Organic Products

I am not against consuming and using organic products. I do agree on some point that organic products are the best choice for everyone, most especially for pre-pregnancy or pregnant women. However, do note that organic products are much more pricier compared to conventional products and it is especially for those who are on a strict budget (like yours truly) and to buy organic products all the time seriously burns a huge hole on my little wallet.
I am neither pregnant nor planning to be pregnant any time soon. And I'm not ranting or debating on the goodness and evil of buying organic products. If I can afford it, I definitely would love to switch my entire house into organics. Unfortunately, I do not have that privilege to do so.
My S.I.L plans to have baby. Kudos to her and I look forward to have a little niece or nephew to be around with. And because of that, she and my brother literally re-vamp their food as well as household products into organics. Every thing must be organic, i.e. vegetables, fruits, poultries, dairies as well as toiletries. I was a bit astounded to hear that. They really spent so much. And this has not even taken into account the cost that is due to incur during pregnancy, post-pregnancy, baby, school, etc. And not to mention the recently announce of price hike on petrol, toll, electricity, etc.
There are times, I have difficulty inviting them out for meals because they want to cut down on outside food as they are very unhealthy for both mother and future baby. Yes, that is quite true, however, it's not like I'm eating outside food all the time (except when I'm at work). If I got the time, I rather had home-cooked food, using conventional foods (as they are more affordable) as long as they are washed properly. I do occasionally buy some organic vegetables and other organic-based food products, when I can afford it. I will not compromise my health and of course, I would love to live longer and healthier.
But the thing is, when my mum carries my brother and I, she did not consume any organic products and use the normal conventional products like most parents do during their time. Yet, both me and my brother came out normal and healthy, though we are not as fit and lanky as David Beckham or Maria Sharapova. Same goes with my friends' parents. But most importantly, we are healthy, isn't that what all would-be parents want? Well, we do suffered from bouts of influenza and other minor illness that is not life-threatening at all, but aren't everyone do, too?
Does consuming organic food able to prevent these illness? Does consuming organic products can really guarantee that the babies born are free of defects (e.g. cleft lip, missing limbs, congenital heart defects), free of illnesses (e.g. cancer, autism, ADHD, Down Syndrome), absolutely genius and brilliant (i.e. high IQ and EQ), live longer, perfectly well-behaved and high immunity? Just because she was born with low immunity and she seems to be allergic/sensitive to many things, i.e. seafood and peanuts and some skin products, but it doesn't mean it's her mum to be blamed for causing her like this. Her two brothers also came out from the same mother, but they are healthy. My friend, who came from a slightly poor background, obviously her mum did not consume and don't know anything about organic products, but my friend came out intelligent and became a successful lawyer and she also eventually gave birth to a healthy baby boy, without consuming or using much organic products (she did use some organic-based toiletries and occasionally consume organic food when she feels like it throughout her pregnancy).
I did asked the doctor, if it's absolute necessary to completely change a pre-pregnant or during pregnancy's diet to organic. The doctor said, "it's not absolute necessary, it is more of a Want and not Need. We can still survive without organics and in fact, our parents did not and don't even know what is organics during their time but yet we came out normal and healthy. We developed normally, our behaviour and attitude are considered manageable and good, we succeeded in our studies and career and we are still alive." When I heard that, I thought that there's an air of truth in there. Even when my close friend was pregnant in her 40s (an unplanned pregnancy), she did not consumed or used much organic products and yet she gave birth to a beautiful and healthy baby girl, whilst her sister who has been trying hard for more than ten years, consuming all kinds of organic food and consume traditional Chinese medicines but unfortunately, the stork has yet to arrive.
Regardless whether we are born normal or with defects doesn't mean that it comes from the food we ate or the things we do. Everything we do, act or eat, we have to do it in moderation. If we eat or do things moderately, then we will suffer less in terms of financially and physically. For example, if we consume more unhealthy food, such as pigging out on fast food, naturally we will end up either obese, heart disease or diabetes and this will affect the baby in the mother's womb. Researchers also discovered that eating certain fishes aren't good for pregnant women due to their high mercury level, but you can't possibly wiped them out of your diet as fishes contains Omega-3 fatty acids, Vitamin D and protein which is essential for the baby's growth. Nevertheless, some of the things happen beyond our control. Sometimes, it is the Creator who decides how the babies will come out and how or what the children will become when they're growing up. We cannot 100% blame entirely on the conventional food we consume on a daily basis. If we lead a healthy lifestyle, i.e. no smoking or consuming alcohol excessively, eating moderately, exercise frequently or participate in active activities and sleep early, I believe that both mother and child will be both fit and healthy.
Please be aware that I am not here to debate. My apologies if you are offended with my posting here. I encourage you to consume organic products as they are healthier and safer as they used natural fertilizers and natural pesticides on the farming system. If you can really afford it and totally have no budget or financial constraint, then I strongly encourage you to go for it. But, if you do have constraint, then just stick to conventional food as long as you wash them properly or use the vegetable and fruit wash to ensure the vegetable and fruits are really clean and edible, same goes with the meats. Once in awhile, buy organic products when you can afford it (that's what I did, too).

