When Wikis go bad
When Wikis go bad - Example of what you get when dumbos have free reign over the submission and editing of entires. Read through a few entries and you'll know what I mean.
Sample quote from entry
Dumbledore:
" ...The book Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince went on sale at midnight, July 17, 2005 in stores everywhere, much to the delight of 8-year-old girls, super-nerds, pedophiles and people who obviously have nothing better to do with their time than read children's crappy fantasy novels. However, like every fucking Harry Potter book before it, at least 100 copies of it were accidentally sold before the set date..."
Quote from entry Livejournal:
"...LiveJournal is a free online journaling service created by Brad Fitzpatrick under the Danga Company and now owned by Mena of Six Apart who describes LJ as "a
journaling service with a lot of teen girls screaming OMG." Those who use LiveJournal are called LJ Users, LiveJournalERS or, more frequently, LJers. Often seen as a seething, attention-starved hivemind of histrionic 16 year old girls, furries, homosexuals, middle-aged virgins, old memes and the occasional fundie
nutcase...."
Hm... on second thoughts, I rather like this alternative wiki...
HTML dummy
I want to add another sidebar to the left of my page, but I dunno how leh. Anyone know?
Boulevard of Broken Dreams - Green Day
Lyrics:I walk a lonely road
The only one that I have ever known
Don't know were it goes
But it's home to me and I walk alone
I walk this empty street
On the Boulevard of broken dreams
Where the city sleeps
And I'm the only one and I walk alone
I walk alone I walk alone
I walk alone and I walk a-
My shadows the only one that walks beside me
My shallow hearts the only thing that's beating
Sometimes I wish someone out there will find me
'Till then I'll walk aloneAh..ah..
I'm walking down the line
That divides me somewhere in my mind
On the border line of the edge
And where I walk alone
Read between the lines
What's fucked up and everything's alright
Check my vital signs to know I'm still alive
And I walk alone
I walk alone I walk alone
I walk alone and I walk a-
My shadows the only one that walks beside me
My shallow hearts the only thing that's beating
Sometimes I wish someone out there will find me
'Till then I'll walk alone
Ah..ah..
I walk alone and I walk a-
I walk this empty street
On the Boulevard of broken dreams
Were the city sleeps
And I'm the only one and I walk a-
My shadows the only one that walks beside me
My shallow hearts the only thing that's beating
Sometimes I wish someone out there will find me
'Till then I'll walk alone
***
So sad, so true.
Anything? You say one arrr!
I am starting to get annoyed with this word.
Anything.
We say it with a shrug and a half-smile to convey that
'Tidak-apah' or '
Whatever!' attitude, then dump the decision-making process to someone else and hope for the best that the other person would make the choice that you really wanted to make but was too shy/polite/lazy to say so. That's what many of us do, don't we? Usually, I'm the worst culprit. I'm '
Anything' to a fault. .
What do you want to eat?
Anything lor.Where do you want to go?
Anywhere lor.I used to think it was my way of being laid-back and accomodating, or perhaps even gentlemanly. But I know in my mind I was always thinking things like:
'
Please please please don't go to that Indian Vegetarian restaurant! I dun like vege!'or
'Noo, I dun wan to go Kara-oke! I can't sing! Go bowling go bowling!' *crosses fingers*
Of course, I seldom voice these thoughts out. I wouldn't be caught dead being seen as a fussy-fart wet blanket. If the situation seems to be rapidly going towards a bad conclusion, at most I would pip in with a
'Hey, that fish & chip restaurant looks quite interesting hor? Want to take a look?' How? what you guys think? Or you guys got better suggestions? Dun wan ah? Orh. Ok lor.'When I look back on the way I behave in these kinds of situations, I shudder to think how wishy-washy I am. I think it's because of family upbringing. My family has got the worst kind of hypocritical
'Anything' attitude. To put things in perspective, lets take a look at our dinner situation earlier today:
MorningMum : Ey, the club has got a nonya buffet at the cafe, can go and eat. We need to use up the meal vouchers.
Dad: *non-committal noise* Club so crowded.
Mum: *sensing resistance* .....
Dad: Anything lah!
EveningI was sleeping. Quarrel must have taken place. I woke up to two black faces.
Mum: Wake up. Lets go and eat.
Me: Eat where?
Mum: *vexed sigh* Dunno lah!
Me: Pa? Where are we eating? Club or where? Should I dress up or not?
Dad: Anything lah! Up to you!
We leave the house. No one talks to each other. Dad drives to the hawker centre. Mum looks like a thundercloud. I was getting pissed at them.
