Father's Day

Hi Everyone,

We celebrate Father’s Day every 3^rd Sunday of June every year. This year, it falls on 15^th June 2014.

Fathers will always be there for their children. Together with mother, he brought us up to where we are now. He knows what is best for his children. He gives advice to his children. He works hard to earn a living for the family.

He willingly fetches his children to / from the places that they want to go. For example, friend’s house, piano lessons, swimming lessons, school, meet up with friends, tuition among others, airport. We can talk to him about technology, cars, sports and politics. He listens to the music that you listen to although he still listens to the classics. He follows what you are watching on the tv. He wants to know about technology.

He disciplines his children. He can spend the time to help to you pass the exams. He is willing to sit down with you and helps you with your studies. He knows about men’s fashion. He was the one who taught me how to tie my tie. He wants us to study well and know the importance of education in our lives. He supports our decisions if it is fine with him. He can manage his finances well. He plays sports with us. 

He guides you in your life. He tells you to drive carefully. He advises you not to mix with bad company. He wants you to be a gentleman.  He tells his children to be street smart in the working world. He knows what it’s like at work. It can be tough sometimes. He knows what it is like to work hard in his career. My dad tells us that drinking and smoking are bad for our health.

We love you, Dad.

Everyday is Parents' Day.

Here are some songs about fathers:

Boyzone - Father and Son

Michael Bolton - Butterfly Kisses

Harry Chapin - Cats In The Cradle

Mother's Day

Hi Everyone,

We celebrate Mother’s Day every 2^nd Sunday of May every year. This year, it falls on 11^th May 2013. We came out from our mother’s womb when we were born. Some of us were breast fed by our mothers.

A mother will always be there for her children. Together with father, she brought us up to where we are now. She knows what is best for her children. She gives advice to her children. She can be nagging and longwinded but she will say it will be for own good and it turns out to be so. She will ask you to find a girlfriend / boyfriend prior to our marriage age. She can sacrifice her work to be a full time housewife, fetching her children to school / college / university and back, cook and takes care of the house.  She will find a good school for you to study in. She is a listener.  She works hard for her family. She can advise you on your clothing choices.

She needs to know where you are when you are not home. She will be worried when you are working late or coming back from cell group late. She is worried for our safety. She wants us to walk in brightly lit places or crowded places.

She trains the maid for those of us who have maids at home. She is there when we need help. If we are overseas, she will fly over to help you. She can help to take care of your new born baby and give you tips on looking after the baby for daughters. She will prepare fruits for us when she knows we are not getting enough of that. She makes sure we have a good breakfast every day. She is patient. My mum flew over to Melbourne for cook nice meals for me one year during my university exam period. She flew over there as well to help my sister to take care of my niece and nephew and cook for my sister’s family during her stressful period.

She encourages you and gives hope to you. She asks us to take care of our health.

We love you, Mum.

Everyday is Parents' Day.

Here are some songs for Mother's Day.

Il Divo - Mama

Spice Girls - Mama

Josh Groban - You Raise Me Up

Cheers,

Rogerkoo

The True Meaning of Easter

Hi Everyone,

What is the meaning of Easter? Does Easter means Easter eggs and bunnies? Easter unfortunately is similar to Christmas where the true meaning of Easter is not known to many. Easter is not about Easter eggs and bunnies and Christmas is not about Christmas trees and gifts. I have written articles on the true meaning of Christmas for the past few years and now it is the same for Easter.

Christians celebrate Easter to remember two significant events that changed the world. These two events are the core foundations of Christianity. These two events are the main focus of the Bible. This is the reason Christians celebrate Easter and Christmas.  

We are sinful people. All of us have sinned against God and no one of us is righteous.

Romans 3:10-11

 10 As it is written:

“There is no one righteous, not even one;
11     there is no one who understands;
    there is no one who seeks God.

Accessed on 19th April 2014: http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Romans+3&version=NIV 

We are lying to ourselves if we say we have no sin. There is no concept of small sin or big sin in Christianity thus it does not matter in Christianity whether it is a small sin such as telling lies or a big sin such as murder, rape and others. We cannot save ourselves from our sins because we are not perfect. In Romans 6:23, it says the punishment for our sins is death.

