who let the dogs out... (i)

" Caution: Massive load of graphics, may take a while to load. "



Last weekend, there was a show held for dog lovers in Kenyalang Park's Community Hall. Event participants were dog-lovers and the beloved pets. The crowd turnout was great! The small hall was instantly packed with people of all ages, including 13thpanda. She was spotted in the hall.



Other bloggers could be in the mix as well. Could she be a blogger? (blogger at work).



Kids just love dogs, especially puppies.



It was rather difficult to capture the dogs on show that day. Dogs, by nature, are active species. They can't stop moving around.

I find it rather difficult to get a decent shot that day. Flash may freeze the dogs' movements, but I don't like the effect came out with the build in flash on my camera. It wasn't soft enough, and the light would not fall/reflect on places I'd like. (I cannot afford a flash gun yet.) By setting the shutter speed with just below 1 second, or maybe fraction of seconds doesn't really helped either - pictures would turned out blurred (due to dog movement), or too dark (lack of light).



I attempted to shoot from far using a 90-300mm lens, hand-held. It didn't work, because of the room lighting (too dark), and I had not got tripod with me. So, I had to switch to 18-55mm lens.



I am just not a dog expert enough to identify all the breeds and types of dogs on display. For better reference, you can click here and here.

There were some interesting dogs at display, really interesting type.

Firstly, I present you the largest dog in the hall...



The breed, and type, not known to me, (Does anyone know?) has a large body. Its size attracted attention to visitors there. All kinds of attention.



Everyone just want to be photographed with this rare type of dog in Kuching.



I heard its originated from Switzerland, is it not? Oh, if you are wondering how big this dog was...




Look at that, comparing its size with the dude in orange.



Despite the attentions he got, he constantly gave the 'what're-ya-looking-at?' or 'i-don't-give-a-damn' look.

More to come in next entry...

i received a call...

... and I am waiting for confirmation, before I can release any details.

meeting @ sue's

I was invited to a gathering up among several bloggers in Kuching at Sue's apartment. Irene invited me. Sue is a reader of Kuching blogs, she is residing at the States.



Among those who showed up include Irene, Ann and Husband, Frankie, Boon Kim, Ken, Robin, Ivan, Chun Chow and Naomi. (Did I miss anyone out? I hope not)



I arrived a little late, and didn't get to snap much photos.

The apartment was really nice. Each unit may seemed to be three-storeys tall, but the fact is, it is designed to be a one and a half storey unit. The landscape within the apartment's compound is great!




The swimming pool is really a stunner. Amazing design. It looks clean, fresh and BLUE. The photos aren't edited, not altered in anyway.

However, this one is.



A quick fix on the photo to emphasize on the clouds in the sky. A rough piece of work. Please do pardon the lack of finesse.

And finally, group photo. I have never shown any photos of my face in this blog this far, and I thought I should maintain that policy. At least, I think it isn't time for me to show yet.



At least I do give a illustrated version of my face. Hehe.

Nice meeting you all. Nice meeting you Sue.

Up next, doggies and pussies (as in cat!!) coming to the town.



" Photo Note: The group photo came from Irene's camera, as the one taken with my A70 sucked big time, too much noise due to high ISO. (I think it was at ISO 400). Also, according to Irene, the patch next to me, is dust particle, and not supernatural, or paranormal phenomena. Phew~ "

sports review: malaysian football

Malaysian Football
Malaysia 1 - 3 Oman



I couldn't resist but to write about our nation's football, Malaysian football. 15th Asian Games in Doha was officiated on 1 December, but some events started a couple of days before the opening ceremony, and football was one of them.

Malaysian football team opened their match against Oman, and the result did not surprise me a bit. 1 -3, the final score line, in favor of Oman. I have watched the match through Astro's telecast partially, and those flashes of moments were enough for me. I couldn't feel any pride running in me when I saw the Malaysian team's display.



