i'm SO ENVIOUS of people who find themselves in the right company all the time. they've got great friends and cousins who share similar interests. like how guys always find football kakis to play with or a best friend to call at random times, and how girls just spend quality time with each other.
man, sometimes i feel so lonesome 'cause my network (of people i know) isn't very tight, or accessible. i really wish i have cousins of my age and who're living a life similar to mine, then there would be so much to do! or have a close relation with my sibling and have more siblings. so sweet to see some of my friends' families being rather close, especially between my friends and their brothers and sisters.
and then, when i see couples doing PDA, i want to be that guy snogging the girl (lol). they've found their happiness! so lucky of them.
all i want is a BFF (best friend forever). he/she will make my life a perpetual sunshiny day. but it's impossible to have a bff. for some reason, one day there'll be nothing left to be happy about having each other as a bff. it seriously sucks when your bff parts abruptly, when you never wanted it to. and it takes too long to get over an ex-bff. waaaah.
no, add 'a fantastic body' to my never-will-be-fulfilled-because-i'm-too-lazy wishlist. i watched part of the sex and the city movie, and WOW THE BRIEF SEX SCENES ARE HOT! how odd, that although having a totally taut and buffed body (probably) doesn't improve the physical pleasure by much - i mean, flabby people enjoy sex just as much right? - just imagining that you are "the ownage" boosts your libido quite a bit, uh huh.
oh, and yesterday i went swimming at 4pm (least packed time, since workers have yet to knock off). and to my amazement, some of the old fogeys are SO TONED AND BUFF and big in all the right areas. uh huh uh huh... if i'm as muscled as them when i'm their age i must say my life has been pretty good.
in other words, my attempt at having the simple, contented life is failing as of now :(
it's too irresistable to entertain depressing thoughts and not let go of them by looking at the bright sunny sky outside my window. i really love to enjoy the weather, but thinking about things are so much more indulge-worthy.
i do hope my sine-curve pattern of happiness and sadness is a phase of teenhood. else it'll be hard to be happy in the long term haha.
Tuesday, December 30, 2008
Monday, December 29, 2008
post xmas parties
played on the wii at huimin's place through the night...
those who survived through the night.
lol xixun your face damn funny can.
ok, at kevin's place playing rock band...
***
but for some reason, i feel so lonely now. haha :(
Thursday, December 25, 2008
"did you know your body..." grossology documentary
did you know:
your ear can store earwax up till 1cm large!?
well, i didn't know that, until a few days ago!
wonderful self discovery (lol)
basically, to K.I.S.S, my hearing in my left ear got pretty muffled, and i tried to scratch whatever's blocking my ear to no avail. and then, i tried to use water to flush it out. you got to use a syringe (without the needle!) and just pour water into the ear repeatedly.
and then, ta-da! out came the now-foreign particle which caused disharmony in self!
OMG A (NEARLY) 1CM-BIG EARWAX!?
i'm amazed at what my body can do!
but now, after all the attempts at getting that dissonance out, i got a earache, probably an infection :'(
oh yea, MERRY CHRISTMAS to everyone!
your ear can store earwax up till 1cm large!?
well, i didn't know that, until a few days ago!
wonderful self discovery (lol)
basically, to K.I.S.S, my hearing in my left ear got pretty muffled, and i tried to scratch whatever's blocking my ear to no avail. and then, i tried to use water to flush it out. you got to use a syringe (without the needle!) and just pour water into the ear repeatedly.
and then, ta-da! out came the now-foreign particle which caused disharmony in self!
OMG A (NEARLY) 1CM-BIG EARWAX!?
i'm amazed at what my body can do!
but now, after all the attempts at getting that dissonance out, i got a earache, probably an infection :'(
oh yea, MERRY CHRISTMAS to everyone!
Monday, December 22, 2008
fuzzy memories of olden days, happy golden days...
the current batch of raffles chorale j2s were GOOD! (i'm a j4 this yr, btw)
the solos by both the guys and girls were outstanding! really, really wonderful voices.
they even did a comedic re-enactment of mummy kissing santa claus, weaved into song! so cute!
my fw3nZ (:
x'mas is here... should exercise a bit more to counter the up-sized meals i'm probably to have in the following days.
ah, today i realised i may face the prospect of being unemployed until chinese new year or even later. that means no spending power ): on the bright side, i'm totally free to do what i think i really ought to do :D
i banked in some cash and my first pay cheque today, and realised i blew a lot of money this month! i've no idea how. possibly on transport (i think i cabbed a few times), food (ate out at least 5 days a week), books (i spent a lot at kinokuniya@bugis one day), and entertainment stuff. quite disgusting, how fast the digits fly away from the bank account book, haha.
oh, and to celebrate jeanette aw being mediacorp's next ah jie (they say she'll take fann wong's place), here's a reprise of the drawing i drew of her! lol.
the solos by both the guys and girls were outstanding! really, really wonderful voices.
they even did a comedic re-enactment of mummy kissing santa claus, weaved into song! so cute!
my fw3nZ (:
x'mas is here... should exercise a bit more to counter the up-sized meals i'm probably to have in the following days.
ah, today i realised i may face the prospect of being unemployed until chinese new year or even later. that means no spending power ): on the bright side, i'm totally free to do what i think i really ought to do :D
i banked in some cash and my first pay cheque today, and realised i blew a lot of money this month! i've no idea how. possibly on transport (i think i cabbed a few times), food (ate out at least 5 days a week), books (i spent a lot at kinokuniya@bugis one day), and entertainment stuff. quite disgusting, how fast the digits fly away from the bank account book, haha.
oh, and to celebrate jeanette aw being mediacorp's next ah jie (they say she'll take fann wong's place), here's a reprise of the drawing i drew of her! lol.
Sunday, December 21, 2008
vow: i will try my best not have a night life (lol)
omg, so expensive leh! just 5 hours of kbox sets you back THAT MUCH!!
ok, so i'm happier nowadays (all of a sudden). though there are missing parts of my life, things will be fixed along the way so i'm still being happy :D
i have a book fetish, i realise. i haven't read most of the books i bought! maybe they will keep me company from the day i retire lol. that's a lot to read in 10, 20 years...
my christmas wish should really be, to have 10 more years of youth so that i can do so much more with it! haha... now that's quite a negative thought, actually. no, i must ENJOY TODAY.
wow, it' s so breezy and sunny outside... off to lunch!
omg, so expensive leh! just 5 hours of kbox sets you back THAT MUCH!!
ok, so i'm happier nowadays (all of a sudden). though there are missing parts of my life, things will be fixed along the way so i'm still being happy :D
i have a book fetish, i realise. i haven't read most of the books i bought! maybe they will keep me company from the day i retire lol. that's a lot to read in 10, 20 years...
my christmas wish should really be, to have 10 more years of youth so that i can do so much more with it! haha... now that's quite a negative thought, actually. no, i must ENJOY TODAY.
wow, it' s so breezy and sunny outside... off to lunch!
Saturday, December 20, 2008
works in progress
it is day 2 since i told myself to ENJOY the moment...
so far, i've been in a pleasant mood! :D
after the choir concert yesterday, i chatted with xixun and liansheng somewhere along the quay near raffles place =) eh, the quay area is really really breezy at night! would be cool if i could sleep on the walkway next to the river, under the starrrrs.
and, i have this fantastic business idea! we can have a singapore river hotel, and the 'rooms' are actually boats on the singapore river! then, customers who don't know how to operate a boat can opt to anchor the boat somewhere for the night, whereas those who can steer can be allowed to drive it around :D:D
can enjoy the sights and sounds and smells along the singapore river!
perfectly romantic~
yesterday was also stage one of my operation cleanup. tidied up the living room table, piano top and the kitchen table (esp. things that belong to me).
today: stage two (incomplete). - my bedroom D: very hard to clear, i accumulate rubbish very very fast! and i tell you, i have enough books to fill a box 50x30x60cm large!!! no, it doesn't include my sec sch/jc notes and books, of which i kept most of them O_o geez, i'm spending a hefty sum on books... i think i need to buy a bookshelf for my books...
so far, i've been in a pleasant mood! :D
after the choir concert yesterday, i chatted with xixun and liansheng somewhere along the quay near raffles place =) eh, the quay area is really really breezy at night! would be cool if i could sleep on the walkway next to the river, under the starrrrs.
and, i have this fantastic business idea! we can have a singapore river hotel, and the 'rooms' are actually boats on the singapore river! then, customers who don't know how to operate a boat can opt to anchor the boat somewhere for the night, whereas those who can steer can be allowed to drive it around :D:D
can enjoy the sights and sounds and smells along the singapore river!
perfectly romantic~
yesterday was also stage one of my operation cleanup. tidied up the living room table, piano top and the kitchen table (esp. things that belong to me).
today: stage two (incomplete). - my bedroom D: very hard to clear, i accumulate rubbish very very fast! and i tell you, i have enough books to fill a box 50x30x60cm large!!! no, it doesn't include my sec sch/jc notes and books, of which i kept most of them O_o geez, i'm spending a hefty sum on books... i think i need to buy a bookshelf for my books...
Thursday, December 18, 2008
my "xuantasy"
http://blog.sina.com.cn/xuantasy
lol... hm stumbled on this blog while reading an online forum :D so funny, since when was i this ga-ga over celebrities (apart from hikki)...
oh i realised something about myself, very surprising this hasn't crossed my mind properly before till now! i'm putting too much pressure on myself to excel in everything possible, that i'm not enjoying my life at all...
everything! from my image, my friendships, my health, my time management...
so i (finally) understand what people mean when they say "singaporean students are overly pressurised to achieve". can you imagine, i never thought of it this way? i always think i'm lacking of so many things: perserverence, manliness (er, lol?), attractiveness, cool attitude etc.
ahhhh. what's wrong with me ah. i shouldn't keep thinking of being "the best i can be", should i?
and then when people praise me for whatever i'm good at, i would think about myself holistically and conclude i'm still "not there yet". yet, how i wish i could live the life of so many of my friends. many of them (seem) more content with their lives than i am with my own lol.
SO!
from now on, i will STOP thinking about what i'm going to achieve with my short life, and focus on what i WANT TO DO, because I WANT TO BE HAPPY!!!!!
tomorrow, here's my plan!
ENJOY myself while running or swimming (depends on the weather), then i might go out to ENJOY lunch with my ex-colleagues, and at night i will ENJOY a delightful church choir concert at vch!
ENJOY ENJOY ENJOY!
lol... hm stumbled on this blog while reading an online forum :D so funny, since when was i this ga-ga over celebrities (apart from hikki)...
oh i realised something about myself, very surprising this hasn't crossed my mind properly before till now! i'm putting too much pressure on myself to excel in everything possible, that i'm not enjoying my life at all...
everything! from my image, my friendships, my health, my time management...
so i (finally) understand what people mean when they say "singaporean students are overly pressurised to achieve". can you imagine, i never thought of it this way? i always think i'm lacking of so many things: perserverence, manliness (er, lol?), attractiveness, cool attitude etc.
ahhhh. what's wrong with me ah. i shouldn't keep thinking of being "the best i can be", should i?
and then when people praise me for whatever i'm good at, i would think about myself holistically and conclude i'm still "not there yet". yet, how i wish i could live the life of so many of my friends. many of them (seem) more content with their lives than i am with my own lol.
SO!
from now on, i will STOP thinking about what i'm going to achieve with my short life, and focus on what i WANT TO DO, because I WANT TO BE HAPPY!!!!!
tomorrow, here's my plan!
ENJOY myself while running or swimming (depends on the weather), then i might go out to ENJOY lunch with my ex-colleagues, and at night i will ENJOY a delightful church choir concert at vch!
ENJOY ENJOY ENJOY!
