one liner of the night

Perhaps, the pauper can never be a prince.

personality test

our result for The LONG Scientific Personality Test ...

ESFJ-The Provider

You scored 82% I to E, 79% N to S, 43% F to T, and 21% J to P!

Providers, a subgroup of the Guardians, take it upon themselves to arrange for the health and welfare of those in their care, as well as being quite sociable. Wherever they go, Providers take up the role of social contributor, happily giving their time and energy to make sure that the needs of others are met, that traditions are supported and developed, and that social functions are a success. Providers are extremely sensitive to the feelings of others, which makes them perhaps the most sympathetic of all the types, but which also leaves them rather self-conscious, that is, highly sensitive to what others think of them. Because of this Providers can be crushed by personal criticism, and will work most effectively when given ample appreciation both for themselves personally and for the service they give to others. This is not to say that Providers are afraid to express their own emotional reactions. They are quick to like and dislike—and don’t mind saying so—tending to put on a pedestal whatever or whoever they admire, and to come down hard on those people and issues they don’t care for. You share your type with 10% of the population.
As a romantic partner, you work hard to nuture and protect your relationships. You go to great lengths to maintain harmony and are motivated to resolve conflicts. You have a very clear idea of what is important to you and do best when your partner shares those same values. You want your partner to be loving, commited, and willing to support your frequently overwelming feelings and reactions. You feel most appreciated when your partner is kind, considerate, and helpful, and compliments you often on your hard work in their behalf.


one of the most accurate personality tests ive done. hmm.

http://www.helloquizzy.com/tests/the-long-scientific-personality-test


from
http://www.keirsey.com/default.aspx

bye bye blackbird

Breathe, you're just getting started.

Breathe.

Work is getting to me. The hours have been up to expectations after all, but the problem isnt the hours. Its the passion. With passion, we'll be willing to put in the hard work, go the extra mile, and produce that extra drop of effort. Agreed, but the thing is after about a month in here, i haven't had time to take a step back and think about how to ignite that passion. The bigger picture beckons but i stay rooted, absorbed in the work that threatens to steal the essence of me away.

So i attempt to delve deeper, trying to find the root to see if i find out the reason behind my lethargy and apathy. Could it be that if i were in some other field, working on the same mundane stuff, would i be more interested? Unlikely. Simply put, the value of work to me ends when office hours end. There is always going to be more work, when does it ever stop.

Not that im not interested in having great ambitions. But i look at the people around me in lofty positions earning tons of money. Yet, i can't say they are much better than they were before they started. They have achieved their goals i must say, success in the workplace, respect that must be earned through hard work, yet i do not know what they have lost along the path that they chose to walk.

Toil and all, but in the end what is gained, nothing but material possessions, hoarded up serving self serving purposes. Whatever happened to happened to the word 'job' - because isnt that what this is? A job.

Life speeds past us faster than we know and whatever we hold dear to us, our job and our pride in what we do at work is forgotten in a sliver of time when our time is up. Think about it. No matter how lofty our aspirations may be, CEO, president, prime minister whatever, all it takes is 2 weeks to be replaced or less. Build a legacy, be remembered as a great person. but the people who truly remember you as a friend, a son, a brother, a husband; Isnt that what really matters?

Passion for the work that we do. Thats a gift to have, makes you actually enjoy working. But i don't see that all often. Often work buries us and the concern is more of trying to stay in the game rather than enjoying what we do. So what are the limits of passion at work? Does that mean filling every single waking moment with the never ending quest of learning? Certainly sounds noble something that people aspire for. But think about what that really involves for a moment. Work 12 hrs a day and weekends, and spend free time reading about how to further knowledge at work? Sounds like obsession, not passion. What happened to time for other activities, exercise, catching up with friends.

'Since i started work XXX years ago, i havent stopped."

I felt sad when i heard those words. Not for the person who said it, because it meant nothing in his eyes. But i felt empathy because i know there are many people who think they dont have a choice, when in fact, they do.

I'm not advocating throwing down our shovels and pens and workstations, but just stop for a moment, breathe. If you can imagine the world fading away and imagine the things you would cling on to in those fading moments, but make sure you return and know whats really important to you.

Nonetheless, im prepared to stick with this God-given job because i know im going to be moulded and built by my maker and creator. So for now im hoping and praying i find the passion and purpose in what i do. Because im not betting on dying tommorrow.

Ramblings

Work has officially started and im really grateful that the hours have not been as long as what i was gearing myself up for (the power of pessimism and low expectations) and i'm given quite a bit of time to learn the stuff im required to know. People at the office are nice and the whole environment feels kind of like a library, quiet, with everyone engaged in their own little world. Although admittedly would be nice with a little noise and conversation around, to keep me awake when the Z monster attacks. and it attacks quite frequently especially when im getting 5 hours of sleep every night.

Speaking of work, my fitness is going down the drain stolen by hours of placing my butt on a chair staring at the screen, and being exhausted at the end of it so much that i only have enough energy to come back home and do exactly the same thing.

Not that its bad, feels especially makes the weekends sweeter.

