greg's lair: my cyber soliloquy

why, hello there...

2011-08-19T02:41:00.004+08:00

it's been a while hasn't it?

to say that much has happened and changed since my last update would be a colossal understatement.

i've graduated. i've found a job that i have a great passion for, luckily enough on the first try. i've had my heart broken and bruised a few times. i've felt my soul get crushed when we lost dad, but i've also seen just how great a guy he was. i've taken a plunge onto that important safety net called friendship and subsequently done my own bit in that area (if small). i've taken on responsibilities that i have never really imagined myself taking. most importantly, i've fallen in love.

and it is thanks to that love that i'm writing here once again. after all, she brings out the utmost best in me - so much so that the people around me can sense the joy and mirth that i now have in my life.

it's a feeling beyond measure, so unfathomable that human description does it no justice.

yet, here it is - so tangible that i feel it constantly on a day-to-day basis when it previously seemed so distant, so right that mere months feel like years compressed into minutes in terms of richness, yet it feels so brief and fleeting even when we're together all the time...

for coming into my life, i will always feel ever so fortunate.

and ever so very grateful.

in loving memory...

2009-12-01T00:46:00.004+08:00

Death Is Nothing At All

Death is nothing at all
I have only slipped away into the next room
I am I and you are you
Whatever we were to each other
That we are still

Call me by my old familiar name
Speak to me in the easy way you always used
Put no difference into your tone
Wear no forced air of solemnity or sorrow
Laugh as we always laughed
At the little jokes we always enjoyed together
Play, smile, think of me, pray for me

Let my name be ever the household word that it always was
Let it be spoken without effort
Without the ghost of a shadow in it
Life means all that it ever meant
It is the same as it ever was
There is absolute unbroken continuity

What is death but a negligible accident?
Why should I be out of mind
Because I am out of sight?

I am waiting for you for an interval
Somewhere very near
Just around the corner
All is well

Nothing is past; nothing is lost
One brief moment and all will be as it was before
How we shall laugh at the trouble of parting when we meet again!

Henry Scott Holland

just... cannot... sleep...

2009-11-08T04:41:00.003+08:00

argh.

i've been tossing and turning in bed for at least 40 minutes and i just can't sleep.

damn my nocturnal habits...

and to make things even worse, i have to be up in 4.5 hours to play ball (assuming it doesn't rain...)... d'oh.

already one bird seems to have woken up to start its day and is announcing that fact to the world... here i am trying to get some sleep as the other early birds in the time zone are more than half way through their slumber, just on the precipice of re-entering the waking world that i am so desperately trying to extricate myself from.

that's one more thing to tack onto my to-do list before getting a job: resetting my bloody bio clock...

guess it's back to another round of tossing and turning and trying to find the escape hatch that leads to dreamland...

happy halloween!

2009-10-31T02:38:00.003+08:00

once again, it's been a long, long pause between ramblings. didn't have quite that much to write about and talking about my third round of hand, foot and mouth disease (courtesy of the niece and nephew) wouldn't have made for fun reading.

needless to say, my somewhat lifeless (for the moment anyway) existence continues to bounce along. i really should be getting off my lazy ass and getting around to drafting my resume and start job hunting. i really, really should. but the thought of drafting a resume and then the subsequent interviews and waiting and... aye carumba.

i guess i really should stop dragging my feet though. but enough about my state of joblessness, i am here to discuss halloween costume ideas!

well more like ideas that i would like to pull off. if i ever go for a halloween party that is... like that'll ever happen to lifeless me. but nevertheless, it's fun to imagine...

1) shiba kaien
after all this time of watching bleach, i only realise that the one supporting character i find really cool is a dead guy. guess that's somewhat appropriate since it's a series about spirits and death... but hell, kaien is pretty cool for a dead guy. physically he looks just like ichigo with black hair. and i could definitely pull the spikey hair off. finding a katana and a kimono to match might be a bit of a problem tho...

2) house
get a cane, walk with a limp, dress up like a slacker and spout sarcasm and caustic wit with every line of speech. especially good idea with my house t-shirt that has a silhouette of house that says "THE DOCTOR IS IN". will probably have to let my facial hair grow for a few years and put powder in my hair to grey it a little though.

3) any premier league manager
hoho. dressing up as fergie complete with purple nose and spouting angry rubbish in a thick scottish accent would be fun. or growing a norse beard like rafa benitez proclaiming a list of facts and other rubbish like lucas is an actual footballer. or being like arsene wenger and kicking a bottle and claiming not to see things that are going on. heck, for kicks, dressing up like jose and claiming to be the special one and being all smug and charismatically charming at the same time... though speaking in accents all evening sure won't be fun... especially if people are asking for the hairdryer treatment AND THEY KENNA UHNDERSTAND YER!

4) the grim reaper
now this would be a helluva lot of fun. sure, it would probably be a heckuva cliche to get a cloak with a hood, a scythe and glowing red eyes. but the possiblities... how about a black hoodie with black jeans and black shoes with bitchin' half gloves and a scythe? death's modernising, yo. though sadly the church wouldn't really approve as they're saying people are getting all drawn into an unhealthy fascination of the occult and death and crap because of halloween... sometimes mother church could really do with some lightening up...

5) zaraki kenpachi
probably one of the scariest looking shinigamis from bleach, kenpachi is just insanely bloodthirsty and always looking for a fight. and he's a mishmash of elements from a tonne of halloween types! a samurai in a black kimono like a japanese grim reaper and an eyepatch for a dash of pirate. those spikes are gonna be hard as hell to style tho, as are those little bells he puts on the tips to give his opponents a chance in combat because he's that insanely good...

another fantastic sunday

2009-09-21T03:48:00.004+08:00

i know i started my post meant for last sunday, but in the end, i just never got down to finishing it.

in short, it was a great sunday, especially since i finally had my long awaited opportunity to play basketball at tanglin cc, the group's old stamping ground till we decided to shift to the moe cca branch (or old nie as we still call it).

well, kind of like how i had two crappy sundays in a row, i have had two fantastic sundays back to back, and i daresay this sunday was better than last.

yep, i probably had a better game of ball last sunday and much better weather, but today had its own awesome fun moments even though i'm all lobster red again. there is a certain enjoyment in my game again that has been missing that just makes the charring to a crustaceany finish all worth it along with the nice feeling of having put in a good shift.

after lunch and lan, i went for mass at the cathedral (not so great considering it's been ages since my last visit to a church without aircon), and i bumped into ms ong at the bus stop after that. we caught up a bit before her bus came. it was a pleasant surprise and really nice to see her as she's one of the best teachers i've ever had.

next up was that bloody incredible manchester derby we watched at dod's place. great goals, stupid mistakes, drama and controversy; this game had it all. and of course, united came out on top. not the scoreline that reflects the spanking of those upstart mercenaries as i had hoped for, but snatching victory right at the death in stoppage time pretty much makes up for it. watching those city bastards all forlorn and all as well as that ass mark hughes throwing hissy fits because of the time added on just made all the heartstopping drama worth it.

as an aside, sorry if you expected a good reception from the fans, carlos tevez you bloody judas. you may have been a good servant for us, but leaving for city rivals automatically bumps your rep down a notch. sure, the fans may have loved you, and you may have tried sucking up to us by saying good things about us. but we're bloody not stupid when you diss the team that made you a champion of both england and europe. i thoroughly enjoyed deriding and booing your sorry, mercenary ass everytime you touched the ball and absolutely enjoyed seeing you prancing around the pitch like a clueless, forlorn little deer. have fun chasing shadows or qualification for europe with that bunch of money-grubbing losers.

(end of judas rant)

after all that drama, we went our seperate ways after the guys got some dao hui from geylang (i got me some 7up since i'm not a soya person...) and, as fate would have it, i met another person i hadn't seen in a long while in the form of goose at eunos mrt station.

hopefully next sunday's just as bloody good as this one or even better... but that's really gonna take something special.

rediscovery...

2009-09-17T15:14:00.002+08:00

motivation.

without it, we are like leaves in a rushing river of life, at the mercy of every flow and every ebb.

once we find it, however, it is like latching on to a rope attached to the strongest tree in the jungle alongside the river. we can then haul ourselves out and proceed along any path we want.

for the longest time, i've forgotten what that meant in terms of my personal fitness.

but now that i've found the motivation to improve both my stamina and my basketball skills, i really, really feel committed to sticking to my plan.

and while it gets boring and, well, naturally tiring at times, i'm actually enjoying it. sweating it out once a day on the basketball court feels good.

and of course, nothing tops the feeling of hitting basket after basket when you find your rhythm.

basketball, basketball... i need a fix.

2009-09-08T03:06:00.003+08:00

yep. i feel like akagi over there. (clipped from SPECTRUM NEXUS)

argh.

i hate the weather these days. why can't it rain on days OTHER THAN SUNDAY MORNING?!

i'm reading myself into a fanatical basketball fervour thanks to slam dunk, but thanks to the rain on sunday morning, i have gone a month without a proper game.

GEEZ.

i know i shot some hoops downstairs on sunday afternoon after coming back from the failed trip to bukit timah, but it's still nothing like a real game. no one to pressure you, no one to dribble pass, no one to defend against... urgh.

this sunday cannot come any moment sooner... *fidget fidget*

slam dunk da funk...

2009-09-05T04:13:00.002+08:00

if you've been reading my fb status updates, you'd probably have guessed that i'm going nutty over slam dunk again (yeah, that old manga/anime...). and digging them out from behind my long row of kenshin mangas, i've started reading them again.

yes, it's the chinese version. stop staring at me like that. i know, i know. it's pretty unbelievable that greg is reading chinese stuff. yeah, yeah whatever. no i'm not just looking at the pictures and guessing what's happening (though i'll admit that i do skim through some bits 'cause it's just an overload of chinese words when takehiko starts explaining technical basketball terms since i know them already...).

it's hard to imagine how'd anyone beyond a sports enthusiast would read a manga based on a sport. i suppose, like bleach, it'd be better to watch the anime since there's so much movement involved (well, i am awaitng my torrent to finish so i can get to watching and hearing proper voices in japanese with english subs as opposed to translating chinese to english and making exceptions for names...).

but if an artist is skilled enough to convey movement and detail, with enough imagination, the reader can get absorbed into the world, playing and replaying each move with fluidity with the aid of a healthy dose of brain activity.

it also helps that there's a tonne of comedy in between as sakuragi (the red-headed and not-so-bright main protagonist) gets himself into all sortsa silly situations whilst learning the ropes of the sport he adopted to impress a girl. oh yeah, he doesn't know squat about it at first, but has an impressive repertoire of physical attributes and learns mighty quick.

ah, slam dunk. i missed you guys...

====================================================

on a side note, i've come to the conclusion that i'm a sucker for good characters. characters with solid back story and/or grow tremendously over the course of the story.

it's probably why i think revenge of the fallen is one helluva show with some really good characters (jetfire, simmons) and action despite the obvious drawback of a rather dour plot. on the flip side, i thought g.i. joe (which has a slightly better plot and just about the same level of action) wasn't as outstanding due to a lack of captivating characters (i liked rip cord, but channing tatum's duke kinda fell short in the character stakes...).

maybe that's just a limited analysis from a limited set of examples.

but i think i'm going to try and pay attention to stories a little more when i watch a movie and compare them to what i hear from my friends and critics...

spider-man vs mickey mouse? it just might happen...

2009-09-02T00:46:00.003+08:00

hoo boy. if you haven't heard the news by now, disney has bought over marvel in a four billion dollar deal.

yeah. mickey mouse is now the boss of peter parker, tony stark and the x-men.

i probably speak for a dozen and one fans out there, but i hope disney has the sense to not mess with a winning formula. heck, i bet the fellas at disney are getting bombarded by all the marvel fan boys making that point in various degrees.

i suppose if there's one good thing about having disney look after the marvel properties is that we'll most likely be getting good, solid animations. just imagine a pixar spider-man animated series. or fantastic four. or x-men.

now that would be awesome.

though i guess the most important thing is that the comics be totally untouched. seriously.

can you imagine every story arc being made to have a mandatory happy disney ending? or no deaths allowed? the hulk beating up bad guys with a stuffed bunny instead of a lamp post?

ok, fine. i guess i'm exaggerating with that last example. disney definitely does allow some violence pass through.

but you get my point, right?

well disney, you guys really have me hoping for some really good marvel stuff. i hope you don't disappoint.

random musing again at 4am...

2009-08-31T03:56:00.003+08:00

life has been slow since i stopped babysitting my niece and nephew.

sure, i've had an exam... lc ministry stuff... outings... the start of a new football season as well as a new year of csa...

nonetheless, life apart from those has been a tad slow. well, i guess it's good because i'm starting to write more again.

rewatching earlier seasons of house have made me realise that there's probably a little bit of gregory house in all of us. whether it's the constant avoidance of the dreaded and dull paperwork or the urge to rebuke (with copious amounts of acidic sarcasm) that total moron of a customer, a co-worker or a boss for something really stupid they did or said or did or the silly things you do to avoid doing work or even that constant crave for some sort of excitement in life, house is just an amalgam of some of the best and worst qualities you can find in a human being. i can even relate to the things house does to the people he does like: almost everything else but telling the person how he really feels.

drifting away from the topic of house, i'm itching for some basketball. ok, fine, i was secretly hoping the dark grey clouds i saw outside the window when i woke up would let rip just so i could slink back to bed and sleep some more because i didn't have enough sleep. but really, i could use some physical activity after not really doing much over the last few weeks. it doesn't quite help that i feel the urge to read and watch slam dunk again.

come to think of it, i have a bunch of books that i started reading and then put aside for other books or things to do. from my autobiography of sir alex ferguson to the biography of erwin rommel to sun tzu's art of war to that halo novel i just can't seem to finish, i could busy my eyes with these tomes. and i could even test my chinese with my slam dunk mangas.

of course, more pressing at the moment is the need to get myself employed. i've got something in mind at the moment that i've already told some of you about, but i'm gonna keep mum for the time being till something actually happens. in the mean time, i have a tonne of things to prepare and if it all works out, i'll mention it. otherwise, you'll hear me moaning about the sickening thought of drafting and sending resumes and going for interviews.

