my view.....

New face to my blog in my bid to keep things fresh and hopefully not bore readers (if there are any readers to begin with......). It almost reflects the change I am going through in my own life with new experiences and moving ahead with a new outlook.

And over to the this post's topic. Over a table conversation, the topic of sex workers cropped up between my friends and I. As always, in every discussion there will be two camps - supporters and detractors. We couldn't really agree with each other on whether it was morally wrong or correct with regard to people who walk down the perceived "dark" and "dirty" profession of sex employment.

But is it really "dark" and "dirty", if you were to think about it objectively?

On the side of the detractors, their views skews to the fact that sexually transmitted diseases are becoming more widespread globally, increased human trafficking especially minors, increased in triad/mafia activities (it is believed that sex workers are overseen by the triads/mafia), etc. just to name a few of the salient points. Most importantly, when the buying stops, the supply stops.

On the side of the supporters, some of the views highlighted were that contrary to popular belief that sex workers are poor souls who were cheated into the trade, most of these sex workers venture into that line because it is lucrative, its a willing buyer willing seller paradox, etc.

Either way, I can't give the answer to who's correct or wrong but I can offer to share my views on the matter:-

Sex workers, prostitution or whatever name you want to coin it has been around going as far back as Greeks, Romans, Chinese, Persian empires centuries ago. If I were to point a finger at the root of it, I would say it stems from one of the infamous seven deadly sins - lust.

I can't deny the fact that the cause of increased cases of STD globally is part-due to unprotected sex and especially with sex workers who have multiple sex partners. With the boom of the internet, apparently you can even hire them off the internet with your credit card. Despite the negative views that dogged this so called industry, there is the fact the these workers are earning a living. Just like how you and I hold employment and draw our monthly salary.

There are times when I can't help but think that it is circumstances that drive people to do the things they do and sometimes. I am not sure how well it pays but considering that they are many who actually opt to be in it, I guess it must pay fairly well.

It may not be our right to judge them as illegal or immoral but I think they should be given the benefit of the doubt and let them be. At the end of the day, what drives the "industry" really is the endless demand and supply for it. It'll never end until we collectively say no to it.

either way it doesn't matter

Long time ago, when my grandfather was still alive, I would always followed him out in the wee hours of the morning for breakfast in one of his usual breakfast joints. It was rejuvenating and interesting to have breakfast about 5.30 in the morning. Really enjoying breakfast in a typical small town way and not the everyday quick bite to rush off to school type of breakfast. It was one of those times when I could share some time with my grandfather and likewise for him.

We lived in different states of the country so, we tried to make it a point to have these breakfast every time my family visited. It was the good old days!

There was one instance when he fill up my tea cup half way to the top and suddenly he asked me, "would you consider this cup half full with tea or half empty with tea?". Quite frankly, I was puzzled. What would have expected a 12 year old to react to such a questions? It was random but at the same time my 12 year old brain told me that there was more to that questions.

I thought so hard that I was starting to frown and my forehead wrinkled. The sight of me frowning and thinking so hard made him chuckle.

"It's not that tough a question. A simple questions deserves a simple answer. There's no need to think so hard."

I gave up trying to figure out what was underneath the underneath and decided that the tea cup was half empty.

Then he went, "hmmmmmmm......."

I couldn't take the anxiety anymore and decided to ask him what the questions was all about.

"It's nothing to complicated my dear boy. Whether you think the glass is half full or half empty, decides on whether you are a positive thinker or a pessimist. Or at least that's the popular believe. So I guess, when you said you thought the glass was half empty, you are likely to be a pessimist."

I frowned........ and he chuckled again.

"Take it easy my dear boy. I am not making a joke out of you. I was just asking the question for fun. It doesn't matter to me had your response been the glass being half full. In fact, does it even matter?

"Since you asked me, I think it would matter."

"Hahaha..... it doesn't matter to me at all. Not one bit. You see, whether you felt the glass was half full or half empty didn't matter to me because either way you are going to be grandson always. Being a pessimist or activist didn't mean you were going be worse off or better off. It simply meant that's who you are. Either way, I will still enjoy my cup of tea and early morning breakfast whenever you are down here visiting me with your family.

What's important isn't about what sort of person you are but rather how best you make use of the time given to you by the almighty God in the heavens. It doesn't matter as long as you are willing to put your brain and your pair of hands to use, you'll never lose out.

My point is that you should never let yourself lose out simply because of what the world perceives you to be. No matter what gets thrown at you, as long as you put in honest effort into it, it'll never matter if you are 'half full glass person' or 'half empty glass person'. Remember that kid!"

My heart goes out to the victims of the Japan earth quake

In the wake of trying times and the whole of the middle east close to an all out war, mother nature throws a punch at Japan with a 8.8 magnitude earthquake. My heart goes out to the victims of the earthquake and may my prayers reach them..............

the magic in natural

This was the scene I accidentally caught when I wanted to take a snapshot of the road leading to the night market in Siem Reap. It was a wonderful couple in their romantic moment along the roads of Siem Reap.

I always held the view that we find beauty in the natural and that "naturalness" can be found in virtually all things living. When I saw the scene, I went, "awww...... so sweet". I couldn't help but feel happy for them and at the same time I was so happy I managed to get a shot like this especially being an amateur photographer.

Other natural beauties can even be found in a lotus farm.

Isn't the lotus just beautiful?

If beauty cannot be found in nature, I don't know where to look at.........

the saddest thing he ever saw

Last year I went on a trip to East Malaysia to do some jungle trekking and hiking up a hill to catch a glimpse of a cluster of unique rock formations with 3 other friends. During the trip we met our trekking and hiking guide, Richard. He wasn't an ordinary guide having completed his masters in the studies of rocks and was already in the process of completing is PhD in the same subject.

Apart from being a guide, he spends the remaining of his time doing extreme and adventure caving to study the formations of stone and how to preserve them. To add on to his accolades is the fact that he serves with the Malaysian FRU (the Federal Reserve Unit). The FRU is a voluntary team that provides assistance to the police or soldiers during times of security or rescue missions.

During our stay at Camp 5 for our trek up the Mulu Pinnacles, we had a good conversation to kill time at the camp because there was simply nothing to do because it became pitch black by the time it was 6pm. Hence, talking to the tourist around me and Richard was the only way to kill time after dinner.

I think most of us would know about the 2004 tsunami that hit Sri Lanka, Indonesia, India, Maldives and Thailand. Richard was sent to Phuket, Thailand to help with the rescue mission. He was with the rescue dive team.

He was telling us about the bad stench from all the dead bodies and from the sea water that washed up Phuket island. He was there for a month throughout the entire rescue mission diving up and down the flooded island to pull out dead bodies of drown victims of the tsunami. Throughout all his training with the FRU and, search and rescue missions he has done, he was never prepared for what he was going to see in Phuket. What he was was the saddest thing he ever saw in his life.

During one of the dive missions, he dived into a flooded house to pull out the dead bodies and he saw something he was never prepared for. He saw two dead bodies but not just any ordinary dead body. What he saw was a paled mother hugging her paled baby and the look on her face was eerily calm. That scene was simply too much for him to take and that dive became the last dive mission in Phuket. Richard decided to opt out of dive missions and continued on land.

Although what he saw was the saddest thing he ever saw, it was also touching because it was the ultimate display of a mother's love for her child. From the way she was hugging her child, he could tell she was doing all the best she could to keep her child safe, knowing it was probably futile. It was sad yet touching............