mufflers/exhaust pipes are the bain of all peace-loving folk like me. you're at a mamak, minding your own business with friends while agonizing over chord progressions or girls or studies or fudgepackers and then, out of the blue, that all too familiar growl [often a whine] of a car that's more muff than might. i can't understand why people would modify their cars to such an extent that they could've gotten something groovier [home entertainment system, savings, investments, living/household expenses] instead of a full-on bodykit, spoilers, fins, rims, tires, sound systems and lcd screens with vcd players and the like. all is good and all, but...think about what you could've saved for. some may say that i'm being envious; i'm not. it makes noise, and it bloody keeps everyone awake when you're roaring through my street at 80 and unable to brake in time to make a turn that requires you to do 10, thus you slide out of control and screech around. and you still don't learn your lesson after that. [a lot of friends are going to disown me if they read this]. i can understand that customizing a vehicle to your own whims and fancies is something that everyone wants to do...hell, if i get a new car, i'd probably put something on it to make it all that more special...erm...maybe not...but, there're more important things in life. your kancil is a mean machine with a nice system and a booming exhaust...that's good, but is it going to stand up against an untouched m5?

i'm probably saying this because modified cars don't really go down with indies. i think indies would prefer to take the bus. which is quite...scary.

and that brings me to the subject of motorcycles. some say that motorcyclists don't deserve the criticism that they get. i think they do. if you bloody weave in and out without warning, with a pillion with you, you really don't value any form of life at all, do you? you don't care about the person riding with you, the motorist who has to swerve to avoid you, the people who'd probably shake their heads to themselves when you land yourself into some icu because you just had to get your gun off at the thought of being a doohan or a rossi on a kapchai dual stroke 150 cc machine. though crashing things isn't the point, at least you die with some protection [and perhaps dignity] in an automobile; bikes have two wheels - helmets only reduce the shock to the head - they don't absorb it. bikes get in the way, really. sometimes you can blame them, and sometimes, you can't...they're just a nightmare to have around most of the times. you take the good in with the bad, i suppose. wearing a helmet doesn't make you any smarter; and it sure as hell doesn't make you any safer. it's all in the way you ride. the same can be said about cars: a seat belt may save you, but it's your noggin that has to do the hard work.

i should be some sort of community service spokesman.