Thursday, April 08, 2010

Conversion To Semi-NPT

I have finally re-setup the tank I wanted to convert into semi-NPT (natural planted tank). The main reason for the conversion is I am tired of purchasing the expensive Seachem root tab for this tank. I got rid of almost 80% of the existing plants. I have removed the bad condition Java Ferns but I leave the mini Java Ferns. Besides, Marsilea and Potamogeton gayi, I introduced Anubias Nana (maybe one of them is Anubias Petite) and Cryptocoryne Wendtii into the tank.

I have removed the female Krib and Ember tetras and placed them in another 2 separate tanks. I only leave the Black phantom tetras and the sole otto in the tank.

The following are the stuff utilised in the tank:

1. Soil: Clay loam (Price: RM5)

2. Sand: Holland Sand

3. Filter: Eheim 2213

4. Lighting: 55 Watt Dymax PL

5. Plants: Marsilea, Potamogeton gayi, Cryptocoryne wendtii, Anubias nana (maybe one of them is Anubias Petite) & mini Java fern

6. Fauna: Black phantom tetras & otto

7. CO2

8. 15 US Gallon (Standard 2 Feet) Tank

This is how the tank looks like originally:



This is how it looks like after the conversion. The water is clear since day 1:



This is the clay loam I use for this planted tank after failing to find top soil I purchased from the same nursery. I have decided to give clay loam a try as recommended by the salesperson. Purchased from Kelana Jaya's plants nursery:



I have added Holland sand at 4 corners of the tank to prevent double layer of sand and soil from being viewed. After that the top part of the soil is covered by Holland sand:



This is how the tank looks like on the 11th of April 2010 after adding water lettuce to shade the Anubias Nana and adding Rotala at the background:



Saturday, March 20, 2010

Open Up and Say... Ahh!

I went for my first dental check up in almost a decade yesterday. I am very particular about selecting the right dentist and very concern about seeing a dentist I am unfamiliar with, due to a bad childhood experience with trainee dentist of my former school.

Here's my childhood bad experience leading to my phobia. I was 7 years old and I was required to go for my dental check up. Being afraid of being punished for not going for the dental check up, I had no choice but to go for the check up. A female Malay trainee dentist was stationed at my former school in a room partitioned from the clerical office. The horror started when the trainee told me that my tooth had to be extracted. In the process of extracting the tooth, I could be heard screaming and yelling out of pain and fear. Yeah, it was in fact very painful. Due to the lousy skill and lack of strength to pull my tooth, I was sent to the general hospital after the tooth broke half way. Thank goodness, the male Malay dentist of the general hospital was skillful and I didn't suffer from any pain. Unfortunately, the first encounter had permanently cultivated the fear in me.

The only dentist I dared to see was the uncle of my friend but I only saw him once in the 70s. The fear of dentist stopped me from going for dental check up until 1989 when I got a few teeth extracted and went through some fillings. I went for yearly dental check up at the same dental clinic for a number of years. I eventually stopped going several years before my late parents moved away to another state. I had thought of going back to my hometown just for dental check up for the last few years but the long journey prevented me from doing so.

I had problem looking for "Klinik Paul" introduced to me by my wife. I saw the signboard but as I went up the stairs, I could not find the clinic. I only saw a company called "Livingwell". Thinking it's another direct sales company, I walked off and made a phone call to the clinic. In fact "Livingwell" was the new name of the clinic. As I entered, I saw a number of people chit-chatting like nobody's business. The receptionist smiled as I was a weirdo who could not find the clinic even it was right in front of me. I registered as the first timer visiting the clinic. Upon putting down the form, the Indian man in the chit-chat session suddenly said "Come on!" and teased the lady who was chit-chatting with him for having too much things to talk about. I was glad that he was a homourous dentist unlike the one I encountered when I was 7 years old. I explained to him my tooth problem with the fear that I had to get it extracted. He showed me the tooth for confirmation on the screen and he confirmed that he could do the filling. He also put some medication on the ulcer on my tongue that I informed him to prevent him from accidentally hitting that area. He was quite friendly and somehow my fear disappeared - he was equally as good as my friend's uncle. So far I am happy with the filling and the medication for the ulcer works like a miracle.

