sixthseal.com

Sibu 96000

I'm in Sibu right now. I totally forgot about the long Labor Day weekend and just booked my tickets at 10:30 am today and the only available flight was at 2:20 pm so I decided to take a break and get some R&R back home...hook up with my gf, visit my family, and get some righteous pharmaceuticals...not necessarily in that order... ;)

I'm kidding!

Though the ampoules (the contents of which will remain unnamed for now, but will be reviewed soon - and don't comment about the significance of the word ampoule for those in the know, for Christ's sake :p) I just took was real good. Real good. :)

I'm going to nod now...

Posted in Sibu by Huai Bin at 11:10 PM Permalink | Comments (15) | TrackBack

Water slide for shit

A lot of people understandably don't shit directly above the water receptacle due to the "splash factor". We usually aim upstream, so to speak, to avoid public use toilet water from splashing on our ass cheeks (or worse, into the actual hole itself).

This practice seems to be widespread, as this water slide show. We'll deliver your shit straight down, so it won't stain the bowl! The wonders of modern sanitation engineering! ;)

It seems that my logs are a bit too much for the water slide to manage though coz it just stuck there.

It should have followed the laws of physics and the dynamics of water and slid right down, but it didn't.

I guess that says a lot about my diet. ;)

Posted in Hmm... by Huai Bin at 01:58 PM Permalink | Comments (62) | TrackBack

Viagra (sildenafil tablets) vs. Cialis (tadalafil tablets)

Viagra (sildenafil) is very well known as a first line treatment for Erectile Dysfunction (ED). Cialis (tadalafil) debuted a couple of years after the release of Viagra and is considered the second generation of PDE5 inhibitors. I managed to get these sweet, sweet pharmaceutical sample packs in pristine packaging (and with the pharmaceuticals still valid for consumption to boot!) from as a gift from a good friend who prefers to remain anonymous. Thanks R! =D

Viagra (sildenafil citrate)

This is the promotional sample pack of Viagra from Pfizer. This is the product that gave Pfizer a long dominance on the lucrative ED market...and in pharmaceuticals, that is one hell of a long head start. ED used to be called "impotence" but that term had certain connotations that challenged the male ego, so medical professionals dubbed it Erectile Dysfunction (ED) instead, which sat better with XY chromosomes, as it doesn't have any negative implications and/or references regarding performance (or rather the lack thereof ;)) and pushes it into the realm of clinical legitimacy. ;)

Viagra (sildenafil tablets) debuted as the first clinical treatment approved by the FDA for ED and put the brand name Viagra into a household name and made Pfizer millions from "The Little Blue Pill". Viagra is the pharmaceutical blockbuster that every pharmaceutical company wishes they own the patent to. :) The promotional sample pack by Pfizer (it's meant for medical practitioners to prescribe to qualified patients for free trial use to see how the subject tolerates this particular medication) contains four (4) of the familiar diamond shaped blue Viagra pills in nice packaging and the Pfizer logo on it.

Here's a closer look at the Pfizer Viagra promotional packs - the four blister packs contains a diamond tablet of Viagra (sildenafil) 50 mg in each solid cocoon. It doesn't have the "Sample - Not for Sale" stamp, so experience tells me that it either came from the "diverted pharmaceuticals" (a catch-all euphemism) market, or the person who sourced it has really good pharmaceutical industry connections. I'm going for the latter since this generous friend of mine gets a lot of pharmaceutical products.

The back of the blister pack contains the highly acclaimed VIAGRA brand name in bold blue font. The lettering beneath states the dose and the generic name - "50 mg SILDENAFIL TABLETS", and the Pfizer logo dominates the rest of the real estate. There is also text that reads PM81401 on the foil. The batch number is located on the bottom and the expiry date (10/2005) is listed. It's still good. ;)

Each Viagra tablet has VGR 50 imprinted into the front of each diamond shaped pill.

The Viagra tablets are also adorned with the Pfizer pharmaceuticals company logo at the back of the blue pill.

Cialis (tadalafil)

Cialis came in late into the ED game but the Lilly marketing machine worked overtime to make this a bestseller. Cialis was promoted as better alternative to Viagra due to tadalafil being effective for 36 hours after the initial dose...which was a major issue Viagra users experienced - time dependant dosing. The 36-hour Cialis Difference was coined then, and it was publicized as a relatively safe ED medication which works up to36 hours and absorption is not significantly affected by food. It was a breakthrough! Middle aged men everywhere rejoiced as they realized that they could just innocently pop a Cialis tablet a day without having to carry a Viagra tablet around "just in case" they get some on a date. ;)

The Cialis pharmaceutical promotional pack contains 2 x 20 mg Cialis. I'm not sure what to call the blister pack sealed doses - are they pills? Tablets? Capsules? It looks like...a fruit of some sort. The tablet design is unique - there is a large rounded base tapering off to a tip. The front of the pack contains the lot number as well as the expiry date (DEC/2006) - it's still good. ;)

The back of the Cialis blister pack is nicely decorated - there's the Cialis brand name with the generic names listed below in different languages - tadalafil, tadalafilli and tadalafilo. The 20 mg per capsule dosage indication is visible and the Eli Lilly logo is watermarked at the bottom.

Here's a closer look at the Cialis pills - it's certainly different. The Lilly Cialis pills are orange in color and have no markings on the front.

The back of the strangely designed Cialis pill is imprinted with a stylized C 20.

I'm keeping the Viagra and Cialis packs for my collection. There is a common misconception that ED medications are aphrodisiacs (e.g. they can induce sexual activity). They're not, the pharmacological mechanism does not involve sexual arousal. It won't turn you on...and most of you already know that. It's just a pet peeve of mine when people says it does. Methamphetamine is an indirect aphrodisiac. Viagra and Cialis are not.

I don't consider Viagra and Cialis to be recreational per se, but I'll probably try some and write a report on it. I have to say that my chemical of comparison would be methamphetamine though, so don't expect raving reviews from me. ;) I'll like to give it a go though, just for fun.

Except I can't bring myself to eat them, they're packaged so nicely by the pharmaceutical companies!

Posted in Pharmaceuticals by Huai Bin at 08:04 PM Permalink | Comments (34) | TrackBack

Cigarettes from Langkawi in the mail!

I received a Pos Malaysia Pos Ekspres (Next Day Delivery) package in the mail today from Mr. Lim in Langkawi. He was kind enough to send me cigarettes for review purposes. Thanks Mr. Lim! :)

I was puzzled regarding the initial content of the packaging at first (having been on the receiving end of several items of *cough* dubious nature in the past) but since it did not come with an entourage of police, I decided it was safe to open the package up. ;)

Peel - Menthol Orange and Fisher Lights are two of the cigarettes that Mr. Lim sent me. He's also the distributor of DJ Mix cigarettes in Malaysia and can be contacted at limmalaysia@gmail.com [gmail.com] for the people who're interested in obtaining the entire DJ Mix range of cigarettes. He has a real brick and mortar shop in Langkawi and has sold the DJ Mix line to people overseas and inside Malaysia from the sixthseal.com comment queries in the past.

...and no, Mr. Lim, there's no commission for this. sixthseal.com is a pure community oriented site. :)

P/S - Future new cigarettes for review purposes would be much appreciated though. ;)

Legal disclaimer: sixthseal.com cannot be held legally responsible for third party transactions.

Posted in Ethanol and tobacco by Huai Bin at 04:49 PM Permalink | Comments (17) | TrackBack

Cha soba (Green tea noodles)

Cha soba is a green tea noodle dish served cold (chilled). There is a side of noodles, a dish containing fresh spring onions and wasabi, as well as sauce.

Here's a close-up of the soba noodles. Soba is made from buckwheat flour and green tea powder is added to the mixture to make the noodles look green. It comes with nori (dried seaweed).

I like to eat cha soba by just mixing everything together to form a chilled noodle mix. :)

Just add a couple of side dishes...

...and you're set for the perfect meal. Zen...

Posted in Food by Huai Bin at 09:37 AM Permalink | Comments (11) | TrackBack

Pomegranate Blueberry by The Coffee Bean

The Coffee Bean chain has come out with a new drink...a fusion of two different fruits – pomegranate and blueberry (color coded for your convenience too ;)).

Pomegranate Blueberry comes in two varieties - ice blended (cold) and tea latte (hot). The new ad campaigns has two nice tag lines too - "Pucker up for anti-oxidants" and "What good fruits become in their next life".

We both went for the Pomegranate Blueberry Ice Blended (RM 11.50) - here's a shot of the blended fruit fusion in The Coffee Bean's blender. I had pomegranate [sixthseal.com] and wrote about it before in a previous post.

Here is The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf's implementation of Ice Blended Pomegranate Blueberry in all its glory!

It tastes wonderful...the two flavors complement each other nicely for a refreshing ice blended drink - catch it while it lasts at your nearest Coffee Bean (and Tea Leaf)! ;)

Posted in Fast Food Inc. by Huai Bin at 09:58 AM Permalink | Comments (8)

420 at 4:20 on 4/20

Year: 2005
Date: 4/20 (20th of April)
Time: 4:20 pm

Total: 20 grams

Personal share: 10 grams

Packaging: Plasic baggie double wrap

Substance: Cannabis

Usage: Consumed (made into a joint to be smoked and inhaled)

Posted in by Huai Bin at 04:20 PM Permalink | Comments (50) | TrackBack

Malaysian canteen style BLT sandwich

Behold! I present to you Malaysia's very own BLT sandwich, available not only in most office and school canteens, but in lower end bakeries as well. It differs from the classic BLT (Bacon, Lettuce, Tomato) of other countries due to the premium nature of bacon over here, so the B is substituted by (more) BREAD. Our very own variant also has TUNA mix in lieu of TOMATO sometimes.