快乐的巅峰。。。
http://ajollyaffair.wordpress.com/
白薇秀的中文博客！
她对中文的掌握相当好耶！只是口才方面差了一些（你曾看过她接受访问的录影片段吗）。欧萱华语的基础似乎比白薇秀好一点，不过她的口腔实在太“红毛派”，听起来不顺耳。。。
哈。（好像曾经有说过）我在此用中文是为了练习自己的中文表达能力（辛苦！我很不喜欢用输入汉语拼音的方式打字）。
phew. so hard to type chinese!!! and i take a few seconds to construct a sentence nicely before i type it out! i must use chinese more often! and not just to order food at hawker centres...
but it's quite difficult to practise it in singapore, where quite a lot of people (the younger generation) don't speak standard mandarin. also, i realise that the chinese vocabulary is less extensive in certain areas (in areas of science and technology), or is so rarely used even by native mandarin speakers, they sometimes resort to describing what they're trying to say using very common everyday language. it doesn't help at all either that the amount of chinese we're learning in school is SO LIMITED! i think it may help if we learn one more subject in the chinese language.
we're in the PERFECT position to play a huge role in transnational businesses between china/taiwan and the rest of the (english-speaking) world! but quite a good portion of us can't really express ourselves decently (not in a juvenile manner, i mean mature) in chinese/mandarin, let alone try to talk business in mandarin! we should take advantage of our bilingual ability and conquer china and the world haha! (well that's what i realised when i almost got the free trip to europe as someone's translator).
anyway, last day of internship... glad that i learnt LOTS through it. the people there were really nice and friendly, too! now, i need to reorganise my short term plan for the next few weeks :/ quite a handful haha!
first, must exercise! i read from somewhere that girls like men with a shoulder-waist circumference (or is it length?) ratio of about 1.6! that's the mystical golden ratio! so my aim now is to achieve that ratio in those parts of my body (and hopefully my entire body is the embodiment of the golden ratio)!!!
shagged out X_X
白薇秀的中文博客！
她对中文的掌握相当好耶！只是口才方面差了一些（你曾看过她接受访问的录影片段吗）。欧萱华语的基础似乎比白薇秀好一点，不过她的口腔实在太“红毛派”，听起来不顺耳。。。
哈。（好像曾经有说过）我在此用中文是为了练习自己的中文表达能力（辛苦！我很不喜欢用输入汉语拼音的方式打字）。
phew. so hard to type chinese!!! and i take a few seconds to construct a sentence nicely before i type it out! i must use chinese more often! and not just to order food at hawker centres...
but it's quite difficult to practise it in singapore, where quite a lot of people (the younger generation) don't speak standard mandarin. also, i realise that the chinese vocabulary is less extensive in certain areas (in areas of science and technology), or is so rarely used even by native mandarin speakers, they sometimes resort to describing what they're trying to say using very common everyday language. it doesn't help at all either that the amount of chinese we're learning in school is SO LIMITED! i think it may help if we learn one more subject in the chinese language.
we're in the PERFECT position to play a huge role in transnational businesses between china/taiwan and the rest of the (english-speaking) world! but quite a good portion of us can't really express ourselves decently (not in a juvenile manner, i mean mature) in chinese/mandarin, let alone try to talk business in mandarin! we should take advantage of our bilingual ability and conquer china and the world haha! (well that's what i realised when i almost got the free trip to europe as someone's translator).
anyway, last day of internship... glad that i learnt LOTS through it. the people there were really nice and friendly, too! now, i need to reorganise my short term plan for the next few weeks :/ quite a handful haha!
first, must exercise! i read from somewhere that girls like men with a shoulder-waist circumference (or is it length?) ratio of about 1.6! that's the mystical golden ratio! so my aim now is to achieve that ratio in those parts of my body (and hopefully my entire body is the embodiment of the golden ratio)!!!
shagged out X_X
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
Monday, December 15, 2008
as fate would have it, it seems i DID forget to accept NUS's offer. or their application system screwed up along the way (not likely), or my internet connection went psychotic when i tried confirming the application online (likely)
ok, hopefully i get reinstated! else, must reapply D: tuition costs up 10% for s'pore prs!!! geez.
ok, hopefully i get reinstated! else, must reapply D: tuition costs up 10% for s'pore prs!!! geez.
Sunday, December 14, 2008
what i've been up to this weekend...
not too often that i get so much excitement in my life. here we go:
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| From 13 to 14 Dec 2008 |
went to my friend's architecture exhibition at bras basah complex, right after the buffet lunch with zulu plt 4 04/08 batch. i realise i need to specify the exact batch, because i know there's people from at least 3 batches who still read my blog! haha. anyway, the exhibition presents works done by architecture students who formed a studio (tutorial group, if you would), bras basah complex 4th floor (to the right of basheer bookstore - beside the escalator). go see! it's around next week or so only...
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| From 13 to 14 Dec 2008 |
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| From 13 to 14 Dec 2008 |
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| From 13 to 14 Dec 2008 |
haha... today (sunday) we carolled at st andrew's community hospital. it's a non-profit voluntary welfare organisation, just next to changi general hospital. anyway, we sang 4 wards x 5 floors = 20 times, once per ward! that's about, 40 songs??? (well we had to repeat our songs)
really very shagged by the 2nd floor that we sang at lol!
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| From 13 to 14 Dec 2008 |
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| From 13 to 14 Dec 2008 |
the crazy bunch (actually crazy only applies to the girls + wenjun)
ah, the next week is here! *breathes*
it'll be another tiring but exciting week! got dance lesson tomorrow (yes you're stifling your laugh, i know it!) and then there's chorale performances at esplanade, and more outings and stuff... pantpantpant...
the last i see of bmt
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| From The Last I See of BMT |
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| From The Last I See of BMT |
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| From The Last I See of BMT |
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| From The Last I See of BMT |
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| From The Last I See of BMT |
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| From The Last I See of BMT |
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zulu plt 4 04/08 batch yay. too bad i ord + ord mood too soon. i think we would have a much more memorable time together then (can ask my previous batches ahaha)!
keep in touch ah (i.e. you add me on facebook/msn)...
i almost got kicked out of school...
... because i didn't receive the matriculation letter!!!
:@
ORD NSFs are supposed to reconfirm that they'll be enrolling, and they were notified via mail. and in the mail is, apparently, a lot of information. the deadline for the confirmation is just tomorrow... AND I JUST FOUND OUT ABOUT IT YESTERDAY!
wah lau...
:@
ORD NSFs are supposed to reconfirm that they'll be enrolling, and they were notified via mail. and in the mail is, apparently, a lot of information. the deadline for the confirmation is just tomorrow... AND I JUST FOUND OUT ABOUT IT YESTERDAY!
wah lau...
Saturday, December 06, 2008
fluff 花絮
as you can see i kind of like the chinese language (a far cry from my primary school days).
anyway, had carolling practice today!!! haven't sang in a group for ages already! really happy that i'm restarting now...
rather sad, though, that a lot of my life is fluff. i need something more permanent and will be with me forever... what would that be?
anyway, had carolling practice today!!! haven't sang in a group for ages already! really happy that i'm restarting now...
rather sad, though, that a lot of my life is fluff. i need something more permanent and will be with me forever... what would that be?
Friday, December 05, 2008
i read it in the news!
(in reference to the today's print of the straits times life! section)
(yea, i know both of them personally in some ways)
it's so weird, viewing your friends from the perspective of the media. not that i detected any obvious slants or non-facts from the article, but the very mention of a person in the press seems to immediately elevate or degrade his/her status, don't you think? i mean, if he/she's not news-worthy and therefore unworthy he/she won't be reported on mass media, right?
in this case, it's obviously elevation. pretty cool. almost as cool as being a psc scholar, or the kid who got perfect grades for his/her o levels. and then you would cut up and laminated the article with your name and smiley face in it and hang it up somewhere in your bedroom. haha so sweet.
the yearning to be 'famous' is shared by many people, i suppose? by the quotation marks i mean, even if it's just for a 3 second commercial or a calefare. to be watched and (potentially?) wanted by as many people as possible, that's celebrity status!
i think it's the feeling of worthiness that makes popularity so attractive, true right? somehow you get a lot of concern pouring from people whom you don't know, but you have shared part of your life with them and they depend on you for something, like emotional support, entertainment, outlet for lust etc.
speaking of stars, i hope jeanette aw's character in little nyonya will continue to be as fiesty but get into less trouble erps. independent i like. mm!
and utada hikaru appeared in my paper today. i was so happy, until i read the content. so worried, i hope she isn't sick or anything ):
sometimes, you don't need to communicate in person to the other party to like him/her. their image has been extrapolated by our wonderful imagination and we picture him/her to be a certain way, and it's usually in some sort of stereotype. which makes news about them all the more interesting and juicy! whenever they do something that adds credibility to their image, that's awesome. when they do something naughty, that's even more awesome (only when they're perceived to be 'bad').
and i guess that's how i perceive jeanette aw and utada hikaru. but, judging from interviews on them and their performances on stage or on screen, they're really the persons i make them out to be... *dreams*
(yea, i know both of them personally in some ways)
it's so weird, viewing your friends from the perspective of the media. not that i detected any obvious slants or non-facts from the article, but the very mention of a person in the press seems to immediately elevate or degrade his/her status, don't you think? i mean, if he/she's not news-worthy and therefore unworthy he/she won't be reported on mass media, right?
in this case, it's obviously elevation. pretty cool. almost as cool as being a psc scholar, or the kid who got perfect grades for his/her o levels. and then you would cut up and laminated the article with your name and smiley face in it and hang it up somewhere in your bedroom. haha so sweet.
the yearning to be 'famous' is shared by many people, i suppose? by the quotation marks i mean, even if it's just for a 3 second commercial or a calefare. to be watched and (potentially?) wanted by as many people as possible, that's celebrity status!
i think it's the feeling of worthiness that makes popularity so attractive, true right? somehow you get a lot of concern pouring from people whom you don't know, but you have shared part of your life with them and they depend on you for something, like emotional support, entertainment, outlet for lust etc.
speaking of stars, i hope jeanette aw's character in little nyonya will continue to be as fiesty but get into less trouble erps. independent i like. mm!
and utada hikaru appeared in my paper today. i was so happy, until i read the content. so worried, i hope she isn't sick or anything ):
sometimes, you don't need to communicate in person to the other party to like him/her. their image has been extrapolated by our wonderful imagination and we picture him/her to be a certain way, and it's usually in some sort of stereotype. which makes news about them all the more interesting and juicy! whenever they do something that adds credibility to their image, that's awesome. when they do something naughty, that's even more awesome (only when they're perceived to be 'bad').
and i guess that's how i perceive jeanette aw and utada hikaru. but, judging from interviews on them and their performances on stage or on screen, they're really the persons i make them out to be... *dreams*
Thursday, December 04, 2008
i knew i was right...
i read it in the news!
jeanette aw's nominated for best actress (for rhythm of life 变奏曲) in the asian television awards!
i've been her fan ever since episode 1 of holland v! i (almost) only buy issues of i-weekly i周刊 that has her in it! sad that i didn't watch all the shows she acted in. especially in the past two years, because of ns (damn). and this year is her bumper year, with FOUR serials woahh... including two high key ones (rhythm of life and little nyonya)
i knew there's something about her...
*sniff sniff* :')
jeanette aw's nominated for best actress (for rhythm of life 变奏曲) in the asian television awards!
i've been her fan ever since episode 1 of holland v! i (almost) only buy issues of i-weekly i周刊 that has her in it! sad that i didn't watch all the shows she acted in. especially in the past two years, because of ns (damn). and this year is her bumper year, with FOUR serials woahh... including two high key ones (rhythm of life and little nyonya)
i knew there's something about her...
*sniff sniff* :')
Tuesday, December 02, 2008
MY FIRST FORMAL DANCE LESSON!
WOW CAN YOU BELIEVE IT I'M ACTUALLY LEARNING HOW TO DANCE?
imagine me dancing. go ahead, laugh...
...
...
...
...
ok, now that you have stopped laughing...
it's really fun, dancing. oh, i'm learning street jazz (don't ask me why i chose it) every monday at a dance studio in funan digital life mall. just started my first lesson yesterday.