My confidence level of going for dental check up is back to normal again. I hope I don't have to look for a new dentist for many years to come. What a relief!!

Monday, March 15, 2010

Diana Walstad Influenced Experimental Tank

This is how my NPT (natural planted tank) looks like today. A lot of plants die in my experiment - it's done purposely to find out what can survive and what cannot survive. The survival rate of the fishes in this tank is surprisingly high, despite no filter is used. In fact the Kribs bred, so were the Platies and Endlers. There's always almost no survival for the livebearers' fry because they got eaten up. It's a different story for Kribs as the parents protected the young ones (I lost the mother Kribs which jumped out of the tank not too long ago). The water is always a bit murky because my fishes mess up the tank all the time including digging. Yeah, I know the tank is overloaded with too many fishes.

I do weekly water changes. I don't follow Diana Walstad's methods very strictly. I could not stop myself from changing the water because the water is very murky and the bottom of the tank is very dirty too as you can see from the photo. Please note that the photo was taken after I changed the water. It could be worse before changing the water. I lost a few fishes in the past when I skipped changing water for 2 weeks in a row. So I've decided not to skip changing water from then onwards. The situation may improve if I have a filter but I've decided not to have one because I have consumed too much electricity in this hobby.

Plants:
Only Sagittaria Subulata, an unknown plant, duckweeds, bits and pieces of Blyxa (I think they're dying off) and water wisteria (newly re-introduced. The old batch died) are in the tank. I have killed many plants in this tank i.e. narrow leaf ferns, marsilea, various species of rotala, hornwort, bacopa, ...and the list goes on.



Tuesday, January 26, 2010

Cambodia

Random photos taken at Cambodia.

Royal Palace:


A nun at Udong:


Angkor:


Angkor:


Angkor:


Kids at Angkor:


Dining at Night Market:


Cambodian Village:


Orphans at Orphanage:


Angkor:


Hill View at Udong:

Friday, January 08, 2010

All Because Of A Word....

Currently there's an on-going issue about the word "Allah" in a Catholic weekly magazine, Herald, in Malaysia. The Muslim majority opposes the usage of "Allah" for "God" in the Malay articles of the magazine, but the court allows it. 3-4 churches have faced arson attacks since yesterday morning - I am not even sure whether they're Catholic churches (They could be Protestant churches). So, there's an on-going tension in the country. I believe majority of the Muslims do not support the arson attacks though - those are the actions of some fanatics who do not even understand their own religion.

This part is my theory:
As an Atheist, I am basically neutral but I am worried that this issue may be escalated into a racial issue. The reason is the fanatics cannot differentiate Catholic and Protestant churches. I doubt they can differentiate Buddhists/Hindus/Atheists from Catholics too - they may end up targeting non-Malays. However, in this process of wrong identity, some Muslim Chinese/Indians could attacked by mistake too. It will be a havoc and absolutely not good for the nation. I am sure that if this kind of issue occurs in the U.S., the problem is the same.

From my point of view, both the Catholics that insist on using the word "Allah" knowing that it's so sensitive to the Muslims and the Muslim fanatics are equally wrong.

The Catholics should just use a different Malay word in the place of "Allah". In fact, they can use the actual Malay word "Tuhan" ("Allah" is in fact an Arabic word...not even a true Malay word). The situation is similar to provoking a group of dogs - the good dogs may do you no harm, the bad dogs may bark and chase you, the mad dog will bite you or even kill you.

The action of the Muslim fanatics are obviously wrong too. This is not the teaching of Islam or any religion. They're just a group of thugs.

The politicians have been using the word "religion tolerance" over and over for decades. Religion tolerance is just tolerating other religions without any respect. Religion tolerance is obviously not good enough - we need to respect other people's religions. Just like a Muslim friend suggested, we should visit the church/mosque/temple of another religion and help cleaning up the place or watering the plants. You'll gain respect when you learn to respect others.