I've been eating canteen food for the past few days, and the only thing I enjoy is this caramel tasting kueh made with lots of Gula Melaka. It has a very chewy texture. Hey, at least it beats the canteen's "BLT" sandwich any day. ;)

Posted in Local food by Huai Bin at 09:02 AM Permalink | Comments (11) | TrackBack

Panorama view of Kuching in the morning

Here's a panoramic view of Kuching taken this morning as I was driving to work. It's shot from the Petra Jaya overpass just before the toll station from across the river. I used Panorama Assist in scene mode and the Nikon Picture Perfect software to stitch the four individual images that I took. The nice thing about the Panorama Assist mode is the translucent overlay of the previous image that was taken to be used as a guide for the next panoramic shot.

This is Kuching in the morning...welcome to our city. :)

Posted in by Huai Bin at 08:32 AM Permalink | Comments (29) | TrackBack

Memories Grand Cafe

Memories Cafe (or Memories Grand Cafe, Grand Memories Cafe) is an old eating establishment located along the old part of town. The signboard looks weathered and faded, and this adds to the charm of this themed restaurant.

Memories Cafe has an interior designed to look like a blast to the past, back to the good old diners of the 60's. There are various decors and posters from the past to immerse the customer in the ambience of the good old days.

Diner style seating arrangements is also available on one side of the place - Memories Cafe seems to attract a wide range of clientele - the cafe was partially full when we were there for lunch and people from all walks of life (there's the cliche again ;)) comes in.

Check out the posters mounted on the walls - Breakfast at Tiffany's, The Sound of Music, a Beatles poster...man, this place is old skool...

I had The Memories Blended Ice (RM 8.50) for the drink. It was so good; I ordered another one as dessert. ;) It contains "espresso, mocha powder blended with ice & milk, topped with whipped cream". There are other themed drinks such as "The Elvis Blended Ice" and "The Marilyn Blended Ice", but they're just variants of ice blended coffee.

The main course consisted of The Big Texas (RM 15.90), which the waiter recommended. It's the cafe's flagship burger and it's huge! It comes in either beef or pork options and I went for the pork. The description of it goes "BBQ burger served with beef bacon, cheese slice, tomato, cucumber, onion, tomato sauce and pork/chicken patty". It's served with crinkle fries on the side.

Here's a closer look at "The Big Texas" - check out the crispy bacon and the generous patty (steak cut would be a better description for the portion) of tender and juicy pork chunk topped with melted cheese. Mmm...

I went there for lunch with Karen over the weekend, who's a friend of a couple of my co-workers, to discuss about insurance with investment options. She just ordered drinks coz she had already eaten. We were there for nearly two hours and still felt welcome by the staff, despite our extended visit.

I never knew that Memories Cafe had such a vibrant group of customers - it always looks empty and dilapidated from the outside. .but I know better now. It's one of the best kept secrets in town. It has good food and attentive service at reasonable prices. Memories Grand Cafe will surprise you if you haven't been there before - check it out.

Posted in Food reviews by Huai Bin at 09:42 AM Permalink | Comments (20) | TrackBack

sixthseal.com 3rd Birthday!

sixthseal.com has been leading the wild into the ways of the man for three years and counting! :)

This blog has been around for nearly 1/3 of a decade. Oh, and doesn't switching the chronological measurement units make it sound all the more impressive? ;) I'm in this for the long run...tomorrow will be the premier of the fourth season of sixthseal.com - a big thank you goes out to everyone who has been with me for the past three years! Hola!

The words of encouragement and support despite my numerous shortcomings and constant relapses means a lot to me...it shows me that no matter how bad I fuck up, there will still be friends there to help me. People like you make me think that maybe the world is not that bad after all. I know I don't reply my emails as often as I should but I want everyone to know that I read every single one of them and it's nice to know that you care. I love you all.

I have been blogging for three years now, and it always brings me down a nostalgic memory lane to see what I've been doing for the past few years. I was a university student in Melbourne, Australia when I started sixthseal.com. I worked as a programmer with XM Malaysia in KL after I graduated, and I arrived in Kuching to be the system engineer for Huygens Asia after that. I'm still with Huygens Asia, and have been since I moved from KL to Kuching.

The past year of sixthseal.com has been interesting...the blog started receiving a lot of publicity, and that has resulted in many situations where people stopped me in town and asked if I'm the "sixthseal.com guy". It's nice to be able to meet new people from different walks of life through an online weblog...I'm glad I managed to bump into readers outside - it brings a more personal touch to blogging. :)

It seems to be a strange coincidence that sixthseal.com happens to change a different digicam each year - my trusty Nikon 5700 was replaced by the more compact 7.1 MP Nikon 7900 [sixthseal.com]. The mobile solutions for updating anytime and anywhere in the world have also been realized this year, with the purchase of a capable notebook equipped with Wi-Fi and CAT-5 network sockets. The connectivity has depended on mainly GSM cell phone GPRS/EDGE networks using IrDA or Bluetooth.

The purchase of an iPAQ hx4700 also allowed Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and IrDA connectivity modes, with ample dual memory slots (SD-Card and CF-Card). The Pocket PC running Windows Mobile 2003 Second Edition ensures that sixthseal.com is just a fingertip away and allows the replying of comments without lugging around a notebook. The pocket able iPAQ has been very useful in comment management. The connectivity is provided by a SE K700i with Bluetooth and IrDA ports [sixthseal.com].

This year also witnessed several sixthseal.com expansion and diversification efforts. There was a supernova in the sixthseal.com universe which resulted in an aggressive push in domain name acquisition. LimTeh.com [limteh.com] was registered on the 1st of February 2005 to be used as the "official" sixthseal.com forum. It has been planned out to be a self sustaining operation and thanks to the help of the moderators team - BIG D, Vertigo, PatrickISU, Swedish-Chef, Lainie, kisps, deadbill, sweety, justine, Astrum, Dear Sergio, shanks, chemist_tip, simplicity, *Limo*, Skwermy and jadephoenix; the LimTeh.com forum has been running smoothly. Let's hear a big one for the LimTeh.com moderator team for helping out! Cheers!

The sixhseal.com conglomeration of sites also added two new domains to the family - tiuniama.com [tiuniama.com] and tiuniamachowhai.com [tiuniamachowhai.com] on the 29th of March 2005. The two mirror domains are meant as a sociological experimental catch-all for trolls. The other domain acquisitions made this year includes sixthseal.info and louisalee.info, which would not be used to avoid diluting the main blog's name. Another little known fact is that the LimTeh.com forum is also associated with limteh.net, limteh.org and limteh.biz domains, although it's not recommended for use or book marking as I only plan to maintain the .com domain.

The "Holy Trinity" of .com, .net and .org was also acquired for sixthseal.com - it all redirects to the main premium sixthseal.com blog. The .net and .org domains was registered on the 9th of April, 2005. The domain name MalaysianBlogs.com [malaysianblogs.com] was also registered on the same date - it's going to be a portal of Malaysian based or owned blogs, a directory of sorts. I haven't gotten that project up and running yet, but it's going to be fully automated - so bloggers can just add their own sites into the relevant categories. SarawakBlog.com and SarawakBlogs.com was also registered on the same date but those two are going to remain dormant till I find an application for it.

The sixthseal.com group of sites also witnessed a downsizing exercise, with castitas.com [castitas.com] shut down for good on the 17th of September, 2004. castitas.com will no longer be updated. However, the domain name is still going to be maintained and all the previous posts will be kept as a historical archive. The first drug blog in Malaysia has been forced to be discontinued due to various reasons. If veritas decides to post again, it will be at sixthseal.com, not at castitas.com - future castitas.com content will be absorbed into the main sixthseal.com blog from now on.

The pengsan.com [pengsan.com] assignment outsourcing service has also ceased to operate due to logistical and human resource issues and the associated pengsan.com twin blog [pengsan.com] about substance use problems is going be suspended indefinitely. The decision is aimed at streamlining the sixthseal.com universe to allow more time to be spent on the main blog. The past year has also been hard on a personal basis due to escalating substance dependency issues, in regards to excessive and dangerous methamphetamine binges. My struggle with methamphetamine use will hopefully be contained before the 5th anniversary of the blog comes by. :)

There were six main events during the third year of sixthseal.com that were directly responsible for creating greater awareness about this blog:

1. The MAC Red Ribbon Media Awards (RRMA '04) held at Mandarin Oriental, KL

I was honored when Ely Azyze from MAC informed me that my entry on Guide to HIV Testing in Malaysia [sixthseal.com] won the main award for creating HIV awareness in the new category of Non-Traditional Media (Blogs). It was an all expenses paid trip, including the stay at Mandarin Oriental, courtesy of DaimlerChrysler.

I was actually flabbergasted that I got the main award coz if you remember, the post has a link to another post regarding methamphetamine in castitas.com and the Red Ribbon Gala Dinner 2004 [sixthseal.com] had the Prime Minister of Malaysia YAB Dato Seri Abdullah Haji Ahmad Badawi, the ex-Prime Minister Dr. Mahathir and MAC president and daughter of Dr. Mahathir, Datin Paduka Marina Mahathir in attendance.

Thanks to Ely Azyze and the staff at MAC who made this happen! :)

2. sixthseal.com in The Sunday Times, Singapore

The biggest newspaper in Singapore, The Straits Times, came out with a front page blurb with another full page pull-out inner insert bearing the title "Drug dealers with stethoscopes?" on the Sunday issue of their publication - The Sunday Times, on the 20th of June, 2004.

This is the only newspaper in Singapore - the other one is considered a tabloid. Thus, I was surprised when one of my readers in Singapore emailed me to inform me that sixthseal.com has been mentioned in a drug related article of their national newspaper.

The full page printed paper and online article talks about doctor shopping and the moral and professional judgments GPs have to make on a patient-by-patient basis on whether benzodiazepine therapy can be justified in patients fitting the monograph indication and also goes into the exploits (I prefer the term "working the system" ;)) of doctor shoppers such as myself. It paints a picture of a Singapore that seems to portray doctors apparently forcing benzos on their patients and mentions that:

"But the practice continues, and not just in Singapore. There are Internet chatrooms - like weblog sixthseal.com - where addicts share their favourite drug recipes and experiences."