Me: I thought we were going to the club?
Mum: You ask your father lah!
Dad: Club your head lah!
Me: *subvocalised*
knn! Quarrel already take it out on me! *fumes
*We park, and walk over to the coffeeshop and find a seat.
Me (to mum): What do you want to eat? Individual (meals), or zhi char (Chinese shared dishes) ?
Mum:
Anything lah. You go and order.
Me: Pa? What you want?
Dad: *du-lan look* Dunno!
Now, on normal days this is my cue to cajole them both into making a compromised decision on what to order. I have a suspicion they wanted to order zhi char, but I was seriously pissed by their attitude so I took them at their word and went off to do exactly what they said. I went to order a huge plate of chicken beryani. Mum later approached me while I was queuing up.
Mum: You ordering individual ah?
Me: Ya.
Mum: What you ordering?
Me: beryani.
Mum: You're not eating zhi char ah? I tot, order a few dishes- *vexed sigh* Ner mind lah! i go tell him we not ordering dishes (from the zhi char) anymore.
Me: *annoyed* You said anything what. I asked if you wanted to eat zhi char you ask me to order on my own!
Mum: Never mind never mind! *stomps off*
So I buy my food, carry my steaming plate of beryani to the table. Dad sees my purchase.
Dad: *thick sarcasm* Malay food ah? Good! That's the best choice! (Said for the benefit for my mum, who has a strong aversion to muslim food)
*
So this is the story of my dysfunctional family and the frequent quarrels we always have over mundane things like where to eat. I blame it on the word '
Anything'. That, and the ton of emotional baggage tagged along with the word. In our family
'Anything' doesn't really mean
'Anything', but a mishmash of things implied, such as
'I can't be bothered to argue with you but you better choose correctly!'or
'Don't be fussy. just choose what I want you to choose, so that it becomes your idea!'or
'Ler song dio ho lah!' ('You happy can already!' + sarcastic implication that it doesn't matter that the speaker isn't happy about it)
***
So what am I going to do about it? The next time, I'm gonna try being assertive when an
'Anything' situation comes up. If someone ever asks me where to eat, or where to go, or what I want to do, I'm going to give a definite answer right away, to hell with all that game-playing and hypocritical pretensions of politeness. The answer will either be a
yes,
no, a specific place, or a specific statement of what I want to do.
So what does this mean? It means the situation in future will play out like this. Out of courtesy, I will ask the Question first. And if the answer to that is '
Anything', you people are out of luck if you think I will fish around for your secret wishes. I will just make the choice to my own satisfaction. If anyone objects better speak up immediately, or forever hold your piss.
Irreverent Irrelevance (1)
Advice on how to be a philosopherQuestion the underpinings of the Universe; ask the fundamental questions of life every single day:
What? When? Why? How? Will I ever get laid?
***
Incidentally this is also the same advice for how to get a splitting headache.
The art of folding
Everyone get a T shirt and put it out in front of you now, and learn from this
Sensei with Madz Skillz!
[Link obtained from
the Horde]
Rock, this one is great!
3rd post in a day!
You Are a Retrospective Soul |
The most misunderstood of all the soul signs.
Sometimes you even have difficulty seeing yourself as who you are.
You are intense and desire perfection in every facet of your life.
You're best described as extremely idealistic, hardworking, and a survivor.
Great moments of insight and sensitivity come to you easily.
But if you aren't careful, you'll ignore these moments and repeat past mistakes.
For you, it is difficult to seperate the past from the present.
You will suceed once you overcome the disappoinments in life.
Souls you are most compatible with: Traveler Soul and Prophet Soul
|
Making a little red dot bigger
Ok, so recently I've been coming across news about new guiness world records being attempted or set by Singaporeans. Personally I think its going a little bit too far. I've always thought that the whole idea of a guiness world record was to chronicle feats and achievements of men far beyond the ability of common people. Like being the fastest or strongest person in the world, or having the tallest/highest/longest something that will inspire awe to all who see it. It should be a testement to many years of hard work and practice and planning of the record holder, akin somewhat to an olympic medal.
Yet here I see so many records being attempted that are just plain bizarre, or attention-seeking.
A quick search on the
guiness world records website or Singaporean achievements reveals:
1)
World's largest fountain - Suntec City Fountain of Wealth ((Oh come on lah! Is this even a significant feat of engineering?? We're biggest because no one else has bothered enough to build a REALLY big one)
2)
Largest game of pass the parcel - ((Can you say Duuuuhhhh??)
3)
Longest human domino line - ((Duhhhh Duhhhhh!! My IQ is going down!))
