Wednesday, February 27, 2008

Treasure Hunt Critic

A friend of mine who has been reading my comments in this blog surprised me with her suggestion this morning. She said that my comments are very entertaining and provoke one to think in "a whole new dimension" on treasure hunts like never before. She suggested that I should pack my bags and relocate to KL where I should start a new career as a Treasure Hunt Critic! Very funny!

She said she is convinced that my comments and criticisms can force many Clerks-of-Course to be extra careful with their works. I find that a little strange, because she was the second person who said that to me.

When I gave my comments on treasure hunts in the past, I did not realise that they were entertaining. In fact, some people have said that my articles are boring because I have the peculiar habit of throwing in too much unnecessary details and technicalities. It is an irony, because when I set treasure hunt questions, I am usually very economical with the number of words in them, thus resulting in short clues.

However, after thinking about it for a while, I must say that it is a bit strange that no one has ever taken up the role of the Treasure Hunt Critic in KL. I am only about 2 years old in the treasure hunt sports, so obviously I am not qualified for the post. But there are many master hunters in KL—some no longer active—who are qualified for the job. Perhaps a couple of them should seriously consider starting a blog for such purpose. I am sure there will be many issues surrounding treasure hunts as a whole that deserve comments. If there is such a blog, I will most certainly be the number one fan!

Then again, most people don't want to be the ones making troubles. They would rather keep their mouth shut and suffer in silence. I guess some things will never change, huh?

17 comments:

CK said...

the last paragraph is the gist.
way to go corny!!!

Cornelius said...

Thank you, CK!

But I am still not forgiving your team for making my team eat your dust this year!... hehehe

Hey, listen, the Sutera Harbour-Angkatan Hebat Hunt 2008 is confirmed in April. The organizers will announce it soon. They have been moving the dates several times, but now has fixed it 27th April. Final meeting very soon to set the prizes and registration fee.

Once the forms are out, I will make the announcement here soon. I am gonna get you bugger this time!...

So when are you gonna belanja me oh? Kacang lupakan kulit kah? Don't be like that lah... I gave you people training with my KK Challenge mah. So how about lobster at Grand Port View one of these weekends, can or not oh?

Anonymous said...

suffering in silence seems to be our way of life already since we are malaysians. thanks to our malaysian politics, they trained us this way. oh well, life goes on...

Cornelius said...

Sometimes reality hurts, huh, ouch? (smile)

CK said...

corny, you come to sdk lah... seafood here better wor...

apr 27? hmm....

Anonymous said...

May I join in to savour the seafood meal too please? :) Yummy!!!

About critics, criticisms and getting criticized, it's all part and parcel of life. It's how we handle the situations that brings about a desired outcome (or not!). Heck, if no one points out our mistakes, how else will we improve and be better (in anything at all)?

Cornelius said...

Claire dear, I am sure CK would love to have you—I mean have you as a company for dinner!

You have described a perfect world there, Claire. Now what was the word that Mia taught me when she was slogging for her Jurisprudence papers years ago? I believe it was "utopia". I must check it out later.

Unfortunately, in the real world, not many people think like that. They are sensitive and easily offended. They may not admit it, but they do! And you don't have to look very far for examples—just look at all our politicians and you will know what I mean. Imagine how many "yes men" surround them all the time!

Anonymous said...

If I may so, Malaysians are eternally patient. They just don't want to make a scene. That's fine , but do show your feelings at the polls.
And as for imprecise clueing , keep feeding back if you do find something not kosher.Don't be like other sheep.

Tensor Fi.

Cornelius said...

Thank you, Tensor Fi, for your comment.

Of course we all know that famous line, "patience is a virtue". But everyone has his limits. I am not so sure about us Malaysians not making a scene. Perhaps lacking the opportunity to make a scene is closer to the mark.

In Malaysia, we have that convenient TMA, the Trouble Makers Act. It is officially known as the Internal Security Act. Whoever makes trouble is liable to be thrown into prison without trial for an indefinite duration. It is without any doubt a very useful tool for the Government.

On the other hand, I am not a big fan of the so-called street rallies and demonstrations like those in our neighbouring countries. I have always maintained that they almost always turn violent. All it takes is for ONE idiot to become violent, and then you will see the chain reaction in the rest of the crowd.

As for the notion of showing our feelings in the polls, I am a realistic person. And the fact is that BN will win the election again. They can't lose, otherwise we are gonna get another May 13. Some people are bad losers. If there is a May 13, we Chinese will be the prime targets. We always are!

