Dude...!! Where's my car???

2007 is turning out to be a bad year for me by all accounts.

Sometime in January, my wife, Doris, was victim of a lone Mat Rempit snatch thief in front of SS2 McD's. She was about to cross the road with my elder son, Ewan, when the perpetrator struck. Doris fell down and suffered some bruises and scratches on her knees and shoulder but thankfully nothing more than that as we all have read of snatch theft victims who have died or suffered serious injuries as a result of impact to the head.

Then in February, a couple of idiots came by the office during lunch time and took off with my laptop. At that time, only one of my staff was left in the office and without looking, she allowed 2 chaps in when they pressed the intercom and claimed to be courier boys. Upon gaining entry, they started their sales pitch about selling carpets as both of them had a rug with them. Whilst one of them was talking to my staff, the other fellow quickly sneaked into my office. When my staff realised one of them had gone in, she asked both of them to leave which they did and when she went into my office to check, the laptop was already gone together with the perpetrators. One of my client arrived at the same time when the 2 fellows were making their get away but later told me that she did not see them carrying anything else other than the rug. I'm pretty sure they had hidden the laptop under the rug & buggered off with it. Since then, I've made it a point to back up my files at least once a week. It is annoying to lose the lap top that way but to me, its the documents & nearly 10 years of precedents that's more important than the hardware itself as insurance took care of the replacement, albeit partially.

September was when Dad was diagnosed with cancer and although we're keeping our chins up on that issue, it is still a very depressing piece of news. He's gone for a 2nd round of chemoteraphy last Wednesday and outwardly, have not shown any decline in his general state of health. We'll only have a clearer picture if he has responded well to chemo after his third round early next month when a CT scan is done. Am keeping all fingers & toes crossed for good news.

Then on Wednesday (17/10/07), my 6 year old Perdana was stolen right in front of my office. After picking up my Dad & Mum from SJMC, I went back to the office and parked it at a busy side lane just 2 doors from the office. Doris came back to the office about 4.30pm & said she noticed where I had parked the car. I was supposed to send Ewan for his tennis lessons at 5.30pm but lo & behold, the car wasn't where it was anymore. Doris & I immediately went over to the Brickfields Balai to lodge a report. The investigating officer (IO) was efficient in getting my statement recorded but I suspect it was because he was in a bit of a hurry to knock off as he was nearing the end of his 24 hour shift. i had informed him that my neighbour had a CCTV installed facing the direction of the lane where the car was parked but he was not willing to come over to take a look at the video but instead, asked me to view it myself & send him a copy. So much for a dedicated police force.

I only managed to have a look at the CCTV recording the next day & the images was that of at least 2 persons doing the job. But only one of them could be seen as the other fellow remained in the car they came in. But once the coast was clear the guy, probably using a master key, very casually unlocked the car, started the engine & drove off all within a space of 2 minutes. It was like a scene out of 'Gone In 60 Seconds'. As my neighbour only had the CCTV installed not too long ago, they weren't very sure how to zoom in or if they could burn a copy of the video. They'll be calling the CCTV installers for help in that aspect as their car number plate could be seen clearly as well but then again, it may be a fake. For whatever its worth, once I have a copy of the recording, I'll pass it on to the police & let them get on with their investigations, if they're bothered at all to do it.

Initially, I really don't know WTF these dweebs want to do with a 6 year old car but I've only 2 theories, either they're gonna send it to the chop shop or use it for some criminal activity. However according to a reliable source (which I shall not reveal too much about but suffice to say, this person have some shady links), the car is already in pieces & they know the group of people these perpetrators belong to also. But I'll leave the matter to the cops & not go to the extent of getting even as it may easily lead to further complications, if you know what I mean.

There was nothing important kept in the car but my house keys. After lodging the report, it was straight to the locksmiths to get a new set of padlocks & getting 3 good ones set me back RM250.00. Then I had to cut a bunch of keys with remote control for the gate & that was another RM100.00 gone. But what I've lost also was my Metallica Black Album (Japanese import version), a Janis Joplin compilation CD, one Jimi Hendrix CD from a box set & a James Brown CD which was in the CD changer. I'm pretty sure I can get the Joplin & James Brown CDs but not too sure about the Metallica & Hendrix. In any case, its gonna be expensive to replace the Hendrix CD as it came in a box set.

As for the car, I'd rather prefer to get my insurance claim than for them to find the car as I don't intend to keep the car even if they find it. But in a depressed 2nd hand car market, it may be more difficult to get rid of it & get a good price for it. I'm told I'll have to wait a few months before I can get the cops to issue me with a letter confirming they can't find the car before the insurance claim is processed. I've been informed also that its a common policy that insurance companies will only pay 80% of the current market value but my uncle told me that this can be increased with some...err "persuasion". What I mean is that the insurance guy get a small cut from the increased pay off. Don't know if I'll do that or not, but will cross that bridge when I come to it.

New car? Am not gonna contemplate that yet until I see my insurance money as I have access to my mum-in law or my Dad's car if we need a 2nd car to run about our business. Until then, its gonna be the fuel guzzler Naza for a few months at least.

