4 AM Date With Suraya

She: Psst. Wanna go to this Malay dating place?

Me: WTF? Now? Is almost 3 am! Wait. Do the bouncers even let in interracial couples? Lol.

She: Of course, lah. You have been featuring late night eating places on your IG, kan? Nanti, u complain I tak ajak…

Me: Yeah, but 3 am is early morning, not late night. And it can’t be dating. I suspect those customers sneaked out of their homes. Haha.

She: I’m starving. I ‘ll go alone but I’m scared.

Me: OK. Only if you come get me, and you pay.

She: Deal!

So we ended up in this strange place in Kampung Baru. Is called Suraya’s and they serve awesome Kelantanese food. True enough, the place was packed with couples.

Surprisingly, for a place this popular, the service crew is exceptionally patient, courteous and friendly. Quite unlike that previously crowded nasi lemak place nearby.

Anyway, I’m happy I get to eat blue Nasi Kerabu at 4am. On the way back, sentimental me asked if she still has Headwind’s Suraya in her car’s USB stick.

She: WTF, man?

More pics to follow.

Sony Alpha a7R, ISO 1000, f7.1, 1/60 sec.

#foodphotography #localfood #suraya #kampungbaru #nasikerabu #kelantanese #nasikerabu #sonyalpha #a7r #zeiss

That Soothing Smile

I was sitting on a bench drying my eyes in the smoke-filled temple and breathing fresh air when this cheerful 11-year-old plonked herself next to me. I immediately asked her to move further from me. Hope she wasn’t offended as I knew right away she is very photogenic, even through blurry eyes.

Photography Tip. I asked her to move as I knew she was sitting too close for this particular lens to focus. Know your lens’ minimum focusing distance without even having to look through the viewfinder. This will save you time. Fiddling about is also unfair to an obliging subject, especially when it is a stranger.

I consciously kept her off-center to include the two worshipers in the background. Sometimes, just ask your model what’s going on behind you and she’ll look unsuspectingly over your shoulders. That’s when you click.

Sony Alpha a7R, ISO 100, f1.8, 1/2500 sec.

#streetphotography #smile #temple #street #portrait #candid #chinesenewyear #cny #sonyalpha #a7r #zeiss

Fresh As Tesco

A 4 KG carton of honey mandarin oranges I bought from them are still juicy today, some 20 days later. In comparison, a box I received as a gift around the same time were already dried up and some oranges are rotting.

Amazing that the Tesco ones stayed so fresh, juicy and tasty so many days after purchase. It was labelled as Fujian Yongchun Honey Mandarin imported from China by Kaishen Trading. Was cheap too. Cant remember the price but hope co-shopper Johnny can remember.

Shopping for perishables is a hit and miss affair and it depends on luck, I know. I was twice lucky and was also happy with the CNY pineapple tarts bought from Tesco.

Panasonic Lumix GM-1, ISO 200, f4.5, 1/160 sec.

#tesco #mandarins #fruits #oranges #shopping #fruits #cny #tescomalaysia

Need Your Advice

I have a non-functioning external WD hard disk. WD Elements or Passport USB type of 500G capacity. Went to a data recovery shop in Imbi Plaza. With just a cursory and dour faced examination, the guy quoted RM 1500 to repair and recover the data to another disk. He said it needs to be done in a clean room as the needle was skipping on the platter and making clicking noises. Will take 5 days it seemed.

I understand the work needed BUT

I can’t afford RM 1500. It is not sensitive or important company data that needs to be recovered by hook or crook. I think the service targets corporate clients with big budgets. I only have pictures and Photoshop files in it. They are important but I can live without it. I have so far.

SO dear hive minds,

Please advise through your collective knowledge on other options to take and maybe recommend a reasonable repair service in KL that you know. Thank you.

Picture by Western Digital.

#wd #diskfailure #hardisk #recovery #repair #hdd #westerndigital