towers Site and the Arab Malaysian Land once belonged to a common owner - the 1st defendant, who intended to develop the entire area into a housing scheme with 3 apartment blocks on Highland Towers Site and bungalows on the Arab Malaysian Land. When the lands were subdivided and issued with individual documents of title, the 1st defendant mortgaged the bungalow lots, consisting of 50 in number, to the 5th defendant in consideration of some financial arrangements. When the loans were not repaid, the 50 bungalow lots were transferred to the 5th defendant in November 1991 to offset the amount due.
After the collapse, Over 1,000 residents in two other blocks are made homeless.
In Dec 15, 1993, The Highland Towers Owners and Residents Committee, headed by Dr Benjamin George, was set up to find out the real cause of collapse and to find the party responsible. In 1996, Seventy-three residents filed a suit against 10 parties who they claimed were jointly and/or severally liable for causing or contributing to the collapse of Block One and the subsequent abandonment of the other two. The case was first brought to the Coroner’s Court, where it was ruled that the Coroner’s Court finds no incriminating factors in the 48 deaths and rules the incident was not a natural disaster but which could be considered a misadventure. The case was later taken to the High Court, where The High Court found Arab Malaysian Finance Bhd and five others liable for the collapse of Block One. Ampang Jaya Municipal Council was found negligent of pre- and post-collapse events but only 15% liable for the latter. Few years later, in 2002, the Court of Appeal dismissed the appeals of four defendants. In 2004, AmFinance Bhd (formerly AMFB) agrees to pay RM52mil to 139 residents and owners of Highland Towers. But this verdict was overturned when in 2006, Federal Court ruled that MPAJ was not to be held liable either for the pre- and post-collapse events at Highland Tower.
The Fourth Defendant (Local Authority) which was the Ampang Jaya Municipal Council, (MPAJ), who had jurisdiction over, the Highland Towers Site, the Arab Malaysian Land and the surrounding areas, although negligent in respect of its duties associated with the building, which were in respect of the approval of building plans, in ensuring implementation of the approved drainage system during construction, and in the issue of the Certificate of Fitness, was nonetheless conferred immunity by reason of Section 95(2) of the Street, Drainage and Building Act.