I think this is the first time the blog made it into a foreign paper.

I remember writing a long rebuttal letter to the author to let our side (doctor shoppers) explain and raised the issue of sensationalism by getting a stereotypical "junkie" like "Micheal" (if he even exists), instead of attempting to maintain journalistic integrity and interview a more realistic representation of the substance users of today - young, well-paid professionals with respected careers.

...and I'm not even going to go into the offensive and derogatory ending phrase "It would not only cut down on addiction, but also shoplifting and other crimes that go hand-in-hand with drug abuse."

I'm not even going to look up, it's only going to throw me into a righteous rage. The last statement is a logical fallacy and is just there to create anti-drug use sentiments and spread FUD. It's like making the statement "a couple of journalists make up characters for their articles to fit the story, therefore every single journalist uses fictional characters". Logical. Fallacy.

That said, I understand that the columnist had articles to write, deadlines to meet, and may not be aware of the more intelligent recreational drug users choosing to enter altered states of mind to seek more life experiences. I'm glad the columnist was kind enough to get Singapore Press Holdings Publications to mail a complimentary copy of The Sunday Times to me. Thank you!

P/S - Thank you, Salma, for mentioning my blog. ;)

It made traffic jump by an unpreceded 16 fold. The article helped me reach the average Singapore family unit by mentioning sixthseal.com as a place where "where addicts share their favorite drug recipes and experiences" to pique paper reader interest into the online world. Spoken like a marketing spin doctor, I only need to retain the interest of *pulls number out of ass* 3.5% of the original paper inspired visitors to sustain my readership for several years, with an estimated *again from the place where the sun don't shine* 0.1% of those telling acquaintances and co-workers about the blog, which in effect creates a grassroots viral marketing campaign.

Okay, I'll stop now. :)

I'm not pissed off at all about being mentioned in the paper. sixthseal.com is a firm believer of the truism that goes "any publicity is good publicity". ;)

3. City, state and nationwide newspaper coverage

The third catalyst that is responsible for either directly or indirectly leading dead tree media readers to the sixthseal.com blog is the coverage that's divided into three sections:

4. Personal

These include personal appearances on the papers e.g. like in the Jolin Tsai concert.

5. Work-related

These are the news releases that are work related and involve the company.

6. Site-related

This is the direct publicity and reference to site(s) in the sixthseal.com conglomerate. This one involves a magazine featuring castitas.com.

Here's a review of the more notable posts featured in sixthseal.com from 19/4/2004 - 19/4/2005:

Note: (V) denotes that the post contains a relevant downloadable video clip.

May 03, 2004
The Devil's Kiss
Home baked Devil's food cake with Hershey's Kisses write-up. The entire process, from mixing the batter to baking is documented. (V)

May 07, 2004
Kuching bloggers meet @ Hot Seat
This historical event marked the first time a large scale Kuching bloggers meet has been organized.

May 18, 2004
Kapak (axe) brandi (brandy)
The Kapak brandy local distilled liquor is sampled and reviewed in this post. (V)

June 05, 2004
Download my nosebleed video while it's still fresh! ;)
This post is another one that contains potentially disturbing material. (V)

June 12, 2004
Jolin Tsai Promo Tour Malaysia - Kuching Concert
Jolin Tsai is the young Taiwanese actress/artist that starred in a few TV series and has a string of albums to her name. She came to Kuching, Sarawak to perform for the first time. (V)

July 12, 2004
Mild Seven PITPARTY 2004
It has F1 racing cars, girls, beer, and more girls. What more can a guy want? ;) (V)

July 19, 2004
The Definitive 7th Mile Teh C Peng
The Teh C Peng at 7th Mile (Kota Sentosa) is a local favorite - families drive up from Kuching just to drink the three layered teh c peng. This post features the original outlet.

July 31, 2004
Meth Dragon Video Download
The controversial video which features me smoking crystal meth. (V)

August 02, 2004
Kuching Festival 2004
This is the annual August Kuching festival which marks off a month of celebration with fireworks, boat processions and a converted gigantic outdoor food court. It's a popular event with the locals and a must-see for tourists. (V)

August 07, 2004
Ice Sculpture Exhibition
The famed ice sculptures from Harbin, China comes to Kuching to show their legendary ice carving skills by creating various monoliths, including a complete palace made out of ice with an ice slide. The ice sculpture exhibition was held in Kuching for a month in a -8 Celsius temperature controlled enclosure. (V)

September 21, 2004
Red Ribbon Gala 2004
The Malaysia AIDS Council biannual gala dinner and Red Ribbon Media Awards ceremony that was attended by the Prime Minister of Malaysia. I managed to win the Main Award for Non-Traditional Media (Blogs) which was recognized with a large engraved pewter bowl and RM 2,500. The Red Ribbon Gala 2004 is the crowning glory of my blogging career to date. (V)

October 06, 2004
"I don't want to feel" - Videos of me cutting myself
Self-inflicted wounds made with a balisong (butterfly knife) during a period of depression. This is not a suicide attempt or a plea for help, but just one of the things you do just coz you haven't done it before. I want to experience the feeling of holding a knife, knowing exactly when and where you're going to start slicing yourself. The feeling of having full control towards the pain mechanism provides a totally different scenario in an uncontrolled environment e.g. a fight. It's novel. (V)

October 12, 2004
Magenta, Kuching
Magenta is an excellent art deco concept restaurant in Kuching with great service and excellent food.

October 26, 2004
Louisa's 23rd @ TGI FRIDAY'S, 1 UTAMA
TGI Friday's at 1U in PJ is where we celebrated Louisa's 23rd birthday. Happy birthday! :)

January 14, 2005
Carvery Restaurant Review
The best restaurant for meat lovers in Kuching.

April 02, 2005
Guide to rolling a concealable cigarette joint
How to make smoking cannabis look legitimate. ;) (V)

April 05, 2005
It's my birthday today, but don't wish me a Happy Birthday
Methamphetamine IV use videos...on my birthday. (V)

April 11, 2005
Slash and Burn - The compulsion to self-inflict pain and leave scars
We have our ups and we have our downs. :) (V)

There will be constant changes and improvements to enhance the sixthseal.com universe and feedback from readers is always welcome. This year saw the introduction of heavy bandwidth utilization content such as video files and movie clips. There are no plans to cease this practice as video clips have managed to complement text and photos to provide a more satisfying and media rich experience. There will be a server migration planned in the third quarter of 2005 to manage the increasing demands on the current server.

The visitor stats have also shown tangible growth in readership numbers over the years, and I thank each and every one of you for taking the time to drop by and share. :)

The first anniversary of sixthseal.com can be viewed here [sixthseal.com].

The second anniversary of sixthseal.com can be viewed here [sixthseal.com].

Much love to all the readers out there!

Long live sixthseal.com! :)

Posted in Best of sixthseal.com by Huai Bin at 12:35 PM Permalink | Comments (41) | TrackBack

Susu Kambing (Goat's Milk) quaint cottage industry

Susu kambing or fresh goat's milk is available at a cottage industry located about 100 meters away from the Petra Jaya toll station. I've seen the small "Susu Kambing" sign with a goat image and an arrow asking customers to drive down the gravel driveway at the stall, but never did drop in until this morning.

I'm glad I did - the place has the charm of a small cottage industry...there's an enclosure where the goats are kept, I would estimate that there's a total of 20 or so goats in total. Look at the second goat burying its head into the feed container. :)

I went early in the morning so I had to call into the open house that's in front of the enclosure where the goats are kept. One woman peeked out and I asked her if goat milk is available. She replied in the affirmative and asked me how many bottles I want.

I went for one bottle - it's a 300 ml bottle with indicator lines running along the side, like it was some kind of medicine bottle. She poured it into this bottle from a huge jug of fresh goat milk. It's RM 13 per bottle (!). That's very expensive milk...

It's good though, the goat milk tastes nice and fresh, though I felt like a cough medicine addict chugging down my codeine from that unfortunately designed bottle. ;) Nevertheless, I like the quaint feel of the operation and the goat milk really tastes different from the bovine equivalent - it's good.

Drink my milk, puny humans! ;)

Posted in Local food by Huai Bin at 01:16 PM Permalink | Comments (19) | TrackBack

Vanjacking

Look at this Zuellig Pharma van...it's just parked there with all sorts of goodies in the back...

Who's up for some vanjacking? ;)

Posted in by Huai Bin at 01:46 PM Permalink | Comments (23) | TrackBack

KFC Curry Crunch

The new KFC Curry Crunch is the latest promotion to hit the menu and it looks like it's a winner. I went to KFC last night to sample the Curry Crunch chicken, which comes with the tagline "You won't believe it's KFC!". It also mentioned "Try it now!", so, hypnotized by those three words, I walked into the KFC franchise...

There was a KFC Curry Crunch promotional girl opening the door and inviting passersby to try the new KFC Curry Crunch. She's dressed in a garish costume, but check out...

...her hat. It has onions, chillis, garlics and all sorts of adornments on it.

The KFC Curry Crunch is being heavily promoted by the KFC staff, as can be seen by the large buttons they wear with the Curry Crunch chicken motif on it.

The KFC Curry Crunch display at the counter looks fine too, so I ordered a three-piece Curry Chicken set.

This is what the KFC Curry Crunch looks like - there's three pieces of chicken that's sprinkled with some kind of herb. I went for a drumstick and two thighs.

Here's a closer look at the KFC Curry Crunch...the green herbs that's sprinkled on the chicken definitely adds texture and taste to it.

The KFC Curry Crunch tastes delicious! I wrote "The KFC Curry Crunch is the best addition to the KFC menu to date!" in the comments slip the KFC Curry Crunch promotional girl passed to me...it's just that good!

