At the Apartment

I decided to spent the evening at the apartment since I was called out to the hospital and was too tired to take the drive back to Gombak late in the evening. Added to that, I will be heading out to ParkCity for my morning clinic. Even though I prefer to head back, I knew I would feel too tired. Plus having to wake Anita up to let me in. Too much hassle since it would be pass the boys' bedtime.

That also meant that I would be missing my tub of asam which my Mum bought from Sungai Petani. I ate so much of the stuff earlier that I felt thirsty even now....... that's not going to be good for my gastritis as well I was sure.

New Flickr. Y No Pro?

I've been a Flickr member since Nov 2007, before converting into a Pro in 2009. I've never looked back ever since. I do host most of my photos on SmugMug though and I tried 500px and Picasa in the past. I've never trusted Facebook with my photos. I was keen on Google Plus but felt Flickr was still the clear winner.

So, I was glad to learn that Marissa Meyer made Flickr one of her main products when she took over Yahoo! Certainly Flickr is a good product, and the previous management neglected this diamond. So, which way did the new regime was taking Flickr?

I knew things were serious when the 3-months Pro account was given away before Xmas last year. I was waiting for them to implement a face-lift a lot earlier. So, when it finally came, I was actually very happy. Google probably caught wind of this change since they only updated their Plus experience only last. For the better.

I'm happy with the new interface. Definitely more modern. But the subscription model made me sit back. I felt that the company missed one important element here. Flickr was actually built on loyalty.

During the lean times, the user stood by the product. They wore their Pro badges with pride. I was one of them. By abolishing Pro - only allowing old timers to be grandfathered in if they have a recurring payment program - these hardcore band would wither away. I personally felt that the loyalty wasn't rewarded. In the days of social media, 6 years is a long time!

The jacked-up interface was a welcomed change. But I was hoping that there would be movement to recognise these Pro group of users who had stayed on through thick and thin. If there is one, I would sign up in a heartbeat. To have to pay extra just to have no advert is just plain lame.....

Farewell Dinner

Not the typical dinner. And nobody was actually leaving on a journey, at least in my household. But as per my weekly ritual of tandoori and mee ladna prior to a United match, I'm not sure if that's going to continue under the Moyes regime. Will it still work? Will my colleague Palmdoc has to up his alcohol intake from merely some shandy?

But for the moment, the tandoori and ladna had been arranged for old time sake. The boys would be getting to bed early, so that Mum and Dad can watch the game. And wish farewell to Sir Alex.

Happy Retirement Sir.

Up KL Tower

This year, the boys' school trip would be up the KL Tower. And Idlan was afraid of heights. He had been up the tower a few times before, but always with us. Letting him loose alone next month may cause a bit of a worry, especially to Puan Anita. So, her brilliant idea today would be to take a trip there and familiarise Idlan, making sure he won't be creating a scene on his next trip.

How about Irfan? He preferred just to stay at home and play with his games. He was still recovering from the recent virus, so we wouldn't kind leaving him at home.

Apparently the restaurant up the tower had been renovated. It was now run by a different company. We didn't go to the restaurant this time, but from what vi saw on the leaflets things had changed. We went straight for the observation deck and lingered around there for almost half an hour.

The front line staffs were all Malay - not Malaysian but Malay. But the support staffs - those who manned the stores and security were all foreigners. Which defeats the purpose really as the high fees to get in put off most of the locals. Tourists being serviced by foreign workers at one of the main attraction at the capital? Should I be surprised?

Anyhow, the front line staffs were really helpful. There was a race being held there in the morning according to the posters. A race from the bottom up the tower using the stairs. Hmmm! Not my kind if race.....

At the walkways by the entrance, there was a mango exhibit taking place for the weekend. Unfortunately, there was not much left on the Sunday afternoon. After all, the Menteri and the likes had been and gone. No point showing their wares to the actual punters. Sad fact! But even the staffs there admitted to that.

After we were done walking around, we caught the sign that there would be a path leading up to the tower entrance through the Bukit Nanas Forest Reserve. It was still being built, but I'm sure it would be grand once it was completed. I would definitely be giving it a visit, although Anita insisted on doing the path from the top of the hill downwards. Not the other way round.

It turned out to be a good day out actually. With the hot weather, we could do with a nice drink right after. So, we headed straight to Pavilion.

More Swimming

It was a really got day yesterday and as usual, Idlan went to the Club for his swimming lesson. Smeared with the strongest sun blocker Puan Anita could fine I was sure. Luckily, by the time he hit the water, the clouds was already in, and even though it was still hot and sticky, it was more bearable.

Since he missed last weekend's class, he had to make it up this afternoon. A Sunday afternoon? I need some down time! But Idlan was thrilled with the idea and there was no talking him out of this one.

Hopefully, it would not be too muggy. I'll probably have some down time during lunch today. The swimming won't start until Kate afternoon.

Have a good weekend everyone.