AND I DIDN'T THINK IT'LL BE THIS TOUGH! i mean, it's so easy to learn those line dance steps. but this street jazz is a whole different thing. proper dance lessons apparently begins with a killer 1/2 hr warm up session. the infinite crunches and hardcore phantom chairs could make me die! as terrific as a tekan session from your hated sergeant. plus, the psychomotor-challenging stretches which demands your joints and ends of limbs are in that particular position. like, your left leg is straightened but your right leg isn't, and the feet are pointed to the left or to the front, body faces the right etc...
and it's only my first lesson!!!
ok, at least i got the basic street jazz walk thing 60% correct. what is it called, ah, i forgot. then, just as i began to get used to the funny crabwalk, the instructor added more dance steps AHHH! 'cause there's a couple of other students who are slightly more advanced than us (by a couple of lessons i think, and who have dance background too) so she had to take care of them as well.
wah lau, i still can't do the turnaround step. so funny haha. the session was so interesting and fun partly 'cause the "three musketeers" (myself and two other friends) kept messing up the steps.
LOL.
oh, and today, i ran for literally a whole hour! YAY! i've decided to do (have i said this before?) exercises every day, first thing once i return from work. hopefully my fitness can improve and perhaps be even better than what i was during my (memorable) army daze.
and i pray i can finish learning photoshop and autocad viz in the following two weeks 'cause i know i don't have the determination to learn it at home haha =X
imagine me dancing. go ahead, laugh...
...
...
...
...
ok, now that you have stopped laughing...
it's really fun, dancing. oh, i'm learning street jazz (don't ask me why i chose it) every monday at a dance studio in funan digital life mall. just started my first lesson yesterday.
AND I DIDN'T THINK IT'LL BE THIS TOUGH! i mean, it's so easy to learn those line dance steps. but this street jazz is a whole different thing. proper dance lessons apparently begins with a killer 1/2 hr warm up session. the infinite crunches and hardcore phantom chairs could make me die! as terrific as a tekan session from your hated sergeant. plus, the psychomotor-challenging stretches which demands your joints and ends of limbs are in that particular position. like, your left leg is straightened but your right leg isn't, and the feet are pointed to the left or to the front, body faces the right etc...
and it's only my first lesson!!!
ok, at least i got the basic street jazz walk thing 60% correct. what is it called, ah, i forgot. then, just as i began to get used to the funny crabwalk, the instructor added more dance steps AHHH! 'cause there's a couple of other students who are slightly more advanced than us (by a couple of lessons i think, and who have dance background too) so she had to take care of them as well.
wah lau, i still can't do the turnaround step. so funny haha. the session was so interesting and fun partly 'cause the "three musketeers" (myself and two other friends) kept messing up the steps.
LOL.
oh, and today, i ran for literally a whole hour! YAY! i've decided to do (have i said this before?) exercises every day, first thing once i return from work. hopefully my fitness can improve and perhaps be even better than what i was during my (memorable) army daze.
and i pray i can finish learning photoshop and autocad viz in the following two weeks 'cause i know i don't have the determination to learn it at home haha =X
Saturday, November 29, 2008
saturday
ok, so i did have a good short run haha...
didn't do much today, coz i played radiant mythology on psp for 4 hours of afternoon (lol)
a quick recount of my progress... mmm... :
got my library membership which allows me to borrow books and audio/video material
got a cheap add-on to my handphone plan (talkmore: 200min outgoing calls to singtel numbers for an additional $5.35/month!!)
learnt enough autoCAD to do most 2D drawings decently now (YES!)
i'm glad i'm spending my time fruitfully now. dang, should have done that earlier haha.
Friday, November 28, 2008
fridays feel happier to me
saturdays are imagined to have bright and clear skies
i'm going to put on my running shoes
and run under the morning sun!
heat and sweat mix
pant pant pant
ah, the world is whitewashed in sunshine
yayyyyyyyyyyyyyy
the weekend is here!!!
***
on a side note, i realise i have look even uglier than imagined. i have a very gentle but deep depression (no, not pockmark la! that one i have a lot liao) on my left cheek, where one's dimples are supposed to be placed. it's like, about the size of half of your thumb, and it's nearly half a centimetre deep!! only when i smile or laugh that depression morphs and looks like a large dimple (i don't have dimples), which is fine coz i look the same on the left and right as well when i smile.
does that mean, i must smile all the time to look more handsome/less ugly? wow, simple anecdote but cheem meanings. hahaha!
saturdays are imagined to have bright and clear skies
i'm going to put on my running shoes
and run under the morning sun!
heat and sweat mix
pant pant pant
ah, the world is whitewashed in sunshine
yayyyyyyyyyyyyyy
the weekend is here!!!
***
on a side note, i realise i have look even uglier than imagined. i have a very gentle but deep depression (no, not pockmark la! that one i have a lot liao) on my left cheek, where one's dimples are supposed to be placed. it's like, about the size of half of your thumb, and it's nearly half a centimetre deep!! only when i smile or laugh that depression morphs and looks like a large dimple (i don't have dimples), which is fine coz i look the same on the left and right as well when i smile.
does that mean, i must smile all the time to look more handsome/less ugly? wow, simple anecdote but cheem meanings. hahaha!
Wednesday, November 26, 2008
little nyonya ep 2
finally, no more fancy camerawork :) back to something we're all more familiar and comfortable with, mainstream mediacorp-style.
jeanette aw has certainly carved a niche for herself - portraying innocent young women. somehow the acting went down much better with me than the previous episode. very sweet right, and with such a good heart...
xiang yun should get a top 10 fav female artistes this (ok, next) year. she's another convincing actress. actually the lineup of artistes for this show quite strong, in addition to the former two, there's also lin mei jiao, cynthia koh, yao wen long and qi yuwu.
the so-called princesses (maybe with the exception of jesseca liu) should brush up on their acting skills, really. i mean, apart from playing princesses, they can't really act as other roles very wonderfully.
***
ah, no more internet connection at work! :( very sad, a bit hard to research up on architecture and other stuff now.
on a brighter note, i think i know most of the basics of drawing 2D on autoCAD now, yay.
jeanette aw has certainly carved a niche for herself - portraying innocent young women. somehow the acting went down much better with me than the previous episode. very sweet right, and with such a good heart...
xiang yun should get a top 10 fav female artistes this (ok, next) year. she's another convincing actress. actually the lineup of artistes for this show quite strong, in addition to the former two, there's also lin mei jiao, cynthia koh, yao wen long and qi yuwu.
the so-called princesses (maybe with the exception of jesseca liu) should brush up on their acting skills, really. i mean, apart from playing princesses, they can't really act as other roles very wonderfully.
***
ah, no more internet connection at work! :( very sad, a bit hard to research up on architecture and other stuff now.
on a brighter note, i think i know most of the basics of drawing 2D on autoCAD now, yay.
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
little nyonya
i can tell the conscious effort put in to make the show really good, but there's still some improvements to be made.
the opening tries really hard to be tastefully aesthetic yet still accepted by the average viewer. maybe the director/producer should watch some of hayao miyazaki's anime feature films to learn how to use simple panning and dialogue/actions to create a more convincing atmosphere.
i think the use of the yellowed 'olden days' tint camera effect to scenes should only be used during flashbacks to the past, and NOT in the middle of an event happening in chronological order! the outdoor scenes were awful because of the tint. so stupid, then the indoor scenes should also be tinted what.
somebody slap the lecherous cameraman from canada! what was the director thinking when he/she asked the actor to 'express his amazement' at jeanette aw's photo? like, think of naughty things? nooooo... and he even dared to touch the photo. eh, the girl in the photo is like, more than half a century old already had she survived the times and all.
somebody, tell the director/producer that less motion (like body movement) is the key to playing subtlety?
i don't like felicia chin's character in the show, either. haughty woman. but felicia chin since she changed her chinese name has become more, urm, attractive haha ;) i like her long hair when it's not tied up.
i hope the later scenes featuring jeanette aw wouldn't frame her in the same, sweetyounginnocentnubile image like in this first episode. it seems that the deaf/mute character is also too innocent and immature in thought that it makes her look dumber than her age. or maybe she's portraying a 15-year-old girl? i don't really know...
whatever it is, i'm still supporting jeanette aw. especially when she gets kicked, slapped, insulted by other people. why are nyonyas so fierce ah.
ah, i feel so sad/angry for her whenever i see those scenes! like, i want to go protect her everytime that happens! lol.
testorone level bursting lol.
the opening tries really hard to be tastefully aesthetic yet still accepted by the average viewer. maybe the director/producer should watch some of hayao miyazaki's anime feature films to learn how to use simple panning and dialogue/actions to create a more convincing atmosphere.
i think the use of the yellowed 'olden days' tint camera effect to scenes should only be used during flashbacks to the past, and NOT in the middle of an event happening in chronological order! the outdoor scenes were awful because of the tint. so stupid, then the indoor scenes should also be tinted what.
somebody slap the lecherous cameraman from canada! what was the director thinking when he/she asked the actor to 'express his amazement' at jeanette aw's photo? like, think of naughty things? nooooo... and he even dared to touch the photo. eh, the girl in the photo is like, more than half a century old already had she survived the times and all.
somebody, tell the director/producer that less motion (like body movement) is the key to playing subtlety?
i don't like felicia chin's character in the show, either. haughty woman. but felicia chin since she changed her chinese name has become more, urm, attractive haha ;) i like her long hair when it's not tied up.
i hope the later scenes featuring jeanette aw wouldn't frame her in the same, sweetyounginnocentnubile image like in this first episode. it seems that the deaf/mute character is also too innocent and immature in thought that it makes her look dumber than her age. or maybe she's portraying a 15-year-old girl? i don't really know...
whatever it is, i'm still supporting jeanette aw. especially when she gets kicked, slapped, insulted by other people. why are nyonyas so fierce ah.
ah, i feel so sad/angry for her whenever i see those scenes! like, i want to go protect her everytime that happens! lol.
testorone level bursting lol.
today
today...
i could have been at changi airport, flying off to guangzhou on transit towards romania and italy for free ):
today...
i could have been slacking away at home doing nothing of significance.
today...
channel 8 is to broadcast the FIRST EPISODE OF THE LITTLE NONYA!!!!!
STARRING...
JEANETTE AW!!!!
AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH...
i could have been at changi airport, flying off to guangzhou on transit towards romania and italy for free ):
today...
i could have been slacking away at home doing nothing of significance.
today...
channel 8 is to broadcast the FIRST EPISODE OF THE LITTLE NONYA!!!!!
STARRING...
JEANETTE AW!!!!
AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH...
Saturday, November 22, 2008
my drawings
just to let you know what i've been doing in bunk when not working.
i started on this little sketchbook since i got posted to bmtc. but i've been too lazy to fill up the pages, hence the small number of pictures.
i think there was this stretch of time, from sec3 till the beginning of ns, when i drew almost nothing of significance, unless you count random doodlings on my school notes as works of art. sad, isn't it.
as you will be able to see, i'm still nowhere near good. but i'll practise!
my first drawing in bmtc, when there was a one-month lull period.
also done at the same time as the hand (above). probably my most accurate drawing. since it's so easy to draw it.
some corn i found on the front cover of an issue of TIME magazine.
also drawn last year, when i got that photo of jeanette aw and pasted it on my clipboard <3
i know it's out of shape. just that i kept trying to improve the shape, and then when i started on the shading, i realised how misshaped it is but i can't be bothered to change it anymore.
but i think my standard has improved since sec 2. take a look at this, drawn when i was in sec 2 for art class:
that is definitely not my dad. gosh, this drawing's REALLY BAD. and to think i actually put down AEP (art elective programme) as a choice of o level subject for a while! hahahaha.
i started on this little sketchbook since i got posted to bmtc. but i've been too lazy to fill up the pages, hence the small number of pictures.
i think there was this stretch of time, from sec3 till the beginning of ns, when i drew almost nothing of significance, unless you count random doodlings on my school notes as works of art. sad, isn't it.
as you will be able to see, i'm still nowhere near good. but i'll practise!
my first drawing in bmtc, when there was a one-month lull period.
also done at the same time as the hand (above). probably my most accurate drawing. since it's so easy to draw it.
some corn i found on the front cover of an issue of TIME magazine.
also drawn last year, when i got that photo of jeanette aw and pasted it on my clipboard <3
i know it's out of shape. just that i kept trying to improve the shape, and then when i started on the shading, i realised how misshaped it is but i can't be bothered to change it anymore.
but i think my standard has improved since sec 2. take a look at this, drawn when i was in sec 2 for art class:
that is definitely not my dad. gosh, this drawing's REALLY BAD. and to think i actually put down AEP (art elective programme) as a choice of o level subject for a while! hahahaha.
notice
to the current batch:
contact me if you want the photos! i've uploaded them somewhere. tell me and i'll give you the address (: you know my email, right? it's at the lift lobby.
