.... of heavenly minded and no earthly value

Yours Sincerely ( Y S ) observes that the best place for Confidence Trickers and, con men and women to operate is in the church and, of course, among the circles of "well meaning, church-going people." The place where you regard as your sanctuary can sometimes be your "battle field" full of bobby traps and mines. It is a place where you have to be drowned in your own suffering and miseries because no "well meaning church- going people" are going to side with you in any issue that call for taking side. At the most, you will be advised , " Oh, don't hate the sinner but the sin."

There is this Catholic con man, now in his forties, who operates in Y S' church for many years. He takes a prey on and off and then disappears for some time, feeds on his ill gotten gains, and resurfaces for another unsuspecting " well meaning and church going" victim. Well, memories are short, especially for " well meaning church- going people." This Catholic con man has quiet eyes and a boyish face that keeps on pleading innocence that even Hitler would have spared him in the Holocaust.

His modus operandi is to tell tear jerking sob stories of his chronic diabetic, kidney, liver, stomach, heart, intestines and what other organs have you complications that call for emergency treatment or operation. Then he pleads with his quiet eyes for a loan from you while invoking heaven and earth with promises of repayment. Of course, you kiss the loan good- bye.

Many " well meaning church going people" in Y S church have fallen for his ploys all these years BUT NO ONE HAS DONE ANYTHING TO PROTECT OTHER " well meaning church -going people" from been cheated. Many were cheated and kept quiet about it, perhaps they felt ashamed for doing "blind charity." Others would tell you about being cheated but made you promise not to tell out !!! A few more are so good hearted that they blessed him " for he knew not what he was doing" Grrrrrrrr !!!! All because "well meaning church going people" are not supposed to talk bad of others. "Oh, hate the sin, not the sinner."


This Catholic Con man targets members of the Parish Council, "well meaning church- going people" with ministry and new "well meaning church- going people." He is still on the prowl. The latest victim was Y S' friends. A "well meaning church- going" lady who draws a small salary but has a big heart. She wanted to help, not knowing that she was taken for a ride. RM6,500, a few months of her salary, vanished.

Sometimes Christians are so heavenly minded that they are of no earthly value. Too many evil things are happening because good men are just looking on.

.... of keeping up with technology

One of the best ways to feel like being a dinosaur is to be left behind in this rat race of technology in almost every appliance and gadget that we use. Of course, a very prominent gadget is the cell phone, hand phone , mobile phone and what-nots.

Yours Sincerely ( Y s ) bought a cell phone many, many years ago when the children were very much younger. It was a "Phillip," and had since been retired. When the daughters grew up and used handphones, Y S has been receiving hand-me-downs all along.

" Pa.... why don't you take over my phone ? It is still ok but I wish to upgrade. " And this "Pa" being a frugal person would not let things go wasted. It is always " Reduce, Recycle and Recycle." So, Y S and his Better Half have been recipients of old "Nokia," " Sony Ericsion," " Samsung," "Panasonic", you name it.

These hand-me-downs become so because of minor faults here and there which young people cannot bear but the oldies can live with. On and off, friends complained that bY S' phone was not clear, with lots of noise and static and worse of all, it suddenly went dead in the middle of a conversation.

Anyway, Y S seemed to be proud of becoming the owner of hand-me-downs until he was awakened by a friend who told him that he had just purchased two state-of-the-art hand phones at about one thousand ringgit each. According to him, his spouse also has to keep up and not him alone. That was inspiration for Y S. No more hand-me-down. It is "Just do i t" Nike style. After all, you don't need a hand phone when you are 6 feet underground !

It is a Samsung Galaxy Ace (GT-S5830) :-

HSPD 7.2 Mbps
Dual band (900/2100MHZ)
Quad band
3.5" HVGA TFT LCD Screen
5MP AF Camera wwith LED flash
800MHz CPU
TopuchWiz 3.0 for Android
Social hub
Wi-fi 802.11b/g/n
GPS/Geo-tagging.

..... attempted burglary

Several weeks ago Yours Sincerely ( Y S ) discovered the 15 feet solid metal grille on the windows of his study room was prised opened. Ten 3-inch nails were cleanly extracted from their resting places without a single bent ! The gap produced by the opened grille was about a foot which was quite sufficient for anybody with an eel-like and monkey agile body to tightly slitter in. Y S ' books and other paraphernalia on a smaller table by the side of the window was upset and were sprawled all over the floor. NO ENTRY WAS MADE! Surprised !!!!

Two theories were advanced : the gap made by the opened grille was too small as it was blocked by the side of a cupboard and secondly an air-conditioner starter switch also blocked the other corner of the grille. While Y S accepted both the theories, behind his mind is the All-watchful God he believes in. There is POWER in the protection of the blood of Jesus Christ . The situation was all ready for a crime scene but yet the burglar(s) fled without entry into the premise.