Wednesday, December 23, 2009

WJN 81 Mercedes - Hit & Run

Today when driving at Jalan Templer towards Assunta Hospital, a dark coloured Mercedes with the registration number WJN 81 suddenly tried to move towards the middle lane I was in when some lorry parked illegally blocking its way. I honked the car and it stopped. Somehow, when all the traffic stopped due to the traffic congestion, the damn stupid Mercedes banged me from the left side behind me. From the mirror, I noticed that the driver was an old Indian man in his 50s or 60s. Beside him was a younger Indian man.

I gave my signal and stopped my car at the left side after the accident but the bloody Mercedes just drove straight ignoring me.

If you ever see a Mercedes with registration number WJN 81 and you feel like banging someone with hit and run tactic. Feel free to do it for my revenge!

Saturday, November 14, 2009

Buzzcocks' Gig On 8th of Nov 2009

The day before Buzzcocks' gig in Kuala Lumpur, I realised One Cafe had shifted to the new venue. Thank goodness, I didn't head for the old venue!!

I took Putra LRT and Star LRT to reach Sogo/Pertama Complex area. Then walked for a few minutes to look for Tune Hotel knowing that One Cafe was not far from the hotel. Unfortunately, I didn't even know the location of Tune Hotel. So, it was a new adventure for me. With the help of google map, I managed to figure out the place eventually.

As I walked towards One Cafe, I saw a big group of kids and I knew for sure that I had arrived at the right place. Then I saw someone with a familiar hairstyle (I called the Alleycats' hairstyle) - the lead singer of The Fridays, Ashraf. I was so glad to see an old friend there thinking I would be alone before the arrival of another friend, Maya (former DJ of Traxx FM). It's ridiculous for me to worry about being alone actually because I eventually found many of my friends there. One of the organisers, Joe Kidd, is an old friend. Aiman from Civil Disorder was the crew. Farez of Maharajah Commission was the "bouncer" :). Jay of Free Love was another friend I had not seen for ages. Ben from Ben's Bitches/Panda Head Curry was there. Rafil from 360 Degree Head Rotation/Panda Head Curry came late. Unfortunately, old man like me could not recognise a few familiar faces. I had to admit I could not recognise Aidil from Couple and Farez the "bouncer" initially after years of not seeing them. I spent most of the time chatting away with Ashraf, Aidil, Azwad (another familiar face), Ben, etc while waiting for the tickets to be sold. As usual, the event was delayed.



The bands performed in the following order:
Dichi Michi
Gasoline Grenade
Free Love
Subculture
Carburetor Dung
then the headliner, Buzzcocks.

The first 2 bands were not my cup of tea honestly but the heat started when Free Love started playing. I think Jay of Free Love was playing really well because of his energetic performance. I think a lot of people enjoyed his performance that day. A friend even mentioned that he performed like a rock star.



The crowd went crazy the moment Subculture went on the stage. The band was an old veteran influenced greatly by The Ramones. Slam dancing, stage diving, body surfing, etc started. Everyone seemed so happy and enjoyed themselves. Obviously Subculture performed well - as usual I preferred their live performance than their recording.



The crowd remained crazy when Carburetor Dung started playing. I lost a bit of concentration here as I moved away from the crowd. My headache started due to the cigarette smoke and heat. I just stood at the back taking photos. I felt regret for moving away from the front stage as I could not get any proper photos of the bands there.



There was a short break after Carburetor Dung finished playing. People were rushing for drinks & toilets. I just wanted to get away from the smoke.

The moment Buzzcocks stepped on the stage, I realised I ran out of camera battery. My built-in flash was not functioning as I expected. I was digging for my spare battery but I realised that it was not with me. I should have checked to make sure I had the battery before leaving the house. So, I failed badly in capturing any good photos. Furthermore, I was at the far end away from the stage. Nevertheless, Buzzcocks played really well. The band was very tight and professional. They even played extra sets as the crowd demanded for more songs. Outside their performance, the band members seemed very friendly too.



I didn't stay back much longer after the gig as my headache got really bad that I just wanted to rush home. I felt like puking!!! I met 2 fellows who attended the gig at the LRT and we had a brief chat in the train.

It was what I called a fun day on a Sunday!!!



Friday, November 06, 2009

Stars

The sound of this band called Stars with their song "Elevator Love Letter" reminds me a lot of My Bloody Valentine with less noise and listenable vocal.