And oh...good bye my dear faithful Perdana! :(

John Fogerty/Creedence Clearwater Revival - Suzie Q

Another classic track for your listening pleasure...

Mini Story - Part 1

After many months of persistent nagging & promptings by Bala, I've finally got round to sending the Mini off to the body & paint shop to give it a total makeover last week. We've had the Mini for about 4 years now & used it for over a year mainly for short trips to the neighbourhood shop. It was in good running condition when we got it save for the inconsistent air-conditioning - sekejap ada sekjap takda. However we've neglected the car for at least a year & a half now due to a combination of preference for modern conveniences such as a cool a/c & auto transmission. Eh...damn tiring to drive on stick if you're caught in city traffic. It's not as if I have so much spare cash lying around but if I don't have it done now, there'll be more problems later not to mention the escalating bills for repairs too.

In the time that it was in semi-retirement, the Mini was not totally abandoned as it became an abode for the friendly neighbourhood rodents. These fellas obviosly had a good time pissing & crapping all over the place and leaving remnants of their wild parties all over. We even got a note stuck on it from DBKL asking "pemunya kereta buruk" to remove it failing which they'll have it towed away for being an eyesore. What did I do at that time? Have it pushed across the road so that it sit right in front of the house so that there's no notion at all of it being an abandoned vehicle! There were also quite a few offers to purchase notes stuck to the windscreen but we never really entertained the idea of selling it.

Finally a few months ago, I had the car towed over to Bala's mechanic & after some cleaning up & minor wiring repairs, the car was back in running condition. Had to replace all four tyres as the 1 1/2 year of neglect had taken a toll on the condition of the rubber. Of course once it was back home, apathy & procrastination took over once again & guess what? The former tenants moved back in!! This time, their stay was not for too long as the BBQ we had last week & Bala's naggings prompted me to have the car sent, finally, to the paint & body shop owned by a family friend.

Wong, the body shop guy managed to get the engine running & told me, when I paid him a visit this morning, that it was purring like a dream. There'll be a few major things to be done but for a start, Wong will be sending the car off to the upholstery fellow to remove all the seats & carpets before they send it back to him. The car will be checked for any rust damage especially to the undercarriage. Once all that is taken care of, the body will be sprayed to a shade of red called 'Tornado Red' which is the same as that used on the current model of the VW Golf (see colour swatch above). Check out the VW website for a pix of the Golf & you'll get a better idea. The pearl white roof will be maintained, perhaps maybe needing just a minor touch up. The white stripes running down the front of the bonnet will be sprayed on as opposed to bunging on a sticker like what it is now. Matching white stripes will be sprayed on to the back too.

In the meantime, decisions have to be made as to the interior, ie. seats, carpets, inside of door etc. Fabric or leather? Or a combo? What about colour scheme? The dash board will also have to be fixed up as it is falling apart & with a matching colour to boot. This 'kepala pusing' decision will be left to the Boss, ie the wife, to decide. Various parts of the engine has been corroded no thanks to rat piss I suspect & I'm told needs some kind of a clean up & paint job. However, I'm not entertaining any ideas of chroming the engine as I'll be fooked to have to spend my weekends with toothbrush in hand cleaning the damn thing.

I'm sure there'll be various other issues, both major & minor, which will crop up as and when the repairs & makeover move along. But this time, I'm determined to bring the shine back to this British icon & have it restored to a "Pimp My Ride" kinda condition, albeit on a tight budget of course! Will post updates with pix as and when this project progresses.

Queen - Bohemian Rhapsody

Greatest song ever? Highly debatable but more likely to be within Top 10 of all time classic rock songs ever written...

Jimmy Page & The Black Crowes - The Lemon Song

Not the original but close enough, if not better!!

Dad updates...

Well, Dad's begun his first round of chemo last week & is expected back for another round on the 17th of this month. So far, he's not had any adverse reaction to the medication, granted that's its just a mild dosage. He's still going about his usual routine, albeit the nights out will be far less frequent than before, and which is good. Amy, my elder sis will be relocating back to KL for good by next month after a long hiatus in London without having been back even for a holiday. I'm sure Dad was very happy when he heard that but just wished that Amy had other reasons for coming back instead of Dad's illness. Hope to have more positive news to report on Dad's condition by the time Amy is back.

In the meantime, and what with September being a month of full of distressing news on the health front, not only concerning Dad but also the mum of a dear friend, my contractor friend Wong & myself have decided to go get ourselves a through check-up including for cancer etc. We nearly died of a heart attack though when we found out the cost quoted by a "health centre" for a thorough check. With prices starting from RM1,600.00, it's a real expensive business to be assured of your health. But WTF do these people call themselves a 'health centre' when the prices are near astronomical. But I suppose you'll be told you get what you pay for & if you want to pay a pittance, you can piss off to your friendly government hospital.

Still, we've managed to get a quote based on our present needs for less than half the whopper quoted earlier. Will make that appointment soon & see if I have to cut down on the pork scratchings.... :(