=====================================================

i think enough has been said about united vs arsenal last night. nonetheless, i'd like to reserve a spot of praise for darren fletcher who most football fans look upon with disdain due to his ineffectiveness in the earlier stages of his career at united. however, i think it's clear as day for any man united fan that the scot has come a long, long, long way to become a key player for us. from an unassuming youth to willing runner to dominant midfield enforcer, fletch has grown from strength to strength to strength. underestimate united's scottish midfield terror at your own peril, all ye non-united curs.

one quick word about the match before i sleep...

2009-08-30T04:01:00.001+08:00

lucky.

your laughter

2009-08-30T02:43:00.002+08:00

heard this on a bbc programme in the car just now. beautiful poem... shame there isn't someone in my life to take the place of 'you' at the moment.

Your Laughter

Take bread away from me, if you wish,
take air away, but
do not take from me your laughter.

Do not take away the rose,
the lance flower that you pluck,
the water that suddenly
bursts forth in joy,
the sudden wave
of silver born in you.

My struggle is harsh and I come back
with eyes tired
at times from having seen
the unchanging earth,
but when your laughter enters
it rises to the sky seeking me
and it opens for me all
the doors of life.

My love, in the darkest
hour your laughter
opens, and if suddenly
you see my blood staining
the stones of the street,
laugh, because your laughter
will be for my hands
like a fresh sword.

Next to the sea in the autumn,
your laughter must raise
its foamy cascade,
and in the spring, love,
I want your laughter like
the flower I was waiting for,
the blue flower, the rose
of my echoing country.

Laugh at the night,
at the day, at the moon,
laugh at the twisted
streets of the island,
laugh at this clumsy
boy who loves you,
but when I open
my eyes and close them,
when my steps go,
when my steps return,
deny me bread, air,
light, spring,
but never your laughter
for I would die.

Pablo Neruda

now that's a response

2009-08-22T23:29:00.004+08:00

5-0.

wow.

it looked painfully like business at usual with a profligate first half with great chances created despite a dominant united.

but in the second half... man. what a blitz.

two goals from rooney sandwiching a classy berbatov goal with an exquisite michael owen goal off a reverse pass from nani who turned goal scorer with a well struck free kick.

guess burnley really was a blip... hopefully we get to see much more of this kind of the same in the weeks to come.

glory, glory.

good man

2009-08-20T17:41:00.004+08:00

Good Man
Josh Ritter

These chords are old but we shake hands
Cause I believe that they're the good guys
We can use all the help we can
So many minor chords outside
I fell in love with the sound
Oh I love to sing along with you
We got tunes we kicked around some
We got a bucket that the tunes go through

Babe we both had dry spells
Hard times in bad lands
I'm a good man for ya
I'm a good man

Last night there was a horse in the road
I was twisting in the hairpin
My hands held on my mind let go
And back to you my heart went skipping
I found the inside of the road
Thought about the first time I met you
All those glances that we stole
Sometimes if you want them then you've got to

Babe we both had dry spells
Hard times in bad lands
I'm a good man for ya
I'm a good man

They shot a Western south of here
They had him cornered in a canyon
And even his horse had disappeared
They said it got run down by a bad, bad man
You're not a good shot but I'm worse
And there's so much where we ain't been yet
So swing up on this little horse
The only thing we'll hit is sunset

Babe we both had dry spells
Hard times in bad lands
I'm a good man for ya
I'm a good man

exasperation and frustration of the highest order...

2009-08-20T06:43:00.004+08:00

i'm sure most of you have read my post-united loss rants before. but honestly, that was a performance so limp even fielding a team of 11 amoebas (or ameobae or whatever the bloody plural form for amoeba is) would have had more spine than the team that faced newly-promoted burnley at turf moor.

surely burnley defended resolutely and scored a cracking goal. hell, brian jensen deserves a medal for his heroics (as always, opposition keepers ALWAYS play their best games against united... damn i hate goalkeepers that don't play for manchester united...).

but surely, even then, with the glut of chances we had towards the end and even the bloody penalty, we couldn't even find just one reply?

by goodness.

there's a saying that you never write united off until the last second of the game.

at the rate we're going, we're just going to write ourselves out of winning the league.

house and up...

2009-08-15T00:43:00.003+08:00

it's amazing to see how house's season finales have come along. season 1 ended with the introduction of house's married ex-girlfriend and their unresolved feelings for one another while season 2 ended with house being shot. season 3 ended with the clearing out of house's team and then 5... well, if you haven't watched it, i won't spoil it for you. it was a huge turning point and it leaves me wanting season 6. really, really bad. even though i still have missing episodes from season 5 to catch up on.

having said that, nothing beats the drama and tension from season 4's two-parter even though i knew the ultimate outcome. the characterisations were extremely strong, with the acting of no less an equal standard. it was an emotional roller coaster that just sucked you into the gravity of the drama. it left me hoping against hope, even with the knowledge that amber (or cutthroat bitch, as house calls her) would die.

it opened up new understandings of everyone on the show. from cuddy to wilson, the new team to foreman. it even showed a softer side of house that we rarely see. of course, kudos must go to the actors for bringing their characters to life. hugh laurie is brilliant as ever, but i think robert sean leonard deserves credit for really bringing out the raw emotions that wilson felt as he transferred his concerns from his best friend's injuries to his girlfriend's life threatening and ultimately fatal condition.

i may have about half of season 5 to catch up on, but i eagerly await the arrival of house season 6.

==========================================================

if there's one animated movie studio that i trust to never fail to make me laugh while telling a compelling and very smart tale, it would definitely have to be pixar.

from toy story to the incredibles to wall-e, pixar always manages to put a smile on my face with a healthy variety of comedy while blending in a good amount of heartwarming and well-told story into the mix.

and up continues in this grand tradition with no less the same pedigree as its predecesors.

if you haven't watched it yet, stop reading this rave and go and watch it.

seriously.

you're missing out.

being the first ever animated film to open the cannes film festival, up deals with themes even grandparents can associate with. after all, the film's protagonist is an old man named carl fredricksen who's basically lived a normal life with his wife ellie. when ellie passes away without the couple ever fulfilling their wildest wishes, carl finally decides to act on one of them when he is forced to move into a retirement village. which is nothing less than moving the house that he and ellie have lived in all their life atop paradise falls in south america the only way carl knows how - via balloon. not hot air balloon, but by your humble little everyday rubber balloon filled with helium. accidentally taking off little wilderness explorer russell, who wants to assist carl anyway possible to earn an assisting the elderly badge and become a senior wilderness explorer, they end up on the other end of the plateau where paradise falls is located. and as they walk the barely floating house across the plateau, they encounter all sorts of adventure that leads to carl making a momentous decision.

i'll end the synopsis so i won't spoil it any further (or boring to death anyone else who's watched it), but i'll definitely say i loved the way the story was told. the metaphors are so rich and the comedy really, really smart. we can all relate to the themes and the moral of the story, especially in the current world conditions we live in at the moment.

still reading? just open the new tab and go book your tickets online and get out of the house to go watch the dang film already. SHOO!

deja vu... ain't it mr crossroads?

2009-07-26T01:07:00.002+08:00

i've got lotsa things going on in my head... thinking about many, many things.

so much thinking that it almost hurts.

perhaps the biggest issue would be saying hello to the real world very, very soon. job hunting... settling down into the new role... eegad, i think i just blew another fuse just imaginging that whole tedious process...

and probably just as big a deal is the dreadful, gnawing question at the back of my head saying, "what if you don't get the jobs you want? what then hotshot?"

what scares me is that i still haven't completely made the mental transition out of school yet, highlighted by conversation with jo about some programme that she's working on. it's like knowing that i'm gonna have to make a turn at the next cross junction, but i'm still stuck on a non-turning lane.

all that combined with thoughts about the other aspects of my life and it just feels really, really heavy.

but drawing on the homily i heard in church just now, i think father did make a very valid point.

we don't need miracles.

we ARE the miracles... miracles in action in everything that we do.

let's try and get the engine running again...

2009-07-22T03:34:00.002+08:00

i guess i stopped writing after the disappointment that was the champions league final in rome. i suppose the warning signs were there as a season that started with tremendous promise ended with a resounding whimper.

at least there is much to look forward to with post-cr7 life beckoning. it took a while for me to digest the signing of michael owen (even though i thought it could be a masterstroke) as i fumed at mental madrid stealing in on karim benzema and probably raised an eyebrow when mickey was handed the cherished number seven shirt. now, he has won me over with his pre-season form, and i eagerly await to see how he fares against sterner opposition in united colours. while it remains to be seen if antonio valencia can perform at the highest level, it will be very, very interesting to track gabriel obertan's progress at united. he's been slated from most quarters, so we'll have to wait and see how the sly old fox works his magic on our new french recruit.

football aside, life's been interesting... i think. i got myself a nice payout from the saf for a week of in camp thanks to ippt and marksmanship (and oh how sweet it felt to finally be able to prove to myself that i ain't that lousy a shooter... 38 hits out of 40 rounds fired fyi) as well as a nice sony mp3 player for company best detail (though that i guess that could be damning us with faint praise since there were humongous technical difficulties on the night... but heck. an mp3 player is an mp3 player!).

and i am damn bloody happy to report that i'm pretty much through with mdis! i just finished my last module last thursday and, last exam and graduation aside, i'm done with that bloody school. no more rubbish admin and stupid cock ups.

though of course, this pretty much means a big hello to that scary jungle called real life... hoo boy.

in not-so-good news, dad had a mild heart attack in june and had to get a stenting done in one of his arteries. he seems to be pretty much back to normal, though i guess this has been one of those wake-up call kind of reminders of just how fragile life can be. makes ya realise that your folks ain't exactly young or are getting any younger either. what is important now, i guess, is that he's ok and that we look after and love him as much as we can.

ben's gone off to aussie to study, so that means i'm down a drinking kaki for family events, but at least we found an awesome new place to eat and drink at along tanjong katong road. foo house serves some awesome food and an ever more wicked sangria that just made me grin like a cheshire cat. definitely going back there again... even if it's just for the sangria!

foc also just ended too, though i wasn't around for most of it thanks to school. technically, i really can lump myself with the csa alumni now that i'm done with school and i would be graduating too had i stayed in ntu and completed the course on time, but i think i might just stick around a little while longer. time will tell more i guess, so we'll see, we'll see.

church wise has also been really interesting. some wheels have started turning in the ministry and though they might not be optimal or fantastic, things are looking positive. hopefully i can persevere and stay the course to ensure things get off the ground and begin to fly.

and, i'll end this all off saying that even though it was mindless and a tad out-of-character at times with enough plotholes to sink the titanic twenty times over, revenge of the fallen was freaking awesome. i guess many critics probably entered expecting too much from a saturday morning cartoon franchise, but hey i'm a fan. i know more about the surrounding lore and back story than any of them critics and i say the action alone makes the show worth watching with an awesome character like jetfire as a bonus. maybe i'll write something more in-depth one of these days...

let's hope i don't get lazy assed again... greg, out.

campione!

2009-05-17T02:13:00.003+08:00

it was a lousy match, but as football365 puts it, manchester united 0 arsenal 0 = manchester united 18 liverpool 18. it's been a long premier league season full of ups and down, but keeping the prem for the third time in a row and equalling liverpool's record of 18 titles has made it all worth it. rome, here come the red devils!

and after starting bbq pit fires and gaining achey, counterpain-covered arms from enthusiastic fire fanning with a chopping board, drinking a huge amount of bailey's, football squash, tonnes of talking cock and a sleepless night that ended at around 5am splayed out on the coffee table, i can finally get a good rest after an awesome class chalet.

here's to the next one.

greg knocking out.

some observations from the time since the last update...

2009-05-10T05:42:00.003+08:00

1) thanks to sars and bird flu, we're getting jumpy at the very mention of the next big thing from the pathogen world. swine flu might be a problematic disease, but probably no where near the danger levels we had previously feared. are we going to respond to every subsequent disease threat like this or will we relax and then get stung in the tail when the real pandemic hits?

by the way, i am of the opinion that if it happens, it'll happen and there pretty much won't be much we can do about till someone finds a cure. if you're gonna die from the chicken worm flu or ostrich tick fever, then it's probably written down somewhere in your script and you can't do much about it apart from hope for a cure. sucks to be me if i get it, but heck... that's just life, ain't it?

2) babysitting isn't easy. especially when your nephew is an absolute handful. which leads to...

3) it's probably poetic justice that i ended up looking after my nephew as a result of allegedly giving my mom as much trouble as he does.

4) since i began babysitting, i've had songs from hi-5, higglytown heroes, charlie and loa and thomas and friends stuck in my head. though admittedly it's kinda like going through memory lane... minus the sesame street gang.

5) united seem to have returned back to their best. but will fergie ever unleash the frightening foursome of rooney, ronaldo, tevez and berbatov in a starting line-up at the same time, despite the success we had against spurs?

6) darren fletcher was unlucky to have been sent off, but considering the angle the ref viewed it at and the speed at which he has to make decisions, i can't quite complain much even though you'd really feel for the fella for trying so damn hard all the time.

7) chelski might've gotten some sympathy points for being denied some clear cut penalties, but the behaviour on show towards the referee probably killed any sympathy they could've had. understandable it might be since the ref probably did screw them over and have a horrible night, but when you take into account that the extremely likeable didier drogba (who labelled the ref an effing disgrace on a live camera that was broadcasting to millions of people around the world) missing the gilt-edged chances over the two legs and the fact that chelski didn't look quite interested in winning the game outright, you'd probably realise that any feelings of pity were probably wasted. oh, that and the fact that they were playing against 10 men factors in too.