Section 95(2) of the Street Drainage and Building Act 1974 states that:
The State Authority, local authority and any public officer or officer or employee of the local authority shall not be subject to any action, claim, liabilities or demand whatsoever arising out of any building or other works carried out in accordance with the provisions of this Act or any by-laws made thereunder or by reason of the fact that such building works or the plans thereof are subject to inspection and approval by the State Authority, local authority, or such public officer or officer or employee of the State Authority or the local authority and nothing in this Act or any by-laws made thereunder shall make it obligatory for the State Authority or the local authority to inspect any building, building works or materials or the site of any proposed building to ascertain that the provisions of this Act or any by-laws made thereunder are complied with or that plans, certificates and notices submitted to him are accurate.
It has a vast difference if compared to Law of Tort, whereas judging from the facts as disclosed in the chronology of events, the fourth defendant is negligent of certain aspects. Firstly, as a local authority, the fourth defendant owes a duty of care to the plaintiffs to use reasonable care, skill and diligence to ensure that the hill slope and the drainage thereon were properly accommodated before approving building or other related plans, and during construction stage, to comply with and to ensure the implementation of drainage system. Second, when the Certificates of Fitness were applied for, there should be proper and thorough inspection on whether the buildings so built were safe in all aspects and not just confined only to the structure. And after the Highland Towers was erected, to ascertain drainage requirement in the area was adequate to ensure slope stability behind Block 1. Then subsequent to the collapse of Block 1, measures should have been taken to prevent recurrence of the tragedy to Blocks 2 and 3. The MPAJ had issued notices pursuant to Section 83 of the Street, Drainage and Building Act 1974 (‘the Act’) to the applicants, which had the effect of ordering them to either repair or demolish blocks two and three of the Highland Towers and the walls on the nearby hillslopes, within three months from the date of the notices. The directions in the notices were contrary to the recommendations proposed by the Highland Towers committee, which was set up by the respondent to study the safety of blocks two and three, immediately after the collapse of block one of the Highland Towers. The applicants had actively tried to seek a solution to the Highland Towers problem, but the respondents refused to discuss the legality of the Section 83 notices. This clearly ruled out any possibility that the respondent would withdraw the Section 83 notices. Therefore, the applicants applied to the High Court for certiorari via Ordinance 53 of the Rules of the High Court 1980, to quash the notices on the grounds, inter alia, that the notices were unreasonable, unconstitutional, and illegal. However, the respondent argued that it had acted within its jurisdiction, and that the s 83 notices were not amenable to certiorari, as alternative appeal procedure had been provided by Section 83(3), (6), 91 and 92 of the Act.
Section 83(1) of the Act confers a broad discretion on a local authority by allowing it to issue a Section 83 notice after conducting such inquiry as it thinks fit to satisfy itself that a building is in a dangerous condition. A notice may require the owner of the building to either repair the defects or demolish the building within such period of time as it may specify. However, this discretion must be exercised in good faith, for a proper purpose, and after consideration of all the relevant factors. Furthermore, a Section 83 notice can only be directed to an ‘owner’ of a building as defined in s 3 of the Act.
Both s 83(3) and (6) of the Act are not appeal provisions, as neither provides recipients of the s 83 notices with an opportunity to appeal to a higher authority against the validity of the notices. Thus, there is nothing in s 83 which provides them with an alternative statutory appeal procedure in preference to certiorari. Similarly, ss 91 and 92 also do not provide a genuine appeal procedure, as a right of appeal under the provisions only arises against a mandatory order made by the magistrates’ court. This would mean that the recipients of the s 83 notices could only appeal if the respondent had seeked for the mandatory order.
In Law of Tort, the liability of negligence as defined by Lord Atkin in case of Donoughue v. Stevenson [1932] AC 562 states that every man must take reasonable care to avoid acts or omissions which he can reasonably foresee would be likely to injure his neighbour, i.e., those persons who are so closely and directly affected by his act that he ought reasonably to have them in contemplation as being so affected when he is directing his mind to the acts or omissions which are called to question, and this results in damage to the neighbour. This is quite the opposite of the jurisdiction according to Section 95(2) of the Street Drainage and Building Act 1974.
The Highland Towers decision becomes another Malaysian High Court decision which diverges from the approach of the English Courts and adopts the approach taken by other Commonwealth jurisdictions in allowing the recovery of “pure economic loss”, especially where sufficient proximity can be demonstrated between the negligent act and the loss. Pure economic loss is the loss related to the product itself which is defective by reason of negligence, as opposed to the loss or damage caused to the property of the Plaintiff by this defective product. It is economic loss unaccompanied by damage or injury. The English courts have always found pure economic loss problematic. Their tendency to reject claims to recover pure economic loss probably stem more from policy, rather than logical, considerations. The problem is that holding someone liable for pure economic loss may lead to damages completely beyond the scale of the fault. Moreover, it is often difficult to assess how much economic loss has really been suffered.
During the final verdict in the Federal Court, one of the three judges, Justice Abdul Hamid Mohamad, said in the Federal Court proceedings that if the local councils were made liable, it would open the floodgates to further claims for economic loss, and this would deplete the council’s resources meant for the provision of basic services and infrastructure.
He also mentioned that if they were held liable, ongoing and future projects will stall and the local council may even go bust. He added that even if it does not end in that way, it is unfair, unjust and unreasonable that taxpayers’ money be utilised to pay the ‘debts’ of ‘such people’. He also said a local council has an endless list of duties to perform for its residents and relied mainly on assessment rates and fees for licences. This was only agreed with by two of the three judges. In his dissenting judgment on the post-collapse liability, another judge, Chief Judge of Sabah and Sarawak Justice Steve Shim Lip Kiong, however, said the MPAJ could not seek shelter in Section 95(2) of the Street, Drainage and Building Act because this was a case of negligence in failing to formulate and implement the master drainage plan so as to ensure the stability and safety of the adjacent Blocks Two and Three. He said there was an assumption of responsibility by the MPAJ to do what it had promised.
The case has been closed since that final hearing and verdict. The local authorities, MPAJ, received the legal mandate that they are fully immune to liabilities. Even though it can be considered as reckless negligence, they will be shielded by the law under Section 95(2) of the Street, Drainage and Building Act 1974. Presumably, they could be care-free in all their ways of doing things and approving anything they deem fit in their full discretion, without the need to consider any threats to life, or to others, as shown in the Highland Towers Tragedy.
In my opinion, this is rather a poor verdict which is aimed at shielding the interest, image, and name of the local council which is under control of government. If this is carried on, officers from the local council will be more relaxed and less concerned about the quality of their work and get away unpunished for things that are their fault and doing. Section 95(2) of the Street, Drainage and Building Act 1974 should in the least be amended or, if possible, abolished to ensure quality and safety in future developments.

