Rigged!

I have an Optus pre-paid mobile phone. Whenever I recharge Optus sends me a text message inviting me to a Website to collect a prize I have won. Oh, it's exciting. There is the possibility of winning free text messages (only to other pre-paid Optus customers now), mobile phones, cameras, trip for two to NYC for the MTV Awards and the like. I always win free texts but live in hope.

Just now I entered the competition and started it - this is where it runs through pictures of the prizes and they slow down to reveal the prize. Much like a spinning wheel does. Only this time before the prize was revealed I received a text message informing me that I had won 40 free SMSs. So, it was already decided what the prize would be. Rigged I call it.

What's In A Name - Melbourne Cup?

The Melbourne Cup has been run and won. And lost, and lost, and lost.... Every year the office runs a sweepstake or two. That means that people pay $5 or $10 with their names put into a hat, figuratively speaking, and the names of the horses running are put into another hat. One by one the names of a horse and the person are drawn. Then a list is drawn up and everyone gets excited about the race because they are backing a horse and only luck plays a part in who wins. The race winner collects most of the booty, about half of the winners' amount goes to second and then half of that for third. Last place gets their money back. Last year I won and picked up some $65 for my $5 outlay.

The way the names of the horses were matched against the people intrigued me. The rather attractive girl who ran the sweep picked Prize Lady as her horse. Hmm. Mad Rush was received by someone who doesn't do things in a mad rush, actually. Gallopin was chosen for a gentleman who has just had surgery for arthritis on his foot and does anything but galloping around the office. Zipping was given to a bloke who does zip around for his lunchtime walk.

Of course I received Profound Beauty, an Irish mare. What does that tell you? I didn't hear her name mentioned much after the race started so there was no barracking along the lines of "Go you little beauty."

Book Titles We're Likely To See

It'll be book reading season before you know it. Here's a couple of titles that may catch your eye.

Obama - The Audacity to Hope

George W Bush - Not a Hope

The Good Samaritan - Moi?

I don't mind helping out the neighbours or even strangers in need of a hand. Yesterday whilst walking to work I noticed something odd. A car was parked on the road facing the driveway. Then I noticed the girlfriend of the car's owner was at the car dressed in her pyjamas. It's at this stage that I realised the car wasn't actually going. Aha, the stupid Holden ute is not running and they need a hand to push it into the driveway. Being the helpful-natured bloke that I am I was about to help out then I remembered that I'd seen the guy take a wheelbarrow load of rubbish across the road and dump it on a vacant block.

Push your own heap of sh!t back into the yard, you prick.

Me, the good Samaritan? Not today, bucko.

Frugal Bastard's Cruise 2008 - Day 4 - October 7th 2008

Today's stop was Penang, Malaysia. I didn't hear the alarm again this morning. The very dark cabin disorients you a bit. We had breakfast outside at the rear of the ship. It was a lovely experience and setting.

Pulau Pinang (Penang) Harbour.

Must be a Chinese boat - junk.

Our boat to get to shore.


Tender boats were used today to take us to shore and they carried some 200 people at a time. We had a free day and intended to go shopping at KOMTAR mall which was included on one of the tour itineraries. I was informed by the tour crew that a taxi was expected to cost 20 ringgit. After disembarking the tender boat and reaching the entrance to the harbour we were swamped by taxi drivers. I ignored the first two and the 3rd offered us a ride for RM30. I asked for RM20 and he said, "Too cheap." He countered with 28, then 25 and finally 20. Then he kept asking if we wanted to go anywhere else. He also sad that KOMTAR was old and not very good.

We met some passengers from the ship in the Prangin Mall and they had been happy to pay RM20 when their initial offer was RM40. Not many of the shops were open before 11am and it was a little run down. We wandered around outside in a car repair and tyre sale business area amongst coffee houses. It was obvious that a Chinese festival was due yesterday or today.

European style buildings in Penang.

Building in need of renovation.

Chinese festival in Penang.

Float for Chinese festival in Penang.

Rich person's home, maybe.

Watch out for the drain. Must have some decent rainfall in these parts.

Stranger public phones in Penang than Singapore.

Penang has a lot of motorbikes.

Strange business hours in Penang.


Back in the mall and Miky discovered that contact lenses, same brand, were half the price of Australia. I was looking inside KOMTAR for cheap t-shirts and they were few and far between. From our earlier walk outside we knew that there was a dim sum shop nearby but we struggled to locate it. When we finally found it we discovered that it was only open from 12am to 12pm - it was already closed! Found a nice dim sum shop in Prangin Mall. Whilst checking out the menu and old couple from the ship, Ray and Dorothy, asked where McDonalds was. Lunch was nice.

