Why Would I Write

Category: Random

  • A Window Into the Soul

    When you don’t write constantly, you lose the drive to keep writing – at least that’s what I’ve found.

    Which is probably why I play so much Dota 2 – because I keep playing it. I recently finished the space opera Mass Effect, man that was a good game. I finally understand the all the hype surrounding it when it came out. I’m definitely going to play part 2 and 3 eventually. It’s about time I play these classic games while they still run on modern systems. For those of you who haven’t played it yet – it’s like KOTOR but with real-time combat. If you’re a fan, you should check it out. I highly recommend it.

    I didn’t do much this Chinese new year – but that’s okay. I think red packets will be replaced by NFC or some other cashless technology in the future. Saves time putting money into red packets, and then removing them when CNY is over. Plus you can easily adjust the amount of money you give to different people, and you could probably do some chargebacks if you regret giving money to some people. Also, you don’t have to worry about getting mugged when you’re carrying all those bank notes in your bag. Muggers are real.

    Lost some money gambling, again I’m more of a gamble to be social than gamble to make money kind of guy, so that’s alright.

    In terms of personal projects, I’m happy that I’ve managed to record a couple of demos recently, and I’ve been keeping up with my 1 show/month target. Animal Bus has been progressing – not as quick as I’d like, but at least it’s getting somewhere.

    Other than that – I made some mods to one of my keyboards recently – the KBDFans HHKB Tofu. I got some holes cut in its sides and spray painted the case purple. Photos on my Instagram.

    Oh, I survived a hungry escalator the other day with my foot intact. My super comfortable Miniso flip flops now have a chunk near the top removed. Nothing happened to me, I kicked off my flip flops just in time. I can’t say I wasn’t worried at all, but I knew my foot wasn’t going to get caught. I guess you could say fortunately I wasn’t wearing sandals or shoes. Since that day, I’ve been a bit more careful when using escalators.

    Lastly, I set off for Austin, Texas next week. Am really looking forward to it. Barbecue, Dr. Pepper and my sister are waiting for me. Can’t wait.

    I’m going to try to get back into the groove of blogging more often. I think it would help me with my work as well. It feels good releasing a stream of thoughts onto a page. Having a nice keyboard to type them out with also helps. And if I don’t blog, how are people who don’t talk to me often going to know about what’s going on in my life?

    These posts are like a window into my life – or soul, if I’m being melodramatic.

    Thank you very much for reading. <3

  • Handling Fees

    So, the other day I received a letter from the customs department, telling me that I had a package with them and I needed to pay taxes for it before I could get it. Initially I responded to their letter, saying I was okay with Pos Malaysia handling it for me like they had in the past. All I would have to do was head to the local post office, pay them and collect my item. However, days went by and I didn’t get a call or email telling me to collect my package. I figured something was wrong, so I gave the customs department a call.

    At this point it had almost been a week since I had told them to go ahead with Pos Malaysia as my handler, so imagine my surprise when I learned that the package was still at the customs office in KLIA. I decided, fuck it – I’ll go pick up the package myself. I get to save on the RM50 handling fees, and bring it home with me on the same day.

    It’s been a while since my last drive to KLiA, and man that place is far as balls. Driving there was close to an hour, with tolls on the MEX highway. The hot weather didn’t make it any more pleasant. At least when I go there, parking was free and there was plenty of it.

    That made me think there weren’t many people that day. I was wrong. The waiting area was packed. It was going to be a long day.

    There were many steps involved in the whole process, here’s what I did:

    1. You sign in by showing your customs letter and giving your identity card to the guards at the entrance. They hand you a pass and tell you to enter the building and look for counter 1.
    2. At counter 1, you pass them the letter – they head to the back, dig out your package and pass it to you. They then tell you to proceed to counter 2.
    3. At counter 2, one of the staff will ask you to open up the package and you have to tell them how much it costs (show them an official receipt).
    4. They will then fill up some paperwork and ask you to bring it to counter 3, while you leave your parcel at counter 2.
    5. So on you head to counter 3, and pass your documents to the person behind the glass. They tell you to wait, so this part depends on on how many people were there before you.
    6. After a while, they’ll call your name and give you back the documents, which you have to bring to counter 2. At counter 2, you pass the documents to them, and they ask you to wait again. I’m not sure what goes on at this stage, but the end result is them giving you a document which states how much you have to pay for the item.
    7. You then head back to counter 3 and pass the documents to the person behind the glass. You wait again, until your name is called. You then go to the counter to pay the fee. You collect the documents and head back to counter 2.
    8. At counter 2, they verify that you’ve made the purchase, then give you the green light to leave with your parcel.
    9. You head to the guard house to return the pass and to collect your identity card again.
    10. Get in your car and drive home.