A Brand New Day for the Brand New Herb...

2009-02-20T02:50:00.002+08:00

hello everyone...
hehe..i duno wats with the greeting...so anyway,i noe i didn blog for a long time (thanx 4 reminding me boon ching) so im just gonna type a lil today...

i dunno wat to write about actually...

ok, let me start with my outing with Chun Yau...hehe..so gay...hahaha...

so i actually finished my exam (twas on 4th feb), dun ask me hw i did, coz i kinda screwed it up, thanks to me callin someone up the day before...dont ask me about that also...
so anyway, after exam i wen for lunch with my classmates, chong and sze sze.we actually finished lunch in just a while and went of in different directions...so sad.. so anyway i was walkin to JJ just to check out wat to buy for sis bday, then i had the notion to just call Chun Yau...Chun Yau is a guy who use to date one of her frens,so we were hangin out together n all, actually ended up bein good frens.he's here for the sem break n is heading back to Aussie sumtime next week...so back to our story...
i called him and wanted to ask him to lepak with me n joe that night in stevens...ended up he was so damn free, i was so damn free, we went for Underworld 3. stupid movie actually...i had very little sleep the night before, so i kinda dozed off during the movie...first time!!! and guess wat? i woke up, i found him also snoozing... haih... twas actually a predictable movie..u noe, the good people win thingie...so after that he wanted to smoke...oh ya we met up with joe for lunch before that...he came for a while during college hours, said hi bye cibai talked awhile durin lunch, then went back to college...so after Underworld 3 we went back to GK,played pool in 8 Ball Cafe, played Left 4 Dead in cc, then wen home, then i met up with joe, boon ching, sharon n kishen in stevens...talked n chatted n gossipped n bitched n laughed til we realized twas ady damn late...hahahaha...

the next day i went out with joe...

another gay outing....haha...i met him at MBS, picked his lil bro at school n headed to times square...saw the Ong Bak 2 poster, got very happy coz joe had his student card, i had mine, and presley(the lil bro) was wearin school clothes...student price maa....we all cheapskate indians...so we happily went to the counter............and found out that the movie was 18SG....n presley was in high school...DAMN!!!
so we wen aroun again..lookin here n there, while presley was also lookin 4 a shoe...oh yea this i have to tell...

we went to this shoe shop, pretzels was tryin on sum shoes, i wen to the shop next to it(some pharmacy) and was lookin aroun..2 indon ladies were takin care of the shop...was jz lookin aroun then i saw a weird pair of gloves so i asked one of them wat it was...she said its used for bathing,to scrub the body...so i went like 'oh' n was leavin the shop, she said
"beli la...bagus untuk badan...kamu guna boleh jadi putih..."
i was just,so stunned...i turned around n looked at her,she was still smiling,so i just smiled and walked away...stupid insensitive bitch...

then joe's mom called, askin pretzels to come home,so we sent him to the station...

then joe was telling me that the Wing Chun kungfu dojo was nearby,so we decided to look for it...
Wing Chun kungfu can be seen in the movie Ip Man,its also called the 'wooden dummy kungfu', wer u train with the wooden dummy. Bruce Lee learnt WingChun as his base and produced JitKunDo using many WingChun moves, so we were really interested in it..plus its not a commercial class,students can only join if they are given an invitation from the dojo..interesting huh?we went all the way til Pudu,found it in some Godforsaken backlot.its not actually a big place,just on the 1st floor of a shoplot...it was closed....DAMN again...

since pretzels went home,we decided to go back to times square n watch Ong Bak 2...before the movie we went to BarBQ Plaza for lunch..a real good lunch..i'l put up the pics nx time...damn lazy nw lar...anyways,in BarBQ Plaza they have a stove in the mid of the table wer u can cook..thats right, the customers cook...they juzt serve raw dishes...twas very nice...we cooked beef,chicken,lotsa veggies n all...the good thing is, we can cook it the way we want it,fried or boiled...the bad thing is, if we dunno how to cook, we cant scold the shop ppl... coz we were the idiotic cooks... but hey, bith of us can cook considerably well... n we ate rice using chopsticks!imagine two dark indian guys sittin beside the... err..front glass of the shop...eating rice from the bowl using chopsticks!haha..we attracted quite a crowd... hehe.. ppl gt shocked ady la...seriously...we were like two chinese wannabes..wakakaka...