4)
Largest display of rice dumplings (( Qu Yuan's spirit gets indigestion))
5)
Fastest text message ((finger not pain isit? Wahhh! So awe inspiring! I want my chew-wen next time to be like you))
And now another upcoming wacky feat!
Biggest blind date (taken from
Tomorrow and
Singapore Ink).
I think this one can qualify for for one guiness feat at least: The Most Redundant Record Attempt by the Largest Number of Idiots in the World.
Come on lah, where's the prestige of being the record holders of events like these? Like that, I also can come up with dozens of ideas! How about :
1)
World's largest Merlion - ((acherly hor, I think our sentosa one already qualify bcos no-one else in their right mind wants to build a merlion!!!!))
2)
Largest game of Twister on a public expressway played by people in yoga positions and two thumbs stuck up their arse
3)
Longest ever braid made from pubic hair of single virgin Singaporean males. ((I'll even contribute!))
4)
Largest display of Nasi Padang ((where else, on our Padang of course)), followed by World's
fastest eater of World's largest display of Nasi Padang. ((2 records in one!))
5)AND! As a tribute to NSmen in Singapore, how about the
world's fastest ever "smart 4-change-to-FBO-change-to-pt-kit-fall-in-at-parade-square-and-knock-it-down-20" record?
Can you think of any more wacky records this Napolean-complex nation can do?
***
Speaking of records, I broke my previous best for running today.
Distance 8km (up from 6km)
Time 45mins
Ave.Speed 2.96 m/s or 5.6mins/km
However, I keep having brain-cramp after running. My head felt like it was stuck inside a fluffy pillow while an angry gorilla outside tried to smack my brains out with a padded boxing glove.
To roast a hacker
Xiaxue's and
Wonky Tong's blog were hacked yesterday, causing a
big hoo-hah among the blogging community.
Luckily though, most of the entries have been restored by blogger, which keeps archives of everything posted. A big relief for both of them after the emotional trauma, I guess.
At first I thought it was another of Xiaxue's stunts to increase blog traffic, which unfortunately enough I think her capable of, but unfortunately it was all true, and I sympathise with her.
It is also unfortunate and sadly ironic that wonkytong's previous post before being hacked was about how to increase blog traffic. I think she must have one screwed up fairy godmother granting her wishes.
To the two of them, I hope that the blogs can be salvaged and returned to normal.
To the hacker, I hope he burns in Hell.
Oh wait. I don't believe in Hell. Oh well. Dousing him in petrol and flicking a lighted match on him ought to do it.
No wait... petrol prices gone up liao. Too expensive to waste on scum like him. Maybe a slow roast over charcoal fire can liao.
Yummy eating place? Not!
So I was surfing the net the other day for good eating places in Clementi....
Too many things to blog about. I think I shall just skim through them. Once again, no pics or links. Go google lah! don't be lazy! Much more work efficient than if I had to post up and edit pics and links!
Thursday:I went to this wierd Russian restaurant called Shashlik, which is tucked away in the top floor of Far East Shopping Centre. with two good friends to catch up on each other's lives. Mostly they were well adjusted and happy with their teaching jobs, while I seem to have stagnated for 2 years since we all graduated. Maybe I should go teach after I graduate. Get some job stability. Some extra time to enjoy the better things in life: Love, family, books, hobbies.
Well anyway, if you come here expecting European style fine dining, you can forget it. Ok, so the decor was nice, the lighting dim and warm enough to mask over any flaws. The table was set nicely, you had the cloth napkins... The waiters and waitresses looked like they could be our grandparents, but service was adequate, if a little abrupt. So far so good. But then they started handing out the menus, those cheaply printed and plastic laminated kind that sometimes hawker zhi char stalls give out. They had evidently seen much use, and the plastic was frayed at the edges.
They served us each with a serving of bread: Not ang-moh style baked buns, but the soft squarish ones like those KFC serves. We were given butter from those individually sealed plastic packs. Hello?? Maybe 20 yrs ago still considered high class, but now every ah kow ah ngiao coffeeshop western food stall also serve the same style leh!
Well, anyway, We ordered soup and a main course. I had the Borsch soup which came highly reccomended, while my friends had mushroom and onion soups. Verdict? Top rate! The borsch was full-flavoured and robust while not overwhelming, and the chunks of potato, cabbage and beef were generous and hearty. Our main courses were less impressive. My friends ordered the Beef shashlik, which is some kind of a kebab style roast. They served it by dumping a hunk of sizzling beef on a hot-plate and placing it in front of her. Salads and side dishes where served on a seperate plate. That may not sound bad, but just imagine, you have one hot plate, and one dark brown hunk of meat on it, and nothing else. Bad presentation lah!