In the defeat, Malaysia conceded an own goal, and an inexperienced goalkeeping. I cannot find the logic of Malaysian coach Norizan praising the team's spirit, after conceding such a weak goal, and putting up such a dismal display. The match only showed how inexperience Malaysians are at this level, and their poor touches and finishing contributed to their continuing falter in football.

During the game, there were a couple of lines by the match commentator which caught my attention.

The Malaysians had not been able to pull together on international stage. It's such a shame for a nation who has so much passion towards the sports.

Also, he pointed out on Malaysian football players' exposure. It is no secret that every football player around the world, dreams of playing in Europe for big club, even a second-tier league is considered big here in Malaysia. There had been talk about Malaysian players being offered for trial at European clubs not long ago, particularly, our U-19 keeper (I think he's Under-19) attracted interest from English side Blackburn Rovers.

Players like Akmal Rizal, once the most lethal and one of the better strikers in Malaysian crop over the recent years, had stint in Europe. Titus James was sent to France for football lesson since a tender age of 14, and now, he has yet to won a call-up for Malaysian senior squad. Or the question is, has he even won a professional contract in France?

With all the respect, I am not saying Titus James is a flop, or a no-talent. But the truth is, why dream of flying when you even have problem stabling both your feet? Why Europe when your base is not firmly established?

The match commentator brought this up during the match. We can have our footballers spread throughout the Asian continent for more valuable football exposure. In Asia, we have better leagues. We have J-League (Japan), K-League (Korea), Chinese League (China) in Far East; we have middle-east countries with good football reputation, such as Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Bahrain, and etc.

These leagues were breeding ground for Asian stars who had made fame in International stage, and professional stage. Names like Nakata, Nakamura, Shinji Ono (Japan), Sun Jihai (China), Park Ji-Sung, Lee Young-Pyo, Seol, Ahn Jung-Hwan Ki-Hyeon (South Korea), those names are certainly no stranger to footballing world.






What has gone wrong to Malaysian football? Malaysia has taken quite a plunge in FIFA world ranking over recent years, and is now ranked at lowly 153 (out of 198 nations listed in FIFA ranking). Almost any team in the world is happy to face Malaysia, with victory almost a warrant.

Should we look into the football management in the country? Has we not got enough raw talent here? Could we not breed talents? Are the talents we have not good enough? Despite large sum of money being injected for the sports development, why are we still on the down slope in the sports?

Malaysia boleh (can).. really?


15th Asian Games: Doha 2006
Basketball: Qatar vs Syria



A short note on the basketball game between Qatar and Syria. I happened to watched this game on Astro. Qatar, a nation which enjoys better economy in the world - literally rich nation, was superior in the game. For Syria, it was a battle against Goliath.

Qatar is one of the stronger nations in the Western Asia in sports, be it in football or basketball. A victory was almost certain even from the tip-off. But, I was rather surprised to see how Syria put up their fight against Qatar. Syria was playing no team basketball at all. Most of the plays were really individual moves, and rather, inexperienced.



Their inexperience translated the fact that most of the players could be amateurs or part timers in the sports. In contrast, Qatar lined up professional players, and among them have had trials in the NBA. I believe some may have stints in Europe as well.



Despite the high number of turnovers in the game (official stats recorded 13 for Qatar and 17 for Syria, but my count seemed to be more than that), the Qataris still reeled away with a 40 points victory, 99-59. Massive difference between the two sides. I can't imagine if Malaysian team were to lined up against them.


Barclay's English Premier League
Manchester United to sign Henrik Larsson on-loan in January



Sir Alex Ferguson managed to lure Henrik Larsson to Old Trafford on-loan in January, primarily as back-up in his striking options. The Red Devils fall short of striker cover, as they currently have Rooney, Saha and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer (it's always difficult to spell his name) as the fit strikers, while Alan Smith is still recovering to fitness following lengthy injury lay-off. Young and rising striker Rossi is on-loan at Newcastle.

