Life For Rent

Presenting the sushi cake! Salmon egg role in the rice, topped with salmon sashimi and japanese caviar. It is strange but everyone attacked the rice somehow. Perhaps cause it has a nice bite to it due to the addition of the orange and crunchy egg role. The rice itself was hard with extra vinegar. Tastes like spoilt rice! But I suppose it had to be made a lil hard to hold the shape (it is a heart, but seen inverted here).

After everyone finished it and as I sat there looking in amusement, I asked “What if Alvin (the chief chef of the place I think which my mom deals with) came by and said “Errrr… the rice wasn’t meant to be eaten.. I added extra stuff to make the shape”

Finally I managed to have a nice sleep after a super duper long week. So well that I dreamt I was called up for NS ICT! But it wasn’t 6 months down the road nooooo… it’s the next day!

First thought in mind was.. huh.. then Monday how to see dentist? Tuesday how to go Jalan jalan? noooo…

So I buzzed those people, hey you are supposed to inform me 6 months before. How u expect people to make arrangements at such short notice? They said ‘it is like that one’. So I called Jay, who’s forever going for ICT. He also said it is like that one. haaaiz…so be it then.

So I packed everything and then at that point did I remember I was a 3SG. And I boarded this 5 ton driven by my new encik. LOL.. only in a dream would your RSM come to your house to pick you up in a 5 ton.

The dream quickly transited onto something else… hmm. Something which I shall not dig into.

Coming up as promised… the wonderful sushi cake!

I really cannot understand how these fellas do their work. I came back and people asked me ifI had problems with my site. Sure enough I did. It was fucking suspended.

So I went onto the chat box for assistance. I really have to question their service level and I am gonna scream at them for an explanation -