AND TAG ON MY BOARD SO THAT I KNOW YOU'RE STILL ALIVE AND ARE READING THIS!
have fun in tekong!
contact me if you want the photos! i've uploaded them somewhere. tell me and i'll give you the address (: you know my email, right? it's at the lift lobby.
AND TAG ON MY BOARD SO THAT I KNOW YOU'RE STILL ALIVE AND ARE READING THIS!
have fun in tekong!
Friday, November 21, 2008
watched some combined schools' choir christmas concert today (by mr kwei).
i was only entertained by the jc/alumni groups, the rest were really bad. ahh, was expecting something much better from the lot, with an established conductor at the helm.
anyway, i don't have to work tomorrow. so happy, coz i can sleep in. i wake up at 6.45am (good grief), get out of house by 7.50am, catch the train by 8.05am, and reach office by 9.00am (ok i was late by a few minutes twice, boo boo).
yes, 1h10min of travel time!!! all my other colleagues either drive or stay in the northeast area. so good.
i plan to jog, sprint - i'm bad at sprinting - and swim this weekend. and maybe up my strength and upper body mass (lol).
why am i still so skinny around the arms, but relatively large at the stomach and thighs.. haha?
i'm quite vain, right? but i'll feel good if i look good :( and must pick up some sport, or else very lose face when people ask 'do you do sports?'
i mean, i still have this notion stuck in my head, that guys ought to be sporty (girls can do anything they want), else, they're yellow-bellied pansies. how ironic, but i'm not sporty at all! D:
but it's confirmed time after time, that i just have no aptitude for sports. my dad exposed me to quite a few sports in the past, like badminton, tennis, basketball, table-tennis, even squash. i had so much problems serving the ball; took really long to get that right. and up till now i return shots with a success rate of about 10-20%. i wish i got my dad's sporty genes.
and i used to like playing football with my classmates, i remember, in primary 3. i always volunteered or got placed at the defenders' position haha. once, i was even goalie, and i let in 7 consecutive goals :'(
since then, no more football for me. and it's so shameful to tell people, i suck at sports, really! how i wish i loved football or could play it decently. then i would be mixing around more with the sporty, fun guys, instead of the quiet geeky-types. and, hey, there's some truth in those stereotypes!
and this dislike/fear of sports, especially team sports, just persisted until today. since primary school to jc, whenever the class is to play team sports (especially football or frisbee) against another class or within ourselves, i feel so lost and ashamed! and just relegate myself to the defender's position and hopefully find like-minded yellow bellied pansies there and start chatting with them.
and i just didn't fit in, totally, in waterpolo and swimming, which i somehow (i still think it's a mistake) got selected for in secondary 1! i was like, the SLOWEST swimmer. and i wasn't rough/tough enough to fight for the ball (woah, waterpolo players ARE VERY ROUGH when playing waterpolo, worse than ruggers when playing rugby). and don't mention catching balls. oh, and my throwing strength and technique were inadequate.
the only times when i felt i was more, useful as a team member, were whenever my class played floorball against another class, or when we played waterpolo within the class. coz most other people are rather handicapped in the water, and my freestyle is fast enough to outswim them. harhar.
i really REALLY wish i can call a friend and go, eh wanna play badminton tomorrow? or get invited to play football on a weekend morning. but, i'm just not cut out for sports, really. and being un-sporty makes you less connected with other males. REALLY!
you can't take part in EPL discussions, you can't compare about your friends' football skills, you can't have a great bonding session kicking some ball. back in bmt as an instructor (i prefer the word 'instructor' to 'commander' which the higher-ups want to call us), my fellow people there would often go kick football, be it at company line after ro, or at the street soccer court (yes there's one at rocky hill).
when the football fever just started, i got asked so many times 'eh clifford want to join not?' i always refused! coz i can't kick no ball. then the one time i did oblige (because another guy who claimed he can't play football either - yet he's a malay (stereotyping) - agreed to join too) made me feel a little silly, too. like, there's so many people who're so engrossed in the game, you can actually tell that they get a bit turned off whenever someone seriously lacking in skills is playing alongside or against them.
it sucks to make someone feel that way, to spoil their fun because you wanted to join or were invited to join in, you know. so i quickly subbed myself out at the first possible chance. i always did that since 13 years ago (i'm 20 now).
if there's anything i can do that makes myself feel proud, it's probably my academics lor (not piano, coz i know how inadequate i am). but so what if i'm proven by moe to be smart.
i don't want to be a geek!!! i want to be a typical tall dark handsome sporty stud who is a 衣架子 (meaning someone who has a good figure that any clothing looks good on him) and likes to wear well-fitting t-shirts and bottoms that show off his broad, shapely figure. these people usually have a pretty girl by their side, too.
as shallow as it may sound, your looks do define a part of you, or at the very least portray a part of you, no? assuming you don't purposely wear something that's out of your comfort zone. and it's very important when you're not living alone. it boosts your self-confidence, you think you're good and people do turn your way. it gets you a girl (or a guy) faster, and also, a job.
ok, i want to be, in addition to being smart, a typical tall dark handsome sporty stud! lol if i'm a stud i'll probably become a narcissus.
i was only entertained by the jc/alumni groups, the rest were really bad. ahh, was expecting something much better from the lot, with an established conductor at the helm.
anyway, i don't have to work tomorrow. so happy, coz i can sleep in. i wake up at 6.45am (good grief), get out of house by 7.50am, catch the train by 8.05am, and reach office by 9.00am (ok i was late by a few minutes twice, boo boo).
yes, 1h10min of travel time!!! all my other colleagues either drive or stay in the northeast area. so good.
i plan to jog, sprint - i'm bad at sprinting - and swim this weekend. and maybe up my strength and upper body mass (lol).
why am i still so skinny around the arms, but relatively large at the stomach and thighs.. haha?
i'm quite vain, right? but i'll feel good if i look good :( and must pick up some sport, or else very lose face when people ask 'do you do sports?'
i mean, i still have this notion stuck in my head, that guys ought to be sporty (girls can do anything they want), else, they're yellow-bellied pansies. how ironic, but i'm not sporty at all! D:
but it's confirmed time after time, that i just have no aptitude for sports. my dad exposed me to quite a few sports in the past, like badminton, tennis, basketball, table-tennis, even squash. i had so much problems serving the ball; took really long to get that right. and up till now i return shots with a success rate of about 10-20%. i wish i got my dad's sporty genes.
and i used to like playing football with my classmates, i remember, in primary 3. i always volunteered or got placed at the defenders' position haha. once, i was even goalie, and i let in 7 consecutive goals :'(
since then, no more football for me. and it's so shameful to tell people, i suck at sports, really! how i wish i loved football or could play it decently. then i would be mixing around more with the sporty, fun guys, instead of the quiet geeky-types. and, hey, there's some truth in those stereotypes!
and this dislike/fear of sports, especially team sports, just persisted until today. since primary school to jc, whenever the class is to play team sports (especially football or frisbee) against another class or within ourselves, i feel so lost and ashamed! and just relegate myself to the defender's position and hopefully find like-minded yellow bellied pansies there and start chatting with them.
and i just didn't fit in, totally, in waterpolo and swimming, which i somehow (i still think it's a mistake) got selected for in secondary 1! i was like, the SLOWEST swimmer. and i wasn't rough/tough enough to fight for the ball (woah, waterpolo players ARE VERY ROUGH when playing waterpolo, worse than ruggers when playing rugby). and don't mention catching balls. oh, and my throwing strength and technique were inadequate.
the only times when i felt i was more, useful as a team member, were whenever my class played floorball against another class, or when we played waterpolo within the class. coz most other people are rather handicapped in the water, and my freestyle is fast enough to outswim them. harhar.
i really REALLY wish i can call a friend and go, eh wanna play badminton tomorrow? or get invited to play football on a weekend morning. but, i'm just not cut out for sports, really. and being un-sporty makes you less connected with other males. REALLY!
you can't take part in EPL discussions, you can't compare about your friends' football skills, you can't have a great bonding session kicking some ball. back in bmt as an instructor (i prefer the word 'instructor' to 'commander' which the higher-ups want to call us), my fellow people there would often go kick football, be it at company line after ro, or at the street soccer court (yes there's one at rocky hill).
when the football fever just started, i got asked so many times 'eh clifford want to join not?' i always refused! coz i can't kick no ball. then the one time i did oblige (because another guy who claimed he can't play football either - yet he's a malay (stereotyping) - agreed to join too) made me feel a little silly, too. like, there's so many people who're so engrossed in the game, you can actually tell that they get a bit turned off whenever someone seriously lacking in skills is playing alongside or against them.
it sucks to make someone feel that way, to spoil their fun because you wanted to join or were invited to join in, you know. so i quickly subbed myself out at the first possible chance. i always did that since 13 years ago (i'm 20 now).
if there's anything i can do that makes myself feel proud, it's probably my academics lor (not piano, coz i know how inadequate i am). but so what if i'm proven by moe to be smart.
i don't want to be a geek!!! i want to be a typical tall dark handsome sporty stud who is a 衣架子 (meaning someone who has a good figure that any clothing looks good on him) and likes to wear well-fitting t-shirts and bottoms that show off his broad, shapely figure. these people usually have a pretty girl by their side, too.
as shallow as it may sound, your looks do define a part of you, or at the very least portray a part of you, no? assuming you don't purposely wear something that's out of your comfort zone. and it's very important when you're not living alone. it boosts your self-confidence, you think you're good and people do turn your way. it gets you a girl (or a guy) faster, and also, a job.
ok, i want to be, in addition to being smart, a typical tall dark handsome sporty stud! lol if i'm a stud i'll probably become a narcissus.
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
3rd day!
today i learnt even more stuff (: but, owing to my sleep debt or something, i just can't help but feel sleepy D:
and although i know roughly most of the basic processes in autocad, i still can't draw a composite diagram efficiently.
so...
... i MUST get my hands on an autoCAD how-to book!!!
and i will master autoCAD hopefully by the end of the month!!! yesyesyes.
seems like i'm putting most of my other goals on hold as i learn autoCAD lol... ahhh howhowhow.
and although i know roughly most of the basic processes in autocad, i still can't draw a composite diagram efficiently.
so...
... i MUST get my hands on an autoCAD how-to book!!!
and i will master autoCAD hopefully by the end of the month!!! yesyesyes.
seems like i'm putting most of my other goals on hold as i learn autoCAD lol... ahhh howhowhow.
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
today is a damn bloody sad day
NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!
no more need to buy winter clothes! and i already told half the msn world that i'm going! geez.
so sad ):
but, i'm really not sad now. ok lor. anyway it was an unexpected event, taking it away isn't a loss at all :)
and since i got this chance so quick, there must be even more chances out there! waiting for all of us to find it! yes i must be optimistic!!!!
on another note, i'm really learning A LOT of stuff now (: a fantastic experience.
no more need to buy winter clothes! and i already told half the msn world that i'm going! geez.
so sad ):
but, i'm really not sad now. ok lor. anyway it was an unexpected event, taking it away isn't a loss at all :)
and since i got this chance so quick, there must be even more chances out there! waiting for all of us to find it! yes i must be optimistic!!!!
on another note, i'm really learning A LOT of stuff now (: a fantastic experience.
