I am a millionaire!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I received an email recently and I reproduced below which is self explanatory.

Well, looks like I should be jumping for joy. I am a millionaire!!!!

Should I cry or laugh or jump and roll crazily on the ground????

Or maybe I should start booking my favourite BMW.

Well which pretty lass out there wants to marry me? (Be warned I am already married to a wonderful women and having 3 wonderful kids).

It just blow my mind that such emails are still circulating around. Are there people who are really so gullible as to believe this sort email or it is just that the sender/creator of such emails is treating fellow human beings as fools?

Which fools who believe in such emails please stand up and raise your hands up high..........



"siyabonga.t.zwane@accenture.com"

We are pleased to notify you that your email addresswon the sum of £850,000 GBP from our monthly UK National Online Promotion held on 16Th November 2008 and released 19Th November 2008. You have therefore been approvedto claim a total sum of £850,000 (Eight Hundred And Fifty Thousand Pounds ).Ticket No. 5647 5600 545 188Contact agent for your claims.

***************************************

1.Agent Name: Mr. Edward Connor

2.Agent Email: notificating-department@live.com

3.Agent Tel : +44 7035 954 072

***************************************

Claims Requirements:

1.Full name:

2.Home Address:

3.Age:

4.Sex:

5.Tel:

6.Occupation:

7.Country Of Residence:

8.Nationality:

9.Amount Won:

***************************************

Send all details to notificating-department@live.com only.

Yours Sincerely,

Zwane T Siyabonga.

(Web-Email Information Manager)

Unforgettable Incidences in Yunan, China

When I was in Yunan recently two incidences happened that I will remember for a long time to come. One I witness personally and the other is told to me by my friend who was directly involved in the incident.



Incident No 1

I was in Dali, cruising in a five-storey high ship in Erhai lake. The lake is about 42 km from one end to the other. The view is fantastic with the seagulls following along side. Naturally at one point of time I have to visit the toilet. It was always crowded with people especially the ladies. On that particular day we had about more than 500 people on our ship.

Side view of the ship that I cruised in.

Nearing the end of the cruise I went to the toilet for the last time. I was surprise to find it quite empty with the cleaner in sight. This man actually looked very stern and graff. While I was at the urinal, I heard the cleaner talking to someone in one of the cubicles. With my limited knowledge of spoken Mandarin I could make out that he was asking the man in the cubicle to hurry up. I look around and then it dawn on me that the cleaner was waiting to clean that particular cubicle. Probably he was waiting to change the container as there was a clean and empty one on the floor next to him.

I heard the man in the cubicle answered back. There was a brief exchange of words that sounds like they were arguing. Suddenly the cleaner pushed open the door and stood in front of the cubicle and started shouting at the man inside. From the corner of my eye I could make out the man in the cubicle was actually in the midst of doing is business as he was squatting down over the potty with his pants down. They continued to shout at each other. Of course I could not understand them as they were shouting in an accent that is typical of a China national. Not wanting to be caught in an ugly scene in a foreign land I quickly zipped up my trousers and make a dash for the narrow door, not even looking back at them.

Whew! What an experience!

Incidence No 2

One of my friends was queuing in the ladies. She was next in line. When the door of the cubicle in front of her opened a lady appeared from nowhere and dash into it, leaving my friend stunted. Almost immediately a younger lady appeared in front of her and announce loudly that she is next in line. Our tour leader who happened to be in there saw what happened and being very experienced told the two ladies off for jumping queue. The younger lady responded immediately that if she needed to queue up then she will go into the cubicle with the older lady at the same time. They both sounded like China nationals. With that remark they went in together. My friend was left standing speechless.

Cultural shock??????????

Good student-teacher relationship

A good student-teacher relationship can indeed inspire alot of creativity among both the students and teachers themselves. Indeed a healthty relationship while they are in school can last a long time beyond school life. I have heard countless stories of how a good teacher can draw out the best in a student and propel him/her to much greater things in life than you can imagine. In return, many teachers have told stories of how they were touched and blessed by the simple and sincere nature of a young child in school.


I believe my daugther, who is in Form One, has quite a good relationship with one of her teachers. When she found out that one of her lady teacher needed a cushion for her back, she quietly went about getting one for her. When she was done with her mission, she showed it to me. I am impressed with her handiwork. I was a little "jealous" of what she is doing for her teacher. But I am absolutely proud of her capability and special friendship with her teacher.






The pillow case.

The pillow case complete with the pillow nicely tucked in.

She took quite a few months to complete it. I think it is really wonderful. Don't you think so?

Christmas time is here again!

Christmas time is here again. Every year, come the month of December, every shopping complexes will be decorated and lit up. I just came back from a trip to the province of Yunan in China. When I travel from Kunming to Dali and then to Lijiang I could not find a single church building along the way. There are numerous temples and some buildings that look like mosque to me. But when I reached the cities all the modern complexes that I went to were decorated with a christmas tree and some lights.