Chat Request Information (not visible to visitor):
Name: Mark
Web Site: HostMonster
Department: Server/Website Unavailable
Question: Hi, my website is sillypore.com. What has it been suspended?
Erik [8:49:34 AM]: Welcome to our real-time support chat. How can I help you today?
Mark [8:49:34 AM]: Hi, my website is sillypore.com. What has it been suspended?
Erik [8:49:48 AM]: For security purposes please provide the password to the hosting account or last 4 of the credit card on file.
Mark [8:50:44 AM]: 1987
Erik [8:51:44 AM]: That does not match the credit card that I have on file.
Mark [8:51:53 AM]: password.
[8:52:21 AM]: credit card is 8813 i believe. but i might have changed cards since
[8:54:06 AM]: 1409 is the last 4 on credit card
[8:54:11 AM]: I just checked the control panel
Erik [8:55:07 AM]: The account was deactivated for hosting storage that is not related to your website. You must remove any files/folders that are not not relevant to your website such as /public_html/hdd_Marky Woof Pictures to get your account reactivated.
Mark [8:55:39 AM]: whats inside that’s illegal?
[8:55:43 AM]: these are my own files
[8:56:35 AM]: I see nothing illegal in there.
Erik [8:57:00 AM]: It is against our ToS to host files that aren’t relevant to your website and are backup/storage.
Mark [8:57:50 AM]: but they are relavant to my site.
[8:57:55 AM]: how do u define what is not relevant?
Erik [8:58:55 AM]: If it is related to your site then you will have to contact abuse@hostmonster.com to clear up the confusion and get reactivated.
Mark [8:59:17 AM]: i cant send an email since my email seems to be suspended too, right?
[9:00:08 AM]: i find that this is quite ridiculous. i get suspended for having stuff that is not relevant. if hostmonster has a problem with it, dont u think i should be informed for me to clarify instead of suspending my site?
[9:00:40 AM]: if this is the case then my site gets suspended every other day as long as hostmonster deems it as something that is not relevant?
[9:01:13 AM]: all my pictures in there are of me and my trip to wales for my studies. do i have to cam with someone to verify that this is how i really look?
Erik [9:02:12 AM]: I’m sorry for the inconvenience please contact abuse by phone or email for more information and help to get your account activated.
Mark [9:02:38 AM]: what’s the phone number.
[9:02:49 AM]: and i am in singapore. i dont know how many times i have to call and the costs involved.
Erik [9:03:38 AM]: Outside the U.S: 801-494-8462
Mark [9:05:29 AM]: im tryin to dial that on my mobile and it is not getting through at all
[9:05:53 AM]: can u get them to buzz me?
Erik [9:06:29 AM]: Then you will have to email them or contact your phone service provide for help dialing internationally.
[9:10:34 AM]: Is there anything else I can help you with?
Mark [9:11:29 AM]: where is this place based?
[9:11:32 AM]: which state/city
Erik [9:13:12 AM]: We’re based out of Utah State.
Mark [9:13:12 AM]: i called! they said it is closed!@
[9:13:36 AM]: so what am i gonna do now? Wait til lthey open? Do they realise I may actually need this site to be up?
Erik [9:14:06 AM]: Then you’ll have to call back when the abuse department is open.
Mark [9:14:08 AM]: Geez maybe it is a good thing my 2 years is due for renewal soon. I dont think this is the kind of service level I expect
[9:14:20 AM]: And u dont know when the abuse dept is open even?
[9:15:12 AM]: Abuse Department
Main Line: 866-573-4678
Outside the U.S: 801-494-8462
Telephone support is available
6 AM – 10 PM (MST) 7 Days A Week.
Extended Hours!
[9:15:16 AM]: So what time is it there now?
Erik [9:16:02 AM]: Saturday 9:15 AM.
Mark [9:16:21 AM]: So it should be open right?
Erik [9:16:56 AM]: Who told you that the abuse department was closed?
Mark [9:17:28 AM]: When I called, there was a recorded msg saying the department is closed.
[9:17:38 AM]: And the line was cut. Total 4 sec.
Erik [9:17:47 AM]: Call into support and have them transfer you to abuse.
Mark [9:18:26 AM]: And the number?
Erik [9:19:34 AM]: It is the same number
Mark [9:19:38 AM]: Anyway i dont have a lot of time to handle this. Its 40 mins to midnight.
[9:19:48 AM]: So if I get rid of the folder u can put the folder back up?
[9:20:10 AM]: U do realised when I called, I used that number u displayed. And I said specifically the voice recording said it is closed
[9:20:17 AM]: How do mu expect me to even get to speak to a human?????
Erik [9:20:32 AM]: Erik [9:17:47 AM]: Call into support and have them transfer you to abuse.
[9:20:47 AM]: You clicked the verification extension not support.
Mark [9:20:56 AM]: If it is the same number I will get the same message!
[9:21:13 AM]: 801 494 8462
[9:21:16 AM]: This is what I called.
Erik [9:21:24 AM]: You hit the wrong extension or phone number. It works fine for me.
Mark [9:21:26 AM]: And I just called and they said the department is closed.
[9:22:04 AM]: I suggest you dial 001 1 801 494 8462 and try
[9:22:17 AM]: 001 is the US code which I have to use.
[9:22:30 AM]: So that’s 2 calls to a voice message for me now.
Erik [9:23:05 AM]: I tried it just now and it worked perfectly from my cell phone. I’d recommend you contact your phone service provider to make sure you are able to dial internationally.
Mark [9:23:24 AM]: Look. Erik. I dont think you are reading what I wrote.
[9:24:19 AM]: There is NOTHING wrong with my provider. It has gotten through to your side. It is sating “The office is closed. Please call again when the office is open”.
[9:24:54 AM]: I want this to be settled. Now. I have already removed the folder. So pls reinstate the whole site back.
[9:25:36 AM]: I DO NOT enjoy coming back home and having messages asking me why my site is suspended. I am extremely annoyed, so either you restore my site now please, or get them to call me.
[9:26:23 AM]: My number is listed in their records. I cannot understand why it is so difficult for them to call a customer who is having problems at hostmonster’s own negligence.

That being said, Erik got them to rescan and my site was lifted (obviously since you can view this). 12am here and they wanna give me these rubbish…. I demand an explanation. And I will post the contents out.

Everyone has heard of a birthday cake. Has anyone seen a sashimi/sushi cake?

Here’s one… salmon sashimi on top of a base of sushi rice. It tastes quite interesting.. but I wonder.. what if the creator came over and said ‘erm.. the rice wasn’t meant to be eaten.. just the sashimi’.

Greenwood has never been endorsed by me. Price does not justify the quality and the service. They did ask me for my feedback and I think I gave them the honest truth straight to their face. I wasn’t being mean.. just being direct.

First of all, we had to ask them for spoons.. forks.. etc.. all in all over 10 times. The servers made no effort in remembering who ordered what. If someone ordered soup u ought to give a spoon. You don’t just serve soup and then expect the customer to call you for the spoon. As for my main course, mine came some 10 min after the rest had theirs. I was displeased, partly cause of feeling ‘left out’ and no one bothered to tell me mine was coming. Should I just have asked them to come over (AGAIN) to check on my order? If it is gonna take a while, that’s fine. Just inform the customer politely and apologetically. It is not a big problem. But that’s not why I was fussy about the food arriving approx the same time. Why? The others may like to wait till everyone had their main course before beginning out of courtesy. So everyone waits, for 1 person. The person is gonna feel bad. And it is not even his/her fault. Secondly.. if someone had their dish served really late, everyone has to wait for him/her to finish. Which is what happened tonight. Everyone had to wait for me to finish. And I don’t gobble down my food. Not anymore anyway. I like to enjoy my food.