Stars with "Elevator Love Letter":


They sound different in the song "Bitches In Tokyo":


Again, they remind me of My Bloody Valentine in "Ageless Beauty":

My Discovery of Lissy Trullie

I came across an American singer-songwriter named Lissy Trullie with her band that named is after her at NME Radio with the song "Boy Boy" that caught my attention. It eventually led me to explore the rest of her songs from the EP, "Self-Taught Learner". I fell in love instantly with the simplicity of the lyric and the song also titled "Self-Taught Learner".

I see Lissy as a very high potential singer-songwriter in the alternative music scene. In "Boy Boy" I could distinguish that it's a female singer singing it but for "Self-Taught Learner", I thought another male singer was singing it. Unfortunately, I was wrong - Lissy was the singer.

Check out this singer-songwriter!

Lissy Trullie with "Self-Taught Learner":


Lyric of "Self-Taught Learner":
You were my first kiss
You were my first miss
What we made was our own
I went home and I told no one

Are you watching me
Am I different
Or am I the same

You don't have to say "I love you too"
That's not what I want to hear from you

Thought I saw you the other day
You changed your hair but you looked the same
Well I make wishes late in the day
You're six feet under and you're safe

Are you watching me
Am I different
Or am I the same

You don't have to say "I love you too"
That's not what I want to hear from you

Oh I want to die with you
Oh Oh Oh Oh I
Oh I want to die with you
Oh Oh Oh Oh
And are you lonely
Oh Oh Oh Oh

Oh I want to die with you
Oh Oh Oh Oh I
Oh I want to die with you
Oh Oh Oh Oh
And can I join you
Oh Oh Oh Oh

Oh I want to die with you
Oh Oh Oh Oh I
Oh I want to die with you
Oh Oh Oh Oh
And shall we meet
Once again

Are you watching me
Am I different
Or am I the same


Lissy Trullie with "Boy Boy":

Wednesday, October 21, 2009

Mail Thief

Although I am not a celebrity, spy, high ranking military man or even Chua Soi Lek, I found my mailbox being broken into 2 days ago. The asshole just pulled open my mailbox with bull strength force. Now, I can't even lock my mailbox properly and have to arrange for repair. I wonder what he got from my mailbox. Usually I only receive bills, bills and bills. Perhaps, he stole the Astro magazine??? What a jerk!!! Yeah, I am cursing the asshole, hoping that his "sarong jatuh, nampak burung, burung terbang" and got his "burung" chopped off.

Note:
"burung" = bird = dick

By the way, I also found a "sarong" at my balcony. I wonder whose "sarong jatuh"!!!

Saturday, October 17, 2009

The Orgasm Addict, Buzzcocks, Is Heading For Kuala Lumpur



This is an unbelievable amazing news for 2009 - BUZZCOCKS IS COMING TO KUALA LUMPUR!!! This is more excited than Santa's coming to town.

With most of the 70s punk bands dead/half dead/inactive/disbanded, I will be absolutely overjoyed to be able to see a legendary 70s punk band all the way from England performing in my own country.

I am also amazed that they are selling the tickets with a very punk attitude - RM50 per ticket for a legendary international band. This is absolutely a good deal that you may never come across again. The last one was the gig by Fugazi in the 90s.

This is a rare opportunity that any true rock music lovers should not miss!!! You may regret for the rest of your life if you miss it. Please remember that this band is old, in a few more years you may not be able to see them performing anymore.

What Do I Get:


I Don't Mind:


Ever Fallen In Love:

Sunday, October 11, 2009

Current Status of My Aquarium Tanks

My NPT (natural planted tank with garden soil & Holland sand). It has been badly messed up by the breeding Kribs after they dig a big hole leading to fungus growth, murky water & floating plants:


15 gallon tank with Lemon Tetras breeding occasionally:


Newly rescaped 15 gallon tank - added driftwood and mini Java Ferns:


3 feet jungle tank:

Friday, October 02, 2009

When We Were Young, Wild, Restless And Dangerous

Thinking back when we were young, we had great ambition and really pushed ourselves to the limit in achieving our dreams. Most of us small town boys and girls tend to dream about living in big cities. We wanted great jobs, city girlfriends/boyfriends, excitement, entertainment, challenges, risks and willing to face all kind of dangers in the cities to achieve our goals. Regardless whether we achieved the goal or not, as we grow older, we tend to get sick of the hectic stressful expensive lifestyle in the cities and longed to return to our small towns. We learn to appreciate simplicity of life, friendliness of small town folks and easy-going nature of life in small towns.

