Friends... Haiz...

This is the second time I posting about this... The last time I posted about this was last year. Just reaching Christmas.

I still can't get it friends are for. Are friends really important? Haiz... I just get restless and angry at the thought of it. I couldn't hold it much longer and just had to let it go somewhere... Bad rumors still spread around about me. This has caused me unnecessary stress!!! It's crowding up my mind.

I think most of my friends at school are fair-weathered or maybe just in front of you, he or she is your friend, but behind, they talk bad about you. I don't think I have many true friends. True friends are indeed very little, but fair-weathered and false friends are plentiful.

After all, no one cares about me...

A Narrow Escape...

Here is a story, I wrote for my mid-year English exam. I didn't do pretty well for my English paper this time. Sigh. I suppose I still can't write Grade A essays. Well, here it goes.

Last Friday, my friends and I decided to go to the beach for a picnic. It was sunny, just perfect for a picnic. This beach was one of the few remaining beaches that was still clean.

After packing and getting ready for the picnic, we took off and headed for the beach. We bought quite a number of things there. Among the things were spades, pails, for building sandcastles, food to eat, extra change of clothing, because we wanted to go swimming, and other stuff needed in our picnic.

When we reached there, we were surprised to see that the beach was quite empty. It was a public holiday and usually it would be full to the brim. Abu, my friend, said that it was still early and told everyone to look for a comfortable spot before the place filled up. After 10 minutes of searching, we finally found a nice spot under the trees. We quickly unpacked and got ready. Since everybody helped, everything was ready in 20 minutes. By the time we had unpacked, the beach was already almost full. Good thing we came early!

After unpacking, Jason and Abu took the spades and pails and started digging to build the biggest sandcastle on the beach. May and Janice decided that they would read under the shade of the trees, while Zhean, Soan, and I decided to take a swim.

When I was admiring the sandcastle Jason and Abu was building, May suddenly shouted "Look out! There is a shark behind you!". I thought she was joking because she always liked to crack jokes. But when I saw the frightened looks of Zhean and Soan and all the people swimming back to the shore, fright filled me. Goosebumps appeared everywhere, and I began to sweat. I turned and saw a black fin heading towards me at great speed. I didn't want to be the shark's lunch. Caught aware, I moved away, and started swimming to the shore as fast as I could. The shark missed me by inches. When I next looked up to the shore, my friends had already reached the shore, signaling and shouting for help, "Help! Help! A shark is chasing my friend!". I was still quite far from the shore, because I went to retrieve a ball that I had thrown too far when I was playing with Soan and Zhean in the sea.

Suddenly, I felt something bit my leg. A sharp pain on the leg and something pulling me. I struggled, but the shark was stronger than me. I could see the water around me turning red in blood. I struggled to get free and get to the shore, but I seemed going further and further away. I thought this was the end of me. Suddenly, I heard a long Bang!", then my leg was free! By that time, I had already used most of my strength. But I still fought on to the shore. Suddenly, the world just turned black.

When I next opened my eyes, all of my friends were beside me and a doctor was there bandaging me, Soan and May told me what had happened after I fainted. They had called for help and the lifeguard came. When he saw what had happened, he called the other lifeguards had a shotgun. The lifeguard aimed and fired at the shark. The shark died instantly. After listening, I thanked the lifeguards for their plucky action. If it wasn't for them, I would be not here now. It was indeed a narrow escape!

So, what do you think of my essay?

With petrol prices increasing, public transport must improve...

All the while, public transport in quality has been bad. The buses arrive late, buses are sardined-packed, etc...

Some drastic action must be taken, so that the people can cut cost. Everything is increasing price, petrol, essential goods, etc...

In my opinion, I think the Malaysia government should introduce bus lanes, like in Singapore. This way, the buses can be faster than the private cars who drive very slowly. No wonder, last year, when I was in Singapore, the buses were always on time! Another way public transport can be improved, is by charging lower fares. Low fares are crucial, so that the lower income people can afford it. If they can't afford public transportation, what more private cars? This way, public transportation will be more attractive too. With more people taking public transportation, we are actually helping the environment too. The government should have more buses running. Most of the time, the buses are delayed. And at peak hours, the buses are sardined-packed! Keeping enough buses on the road is not just about buying new buses, but keeping the existing ones in working condition. The people chosen to drive the buses must be careful too. Every month, I read of a few bus crashes. Pick the correct people to do the work!

I think, with the above steps taken, the quality and efficiency of public transport will improve.

EURO 2008 has kicked off!!!