Monday, November 17, 2008
today is a damn bloody happy day
it's a really good opportunity!
i hope everything works out fine and to everyone's satisfaction.
i'm telling the entire world about it right now... don't be so jealous of me ok? :P
WOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOW!!!!
i hope everything works out fine and to everyone's satisfaction.
i'm telling the entire world about it right now... don't be so jealous of me ok? :P
WOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOW!!!!
Sunday, November 16, 2008
today is a thoughtful but somewhat happy day
i realise my blog is chokeful of rubbish, random thoughts and all.
instead of being totally intellectual and write about things that do matter to the world, like discussions about the us elections or the state of the world's economies, i'm too self-absorbed in enjoying the moment and chasing memories.
so what is the purpose of our lives? well, for many of us it is probably not related to worldly issues, as relevant they are to our lives. quite interesting, how we don't see the 'larger picture' about the world, and cling on to the most 'insignificant' of things, and the smallest of things mean the most to us. at least that is the case for people in my demographic range.
i was quite horrified when i learnt that some people, friends of my age, whom i know are so passionate about making it big in the finance or business sector don't even read about the us elections or the current economic downturn. others are very happy sleeping or playing psp in the day. not that i'm not guilty of that, but at the very least, from what i see, quite a lot of people are apathetic towards global issues.
but it's too easy to overlook global issues, when you are living in a country distant enough to not feel the effects of the happenings, or if you depend on proxies to live your life. i'm still a dependant, and i don't know the exact percentage increase in prices of food, or when the ban on importing malaysian poultry was enacted (but i do know i've not been eating kampung chicken for a long time). nor do i know much about how to go about pursuing non-academic interests. i depend on my mom for food, and to a large extent my dad for money, and schools for directions in life in general.
it is probably the same for many other youths around singapore. just how many of us go to the wet market or gourmet shops (for the richer ones) to buy food. or, how many do find activities to do outside of their comfort zones (which would include the school, friends, religious organisations and the like).
well, i do know a few same-aged friends who are highly in touch with local bread-and-butter and global issues, and they do share with me their concerns about those issues, which explain why i do know some things.
for the rest of us (myself included), it's all about work (personal finance) and politics, play, personal (pastimes), social and love lives. sad that in singapore most of our lives are as such, while in other countries such as france, young adults are customarily shooed out of the house to live on their own. living independently forces people to grow up faster, definitely.
not that i want to live an independent life now! i don't think i'll have financial stability, especially when i don't have a degree or diploma, and costs of living in singapore are so high.
so many of us are mere followers. not that following is a bad thing, but i wonder if there are some of us (like me) who follow but wish they could lead in certain areas.
perhaps that is why sometimes, we are unhappy with our lives. we don't think we can control our own situations. well, obviously, apart from natural occurrences such as cancer, your family background (you don't choose who your father and mother are) and some would argue, your intelligence (nature or nurture), and murphy's law, like the random chance a fallen branch will hit your head and you die from concussion, much of our interaction-based aspects of our lives can be controlled.
and isn't that one of the most important aspects of our lives. it is, in my opinion, the next most important thing after the basic necessities - food, shelter and health - are met. again, you can argue that with the strict regimentation the singapore government (seems?) to have on its citizens, we are left with little freedom. for example, how NS robs young singaporeans of their time.
well, in a way it does. however (thankfully we live in singapore!), our government is enlightened enough to make wise and sound long-term plans in general. and how one of my previous 2ic will attest, the remaining time you have not in ns can be very well spent. he was freelancing as a webpage designer, i think, and can make a neat $2000 or so from every website he designs. at least, try to take away some lessons from the time spent in ns! i'm sure there are.
OK I SIDETRACKED TOO MUCH.
I WANTED TO TALK ABOUT AVENUE Q, and the musical generated this much, and much more, thought in me.
i <3 the characters in the musical! lucy the slut, princeton (who i can probably relate to quite a bit), kate monster, the bad idea bears, and especially christmas eve, rod and TREKKIE MONSTER!!!! omg. graphic.
i wish i could sing and dance and act just as well as the puppeteers... it's so liberating, i think, to express a part of yourself in the character you're acting out. maybe i should look for that chance, to do just that (:
instead of being totally intellectual and write about things that do matter to the world, like discussions about the us elections or the state of the world's economies, i'm too self-absorbed in enjoying the moment and chasing memories.
so what is the purpose of our lives? well, for many of us it is probably not related to worldly issues, as relevant they are to our lives. quite interesting, how we don't see the 'larger picture' about the world, and cling on to the most 'insignificant' of things, and the smallest of things mean the most to us. at least that is the case for people in my demographic range.
i was quite horrified when i learnt that some people, friends of my age, whom i know are so passionate about making it big in the finance or business sector don't even read about the us elections or the current economic downturn. others are very happy sleeping or playing psp in the day. not that i'm not guilty of that, but at the very least, from what i see, quite a lot of people are apathetic towards global issues.
but it's too easy to overlook global issues, when you are living in a country distant enough to not feel the effects of the happenings, or if you depend on proxies to live your life. i'm still a dependant, and i don't know the exact percentage increase in prices of food, or when the ban on importing malaysian poultry was enacted (but i do know i've not been eating kampung chicken for a long time). nor do i know much about how to go about pursuing non-academic interests. i depend on my mom for food, and to a large extent my dad for money, and schools for directions in life in general.
it is probably the same for many other youths around singapore. just how many of us go to the wet market or gourmet shops (for the richer ones) to buy food. or, how many do find activities to do outside of their comfort zones (which would include the school, friends, religious organisations and the like).
well, i do know a few same-aged friends who are highly in touch with local bread-and-butter and global issues, and they do share with me their concerns about those issues, which explain why i do know some things.
for the rest of us (myself included), it's all about work (personal finance) and politics, play, personal (pastimes), social and love lives. sad that in singapore most of our lives are as such, while in other countries such as france, young adults are customarily shooed out of the house to live on their own. living independently forces people to grow up faster, definitely.
not that i want to live an independent life now! i don't think i'll have financial stability, especially when i don't have a degree or diploma, and costs of living in singapore are so high.
so many of us are mere followers. not that following is a bad thing, but i wonder if there are some of us (like me) who follow but wish they could lead in certain areas.
perhaps that is why sometimes, we are unhappy with our lives. we don't think we can control our own situations. well, obviously, apart from natural occurrences such as cancer, your family background (you don't choose who your father and mother are) and some would argue, your intelligence (nature or nurture), and murphy's law, like the random chance a fallen branch will hit your head and you die from concussion, much of our interaction-based aspects of our lives can be controlled.
and isn't that one of the most important aspects of our lives. it is, in my opinion, the next most important thing after the basic necessities - food, shelter and health - are met. again, you can argue that with the strict regimentation the singapore government (seems?) to have on its citizens, we are left with little freedom. for example, how NS robs young singaporeans of their time.
well, in a way it does. however (thankfully we live in singapore!), our government is enlightened enough to make wise and sound long-term plans in general. and how one of my previous 2ic will attest, the remaining time you have not in ns can be very well spent. he was freelancing as a webpage designer, i think, and can make a neat $2000 or so from every website he designs. at least, try to take away some lessons from the time spent in ns! i'm sure there are.
OK I SIDETRACKED TOO MUCH.
I WANTED TO TALK ABOUT AVENUE Q, and the musical generated this much, and much more, thought in me.
i <3 the characters in the musical! lucy the slut, princeton (who i can probably relate to quite a bit), kate monster, the bad idea bears, and especially christmas eve, rod and TREKKIE MONSTER!!!! omg. graphic.
i wish i could sing and dance and act just as well as the puppeteers... it's so liberating, i think, to express a part of yourself in the character you're acting out. maybe i should look for that chance, to do just that (:
intensive photologging
to my pleasant surprise, i found out a week ago that my previous batch vandalised some walls in a certain abandoned building...
shanmugam!
yea, whatever. you made it bad for yourself, so.
company best! vandalising the wall!
ok here comes more random pictures :)
he always tries to destroy otherwise nice photos haha. but thankfully digicams can adjust according to light.
ok i can't zi4 pai1.
everything else that i took is censored for quality control. ah that's all for that chapter (for now).
just yesterday, i met up with quite a couple of the old guys...
he's ONE BIG CAM WHORE! :P like, half of my photos got his face on it lol!
remembering happier times in zulu. when training was xiong and people gave a hoot about what's going on, instead of hanging on for the ride.
immediately after the nice gathering, i rushed off to meet my recruits-turned-officers/pti/happy private for dinner and more...
another instance of bad camera technique.
very japanese, right? the big eyes and all. lol.
i forgot to take a group photo, so here's everyone in 2 photos lol.
 |
| From memories |
shanmugam!
 |
| From memories |
yea, whatever. you made it bad for yourself, so.
 |
| From memories |
company best! vandalising the wall!
ok here comes more random pictures :)
 |
| From memories |
he always tries to destroy otherwise nice photos haha. but thankfully digicams can adjust according to light.
 |
| From memories |
ok i can't zi4 pai1.
 |
| From memories |
everything else that i took is censored for quality control. ah that's all for that chapter (for now).
just yesterday, i met up with quite a couple of the old guys...
 |
| From Zulu ORD |
he's ONE BIG CAM WHORE! :P like, half of my photos got his face on it lol!
 |
| From Zulu ORD |
remembering happier times in zulu. when training was xiong and people gave a hoot about what's going on, instead of hanging on for the ride.
immediately after the nice gathering, i rushed off to meet my recruits-turned-officers/pti/happy private for dinner and more...
 |
| From Derrick n Co |
another instance of bad camera technique.
 |
| From Derrick n Co |
very japanese, right? the big eyes and all. lol.
 |
| From Derrick n Co |
i forgot to take a group photo, so here's everyone in 2 photos lol.
Saturday, November 15, 2008
updates
 |
| From milestone era |
gareth had to go. so we took a last group photo of the year! the food at - i can't remember the name of the restaurant - holland v is quite good. this is just beside cha cha cha, i think. also serves mexican food, esp fajitas.
... and to prove to you that i HAVE the captain planet playthings...
...
...
...
...
...
...
...
... TADA!
 |
| From milestone era |
wooo, i am captain planet's master, geia's father!!!!
 |
| From milestone era |
i control all the rings! EARTH, FIRE, WIND, WATER, HEART, i am the lone superpower of the world!!!!
 |
| From milestone era |
watch how the planeteers summon cpt planet...
 |
| From milestone era |
cpt planet is another superhero who wears his underpants inside out. like superman and batman.
seriously, listen to linka's (the blonde planeteer who's actually from the USSR) hot accent! no wonder wheeler (the orange haired guy who's from USA) likes her.
Friday, November 14, 2008
retro
these are some of the songs to some of my favourite kid shows:
lamb chop's play-along!
the famous 'this is the song that never ends'!
captain planet ending theme! the song is damn catchy... esp the bassline
and i <3 linka's soviet union accent *hot*
have you watched 'captain planet' before when you were young? in retrospect, the show's REALLY LAME. like, the first episode for instance. the 5 planeteers were so easily convinced to leave their previous lives and become planeteers.
but it was a really good show for youngsters. the idea of youngsters having super power is so cool. so cool, that i own THE ENTIRE first set of captain planet toys. even the rings. cool eh.
lamb chop's play-along!
the famous 'this is the song that never ends'!
captain planet ending theme! the song is damn catchy... esp the bassline
and i <3 linka's soviet union accent *hot*
have you watched 'captain planet' before when you were young? in retrospect, the show's REALLY LAME. like, the first episode for instance. the 5 planeteers were so easily convinced to leave their previous lives and become planeteers.
but it was a really good show for youngsters. the idea of youngsters having super power is so cool. so cool, that i own THE ENTIRE first set of captain planet toys. even the rings. cool eh.