In your opinion, do you consume and use organic products? Do you, especially those who are planning to get pregnant or are currently pregnant or your spouse are planning to get pregnant or currently pregnant, re-vamp the whole pantry or household into organics? I love to hear your feedback.

Fitness Centre - Peak Physique

I seem to be moving from one fitness centre to another. LOL. My first fitness centre that I have signed up was Fitness First, followed by Celebrity Fitness, then Clark Hatch and last but not least True Fitness. So Peak Physique is my fifth fitness centre.
I have signed up for a two-year contract, well basically I signed up for 1.5 years, but I was awarded another 6 months free if I pay a lump-sum using my Maybankard 0%-interest installment plan, so total will be two years. It was really convenient for me as I'm staying near PWTC area and I worked in central of KL and I usually took the LRT to and from work, whilst Peak Physique is located in Sogo, hence it's located in the middle of my destination. And since it's located in Sogo, so if I finish work early, I can go grab some snack to munch before I go up to the fitness centre or I can grab my dinner after my work out.
Peak Physique is a new gym in town, opened in May 2012, conveniently located inside of Sogo shopping centre in Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman. The layout is pretty spacious, accessible and comfortable. No need to worry of bumping or fighting for the machines and equipments. There are 3 studios, one for Spinning classes, one for yoga and pilates and one for aerobics, dancing and group exercises. The female locker rooms are spacious as well. And most importantly, it's private. A lot of lockers fitted with a locking mechanism, shoe lockers, personal lockers, a sauna, 4 changing rooms, 4 toilets, 14 shower rooms and a make-up area with hair-dryers provided.
The cardio area is equipped with good and functional treadmills, cross-trainers, bikes, to name a few. And the weight training as well as the strength training area is well-equipped good equipments. And there's also TRX Suspension training equipment, too. On another corner is the Martial Arts/Kickboxing area where there's a weekly Muay Thai/Kickboxing classes are held there. Next to the female locker room are the Drinks bar, where you can help yourself with water, green tea, fruit tea and Nescafe with glasses and cups as well as sugar and creamer provided. Most of the gym-members (including me) will grab a drink and hang around that area where they provided high tables and chairs, as we chat up with other gym members, read magazine or newspaper or simply just catching our breath after a long and tiring workout.
The janitors there are very hard-working, ensuring all the glasses and cups are taken away to be washed and ensuring the water or other beverages are refilled. And you will always see them all around the gym, ensuring the equipments are cleaned after usage, which is really good and I applauded for that effort to ensure the place and equipments are clean.
Those who drive, they are offered 3-hours free parking at the basement, provided that they showed their membership card and the parking coin to the receptionist and make sure to validate the parking coin at the parking vending machine before approaching your car.
So far, I have no complaints about this fitness centre as it meets my every needs. I'm happy working out here. Only one thing I'm dissatisfied is they will not announce if they're a class cancellation on Facebook or Twitter. They only will display it on the reception counter announcing the class cancellation. So for those who did not go to the centre for the whole week, they will not know that the class has been cancelled unless they got there and see the class empty, that's when they realize the class is cancelled. It happened to me twice. So I've learnt my lesson, by calling them up before I go to the centre to avoid disappointment and inconvenience. Often times, I'm fortunate that my fellow gym friends will inform me when there's class cancellation on the following day or week, so I'm really thankful for having them informing me beforehand.
Crowd-wise, well, it is more crowded during weekdays after office hours, but not until the extend that all the equipments are taken up. Don't worry, you will definitely get to use the equipments, without waiting in line or anyone hovering over you to get you out of the machine. During the weekends, the crowd is not much, so it's a breeze. There aren't much classes conducted during the weekend, if I'm not mistaken, there are spinning classes as well as Zumba and Tai Chi class on Saturday and K-Pop dance class on Sunday. I am actively participating the Zumba, Tai Chi and K-Pop classes. There are many other classes, too, you can check it out at their Facebook page or you can simply pop by to the centre and check out the centre yourself.