This person makes me feel alive again. I go home and i hope to talk to her every night. She makes me want to stay past bedtime talking to her. Yet, i've never met her in person. She makes me feel i can share everything i have with her, not that its much. I dont know her all that well, she says that too. But it feels...right.

Time will tell.

For now im content to just pour out my thoughts, feelings, dreams and memories over the internet.

Dont know when i'll finally meet her.

off

If i were to be on the side of rationality, i would be a traitor.

and is it possible to miss someone whom you never met? Strangely, a feeling i had while i was on the night rider back on a early saturday morning.

Im back from Hong kong after a time of shopping, eating, walking, sleeping on the floor, filling in damned swine flu forms every time we pass a border. But on the overall it was a good shopping trip and i came back with a good sized loot from HK and Shenzhen. The level of customer service in HK is miles ahead of most of the stores in Singapore for some reason especially in G2 black label and they were EXTREMELY helpful so much so that sean actually spent more than me in that shop.

I just had the urge to blog, to write down some of the things that are swimming around in my head. It usually happens when i take a 1 hr night rider bus back home. But when i finally sit down in front of the computer it seems so redundant to spell it all out here. Perhaps when im less sleepy i'll feel like it.

oh yeah. Next week is first week of work! Excited/Apprehensive.

Cryptic

This kinda feels like deja vu. chui. Familiar feeling, not something i want to experience again anytime soon. The feeling of working for a goal, but when it all seems to fit, things just go awry. Perhaps i should stay home tmr on a saturday.

elation

Someone just made me very happy today.

Missed my mrt station because i was distracted and it was 12am with no return train.

Unintentional, but achieved the purpose nonetheless.

"Congratulations, you got the job."

Those words never felt sweeter after the long arduous wait that was called for the test. It took weeks of failure to reveal his purposes, his plan for my life when all i was focused on was on my plan. Little did i know that God desires to mould my character into something more than what it is.

The endless interviews with unemphatic interviewers spewing textbook questions with a stern demeanor yet expecting extraordinary answers. Yet this wasn't the feel i got at the company that hired me during all the interviews.

On that thursday night, i finally realized the truth of the matter was hard work was the way to mould me. My stubborn refusal to toil to produce fruits of labor stuck with me till that day when i was finally broken. Now i understand why things worked out this way, for even in 2007 God was preparing the way for this job that he has blessed me with now. And i stand amazed at the wonders of your works.

Even at the final interview which i wasnt expecting, he showed me that he is in control of the situation and i dont know how i landed the job, but i did.

If you are reading this and you know me, ask me.

For this is my testimony for God.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

and this is the song of the moment

back

Its been some time since i last sat down and blogged. More than a month to be specific.

Feeling kinda annoyed with this persistent sore throat and 2 nasal passages blocked at 2.15am in the morning but i decided i would do a bit of writing tonight, especially since i had 3 hrs of sleep in the afternoon.

In general i've been keeping busy with job hunting, interview preps, interviews (at least im getting them) catching up with friends and enjoying unemployment before it turns nasty and downright depressing.

Watched a whole season of 24 season 7, Heroes season 3 over the past weeks inducing 5am nights and 1pm mornings.

Played tennis for the first time today, damn shiok. But the bad thing about it is the nasty weather in singapore but i suppose thats normal. Is it just me or is the weather really getting hotter over the years. I was walking back today and the sun was just blinding and even outside it was like an oven. On that note, today was rather eventful, hope the curse is ending.

to end off,

Unearthing some on the random stuff that i've been writing over the past year or so.

Punggol Jetty

World left behind

Long winding road edge of my world

Weary steps purer air

Leads me on to eternity

Glittering shimmering lights

Glistening sea and sounds of lazy waves

Shadows searching for existence in rods of hope

No sign to be found

Why do they come, then?

Tender gaze loving embrace

Eyes of starcrossed lovers

Yet a few feet away

Lonely souls stare out at the promise of the solace

Undying flame burns in the distance

Destruction that brings a new beginning

Same orange glow from the lights

Heady concoction of love dreams thoughts hopes

Like floatsam, drift away on the waves

To a place that looks so close.

Yet so far away from home.

Probably only makes sense to people who have visited this place though.

Something Humid, Something Cool.

Mirrors and mist

Self is lost in the humidity All

Attempts to eradicate my life of the unclean

Essence of myself flowed down the drainpipes of time, Forgotten

Anticipation, for the new me to sharpen

Wiping the returning blur, Impatiently

Its not time

Alas, when its all over

It isn’t me I see

Of what passion used to be.

Contemplative

I hope this is going to be a moderately long post and i get to put down everything that is swimming around in my head at this point of time. First of all, updates. I'm officially done with school, done with 15 long years of education and feeling a little numb but glad its over. I know i didnt do well for at least 2 of the papers, but at this point im just glad its all over.