Mine was worse. I ordered the tornadoes rossini (I think), which was tenderloin of beef served with goose liver. I thought, hey Foie Gras, why not? Well as it turns out, There ARE very good reasons why not. It smells like the Whiskas Liver and Chicken I fed my cat with the night before, for one. It looks too much like the rat liver cell homogenate my lab-mate used to make, for another. To top it all off, they served the beef with assorted mixed seasonal vegetables (the kind you buy in frozen packs from Fair Price), and crinkle-cut french fries!! How much more hawker-style can you get? For the price we're paying (approx. $25 for main course), I'd expect a more elegant baked potato with bacon bits and sour cream, or hey, maybe some Potato Lyonaisse like that. KNN, serve me french fries, and a chao tah ones as well!! Lucky their steak still got standard.
Verdict ah? 3.5/5 stars. Good place for soups and steak, but their prices a little to expensive and the presentation like crap.
Friday:Running and pull ups. Work. Lonely day.
SaturdayMet ex-boss at Orchard and ate at Spageddies in Paragon shopping centre. Asked him advice about how to cope with my post-grad. He was very supportive, and gave me a lot of tips. Still, it got me thinking. I see the way he works and I don't envy him. There is very little opportunity to rest on laurels in academia and work is very demanding. Writing papers and proposals, jetting off here and there to give talks and attend conferences, doing research, teaching..... is this how I want my life to be? Consumed by work?
He had to leave to visit someone who was on covalescence, so he asked me what gifts he should bring over. I suggested getting some bottled herbal tonics from a TCM shop, so we wandered around Paragon and hey presto, a yao chai dian pops up right around the corner! What the heck? Is there one in every major shopping mall now? I thought I'd have to bring him over to Chinatown to get them.
Anyway, he bought some bottles of fish oil tonic (sounds disgusting but was highly reccomended as a 'blood' tonic), and I gave him a lift to his destination. Then, I went skate hunting around Singapore.
I stopped over at Skateline's store in Queensway Shopping Centre, paid $1.50 to enter its dark, dingy, and severely overcrowded carpark, and drove out without finding a spot. Let this be a warning man, DON'T park inside Queensway Shopping Centre! Their carparks are fucked up! Get yourself to Ikea or Anchorpoint instead and walk over.
I will confess now that I never intended to buy any skates from skateline, for reasons which I shall explain later. All I wanted to do was to ascertain which shoe sizes and models fit me best. I marched into the store and harried the poor salesperson into letting me try 4-5 different models, recorded their prices and then left. But I must say, I was very happy with the level of service provided by him.
I then drove over to Farrer Road's Singapore Inline Skating School, which happened to be having a sale on Nike and Rollerblade models. Their shop was a warzone. It was cramped with staff and customers trying out the skates. Empty boxes and paper littered the floor. The aircon was down and two fans were blasting at full power trying to dissipate the heat. The staff were shouting. I was studiously ignored for 5 whole minutes while I looked at the models. I left after it became apparant no one was going to help me with fittings. As I stepped out, someone could be heard yelling "Shut the door! Shut the door!". I swung it shut and stomped off, irritated.
I was still vaguely dissatisfied, and it was still early and I didn't want to go home, so I drove down to Skateline's bigger store in Upper Paya Lebar Road to browse. Service was good, the sales staff had good product knowledge. One of the staff actually stopped serving me to go over to help a couple of girls who stepped in. Slightly irritated, but ok lah.. understandable. He knew them, and they were pretty chio too. Another guy came to help, and I managed to get him to let me try out some of the top-end recreational skates.
Then I fell in love! With the K2 Kinetic 10.0 Mens 2005 fitness skate! Softboot with an Enhanced Stability Cuff, Quicklace system with an Exflo cage, Aluminium-Titanium powerframe, ILQ-9 bearings on 80mm wheels! *drools*
Unfortunately, it costs a whopping S$421! Maybe $400 if I beg for more discounts. How how? I'm really conflicted. I'm thinking, why pay $200 for a lower-end model and get 60% satisfaction instead of paying $400 for a good one, and get 90% satisfaction? I like it, I want it, I can afford it. But I am acutely aware that I am being quite spenthrift however I or anyone else looks at it. And maybe I really don't want to be Ooh-Ahhed at by my skating buddies. Some people like to show off their newest toys and gadgets to others, but for me it is very awkward feeling to have people gawking at my latest extravagance.
