Cheers Cobber at Fisherman's Wharf

Change of address

2008-04-30T05:14:00.000-07:00

Dear cobber, I am moving Cheers Cobber blog to Fisherman's Wharf. My new link is http://fishermanswharfs.blogspot.com/

My mates says that Fisherman's Wharf is synonymous with me, thus make them easier to find my blog.

cheers cobber

Ringgit vs Mickey Mouse money

2008-04-22T05:18:00.000-07:00

The price of Malaysian favourite makan ,roti canai has gone up by 10 cents. I normally pay rm 1.00 and the reason for the increase in price given by my neighbourhood mamak gerai is that price of flour went up by 40 cents a kilo.

Let me take you down memory lane, in 1977, the only open air cafe in my hometown which have the only jude box in town, charged 5 cents for per selected song. I used to play Hotel California twice in a row. By the end of the night,you will properly hear this song repeated over 20 times.

A bowl of fishball mee soup cost 10 cents for small and 15 cents big. A bottle of coke or my usual choice fanta cost 15 cents.

In 1986, I remember paying rm1.80 for a mug of beer and in 1990 rm 12.00 for a jug of beer.
I get pissed drunk with rm 50.00 in my pocket.

The average pay for a fresh graduate in 1985 range from rm 1000- rm 1500. Today the same new graduate take home rm 1500- rm 2000 per month.

The rate of inflation and cost of living in Malaysia had increased tremendously and the increment in layman salary now just don't match. The average spending power diminished and the fact is we are getting poorer and poorer.

The prices of every essential goods needed in our daily life are going up faster than you can imagine. Inevitably, get ready to add another zero to the ringgit in the near future. Expect your standard of living to take a dive.

The government of today need to address this problem urgently, ensure that the economy is strong, healthy and growing. No more wastages of public fund, cut down on corruption, more foreign investments and importantly good governance.

I wondered in this great country,when can we, her children enjoy the wealth and the bountiful fruits blessed by God?

cheers cobber

The hottest topic in town

2008-04-20T08:13:00.000-07:00

After Black 14 , I believed the most talked about person in Malaysia is non other than Anwar Ibrahim. Every night the topic of who is going to be the next prime minister never failed to be debated.

The majority of the regulars concurred that Badawi cannot hold on to number 1 post in Malaysia for long.The power struggle in UNMO will see either Najib or Ku Li fighting for the coveted position. Najib looks like the underdog, he should challenged Badawi outright but instead waited for durian runtuh. Ku Li seems the better choice to lead UNMO in December.

Now, who get to run the country is a different ball game. Some put their bet on Ku Li but I personally like to see Anwar as the next Prime Minister of Malaysia. 'Gus are you crazy, Anwar is anti Chinese and he cannot be trusted' claimed by many.

Look, the man has spent 6 years of his life staring at 4 corner of the wall, had plenty of time to reflect his life and done honest soul searching. I believed he is a changed man and deserved a chance to prove himself. What he has done in the past is of no importance to me. His future vision for the country get my up most support.

I have attended Anwar's pre and post election ceramahs and the latest Black 14 gathering. I found him to be consistent in wanting to implement a new Malaysian Economic Plan to help all Malaysians regardless of race. He understands that race based politics and political parties doesn't work anymore.
My eyes went teary when he spoke and stressed about Ketuanan Rakyat as opposed to UNMO's Ketuanan Melayu (no racism meant).

The world is facing an economic slow down. Compared to the current batch of Malaysian elected leaders, Anwar is more experienced and is the best person to see Malaysia thru this bad times. Now if Anwar performances are not up to expectation, just practice the power of our votes.

cheers cobber

Good Day Cobber

2008-03-29T09:45:00.000-07:00

One fine night many months ago, May 07, a cobber asked me to read Malaysia Today and I haven't look back since. Now I spend many hours reading RPK articles, subscribed to Malaysiakini and looked up at Malaysiakita for the latest sopo bloggers posting.

In June 2007, I stopped subscribing to the STAR newspaper. All these years with no alternative news, I am forced but knowingly swallowed all the vile spit that the MSM had forced down my throat.

The day I discovered this alternative news media in the internet, praise God for this new breed of people, now I don't have to tolerate with all the lies, spin stories, bias reporting and mind boggling comments in the papers or television.

I strongly urged the MSM people, please report and disseminate information to the public justly, fair and don't treat us like moron. We had shown we can make up our mind to move mountain and certainly not afraid to use it. Look, I have boycotted you.

So, after much fighting with my son and daughter for hogging the family desk top computer, I decided to get my own personal lap top. I must apologized to my children for scolding them when they spend hours on the net. I accused them as computer addicts, now they are laughing at me. We have now come to a truce and understanding on the amount of time we can spend on computer. I cheated sometime.

Why do I start this blog? I named my blog Cheers Cobber. It simply means cheers to my friends when we lift our drinks in the pub. Cheers to life , friendship and health.

Cheers Cobber will be my diary of events happening in the pub and my daily life.I want to remember and keep track of the many interesting conversations and arguments.The happy days and sad moment. Making new friends, losing friends due to misunderstanding or death itself. There are many hypothetical answers to many questions asked where time will be the determining factor. Hopefully this blog can be the helping hand.

This will be the place where I can rave and rant. I will blog on any matter that I fancy but not necessary in chronological orders.

But the main reason I started this blog is because of some exemplary bloggers that touched my heart and significantly changed my outlook towards life, our society, my political awareness,my vote,importantly, I embraced and believed in Anak Bangsa Malaysia.