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
oh. goodness.
i'm already missing the company of friends!
i didn't expect this feeling to kick in so soon. was thinking, maybe it'll come in 2 days time, after i've rotted at home long enough.
but, no! it kicked in since i left the fieldcamp site!
thankfully, i'm leaving behind happy memories. i can imagine how i'd feel about my ns life a few months down the road - just like how i missed chorale and other close friends then, and only thought of the beautiful things we did together later.
so thankful to everyone who's been in my life throughout ns, big or small, the role you played in my experience adds up to something that i'll remember fondly.
i'm already missing the company of friends!
i didn't expect this feeling to kick in so soon. was thinking, maybe it'll come in 2 days time, after i've rotted at home long enough.
but, no! it kicked in since i left the fieldcamp site!
thankfully, i'm leaving behind happy memories. i can imagine how i'd feel about my ns life a few months down the road - just like how i missed chorale and other close friends then, and only thought of the beautiful things we did together later.
so thankful to everyone who's been in my life throughout ns, big or small, the role you played in my experience adds up to something that i'll remember fondly.
ORD!
I ORD TODAY!
I'M LIKE, "WHAT?"
QUITE STRANGE, I DON'T KNOW IF I'M HAPPY OR NOT.
the past couple of hours played out like a tv drama.
gave gary a little token of appreciation the night before, and he was really, really happy :)
after a restful night outfield for the last time, i started rushing through all the thank-you notes. hanged around with people for a while, said my goodbyes and passed some of them the notes.
i had written the notes as it would have been so much harder to say what i felt to them. and not to mention, hard to find all of them, so i planned to drop the notes somewhere in company line.
then, at about 9.30am the tonner engine started revving. what, it's leaving so soon? i hurriedly packed my belongings - i had neglected to do so for a quick withdrawal - and went on board. the tonner drove unexpectedly slowly, perhaps because of the items transported on board.
as it chugged on, people whom i know waved goodbye to me. i could have just leapt out of the vehicle!
it's so miserable. especially when i waved goodbye to the 44th, who've been with me for the most part of my stay in zulu. and then they went on to train the recruits, whilst i was to end this little detour in my life that is the army and head back to the highway.
i pasted my thank-you-goodbye notes for every permstaff member, less the other 2 ord-ing people, on the company office's whiteboard, just like what mark had done 5 months before. and i pasted my last words to platoon 4 just beside the lift on their level. i hope everyone whom i wrote the notes for reads it.
***
latest updates on my life progress
4. call up the architect for internship DONE now i need to send them my resume first (but i need to create a resume first!!)
5. write somethings... -secret- DONE the thank-you notes
6. buy something DONE tortillions and engineering gloves
7. gather info about possible courses i'd like to sign up for NOT DONE
8. plan out my post-ord schedule NOT DONE
I'M LIKE, "WHAT?"
QUITE STRANGE, I DON'T KNOW IF I'M HAPPY OR NOT.
the past couple of hours played out like a tv drama.
gave gary a little token of appreciation the night before, and he was really, really happy :)
after a restful night outfield for the last time, i started rushing through all the thank-you notes. hanged around with people for a while, said my goodbyes and passed some of them the notes.
i had written the notes as it would have been so much harder to say what i felt to them. and not to mention, hard to find all of them, so i planned to drop the notes somewhere in company line.
then, at about 9.30am the tonner engine started revving. what, it's leaving so soon? i hurriedly packed my belongings - i had neglected to do so for a quick withdrawal - and went on board. the tonner drove unexpectedly slowly, perhaps because of the items transported on board.
as it chugged on, people whom i know waved goodbye to me. i could have just leapt out of the vehicle!
it's so miserable. especially when i waved goodbye to the 44th, who've been with me for the most part of my stay in zulu. and then they went on to train the recruits, whilst i was to end this little detour in my life that is the army and head back to the highway.
i pasted my thank-you-goodbye notes for every permstaff member, less the other 2 ord-ing people, on the company office's whiteboard, just like what mark had done 5 months before. and i pasted my last words to platoon 4 just beside the lift on their level. i hope everyone whom i wrote the notes for reads it.
***
latest updates on my life progress
4. call up the architect for internship DONE now i need to send them my resume first (but i need to create a resume first!!)
5. write somethings... -secret- DONE the thank-you notes
6. buy something DONE tortillions and engineering gloves
7. gather info about possible courses i'd like to sign up for NOT DONE
8. plan out my post-ord schedule NOT DONE
Saturday, November 08, 2008
productivity
these are some of the stuff i must do before i ord:
1. collect the remaining 4 signatures and do the interviews DONE!
2. wits project. for some strange reason an anonymous character has finished it already, so DONE!
3. complete my drawing of the watch. i started drawing it in april, or earlier i can't recall! think gary appreciated it, though he's sick of seeing the same watch for more than half a year. anyway, it's now DONE!
4. call up the architect for internship. half done. need to follow up on monday to begin negotiations. nothing's confirmed yet, but it looks positive as of now :)
5. write somethings... -secret- not yet, but soon! i have so little time left.
6. buy something. idea scrapped. but it looks like i need to buy something for 40+ people...
7. gather info about possible courses i'd like to sign up for not yet
8. plan out my post-ord schedule not yet
actually i wanted to post more here, but it's really getting too late. i'm watching 007 today at about 11am with my family, and then there's tuition and i'm booking (in for the last time) thereafter. so there. will update within 4 days *mixed feelings*
1. collect the remaining 4 signatures and do the interviews DONE!
2. wits project. for some strange reason an anonymous character has finished it already, so DONE!
3. complete my drawing of the watch. i started drawing it in april, or earlier i can't recall! think gary appreciated it, though he's sick of seeing the same watch for more than half a year. anyway, it's now DONE!
4. call up the architect for internship. half done. need to follow up on monday to begin negotiations. nothing's confirmed yet, but it looks positive as of now :)
5. write somethings... -secret- not yet, but soon! i have so little time left.
6. buy something. idea scrapped. but it looks like i need to buy something for 40+ people...
7. gather info about possible courses i'd like to sign up for not yet
8. plan out my post-ord schedule not yet
actually i wanted to post more here, but it's really getting too late. i'm watching 007 today at about 11am with my family, and then there's tuition and i'm booking (in for the last time) thereafter. so there. will update within 4 days *mixed feelings*
Sunday, November 02, 2008
double post
ah damnit. i forgot what to type about already.
AH OH YES i rmb.
i went for an insurance agent recruiting talk on thursday.
it sounds really exciting, for those interested in making money, coz if you do work hard your rewards are really handsome. in 6 years you can own a bmw!
and apparently the office politics are very minimal.
but it's not for me, heh. i'm still for archi as of now...
i hope i can be successful one day. prove to myself i'm actually quite powerful. harhar. but i don't think i can earn as much as a good insurance agent. wah, they can really earn an awful lot.
AH OH YES i rmb.
i went for an insurance agent recruiting talk on thursday.
it sounds really exciting, for those interested in making money, coz if you do work hard your rewards are really handsome. in 6 years you can own a bmw!
and apparently the office politics are very minimal.
but it's not for me, heh. i'm still for archi as of now...
i hope i can be successful one day. prove to myself i'm actually quite powerful. harhar. but i don't think i can earn as much as a good insurance agent. wah, they can really earn an awful lot.
pre-ORD list
these are some of the stuff i must do before i ord:
1. collect the remaining 4 signatures and do the interviews
2. wits project
3. complete my drawing of the watch
4. call up the architect for internship
5. write somethings... -secret-
6. buy something
7. gather info about possible courses i'd like to sign up for
8. plan out my post-ord schedule
will let you know if i succeed when the day comes haha.
1. collect the remaining 4 signatures and do the interviews
2. wits project
3. complete my drawing of the watch
4. call up the architect for internship
5. write somethings... -secret-
6. buy something
7. gather info about possible courses i'd like to sign up for
8. plan out my post-ord schedule
will let you know if i succeed when the day comes haha.
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
album reviews: jay chou and hins cheung
i had wanted to make this post in chinese too, since the albums are mandarin/cantonese. but, the thing is, it takes too long to input chinese characters. if only i have the tabloid programme especially to recognise chinese characters written on it. i used to own and use it way back in primary school.
please note that this short review is solely based on the music, not the lyrics.
anyway. i personally don't like jay chou's new album, capricorn, overall.
i only like 稻香 and 说好的幸福呢. the rest just don't feel significant enough to have a place in my already-full mp3 player. like what the general comments about the album say, this album's contributions to the large repertoire of mandopop is just tiny. it's all the same!
not that same is bad. bach wrote a four-part chorale per week for his church's mass for a period of time, and the total number of bach's works number over a thousand. chopin composed quite a lot of piano music (i forgot how many). and some of their stuff, especially bach's, sound the same!!! for example, i notice bach likes to use the motif from the invention in b-flat major in any keyboard music that is in the same key.
but! jay chou isn't dominating the music scene, unlike how bach is one of the dominant forces of baroque music today (he's dead, by the way). we listeners have so many artistes to choose from, you know. and i'm neither a big fan or hater of jay chou (ok, i used to be a little bit his fan a while back - liked his ballads from the older albums).
jay chou's rivals are catching up with him. i say, if weren't for the fact he introduced the then-new style, which was entirely his back then, to mandopop back in 2000, this album would sell just as well as the average artiste's. hey, everyone's singing in the rnb style. and we've got oriental and hip-hop and whathaveyou genres infused into pop. the instrumentations, the tunes, the accompaniments are all so similar.
actually, you can similarly argue that hin cheung's urban emotions is the same old thing again.
yea, actually that's quite true. but i'm very biased towards good vocals, and hins cheung is a singer with pretty good vocal technique. go search for videos of him sounding like pavarotti, or when he uses falsetto and whistle tone to exciting effect. too bad little of it is found in this album. i always like artistes who stretch their vocals to good effect. like christina aguilera, justin 侧田and jj lin.
if you see rnb as the in thing, then cantopop must be a little vintage. but everyone likes sappy ballads with soaring vocals once in a while.
oh, and the album features rihanna in her duet hate that i love you, where hins sing in two versions (cantonese and mandarin). actually i quite like rihanna's voice. just that mass-producing catchy singles gives the impression she's substance-less.
please note that this short review is solely based on the music, not the lyrics.
anyway. i personally don't like jay chou's new album, capricorn, overall.
no, the album isn't epic, contrary to what the cover suggests.
apart from the few featured songs like 稻香 (fragrant paddy) and the pretty good ballad 说好的幸福呢 (loosely translated to: where's the promised happiness), the rest of the songs feature a rockin' jay messing around with traditional western sounds such as yodelling and cowboy-style banjo-like riffs and chords in 魔术先生 (mr. magician) and snazzy harmonica played ad libitum in 流浪诗人 (wandering poet). or traditional oriental sounds with the erhu in 花海 (flower sea) and 兰亭序 (orchid pavillion). the rest are pretty much in the usual urban RnB style.
i only like 稻香 and 说好的幸福呢. the rest just don't feel significant enough to have a place in my already-full mp3 player. like what the general comments about the album say, this album's contributions to the large repertoire of mandopop is just tiny. it's all the same!
not that same is bad. bach wrote a four-part chorale per week for his church's mass for a period of time, and the total number of bach's works number over a thousand. chopin composed quite a lot of piano music (i forgot how many). and some of their stuff, especially bach's, sound the same!!! for example, i notice bach likes to use the motif from the invention in b-flat major in any keyboard music that is in the same key.
but! jay chou isn't dominating the music scene, unlike how bach is one of the dominant forces of baroque music today (he's dead, by the way). we listeners have so many artistes to choose from, you know. and i'm neither a big fan or hater of jay chou (ok, i used to be a little bit his fan a while back - liked his ballads from the older albums).
jay chou's rivals are catching up with him. i say, if weren't for the fact he introduced the then-new style, which was entirely his back then, to mandopop back in 2000, this album would sell just as well as the average artiste's. hey, everyone's singing in the rnb style. and we've got oriental and hip-hop and whathaveyou genres infused into pop. the instrumentations, the tunes, the accompaniments are all so similar.
actually, you can similarly argue that hin cheung's urban emotions is the same old thing again.
yea, actually that's quite true. but i'm very biased towards good vocals, and hins cheung is a singer with pretty good vocal technique. go search for videos of him sounding like pavarotti, or when he uses falsetto and whistle tone to exciting effect. too bad little of it is found in this album. i always like artistes who stretch their vocals to good effect. like christina aguilera, justin 侧田and jj lin.
if you see rnb as the in thing, then cantopop must be a little vintage. but everyone likes sappy ballads with soaring vocals once in a while.
oh, and the album features rihanna in her duet hate that i love you, where hins sing in two versions (cantonese and mandarin). actually i quite like rihanna's voice. just that mass-producing catchy singles gives the impression she's substance-less.
