Aryton Senna

9 May 2024, a date of no particular significance? 

I'm sure if you were to google search 9 May, a lot of events would had taken place all over the world. Even historic events. In fact even today, 9 May 2024 lots of events would have happened all around the world. Maybe, even something significant. 

But to me TODAY, somehow after finishing work and chores, I unwind on YouTube. I saw my Hero's video and the memories came pouring in. I was filled with emotion and it was not easy to hold back. I don't know why but it was like some cosmic interference and somehow it manifested through YouTube. The year was 1994. Lots happened that year. We lost Kurt.

It was also the year we lost 3 Times World F1 Champion, Ayrton Senna da Silva. Born in Santana, São Paulo, Brazil on 21 Mac 1960. Died on 1 May 1994, San Marino Grand Prix Circuit, Imola, Italy. 

In Brazil, his home country, it was a national tragedy and government declared 3 days of national mourning. The Brazilian flag was placed over his coffin and was carried by Military Police Academy Mounted Guards for the 32.2km's journey to the city. The motorcade was led by 17 Police motorcycles and 2500 Policemen lined the route to keep the crowds at bay.

It is believed over 500,000 people lined the streets to offer him their last salute.

After the public viewing, a 21 gun salute was fired by the 2nd Artillery Brigade and 7 Brazilian Air Force jets in a diamond formation as the funeral precession proceeded to Morumbi Cemetery, Sao Paulo, Brazil. 

Senna's championship car, chassis no MP4-8/6 was designed by Steve Nicholas, Ron Dennis and Gordon Murray. Power was derived from Honda's 1.5 litre V6 RA168E turbo engine. Producing 675hp at 12,000rpm. Weighing in at only 540kg. The weight to power ratio made it a monster. Manual transmission.

Not to be confused with the above car, the car that took Senna's life was a Williams FW16 Renault powered RS6 3.5 litre V10. Producing 830hp at 14,300 rpm.   

Senna's iconic helmet was inspired by the Brazilian flag. His last helmet worn during that tragic day was Bell (M3 Kevlar). 

Why Senna's death hit me so badly that even in 2024, I tear up?

I was very close to my late grandmother. Back then my late father was an Immigration Officer attached to the Immigration office in Johor Bahru. Needless to say we regularly watched Singapore channels. We stayed in the Government quarters and due to my father's rank we got a nice house. Me and my grandmother shared the room together. She had an old National transistor coloured TV. The ones with the knob to change channel and volume. With the build in antenna at its back. It had a funky orange silhouette. 

She watched her favourite shows, Golden Girls, Murder She Wrote and etc. 

I on the other hand was obsessed with F1, 500cc Moto Grand Prix Racing, Miami Vice and etc. 

I was a big fan of F1 back then. I watched the greats Senna, Alain Prost, Nigel Mansell, Mika Hakkinen and Michael Schumacher battling it out. Race after Race. It was pure adrenaline. It was nail biting. It was pure excitement. Week after week, I would look forward to the races on TV.   

It was never the same after Senna died. I just lost interest in the sports and just like that I rarely saw F1 thereafter. Within a few weeks after Senna death, I stopped watching F1 altogether. I never saw a complete race from start to finish. And it has remained so. Occasionally I may catch bits and pieces on YouTube of current races but that's about it. I just lost interest. 

Seeing Senna drive was magical. He defied physics. He was brilliant. He was extraordinary. He made his car dance in corners. He took corners at breakneck speed. He gave his all for the thing he loved to do.

Never again will I watch F1 races from start to finish. I guess it was meant to be. 

The tears today when I was watching Senna on YouTube was not only remembering the Greatest Driver in the World but the memories of yesteryears in the room watching that TV at night with my grandmother nearby.

To add salt to injury, it was also today that I found out that on 1 March 2024 Lego had released its Lego Icons set (no. 10330) MP4/4 as a tribute to Senna. Immediately I checked all local outlets, only to find that it is completely sold out. 

God Speed Senna I love U Amamma. 

He was a master of the rain. Although he hated racing in the rain. He was noted saying this to his trainer that he could not see anything in the rain only the previous car's tire lines. The difference between him and the other drivers was that he never let go his throttle. He kept pushing it even in the rain.  

Seeing him driving in the rain was truly astonishing. 

Now when I see rain, I think of Senna. As a tribute.

