#food

VIBRANCY, COLOURS, STORIES AND BATIK; THE WEEKEND THAT WAS

/ Alan Atkinson / 1 Comment

Another angle. The author and his newly published book, SPARKS OF JOY – SEIZE THE MOMENT. Notice how the sparks of joy are the “jewels” of life.

I had written in my recent article, “Seize The Moment With Batik and Sparks Of Joy” (1) how fast each week goes by, that I am more convinced that the weeks have been shortened to just Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

Now, it looks like the weekends are getting shorter too, may be shaving off some seconds here, and minutes there. Just as fast it comes, it seems to go faster.

It is for that reason why I talk about “moments” (2). To me, I believe a moment is way faster than 1 second. I also believe that we should not take time for granted, that we have to use it wisely. I will save the topic of “Moment” for another essay.

Yes, the one and the same.

Jeannie, the Batik Influencer; and I, the Hatted Writer; had another good weekend at Amcorp Mall. The Batik Influencer had multiple pieces of her Batik Cape Creations under her label, JEANNIE’S OWN; “acquired” by existing and new friends. The Batik Influencer was in her element as usual.

I see…Interesting; listening attentively. Batik. Dynamic!

I, too; had my fair share of meeting with existing (notice how I didn’t use the word, “old”. It could end up in the same sensitive vein as “hotdog”😂) and new friends, readers of http://www.leatherpotato.com and owners of their SPARKS OF JOY – SEIZE THE MOMENT copies.

David Fernandez texted me a couple of times earlier in the week, making plans to meet at Amcorp Mall for coffee. He was the first one to get his personalised copy of my book. He knew I could not leave my “work station” for long to grab an enjoyable time for coffee, so he included an extra amount for a great cup of coffee. Thanks for the coffee, David. Looking forward to meeting with you over a real mugga (for coffee as in “cuppa” for tea).

David Fernandez and the author, me; Alan Ian Atkinson.

The Batik Influencer is always spritely when talking about her Batik Cape Creations to just about everybody. The patterns, the colours, the whys, whos, hows and the list goes on.

It was a slightly quieter weekend due to the long holiday. People would travel outstation, while people from outstation would come over. It was fun, all the same.

We, Jeannie, the Batik Influencer; and I, the Hatted Writer, will be at Amcorp Mall to meet all you wonderful people. There were many who contacted us, saying they want to meet with us. We will be in the same place this weekend, at F1.08; 1st Floor. The Batik Influencer has some great new pieces on offer, especially with new muted colour designs. Very, very limited number of pieces. Come early to ensure you get your very own JEANNIE’S OWN Batik Cape Creation.

I will be at hand, to personalise your acquired copy of SPARKS OF JOY – SEIZE THE MOMENT.

We are expecting this weekend to be another amazing weekend.

The poster. The Book.

The author. The book. The poster.

David Fernandez and his personalised copy of SPARKS OF JOY – SEIZE THE MOMENT.

The Batik Influencer, Jeannie; explaining the vibrancy of batik.

One (and more for the camera) – to get their daughters to choose, by video call.

I like this. The Batik Influencer showing the finer ways of getting more from the style and beauty of her JEANNIE’S OWN Batik Cape Creations.

“This is definitely me”, she seemed to be saying.

The Hatted Writer

Nice Tee, Davis. Davis with his personalised copy of SPARKS OF JOY – SEIZE THE MOMENT.

Sivakumar, his son and the author.

Sivakumar, displaying his personalised copy of SPARKS OF JOY – SEIZE THE MOMENT.

She’s back, as she said she would come back. 😊

Listening attentively and sharing / exchanging views and ideas about batik, with the Batik Influencer.

Josh, grandson of George; with his copy of SPARKS OF JOY – SEIZE THE MOMENT.

“There is so much to know about batik”, said the Batik Influencer. “It is always exciting.”

Every edition is a “Special Edition” of the JEANNIE’S OWN Batik Cape Creation.