Now the reason I didn't buy from Skateline is because it is cheaper to purchase them from the United States, shipping and all. Prices are usually half as much as what it costs in Singapore dollars, and even with shipping charges one could still save about $30-$50. One of the reccomendations I had from my friend was to buy from Inlinewarehouse.com. The online service arm of our Singapore Post has a very nifty service called VpostUSA, which gives you a location in America to which your USA purchases can be shipped to (i.e. local shipping). From there, your stuff gets shipped back to Singapore, and you can pay for it most conveniently to SingPost, and saving a few more dollars which would have otherwise been spent on a FedEx package. My calculations indicate that I could possibly purchase my skates this way for $380, $20-$40 cheaper than if I were to buy it locally. Its still too expensive leh, And I still have a phone to buy. :-/ Can I use the money I saved from not needing to splurge on a girlfriend?
Hahaha, I'm just rationalizing. I think the money's as good as gone. I've lost my heart to a fast pair of blades.
A Yahoo! search referral to my blog
This guy sure has a very clear idea what he is looking for!
Sorry to disappoint you, whoever you are, what you want ain't here!
Short Bites
Fitness:I took a break from exercise on Tuesday, but resumed training today. Jogged 2.4km at a slower pace on the treadmill, then suddenly found my second wind and ended up running 6km in 30mins. The downside is that after stepping off the treadmill, for the next 5 minutes I felt like a Chinese ghost gliding across the floor.
Pull ups are not progressing as fast as I wish, but I'm definitely feeling the muscle strain. I think that's a good sign.
Work:My friend and my boss came through for me, and provided a solution to a long-standing problem. Now I am free to proceed.
Hard part: Now I have to come through for Boss and friend. I'm so afraid of disappointing them and myself by not making full use of their aid. I'm still having motivational issues.
Social:Coming Thursday: Dinner with 2 good gal friends who graduated from NUS Bio and are now teachers in JC. We're planning to visit Shashlik, a Russian style restraurant famous for its senior citizen waiters, brusque service and delicious food. More blogger material, hehe. Maybe I'll bring a cam so I can blog whore the subsequent entry.
Coming Friday:
Soccer is on again! Whee.
My 1st boss from my Honours days called me earlier today. He was in Singapore and wanted to meet for lunch. I'm really touched he's bothered to keep in contact with me. He's the greatest supervisor and mentor I've ever had and I respect him very much. I wonder if I should pay for the meal, but I think he will object. Should I buy him a gift? I suck at all these social situations. I think I'm going to confess to him about my work problems.
Last but not least, another lunch appointment with another friend, date not decided. We have a lot to catch up on. Its these little social engagements that will keep me sane in this crazy world I find myself in.
Tempestblue, out!
The NKF SPH Saga
I'm sure everyone has heard of the recent news hogging the headlines, namely that of
NKF CEO T.T Durai's lawsuit against SPH, and his subsequent withdrawal. I just want to say that I am happy that I stopped donating to NKF 4 years ago, after pissing me off with their strong-arm/guilt trip tactics to solicit for donations. I knew something fishy was going on then, that a charity with such a high yearly turnover was pumping so little back to the patients.
Now, it has been disclosed that based on their reserves alone, they could afford to FULLY subsidise all kidney treatment for ALL its patients for 8 years, or 30 years if patients continue to pay for their part of the treatment costs. WTF?? Are you preparing for a mass kidney failure apocalypse in Singapore, NKF? Keep so much money for fuck? Or is this merely imitation of our Singapore government's policy towards national reserves?
Point 2: Objectively speaking, T.T Durai's salary isn't so much of a problem for me, because benchmarked against other multi million dollar companies, he's actually on the low end of the salary scale for CEOs. To object to his salary would be to object to what Sim Wong Hoo or Bill Gates or Donald Trump takes home each month. There is nothing wrong with being paid well at the top. BUT! The problem is that he is a CEO NOT of a company, but a charity organisation which funds itself with the money donated by the public. I can't put my finger on this, but there is something distinctively immoral about using public donations to shoot yourself through to the top of Singapore's income tax bracket. But even that wouldn't be so bad if NKF's cashflow had been transparent from the beginning. It is unfortunate that they have chosen instead to hide it from view, and protect that by lashing out with lawsuits against people who dare to question their actions.
I think NKF will find that even if their actions are found to be legally permissible, they will not be able to save their tarnished reputation. People who think to transfer their donations to smaller, 'more deserving' charities should do so with both eyes wide open. My friend
RockOrange's previous experiences working with smaller charity organisations has shown me that even small charities are not immune to corrupt practices and mismanagement of donations.