so after that we went for the show..twas not bad...storyline kinda ok,but the fight scenes were real grenades...they were the BOMB!!!Tony Jaa is really livin up Bruce Lee's abilities...real good...

so wat happened after that?oh ya while buyin tickets,twas a real friendly, cheerie, cute (she was cute) indian girl who was serving us. n joe told her we wanted the side seats coz its more romantic...dia ketawa macam gila...she said for so long she was working there,she never heard anything like that...n she said
"have fun"
after giving the tickets...wats that suppose to mean?

so after the movie we walked to KL, had dinner in the ever famous Premalas...then waited for bus...we met quite a number of karate ppl goin back home from trainin...shit...reminds me..i stil have to lose weight...then joe got a bus n went home...

myself?
i was just hangin out for awhile, then i took a bus oso,went cc,went online,check on stuff n all,then i went home n tried to sleep...i dont know wat was wrong with me...i din sleep the whole day on tuesday except 7pm-8pm,then went exam,went out with chun Yau, slept during Underworld 3,aroun 5 mins...then went home,still slept damn late..around 4am.next day oso roun 4am...shit..i hate number 4...nvm la...i can still sleep like a pig til next week..then college starting again..YAY!!!

or so i think... college gettin borin la... evryone's just interested in studies, assignments, exams and their own life... no more lepaking, no more talking crap...

ok ok...no more sighing!!!

by the way, did you all know that i was on a vow for the past one month?no liquors or any alcohol for a month from 11 January (we drank last for kishen's bday) till 11 Feb... and i survived it without any problems at all! hehe..im proud of myself..kekeke..drank after a month during V-Day,celebrating a bachelor nite with Kevel, Avin, n Sandeep...i feel good now..i did it for a purpose,but made it look like we were doing it for fun...everytime someone offered me a drink,it was always "sorethroat,cant drink"

yeah!!!im the man!!

so now i have another vow with Keveljit...12 feb-12 march...no shisha!!!so far i havent taken it yet...n i dont wanna break it also...man of my word...so everyone...no shisha for Basil...

wow!!i didnt know wat to talk about and look at all this...boon ching,i have to reduce hangin out with u n sharon la...i also became a chatterbox ady...hahahaha....k k..

im gonna crash now..had a really gd time blogging and chatting with Ruby,my old friend...shit..thats makin me soun way too old..ok lets say...Ruby,my teen time buddy...no... Ruby, my friend-i-haven't-been-keeping-in-touch-with-for-a-long-time...i guess that'l do...

aite...Herb out...

fucked!!!

2009-02-06T11:27:00.003+08:00

you know, i was still deeply in love with my "ex", as i have to call her now i guess, i just couldn't let go.maybe it is just because its my first relationship.i got some advices from friends, but its just really hard for me...i loved her like crazy man..was just that i fucked the whole relationship up.treated her badly.but i never took her for granted.i was conscious about all the fights and the possibility that she might leave me one day.my whole fucked up plan for breaking up with her was different.not that i planned to break up with her,no.it just happened.after so long of saying no whenever she wanted to break up,i finally said yes.that was the biggest mistake.she was my everything.now she's happy with someone else.i always wanted that for her.just wanted her to be happy.but i wished it would be with me.i really regret shouting at her in december.i fucking regret.i don't know what devil got into me that day.man,i got to go.i don't know why am i posting this.maybe i', just facing depression.i mean, the most important thing that has happened in my life just walked away,and i stood looking without calling her back.i've been having insomnia for a few days.just lying on the bed,not able to close my eyes.fucked my exam real bad.i knew the answers but i just couldn't stop having her in my mind.i told her she would be my first and my last,and i meant it.damn.maybe its just because she's my first relationship.i don't know.i can't stop thinking about her.i also feel suicidal.how bad is that when the balcony of the 15th floor is actually talking to you and putting ideas in your head?will i get over this?i hope so.i really hope so.

if i get the chance, i want to ask her back again.i was in love,and i am in love.and i wish that she will realize that fact.4 years 5 months, never cheated on her.4 years 5 months,the best in my life.

God save me.

Similar? With who? Obviously not me...

