"Ah Bengs"....Our National Pride!!

The term “Ah Beng” comes from the Chinese words 阿明。明 is a word commonly used in the names of Chinese males in South-East Asia region, particularly Malaysia and Singapore; It means “bright”. However, the term is also stereotypically portrayed to be anti-intellectual, superficial, materialistic and shallow.

The ages of “Ah Beng” ranges from early teens to late 20s and are usually seen as originating from a smaller or much rural areas. Their language consists of local dialect such as Hokkien and Cantonese, mixing with English and Malay at times.In short, they speak Manglish!

“Ah Beng” like to use phrases like “what lah?!”( when they are annoyed), “Ha nah!!”(as to meaning yes I know), “Oi!!”(for hey!), “Happy lah!!”(now are you happy?!), “On ah!”(meaning deal!), “Not happy ar?”(are you not happy?) etc etc…….just a few examples.

If you have already noticed, they like to end every single phrases with the Malaysian “lah” or “nah”. In other words, the only English that they are only bothered to know were DIRECT TRANSLATION from the local Hokkien dialect ! Furthermore, "Ah Bengs" are also a bunch of swearing machines. Swearing is their past time.

“Ah Beng” are also sometimes associated with extensively modified or zhng-ed cars and they are also known to be excessively flashy and show-offs. They usually like excessively gaudy patterned shirts and matching them with some tight fitting jeans and if possible, loads of accessories to compliment!! Gold jade rings and gold often counterfeit Rolexes. Also!! To grow their nails resembling a witch’s is also one of their hobbies. What for? I do not know. But I have seen quite a number of them picking their noses with their pinky fingers. Ewww!!

There are some very successful “Ah Bengs” too. Owning chains of coffee shops (or kopitiam in local dialect-Hokkien), food courts (yes they love food) , karaoke lounges (oh yes, they love to sing too), small property development companies, budget hotels and foreign labour supply companies all over Malaysia. Recently, a more dangerous kind of Techno-Ah Bengs have emerged, Ah bengs who can rig up a computerised race-horse betting system complete with a touch of telecommunications.

Cultural Learnings of Malaysia For The Make Benefit of Nations Around The World.....

Yes, yes cultural learning chapter 1!! National pride of Malaysia......Manglish!! (or mangled english to be exact):p

Malaysia is a land of paradoxes. Chinese ladies in short skirts walk the streets side by side with Malay Muslims wearing Islamic headscarf. To gaze on the ultra-modern Petronas Towers in downtown Kuala Lumpur, you could hardly imagine that this is the same country where sleepy fishing villages dot the coast.

When it comes to language, there are even more surprises in store.

English is widely used here, Malaysia being the former colony of Britain. There are three Anglophone daily newspapers in the capital, English television and radio stations. Bookshops such as the nationwide chain MPH offer many more books in English than in any other language. Yes, and even roadsigns are in English.....

In the fashionable shopping districts and the upmarket cafes, where the espresso class lounge, you can hear English spoken everywhere but what kind of English is it that Malaysians speak???

That’s the interesting part. There are those that speak English better, one suspects, than half of England. Then, of course, there are some who cannot speak the language at all. However, most Malaysians are somewhere in between. They speak a corrupted form of English, often referred to as “Manglish”—Malaysian English or perhaps Mangled English?

Let me give you some examples. In Manglish, when someone has gone out of town, he is said to be “outstation.” There, a mobile phone is known as a handphone rather than cellphone.

Malaysians call slippers what the British call sandals, and during sales, in the shops, there are plenty of signs announcing, “Buy one, free one.”

If you want a glass of water, you ask for “skyjuice”

Manglish grammar has its own unique set of rules. For example, the use of already, “He go home already”

Then, there is the famous “can or not?” as in, “You borrow to me five dollars, can or not?”.

Another important aspect of Manglish is the use of “lah.”

“Lah” does not have any actual meaning, but Malaysians like to pepper their sentences with it. But i think it is more of Malay influence:

“Why you so like that, lah?”

“No lah.”

“So I told him lah that he cannot go lah.”

