by admin on October 5, 2009
On a lark, I accepted an invitation (thanks Tiruz!) to join a group of cycling enthusiasts to cycle from Kuching to Serian and back on Sunday morning. I wasn’t really thinking except for some silly notion that it would be just another Sunday cycling ride. Perhaps it was a mistaken notion that the distance from Kuching to Serian would only be around 30 kms and that I’m sure as hell fitter than the average cyclist. Ignorance is bliss but it also can lead to great adventure. Whatever. However I got the distance totally wrong as it is a good 60 kms from Kuching to Serian!
With Mimik an adventure racer who at one time after a particulary 'adventurous' sea kayaking outing with me off the Bako coastline refused to talk to me after that!
Not one to keep a good thing to myself I also invited my friends Reuben (who cycles to work - except that his work place is just round the corner of his house, a good 5 minutes away!) and Cynthia who has just recently bought herself a mountain bike. With more enthusiasm than good sense; we turned up at the appointed meeting place (behind Arif Hotel in town) well before the appointed time and in typical Malaysian custom had to wait a good hour before the rest of the cyclists turned up in assorted fancy looking road and mountain bikes and attire. Let’s just say that the 3 of us don’t quite look the part. Anyway we finally set off at 7.30am. Incidentally there are several groups of cycling enthusiasts in Kuching and this informal group was organized by a fellow architect, Hj. Mohd Khaidir Abang who now heads the Dept of Technical Services in DBKU.
Odd kayaker/cyclist out but I still managed to reach Serian! ;)
Anyway I made it to Serian despite the smells (after kilometers 30 onwards there are various poultry and pig farms alongside the highway), heat (I’m glad I brought my full brim hat instead of a cap) and ‘burning thighs’ - yeah a new ’sensation’ to me that borders on getting a full muscle cramp. Upon reaching Serian I gratefully accepted the (tempting) offer from Reuben (grinning comfortably in his Hilux) for the ride back to Kuching, as by then the near noon sun was really bearing down. The Hilux was part of Reuben’s slew of contingency plans that he put into effect after kilometers 20 which no doubt that Cynthia appreciated as well as she was picked up by Reuben a short distance later. Their spirits were willing but their butts were not!
Reuben & Cynthia : "Their spirits were willing but their butts were not!"
We had a great experience and were discussing plans for our next cycling trip already on our lazy drive back to Kuching! It’s a good thing that we have short memories. Did any silly things on Sunday? 
by FH2o on September 14, 2009
Monday blues if you get stopped by Monday
Hey! It’s back to work Monday and I’m still in a Tg Datu frame of mind having spent a wonderful weekend at the remote National Park there. And on the way there on Saturday morning we were stopped by a police road block for no apparent reason as the policeman for some strange reason only asked to have a look at the passport of the American lady who was in the van with us. Perhaps he has some other motive in my mind until he probably notice that I had taken a snap of his badge. Duh! Whatever.
After Tg Datu, it's a struggle to get back to work!
by FH2o on September 7, 2009
Penny was missing at dinner time on Friday night and after a couple of calls we went out looking for her. This is nothing unusual as Penny, the smartest and most adventurous of our dogs, has this habit of sneaking out of the house to explore the neighborhood and because our house is not fully-fenced in the conventional sense (we live right next to a river) Penny has a knack of finding a new way out of the house each time we find a way to thwart her escape(s).
The house across the road from us had been empty since we moved in and had recently being sold (to a sucker) termites infestations and all; and as such warrants major cleaning up and renovation works which has been going on for the past few months. We have noticed that the workers were fishing from the river and setting up crab traps. But we didn’t realize that they have also been setting up traps to catch the monitor lizards as well until Friday night when to my horror, I found Penny caught in one.
Penny in pain and her owner equally anguished
After hosing off the mud all over her; I carried her to the van to bring her over to see the vet who after sedating Penny managed to remove the hooks through her mouth and embedded in her front left paw. We are relieved that Penny survived the ordeal and now more worried about how to keep her safe and well within our compounds. It’s a cruel, cruel world out there - especially for animals. *sigh*
by FH2o on September 4, 2009
I love mornings as there’s freshness to it all – the air, soft morning light and the promise of all things good and wonderful. And as I drove to work yesterday as well as this morning, I was pleasantly surprised by the blossoming of sweet pink and snowy white flowers on the trees everywhere as I drove along Kota Samarahan Road and Simpang Tiga! Cherry blossoms or sakuras in Kuching? It was surreal and it was magical and it was a most delightful sight watching the falling delicate flowers in the wind and gathering to form a soft and beautiful colorful piles on the ground.
"Cherry Blossom" or Tecoma in full bloom in Kuching
Like all things beautiful, this is fleeting, so enjoy the magic while it last and have a magical weekend; because despite the best of plans magical weekends also don’t last! Whatever.