Verdict: I'm really satisfied with the service offered by Peak Physique and so far I find my membership price is worth paying for and I look forward to see more improvements in this centre. I love to recommend to all to join this fitness centre. Do check out the website for more info and photos of the centre.

Location: Kompleks SOGO, Level 8, 190 Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman, 50100 Kuala Lumpur
Business Hour: Monday-Friday 6:30AM - 11:00PM / Weekends & Public Holidays 9:30AM - 7:30PM
Website: http://peakphysique.com.my/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/peakphysique.fitness.KLSOGO?ref=profile

For Your Info - Publika

Dear All,

Thank you for your interest on my post dated 17 January 2013 regarding the "New Parking Rate in Publika @ Solaris Dutamas". I hope I'm able to assist to those who has posted your comments for that post.
Anyway, I'm sorry to inform you that I no longer working in Publika since end of September. Therefore, I won't be able to find out if there's any new rate adjustments in the near future, which I presume there will be changes as I have a feeling the parking rate will probably increase on a yearly basis. Those of you who are working in Solaris Dutamas, perhaps you guys can help out and provide the new rates in the near future for the convenience of potential employees who wish to start their job in Solaris Dutamas or new customers who hadn't been to Publika before. I believe your input is very much appreciated.

Anyway, once again thank you for viewing my post and may all of you have a blessed and lovely day. God Bless...

Shogun Express

I have recently bought 2 meal vouchers from Groupon for Shogun Express, a little Japanese kiosk located inside of AEON Big, Mid Valley. It's a pork-free eatery, I presume they're Halal, because I see all the staffs are Malays. The voucher cost me about RM12.90, but it's a full set meal, so I thought it's quite worthwhile. The deal features are:

1.  Bento Set Meal with Miso Soup (Choose either one)

• Yakiniku Beef or Chicken
• Japanese Curry Beef or Chicken
• Teriyaki Chicken

2.  Edamame

3.  Mochi

4.  Drinks (Choose either one Hot or Cold drink)

Hot

• Cappucino
• Caffe Latte
• White Coffee
• Hot Chocolate
• English Tea
• Green Tea

Cold

• Fruit Juice 
• Ice Lemon Tea
• 100 Plus
• Coke

So for my first voucher, I try out the Yakiniku Chicken Bento set and Fruit Juice (only got Apple and Orange flavor). The Fruit Juice and Ice Lemon Tea are from the dispenser. Below are the pictures I've taken. The Yakiniku Chicken is not bad, the mochi is nice and sweet. That cup for the drink is the standard size. I saw other customers also served the same cup, so it's not fraud ;)

I'm satisfied with the food, I have no complain on this. The following is the menu board of Shogun Express.

 2 weeks later, I returned to use my last voucher. This time, I ordered the Teriyaki Chicken set. And this time, I took picture of the menu placed on my table, just in case the menu above is not clear enough.

 

 Unfortunately, I am pretty disappointed this round. The Teriyaki Chicken is hard and difficult to chew. And the edamame... Either it's not fresh or they have over-cooked it. You can compare the colour of the edamame from the first picture and the picture below. The first picture, the edamame is in bright green but the picture below, the edamame are dull and a little brownish.

Although my second attempt did not meet my expectation, but I'm not gonna boycott this place. From the menu, it seems they serve some good variety of food. I will probably patronise this eatery again and most definitely I won't be ordering Teriyaki Chicken. I will most probably go for Yakiniku Chicken or maybe I'll try their Chicken Bulgogi or Teriyaki Udon. 