Other note, Arsenal's title hope waned after another defeat against Fulham. They lost 1-2 to the Cottagers. Prior to the match, Gunner's old boy Anelka whipped 2 goals to sent Arsene Wenger and Co. to their despair in Bolton's 3-1 victory. With that result, Arsenal was left trailing 16 points behind leaders Manchester United, whom had drawn against Chelsea 1 - 1 in their meeting at Old Trafford.

Arsenal had just pull themselves from setback after finishing as victors in their derby game against Tottenham. Gilberto's double goals from penalty spot gave Gunners a much needed 3- 0 win over their London neighbors.


NBA
A quickie on NBA

The 2006-07 season started with unexpected results. Dallas Mavericks slumped to a 0-4 start; Memphis struggled without Pau Gasol; Utah Jazz leads the league with best record; No one expected Orlando Magic to be pace setters in the Eastern Conference.

Since then, there has been a little change/update. Some of the big teams are putting their form together now, and have had good runs to date. Dallas Mavericks are team on fire after winning 12 games in a row. Phoenix Suns started slowly, but now have won 6 in a row, and their record stands at 9-6. Despite losing 3 of their last 4 games, Utah Jazz remain as the league best.

With acquisition of defensive king Ben Wallace, the Chicago Bulls were thought to be the top contenders this season. However, things did not turn to be that way, as Big Ben struggled to blend into Bulls' system, and are now struggling with 6-9 record. Click here for glance of the standings.

Not much to talk about NBA these days, at least not in this entry. It has been long up till this point.

So, till next time. Enjoying the 30 days (or 29 days) left in 2006. After that, we will be welcoming new year - 2007.




" Photos note: All photos are borrowed from the following sites for illustration purposes: 15th Asian Games: Doha 2006 Official Site, and Manchester United Official Site. "

name of the game

It's been a while since my last sports review, or any sports related write up. A lot had happened around the sporting world. There are ups and downs in the NBA; In England, the pre-season hype of 4 powerhouses - Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester United, possibly Tottenham just sneaking behind, seemed to have waned to a two-horse race this season; 15th Asian Game has just commenced in Doha, Qatar; and many more.

Before I get to those, there is one article I felt I must share. I came across it on a weekly Football edition of theStar newspaper. I thought it was very well written, and very nice to read on. I couldn't find the online version, so here it is, copy and pasted as per printed on the paper.

It's a little lengthy, but I do hope you can spend time reading it:

Name of the Game
Some have to pay a cruel price for watching a world game, writes ROB HUGHES.


Sometimes the compulsion to watch a soccer game on screen is almost beyond our comprehension.

When Manchester United met Chelsea on Sunday, the pictures were instantly relayed across the globe. The match ended 1-1. it was good but not great, intense but not inspirational.

Yet the marketing of England’s Premier League is such a triumph that audiences stay awake in the Far East, and wake up in the Americas to see the action “live” in a pub, or in a cinema.

But can the view be worth risking liberty, even life?

From Somalia came news that masked gunmen, seemingly representing the Islamic Courts Union, had stormed a cinema in the central region of Hiiraan during the game. Shafici Mohyaddin Abokar, a local sports writer, reported on the website of AIPS, the International Sports Press Association, that 25 fans, some as young as 10, had been arrested, after having their heads shaved, and jailed.

The militia also reportedly confiscated and destroyed cinema equipment in the Buuloburde district.

The crime, apparently, was being caught doing what people across the world do on a Sunday night: get drawn into the global game.

It may be hard to grasp that for the entrance fee equivalent to 30 US cents, men and boys in an African land risk everything.

Even as they languished in prison, Chelsea was announcing on Tuesday that it is to
open a new Chinese-language version of its website.

This spread of soccer, this race to what Chelsea’s chief executive, Peter Kenyon, boasts will make the richest club the world’s famous “brand”, was announced in Dubai, where leaders of soccer and business had their annual convention of mutual self-interest.

Sepp Blatter, the FIFA president, was there, explaining why the world governing
body had suspended Iran for political interference in the running of soccer. Suspending, yet making an exception for the duration of the Asian Games that are about to start in Qatar.