Sometimes i feel disappointed at what i've attained over the past 4 years in terms of grades. If my gpa doesnt drop any this semester, its still not enough to attain a cum laude. True i probably havent spent my entire waking hours devoting my life to studying, but with the peers with the awards and scholoarships getting swanky jobs 1 by 1, its hard to remain focused on the old adage that grades arent everything. Agreed, but they certainly help u get that foot in the door. What else do i have, no sporting glory, no notable achievements. And while we are on foot in the door, it begins to dawn upon me that even when i did get my foot in the door, somewhere along the line, i stopped believing in myself. Dont know when, dont know how. I realised that deep down i felt mediocre.

Perhaps im just not smart enough, not hardworking enough, not devoted enough to what i'm studying. And when i look back over the years, i realised that there are modules that i did try, i tried freaking hard and i wasn't rewarded for my efforts, maybe i studied the mod wrongly, or i just screwed up. And then there are modules that i just didnt get, like accounting. Or modules which i set myself up for failure by doing last minute work. So many have beens, have nots.

But having said that i'm at peace with whatever grades i have now, realise its too late to change anything and even if i could i probably wouldnt have changed anything..well maybe except taking that finance major instead of a political science one. But that mediocre mindset, its a thing of the past, i've buried it. Its now dead. Because i have people who believe in me, and most importantly, God does, and he has a perfect plan for an imperfect life.


My papers ended on wednesday and i've been out clubbing, shopping and even been into malaysia today. In fact i almost died while waiting in line getting my passport stamped at the incredibly inefficient and overcrowded because i had this splitting headache for 2 days and the buses were spewing fresh carbon monoxide into my face and hundreds of people were breathing out carbon dioxide within metres of me.

Since i had this long running headache, and watching the sixth sense on tv, which incidently happens to be one of my favourite movies, i had a thought, what if i had a tumor in my brain and i had a month before the lord takes me home.

Who would i want meet, what would i say and what would i do. While taking that last breath the night before (assuming i go quietly in my sleep) who would i want to be by my side, holding my hand and telling me everything is going to be alright. Not going to mention that names that come quickly to my mind, but its good to know who you are and remind myself why that person is important to me. And before i go, what would i say to each of these people that would impact their life, that even if the persons life doesnt change radically, i would be glad if they remembered the words of a friend, son, lover, brother before he drew his last.

A common phrase pops up among the words spoken to friends and lovers.


'Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and will dine with him, and he with Me.

Revelation 3:20 - New American Standard Bible


But it pains me to know that in that list of people, there is at least one who probably wouldnt care to turn up, not even if it was to fulfill that last wish he had.

Everything in its time

Corrinne May - Everything In its time

Sometimes i wonder what lies ahead
How long til my hunger is fed
They say it's hard to make it in this part of town
so many people on this merry-go-round

Some folks try astrology
Some turn to crystal balls
To find an answer
To get through it all
I just fall on my knees and i try to pray
in the silence i can hear Him say

The river runs and the river hides
Out to the ocean and under the sky
I promise you, the answer will come
Hold on to patience and watch for the sign
Everything in its time

I often feel like that i'm two steps behind
Somebody must have moved that finish line
There are a thousand reasons
why i should give up
But i'm stubborn in the things i believe

The river runs and the river hides
Out to the ocean and under the sky
I promise you, the answer will come
Hold on to the patience and watch for the sign

'cause maybe there's another plan
One i still cant see
A little surprise, like your love in your life
Funny how time changes how we see

The river runs and the river hides
Out to the ocean and under the sky
I promise you, the answer will come
Hold on to the patience and watch for the sign
Everything in its time
Everything in its time

Final Lap

"last chance to study for exams, try to enjoy it."

-Quote of the week-

Can't wait for next weds.

the words elude me in the exhaustion.

my blog needs some pictures

Times are bad

Meiyan sent me this picture. Courtesy of sean and dex @last day of sch where i wasnt there. damn.

Where i want to be at now.

Bright shiny morning

Its been awhile since i bought fiction and perhaps it might have been a spur of the moment buy but i bought james frey's latest, Bright shiny morning. Impressed by his writings of a million little pieces and the follow up, My friend Leonard, i decided to just buy this one without reading any reviews whatsoever unlike what i usually do before buying anything.

Watched gran turino in iluma near bugis. Didnt disappoint at all. One small gripe about the movie is thatl it lacks the pace of million dollar baby which eastwood directed some years back. This grizzly old man is damn good, who says old men are useless.

On another note, its officially the last week of school and im really looking forward to april 17th the day when all this ends.

This morning i woke up and decided its going to be a productive day. I have to. Just that blogging isnt exactly serving that purpose.

the things people get themselves into, when they think with the wrong head.

March 26, 2009

Man dies after bottle mishap

A SINGAPOREAN died of heart failure after his genital became stuck in a soft drink bottle, reported Sin Chew Daily and China Press.

The incident happened when the 77-year-old man used the bottle to engage in a sexual activity.

China Press reported that the senior citizen got his private part into the bottle and only sought help after his genital could not be dislodged from the bottle despite trying various ways.

Doctors tried to alleviate the man's suffering by cutting the bottle below the neck but to no avail. An inflammation later set in causing him to be unable to urinate.