***
As an aside I am quite amused to discover the huge media coverage over this trial. Of course it could have nothing to do with the fact that all Singapore's major news publications are owned by SPH, could it? I mean, the last time I saw so much coverage over a single issue, it was something of international catastrophe, like the war in Iraq, or terrorists bombing London ahead of the G8.
I haven't been to the trial, so all I/we have to go by to know what happened is through the news which in this case cannot claim to be an impartial reporter. The scientist in me says to distrust everything you have no direct proof of. How do we know the news reports are not subtle suggestions to manipulate public sentiments against T.T. Durai? After all, the suit was initiated by NKF against SPH for libel. How come all the news reports are about NKF's lack of transparency? Where's the other part?
*Disclaimer in case I get sued*
No insinuations or allegations are being made against any party I have mentioned. I am merely speculating over issues which were not made clear to me. Parties who feel aggrieved are welcome to explain in rational, concise text why I am wrong, instead of wasting money on lawyer's fees in trying to make me put up a standard UNRESERVED APOLOGY.
Edit: After Reading
Calamari for thought's more detailed calculations, I have to rethink my comments that TT Durai is deserving of his huge salary. Dunno how accurate are the calculations, but it should be within ballpark range.
Two rights makes up for one left?
Things are on the upturn at the moment, at least in certain things. I've gone back to Aikido again, and I've started jogging 2.4km in the gym on Thurs, Sat and Sun, with Friday being Aikido day. The asthmatic attack that I was afraid of hasn't happened, perhaps my body's starting to cope with the air-conditioned room. Well, good for my lungs, I say. I hope to start a routine of jogging every evening, and couple it with some weight training or pull ups.
Recently, a friend of mine took unexpected interest in my unfortunate situation at work. I am pleasantly surprised at this friend's concern, and willingness to go out of the way to help. I feel much better about the whole thing, and I realise now part of the despair I felt was due to the feeling that no one gave a damned about it, or understood it. Or wanted to. Knowing that someone is taking an active interest in helping has lightened my heart considerably. Knowing there is someone believing in me has given me external motivation to work hard. I'm good at disappointing myself, but I do try harder not to disappoint others. To this friend, I'm very touched, and grateful.
On the not so good side, I broke a solemn promise to myself. I told myself I wouldn't do something. Heck, I even said so out loud to some people. But on saturday, I broke that promise. I don't usually break promises. Actually, I seldom make promises to myself, just so that I wouldn't be caught in that bind. But this one was a pretty serious vow at the time, and now I broke it. Don't worry, its nothing illegal, or immoral, and the consequence is mainly the guilt of having to live with a broken promise. I won't rationalise my way out of the guilt, but I'm not intending to try and salvage that promise either, because subconsciously, irrationally, I want to break it. I guess I'm just afraid that this means I can't trust myself any more.
Little Things
I've finally updated my bloglinks to reflect more accurately who I read. Tried blogrolling, but they just succeed in making my list look cramped and messy. I guess I'll have to key it in the template manually.
***
I've also taken the heel brakes off my skates. I sense a big, messy, bloody crash coming sometime in the future, but what the heck, eh?
***
Its already Sat, but no-one has called to arrange a skate session yet :-( I was so looking forward to it.
***
Orange just asked if I wanted to go clubbing, but I'm sure she just wants to drag me into a gay bar and watch me get hit on. :-/ I guess I'll decide tomorrow.
***
Melon Collie and the Infinite Sadness
Being an only child with two working parents meant that I learnt how to play with myself from an early age. In my youth I entertained myself with my plastic sword and leapt off furniture ninja style, Swishing my magic blade and vanquishing imaginary monsters. I enacted complex heroic fantasy stories involving my Yakult free-gift figurines and plastic toy soldiers and He-man action figures. When I grew older and PC games became more advanced than the usual Alleycat or Beer Tapper, they took over the main burden of keeping me occupied, and my imagination entertained. I grew up very used to the idea of solitary entertainment.
So on Wednesday evening I found myself skating up and down an ulu stretch of road along Bedok Reservoir alone, practicing my strides, my balance, a few tricks. I don't like the track there very much because of all the broken branches scattered along the path, and the fact that the only skateable road stretches 1 or 2km at best. As I passed some joggers and cyclists, I was reminded of the time I was in Keswick, UK. Keswick was a little town nestled among the hills and valleys of the Lake District, right along the water's edge.
I was reminded, not of the similarity but the large difference. I remembered while I was backpacking there, every stranger we walked past would look us in the eye, smile or nod, and say a cheery 'Good morning' or 'Good day'. People actually looked for excuses to start a friendly conversation, if we stood long enough near each other.