I remember a friend told me to returned to my hometown, Kangar, to work after graduation. He told my parents, "Wouldn't it be good to have your son living with you?". I dismissed his opinion as instantly as junks picking up from the dustbin. Telling myself that it was so easy for him to suggest a ridiculous idea just because he had a family business to run and he could remained in my hometown so easily. I would probably be jobless for the industry I was in as IT industry was almost non-existence in my hometown. Today I think if I took his advice and started my own business in IT industry, I could be doing better and happier as a pioneer in my hometown. Furthermore, my parents would not have to shift to Penang against their wish.

There are a lot of things mentioned by someone less educated but they make sense to me now.

1. One night, as I returned from work almost midnight. I probably looked tired, frustrated, angry and stressful. A security guard I met at the car park told me in Malay, "Come and join me working as a security guard. Life is much simpler. Look at yourself! Working so hard and make your life so difficult. Look at me, I am just sitting around". I know that his suggestion may seem ridiculous because the salary of a security won't allow me to feed my family, but don't you think his opinion makes sense too? Why do we work our asses off till we fall sick and grumpy just to make a living? Is it worth it?

2. I also remember having a conversation with an elderly Malay lady. We started a conversation our of boredom while I was waiting for someone. Somehow our conversation led to her asking whether I was married. I answered, "No" (I was still single at that point of time). She asked, "Why not?". I answered, "No money". I expected the topic to end but she gave me a lecture that career could come later and marriage should come first. She told me something I remember till today, "You will push yourself harder as you have a family. The career will grow automatically eventually". I dismissed her opinion as outdated village people's idea at that point of time. Today, I think it makes sense because if you start a family only when your career is successful, you may not have sufficient time to generate offspring. Just look at the situation of most of the Chinese community in Malaysia/Singapore. How many of us are childless?

When we were young, wild, restless and dangerous, we dismissed a lot of opinion from elderly folks and less educated folks. I guess we were more arrogant but time will prove us wrong.

Tuesday, September 29, 2009

Dear Mom & Dad

I know why I couldn't sleep last night and had to seek the help of alcohol to get myself into deep sleep. The answer is simple: I miss my mom and dad who passed away in May and September respectively. A friend who lost his father once told me that it may take a long time to get over it. I wonder how long! Probably years!

I used to write to my parents ever since the day I left for college. They would start to get worried when they didn't receive any letter. Over two decades of writing home, the number of letters gradually dropped due to the busy schedule of my job or ...should I say the laziness of writing. I even missed out mother's day, father's day along with their birthdays sometimes. Now I realise how much I miss simple things like writing a letter to my parents as follows:

"Dear mom & dad,

How are you? I hope both of you are fine.........

All the best and take care.

Your son, ........"

The letters writing eventually evolved into phone calls as my dad had problem writing. I noticed his writing was getting worse each time he replied - spelling issues, canceling of words all over the letter, missing words, etc. Knowing that my dad was an English teacher, he would not do this kind of mistakes. Eventually I was told that his brain was shrinking. During the days of our phone calls, I was usually the one calling back home. My dad would call me only if there was a long period of silence from me and my parents started to get worried. Eventually, our conversation grew very simple and short as my mom didn't have much to talk about once my parents moved to Penang - no more gossiping with the neighbours...so, I had very little news about the neighbours, my parents' friends and their children. I remember that in one of our conversation, my dad told me, "Even if we have nothing much to talk, give us a call..hearing your voice is good enough". I wish I can hear their voice the way they longed to hear mine. I even miss simple phone conversation translated from Hokkien to English as follows:

"Daddy/Mommy, how are you? Have you taken your lunch/dinner? What are you doing? How's the weather?.......Take care. Bye."

