[Photo] Candid Headshot of a Malay Martial Artist

I took this candid headshot of my friend Luqman, who is a Silat practitioner (like yours truly).

The photo was taken while he was waiting for the results of a national Silat tournament he participated in.

The good news came later: His team won the overall champion for the male category.

[Photos] The Chief Minister of Malacca

A few weeks ago I had the opportunity to shoot the Chief Minister of Malacca during an interview.

I showed this picture to a couple of my students, and asked them to mention who the person in the picture is.

Guess what they answered!

[Photos] TRON-Inspired Home Interior Design

Ever dreamed of having your home designed like the world of TRON?

Pretty soon, and with the help of a fad wad of cash, that dream could be a reality.

Recently Disney and DuPont hosted a TRON-themed lifestyle living solution along with several designers and brands.

More fictures follow.

[Photos] From Shooting Hoops to Shooting Pics

One of the things that I am thankful for after getting accepted to teach at Sri KDU is that I get to be assigned to the basketball team. Basketball is the sport that I enjoy most; I used to shoot hoops and play ball almost everyday since I was in secondary school, never mind the weather or if it was fasting month or not. My main disadvantage is that I am pretty short for a basketball player, and there are many situations where I just can't beat that 6-foot guy to a rebound. But I made up for it by training myself to be able to jump really high, and I remember at one point in college when I was able to jump high enough to touch the bottom of the rim.

I was captain of my basketball team for two years in a row; even though I was not the best player, I was probably the most passionate baller in the team. We were also not the best team out there, and we lost most of our competitive games in the national stage, but we had fun nonetheless. Our best result at the 'national' level was getting into the quarterfinals during my first year of captaincy. Can't remember the team that beat us, but I remember it was held at Purdue University, West Lafayette in Indiana. It was one of my proudest moment as a basketballer playing at the 'national' level, albeit in a foreign country (United States is considered foreign to me).

Now I am quite overweight, still short, but my love for basketball hasn't died. So to be assigned to handle basketball CCA in my first year as a teacher and the school basketball team this year is like a favor to me. Apart from getting to shoot some hoops during training or in between games, I was also able to entertain my other passion --- photography. Shooting sports is a big challenge and no easy feat, and I enjoy the times I get to try my hand at photographing high school sports. I have gone from shooting hoops to shooting pics of people shooting hoops.

Here are some photos I took from a recent friendly tournament held at the German School Kuala Lumpur.

Next week the school teams will be competing in the MSSD Petaling Utama tournament. I wish all the best for my players and hope they can get a good placing this year.

Expect photos of the tournament within a fortnight or so.

Miss the Good Old Days

Seeing double, originally uploaded by ihsankhairir.

I miss the good old days when I used to be much fitter and healthier.

I played basketball, soccer, volleyball and table tennis almost every day.

I gymmed three times a week with a close friend.

I worked double part time jobs five days a week but enjoyed them.

I walked around the town and took random pictures for self-satisfaction.

I was able to jump high enough to slap the basketball backboard.

I walked whenever I needed to get somewhere, instead of driving.

I did Math homework every night with the motivational support of my close friends Cassie, Kristen and Ivan, and their daily gifts of m&m's.

I snowboarded every few weeks during my last few winters.

Went bowling almost every few weekend nights.

I ate free footlong tuna subs almost every day, courtesy of good rapport with the manager of a Subway outlet.

These and possibly many more remain things of the past, that I probably won't be able to do anymore.

Life in the real world plus the constant climate on this part of the globe strikes off most of the stuff on the list above.

Nevertheless, I choose to make the best of what I have and what I am currently going through. Life is too short and precious to be spent wallowing in self pity and wishful reminiscence without shouting carpe diem and making every day as enjoyable as can be.

Here's to everyone having a wonderful day today. Cheers! :)

What do you think the world will be like in 50 years?

Hmm, let's see...

Fossil fuel will be almost out, therefore the prices will be high. By then, world would be more reliant on renewable energy sources, and therefore prices for such commodity will also be high.

World population would be so high such that there's not enough food to feed everyone, and famine and poverty would be rampart in third world countries.

Information would be more accessible since internet is more accessible everywhere. Mobile internet devices would be a need for almost everyone, and since IPv6 is in use, there would be almost no limit to the number of mobile internet devices produced every year. People would rely more on these devices as a way to connect with people and the rest of the world.

Libraries would be visited less often. Books in schools would be phased out. Appliances communicate wirelessly with each other, and are connected to the internet as well.

That's all I can think of for now, within five minutes of thought.

What do YOU think the world will be like in 50 years?

Ask me anything