The seats are pretty limited so it's best to come early. It's located near the Organic Food section. Enter from the back entrance near the Wet Section of the AEON Big, where all the poultry, vegetables and fruits are found. There's some food kiosk around there, too. I would love to give them a try one day.

Location: AEON Big, AT1, Mid Valley Megamall.

Studying in Wawasan Open University

I've enrolled in Wawasan Open University (WOU) in mid 2012. It's my first time learning the open distance learning concept so I'm still a little wary over this whole concept. So to give it a try, instead of taking up degree courses like most new students, I rather take up Graduate Certificate in Business Management. It's a 1.5 years graduate certificate program compared to the 3-4 years degree program. At least, if I unable to cope, at least I can obtain a certificate instead of obtaining nothing at all if I unable to complete the degree in 3-4 years time. I have not try juggling both studies and work at the same time, so it's best to try out the concept before I really plunge my head deeper into my education. Once I've completed my graduate certificate (hopefully I pass all subjects *fingers crossed*), then I may consider continue my degree or not.
The subjects I took in Graduate Certificate comprises of Core Subjects such as Business Accounting 1, Human Resource Management, Principles of Marketing and Principle and Practices of Management and Compulsory University Courses such as Computing and Internet and Communication Skills. So far I've completed 3 subjects, currently I'm taking 2 subjects and my next and final semester I'm taking 1 subject and I'm done. So if I plan to take degree, I needn't have to do the above-mentioned subjects and just continue with the rest of the subjects that I have not take yet.
So far, throughout my studies, I'm able to cope OK. It's very stressful and tiring, but I tried to take things slow and steady, one step at a time. I got a couple of classmates who unable to take the stress and pressure and drop out half way. I'm not sure if they able to get their refund, but I really sympathise them. One of the reason why I'm taking Graduate Certificate, as I'm concern if this would happen to me. You really have to be very committed and must really manage your time (and stress!) very well if you really want to consider furthering your studies. The prices are quite competitive and quite affordable, so far. I'm able to afford it without using my EPF or getting a study loan, etc.
The tutorials are conducted on weekends (Sat or Sun). It's only occurs once a month, depending on what and how many subjects you're taking. Upon enrolment, you are given a class schedule as well as the exam schedule to ensure which subjects falls on which weekend and to ensure none of the subjects (e.g. if you take more than 1 subject) doesn't clashed with the exam schedule (You can't possibly take 2 subjects at the same time, unless it's the same day but different time). So for those working 5 days week, it's convenient for them to attend the tutorials. However, there won't be any replacement classes should you fail to attend the tutorials. You will need to email the tutor or post your question on the students portal's forum. The tutors are part-timers and have many years of experience in the careers, hence, the tutors that taught me so far, shared a lot of real experiences that they have encountered in their work or career, which makes the tutorials more interesting and easy to understand.
Overall, my experience in WOU has been OK so far. I have not much complaints. I manage to complete my assignments on time, I manage to attend all tutorials and I manage to score well for my exams. Only thing that I'm not satisfied is:

• We use to have course materials in Flash format, which is more interesting and easy to understand, however they have discontinued the method as they deem too costly (for budget and labour)
• The exam venues are always different, and there's once I went to a college, where WOU rented a hall to conduct the exam, the washroom was so awful I just find it very difficult to even walk pass, don't say walk in.
• I was looking for some supplementary materials at the students' portal. This supplementary materials are slides that will be use during the tutorials and it helps me to understand the tutorials better. However, when I went to check for the slides it was in the folders, so I posted on the forum asking the Course Coordinator on the whereabouts. The next day, during my tutorial, this replacement tutor, who replaced the original tutor (his mum's passed away so he unable to conduct the tutorials), she asked who is the one that posted on the forum asking the slides whereabouts. She 'nicely' pointed out that this student SURELY did not do their studies and did not bother to read the course notes. I felt offended. And she some more ask who was it. In the back of my head, I wondered if she really expect the students to raise their hand and admit its him/her so she can continue to taunt on this student? And ironically, this tutor always emphasise on been ethical and empathy on whatever things you are doing, unfortunately, she is not practising what she preaches? I will not deem her as a bad tutor, no point. I just hope she practise what she preaches. If I know that these supplementary materials are uploaded by the tutor, I will not have posted the question on the forum. I will instead email the tutor. Well, lesson learn.
• My previous subjects, which I took (Marketing, Computing and HR), the Course Coordinators are very active in answering and assisting students in the forum. All the questions posted on the forum are always answered promptly. And they even put in the trouble to post interesting articles or videos to help us better understand the chapters. Unfortunately, my current semester (Management and Communication), the Course Coordinators are not only unhelpful, they rarely seen in the forum unless it's the very last minute when it's the assignment submission deadline. I wish they have a SOP on these Course Coordinators as well as Tutors.