My good bye would eventually became the last good bye to them.....

Thursday, September 24, 2009

2009 The Year of Death Continues


The year of death, 2009, continues to claim more lives of people I have known.

Up to May:
I lost 3 friends and my mother.

In Sept:
The number of friends that passed away increased to 4.
Then I lost my father.
When trying to contact a former teacher/neighbour, I also found out she passed away already.

Total lost so far:
4 friends
2 family members
1 teacher/neighbour

What a fucked up year, don't you think so???

I have never lost more than 3 people I have known per year in the past decades. 2009 is absolutely fucking amazing! It's a fucked up year!!! I won't be surprised if the world ends tomorrow!!

Saturday, September 05, 2009

No Fishing! Can't You Read, Idiots?

This morning as I walked to the park near Ara Damansara, I came across 5 "blind" Malaysians adults fishing in the lake when the the signboards had been placed around the lake indicating "No fishing" or "Dilarang memancing" in Malay. The signboards even came with pictures that a 5 year-old kid could understand.

Normally I saw kids below 12 years old trying to fish in the lake. Most probably they caught nothing. Today, I was so surprised to see adults in their 20s-50s fishing at the lake. I was pretty sure they're Malaysians and not foreigners. At the inner part of thye lake, I saw two Chinese men probably in their 30s and 50s, fishing with a big bucket. At the outer part of the lake on a wooden bridge, I saw a Malay man and two Indian men doing the criminal acts.

What a coincidence! They comprised of 3 main races of Malaysia. I am ashamed!! In my heart I was sinking and asking them, "Can't you read the signboards, idiots?".

Not many people were at the lake because it was approaching noon. I only met a man doing his morning walk like myself. He probably was asking the same question to those "criminals". We walked pass and greeted each other with a simple "good morning". He just gave me the look and smile indicating there were idiots in the park.

There was a man cleaning the park but he seemed to be ignorant although the crime was carried out right in front of him. Probably, it was not his responsibility to catch the "criminals". There was a police station nearby but I think it was not their responsibilities to take care of the park too. There's no such thing as any park ranger in a small park like this I suppose.

No wonder a lot of parks in Malaysia look worse than cemetery!!!!

Monday, August 31, 2009

Tribute to Hungry Ghost Festival

Being a "kampung" (village) boy originated from Perlis, I have been exposed to a lot of supernatural stories since I was a little boy. Most of the events occurred in Perlis.

I remember being told that a lot of Malays/Siamese in that area used to keep some kind of spirits for their protection in the olden days. As they passed away, their offspring do not carry on with the traditional practice anymore. So the spirits roamed freely.

The hill in Kangar town near the old Mahkota cinema is known to have a lot of spirits (keramat). Several people got lost on the hill in the past including some of my schoolmates in 1980s. My dad told me "bomoh" had to be called to assist when a skeptic got lost decades ago.

My family members had been exposed to supernatural elements as well especially my late mother who was exceptionally "sensitive".

I remember my sister telling me that she saw a lady ghost hanging around at the hall of a "kampung" house we used to live. She could not enter the room because there was a Buddha statue inside the room. Eventually, my family found out that the wife of a teacher who used to live there passed away.

When I was a little toddler, I used to fall sick every Thursday. Any other days, I was fine. Even the doctor was puzzled and joked that Thursday did not suit me. With the consultation of a medium, my family found out that an ancestor from Indonesia was seeking my family's attention. After praying, everything is back to normal ever since. My ancestor actually migrated from Indonesia.

When I was a boy I used to live in an area called Kampung Bakau which is next to Sekolah Menengah Perlis. That entire housing area was infamous as being haunted. There were several occasions that my parents saw weird things when staying there such as:

1. A hairy hand trying to grab my dad when he was watering the plants

2. My late mother saw someone that looked like my dad but "he" was not my dad.

3. My late mother saw someone that kept rushing into the toilet thinking "she" was my sister but "she" was not my sister.