Miky bought shoes for Yu-Jin and then they went back to the ship. Took a taxi from the spot outside the mall where we had arrived. The driver asked us how much we had paid to get here and I said it was RM15. He didn't have a problem with that. Bastard! - first taxi driver that is. This guy was young and quite chatty.

Buildings near the harbour.

Must be a tough job or business is slow today.


I tell you it was warm but I wasn't going to waste my time in Penang and so I wandered down to Clan Piers which is World Heritage Listed. There are basically seven families, and subsequently seven piers, congregating on the sea. They made their houses on jetties after migrating from China and it looks as though they have extended them as required. Now the fishing industry has died down a bit and they can't afford to buy actual land so they are stuck. Judging by the plasma screens and other items I noticed I don't think that they are that stuck. What an interesting place. I walked along Lim Jetty and Chew Jetty.

Shrine at Lim Jetty.

Lim Jetty, Penang.

Lim Jetty all on stilts, Penang.

Lim Jetty stilts.

Chew Jetty, Penang.

Rubbish after Chowing down.

Chew Jetty houses.
Chinese locals still follow the old festivals.

Make-do renovation work.


Next it was time to walk around Georgetown. At least that was the old British name for Penang. Methinks the Brits weren't too imaginative with naming places.

Interesting sign - Parking on your o(w)n risk. Something lost in translation.

Funny sign - Chin Fook. Maybe he has a side job as a boxer.

If it's too hot just whack on another air conditioner.

Malay area in town.

Georgetown.

Impolite way of saying post no bills.

Stop sign - not too difficult to work this one out.


I'd run out of time and had to go back to the ship. Wow, it was so humid I had to drink so much water.

Superstar Gemini in Penang Harbour.


The shopping in Penang was a disappointment but the old buildings and the Clan Piers were definite highlights. On board I did a workout with Miky and had a swim with Yu-Jin late on. After tea we had a walk together on deck and watched "Twice as Nice" with Wesley Stevens and Shelley Dartez. Even the Boy enjoyed the show. Wesley used to be in The Commodores and The Stylistics and had a hit with "You make me feel brand new".

Now I Know Why Farmers Hate Rabbits

We have discovered why farmers hate rabbits. It's because they dig holes. Now, Stew has a perfectly decent hutch to live in but he's decided to dig a burrow, it's taken him about eight months to think about it, underneath my shed. I'm going to have to put a stop to it. Last night when I went outside to photograph his paw-work I caught him in the act.


Stew caught in the act extending his burrow beneath my shed

Stew Rabbit caught in the act.

Stew's handiwork, or paw-work, beneath my shed.

Stew's hiding spot at the back fence.

Stew has started digging elsewhere in the garden.

I'm Proud Of My Boy After One Of Life's Had Lessons

When I came home from work today I was greeted by a forlorn son. I asked him what the problem was and he looked sheepishly over his shoulder in the direction of his lunchbox. Inside the lunchbox was his unfinished lunch. Thinking that he hadn't eaten his lunch, which angers me greatly, I told him off.

Let's go to the start of the story. Last night at taekwondo they hadn't out boxes of 48 Caramello koalas to volunteers who wished to sell them for fundraising. My boy was one of the quickest to raise his hand. This morning he took 20 to school and I thought that he might sell 10 as I didn't think that many kids would have too much money to spend. They were priced at $1 each and they are of a decent size so the price is reasonable. He sold all 20. They were very popular with the kids. Even his maths teacher bought two.

The reason he was so downcast was because he only had $18.05 for his efforts. Either some kids cheated him by using five cent coins instead of 10 cents or he didn't count the money properly. For whatever reason he was short. The reason I am proud of his is that he didn't ask me to make up for the shortfall but went to his piggy bank and made it up himself. Not only is he raising money for someone other than himself but he takes the fall for the shortcomings. I've heard of parents bailing their children out for traffic infringements and the like when the kids are adults but my eight year old has a decent head on his shoulders. And he will learn a great lesson from this. Tomorrow he intends to take the 28 remaining chocolates to sell but will ensure that he is given the correct money before handing over the goods.

Reminds me of my motto - "Don't Trust Any Bastard".

Fifty Nine

Fifty nine is the number of the day. It's how many snails died underneath my feet as I walked to the bus stop in the morning. Well, that's what happens when it's raining at that time of the day and the snails come out to play. I do my bit to save the environment.