So we’ve been shopping for a home. Yeah, we figure after 4.5 years, it’s about time to go to the next level..but we need to get a house first. A place with ample space for our cars, for Charlie to run around a bit and a functional kitchen. We’ve been living in this tiny apartment for so long and I’ve particularly gotten really sick of it. Doesn’t even have enough space for a damn washing machine.

Long story cut short, we found this double storey terrace house near where we’re living right now and instantly fell in love with it. Told the agent we’re taking it. Told her we’re going to get the house valued by the bank and then come back with our offer price. Which we promptly did. Bank came back with the price that is about RM40K lower than what owner has listed. So after about a week of negotiations, we got the price down to our ideal…which is about 16K more than the bank’s actual valuation. We didn’t mind paying the extra, it’s a business after all and we really wanted the house.

So we got to arranging for our mortgage and after nearly 2 weeks, nothing has happened yet. Apparently, the owner has refused to handover the title to the bank for processing. Why?

Apparently, a different property agent has told him that she could sell his house for RM20K more thank his initial listed price!!! And to our horror, this greedy asshole of a house owner believes that his un-renovated, 15 year old, dirty house is worth RM60K more than what the banks have valued. So he refuses to sell it to us. Okay, so he’s greedy and stupid. What can we do? We can do nothing. Except for looking at different houses, which will be his loss eventually. Good luck selling your house dumbass.

What I’m really angry about is how what these agents appear to be doing, they are essentially spoiling the market for both buyers and sellers.

By seemingly jacking up house prices in order to make more money when there are ample buyers out there who would willingly part with their money for a reasonable above average market price. I am extremely pissed off by this and to whichever property agent that is reading this and is trying to pull a fast one, FUCK YOU.

Anyway, we eventually found out that the agents who in my opinion have been speculating with the market is these bunch of agents from this agency called J A Valley Properties. Their names are Judy Chong, Steven Chong and their daughter. If you’re looking to buy properties in Petaling Jaya, beware. It seems their modus operandi is to find out the owners of the properties, contact them and then promise to sell their properties at a much inflated price. Then they’ll get their colleagues from the same agency to do the same and before you know it, the owner is totally convinced that they have underpriced their properties. Mind you from what I’ve heard, these people don’t even physically value the properties or see pictures before conveniently stating the price. And who get screwed? Uninformed owners (and of course, greedy ones) and sincere property buyers like you and I.

I’ve actually contacted them way before this to view some houses they have listed on http://www.iproperty.com. But we eventually decided to stay away from them because I found that they tend to offer their properties around RM50K more than the market value or other property agents. They seem really damn shifty as well and keep shoving down your throats properties that are way beyond our budgets. Like wtf, stop wasting my time. Very persistent and annoying as well and doesn’t understand the meaning of “It’s beyond my budget”.

Here are a couple of house buying tips:

1. Drive around the neighbourhood you want and just browse for houses row by row, street by street. From our experience, calling agents up are frustrating. Of course, that said, there are professional & good ones out there, we’ve met a few. So good luck.

2. Always have the banks value the property before making a price offer. With the bank’s valuation, you have a solid benchmark for making an offer.

3. Check out Judy Chong, Steven Chong and their daughter (whose name I can’t remember) of J A Valley and learn what kind of property agents you should watch out for from them.

4. Research, research and research. Don’t ever be an un-informed buyer.

So, yeah we’re still looking albeit frustratingly. I hope we’ll find our dream home soon cause I’m itching to decorate.

Michael Jackson is dead. just the other day i was chatting with my boyfriend about entertainers that we must definitely see in concerts and MJ was on the top of the list. it’s hard to believe that he’s gone for good. i wish i wasn’t that young when he performed in malaysia. now i really will never be able to see him in the flesh.

rest in peace michael.

Yes, you can win a trip to Old Trafford with SMIRNOFF® Limited Edition Promotional Pack!

Great news to all Manchester United fans who wish to catch their favourite Manchester United football team at Old Trafford! SMIRNOFF®, the world’s number one premium spirit has announced the launch of a SMIRNOFF® limited edition promotional pack design in Malaysia, where consumers and fans alike can participate in a contest to win a trip to Manchester to watch some of the greatest footballers of our time play at Old Trafford!

This specially designed promotional pack available on SMIRNOFF® 21 featuring four of Manchester United’s top players is launched in celebration of the partnership between SMIRNOFF® and Manchester United as SMIRNOFF® vodka becomes the official spirits partner and official responsible drinking partner of the club.