Posted in Fast Food Inc. by Huai Bin at 11:09 AM Permalink | Comments (44) | TrackBack

XX chromosomes at the clinic

I haven't had the opportunity to do a XX chromosome entry for a while and I'm glad I met some at the clinic just now. I have a couple of regular GPs that I go for every week for my various benzodiazepine needs and I've never seen good XX chromosomes there, despite being a "regular patient" (the nurses all know me). It's always older ladies, not to sound offensive. ;)

I saw two girls walking in to the clinic today, and the red shirt girl smiled at me. She's accompanying her friend to the clinic. I told them I'm going to take a photo and here's it - the mosaic has been applied on a wall pharmaceuticals poster to avoid revealing who my doctors are. :p

I did not manage to capture her real life persona on the photo - the red shirted girl has a bubbly personality, with nice eyes and a great smile. She's real friendly too...just a little young. ;)

Posted in XX chromosomes by Huai Bin at 08:16 PM Permalink | Comments (14) | TrackBack

Slash and burn - the compulsion to self-inflict pain and leave scars

It's strange, I was just thinking about that tattoo I've wanted to get and suddenly got the urge to test the resilience of my flesh against a balisong...

I even took a lit cigarette and...er, cauterized the wound, just to see if my tactile senses are still in order.

Download: Slice and burn [sixthseal.com]

It's not unfamiliar to me...I'm not a cutter, but I use syringes so much I'm used to taking instruments to myself.

I just find it a little hard to keep my head on straight sometimes...ever get that feeling?

Posted in Hmm... by Huai Bin at 01:44 PM Permalink | Comments (44) | TrackBack

Ainsley and Michelle's housewarming party

I went to Ainsley and his wife Michelle's housewarming party at their new place in CountryVale last night. It's a residential area located about 4 1/2 miles away from Kuching and the place is so pristine, it's amazing. They just moved into a large corner semi-detached house and I received an invite to the housewarming (which came with a much needed map ;)) with most of the Huygens Asia family at their place, starting 7 pm.

Ainsley (we work together) and Michelle managed to get a good plot of land too - the view is full of dense foliage since there's a jungle located right beside their place. I went early with Kenny (another one of my co-workers) and managed to see the view just before sunset. There's a shallow valley and miniature hills too - the place is serene. Lots of fresh air, good neighborhood, nice location - it's a great place, Ainsley! :)

There were tables laid out on the front lawn for the guests - I think we were the first to arrive, coz what we thought would be a 30 minute drive turned out to be much quicker, due to what I can only attribute to Kenny's excellent speed on the highway. I was impressed...he drives with the same abandon that I do, except he doesn't get into...er, road mishaps, shall we say, as often as I do....which is pretty often. Cars, trucks, defenseless old ladies, you name it; I've accidentally mowed it down while driving. :p

The food was prepared on another table and I managed to get a couple of blurry shots of the fare...my apologies for the less than pristine photos. Please forgive my Nikon 7900 - it indulged in various benzodiazepines and had more than a couple of tokes from the peace pipe before arriving, so several photos didn't focus well. Myself, I went to the housewarming party sober, I would never think to insult the hosts by attending a family friendly event without all my faculties intact. ;)

There was a wide variety of food at the housewarming...I remember eating a lot of chicken drumsticks and helping myself to the fried kolo mee/kampua mee...

...it was enough to feed about 30 adults and children. I was starved and I ate my fill, and so did most of the Huygens Asia family, and there were still leftovers. It totally ruined my fantasy of eating everything in sight during the munchies. ;)

Lest we forget, there's also a cooler filled with beer and soda at the lawn. I did not know alcohol would be served, two thumbs up to Ainsley for arranging that.

The front porch is lined with shrubs and huge cacti pots, which leads to the front door. Everything is so clean and new, and I was impressed that the place remained pristine despite the guests going around. I don't know how they do it...

Ainsley was kind enough to give us a tour of his house - this is a piano in a nook just off the first living room. There are two living rooms...so I think this would be the guest living with the one at the back designated as the family living room. I don't know though, I only have one living room and I'm sleeping in it. ;)

There is also a very realistic looking dog beside the futon (very soft, the futon, not the dog). I thought it was real at first, that's the detail it had. It's realistic enough to give home intruders reason for pause, and if that doesn't, the countless surveillance cameras (some hidden) hooked up to DVR's and video servers for remote monitoring would. We are, after all, in the IP remote video surveillance industry. ;)

The back patio with transparent skylights would be an ideal place for breakfast with the breeze and fresh air. It overlooks the backyard, which is going to be installed with a fish pond.

The family relaxation room was populated with children and their guardians digging into the food, which gave me a new wave of the munchies. There will be a projector screen TV installed here in the future too.

The upstairs rooms have all been fully furnished and include a dedicated home office for Ainsley (shown above). There's also a fully equipped air conditioned entertainment room with a large TV and A/V equipment in front of a sofa for his kids as well. Hey mom, how come we never had one of them "entertainment rooms" when I was little? ;)

I passed by some of Ainsley and Michelle's wedding (or was that engagement?) photos in the hallway...

...which leads to their children's bedroom. The starfish light decor is very trippy - it flashes and pulses with different light intensities, looks like a perfect trip toy. ;)

Here we have the master bedroom...it will be a one phrase description since I feel like I'm violating their privacy already. :p However, there's a very interesting contraption beside the bed...

...a Lorenzo chair! I felt totally at home chilling out in this Lorenzo chair...I need to get myself one of these - it's perfect for reclining in, with its contoured curves and padded sides. I mean, just look at me! I'm totally chilling out here...in fact, I'm so relaxed, I've let Cali surfer dude speak invade my language syntax! ;)

The rest of the invited guests decided to grace us with their presence at this point, so we adjourned downstairs to get something to eat...

I think I had three or four rounds of food...

Props to Ainsley and Michelle for being gracious hosts! Thanks for having us! :)

Posted in Huygens Asia by Huai Bin at 08:40 AM Permalink | Comments (11) | TrackBack

Mee Jawa Kuah Unta (Mee Jawa with Camel Gravy)

This is Bahgia 9 Cafe, one of the food stalls at the Civic Center which offers a rather unique dish...

...Mee Jawa with Camel Gravy. Camel meat and ostrich meat for that matter, is not rare over here - there are a couple of industries offering meat products from these animals as an alternative to...well, chicken.

The nice ladies at the stall were kind enough to show me the camel gravy (kuah unta) from which they make their Mee Jawa Kuah Unta with. It comes in a steaming pot with camel meat. The gravy is made by simmering the camel meat with various spices (they didn't reveal which ones exactly) overnight.

We all ordered a dish of the Mee Jawa (noodles cooked Indonesian style with a distinctive spicy gravy) - this is what it looks like.

The Mee Jawa with Camel is good...I can't say that my palate is sophisticated enough to detect camel meat in the gravy, but I can tell you that it's good Mee Jawa. The place has some righteous satay too.

Posted in Local food by Huai Bin at 03:53 PM Permalink | Comments (19)

Nikon Coolpix 7900 review - my latest digicam

I just bought a Nikon Coolpix 7900 (the March 2005 newly released model) two days ago for RM 1,888. My primary digicam, the trusty Nikon 5700 has been out of commission for a while due to a CCD malfunction. I love that camera, it has a nice solid weight and the features are great. It also looks good - I've always preferred black magnesium alloy SLR type bodies to the silver ones for practical and aesthetic reasons.

Alas, it had to be sent to Nikon in PJ to be fixed coz every picture that I took had chroma distortion at the top, so I figured it's probably the CCD sensor. I've been looking around for another digicam while I wait for the 4 week turnaround time and decided upon the 7.1 MP Nikon 7900. I've been waiting for it for a week, and no one in Kuching had any, until I went to Hock Lee Center on Sunday and saw one on display. It just got in that very morning.

Unfortunately, I had also seen the Sony Cyber-shot DSC V3 7.2 MP digicam which looks a lot like my trusty Nikon 5700, except the Sony is slightly smaller. It retails for RM 2,588, and did I mention that I love black SLR-type magnesium alloy digicams? I'll put on my flame retardant suit and share the reason behind this - the silver digicams looks cheap and unprofessional. I'm sorry; it just had to be said. ;)

Thus, I was caught in a predicament - should I retain brand loyalty and go for the Nikon 7900 or should I get the Sony V3 which looks fucking great and is only a RM 600 difference? Did I mention the Sony can take CF Cards too? I don't know if I mentioned this before but the Sony V3 also has the SLR-type magnesium alloy body like the Nikon 5700 that I have and I love these d-SLR type digicams. It's like a digital SLR...except you don't need to lug expensive specialty lenses around and worry about breaking that RM 10,000 lens.

I've always gone for Nikon digicams (the 7900 is my third) due to the stellar macro performance (people always ask me how I manage to get such detailed pill shots) and also coz I have three CF Cards, two EN-EL1 Nikon batteries and two chargers. Plus, I like Nikon. That was before I handled the Sony DSC V3 though...and I just couldn't decide which one I should get. Actually, I had already decided to go for the Sony, but I had to consult my gf, coz apparently, my finances are audited by her. :p

She had very sound advice - go for the Nikon 7900. It's technically an upgrade since its 7.1 MP compared to the Nikon 5700's 5.1 MP. The other reason was because (and we've discussed this before) I already have a d-SLR type (she calls it "bulky and unwieldy") digicam (the Nikon 5700), which is due to come back from repairs soon. Thus, common sense dictates that one should own a "main" digicam (that would be my Nikon 5700) and get a new "portable" one instead (which would be the Nikon 7900).

It does make sense...there's no point having two d-SLR type cameras to lug around when you can have one to carry around and a portable one to...well, pocket. Thus, I got the Nikon 7900. It's a new release, it just came out this month and it has a lot of new features, most of which I find annoying, like the blurred shot warning (be damned if a digicam starts to nag me). It's pretty much useless except for newbies coz experienced photographers would know a good shot from a bad one right away. There is also no "burst photography" (rapid fire continuous shots for a limited amount of time to increase the probability of getting that hard to shoot scene) mode unlike my Nikon 5700 (which photographers like for various reasons ;)) since it can only manage a paltry 1.7 fps continuous.

