Cloud 9

Me, the rookie graphic designer...


Streamers along some street, I think it's in Butterworth.


Stands, designed by the dude next to me. But my posters are on it!


Biggy billboard inside Harbour Place.


Night shots. I'm glad it's white...

...my debut to the world of design.

-End-

Stand Up Speak Up

I went to McD to get some lunch…

I arrived…and ordered, “DOUBLE CHEESE BURGER, Burger only!”

And then I felt something…someone’s watching…that creepy feeling…

So I inspected…and would you believe it…all the McD staff was staring…

At my wrist…

I’m like “WTF?!” Get a life…

Then they were like pointing to the piece of paper where they placed it on top of their trays while still secretly peeking at me bands…

I can hear the whispers…

“Ini-ah? Putih punya…hitam…eh?”
“Bukan bukan…”
“Mustahil!!”

Then the delivery dude came in…and went straight for the kill and inquired…

“Wristband ini McD punya ah?”

Hell NO!...Inilah Stand Up Speak Up, fools!

Toilet Sex

Dirty Moments at Sunnyville Unisex Toilet

Toilet door shut, 2 occupants inside…one male, one female…
Imaginary passer-by hears…

Male: Eh…cannot come out lah!

Female: Cannot meh? Rub harder-lah, can wan…

Male: Hmmm, really? *Rubs harder and makes groaning sound*

Female: Woh, cannot come out lah…

This is what happened…

Male is trying to remove a permanent marker stain off his palm…Female is also trying likewise…while helping Male as well.

Male = Me
Female = Elaine

End of the Month

Mr Kee enters the room…

Mr. Kee: Alright people, gather. I got some news…

*Everyone gathers*

Mr. Kee: OK, I’ve got good news and bad news…which one do you guys want to hear first?

Everyone: Bad!

Mr. Kee: Err, OK…bad news is that everyone’s pay will be delayed this month, due to Harbour Place…next week the latest…

Everyone: Oh…

Mr. Kee: Everyone alright with it? Its uncalled for…rest assure, you WILL receive your pay

Me: OK OK, we’re cool…just have to eat Maggie mee for this week then…

Mr. Kee: Maggie mee?

Elaine: Oh, Meng’s kinda broke for this month…Hey! *looks at Meng* Where my Maggie mee you ate the other day?!

Me: Oh!...errrr…

Mr. Kee: Adoi, Maggie mee also boh-tan-chiak (don't get to eat), kesian…

Me: Err…so whats the good news?

Mr. Kee: It’s actually more like a good-and-bad-news rolled into one…

Huh?

iMiss

A Graduate, At Last!

You can call me a graduate now…cos I am one! Wooohooo!

Me! Of all people…a graduate…tomorrow shall be a public holiday. Let’s call it the Meng Day…Hari Meng…hehehe…only people who are 6’ are eligible for this holiday.

It was a good closure to my college days; though it has been over since March, but still…a closure is a closure…I can now move on with life :)

I would like to dedicate this entry to those who have made an impact in my life during my days at the money-making college…

A shout out to my first college clique, Faridah, Ernie and Ena…boring foundation year was made exciting…I owe it all to you guys…

To DURIANS INC…which consists of Audrey, Acap, Abraham, Philip and Mayki. Formed in 2003, diploma year was a blast with you guys, I’ll never forget the crazy days we spent and had during class (eg, chopstick dancing with Abraham, non-stop crapping/day-dreaming with Audrey, back-to-back random jokes and cigarette break with Acap, bubbly crazy-driver Mayki and Philip aka Mr. Art Director).

And of course, the lecturer that set my sights right and gave all the encouragement…none other than Chris himself. It’s funny that I actually missed the first week of his class because Incubus came down to KL for a show and when I came in a week later, I thought he was some hot-chick lecturer when I first saw him from the back, turns out, its a dude…I dunno what category he falls into…so I’ll stick to metrosexual. Though I do make fun of his lifestyle sometimes, he’s talent and wisdom is undeniable. He single-handedly…in a way…revamped the whole design principal in EAA…much thanks to him.

One chapter closes, another opens…
A new me is approaching…

Watch out!

Captain Queer

There are some things money can't buy...
For everything else, there's EUGENE GAN.

She Has Taken Flight

It has been 2 months since I took on this assignment…
It has been roughly 1½ years since the company took on this project.