Address:
Amcorp Shopping Mall,
Booth 1.08, 1st Floor, ,
8, Jalan, Persiaran Barat, Seksyen 52 Petaling Jaya, 46050 Petaling Jaya, Selangor, Malaysia
Date: April 5th – April 6th,  2025
Time: 10.00am to 5.30pm (can be extended to 7.00pm)

NOTES:
1. https://leatherpotato.com/2025/03/29/seize-the-moment-with-batik-and-sparks-of-joy/
2. Historically, a “moment” (as a unit of time) was roughly equivalent to 90 seconds, while a second is, of course, a second. Therefore, a moment was significantly longer than a second. However, the phrase “a moment” is often used in a more general, a slang, if it may; subjective way to mean a very short period of time, which can be shorter than a second.

Here’s a more detailed breakdown:
Example: If someone says “I’ll be there in a moment,” it doesn’t necessarily mean 90 seconds, but rather a very short amount of time, potentially just seconds, or even less.
Historical “Moment”: In medieval timekeeping, a “moment” (or momentum) was a unit of time, with 40 moments in a solar hour, which was a twelfth of the period between sunrise and sunset. On average, this equated to about 90 seconds. 
Modern “Moment”: While the term “moment” still exists in the context of time, it’s now more commonly used to refer to a very short period of time, often shorter than a minute, and potentially shorter than a second. 
Subjective Perception of Time: Our perception of time can be subjective and influenced by factors like boredom or excitement, making “a moment” feel longer or shorter depending on the situation. 

WHEN BROTHERS OF DIFFERENT PARENTS MEET

/ Alan Atkinson / Leave a comment

Where have all those young years gone? What happened? All of a sudden, reality hits, we are still very much the same as when we were in school, well at least since our memories serve us well.

A few weeks ago, there was mention in our La Salle@75 WhatsApp (that’s a Social Media communication app on devices like smartphones, electronic pads and computers…for those who aren’t sure) about us, guys, getting together for a physical meet up. It has been many years since we last had one.

Mak Weng Kit straight away replied, “I’m in”. I, too; was game and thought it was a capital idea. As the saying goes, “Time waits for no man”, weeks went by when the suggestion was made.

I decided to buzz Weng Kit for us to meet first, to start the ball rolling with the hope that this will begin a more than once meeting on a regular basis. Then, others can join us in our future meetings.

It was good to know that Weng Kit kept busy by being “Grandpa” to his five grandchildren, two of whom live abroad. He told me that he could only meet after 1.00pm because he had to pick his granddaughter up from school. He made a suggestion that we meet in the coming week at Starling (another place where all the “stars” meet? [in reference to my other articles written about Star Bhavan]) Mall in Damansara Utama, Petaling Jaya; or any place I suggested. He would be there.

I counter- suggested Happy Mansion, Section 17, also in Petaling Jaya; as there usually is ample parking space there. Date: The coming Monday. Meet time: 2.00pm. Weng Kit agreed. It was set. The meeting of the year. I was thrilled that it was an “all systems go” for our meet. The following explains why…

Come Monday, I was out on my walk, probably faster than I usually do, in the build up to 2.00pm. Another reason for my faster walk-than-usual was probably because I was held up by my morning replies to my emails and social media. There seemed to be more than the usual numbers, and people seemed to be responding faster to my responses of their original messages to me. I crossed the allocated time I set for this daily morning exercise.

I completed my walk in the nick of time. Had a shower, got ready and spruced up a bit more than usual. Texted / messaged / Whatsapped Weng Kit at the time I was leaving my house and told him I would be at our meeting place, Good Blue Men before 2.00pm.

Traffic was good from Subang Jaya all the way to the venue. I arrived a few minutes before 2.00pm. Weng Kit, arrived just after me, before 2.00pm, too. Punctuality.😁😉

We were both really happy to meet, face-to-face, after many years. The last time we met was our La Salle 1975 batch gathering in 2014. Since then, it has only been through social media.

Weng Kit is a happily retired from business, businessman. The head of a growing “Mak Weng Kit” clan (his son, the third of three children; is getting married at the end of this year), Weng Kit and his wife devote their time to their children and grandchildren. Weng Kit is also an avid golfer, marathon runner and adventurous road bike cyclist going on long cycle trips.

However, his keep-fit activities have temporarily come to a stop because he recently had a knee-cap replacement. Which means, taking things real easy. However, Weng Kit is still looking really good.