The Nikon 7900 has some amazing features though - like the 2.0 inch amorphous silicon TFT LCD screen. Fuck, that screen is HUGE. It's also clear, detailed and bright as fuck. I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw it. The size is awe inspiring as well - it's 120 x 57 x 69 mm. That's the exact size of a pack of cigarettes. The Nikon 7900 is portable, alright. If you can carry a pack of Marlboros, you can slip a Nikon 7900 in and you won't even notice the difference.

The neutral point of the Nikon 7900 is that it doesn't get a second glance from passer-bys. Everyone and their grandma (and her pet cat) own a digicam nowadays, and this looks just like the miniature ones that are flooding the market nowadays. I don't feel like I'm covering an event when I use it, unlike the large Nikon 5700. It's good for a compact digicam in a sense...it attracts less attention. It also attracts less respect. It can be argued that only true d-SLRs command the respect they deserve, but we're not going there due to budget and practicality issues.

The downside to the few days I've been using the Nikon 7900 is the weight of the digicam...or rather, the lack of it. I'm used to the comfortable weight (more than 1/2 kg) of the Nikon 5700 (bought it at RM 3,100 and have been using it for two years, daily) and the featherweight Nikon 7900 (about 180 g) requires delicacy during operation, a trait I do not possess. I also didn't like the shallow "grip outcrop" to the right of the digicam after using the solid grip of the Nikon 5700 for so long.

The best feature of the Nikon 7900 is the new "Face-priority AF" function which does facial recognition and focuses on faces and people. Nifty. The movie mode can record 640 x 480 @ 30 fps (unlimited) which is great - it's an upgrade from the Nikon 5700. It also has "Electronic Vibration Reduction" which seems to work. I can see myself using the two different digicams for different situations.

The other good thing is that there's no learning curve to speak of - once you're familiar with a Nikon digicam, you can operate any Nikon digicam without problems. I still have to practice being gentle with the Nikon 7900 to avoid blurring the shots due to the light weight, but that would come in time...and I definitely need to turn off that damned Blur Shot Warning indicator.

Plus, the Nikon 7900 TTL is fucking amazing too - I strap it to my belt using the original leather pouch (which looks pretty good actually) and the opening mechanism is magnetic in nature. That, combined with the dangling strap I keep allows me to tug on the strap to snag the 7900 clear of the magnetic clasp while hitting the appropriately placed power button and the Nikon 7900 boots up and is ready to go by the time the digicam is leveraged into the right hand (I'm right handed) via the strap rebound.

TTL (Time to Live) is a speedy 2 seconds, faster if it's in standby mode (so it doesn't have to go through the Nikon intro which takes a second).

How fast is that? Well, I'm not going to post a photo, but there was an incident at a certain escalator at The Curve which is of an ephemeral nature, and I managed to whip out the Nikon 7900 and caught the scene in time. I'll leave you to think about the nature of the scene, but I'm telling you, the TTL is fast. ;)

I also liked the new D-lighting feature which adds detail to dark areas of the scene composition. *cough* This feature alone justifies the upgrade. The huge 7.1 MP photos that comes out at 3072 x 2304 gets a big thumbs up from me too. I got a 256 MB SD Card with the purchase of the camera, and I have another SD Card around but the other great thing is the Nikon 7900 also has internal memory so you can take shots even when the SD Card is not in.

Imagine this scenario - you've just filled the SD Card and you're swapping it out when this shot of a lifetime comes along and there you are, stuck in between reloads! Well, I can say without any shame that the recurring nightmares that I have regarding this scenario is a thing of the past. ;)

The nightmares that I've been having has now morphed into dream like sequences where I just drop the SD Card, fuck reloading, point the digicam at that shot-of-a-lifetime and press the shutter button and I get the shot, all due to the internal memory of the Nikon 7900. I can sleep easy now. Thanks Nikon! ;)

It's definitely a great buy, but I'll wait till the price drops if you don't need one right now. RM 1,888 is a little steep for a consumer grade digicam. I still love it though, it's pocket able so I won't have to strap my sling bag, which I'm told is a fashion faux pax when I'm wearing a coat. ;)

I like the leather belt strap though...that's how I'm carrying it now.

Posted in by Huai Bin at 02:15 PM Permalink | Comments (24)

McD Chicken Porridge (Bubur Ayam McD)

McDonald's has a range of porridge in their menu in Malaysia and has for quite some time. It's our "healthy" alternative to the burgers and fried chicken that is a staple of McDonald's. Bubur Ayam McD (McD Chicken Porridge) is billed as "hot and tasty" and while I can attest that it's definitely hot (eating it before it cools down will definitely give your tongue a good scalding), I'm not so sure about the tasty part.

This is a large serving of Bubur Ayam McD. It literally translates to McD Chicken Porridge and costs RM 5.20 for a large Styrofoam container full of chicken porridge. It's about as big as one of the premium Ramen bowls out there and comes with a plastic spoon (Western spoon as opposed to the Chinese "soup" spoon usually used to eat porridge) and four packets of pepper (which you'll need).

Here's what McD Chicken Porridge looks like when it's opened - it's steaming hot chicken porridge with spring onions, fried onions, chilli and various other condiments. It doesn't taste so good out of the bowl, so I recommend...

...using all four pepper sachets to spice the McD Chicken Porridge up a bit...

McD Chicken Porridge isn't so bad when liberal amounts of pepper is used to flavor the otherwise bland porridge. It's good for the times you're not really hungry at lunch and want something light.

Bubur Ayam McD has nice, large and tender chicken chunks too...

Posted in Fast Food Inc. by Huai Bin at 02:18 PM Permalink | Comments (13)

NEXT cigarettes review

Philip Morris International has recently launched a new brand of cigarettes called Next to fill the void left when the Malaysian cigarette tax hike priced their flagship Marlboro brand out of the reach of lower income bracket smokers at RM 6.50. Next is the new wave of cigarette brands that retails at RM 4.50 - close to the "old" (pre-tax hike) prices of mid-range cigarettes.

Next cigarettes comes in the standard two established tobacco industry standard types - full flavored and lights (mild). The full flavored packs comes in a darker shade of blue than the lights. The design of Next cigarettes is minimalist, with just a characteristic "streak" down the box aligned with the X of NEXT.

The full flavored packs taste like a milder version of Marlboros - and that's not a bad thing at all. PM did well with NEXT, it tastes like their premium flagship brand but is priced at a very affordable price at RM 4.50 for a post cigarette tax hike.

I won't bother with NEXT Lights, since the full flavored version is already like a watered down Marlboro so you can imagine what the Lights taste like...

There is one minor gripe I have with the quality of the cigarettes though - all of the NEXT cigarettes (both full flavored and lights) have a distinctive defect in the wrapper. There is a fault line running down every cigarette, which seems to make the cigarette look fragile. However, testing the cigarette by rolling a cannabis cigarette (which stress tests the wrapper integrity) proved me wrong...the "fault line" is not a bad wrap at all - the wrapper didn't open up or tear at that line (where I expected it to). It's just the way NEXT cigarettes are made - it's not a structural integrity issue at all. Nice.

I like Next cigarettes since I smoke Marlboros and NEXT basically taste the same, and it comes from the same tobacco company as well. The retail price of RM 4.50 is making me switch from Marlboros to NEXT full flavored cigarettes.

NEXT cigarettes - The next best thing... ;)

Posted in Ethanol and tobacco by Huai Bin at 01:57 PM Permalink | Comments (19)

KFC Cheezy Wedges

There's just something about ordering KFC and eating Cheezy Wedges in the office while working overtime. The warm potato wedges is just perfect for the rainy day compounded by the cold air conditioning settings...

Just look at the gooey cream and cheddar cheese slathered on the steaming hot potato wedges...

Mmm...cheese... *drools*

Posted in Fast Food Inc. by Huai Bin at 05:16 PM Permalink | Comments (21)

It's my birthday today, but don't wish me a happy birthday

It's my birthday today. 5th of April, 1981 was the time I came into this world. Birthdays can be time for celebration and it can be time for contemplation as well. I'm going to go for the latter this year.

I'm going to be brutally honest and address one particular issue that needs to be resolved immediately:

Download: Methamphetamine IV video [sixthseal.com]

I had become the typical meth fiend. The Mr. Hyde to the Dr. Jekyll. You want to dig up dirt on me? Don't bother, I'll save you the time - it's all here for all to see. I have a methamphetamine problem - and it's not a small one. I always reach for the needle compulsively. I'm an IDU (Intravenous Drug User) and I'm going to admit it. I hear it's the first step to quitting.

The audio and video has been compressed from the original 180 MB and 224 MB file respectively so there are some quality compromises. It still gets the message through though...

Download: Methamphetamine compulsive use [sixthseal.com]

This is the second time in 5 minutes that I shot up (three times, to be exact). I had become so scattered, so fucked up and spun the fuck out that I didn't even notice I was shooting up the "wrong way" during the second time (should be pointing towards me for a faster onset). I probably wouldn't have cared even if I knew.

I was just rolling on the high, looking for the next high, wanting the next shot, wanting to be high, high, high again.

I know the videos are going to be disgusting and off-putting. I have received photos of tweakers doing their thing and it puts me off. I realize that these videos are going to disgust and horrify some of you too...but I'm putting it up anyway, coz it's a realistic look into a life of an IV meth user.

There were only two birthday cards for me this year - one from my sister and one from my parents. I've neglected a lot of my friends and also my gf. I realized that a long time ago but never took steps to take care of it. I've put methamphetamine as #1 in my life and that has cost me a lot. It's a wake up call for me.

I'm quitting methamphetamine. I know I've said that many times before but hopefully this year will be a new start. I'm 24 now for fucks sake; it's time to get with the program...

