Another revolution of the wheel..

Received a SMS from Abg Man, invite for a ride to Bagan Lalang on Sunday morning. Made plans earlier and contemplated to give the ride a pass. But then again, it has been quite some time since I have last ridden Scotty (almost 4 month to be exact). So, feeling a bit optimistic, Bagan Lalang seems like a doable distance. If I can't finish the whole distance, I could just do it half way.

But then again, I have to be realistic. It has been almost four month since I last ridden Scotty. And no physical activities of any kind, other than lifting wok, pots etc. So, the sobering thought that I have also added more weight, decided to give that Bagan Lalang ride a pass.

Will need to train and ride a bit before I can re-join the Clan. There is no other way. Now, where did I put the spare tube and the new pump?

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Sepohon kayu daunnya rimbun..

Conversation this evening between Father and two year old Sasha.

Father: Siapa tak solat, dia ber..
Sasha: ..doca! (dosa!)
Father: Siapa berdosa, nanti kena..
Sasha: ..cebat! (sebat!)
Father: Jom, solat..
Sasha: Nanok (tak nak!)
Father: Aiyoh..(stumped..)

Nak kena sebat agaknya Sasha ni. Tapi dalam nak terapkan, kena la sedikit demi sedikit, insyaAllah

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Yellow or Green?

The recent price hike on fuel has seen RON95 petrol increased by 5 cents per litre and RON97 dictated by market price. As the price of RON95 is still subsidised, its sale to foreigners are banned with foreign registered cars can only fill up with RON97.

Surprisingly, we could see foreign registered cars gleefully pumping RON95 into their tanks (at least sighted at a few petrol stations, along the North-South highway), clearly defying the rule. So, the question is who is responsible to enforce this ruling? The relevant ministry or the petrol station owner.

In an economic sense, an extra 25cents per litre would be an interesting enough carrot for petrol station owners to enforce the ruling of RON95 non-sale to foreign registered cars, as a full 50litres tank could easily brings in an extra RM12.50 in sales. So, why it is not being fully enforced by the petro station owners?

Or is petrol sales commission are based on volume only? Hence there no extra motivation for sellers or petrol station owners to enforce the sales as it is the oil companies who benefited from the increased price? I can only speculate as I am not from the industry.

Anybody care to elaborate?

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Green, green grass of home?

A friend commented on one social website that if the government are serious about protecting the environment, how come one hybrid car, a Prius, costs RM176,000 in our beloved country if the price of the same car in the States is just equivalent to RM73,000?

Should it be cheaper to encourage green living and minimise one's carbon footprint? Should its import duty (one thing that jacks the price up) be reduced or even waived in support for the green movement?

How much would a Prius cost if it is sold in Langkawi? Hehehe..that's some point to ponder ;) What do you think?

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The wheel has landed..

Finally, after a very, very long time, the back wheels of Scotty has returned home. With a new spoke (in addition to the three before that), it is ready once again to carry my big a** all over the place again.

Even when I was at the bike shop earlier today, the owner wife was commenting that I must have not been riding since then. I want to tell her that I have a few more gleaming new road bikes at home, but that is just wishful thinking, hehe. The bottom line is, I haven't had the time to drop by at the bike shop and pick up the wheels. And its just a convenient excuse for not riding :(

With that note, and pending the arrival of the storks, I don't think I would be riding in the next few days. Once the storks delivered, then it would be easier for me to plan my rides. Really need to ride and catch-up all those missed sessions. And row more often. En AzLei said, early October will be some ergo races coming up. Now, that's a thought.

Have a great week ahead people!

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Interconnected..

In the course of our lives, we can't help but to be interconnected to one another. 'No man is an island' is often cited. A happening thousand of miles away could inadvertedly affects our lives in more ways than one.

Or how, one's carelessness lead to an old car overheating and now slapped with a repair bill of more than a thousand bucks. And suddenly, thoughts of a new car is entertained. How is all that interconnected? Beats me..hehehe ;)

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To drive, to cycle or to ride..

I drove most days to work. I cycle some days to work (not as often as I like to though) and there are days that I ride to work. As in riding on the public transportation. And today is such days.

Driving usually takes the shortest time. Riding could be on either extreme (at least if we're talking about city riding), while taking the public transport would be subject to the adherence to schedule and availability of (connecting)transport. If I am riding, need to be out of the house latest 7am, as with taking public transportation. Driving? Own sweet time, latest 740am.

Cost wise, driving could be the costliest with petrol costs on top of tolls etc (for me at least), with public tranportation would be manageable (no use outpricing yourself) and riding would basically cost, err.. near to nothing ;)

So, in choosing the preferred mode of transport, both facts must be factored in. Like today. Let's do some calculation..

Car : Toll (3.80) + Fuel (±4.00) = ±45mins
Public Transport : Ticket (4.50) = ±70mins
Riding my old bike : sweat, swear = ±90 mins

Note: The journey back home, could be a whole, totally different matter altogether. Especially if you're taking the public transport ;)

So, the song by Queens, "Bicycle Race" came to mind..

I want to ride my bicycle
I want to ride my bike
I want to ride my bicycle
I want to ride where ever I like..

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