Yesterday, the final hurdle was within sight…
Today, the last hurdle is crossed.

I’m stuck here at the office…
Hoping to grasp a foretaste of Harbour Place.

Just for closure…
That’s all I need.

My baby has taken flight…
She'll make me proud.

That’s all I want…
Closure.

Sleepy Saturday

[7:45am]

Room door opens with an intentionally loud entrance sound.

*THUD*

Dad: Morning, eh…can you go pick up mom? I’m kinda busy now.

Me: ZzzZzZzz….wfjwivnv?

There was this weird sentiment that somehow glued me to the bed…
Somehow, I got up…drove down…with the windows down…
Thinking…what was that feeling all about? It couldn’t be a hangover.

Reached home, mom picked up…Then I realize I’ve just had a lovely dream. To some extend it was…and a bit weird as well…

I was kissed by that special someone, submerged…while taking swim…and then pretended that nothing happened…in my dreams, I was confounded. But I felt it…it was real…

It felt so real…I thought it was…

I enjoyed that one beautiful moment.
Dad had to abruptly end that magical instant…
Dreams like this, sometimes…you’d wish never wake up.

Superman

Quoted and Unedited

David: u didnt found that waja front view like what meh? u think and see..

Me: the front? alfa romeo??

David: no la..

Me: errr...dunno leh

David: front view of waja is like a UNDERWEAR!, hahaha...

David: triangle underwear! my god!

Me: HAHAHAHAHHAAHAHHAAHHAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

David: i cannot accept this superman style!

David is our Art Director by the way...he's another unsatisfied Kancil owner.

Not Quite Happening

I like to think that that I like traveling…
But I’m too lazy to put in the effort.

I’ve promised myself to sleep early for the past 2 weeks…
That never happened…that includes Langkawi. Ok, I slept early last night.

Being a working class person…
I wish I would live more…that hasn’t happened.

The tattoo I’ve always wanted to get…
Has been put on-hold for 2 years already.

I used to have eight piercing altogether on my face…
Now, there are only four left.

I’m still trying to gain weight…
But I’ve gained height instead.

I noticed I sometimes make sissy-like hand gestures…
That’s only because my arms are long and I have to avoid hitting people, unintentionally.

When my car's window is down…
My hand can reach the bottom part of the door.

People think I look like Bruce Lee at times…
I think I need a haircut.

The Bird

Alright, I admit it. I am getting a little carried away with this Langkawi trip. Heh, manage to make a meal out of it by writing mini-series-like entries…

Taking a breather, after all…I’m back in Penang.

This Saturday, the big project (Harbour Place by PJ Development) I’ve been doing for the past month or so is finally coming to an end. You can’t imagine the stress, tensions and frustrations that were involved throughout this whole thing. But I’m glad I get to do it, it will be a shiny new addition to my portfolio.

Its funny, ‘cos according to Elaine, I was hired to cover the smaller projects that they’ve been force to overlook due to Harbour Place. But I ended up sort off “taking over” the visuals department. And what was originally a random paper bag design turn into an entire campaign. Weird isn’t it?

It gets weirder…

The design was originally rejected, instantly. With not much reasons given. I’ll post up the series of pictures I would like to call “The Evolution of the Hornbill Bird” soon for you guys to check out...

It gets even weirder…

It’s actually a King Fisher bird. But for some reason…my boss likes to call it a Hornbill though both species are poles apart in appearance and size…

Mr Kee: Hmm, so what if you put the Hornbill here…and….

Me: IT’S A KING FISHER!!

Mr Kee: Right, right…sorry… king fisher…so what if you move the Hornbill to…

Me: *Sigh*

Hehehehe…ain’t working fun? And now I tend to call it the Hornbill if I don’t call it a ‘bird’. Maybe the way I illustrated the bird made it look like a Hornbill…

The Trip, Part 2

Highlight #2: The Ferry

And so, after a 2 hour long pre-Langkawi escapade, we finally got on to the ferry. Now it’s just the matter of getting thru this 2 hour long ride before we arrive…I just can’t wait!

Trivia

Here’s a little trivia, I can’t get seasick. You see, my dad’s into all this water sports and boating trips, so since I was young, I’ve been pre-condition to take this punishment.

