Q&A series: is gold magnetic?

First in the series of questions that came to my head and possibly the answers.

I found out that pure gold is not magnetic - does not stick to a magnet either. If someone gives you an item which they say is gold and it sticks to a magnet, it is probably iron or some other ferromagnetic metal (iron, nickel, cobalt).

However, remember that besides Gold, platinum, silver, lead and aluminium does not stick to a magnet as well.

Need to go on a holiday

It's been ages since we all last went on a holiday. The last time we went on a holiday was to La Rochelle in France - that was in 2008. Our PhD work and all the various therapy sessions for our son keep us occupied. I can't wait to complete and submit my thesis.

However, there are other things to worry about after I submit my thesis. namely getting a job. I really want to stay here in the UK for a while to continue the Son-rise programme with our son as well as the other therapies which are not available in Malaysia. It's just our luck that the Conservatives came to power just as we were completing our studies and made it tougher for us to get jobs. So far I have had only one interview out of the various applications I had sent out. However, I didn't get that job as well either. Everybody tells me that the doors will open once I get my PhD and I am hoping for the best.

Anyway, as soon as my wife and I submit our theses, we plan to go away somewhere nice. Can't wait for that day.

Pencil case made from recycled tyres

This is a really fun pencil case my wife bought from 'Love thy Space', an online store based here in Coventry, UK.



The words on the case says: "I used to be a car tyre recycled into something Remarkable"

Yes! It's made from recycled tyres. They cost only £4.50.

Charity run

My son Imaan was 3 years old when he was diagnosed with Autism even though we have had our suspicions when he was 1 years old and his development was slow.

As you can imagine, we were totally devastated and the doctors didn't help much when they told us that autism was a life long condition and we would have to live with it. We went through periods of denial, self-pity, and sadness and finally, acceptance. Fortunately, we are not the type to mop around and just accept what so called "experts" have to say. We did our own research and found out about various alternative therapies.

Among the various things we did, the one that made the maximum difference was the Son-Rise programme. Unlike other therapies, the Son-Rise programme is home based and is parent-directed where parents are seen as the child’s best resource unlike other therapies (such as ABA). After depending around a year on the services provided (or not) by the Government here, we didn't see any difference. However, since we started the Son-Rise programme, he has been toilet trained, improved his diet and went from no speech to speaking sentences.

Unfortunately, the Son-Rise programme and theother therapies are not covered by the NHS and we had to literally fork out thousands from our own pocket that we are almost bankrupt now.

We estimate that it will cost us around £20,000 to do a full time Son-Rise programme at home. This cost does not include his special diet, supplements and cost of private doctor consultations and tests. However, my son is the priority and if he loses his diagnosis of Autism and is able to go to a mainstream school, socialise and have friends like all other neurotypical kids, it would be worth it.

Anyway, a lot of amazing people are helping us fundraise for our son. One of them is my sister-in-law, Eju, who is running two races in support of my son.
The first one will be the Wimbledon Audi 10K race this Sunday on the 17th Oct 2010 at 9:00am. Here's the location: Wimbledon Rugby Club, Beverley Meads, Barham Road, Copse Hill, Wimbledon, SW20 0ET

Please come along to support and/ or donate. For more information visit the fundraising page on the special blog that documents our journey with our son.

North East India and the Commonwealth Games

The little known North-Eastern states of India, especially Manipur, were well represented at the opening ceremony of the 2010 Commonwealth Games on 3 October in New Delhi bringing a sense of pride to a lot of people in the seven states - often called the seven sisters.

Took this from an email I received a couple of minutes ago:

The Indian contingent was led by a girl wearing Mizo Puan (from Mizoram?). Then there were the dances representing the varied culture of the country.

There were the Radha-Krishna dancers easily identified by the ladies wearing unique and big skirts and the Pung Cholom drummers from Manipur.

The Bamboo dance of Mizoram and the Bihu dance of Assam

And finally, we had World Champion boxer Mary Kom from Manipur carrying the queen's baton.

I think it was fitting that the first medals for India at the games was also won by Soniya Chanu and Sandhya Rani, both from Manipur, who won a silver and a bronze respectively at the women's weightlifting 48kg title on Monday.

Marble Arch in London

Located at the junction of Oxford Street, Park Lane and Edgware Road in London. It is very near to the famous Speakers' Corner in Hyde Park.

7th Blog Anniversary

Today, I have been blogging for 7 long years and this is my oldest blog. I started blogging on the ah ok lah blog on the 8th of September 2003 and it has been an amazing journey.

I started blogging anonymously and late went public. I opened up my heart, shared my happy and sad moments, my anxieties and hope, made fun off, ranted and made friends all around the World.

I have been with Blogger all this while and though I did consider moving to Wordpress, I am glad I didn't.

Looking at the statistics, I can see that my most popular post is 'Freemasons in Malaysia' with 4,143 Pageviews and 42 comments. Check out some of my more popular posts and I realise that I actually write about anything under the Sun.

A big Thank You to all my visitors.