Romans 6:23

English Standard Version (ESV)

23 For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Accessed on 19th April 2014: http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=romans+6%3A23&version=ESV 

However, someone did come and save us from our past, present and future sins once for all. He is the only one who is perfect and has no sin. He was sent by God to die on the cross for our sins so that we can have eternal life.  He died on our behalf and this means we do not have to die for our sins.  

John 3:16

English Standard Version (ESV)

For God So Loved the World

16 “For God so loved the world,[a] that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should notperish but have eternal life.

Accessed on 19th April 2014: http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=John+3%3A16&version=ESV 

He not only died for us, but He rose again on the 3rd day and this means that He has conquered sin and death. He has freed us from the bondage of sin. As a response, we want to serve him and become more and more like Him. He is Jesus.

Christians remember Jesus' death on the cross on Good Friday, and then on the third day, that is Easter Sunday, we celebrates his victory our sin and death. His victory means we are freed from the bondage of sin. We know we are not perfect but we know that through the Holy Spirit, we have the hope of becoming more and more like Jesus. We can be better persons throughout our lives.

Christmas trees and gifts together with Easter eggs and business are man-made and meant for commercial success. We can buy Christmas presents and have a reunion or gathering with our relatives and friends but we must know the true meaning of Christmas, that is the birth of Jesus Christ. We must also know that Easter is not about chocolates but about the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. For Christians, we must be thankful for this wonderful gift of love from God. We remember his death and we celebrate his resurrection during Easter.

Ephesians 2:8-9

New International Version (NIV)

8 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— 9 not by works, so that no one can boast.

Accessed on 19th April 2014: http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Ephesians+2%3A8-9&version=NIV

Here are some very good songs that we can listen to during this Easter season:

Behold The Lamb


There Is A Fountain Filled With Blood


We Are The Reason
Although we usually sing this during Christmas, the chorus gives us the reason Jesus came to die on the cross.



Mighty is the Power of the Cross



We can sing this tomorrow:

Come On and Celebrate



Overcome



Cheers,

Roger TJ Koo

Running

Hi Everyone,

Some of you may have heard that I've been participating in various running events for the past two years. Here's how it got started.

I picked up sports again from 20o4 as a form of exercise and to keep fit. I started jogging and playing badminton with my friends and colleagues. Sports improve my overall health and reduces stress. I sweat a lot and feel much fresher after sports. I feel happier after I exercised. My athletic capability is not the best of the best. I have not considered joining competitive running prior to that.

A good friend, Daniel Teo encouraged me to pick up competitive running in the middle of last year.  He knew that I've been jogging and playing badminton each week. He asked me to consider about joining the McDonalds Olympics Fun Run 2012. He also participated in several running events that time. I told him I will think about it.

A lot of my friends from school and colleagues joined Standard Chartered KL Marathon 2012. Some joined the Energiser Night Run. More and more people are joining competitive running in the past few years. After some time, I thought that I can try running a 5km or 7km event. I then signed up for the McDonalds Olympics Fun Run 2012 together with Daniel. It was a 7km running event held at Dataran Merdeka. I started to train myself for the run. There was no official timing for the run thus I do not know the results but overall it was an achievement. I never knew that I could complete 7km. It was a good run.

I signed up for the Brooks Marathon 2013 earlier this year after that with Daniel. We took part in the 10km run held at National Stadium. I completed the run in a net time of 1:30:09. It was another achievement. The medal is the small silver trophy that you see in the picture below.

I've decided to join the Standard Chartered KL Marathon 2013 (10km Cruise) after that to challenge myself. Maybe I can be faster. My time was 1:32:38. It was slower but I still completed it. I then signed up for Adidas King of the Road held at Sunway Pyramid in October 2013 with my school friend, Kevin. My time was slower as well, finishing in 1:34 with 3 minutes toilet break after the first water station. I have been training prior to this by jogging myself or with my colleagues every week but my time seems slower each time. Each run that I went to have different kinds of terrain. Uphill, downhill, straight road, slope, curving and passing through tunnel are among those terrains. My timing is consistent across the 3 races. 