Posted in by Huai Bin at 01:40 PM Permalink | Comments (90)

Chlordiazepoxide (Librium) - the first benzodiazepine

Chlordiazepoxide is the very first benzodiazepine that came out and it's the prototype for the benzodiazepine compounds. Leo Sternbach was the man who discovered the psychoactive properties of chlordiazepoxide, and it as a fluke too. He worked on synthesizing biotin when he first went into Roche and when that was done, he was about to clear his lab when he noticed a crystalline compound. He didn't think it would be worth sending for tests, but dropped it off anyway, and that decision gave us the wonderful benzodiazepine family we have today. ;)

It's all written down in "Good Chemistry: The Life and Legacy of Valium Inventor Leo Sternbach" and his personal memoir "The Benzodiazepine Story" published in-house by Roche (rare book). The product trials started in May 1957 and the excellent results from the clinical trials allowed Roche to debut Librium (clordiazepoxide hcl) in 1960, which was well received, considering the sedatives of that time didn't exactly have excellent safety profiles.

Valium (diazepam) was only marketed in 1963, and it was the blockbuster hit that propelled Roche to fame and fortune. However, Librium (chlordiazepoxide) is the first benzodiazepine and that gives it a lot of historical value. The chemical structure of chlordiazepoxide hydrochloride is 7- chloro-2-(methylamino)-5-phenyl-3H-1, 4-benzodiazepine 4-oxide hydrochloride. It has the 1,4 benzodiazepine structure that most other benzodiazepines share. Librium is the Adam of the benzodiazepine world.

I've taken chlordiazepoxide before and I wasn't very impressed, considering the heavyweights like clonazepam and alprazolam had been released since the first benzodiazepine. However, I wanted to get more before I write about it and that was difficult coz most GPs don't stock this considerably weak and old benzodiazepine anymore. I got my pharmacy in Sibu to get one in through "unofficial channels" (it's faster) and received it when I was back home the week before. I purchased it for RM 250 (!) which was a pleasant surprise, since private channels usually doesn't come cheap. I guess Thailand must have really cheap generic benzodiazepines.

This is the bottle of generic chlordiazepoxide marketed under ATC and named Benpine. I had asked him to get the 25 mg ones, but his source could not get them. I don't mind anyway, since it's still a lot of chlordiazepoxide. :) It was obtained from Thailand and comes in a 1000 pill glass bottle containing 5 mg of sugar coated chlordiazepoxide base (as Hcl). There is a red stamp with the words "FOR EXPORT ONLY - Psychotropic substance" on one side and "WARNING: MAY BE HABIT FORMING" on the other. Habit forming, eh? No shit... ;)

Anyway, these 5 mg sugar coated chlordiazepoxide tablets are nice to suck on - I don't measure how much I take, I just grab a handful and suck on those since it's a very low potency benzodiazepine. The sugar coated feature is nice - there's a burst of sweetness from the pills you just popped in, and once that's gone, a slightly bitter (not as much as alprazolam) taste dominates. It comes on very fast; it's one of the rapid acting benzodiazepines. I felt the familiar benzodiazepine effects within 30 minutes every time.

Chlordiazepoxide has the classic anxiolytic, sedative, hypnotic, and anti-convulsant effects of benzodiazepines. It peaks at the 2 hour point and starts to return to baseline after that. However, it doesn't leave you hanging just like that - chlordiazepoxide feels like diazepam (Valium) in that sense...the peak plasma concentration slowly goes away instead of just disappearing like Xanax. It's interesting to read that the monograph lists desmethylchlordiazepoxide, demoxepam, desmethyldiazepam and oxazepam as the active metabolites which remains in you for anywhere from 5-48 hours. It's supposed to be notoriously unpredictable in the time to peak plasma and half life calculations.

ATC 5 - The new Erimin 5. ;)

Chlordiazepoxide feels good - it's nice to know that the very first benzodiazepine can still perform. I went on a chlordiazepoxide-only benzodiazepine intake for two days. It does the job (in large enough doses) and I felt happy on it. :) I didn't notice much in the way of what people call "hangover effects" since I don't get them on other benzos anyway. However, I noticed that my motor skills were slightly impaired on the second day after a high dose on it. I've taken it for quite a while now; I just grab a fistful of it like candy and pop them in my mouth. I find that anything below 500 mg (approximate) didn't do much. It tastes like candy though, with its sugar coating. Heh!

Unfortunately, it goes all too quickly too...just like candy. I won't miss the effects (which was nice, btw, but the benzos I'm on now suits me better), but the sugar coated 5 mg generic Chlordiazepoxide Hcl pills will always bring a smile to my face. I found out that I did like chlordiazepoxide, an not just for the historical value, but also from the way the active metabolites slowly hangs around for the rest of the day until you redose. I didn't have to scramble for lorazepam or more Xanax, unlike the newer benzodiazepine compounds coz of the sharp blood plasma concentration reduction.

Chlordiazepoxide is worth exploring for historical value...getting to sample the first benzodiazepine was fun. I remember the highest dose taken was about 800 - 1000 mg over a 15 minute period one night to finish of the rest of the bottle (it was still about 1/5 full), and I was just watching a movie while repeatedly reaching for more until I realized I finished it. I didn't feel an urge to sleep, but I did get a feeling as if I was stoned. It was fun.

However it should be noted that chlordiazepoxide has been associated with seizures (?!?!) at high doses, so be careful. I didn't get seizures though, it could be an isolated incident like triazolam alone causing an OD death in one patient. It would be wise to exercise caution though - I was really irritable after the chlordiazepoxide holiday and it took me a couple of days to normalize back to my usual dose, and I had to up that to make it faster too. :p

Oh, and er...April Fool! Here at sixthseal.com, it's still the 1st of April until I say it's not. ;)

Posted in Pharmaceuticals by Huai Bin at 03:40 PM Permalink | Comments (37)

Guide to rolling a concealable cigarette joint

This is a basic beginner's guide to rolling a concealable joint that looks like a cigarette for discreet use in public. The orthodox method of joint rolling does not seem to be popular in Malaysia due to the low proliferation of rolling papers, compounded by the unique customs in a country where drug use is generally frowned upon and the sociological factors affecting ganja (cannabis, marijuana, weed) consumption and the local etiquette involved with cannabis use.

Listed below are the items necessary for making a cigarette joint:

1. Cannabis (also known as ganja, marijuana, weed, grass, pot etc)

Shown above is the commonly available cannabis in Malaysia - highly compressed for minimal bulk.

2. Cigarettes

This is the Marlboro "Racing Edition" packs - Marlboros are ideal due to the high structural integrity of the paper. Pall Mall is also acceptable due to the extreme ease of tobacco removal (low density) but has a more fragile paper.

3. Syringe

Please snap off the needle for safety purposes - only the plunger is required, though the body provides a relatively clean receptacle for storing it. IV users should remove the orange cap to avoid mistaking it for a usable syringe (which is why the needle should be snapped off).

Guide to making a cannabis cigarette:

Step 1: Prepare a "workspace" i.e. a clean sheet of glossy paper to "shred" the cannabis. There are some people who prefer to utilize scissors for this tedious task, but manual shredding can be enjoyable for the people who enjoy working hands-on with cannabis. Prepare an amount according to personal preference.

Step 2: Take one cigarette and hold it at the reference point shown in the photo above. User preference is the overriding factor here, but generally 1-2 cm above the filter is a good guideline.

Step 3: Work you way down the length of the cigarette by applying rotational pressure with an appropriate amount of force to "loosen" up the tobacco inside the cigarette. Please do not use excessive force as the integrity of the cigarette will be compromised. Marlboros generally can withstand moderately rough treatment without adverse effects.

Step 4: Extract all the tobacco from the cigarette starting from the reference point. The tobacco can be pulled out when it emerges during Step 3 and stroking the cigarette downwards will loosen up the remaining tobacco for spinning (mixing with cannabis).

Step 5: It is essential that at least some tobacco is used as cannabis alone will not burn well. The ratio of cannabis to tobacco should be very high (for non-smokers) or 2:1 (for smokers). 1:1 ratios are also acceptable in times of low cannabis availability.

Step 6: The emptied cigarette should look like the photo above. The entire cigarette should be hollow up to the reference point. The reference point is used to avoid cannabis wastage by ensuring that the very end of the cannabis cigarette contains tobacco only. This will prevent users from having to smoke right down to the filter, which can be unpleasant to the palate. Notice that the structural integrity of the hollowed out cigarette is maintained.

Step 7: Combine the cannabis with tobacco by sifting it using the fingers. Please ensure that an equal distribution is prepared and ensure that there are no excessively large pieces of the mixture present. It is also important that the stem and seeds of the cannabis bud is not used as the former can tear the cigarette when repacked and the latter would result in an uneven burn.

Step 8: Previous cannabis + tobacco preparation surplus can also be added at this point (if any). Ensure that the sifting process is repeated if surplus mix is used.

Step 9: There should be a pile of cannabis and tobacco mixture on your workspace at this point. It is important to note that potential sources of airstreams such as ceiling fans should be neutralized. Working with cannabis requires a wind free environment, much like methamphetamine use. This rule should be adhered to strictly, at the expense of extreme displacement of substance(s) due to changing wind currents or existing atmosphere disturbances. The latter includes, but is not limited to, people breathing over your neck, sneezing, and coughing either by yourself or others.

Step 10: Prepare the plunger by removing the plunger from the body of the syringe completely.

Step 11: Grip the cigarette firmly on the filter tip and insert plunger carefully into the cigarette, making sure to minimize unnecessary contact with the sides or (more importantly) the top of the cigarette to avoid structural damage. This first step is done to ensure that the 1-2 cm of tobacco intentionally left behind in the cigarette is packed properly as the base for a smooth draw.

Step 12: Hold the hollow cigarette at 45 degrees and proceed to fill the cigarette with the cannabis and tobacco mixture. It is essential that no contact is made with the fragile tip of the cigarette. Instead, allow gravity to do most of the work by using the thumb and forefingers to "drop" the mixture into the cigarette. This can be achieved by using the motion used to snap your fingers (without actually doing so) while holding the mixture on top of the cigarette.