Anyway, this are just my experience studying here. I will not say I will definitely continue my studies, as I have to see how's my current workload, if I'm able to squeeze my time to do my degree. But, it's a bit easier than to go to the physical campus to attend classes after work. I definitely unable to do that. So there's always a pros and cons in everything, but you really, really have to be very committed in your studies if you really wanna achieve your goal. And most importantly, to have full support (morally and emotionally) from your family and loved ones, as sadly, I do not have any support because they find studying a waste of time and money, hence the only support I seek and receive is God.
At the end of the day, most companies they very much prefer to see your capability and work experience as they find that qualifications and degrees are just a piece of paper to decorate the CV. I took this program is because I wanna have a basic background on business management as during my college years, I studied fashion design, but throughout my career, I'm working in the admin position, hence that's the reason why I decided to study business management. So the choice is yours. 

Mirror Mirror Hair Salon - Solaris Mont Kiara

I have purchased a voucher from LivingSocial for this salon. There are 2 options to choose from where:

Option 1 - RM35

• Wella Intensive Hair/Scalp Treatment
• Director's Cut
• Wash and Blow

Option 2 - RM73

• Beach Waves/Classic Perm/Classic Colors/Highlights
• Wella Intensive Hair/Scalp Treatment
• Director's Cut
• Wash and Blow

I opt for Option 2 because I hadn't coloured my hair for a long time. The price seems affordable, so I thought "Why not give it a shot?"

So I took a day off and went to the salon on a weekday, as I presume it will be more quieter compared to weekends. If I remembered correctly, the salon was quite spacious, there's only 5 seats available on front and 2 seats for hair wash. It has a medieval atmosphere, contemporary-looking lightings and set up. Nice and comfortable. When I was there, I only saw 2 stylists. The one who did my hair is the Jaja (I hope I spell her name correctly), who I presume she's the director. I'm happy with the way she cut my hair, I really like my new hairstyle. However, I was a bit surprise that I was not asked on what colour I would like my hair to be as she made the decision herself. So the colour turn out quite dark, which is not what I'm opting for, actually. 

There's only one thing that I'm not really happy about is, the option to choose between Intensive Hair Treatment or Scalp Treatment. As per according to the LivingSocial website, it stated that I can choose either one. Yes, that is a correct statement, HOWEVER, I was told by Jaja that if I wish to do Scalp Treatment, I must pay an additional RM35 for it, AND that is NOT clearly stated on the deal. She said she has mentioned to LivingSocial rep but they chose not to include that price for the Scalp Treatment. So I felt a bit duped. I'm not sure who is right and who is wrong here. And another thing I'm not happy about is the hair treatment. The hair treatment is applied on my head after washing and was only left on my head for less than 1 minute... I think 45 seconds to be exact. To my knowledge, hair treatments are usually left on the head for at least 3-5 minutes and I usually have my hair treated when I'm back to my seat, using a hair steamer swirling above my head, as what I have experienced in the other salons I've patronized before. Perhaps different salon, has different way of doing things. But I doubt that treatment can so fast absorb to my hair, even though my hair is pixie-cut short. Even if I buy the treatment products in pharmacies, regardless if its Loreal, Wella, Pantene, etc, it always state on the container "to leave on for at least 3-5 minutes before washing off."

Anyway, after I'm done, I'm given another voucher to be use for my next visit, which has the following offer:

• RM50 off all chemical service with complimentary basic moisture treatment.
• Director's Cut with complimentary wash and blow dry. For Her: RM45. For Him: RM35

 It doesn't have an expiry date, so I guess I will use it when it's near Chinese New Year. 

