Blog de Donovan Tan

1st post ever to be written Tun Mahathir style

1.The recent newspaper headline have caught my attention and got me thinking.

2.The number of old folks being abandoned by their children is on the rise. A sad news it is but that is the trend.

3.Parents have to bear the burden of raising their children since they are born. A mother can look after 5 children or so.

4.Now all 5 children are grown up, looking after their mother until THAT DAY comes seem to be too much of a burden.

5.Orphans would never do that to their step parents but those born and raised by their biological parents would.

6.Is taking care of an old man that much harder than taking care of a baby? I don't know.

7.In Singapore, those who are caught abandoning their parents can be jailed for up to six months.

8.Our government should learn from our neighbors on this matter.

9.If one could speak out words like 'I got my own life to live now.Goodbye' to their parents, he/she can say it to any body.

10.If you cannot respect the very people who have raised you with love and care,then there is no point respecting the gods you worship. Because you cannot respect any body.

11.I might have missed out of those who had not have a good time with their parents. Child abuse,rape, etc.

12.BUT, how many people in the old folks home actually did that? How many of them actually deserved to be there?

What goes around, comes around.

Yesterday Kev was saying on his facebook that his new SE Xperia X1 broke down and was sent to the 'hospital'. My reaction?


Yes, literally. See?
Today,guess what happened? On my way to work, I had a puncture and arrived at work late.

So I called and inform Ben about it.And His reaction?


You might have thought so.

And I also got mad and replied with 'MCB ni. hen hao siao ar !?' In mandrin.

So, what I've been taught about karma proved to be true,again. And that makes me wonder, what is happening to Ben tomorrow ???

I'm seeing my old self at work. Watching him serve a customer reminds me of myself about 3 years ago. He is hard working,aggressive,he never stops trying, and has no fear of rejection. Always eager to know how much other people earn from the sale that he missed. Always the 1st to react when customers walk in. That was me. And now I see that in him.

Now things have changed. I'm laid back and more relaxed at work. I got fed up with this place. I have more time for exam preparation and photography but that is just not my main purpose at work.
I used to take the shortest lunch and dinner break at off-peak hours when I was at Megamall. Worrying that staying away from the shop will result in missing a sale. But now I take one full hour breaks even at weekends. I don't care because usually there is no sale to miss. And while I'm taking things easy at work, he is there to take every advantage of it.
I don't blame him. He did nothing wrong and should take credit for his hard work. The only thing that I find irritating is his tendency to get involved in my sales.

It is tough to earn more here. Back then when the economy was good and shopping malls were few and far away, selling 3 cameras in a day is just routine. But now its the opposite.I sell 1 in 3 days. Sometimes less. And I have to work 12 hours everyday.*tiring* When there is no people there is no sale. This is not an excuse but a condition.

Facing my old self everyday isn't such a great thing.

I can't take this half day long,less rewarding job any more. I'm going to quit at the end of the month to prepare for exams in September.

NO, it is not my birthday today. It is probably the most significant birthday of your life.

I see my friends celebrate their 21st birthday one after another. Some wants to throw a party. Some wants to relax at beach. Others kept it very simple.

So with mine coming up in a few months I started to think how am I going to celebrate mine. How do I celebrate moving from
childhood/boyhood TO adulthood/manhood ?

BUT... There is a problem. Because I can't figure out many reasons to celebrate. I mean, I screwed up and missed the convocation. I'm not happy with a few things that I can't do much about now. And I haven't achieved much in recently months.

Everybody have their own way. I can't figure out mine for now. Any suggestion my friends?

Somehow during my 2 years studying at PG TARC which located in Tg.Bunggah, I've never fully explored Batu Ferrigghi. It is a famous tourism spot in Penang. Many people have told me about the beach and Sunset Bistro.I've always enjoyed vacations at the beach
Yesterday,Wednesday which is my off-duty day, I went over to see what's what. A big thanks to Su Ping for being kind enough to provide transportation. And also special thanks to Wei Chang,a guy from Ipoh who came to Penang for a vacation because if he had not come, we wouldn't bother to go all the way there.

I have to say it is the best off day I've ever had so far! Much better than the Kampar trip for 2 reasons.