But that boat ride was an exception. I didn’t really get green about the gills, but I could feel it coming. Come on, 30 people stuffed inside an enclosed area…with air-conditioning! And with windows the size of rat holes, who wouldn’t get sick of it? Did I not mention the ratio of the amount of people who gave in and gag? Now this is not a punishment, it’s a torture (the ratio was almost 1 of 3, mind you). And the ferry smells funny too.

So, me and Ian decided to head off to the rooftop to get some, well….fresh air…blasting-tornado-like wind to be honest. But hey! Beats sitting in that air-conditioned sardine can!

Even so, people were puking up there as well, sigh. It’s relentless. But at least we felt better; screw those puking losers…heheh, we iz hardcore! :P

While we were there, I manage to point out all the little small islands in between that I’ve been to when I was young, all 3 islands…man, I don’t get chances like this to share my experience too often…

Pictures from me mobile!

On the top left, some ichi-bawah eye-candy for us to savour. Heh.
And well, that's how strong the wind was...in the end, SUNSHINE!!

Well, the rooftop adventure was cut-short, seeing that there were sinister-looking clouds ahead of us.

Sina: Hey, I have a question, why are we leaving Penang?

*points to Penang where the Sun is shining and then looks towards Langkawi where it was surrounded by Dark-Mordor-like clouds*

Me: Errr…the cheap alcohol? :)

But anyway, the rain did come when we still have half the journey to complete. So back to Hell that is the human-sardine-can-with-air-conditioning.

Well, by the time we got back down, I was too tired to bother; I slept through the remaining of the ride…

To be continued...

The Trip, Part 1

I is back!...and dead tired…

OK, the excursion was great…a chilled out affair, nothing too hardcore…though we had a pretty mean looking collection of alcohol and not to mention the extremely kinky room that we stayed in.

Highlight #1: The Morning Call

Me: Ian, so what time you gonna wake up tomorrow?

Ian: Hmmm, around 6.45am?

Me: Cool, cool…gimme a wake up call at 7am, then I come pick you up from Pekaka.

Ian: Alright dude…

(I had this gut feeling that I should set my own alarm…I dunno why, so I set my alarm at 6.45am)

[6.45am]

RIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIINGGGG!!!!****

Me: Urks! Huh? Huh? Oh!....Langkawi!!! *went around finalizing my packing…and then…*

[7.10am]

Hmmm, Jellyman (Ian) hasn’t called…maybe I should give him a ring…

(Calls Ian)

*Toot Toot…..tooot…tooott………………*

Hmmmmm…this is not good…let’s call Sina then…

“The number you have dial is…” Grrr….engaged…

Then it hit me….uh oh…no one’s awake! But me!...then I realized I’ve left the hotel voucher at the office at Gelugor and I have left home without my ferry tickets and I’m already half way to Jesselton with only a modest amount of petrol left…Oh fuck, this isn’t getting any better….and to make matters even worst, I’ve left Ian like another 100000000000 zillion missed calls and he is still asleep! And I’m stuck in the morning JAM and it’s freakin’ almost 8AM and I'm on the wrong side of the island with my ferry on the other side leaving at 8.45AM…crap.

[I came up with a solution, ask dad to deliver the tickets to me at the ferry while I go to my office which is near Ian’s grandma’s place to pickup the hotel voucher]

Meanwhile…on the brighter side…

Elaine has got up…had the pleasure of time-wasting…worry-free, with only Langkawi in her head, and maybe some Wan Than Mee…Grrr…while I am on the other side, driving like a psycho, whooshing pass traffic, beating every red light possible with only a spit of petrol left in my car….everything at that point was going absolutely wrong…absolutely wrong and it did not help that my dad decided to give me a lecture about time management.

Somehow, I had realized I have Sina’s house number…D’oh! Why didn’t I think of that earlier? Sheeesh…in the end, I manage to get Sina…

[7.45am]

Still trying in vain to call Ian and finally

Ian: Huuu…..lo? ZzZzZzz…

Me: HOIIII!! CHE LIAO AH??!! (Hoi, awake already?!)

Ian: Huh?...Oh shit! Che liao, che liao… (awake already…)

FINALLY!

