Need. Sleep.

I have attended court hearings on a number of occasions before as expert witness. Daunting task, but sometime it was good to get out of the usual routine. That was exactly what I did today. Having rushed to Subang to see my taints I the morning, I the set off to Jalan Conlay to attend an arbitration there. It started onetime, but unfortunately dragged one the whole day.

I was caught in a massive traffic jam when I was finally done at six, unable to turn back to Subang. It just did not make sense to head there and then turn back to Gombak. And the traffic was horrendous. I decided against going straight back home. I had some light dinner at KLCC instead. Hung around there until the rain and traffic subsided. Finally home at 8.

Long tiring day. And I would be on call tomorrow. Better get some sleep I guess.

Urbanscapes 2012

I learned about it in 2008. Attended it the first time in 2009. Missed 2010 due to work. Heavily involved with the event in 2011. A spectator for 2012. Urbanscapes celebrated her 10th chapter last weekend. And it was bigger than ever. And with the sheer size, the soul had been diluted somehow. And part of me felt sad.

It used to be hip. It showcased local talent. We were talking about talents which had yet to become mainstream. The acts featured were underground and beloved. There was a sense of us then. Now, it was all money and commercial. Sponsors and profit. A shame really. Yuna started here. Zee Avi started here when she was still KokoKaina.

Urbanscapes now expanded to fill a whole weekend - a couple of days. Traditionally held in the middle of the year, it was shifted this year due to Ramadhan. Venue was the same as last year - Padang Astaka - which contribute somewhat to the loss its magic. I stated last year that I preferred KLPAC, and did not buy the excuse that it was too expensive a venue there - well, the charge was RM90 for a Saturday pass alone, and more than RM200 for the whole weekend. KLPAC offered better shelter from the elements, and also allowed for indoor showcases to be featured.

And talking about the elements, having a festival - an outdoor one at that - during the Monsoon was never going to be a good idea. They managed to be blessed with sunshine for most of the couple of days, but the muddy field explains much about the risk. But maybe, that was part of the charm. Having limited number of entrance and exit though - minus easy parking - was certainly not charming. That area of PJ was not overly blessed with public transport either.

Padang Astaka also appeared too big for the event. There were too many open space which the organiser struggled to fill. The saving grace was this allowed for space to dance and enjoy the music. Mind you, you would be on the muddy fields then. There were hardly any shelter though. Not even proper area to sit and chill.

Enough about the negatives. The eclectic mix of the hip and the trendy were there for all to see. The price of items and beverages were still on the steep side, but one would expect that in such circumstances. A few nice shops, some really nice things to browse and buy. Nothing unexpected. Almost the same as last year, but some things you would struggle to get in one place elsewhere. What I missed was some improv and comedy. There were none to see during my visit there. Maybe my timing was off then.

As for the music, the ones I managed to sample was well groovy. Sound system was great, but shame about the mud. A bit of a put off really. It was nice to come back to Urbanscapes and see how it grew, but I still feel that it had grown too big for its boots. It ain't so cute anymore!

You know something was not right when you had booth by AirAsia and Hong Leong Bank, and a showroom - complete with cars - by Volkswagen. At Urbanscapes? Certainly not my cup of tea ........ Personally, I think it had lost its soul ..... What a shame. More negatives than positives I was afraid .....

Tense Time at The Bridge

Even though I was quiet and sleepy, I stayed up to catch the first few moments of the Chelski-Citeh game on TV. A cagey start. No risk taken by both sides, true to the philosophies of both managers. And this was a departure from the more free-flowing style of only last week, at least as far as Chelsea were concerned. And yes, Torres was included in the starting line-up. I guessed that Banitez's contract stipulated that.

I was however struck by the hostile response by the crowd towards Banitez. These lot clearly considered Robbie Di Matteo as one of their own, and lived to see him stay. Unfortunately with Chelsea, the owner decided everything. It was his club. Not the supporters. Shame really. And Banitez better get his act together and start winning soon. The fans won't give him too log to settle. And since I don't think Abramovich can afford to sack another manager before he end of the season, the fans would be stuck with Banitez. Tense time ahead .....

He Graduated!

After three years in kindie, Irfan would be joining Year One next year, and the whole school knew it. Even the Principal came of to talk to Anita as she already knew of Idlan.

On the last day on kindergarten, the children were celebrated with a scroll-giving ceremony, with all its pomp. I actually managed to attend as I reshuffled my clinic schedule to start a bit later.

Irfan's graduation ceremony started at 8.30, and after the speeches, hey went straight for the scrolls. The show and singing came later, giving the opportunity for the working parents to slip out early.

Irfan with his scrollIt was fair to say that Idlan was boredThe event started with a procession, followed by speech by the School Chairman and the Principal. Next came the choir, before the children were introduced on stage. They lined up one by one, remembering to thank the Chairman and bowed. Those from Years One to Three were also there in the audience, meaning that Idlan was there to see his brother. The ceremony was done by 9.15, and I was already in the ward for the rounds by 9.45. Perfect timing.

Anita stayed for the Teachers and Parents meeting later.

Time for Uploading

After a couple of full days of photo taking, post-editing came as a drag. Even though I have the routine sorted out, it was the upload onto the server later on which could take some time. Usually Sunday morning would be the best time, but loading up almost 200MB of data on a slow broadband connection from the Gombak home - the apartment had 30Gb - took a bit longer usually.

The main photographs were from the Urbanscapes outing yesterday afternoon. I have yet to find time to blog about that. Maybe I would do that some time thins afternoon. As for now, it was time for breakfast, and Sunday morning rounds.