Weng Kit has been keeping abreast about Laura, Jeannie and family through all the articles I have been posting on leatherpotato.com . The latest being Laura’s marriage. And of course, the publishing of SPARKS OF JOY – SEIZE THE MOMENT.

We talked very fondly about the past, the time when most of our La Salle friends were in our (Atkinson) No. 21, Jalan Ladang house (which was a few hundred meters away from school). From early morning to late night, every day. The guys used to stay over, too. My sister, Jennifer, had her friends from Convent School stay over, too. 21, Jalan Ladang was a pretty big house. It had a very large compound, all round, with a badminton court, too. Our usual day activities were badminton, football, hockey, table-tennis, and darts. We had many dance parties there, too because of its big courtyard just out of the living room. That house sure had many, many, many great memories.

We talked about all our cherished friends and teachers, many are no, longer with us…Hock Chai, Andrew Rozario, Kien Tat…. our teachers like Mr. Ho Chai Fong, Mr. Julian Xavier and the Lopez brothers (Mr. Joseph and recently, Mr. Anthony), among others.

We talked about those who were our temporary teachers like Dr. Khoo Phaik Choo, who was a temporary teacher when she was 20 years old, and we boys, 13. Over the years, she has become a renowned Paediatrician in Malaysia. Another temp teacher was a person by the name of Kenny. He was a fun teacher, always cracking jokes and communicated well with the boys, maybe because he was not that much older than us.

Yes, we, the boys from the 1975 batch have been blessed with an amazing spectrum of dedicated teachers. A couple more of such teachers today are Mr. Michael Xavier; and Mrs. Sivakumar. Mr. Xavier, who is in our Whatsapp group, never fails to wish us with his “Good morning guys and take care message, each morning. Mrs. Sivakumar, whenever we reach out to her, will respond to us. She never looks a day older than when she taught us in class back in 1972. She was our History teacher in Form Two.

Soon, far too quickly; it was time for us to go back to our family lives. But not without Weng Kit having gotten his very own personalized copy of SPARKS OF JOY – SEIZE THE MOMENT. He paid far more than the price of the book, which I thanked him for and said that it will be passed on to a needy cause. Weng Kit has always been a generous person.

We took this picture👆, too. Definitely one for the album.

I think what Weng Kit and I felt which we did not talk about, did not see the need to, or there were no words at that time to describe it; was the aura of re-uniting in person. That is friendship taken to a different level.

We will work towards making meetings like this on a more regular basis. We don’t need a major reason to do so. However, Weng Kit reminded me that this is our 50th anniversary year of the 1975 La Salle Klang alumni. I told him that I am in with him, to organize a re-union of sorts for the boys of that year, and the teachers, too. That will be interesting.

SEIZE THE MOMENT WITH SPARKS OF JOY AND BATIK CAPES THIS WEEKEND

/ Alan Atkinson / Leave a comment

What a fun time it was for the Batik Influencer, Jeannie (who oso [the word “also” pronounced this way by some people here😁] happens to be my wife); and myself, recognised by more and more people as the “Hatted Writer” (This recognition is gaining traction), at our stint at Amcorp Shopping Mall last weekend. It was fun from the word “Go” when we set up our booth until we packed up to leave.

People started streaming in, browsing all the things that were displayed on the tables. Soon enough, others started checking the various Batik Cape Creations under the JEANNIE’S OWN label. Before long, the buying started. JEANNIE’S OWN Batik Cape Creations were very limited in stock, making it exclusive to those who purchased one or more of them.

A moment of humour.

Off and on, Jeannie and I managed to get short rests here and there during the day. I have to admit, I managed 40 winks…ok ok…it was 57…I counted😉😂. That super short power snooze was a great help as I had about a couple of hours sleep before getting up to come to the mall. The reason for the short sleep (or lack of it) during the night was because I had a couple of essays I had to work on, while the ideas were still fresh in my mind.

The Hatted writer (me) and the Batik Influencer in one of those rare moments of rest and “regroup”. 😉😀

Over the weekend, multiple numbers of the book were snapped up. I had a lady who was an avid reader stop by. After reading the back cover, she got a book. I was happy to personalise it for her.

With Derek Fernandez, who asked me to personalise his book, dedicating it to his wife.
The Man from MCMC with his copy of the book, with the Hatted Writer.

