Patriotism in Unity - The Name of The Game

Now that August month is here & in conjunction of the coming Merdeka (Independence Day) in 2 days time, the theme of the month is none other than unity. I mean what other theme is there to talk about besides unity? It has been 4 years since my last post about this topic, titled Merdeka & how much things has changed since.

Racist remarks, threats to people of other races, acts that showed disrespect to other religions/beliefs, all well publicized all over the medias over the past 4 years & it's still ongoing. Done not by ordinary people like u & me, but sadly by people holding prominent roles in the society, people who are supposed to be the role models for the society, people who are supposingly upholding the law. And the blame game goes on & on. I don't need to specifically mention any here since most of you, readers of this post are well savvy enough to know what's I'm talking about.

That's talking about the present. Speaking about future, looking at the youth & kids' behaviours today, we are bound to be worried about how can they help shape this country. U see children mixing only with other people of their own race in school canteen. Go to a mamak restaurant, u see groups segregated according to races. That's not all. Blame it on plain ignorance or lack of awareness or whatever, u see youths today (and matured adults too) don't really understand the culture / beliefs / practices of the other races. True story accounts, some people still cant differentiate a tosai, a capati & a poori. Some still don't understand why a Chinese can celebrate both Chinese New Year & Christmas. Some people think Deepavali is a celebration of Indian new year. Many people have never attend a Malay kenduri. Some people think dialects like Hokkien, Cantonese, Hakka are all the same besides Mandarin.

The point is, if we don't know the other customs & beliefs, how are we to know how to respect them? The rule in the corporate world is, if u don't know about a topic or don't know what to talk about, u keep your mouth shut. And here, u have some people (prominent ones at that) trying to be too smart by telling the public about their standings, without thinking of the consequences. Best part is, even if we try to follow other customs, we will get a certain look from them as if it's abnormal for us to do it. I still got stared at, whenever I use my hand to eat banana leaf rice. Many people are surprised when they know I can speak pretty good Malay.

Most recent news is about how an act of kindness shown by Raven Murugesan towards a Muslim cashier, has created a big buzz in the Net. Not undermining what Raven has done but during the time of our parents, what he has done is an usual random thing to do then & there's nothing to shout about really. Today, it's seems to be a BIG deal for a person to show kindness towards another person of other race. We just fail to understand that when we see a person beyond the colour of his/her skin, all we're looking is just another child of God. If we're to put one finger each from ourselves & that person & cut the fingers, what we're bound to see is only red coloured blood from both fingers. I've said this before in previous posts that if the Americans take centuries to accept a black as a president, then this young country of ours at 56 years old, has a long way to go to be able to progress as a nation for all.

We can complain for the whole day, telling about what's went wrong and have brainstorming session with the who's who on how to do better as a nation. Will things improve? Merdeka is not about who fly the most numbers of national flags or who hoist the flag the highest. Merdeka is not about having to stand up to Negaraku each time I go to cinema. Kee Thuan Chye hit the bull's eye in his blog when he said patriotism is what u carry in your heart - your love for your country, if u want to put it that way. It is something that make you decide you will fight to protect it, perhaps even die for it.

And it's not the question about what other should do to make things better but instead, it's about what can we do to make things better. Our forefathers has fought their lives for this country & it is us, who should be making efforts to preserve peace and unity in the country. We show the others how to become a better Malaysian by becoming one ourselves. A divine teaching said, life around us is a reflection of ourselves. And we change others by changing ourselves. And me? Life has never been better, having great friends from all walks of life and I truly thanked God for this. And these crazy, memorable experiences will definitely be shared with my children in future to inspire them to help create a better Malaysia.

The Akurians

Happy Merdeka everyone !!!!

Language - The Power Tool

Language, they say is the most powerful tool to succeed in getting your message across to the audience. The utmost important must-do way is by using normal conversational language as a tool. When I say, conversational language, it doesn't need to be perfectly constructed sentences. The infamous Manglish (English spoken in localized Malaysian slang with localized words) is one conversational language. Same can be applied for other local languages as well. Knowing the language is one thing. Being proficient in it is another thing. Being able to use it to appeal to the right audience is another whole new level.

I usually train my Customer Service personnels to adapt to customer's language level to be able to create a rapport with them. Giving dummies example, if a German is working in Japan, he can't speak German to the colleagues. Of course, they can speak a common language, such as English. However, if he's to learn Japanese & speak to the colleagues, it brings the rapport & relationship to a higher level. Even, in any tasks in our working environment, we can use this method too. This can be demonstrated in below some real-life scenarios below:-

MESSAGE: To check driver status & to inform him on the urgency to deliver the goods to customer

Speaking to Malay driver (Malay language)
Me: Bang, ko kat mana ni? (Bro, where are u now?)
Driver: Aku kat Shah Alam ni, dekat roundabout JVC. (I'm in Shah Alam now, nearby JVC roundabout)
Me: Barang Canon tu, ko hantar cepat pi sana ya. Aku dah kena marah teruk dengan customer ni (U  know the Canon goods, please deliver it urgently, okay?? I've already got scolded by customer)
Driver: Ya ker? OK, lagi 10 minit sampai. (Is it?? OK, be right there in 10 minutes)
Me: OK, timo kaseh ya (OK, thank you)