It makes me wonder. Do the local residents know what is Christmas? Do they know the real meaning of Christmas? Back home in Malaysia all major and medium size shopping complexes are also decorated for Christmas. I noticed that this year the decorations are not so lavish. They are quite subdued. Probably it is due to the economic downturn in progress. Does Christmas depends on the economic health of the nations? It looks like the answer is both "Yes" and "No" depending on who you are. It really actually goes down to what you believe in.

If you think of Christmas as the time of the year for merriment and getting drunk occasionally and it is also the time of the year that is alright to throw away your good jugdement and embrace insanity for a while; if you think it is the time of the year that you must buy something for someone just like the advertisement is drumming into you or if you think that it is when you can make an extra bundle of money because you are selling something that is in demand during this season then your joy will very much depends on the economic health of the nations.

But to me Christmas means a very different thing to me. Oh yes! I do believe in merriment and celebration and buying gifts for someone you love. To me Christmas means much more than commercial values or even superficial personal enjoyment for a few days. It means a new hope for all mankind. It was at the first Christmas about two thousands years ago that a new hope was born to mankind. That hope does not last only for one day. It last for eternity. It was on that day that God in His wisdom became man in order that man can have the hope of being reconciled to Him. On that day Jesus was born so that He can bear all our sins in order that we can eventually be reconciled to God. And Jesus achieved this thirty three and a half years later by dying on the cross on Good Friday. He then conquered death by rising again after three days on Easter Sunday so that whosoever believe in Him and invite Him into his heart to be his/her personal saviour shall have everlasting life with God!

This is why Christmas means a new hope for me. Yes, it is a joyous occasion. We should celebrate. There should be merriment. There should be singing and dancing and praising God. Please do not get drunk and make a fool of youself. Let me wish you a blessed Christmas. When you are blessed there is certainly merriment and celebration around. I do not know how you can be blessed and go around with long 'papaya' face and be a grouchy guy all the time.

Yes it is a time of giving because you are blessed. But please give to the needy and give sensibly. Do not waste your money on things that is of little value to anyone except the sellers. It is a time to remember the less fortunate than us and continue remembering them throughout the year; not just on Christmas day itself.

To me Christmas does not depend on your financial health. If you have Jesus in your heart there is joy all year round. I do not mean you will have no problems. Everyone has problems. The difference is that there is joy in the midst of the problems. Inflation or recession may come but joy shall fill my heart because of the new hope that Jesus came to give.



Once again blessed Christmas to you!!!!!!!

A bad, bad weather in the north

It has been raining rather badly in the northern region (Kulim and Bukit Mertajam) the last few days. The weather actually disrupted my plans for my daily jog or hike up Bukit Mertajam hill. This morning when I woke up I had high hope of going for my morning jog in Mengkuang Dam but the weather is so bad that it is still raining as I blog now. I guess today is going to be an exceptionally bad day. Looks like it is going to be raining the whole day.

Bukit Mertajam Hill or also know as Che'ruk Tokun Hill is the ideal place for a good hike to exercise your muscles and your heart. It is only about 4km up to the summit from the carpark at the base if you take the tarmac road up. There are two resting places along the way for those who cannot make it all the way up to the summit.

Besides this tarmac road there are a few other trails up to the summit. I find these trails are much more interesting as they actually meanders through pristine forest reserves. You can actually trek up the hill at anytime of the day provided there is sufficient daylight and is not raining heavily. There are actually quite a good percentage of people going up the hill armed with umbrellas. They will continue up the hill even if it is raining. In the heat of the afternoon, the trails are good refuge for those seeking a cool place.

Someone went ga-ga over my blog!

Yesterday I received an sms from my son in Melbourne. Before I read it my mind was already in overdrive wondering what is the emergency. It is not normal to receive sms from him while he is in Australia. To my relief it was not an emergency. My son has discovered my new blog and he was really excited over it. I thought that was it but this morning when I visited his blog I was rather amused that he actually when ga-ga over my blog! He blogged about my new blog! He could not believe that I actually started blogging! Well my son "look-me-no-up". He thinks a 50 year old guy cannot blog. So here comes your father in the blogspheres, Titus.

Thanks for introducing me to your fanatical followers!

First time blogger

I have been thinking about blogging for a long time since I started surfing the net many years ago. Never got to do it. Many of my friends have their own blogs. Some even maintain more than one blog. My son has been blogging for years.

Finally I pick up enough courage to start one. A lot more to learn but I am determined to make this blog interesting. What make me do it? Well, many events happened the last one year in my life that changed me very positively. Events ranging from my personal life to family and church and even what is happening in the country. Hope to update my blog frequently.