B.U.S.Y.

Been busy, busy, busy.
Was helping out on a pitch. Then I had a really interesting shoot for Mamee instant noodle over the weekend, with the most decent storyboards I've had in ages. No lame local celebrities. No lame hard-sell scripts. And the icing on the cake was having some Thai talents, a Thai director and his team on the shoot. Needless to say, they brought the boards to life. We even had pyrotechnics for one of the boards - no need for fire effects in post! Looking forward to the online and offline next week. The commercials should be out end of the month, about the same time as another animated commercial for Mamee Monster. That one is no biggie, but compared to the 2D el-cheapo spots they use to have, this one is better by leaps and bounds. Think Cars. Sort of.

Been lazy, lazy, lazy.
Haven't gone riding. Haven't gone for a run since KLIM. Managed to squeeze in only a swim and a session of RPM in the past week. Not to mention my left foot has been hurting on and off along the 5th metatarsal (the bone along the side of the foot connecting to the last toe). Now I'm seriously thinking of giving the A Famosa Triathlon a miss.

Annual lezzer trip pilgrimage
My annual holiday with LY, my itchy chaboh, is yet again, to one of our favourite places in the world. Bangkok. This time, we are bringing our significant others along. Kinda like a double-date holiday. It'd be a first time for us, though we're kinda wondering if this counts as our annual trip. We're bringing the boys to an island, then to the city to eat and shop. Nut and Itchy style.

Here's a very rough itinerary:

25 April (Friday night)
2130: Check in at LCCT
2230: Depart for BKK
2335: Arrive in BKK

26 April (Saturday morning)
0000: Take cab to Sawasdee Inn at Sukhumvit.
0030: Check in. Sleep.
0800: Wake up, have breakfast.
0830: Check out. Take cab/walk to Ekamai Bus Terminal nearby.
0930: Take Bus to Trat Province.
1430: Arrive in Trat. Have quick lunch. Take songteaw to
Ao Thammarachat Pier.
1530: Ferry to Ao Sapporos Pier, Koh Chang.
1600: Arrive on island. Get a cab or tuk-tuk to Siam Bay Hotel.
Check in. Wash up. Rest. Hang out at the beach.
1900: Dinner. SEAFOOD?
2000: Free & Easy – Explore Koh Chang nightlife?
Drinks on the beach? Sleep whenever.

27 April (Sunday)
0900: Breakfast! Bum at the beach or pool! Free & Easy!
Lunch whenever. Bum some more. Dinner whenever. Sleep.

28 April (Monday)
0900: Breakfast! Bum at the beach or pool!
1200: Check out of Siam Bay. Get cab/tuktuk to Pier.
1230: Ferry to Ao Thammachat Pier. Take songtheaw to Trat.
1330: Have lunch in Trat.
1400: Take bus back to Bangkok.
1900: Arrive at Ekamai Bus Station. Take BTS to Rachetewi BTS.
1915: Check in to Asia Hotel. Rest and wash up.
2000: Dinner at Siam House (next door) – our favourite place.
2100: Massage!

29 April (Tuesday)
0900: Breakfast. Platinum for shopping! Lunch at Platinum Food Court. More shopping. Look for tailor?
2000: Take BTS to Asok. Take cab to Chokchai Steakhouse.
2200: Nightlife?

30 April (Wednesday) – Makan Day
0830: Wake up, get ready, have light breakfast.
0900: Take BTS to Saphan Taksin for River Ferry Ride to old Bangkok.
0930: Eat our way around Bangkok. Soi Polo Fried Chicken. Streetside Duck Noodles. Pad Thai Tu Pee in Old Bangkok (recommended by my Thai producer).
1800: Dinner at ChoteChitr in Phraeng Phuton
2100: Take BTS back to hotel to shower and dress up.
2200: BTS to Saphan Taksin. Go for drinks at Sirocco.

1 May (Thursday)
0900: Have breakfast. Last minute shopping..
1300: Take BTS to Mo Chit for Aw Taw Kaw Food Court.
1600: LY and FH to check in at Suvarnabhumi Airport.
1900: LY + FH fly home. WN + D explore and eat in MBK.
2205: LY and FH arrive at LCCT.

2 May (Friday)
0900: Have light breakfast. Take BTS to Mochit BTS. Visit Chatuchak Market. Eat at Aw Taw Kaw Market.
1300: Go to Amaltery for alcoholic ice cream. Or go for massage.
1600: Depart for Suvarnabhumi Airport.
1900: WN and D fly home.
2205: Arrive at LLCT.

Getting ready for Shanghai.
Yet to cross off things from my To Do List. It's still over 2 months away. No news about my visa from HR at the moment. So I guess the idea of leaving won't sink in until the visa is ready and I can book my one-way air ticket. Then I gotta plan what I want to bring over there. Organise the shipping. Etc Etc Etc. Arrrrgghh. Stressful.

Daylight robbery.
It's that time of the year when my hard earned money will go into coffers that send smiling himbos into space, children of well-connected politicians to universities abroad and the PM to his holiday home in Perth.

I didn't pay them what I 'owed' for 2006 last year (sent in the form but forgot to go to the bank, haha), so I went to the LHDN office this morning to find out if I should include it in this year's payment. I waited one and a half hours only for them to tell me that I didn't have to pay for last year after all. They owe me almost RM500 in tax returns for previous years. Bad enough I didn't get my money back. I didn't even know I had credit! Imagine if I never asked. It seems I can deduct the amount from this year's payment. You bet I'm gonna!