I remember the petition to the Agung initiated by People's Parliament,yes, thanks for the chance to be a part of it. Who can forget about the morning walk where we didn't bring umbrellas when the "rain" fall. Thank you Old Ben, Zorro, Can You See It, People's Parliament,Ancient Mariner,Old Blue Eyes,Shanghai Fish, Rocky Bru,The Meesh Experience, many others for the fond and unforgettable experiences.

Thank you Shanghai Fish for helping me to kick start this blog. The bloggers that I know encouraged me to blog and are waiting for my first crack,so here's to you cobbers.I didn't climb on the express train during the election period to start my blog but rather take the choo- choo train now.

Till date, I have the privileges to meet many bloggers of different ethnic background, different political believe, different culture, male and female, layman and YB and the common factors that bond most bloggers together are the quest for truth,justice and fair play.

A group of bloggers have initiated and subscribed to the concept of Barisan Rakyat. I believe in the manifesto presented. The people have the power and right to choose the goverment that they think best represent them.

I would like to evoke everyone to profess this civil society that believed we are of the same colour, same right and dreams, and call Malaysia HOME.

cheers cobber

Hole in the Wall's, errr ....Head

2008-03-24T22:11:00.000-07:00

Scenario

Gita being held ransom by a bunch of baddies at a typical americano barber shop.
Dafi came to rescue Gita on a scooter with a briefcase fastened at the rear end.
Dafi entered shop, opened briefcase showing the booty to the baddies.
The bloody bunch went gu gu over the choices of ice cream drumsticks.
Then went ga ga on the phones to sms Cornetto, the code at back of lids to win fabulous prices.
Baddies in ecstasy when win big prices. Gita and Dafi took the chance to escape.
Riding the scooter into sunset and all thanks to Cornetto Royale for distracting the baddies.

End of scene.

I nearly spilled my beer all over the bar when I saw this distasteful advertisement. What's are the advertiser thinking and what kind of message are they trying to portray? I don't think it's cute but rather finding it disturbing.

Certain sensitivity must be taken into account and the recent kidnapping news that splashed the headlines doesn't help either. Many distraught families or individual may not take this kindly.

I am not against freedom of expression but good senses must prevailed. I don't think kidnapping should be taken lightly. The satirical effort in this case is definitely done in poor taste.

The law punished armed kidnappers to death and life imprisonment for non armed. A grave warning as to the severity of this heinous criminal offense.

I thanked God that Gita is free now and Dafi have this great fore sight . Thanks to Cornetto Royale , Malaysian should feel safe, sound and peace in heart.

cheers cobber

From Cheers to....... Tears

2008-03-24T05:51:00.000-07:00

Last year 2007 national budget had been kind to beer gushers. When the Finance minister announced that there will be no increased in duties,the beer nation populous celebrates.

But alas, this temporary euphoria have come to an end. This time the bad news is not from the government. I have just received news from my supplier that the prices of keg beer will be increased by the beer manufacturers. No information yet on how much is the intended increase.

All kind of excuses will be given, increased in world market price of hops, cost of transportation, company marketing,etc.... What the heck ,you think I care about your problems! What about me? Increased in rental, electricity, water,food cost and especially staff salaries.

I either pass the increased in cost to my regulars or I absorb it. I might try 50-50. One fact remain, managing a pub is a sunset industry. The publicans are finding hard to keep heads above water and the beer drinkers are finding it harder to drown their sorrows.

Waiting to see the reaction of my regulars when I tell them the bad news. If they gather to form a lynching mob, please spare me lah. I also cari makan leh.

cheers cobber

Introduction : Hello, I am Augustine Gan

2008-03-22T00:58:00.001-07:00

There is this neighbourly watering hole that i am managing for the last 15 years. During all these years,I have seen and know many kinds of people with diverse characters and personalities coming and going.Some became your good friends,some are your steady drinking buddies,unfortunately some individual can be a pain in the ass.

Most of the customers are regulars,4-5 times a week, There are also members who almost never failed to show up every night. My name is Augustine Gan and I am the publican. Let me introduced two regulars who keep me company almost every night.A retired gentlemen Dr.Seng,who will make his appearance at 7.30pm,always take the 3rd seat at the bar,have his drinks and called the night by 10.00pm.Occasionally when in the mood, he stayed longer.Then we have trustingly old Ben, a straight forward guy who always speak from his heart,moderate sense of humour,use the 4 letter word freely as adjective,noun,preposition,in all his sentences.
Dr.Seng and Ben are my cobber.

Sometimes we liked to compare our pub with the US sitcom show CHEERS,a place where everybody knows your name.This is the place we have regarded as home away from home. A place that hold many fond and also sad memories.The younger generation including our children often refer this oasis as old folk home.

Every night there are so much sharing and conversation topics ranging from anything under the Malaysian skies.There are loud talk to stamp authority, strong characters shoving their views down unwilling throats, mindless arguments, aimless dispute, temper flaring out of control ,name calling to mask manhood, profanity that make toes nails curled, making alliance to strengthen ones opinions, saying sorry after a battle, making up to fight another day, losing a friendship forever, never seeing that unforgiving individual again

Ok,ok,I exaggerated,one thing for sure, after all these years we knew each other weaknesses and strength, know when to pull legs and when to stop. I acknowledged in life we never stop learning even when we are old, therefore always take everything with a pinch of salt.Shared all you want but always be prepared to listen, give everyone a chance to speak his mind,concurred or argued the points objectively.

The people that I distant myself are person who engaged a conversation,monopolized on the subject,cut you off in mid air when opinions differ, rudely walking away when you are talking.I believed they are sadist that get cheap gratification from their wayward actions.

In my next posting, I will tell why I started this blog and explain how bloggers influenced and changed my life.

cheers cobber