In Sabah some years ago, there was once when the opposition won the election. And then suddenly there were bombings all around town the next day.

The election we are having now is not about seeking an alternative Government; rather it is about denying the existing Government from becoming a dictatorship. IF—and that is a big IF—we can deny them of a 2/3 majority, then they won't have a free hand to change the laws of this country as they please. Besides, it will also send a clear message that many people are not very happy with things in Malaysia.

Having said that, however, it is sad that there is nothing much we can hope for from the opposition. There is just simply no better choice.

CK said...

i laugh when opposition (or better call them Barisan Rakyat as opposition have -ve connotation) talked about forming government.
BE REALISTIC. DENY 2/3 MAJORITY THEN ONLY TALK ABT SHADOW CABINET ETC. FOR ME, DENYING 2/3 IS THE MOST CRITICAL TASK NOW. BITH THE BARISAN RAKYAT'S COMPONENT PARTY BICKERING AMONG THEMSELVES.... THINGS ARE NOT TAT POSITIVE. Having said that, I still have hopes.

P/S : VERY EXCITED ABOUT THE SUTERA HARBOUR HUNT.

Cornelius said...

CK, I hate to disappoint you, but although inside sources have not confirmed it, it seems certain that the prizes for the Sutera-Angkatan Hebat Hunt 2008 will be raised.

Furthermore there won't be many games in the Sutera; so it will be very, very attractive for the KL grandmasters.

What's even more worrying is that there is now a good chance that we are going to have another open hunt the day before the Sutera hunt, making it even more worth-while for the KL teams to come in big numbers. It is going to be an invasion like never before! Hopefully there will still be some consolation prizes left for us Sabahans.

Once I get the confirmations for these hunts, I will send out emails to you people as well as make the announcements in this blog.

Anonymous said...

re: opposition forming government.

in simple no. say BN wins 10, DAP - 5, PAS -5 and PKR - 5

in this case, the oppositions have more seats but BN still get to be the government cus the oppositions are all stand alone party.

Anonymous said...

Helo Corny, nice to know that Sutera hunt is just around the corner. May be you should inform the KL teams that eventhough the prize value has increased, most of them would include service vouchers at Angkatan Hebat in KK. I have 3 cars at home and had just finished using up the service vouchers which we won last year.

Anyway, looking forward to a great hunt!! I would suggest if the hunt would consist maybe 60% Questions, 20% Treasures, 10% Challenges & 10% common puzzles i.e. crossword, sudoku, picture puzzle, word puzzle etc. The varieties could make the hunt more fun especially to the new hunters and more potential new faces in the podium finish. 80% Qs and 20% Treasures, I guess I know who the potential winners are right now.

Cornelius said...

delurk,

In the game of chess, there is a cardinal rule; always develop your ALL your pieces first before launching an attack. The power of united forces should never be underestimated.

In this example you have given here, the reason that BN will still win is simply because the opposition has no unity. But if they are united, they will be much stronger. Unfortunately, that is not a likely scenario, huh?

Cornelius said...

Teo,

Thanks for your comment. You have given there ideal proportions for the scores in a treasure hunt. I am sure not many regular hunters, if any, can argue with that suggestion. Alas most of the time you get more games—and stupid ones too.

As for the prizes, Teo, trust me, when the grandmasters come for our hunts, they are not eying the lowly 10th-20th places. They don't aim for those miserable hampers and vouchers; they come for the top prizes! And the top prizes in the Sutera can beat a lot of the prizes in KL hunts! If you don't believe me, ask last year's champion.

And by the way, you should not be surprised that last year's champion will try their best to come again this year!

CK said...

wat else can i say? let's hope that the increased competition will raise the std here. like how i relate the case of those kenyan/african came all the way to participate in runs/marathon...
thomas friedman says the world is flat now. tat's globalisation i guess or, in this case, nationalisation, just in case some of them always forgot to include us here in Sabah and Sarawak as Malaysian haha....

Cornelius said...

CK, I am happy to know that a fellow Sabahan shares my thoughts. I don't really care about losing out to the elite teams.

We must stop hoping for some sort of pretection from the invasion of the West Malaysians. It is time that we rise to the challenge! It is time to grow up! If only I can do it more frequently, I will fly over to West Malaysia to hunt there instead of waiting for them to come over.

Hopefully some of us will be able to make 'em run for the their money one of these days.

Therefore, let's not keep repeating that the West Malaysians are coming over to "grab candies from small kids". Let's try to improve and prevent 'em from grabbing those candies. It will probably take a while, but we have to start some where!