Malaysians scored a victory a couple of years ago when “lah” was introduced into the official Oxford English Dictionary. They were slightly less happy to see that the entry listed its usage as Singaporean English.

You see, Singapore, has its own version of English, known as Singlish, which is very similar to the Malaysian variety.

English is only one of the many languages that a visitor will hear in Malaysia. There is Bahasa Malaysia, also known as Bahasa Melayu or simply Bahasa, as well as a number of Chinese dialects including Mandarin, Cantonese, Hokkien and Teochew. You’ll also hear several Indian languages such as Tamil and Punjabi.

Malaysians have a habit of mixing two or more of these languages together when they speak, sometimes even in one sentence. So, don’t be surprised if you hear sentences like these:

“Aiyo, the lif is rosak already! Mari-lah, we use the stairs one.”

This translates to: “Oh no! The elevator is out of order. Come, let’s use the stairs.”

Note the words "Aiyo","lif", "rosak" and "mari-lah"..... are actually Malay.

English has particularly affected Bahasa Malaysia in the form of loan words.

For example, “makhlumat,” which means information, is not used often anymore. Instead, the loan word, “informasi” is gaining in popularity.

There is “bas” for bus, “rileks” or “rilek” for relax, and “restoran” for restaurant.

English loan words are especially common in technology and science. Therefore, you’ll hear the words “teknologi” and “sains.”


These loan words are very popular with the younger “generasi.”(generation)

Bahasa has many different words for “I” and “you”, but Malaysians still find room for these English words in their speech.

In this way, “I love you” can be expressed as “I sayang you”, and one might also ask, “You sayang I?”

Note that "sayang" is also a Malay word meaning love

Tourists need not worry too much, though. Although they may hear some pretty strange things while they are here, like how my bf frowned when he overheard some strange phrases, a good command of English is enough to ensure that they will not be in a situation where they are stuck with no way to communicate.

In fact, tourist are likely to be charmed by the unique way the language has evolved here (yes, my bf even took the trouble to learn Manglish from me wahahaha). It is quite likely that they’ll pick up a bit of the local lingo while they are here and if they choose to stay on a little while longer, they are sure to wake up one day to find themselves speaking Manglish.

Last week, I attended a Deepavali open house(my colleague's Indian) and met this British guy who has gotten married to a Malay lady and raising 4 kids and the weird thing is, he speaks 100% Manglish!! If it wasn't that he told me he came from the UK, I wouldnt have guessed(though of course, he looks different from me). But he sounded totally Malaysian.

English has been in Malaysia since the colonial days, although Manglish is a relatively new development.

Recently, there has been much lament in the Malaysian media about the decline in the standard of English in the country. There have been government campaigns and Science and Mathematics in schools will now be taught in English.

Although the government, unlike Singapore, has not yet taken an official stand against non-standard usage, one gets the feeling that Malaysians will not give up their Manglish that easily lah.

Why?? Because It is our identity as Malaysians.......lah...... still need to ask ah??

Chingrish!! Me No Understand......

Haha....I came across some very funny chingrish signs online today i would like to share.....

If you don't know what Chingrish means, this is how Wikipedia defines the term "Chingrish":

"Chinglish (slang) is a portmanteau of the words Chinese and English and refers to either (a) English interspersed with Chinese language errors common to those Chinese persons who are learning English or (b) Chinese interspersed with English, such as used by westernized Chinese (e.g. American-born Chinese) who are not fluent in Chinese and codeswitch English words into speech when they can't think of the correct Chinese word."

In correct or Improper pronunciation or misspellings through typos or poor pronunciation may result in Chingrish as below !!
















"Don't Go!!"
- Don't go, don't go!!....nooo.....!! Not until the green light's on......and i shall turn it on for you















"Please Cry In Loud Voice or Do Not Run About"
- Now i wonder if it is only meant for dogs or is it also meant for human beings?? And shall i cry out loud and run amok??















"The Perfection Concentration Camp"
- Yes anyone?? who would like to pay a ton and live in a concentration camp??