8) l4d is freaking cool and damn bloody fun.

and lastly,

9) "mas selamat was planning hits on singapore." no shit sherlock. i thought he was going to renounce his terrorist ways and hide in seclusion somewhere in jb raising a bunch of kitty cats. guess i was wrong then.

does absolute power corrupt absolutely?

2009-04-14T01:41:00.002+08:00

this little question has probably been done to death. but i honestly do feel a need to ramble about this.

is pure democracy overrated? does one possessing absolute power eventually lead to absolute corruption?

we all crave for democracy, the right for our points of view to be put across and aired for all to consider. who likes being shut out of conversation or being barred from participating in making important decisions? yet, does the chaos of being presented with too many opinions outweigh the benefit of everyone being heard out for the best possible solution to be found?

conversely, does having a central figure dictate everything lead to abuses? is it possible for anyone to remain untainted by the alleged corruptive touch that power brings? we will all point to hitler and stalin and saddam hussein and say that the atrocities committed by these dictators is reason enough to shy away from a strong central leadership. but what happens when a collective makes that same decision? isn't a collective leadership performing the same function as the central one with more points of view being injected into the mix? yet is it still considered democracy when they make the same atrocious decision as the dictator?

does having more voices allow a leader to make better decisions? or does it impair his judgment due to the sheer volume of options he or she has available?

will there ever be the right balance between the two?

dilated pupils, masterpiece grimlock and change...

2009-04-04T13:07:00.005+08:00

just got back from my eye checkup in the morning. my left optic nerve is still enlarged but not really causing any problems so i'll see the doc again next year to check up on it. in the meantime, my pupils are still dilated and i'm hiding here in my room, with my lappy screen brought down to minimum brightness, appreciating the darkness like a vampire. it doesn't help that the sun is out in full bloody force today.

my eyes... my eyessssssssss.

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on thursday, i dropped by the hangar for the first time to pick up stuff since coming back from the states with david to pick up none other than mp-08 i.e. masterpiece grimlock. as a transformer and a grimlock fan, this is pretty much a geek dream come true. finally, a poseable, super detailed and hugeass grimlock figure that looks like he can take on big bad unicron on his own and kick his ass to kingdom come.

photos are on facebook. lazy to upload them all over again. haha.

me grimlock badass!

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just a little ramble here.

they say change is inevitable. change affects us all in different ways, and while there are people out there who embrace it, i think change is one of the hardest things to accept when the said change drastically affects your life in an such a way that you have to alter your usual patterns of life to accommodate it.

sometimes we crave change when we feel something in our lives needs changing. yet, we absolutely detest change for the better when it is forced upon us. is change always necessary and always good? is it sometimes better to stick to the old, traditional ways that are tried and tested? or do we go and change things by shaking things up?

there's a saying that the more things change, the more they stay the same. and i think it's an irony that the more we want to change, the only constant that remains is precisely the opposite: change.

the world is just awesome

2009-04-01T03:34:00.003+08:00

i really wish i could embed this video, but i'm guessing discovery asked someone to diable embedding on youtube and discovery's videos don't have an embed function, so this url right here will have to do. yes, go on. click it.

man vs wild is just an awesome show to watch. just watching bear grylls traverse some of the most challenging terrains in the world just makes me recall the odac days and soaking in the wonders that nature has to offer and that our planet does have so many wonderful things worth treasuring even with all the nonsense that goes on around us.

just hearing bear's honest sharing on discovery's "the world is just awesome" spots just hammers it home.

"you've just gotta watch an avalanche. see a big wave. see a croc move fast. see a snake strike. see the torrential rain in the jungle where you can't even hear yourself think.

when you see the animals that are the most wild, the mountains that are the most raw, it's impossible to look at those and not just go, 'wow.' it is awesome."

it's about time...

2009-03-30T01:01:00.003+08:00

well. when your last post was about being happy that your team negotiated a tricky tie and then ended up with crappy (and that's being kind mind you) back-to-back results, you'd naturally want to take another break from blogging...

ok lah. i lied. i've just been lazy as usual without that many interesting things to write about. though, come to think of it, my boring little life has had a few injections of the odd moment out of the ordinary.

though really, seeing united lose 4-1 and 2-0 just plain sucks.

right. enough about football.

school's finally winding down. and honestly, just thinking about leaving the relatively comfortable and secure arms of academia and entering a new phase of life is pretty daunting. while i might have one more module than the rest of my classmates from bmcd1 0612a/m11 to go, i can't help but wonder where the road of life is going lead me next. especially when you factor in the reality and fear of today's current economic climate.

even without that scary thought of that horrible word, recession, there are so many questions going through my head. can i really graduate and go out there and do well in my job? what do i want to do? do i want to write? or do i want to use my voice? can i find something that suits my interests? or will i have to slog a while with something i don't quite like before finding something that's more me? or is something i cannot even start to comprehend waiting for me around the corner?

whatever the answer, the future is just as exciting as it is worrying. i guess all lil' ole me can do is get myself ready to meet this darn thing head on...

(and i'm starting to miss everyone already. =\)

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as most of you already know by now, i've become an immense fan of house. it's my new poison alongside bleach and the returning (and possibly last) season of transformers animated. hugh laurie is just insanely talented, especially when you realise that house and that airhead aristocrat george from blackadder are one and the same actor. caustic wit, great characters and holmesian style detective work with some very real philosophies wrapped up in the guise of a medical drama. house just plain rocks.

it's also bloody awesome that we share the same name.

on the other hand, it does make me wonder. is house just being house by being the manipulative, egoistic and sarcastic bastard that he is? or is it just a front for him to prevent himself from getting too involved with his patients? is it for the better that we make decisions we feel are right, everyone else's point of view be damned? or are relationships more important? is it better to be miserable so all that's left is up? or should we live life and be happy and leave ourselves open to disappointment and vulnerability?

whoever said tv was just trash that made your brain rot?

or maybe i just think too much.

it wasn't an easy game...

2009-03-12T05:46:00.002+08:00

but two-nil to the red devils means hello quarter finals. the quintuple is still on lads.

COME ON YOU REDS! *beams*

it raised my blood pressure again...

2009-03-08T01:35:00.002+08:00

but i will still not get involved.

i will not. i will not. i will not.

God grant me the patience.

politics sucks...

2009-03-06T01:18:00.000+08:00

but i will not get involved.

no fuh-reaking way.

this is why news people don't wear green. take note kids.

2009-03-03T19:09:00.001+08:00

well... i didn't really expect that...

2009-03-02T13:03:00.003+08:00

drivers, have you ever been ranted at by an angry, incoherent indian guy who stops you at the traffic light in the rain along still road because you almost hit his van while you were driving... i dunno... straight?

if you ever suffer from such a phenomenon, like lau did while we were on the way to parkway, i have the following recommendations.

1) ignore the raving bas*ard and let him cool down in the rain. see how long it takes before he decides that he's had enough.

2) use leonard's patented three response reply for appearing interested in a conversation. "oh?... yah... izzit?" with a "...then?..." thrown in every 5 minutes. tone is everything. rinse and repeat. like 1, see how long he can tahan in the rain.

3) something along the line of 2. play along. keep nodding your head and saying "ok" and "yup" and just stall for time. wait for the rain to get heavier and heavier or for the guy behind the van to get fed up and start horning. better still, wait for the traffic cops to come and tell them that this gentleman over here has been politely telling you about the dangers of driving straight on a straight road and how careful you should be.

4) take a look at him, then just look back at the traffic light. when it turns green, just put the pedal to the metal and leave him to eat your exhaust.

surprise... another update.

2009-02-23T02:17:00.003+08:00

yeah. i know. i've not really been writing much lately. life's just been so... idyllic... that i can't really think of incredibly interesting things to write about, hence the last two posts of being nothing but video.

it's been a good weekend. played footy (and got horribly thrashed) yesterday and bball with the guys today. i picked up a sprain on my left big toe and a nasty bunch of grazes and abrasions on my right lower leg amidst the drubbings, but at least it was a good run out and a positive spur to improve at footy. and compared to last week, this week's ball game was miles better for me compared to last week's sorry excuse of a performance. i actually enjoyed it, and scored one real peach under the basket on cutting in. that one really got my confidence buzzing. hopefully next week's game will be even better!

on a slightly bitchy note, i'd daresay one of the reasons why we got drubbed yesterday was because we had a prima donna on our team. it's alright if you're a cristiano ronaldo or a messi or a kaka who can actually win a game to have that kind of an attitude. but if you're the reason why we keep losing possession and blaming everyone but yourself, then i do believe you need a reality check and a slap in the face to wake you up. if i was an alex ferguson yesterday, i think my face might have been more purple than old purple nose himself protesting a no-penalty decision being given after john terry rugby tackling ronaldo in the box at 1-0 down. sure, you might have some skill, but if you can't do anything effective, don't blame everyone else. raise your hand and say you screwed up.

fortunately, he's not part of the usual nus css soccer gang, so thankfully, i won't be seeing him anytime soon. watching players like that is like self torture, especially when your actions bring about consequences (albeit not life and death since this is football) for others.

on another unrelated note, facebook noting seems to be the new blogging device. plus now you can tag people and make them do stuff too like those spammy emails you forward to 10 other people. could be one of the reasons why i'm not blogging as much i guess, but i'm really out of interesting stuff to write about these days too.

i finish this post with yet another video. and it's another bleach song...

enjoy!

a 12 year-old who could put an adult to shame...

2009-02-12T20:49:00.002+08:00

wise words from a seventh grader. and delivered like a seasoned speaker to boot.

they're baaaaaaaaaaaaaack...

2009-02-02T00:51:00.003+08:00

and after a long absence, so am i. i actually had something typed up, but a combination of laziness and lack of inspiration meant another half written post consigned to the draft pile for eternity.

nonetheless, i feel inspired enough to lose that post because of what you're about to see.

june 2009 cannot come any sooner...

last post from anaheim...

2009-01-07T19:29:00.002+08:00

it's been a whirlwind of a past few days.

if there's one thing i've learnt, it's that shopping should be left to shopping trips and that exploring a new place should be left to exploring a new place. combine the two and you'll have one helluva fun time moving around all over the place with a tonne of baggage in tow.

definitely not one of the most pleasant experiences.

nonetheless, it's been pretty magical too.

i got the chance to handfeed squirrels and get them to come to me, saw what was probably the dominant male of an elephant seal community beat down a rival male, experience the wonders of hearst castle, experience a bit of san francisco and really get to play in the snow at yosemite national park surrounded by the majesty and beauty of raw nature.

those moments were simply awesome, especially yosemite's thick snow.

and after one day in anaheim, here i am, on the way to coming back to singapore.

do i really want to go back home? not really.

do i wanna stay behind? not really either.

new year, universal studios and an old girlfriend...

2009-01-02T16:07:00.003+08:00

happy new year.

2008 came like a tornado and left like one.

like i've lamented before, time these last two or three years just seems to be slipping by so quickly that its been pretty hard grasping onto what exactly has happened.

but i suppose there's no point lamenting now. the best that i can do is try to match this breakneck pace, even if it seems like trying to grab hold of a stream of fine sand, and make the best of it.

happy new year everyone. let's make 2009 a good one.

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celebrating the new year here in hollywood was a really different one.

yeah. like no sh*t sherlock. i'm in a different country altogether. hurhur. silly me.

anyway, you get my drift.

we celebrated it here on the hotel's roof with champagne and beer, which isn't a good combination to have by the way if you're intending to stay sober.

some of the others visited santa monica earlier on new year's eve and were a little too close to an assault case for comfort, so we ended staying back.

it wasn't much to be honest. but i think everyone there on the roof deserves a big thank you for making it something to remember, especially considering the circumstances.

2008 may have ended and our time in school together may be winding down. but the ties that bind us together will bring in a good 2009...

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universal studios on new year's was sorta underwhelming.

especially when you've gotten a taste of pure adrenaline from disneyland's rides.

ok, i'll give them credit for the three rides posted by universal: the simpsons was sorta cool (though i still want my back to the future ride back dammit...) for a motion simulator, jurassic park had dinosaurs (a huge plus in my book) and the mummy had one helluva powerful acceleration and cool roller coaster track.

it did have the ultimate anticlimax of all anticlimaxes, pretty much summed up by ain when she let out one loud "huh?" when the ride ended. it was, however, one of the funniest moments ever.

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an old girlfriend?

yeah. you could say that about the lady.

she's a real beauty. sleek, fast and packs one mean punch.

ok fine. i'm just kidding. i can't believe i haven't posted this video up.

airwolf had one of the most wicked theme songs ever for a tv series. it was just... awesome. and especially memorable.

childhood memories are always awesome.

but she really is called 'the lady'...

downtown LA, vegas, the sheer awesomeness of the grand canyon and day one in hollywood...