2009-01-25T14:57:00.002+08:00

hallo everyone!!yea its been like ages since i blogged rite?now this is just something i wrote..typed..came up with during the first week of Dec 2007 for some student presentation... its nothing to do with me...seriously...believe me...i'm dead serious...no, don't gimme that stare...i'm not lying...
anyway,here you go...i hope you people enjoy it...if not just comment on it la k?

Trying Hard

I’m not a gorgeous hunk like celebrities such as Johnny Depp or John Abrahams. Nor am I as good looking as they are. I’m just an average 5 foot 10 guy who’s low in confidence and crack up when it comes to nerves. This is one of the many reasons why I’m still single. I feel that I’m not up to scratch when it comes to creating conversations. And honestly, I go ga-ga when I’m talking to a girl. Yup, I go ga-ga. I mean, it is easy for some guys to crack conversations with girls, but as for me, I think standing in the way of a death match between Batman and Penguin Man would be much more endurable than starting a conversation with a girl.
There was once I was in Starbucks with my friends. My friends realized that I’m reaching 30 and still single. So they urged me to go to a corner where there was this stunningly pretty girl sitting alone having some drinks. If it wasn’t for the fact that one of my friend, who usually crashes every car he drives, threatened to drive my brand new 3 Series, I wouldn’t have relented to them. I went over to the girl’s table, very reluctantly, and tried hard not to wet my pants. When I reached her table, she looked up. I summoned all my strength and smiled at her.
“Hi, err, are you sitting alone?” I asked.
“Oh, hi. I’m waiting for some friends who are supposed to join me tonight. But it is raining outside. I guess maybe they are stuck in heavy traffic or something. Is there anything I can do for you?” She asked.
“Err, I was just thinking if I can join you on this table since you are sitting here alone. Would that be err, ok with you?”
“I’m sorry but I need to go and meet err, my mom in a while. She just err, gave birth and she’s in the clinic.” She stuttered.
I was bewildered. “Erm, your mom just gave birth?” I asked her.
“No, I mean my mom’s waiting with my sister who just gave birth and she’s expecting me in the clinic in a few minutes time. I’m sorry but I really need to go now.” She said.
“But, what about your friends?”
“What friends?” She asked.
“Erm, you mentioned earlier that your friends are coming here in a moment.” I said, now more puzzled than ever.
“Oh, them. Err, no, they said they can’t come tonight because one of them just lost her star, I mean, her car, and she needs to go to the clinic to lodge a report.” She went on.
“Lodge a report in the clinic?” I asked, completely baffled.
“No, I err, meant I need to go to the clinic. My friend needs to go to the police station. Excuse me, but I really need to go now.” She said.
I finally understood the situation. She was trying to avoid me. I don’t need to be a genius to figure that out, so I simply said, “Very well, tell your sister I said congratulations.”
For a moment she looked perplexed. “My sister?” Then comprehension dawned on her. ”Oh oh ok ok, thank you. I’ll tell her that. I’ll see you around.” She said.
“Yeah, sure. Anytime.” I muttered.
And I watched her, glumly, as she made her way out of the door.
To be frank, that wasn’t the worst attempt I’ve ever went through. There was a similar incident that happened a few months after that. This time, I was with the same company of friends in a Mexican cafe. As usual, my friends were asking me when am I going to start going out with a girl and get involved in a relationship maybe even get married.
I was looking around the cafe, trying to ignore their taunts and jeers, when I spotted a girl sitting by herself at a small table. One of my friends saw the direction I was looking at, and adding two and two, got the picture and wasted no time in telling the others about the girl that caught my attention. This time, they threatened to tell my superior that I mixed his morning coffee with laxatives a few days ago. He was too infuriating and maddening, strutting around the office and finding faults without mercy that I had to resort to such move. We had an enjoyable day watching him running to and fro in the office, trying to reach the toilet in time, and hearing moans of pain and very loud farts from the toilet.