"Unrecycling"
- Yes prease, prease unrecycle for me.....














"Private Vegetables"
-Talking bout food porn, but what you do with your vegetables in the privacy of your home is your business!

















"F**** The Ginger Water"??!!
-Woah!! Anyone??I bet it will love you long time.....















"Husband & Wife Lung Slice"
- Ummm.....I just had Saliva Chicken yesterday so maybe I'll order the Husband and Wife lung slice today. I'll have a Sauce Cow on the side, but hold the Sauce Pig hand, prease........















"Slip Carefully"
- yes, yes deary......next time when you slip, please do slip carefully so you look very the graceful.....

Archaeo-Acoustics!!

Wow!! Pipe dream or possibility?? ever heard of it?? Archaeo-Acoustics i mean!!.......today is the first time i came across this term and decided to do some research into it!!

By archaeoacoustics I mean the recovery of sounds from the time before the invention of recording. This implies that such sounds would have been recorded inadvertently, while intending to do sometring else. Not much has been written about this subject and only very few experiments have been made, but I find the subject fascinating enough to dare the deep waters of the unproven and often scorned.

This is the clip i came across!!

One story making some news is that a piece of pottery from Pompeii was found to have had sound recordings inadvertently embedded in it during construction. The story is that the potter inadvertently recorded sound as he was applying a steel needle to make concentric rings around the body of the pot.

Belgian researchers have been able to use computer scans of the grooves in 6,500-year-old pottery to extract sounds made by the vibrations of the tools used to make the pottery.

Amazing or what??!

Gym,Gym and GYM!!

Yes!! It's time to hit the gym!! I never knew i would enjoy gym this much!! I havent been to gym for only a week and am missing it already!! Wow....such an addict :s (yes honey, i wanna be that butch muscle woman hahahaha....kidding!!my bf will kill me).

The range of gym fitness equipment available these days is staggering, and it can be hard to know which type of exercise equipments you really need. What’s best for weight loss? Toning? What’s the best for cardiovascular health? Umm......complicated so i will leave that to the trainer :p. But!! well,well, let’s focus on cardio exercises here, because it’s one thing everyone should be concerned about. Maybe your doctor has told you that you need to get your heart in better shape (or bum? for me anyway haha). Maybe you’ve been motivated by someone else who unexpectedly developed problems and you don’t want to be next. Even if it’s just a desire to “get healthier,” cardio exercise equipment is a good way to start on the road to a healthier lifestyle.


What Exactly Makes It “Cardio” Equipment?

A cardio workout’s primary purpose is to raise your heart rate to some extent in order to improve heart health and function. There may be other benefits to some kinds of gym and home fitness equipment (exercise bikes, for instance, can also strengthen and tone leg muscles), but cardio equipment’s primary goal is to raise the heart rate and break a sweat.

An additional side benefit of these types of home workouts is that you will also shed some weight as you burn off fat. It’s a win-win situation.

There are several kinds gym equipments that you can use for your workouts that will give you real cardiovascular benefits. Each of these has pros and cons attached with them, and you will need to decide for yourself which exercise best suits your fitness regimen.

Exercise Treadmills - Treadmills are traditionally the most popular type of cardio fitness equipment, but are fast being passed up by the elliptical trainer. Treadmills offer a great alternative to walking outside in bad weather. If you enjoy both walking and running, you can vary your speed and most come with heart rate monitors, which are always a good idea. Keep in mind, though, that this type of home gym equipment can jar your joints, so it may not be your best option if you have arthritis.

Exercise Bikes - Stationary exercise bikes allow you to sit down while biking, giving you the same chance to vary speeds. This type equipment is ideal if you suffer from back pain. Some stationary bikes also have handlebars that move as you peddle to exercise your upper body at the same time. Recumbent bikes allow you to sit back in the seat as you peddle.

Elliptical Trainers - Elliptical machines are one of the most popular pieces of fitness equipment for cardio workouts now available. You stand and work the feet back and forth, but because you don’t lift your feet and “glide” instead, there is no jarring of the joints. With each stroke, you are also working your upper body with the poles. Fewer of these have heart monitors, but some do. Alternatively, stop exercising periodically and check your pulse rate.