His misadventure later led to other medical complications causing his death. -- THE STAR/ANN

MAS SELAMAT SPOTTED AT PUNGGOL JETTY

I love to run to punggol jetty to watch the waves and catch the breeze. For the uninformed, Punggol jetty is the place where u take a boat to go to outward bound school, where couples make out in darkened cars, where lots of people take their fishing rods lines and dip it into fishless waters just to pass time and weird people who run all the way from sengkang just to watch the waves and catch the sea breeze and not to forget bored policemen at their outpost.

So as i was saying, one night i decided to take sometime of work and go for a run. As usual when i reached the jetty i walked down to the beach for some moments of quiet and rest. I was sweating more than usual, not having ran here in a long while. When i got up from the beach, it was necessary to walk past the police post, and i would be facing the police officer on duty as i walked. As i neared him, he glanced at me and that was when it happened.

He fixed his gaze on me for at least a second, then he slowly turned his neck to look at something on the wall. At that moment to my horror my intuition told me what he was thinking.

The poster on the wall was none other than MAS SELAMAT. Escaped TERRORIST.

He turned back to look at me again.

Incredible. I felt like asking him in what way do i look like MAS SELAMAT. You too bored already ah you.



Im getting increasingly annoyed at people who mistake my race.

rather geeky (in a hardware way) post

I dont know why but im damn happy to get a new pc. Finally after almost 5 years!

Wanted to buy one off the rack initially but i changed my mind after looking at the crazy prices and the so not value for money deals that the ready made pc makers are offering. For that kind of prices > 2000 i could probably go get top of the line stuff, 24 inch monitor, $400 gfx card, quad core intel cpu and all the frills. But looking at the dwindling amount of cash in my account, i decided to stick to a more down to earth budget of about 1100, without a new monitor(that can wait for the IT fair in june). I want a 24"" monitor! + harmon kardon speakers.

So over the last couple of days, i downloaded price lists, got back in touch with whats happening on the hardware scene, tutorial lesson with biyang included. Kind of stuff that gets ordinary people turned off.

After some days of deciding what kind of requirements i wanted, i went i approached the master of home built pc's for his specific recommendations on the nuts and bolts and this is what we have for saturday's simlim adventure.

MSI K9A2 CF-F AMD 790X (Quad 9650) $366 - Mainboard + AMD quad core cpu
Hitachi 500GB 8/16MB (3 Yrs) $86 - Harddisk
PC-6400/800 Kingston DDR2 2GB x 2 $60 - RAM
Palit GTS250 512MB DDR3 DVI / HDMI........$255 - Gfx card
CM CM690 3 x 12cm Fan + Side Window........139 - Casing + cooling system
AcBel M8 670W Modular (5 Yrs)...............179 - Powersupply

<1100

Hope i can get a bundle discount on this man.

Mission accomplished. Dunno why spend so much money also so happy.
This pc better last me a long time. But 5 years later i bet i'll be griping about how i need a new one. The wonders of technology, it just keeps getting better.

Many thanks to biyang for all the tips and recommendations!

running scared

For the first time in a long while, im scared of actually failing a quiz.

Too much procrastination this sem.

random week 12 mon morning

11am. Its already sweltering outside. Week 12. 3 more weeks to graduation.

Pile of corp rep notes untouched, quiz tmr.

I'm blogging. Says a lot about my mood now.

I've been having strange bouts of weird dreams that plague me on some nights with the exception of last night. Familiar people doing the weirdest things in the dreams but one of the memorable ones was that i crashed my Porsche while backing out of a parking lot and a lorry whacked it. I woke up immediately in relieved to find that i didn't crash anything and wondering what would it be like if i actually have a Porsche to crash.

Someone once told me that getting to work is always hard, for the first half hour. Then after that it becomes fun. I haven't experienced that before, maybe its because i hate the subjects i study for. Doesnt matter, hate or not, its time to CHIONG AHHHHHH.

before my afternoon nap at least.

Congrats Joe!

Today another of my cousins got married. Watching him and jane walk down the aisle had less of a significance than last year when the first of my cousins, ben got married, but it still gave me this warm feeling inside.

I'm glad liz flew back from aussie back to sg to make it for the wedding, skipping 2 lab lessons in the process but as i said, 2o years later you dont want to look back and say i skipped my cousins wedding for a couple of lousy lab lessons. In the same manner, i could have spent the day studying corp reporting for tues quiz, but i didnt. And i know i'm going to look back 20 years later and say i made a good move. But on tuesday when i see the paper i hope that thought comes back to mind. Cos im so screwed. lol.

Anyway congrats Joe and Jane! You 2 make a great couple.

On another note, we used to belong to the kids/cousins dinner table before all these marriages started.

Now its called the unwed table. And the numbers are steadily dwindling.

Not so funny thought there.

rant

I thought i could hold back on griping or ranting about the small stuff in my life. As they always say dont sweat the small stuff and i'm going to say that all the stuff i rant about is really quite insignificant but since writing is my outlet, im going to unleash all that unnecessary stuff on this post. It comes one after another, a series of disconnected events cumulating in this feeling of extreme frustration and annoyance.