By the way, every 1st May is Malaysian's Labour Day.

Comparison Victorinox and Zwilling Nail Clippers

Which is better? We put it to the test. Victorinox cost about RM50 with a leather case. Zwilling cost about RM88 after discount. Results may vary by users but this is what I found reflects my usage. 

These are travel size friendly so many do carry them as part of the ECD for impeccable grooming.

Side profile. It's obvious the Zwilling is bulkier in stature but both are sturdily and solidly built.

Front view. The cutting profile is visibly different. The Victorinox is straight while the Zwilling is curved. Looks can be deceiving as viewed from this angle, the curved profile seems to have a better cutting edge as our nails are curved just like our fingers. 

Ready to commence the test

The Victorinox has a better and bigger filing surface. Don't get me wrong, the Zwilling does its job well although with a much smaller surface. 

Verdict? To me the Victorinox is much easier to use, with its straight cutting profile. The cutting edge is also sharper. The Zwilling with its curved edge at times takes a little getting used to adjusting to the natural curvature of my nails. The profile of the Zwilling may be a little too curved for my nails. 

I don't know if the picture does justice to the Victorinox but if you can see the cutting of the nails are smoother 

The Zwilling still has some rough edges, visibly seen.

Dunhill AD2000 Sterling Silver Pen

Those gen X kids who like me grew up in the 80's would be familiar with the motto Gaya, Mutu, Keunggulan. "Style, Quality, Excellence". Belonging to the brand Dunhill.

Back those days, cigarette brands would be attach to football, F1, etc. etc. etc. They were everywhere.

These cigarette brands would have a luxury arm making branded goods, always at a premium price.    

Alfred Dunhill, the founder was born on 30 September 1872. In 1893, Dunhill inherited his father's business and the rest we can say is history.

This I purchased in PenGallery thank's to wonderful marketing. It was strategically placed at the entrance and it caught my eye as I was leaving the permise. Wonderfully displayed in a transparent case. The shining torpedo shaped pen immediately caught my attention.

It is under the AD2000 sterling silver series. Most of them on the internet have clips. However this is the clipless version.

Here are some pictures. I hope you enjoy them. Beautiful in every way.

Under magnifying you can see many scratches testament to its age.

2 sides of the pen are flat. Testament as a roll stop as it does not have a clip. It does not align straight. It runs by a couple of mm.

The rest of the barrel is round and smooth.

Dismantled. All beautifully crafted and screws in smoothly.

This will be one of my treasured possessions.

A picture of Alfred Dunhill taken in 1893, quite a sophisticated and dashing man

Sailor Vestaere Takuya Leather Crafter Fountain Pen

This was one of my more recent purchase on 4 November 2023 at PenGallery. I was not sure about this pen as it did not pop out like the brilliant breathtaking Arco celluloid. But it was unique and I do love leather goods so it took some thought before deciding. 

The Sailor Vestaere was made in 2002. It is 21 years old. Older than my son. It is based on the Pro Gear 21K fountain pen and individually crafted and hand stitched by a Takuya Okamoto, a well known leather craftsman based in Tokyo. 

He is a highly sought after leather craftsman among Japanese pen collectors and leatherworks. He has gone to great lengths to conceal the secrets of his craft. His creations, which look so deceptively simple, belie much of the attention to detail and time spent to make them. 

Which is what attracted me to the pen n the first place. 

I am unable to share much details with you as to its performance as I had not used it since purchase. It has gone into storage. But users of Sailor fountain pens would be familiar in its writing performance.

Looks wise it is deceptively simple yet elegant. Holding the pen does takes a little getting used to as I am not used to holding leather as a writing tool.

Being clad in leather, it needs to be maintenance like leather goods. i.e. the occasional leather moisturiser.

Ok. The question. Why am I not using it? Why has it gone into storage.

Well the answer is a bit more complicated. Initially I was attracted to the pen due to the leather motif. But on 4 November 2023 whilst holding the pen and seeing my son mingle with the crowd at PenGallery getting more into fountain pens, I thought this would make a good Birthday gift for my son next year. This is provided that he likes it. He is at this phase in his age where is he is attracted to more colourful and brighter pen barrels.   

3 December 2023 Breakfast

Simple or not so simple breakfast today. Depends on how you construe it.