Joining these competitive running events have these benefits:

1. Challenge myself to finish faster
2. Very good exercise and burn calories
3. Feel fresher and happier
4. Running at different locations

I can see places that I never saw before. For the McDonalds Fun Run, we ran past Bank Negara, Memorial Tunku Abdul Rahman and other government agencies along that area. At the Brooks Marathon, we ran past Bukit Jalil, IMU, Astro and Kesas Highway before ending at the National Stadium. As for the Standard Chartered KL Marathon 2013, we run from Padang Merbok and passed by KL Sentral, Brickfields, Majestic Hotel, Masjid Negara, Lake Gardens and Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman. Last but not least, we ran along the NPE from Sunway Pyramid until slightly after Continental tyre factory and heading back to Sunway Pyramid at the Adidas King of The Road.

The biggest marathon event that I've gone to is the Standard Chartered KL Marathon with 33,000 participants. This is followed with Adidas KOTR with 11,000 participants. I have signed up for the Multi Purpose Insurance 8km run on 5th January 2014. I wish to participate in the following running events next year:

1. Standard Chartered KL Marathon 2014
2. Brooks Marathon 2014 (maybe)
3. Adidas King of the Road 2014
4. Putrajaya Night Run 2014
5. Mens' Health Night Run 2014

Come and join me in the next run! More friends running together creates more fun. I want try going for night runs next year. We can train up together and improve our timings.

Cheers,

Rogerkoo

Food Safety & Hygiene

Hi Everyone,

We often heard of more and more of tainted food and food poisoning cases in the world. Among these cases are:

1. China Tainted Milk Scandal in 2008
2. 13 Pupils Hit With Food Poisoning in Alor Star
3. Unhygienic Food Preparation
4. Unhygienic Eateries
5. Cyclospora Parasite Sickens 362 in 15 States, 18 Hospitalized

The China milk scandal involving several milk brands including budget brand, Sanlu, Mingli, Yili and Yashili. Babies who had been fed Sanlu branded milk were found to have kidney stones resulting in 16 babies were dead in one region in Gangsu. Further investigations revealed that the milk powders were laced with melamine, a chemical used to increase protein content^.1 Greedy and ignorant companies were boosting their profits by including melamine in milk production. We wonder why there is no conscience among unscrupulous manufacturers.

Closer to home, there were several food poisoning cases happened recently^2,3,4 and in the past few years. There were also reports on unhygienic food preparation and eateries. Rats and cockroaches are the main culprits in most of these cases. Surprisingly, some people are defending the unhygienic eateries by claiming that it tastes good. There is a restaurant near by house that is always full of people yet I have been told that this restaurant is surrounded by huge rats. Most people would actually avoid these restaurants rather than frequent these restaurants. In some cases, people will find some type of insect such as a cockroach or a fly on a plate of rice or in the bowl of a soup. 

There are also restaurants that do not prepare food hygienically. Vegetables and fruits are not washed and food are cooked using unclean cooking oil. Unclean oil means that the cook uses the cooking oil that was used in the previous day or the cooking oil found in the drain also known as Gutter Oil. It is to our disgust that we see the video showing how gutter oil is produced. Gutter Oil is present in 1 in 10 of China's cooking oil and is carcinogenic. Food not prepared in hygienic ways will cause diarrhoea and vomiting. It will cause Hepatitis C and death in worst cases. Rats in the surrounding area also cause the Leptospirosis disease.

Recently in US, there is also the case of Cyclospora happening mostly in the state of Iowa. It sickened 274 people and hospitalises 10. To know more, please read Item 2 in the links above.

A number of fruit and vegetable farmers and sellers are also spraying huge amounts of pesticide and insecticide to their crops. These are not good as there will be high level of chemicals in our body after consuming these foods.

There is also a concern of food safety in China. This is written by one of The Star's journalist who is working in China.

