Left 4 Dead 2

Zombie-killing just got better with the recently released 'Left 4 Dead 2'.I am barely moving through the first game which is also a big challenge due to its
strategic gameplay and fast-moving nature.Now, I am playing the L4D2 and I'm liking every single minute.It has more firepower, a large assortment of melee weapons such as the
chainsaw, katana, baseball bat and crow bar.Small arms such as a .50 Desert Eagle, glocks and some 9mms were also part of
the 'unlimited ammo' armory.What I love most, is the combat assault rifle that fires three round bursts and the
M-72 'thumper' grenade launcher.Since my system is linked via optical cable for audio, the experience is awesome!

Catching up with the past

Time catches on very quickly.I met an old friend recently. Someone I haven't seen or really had a conversation with for nearly 20 years.The guy who is in his mid-50s, had gone through a rough patch and somehow managed to pull through.He held up pretty okay on his own.There were little physical changes with the exception that he is already toothless.I can also see the mid-life crisis thing wearing in as he looked more like a wild man these days.The only thing that I can only recall over these years was the fact that he was one of my mentors. He taught me quite a bit when I was starting out as a photographer in the Press.I have since moved on with life and as usual, in a large gathering where 60% of the attendees were ex-staff from an organisation, there were bound to be plenty of ego-trips.I didn't have much to say as much of the events that were brought up from the past were insignificant.My participation in the get together was out of respect for the man and what I learned is the fact that there is no point gloating about the past.

Outing with the kidz

The kidz - striking a pose

My boss and the kidz

IT's been a soggy weekend and yesterday morning, we managed to take the kidz
out for a doggy event at the 1 Utama Central Park.As usual, Michelle and I had formed the habit of leaving our home early to the
fairground.Lucky for us, there were ample car parking lots at the park's facility.We walked the kidz and their backpacks and chilled out at our usual break area for
a McDonald's breakfast.During the event, we met up with some old friends from the Husky club and
exchanged notes.This year in particular, has been really quiet.The only gathering which we attended before this was the Dogathon at UPM in
Serdang.On the whole, things had turned out okay. We spent half the day there before heading home. The kidz are happy as they get
plenty of excercise as well as socialise with other pooches at the event.

Left 4 Dead

I've revived my Xbox 360 and found that its new user interface is upgradeable through its gaming software.

Recently, I bought 'LIPS', a music game which centres around singing.

It comes with a set of wireless microphones and downloadable add-ons such as album packs.

But my first concern was to get the Xbox Live connection re-instated.

This was achieved in the past with a Microsoft Live account registered in Singapore.

Jason Loh of Gamer's Hideout taught me this trick and it worked for a while.

In the past, the Xbox live access can only be made with a 3, 6 or 12-month pass.

My access has since lapsed, but I do have an Xbox account.

After tweaking with the wireless router, we're back in business.

So, lately, I bought the 'Left 4 Dead' game which came highly recommended by the guys from the Usual Suspect Network's Z.E.D.U. forums.

And yeah, this game kicks some serious ass and my favourite character is 'Bill', an older guy in a team of four 'Survivors'.

Well, so far so good!

I'm looking forward to 'Left 4 Dead 2' which was recently released..

The season of giving..

Its easy to take and giving is always the hard part.This year marks the fifth year in my rural people outreach programme.I contribute tools to farmers and teachers - mostly indigenous folks living in the outskirts.And over a period of time, I've been very fortunate to receive sponsorship from companies like Spyderco in the US who generously donated some knives and accessories.For 2009, they have given two care packages.The latest is a batch of Byrd knives which I had handed over to teacher Mr James Lias from Mukah, Sarawak.He will then select a handulf of recipients from the interior of Malaysia's Borneo.Lias told me that he would document the whole process for my assessment report to my sponsors.I am glad to have met such an honourable man like him who had generously spare some of his time to realise this project.Hopefully, the care packages would be delivered in time for Christmas.

Kill number 4

The dogs had killed again.

This time, it was a kitten.

It has been entering our home and had left its scent in the kitchen area.

My guess is that the cat was scavenging for food and found a place to hangout at the back of the house.

This morning, the dogs picked up a strong scent and before I knew it, the Coonkid had caught it and Naughty worked on it as both went in for the kill.

They took the cat out to the front yard and the rest was history.

This is cat number four on their kill list.

The waiting game..

I received a phone call from a private number yesterday.Since most of them are fraud or some direct-selling telephony, I ignored it the first
time.Then,the cell rang again and this time,there was a voice asking: "Mr Sam? I am
calling from HP.."That was the phone call that would seal the deal between me Hewlett Packard
Malaysia through their Public Relations company on a purchase scheme for the
mini 5101. I can save RM299 for this netbook.But with every special media purchas scheme, there are some catch.First, I have to give my credit card info through the phone. This is a no-no.Then, when asked, I was told that I can bank-in the sum for the purchase to a bank
account. And I thought that would be a viable option.The guy told me that its standard operations procedure for HP to deliver the
netbook to me in 14 days.What the fuck?I told him that I'd think about it before making any commitment and emailed the PR
executive to tell her my reservations. The deal is off.Why? Since Christmas is just a month away, there are many offers for products
such as HP's netbook.Yes, I am interested in it and I've already sold my mini-1000.My money is parked in the bank, ready to roll when needed.Now, why the fuck would I want to save RM299 when there are no extras thrown
in? The HP media scheme does not cover any RAM upgrade, accessories and
Windows 7 redemption.So, rather than jumping straight into this deal, I'll just sit back and wait.December is three weeks away and I am sure that there are plenty of surprises in
store.After all, the RM299 savings is no big deal.

Air travel : Singapore

My hotel in Keong Saik road, Chinatown

The cheap flight..

Its been donkey years since I took a flight down to Singapore.

Usually, it takes about 45-minutes to get to this island republic, but the hassles of checking-in, security clearance and waiting to board can chalk up some time.

I was in Singapore for a short business meeting and took the opportunity to meet up with some friends before heading back the next day.

With an exchange rate of RM2.5 to one Singapore Dollar, the cost to visit this country is now getting prohibitive.

But there's a lot to catch up and time isn't really on my side.

I guess the flight to Singapore wraps up my trip quota to the island republic this year...