So, back to my story, my friends threatened to tell on me, which left me with no choice but to walk over to the girl’s table and, I’m afraid to say, embarrass myself again.
She didn’t look up when I reached her table, so, clearing my throat, and asking God for strength, I asked, “hi, err, is this seat empty?”
She looked up at me and smiling, said, “Yes, and so will this seat if you take that seat.”
I felt my face reddening. But I tried to ignore it. I smiled at her and tried another brave stab at creating a conversation with her.
“I’m Gopi…” I started.
“I prefer Milo.” She said.
I was puzzled. “I mean, my name is Gopi.”
“Oh sorry. I thought you said ‘kopi’. I’m Alicia. How do you do?” She asked, extending her hand.
“I’m fine, how are you?” I asked, starting to feel more confident.
“I was really fine until you came over.” She said, still smiling.
I could have passed for a tomato, the way my face was reddening. Ignoring it again, this time with more difficulty, I sat down opposite her.
“Are you sitting here alone?” I asked her.
“Obviously. Do you think tables and chairs make good company?” She shot back at me. The thing was, she was smiling while making all this retorts. So I really don’t know if she was serious or just joking. I was getting more embarrassed as the minutes passed by. But I was quite determined to talk to her. The only motive I had behind this was because I wanted to show my friends that I’m not a loser.
“So, what are you doing here?” I asked, trying to keep things friendly.
“All the things that I can’t do at home.” She said.
“Oh. So that’s the reason you come to the club? Because you can’t do these things at home?” I asked.
“Precisely. Glad to know you actually understood. Is that the same reason you’re here? Other than trying hard to crack a conversation with me?” She asked.
I can swear to you that you could have fried an egg on my head.
“No I just come here to hang out with my friends. You know, just releasing stress and work tension. So, where are you from?” I asked.
“Anywhere you’ve never been to.” She answered.
“Oh. Err, is this your regular hangout spot?”
“Yeah. Or should I say, it was. Guess I should change to a new spot somewhere else.” She said.
“Err, why do you want to change to a new spot?”
“Well, I suppose the reason is because I want to keep pests off my back. Sometimes it is pretty annoying, you know.”
“What pests?”
“Just pests, you know. No no I’m not talking about you.” I felt a hot surge of anger. “Just that some can’t mind their own business and let me do mine.”
“Err, ok. So, where are you heading to after this?” I asked.
“Any direction you are not heading to.” She answered again.
“Wow, you are quite full of sarcasm, aren’t you?”
“No, I’m just being logical. You actually want to go home with me?” She asked.
“No I never said that…”
“Which means what I said was true.” She quipped.
“All right. You win. Err, can I buy you a drink?” I said uncertainly.
“No thank you. I prefer something sweet.” She said.
The kind of fury I was in, I seriously felt like using Freddy Krueger’s claws on her. Only God knows the amount of anger inside me which was bursting to come out.
At that moment, I heard a voice talking in our direction. “Hi darling. Have you been waiting very long? I’m sorry I had to run some errands in the office.”
I practically jumped in my seat as I turned around to face the speaker. It was a tall, well-built man in office wear. My mind spun faster. I turned to face Alicia, my face looking like a Japanese with a very bad sunburn. Alicia smiled at me and said, “Meet my husband Blake. Blake, this is Govin. He was keeping me company all this while.”
I didn’t even correct her about the pronunciation of my name. I just stood there, my upper and lower jaws five feet apart. Being totally baffled would be an understatement to explain my condition at that moment. I shook hands with him, turned around and walked away. Alicia and Blake just stood there, puzzled at my queer behavior. I sat with my friends but I didn’t talk to any of them. I was speechless. All that effort, gone in a minute’s notice. Well, that wasn’t the only two incidents that happened to me. And I won’t deny any statement you make about me always having a hard luck. From that day onwards, I stopped trying to talk to girls. I guess I tried too hard. That explains my current profession too, of being a priest in a temple…