2008-12-30T16:00:00.008+08:00

it's been a crazy past few days.

we've been running around with our luggages from anaheim to rosemead to vegas and then to hollywood.

to give you an idea how much luggage our band has, just imagine that sending a mini-van for 15 people wasn't enough to handle our luggage. ALONE.

we couldn't really explore downtown la much. i really wanted to visit the cathedral of our lady of the angels but the place closes at 6pm and we got there at like 5.55. what the heck. though at least i got a small peak around the exterior of the church and the complex itself. it is huge and quite a sight. i can only imagine the interior until i look up the pictures of it for myself.

las vegas was an interesting if somewhat harrowing experience. while it's definitely a city of sin and lost wages, vegas is an astounding testament of human ingenuity and creativity (if somewhat tacky and over the top at times... though some would say that's the point of vegas...). some of the architectural designs of the hotels were just awe-inspiring and extremely beautiful.

if vegas was about manmade stuff, the trip to the grand canyon was all about nature's own magnificent creations. as we travelled from nevada to arizona, we passed by the hoover dam (cue the transformers and megatron references...) and it was really something to marvel at. the surrounding rock surfaces and the massive dam combine to make one impressive view. at night, the lights amid the darkness make it something to really behold.

of course, the dam paled in comparison to the canyon, which was just an incredible sight to behold. the rock faces look chiseled, as if carved out with precision by some giant sculptor with colours that seem as if caressed by a master painter's brush. even the sky over the canyon seemed extraordinarily beautiful and pure about it.

words can only describe so much about the wonders of the canyon, so i'll let a select bunch of my pictures do the talking for me.

enjoy.

yeah. that's just some of it. rest is on facebook. go look there.

the last night in vegas was a sober reminder to keep our guard up and that we're not at home. one of the guys got robbed at knifepoint during the late night at the casino opposite the hotel. definitely a reminder that we ain't in kansas (uhm... singapore... but you get what i mean...) anymore. at least the cash was the only thing he lost, so that's something to be thankful for.

leaving vegas with one helluva long bus ride later, we're now in hollywood. it's a strange place hollywood. where superheroes and even (shrunken down, human-sized) giant robots prowl the streets to take photos with bystanders for a tip. but somehow, it kinda feels like home, with the busy traffic and high rise buildings making it feel like orchard road.

all i want to do now is find liz montgomery's star on the walk of fame after failing to find it on the second day. that would be really cool.

oklahoma: week 3, anaheim, disneyland and christmas...

2008-12-26T02:31:00.004+08:00

oklahoma city.

what a place.

it looks kinda sparse from the plane as it descended, but what a wonderful place it turned out to be.

how can i forget the dry, cold and windy weather that also gave me my first (if somewhat brief) experiences of snow?

how can forget the famous southern hospitality shown us by the people of oklahoma who made us feel so welcome?

how can i forget the great food we had at awesome places like trappers (ultimate fried chicken... and gator!) and spaghetti warehouse (spaghetti and meatballs and that awesome, awesome sangria...)? and what about the stuff we cooked too?

how can i forget the fun lessons that i had with the great teachers who taught me, as well as meeting up with the lecturers who taught me back home in singapore?

and how can i forget the company of friends, both old and new, who made the trip so full fun and enjoyable?

oklahoma city and oklahoma city university will always have a place in my heart. it was just such an awesome experience.

thank you.

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i might've been here before... 16 years ago.

but it all seems... alien to me.

it felt... odd. odd that i couldn't quite recall anaheim and that nothing really seemed to spark off the memories from all those years ago with jie and dad.

descending onto LAX provided somewhat of a culture shock too. after all, oklahoma was vast and sparse...

california, in comparison, looked like a beehive swarming with activity with its many clusters of buildings as far as i could see out the window.

even going to disneyland felt a little different.

rides like big thunder mountain and splash mountain felt just like they did all those years ago... but experiencing space mountain again just felt like a new experience.

chionging all the high adrenaline rides was a real rush tho. the maliboomer was a crazy freefall ride while soarin' over california was a simply magical experience that could've only have been done by disney. and california screaming? an absolute blast of an insane roller coaster ride.

one thing that didn't change?

those huge turkey drumsticks dad got me 16 years ago.

yum.

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it's that time of year again.

though, for obvious reasons... this year has been a break in my traditional christmas... well, traditions.

no christmas vigil mass at sji this year nor helping brother mike with the tree decos.

just midnight mass at st boniface church, which is roughly 2 miles from the hotel, which had a huge creche and SEVEN christmas trees (though only decorated with lights). which i walked to and half way of fro.

no family around for dinner and countdown.

just a dinner of maple glazed atlantic salmon and shrimp at red lobster with friends after shopping at brea mall. with chicken breast strips, calamari and cheese fondue for appetisers, a delightful glass of riesling to accompany dinner and a warm chocolate chip lava cookie sundae to top it all off.

no sifting through the presents under the tree and opening them all up after wishing everyone else merry christmas.

just a simple gift exchange with the others (which i wasn't around for since i was walking to church at the time).

it may not have been a typical christmas, but it will definitely, definitely stay in the memory for many, many years to come.

a merry, merry and blessed christmas to all my friends and family out there from anaheim. i love you all.

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if i had to choose one of my lecturers from ocu as one who i respected and whose company i would enjoy, i would have to say that dr musselman is easily one of my favourites. he's funny and knows so much, it's hard not to love the old coot.

we met him as a class for lunch on our last wednesday in oklahoma and he was talking about our exams and assignments when he started talking to me about mine.

he said he expected to hear big things from me because of that one little essay (well, sorta little 1,585-word essay...) because of the way i wrote it.

it was nice to hear those kind of words of empowerment from someone you respect so deeply... but i just can't help but wonder what old musselman thinks and expects of little old me.

only time will tell.

oklahoma: the second week...

2008-12-17T13:35:00.002+08:00

ok, i know it's a little late and i'm already into the middle of the third week... but the second week in ocu definitely deserves a mention in this remarkable little journey.

we had our television production module and boy, was it some experience. nothing beats a through and through hands on module and it was some really awesome fun. we took turns familiarising ourselves with the various jobs you find in a television studio.

it started a little rough settling into the new roles, but with great teachers like karlie and andy (who looks and sounds a lot like tobey macguire's peter parker and makes all the girls swoon... he's probably one of the nicer chelski fans you'll find out there, even if i can't understand entirely why he likes big JT... anyway, here's your little mention andy! =) around, it eventually became so smooth that we made one pretty awesome final show that was on campus tv live.

with the amount of teamwork involved, it didn't take long for the group to bond with the group of five from the other class and now we're all just having fun as time goes along.

while 20 days isn't exactly the longest period of time ever, i can't help but feel that these 20 days have been no different from rest of the year in terms of the speed it has gone by in. it's like being strapped to a rocket that can hit speeds like mach 5.

i think i'm gonna miss oklahoma, even if there isn't a helluva lot to do around here...

oklahoma: the first week...

2008-12-06T14:31:00.002+08:00

i haven't been able to write as much as i would want to on this sojourn thus far.

when i haven't been down in the pits of depression, i've either been so beat that i just fall asleep on the sofa bed at the lappy, been suffering from a terribly, terribly upset stomach that made me a walking zombie, been online shopping or just plain slacking.

i can't believe it's already been a week and a module past.

just above a week ago i was weeping for hwei yen and everyone at home, drowned out amidst the roaring engines of my northwest flight before finding my way to minneapolis.

before i knew it, the arduous journey to oklahoma was over and after a helluvan eventful week that included walmart visits, cooking attempts, (sorta like) food poisoning, playing with fossils, seeing bison and prairie dogs, buying cowboy boots for jillian and zach and watching a parade (for more information and pictures, please check out the facebook page).

time's still just flying away at a crazy rate, it's scary.

but damn, it's a fun kinda scary.

tinged with a hint of darkness.

in loving memory...

2008-11-29T00:02:00.003+08:00

they say that in serbia, there's an insult that goes "i wish your house will appear on cnn tonight" because that would mean said person's house would have been visited by an american bomb during the airstrikes conducted on kosovo.

after tonight, it is not going to be a phrase i view with much amusement anymore.

more than one hundred and fifty families are going to bed tonight with grief in their hearts for someone who has lost their life within the chaotic maelstrom that is mumbai at this point of time.

and witnessing this grief firsthand, i know it's not a pretty sight.

it's tempting to ask why this has to happen, but in the end, it will be like chasing a shadow.

we have all lost someone very precious to us and my heart and soul goes out to everyone else out there who is feeling exactly the same way.

and i also sincerely hope that no one else has to feel this way either.

rest in peace... you will always live on in our hearts...

two...

2008-11-27T02:20:00.004+08:00

two hours, 21 minutes into thursday.

geez.

i don't know what to feel.

the trip is only a month plus long, yet while i'm excited about going, i'm gonna miss home.

sounds silly huh? especially when everyone just wants to get off this speck of dirt in the south china sea to places where the weather is nicer and the people are friendlier.

especially since i am going to america for a month.

yadda yadda.

it's just... not home.

maybe it's the amount of crap i have to do at the moment that's getting to me.

my room's in shambles and needs tidying. i have a party tomorrow and food to prepare. i have stuff to pack and get ready for the trip. i have church stuff that needs typing and emailing out.

all within the span of less than 2 days.

come to think of it, i'll be heading for the airport in just 50 hours time.

fifty. hours. time.

yikes.

3 days remaining...

2008-11-26T05:54:00.002+08:00

after witnessing yet another scoreless (though probably a much more decent performance as compared to the aston villa game...) draw with villareal (maybe it's something about these villa teams that cause united to stop scoring...), i am five hours and fifty five minutes into the last wednesday of 2008 for me here in singapore.

i've done a fair bit of packing by shoving the clothes i'll use in the states as well as making some decisions to omit certain items that i might not need to make more room for the rubbish i intend to haul back home.

to add another bright spot to my day, i got my american history/politics module results back and scored a nice A. doc musselman's speed of marking is just as incredible as his jokes. and i got an A! *dances a little jig*

ahem.

seriously, i can't imagine the weather over in oklahoma city. i've never set foot in snowy conditions before, and the coldest i've ever been was in london. how cold will it be with lovely white snow on the ground, i have no blinking idea.

but this cold weather should be fun... though i'll probably end up hating to come back and feel the icky humidity when i step off the plane into terminal 1 on 9 jan.

countdown: four days

2008-11-25T00:17:00.002+08:00

well. it's already 17 minutes into tuesday at the time of this scribbling.

it's funny how everything seems to come to a head when you've felt like you've had all the time in the world to do things a week or two ago.

amidst the packing, getting things done before i leave, i suddenly find myself with less and less time as last minute things start popping up.

dinner with the 27 guys either later tonight or on wednesday and a (really) early christmas party with the csa people on thursday has suddenly seen a huge chunk of packing and prep time taken out of the equation.

not that it's a bad thing though as i get to see just about everyone before the so called "great american adventure".

my room still looks very much like a mess... and my stuff remains unpacked though set aside from the stuff that will stay.

still, i'm eager to see america a third time.

especially with a lot of snow tossed into the package this time around.

fan rant...

2008-11-24T01:31:00.002+08:00

oh boy.

just when it looked like we could close the gap on the league leaders, we had to look at the opportunity and let it drift away at villa park.

credit to aston villa though, they played remarkably resolute and at times cracking football.

as a united fan, i cannot help but channel my frustration at a certain wayne rooney who just can't seem to hit the broadside of a castle wall at the moment, let alone work the keeper. he has effectively cost united five precious points had the excellent chances he had against arsenal a fortnight ago as well as last night nestled in the back of the net.

it's disgraceful that a strike force of three with a combined value exceeding 90 million pounds has to be shown in recent weeks how to score by a central defender, a dinosaur of a former winger, a teenage right back from brazil and probably the best winger in the world at the moment.

at least dimi berbatov can hold his head high and say he has tapped in a goal and played important parts in games when he has had the chance to have the ball at his feet.

but to you carlos tevez and especially you, wayne rooney, i say you two jolly well stop running around like headless chickens and stick the ball in the back of the bloody net.

flying on the wings of time...

2008-11-20T00:37:00.003+08:00

it's amazing how time has just been flying out the window this year.

this year has so much going for it for me with two forrays out of the country in the latter half of the year.

july and the wonder of world youth day and australia has come and gone. now, i stand on the edge of the second great adventure of 2008 as uncle sam and lady liberty await my third visit to oklahoma.

and it just seems like january was only yesterday when i registered for wyd. and yet, here i am now, at the tail end of 2008.

just a month ago i was in camp for reservist. two weeks ago i had an exam. and just last week, i had my interview for my visa to the states done up after a long and arduous spell beureaucratic process of form filling.

it's just mindboggling, with this breakneck pace at which life is travelling at. without the time and space to sit back and take a breather, absorbing and pondering about what has just come to past.

makes you wish there were more hours in a day.

2008-11-02T16:13:00.002+08:00

more the engrish!

this had me lol-ing at every line.

bruce wayne = batman = spiderman?!

chiong toys ftw!

insane skill and a bleach song...

2008-10-30T15:42:00.003+08:00

take the classy and eccentric arrogance of eric cantona and toss it into the blender with the goalscoring prowess of ruud van nistelrooy and you get dimitar berbatov.

like the old fox fergie says... you'd pay double the money to see stuff like that. simply genius, pure class.

now for a song... a jap song.

yeah. i'm back in an anime watching mood. bleach is awesome stuff, and so is this opening theme.

i absolutely love the translation for this one. there's something about japanese songs that really give beautiful, poetic translations. makes me wish i had furthered my extremely limited knowledge of jap, but i guess i haven't got much of a choice.

D-technoLife (BLEACH 2nd Opening Theme)
UVERworld

ienai itami kanashimi de kizu tsuita kimi yo
kesenai kako mo seoi atte ikou ikiru koto wo nage dasanai de

tsunaida kimi no te wo

itsuka ushinatte shimau no kana
usurete iku egao to kimi wo mamoritai kara
hibiku boku wo yobu koe sae kare
toki ni sou kaze ni kaki kesaretatte
kimi wo mitsuke dasu

ienai itami kanashimi de kizu tsuita kimi
mou waraenai nante hito girai nante kotoba sou iwanai de
mienai mirai ni okoru koto subete ni imi ga aru kara
ima wa sono mama de ii kitto kizukeru toki ga kuru darou

you and me, two are spoken

itsuka wakari aeru kara

=/=

You've been hurt by unspeakable pain and sadness.
Let's carry each other's indelible stains.
Don't give up on living!

I held your hand.

Will I end up losing them someday?
I want to protect you and your fading smile, so,
Even if the resounding voice calling me should wither,
Even if the mingling winds should tell me,
I will find you!

You've been hurt by unspeakable pain and sadness but,
Don't ever say things like "I can't laugh" or "I hate people."
There's meaning in everything that happens in the unseen future,
So stay as you are for now, I know there'll come a time when you realize it.