Monday, October 27, 2008
我首次的华文版部落格文章喔~
你越不要说，我越想尽办法把真相从你挤出来．．．
哈哈哈哈．．． ．．．
***
我今天又累坏自己。昨天凌晨一点多才上床，今天八点起床后就赶着去赴约（因昨天的事而．．．咳，不好说）。在那儿等到两点才搭德士到文礼。接着，吃了八个寿司，又教补习。
没想到我不在兵营时，每天都忙着做这个，做那个。与在兵营里时比较，在营外时忙得多。
当然，做工“收获”不浅，但是，我好像不知不觉牺牲了自己。
离开武装部队之后的生活会如何？拭目以待？
不，我必须抓紧时间，为自己而生活！
***
诶（念“ei” 轻声），我的华文语言基础还挺不错吧？只可惜，用汉语拼音来打字太花时间了！
其实，我读小学时候很不喜欢华文。尤其是做华文功课。老师吩咐我们每几个星期交那一篇日记，我会拖时间不做，做完其他科目功课后才写那个死日记！我经常大白天做不完，到了晚上还在绞尽脑汁，好不容易才写完一篇约两百字长的文章。
小时候，华文语言基础很差。在小六离校会考中，高级华文成绩竟然是优等分级？！太离谱吧？
到了中学时，发现我有好多同学的华文本领比我的还差，对自己的语文发挥本领也就有了点信心。老师也教得既有趣，又很好，所以我对华文的兴趣从这时候发萌。
我万万没想到，我的中学高级华文会考又得了A级！感激我所有的华文老师，尤其是小学的黄老师，中学的韦老师、温老师、黄老师。
只可惜，我的口才方面还是较弱些，是因为太少讲的问题。
好啦，很啰嗦。睡觉了！
明天会更好！呀．．． ．．．！
哈哈哈哈．．． ．．．
***
我今天又累坏自己。昨天凌晨一点多才上床，今天八点起床后就赶着去赴约（因昨天的事而．．．咳，不好说）。在那儿等到两点才搭德士到文礼。接着，吃了八个寿司，又教补习。
没想到我不在兵营时，每天都忙着做这个，做那个。与在兵营里时比较，在营外时忙得多。
当然，做工“收获”不浅，但是，我好像不知不觉牺牲了自己。
离开武装部队之后的生活会如何？拭目以待？
不，我必须抓紧时间，为自己而生活！
***
诶（念“ei” 轻声），我的华文语言基础还挺不错吧？只可惜，用汉语拼音来打字太花时间了！
其实，我读小学时候很不喜欢华文。尤其是做华文功课。老师吩咐我们每几个星期交那一篇日记，我会拖时间不做，做完其他科目功课后才写那个死日记！我经常大白天做不完，到了晚上还在绞尽脑汁，好不容易才写完一篇约两百字长的文章。
小时候，华文语言基础很差。在小六离校会考中，高级华文成绩竟然是优等分级？！太离谱吧？
到了中学时，发现我有好多同学的华文本领比我的还差，对自己的语文发挥本领也就有了点信心。老师也教得既有趣，又很好，所以我对华文的兴趣从这时候发萌。
我万万没想到，我的中学高级华文会考又得了A级！感激我所有的华文老师，尤其是小学的黄老师，中学的韦老师、温老师、黄老师。
只可惜，我的口才方面还是较弱些，是因为太少讲的问题。
好啦，很啰嗦。睡觉了！
明天会更好！呀．．． ．．．！
Sunday, October 26, 2008
important updates
1. thanks to one of my friends who called me up today and pointed out that my previous two posts are incongruent (how could i have done guard duty AND watched perahia at the same time?) well, one of my friends volunteered to do it for me. FOR NOTHING! am touched.
i mean, a $71 ticket is rather valuable, but for someone to volunteer to do guard duty in order to let someone else enjoy life is quite, sacrificial of himself and bastardly of me :(
thanks again, guodong! really appreciate your kindness.
2. i am dying of increased fatigue! my acne is erupting again after so many months of effort (and money) because of the late nights working or having fun.
speaking of fun, watched tropic thunder yesterday night with some of my first batch of recruits, some of whom are sergeants and lieutanents.
my 1st batch of recruits want me to get drunk O_o lol i think i die liao.
after my ord, i really hope to intern in an architectural firm, or a design-related firm like interior design, to get a sense of what really happens in there. but i'm slightly apprehensive about calling up the contact which my dad helped me source for. apprehensive about rejection. because i've absolutely no training in art or any design programme like autocad and illustrator! what sort of intern will i be? coffee maker? or clean away the eraser dust on the floor, created by the architects who work fervently to the extent of losing sleep :
if i intern, where do i get my money from? hey, i need to save money for the future, you know!
maybe this is what they say by sacrificing yourself to the lure of money. my life is sucked into a deep well of boredom and depression and lust for financial stability! ARGH.
3. no la. it's not that bad, really. but sometimes (nowadays) i can get really sad. whenever i think about... sigh. i just can't stop thinking! even in the midst of perahia's concert (i admit, i was too tired to enjoy his concert to the fullest so my mind was wandering off and into the well it went.)
another thing: it's one thing to know that someone's like that (which is rather hard to explain now coz i'm not thinking straight and i can't recall my train of thought anymore) because he told you so, but torturous to find it out yourself. as if he's hiding it from you, despite being rather good and close friends.
everyone has their right to privacy, yes. but everyone also has some right to know each other better, right? the mystery is KILLING ME!
4. in relation to the previous point: i have only about 3-4 working days left. zulu company take note. miss me when i'm gone, ok? i'll miss you back, too :(
5. on a more tangential but solemn note, compared to the previous points.
one of my aslc platoon mates just passed away yesterday (26th october) in a motor accident.
the issue of death has rarely cropped up in my life. the first instance was my accidental murder of about 10 goldfishes in a week when i was about 5-7 years old. the tank water looked suspiciously soapy in retrospect, i wonder if i indeed added soap. maybe the fish were stressed by the enviroment; i kept changing water every day.
next, was the death of a male hamster. the larger, dominant male was probably the culprit.
i apologise if this sounds flippant so far. that's not my intention at all. but really, the first two deaths i experienced were deaths of my pets.
then, my paternal grandfather. i was about 9 years old then. i remember silently shedding tears in the mrt carriage at jurong east mrt the moment mom broke the news. i knelt on the seat facing the window. embarrassment at a young age does happen, and all of us hide our weaker emotions sometimes.
the emotion felt then was just that of pure sadness. that someone whom you knew passed away. it's a very simple emotion, uncomplicated by any yearning for that someone to come back. probably because i'm not close to my grandfather - he lived in north malaysia.
and now, another person whom i knew and talked to before. gone. i received the news through sms from my section mate who's a good friend in need.
i suddenly realise this issue, of death of persons, is so sensitive, i'm pondering over every word i type here. and i hope i do not offend.
i'm not close to him, that platoon mate of mine. still, his demise meant some things to me.
not sad, not yearning, not missing. because i'm not close to him.
but, i'm thinking, life really is that fragile. who'd knew his demise would come so soon. who knows, you or me will be gone any moment.
i just saw a powerpoint slide presentation saying how the daily struggles IS life, since life is about coping with things around you every day. and that because you will be handling stress every day, there won't be a day when you can finally 'enjoy' a life without any obstacles or challenges. there's a beauty in enjoying the daily things that happen. that's life.
and i'm intellectually shaken by the powerpoint slide presentation and the death. it all makes sense to me, suddenly. perhaps i can begin to overcome the inertia in me that keeps me pessimistic every day? i hope i can, although i do enjoy wallowing in sorrow too.
every day must be a celebration of life!
thank you, dad, mom, brother. relatives especially those whom i talked to in the recent year or so.
many thank yous to gary, dq, jeremy, derrick wong and co., weiqi, don and co., and all the friends i met in the army (just to name a few).
and to my long-suffering friends like jeff and yi han, for bothering to call me. i need people to contact me because i'm too lazy and/or reluctant to call (rejection)! and to my chorale friends and people i met in school.
there's too much to lose.
i mean, a $71 ticket is rather valuable, but for someone to volunteer to do guard duty in order to let someone else enjoy life is quite, sacrificial of himself and bastardly of me :(
thanks again, guodong! really appreciate your kindness.
2. i am dying of increased fatigue! my acne is erupting again after so many months of effort (and money) because of the late nights working or having fun.
speaking of fun, watched tropic thunder yesterday night with some of my first batch of recruits, some of whom are sergeants and lieutanents.
my 1st batch of recruits want me to get drunk O_o lol i think i die liao.
after my ord, i really hope to intern in an architectural firm, or a design-related firm like interior design, to get a sense of what really happens in there. but i'm slightly apprehensive about calling up the contact which my dad helped me source for. apprehensive about rejection. because i've absolutely no training in art or any design programme like autocad and illustrator! what sort of intern will i be? coffee maker? or clean away the eraser dust on the floor, created by the architects who work fervently to the extent of losing sleep :
if i intern, where do i get my money from? hey, i need to save money for the future, you know!
maybe this is what they say by sacrificing yourself to the lure of money. my life is sucked into a deep well of boredom and depression and lust for financial stability! ARGH.
3. no la. it's not that bad, really. but sometimes (nowadays) i can get really sad. whenever i think about... sigh. i just can't stop thinking! even in the midst of perahia's concert (i admit, i was too tired to enjoy his concert to the fullest so my mind was wandering off and into the well it went.)
another thing: it's one thing to know that someone's like that (which is rather hard to explain now coz i'm not thinking straight and i can't recall my train of thought anymore) because he told you so, but torturous to find it out yourself. as if he's hiding it from you, despite being rather good and close friends.
everyone has their right to privacy, yes. but everyone also has some right to know each other better, right? the mystery is KILLING ME!
