4 wheel change .... the prelude

 

Driving was something I enjoyed since I bought my first car. I had been a 7 seater man since I came here to work. From Serena , Zafira to Santa Fe; I finally returned to the family of SUV. One of the reasons is that I need to drive to work in a raining cat and dog typhoon day. The SUV capability of driving through flooded road was something that I needed. Fefe had one unique feature that other 7 seater SUV lack of; the third row blower. Well, Fefe’s diesel engine was pretty much solid and even though the paint started to fade, the leak was noted from the rooftop luggage tray fixation screw, it’s pick up was still good and reliable. The leak from the screw hole of the roof top started 2 years ago. A heavy down pour would leave the luggage compartment with water stain and it had worsened after 1 year.

I had tried to seal it with silicon and  water resistant GS3 glue however it only worked for a short period. The glue/silicon would fade away after a hot summer and the leak recurred. I was reluctant to change Fefe as those cars which are comparable to Fefe was in the range of MYR 300k; enough to buy a house and I was not ready to spend such a load for a car.

As time passed some of the electronic sensors had started to fail and I had to replace them one by one. I had started to source for a replacement since 1 year ago. 7 seater SUV was still my first choice but yet MYR 200k was the ceiling that I set. I had tested drive the 4.5gen Santa Fe and was impressed by its improvement over the last 10 years; but yet it exceeded the ceiling that I set.

I had broadened my choice to 5 seater SUV instead. I had tried Rav4, Kuga and I was satisfied with their performance but their space had made me think twice. I had decided to wait for the launching of Outlander and Xtrail which are both 7 seater and might probably fit my requirement.

The last straw came 7 months ago when one of the lower arm and sensor failed together. The replacement took 2 days and I knew that the time had come and bit after bit I would need to replace its parts.

The replacement was inevitable but the time lost on replacement was what I could not afford. So I begun my sourcing again.

It was not difficult for me to narrow down my choice but yet spitting out part of the load which I had accumulated over those years is something that bothers me.

After a short discussion, Ving and I had finally made our decision and we decided to take a final look before we drop the deposit.

I called up the sales manager who sold me Fefe 10 years ago and asked for one more tour before I signed the agreement.

We took a good look and the manager had kept persuading us to settle with the petrol turbo hybrid model. A more efficient fuel saver but I wanted something with a better torque. The hybrid model would be facing battery problem sooner or later and I would not like to bet my future on this uncertainty. We had however stood our ground and make a purchase agreement for a 4WD diesel model.

The sales manager did warn us that the waiting period would most probably not shorter than 6 months. I still had Fefe to hang onto and I and not in a rush to get a new car.

4 Months had passed by since I paid the deposit and one day the sales manager called me up and asked me if I wanted another color as someone had left the queue and a blue color model was available. I reviewed the color with Ving and told the manager that we could wait.

2 days later the manager called us again and told us that our car had arrived….WTX I grumbled, it was fishing method to lure me to go for the spit out vehicle…well, I was happy though as I finally got the chance to tried out the drive assist...

 

 

 

 

Home going....the planning stage

The 0+7 quarantine rule was declared finally at the beginning of October. I had begun my trip planning as I promised Ving. Both of us were disturbed by our parents’ health and wished to visit them as soon as possible. Deep discussion was done as I had only a window of 5 days maximum due to my job.

We had decided to spend the longest time accompanied our parents. The plan would be arrived at KLIA and I continued my journey to JB. We would meet later and returned back here on D5.

It involved not only the flight back home but also connecting flight from JB.

A TPE- KUL was our only option but later the double A had announced their strike back – flight from KHH to KUL which would commenced on 2022/11/15. It was not only cheaper but the time was absolutely nice. Take off from KHH at 10pm and arrived on 3am. Return flight from KUL at 5pm and arrived by 9pm. Solid 5 days stays…what an attractive offer but yet it came from the NOTORIOUS double A….No margin for error; postponed or delay will deeply affect my connecting flight(my decision was right and the first flight debut was delayed…)

I opted for the TPE-KUL route even if I had to pass the 4hours drive up north.

3 flights to consider, CAir, EVA and Starlux. CAir is the first to take off and starlux the last.

There is no offer nowadays for to and fro ticket. Thence one can buy to and fro ticket from difference airway without hesitation. The flight to KUL was simple and I opted for the first flight out as I had decided to drive up instead of using HSR. Math is easy, per trip would be :

driving = N2500+ (fuel +tol)  plus tiredness of driving.

HSR = NT 6000+(ticket) plus NT2500 overnight stay.

It would be a road trip in the dark after day shift; with the level2 drive assist on the new Fefe; hopefully I would be able to complete the task in time.

We woule be splitting when we arrived in KUL. Ving would stay in Setia Alam and later in the evening, I would take Firefly down to JB. A thrill riding in a propeller flight.