So I was quite annoyed with all these. And they had this house special… red wine mixed with OJ and fruit punch. Not quite my kinda thing.. too sharp and ‘acidic’. But I can’t fault it cause it may actually please another person’s taste buds. Just not mine.

I told the manager frankly, I look for service which is of upmost importance. A good service can remedy bad food actually, but bad service will ruin even the best food and dining experience. There is no excuse for bad service, even if customers all come in at the same time, or they are short handed. That is NOT an excuse. The guys on the ground are not at fault. The processes are all screwed up which is why orders are late.. things get forgotten.. everyone seems busy yet no one is pleased with the service.

The good thing that came out of it was, I told my mom bout the idea JJ  and I have about the cafe and shop. I didnt need to convince them really. I just highlighted the key areas and the pros of such a model. Maybe I should be a sales man? LOL.. That being said I said I will leave sales and marketing to them while I handle operations which is what I do best. I figure if I can be pleased, anyone will be pleased with the level of service etc. It is simple why I proposed this idea. I want them to focus on whole sale. I do not want retail sales to affect and take too much time away. I don’t want so many people in a shop just to cater to walk ins. I will rather ride on an existing location, manpower, and storage facilities etc. ie, to share resources without interfering with each other too much. It can work, but there are lots of details and scope definition that need to be worked out.

So it is all good. I wanna cater to the retail market as well, without putting too much resources in it. Cost, and time. Not ideal. I am sure I can work something out with JJ. I have my day job and my own stock trading activities therefore I don’t want to spend too much effort as an ops director but yet, if anyone knows me by now, I like to find win-win solutions. When i can’t, I will at least have secondary backups.. tertiary backups etc.

That’s all for now. Gonna turn in early. Long day tomorrow.. full day course. That being said, I think Oreo the shaved cock is a devil. I am open for another dog. How bout a rottweiler again? It has been a while since Diesel died.. I don’t think she will mind. I don’t mind adopting one but I don’t like small breeds. I will keep options open. A pet, like a partner, is a two way thing. I don’t seek one, but if paths cross someday, I will know. I will only keep a pet who shares mutual fondness for each other.

Stick around cause next, I am gonna post what a sushi cake looks like!

This day, is my brother Michael’s 18th birthday. Can book driving theory lessons and tests already eh.

Happy birthday man!

Today’s also Eat with your family day. We knock off at 5, and I think we are heading to Greenwood. I think my mom caters raw fish there too…. not quite sure though. I have been there once quite a while back with the ex. Nice play, good food. Price wise I am not too sure… I wasn’t impressed enough to do a review on it.

Alvin and edwin knows by now, any endorsed recommendations from the prince has a certain standard to it.

Oreo came to greet me as I made my way out this morning while Bear Bear ran away. Why? Cause I am bullish on the stock market performance today? I chased him away for good measure. Don’t want bears lurking around..

I need to get a visit to the dentist done… Jayme told me where she did hers, so I rang them up just a while ago and the nurse was very pleasant.. and yeh I made an appointment to see Dr Ng. The same one who attended to Jayme. I don’t fear dentists, but what I really hate is the high pitched drilling sounds especially from the scaling. I have not seen a dentist for quite some time now.. way before NS!! OMG.. I think Dr Ng is gonna have some work to do and my bill might really climb.. sigh.

So it will be next Monday afternoon. Will go from work after lunch.. This will be the first accomplishment amongst many others on my “I turn 30 to0-do-list”. I plan to make a trip to the dentist on a regular basis from now on. My teeth have been neglected… but that will change from now on.

A full day’s seminar at SMU tomorrow followed by dinner with the course companions Julian and friends. Julian wants to hook me up with someone… *L*… let’s see.

The second half of 2009 is gonna begin next week… How time flies..

Nihplod -> I remember you… of course. Same old you, same old me isn’t it. Well if you bothered and cared enough to write, I’ll care enough to read and respond.

In the course of digging out all the clothes I found 2 shirts from guess that I seem to have forgotten. I took the white one today, put it on and hey it fits me VERY well still! The other one is black and I kinda like that one better but this is just as good. It isn’t 10 out of 10, but it is like finding something you’ve forgotten or lost years ago. It is a nice feeling.

I checked my credit rating yesterday night just to make sure the joint loans were still being paid on time. I check it on a routine basis too. If someone applied for a loan or a credit facility without my knowledge, then this is a catch-all document. This document is very important as the report is used by banks to check on your credit history and it is a determining factor on how much loan the bank is willing to give (if at all). They need to know your credit history to see if you are a potential high risk client. That said, I’d like to declare, despite all the scoldings I have gotten from all my friends, I do not regret any of my decisions. At least for now.