The neighbours also encountered weird things around that area:

1. My neighbour's children saw kids with green face and red face playing with water at the sink.

2. Neighbours complained about hearing baby crying at night (Note: there were a lots of stray cats in that area too. So, it could be cats)

3. An old man was seen by the son of a neighbour when there's no old man in the house

4. A lightning stroke my sister's friend's room directly at the chair he used to sit. Eventually, a medium informed that the house was haunted and he had been living with a female ghost in the room.

I remember the late Pak Dollah who used to live in a nearby "kampung" told my parents that the area had a lot of suicidal/rape cases during the Japanese occupation. He even pointed out that the trees in front of our house and the back of our house used to be the suicide spots of 2 women.

I used to work in Cyberjaya for about 2 years plus and I used to pass by the infamous Lim Kok Wing Institute where there were a lot of accidents. All of the time I drove alone even after midnight. I had never encountered anything supernatural there but I knew it was a dangerous part of the road. I felt half asleep there once and almost had an accident when making a u-turn. Another dangerous part of the road is in front of NTT. I remember very well that someone died in an early morning accident there years ago. I only heard about security guards complaining about the lift in my former company going up and down by itself when nobody was around, as well as mysterious window tapping sound.

In my current company in PJ, I often have to work alone in the office. Sometimes, I can hear weird sound like someone typing using the keyboard when nobody was around. I even walked towards that section to check but found nobody. I believe the noise is caused by the temperature changes leading the windows frame to generate the noise. Strong wind often causes the gap of the windows to "whistle". I have got used to it.

In my apartment, I often hear the sound of marbles or something dropping after midnight too. I don't think it's something supernatural or rather I try to dismiss it. I believe there's a Malay family with a kid staying upstairs.

I am actually an in-between believer and non-believer. I believe because I have no doubt about what my family members encountered. Even my cousin who is a doctor and my uncle who is a former army have encountered supernatural stuff. I don't believe because certain encounters can actually be explained but our brains play trick on us sometimes.

Wednesday, August 26, 2009

Natural Planted Tank Update



This is how my NPT (Natural Planted Tank) as of today. The faunas remain as Platies and Endlers but I have also added a pair of Kribs lately after they're bullied by another breeding pair of Kribs from another tank. Therefore you may have noticed the additional pot.

I threw out a lot of plants from this tank because they were either hit by BBA, stunted or dead. I only keep those doing well in the tank currently. The water of this tank is often full of debris because the tank is overcrowded with fishes. Furthermore there's no filter.

I am quite happy with this tank that I use common garden soil (Topsoil) and Holland sand although it looks messy. It cannot beat a tank with ADA soil which is likely to look very neat but what the heck in terms of $$$$ ????

Saturday, August 22, 2009

Breeding Kribs

Babies of Kribs:


Male Krib Guarding The Fry:


Female Krib Guarding The Fry:


I found my newly bought Kribs digging a cave underneath a rock one day. The next thing I spotted was dozens of eggs sticking on the rock. In a few days, I found something moving inside the cave. Due to poor visibility inside the dark cave, I thought it was caused by the heat generated from the light. Eventually, I found out they were fry of the Kribs.

After 2 days, my wife told me all the fry had disappeared. To my disappointment when I checked them out, I found majority of them missing too although I could see a few of them still moving inside the cave - I thought there were less than 5 of them. I thought the parents had eaten them. Days later, I found the cave collapsed (poor engineering skill of the adult Kribs). I thought "There goes all my Krib babies!". After careful inspection, I found a big group of fry swimming along with the parents. The parents were indeed taking turns to take care of their babies. All the intruders were chased away. They even stared at me when I photographed them thinking I was an intruder too. They attacked the other pair of Kribs sharing the tank till they ended up with broken tails and fins.

Now it makes me wonder how I am going to keep the fry when they grow up if they're so aggressive.

The Kribs are indeed very good parents. I have never seen any fish taking care of their fry in my tanks prior to this. Who says fish has no feeling? They care for their young ones the same way human and other mammals do.

Saturday, August 08, 2009

New 3 X 1.5 X 1.5 Feet Tank



After going through 3 broken/crack tanks, this is the result of a new tank with 10mm glass thickness. The old crack tank is left at the balcony with a lonely Black Molly with water level of only 3 inches. I can't think of what to do with the tank and the Black Molly. Maybe I should breed some Mollies :)