1. Lost aviator sunglasses in Jb due to carelessness. I CANT GET THOSE nice cheap ones IN SINGAPORE.
2. Mom was waiting at 4am when i came back from zouk, goes all naggy.
3. Laptop SUDDENLY becomes damned laggy within a space of a week
4. Desktop was working when i only used it for dota, mom officially killed it when she used it for surfing the net.
5. I cant play dota now unless i get a new desktop which is going to cost 1 grand.
6. Installing ALL the programs again is a bitch
7. I have NO time to go shopping for a desktop
8. I have ZERO motivation to study, but the constant quizzes and projects dont allow me to slack off much
9. I have not got a job yet, (partly my fault cos i havent spammed enough employers yet)
10. Mom is worried that i am mixing with wrong company - clubbing = bad company
11. Every 3 weeks, the question arises, got girl friend or not. big big wtf.
12. Even better, next question is got any girls interested in you. YAH YAH QUEUE AROUND THE BLOCK AH. i got hit for giving that answer.
13. Niaos me for using a clean tissue paper to wipe up some chilli that has dripped on the table, when there was some 'not so dirty' tissue within reach to wipe the mess with.
14. Feeling so exhausted from i dont know what, its certainly not work.
15. Constantly being reminded to 'work hard'
16. Hair is so short that i'm reminded of my army days
17. There is a wedding on saturday that i dont really want to go for
18. Corporate reporting 2 hr quiz next week that i havent started studying for
19. is wondering if its really worth the wait
20. Is constantly getting rejections letters in the email

I'm going to stop before i get all cryptic. Glad i got that all out. Phew.

Good thing, probably volunteering at sculpture square. Nice and peaceful despite no work being done there today.

okbetterstartstudying.

but now im sleepy. zzz.

jigsaw

Sitting outside the coffee shop, i have a bowl of pork chop noodle and a teh ping, alone watching the light drizzle glisten in the warm orange glow of the fluorescent street lamps. I am reminded of a certain juncture of my life that seems so distant now.

Finishing my meal i reconsider if i should head back straight to continue the doomed cause of studying for accounting but deciding against it i sit back, drink in hand, together with an unknown uncle who is slowly downing a Heineken. Both of us are silent, wordless in common understanding. I stare out into the night, the sounds of a family deep in conversation at the next table, some kids sitting mournfully around the meaningless chatter of adult talk, and me and the silent uncle sharing a common table, different drink.

Scattered bits of memories return, pushed out from the old vaults, ignited by the smooth sounds of kirk whalum on his saxophone. 'Lover for life' played as i cycled through the empty streets of Graz after a late night. The memories are old and the colors are fading, much like an old photograph dug out from a time too long ago. Carefully i attempt to reconstruct the scenes in my mind careful to do so without missing any details but somehow the puzzle doesn't fit together anymore, a disjointed mix of jigsaw pieces with the final image lost on a box that was thrown away a long time ago.

The task is futile, what difference does it make anyway? I get up and walk back wearily, taking in the rare cool crisp air leaving the pieces of memories behind amidst the orange tinted drizzle, much like our day of parting.

But i am glad we met again tonight. Even if it was just over a drink and dinner on a rainy Saturday evening.

Cryptic Dreams

I always thought dreams come alone in your sleep but last night i had two.

The first was a strange one. I was in working clothes, ie shirt and pants and leather shoes marching through the wilderness of a tropical rainforest with a bunch of people whose faces i couldnt recognize or remember now. I was tired and this seemed much too much like a army outfield experience. Coming to a river we soon saw a huge underwater structure diverting the flows of the river somewhere to a huge pool. Stopping momentarily, i saw HUGE slim fishes, much like knifefishes swimming 1 by 1 along the flows of the water into the huge pool. Only one of my companions seemed to be filled with as much excitement seeing such a sight, while the rest of my companions merely pressed on. I tore myself from the scene and we marched on for an eternity. Slowly it dawned on me that i was in a weird predicament. What the heck was i out here trekking in stupid leather working shoes and a white shirt! Where were all my belongings? It seemed like i hadn't prepared anything for this trip at all. Finally we arrived at our lodgings for the night and it seemed suspiciously like my bunk while i was still in army. Then a feeling of utter desperation for this whole thing began to become reality. The nameless others milled around to unpack and various sorts of admin as i sat there wondering what was i doing and the fact that i had nothing for the journey ahead.

the next dream that ensued brought me back to reality sitting at familiar place with a familiar friend having a familiar conversation which i cant recall, till he said 'You dont behave the way you should' and somehow the words struck back at me like a slap in the face.

and then i woke up feeling very very tired.

Quotable movie quotes

"The things we do and say echo in eternity in the lives of others. "

"Its not who we are but what we do that defines us."

"Sometimes the truth isn't good enough, sometimes people deserve more. Sometimes people deserve to have their faith rewarded"

"You want the truth, you can't handle the truth."

"A day may come, when the strength of men will fail, a day may come when the courage of men fail, but...it is not this day. today we fight!"


-favourite movie quotes-

Happy Birthday

The title of this post is dedicated to a certain someone who im sure still reads this blog whose birthday falls on the 9th of March.

anyway, Happy birthday!