But that wasn’t the end yet…it was already 8.20am by the time Ian was picked up at Pekaka…while dad was still on the line…still lecturing………with the morning rushing hour only halfway thru…we’re in for a hell of a ride…VROOOOOOOOOOOMM! Small Little Kancil style! Kancil does becomes handy during traffic jams…you get really resourceful with the roads…or pavement…sidewalk…

Ultimately, at the end…We arrive…barely…JUST…just…JUST in time…While I was scrambling my way out of the car with my bags and all…Dad was there…still lecturing.

Dad: Blah, blah, blah, blah Leave earlier next time, blah, blah, always sleep late, blah, blah, blah, blah Faster go! Blah, blah….

Me: Bye mom, bye dad!

*Runs*

Ticket lady: Hoi! Ka Kuai!! Ka Kuai lah!! (Oi! Faster-lah!!)

We barely…barely made it…

So much for waking up at 6.45am…
2 hours of tension, stress and going psycho…
Makes the holiday trip even more enticing…
Man, I can’t wait to get there…

To be continued…
Pictures coming up! :)

Trippin' Out

The duty-free land of LANGKAWI, I is come!....We to be exact :)

Catch yah guys later...

Call Me!

It has been overdue! Any of my college friends would (especially Acap...so shaddup! :)) know that I've been owing myself a new phone for far too long. Well, TADAAAAA...I finally got me a new Mobile Phone...a modest looking but feature packed Sony Ericsson T630. And it has a freakin' camera! Sweeeeeeet... :)

I know, I know. It's quite an old model, but hey! I'm having a difficult time using this phone. Kinda 'too-high-tech' for a simple minded person like me, heh. ;)

So here's a new addition to my little collection of electronic gadgets!

Apple & Intel?

Oh my god…
Oh my fuckin’ god…

It has happened, I thought it might…
But it finally did…

Apple has dumped its PowerPC platform and has embrace Intel!

What?!
What the heck happened?

Apparently, there was a lot of issue concerning the PowerPC’s architecture, not that there’s anything wrong or faulty in it…but ultimately it was apparent to the people at Apple that the PowerPC G5 has failed to keep up with its Intel counterparts. Let’s put in plain simple English…it has been roughly 2 years since the G5 was released. And guess what…they still haven’t release the portable versions of the G5, portable as in a scaled-down-in-size to fit in a Notebook. If you’re an Apple user or familiar with Apple products, they have yet the release any notebook G5, the iBook and the Powerbook. And…PowerPC are server based, they were designed to run on servers, not personal computers. The biggest issue that might have been the ‘downfall’ is that they still haven’t resolved the cooling matter. It overheats easily on laptops eventhough it consumes less power.

There’s gonna be a hell lot of a change, Apple would have to tweak around the OS X operating system to cater the Intel architecture. Apparently, OS X has been living a secret double life…Apple has secretly prepare the transition, they knew PowerPC couldn’t keep up (heck, PowerPC G5 3GHz is still pending and it’s overdue! Same goes for the iBook and Powerbook) so they have started to re-design or tweak the OS X to cater the Intel platform. Man, now Apple would really have to rely on their operating system.

Empty Promises

Right now, I'm in a very ANTI-MICROSOFT mood. After going thru that “screen going blank” moment last night, the little anti-Microsoft me inside has taken control (even Microsoft Office prompts me to use the word ‘microsoft’ with a capital M, grrrr..). So I went probing around Goggle and see what I can find…

Tada…Have fun…

Isn't a good idea? Since most of the time it either blue screens or just hang for no obvious reason...

...and why not get a keyboard to go with it. Besides, it has all the buttons you'll need while using a Microsoft operating system.

I'm suprise Bill hasn't thought of that. Hey, people would pay good money to watch it :)

An addition to all the world's disaster in the last 100 years.

Now this is really funny. It was an ad by BMW. It'll surely run better without it, surely.

Hehehehe, this is just really funny. Cliche...but still funny.

Don't wanna feel left out. So here's my own illustration. OS X rocks!

While I Wait...

Another expedition to KL beckons, oh big city…The Tall is approaching, be wary. Reminds me self to…bring camera, lights, coffee, Liz...wake up on time…call The Fat to warn him, any orders? Heh.

What’s up with this Sri-Lankan dude who wakes up at 9.20pm at night to eat his dinner? Hurry up you fool…We gotta go!! I gotta meet up Banana girl and discuss this little free-lance job she’s giving…Shove ‘em up and lets go!! Hurry I say!