In an oven friendly bowl place 2 cups of chicken broth, 4 smashed slices of garlic, salt, pepper, Italian herbs and cayenne pepper with thin sliced potatoes. Sorry I am unable to provide the measurements as like Uncle Rogers said, Asians go by feel. 

Bake for 220 degrees celsius for 40 minutes. What you are going for is perfectly cooked potatoes infused with the broth and spices flavour and potatoes with a little crisp at the bottom of the pan. There should not be any broth left once the potatoes are baked. If there is still broth left, do as I do. Transfer to a cast iron pan, drizzle with olive oil and butter and cook. Drying out the remaining broth.

Serve with buttered bread, some sour cream, avocados and the potatoes. Enjoy.   

Japanese War Propaganda Poster

The Japanese Army invaded Malaya just after midnight on 8 December 1941 at Padang Pak Amat beach, Kota Bharu, Kelantan. Their ruthlessness, tyranny and pilferage of the countries natural resources lasted until the Japanese first garrison to surrender in Penang on 2 September 1945.

The currency adopted during that tenure was the Japanese Government issued Dollar or referred informally with contempt as the banana money because of the motif of the banana tree on the 10 dollar banknote. 

Internet, Facebook, X, television was not a form of mass communication back then. 

To get your message across a broad spectrum of society quickly and effectively, radio, leaflets or posters were used to spread messages.

The invading Japanese forces used slogans such as "Asia untuk orang Asia" (Asia for Asians) to garner support from the locals. The aim was to convince the local population that Japan was the actual saviours of Malaya while Britain was portrayed as an imperialist force that wished to exploit Malaya's resources. 

The propaganda posters utilised were to touch the sentiments of the locals by using colourful art depicting Japanese army as their saviour, spreading false news of the war, depicting how well locals would be treated as opposed to the previous occupying imperial forces. Whatever lies it takes to entice support.

Lithographs posters were commonly used during that time period. Colours used were vibrant, vivid, bright and evocative. I have one such poster in my collection.

I have with the aid of sifu Dickson Niew provided some details as to the translation as I am unable to read Mandarin.

As mentioned above. If you construe the colours look very vivid and unique unlike printed colours of today. The paper material is also different. Another indication compared to the many re-printed fakes of today are the condition is damaged and not perfect, indication of its age, wear and tear. Fakes today are in perfect condition.    

Depicted on the bottom left corner is the artist name.

Pacific Ocean War.

Printer. Copyright. Reserved.

US aircraft carrier was attacked by the Japanese. Suicide bombers.

During the landing of America's army on an island at South Pacific Ocean, there were attacked by Japanese war planes.

Painting of Second World War USA & Airforce vs Japanese.

Anyone who can share more light on this matter please do email me at s_surins@hotmail.com

Simple but delicious scramble egg breakfast

Sunday, 26 November 2023 simple Hearty breakfast.

Sourdough bread was bought from a local Bakery. This bread or ciabatta bread would be great. Toasting them would be great. 

The beef strips were purchased from the supermarket. Any good brand will have good cuts with a little fat. Just cook them with a little Oliver oil and season with black pepper, salt and smoked paprika. I used cast iron pan to get some crust on the meat. 

For the scramble egg, here is how i made it. Turn on your non stick pan to low heat and pour 4 table spoons extra virgin olive oil. In about 1 minute drop in 6 large eggs. Start stirring slowly whilst breaking the yoke. The key here is to stir gently and slowly. Take your time and not rush. When the egg starts to stick or harden at the bottom of the bottom of the pan, remove the pan from the heat whilst continuing to stir gently. The key here is to be gentle and low heat. Once the egg mixture starts to solidify, put in 4 table spoons of butter and stir gently. Remember, everytime the egg hardens or stick however slight at the bottom of the pan, immediately remove the pan from the heat. Use a soft silicone spatula for this scramble egg making. Not wooden or hard silicone or plastic spatula. 

When the egg mixture becomes more solidify, add in salt, freshly ground white pepper, freshly ground black peper and some italian herbs. That’s it. You’re done. For garnish add in some chives. 

Add in a little drizzle of extra virgin oilve oil and balsamic viniger for that extra tangy taste.

Note my scramble egg recipe is on the runny side. How the french make it any not hard or dry like the malaysian style. 

You may add avocado slices and roasted sunflower seeds for that added creaminess and crunch. Enjoy.