For those who are on my MSN list, you’ll notice I have been using whacky nicks for the week. The responses I have received are quite interesting, from “what happened to you??” to “when?”. Quite a good distractor for me cracking me up every now and then.

Heading into the market. Quite a good day of greens and gains. Gonna cut positions and take some profit off the table soon perhaps.

And..

Time to work on the next thing on my to-do-list.

So this is something I haven’t really talked about.

My mom adopted this sharpei named Bear Bear. He has been around for a while… And recently my brother took home a cocker spaniel. Both are black. They roam the drive way so anyone who comes in and out of the house has to go through them first.

Bear bear as I heard, didn’t take too well to another male dog in the house and he showed his jealousy and resentment. So what did the folks do? They shaved the cocker… so that now he is one lil dog with hair similar to Bear Bear’s. Bear  bear seems to take to him better now. hmmm

So there’s a shaved cock and a bear doing sentry duty all the time.

And if you think Bear bear’s a playdog, he bit my mom’s hand. So deja vu. Diesel bit me back then when I took her home too. I still carry the scar on my hand. Now my mom’s hand is in a similar cast.

The shaved cock’s named Oreo. Thank goodness I have never named ‘mine’ Oreo..

No pictures yet. Can’t be bothered. I miss my diesel….

It’s Jay and Jayme’s 3rd wedding anniversary today! Wishing both of them bai tou xie lao, zhao shen gui zi, yong yuan qing chun (for jayme only), kuai dian fa cai (my own version, for jay only), yang hou dou fa (sheep and monkey both huat)!

was scolded by Alvin, Jayme and Rach. Over the same thing. I know what I should do, but I can’t help myself. Did u all think I could help myself? I thought.. long and hard before writing this post. I have more than 5 words to do my 2 words but as you can see I haven’t posted or said anything.

I can’t articulate how I feel. Perhaps there’s a lot of left over love on my side still. I don’t wanna say too much. The 3 of them got to know a lil bit more on what is happening and sure enough I got another earful.

I only wonder, does anyone know how it feels like to see someone you love, happy. To be able to achieve something and be very contented with it. I told him, I do not think there is anyone else in this world who can rationalise anything I have done, to his tune.

I don’t get a kick out of seeing the person having a wretched life without me. I still want to see the person happy. Alvin can’t believe the amount I pamper the ex with. I don’t think Alvin even gives 10% of what I give. But he’s been together with the partner for some 9 years now, so they must be doing something right while I’m doing something that’s fucked up.

I am also not sure why I am so emo these days. The medication I have been given is said to have potential side effects in this area but I am not on the normal dose even. Way lower. I wasn’t expecting to feel any effects but I do see physical effects at the very least. Maybe I am quite sensitive to it..

I packed his stuff, carted 2 bags to work, and then had to trouble Jayme to grab them from me while she dropped it off to him. Atlas, 3 items he wanted were not there. I got home quite late last night… tired to the core.. at 2 plus AM I was digging my wardrobe for those 3 items. I figured I found 2. I had to log onto my FB account just to access Rach’s account so I could see what he wore during Queenin’s wedding. I zoomed in and tried my best to match and I think it is that pair. So I took a photo of them all and sent it to him. He said it isn’t..

I don’t know.. I am tired. I try very hard to do stuff to see him happy still. I don’t even know if I am even doing anything right. I wanna give up.  I really do. I wanna breakout from this cage I appear to find myself in. I wonder and wonder and wonder. Late into the night… I wonder..

I just feel very exhausted. I’m not angry, or sad (I think) or anything. Just tired… very tired. There’s quite a few things that I wanna do this year… none of which will probably be able to get done. It is ok.. I think I am quite used to that anyway.. I can live with that. I just feel very exhausted.. like someone who is living on borrowed time. 

Exhaustion.  The kind where you wanna just fall into a deep slumber… forever.

I packed quite a lot of clothes today. Figuring out where and how to cart them to the office tomorrow morning.

Thing is, they aint my clothes. But I guess it is time to settle this once and for all..

And I thought I got away with it. Seems like I am now down with a running tap-like nose! SIGH

So much for my jap lunch on Sunday…

My peekchers are a lil whacko but I am too ill to handle it now… shall deal with it when I wake up.

Tangs is having their 12% sale this Wed and Thurs! Who wants to go?

Geez I hate being sick….

June/Jul holiday.. not likely. Visit the dentist that is what I need to do. I shall visit the one at Ghim Moh as recommended by Jayme…

that is… if the mucus isn’t flowing out of my nose and into my mouth..