My Home Town

My Home Town
By Lintang bob Yong
“I took a little trip to my home town…………….” I sang as I drove.
Those catchy lyrics of Paul Anka’s song reminded me that I must, no matter how busy I am, make a visit to the village where I have spent one third of my life time. My home town is in the state of Selangor and about 20 kilometres south of Kuala Lumpur City.
Being busy like anyone else, I have postponed the trip more often than not; even though the place is accessible by easy means of transportation.
My late father, a tin-smith emigrated from China 75 years ago, set up his business in Salak South (now called Salak Selatan ). I was born in this tiny township where all residents were later resettled in a fenced up village, named Salak South New Village. This resettlement was orchestrated by the British Administration during the ‘emergency period’ and is situated just five kilometres away from my birth place.
“I only stopped just to look around………..” I continued singing.
The village I knew has changed beyond recognition and I felt like a total stranger in it. The name has been changed to ‘Kampung Baru Salak Selatan’. The old road leading to the village from a trunk road was no longer there. Instead, I found myself driving along a high-way, named Sungei Besi Highway and I had to navigate myself to find the slip road that leads to the entrance of the village. The notorious landmark; a wooden movie theatre which was then the centre of the villagers’ entertainment has disappeared. This made it more difficult for me to locate my late father’s shop which was just a stone throw away from the theatre. As a teenager, I frequented the theatre often.
Eventually, I found my bearing and stopped by a row of seven wooden shop houses. Shop numbered 2 was where our family stayed and I had great memories of my neighbours’ children as my playmates. We used to play under the cherry tree in front of the shop. The shop was sold after the death of my parents. The cherry tree was gone and the shop numbered 2 had made way for a three-storied concrete building. My childhood friends are also no longer staying there. The rest of the shops, looking the same as they were; though the owners and businesses had since changed hands many years ago are still standing. One particular famous medical shop, known as Thien Teck Tong is still around. I met up with the youngest son whose father was a Chinese sinseh and learned that he has taken over the business after the death of his old man. There was also a bicycle repair shop, the business of which is now run by the grand children and they have turned it into a motorcycles repair shop. I remember that there were also two sundries shops but the businesses are no longer operating now.
Wanted to look around more, I drove along those roads that I used to hang around with friends. In the olden days there were not many motor vehicles on the road so it was relatively safe to play along the roads. Sometimes we cycled to the nearby ponds and caught fighting fish. During school holidays, we even climbed the adjacent hill to the other sides of it.
The birds were singing………..
Continued my journey, I could see some of the houses look the same and familiar but many of the wooden houses are rebuilt with bricks and concrete. I felt sad when my memories flashed back to the times I spent my childhood days with friends playing in their houses. Though I felt a sense of guilt and regrets for not keeping in contact with them, my heart was singing and wanting to revisit my home town again, perhaps with luck, I might be able to meet up with some of my childhood friends.
And so the music, it goes on and on………….

Alleycats Live At The Royal Lake Club

Alleycats Live at The Royal Lake Club
By Lintang Bob Yong
It was ‘Saturday Night Live’ on July 17, 2011 at 9.30 PM. I went to the Batek Bar and found myself staring at so many faces looking at one direction. All eyes were on the stage. Obviously, they were looking forward to watching Alleycats’ performance. Wow! I reckoned there were 300 or more people at the Batek Bar that night; many were seated comfortably; some were standing leisurely and others were happily hanging around chit-chatting. All of these people had one thing in common; they all were waiting patiently for the show to start.
The Alleycats is a Malaysian band which was formed in 1969, and gained popularity in the late 1970s. They consist of musicians from Penang, and became popular in their home state earlier on in their career. The Alleycats had produced all together 27 albums. Their first released album was “Terima Kasih”, with their first single Senandung Semalam.
They have played in Singapore, Indonesia and Hong Kong. Over a period of time, the Alleycats’ band members had changed and the present members consist of David Arumugam (vocal), Glenn (vocal), Mike (keyboard), Jimie (Bass), Dina (lead guitar) and Boy (drum). Their music is classified to be of western folk and pop music.
The crowd roared as soon as the Alleycats made their appearances on the band stand. The first number they sang was ‘Sampai Salam’ receiving a thunderous applause, followed by ‘To Love Somebody’ and ‘Jasemin’. I enjoyed their subsequent renditions-‘Oye Como Va’ and ‘Andai-nya Aku Pergi Dulu’. Songs like ‘Pocho Pocho’ and ‘My Achy Breaky Heart’ got all the line dancers on the floor. Coincidentally, the Alleycats sang 27 songs during the three sessions. Each session was 45 minutes long.
The night ended at 12.30 PM with David’s famous trademark shout of, ‘Terima Kasih” and the crowd echoed with more ‘Terima Kasih’. I believed everyone went home happy that night.
“Terima kasih” to all.