However, having your living space about to be compromised by some "idiots" can be stressful. Better Half disclosed that for several nights Y S had nightmares and yelling out " Curi ! Curi ! ( Thief! Thief!) Y S wondered how his elder daughter managed to live through the experience when her apartment on the 8th floor was burglarized and her personal possessions leisurely checked through. She is a brave girl/woman/wife . LOL In police stations in the west, there are
trauma rooms for victims to de-stress before/after making their report. The authority also provides post-trauma counseling.

Having your private space about to be compromised, or worst still compromised can be traumatic. It is like having someone going through your handbag or wallet. It is like your personal diary being read.

Gone are the gentle and peaceful days we used to live in. My natal house had no grilles whatsoever. The world has changed or rather is changed by unscrupulous supposedly humans. The going is tough and so the tough gets going. Y S and his neighbours co-operated and discovered a weak defence behind their houses. So, we co-operatively put up a "Great of Wall of Lumba Kuda." 80 feet X 8 feet concrete wall . Still thinking of putting up barbed wires combat war zone style on the wall !!! Or, perhaps plant numerous mines behind the houses. Electrify the fence !!! LOL .Come what may ! Let's protect our living space. Trust in God. He is still in-charge. But do what you can and He will do what He will.

.... of funeral wakes

Remembering Y S' mother's funeral.
" Had I visited her enough when she was aged and sick ???"

Yours Sincerely ( Y S ) is amazed by the trouble people take to attend the wake of a relative or friend, not to mention a family member. Some rush from very far to be at the wake or funeral. At some wakes, Y S attended and observed lots of custom, traditions, religiosity and observances, and also gaiety ! Dirth and mirth seems to mix fairly well.

These days, the funeral wakes come in several packages with differing costs and types of services and products. The more high end canopies come in white and full of ribbons and laces to hide away rough edges and rusted metals. The in-thing is, of course, the air-conditioner. The lower end comes with air cool sprinklers, and the budget one is fans. Gone are the days when the free drabby khaki lorry canopy was used. Sometimes without the announcement scrolls hung at the canopy, you wonder whether it is mirth or dearth ! The colours usually associated with death is now camouflaged. Death as Shakespeare puts it is indeed " sweet sorrow." ( Romeo & Juliet. I hope I remember it right.)

The chairs at the high end wake are dressed in white and ribboned. The cheaper ones are the common plastic chairs, and the free ones are the rusty, old foldable ( usually blue in colour) ones borrowed from the Chinese association or clan in town. There is still no equality in death. Ya?

The menu during the wakes also range with the cost. There is always a variety of mass fried noodles and porridge, and free flow of Chinese tea, coffee, tea and bottled water. Whatever food is offered, there must be a free flow of groundnuts ! At some wakes, cigarettes and beer are freely offered and freeloaders have their hey days. The servers are always busy serving hard because their work ends when the food finishes. LOL

Y S also observes that "mahjong," card games and gambling of sorts are carried out until the wee hours of the morning. The din is unceasing and is comparable to that of the wet market. Many catch up with old friend and relatives, and there is lots of chit-chatting. These activities are carried out vis-a-vis the prayers and chantings, cymbals and gongs of the Taoist priests and mourners. Sorrow and joy seem to co-exist peacefully, so going for such a wake, you don't know whether to be sorrowful or joyful. These mambo jumbo can go on for many nights, especially for the richer deceased.

Such practices and observances are good as they keep the community vibrant, strong and united. The practice of giving cash offering, commonly called " White Gold" for the deceased's expenditure in the after-world also serves a good function in helping the less well to do families to off set the funeral expenditure.

However, Y S thinks that the wakes are really for the living. The dead is dead not matter how lavish is the wake and how elaborate is the funeral, or how much prayers and masses are offered for him / her. If such a big celebration is organised for the deceased when he was living, he would be on cloud nine !

The point Y S is driving at is to do what you want to do to anyone when he / she is alive. When he is dead and gone, there is nothing much we can do, except those things that would ease our conscience to make us feel good, or that we are filial children. "Ho ! So and so spent so much and so much for his father's funeral ! "

If you think of your parents, visit them. If you remember a friend / classmate, pay him / her a visit. If you recall a colleague, invite him / her out for a meal. If you think of someone who has made a difference in your life and you cannot visit him / her, give him / her a call, send an email or an SMS.

Follow NIKE, " just do it." Don't wait until the person's funeral !

.... of Optimism and Pessimism

This photo was shot when the dark rain bearing clouds were descending on Tongle Sap in Cambodia. The rain renews life in the lake, extending its frontier, revitilizing aquatic lives and refreshes the water.

According to Corrie Ten Boom, if a bird is flying for pleasure, it flies with the wind, but if it meets danger it turns and faces the wind, in order that it may rise higher. Kites also rise the highest against the wind and not to mention, airplanes take off against the wind, not with it. As they say, some see the hole in the donut and others the ring.