I caught watchmen on sat in theaters and despite some scathing comments from some folks, i remain unfazed and i felt it was a decent show despite being an almost incredibly long show.

Sure it got slow at some parts but i know better than to comment about lengthy shows, especially book/comic book adaptations which i've never read before. Which probably means some subtle but necessary details that non readers would probably not miss and a bunch of fans who would slam the director if he left that scene out. Having said that, no complaints from me on the show except that i wanted to pee when it was approaching the 3 hr mark. Dr Manhattan was just imba anyway but the interesting characters were the rest of the lot, especially Rorschach. Coolest old guy around with a strange shifty inky mask.

As for people whining about the show being too gory, im speechless. Havent we already been conditioned to all the gore shown on tv nowadays, SAW is like a hundred times more cringeworthy than this and no one gives a damn anyway. Well pretty tight screenplay and well shot so definitely give this 1 a shot, but remember, no one said this was the best show of the century.

but i did enjoy it quite a fair bit despite not having read the graphic novel. Definitely not just for those who read the series.

Its the final lap so to speak and i feel like sitting down and quitting, or at least not putting in a 100%. Blame it on the absolute inability to alter my grade upwards past the mark or just an excuse for blatant slacking, this is officially my most relaxed sem ever, not by nature of the modules but by choice. just when i thought last sem was my quite relaxed given the post exchange mood, the final sem takes the cake. Projects that are due in 1 or 2 weeks have barely begun to make a dent on my (and my friends) leisure activities and are somehow eluding the bright yellow to do list on my desktop. but, im loving these last moments of school life.


Speaking of desktops, mine just died. AGAIN. I've replaced that damn gfx card like 200000 times already and it never fails to die on me in exactly the same manner every year. Except that this time, it has only been 3 mths since i last changed it.

p.s: i had to read thru this short post twice to check for grammar errors because im so damn tired after 2 days of morning class. how am i ever going to work next time

不小心回到那一天

After a relatively long hiatus, im back, burnt, flaking of the back from too much sun in phuket and just started school after the midterm break. I keep peeling stuff off my back and its becoming a habit. Firstly with a youtube video to start things off. Unfortunately the embedding in this truly classic youtube video has been disabled so just click on the link, trust me you wont regret it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ygtBxhFc24A

On that note my favorite one is the vehicle overturn. Hey that takes a real talent to do something like that.

Its almost 3am now and i wonder what im up blogging at this hr especially when i have 8.30 mindnumbing MA class tmr. Been thinking about couple of things recently, like how i shld have pursued my dreams earlier, how i should have thought about where i was going before i entered SMU doing economics. Exploring jobs today it dawned on me that the door to a life of working with animals closed long ago. So many things to explore after O levels, A levels, yet the path i took was the one most trodden, a safe route to a university doing something normal. Yet so many opportunites have closed; degree in aquaculture, fisheries, zoology, all but a distant past.

Yes i could go do it all over again, but we all have limited resources. Looks like the path to take is set for me, unless i run off into the brush and make my own path in the wilderness. For now its back to the job search and applications which take seemingly forever to fill in.

On that note, someone asked me why is this specific guy always getting the girls. I thought the answer was simple enough, money and power. And this guy is sure to have both sooner rather than later. Combine that with the fact that he doesnt look like a toad is a pretty nice fella, and you have a babe magnet pretty much. Simple as that and how pragmatic the world has become from when we all just...... a little younger, a little more foolish, a little more of a dreamer.

Well after all that, SDU is gonna send me something soon. Time to hit the sack /slp

Been a long time coming

Its that time of the semester again, the friday before the midterm break. This being the 8th and final midterm break that im having, i am sad to say that i squandered this glorious occasion away on meaningless activities such as studying and projects during the past few midterm breaks. Hence to make up for this, im off to the land of smiles, thailand, phuket.

Then it suddenly dawned on me that after 4 long years in Smu, i've made good friends, discovered once again that i hate studying, i can never get to school for 8.30 classes on time, soon i'm never going to get afternoon naps again, not for a long time at least, and im never going to live the life of a student any more in about 7 weeks from now, for better or worse.

But for now im relishing the company of the folks ive known in school during these short 4 years.

I thought i had much more to write, but suddenly it eludes me. be back later.

Pleased

I'm pleased on 2 counts.

1. GST package says i get 200 bucks on 1st march and another 200 bucks on 1st july.
2. Bleach is done with fillers and on with the rest of the story.

Good night.

karaoke

Heres a video of 2 korean girls singing karaoke and they appear on some variety show. Doesnt matter if you dont know what they are singing. Just watch.



Priceless.

A valentine's day message

I sense of relief washes over me as i'm finally past the dreaded tues and weds morning classes. I wonder how i am going to get up every morning to go to work at 8 in the future. But for now im content with going to bed right after this. Having heard so much over the past few days from some people, its that time of the year again. Valentines day. People asking me for gift ideas, asking me to buy roses cause they are cheap and give to random girls, people asking what are my plans(somemore no offence meant), people asking me to hint to their bfs that they should actually plan something for valentines. An observation from all this. Its amazing how some people seem to gripe about their partners yet when i ask them why dont you do something about it, the topic always changes. From what i know avoiding issues doesnt eliminate them. Well, theres always a huge carpet where people shovel all the nasty stuff underneath, just hoping it doesnt start rotting eventually.

