Is smoking an addiction?

I found out that one of my colleagues is smoker, the only one in the finance division actually. He seldom smokes around us but the nicotine remnant accumulated around his gums gave it all away. When I asked whether he is addicted to it, he answered with an almost immediate “yes”.

I used to think smoking is an addiction but one of my former uni-mate (let’s call him Col) told me that smoking is not an addiction at all, it is a habit. A bad one if you were to ask me. To Col, it’s just a habit of the need to hold something between the fingers. I didn’t believe him then, but he proved me wrong… so so wrong. It’s a bit egoistic to say it but seriously, seldom people prove me wrong.

Col is quite a chain smoker, puffing away 2 packs a day since his schooling days if I remember correctly. During Christmas of our final year, he travelled back to Malaysia as he missed home very much. Lo and behold, he fell in love with a girl and amazingly, they got together in that short visit back. Obviously, they kissed when they were together and she gave him a remark which sounded something like this…

“Col, I don’t want to kiss an ashtray”

From that moment, Col has not smoked… until today. And no, he does not even smoke socially… not even a single puff, no kidding. Addiction?

“It’s just a habit, I can kick it anytime”

That was what he told me, something like that. I was quite shocked really but it made me believe that smoking is nothing but a bad habit. My friend has showed me that if you want to quit, it’s really quite easy. It’s just that you have not found something worth quitting it for.
For the girls who want their boyfriends to quit, you can try the me-ain’t-kissing-ashtray trick.

For guys who want their girlfriends to quit, sorry… think the kissing trick won't work.

For those smoking who think you’re addicted. You’re addicted simply because you think you’re addicted.

For richer or poorer

I was running on the treadmill the other day when something on the tv screen in front of me caught my attention. It was a statement issued by one Multi-National Corporation (“MNC”) regarding their record profit growth for the year. Not long after that, statements by a few other global giants were shown. They too, achieved phenomenal profit growth.

Usually, MNCs will claim that their growth was achieved from effective management or well-structured financing or dedicated people or other sophisticated reasons. I may not be an expert in the business world but as far as I am concern, profit growth can only be achieved by a few methodologies:-

Increase the volume of sales while maintaining costs; or

Increase the price of products/services while maintaining costs; or

Reduce costs.

Of course, the most effective way of achieving profit growth is to adopt all of the above which is… increase price and sales volume and at the same time, reduce costs.

Ya’ know, all these big MNCs continue to be where they are simply because their profits keep increasing year by year; and it has to increase. A MNC, or any company for that matter, have to keep growing in order to survive in this ruthless world. More often than not, growth is measured by profit increase.

Leaving the reducing costs part aside, when a company increases the pricing of its product or service, there is only 1 loser… us. Maybe it’s too harsh to say that we’re losers, after all, we do enjoy the product or the service that we paid for. But then again, when you consider that our salary is not exactly growing at the rate of which the prices are growing, then we are quite near the losing end…

Now, let’s have a look at the ‘cost cutting measures’. Such initiative is often hidden behind the name ‘cost management’. It is interesting to know that when a global MNC decides to cut its cost perform costs management, it is usually being implemented in Asian countries. And trust me, Malaysia is a country always being targeted, probably because they know Malaysians corporate slaves will do whatever they can to please the big boss.

Anyway, what happen when you’re a victim of a cost cutting regime and you have to face increasing prices situation? Yeah, then you are the ultimate loser…
The above may not be the exact situation for you, but that is quite the trend on things happening around us. We always complain that our salary is not increasing but prices of things kept increasing but you know what? The thing is… prices are going to keep increasing while our salary will not be increasing in a rate that will match it. Well… perhaps some will, some might even have their salary increasing in a rate much higher than the increase of products/services. But for many many many of us… we will not be that fortunate.

We all know that we live in a world where the rich will always get richer; and most of the time, they get richer by making the poor gets poorer. But what we don’t quite know is that the poor, in the struggle to become rich… all ends up helping the rich to get richer. The above is a classic example; and there are many more. But that’s a story for another day…

P/S: The prices of bread just increased. Soon, every fellas who eat bread are going to increase the price of their stuff… what are you going to increase?

From shitty good news to gym and a penis song

I was feeling rather chirpy while on my way to work today. Yeah, the thought that Friday is on the way is enough to cheer me up. But just as I was about to cross the road, I felt something fell on my head. I raised my hand to check it out and my worst fear was confirmed…… a bloody freaking bird shit right smack on top of my head! Like right at the centre ok!