Step 13: Periodically insert the plunger into the slowly refilled cigarette to ensure that the density is maintained. Using the fingers of one hand to tentatively grip the paper top of the cigarette and holding it while pushing the plunger in and simultaneously "docking" the filter to the table to provide support will "pack" the cigarette effectively, though it should be mentioned that this requires some expertise to avoid compromising the integrity of the cigarette paper.

Step 14: Repeat Steps 12 - 13 until the cigarette is repackaged with cannabis. It should look like this after it's being filled - with minimal damage to the exterior. It justifies reiterating that no stems should be present in the mix due to the possibility of it tearing the paper.

Step 15: The refilled cannabis cigarette can be left as is, though this practice is not recommended due to the possibility of confusing the cigarette joint for a real cigarette.

Step 16: Twist the tip of the cigarette to produce a classic joint "twist close" shape to differentiate the cannabis cigarette from factory packed cigarettes.

Congratulations! The cannabis cigarette is now ready to be enjoyed or transported under the guise of a normal cigarette.

It should be noted that smoking the cannabis joint disguised as a cigarette would not produce optimal effects due to the cigarette filter. The cigarette filter should be removed, stripped down to a minimal amount and reinserted to produce a more THC laden smoke. The video below describes the methodology involved and includes a cool trick to remove the filter (Thanks dc!):

Download: Cannabis cigarette filter removal trick and lighting up [sixthseal.com]

Please note that smoking cannabis in public is illegal and there is a very real risk of a law enforcement officer stopping you and asking for a toke. ;)

Happy April Fool's Day! The "cannabis" above is just tobacco and nothing illegal was used in the making of this post. I know I'm a day late, but who would believe it if it was posted on 1st of April? ;)

Posted in by Huai Bin at 01:02 PM Permalink | Comments (39)

Stilnox - zolpidem experience report (100 mg oral)

Stilnox is the name zolpidem is marketed under by the sanofi-aventis group. It is sold as Ambien in the US and Myslee in Japan. The three names all refer to zolpidem tartrate tablets in 10 mg doses. It's made by the same company, just sold under different names in different countries, a pharmaceutical practice I never did understand, like Roche selling clonazepam as Klonopin in the US and Rivotril elsewhere.

Stilnox (zolpidem) is one of the four non-benzodiazepine novel z-drugs. Zolpidem belongs to the imidazopyridine group of chemical compounds. It has a very short half-life of just 2 hours and is marketed as a hypnotic (sleeping pill). It was the second z-drug to come out, debuting in 1992 after zopiclone (1989). The third z-drug is zaleplon (Sonata), which is not available in Malaysia.

The fourth one (used to be only 3 of them) has just hit the market under the name Lunesta (eszopiclone) and is the first one to be approved for indefinite prescription (!). I've been following eszopiclone for quite a while and it just came out (as in now), so it's not available in Malaysia yet. However, I just talked to my doctor about this and he's excited (my extreme enthusiasm about pharmaceuticals is infectious) about it too.

Mostly about the "indefinite prescription" part, coz he's been giving me Dormicum (midazolam) 15 mg, Rivotril (clonazepam) 2 mg, and Xanax (alprazolam) 0.25 mg. I've been getting this from him regularly and he's starting to talk about tapering, so I compromised on the Xanax (used to have 0.5 mg). Which is fine by me, he doesn't know about the other two doctors who're prescribing me other benzodiazepines. ;)

He's a nice doctor though - he's made it clear that medical support is will always be available from him due to my long history of benzodiazepine use, so he's only going to encourage me to taper off Xanax and stay on Rivotril and Dormicum indefinitely. I appreciate him for that. He's the best doctor I have now, since the one in Sibu stopped practicing due to the Big C (Bless Him!). There's another nice and understanding doctor here that I see, but he has a disturbing tendency to read Bible verses to me...

The good doctor (the one I was talking about) is not a big fan of the "lazy" (his words) people at BPFK and estimates that it'll take 8 months before Singapore approves Lunesta and probably close to a year before Malaysia gets the clinical data and safety profiles from other countries and finally writes a monograph and by the time it's approved, it'll be 2 years. I like his healthy disregard for the BPFK. ;) He's going to get it in for me anyway, which is great of him...hopefully, I'll be the first to sample eszopiclone in Malaysia.

I digress...back to zolpidem, I bought it from the pharmacy in Sibu (amongst other things which I will post about soon). I don't need prescriptions coz the pharmacy is owned by someone related to my mom. I think she's my aunt or something. I didn't know that until much later, I just became friends with the son a couple of years ago, and now I realize he's my cousin. Jesus. I digress again. The Stilnox (zolpidem) cost me RM 30 which means one 10 mg tablet is RM 3. I've had zolpidem before (which is where the pill pictures come from), but not in 100 mg doses. This will be my first time ingesting a high dose of zolpidem.

This experience report details the oral ingestion of zolpidem under the following parameters:

Dosage: 10 x 10 mg Stilnox (zolpidem tartrate) for 100 mg in a single dose.
Experiment aims: Exploring the pharmacodymanics of high doses of zolpidem and reported visuals associated with it. (Read: Get high and have fun. ;))
Other drug interactions: Methamphetamine use for the past 72 hours (3 days) without sleep and food. Clonazepam, alprazolam and lorazepam also taken during the past 8 hours before dosing. Cannabis was smoked after dosing.

Download: Zolpidem (Stilnox) experience video [sixthseal.com]

Experience report (complete and uncorrected):

Damn, I just saw red spots (large ones) everywhere after I downed 100 mg of zolpidem (whole blister pack of 10 x 10 mg damn I can still type ::))

Good; I already have sleep deprivation hallucinations coz ive been up for 3 days without sleep and food. The fucking walls (thank god for ms word auto capital letter) were CRAWLING. Fucking moving like I just took a large amount of k (not line, just near till you can't move).

Yeah things are starting to look strange now. Definite improvement from the previous sleep dep visuals, this is more mellow, slow. Like the start of an acid trip teaser visuals. I keep on forgetting wat I wanted to do. Allthat meth no sleep and benzos (had al ot of diff ones just now, I do that towards the end of the run while still injecting just so I don't go fucking psycho and assault someone, you know that meth comedown violent feeling, so its good to temper it a bit with benzos.

Was telling a friend that us Asians (in some more liberal countries anyway) don't really tell people from the US or UK about how large (wow things are moving now, surfaces quivering and OEV, wow) anyway we don't tell coz the climate here allows some of us to buy benzos in huge amounts and it's always available in a pharmacy you know, and also the multiple scripts you get from different docs. Imagine always having large quantities of Dormicum, Xanax, Rivotril (Klonopin), Ativan, Mogadon, Phenobarbital, Valium and so forth at home.

Imagine how big a habit you can work out in countries where benzos are easily obtainable shit I forgot wat I wantd to say. Anyway, imagine having all that benzos around and imagine the huge doses we need. I hear US people saying that 30 mg diazepam is "excessive". Jesus, I take 200 mg diazepam an drink red wine for fun..and someone said no one can take 100 mg of valium and still stay awake. Was laughing coz when you're in a benzo friendly country you can get as much benzos as you want, so its easy to work up to a habit for life.

US and other countries are diff, its harder to stockpile such a huge amount since rx rules are tighter and pharms won't sell it to profit under the table. Thus, more people there are less experienced with benzos so we usually don 't comment since we come from Benzo Bazaar. :)

Ok donr writing, gonna check on visuals now coz I've been steadfastly ifnoring hem for the past minutes while I concentrate and finish what I was writing. Everything looks smooth now and I can seee cardboard box that contains a fan slowly developing cracks and cracks up.

I knew it! :) Meth runs without sleep (dep hallucinations) and without food (ultra fast absorption) and zopidem or zopiclone will give you nice visuals esp when you close your eyes (INTENSE). Benzos won't improve on the visuals, it just calms you down a bit, the only ones there are from sleep dep/

But the z drugs (have not tried the other one not available here, sonata I think) will IMPROVE on th visuals and calms you down too. However, don't mean to be dicksizing or anything, just stating the obvious), you need to have a large benzo tolerance to remain awake at large doses of benzos or zopidem/zopiclon. You gotta be awake to enjoy the visuals. It's nice, it's not like the scary sleep dep ones but an improved fun ad happy visual anomalies. Heh) smoking cannabis after taking also makes it more fun.

I want to get sth to eat coz ihaven't for 3 days but I dun think I an be sober. I forget things instantly. Jesus. But I'm hugry and I need water coz I hardly drank any during my meth run// will go now, it's okay, it's the regular place, just get sth to take away and of course drinks. I need to drink.

Wow fuck I closed my eyes for 10 seconds and I saw myself CLEARLY , saw my reflection clearly sitting on a train and looking out the dark window. It was night. It was SO VIVID I couldn't believe it/ I'll always take zopidem when coming down. Get entertained with these sweet visuals before sleeping. I'm going to get food now though, wish me luck, I can't retain a memory for more than 2 secs/

Just want to tell you all that there's SWARMS of schools of those black worms/snakes moving around the room. They can turn bigger and become translucent too. Heh I'm enjoying this. I can close my eyes and see myself in a coffee shop with people moving around me to sit and eat too, one guy had a yellow t shirt and was wearing glasses. So vivid and nice these CEVs/ oops sorry I used the wron reference just now. All above means OEV when I wrote CEV. Of course I got a lot of nice opened eyed visuals but the ones I described as ultra pantone color vivid comes in closed eyed visuals. It's like the mind makes a dream for our eyeballs. We could just be large balls floating on some God's bar where everyone is wearing a while robe and has a bread, yo know the works.

We could be in that ball like matrix and the god eats it and poof our plate of reality as we know it is gone with just one chew. Everything we've known and loved. Forgotten coz we cease to exist after that. Imagine if we're really in dimensions. We could be in a baseball in a God's beer mug now and he nearly sipped the whole ball (quite big) in but decided not to yet.