To participate, you can either log on to www.thespiritofchampions.com or SMS the correct names of the four Manchester United players on the promotional pack, and share in maximum 25 words how they would celebrate with SMIRNOFF®.

For those who opt to participate via SMS, they also stand the chance to win attractive weekly prizes, including Manchester United Malaysia Tour match tickets, Manchester United Jerseys and Caps, laptops, MP3 Players, Mobile phones, and Digital Cameras! For further contest rules and regulations, please refer to the contest entry guide available on the SMIRNOFF® limited edition promotional pack.

Only 12,000 bottles of the SMIRNOFF® limited edition promotional pack will be available at selected supermarkets and entertainment outlets nationwide starting July 2009, selling at a recommended retail price of RM160 per 75cl bottle.

And what about us bloggers??? W00t, an exclusive treat for bloggers residing in Malaysia!

A 2-week contest named “Celebrate Like A Champion” is running on Thaiboxingirl’s blog (www.thaiboxingirl.blogspot.com) from now till 8th July 09. There are attractive prizes are up for grabs, including SMIRNOFF Manchester United branded merchandises, including 2 VIP Manchester United VS Malaysian Selection match tickets (on 18th July) worth RM 308 each, 10 RM98 match tickets, exclusive invites to party with Manchester United legendary footballer Bryan Robson on the 17th July and many more!!!

Interested? This is how to participate:

Part 1: Answer the 4 questions correctly:

i) Name 4 of the Manchester United legendary players.
ii) Name the founder of Smirnoff Vodka, and the country Smirnoff originates.
iii) Complete this sentence, stating the partnership between Smirnoff and Manchester United: Smirnoff is the official _____________of Manchester United.
i) What is the latest Smirnoff’s Limited Edition bottle called?

Part 2:

Take picture of your “CELEBRATE LIKE A CHAMPION” moment and insert it into a prefixed Smirnoff Photo frame provided in thaiboxingirl’s blog. In your most creative style, caption how this was your most glorious champion moment.

For the prizes, there will be a set of Grand Prize, 2 sets of second prizes, 3 sets of third prizes, 5 sets of special prizes and 5 sets of consolations prizes!!!!!

1st prize :
1 Jersey + Smirnoff limited edition promo bottle + 2xRM308 VIP tix + 5 party invites to hang out with 2 ManU Legendary Players

2x 2nd prize :
1 Jersey + 1 Smirnoff limited edition promo bottle + 2x RM98 Match tix + 5 MU party invites each

3x 3rd prize :
1 Jersey worth RM150 + 2 x RM98 Match tix each

5 specials :
1 Cap (worth RM80) + 2 x RM58 Match tix each

5 consolations :
1 Cap each

Contest is opened to 18-year old and above, non-Muslim bloggers residing in Malaysia, at least within the period of 25th June 09 to 19th July 09. To participate and for more details please go to www.thaiboxingirl.blogspot.com.

As for me, I’ve been to Old Trafford…

but all I got was a lousy lollipop!

So yeah, I’m so going to participate in this contest. Good luck people!

…with the Nokia N97.

PICTURE SOURCE

Yes, that’s me. Last week I was invited to the launch of Nokia N97. Was really looking forward to the event because I’ve heard so much about the phone. How awesome it is. How sleek it looks. And how much better it is than its predecessor, the Nokia N96. I owned the N96 for a while but gave up after about a week and reverted back to my old faithful, the Nokia N82.

Nokia N97 launch @ Mandarin Oriental.

The N96 honestly was an overrated and overpriced phone. As much as I love Nokia, I can’t help but feel that the N96 was the single most disappointing thing that the company has ever come up with. It simply was not able to compete with the older, tired looking N95 (which I had begrudgingly gave to my Mom and she LOVES it). Not even close. The camera was an epic disappointment, the ergonomics of the phone was awkward and it was slow as hell. Even the firmware update did nothing to alleviate its problems. It’s got sexy looks, yes but unfortunately the pros end there. So yes, I had my reservations about the N97.

What do I know….the N97 had me at the sliding. Yes, I’m shallow like that. The sliding mechanism is too cool. It’s not flimsy and in fact feels really solid. It slides upwards to reveal a full qwerty keyboard with classy matte surface. I’m trying to stay calm just talking about the matte keys. The keyboard keys are spaced comfortably away from each other, unlike the E71i which are right next to each other and is quite annoying to use (even abnormally tiny fingers like mine keep pressing the wrong keys).