I had to walk all the way home to wash my hair which caused me to be late for work today. My mood was obviously spoilt until my boss told me a rather good piece of news… I have been selected to go London next January for global consolidation. Good news indeed as it also means my Paris honeymoon plan will be happening after all.

Anyway, I had another freaky gym experience the other day...

I was standing near my locker wrapped in towel about to change when someone called me from behind…

“Eh, zewt”
“Yo, didn’t know you’re a member here”
“Yeah, joined not too long ago. Got dinner plans?”
“Not really”
“Wanna join me? I am eating with YM”
“No thanks, a bit late. Maybe next time”
“Come la… I can fetch you there and drive you back”
“Nah…”
“Come la”
“Another time la...”
“Ok then”

He was my former school and church mate. It was a perfectly normal conversation but as soon as it ended, I realised all the guys around me was staring at me. It then struck me… Lesson learnt… do not discuss dinner plan in the locker room of a gym wrapped in towel… particularly when the other guy is trying to ‘ask you out’ and you’re trying to ‘turn him down’.

Last but not least, I wanna share this really kick-ass video with you. I was laughing like an idiot sitting at my workstation the first time I watched a few years ago. Some of you may have seen it but certainly worth another view…


Happy weekend to you all!

Turning your eyes from oil to ferry

Well well well… whadaya know… one of our ministers in our beloved govt issued a statement today telling us to brace ourselves for imminent increase in petrol price. What perfect timing considering what I blogged about yesterday. Well, I can't blame him. According to CNNMoney.com, crude oil rose to as high as USD88.70 per barrel today.

That minister said that high fuel price is affecting oil producing countries. Honestly, I have yet to decipher how that is possible. A fellow blogger commented that Malaysia, being a net exporter of oil, should benefit from increase in petrol price. Indeed… and how an increase of petrol price for a net oil exporter like our country be detrimental is quite beyond me. Perhaps someone may want to enlighten me on this point.

He also mentioned that our, i.e. Malaysia’s, oil reserves could last us for about 10 to 15 years. Hmmm… that is not what I heard though… perhaps someone can also enlighten me on this point.

Anyway, I think we should leave the oil issue out for a while. I think we should also stop talking about our tourist in space too.

Too much attention has been given to this space tourist so much so that we have actually missed out on a tragedy which took place lately. Did you all read about the ferry which sank while on its way to Tioman? Honestly, I didn’t know it until today and a quick look around the blogosphere showed that most bloggers are more interested in talking about the space tourist than anything else.

Were you aware of it?

Yes, a ferry caught fire while on its way to Tioman and you know what? They found out that the ferry was operating without a licence. Lives were lost and some are still missing. Ya’ know, those people who call the United States as a land of possibility, they just have not been to Malaysia yet.

So we had non-road worthy buses driven by drug addicts caught a few months ago. Oh… you’ve forgotten all about that already haven’t you? By the way, I wonder if the buses on the road now are really ‘clean’ already. And now, we have unlicensed ferry in the sea. What is next? Broken airplanes flying around? Seriously, I won't be surprise. The Nuris are still flying, aren’t they?

At this point, I want to draw your attention to a testimony by a blogger whose girlfriend’s relative is one of the victims of the tragedy. I am again left speechless after reading that blog entry. What typical Malaysian way of doing things. If you don’t feel angry after reading it, you are probably inhuman.

A fellow blogger commented in my previous entry saying that there is nothing we can do about it because we are so low here and the powers are so high up there. C’mon, let’s be honest with ourselves. Is there really nothing we can do? Or do we choose not to do anything about it?

The price to drive

I was browsing through the comics newspaper online a while ago when I stumbled a piece of worrying news. No, I was not referring to the list of sex offenders names being released, though I have some reservations regarding that. I am referring to the latest crude oil price which just hit a record high of US$85 per barrel.

If you remember, the last increase in petrol price of RM0.30 happened in late February 2006 when the crude oil price was hovering around US$60 per barrel. It caused much uproar amongst many Malaysians with some badly hit people doing a big demonstration made themselves heard around KLCC area. Yes, it did happened, just not reported in the news.

Anyway, the price of crude oil has now soared to US$85, which is a 41.6% increase from US$60 per barrel; the price of crude oil during the last increase in petrol price in Malaysia. Oliver Jakob, managing director of Petromatrix, a consultancy firm in Switzerland was quoted here; saying that US$90 per barrel is “within easy reach”.