Last time not as intense coz no meth run (sleepdep) and 3 days without sleep (dep) and food (metabolizedultra fast) plus absobtion.

I took zopidem alone (not whole blister pack but near it) a couple of years ago and the visuals were dismal compared to this. And I cant even remember your name Bob! I'm moving around, whee!

Note recipe:
3 days of tweaking the usual way with no food no sleep and minimal water
(I had to move very close co I had to make sure I was writing the currect thing coz I forgot now and theres; a guy in a grey shirt dancing in my peripheral visual (hallucinationsm the good ones oopslose ability to type liaw'

shit drool is uncontrollable too, it kept dripping and drooling out for a long time now, think its either the benzos or the excessive meth runs of constant IV and smoking compulsively. That can make yu lose control over body too. Droolin manifests frst.\\\\

and my walls are crawling again in nice big chunks now, not those small pixels. This is a] large scale people painting the wall wth cements and brick laying, wowl

Fucking entertaining I tell you, will do this again, defiately.

There is an old lady, quite big sizd, plybp. Damn the curse in word coms in multiple shades of changing color and there's an car exhause following it. Old lady still there though. Just suddenly appear and sit in the corner hugging her knees. Quite scared coz it's probably just a hallucination (even though I clearly sw her including her mostly blue blouse the common chinese people wears in older days and she looks up at e with her umbrealla tightly held on her lap. Life of a poor old 50+homemaler, just like in a cauge. She always looks at me when I look at her. Please don't talk t me right now I need fucking really concentrate tremember everything which is important.

Oh yah I enjy ythose peple, they enjy making a home and they're nice always carring. I feel sorry for er, unfortauntely she left and a much younger guy (who's halluicioation coz I can see him when I turn around only in my peri vision. Very real.

I had one last thing t saw but I forgot. Oh yeah remember now. I'm not going to type now coz the fonts chages colors and the keys on my keyboard keeps moving around to make me typo. I can hardly write now, too many funky disco balls and flashes of people I talked to ujst now. It\

Its peakig now, right now! The keyboards didn't look right and kept mophing and moving around ad deverywhing here is good now, the big league hallucinations have come out in foce!!!!!!!!!

Walking hard textured walls moving and discussing, 4 of them.

I keep on drooling.

And I thought and FELT an early 30's guy, from about here, just came to push my chair in deeper so I wn't fall down. Hey your mnitor is full of animated videw wor. Even looking at dead monitor makes me se thigs.

Whoa, the world just like passed around me just now mst have oned out the girl and his father stll here, and that's tehe security guards to carry our stuff now so I can put everthing in one place.

Its obvio I cam't typ now s I'l enjoy rest of this three combo trip. Its fun. P)Amesome experience right ater hard meth run with IB and smoking I would lik to go (drolled) gain co I can't write in this state, strong OEV - opned eye visuals and my drool is stll on mhin and inever bothered o wipe it

Hey that rcipe is the only way to go. I forgot now pkw4 l4y m4 yu4
J

Are so strong thJesis thhe trps sare so stron and insightlyu.

Jut quk jot recipe
1. dun et and skee I'm drooling ain.

And fuck my entire floor moved. Ants all I n rw I tink they're still ther should I heck? Going tp cjec;l

Back. I just said that this combo is soooo good I havee to call it psychedelics Try seeubg the walls behind you move straigt contnueslyl, thhe cardnard boxes that are really dancing and moving. Oh, the anterograde amnesia - second to one! :) I don't ist wrote recoe

Recipe: (c0nceentrate)

Enough meth to IV or get big inhles, that works well too

Damn it, I an't even remember wat I'm doing and the box seems to sliding cars like in thise KLIA bugues.

Cocntrate!

Recipe:

1. methamphetamine (crystal meth for IV and smoking ibsessively). High doss thanks for helping me type this.

Anyway,

Most have teams for ths journey
Methamphetamine (crystal meth) - to last you to remain waait no matter wht hapend. - take lots, inject lots, keep on holding long huge pufs. Dunno wat I'm talking now but just go intense until we die lah, we don't live long, so rather enjoy. everyonee kan?
YA!

The side of my cel phone is actually loving now, contbuously, swimming, the allows. I'm droling again.

Shit the rite haired very own woman is squatted here.whats the deal, I'm cofused.

OK
Recipe for Methamphetamine

Can't concentrate and everything is moving now =m eveb durt' uts like god aci/magicshrrom mix.

Why do I keep drooling?? Ca't control the muscles theer.
I was sitting hefore 5 minte rereading the previous para and we don't now what to o. It's prob coz excessive (I tweak like fuck, will put up the video of me hell, I always except to die each time I quit.

Wahl ah ths box can squirm and loosen hs Sumi type arms and hes ,k ij kuje he's going to break out of the box soon bt of course I nw hat this is just for the combo I too just iw ithub grab is happebng though its very nice to see your new home deciraub fir 2 hurs. Wow is late and I need to get something to eat. And I'm stone an what was hat I took? Yah mth muns, toll me.

Sorry forgo the combo instro

Recipe:

1. Methamphetamine run (3 days without food and sleep and minimal water) +
2. Various benzodiazepines (optional, it's just coz I dependant)
3. You should be very hungry by now, meth is just not telling you. SO just constantly IV and smoke continuously until you go half crazy, which wish
Crystal methamphetamine can do any time IT WANT featured the 3rd day.

I'm very very confused now though, the peak has passed - I love this trip.Thanks everyone!

Zolpidem is such a nice guy what did he do this to me. I know, I wanted it, but you still have to take more benzos. Jesus, I looked over the CRT monitor tat wasn't functioning and I saw myself and screen warping in 3d. Like I'm in a sitcom. Bizarre this 100 mg dose zopidem when going out - the visuals are intense, you probably will forget something (everything), I think she's funny. She got me 100 mg fr RM 30 we're firnds.

I'm at plateus now, no it should be alright if I drive very ery safely. I want to grab something to eat and enjoy strilling around while getting tis mellow ass hallucinations. Thanks!

P/S - My notebook case (black) was so intense just now.. Full opened eyed hallucioations. Saw the bag beieng move. It moves like tentacles until puzzled, I looked it in the eye and it's stil don't care and wave the smaller strands and threads in front of my face.

I still can't stop dooling the whole time. I think we're still under the influence but passed two hours already (prob coz I take lots). I'm don't have good motor control and I saw the ground in that room movep like it was living.

OK im not making sense now. I will enjoy the rest of the trip and grab something to eat. Zopidem gets big tumbs up from me!

I'm at baseline now - it's been 2 hours and 30 minutes or so since I dosed. It's great one, zolpidem - it gives visuals in the right condition. I hereby declare myself fond of zolpidem and I realize that a big part part of the reason I like it so much is the peak, where the thought patterns gets all mixed up and the heavier visuals starts to come and everything just gets intense and disorienting for a while.

It feels like everything is confusing and it feels like total abandon! :)

I can see why people like this. The anterograde amnesia effects were very strong as well, comparable to midazolam. I don't know whether it was the high dose I took but I can't remember what happened an hour ago coz the time skipped. Total abandon and time skipping - it's gotta be good. :p I can't say I didn't have fun though.

Plus, zolpidem has a short 2-3 hours half-life only so it'll be perfect for recreational use if you can remain awake on very high doses. It feels good peaking at 100 mg of zolpidem on an empty stomach and experiencing the delirium, disorientation and you won't be able to remember. ;)

It's all about the disorientating peak - it feels like magic mushrooms with hit of nitrous oxide. Nice...

Disclaimer: This is an April Fool's day post.

Posted in Pharmaceuticals by Huai Bin at 12:27 PM Permalink | Comments (36)

The Bakery Moments

The Bakery Moments is a Norwegian concept bakery located at The Curve in Mutiara Damansara that serves Norwegian bakery products.

The Bakery Moments has abundant seating arrangement, both indoor and al fresco. This is the first outlet of The Bakery Moments in Malaysia.

The main counter of The Bakery Moments showcases some of their bakery products. You'll notice that The Bakery Moments has a stylized y, which is made to look like a green heart and is a prominent element throughout the bakery.

There is also a self-service deli/sandwich counter in the middle of the place, with various bottled and canned drinks from mineral water to coke available.

The Bakery Moments also has a bread rack, true to its name and they offer a wide variety of different breads.

The cold sandwich counter features a wide range of sandwiches, with fillings to please everyone from the vegan to the meat lover. I went for the Swimming Shrimp Avocado (RM 12).

I also ordered a Sunny bolle (RM 2.50) from the main counter for something sweet. I love the attention to detail in The Bakery Moments - everything from the stylized green heart logo to the two clocks showing the time in Malaysia and Norway.

This is what I had for lunch - there's the Swimming Shrimp Avocado sandwich (served on a plate by the waitress), a Sunny Bolle, and a 600 ml bottle of Aquarius mineral water. The staff also gave me a free piece of chocolate cake.

This is the generous piece of chocolate cake that came as a free sample. It's fluffy and nice, with just the right balance of sweetness complemented by the smattering of dark chocolate chips on top.

The Sunny Bolle is a pastry with hints of pineapple and cinnamon which is a great combination. The Bakery Moments seem to cycle their products fairly often as all the food I've had are fresh and don't have the stale tones that other bakeries often have.

The Swimming Shrimp Avocado comes with generous amounts of filling and can be heated upon request. I prefer to eat deli sandwiches cold though, so I didn't opt for that.

Here's a close look at the Swimming Shrimp Avocado - it has shrimps, avocado, cream cheese, lettuce, spring onion and cucumber. The fillings just burst with flavor and juices when bitten into.

The Bakery Moments @ The Curve comes highly recommended from me. It has great bakery products and the service from the staff is excellent.

Posted in Food reviews by Huai Bin at 01:51 PM Permalink | Comments (16)