The return flight to TPE was a struggle as I had to take a flight up from JB to KLIA. Only one flight available which was operated by MAS. The Airasia had cut down its flight from uncountable to 3….However MAS flight arrived at KLIA at 12 noon, Chair leave at 2:30pm, EVA at 3:30pm and Starlux after 4pm,…..I had considered until the last minutes and opted for EVA which was more expensive… the extra 1 hours is better than nothing, any delay of flight will lead me in a heart pumping chaotic condition.

I completed the purchasing smoothly even though the fear of seeing a fully booked message popping out when I did the purchase of connecting domestic flight haunted me throughout the process.

The trip was all about connecting, connecting and connecting; it was a big stress for me as no error should happen or else …..Even though I had allowed tolerable waiting time as margin for error, but yet, I knew only with grace that it could happen smoothly…

renewal run - the conclusion

 

Another three months had passed after 3/4 of us gotten our passport. Yun’s passport was sent back again and pending correction.

It was a long wait but no rush as we are not going anywhere and no pressure for alien resident certificate renewal.

At the beginning of fourth month, I had called up the representative office and asked around the passport matter. I got an negative feedback and retreated to the waiting posture.

However 2 weeks later, I got a call from the office and adviced me about the collection procedure again. The SOP applied; IC, receipt and collection need to be done personally.

I made a short discussion with Yun and planned the collection trip.

Yun would come back for a short break for a few days and both Ving and me would accompanied her for the collection.

The plan was disrupted as dragon cat got ill again and Yun had to take her for consultation and only Yun and I proceeded with the trip.

The journey on the HSR was uneventful and we reached the office by 10:30am. Out of my surprise, Yun got a brand new passport instead of old one with a correction of data on the catatan page.

We headed to NTU and had a great lunch at the Mr Chee Kopitiam which sold genuine Malaysian food.

Chee was one of my high school junior who had opened up a Malaysian restaurant near NTU. It tasted just like what we had in Malaysia with 3 times the price tag….Well, cheaper than buying a flight ticket of course.

The return trip was uneventful and Yun had gotten off the train halfway returning to her hostel. I reached home in one piece and life goes on….

I am real happy everything went out smoothly minus dragoncat who got admitted and stayed in the vet hospital for 5 days.

The renewal was costly as the to and fro HSR ticket cost NT3000+, the renewal fee NT2000 (1500 if you do it in Malaysia)….but the experience and lesson for Yun and Xian was priceless…..

Home going...the beginning....

The recovery was eventful as I had noted with cough and shortness of breath affecting my daily life. However, I had to coup with the roster and life goes on.

Many of my colleagues had later joined the three months no test lineage since my recovery. We were short in man power and work load had increased markedly. The only thing that could let me raise my mouth angle was the figure in the bank account. Not only the extra shifts that increase the load but also incentive distributed by the ministry for Covid.

Lots of countries hit badly by Covid had loosened their grip; even the homeland had leavened the quarantine requirement. It was almost time to go back as many of the fellow Malaysian had started their journey home but yet, I need to wait until the 0 quarantine rules applied before I can make any move.

Our shifts had markedly increased since my recovery. We were doing 15+4 as we were one man short. I had another 2 ward duty and 1-2 government clinic sessions. My monthly off was shortened to 7-8 per month. I had planned for a trip back home in November as I speculated the loosened of restriction in early November or late October would be materialized based on the news release by the command center.

My speculation was correct and in late September, the 0+7 rules was implemented; and the painful trip planning had started…..

nightmere come true...

 

It was the first day of my straight night shift. I had an afternoon nap and felt a little warm on my waking up. The condition had worsen through my shift and I had a feeling that I had caught it. It sucks as I had a streak of shifts pending to be done. I did not take any medication and waited until the passover. I told my colleague that I needed a PCR as I am not feeling well. The next 40 mins of waiting was a pain in the axx. I called up Ving that I might be positive and might need to go to the shelter to protect them. She was worried but nothing much could be done.

The result came out as expected and I had called up our infectious controller; she told me that I could only be placed in a shelter when the authority started to process my data; it could take 1 day or more. So I given up the idea and told Ving that I would be quarantine in Xian’s room on the 3^rd floor for the rest of the period.

I had started myself on Paxlovid and taken the medicaiton before I driven home.

When I finally hit the house, I had sprayed a load of alcohol on my body before I headed to the bathroom for shower.

After sanitizing the bathroom, I retreated to Xian’s room. My whole body sore despite of taking paracetamol. I dipped into dreamland after taking some NSAID. The sleep was poor and I had awaken from time to time.

I was not febrile however the body ache and headache was irritating. I did not get better despite of taking the antiviral regimen; instead the mouth bitterness was very disturbing.

I spent most of the time helplessly on the bed, unable to do anything during the first 2 days. I sealed my balcony by using plastic trash bag; I transformed it into a temporary toilet/bathing place. As Xian’s room did not have a bathroom attached to it, I had intended to leave the room as least as possible. The urinal, bucket, water dipper , balcony had become part of my bathroom the next few days.