Yes, our wonderful government is saying that there will be no further increase in petrol price this year. But you and I are all painfully aware that the lifespan of “this year” is fast running out. And let’s be honest with ourselves, if the election is not on its way, we may well be paying RM2.50++ per litre of petrol already. The question is then of course… what will happen after the election?
Having said that, I am dead sure that even if petrol price increases to as high as RM3 per litre, all we Malaysians will do is start f**king the government in blogs and complain about everything under the sky in our regular mamak gatherings. Maybe some will make themselves heard and seen again in KLCC. But before you know it, we will all be ordering the new Camry-s and Civic-s and play our part in contributing to traffic jam. Don’t you think so?

But you know what really bothers me? It is the usage of the savings arising from the cut in petrol subsidy which ticks me. One I could think of right now is to send a Malaysian as tourist to space. Oh, did you read the news today? Our supposedly Malaysian first astronaut has successful conducted his first space experiment… by spinning a top (“gasing”) in space.

Hey… you and I may find it stupid, but a lot of Malaysians out there are actually quite proud it. But you know the irony of it? It is the same bunch of Malaysians who take much pride in having that dude in space and having the “gasing” played in space that will feel the pinch most should there be a price increase in petrol price. Don’t you think so?

For those people residing overseas, don’t you dare say that petrol price will still be cheap if it hit RM3 per litre here in Malaysia. Yes, it may be US$0.86 per litre (RM3) but when you consider that the average income per capita in Malaysia is US$496 per month as at 2006 (source: Malaysian National Budget Speech 2008), petrol is freaking expensive.

Well, what am I getting at here? With the second dude also heading to space in the near future; all I can say is… brace yourself for the inevitable.

P/S: I have to say it… the experiment performed by our space tourist is just so damn fu*ked up.
P/S/S: Anyone upgrading their car?

Let us be reminded...

One of my friend’s mom was admitted to hospital last Friday, she fainted. Her kidneys failed and the surgery to remove some puss from her kidneys was not successful. She stabilised on Saturday and the next surgery to remove the pus still present in her kidneys was scheduled to be performed tomorrow.

But all is not meant to be, she passed away yesterday.

One of my mentors since my early school days who is going to be the worship leader during my wedding ceremony was admitted into hospital too on Friday. The medical staff found a stone in his kidney and due to some other complications, the doctor took a sample of his tissue for a biopsy to rule out the possibility of cancer and the result will be out this coming Saturday.

Perhaps I have reached an age where such things are part and parcel of life; but one thing for sure, I am reminded again of how fragile life is. I am reminded again of the pain when I lost my mom. I am also being brought back to earth to once again catch a glimpse on life’s reality.

Amidst our euphoria of celebrating the beauty of life, let us not take it for granted… let us know our limitations… let us realise what are the important things… let us find time to do things that truly enrich us and most important of all… let us cherish those whom we love while we are still walking this path on earth with them.

A very personal sharing

I met some of my former church-mates for lunch last Wednesday in the same restaurant where the erotic lunch happened last week. I think it’s just something about that restaurant. For those who want to know, it’s one of the hottest eatery spot in Pavillion. Maybe you should go and have lunch there some time.

Anyway, we were doing our usual catch up but there has been a certain change in the flavour of our conversation. We used to bitch about work and gossip about so and so dating so and so. Yes, Christians are human after all. As age catch up with us, the conversation topic has shifted to marriage and children. One of us is already a mother.

Somehow, the conversation led to feeding the infant and about so and so having a lot of milk… breast milk. One of the girls was telling us about how her cousin (I think) has a lot of breast milk …

“Really damn a lot, when I opened the fridge, I could see so much!”
“Why she wants to pump out so much?”
“XXX don’t have much milk, so she just take from my cousin’s reserve”
What the…...!!! My friend’s cousin shares her reserves of breast milk!!! Okay, I think I have a few mothers reading my blog. Will you all share your breast milk? Or, will you let your child drink someone else’s breast milk?

Any thoughts on this very ‘personal’ sharing?

Last but not least…

Zewt ingin mengambil kesempatan di sini untuk mengucapkan Selamat Menyambut Hari Raya Aidilfitri kepada semua pembaca AZAIG yang beragama Islam terutamanya deOughtred, Ardy, Alan Zed, Wazir, Kata Tak Nak, Pak Zawi, j or ji, Manal, Lucius Maximus, Tunku Halim, Zaty dan yang mereka yang saya rasa masih membaca AZAIG seperti Nuraina dan Rocky Bru. Harap-harap saya tidak meninggalkan sesiapa.

P/S: Thanks Babbles for the “I love your blog award”. Very flattering indeed my friend.