Come to think of it its been way long since i've been single on a valentines day. 7 years. Kinda surprises me.

The last one was spent leaving on a jet plane for exchange, and that didnt seem that long ago, yet it is. 1 year ago seems eons ago. A time when everything seemed 1 year simpler, 1 year less of heavy laden memories, 1 year less of sorrows, 1year less of joys. Looking at your blog, i am saddened. I could say i'm sorry a million times, but that wouldnt do any good. I'm sorry i couldn't lie, I'm sorry i still cant, I'm sorry for everything that has happened. I trust that one day you will find that happiness in the special someone. because i haven't.

"Dont be with someone you can live with, be with someone you can't live without."

but the irony of it all is that we all can live without that someone, no matter how special he/she is

eventually, somehow.

I've done it. More than once.

累

Before i begin my quest to finish my MA hw and a whole host of annoying activities this week, i decided that coming here to type some random crap will induce some sense of fear into me so i will stop procrastinating. So without further ado, let me list out the stuff that i have to do this week.

Starting tmr,

Tue: MA hw due (havent started)
Corp Rep Project meeting (havent started prep)
Wed: EBC class (havent started on proj at all）
Thurs: Com service from 11-6
Friday: Urban econs presentation(barely started)

Next Tue: Another MA quiz

= 累

If theres a camel up the hill

i havent blogged for something perhaps because of the recent monotony of things but well this video made me start



I will give you plankton.

The Story of Goldilocks and the Three Bears

I was talking to some people today about frog leg porridge and somehow the conversation gravitated to Goldilocks.

First of all, we concluded that Goldilocks is a real bitch.

In case we cant remember this childhood classic, lets revisit it because i realized i couldnt remember the ending of the story, and apparently it has a couple of endings.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Once upon a time, there was a little girl named Goldilocks. She went for a walk in the forest. Pretty soon, she came upon a house. She knocked and, when no one answered, she walked right in.

At the table in the kitchen, there were three bowls of porridge. Goldilocks was hungry. She tasted the porridge from the first bowl.

"This porridge is too hot!" she exclaimed.

So, she tasted the porridge from the second bowl.

"This porridge is too cold," she said

So, she tasted the last bowl of porridge.

"Ahhh, this porridge is just right," she said happily and she ate it all up.

After she'd eaten the three bears' breakfasts she decided she was feeling a little tired. So, she walked into the living room where she saw three chairs. Goldilocks sat in the first chair to rest her feet.

"This chair is too big!" she exclaimed.

So she sat in the second chair.

"This chair is too big, too!" she whined.

So she tried the last and smallest chair.

"Ahhh, this chair is just right," she sighed. But just as she settled down into the chair to rest, it broke into pieces!

Goldilocks was very tired by this time, so she went upstairs to the bedroom. She lay down in the first bed, but it was too hard. Then she lay in the second bed, but it was too soft. Then she lay down in the third bed and it was just right. Goldilocks fell asleep.

As she was sleeping, the three bears came home.

"Someone's been eating my porridge," growled the Papa bear.

"Someone's been eating my porridge," said the Mama bear.

"Someone's been eating my porridge and they ate it all up!" cried the Baby bear.

"Someone's been sitting in my chair," growled the Papa bear.

"Someone's been sitting in my chair," said the Mama bear.

"Someone's been sitting in my chair and they've broken it all to pieces," cried the Baby bear.

They decided to look around some more and when they got upstairs to the bedroom, Papa bear growled, "Someone's been sleeping in my bed,"

"Someone's been sleeping in my bed, too" said the Mama bear

"Someone's been sleeping in my bed and she's still there!" exclaimed Baby bear.

AND THEN THE BEARS ATE HER

RARRRWWWWWWW YUM YUM YUM YUM CRUNCH CRUNCH

Goldilocks was never found again.

Chinese new year musings

Its chu yi of the chinese new year and i realised that with each passing year, i get increasingly annoyed by the incessant blaring of chinese new year tunes belted out on air and everywhere as the festive period approaches, blame it on globalization or a change in the festive mood each passing year, the overly happy noisy tunes just irritate me enough to force me to plug into my ipod when on the car going on visitations to relatives places.

Upon reaching the relatives place in the afternoon, i am greeted by the sight of literally dozens of people milling around, of which less than 1/4 of the names are familiar to me. Makes me wish they stuck around a little longer each year so that i could get to know who the heck my relatives really are. Its as if on cue when my family arrives, less than an hour later these unknown folks which appear once a year disappear again, not to be seen till..next year.