In a nutshell, all food should be prepared in a clean environment. Food must be fresh and free of any harmful chemicals. Fruits and vegetables need to be washed thoroughly. Dirty parts should be removed. Unhygienic food can kill.

1. 2008 Chinese Milk Scandal, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2008_Chinese_milk_scandal, 

<sup>Accessed: 27th July 2013

2. 12 Penang students down with food poisoning, http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/12-penang-students-down-with-food-poisoning/, Accessed: 27th July 2013

3. 13 Pupils Hit With Food Poisoning, http://www.malaysiandigest.com/news/36-local2/332061-13-pupils-hit-with-food-poisoning.html , Accessed: 27th July 2013

4. 70 pupils of Bukit Kapar school down with food poisoning, http://www.thestar.com.my/News/Nation/2013/02/20/70-pupils-of-Bukit-Kapar-school-down-with-food-poisoning.aspx , Accessed: 27th July 2013</sup>

Safety on the Roads

Hi Everyone,

Snatch thieves, robberies rape and other crimes are happening frequently for the past 2 years. Innocent lives were threatened and some were lost. All these happened in an instant without any warning. It can happen anywhere including residential areas, commercial areas, restaurants, alleyways and parks. As of today, there is almost a murder or shooting in the news everyday.

Areas involved include Bukit Gasing, Wangsa Maju, Cheras, Penang, Petaling Jaya, KL, Johor and other areas. There is a crime awareness website and a crime awareness Facebook page as well. It is not safe as before. This also applies to cities such as Melbourne, Australia and Italy.

Actions seem to have been taken but crime rate still increases. More and more residential areas have started to employ guards to guard their community. Most of us need to come back home by 12am. We need to be vigilant to our surroundings and not fall victims into crimes. 

Perhaps these are some steps to take to curb crimes: 

• More patrolling by the police should be done
• Learn martial arts and kick boxing for self defence
• Pepper Spray
• Don't carry expensive items
• Don't carry things in a position for snatch thieves to take
• Carry minimum cash when jogging
• CCTVs / Guardhouses in residential areas
• Take the more crowded (average to slightly more crowded) ways to go home instead of short cuts
• Wear cheap watch
• Just give them money when they ask

These thieves and robbers may not necessarily be done by foreigners here but can be the locals. The cause of these may be due to rising costs of living and insufficient money to buy what they want. Some may be their plan all the time as an act of revenge or something. I do not know what their reasons are but we need to be vigilant outside.

Can all these be reduced and stopped? Please help to make each country safe whether here in Malaysia and other countries.

Cheers,

Rogerkoo

My Book Collection

Hi Everyone,

I like to read and here is my book collection. I bought most of it but some are from my sisters' collection. For example, my sisters had The Complete Short Stories of Sherlock Holmes and Wild Swans previously. Please do note that I have not read some of those books yet (Emperor Tang Ming, The Singapore Success Story for example).

The classics are mostly from my sisters' collection except for Bleak House, Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn (bought by my mum). Besides that, my mum also bought The Prince and the Pauper, A Tale of Two Cities and Black Beauty.

Here are my latest books that I bought:

The Racketeer
The Lord of The Rings + The Hobbit 75th Anniversary Box Set
Kill Alex Cross

I bought at a discount for some of these books. For example, I bought The Racketeer at MPH at 25% discount. Buying the box set for Lord of the Rings + The Hobbit is actually cheaper than buying each book individually. Currently, I am reading The Return Of The King (40%).

My main genres of books remain as below:

1. Mystery / Crime / Thriller (Agatha Christie, James Patterson, Arthur Conan Doyle, Michael Connelly, Michael Crichton, Stieg Larsson)
2. Lawyers / Court Cases (John Grisham)
3. Christianity
4. Fantasy (Narnia, Lord of The Rings)
5. Horror (Stephen King)
6. Classics
7. Biographies

In addition, I also read Life of Pi and the Power of One. I have also read other books such as Malay stories and books on health and IT magazines. Besides these, I read free classics on the IPad and my phone. I am considering buying e-books in the future. 

That's all,

Rogerkoo