My verdict: I don't mind coming back here again for my hair cut, because I do find my new hair cut is good and I like it. You can go ahead and give it a try, but make sure to make appointment because there's only 2 stylists.

Salon Address:   15-1 Jalan Solaris 4. Solaris Mont Kiara., 50480 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia [located same row with Dr. Cafe and it's above one of the shops (sorry, I forgot what shop)]

Website: http://www.officialmirrormirror.com/professional-bridal-makeup-artist-malay.html

LivingSocial - Online Purchase

This is not my first buying from this company. There are many other cheap deals websites around, i.e. Groupon, MyDeal, Dealmate, etc. The deals I usually bought are food and beverage and products, most of the time it'll be food and beverages, because they are much easier and they do not require me to stand by for the courier guy to deliver the goods.

So when I found out that LivingSocial's office is at Mid Valley, I opt to pick up my items myself since I do go to Mid Valley once in a while. So I purchased the first item, which is a Pulse Sports Watch with Heart Rate Monitor, the redemption date begins on 16 Aug and the last day to redeem is 30 Aug. Then a week later, I purchased another item, which is two pairs of Strutz Arch Support Sole Angels, the redemption date begins on 26 Aug and the last day to redeem is 9 Sept. 

I decided to pick up these two items on 26 Aug, so I can shoot two birds with one stone, instead of going their twice. So on the 26 Aug, I went to LivingSocial office at The Boulevard, Mid Valley at 10:30am to redeem my items. I gave my printed vouchers to the staff at the front desk and waited patiently for him to get the items. However, the staff only gave me one item, that is the watch. He told me that the Strutz has not arrive yet and told me that he will arrange to have the item delivered to me. I was annoyed. The reason I came to office to pick up my items is because there won't be anyone at home to accept the items and it is inconvenient for me to have it delivered to my office. I was really annoyed but I have no choice but to come back another day. This is so inconvenient.

When I got home, I sent an email to LivingSocial to seek clarification for the redemption date error and the delay of delivering the products. It was supposed to reply back within 48 hours, unfortunately, I received a response after 4 days and the response is the item has arrive yesterday instead of 26 Aug. Period. No explanation on the delay or even bother to inform that there WILL be a delay. No apologies. Nothing. That is very friendly and courteous of them. 

On the 9 Sept, I have to go back to LivingSocial again to collect my items. I did ask why they did not bother to inform the buyers on the delay, the staff just smile and told me to sign on the voucher that I have collected. How friendly. He gave me the Strutz and about to walk away but I stopped him and ask if he got a paper bag for me to put these items. He proudly tells me that LivingSocial believes in going green and save the environment so they don't provide any plastic, paper or even an envelope to put the items in. So I have to walk out of the office carrying my two items as they unable to fit my bag. At the back of my head, I imagine if those people bought lingeries, bras or panties and they are not provided anything to put those items in, so that means we are going to leave the office swinging the lingeries, bras or panties? Wow, if I'm gonna purchase those items, or any other items in the future, I MUST keep a mental note that I MUST bring my own shopping bag or carry a bigger shoulder bag or tote bag, just in case as I do not want to tell the whole world I just bought lingerie, bras or panties from LivingSocial or inviting any suspicion from the security guards thinking I have shoplifted these items. 

Does this really happen? To the ladies who have purchase lingeries, bras or panties from LivingSocial, do they provide any plastic or paper bag to carry those items? I'm really curious.

Supermarkets

I do not what's wrong with me, but I think I got bitten by a chef bug. I tend to enjoy cooking more than I use to and I frequently hang around in supermarkets to get my ingredients. My mum often call me see lai (housewife) or aunty as she said usually these people always hang around the supermarkets to buy stuffs to cook for the family. >.<
I don't really go to wet markets because:

1. I unable to speak Chinese, I only can speak broken ones or basic ones, therefore I unable to tell the trader which part of the poultry I want or what type of seafood I'm looking for because I cannot describe or explain to them
2. I'm an OCD-sufferer (Obessive-Compulsive Disorder) whereby I cannot tolerate dirty and wet area and loud-spoken people. It totally turns me off
3. I cannot wake up super early and go to the market to buy the things