Watch more videos on these links.
Pocho Pocho & Achy Breaky Heart
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5kHvcFcyJws
Andai-nya Aku Pergi Dulu
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cd5dxpwcqEE
Knocking on heaven’s door, All shook up & To love somebody
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tCxCOu9Nvxc
Oye Como Va
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jBxGGUR0tf8

My Experience after a Motor Accident

http://www.youtube.com/user/yonglintang?feature=mhum#p/u/24/lf1s-7ixre8
My Experience after a Motor Accident
By Lintang Bob Yong
On June 13, 2011 at about 1.30 PM, I was travelling along Jalan Hujan Emas, Overseas Union Garden, on my way to pick up my granddaughter from school. At the T junction my car was hit at the rear by another car coming out from a side road.
On impact, I thought my car would turn turtle. But instead my car swirled around 180 degree and stopped right in the middle of the main road, facing the car that hit it. I stayed in the car, dazed for a few seconds and wondered whether I was still alive. The engine was still running and when I tried to drive the car to the side of the road but it couldn’t move an inch. I got down from my car and walked over to the driver and was surprised to see her sitting there equally dazed. I examined my car and was shock to see that the left-rear wheel was almost detached. At close examination, I notice the axle on the car’s rear has broken and the wheel was made immobile. Further, the left-rear car’s body work and paint was damaged, and the door was jammed.
On hind sight, though not happy with the fault of the errant driver, I thank the Lord from keeping both of us safe and away from bodily injuries. It is God’s mercy too that at the time of accident, there were no other cars, motor-cycles and people in the vicinity.
After having calmed down and without further delay I called a toll-free telephone number provided by my insurer. About 10 minutes later, I received a call from a tow truck operator who told me that he was sent by a PIAM authorized motor repairer and he was on his way to the site of the accident. He was helpful and towed my car to the Sri Petaling Police Station to make my report. I accompanied him to the police station in his tow truck. This was the first time I ever sat in a tow truck.
After making the report, I was told that I had to go to the KL High Street Traffic Police HQ to have the report verified and to obtain certain documents if I wanted to file my insurance claim without losing my NCD on the next policy renewal. I have also been informed that the HQ would close its office each day at 3.00 PM.
After making the report, my car was towed straight to Sum Motor workshop at Old Klang Road with me riding as a passenger again. The ride was slow and bumpy. During the journey, my mind was filled with anxieties about, among other things, the period that I would be deprived of the loss of use of my car.
The staffs at the workshop were sympathetic and rendered all the assistance that was necessary and assured me that my car would be repaired as soon as possible. I was grateful that they sent me home after all documentations were completed.
I got up early the following morning, praying that I could have all the things done before the closing time. I was mentally preparing myself to spend at least 2 hours for this errand, bearing in mind that this has been the norm that one has to wait for some time when making motor accident report. I was prepared for this and brought along a book so that I could read it while waiting to be attended.
I was at the High Street Traffic Police Station at 10.00 PM and to my surprise, the entire procedure took only 10 minutes. The police and the staff were courteous and friendly. In my opinion, the service was a marked difference from the bygone days. The motto ‘Clean, Transparent and Efficient Government’ must have been put into practice earnestly by the public servants. With this glaring improvement, I felt a sense of pride that the police has live up to its promises and the rayat’s expectation. I left the place happy and contended.
On June 24, 2011, I received a phone call from the motor repairers informing me that my car was repaired and ready for collection. I took possession of my car on the same day. All in all, my car was in the workshop for 12 days.
I was happy with the good service and the satisfactory repair works provided by Sum Motor Sdn Bhd.
Because I was not at fault in the accident and not wanting to lose my NCD, I filed an OD (own-damaged) claim to my insurer. The Insurers’ KFK (Knock for Knock) agreement allows my insurer to recover the cost of repair from the other party’s insurer who is liable for the cost of the damage. I am also entitled to claim for ‘loss of use of’ of my car during the period that it was in the workshop while undergoing repair.
I filed my claim 'for the loss of use of' on June 30, 2011. On July 13, 2011, the insurer of the other party offered me a compensation of 25 % on the amount I claimed. I rejected the offer and appealed for a more reasonable sum. And with the help of a good friend, the insurer on July 22, 2011 revised their offer of compensation upto 68% of my original claim amount. I accepted the offer on August 5, 2011 and received a cheque on August 18, 2011. The repair bill for the damage of my car was fully paid by my insurer direct to the repairer.
All in all, the entire episode took 67 days.
Although this was a traumatic experience to me, I thank God for his blessing.

