Tyre air pressure

Check your car tyres air pressure at least once a week. Today I realized that my rear right tyre was slightly inflated. Drove to a petrol kiosk to get it pumped. The settings that I normally pump are FRONT 32psi, REAR 30psi. Using the electronic pumps with the digital meter are more accurate as compared to the manual turn meters (inaccurate and OFTEN spoils!).

Reasons why you should keep them pumped well:

• Well pumped tyre increases life-span of the tyres
• Will not have pre-mature wear/tear at the sidewalls
• Better response on throttle
• Better handling/control

The higher the psi you inflate, the more compressed the air is and it will make your ride feel bumpy. You can play around with the psi to your preference. For a comfortable ride, you can set 28psi for front and 26 psi for rear. I like mine at 32psi front and 30psi rear. If you drive on highway / long distance, it is advisable to set your tyre pressure at 30psi front and 28psi rear due to a long journey at high speed increasing the air temperature in the tyre thus pressure will rise.

Petrol price down!

So the govt just reduced the petrol price per liter from RM2.70 to RM2.55 (RM0.15 reduction per liter).

Should we be happy over this price reduction?

• I'm not because the price should never have gone up in the first place
• The bowl of Pan Mee I eat for breakfast is not going to get cheaper
• I'd be pissed if this price reduction was to win voters for the upcoming election
• Chain effect of hike made all cost of living increase, but these costs will not be lower now that we have a 15 sen reduction

Point to ponder:

1. If petrol gets a further reduction to RM2.00 a liter, will our standard of living adjust with it?

My fav fruit juice

If you have a blender at home to make fruit juice, you should make these combination of drinks.

Blend 3 stalks of celery, 2 tomato

Blend 3 stalks of celery, 2 green apple

Blend 2 stalks of celery, 1 carrot, 1 tomato

Add some salt if you feel the taste of celery is too strong. Mix around with various veges and fruits for your own preference. Whether its tasty or not, you're still drinking something that is healthy for your body.

Magic the Gathering Nationals 2008

Congratulations to Au Yong for winning 1st at 2008 M:tG nationals. Im sure you will do well in guiding Malaysia to a top finish for Worlds. Also props to Jason Yap in his quest to get a chance to play in Worlds. All the best to you, and may your gravy train of Pro Tours be a long journey.

What happened on Saturday?

1. I was playing B/G elf and I beat Vincent Gan using Reveillark. He muttered some stuff "...it doesn't take skills to win in Magic"
2. I did 1-2 for constructed portion, losing to Hwa in 3 games because he dropped a Moat before I could thoughtseize it off thus nothing I could do to handle the Moat.
3. I lost to Razif in 3 games because he managed to combo off the infinity life gain playing Reveillark and I had no Extirpate at all in my sideboard because I told Mun Yip i won't be needed them (LOL!)
4. I managed a 2-1 for Lorwyn/Lorwyn/Morning Tide, and I have not seen a single Morning Tide card until Nationals. I stopped Lorwyn right after PT:KL so yeah, drafting was tough!
5. I drafted a Mono-red elementals deck with the Elemental Lord and some fat elementals + 2 blue cards for gas in mid-late game.
6. I screwed up my Shadowmore/Shadowmore/Eventide draft because I had no clue what to pick as I never saw those cards before.
7. I dropped in day 1 after round 7.

I think I did pretty well considering I was inactive in playing magic for almost a year, and had no idea about the metagame and decks until 1 day before Nationals where Mun Yip dropped by to bunk over at my place and lent me his decks. Great fun meeting old friends, but I cant get too serious in the game due to other commitments. I shall be back one day! Perhaps to do better than a 23rd placing in GP:Bangkok!


I will be back next year for Nationals 2009 (to have fun of course!)

Always give 100% at work

The reason why everyone enjoys Fridays and should never work on Saturday and Sundays.

Is a turbo timer needed?

I believe this is most often asked. Let me share my point of view:

Why is it needed?

• Turbo timer aids you to cooldown your car by a preset timer.
• Helps you to idle down in order for the oil to flow pass the turbo charger.
• Idling down prevents oil from getting 'cooked' in the turbo charger.
• Reduce chances of sludge forming up from high temp.
• Optional function that comes with it is a good feature.

Why is it NOT needed?

• You can drive slow and not boost to cooldown your car.
• Driving at a slow and steady speed allows sufficient air to go through your car.
• Driving will make the oil pump all round as well.
• When your car is stationary after a hard drive, its as hot as hell anyway, the longer you idle the hotter it gets!
• You do not require the unnecessary functions

So conclusion, to get one or not to get?
It can help, especially certain functions are great "think Apexi pen turbo timer which offers O2 reading". If you have the money to spend, go for it, but you can live without a turbo timer for your car as long as you know how to cool down your car before you reach your destination. Just drive slow and not boosting for the last 2km of your journey is sufficient.

Car park tips: Reverse parking.

Ever wondered how those valet car parking guys do it? Parking in tight squeezed places with perfection. Its really simple actually. Take a look at how forklifts maneuver and apply the same driving concept to parking your car.

Benefits of reverse parking:

• Reverse parking is easier than head first. (Remember, we're suppose to be driving our car as though its a forklift!)
• You can gauge the remaining space just by looking at your LEFT and RIGHT side view mirror.
• When you want to exit, driving head first is much easier.
• Easy for cars that have bad turning radius: Such as van, lorry, pick up truck, 4wd, (EVO's have really awful turning radius!)
  

Any techniques that can help?

• Locate your parking lot. Use the pillar / car as your side view mirror object to gauge the spacings.
• Once you can clearly see the object (pillar for instance), slowly reverse beside it.
• You will usually need to concentrate in 1 side view mirror, but its also better to keep an eye on the other side just incase.
• When you are half way into your parking lot, straight your car by moving forwardl
• Now slowly reverse back straightening your car and position it evenly so that you have ample space for left and right doors to open.

Practice, practice and practice. You will soon find that reverse parking is in fact much easier than entering from the front, and provides you full control.