Back here, I wonder why we don't have a similar culture. We don't look each other in the eye when we pass. We don't smile or nod in greeting. In fact, most of the time, we avert our eyes as if to pretend the other does not exist. Even in lifts, people would rather look anywhere than at me. They'd stare fixedly at the floor indicator, or at their shoes, or dive into a newspaper. When they exit, there's no 'Good evening' or any polite remark. Why huh? I'll admit, I do that sometimes, but that's because the whole atmosphere feels so frigid in a lift situation, saying something feels really inappropriate.
Well anyway, skating alone got boring after a while, so I headed back and decided to pop into the little gym downstairs. I used their treadmill, for the first time, and promptly got an asthmatic attack after 20 minutes of running. I've always suspected I get attacks when I do cardio exercises in air-con rooms. I used to get it at a club gym years ago, but I thought then that it was just 'dirty' air. I guess this recent episode settles it once and for all that I should not bother to sign up for any of those mega-gyms like Carlifornia Fitness.
I'm starting to think I should go for professional counselling. I'm having a lot of trouble motivating myself for work. That's really bad when I'm in charge of running my own work schedule.
Reviews
I've been pretty busy distracting myself from work the past month. The reviews below are of books and movies I have read or watched in June. I just needed to say something about them. As always, I'm too lazy to put pictures or links. I figure if anyone's interested, they can google it themselves.
Books:
Kim - Rudyard KiplingGreat premise, but damned, it really rambles on towards the end. The relationship between streetwise Kim and the deeply religious Tibetan monk is poignant and touching, and Rudy's description of 19th century India is vibrant and colourful.
Rating: 7/10
Sophie's World - Joestein Gaardner
Great intro to philosophy. Intriguing twist to the plot. Reads like a young adult's book, but tackles some adult themes. Oh, all right. I'm just thrown off by the last part where Sophie's friend and her boyfriend start copulating in public. I also don't understand the ending. If I were to interpret it, I'd say that it is the author's conceit that makes him place Sophie and Alberto Knox among the legends of the fairytale world, like Cinderella or Red Riding Hood. Perhaps given a few decades or perhaps a century, if by chance 'Sophie's World' becomes as famous a parable as 'Cinderella', then everything would make sense and the epilogue of the book will be seen in a satisfying new light. But for now, that point is lost for me.
Rating: 7/10
The Soverign Stone trilogy - Margeret Weiss and Tracy Hickman
I loved the original Dragonlance:Chronicles. Hated everything after. Somehow I can never feel for the protagonists in their novels. I've tried reading their Deathgate cycle, Prophet of the Rose and the Darksword series, but I didn't care enough to finish reading them.
I did finished reading the Soverign stone trilogy, but same problem. I didn't like the characters. I didn't like the plot. I thought it was too symmetrical. Magic comprises Earth, Air, Water, Fire, Void. Races populating the world are Elves, Dwarves, Humans and Orcs. Elves have air magic, and live in the north. Dwarves are fire magic, and live west. Humans are Earth, and live in the east, while orcs are water, and live in boats at sea down south. In the centre of the land is the old city, corrupted with the magic of the void. Bleh!
Thats not the only part that put me off. The resolution of the story and the fufilment of prophecy (All fantasy stories have prophecies, right?), smacks of more symmetry. Four valiant dominion lords, each chosen from each of the 4 principal races, shall bear a portion of the soverign stone (conveniently split into 4 pieces) unto the old city, where the big baddy lord of the Void will die after much battle and some magical stuff happens leading to the end of the story. Ho hum.
Rating: 5/10
TV/Movies:LOST - Season 1
Great acting, great sets, great drama! One of the shows of the year. Bad thing is, none of the mysteries get solved, even after the end of the season! We don't know what the monster is, what the island is, who the Others are, what the Hatch does, what Rousseau's agenda is... its SO frustrating.
Rating: 8/10
Kill Bill 1 and 2Quentin Tarantino's masterpiece is like one big inside joke, a nudge nudge wink wink tribute to a hundred different movie genres and popular culture. Parts of it plays like a classic black and white film noir, while the soundtrack plays like a classic cowboy western. The characters stare at the camera and do monologues, or narrate flashbacks. Anime is used to describe O-Ren Ishhit's rise to notoriety in the Japanese underworld. Uma Thurman wears Bruce Lee's classic yellow sweatpants and jacket, wields a samurai sword and does a fight sequence supported by Yuen Wo Ping's entire fight team, lopping off of limbs and heads, spewing arterial blood sprays that could give Sentosa's musical fountain a run for its money. I nearly choked on my Ice Cream Soda when Bill made his appearance. They got Kwai Chang bloody Caine, chinese flute and all, to be Bill?!