So my best option to get my stuffs is at the supermarket or hypermarket because they are clean, wide varieties to choose from, spacious and most importantly, it's fully air-conditioned (no need to sweat or rub against people with sweaty arms and smelly body odour... Eeewww...). I prefer AEON (previously known as Jusco) or TESCO. AEON for their seafood, vegetables, fruits and poultry as well as their Japanese foodstuffs, whilst TESCO for their shelves items, such as sauces, cooking oils, seasonings, etc. I find AEON has really fresh and properly indicated signages of poultry, seafood and vegetables. Some of their prices can be bit expensive, but as long as it's fresh, I guess that's worth it. When there's a Members' Day Sale or AEON Sales, that's the time I will buy a lot and store them in my refrigerator because the prices are much attractive yet the quality remains the same. I always go there to buy chicken breast and thigh, salmon fillet and prawns and sometimes I bought some organic vegetables, too. Expensive, but it's good to consume organic foodstuffs once in a while. I prefer to go to AEON at Mid Valley or 1Utama as they seems to have all the items I needed and the items are easy to find (I hate going round and round to find a particular item. I prefer to be able to glance at everything at one place). The next alternative I would go for will be Cold Storage, Mercato, Village Grocer and Isetan but these places are my last resort, because their items are really expensive. 

I usually do my grocery shopping in the morning, when the shopping mall opens at 10am or perhaps have my breakfast first before starting my mission. I don't really like to scramble or bumped into people or trolleys and rushing about as well as to wait on long queues at the check-out counters. I like to shop with ease and at peace, carefully and casually select my items and end my mission with a sigh of relief and a smile on my face. 

Any suggestions or opinions on where to buy seafood, poultry, fruits and vegetables apart from my favourite supermarkets mentioned above. Do share :)

Fitness Centre - LeanBodies Fitness Centre, Solaris Dutamas

Reason for me to join this fitness centre is my desperate attempt to lose my excess weight prior to Chinese New Year, I joined a new neighbourhood fitness centre called LeanBodies, located at Block A, Solaris Dutamas. It's just 5 mins walk from my office, which is located in Block D. When I entered the centre, it was really small and quite limited room to walk about. It's by far the smallest fitness centre I have ever come across and worked out in, therefore I do not put high expectation on this place, but to just achieve my goal that is to drop from size M to size S *Gambatei :P*, so I just signed up. It's a non-contractual membership so I can come and go anytime I want, which is just what I needed (I hate to be tied down with contracts and other bulls**ts). I only planned to work out until after Chinese New Year is over and I signed up due to convenience sake (I know, even if I worked out everyday for 2 months will prove futile to drop from size M to size S, but I'm not giving up *Gambatei*). And this centre opens 24/7, except for the administration staff, they only start work at 10am. So upon signing up, they will help you to input your thumbprint so that upon entering the gym, you have to verify your thumbprint on the thumbprint scanner. You won't be able to enter the centre if the scanner failed to read your thumbprint. Therefore the alternative is, they will give you a member's code ID, then you can key in the code on the keypad located below the thumbprint scanner.
Did I mentioned the centre is small? Actually in just one glance you can see the 'whole' centre by just standing at the doorway, therefore I was quite appalled to see how tiny the changing room is. There's 20 (I think) lockers (they provide the keys, but the hook of the keys seems to go missing, which is kinda annoying), 1 wash basin, 1 cubicle for toilet and 1 cubicle for shower. The locker area can only fit 2-3 people, because of the tight walkway. Just imagine, if your locker is located inside the room, and if a person open the locker door 1 locker away from yours, regardless whether your locker is located opposite or beside that person, you have to wait for the person to close the door before you can reach your locker because you have no room to walk through. And the toilet cubicle is the smallest and constricted toilet that if you are not careful, you will bumped your head onto the door when you bend over. I cannot imagine how a big person (no pun intended) can even do their business in there 'cos hell, I'm having problems moving about. You surely have difficulty turning around and you can totally forget about stretching your legs in this cubicle.
OK, enough of the changing room. Let's move on to the main area. There is 1 studio for dance and yoga. The studio can fit about 10-15 people and there's no dance platform. There is 5 treadmills (1 always not functioning), 1 elliptical cross trainer, 1 recumbent bike and 1 stationary bicycle; 1 dumbbell racks with dumbbells of different weights and sizes, 2 benches, fitness balls, yoga mats and 2 weight-training equipment.
The centre will be crowded almost to the extend that you have no place to move about, especially during weekdays, after working hours, i.e. 5pm onwards. During weekends, it's a breeze; you can literally 'conquer' the whole gym all by yourself. The cardio machines are limited to 20 minutes usage, but 1 out of 10 members will heed that advice.
One thing I dislike about this centre is the changing room. I always felt that the changing room is the most private rooms, especially for females. But sadly, some women they just don't care and this really dishearten me. A few times, as I was changing clothes in front of my locker (sometimes the shower room is occupied), the women who entered or leave the changing room, 4 out of 10 times, they will leave the door ajar and the people (especially men, because in front of the changing room is the weight-training area) will be working out there, and it will be like a free strip show). Even though there's a curtain, strategically placed in front of the door (so-called to ensure 'privacy'), when the door was open, naturally the curtain will flew back until the door is closed back. At first, I thought women are considerate with other women who's changing, but, sadly, that doesn't happen here. As long as it's not them who's changing, they don't seem to give a damn if other men can see the women inside the locker. Sometimes, the trainer or instructors also did that. It's like once they're out of the locker room, that's it. They never thought of ensuring the door is close back or whether there's people half-naked or not in the locker area. Inconsiderate, but that is the reality of life.
I'll be leaving this centre right after Chinese New Year. This is not much of a good experience for me, really. But do join if you are OK with the following:

• Desperate to work out to lose weight or tone up or simply to de-stress
• Convenient. Near office or planning to work out in the wee hour in the morning or late at night
• Do not want to be bind by contract. Can come and go as you please
• Price - (Per month) Individual: RM98. Students: 85. Groups (Family and Friends): RM90 per person

This is strictly my own personal reviews. Don't let my personal judgement cloud your mind and decision making. Since this is non-contractual, you can give it a shot for a month. Cheers!!

Address: A1-UG1-05 (Block A), Solaris Dutamas (same row with San Ne Deul Korean BBQ Restaurant, facing the main road)

New Parking Rate in Publika @ Solaris Dutamas

Firstly, I wished to thank you for your kind attention on my previous post "Parking Rate in Publika @ Solaris Dutamas". It's kinda inconvenient as on both Publika's website and Facebook did not advertise on their parking rates and caused much confusion among their customers. Hence, in order to help you guys who have not been to Publika or those who have been by forgot the rates, I hope this post helps you. 
By the way, I am still working in Solaris Dutamas, but I no longer need to pay for the parking as 1 of the resigned staff passed her season parking card to me (thank Heavens, but I'm not jumping and shouting for joy as all her work passed to me! >.<)

Effective 15 December 2012, Publika has announced their new parking rate as followed:

Mon - Fri:        Entry between 7AM - 5:59PM              > RM2 for first 3 hours

                                                                                         > RM2 for subsequent hour(s)

                        Entry between 6PM - 6:59AM              > RM2 per entry

Sat, Sun &

Public Holiday: Entry between 7AM - 6:59AM (Next day) > RM2 per entry

Maximum Fee: RM10 per day

Please be informed, the Premier Parking, if I'm not mistaken cost RM2 per hour. I can't confirm on this, but anyway, please do not ever parked at the Premier Parking, which is near the G2 parking entrance (near Hong Leong bank, beside Rakuzen restaurant).

As I no longer need to pay for the parking, I unable to confirm the exact rate for Premier Parking. I only heard from my colleague's friend who mistakenly parked at the Premier Parking and he has to pay RM8 like that after 6pm, whilst his other friend only pay RM2. Honestly, I'm not sure what is so exclusive about this Premier Parking that they have to charge that amount. I jot down the parking rates above, which are pasted at all Auto-Pay machines, so that you guys can conveniently find out the parking prices at Publika.

Anyway, I do hope this could help you guys. Should there be any errors on the rates above, please forgive me and I will rectify it immediately.

Thanks again for reading. Cheers!