Gong Xi Fa Cai.....

Officially, another year gone by based on the Chinese calender.

Chinese New Year celebrations haven't been the same compared to when we were younger. These days, they're more quieter celebrations. Probably a sign that age is catching up.

I remember once upon a time when I would take the Intrakota Bus 21 that stops by Lot10 for CNY shopping. It would be a stop to the Quiksilver shop at Starhill Shopping Gallery for RM 90 t-shirts. And I would always get a few in different colours and designs. Ahhhhh, those were the days.

What did I get this year? ONE shirt, and at the last minute - I managed to get myself a new pair of Levi's. Yes, I think its been at least 4 years since I last bought a new pair of jeans. The last 2 pairs were from Melbourne during a Levi's clearance sale. It was factory outlet stuff but it was 2 for the price of 1! AUS $100 for 2 pairs of 505s (the old one) was a bargain!

The "styles" are all different now. 505 used to be "straight-cut" jeans but now they have turned into "tight-straight". The new "straight-cut" are now 512.

My first pair of Levi's in 4 years!

Shopping for the jeans was a nightmare! Heck, shopping for ANYTHING is a nightmare for me with my shopping attitude/habits.

I had previously gone to Marks & Spencers and checked out their jeans there. Thought I had better look around for more choices.

Went to Hush Puppies to get a pair of casual shoes but it sold out! If anyone sees a style of shoes at Hush Puppies called "Risk", let me know, I'm looking for the brown ones as the 1U store only has the grey ones left. I'm angry at myself for not getting them earlier.

Then again, that's my problem when it comes to shopping for anything. I need to ponder and decide and I will sometimes take forever. When I finally decide to get something, I will find it sold out and no longer available. Both D & D have had personal experiences with me and my indecisiveness when I was in Melbourne, thinking to buy or not to buy a pair of Nike Air Prestos.

If you read some of my previous posts, you will see that I do the same for other stuff such as toys as well. Why can't I just buy first and think later? Some people have said the same thing, especially about buying toys. Buy first, regret later. Guess I never learn

CNY isn't complete without the obligatory visiting and reunion dinner. The first one was just a small one with the parents and siblings. By the time we usually get to the 2nd reunion dinner, like we did last night, I get abit "tired" of the Yee Sang, and the Sharks Fin etc. Yes, it really is possible for that to happen. These 8 course meals are not doing me any good!

A short stop to 2 houses yesterday. Took a picture at one of them and I must say, I'm quite happy with the results of this shot. I think its one of the best I've taken so far as I'm still learning to take photos.

In the one of the halls of Uncle K and Aunt L's house

The reason I didn't go around and take more pics of the house? My ass was stuck to the couch in the TV hall, and my eyes were mostly glued to this:

I need one of these for my gaming! Look at the size of that screen!

Did some probing and found out that this China-made LCD was bought 2 years ago for about RM 10,000. That's a steal. Sure, its not a branded one but I think its pretty good. Placed a can of Coke on the shelf, just for a size comparison. Man, wouldn't it be awesome to have one of these for my games and movies! It will be a reality, someday! :P

It could be my imagination but this years Ang Pow haul isn't too bad. I think its one of the highest in recent memory.

And overhead, "does Roy Eng have a girlfriend yet?". I think this is like an annual report that everyone wants to know about. Argh. Good thing the question wasn't direct at me.

So, here's just something else:

Valentine's Day Chocolates

Been spending the past few days catching up on my TV shows. I think I'm halfway through "Lost Season 1".

Another 2 days of lazing around and its back to work on Friday, then another 2 days of lazing around. I think its going to be a good week.....

Heroes - Believe The Hype.....

HEROES

What can I say? I'm really hooked. This series received lots of good reviews and they were right though it might not be everyone's cup of tea.

Every episode ends with a cliffhanger. This is a good show. Thanks to modern technology, I've just finished watching episode 4.

So far, the storyline is similar to what you will read in comics - but the plot: A group of people from all over the world start to discover that they aren't normal and start to display "powers", ie. flight, invincibility, super strength, mind reading, the ability to see the future etc.

More info on Wikipeadia here. A must watch!

I've spent so much time on movies and tv shows lately. I finally got to watch "The Departed".

I wanted to catch it at the cinemas when it was showing but thinking it was just a remake of "Infernal Affairs", I decided there was no rush.

The verdict? I still prefer "Infernal Affairs". I think it was more stylish, modern. "The Departed" with the Irish traditional music etc didn't really appeal to me.

The odd thing is, I have no idea what both of these movie titles mean or refer to.

Also watched a comic-based, Hong Kong martial arts movie called "Dragon Tiger Gate" starring Donnie Yen, Nicholas Tse and Shawn Yue. Nothing much to shout about other than the fight scenes, a little over the top but I prefer Donnie Yen's "SPL" more. Maybe its because it was a cop movie. We need more movies like "Infernal Affairs"!

I've just discovered a review of "Dragon Tiger Gate", here.

I've finally managed to get something out of my deposit that I placed about 1/2 a year ago when I wanted to order my Masterpiece Optimus Prime (HASBRO Version).

Had to forfeit 50% of it but then I didn't really need another Optimus Prime in my collection, not when its the same exact version! I guess it beats paying another RM 300 and getting another Optimus Prime on my shelf.

Instead, I placed a pre-order for Masterpiece 05 (MP-05) Megatron!

MP-05 Megatron

Some other interesting things I found online:

A Soundwave MP3 player. Soundwave used to be a tape-recorder/hi-fi in the old cartoons. In fact, I think the design on this MP3 player is still based on his old tape recorder look. Now, they've actually made a functioning MP3 player that also transforms.

Collaboration between TAKARA and Apple, the Optimus Prime iPod docking charger with speakers! If only I had an iPod!

A Nike and TAKARA collaboration! I don't know if this is meant to be a joke or what but transformable shoes?! I reckon its just Transformers in the shape of Nike sneakers.