PICTURE SOURCE

I’m not really big on touch screens because I’m more of a tactile person but the N97’s screen is unlike the Iphone where you can do that air conducting thing ala Minority Report (ok kinda, cause there’s still some ever so light contact with the screen). You actually have to press the N97 screen so it’s all good. It apparently even comes with a stylus for people with clumsy fingers (like yours truly) and of course, for those who prefer to use chinese characters, you can do away with the hanyin pinyin bs. Just write!

On to the OS of the phone. It still uses Symbian60 and I have no problems with it, namely because I’ve never tried others :P The phone seems reasonably responsive. I was testing out the personal phone of one of the Nokia’s bigwigs (whose name I have unfortunately forgotten) and it was loaded with widgets and all kinds of stuff but I didn’t notice any lag. So yay to that.

The one thing that I was worried about was definitely the camera. Majority of the pictures on my blog were all captured with my N82’s camera and it’s very important to me that my phone’s camera is able to take pictures in the dark. The N97 passed my camera test with flying colours. It doesn’t have xenon flash like the N82 but the two LEDs are good enough. The camera button is thankfully not spongy like the N96 thus really, really helped in adding to the clarity of the picture. The white balance of pictures taken by the N97 is one of the most accurate too. It has lost the blueish tint that are quite synonymous with pictures taken on Nokia’s phones.

So overall, I really, really love this phone. I don’t think I’ve ever wanted a phone so bad. The last time I had this feeling was back in the 90s when the Nokia 8310 came out. I will no doubt get an N97, whether by hook or by crook. All I’m waiting now is for the price to stabilise a bit and then I will whip out my life savings for it. Afterall, my beloved N82 is starting to show signs of age.

I will get the black one, but the white one looks really cool too.

PICTURE SOURCE

Yeah and I didn’t take any picture of the phone at the event because I was too engrossed playing with it. But I did have one gem of a picture from that night….

This is me looking horrified for super failing at Guitar Hero competition. I think ST was too stunned to react. There was an audio video delay, I insist that was the case.

Nuffnang Tiger Standout Party was fab.

#1

I went as a chinese streetwalker with intention of landing a gweilau.

#2

I study engrish very hard. I can say, “I would like, some wot ah”.

But ah…I didn’t stand out much. Some thought I was a Tai Thong waitress, aiyak! Didn’t even win one miserable prize…I need to work harder with my costume in the future.

Okay, maybe I wasn’t that pathetic. I managed to be the FIRST privileged standout. The prize for this? Fame and glory.

#3

No. 1

So many imaginative costumes that night.

#4

Got beggar.

#5

Got terrorist.

Even my biao mei from China was at the party. I give her the wisdom in finding gweilau.

#6

My biao mei is very plitty.

Let me tell you the gweilau count on that night was so low. The only other person that came close to being a gweilau is this one. His hair very bronde.

#7

Fakeplan white person.

Now onto party pics..

It may look like I was intruding in the picture below. But the real intruder was KY!

#8

Me, Mell and the picture intruder -_-. But if you looked carefully, KY was upstaged.

#9

Michael, Michael’s gf and me. And who is that dude with his tongue out at the back?????

#10

These girls dressed to win! The winner is the missy in the gigantic costume w00t.

#11

Party fuel.

#12

Horng, Selina and me.

The end of the party was near when someone announced Timothy’s birthday. Yeah we were all given a piece of paper earlier to write birthday wishes for him which we then stuck on his bodehhh.

#13

Congratulations, you’re an old fart now.

Last picture for laughs.

#14

Holy shit my arm is the size of their waists (Suet, Jia Mei, Aud)! -____-

a mommy cat has given birth to a litter of kittens on our balcony. one of em strolled right into our living room.

so precious. wonder how hard it is to care for cat?

you know what always annoy me to the core?

when the anticipation of biting into a fresh hamburger gets dashed by a terribly aligned burger.

in this case, it’s a fillet-o-fish.

i want the hamburger:fish fillet:cheese ratio to be equal for every bite, thank you very much.

on another note, i just learned a new trick.

balancing a fork and spoon on a toothpick balanced on the mouth of a glass.

obviously, i am the second cumming of merlin.