A Song For All Seasons

2008-11-05T01:11:00.004+08:00

ALL OUT OF LOVE

AIR SUPPLY

I'm lying alone with my head on the phone

Thinking of you till it hurts

I know you hurt too but what else can we do
Tormented and torn apart

I wish I could carry your smile and my heart

For times when my life feels so low

It would make me believe what tomorrow could bring

When today doesn't really know,

doesn't really know

Chorus:

I 'm all out of love,

I'm so lost without you

I know you were right believing for so long
I 'm all out of love, what am I without you

I can't be too late to say that I was so wrong

I want you to come back and carry me home
Away from this long lonely nights

I'm reaching for you, are you feeling it too

Does the feeling seem oh so right

And what would you say if I called on you now

And said that I can't hold on

There's no easy way, it gets harder each day

Please love me or I'll be gone,

I'll be gone

Chorus

I 'm all out of love,
I'm so lost without you
I know you were right believing for so long
I 'm all out of love, what am I without you
I can't be too late to say that I was so wrong

Oh, what are you thinking of?

What are you thinking of?

Oh, what are you thinking of?

What are you thinking of?

Chorus

I 'm all out of love,
I'm so lost without you
I know you were right believing for so long
I 'm all out of love, what am I without you
I can't be too late to say that I was so wrong

..........

this song, this very song, is what is really in my mind right now...
yeah i know it's 1.15am, and i should be tucked up in bed right now,but this is just how im feeling right now, somehow so so sentimental and...God, i just love this song!!! so kena with the mood and all la...
i think i'm crazy...maybe i am...maybe not...happens...its just a song for all seasons...can the latest songs be as good? maybe, maybe not... maybe James Blunt's "You're Beautiful" is up to standards, but i can't think of any other songs... ok, Aerosmith's "I Don't Wanna Miss A Thing" is also a damn good song, but somehow...i wish they made more songs...

A Plight Not Shared...

2008-11-02T18:18:00.004+08:00

This is a photo i took in college while on my way to do some printing. it was near the basketball and volleyball courts near the main gate of the college. this poor little puppy seemed all alone and really sad, not knowing what to do with so many people around. it was not even moving at all, just sitting there in the shallow drain and, i believe, lost in its own thoughts.

i just thought i should put this photo up. somehow it reminded me of myself. for me, college is not like high school where you have good friends, close friends and best friends, with whom you can share all sorts of things and have maximum fun. but here in college, everyone is too busy and concerned about their studies and assignments and everything, it seems like there's only three words you hear most of the time. "hi", "Bye". you figure out what's the third word...

and all this really makes me miss high school and primary school a lot. all those things i used to do in primary school, all those teachers we made fun of, hahahaha, me fighting with another guy after school without knowing the headmaster was watching from his room (gosh that was bad), stage plays and singing and all that. during secondary school all those racism bullshit started. malays have their own gangs, the chinese have their own gangs, the indians their own gangs.but it was still ok in secondary school in some parts. me and my friends used to have so much fun! going to the temple, skipping school and going to the cybercafe or bowling or movies, playing futsal when we were suppose to be in class (and then getting caught by teachers and caned), our futsal 'practice' every morning in one of the empty unused class that we converted into a mini stadium where we play before the morning assembly. man, i miss high school so much!!!

will there be a time like that again?

i hope so... all my friends are busy with their own life and all nowadays, it's quite hard to keep in touch... maybe we'll be able to organise a reunion somewhere sometime...

well, i'm not exactly sad, i have my CherryBaby in the same college with me. my girlfriend and best friend. that is more than enough for me...

i hope that little puppy does not stay like that anymore. it deserves a better life surrounded by loved ones.

all the best little puppy...

Pic Of The Day

2008-10-23T09:20:00.000+08:00

ok ok i know its been a bloody long time since i first blogged (sorry sorry) but i duno time jz flies off without me noticing..it's already the 3rd week of college and things are gettin more hectic than usual...well,kinda...

nvm dat....

before i start on the...err..wat i'm suppose to start on,on the PR in my house,i wanna show you all the photo of the day...

that...is my classmate aka class rep aka course rep aka supreme ruler of Diploma in Technology(Property Management) year 2, Chong Hon Mun. he was having a bad flu + fever + running nose(more like a sprinting nose) + sorethroat during the whole of today. and in a desperate attempt to stop his running nose during our last lecture (a bloody boring one) he stuffed facial tissues into his nose so that it does not distract him from reading his novel at the back of the class during lecture(not exactly something he should be doing while lecture was going on actually). So while Amanda(another classmate<Cookies-tkm.blogspot.com>) was trying to snap a photo of this..errr...rare scenery,i managed to snap it as it looks...hehehe...sorry Chong...couldn't resist...