First, there is a beach and of course, a beautiful scenery plus the bikini babes and animals you can't see in town.
Second, traveling is less tiring and takes less time to reach. Its in Penang !

The only thing I didn't quite like is the rough sand and the weather. Which was very warm.

But you wouldn't be so bothered if you are on the parachute being dragged by a boat or just enjoying water sports.
And as you would expect, you have to pay a bit extra for a tourism hot spot. For the short 5 minute flying-without-wings experience costs you *170bucks. RM120 for a 35mins jet skiing in a 2 seater.

Even my iced peach juice costs RM4.90
I'm not whining about what I paid, I'm just trying to bring up some awareness.

I don't know about prices of banana boat ride, 4-seat-in-a-row water drifting,"horse riding", and literally horse riding.

I abosolutely loved my trip there and I'm thinking about visiting Batu Ferringhi again soon. Who wants in?

Opening an invitation for all ! 'mai kong wa bo chio hor'

Browsing through facebook and friendster have not been a great experience lately. Photos of others' graduation. My classmates, my cousins, my friends... They have all earned the right to attend the convocation as a graduate. And I have nothing but a sincere congratulations to all those who have made it.

As for me, and a few others who suffered the same fate as me, I can only say Keep Trying ! Finish what you started and don't ever quit.

I don't blame any body but myself for this. And they did nothing wrong by sharing photos of their sweet success moments online.

I felt bad because I tried but not hard and smart enough. I wanted to graduate. I want it bad.
I wanted to be among my M26 classmates in this photos.

I thought I could share that moment with my friends.


I wished I can stand in this photo with my cousins. What a family reunion that would have been ! My granny would have been so proud.
The experience of going through such a hard time have thought me one thing. My previous method and the amount of work I put in for exam,is not good enough.

Now that is it decided that I either graduate by September,go to UTAR in Janaury OR settle with a diploma. Any more delays in studies is unacceptable.

In other words, I do well this well, I continue and if I don't, that's it. The fun ends.

With that in mind I'll have to do everything I can to make sure I do well. I might quit my job,study until I drop,cheat in exam,beg for help, any thing to get this right.

I have 7 weeks left now to tackle my worst subjects in college. I hope I'm up for this. To those in similar situation as me, start early,study smart,do your best! And you shall have no regrets at the end of day.

Good Luck

Kampar UTAR is said be a boring place to people but T-back Marcus-nator said it is fun while Tzun Hoong called the place hell.

So I thought I would need some kind of companion there. Kev said I should find a girl friend instead but I have other ideas. I'll have a pet ! Previously I had hamsters but now I'm thinking about Sugar Gliders!

I did some brief research on the net and found out a few facts about these animals of Australia/Indonesian origin.

The size is slightly bigger than a hamster but it has a much longer tail. It has the cute looks that everybody will adore. But unlike hamsters who has lived with humans for many generations, the pet Sugar Gliders' ancestors live in the wild. Which means they not very used to living with humans yet. Some say.

Preparing for food takes a bit of time and effort. The owner must also know what to and what not to feed their little pets. This might be troublesome to some.

It bonds well with its owner. It is very playful in an adorable way and loves to climb on the owner's shirt.

But then there is a problem. These little creatures are very attention needy. Beast Master Pei Hong said it is recommended that you breed two so that it has the company and attention it needs. Like in the wild, they live in groups. Some web site also says that boredom and loneliness can cause these cute little animals to die.

While most hamsters live for about 1 1/2 year to 2, sugar gliders can live up to 15 years. Which is almost as long as a dog but it doesn't guard the house like a dog.

There is however one thing sugar gliders and hamsters have in common. They are both active at night but sugar gliders can make louder noise.

But one thing makes a sugar guider stand out from the rest of the home pets. These little creatures, can actually glide or fly downwards without getting themselves hurt !

But even here this could be a problem. Because if it can jump off from somewhere to you, I fear it might jump into another animal's mouth.
I haven't tried breeding a sugar glider yet. But I know it bonds well with its owner but could be a difficult to handle.

If you have some information about these cute little animals to share, please send an email to Thank you