Speaking to Indian driver (Malay language)
Me: A-ne, lu sekarang kat mana? (Bro, where are you now??)
Driver: Saya kah? Saya dekat.....tol USJ. Kejap lagi sampai. (Me?? Me now nearby.....USJ toll. Will arrive there shortly)
Me: Itu macam kah? Itu barang Canon ahh...lu bawa kan? Itu manyak urgent lahh. Lu cepat-cepat hantar sana ahh. Itu customer sudah manyak marah lahh (Is it??U know that Canon goods? Ur carrying it right?? It's an urgent goods, could u please deliver it urgently. The customer is very angry now)
Driver: Ya kah? OK, OK, nanti sekejap sampai (Is it?? OK, OK, will arrive there shortly)
Me: OK, thank you ahhh. (OK, thank you)

Speaking to Chinese driver (Cantonese language)
Me: Tailo, yi kar lei hai pin to??  (Bro, where are you now??)
Driver: Yi kar ahh?? Yi kar ngo hai USJ toll kor to (Now?? Now. I'm nearby USJ toll)
Me: Tiew lo !!!  Ko ti Canon for ha mai, ho chung yu ka. Ngo pei hap chai tiew to ho sai lik...Fai tit sung hoi kor to, ma fan lei. (Fu**!!! U know the Canon goods, it's very urgent u know. I got fu** nicely by customer. Could u please deliver it urgently?? Thanks)
Driver: K&%%& !!! Ho lah ho lah. Ngo chun leong ahhh (K&%*!! OK, OK, will do my best)
Me: Mmmm koi lei ahh, ha si cheng lei yamcha (Thank you very much, will buy u drinks next time)

I'm truly grateful to be able to grasp the local conversational language, be it in Malay, English or dialects like Cantonese, Hokkien etc thru exposures in my education years in national schools & current working environment. My only regret is not learning Mandarin properly during my schooling years, which I promised myself not to let it happen to my children. Not undermining some people putting priority for their children on learning internationally recognized language such as English & Mandarin, but many of us may have forgotten about the having language skills required to work in a Malaysian environment.

True, learning English & Mandarin is important & in fact, should be made a priority for all children. Unless, we're training ourselves to work in oversea country for all our life, we mustn't ignore the other languages as well such as Malay & local dialects such as Cantonese, Hokkien, which sadly I think is slowly dying. As what I mentioned earlier, grasping the conversational language (not necessarily need to master) to survive in a Malaysian environment. We took for granted on having a home country with cultures so diverse that we forgotten that it's actually a free training ground for our children to learn multiple languages, all at the same time. Something to ponder on for the parent wannabes or for those planning education for their child....

Jalan-Jalan Cari Makan - Penang II (And Perak too)

Following up from my previous post of proposed crash course, makan-makan program to Penang under Jalan-Jalan Cari Makan - Penang. OK, maybe parts of Perak as well, since this is a road trip up north. Sharing with all on the food photos & my views of them



Char Siew Pau: Restoran Foh San, Ipoh - Fluffy, freshly made with chunky meats. There's feels of satisfaction already after seeing smokes out from the pau upon opening of one side.



Nasi Kandar: Line Clear Nasi Kandar - Talking about brand awareness, this is one name in everyone's mind whenever u mention Penang Nasi Kandar. Always fresh at any time of the day u want it. I really mean ANYTIME...

 

 

Durian ABC: Restoran Kek Seng - The best in Penang, a desert that I ate since my childhood days. Although the durian ice cream is no longer that pulpy as compared to yesteryears, still worthwhile to have it...

 

 

Fried Oyster: Restoran Seng Thor - This is fried oyster with eggs. Read me, Fried Oyster with Eggs & not Fried Eggs with Oyster. Enough said. Without doubt, the best in Penang

 

 

BBQ Drumsticks: New Lane hawker centre - Tastes better than wings and its a wonder why cant those be available in KL

 

 

Sar Hor Fun: New Lane hawker centre - Its that broth...Not too watery, not too dry either. By the time u finish eating the kueh teow, nothing is left on the plate, really.

 

 

Brown Sugar Pancake: Pulau Tikus market stall - No one else in M'sia have pancake of tis kind. Filled with brown sugar & grinded peanuts, giving the not-too-sweet flavour to it. Perfect for the one who crave simple breakie meal without compromising the glucose level
 



Fruit Rojak: Gurney Drive - Its hard to explain why Penang fruit rojak is only available in Gurney Drive. Main difference compared to the ones in KL are the sauces and the mangoes used. Try stall no 52, "Tan Swee Hoe" and stall no 39, "GP Soon".
 

 



Duck Egg Char Kueh Teow: Pulau Tikus market stall - People say duck eggs has high cholesterol. With the tantalizing aroma that comes with it, does anyone cares?
 

 



Steamed River Prawn: Restoran Luen Fong, Tanjung Tualang - The best prawn dishes ever !! One taste, & u wouldn't wanna eat any prawn dishes anywhere else. Juicy, meaty, fresh. Eat it original style, u will understand why people travel long hours from KL just to have this

 



Kueh Teow Soup: Restoran Onn Kee, Ipoh - It so smooth that u can slurp this from your mouth into stomach without u really realize it
 

 



Ipoh Bean Sprout: Restoran Onn Kee, Ipoh - What more can I say? Ipoh people are lucky lot for having first hand supply of this wonderfully created products of nature. U have to eat it to know how I felt about this one