The Permanent Resident In My House

2008-10-23T03:00:00.000+08:00

ok... and now... here is the PR in my house i've been wanting to tell you all about...

its a fat, lazy, fat, furry, fat, adorable, fat, cute cat that ventured into our house when we were staying in Gombak not long ago. that time it was still a kitten but now!!! its super huge already!!

that day sabastian came to my house and he thought i have a dog in my house. that's how big it is. yeah...

when it came into the house the first time, we(well, my parents actually) gave it some food, and then it just became part of the family. and when we moved out, we figured out that it won't be able to survive by its own as it was too used to being fed and all.

so we gave it to my mom's sister who took care of it for a few months until they too, had to shift house. when we got it back it was twice as large compared to the last time we saw it.
then we gave it to my elder sister(Christina's) friend, who took care of it like as if it's a prince. weekly bath, regular visits to the vet, a LARGE double storey cage, cat manicure(or is it pedicure?), CAT SPA(my God, the cat is livin a more luxurious life than i am...) and lots of other things...

my sister's friend's maid ran out of contract so she said that she might not be able to take care of it properly, so she handed it back to us, and now, this little(maybe not so little) prince is staying with us.

what the hell???i haven't even told you all his name!!!

well, his(yea its a he) name is...

...

LEO

yea, we figured that he looks a bit like a lion except for the fact that he does not have a mane like Aslan in The Chronicles of Narnia...

...

This is him feeling a bit naked and cold and dressed to impress

...

ok... don't pay attention to me and my pillow...it's a superman pillow actually, kinda worn out d...

...

This is his favourite spot for sleeping, resting, chilling...the PC chair...oh yeah, an interesting story...

two weeks ago i woke up in the morning and usually when i wake up i'll go switch on the computer and while waiting for it to configure and all that crap, i'll go do all the mornin things...and then i'll check my mail n facebook n fantasy football n all.(maxis broadband is best at that time...)

so i got up, opened my door room,and there was Leo in front of my room door...

Leo looked up at me...

i looked down at Leo...

Leo looked up at me...

both of us looked at each other for a few seconds...

then Leo got up and sprinted and jumped on the PC chair and lay there!!!

i guess he's too used to my routine and doesn't wanna give me the chair that particular morning...that wasn't the first time though...

oh..this is a photo of his fur close-up...looks more like a Persian carpet, doesn't it?

this is him trying to look like a Levi's model...

this is him trying to look like David Beckham in a Brylcreem poster...

this is him aware that my sister(Pauline) was snapping a photo of him and he's like...

"check out my sexy body!!!"

so this is Leo, the stray cat that is really loved by my family members and also every Tom, Dick and Harry who visit my house. Cherry really loves this fella and comes to my house to see him more than she wants to see me...haih...

i'm always complaining about him making a mess(he loves sleeping in my room while i'm not around) and making noises all the time,

but if we lose him,

all of us will be feeling miserable...

...

but nevertheless....

...

he's still a fat, lazy cat!!!

My FIRST BLOG!!!!!!!!!

2008-09-21T01:34:00.000+08:00

hallo hallo testing testing....

wow!!!
i finally have my own blog!!!
actually i had one before,but before i blogged my first page,i forgot d password n also d account...how dumb...

so anyway, ... err, ... hi everyone! im kinda slow at typing and its damn dark here im not allowed to put on d lights, so im not gonna type much today...

to start with,
today was d final day of exams for my second year 1st semester in diploma,so its like YESSSS!!!!IM ON HOLIDAY!!!
so wat was supposed to happen today was....

wait wait wait,
let me tell you all bout my nightmare 1st..
i was ahem...studyin for dis morn's paper roun 2am den i decided to take a nap to so call refresh my brains...den i slept..n i dreamt dat an uncle of mine (he's a useless piece of shit,no one in my family likes him but my dad is d eldest so he needs to take up d responsibility of helping him whenever he needs help.you wont like him if you get to know him also.if you put him beside a pile of shit, da pile of shit will cover it's face in embarrassment and walk away.he's that bad).
so as i was saying, i dreamt that this shit uncle came to my house and decided to stay da night.he was talkin to me and i ignored him.then he asked again and i asked him "wah,after all da shit you have done,you can still talk to us without any sign of embarrassment huh?"
den he got up "you watch your words!"and i threw a punch at him...and we started fighting...oh by the way he's bigger than me so i wasn't the only one hitting the target...fighting n fighting...and suddenly i woke up,breathing heavily...it was really..real...
and guess wat? my cousin's wedding is in two weeks' time.that asshole will be there so i wonder what's gonna happen...maybe i should bring my Kendo stick to da wedding...

crap!!!i wrote that much d ar?

i'l continue tomorrow la k?i hope...still go lotsa stories about today but im getting sleepy,it's very warm here, the pet cat Leo is bothering me for his usual napping place....the computer seat!!!
so i'l be back tomorrow..adios...