Man, this computer is really freaky…it shuts down at random. One moment you’ll be typing…getting all intense in whatever conversation there is on MSN or whatever and *BIP*...

.......................

..............(dazed).....................huh?!

THE FREAKIN’ SCREEN WENT BLANK! WHAT THE FUCK?!

And when I made a restart….it says…

NTFS file missing
Press Ctrl+Alt+Del to restart

OK…
And press the famous 3 key combination I did…
And restart it did not
But repetitive it was…
It kept prompting the same command…

AAAAAHHHHH!!! YOU PIECE OF UGLY-RECTANGULAR-BOX!! YOU PIECE OF CRAP!! RESTART YOU FUCK! R-E-S-T-A-R-T-!

Ishh, the hard disk must have gotten disrupted again…

But finally, it’s back...man, too much stress is involve when using this PC…iBook!! I miss you….come back to meeeee….

It's Her!

I saw her...I saw her! Oh my…how long has it been? A year? Time has flew just by…but despite the fact, she still captivates me in everyway imaginable; her sudden cameo appearance made all the traffic tension go away just like that. In a blink, from “tensed up going to explode anytime soon” mode into well…”acting weird and constantly staring at the rear view mirror” mode…Man, she’s oh-so-beautiful…her eyes…her skin…her rosy cheeks…the way she smiles.

She rides a scooter...
She rides a black scooter...
That’s cute…fits her style...
With a hint of danger, I like.

OK OK, it’s one of my longest kept secret. I’ve never told anyone about her. I don't know why. I first saw her in McDonald’s Sunrise Tower about 2 and a half years ago, she used to work there. I don't see her there anymore, maybe she quit. If anyone would realize, there was a phase in my life when I kept insisting that we should go Sunrise and hangout. I never thought it would develop into this…I thought it would go away…it did…I thought…but it didn't.

Then she popped back in, just like that!
I think she might have noticed me...
I think...I hope so...
I really hope so...

Awww man, if I ever see her again…I’m gonna ask her out…really. For real. Even if that means me screaming out my small miserable Kancil window to her; while she's riding the scooter.

“Hey!! Wanna go grab a drink?!?!?!...With me?!?!?!?...My treat!!!”

:)

Boston Public

It’s been awhile since I manage to get me some good TV time. The easy life, you know where you just lay almost motionless and your eyes just constantly stare at the big electronic box absorbing every single facet of it. One TV show has finally caught my attention, Boston Public. Of all series, I had to fall on the one series I’ve labeled as ‘boring’ and ‘uneventful’. But turns out, being a public school teacher can be pretty cool. Let me try to put into perspective what I’ve just seen on that particular episode.

Steven (the big black dude) is the Principal of the school, and he’s dating one of the hot teachers but he has a fellow colleague (Marla) who’s 42 years old, single and desperate to have a child. So she went to his office…

Marla: I’ve decided, I wanna have a baby.

Steven: Oh..that’s good, that’s good. Congratulations, Marla.

Marla: Thank you, Steve…

Steven: Err, so who is he? You know…the father-to-be…

Marla: Oh…ermmm, I was hoping you could be the donor…

Steven: Eh?

That’s one part of the story, on the other side; we have this cool, hip and unconventional teacher (Charlie) who incorporates drugs and sex in his Math class. Like…

Charlie: So, here’s the equation, if the drug dealer sells 10 bucks for half an ounce of Marijuana and he has 1 kg to spare, will he have enough gas to drive all the way back from the suburbs back to the city with only 1 liter of petrol left with the distance of 23km. Will he make enough money to pump in some gas? Along the way he stops to pickup his hoes…… (it goes on and on and it gets more complicated)

And the vice principal is dating a former porn-star who’s currently dating like 5 other men. And he really really likes her. And seeks Charlie (the cool, unconventional teacher) for advice and the two of them have a history cause Charlie keeps getting called-in to the office for improper teaching methods by the vice principal, whose name I forgot. Damn.

Man, I can’t wait for next week’s episode…Finally a new TV show to look forward to.

