By TAN KARR WEI
Photos by SAMUEL ONG

karrwei@thestar.com.my 

GERRY Harvey was a college dropout who decided to start a business with his friend Ian Norman back in 1961. 

Today, he is the chairman and founder of Harvey Norman, an Australian electrical, computer, furniture and bedding retailer that has stores all over Australia and in New Zealand, Slovenia, Ireland, Singapore and Malaysia. 

Just opened: The new Harvey Norman technology store in Pavilion Kuala Lumpur.

He studied commerce, economics and accounts in college but dropped out after about two years because he “just didn't like it”. 

“We started a store when I was only 22 years old. Looking back, I was too young to be venturing into business but I guess I was ambitious at that time,” he said during a visit to the new Harvey Norman technology store in Pavilion Kuala Lumpur. 

The store that they started was rather rough, selling second-hand furniture to earn money. 

Harvey and Norman started their first electrical shop a year later, when they had enough money, and there was no turning back since. 

Checking it out: (From left) Harvey, Augustus and Williams looking at one of the television sets on display at the new store.

“It’s quite ironic. I left university because I didn’t like what I was studying but now that I’m the chairman of the Harvey Norman stores, I’m back to doing a lot of commerce, economics and accounts for the company,” he said with a chuckle. 

Harvey Norman’s store in Pavilion focuses on the latest electrical equipment and IT gadgets. 

“There will also be other stores opening in Sunway Pyramid and Bukit Tinggi, Klang. We hope to open about 20 stores in Malaysia within the next five years,” said Angelo Augustus, managing director of Pertama Holdings Ltd, which manages the Harvey Norman stores in Malaysia.  

Australian High Commissioner to Malaysia Penny Williams was a guest at the Pavilion outlet and was taken on a tour of the store by Harvey and Augustus. 

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by Gabby Hyman

People tickle their artistic curiosity online by surfing the Web and doodling with drawing software. For some, the Internet grants them access to lurid crime sagas, intriguing details about how entrepreneurs make money, or to the latest and greatest low-fat recipes. If you're spending a near-obsessive amount of time on your favorite hobby or interest, why not create a new career and get paid for your efforts? Consider these careers that you can train for in relative comfort, online, and at your convenience.

See if the following headlines tempt you:

Home Cooking Whiz Becomes Culinary Expert

Your friends and family are awestruck by your cooking. It's not just your inventiveness and presentation, but the uncanny knack you have for creating a menu that they envy. Why stop there? Take a cooking class or, better yet, pursue a culinary school degree that offers accelerated learning and flexible schedules.

The Bureau of Labor predicts that job openings for chefs, cooks, and restaurant managers will enjoy brisk growth through the next decade. The BLS reports if you take but a few courses, you won't have to start at the bottom along with most food-preparation employees. Two and four-year culinary arts schools can hook you up with major hotels and restaurant chains, spas, resorts, and cruise lines. Get cooking!

Concerned Parents Take Education into Their Own Hands

You've watched kids all around the neighborhood come home from school looking more baffled than when they walked to the bus stop that morning. Or perhaps your son or daughter has been identified with a learning disorder and you've pitched in to help. With the Department of Labor reporting a shortage of special education teachers -- and with your own passion on fire -- why not take an online degree in education and build a second career that matters?

If you already hold a bachelor's degree, many school districts in the nation offer emergency, alternative credential programs that combine in-class experience with online teacher training. According to the Department of Labor, the middle percentage of special education teachers earned between $36,920 and $59,340 in 2004.

Detective Novel Fan Breaks into the Courthouse

You read mystery novels incessantly and peruse the top crime stories on Yahoo and other Web sites. If you could just get into the courtroom and really see what's going on! With online online legal assistant training and a paralegal degree, you'll end up in front of the bench, beside the lawyer assigned to the case.

Paralegals are in top demand as more and more law firms turn to them to handle trial and investigative preparations traditionally done by attorneys. With online paralegal training, you can prepare to work for a firm that specializes in criminal law, divorce and property settlements, drunken-driving cases, cyber crime, and high-profile lawsuits. You can earn a paralegal certificate online in a few months, or pursue a two-year or four-year paralegal studies degree online. Paralegals often work for the federal government -- the single-largest employer of legal assistants -- or with corporate legal departments and private law firms.

Doodler Creates Award-winning Online Advertisement

You hate the busy, gaudy flash ads on most of the Web sites you surf all the time. You're sure that anyone with half an artistic eye and your flair for comedy could do better. Do it! You can easily merge online Web design classes into your life -- no matter how many hours a week you work for that other job.

If you need a better reason to take online graphic design courses than that you're simply sure you can succeed, consider how much you're already needed in the profession. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that among all the new graphics job aspirants over the next decade, graphic artists with an education in Web design and animation will find the greatest number of opportunities.

Web Surfer Becomes Media Marketing Guru

It's been a hobby of yours to scour the Internet from edge to edge. You'd rather surf than sleep. You even know how certain ads find top placement on the search engines. Get paid for it! You can build a lucrative second career in media marketing through online MBA degree programs or marketing courses

By completing an online marketing degree program, you'll convert your deep knowledge of Web surfing and end-user practices to skills in search-engine optimization, ad placement, pay-per-click strategies, and other assets companies need if they're to remain competitive. Some hobby!