And that whole episode about Uma being apprenticeship? To an aged Chinese swordmaster with a penchant for flicking his snowy white beard? I couldn't stop giggling, it was so cringingly tacky. I think Tarantino's been watching too much B-grade HK wuxia dramas.
While Volume 1 was a such a bloodbath it got banned from DVD release in Singapore, Volume 2 tones the violence down a little and even provides an interesting twist to the story. I must say I prefered Volume 2. All in all, I think Kill Bill is one of those pat-self-on-the-back movies. The highlight of the movie for me is recognising what influences were brought into this or that scene, which movie or style it copied, and who the bunch of talented supporting cast comprises of. Daryl Hannah (Splash, Blade Runner), Lucy Liu (Ally McBeal, Charlie's Angels) , Sonny Chiba( popular 80's martial art movie star), Gordon Liu (famous HK martial arts star), David Carridine(Kung Fu- the series) ....The list goes on.
Rating: 7/10
City of GodI don't need to say much about this movie, except that its brilliant. The bad guys in this movie have more humanity than all the Hollywood-style villians put together. Too bad the director neglected to pay more attention to the portrayal of the womenfolk. They remain mere cardboard figures in the film. As we say in Hokkien, pai sui only! Still, this show is a must watch!
Rating: 9/10
Sunday
I watched
Ninjai. Then, emotionally traumatized, I watched Kill Bill. Later, I'm going to watch City of God. One's a popular flash anime, another is a popular cult favourite, and the last is a critically aclaimed award winner.
Why is society so permissive towards displays of violence, but so uptight about sex and nudity? The two are so different. Two polar opposites. Pain and Pleasure. Makes you wonder if our society's values are upside down, doesn't it?
***
I've also made some slimy green muck. It's green bean durian soup, but it still looks like slimy green muck.
Cheap thrill
Another weekend, another new month, another bout of wistful regret over the inexorable passage of time.
This first saturday of July finds me declining to join my Aikido friends for a trek through MacRitchie's treetop walk, for the stated reasons that it is too far and too early for me, and for a more deep-seated reason that I try to hide even from myself. I didn't want to be seen by a certain someone. No, not like this.
Instead, I went blading with G and his friend at East Coast Park again that morning. Safe, uncomplicated male-bonding. No uncomfortable questions on how I'm getting along in my work, or in other things. But then we bumped into D,
whom I used to whom I have had some...... well nevermind.
She had come down to ECP on an impulse to blade, so the four of us did a lap or two down to Fort Road and back, chatted a while, and caught up on each other's lives. We parted company around noon, and G and I went to Parkway Parade to eat. After that G went off, while I stayed back to wander around.
I hadn't been to Parkway in quite some time, although it was a weekly haunt for me when I was a little kid studying the organ (no, not THAT organ, take your minds from the gutter you perverts) at Yamaha music school. Being the sucker for nostalgia that I am, I took a slow tour of the place to see how things had changed. The amusement park on the 4th floor was gone, that I knew, replaced by a spanking new foodcourt called The Banquet. Hai.. I had such great memories of that place.
Amerikaya, to my surprise, was still there, although I thought the shop had closed down. I bought my only pair of leather shoes there back in 1996 for my JC prom night, and I'm still wearing it today. There's a closing down sale going on now, with prices slashed between 20%-60%.
Going up the escalators, I felt eyes on me. Perhaps I was self-conscious, because that day I was wearing a bright blue sleeveless T. I worried about my sweat from the prior blading session. I longed to smell myself to see if I stank. I was self-conscious about my white, flabby arms, and the armpit hair that was sticking out beneath. I felt naked baring my arms. I wonder how the girls in sphagetti straps endure it.
Perhaps it was a quirk of fate.I felt something. I turned and looked up, and our eyes met. She was a young girl, maybe 20ish, long hair, not too tall, wearing a grey top and skirt. With the mutual embarassment of having been caught looking,she turned her head away even as I averted my eyes. I waited a few seconds. Then, as suggested by the article in my previous post, I turned back to look at her again. Once again, I caught her looking at me. Our eyes met for the briefest moments, enough to convey our mutual surprise at having been caught looking at each other for the second time. Our eyes averted yet again.The escalator reached the top of the floor, and smiling to myself at the cheap thrill, I stepped off and hurried away into the crowd.