click My slide In-House Karaoke Competition 2011

RLC In-House Karaoke Competition 2011 Final

By Lintang Bob Yong
For the first time, the In-house karaoke competition which was held on May 13, 2011 at Banquet Hall was packed with more than 150 members and guest.
The concept of ‘free admission’ to witness the competition was most welcomed by members. Hawker food was available before and during the event in a free and easy atmosphere. It turned out to be a hit to everyone. However, there was a hitch in the billing to the members. This problem will be rectified in the next event. The Karaoke Sub-Committee was pleased with the tremendous support it received.
This year all the 15 solo contestants went straight to the final as the heat was cancelled due to insufficient entries. There was also no duet category as the Inter-Club Karaoke Competition decided to scrape it. To replace the duet category and with a view to prepare our Club for future inter-club competition, a junior category was added but only 2 juniors signed up.
At the end of first round, 5 winners competed once again for position ranking.
Solo Category
The Champion: Christopher Lee
2nd placing: Adam Teo
3rd placing: Kamaliah
4th placing: David Wong
5th placing: Kwan Dih Chow
6th placing: CK Khoo (Reserve)
Junior Category
The Champion: Lim Wei Han
2nd placing: Akmal Ariff
Congratulations to all winners!
All the winners in the solo category would represent our Club in the Inter-Club Karaoke Competition which would be hosted by Kelab Golf Negara Subang on June 4, 2011.
It is worth mentioning that this year competition attracted 6 newcomers and 2 of them emerged as the Champion and the 1st Runner-up. The untiring efforts of the Karaoke Section Sub-Committee to encourage new and younger participants must have paid off. However our Section will continue to work hard to realize its dream to discover younger talent and encourage new talented adult members to join in the annual In-house Karaoke Competition. We hope our Club will maintain our superiority in the Inter-club Karaoke Championship Competition.
The Competition was professionally judged by Gary Goh, Jenny Ong and Sam Iskandar. To all the judges, we expressd our appreciations.
Thanks to our Karaoke Section Chairman, Dato Kamal for his guidance to KSC and his entertainment to the crowd with a song during the intermission.
We also like to record our appreciation the presence of Mr Teoh Cheng Hai, our Club Vice President, club members and their families and guests who showed their full support for this event.
The success of this event will not be possible without the hard work of the Organizing Team. Thank you for doing a good job.
Go to these links to watch the videos)
Christopher Lee
http://www.youtube.com/user/yonglintang?feature=mhum#p/u/22/bd0FbGzb8ZA
Adam Teo
http://www.youtube.com/user/yonglintang?feature=mhum#p/u/23/JKkwEsEjzDI
Kamaliah
http://www.youtube.com/user/yonglintang?feature=mhum#p/u/24/lf1s-7ixre8
David Wong
http://www.youtube.com/user/yonglintang?feature=mhum#p/u/18/1qRTVswO4o0
Kwan Dih Chow
http://www.youtube.com/user/yonglintang?feature=mhum#p/u/17/KZ50yMIBGxs
Lim Wei Hun
http://www.youtube.com/user/yonglintang?feature=mhum#p/u/21/urg2TEh_CSA
Akmal Ariff
http://www.youtube.com/user/yonglintang?feature=mhum#p/u/20/LWw_wcfGj94