4. in relation to the previous point: i have only about 3-4 working days left. zulu company take note. miss me when i'm gone, ok? i'll miss you back, too :(
5. on a more tangential but solemn note, compared to the previous points.
one of my aslc platoon mates just passed away yesterday (26th october) in a motor accident.
the issue of death has rarely cropped up in my life. the first instance was my accidental murder of about 10 goldfishes in a week when i was about 5-7 years old. the tank water looked suspiciously soapy in retrospect, i wonder if i indeed added soap. maybe the fish were stressed by the enviroment; i kept changing water every day.
next, was the death of a male hamster. the larger, dominant male was probably the culprit.
i apologise if this sounds flippant so far. that's not my intention at all. but really, the first two deaths i experienced were deaths of my pets.
then, my paternal grandfather. i was about 9 years old then. i remember silently shedding tears in the mrt carriage at jurong east mrt the moment mom broke the news. i knelt on the seat facing the window. embarrassment at a young age does happen, and all of us hide our weaker emotions sometimes.
the emotion felt then was just that of pure sadness. that someone whom you knew passed away. it's a very simple emotion, uncomplicated by any yearning for that someone to come back. probably because i'm not close to my grandfather - he lived in north malaysia.
and now, another person whom i knew and talked to before. gone. i received the news through sms from my section mate who's a good friend in need.
i suddenly realise this issue, of death of persons, is so sensitive, i'm pondering over every word i type here. and i hope i do not offend.
i'm not close to him, that platoon mate of mine. still, his demise meant some things to me.
not sad, not yearning, not missing. because i'm not close to him.
but, i'm thinking, life really is that fragile. who'd knew his demise would come so soon. who knows, you or me will be gone any moment.
i just saw a powerpoint slide presentation saying how the daily struggles IS life, since life is about coping with things around you every day. and that because you will be handling stress every day, there won't be a day when you can finally 'enjoy' a life without any obstacles or challenges. there's a beauty in enjoying the daily things that happen. that's life.
and i'm intellectually shaken by the powerpoint slide presentation and the death. it all makes sense to me, suddenly. perhaps i can begin to overcome the inertia in me that keeps me pessimistic every day? i hope i can, although i do enjoy wallowing in sorrow too.
every day must be a celebration of life!
thank you, dad, mom, brother. relatives especially those whom i talked to in the recent year or so.
many thank yous to gary, dq, jeremy, derrick wong and co., weiqi, don and co., and all the friends i met in the army (just to name a few).
and to my long-suffering friends like jeff and yi han, for bothering to call me. i need people to contact me because i'm too lazy and/or reluctant to call (rejection)! and to my chorale friends and people i met in school.
there's too much to lose.
Saturday, October 25, 2008
esplanade sun festival - murray perahia on 24th oct
murray perahia is awesome. his playing is really lucid so you can hear the inner voices very clearly. my piano enthusiast friends remarked that they have never heard so many inner voices in chopin's ballades!
his contrapuntal playing is rather brilliant, the way (as kwan rui describes) he keeps the melody at a steady volume but changes the counterpoint tone, usually in the left hand, to create contrasts of loud and soft.
that made me think, mainstream music's like that too! haha. the lead singer's volume on the track is always the same but the instrumentation behind and its volume change for different parts of the song. interesting.
the pedalling was just about right to create blend and form especially in the flow of notes. though i thought it could be just slightly less murky for bach. just slightly. maybe the acoustics was already quite 'wet' to begin with.
and the beethoven! the sharpness of the contour in the appassionata was all apparent: the quick, flighty ascensions up the register with broken chords followed by a loud block chord in the lower register.
the tone was, however, downplayed to good effect. usually pianists cook up a big storm with clangouring upon every forte or fortessimo written in the score, to the extent that ugly sounds are heard, capturing the high strung-ness and furiousity of the piece. but, no! perahia's rendition was meliflous and less emotionally charged than the usual interpretation of the piece.
this interpretation somehow - i don't know why but it just struck me like that! - displayed a seemly ironic sense of simplicity, of being enlightened about the worldly complex matters and maelstrom of personal turmoil that beethoven experienced during the time he composed the appassionata.
with the 'simplicity' of expression (by simplicity i mean not being overtly emotional and charge at every note with equal density) it allowed fresh air to breathe into the inner parts of the voicing (again, the voicing!) which would not have been heard clearly if everything were played double-f.
the contrapuntal textures and demarcation of the different lines in a largely homophonic texture reflects the complexity and confusion of the composer's mind: they weave in and out of each other and so many lines run simultaneously against each other.
mind blowing!
and the chopin - lovely short pieces, those marzukas, nocturnes and etudes. the lyricsim in the melody is constantly achieved, be it in the right or left hand. i mean, the tone is so constantly good. again, the renditions show how contrast can be generated through the accompaniment rather than the melody. and i was reminded of the different touches to be used especially for the left hand that i learnt while practising a john field nocturne (learning how to create interest out of repetition is very tough, i tell you).
liked the way he choreographed his body and arm movements in certain areas, for example, the wave like parts played by both hands in the high register - sorry guys, i don't know which opus that is!
the encore pieces were splendid, too. this time the pieces chosen were even more showy and were like 'ta-da'!
lol. ran out of words to describe the concert. fantastic! no wonder, that perahia received a standing ovation at the end.
ok, will elaborate more about yesterday in a while... gotta go swim with friends, then tuition, then nights out hahaha. byebye.
his contrapuntal playing is rather brilliant, the way (as kwan rui describes) he keeps the melody at a steady volume but changes the counterpoint tone, usually in the left hand, to create contrasts of loud and soft.
that made me think, mainstream music's like that too! haha. the lead singer's volume on the track is always the same but the instrumentation behind and its volume change for different parts of the song. interesting.
the pedalling was just about right to create blend and form especially in the flow of notes. though i thought it could be just slightly less murky for bach. just slightly. maybe the acoustics was already quite 'wet' to begin with.
and the beethoven! the sharpness of the contour in the appassionata was all apparent: the quick, flighty ascensions up the register with broken chords followed by a loud block chord in the lower register.
the tone was, however, downplayed to good effect. usually pianists cook up a big storm with clangouring upon every forte or fortessimo written in the score, to the extent that ugly sounds are heard, capturing the high strung-ness and furiousity of the piece. but, no! perahia's rendition was meliflous and less emotionally charged than the usual interpretation of the piece.
this interpretation somehow - i don't know why but it just struck me like that! - displayed a seemly ironic sense of simplicity, of being enlightened about the worldly complex matters and maelstrom of personal turmoil that beethoven experienced during the time he composed the appassionata.
with the 'simplicity' of expression (by simplicity i mean not being overtly emotional and charge at every note with equal density) it allowed fresh air to breathe into the inner parts of the voicing (again, the voicing!) which would not have been heard clearly if everything were played double-f.
the contrapuntal textures and demarcation of the different lines in a largely homophonic texture reflects the complexity and confusion of the composer's mind: they weave in and out of each other and so many lines run simultaneously against each other.
mind blowing!
and the chopin - lovely short pieces, those marzukas, nocturnes and etudes. the lyricsim in the melody is constantly achieved, be it in the right or left hand. i mean, the tone is so constantly good. again, the renditions show how contrast can be generated through the accompaniment rather than the melody. and i was reminded of the different touches to be used especially for the left hand that i learnt while practising a john field nocturne (learning how to create interest out of repetition is very tough, i tell you).
liked the way he choreographed his body and arm movements in certain areas, for example, the wave like parts played by both hands in the high register - sorry guys, i don't know which opus that is!
the encore pieces were splendid, too. this time the pieces chosen were even more showy and were like 'ta-da'!
lol. ran out of words to describe the concert. fantastic! no wonder, that perahia received a standing ovation at the end.
ok, will elaborate more about yesterday in a while... gotta go swim with friends, then tuition, then nights out hahaha. byebye.
Thursday, October 23, 2008
oh, it's nothing, really... it's ok... ok...
yea... it's ok to be called up one fine afternoon and be informed that i am on duty 2 days later. when it wasn't forecasted earlier.
i'm not supposed to have any duty for this month and next!!! what's happening?
because of that, i can't have dinner and watch murray perahia's piano concert with some friends whom i've arranged to go out with. that's $70+ dollars, too. and my tuition schedule will be messed up.
of course there isn't justice, but it can't be helped either. someone has to do it, and it has to be me?
3 weeks left leh. what do all of you want?
@#!%`~&#^?$*@#>$%#?@^@$%*#%^@^#!$)?...........
emo-ing... about this and that. yea, that thing. i think too much (maybe) and it really affects my mood badly.
>.<"
on an unrelated note, some anonymous character left a comment on one of my posts which is 2 years old!
i wonder who it is... it's really intriguing. how did s\he find that post? did s\he read all of my posts since this blog started in 2006? or maybe a keyword search (i suspect the word "PLUNCH") landed him/her on my site? s\he must know me right? else why would s\he leave such a random comment "yea... too short..."
and, hey! the average singaporean guy is about 170cm!!!
this anonymous person must be either a tall guy, or a girl.
***
i think, people who think too much (e.g. me) will never find happiness lasting longer than a few days. i don't think i've been very happy for long periods of time since secondary school. why why why.
however, my younger, happy days were innocent and not very significant. the sad times then were also, well, rather sad but after some time everything's ok and good to go.
ok, the cliche is again, true, i guess. people just have to experience sadness of a higher intensity to appreciate happiness (and vice versa i suppose). i've been immensely happy before. especially since my jc days. and fell harder and more too.
or is it just a maturing mind that intensifies the significance of events, that makes us feel the emotions more strongly? like how a person's simple gesture means so much to you because from it you can infer tonnes about his/her character and attitude towards you.
meaning, you don't need to have felt extreme sadness to truly enjoy extreme happiness?
so it's like, a casual but non-relationship between experiencing and feeling happiness and sadness. well, in reality there'll be something that makes most people sad, right?
my mind's thinking too much into people's actions that it makes me sad, shocked or slightly tainted with disgust, or anything in between.
for instance, you hear it first-hand that your friend, with that wholesome image he could be a character from high school musical, surfs porn :O
another example: because people are self-centered. even myself :( if i weren't self-centered i wouldn't have a personal blog, or keep daydreaming about my future.
you want someone to like you or to be your best friend forever but you don't know how to do it.
and no one likes me!!!
let's magnify that:
i'm not (that) ugly, i like being with nice people... so why like that? sniff sniff.
teach me how to make friends, can? or someone take pity on me and be my frI3nD?
i'm not supposed to have any duty for this month and next!!! what's happening?
because of that, i can't have dinner and watch murray perahia's piano concert with some friends whom i've arranged to go out with. that's $70+ dollars, too. and my tuition schedule will be messed up.
of course there isn't justice, but it can't be helped either. someone has to do it, and it has to be me?
3 weeks left leh. what do all of you want?
@#!%`~&#^?$*@#>$%#?@^@$%*#%^@^#!$)?...........
emo-ing... about this and that. yea, that thing. i think too much (maybe) and it really affects my mood badly.
>.<"
on an unrelated note, some anonymous character left a comment on one of my posts which is 2 years old!
i wonder who it is... it's really intriguing. how did s\he find that post? did s\he read all of my posts since this blog started in 2006? or maybe a keyword search (i suspect the word "PLUNCH") landed him/her on my site? s\he must know me right? else why would s\he leave such a random comment "yea... too short..."
and, hey! the average singaporean guy is about 170cm!!!
this anonymous person must be either a tall guy, or a girl.
***
i think, people who think too much (e.g. me) will never find happiness lasting longer than a few days. i don't think i've been very happy for long periods of time since secondary school. why why why.
however, my younger, happy days were innocent and not very significant. the sad times then were also, well, rather sad but after some time everything's ok and good to go.
ok, the cliche is again, true, i guess. people just have to experience sadness of a higher intensity to appreciate happiness (and vice versa i suppose). i've been immensely happy before. especially since my jc days. and fell harder and more too.
or is it just a maturing mind that intensifies the significance of events, that makes us feel the emotions more strongly? like how a person's simple gesture means so much to you because from it you can infer tonnes about his/her character and attitude towards you.
meaning, you don't need to have felt extreme sadness to truly enjoy extreme happiness?
so it's like, a casual but non-relationship between experiencing and feeling happiness and sadness. well, in reality there'll be something that makes most people sad, right?
my mind's thinking too much into people's actions that it makes me sad, shocked or slightly tainted with disgust, or anything in between.
for instance, you hear it first-hand that your friend, with that wholesome image he could be a character from high school musical, surfs porn :O
another example: because people are self-centered. even myself :( if i weren't self-centered i wouldn't have a personal blog, or keep daydreaming about my future.
you want someone to like you or to be your best friend forever but you don't know how to do it.
and no one likes me!!!
let's magnify that:
i'm not (that) ugly, i like being with nice people... so why like that? sniff sniff.
teach me how to make friends, can? or someone take pity on me and be my frI3nD?
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