You and me, two are spoken.

Someday we'll understand each other.

(romaji taken from animelyrics.com and english translation taken from bleachexile.com)

bleach is awesome. =)

of falling trees and potential paper cuts...

2008-10-17T01:45:00.002+08:00

being an admin spec can sure be a hazardous job.

take yesterday for example.

while i was in the brigade rsm's car on the way to pasir labar camp, a tree fell on the bus stop just outside ntu. it wasn't a really big tree and the stop is still standing, but it did bring back memories of the first day at sungei gedong.

and moments before the tree fell, a really huge branch got blown off the said tree by the absolutely nutty wind and hit the car. the paint was a little scratched, but at least master warrant goh is going to change his car soon, so that's not too bad i guess.

though trust me, the wind and rain were absolutely frightening yesterday.

and of course, today's work involved lotsa paper and the shredder in the ns services office.

scary painful paper cuts were always a worry, though fortunately no harm befell these hands of mine and neither did a finger get lopped off while clearing the shredder of debris as it choked and spluttered after too much paper went into it.

oh, and facing the insane aircon temperatures by other ns men who think they're eskimos is another health hazard. fortunately, i have not yet been touched by the deathly finger of hypothermia either.

remember always kids. life is precious.

well... that was quick.

2008-10-14T21:58:00.002+08:00

as fate would have it, i'm involved in a stay out ict... which means i get to come home everyday.

it's fine and dandy, but considering i stay in the east... well. it's literally a journey to the west every freaking morning.

at least i don't have put on camou cream or go outfield!

just face the big bad chill of the aircon of the lecture theatre where i'm holed up for the day waiting for miscellaneous work to be done.

life's pretty good... if the food from the cookhouse isn't that fantastic.

be back in a bit...

2008-10-13T01:13:00.002+08:00

well. off for make up training in sungei gedong government chalet. whee.

time to leave civvie life for the dull barracks life.

should be back at the weekend hopefully.

take care and enjoy your freedom people. cya all on five! =)

cow curiosity phail...

2008-10-08T23:00:00.002+08:00

fail blog has awesome stuff. this one is absolutely priceless.

moomoo's got a new awesome helmet!

check out fail blog here.

eye-gougingly hardcore...

2008-10-06T10:46:00.006+08:00

when you look at games today, you'll realise that they're actually pretty easy. if you die, there's always a spawnpoint somewhere nearby. or if you saved, it's just a matter of reloading when you're in a jam. missed a power up somewhere? you'll probably amble along, just that you might take a moment longer or need a tinge of good luck.

in other words, gaming has generally gone SOFT.

well, i guess that had to be. it's pretty hard encouraging the casual gamer to keep coming back if they keep dying at the same point again and again and again.

thankfully, capcom has decided to go back to the days of hardcore gaming with the release of mega man 9.

he looks cute, but mega makes casual gamers cry for their mommas.
screen nabbed from mmhp.

yep. the blue bomber is back and boy, are the days of old back.

what? mega's not next gen enough for you? of course he's not next gen enough. HE'S OLD SCHOOL. and like his japanese name, he rocks.

yeah, i've come close to clawing my eyes out whenever i get thumped into a pit by a surprise attack. and i've felt like flinging the 360 controller at the screen whenever i missed a jump by this little bit and ending up on a spike. both means result in death and a backtrack to the start of the stage or the halfway checkpoint if you've somehow made it there.

yes, this game will leave you frustrated. it will leave you cursing and swearing. it will leave you gutted and absolutely devoid of hope at times.

but when you finally manage to clear a stage in mega man, you will feel the real satisfaction of what it's like to play a proper game.

multiply that by 8-10 times and you'll know what it means to have completed a challenging game like this.

i'm still working on it, but i am sure victory will taste as sweet as the raw gaming goodness i'm getting.

animated sprite taken from gsa.

guess there is some decency left in this world after all...

2008-09-13T03:42:00.002+08:00

a few days have gone by on this one, but on monday after going to risen christ church for mass since it was the solemnity of the nativity of mother mary, i was waiting at the bus stop for a 56 to jie's place when this young boy, who's probably in p3 or 4, came up to me and asked if he could borrow my phone.

me being me, i obliged and he called his mom.

few moments later, he returns it with a word of thanks and he scoots off to find her.

no long after that, my phone starts to buzz and i see the number that the lad has just dialled.

oh great, the kid's gone. what now?

i answer the phone and the mother asks if i was the one who lent her son the phone to call her. i say yes and she says thanks me quite profusely in mandarin. i smile and tell her it's nothing.

small gesture? yes.

but a totally unexpected and nice one for sure.

shocking...

2008-09-03T02:05:00.000+08:00

i definitely want me one of those in my soviet base when red alert 3 ships.

transfer window final day intrigue...

2008-09-02T04:45:00.003+08:00

i can't believe i'm actually staying up and following the berbatov saga on sky sports. i guess i want to go to sleep knowing that we have a striker in to reinforce the squad, but there is an amazing amount of other transfer information zipping about on sky's clock watch.

it's unbelievable.

in other things, i've been watching hogan's heroes. if you don't know what it is, it's a classic sitcom set in a german world war two pow camp. no one escapes stalag 13 simply because its inmates can do more harm to the german war effort by helping other prisoners or potential prisoners escape or by sabotage and espionage. it's side splitting stuff and while a little over the top at times, downright ingenius.

schoolwise, i don't really get why everyone's getting so worked up about our new tutor.

yes, he's sarcastic. yes, he's naggy. yes, he's a nitpicker. yes, he does rub people the wrong way.

but we are mere students while he is a producer at channel newsasia. he's seen it all while we've only been weaned off the experience of other lecturers.

we're good for an mdis batch. i don't doubt it for a second.

but i think we need to lighten up a bit and realise that he has much to offer us from his experience if we can just thicken up the epidermal layers a little bit and see through the jibes and nagging for a lesson on how the workplace really will be like.

we also have to speak up because we are pretty darn silent and take a while to get going. i guess he just wants to provoke a reaction and get a response through his sarcasm.

i think it's an absolute rarity to have people coddle you on the job, and i think if we can't tahan 3 days of this, then it's going to be a hard, hard time in the future when the proverbial hits the fan. i might have enjoyed working as a temp in my 3 experiences of working life thus far, but i think i've had it easy as compared to the perm staff who really do have to dole out crapshovelling shifts by the truckload.

sometimes, you just have to take things on the chin.

it never gets old and kinda makes you want to break into song...

2008-09-01T02:13:00.001+08:00

yeah. i'm in love with this song.

back to school... back to writing...

2008-08-25T01:12:00.002+08:00

well, it's back to school again. well, it's been like that since last tuesday actually, but i've been lazy to write.

and it's a writing module again! woohoo.

this time it's all about broadcast and script writing and it does really give you an insight as to how the people you don't see on the camera write.

i'm actually finding myself analysing what i hear on the telly and radio, even trying to imagine the writing terminology that goes into stringing together a bunch of scenes.

mass comm... it just changes the way you look at all things media.

the last day syndrome again...

2008-08-14T01:04:00.002+08:00

it's been an interesting past week. sunday was ol's fun and food fair fundraiser for divine mercy ie the church that will be right at my doorstep in the near future. while helping liz out once i couldn't find anymore proper food to constitute a proper lunch, i made this pretty neat-looking mini-rosary handphone strap with a san damiano cross.

my only problem is that my phone doesn't seem to have one of them little notches for such little trinkets... bugger.

and after that, i had my first rt session for flunking ippt in june. and having the need to weigh myself, i have officially put myself on a diet.

yes. you read that right. a freaking diet.

i know some people (of which my mom and probably the rest of my family don't belong to this group) say that i'm not fat. well, methinks appearances can be deceiving and the numbers doth not a lie tell.

if i want to be free of the scourge of rt, i have less than a month to prepare for my test, otherwise it's another 6 or so evenings wasted.

and as pull ups are an area i need to improve on, i think losing some of the unneeded kilos would help in that particular area pretty much.

now onto the bit which has to do with the title of this post. tuesday was my last day in the office at ibm as school's gonna pile up like a horrible car accident soon. and it feels like deja vu all over again.

this stint in ibm, while riddled with absences thanks to school, is easily my longest period of time spent with one company. and, like i've noted before in my old blog (yeah, i actually went through my friendster blog...), it's an odd bittersweet feeling.

i'm absolutely thankful i could sleep in and wake up at 9am this (wednesday) morning and slack the day away and then haul myself out of the house and off to ntu for mass (which, on another sidenote, was great to be back for. i missed csa!). i'm glad that i don't have the monotony of work to deal with again.

yet, i left behind an office of some good people that i got to know in my time there. and while the nkf schools department from 2005 still have my heart in terms of working environment, i think it's fair to say that the people in ibm run a close second of three. i appreciate the flexibility i was shown in terms of leaving for long periods for school and i enjoyed the company of those around me.

while i say that i will miss the dosh that i was getting, i think the main source of this bittersweetness is definitely the people.

i just hope that i can be blessed with such good colleagues in the future.

it's not perfect, but it's still home...

2008-08-08T03:13:00.003+08:00

i guess this was supposed to come up in the half written entry before the previous one which has been pretty well read judging from all accounts. but i think it deserves a topic on its own.

i've not exactly been an absolute singaporean patriot. yeah, sure, when i was a kid i used to love singing all those national day songs, but as time wore on, cynicism crept in and eventually i stopped singing. and, with my gradual growing disillusion with this country and all it stands for, especially after *that* event in my life, i couldn't look upon the singapore flag with much sense of pride.

a generally ungracious, uncaring, unfriendly and unforgiving city state that was so caught up with status and power and money where life chugs along at an electric pace. the red and white was becoming for me a symbol and cover for all these things that i found messed up with my world.

but wyd came and reminded me that while i have bones to pick with some singaporeans, it doesn't mean the country is entirely at fault or just plain sucks because we can't measure up to other places around the globe. it has its perks and achievements that you just can't find anywhere else.

like for example, i'm all for speaking good and proper english, but it's nice once in a while to indulge in a litle singlish to get a point across lah, especially when some words and situations can only be described with a sprinkle of malay or hokkien.

we may not have a lot of awe-inspiring natural flora and fauna around to marvel at, but we do have clean streets and a good public transport system around.

i found it sad to be at the (hopefully) *last* match at the national stadium that singaporeans were booing the singapore selection xi. i can imagine many brazilian fans around in singapore, but surely it's a little too much when someone in front of you is shouting at the singapore team to "go home."

sure, there are tonnes of things we may not entirely like here, but at least there's enough here to give me semblance on national pride. if not for what we really have achieved, then at least for the wonderful people around me who have shown me their love and care in the past 24 years of my mortal existence.

all because of this tiny little dot in the south china sea.

smitten in sydney...

2008-07-22T00:09:00.004+08:00

humour me as you read this little story i have to tell from my world youth day experience. it's probably not 100% accurate, but the gist is there...

the whole group was on its way to bondi beach on wednesday for the franciscans' come to the water programme. we took a bus there from st francis of assisi on paddington, a 378 if my memory serves me right. i was initially standing as the bus was packed with many other pilgrims on board.

as the crowd in the bus cleared, i eventually found myself seated on the inner seat of the second last row on the left.

being me, i just kept to myself, staring out the window and drinking in the scenery. suddenly, the girl behind me says hello and asks me where i'm from.

singapore, i reply and then ask her where she's from.

paris, she says.

and we begin to chat. i find out that she's studying law and mention that i had been to paris when i was 10 and i mention the eiffel tower.

"oh," she says. "i think i have something you might like!" and she dips into her bag.

a moment later, she fishes out a little eiffel tower keychain.

"that's for you."

i'm momentarily stunned by her spontaneity and the pretty little keychain. and after a wow, i thank her for the gift and say, "hang on, i've also got a little something for you too." i reach into my pouch and pull out one of the merlion pins dad gave me and hand it to her. "it's not much, but that's a merlion..." and i try to explain what it is and what it stands for.

she takes it, and slides the pin out from the sheath and then pins it on her shirt, which she shows me with a smile on her face.

we talk a little more and before long, we reach our destination: beautiful, beautiful bondi beach.

the bus starts to clear out as everyone starts alighting and eventually, the two of us are left at the back.

"after you," i say as i gesture for her to go on ahead first.

"it's ok, go on ahead first," is the reply.

"it's alright, i insist."

"thank you," she says and moves.

as she does so, she adds in a line with a sincerity and appreciation i have never really felt before.

"you're a gentleman."

as i get off the bus after her, i realise i haven't asked her name.

so i turn around and ask her for it.

it's florence, and i give her my name as we shake hands and part.

and then it started, initially as a regret for not taking a photo with her followed by a regret for not getting her number or contact.

her sincerity and spontaneity, kindness and generosity as well as the connection i felt in that short 5, 10 minutes together has made a large impression on me. i've never felt this way before, especially after such a brief meeting.

yet here i am. a fool, fallen for a girl named florence from paris who gave me a keychain of the eiffel tower.

while it looks more and more likely that it is something that is doomed to remain in the realms of fantasy, what happened was truly real.

if it is meant to be, then it will be.

in the meantime, you can bet that i'll be treasuring that little keychain.

before i leave...

2008-07-09T01:56:00.002+08:00

i seriously can't believe world youth day is finally here. i mean it seemed so, so far away when keenan came to talk to us about it last year and told us about the sessions, about the things we would do... then came the sessions and the fundraising and the fellowship and stuff.

and now, here i am, 10 hours before flying off to brisbane.

it's been a wild, wild past few days. lotsa break ups, late night lanning, last-minute shopping plus a long overdue marathon footy session at the cage today. though my naggy back started nagging, it's since gone. inconsistent as usual, but not without some moments that make me smile when i think about them, like the deliberate measured pass that led to the first goal of the day and scoring in the last game. i've come to the conclusion that i operate like a left wingback playmaker, though on the real field, i'd probably die of exhaustion from running up and down the flank like a wild dog.

also managed to get about doing the class and 27 jerseys to boot. can't wait to get them when i come back!

as the clock ticks down to my pilgrimage, i can't help but wonder. what's the weather gonna be like? how cold will it be?? what are we gonna do? who are the people that we're gonna meet? what will they be like?

this is going to be one heckuva 10 days ahead.

see you on the 21st and have a blessed july!

well, this is interesting...