Another book acquirer was Derek Fernandez. He is one of the senior guys at MCMC, heading a very major portfolio. He showed me an app that he and his team had developed, one that is going to put “Speedtest” an excellent app itself, until now, in the bin. With this new app, you can test the broadband speeds from wherever you are. When testing the speed in an area, even if in a shopping complex as such, and the speeds fall below its approved level, it will send the speed result to the broadband provider and at the same time, to MCMC to take whatever action necessary.

With Derek Fernandez, the man from MCMC. Here he demonstrated on my phone, an app which he led in the development of it.

Derek, demonstrating, on my phone, an app which he led in its development. I think it is a super-cool app, one that everyone would surely want to have on their smartphones. I have downloaded this app on both my smartphones.

Avid book reader had to get my book, especially since she could get a personalised message from the author. 😀

Several people who had purchased the book earlier / previously, also turned up, just to chit- chat. Many were curious as to how I came up with this book, and discussed the various articles and chapters. They are eager for me to write my next book. Wow! That is motivation.

Jeannie, the Batik Influencer; modelling one of her Batik Cape Creations under her JEANNIE’S OWN label.

As the saying goes, “How time flies when we are having fun”, holds true. Before long, the weekend came to a close.

Engaging with a customer’s enquiry on one of our items on display.

Now, this weekend, which begins today; is at hand. Both, Jeannie the Batik Influencer, and I, the Hatted Writer; invite all you beautiful people, to come by. “You come by now, you hear!”, a line taken from the very famous tv show, The Beverley Hillibilles of the 1970s / 1980s.

All our items on display for sale, including a SpongeBob SquarePants in a purple amphibious-like vehicle and another – a little penguin with wheels.

Copies of the book, SPARKS OF JOY – SEIZE THE MOMENT, amongst the many diecast cars of various model scale sizes and types, up for sale.

As the Batik Influencer showcasing one of her creations while emphasizing the beauty of Batik it has to offer the world.

The Batik INFLUENCER, Jeannie; modelling her latest creation from her JEANNIE’S OWN LABEL

We had enquiries on many of our product offerings and also about the upcoming weeks which we also be around in the same booth location.

Four ways… It’s so easy.

Address:
Amcorp Shopping Mall,
Booth 1.08, 1st Floor, ,
8, Jalan, Persiaran Barat, Seksyen 52 Petaling Jaya, 46050 Petaling Jaya, Selangor, Malaysia
Date: March 15th – March 16th,  2025
Time: 10.00am to 5.30pm (can be extended to 7.00pm)

EVERYBODY’S BIRTHDAY

/ Alan Atkinson / Leave a comment

Today is my birthday. It is the Batik Influencer’s, Joanne’s, Sarah’s, Kenny’s, Michelle’s, Ray’s… birthday, too.

Happy Birthday, everyone!

The seventh day of Chinese New Year is also known as 人日 (renri), or “yan yat” in Cantonese (literally translates to “human day“) or “ren qi” in Mandarin. It is supposed to be everyone’s birthday today, so everyone grows one year older on this day.

Have fun!

BARE FEET 10 KILOMETER WALK – Pt2

/ Alan Atkinson / Leave a comment

cont. from BARE FEET 10 KILOMETER WALK (28th January 2025)

Yes, this is part 2, a continuation of the earlier essay. After all, it was a long walk in the sand (most of the time, I was on the sand).

An early morning light, gentle cool breeze was blowing ever so softly. It didn’t seem to come in from the direction of the sea. It was not strong enough for people to pause everything they were doing to say, “ah yes, I feel the breeze”. Most things are taken as a given or for granted, or with a “so what?” attitude.

The sun was up, not overhead. It was still in the distant east, but climbing at a steady pace to meet its overhead position at noon.

As I stretched my gaze to the edge of the sea in the distance, I could see ships, three of them, all keeping a safe distance between each of them, move from the south upwards to the north (I still have my sense of direction). This would mean that many of them would have made their way from ports in the east like Sabah, Sarawak, China, Japan, and other countries to the west, upwards to Europe and the U.S. Come to think of it, this would mean that vessels travelling from the east, going around Peninsular Malaysia; would be travelling on the right side of the Straits of Malacca, going up north to Europe and the rest of the west.