Just Shoot Me

Ahh, photoshoots. It makes me feel all nostalgic and all, being the photography geek that I am, biasa-lah. On Friday, we (Me and Mr. Kee) visited Smart Modular for a photo shoot session. They wanted to create some sort of “campaign” to change the way people see the HR Dept….you know, making them look friendlier, more human…etc…

On the down side, I was only notified about the photo shoot an hour earlier. That didn’t give me much time to prepare myself and also not much time to recharge the batteries. But anyway, I have this thing for “last minute” work. I was born for last minute stuff. Heh, if it’s one thing I am good at…that’s it!

Anyway, it was entertaining. As a photographer, it’s crucial to try your best to socialize with these people, get them ready, and make them feel comfy so when the pictures are taken they’ll look natural. And hey! Everybody looks good when they’re posing naturally. Not too happy with some of the final shots, some were blurred due to the shutter speed. I’ll admit it, this FUJI FINEPIX S5000 camera is still quite tricky to use. Still haven’t got used to the features and functions. The most complicated camera I’ve ever used thus far. Hehhe. One day, I’ll sort it out, one day. All this baby need is some love and some time, that’s all.

Being a photographer, you can’t help but somehow including yourself into the fray. I’ll admit it, eventually it will become annoying when you realize you’ve been snapping like a billion shots and there’s not even a single frame of yourself. And you have trust issues with people your photo. Because you do not want some stereotype photo where there’s no angle, no lighting and no composition.

The Boys in Black. Thank god they didn't give us the light blue ones like the workers wear.

If only Meng...if only...

And there’s an upcoming Beautiful Junk 05: Design & Noise Festival this coming weekend. I would love to send in an art-work for display. Hmmm, a poster maybe?

I Want

I want…a digital camera, to invade or take-away people’s privacy, hehe.

I want…a Powerbook ‘cos the iBook just ain’t powerful enough.

I want…a 30GB iPod Photo so I could carry my ridiculous load of music with me wherever I go.

I want…more RAM to make this dawdling PC quicker.

I want…a Mini Cooper Cabrio so that I’ll enjoy driving to work, everyday.

I want…the upcoming PlayStation 3. Just because it looks so damn cool.

I want…to move out.

I want…Harmon/Kardon’s SoundSticks© therefore I can blast my music and piss off my neighbour, big time.

I want…to go Langkawi and party!

I want…to stop saying “I want”…

Ciao!

Rack 'Em Up

Boys and girls, may I present to you...The antics of the people at Megan Ads. You see, when I first joined we weren't allowed to wear our shoes indoors. So that was a big problem for us. We have 6 employees and 8 pairs of footwear, so you can imagine shoes scattered all over the front door. Not a pleasant sight especially when we have clients visiting the office. So we thought a shoe rack would be a good idea. Or so we thought...

The shoe rack that never was...

The Morning Ritual

The sun rises
The tall still asleep
The dad came in…
And went
“Hoi, lets go take your car!”
Me: ncieuwcnu what? It’s 7-freaking-AM!!
ZzzZzzzZzZ…
Man, I need my OWN car.

The drive
The traffic jams
The morning tension
If only I own a helicopter
Then I can wake up a tad later
And give traffic reports
To earn extra cash.

The weather
The gloominess
The morning hunger
Sleep is all I can think of
Maggie mee breakfast
Milo-panas
Man, what sort of diet am I on?

Précis

The Work
Printing. That’s every designer’s nightmare. The print house is a vicinity where dreams are crushed, ideas are annihilated and visuals collapsing. Believe me, to be a good graphic artist is to be good at somehow estimating the colours on-screen and colours on print. Find a compromise and you can declare yourself a legitimate graphic artist. As for what happened to me at the print shop yesterday, I can only speculate. The colours are alright sometimes, but horrible at times. So is it me or them? Hmmpf.

The Money
On Monday, dad handed my weekly allowance to me and went, “Well, the time has come. I’m cutting you off.” ARGHHH!!! IT’S THE END OF THE WORLD!!! NOOOO...

Eh, wait…I’m working now…I get paid…Oh…it’s cool…I’ll survive.

Was gonna tell dad to cut me off anyway, but I guess he wants first dips. Heh.

The Streets
School holiday! Oh my god! You have no idea how freakin’ happy I am because of that. The streets are for once, not jammed up as they used to during rush hours. Stupid schools, they should be a better system for the school buses to park and wait, grrrr…

Over and out!