Wednesday, August 27, 2008

mY beLoVed CaR


mY beLoVed CaR
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I love kara'oke!

I am SORRY. First of all, SORRY to MySelf for not having the determination and disciple to keep blogging on frequent basis. SORRY again to Readers of this blog (as if there is...) for not updating. Ideas are just hard to come by these days, as I do not know what to sketch and write about. My mind is just blank for the past few weeks...myabe becoz of the hectic work schedule, and also...hmm...there is no more excuse for me. I have to admit! I am lazy! Alright?!

So, I got this nice idea spinning in my mind that day after I got my car's road tax renewed. The car has been with me since the day I landed myself on my first job which was a few years back. Bought a "second-hand" or "used" car instead of new one coz not enuf money lor. No oil reserve underneath my house mah, or anything near to that...if not, it will be Ferrari I tell you! OK. Enough of bullshitting.

15 years old. Happy birthday to YouUUU...



So the "used" car I bought that time was damn old. It was manufactured in my own country in the year of 1993. Which means it is already (2008 - 1993 = 15) fifteen years old. A check at the car's permit showed that this 'new' car of mine has already served 3 gentlemen previously. Well, for a 18k RM (USD 6k) during that period of time, it's considered a good deal. I know, I know. For this kind of price, I could had easily got myself an old BMW in the States or Canada, but SAD to say, this is Malaysia. People who could afford a Honda Accord Sedan here could easily afford a Porsche in the US. Why is it like that, you may ask. All I have to say is the stupid tax structure here. Purposely designed to make you feel envious of other countries. T.N.S.!

Let's talk about the car's specifications. This is the interesting part. Engine capacity = 1.5 Litre with a *superb* acceleration of 0-60mph time that is almost equivalent to infinity. A 12 Valve Single Overhead Cam (SOHC) which translates to Stone Age engine technology, an automatic gearbox that only has a max limit of 3 gears. Yes! 3 only. So few...Sigh. Best of all, this car model is known to be the worst in terms of suspension. The feeling is like riding on a rock. No suspension at all! Sigh....

The SpeC is damn "Good"!



But I don't really care much back then. All I need is a just form of transport for me to get to work and back to my hometown. Some more, with my limited budget, there isn't much choices left for me.

Having a 2nd hand car also means you gonna spend some money into the repair bills. Well, I am ready for that coz I've set aside some buffer for the initial repairs. But over the years, the repair bills just got bigger and bigger. Obviously, my car is getting older by the day, and many parts tend to fail due to wear and tear. The most serious one so far is the gearbox...yeah, changed the whole unit! Damn! Really burned a deep-deep hole in my pocket. Summing it all up, I would roughly estimate that the total repair cost till now shouldn't be anything less than 7k. Hopefully, nothing big is coming up in the near future. But I can 'FEEL' it's coming very soon...coz that day I saw some white smoke billowing out from the exhaust!

Repair Repair Repair...



I wouldn't really blame the car or anything else, since it has been my companion through many of the places throughout Malaysia over the few years. Together, we have traveled to almost 90% of the Peninsular, had crossed countless borders, scaled up mountains like Genting Highlands and Cameron Highlands more than the fingers can count, I mean..., what more do you expect? I am satisfied, considering the happy moments that my car has brought me to all this while.

Genting Highlands!



Whatever it is, I still consider my car as my BMW, though of coz it is not. To have a real BMW is everyone's dream (including mine), but until that one become a reality, all that I have now is that old junk I am driving. It's either to cherish it or to treat it as a garbage. I choose to see it the better way.

And another thing I had come to notice through my experience is that, you can always find people driving luxurious cars, only to see them alone in the car, and the expression on their face is something you wouldn't want to see on yourself. On the other hand, I have seen a whole family packed like sardines in a small old junk, but still showing their sincerest smiles and happily enjoying each other's companion. Don't get me wrong. I ain't saying that you can't be happy if you're rich. It is just that...luxurious car won't make you happy, it's WHO SITS BESIDE YOU that makes you happy. It's the only thing that MATTERS. You get what I mean?

Happy Face VS Sad Face




It's WHO sits beside you that MaTTers



Oh...it's late already, I gotta sleep, or I'll be late for work. And a few hours later, I'll be driving my "BMW" liao... :)