On October 21, I put up an entry titled “Idiots Who Spam My Mailbox Everyday.” GK Lim whose name was among the offending mails wrote to say that he has asked his marketing people to stop non-opt-in mailings. I thought that was the end of those annoying mails from him. Look what greeted me when I retrieved my emails just now. Another non-opt-in email from GK Lim. Non-opt-in mailing is a term used in place of spam mails or unsolicited bulk emails to make it sound more palatable. Shit still smells like shit no matter what you call it.

Tanjung City Marina at dusk.
Photo by Wuan.

Most of my relatives in Penang are not aware that I got married last year. If Mum was around, it would have been a grand reception as our extended family members number by the hundreds. Nonetheless, I like to officially introduce Wuan to them by holding a wedding reception in Penang some time next year. It has been a while since I met many of them. This will be a good opportunity to rekindle our kinship.

I have been looking around for restaurants that serve good Chinese wedding banquet dishes only to realise how out of touch I am with the happenings of the culinary scene in Penang. The only restaurants that I could think of were Haloman, Fortuna, Prosperous and Lee How Fook. All have closed shop since many years ago.

When Wuan and I were in Penang last year for the Forum on Public Transport for Disadvantaged Groups in May last year, we were treated to a sumptuous dinner at Hai Nan Town Nyonya and Hainanese Restaurant by the organiser. We loved the food they served. We really do not mind serving Nyonya and Hainanese dishes for the reception. Besides, the view of the Tanjung City Marina at dusk makes for a very romantic background. I wonder if they do wedding banquets.

1. Annoy a blogger

2. See #1.

When I first saw the photo below, I thought to myself, “Wow, nice car!”

Then I noticed the signboard with the wheelchair logo behind the car.

I thought to myself, “A disabled person who has made it to be able to afford such a nice car.”

Then I saw that he occupied two parking spaces.

I told myself what an idiotic and selfish disabled person the driver was to deprive other disabled people from using the parking space.

Then I read in Yoon Kit’s blog that the person who parked the car there refused to move the vehicle despite being told that he had occupied parking spaces for disabled people.

*&%$#@. That was all I could think of.

Parking spaces for disabled people are there for a purpose. They are extra-wide to allow the car door be opened fully and a wheelchair placed beside it for the disabled person to get in and out of the car. Regular parking spaces are too narrow for this. Another car parked beside the car of a disabled person in a regular-sized parking space will prevent the car door from being opened fully.

Driver of car BJD 8282. Pray very very hard that you never ever officially qualify to use these parking spaces. It is no fun for a disabled person to travel twenty kilometers to run errands only find all accessible parking spaces taken up by inconsiderate people like you and leaving us no place else to park.

Read Mentally Challenged Parkers for more on the incident. Special thanks to Yoon Kit for advocating on behalf of disabled people. Thanks also to Paul Tan for directing me to Yoon Kit’s blog.

Photo courtesy of Yoon Kit.