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A growing number of Americans have discovered the joys of working for themselves. By developing a marketable skill, you can work directly for customers and clients without having to worry about middle managers or boring company presentations. In today's increasingly flexible job market, medical careers no longer require working in hospitals, and technology degree holders can find lucrative work from their home offices.

According to government data, these five careers offer some of the easiest ways to get started with self-employment. In many cases, you can usually start earning money while completing your formal training.

1. Home Health Aide

While most home health aides spend their time working from clients' homes, this fast-growing profession combines many of the benefits of a nursing career with the flexibility of self-employment. Earning $20,000 per year or more by working part-time, a typical home health aide assists clients when he or she is not caring for family members or completing a nursing degree program.

Many states require a prospective home health aide to hold an associate medical degree, as well as a personal bond. Though some home health aids are truly self-employed, the vast majority of professionals book clients through a professional agency. Agencies provide tax withholding, bookkeeping, and business support for home health aides. Some larger agencies even provide tuition reimbursement for online health degrees.

2. Private Investigator

A criminal justice degree and a love for working unusual hours are two of the most important ingredients for a job as a private investigator. Private eyes often transition to this career during or after a similar career in law enforcement. Retired or injured police officers who cannot return to active duty often take on P.I. work to supplement pension or insurance payments.

Hard work in the field pays very well, since skip tracing and other collection activities frequently offer larger, immediate bonuses. Many private investigators earn over $32,000 per year working full-time. However, the flexibility of P.I. work allows many professionals to spend time attending law school or completing other degree programs.

3. Freelance Database Administrator

Nearly every business in America relies on a database, yet few small businesses can afford to hire a full time staff member with a technology degree. Therefore, the market for freelance database administrators has blossomed over the past ten years.

Many online technical degree programs now offer elective courses on business management and marketing for freelance professionals. Meanwhile, online technology courses help freelancers earn and maintain industry certifications. Working full time from home, some freelance database administrators earn $60,000 or more per year.

4. Personal Chef

Don't confuse today's personal chef with a nanny or housekeeper. Professional personal chefs spend their afternoons bouncing between two, three, or four home kitchens, putting their culinary degrees to work for clients. Many personal chefs earn $33,000 or more per year, without the long hours or the stress of working in a commercial kitchen.

Personal chefs are also part of another interesting trend in larger cities: personal dinner preparation centers. Customers can book time at these open, professional kitchens where chefs help prepare ingredients that can be completed quickly at home. Personal chefs often round out their schedules by teaching group culinary courses at the homes of clients or at catering facilities.

5. Graphic Designer

Thanks to new technology, a growing number of graphic designers prefer to work from home studios and keep their own hours. Some modern graphic design degree training is done on software that can run on home computers. Working from home allows many creative people the chance to complete online graphic design degrees while still earning an income of $38,000 per year or more.

Although working from home requires more discipline than working at an agency, many graphic design schools offer time management and business courses that help students prepare for the freelance life. Local graphic design colleges also sponsor exhibitions, seminars, and other social events that help professionals make valuable, personal connections.

Transitioning to Self-Employment

Many career experts recommend testing the waters before making a major career change that involves being your own boss. For example, taking a few culinary courses can help you decide whether you really have the patience and the skill to become a personal chef. Likewise, an introductory online technology course can determine whether you've got the passion to make databases your full time job.

While working independently can hold tremendous personal rewards, self-employment carries some burdens and risks. Experts encourage self-employed professionals to save at least a third of their income in a high-interest savings fund to cover emergency expenses, unexpected sick days, and income tax withholding. On the flip side, small business owners can often take tax deductions on work-related equipment and professional development programs. Enrolling in online career training courses today can help you start your own career transition.

This year's Vinayagar Chaturthi Fell on 15th September. As usual, the folks from Taman Sri Ukay, Ampang, gathered at the traffic lights-junction. As expected this year's crowd was bigger than the previous years. (The numbers have been increasing quite steadily over the years now.) 

In fact, this year, a proper tent was put up and it helped tremendously as even though it was raining heavily the crowd didn't turn away. The only thing missing was my mum, sister and wife, who were not present.

The chariot procession from the temple nearby was delayed by the rain. At around 9.00pm, the chariot itself arrived, pulled by 2 strong bulls (with the aid of a small generator/machine/engine or something like that- oh yeah, I noticed that the chariot had tires also..).

The chariot was beautifully decorated with fruits, flowers and lights. The devotees took their turns to pay homage and make their offerings to Lord Ganesha, who is believed to remove obstacles in our daily life through our prayers.

A little later, sweets such as mothagam, kesari and palkova and drinks were distributed to the devotees there.

On the 7th Sept, mum & Archana left for India, Bangalore to be exact. We sent them to the airport. She was going to do her MBBS in Manipal (a twinning programme with Melaka-Manipal College). Lucky had my camera with me. But since I was just practising using it in manual mode, only a few pics turned out well..

Cute little teddy bears..

            CoffeX anyone?  Yes, their flight no is MH 0192.