Am still a newbie when it comes to gym but that's all i know for now haha.......I find them very effective and i really enjoy it........."gym a day, keeps the doctors away"!! ;).

Gym tomorrow morning woo!!...........

Wow!! I Didn't Know......

Wow.....it's been only a week and errr....yes i know, a week is just a short time but i didn't have internet access becuase i just moved in to a new place......and damn!! it's killing me!! No internet and thus no updates!!

I am starting to think this blog is more for myself then for anything else now haha......I have to admit, i actually find blogging addictive....one week without my itnernet, am dying!!

Anyways, It's kind of surprising to find myself enjoying my new job!! (well yes, i thought i wouldnt, so shut up!! :p).I love it and the people are so friendly and helpful at my company. Though it can be stressful but wow!! it's cool!! haha.....I have made lots of friends in no time and i talked to everyone i encountered. And even got invitied to Deepavali celebration. It's cool!!

Can't wait to go back to work now :p

Laptop SOS!!

Yes, yes, today I have decided to blog about saving your laptop's life after a spill. Why would i want to blog about that? Well....hmm.....it was coz yesterday my herbal tea almost killed my dear Toshy(toshiba lah!!). So i have decided to provide some tips on how to save your laptop after a spill!!

Wanna know how? Wanna know how not?? Am not gonna tell you hahahaha.........kidding (I know, I know, not funny *sweat*)

Listen here guys, water, coffee, and soda are among your laptop's worst enemies. Just a little bit of such a liquid on your laptop keyboard can damage or destroy your machine or cause you to lose data.


Some laptops are more vulnerable to damage from a spill on the keyboard than others, and it doesn't always have anything to do with the price tag (yes, not all about fancy 5 figures). Some keyboards have a thin rubber membrane beneath the keys with electrical contacts molded right into little domes under each letter; that design may feel squishy and cheap to some users, but it stands up better to a splash or a flood than a more traditional design with springs and exposed contacts. How do you know which type of design you have? Take a look for yourself by prying off a keytop; if you're shopping, you may be able to get the information from the manufacturer or a dealer.




Here's the drill for an emergency recovery from a spill:

1. If you have your machine plugged into wall current, turn off the power at the circuit breaker in your home or office.You don't want to touch a wet wire carrying 110 volts or so.

If you're running the machine on battery power, it's still operating, and you don't see sparks, hear odd noises, or smell burnt electrical components, shut your laptop down through the normal Windows process.

If something is obviously wrong with the machine, turn it off immediately by depressing the Off switch or by removing the battery.

2. Ground yourself by touching the center screw on the faceplate of a dry electrical outlet or by touching some other metal object that reaches to ground.

3. If you haven't done so in emergency mode, remove the AC adapter and the battery, and set them aside.

4. Disconnect any external devices (such as a mouse) attached to the USB, FireWire, serial, or other ports.

5. If you find any liquid on the battery or AC adapter, wipe them carefully and set them aside.
If your spill has thoroughly soaked the AC adapter or the battery, you probably need to consider it a loss. You can get replacement AC adapters and batteries from various sources, including the original equipment manufacturer, laptop accessory companies, and the used market.

6. Remove any cards installed in the PC Card slot.

If they're wet, carefully dry them off. If any water has gotten into the narrow slot, dry out the area with a cotton swab, taking care not to leave any threads of cotton in the internal connector.

7. Wipe off any liquid on the display.

8. Remove the hard drive and the CD/DVD drives if you have them installed in plug-in bays.

9. Open the memory module container; remove and dry the memory modules.

10. Hand-dry the keyboard surface with a lint-free cloth.

11. Clean the exposed membrane or switch cover and the keys themselves.

12. Leaving the display open, place the computer on a sturdy surface supported by two books or small boxes.

13. Reassemble the pieces that you removed.

TADA!! There you go!!.........13 tips!! wow........haha.....didnt know it can be that cumbersome.....