Therefore, vessels coming from the west, would use the left side of the Straits of Malacca (closer to the Indonesia), and go around the peninsular to head to the east. The narrow Straits of Malacca is one of the busiest sea lanes in the world, with about 94,000 ships (200 ships per day) (1) passing through it each year.

I got the walking exercise on the Samsung Health app on my Samsung Galaxy Watch 7 Ultra fired up. I think Samsung’s Health app is one of the most comprehensive health information trackers there is available today. It is worth noting that this is one of the most accurate health data providers. It tracks almost all of my health extensively on a daily basis. The caveat I place on it is that the information it comes out with are only indications to how I am doing, health wise. Nevertheless, I find it fun to use.

The length of the beach was only about 300 meters long. So, I was walking up and down, from point to point and return, quite quickly. At the beginning of the “journey”, the beach had quite a lot of people on it, though not enough to say it was crowded. After a few laps on the beach, I removed my cheap, rubber slippers and parked them next to where Jeannie had left hers. It was the spot, water-wise, where Jeannie was in the sea.

When I started walking bare foot (feet?), I had hardly covered a few hundred steps. I found that walking on the damp sand was easier that in the dry beach sand, where each step , I sunk in the sand by a few millimeters, and momentarily, lost my balance, due to the unevenness of the sand. This was kind of slowing me down, too; as I like to keep a quick pace and complete my daily walk within the 1 hour 50 minutes to 1 hour 57 minutes.

As I walked on the damp sand, my speed (pace) picked up. After a short while, I had created a trail of footprints back and forth. I knew they were mine. First of all the pattern and path were the same, to and fro. Then, the size of the footprints. It was size 8,9, or 10 (depending on which country measurement is used). I usually use US size 9.

Within an hour, the crowds on the beach had swelled up. People who were there for sometime, must have been wondering to themselves while watching me walk down the beach to the other end, and then return, then go down the beach again, creating laps, “This guy is crazy or what? (“Or what?” is very Malaysian. Not quite sure if a statement has been made or a question has been asked), patrolling the beach up and down”. What must have made them even more curious was that the sun turned up its heat, like it had a knob to raise or drop its temperature; and yet, I was walking like there was no stopping me.

During my walk, I allow my mind to roam freely. Sometimes, I take in the scenes around me, the people and any thing that may be out of the ordinary.

Letting my mind roam freely is freedom. No Artificial Intelligence (AI), Chat GBT or anything like that can ever mimic the mind of a human, that’s my belief. The creators of these technologies would like you to believe that these technologies do, until you ask them if their minds can be replicated. More important question, “Will they allow their minds to be replicated?”

As I passed the 8km distance I walked, I realised that I was at my usual regular speed as per my daily walks. Before long, I crossed the 10 kilometer distance, and hit 10.46 kilometer when I achieved the 15,000 – step goal.

Wow! I actually walked 10 kilometers barefooted. That was a record of sorts for me at least. It seems like a crazy thing to do when I think back. Sure, the beach and sand were kind to my feet. Not much pebbles or any other thing that otherwise would have hurt my feet. I did feel a couple of blisters building up though; but not too serious.

I walked back to my slippers which I laid next to Jeannie’s on the beach. They were gone, both pairs were stolen! I waved Jeannie to come up from the water and asked if she noticed someone around our slippers, as they had disappeared. Jeannie said she was too busy enjoying herself to notice any slipper thief or anybody that resembled a slipper thief (not that she or even I, would know what a slipper thief looks like).

It did not bother us as our “feet protectors”, otherwise known as slippers; weren’t expensive. We walked barefoot back to the hotel, satisfied with ourselves; that she spent time in the water and I, did my 10 kilometer walk – both having accomplished what we set out to do for the day.

If you have a chance to do something wild (not too wild, I hope) or something out of the (extra) ordinary, please share it in the comments. I am not sure if I will pull off another “stunt” like this again.