The EURO 2008 has kicked off on the 8th of June 2008. It's a pity all the games are screened on TV at night. I want to watch the games! I've read somewhere on the net that the winners of EURO 2008 would get as much as 23 million euros!
The UEFA organization will generate a record income of 1.3 billion euros. Haiz... So much money!!!
The 16 finalist, that participate gets a whooping 7.5 million euros each. 16 finalist, 120 million euros!!! They get it just for participating! They will get a further 1 million euros win and 0.5 million euros for a draw in the group stages. The eight teams in the quarter-finals will each receive 2 million euros! And the semi-finalist will share 6 million euros! The winning finalist will get 7.5 million euros, while the loser finalist will get 4.5 million euros. WOW! Just so much money spent on a football competition alone.

Handphones...

A handphone is a useful gadget, yet it also can be bad for you. Everything has its pros and cons, even the handphone.
The handphone has many pros, one of them is during an emergency, you can call someone for help instantly. For example, if you are stuck in the city, or lost of finding a place you want to go, you can just use the GPS which is one of the many functions of the handphone. If your handphone isn't equipped with a GPS, or isn't a GPS phone, you can just call a friend for directions, than asking a stranger for directions.
Another benefit of having a handphone is, you get to stay connected with your friends. For example, if you are living in Alor Star, and your pal is staying in Johor, and you wish to just have a chat with him, you can just call or send an SMS. You can even talk face to face through the handphone with 3G. You will not need to trouble yourself to travel all the way down to Johor to talk to him. Everything is just at a touch of a button.
When you are bored and have nothing to do, you can just play with your handphone games, or watch a movie, or even surf the web! It can also be a source of entertainment. For example, picture yourself in a bus, bored, with nothing to do, you can just take out your handphone and occupy time by playing games on your handphone or watch a movie.
Handphone has its cons too. One thing bad about having a handphone is handphone sends out EMF, which is bad for the brain. If you place your handphone near your
near your phone within a 20cm radius for a long period of time daily, you are actually increasing your risk of getting brain cancer by 10%.
The handphone can also be a source of distraction. For example, when a person is doing something, and the telephone rings, you will stop everything to answer the call. This distracts the person nd causes the person to lose concentration on what he is doing.

How to save petrol...

1. Drive smoothly
   Aggressive driving can use a lot of fuel. Avoid accelerating too hard or braking too hard and try to keep your steering as smooth as possible.
2. Use higher gear
   The higher gear you drive in, the lower your engine speed is, which can improve fuel efficiency.
3. Tune and service your engine
   A well-tuned engine can improve fuel economy by up to 4%, so change your oil and follow your car manufacture's recommendation.
4. Keep your tyres at the right pressure
   Tyres that are under-inflated by just 1 psi can reduce fuel efficiency by 3%.
5. Avoid carrying excess weight
   For every extra 45 kg, your fuel efficiency can drop by 1% - 2%.
6. Keep the windows close
   Wind blowing through an open window will slow you down, causing you to put your foot down, using more fuel.
7. Use the correct oil
   Using the correct oil can improve the fuel efficiency by 1% - 2%.
8. Avoid excess idling
   Idling gets you no where but you burn fuel.
9. Cruise control
10. Take the roof rack off

So, everyone use these steps to reduce your fuel consumption. Save petrol!!!

Petrol price increases, and everything increases!

Just a few days ago, the petrol price in Malaysia increased by a whooping 78 sen. Once petrol prices increases, it causes a domino effect. Bus and lorry companies are increasing their charges for their services. Lorry transport charges have increased by 40% - 60%. With this increasing, food prices, everything will increase, because of transportation fees. Bus services may grind to a halt when quota runs out. 

Though the government will see whether the road tax may be reduced. The government so far has announced  a RM 200 reduction on road tax for private vehicles with engine capacity over 2000 cc and private motorcycles with engine capacity over 250 cc, which isn't much. The government is also giving a rebate of RM 625 a year for private vehicles with engine capacity up to 2000 cc and private pick up trucks and jeeps up to 250 cc. A RM 150 reduction will be given to motorcycles with engine capacity up to 250 cc. 

In my opinion, I think the government increased the fuel prices to drastically, it should have been increased in stages. People would have to change their lifestyles in a blink of an eye. The people won't be able to cope, people will have to spend extra for transportation.

Today is Dutch Lady Milk Day!!!

Today, June 1st, Dutch Lady Malaysia celebrates its own nationwide milk day campaign themed "Dutch Lady Milk Day", where 50 000 milk packets will be distributed free across Malaysia. Dutch Lady Milk Day is part of Dutch Lady Malaysia month long "Spread the Goodness of Milk" campaign, which is also in line with the government efforts to create a healthy and active Malaysia.
Did you know that, Malaysians are still not used to drinking milk on a daily basis? We need milk for our physical and mental growth and agility. Did you know that milk can reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes? Did you know that milk can reduce breast cancer?