2008-06-20T23:10:00.002+08:00

once more from football365's mediawatch column...

Non-Football Story Of The Day
An academic has worked out a mathematical formula which he says proves June 20 is the happiest day of the year. It is down to a combination of lighter evenings, the prospect of holidays and memories of childhood summers, reports the Daily Telegraph. Are you smiling?

wow. maybe it's gotta do with it being my birthday?

nah. surely not.

but hey, i lay claim to being born on the allegedly happiest day of the year. whoopdeedoo!

post number 300...

2008-06-18T23:37:00.002+08:00

since 2005. well not exactly 300, since there are quite a few unpublished drafts that will never see the light of day... but hey. 300 says the post counter!

anyway, it's not a fantastic post. just brilliance off football365's ever magnificent mediawatch page.

Quote Of The Day
"(Morgan) De Sanctis and Borriello were pretending Holland were leading 2-0 and you cannot joke about that! Borriello made another joke that Marco Van Basten had scored with an overhead kick, so I slapped him" - Proof, if proof were needed, that you don't f**k with Gennaro Gattuso.

and if you haven't watched kung fu panda yet... what the hell are still reading this for? go watch it!

rant: inconsiderate idiots on public transport...

2008-06-15T16:45:00.002+08:00

warning: somewhat unrestrained fury ahead.

oh boy did i start the day on the wrong foot.

i was on a long haul train journey from pasir ris to bukit batok trying to catch some shut eye. when i finally managed to get to sleep, this stupid, inconsiderate bitch boarded my section of the train with madonna's 4 minutes blasting from her phone.

i was rudely awakened from my light slumber, but i tried to tolerate it since i didn't really want to make a scene. but no, she didn't lower her volume despite her music being so loud and it got worse when the person next to me vacated his or her seat. this 'woman' then decided to plomp down next to me.

needless to say, i couldn't get back to sleep again.

and i officially hate that ****ing song with a ****ing vengeance now.

to compound my irritation long after that bitch finally got off, as i was about to alight, there were 4 people standing right in front of the door i was exiting from, 1 young punk and 1 mum with her kid and mum.

i know it wasn't very gentlemanly of me, but i have no sympathy for idiots who insist on blocking my exit route at my stop. and, unfortunately for them, i was already very, very irate. so i walked out forcefully and the woman on the right got a good deal of my shoulder in the process. on hindsight i wish i got the guy too, but my path out took me to the right.

anyway, i stand unapologetic for shoulder barging the woman as i don't consider her actions very ladylike. the yellow lines are there for a reason you ****ing retarded morons. LET ALIGHTING PASSENGERS OUT FIRST AND STAND BEHIND THE DAMN LINE.

is it so ****ing difficult?

alas poor bumblebee, me knew him, slag...

2008-06-10T20:20:00.003+08:00

animated grimlock just rocks.

a trip to the eye doctor's...

2008-06-07T20:26:00.002+08:00

*blows the dust off the blog*... yeah i've been one lazy git. and a relatively uninspired one at that. so much to talk about with the move to elias road, getting my xbox 360 (and all the games... which is why i've not exactly been productive blog wise...), the new nephew (zachary kevin loh zhi kai is his official name... he's the second terror in my book... tho everyone says he looks like me. takes one to know one... O_o), the art module, getting my deferment for world youth day (finally... big big thanks to all who made it possible, including the Big Guy and all who sent Him a word about me! =)... but yeah. life goes on.

and it's pretty good.

anyhow, yesterday, i had a check up at the eye doctor's to follow up on a recommendation from my optometrist after a partial scan of my retina didn't show any apparent damage from getting struck by a basketball about a year or so back.

and after getting my eyes numbed and dilated (the numbing solution stings by the way...), the doc checked me out and found a tear in the right side of my retina.

which needed lasering to repair. whoopdeedoo.

not a difficult choice considering i'm at high risk of suffering a detached retina since i'm so terribly myopic. in case you're not sure on how bad a detached retina is, it means blindness. curtains. yup.

a few more tests, photographing of my eye (which also reveals that i have somewhat abnomally sized optic nerves) and more stinging numbing solution later, i hopped on the operating table and the doc went about his business.

what happens next is pretty surreal, especially when you have to keep still throughout the whole process with this green beam of concentrated light burning away at the back of your eye to weld the tear. it's not exactly the most soothing experience, and honestly, it's damn bloody scary. not only could i feel every zap as the laser pulsed about doing its work, but essentially, my eye was simply blinded during the process. and it hurt too. i even could vaguely see a cloud of reddish purple at the corner of my vision after the initial laser pulses, which was probably blood. after that, my right eye's vision blurred and disappeared in a wave of flashes of bright green light accompanied by pain like needle pricks, but not quite so sharp. there was one flash where i swear i could see what looked like veins or nerves on a whole screen of green, probably as the laser hit my retina dead centre and flooded out my vision with green light.

after all the groaning and tensing which lasted for a five minutes that seemed like an eternity, the laser ceased. and i just burst into laughter, my usual way of dealing with pain and told my mom and sister, who sat through it all, about it. initially i couldn't see outta my right eye, but slowly and surely, it rebooted back to life, albeit feeling like it had been run over by a truck. fortunately, the paracetemol i took before the op started to kick in and dull the pain considerably.

while i got myself a new phone after that, it pales in comaprison to the totally surreal experience i had before that.

now i know why they say never to point a laser at your eyes. it may not be as powerful as the one that stitched my retina up, but i sure as hell wouldn't want one near my eye.

a thought most horrifying...

2008-04-21T22:31:00.003+08:00

sometimes, things are really a helluva lot more easier said than done.

thinking back about today has made me realise just how terrifying it must have been in my friend's shoes when i told him not to worry...

can you ever imagine what it's like to wake up the next morning and have a loved one tell that he or she can't remember who you are?

or would you recommend that loved one to undergo a treatment that could cure their illness or disorder, with the knowledge that they could just come out of it not forgetting everything about you?

i'm filled with nothing but respect for my friend for daring and caring so much.

but at the same time, it just sends an icy chill running down my spine.

back to roost...

2008-04-16T21:56:00.003+08:00

after prowling in the wilderness for about a month or so, i'm back. it's been a somewhat rough past month, but hey, c'est la vie.

the migration to elias road is under way and i'm loving how my new room's shaping up. all i need to do is get a bookshelf and unpack the whole bunch of boxes sitting by the head of my bed and it'll be perfectly habitable. not to mention getting the internet set up and all... as well as the furniture into the living room once all the other boxes have been unpacked. mom hopes to have us there before the jie's second terror arrives into the world...

church wise, it kinda seems to me that i'll be up for some interesting times ahead. easter vigil this year was another fantastic experience and i think i gave the best reading i've ever done in my short time as a lector thus far. what makes me sit up and think is that i'm taking over as the acting secretary as jerome is going out of town... which kinda intrigues and scares me at the same time. wading into church politics, not knowing if i'm afloat or sinking... interesting times ahead indeed.

and before i tuck into my values and culture assignment, i leave you with one of the suckiest ways to die in halo 3. enjoy. thanks ivan.

Halo 3 One in a Million Death - Watch more free videos

ok... correction. this sucks more. thanks pete for this one.

halo 3 traffic cone ownage - Watch more free videos

the servant king

2008-03-20T00:41:00.002+08:00

wow. time just seems to be in overdrive this year. it's already coming to the end of the third month of 2008 and easter is just a few days a way.

have a truly blessed holy thursday everyone!

The Servant King
Graham Kendrick

From heaven you came, helpless babe,
Entered our world, Your glory veiled;
Not to be served but to serve,
And give Your life that we might live.

This is our God,The Servant King,
He calls us now to follow Him,
To bring our lives as a daily offering
Of worship to The Servant King.

There in the garden of tears,
My heavy load He chose to bear;
His heart with sorrow Was torn,
‘Yet not My will but Yours,’ He said.

This is our God,The Servant King,
He calls us now to follow Him,
To bring our lives as a daily offering
Of worship to The Servant King.

Come see His hands and His feet,
The scars that speak of sacrifice;
Hands that flung stars into space
To cruel nails surrendered.

This is our God, The Servant King,
He calls us now to follow Him,
To bring our lives as a daily offering
Of worship to The Servant King.

So let us learn how to serve,
And in our lives enthrone Him;
Each other’s needs to prefer,
For it is Christ we’re serving.

This is our God,The Servant King,
He calls us now to follow Him,
To bring our lives as a daily offering
Of worship to The Servant King.

reliving and relearning...

2008-03-18T00:42:00.002+08:00

was taking a good, hard walk down memory lane once more while unpacking my personal stuff at elias road yesterday. went through most of my Christmas and birthday cards as well as stuff from years past and i realised a few things from what was written within.

one, how much i've changed since then.

two, how much i've stayed the same since then.

three, i've not really kept in touch with quite a few people, which has made decide to resume my Christmas card sending once more this year. even if i have to write and post from freaking oklahoma.

four, i'm really thankful for the friends i've had who i'm still in touch with. going through david's cards was a real reminder of the joy we had doodling on our jotter books in class last time. photos reminded me of the great times we had in the 27th as well as in odac (when jem had that really butchy hairstyle with his hairband and all. not to mention his plastic frame glasses. then again, he was the babe magnet, so what am i to say? though of course, it could've been his personality shining through. oops. sorry bro. don't kill me! lol.). and my warm fuzzies from days of camps, foc or otherwise, long past. gosh.

i also had a learning experience today. rather, i was relearning something i had already known before, just that i hadn't seen the problem in a totally different perspective from where i was looking from. that's life i guess... looking at things from different perspectives and finding the good in those perspectives.

and i close off with this masterpiece from transformers.

keep fighting the good fight.

the match winner...

2008-03-11T21:51:00.002+08:00

it felt like a total blur.

it was the last game of the day. as usual, it was competitive as hell. what's more, the way the teams were split, it was dubbed the speed versus strength duel - all the speedier, smaller guys on one team while the more powerful and physical guys were on the other.

we'd raced to an early lead, but that didn't really matter. eventually we lost it, and i was getting frustrated with myself for not reproducing the good form i had shown in the earlier matches. silly dribbles that lead to turnovers and poor defending on my part eroded the lead into a deficit to a runaway lead.

yet, true to form of *the* last game, we just clawed right back. and eventually, the game was poised on a knife edge at 20 baskets apiece. just one more basket from either side would win the game.

and damn it was taking long to come.

both teams came close. tired legs meant tired defenders and we had a proper game on our hands. there was a mix of openings from various ranges, but none of them found their way in.

then it happened.

we were on the attack after enduring a spell of pressure. the ball found its way to kelvin on the right side of the basket. somehow, i saw an opening and made a run in behind the defense along the touchline and received the good pass from him.

something inside told me to shoot. and, as if it were pure, raw instinct, i rose to take my shot, with my back to the net.

and it sailed through the air, coming off the back board with a thump and swishing into the net.

all i could do to celebrate was punch the air and let out a "yes!" before going over to kelvin to thank him for the pass.

it felt damn bloody good.

quick song post...

2008-03-07T00:53:00.002+08:00

Walking In Memphis
Marc Cohn

Put on my blue suede shoes
And I boarded the plane
Touched down in the Land of the Delta Blues
In the middle of the pourin' rain
W.C. Handy, won't you look down over me
Yeah, I got a first class ticket
But I'm as blue as a boy can be

Then I'm walking in Memphis
Was walking with my feet ten feet off of Beale
Walking in Memphis
But do I really feel the way I feel?

Saw the ghost of Elvis
On Union Avenue
Followed him up to the gates of Graceland
Then I watched him walk right through
Now security they did not see him
They just hovered 'round his tomb
There's a pretty little thing
Waiting for the King
Down in the jungle room

When I was walking in Memphis
I was walking with my feet ten feet off of Beale
Walking in Memphis
But do I really feel the way I feel

They've got catfish on the table
They've got gospel in the air
And Reverend Green be glad to see you
When you haven't got a prayer
But boy you've got a prayer in Memphis

Now Muriel plays piano
Every friday at the Hollywood
And they brought me down to see her
And they asked me if I would
Do a little number
And I sang with all my might
She said,
"Tell me, are you Christian, child?"
And I said "Ma'am, I am tonight."

Walkin' in Memphis
Was walking with my feet ten feet off of Beale
Walkin' in Memphis
But do I really feel the way I feel?

Walkin' in Memphis
I was walking with my feet ten feet off of Beale
Walkin' in Memphis
But do I really feel the way I feel?

Put on my blue suede shoes
And I boarded the plane
Touched down in the Land of the Delta Blues
In the middle of the pouring rain

Touched down in the land of the Belta Blues
In the middle of the pouring rain...

in case you can't connect to the imagery and don't understand the song(like i did initially), go here.

learning to let Him walk with me...

2008-03-05T23:54:00.005+08:00

"Coincidence is God's way of remaining anonymous."

so said the brilliant albert einstein, and the quote now makes its rounds thanks to the local production, the leap years.

well, i don't really know about you, but judging from how it's been with my life of late, i think God rather sucks at being anonymous. not that i'm complaining, mind you.

you could chalk off one coincidence. maybe even two. but when a whole slew of 'em happen in quick succession, you just can't help but feel someone up there's trying to drill something into your thick, mortal noggin.

from small things that happen every day to the bigger things, i just can't help but feel that there's huge overarcing theme that God has planned for me at the moment. i don't know exactly for sure what He's trying to tell me, but i guess my gut feeling can't be far off from what He's saying.

even if i get it wrong, i'm pretty sure whatever i garner from this will just add to my experience bank. as far as i'm concerned, i'm relaxed, refreshed and reassured.

and after all that has gone on, i just hope that i can continue to let jesus walk with me amidst the chaos and madness of everyday life.

sure beats walking alone.

what do you do when you've lost your marbles and then realise you feel like an utter ass for losing your temper?