NOTES:
1. Wikipedia

THE FIRST WEEKEND WITH THE BATIK INFLUENCER AND THE HATTED WRITER

/ Alan Atkinson / Leave a comment

The first Saturday and Sunday, which is the first weekend of the year, 2025. Into the 4th day of the year, with 361 days to the end of the year; just in case you are counting.😂

The first three days has put us through the paces with challenges (for the want of a better word) which we didn’t see coming, and those that we knew were on the horizon but kept putting them off “to a later date”.

Feelings or how we feel or react comes into play. Are we in control of them or they in control of us. It all boils down to the choices we make. Without a doubt, it has been an exciting three day start.

Jeannie, the Batik Influencer (who happens to be my wife, too); and I, the Hatted Writer (Alan); are in Amcorp Shopping Mall today and tomorrow. We believe that every new moment (and day), offers us opportunities to live life to the fullest, which we are doing and will continue to do.

Intrinsic designs and colours. JEANNIE’S OWN Batik Cape Creations.

We are so looking forward to seeing and meeting with all of you over these next couple of days. Share your experiences with how the start of the new year has been for you. Some of you may have extended your leave by taking January 1st and 2nd off; and would only be “starting” your new year per se on Monday. How nice. We are looking forward to having loads of stories, especially new ones to share.

The Batik Influencer has some of her new batik Cape Creations under her label, “JEANNIE’S OWN”, that she will be showcasing. These are an array of amazing designs and colours. Bright red, different shades of gold, light blue or a sort of turquoise (yay! I got that spelling correct). The patterns and designs – are works of art. One just gaze at them and be lost in the wonders of these beautiful designs. Come and get yours quickly.

My book, which had a bit of a delay, promises to be out real soon. It just went through its edit, with a few additional adjustments and then it would be good to go. Teaser: First word of it’s title: “SPARKS”. I am superly excited about it. It has elements in it that stretches the English language. I wish I could tell you more… Maybe, I can… it is a real book…for all ages. You can mark the chapters that you like best, you can put all sorts of markings it it, and you can share it with anyone.

Come over to our booth at F2.15 which is located on the second floor. We have many things of interest, including a whole range of James Bond cars and Ferraris, too. There is even an Alfa Romeo Tonale. Many are collectibles.

We will at our booth from 10.00am onwards. Let’s make some noise…Lot’s of noise😉😂😂😂

Something for everyone.

Amcorp Shopping Mall,
Booth 2.15, 2ndFloor, ,
8, Jalan, Persiaran Barat, Seksyen 52 Petaling Jaya, 46050 Petaling Jaya, Selangor, Malaysia
Date: January 4th & 5th:
Time: , 10.00am to 5.30pm (can be extended to 7.00pm)

EVERYONE NEEDS A HOLIDAY

/ Alan Atkinson / Leave a comment

One thing that has remained the same in over 60 years is the view of the sea as we drive up towards Port Dickson (affectionately known as “P.D.”) town and along its coastline towards the multiple hotels and private homes. The sea is not sea blue (it has never been as long as I can remember). It has always been a chalky lime-green in colour.

Ponder: “To sea or not to sea”

Another thing that has always seemed to be the same is that the sun is scorching hot once it hits the 10.00am mark onwards to late afternoon. It does break if rain show up, and it shows up whenever it feels like it.

The beaches and sea have never failed to entertain. I can remember the days travelling in a little red and black mini – uncle Jeff’s and Aunty Val’s go anywhere vehicle. it never seemed too small or small. It fitted all 18 of us nicely and comfortably. O.K. Not 18 but close. There was Uncle Jeff and Aunty Val, Brendon, Shenton, Jennifer, Nigel and myself – that’s around 18, thereabouts.😉😂

As for a comfortable ride, I can’t remember. The adrenaline (don’t worry if this word seems like a tongue-twister and you find it tricky trying to pronounce it. Try spelling it out on the keyboard. I had to correct spell it several times before the right one stuck to the screen)… so, the adrenaline rush got us excited with the idea of going to the beach to play in the sand and water.

As we came up the last bend (it was a sort of slight slope climb) of the road and tuned left, we could see “paradise” on our right. It was not the end of that road, we, the kids; were not interested. Believe me, the scene which was everyuthing “sea”, was phenomenal…breathtaking to us very young kids in the late 1960s. By the way, Uncle Jeff and Aunty Val were the hip couple for us young Atkinson cousins; both good and everything (and I mean, everything) mischievous.

