AC to MC...?

Just saw Sports Centre on ESPN. It seems that AC Milan is considering an offer from Manchester City for their star player Kaka for 175 million pounds!

That's a lot of money and I'm sure Kaka is worth his huge price tag, but Manchester City?! Is Kaka serious? Or has Kaka gone Koo Koo?

No disrespect to Manchester City, but if you are a star player of high pedigree from a World Cup winning country where football is breathe in like the fresh air, or is treated like a religion-a top club with a rich history, tradition & champion pedigree would be a more logical & suitable choice.

Europe is not short of clubs that fit the bill above-Real Madrid, Barcelona, and of course Manchester United are huge clubs with all those mentioned qualities.

I wouldn't even blame Kaka should he choose to head to Liverpool or Arsenal or even Chelsea, but Manchester City?

Again no disrespect to Man.City, but just because you have tons of money & is currently the richest football club in the world doesn't mean that you can buy success by luring the world's best through your chequebook.


Look at Arsenal's Cesc Fabregas. He's currently one of the best midfielders in the world, yet he has not accepted big money offers from Real Madrid or his native Barcelona.

Look at Liverpool's Stevie G -another outstanding player. Why is he still staying at Merseyside Red when Chelsea & Real Madrid were clamouring for his signature few seasons ago. The money that was offered was unbelievable, yet Stevie stayed with Liverpool.

And why is Paul Scholes & Ryan Giggs are still at the very same club since they were 11 years old? Again money is not the issue. It's playing for the RIGHT club.

Pictures courtesy of: Google Images

Makan Time !

As my son Darius has already turned 5 months old, my wife & I decided that it's time for some baby food from the usual milk.


Mind you my boy is one fussy eater! One week he wants just milk, while the next he wants milk plus honey & some nestum.


Well, now he enjoying baby food. So one fine evening while my mother-in-law was feeding his beloved grandson, Darius decided that it's time for him to play with his food! So as the babyfood went into his mouth, he blew it all out!






















I wonder what will happen when Darius feeds himself? I think I'm going have to put a drop-cloth down. Hehehe....

Brave Gesture

Mali international & Sevilla striker-Frederic Kanoute was fined by the Spanish Football Federation for revealing a T-shirt that expressed support for Palestine during a match.


Kanoute lifted his Sevilla jersey over his head after scoring in his team's 2-1 Copa del Rey win over Deportivo La Coruna. Kanoute, who was born in France, is a practicing Muslim.














Kanoute's action, which has been interpreted as a response to Israel's recent attacks on Gaza that have killed nearly 700 people, was met with a yellow card from referee Antonio Mateu Lahoz.


Lahoz said in his post-match report that he'd cautioned Kanoute for raising his shirt over his head in accordance with federation rules, while also noting the message of the striker's T-shirt.


Raphael Schultz, Israel's ambassador in Madrid, told Radio Marca on Thursday that Kanoute's gesture "had gone beyond his profession and FIFA rules to this respect."


"I saw the match and the T-shirt bore nothing more than the name of Palestine. It was not an incitement against Israel. I don't think it extolled violence," Schultz said.


Meanwhile, Palestine embassy official Mahmoud Aluanen told the same station that Kanoute "has shown himself to be a very brave person to support our people at a public event."


"Sportsmen are human beings and cannot contain their feelings. They have all the right in the world to express their opinion about matters which contravene human rights.


"I'm sure that all Palestinian children, those who love football, will be happy about this gesture," Aluanen added.


The incident came a day before Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas paid a visit to Madrid for talks with Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero and King Juan Carlos.



My Opinion:

It was a very brave gesture from Kanoute, despite the fact it was against Spanish football regulations.


Yes, yes-sports & politics should not & never ever mix, but you must admit what is currently happening in Palestine goes beyond human rights. Innocent people especially children are dying senselessly.


You don't need to be a genius to figure that one out.


So while all the world leaders & the UN Security Council are "content" & "powerless" while sitting their butts down, with fingers up their a**e, and no action is being taken, the simple & brave gesture of a professional footballer should be applauded & saluted for reminding us that in the mix of our celebrations & happiness, we should spare a thought for those unfortunate ones in the Middle East.



Frederic Kanoute-I salute U...


Picture & news source:

http://news.bbc.co.uk

My Life So Far...EP.6

5th Event


So on 22nd September, off we go to IJN again for another appointment. There we were briefed by the surgeon who'll be conducting the surgery-Dr Sivakumar (nicest Doctor we've met!)