2010 Happy 12th Anniversary RLC Harriers!

Happy 12th Anniversary RLC Harriers!
By Lintang Bob Yong
Anniversaries come and go. This year’s the RLC Harriers 12th Anniversary also came and went. But it was celebrated in a different manner. Though the event was organised in a simple, free and easy style, it has caught the attention of the Club’s President and many of the General Committee Members. They attended the event in full force. Their comments were that they had thoroughly enjoyed every minutes of the fun filled actions, the peculiarity of which could only be appreciated by the hashing fraternity.
I joined the Hash Section in year 2000 and had since participated in the past 10 Anniversary Celebrations. I would rate this one to be more in line with the hash tradition and was glad that I did not miss it.
The Anniversary Run was on a Tuesday 7 December. The GM flagged off the run at 5.00 pm sharp. It was an in-house run, in the confine of the secondary jungle at the tail end of the Main Range. The tail end was still an energy sapping, “Dragon Trail.” The trail no matter how difficult it was did not sap the spirit of the hashers.
The 40 hashers encountered ‘checks’ and invariably a few ‘false trails’ along the way. That was nothing unusual. However, 3 hashers were unexpectedly being misled by a fellow hasher who created a new trial on his own by throwing papers along the infamous ‘Dragon Trail’. Unhappy initially, they felt betrayed but it turned out it was a blessing in disguise for they admitted their enjoyment in tracking the forever exciting “Dragon Trail.” Such an episode could not of course escape the eyes and ears of ‘Extra Virgin’ and consequently, the good and bad hashers were ‘on-down’ at the circle without the acceptance of their pardon.
The highlights of the event were staged at the club Gazebo and more than 80 Members attended the dinner. Food was plentiful. What could have made hashers happier? Nothing but chicken, beef or mutton washed down with chilled draught beer! Satay was served before dinner! What a handful and mouthful?
The most notable was seeing male hashers dressing in colourful Hawaiian shirts and matching short pants, and the females donned in their sexy sarongs or spaghetti sundress with hats to match. Many hashers wore slippers too. The theme of the On! On! was of course “Hot, Hot Tropical Nite” in the true sense of the expression.
The celebration of the 12th Anniversary would not be complete without the cake-cutting ceremony. Our Club President, Dato’ A Sani Karim led the other General Committee Members, the entire Sub-Committee Members, the past Grand Masters and the ex-club President, David Yap, the founding Member of the Hash Section, performed the symbolic cake-cutting ceremony.
Games like “My Own Coconut Drink”, “Belly-shaking for males and Hip-shaking for females” were keenly contested. Winners were declared and happily walked away with prizes donated by well wishers. Lucky Dips, Special Lucky and Table Draws were organized and winners grinned from ears to ears when Lady Luck smiled on them.
The night would not end without some die-hard hashers wanted to dance all night long, as they wished. But reluctantly, when it was time to end the party, they had accepted that all good things must come to an end and bid farewell to everyone.
The entire activities were recorded on videos.
Watch them on:-
http://www.youtube.com/yonglintang
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=347325647377

Reminiscing over you, The Royal Lake Club!

Reminiscing over you, The Royal Lake Club!
By Lintang Bob Yong
I was born and grew up in Kuala Lumpur. The Lake Garden then was perhaps the only public park in Kuala Lumpur where folks could spend their weekends doing whatever outdoor activities they had planned.
Since there was a lake in this garden, the naming of this park as The Lake Gardens was an obvious choice. During my youth period, I used to have fun in the Lake Garden. Nearby there was an old bungalow which to my young mind was a haunted house. But the concrete steps leading up to the entrance of this house appeared mysteriously friendly to me. The door which I could not see through added more thoughts to my curious mind as to what was inside. That old bungalow as I later learned was the club house of The Royal Lake Club.
In 1975 at the age of thirty seven years, I walked through the door of a new building that replaced the old bungalow. I was glad that I became a member of The Royal Lake Club. Since then, I have been an active member, bringing my business associates and my family for food, sport activities and club functions. When my children were old enough, I brought them to the club and we spent a considerable time at the swimming pool. The children library was a big educational help to my two young daughters who often frequented the place.
Later I decided to play an active role in the club and have since served in the Food & Beverage, Harriers and Karaoke sub-Committees. The sports that I enjoy till to date are badminton, swimming, ballroom dancing, hashing and karaoke. Now, aged 72 years, I have not thought of giving up these sports as yet. I have taken part in the In-house and Inter-club Karaoke Competitions since 2003 and am glad that I played a part in contributing to the success of our club being the only club that have won the Challenge Trophy for three consecutive years.
The fellowship with the club members is unforgettable and I enjoyed and loved every minute. No doubt in my mind that The Royal Lake Club is my second home for the last 35 years. In this club, I do not have to worry about my personal safety as security is second to none and the good car park facility is the talk of the town.
I am glad and proud to be a member of The Royal Lake Club.
May God bless our Club.

The same article was published in the Royal Lake Club Newsletter-August 2010 Issue