The recent trip that we (Jeannie, my wife; Laura, our daughter; and I) made, rekindled the days of the 1960s. P.D. is modern by today’s standards. The good thing is modernisation has not affected the sandy beach coastline too much. We still can feel some beach sand under our feet and see the sea. Let’s hope modernisation, urbanisation and every thing futuristic will leave this landscape remaining unchanged.

I would strongly recommend to take the break from the rush and dust (that too) you have always wanted, even if it for no rhyme or reason (I have not heard that phrase in a long time – English class😅). P. D. is a fairly short drive from Subang Jaya, P. J. (Petaling Jaya) or K.L. (Kuala Lumpur).

Sometimes, when we are too much into what we are doing, we may not be at optimum level. Taking a break, even it is for a short while, from whatever we are doing, especially if it takes up a good amount of our daily time; can do wonders. Have fun. We sure did.

This is how to enjoy the blazing sun, sea and beach – in the comfort of air-conditioning.😁⛱️

Difficult decision – Here, as we look outside, we are debating on whether we should go outside to the beach and get sun burnt, or stay inside and enjoy the air-conditioning.

IT’S BEGINNING TO LOOK A LOT LIKE CHRISTMAS

/ Alan Atkinson / Leave a comment

🎵Everywhere you go…🎶

We are sooooooo busy with Christmas shopping. In my younger days, we’d shop for new clothes and shoes for Christmas. And receive lots of presents at home.

Nowadays, the shopping spree period is a lot longer… to facilitate more buying. 😁… Yes, we’ve just bought quite a few more new Christmas decoration items. And I bought a Christmas present for myself, labelled as a Christmas gift from Jeannie😉😁- a Marshall Willen II bluetooth speaker. This is quite a speaker. I spent a few days testing out many brands of speaker from Bose, Klipsch, JBL, and other brands before choosing the Willen II. This, in my opinion; is amongst the the best for its size, build quality and price; pumping out a wide sound range spectrum. It is an IP67 rated, water and dust resistant, go anywhere with it, speaker. It looks just like a typical classic Marshall guitar speaker, except for its size.

Christmas-sy work station…with the gold dust swirling around the lighted nativity scene (on the right), the quiet, white nativity scene next. On the left is Santa in the glass globe. Notice the candy cane? The Marshall Willen II bluetooth speaker (cream colour) – a Christmas present to me by Jeannie – she does not know yet, so go along with me on this.😉😂

In our younger, younger days, we, that is my brothers and I; had our clothes for Christmas, tailored. My father made arrangements for the tailor come to our house.

Mr. Magoo, the famous fictional cartoon character, was modelled after our tailor. Our tailor, who was probably a 100 years old at that time, used glasses (spectacles) that were more powerful than those used in observatories looking out for stars millions of light years away. He was a small made made. For every step he made forward, the wind blew him two steps backwards.

So, having Mr. Magoo, the tailor, come over, take measurements and show offer material for our shirts and pants, was not our choice. First of all, we could choose any style we wanted…it always had a way of coming out the style my father chose. It was the military way. You could tell that Nigel, Terence, Malcolm and I were brothers – we were the same clothes. My sister, Jennifer; escaped the “military”. She was free to follow fashion trends.

Then, going out to family and friend’s houses with our parents on Christmas day. I don’t remember much about the delicious food and cakes they served or the presents we received. It was spending time with our cousins until wee hours in the morning that was epic.

From December 26th til after new year’s, was one continuous celebration in our house at 21, Jalan Ladang Klang; each year. This was back in the 1970s and 1980s. Many of you family and friends reading this essay, will remember these awesome times.

As I craft this essay into something for today, I take milli-moments off my keyboard thumping, to gather my thoughts for the next few sentences. I look away from the screen to see the lighted nativity scene with all the glitter dust swirling inside. beautiful. The white one next to it, is made of stone I think. it’s blue light over it has gone out. I will have to get the batteries changed.

As I look around, colourful lights on our two Christmas trees and other decorative items, blink and shine, merrily, doing their part in making this the best Christmas…ever (picture me making that face the younger-sters make, when they emphasise the word “ever”).