2008-02-27T00:52:00.004+08:00

blog about it.

duh.

and i really feel like a numbskull right about now.

to those who had to see me in that degenerate state and bear the brunt of my ranting, i'm sorry you had to see me that way and i hope you never have to see that side of me ever again.

The Living Years
Mike & The Mechanics

Every generation
Blames the one before
And all of their frustrations
Come beating on your door

I know that I'm a prisoner
To all my father held so dear
I know that I'm a hostage
To all his hopes and fears
I just wish I could have told him in the living years

Crumpled bits of paper
Filled with imperfect thought
Stilted conversations
I'm afraid that's all we've got

You say you just don't see it
He says it's perfect sense
You just can't get agreement
In this present tense
We all talk a different language
Talking in defence

Say it loud, say it clear
You can listen as well as you hear
It's too late when we die
To admit we don't see eye to eye

So we open up a quarrel
Between the present and the past
We only sacrifice the future
It's the bitterness that lasts

So don't yield to the fortunes
You sometimes see as fate
It may have a new perspective
On a different day
And if you don't give up, and don't give in
You may just be o.k.

Say it loud, say it clear
You can listen as well as you hear
It's too late when we die
To admit we don't see eye to eye

I wasn't there that morning
When my father passed away
I didn't get to tell him
All the things I had to say

I think I caught his spirit
Later that same year
I'm sure I heard his echo
In my baby's new born tears
I just wish I could have told him in the living years

Say it loud, say it clear
You can listen as well as you hear
It's too late when we die
To admit we don't see eye to eye

wisdom from the excellent facebook application, art of war quotes...

2008-02-21T15:57:00.003+08:00

"To begin by bluster, but afterwards to take fright at the enemy's numbers, shows a supreme lack of intelligence."
The Art of War by Sun Tzu
Chapter IX: The Army on the March

oh and this one too.

"We cannot enter into alliance with neighboring princes until we are acquainted with their designs. We are not fit to lead an army on the march unless we are familiar with the face of the country--its mountains and forests, its pitfalls and precipices, its marshes and swamps. We shall be unable to turn natural advantages to account unless we make use of local guides."
The Art of War by Sun Tzu
Chapter XI: The Nine Situations

the beauty of the sky...

2008-02-20T22:45:00.002+08:00

rich in different hues of blue
the sky doth carry other wonders too
from the pretty clouds that cover and conceal
the celestial treasures to be revealed

the stars and the full moon dance through the night
while the clouds and the sun in the day play in the bright
and while we gaze upon these wonders above
we are always reminded of His great love

yep... it's a beautiful sky over bishan tonight. i wish i had a camera that could capture it. the full moon hanging over with the stars all out in twinkling force. the beautiful colours of the sky, with the midnight blue meeting some orange and red just before touching the horizon. it's simply awesome.

couple that with the gorgeous and intricate cloud formations i saw earlier in ntu, it makes for one gaze into the heavens that just reminds you that you're part of something so much bigger.

more musing and ramblings...

2008-02-19T23:02:00.003+08:00

1) is chivalry dead in today's society? why are there some guys who just don't treat women as well as they really should?

2) why do some people fail to see that the people they're dealing with are real people with real feelings and real needs just like themselves?

3) why the hell can't nani do what he did against arsenal on a more consistent basis? was he able to do that because he was up against a rather rubbish justin hoyte? will darren fletcher be able to take more games by the scruff of their neck like he did? and will fergie drop the heroes against arsenal against lyon?

4) why am i struggling so much with this PR assignment? =P

5) does the end always justify the means? is it ever possible to make a decision to benefit the majority as well as the minority?

6) will the world ever truly know peace? is democracy really democracy when it is enforced on another country?

7) is it always prudent to tell it like it is? or is it better to sugarcoat and gloss over an issue and hope it blows over?

once upon a time...

2008-02-11T10:19:00.000+08:00

there were two friends who had a passion for building airplanes. all they ever dreamed about was to get their planes done and up in the sky and fly, hoping that their flights would never, ever end.

one of them wasn't particularly good at making the finer parts of his plane. however, with a bit of effort, he refined his technique as time went by after much trial and error.

and eventually, he finished his plane.

the other friend couldn't build so fast. while his technique was slightly better, he still had troubles with certain parts of the plane, especially with the engine. so he kept on trying as well, until eventually, he too finished his plane.

he then agreed with the first friend on a date to take off so that the two of them could realise their precious dream together.

the day came. the two friends got into the cockpits of their planes and started the engines. the planes coughed and sputtered to life. however, strange noises were emitting from the planes' engines, sounds that just weren't normal.

nonetheless, the pair still decided to take off anyway. after all, their dream of flight was nearing reality!

the planes taxied down their runways and before you knew it, they were in the air. the two friends were ecstatic! they could finally fly!

however, the engines started to sputter and cough again, and almost at the same time, both engines died mid-flight. without their engines, the planes began to plummet from the heavens like falling stars, crashing into the earth.

miraculously, the two friends survived and, after a month in hospital, made full recoveries.

the first friend, however, became disillusioned. he thought he had finally achieved his dream, but in the end, the brief moment of glory turned into calamity. he was shattered. and he swore never again to take to the skies or even think about making a plane again.

while his friend turned his back on their dream, the second friend picked a totally different route. he had tasted his dream, and though it left him in pain when it crashed, he wanted to experience the feeling again.

he wanted to fly once more.

so, he did some research and invested some money into books, especially those about plane engines. as he learnt more each day, he went back to his workshop, applying what knowledge he had gathered and eventually, started work on a new plane.

day by day, his knowledge grew, and so did the plane. the fuselage, the ailerons, the tail fin, the landing gear and the wings slowly took shape.

the path to flight was not without its difficulties along the way. once, his workshop caught fire and after putting out the flames, he discovered that the plane was damaged.

yet the second friend persisted. he rebuilt new parts from scratch and disposed of the damaged ones, even taking the time and care to add in improvements and refinements along the way.

finally, he was left with the engine. while he had not been skilled enough in the past, the second friend got his head down to work, referring even more closely to the books he had bought and attending to the engine with far greater care and skill.

eventually, he finished rebuilding his plane and looked at his calendar and picked a date to fly.

when the day came, the second friend was filled with excitement. this time however, it was also tinged with a touch of trepidation. he had crashed once, and all he could do was hope it would never happen again.

he suited up and trooped into the cockpit, where he started the engine. once more, the engine coughed and sputtered to life. this time, however, the engine purred once it had sprung to life.

the second friend closed his eyes and said a quick prayer, before taking his plane down the runway.

unlike the first time, the plane took to the air and stayed there. for the initial part of the flight, the second friend was anxious and he clung to the sound of the purring engine, hoping and praying that he wouldn't have to experience the dreaded sound of deathly silence once more.

but it was not to be.

the plane flew and flew and flew. and my, did it fly.

the second friend snapped out of his fear, and looked out the plexiglass windows.

and what a sight he saw.

he saw the trees of the forests and the rolling hills. he saw the cities and the people in their cars scuttling across the roads like marching ants. he saw the beautiful blue of the lakes, the streams and the rivers, which led to the vast green-blue oceans that stretched far beyond his horizon.

he didn't want to come down, but eventually, he had to. as the fuel gauge started to reach out and point to empty, the second friend reluctantly came back down and landed on the tarmac.

but as he wheeled his plane into its hangar, he told himself that this was only the beginning and a taste of things to come.

and he went to sleep that night, with a grin on his face, as his dreams were filled with the sights he had seen in the day...

remembering munich and the babes...

2008-02-06T23:59:00.000+08:00

50 years to the day, a tragedy befell not just manchester united or england, but the entire world of football.

8 young men, whose long careers in the world of football lay at their feet, perished when their plane crashed along with 3 staff, 8 journalists, 2 crew and 2 passengers. this tragedy occurred after the plane stopped over in munich for a refuel following the team's european cup match against red star belgrade.

amazingly, some of the players managed to pick themselves up from the shock and return to action some 13 days later. 10 years later, the busby babes, led by sir matt busby, himself a victim of the crash, completed a miraculous turnaround, having not only reclaimed the league title within the time frame, but also winning the competition they were competing in when the tragedy struck, the 1968 european cup.

while the likes of best, charlton, stiles and law stepped to the fore to carve their names in united lore as a result, one could only imagine what was to be had those 8 players lived to see their potential fulfilled. especially so for young 21 year-old duncan edwards, who was described as the boy in a man's body, whose talent was so immense that he made the great bobby charlton feel inferior.

these were the men that set in motion the foundations of the modern day united - flowing attacking football that was pleasing on the eye with the emphasis on the effervescence of youth.

on this dark day, 50 years on, we still remember them, keeping them in our prayers.

players
roger byrne,28
geoff bent, 25
eddie colman, 21
david pegg, 22
mark jones, 24,
duncan edwards, 21
tommy taylor, 26
liam "billy" whelan, 22

club staff
walter crickmer, club secretary
tom curry, trainer
bert whalley, coach

random musings...

2008-02-05T15:36:00.000+08:00

why can't some people just walk one floor up or down and insist on taking the lift?

why do some people think the whole damned universe revolves around them?

why is it beyond some people to just break away from their facade and admit that they aren't what they thought themselves to be?

why do some people insist on deception when simply telling the truth would easily suffice over a pointless white lie?

why do companies insist on using persistently irritating advertisements when they're just annoying the heck out of the customers?

why is it so hard to find a nice word that rhymes with the word 'poem'?

why do radio stations play songs, good and bad, to death by repeating them 24/7?

why does every single english footballer have to find a way to weasel their way into fabio capello's plans by talking in the media when they should be letting their football doing the talking?

and last but not least...

how the heck did a robot from cybertron end up getting the name bumblebee?

would you believe it?

2008-02-03T01:47:00.000+08:00

it's already february. one month of the new year. poof. snap. bang. gone. in the blink of an eye.

time's absolutely flying now ain't it?

it's hard not to love this bunch...

2008-01-25T02:34:00.001+08:00

i was one of the sceptics about transformers: animated. simplistic looking transformers who look like humans with robot bits stuck on like a superhero costume just didn't really do it for me at first, you know?

they're giant friggin' robots for crying out loud! not magneto or superman or whatever superhero have you. transformers teen titans style? nah. no way and no thanks.

but man, was i wrong.

it seems like animated has chosen the path that made beast wars so damn good: they make you care. even though the tone is a little on the kiddy side, the characters are just so darn likeable. whether it's prime and his usual heroic repertoire, the stoic ninja prowl, the cantankerous veteran ratchet, the bumbling gentle giant bulkhead and the kinda-annoying-but-pretty-darn-gutsy bumblebee, they're just written in such a way that you can't help but feel and root for them.

i guess this is going to be the start of a beautiful friendship.

why do...

2008-01-25T02:31:00.001+08:00

some people just don't get the message even after getting their chops busted up before?

or when people around them are desperately trying to drill a message into their thick skulls?

beautiful seeds and seeds of discord

2008-01-23T02:01:00.000+08:00

it's strange how people can grow up together, but a certain few will have their eyes obscured to the changes that come with it.

all of us grow up with time, mature, and eventually blossom with all the beauty and goodness that was placed within each of us. unlocked and coaxed into the world by the warm sunshine of family, the encouraging water of friends and the nourishing soil of knowledge and wisdom, we all begin as seeds that metamorphose, sometimes so quickly and rapidly, into forms that bring joy and richness to those around us.

alas that some should fail to see these changes and only see the plant that has sprouted. they do not see the gorgeous flowers nor do they see the rich fruits. neither do they see the seed, in which carries the potential to transform, not only the seed itself, but the lives of everyone around it.

such people merely see a plant that is to be harvested and used as seen fit. the flowers are seen as accessories for their own beautification and glorification, fruit for their consumption and satisfaction. the seeds? they are fortunate if they are edible, let alone usable and are therefore discarded without recognition of the wonders locked away within their husks, left to be trampled upon along the wayside.

it is easy to recognise the talents and faults one has when people meet for the first time. yet, it is truly a challenge to realise that such talents can grow and misgivings diminish, especially when they unfold right before our very eyes over time.

mysterious ways indeed...

2008-01-20T16:06:00.000+08:00

saturday was a real lesson in the importance of good communication for me. and it left me mystified at just how He seems to make things work.

apart from getting lost around downtown east because i didn't hear jo properly about costa sands DOWNTOWN EAST, which to be fair to myself i had completely no knowledge of, and costa sands PASIR RIS (note to you costa sands people: IT'S DAMN FRIGGIN' CONFUSING WHEN YOU HAVE TWO COSTA SANDS CHALETS IN THE SAME DAMN AREA!), i had such a day in church that i won't soon forget.

tuesday was the first time i felt i was properly involved as the coordinator for 6.30pm's lectors and commentators, so having my first real test within the same week seems either really appropriate or just plain suay.

i'll try and cut a long story short: i send new roster, email gets lost in clutter, i don't check whether message was passed, no commentator for mass half an hour before it began, i sorta panic, commentator manages to get someone to sit in.

and i was reading on saturday to boot.

uncannily, my reading was about God working all the time, even quietly throughout the tough, testing and trying times.

and after the whole episode, it's something that i agree wholeheartedly with.

sometimes it just puzzles...

2008-01-16T12:23:00.000+08:00

after attending my first lector and commentator comm meeting, it's kinda puzzling, yet at the same time, astounding, how people in a church all wish to serve God, but in their own distinct, individual styles.

despite the differences, the politics and sometimes, chaos, everything just seems to move along.

kelly used the classic "God works in mysterious ways" phrase.

she's right.

and only God can somehow get it all to work, despite the imperfections and inefficiencies.

and it feels funny to be involved in an exco again, not to mention being the newest and youngest head around.

