A tale of peppers & Penang

Ladies and gentlemen, presenting the Penang A1 Aerated Water embossed bottle. Our grandpas and granduncles used to drink from them as a source of thirst quenchers. Well, there are many other aerated water brands out there at that time. Just so happen I have these.

Houston, we are ready to take off

Looks mint coz its clean

But I like to start by exploring on futures contract in this post.

What is futures contract?

In layman's term, it's a financial contract between 2 parties to transact (buy/sell) a specific product/service/commodity/asset at a standard quantity and quality at a specified future date at a price agreed today.

So why futures?

Because no one knows how the supply and demand would affect the price of the product in the future. Thus by agreeing on the price today, no matter how much the price the product changes (rise or fall) in the future, we are paying for the price agreed TODAY.

Still confused? Here's a scenario to illustrate just a basic idea:

Suppose Ali is an oil palm plantation owner. No wait, that's stereotyping, let's restart.

Suppose Jackson Michaels predicts that black pepper harvest will be abundant during the next harvesting season, we will have lots of pepper right? But critics don't agree due to current situation such as changing weather patterns resulting in crop failures. Hence the current black pepper price is around RM12,500.00 per tonne (latest mid Feb 2011, I think) and rising.

However, Michaels is not forecasting on pepper prices, instead he is betting on freights cost that are used to transport the peppers.

He successfully negotiated low prices with ship companies to allow him to use their cargo/containers during harvest time to transport the peppers.

And why in the world the ship companies agree to charter their boats to him at a low price?

Because no one knew if pepper production would be plentiful or pitiful. At least Michaels' contract guarantees them a business regardless of pepper harvesting results.

When the harvest time came, the increase of pepper supply will cause the pepper price to fall. A lower pepper price will then ignite a buying frenzy, which in turn creates a shortage of boats to transport so many peppers.

Now Michaels can let go of his ships at any price he likes, making large amounts of money.

Coming back, what do futures got to do with embossed bottles such as the one below?

Pepper in Penang? Better luck finding bottles there than pepper.

The bottles are currently retailing at RM160. It is yet to be on the endangered species list but its population is shrinking fast.

From a futures trading perspective, you may want to get one for yourselves now at RM160. The price may go up as it will become rarer in future. Who knows, it may go beyond RM200? Just a hunch.

This could look like a marketing gimmick but I'm letting one of these babies go for only Rm120. FIRST COME FIRST SERVED ONLY. After that, the price reverts to RM160.

Penang mari, or at least originated from Penang long long time ago.

From a futures trading perspective, this lower price is just mad. Or am I implying a sudden discovery of more A1 bottles in the near future? :)

Penang A1 Aerated Water embossed bottle (400ml) retails for RM160.
Shop Under The Sun is giving this away at RM120*
* One only, first come first served.
** Kindly contact 012 6736161 (Mr. Ho) if you are interested in this product. Thank you.

So close yet so far

Imagine this, you were having one of the best days of your life. You discovered a piece of treasure. After admiring it and dreaming of how to display it, in the end you can't have it. This happened to me.

I found a near-perfect Milk Maid wooden crate after much hunting around in my relative's house. The crate was used to hold tins of sweetened condensed milk back in the days when cardboard boxes were not available. It was made from wood in Australia, obviously since it was prepared in Australia, says on the box.

Aside from some small cracks on the top of the crate, everything is in tip-top condition. I queried to have it. Initially the answer is yes. However upon further investigation, it seems the crate is holding some precious items which means I can't have it in the end.

Well, at least I know where to find it whenever I wish to put my fingers upon its engraved letters.

It looks quite new as if your mom just bought it from the grocers yesterday.

The feeling of this close call brings me back during one of my Indian barber session. While flipping through a famous comic, I found this illustration which perfectly describes my encounter.

Something like this happened to me and my mates, seriously.

Speaking from the experience as an amateur relic hunter (ultra-amateur level), for every item found, whether in whole or just part of it, there are many more which lies hidden yet to be discovered. Just need patience, technique, persistence and a bit of intuition. And luck too.

My ordeal with the wooden crate is just one of the many adventures which I felt there are many things out there just waiting and lying around for us to discover.

Whether is it bottle-hunting, coin-combing, brick-finding, insulator-picking or crate-discovering, there's always the case of the fish that got away. So close yet so far. Let's see if our next trip can be more fruitful.

Additional note: Initially if I was to find an additional crate, this one would probably be sold here. Since I can't have this one, the next one I find is definately a keeper. Sorry folks.

Owning a piece of Chuck

 It is here. A collection of awesome Chuck Norris funnies infused into a jar.

Having 365 pieces of fortune cookie-like strips inside this glass canister means you can have a joke a day to ride through a full year.

Chuck Owns make a perfect gift for Chuck Norris fans as well as anyone who appreciates a little laugh.

Doctors strongly advise against staring at Chuck for long periods of time for obvious health reasons.

 This product is made by itself. For complains, warranty or refund; talk to Chuck.

Chuck Owns retails for RM95.
Shop Under The Sun is giving this away at RM36.50*.
* While stocks last.
** Kindly contact 012 6736161 (Mr. Ho) if you are interested in this product. Thank you.