I had suffered from most of the symptom described and the medication had only partially work.

Soreness was the most annoying symptom that affected me. I was disturbed by nasal congestion, bloating leading to poor sleep in the night. Sorethroat was noted but tolerable. However the mouth bitterness from Paxlovid was like thorn in the back.

My symptom had markedly improved on D3 though and I had referred to my infectious controller about early return to job. I followed the protocol and two antigen rapid test swab was done on D4 and D5. The back to back negative test had allowed me to return to work on D6. I was 5 shifts short due to the quarantine order.

Catching up the shortage was problem but yet the sequelae from covid19 was the most horrifying part.

I had problem climbing to 3rd floor; persistent bloating was noted from time to time. Insomnia was noted and I constantly waking up at 3am in the middle of the night.

Long way to recovery….

But I still praise the great one, Ving and Xian were not infected. I had a high CT value when I was tested; I was not infectious when I left for my night shift. I had refrained from using the bathroom and only countable time that I left the room. All those factors are vitals leading to a successful isolation.

renewl run 4....

 

4 months had passed since the renewal run. An agony though, but I would not want to share the fear with any of the family members. The call from the visa division came in April informing the arrival of our new passport.

As XX and Yun had their college project to run, I could only squeezed a window around early June.

It was a similar routine as the previous run. Early stopped at HSR station and hit the visa office by 11 and head back to HSR station by noon for lunch; catch the express ride by 12:30 and reach K city by 3 something.

Everything was smooth until the passports were handed to us for final checking and acceptance. While Yun was glancing through her detail, she discovered that her height was not properly stated on the passport.

The staff had retrieved our application forms and found that they had mistaken the 5 as 3 on the form; Yun was 20cm shorter than her actual height.

The staff had tried to persuade us to accept the passport and signed a papers claiming that we acknowledge the mistake and agree to accept it…. three letter words ending with F almost burst through my mouth. But, at that point, I knew that no one should be offended to facilitate the process. They told me that we could go to the IMI office for correction when travel back to the homeland.

I politely tell them that I cannot accept it and requested for a correction by IMI office back in Malaysia. I kept the “our old passport photocopy clearly stated Yun’s height and how could an adolescent loss 20cm in 5 years! you all should have double check it !” in my throat.

I told the staff that I had my passport lost and encountered an unpleasant experience dealing with the IMI staff in the past; once I signed the acceptance paper, we would be on our own and may be very helpless during the process back in homeland.

The counter staff had then called up their in charge and told us that they would returned the passport and told us that no new passport would be issued mostly and correction would be done on the pemerhatian page. I told them that I am not particular of getting a new one but at least every detail should be correct or appropriately cited. They tried to talk me off by telling me that it might take six months to get it back and I told them that we would not be travelling in the near future and as PR holder we are not worried about our resident certificate renewal.

The counter staffs had finally accepted my decision and agreed to return the passport for correction. As MAS was flying inconsistently since the beginning of the year. The mailing process would be markedly delayed due lack of flight.

We left the office with only three passports at the end; however it was an great experience to share with Yun and XX. I told them about the right attitude when dealing with such situation.

We had a great lunch at one of the classic Japanese Italino restaurant at the T city station. The curry rice was superb as we had previously tasted in Kansai. The return trip was uneventful…..

It would be another run in the future and the only thing I could do is pray to the great one.

renewal run part -3

The office was filled with people as expected. It was just like old days when we presented to da imigresen; someone will checked you papers before a number is handed out to make sure no time is wasted when you hit the counter.

I stroke the first coral during the document checking session. I did not remove the cover of yun passport when I photocopied in the house. There was this small edge printing of the cover at the edge; what the four letter word with F; I grumbled. There were total 4 documents in that condition and Yun had to do the run at the convenient store round the corner.

Form downloaded from the net was not appropriate and cannot be used !!!!!!!!!!! A chop to write the address need to be chopped at the end of the form…

So double jeopardizes; refilling the form and photocopied some of the document.

After 40min of struggle, we were finally called and luckily our photo will the mild grin were accepted….I opted for the express with a charge of NT250 each. The staff was nice enough to combine the mailing parcel and lifted the fee by half.

We walked out from the office by 11:00am and rushed back to the station to catch the 11:46am train. Xian had to rush for the class at 3pm.

We bought bento from the outlet and enjoyed a good meal. The sushi bento from the sushi shop is great and the fried pork chop bento from the railway bento shop was a must try.

I had fallen asleep soon after I finished my meal. It was truly a relief for me after worrying for the past 2 weeks. Anything could go wrong and wasted all the effort and money. It remind me 5 years ago when I presented to UTC Kuching where we just hand on our document and got the passport in 2 hours. Nothing to worry about.

Yun had gotten off at T city and we arrived at K city station on time. Xian had made it to the class and I headed home for another good nap.

It was just a temporary relief for me as I had to worry about the trip up to pick up the passport. It would be another challenge to coordinate such travel.