Well this year was interesting with most of the random small talk focusing on how bad the economy is how its probably a good time to continue studying and the only people that are hiring is probably mac donalds which pays $5 an hour. This year, being stuck with a nasty gastric flu is bad given that it limits the reckless indulgence that i usually partake during the festive season because anything more than half of my usual food intake and i will be inclined to expel the contents on either end. On another note random comments on marriage are being thrown around which is a clear sign that im getting older but thank god my sis is around to take the brunt of it while she has her bf around leaving me safe from the questions. In fact, shes probably getting married next year or the following. Damn fast. Also, despite the comments on marriage, without fail i get the comment on "oh how go army already or not?" yah thank you i look young.

Each chinese new year just gets more and more interesting.

Old friends, new times.

Strange how people can be so familiar after not meeting them for half a year, how it seems like nothing has changed and things were just like before. Same familiar faces, same laughter, same feelings again. Yet undoubtedly things have changed so much. Even if its the same people all over again. Quietly, i contemplate here how things have changed since a short half a year ago.

To Matt and Eva, welcome to Singapore. May everything work out for you guys.

as the days pass, its been exactly a month and someone still owes me something. But i'm beginning to forget what it is already, even if was the last thing i asked of.

Nine foot Giant pangasius catfish

Photo Copyright Suthep KRITSANAVARIN

One of the largest ever recorded Giant catfishes has been caught by fishermen in Thailand.

The Giant Mekong catfish, Pangasius (Pangasianodon) gigas, weighed in at 646 lbs/293 kg - that's about the same weight as five St Bernard dogs, or 7.69 Kylie Minogues - and measured just under nine feet in length.

Zeb Hogan, who is involved in a World Wildlife Fund and National Geographic Society project looking at some of the world's largest freshwater fish species said: "We've now confirmed now that this catfish is the current record holder, an astonishing find.

"It's amazing to think that giants like this still swim in some of the world's rivers.

I'm thrilled that we've set a new record, but we need to put this discovery in context: these giant fish are uniformly poorly studied and some are critically endangered."

"My study of giant freshwater fish is showing a clear and global pattern: the largest fish species are disappearing. The challenge is clear - we must find methods to protect these species and their habitats. By acting now, we can save animals like the Mekong giant catfish from extinction."


- PFK website

Dangerous Fish

ARRGGHHH

6 INCH LONG 1/2 INCH WIDE

ARGGGGHHH

Tree on a plain

I just had to post this.

Awesome.

The Dark Knight

I confess to watching the dark knight repeatedly since i got it on my pc thanks to gerry. Personal opinion here but i felt it was the best movie in the 2nd half of 2008 thanks to a stellar performance by Heath Ledger as the Joker and i'm glad he won the best supporting actor award in the Emmy's. Classic phrase being

*You wanna know how i got these scars"

Comments about batman not being confident enough in this movie can be heard by some disgruntled comic book fans but in all fairness, this is a young batman and by far Christian Bale is THE batman compared to micheal keaton, val kilmer, and GASP george clooney. URGH.

Something caught my eye in the show, there was a particular scene at the end of the show where Alfred burns the letter meant for Bruce Wayne from Rachael with the narration in the background..

Sometimes the truth isnt good enough.

Sometimes people deserve more,

sometimes people deserve to have their faith rewarded.

*clap clap*

creatures in the night

its 3am. I hear the alarm bells from a car or lift ringing for what seems like an eternity. It makes me think that the whole world has disappeared into the night air. It almost makes me feel like i have to grab a shotgun and be prepared to shoot anything that claws its way past the front gate. Its awfully quiet outside other than the incessant ringing of the alarm. I actually start to think about what if all this were real and theres no one left but me and those creatures lurking outside.

I watch/play too many zombie movies/games.

I should get some sleep:)

totally random at 3am

With the start of the new school term and the 2 consecutive days of 830 classes have taken its toll on me and im wishing that school didnt have to start this early.

Dex and me were so bored after class that we went to watch......PONYO on the cliff by the sea. Well i kinda liked the animation and art of the show and its a rather feel good show i guess though a little draggy. Well it was 6 bucks and i had no expectations at all for the movie so i guess its decent thou nothing i would watch if we werent bored shitless. Watched 7 Pounds a couple of days ago too and i'll admit it i watched it because of Will Smith. Pretty decent show except that it was once again a little slow and i kinda saw the twist in the story coming. The thing that makes the show watchable is probably Will's acting in the show. I'm impressed how he managed to cross over to serious acting from not so serious roles starting with Fresh prince of Bel air which happened to be one of the shows i liked when i was growing up. 3.5 stars out of 5.

Classes so far have been mind numbing because practically nothing goes in because i just aint interested in studying yet, at least for this 1st week. In reality i actually have stuff to do but i'm just procrastinating as usual. In one of my random conversations at school, we were commenting that the scenic index of SMU seems to be on an upward trend and hopefully its not just because its the 1st week of school because by week 12 everyone will be trudging around and perpetually in the library wasting their youth away. Well, its my final semester and honestly i cant really be bothered with nonsense like class participation, and much less for professors who spend 20 minutes talking about class participation. Finally its a free day tmr in between classes and i'm looking forward to a whole day at home...hopefully doing something. For the first time i feel guilty im still slacking.