    The above process took me about 3 hours at the customs office alone. So if you factor in the traveling time, that was about 5 hours of my day gone. Just like that. A huge fucking waste of time.

    I probably should have paid the RM50 handling fees in the first place, but I guess now I know for sure. Also, they were being lazy and my parcel hadn’t moved in days. So I felt compelled to do something about it.

    TL;DR, is it worth paying handling fees? If you have an afternoon to spare, and you live close by to the customs office, sure. If not, just give Pos Malaysia the handling fees, it’s worth not going through the hassle.

  • Happy New Year, Gig #117

    Happy New Year, Gig #117

    One year ago, I started the journey to clean my room, and one year later – I’m not done. But that’s okay. It’s something I’ll have to eventually get around to, if not my room will turn into a location for a new season of Hoarders. What makes cleaning up your room such a difficult thing to do? I guess I’m just lazy. And I don’t feel like it’s worth enough of my time. I’d rather spend it doing fun stuff and goofing around. Crazy huh?

    Writing about it now makes me feel like I need to change my attitude towards having a clutter-free room. There are many cases for having a clean room, and nothing against it. There is no reason why you should have a messy room. I guess it’s more the part of me who likes to hold on to old, useless trash instead of giving it up.

    I’ve got tons of stuff in boxes, untouched since the day I moved in to my current home. I haven’t looked at them for the past 10(?) years – there’s no reason to think that I would look at them in the next 10 years. Time for them to go. Stuff for other people to make use of, or even the trash. There’s really no reason for me to hold onto so many things.

    Clean room means a healthier environment, which is great. Less stress – since you don’t come home to a messy room, you won’t have to worry about having to pick things up. It also means more storage for me to keep other things in the future. Having a clean room is a benefit, so I shall keep that in mind as I continue clearing out stuff this week.

    Happy New Year to everybody, maybe I’ll spend more time updating this blog this year. Once a week feels a bit too little. We’ll see.

    In other news, I’ve got my first gig of the year happening this Thursday – at where else, but the KL Journal Poolside Open Mic? Feel free to drop by for some cool tunes and cool beer.

    Poolside Open Mic #71 ft. Ash [Facebook Event Page]

    Time: 8 PM – 10:30 PM
    Date: 10th January 2019
    Venue: KL Journal Hotel [Google Maps]

    The Poolside Open Mic is our 3rd longest running open mic night which happens every Thursday evening right on TOP of The KL Journal! Each installation features one of our finest musicians, with this one featuring…

    ***ASH***

    Armed with just a guitar and her soothing voice, and her eclectic blend of soul, RnB and bossa nova, Ash is a KL-based singer-songwriter who has just begun her journey into the performing arts. Often spotted at indie haunts such as The Bee, The KL Journal, Merdekarya and PLOY, she uses the stage to sing stories of her personal experiences with a subtle mix of melancholy and sensuality complimented with her delicate guitar playing style. With a decent repertoire of originals and covers under her belt so far, expect to see more of her in the near future as her journey has just begun.

    Follow her: https://www.instagram.com/ashneese/

    ***OPEN MIC***

    #1 2storeyheart
    #2 Sia Nicholas
    #3 Wasif Hyder
    #4 Raymond
    #5 Adz King
    #6 Juan
    #7 Nero
    #8 Amr Mohsen

    To sign up for the open mic, email us@openmicmalaysia.org 😀

    ~

    Open Mic Malaysia is the brainchild of Shaneil Devaser, frontman of The Endleaves. Established in 2012 and currently operating in the Klang Valley, Kota Kinabalu and Johor Bahru, Open Mic Malaysia aims to create sustainable avenues for bedroom musicians, singer-songwriters and professional musicians to share their music and experiences with each other and the public, over evenings of wholesome indie goodness. In partnership with other like-minded musicians from across the country, Open Mic Malaysia aims to… Make Malaysia Great (for indie music) Again.