When confronted with a Goliath-sized problem, which way do you respond : " He's too big to hit" or like David, "He's too big to miss ?"

Yours Sincerely ( Y S ) has been dragging on with the baggage of pessimisms all along his life. Y S is always prepared for the worse, the very, very worst. If the car could carry 2 spare wheels, Y S would carry them. If RM1.00 is enough, Y S would carry RM2 or RM3, just in case. And living with " in case" is very heavy and draggy. Looking at the black side of life wouldn't not disappoint Y S, and he would be cheerful if it doesn't work out. So, Y S could call himself a "cheerful pessimist." But not anymore.

As life is at the threshold of 60 years, a reorientation in one's outlook is a blessing. To be able to see things more clearly or as they should be viewed. According to Albert Schweitzer, " An optimist is a person who sees a green light everywhere, while a pessimist sees only the stoplight. THE TRULY WISE PERSON IS COLOUR-BLIND. "

Tomorrow is not another day but another chance. The night has fallen, no doubt, but morning will soon come. Optimists are possibilitarians .No matter how dark things seem to be or actually are, they raise their sight and see the possibilities and they always see them because they are always there. " The pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunities, the optimist sees the opportunities in every difficulties." Winston Churchill. Remember that the same sun that melts butter also harden the clay.

However, an optimist may be wrong as often as the pessimist, but he has a lot more fun anyway. So, the optimist laughs to forget BUT the pessimist forgets to laugh.

... of the rich and the poor

A floating village. Houses on bamboo rafts. This one even has potted flowers for decoration.
This is a Catholic Church and is adjoined by a school for the floating children.
A school for the floating kids of the floating villages.
This is a gathering points for the floating villagers. On the day Y S visited an organization came to distribute some handouts.

Y S noted a lop sided demography where there are many adults, aged and young children. The youths have moved to the cities for employment.

Have a basin can travel. Danger? What danger when you are born in the midst of danger.

Do these kids have a future ? Are their parents worried about their future? " Do they go for tuition classes?" " Ballet classes?" "Piano lessons?" " Mental Arithmetic classes?" DO THEY HAVE ENOUGH TO EAT? This is a realistic question.
Note a pig farm on a raft.

This is home for the floating people on Tongle Sap.


Yours Sincerely visited Tongle Sap, a great versatile lake in Cambodia, which expands and shrinks according to the season. Here you can see several crowded floating villages with houses of many shapes and sizes, shops of sorts, a Catholic Church, two schools on rafts, several fish and pig farms, and lots of POVERTY.


Life when lived at survival level is very basic and simple. There are very few needs and almost no wants. Surviving from "hand to mouth" makes life very plain and Y S asks himself whether life is intended to be such !

The inhabitants have no permanent address and their floating houses moves about according to the level of the water in the lake. It seems that the schools and shops also moves up or down the lake accordingly. There is no water bills to pay and bed time follows the sun.

From the noise and faces Y S observed at one gathering point for the inhabitants, they were oblivious to the tourists' presence and conducted their lives as usual. " Are they happy and contented?" When life is emptied of wants, there are in fact few needs. Perhaps the real measure of your wealth is how much you would be worth if you lost all your wealth ! Sometimes adversity makes a man, and prosperity makes monsters.


This is a mini bridge that joins Canada and U.S.A.

A giant castle on one of the Thousand islands. Only occupied in summer when the owner comes for his holidays.
These are all individually owned houses which are practically empty most of the time.

On the contrary, Y S was at "Thousand islands" that straddles the US and Canadian border on the St Lawrence River.. Here you can be amazed by the huge gigantic private mansions and castles of the super rich, all built on individually owned islands of all sizes. There is a myriad of architectural wonders which baffles the mind, not so much on the construction technology but rather on the immense wealth the owners possess ! It seems that each property has its own "Indah Water" / waste disposal facility. It has to be contained and transported to the mainland to be discarded. You can imagine the cost !

To signify Y S' comparison to the floating "huts" and "coops" on Tongle Sap, these mansions and castles are only used as get-away summer homes once a year !!! Sometimes, wealth exalts and poverty downgrades a man by three degrees !!! Poverty is no sin and the poor may sleep soundly but still being poor can be terribly inconvenient!!!

What a world we live in ? The rich man worries over his last meal and the poor over where his next meal to come.

Y S is contemplating voluntary work in Cambodia.

.... of a Birdie!

Today is a day to be celebrated !

Yours Sincerely ( Y S ) was golfing at Permaipura Golf Course near Bedong and this is the first time Y S hit a birdie from 150 meters with an Iron 5. It is a stroke to be cherished. Don't ask Y S how he did it , and neither could he do it again.

Practice is the best of all instructors. And practice does not make perfect; perfect practice makes perfect.

The birdie makes my day !!!