"He works in ways,
we cannot see.
He will make a way for me."

song time

2008-01-13T16:56:00.000+08:00

Built To Last
Mêlée

I've looked for love in stranger places
But never found someone like you
Someone whose smile makes me
Feel I've been holding back
And now there's nothing I can't do

Cos this is real, and this is good
It warms the inside just like it should
But most of all, most of all
It's built to last
(It's built to last)
It's built to last

All of our friends saw from the start
So why didn't we believe it too?
Yeah, now look where we are
You're in my heart now
And there's no escaping it for you

Cos this is real, and this is good
It warms the inside just like it should
But most of all, most of all
It's built to last

Walking on the hills that night
With those fireworks and candlelight
You and I were made to get love right

Cos this is real, and this is good
It warms the inside just like it should
But most of all, most of all
It's built to last
(It's built to last)

Cos you are the sun in my universe
Considered the best when we've felt the worst
And most of all, most of all
Most of all, most of all
Most of all, most of all
It's built to last

back at work and hopelessly lost...

2008-01-07T13:20:00.000+08:00

it's the first day back at ibm after a month's absence thanks to school.

and i'm as lost as a sheep that has wandered into the dark, unfamiliar woods.

the month in school has left a fine coat of rust over my brain's ibm section that's proving rather hard to scrub off.

i seriously wish i had a nice, long break.

5 jan 2008 was a really good day because...

2008-01-06T03:40:00.001+08:00

1) i somehow managed to sleep only 2 hours and get through the day. well almost.

2) helped uncle gerard shift his stuff from one flat to another across the hallway. with nick, we shifted his bedroom, gabby's and sabrina's bedrooms, his dining room and his living room, which included the honking big tv and hi-fi set.

3) i left home with 1 bag and came back with 3. left the house with 2 sets of clothes and returned with a huge tonne of clothes, including some mighty fine winter wear for sydney and oklahoma.

4) got a nice angpao for the moving work.

5) though i was late for mass by 10 minutes and i was commentating, it was probably one of the smoothest masses i've had in recent memory. even though i kinda drifted off to the border between deep prayer and sleep while father augustine sang his eucharistic prayer and had to rely on the organ playing the final doxology to jolt me back to reality. and i still changed the slide on time. woot.

6) helped a cabby out of waringin park while i was walking to godpa's to pick up my bags that gek lye ee ee and nick helped hold at their place. and i got a lift up the one slope for my trouble. haha.

7) the gift. as well as reaction. =)

8) as i approached the door when alighting at bishan, i saw this guy in the corner of my eye pump his fist as i squeezed my way to the front. as the doors opened, he said, "go man u!". needless to say, i was wearing my hargreaves united jersey, though i guess he was left a little disappointed as i walked out and asked his friend, "scholes?"

9) i'm pretty much in an unfazably good mood. the only person who drew some ire from me was this girl on the train with an awful fasion sense. even the little kid who tried to cut in front of me to get water while i ordered jie's kfc didn't so much get a frown from me. and having a flying fork (yeah, you read that right) bounce off my arm from the other counter simply drew raised eyebrows due to high amusement.

10) united won 2-0 in the fa cup with an r&r (ronaldo&rooney) strike in the last 10 minutes. and they were pretty nice looking moves to boot. and because i fell alseep and missed the first half, i pretty much got all the action that i needed. and since there was no premier league footy tonight, it meant no s**tball channel with their s**tty pundits with their s**tty "expert" punditry.

and i still haven't included hearing about ollie's pap cocktail function where all the mps called everyone "comrade". i had a ball with the animal farm and communist jibes after that. it's so ridiculous.

5 jan 2008 rocked.

totally.

change

2008-01-04T02:38:00.000+08:00

a blog is a cyber soliloquy, really. in this small, tiny space in the world wide web, i enunciate my thoughts and experiences, seemingly to myself, articulating them into clearer, more streamlined stories and processes as i try to make sense of it all. at the same time, i usually do not engage anyone in direct conversation. yet, these words are here for all the world to see, like an invisible stage that i often fail to realise exists even as i re-enact and unfold my story upon it.

i am merely an actor, you, dear readers, are the audience and the blog is my stage.

hope you guys like the title change. i won't change the banner though.

after all, that's what my soliloquies are about most of the time anyway.

mommy, are the monsters gone yet?

2008-01-02T02:19:00.000+08:00

aliens vs predator 2 might not be everyone's cup of tea. i suppose the plot was predictable, the carnage mindless and the details that only fans of both franchises would appreciate would be missed by most who did not watch the previous incarnations of either alien or predator.

but it did leave me with something to reflect upon.

the young daughter of the female protagonist asks her mother after they escape the nightmare of alien infestation and nuclear bombing of their former town if the monsters are gone as soldiers set up a defensive perimeter arond them.

who are the monsters?

the mindless aliens/xenomorphs, programmed by nature to kill and replicate?

or the hulk that is known as the predator, killing and taking body parts for trophys for sport?

or was it the government portrayed in the film? the same government that the people trusted to rescue them amidst their crisis, only to receive fiery, thermonuclear death at the hands of their very own air force.

or could it be that monster that is locked deep within each and every one of us?

are the monsters really gone?

here's to 2007... and hello 2008

2007-12-31T20:37:00.000+08:00

it's been a strange year, 2007.

it was not without change and not without trial.

yet, it has been a year of blessings and happy times as well.

and i'm happy to say it ends on a good note.

so, farewell 2007.

and welcome, 2008, with all its surprises in store.

happy new near everyone!

a day of firsts...

2007-12-31T00:13:00.000+08:00

sprained my ankle in a totally new and stupid way today. was playing basketball and trying to dribble pass ollie. somehow, i lost my balance and tripped all over myself and fell flat on my sorry ass. my left foot landed flat on the ground before the rest of my leg, spraining the bit of the ankle above the heel. not the traditional ankle sprain at the sides, but at the back. couldn't run, so i sat out a game and iced it. i'm not immobile, as i took back to the court after the ice melted without much discomfort. but the ankle is slightly swollen at the back and i can't angle my foot downward.

after attending a wake, i soon found myself at the new home for the first time.

well, not really the first time at the place. more like first time there after the rennovations. i like the place. it's big, and so's my room. i almost feel like i have too many cupboards in my room to use up. took a few photos and those will follow shortly once i feel not-so-lazy enough to fish out the mmc adapter as well as the mmc itself from the phone.

got my first nap in the new home too, after wiping the aircons and fans since most of the cleaning was done by the time i got there.

oops.

it's going to be an interesting and intriguing 2008.

unto us is born a saviour...

2007-12-24T17:54:00.000+08:00

finally finished wrapping up my christmas presents. with just enough time to spare before i get ready for the traditional visit to sji for christmas vigil mass.

somehow, this christmas feels... different. i don't feel as excited as i used to. on the contrary, i feel a little more peaceful.

the joyous expectation is there, just more quietened.

i can't wait for midnight to come.

merry christmas everyone. may His peace be upon you all.

musings...

2007-12-19T11:18:00.000+08:00

i threw my keys down the rubbish chute last night. argh. got caught in two minds as i was clearing up my dinner as i wanted to toss the pepsi bottle into my plastic bag, but i saw my keys and wanted to remember to bring them into the room. instead, i tossed them into the plastic bag without so much as blinking, only to realise my screw up when i saw the pepsi bottle still standing on the coffee table on re-entering the living room. insert a good, solid homer doh here.

i'm getting sucked into facebook. damn you nick for inviting me to add the transformers app. lol. now, me grimlock am eating bad decepticon children who stay up past their bedtime. roar.

speaking of transformers, i think i appreciate the strong writing and characterisation after chatting with ollie about how the guys could fit certain characters. i figured i'm pretty much like bumblebee, lau's as cantakerous as ironhide and chung's the quietly capable ultra magnus while dod is as treacherous as skywarp. and jem's hot rod. don't ask me why. i picked rhinox for ollie. suits him pretty well. it's a pity sometimes that optimus prime and megatron overshadow the rest of the transformers lore there is. there's a rich world of characters that almost anyone can relate to because they're just so well written.

christmas is just under a week away. chatting with kelly kinda made me realise that i should try and do something for christmas this year, even if it might be getting something small for everyone. i think marks and spencer is going to like me quite a bit this week.

and to end off, something about the origin of candy canes that i got from kelly.

A candy maker in Indiana wanted to make a candy that would be a witness, so he made the Christmas Candy Cane. He incorporated several symbols for the birth, ministry, and death of Jesus Christ.

He began with a stick of pure white, hard candy. White to symbolize the Virgin Birth and the sinless nature of Jesus, and hard to symbolize the Solid Rock, the foundation of the church, and firmness of the promises of God.

The candymaker made the candy in the form of a “J” to represent the precious name of Jesus, who came to earth as our savior. It also represents the staff of the “Good Shepherd” with which He reaches down into the ditches of the world to lift out the fallen lambs who, like all sheep, have gone astray.

Thinking that the candy was somewhat plain, the candymaker stained it with red stripes. He used the tree small stripes to show the stripes of the scourging Jesus received by which we are healed. The large red stripe was for the blood shed by Jesus on the Cross so that we could have the promise of eternal life, if only we put our faith and trust in Him.

have a good wednesday people.

already half way through the last month of the year...

2007-12-17T03:24:00.000+08:00

good grief. is december flying or what?

i still don't believe it's already the 17th of december and christmas is just next week!

well... just when you thought things were starting to get better...

2007-12-14T02:07:00.000+08:00

right. finally, i started feeling the end of my snarky side.

BUT.

the damned army had to send me a love letter to come back on 7 july 2008.

which presents me one helluva huge headache, cos it falls upon world youth day in sydney next year AND in the middle of lessons.

i would defer my lessons, but now i have one more variable in the mix.

ain't that just freaking dandy?

not the best person to be around right about now

2007-12-11T01:47:00.000+08:00

dammit. it's snark season again. the extended rain and crappy schoolwork have finally conspired to hit the instant depression/ultimate crank/uber groucho button.

and it's triggered the inner snark. whoop-dee-freaking-doo.

though if there is one good thing, i'm not biting. yet. although i might be tearing through your chops on the inside.

friggin' hate getting into this mode which just goes for no good goddamned reason.

rargh.

contradictory feelings...

2007-12-10T03:39:00.001+08:00

i know i said i should be trying to cherish my time in school... but as much as i'm enjoying this module in advertising, i have to say that i'm loathing the work. needing to come up with a presentation for an ad campaign is pretty tough, and i honestly feel quite lost. i know what i want to do with this, but trying to verbalise my thoughts is a real challenge. i dunno why, but i just feel like i'm lacking the words to describe my thoughts.

funnily enough, i've been flowing rather freely in terms of creative ideas for the ads. from sorta being like a comic book artist doing the storyboards for tv ads to conceptualising and writing the scripts for the radio ads, i'm enjoying this little bit of the assignment.

if only i could contribute more to the bigger picture...

there's always a silver lining...

2007-12-03T02:26:00.000+08:00

i was pretty bummed out that after running the vulture gauntlet, weaving through horrendously packed spaces and spending $60 of my hard-earned paycheque to get 2 1gig sticks of ram, my compaq could only support the newer ddr2 667 ram sticks that i was eyeing but decided to avoid in order to play it safe.

fortunately, i've found a willing taker for the poor, homeless 533s in the form of this old gal who's been clamouring for a ram fix.

yep, my coming-to-two-years-old toshi now has more ram than my new compaq. at least till tomorrow anyway.

greg's lair: my cyber soliloquy

why, hello there...

in loving memory...

just... cannot... sleep...

happy halloween!

another fantastic sunday

rediscovery...

basketball, basketball... i need a fix.

slam dunk da funk...

spider-man vs mickey mouse? it just might happen...

random musing again at 4am...

one quick word about the match before i sleep...

your laughter

now that's a response

good man

exasperation and frustration of the highest order...

house and up...

deja vu... ain't it mr crossroads?

let's try and get the engine running again...

campione!

some observations from the time since the last update...

does absolute power corrupt absolutely?

dilated pupils, masterpiece grimlock and change...

the world is just awesome

it's about time...

it wasn't an easy game...

it raised my blood pressure again...

politics sucks...

this is why news people don't wear green. take note kids.

well... i didn't really expect that...

surprise... another update.

a 12 year-old who could put an adult to shame...

they're baaaaaaaaaaaaaack...

last post from anaheim...

new year, universal studios and an old girlfriend...

downtown LA, vegas, the sheer awesomeness of the grand canyon and day one in hollywood...

oklahoma: week 3, anaheim, disneyland and christmas...

oklahoma: the second week...

oklahoma: the first week...

in loving memory...

two...

3 days remaining...

countdown: four days

fan rant...

flying on the wings of time...

insane skill and a bleach song...

of falling trees and potential paper cuts...

well... that was quick.

be back in a bit...

cow curiosity phail...

eye-gougingly hardcore...

guess there is some decency left in this world after all...

more video fun...

shocking...

transfer window final day intrigue...

it never gets old and kinda makes you want to break into song...

back to school... back to writing...

the last day syndrome again...

it's not perfect, but it's still home...

smitten in sydney...

before i leave...

well, this is interesting...

post number 300...

rant: inconsiderate idiots on public transport...

alas poor bumblebee, me knew him, slag...

a trip to the eye doctor's...

a thought most horrifying...

back to roost...

the servant king

reliving and relearning...

the match winner...

quick song post...

learning to let Him walk with me...

what do you do when you've lost your marbles and then realise you feel like an utter ass for losing your temper?

wisdom from the excellent facebook application, art of war quotes...

the beauty of the sky...

more musing and ramblings...

once upon a time...

remembering munich and the babes...

random musings...