According to Dr Siva, surgery is needed, in order for my son to have any chance of leading a normal life. We were given the odds, the step-by-step on how the procedures will be conducted in the OR, etc.






















My spine twitched when I thought of the fact that my baby would have to undergo an open heart surgery.


Open heart surgery?! He's barely 2 months old?! Surely they must be joking.


Since that visit, I had sleepless nights.

My Life So Far...EP.5

4th Event


On the 17th of September, my son was finally discharged from the hospital's Pediatric ICU. I can't tell you how estatic I was that my boy was finally coming home.





















Despite the fact that he has to undergo treatment for his Congenital Heart Disease (CHD), my wife & I were just relieved to be able to walk out of ICU with baby in tow.


However, we were told to attend an appointment at IJN in 5 days time. Our hearts were beating with suspense.

My Life So Far...EP.4

3rd Event


On the 10th of Sept, while still being warded in the Pediatric ICU for the 30th day, my son was off to IJN for his referral visit. My wife rode in the ambulance with him, while I followed from behind.


At IJN we were temporarily placed in the ER ward while waiting for our turn. As my boy is mentioned as a special-case, he got special treatment for the day.


It was heart wretching to see him wheeled into the Pediatric Cardiologist's office in an incubator.



















My wife & I were totally weren't prepared for what the Cardiologist had to say next.


After subjecting my son to an hour of Echo scan, the verdict was this-My boy is diagnosed with
5 of the 7 most common Congenital Heart Disease (CHD) that a child could get. There are:


a) PDA - Patent Ductus Atreriosis
b) VSD - Ventricle Septum Defect
c) ASD - Atrium Septum Defect
d) PS - Pulmonary Setnosis
e) AS - Aortic Setnosis


Our hearts sank...

My Life So Far...EP.3

2nd Event


After being in hospital, Pediatricians informed my wife & I that our son has a heart condition & will be referred to IJN!


We were shell-shocked!


Now these doctors are pretty emotionally dumb with no fuel whatsoever in their empathy tanks!

Instead of actually trying to explain what was really the particular heart condition my boy was diagnosed with, the doctor just blurted-"Oh your son has a hole in his heart, so we've referred his case to IJN"...


If you were a first time parent, with no clue what's going on, wouldn't you want to just slap this silly dingbat doctor! I wanted to but i didn't, instead I went into sarcastic mode.




Me: Doctor, could u please explain to me exactly what is wrong with my son?
Where is the hole in his heart? Is it a serious matter? Would he need surgery?
Or would he need to use a chest plate like Iron Man?



Doctor: Errr? (Looking puzzled-obviously she doesn't know who Iron Man was!)
There's this one salur where the valve should close, but in your son's case dia tak tutup lagi....



Me: Is it a matter for concern? Is it serious? When will it close?


Doctor: No, tak serious. (She didn't answer my last question)


Me: What's the condition called?


Doctor: Hmm...PDA (and she left to attend to something else)



Bodo tak doctor ni?! Like I said-no empathy whatsoever, langsung tak tau nak relate to parents. No human relations at all, how did she become a Pediatrician, God knows! She might as well jadik tol booth girl je!


Feeling cheesed off, I suggested to my teary-eyed wife that we googled PDA on the internet to get proper answers. I found this on the internet:


What Is Patent Ductus Arteriosus?


Patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) is a congenital heart disease. A PDA is a persistent connection between the aorta and the pulmonary artery. This connection is called the ductus arteriosus and is normally present before birth.


In most babies, the vessel closes within a few hours to days after birth. In some children, this vessel fails to close.


The Ductus Arteriosus

The ductus arteriosus is a blood vessel. It connects the aorta and the pulmonary artery.


Before birth:
It allows blood to flow through the baby's body without passing through the lungs. The baby gets oxygen and nutrients from the mother through the placenta and umbilical cord before birth.



















After birth, as a baby begins to breathe on his or her own: Air replaces fluid in the baby's lungs. The pulmonary artery begins to carry oxygen-poor (blue) blood to the lungs to pick up oxygen. The aorta begins to carry oxygen-rich (red) blood to the body. The ductus arteriosus is no longer needed, and it usually closes within a few hours to days after birth.


In my son's case, it did not close.