He said nothing about Somalia.

It takes extremely brave people even to report what is happening there while the struggle for Islamic control of the country is so extreme. A year ago, three people were killed by a grenade lobbed into another cinema, coincidentally during another Manchester United-Chelsea screening.

And during the World Cup in July, a cinema owner and a teenage girl were slain by a gunman in central Somalia while they watched a match in Germany.
The Somalians cannot say they have not be warned. The Islamic Courts Union militia, which has gradually extended its power from the capital, Mogadishu, has repeatedly forbidden children to play or to watch soccer.

The game has been declared a “satanic act” by some of the rulers. On the AIPS website this week, Abokar quotes Sheik Hussein Barre Raage, an administrator of the Islamic Courts Union in Buuloburde, as saying: “Now the bad lovers of sports are in jail, and will remain there until they are taught the good culture and lessons of Islam.”

The sheikh blamed “bad games descended from the old Christian cultures” and allegedly said that the youngsters would be “ forgotten in jail” if they again watched matches at the cinema rather than attend special holy war registration centres.
How can the men who play the game, or the entrepreneurs who sell it as far and as wide as the technology will allow, feel responsible for acts in another culture, almost another life?

The closest anyone came to committing a satanic act during the drawn match at Manchester’s so-called Theatre of Dreams on Sunday was when Chelsea’s Didier Drogba elbowed Nemanja Vidic in the face.

That elbow, which looked for all the world like a calculated piece of villainy, was perpetrated by a forward from Ivory Coast against a defender from Serbia.
Both are hired by clubs in the English Premier League. Both earn riches of US$100,000 per week, or more.

And it is for the referee, Howard Webb, to know how he interpreted the laws of the game so leniently that he showed Drogba the yellow card, a caution, rather than the red card for dismissal that the laws of the game say deliberate violent conduct warrants.

Something had been going on between the Ivorian and the Serb from the early contest. From the way that Drpogba glanced at Vidic behind him, looked to see where the opponent was, and then rose with his elbow cocked, this had all the appearance of a crime under soccer’s strict coding.

Not surprisingly, Jose Mourinho, soccer’s most vituperative critic of referees, pronounced that “the result is fair, Webb did his job well.”

Meanwhile, for celebrating a goal of a lifetime, a goal of fantastic beauty, Ronaldinho was also shown a yellow card in Barcelona.

Ronaldinho’s timing in coming back to form is impeccable. Barcelona, without Samuel Eto’o, Lionel Messi and Javier Saviola – all injured – needs its genie now more than ever.

And he, aware that his season has not sparkled as usual and that Fabio Cannavaro, Italy’s victorious World Cup defender and captain, had won the Golden Ball as player of the year, felt it was time to remind everyone of his talent.

Ronaldinho has scored 72 goals in his time at Barcelona. He was never scored one like this. Two minutes from the end of a 4-0 thrashing of Villarreal, he used his chest to control a pass from Xavi Hernandez.

The Brazilian then turned away from goal. The defenders around him relaxed, and in that instant with complete and knowing athletic quality, Ronaldinho rose and gently, artfully lobbed the ball over his left shoulder past the startled Villarreal goalkeeper into the net.

Ronaldinho said he dreamed of scoring a goal like that. He warned that he has another dream, to score from the halfway line. Coming soon, no doubt.
No sooner had he pulled off this sporting dream than television cameras panning the audience of 78,417 showed the sheer joy of witnessing such artistry. Whoever you support, you cannot but applaud such skill, such audacity.

Everyone in the stadium, bar one, loved it. Referee Miguel Angel Perez Lasa whipped out his yellow card and admonished Ronaldinho for taking off his shirt and whirling it above his head.

Yellow for an elbow in the face. Yellow for celebrating a masterpiece. And jail for watching the game in the wrong part of the world. It is a weird, not always wonderful effect for a game to have. – IHT

More updates coming soon.