Looking Back at 2008, What have I achieve?

Was checking through my previous entry for the year of 2008 and I saw these two entries titled "What do I want for the year 2008?" and "My Wishlist for 2008".

I slowly recalled what I had achieved so far. Maybe starting with what I want for the year of 2008.

Graduate with my M.Eng. - Passed my First Year presentation and the report is almost completing, so not 100% complete but I hope to close it by Jan 2009.

Get a good job - I did change a job, the pay was good but work sucks. Need to work on this one for 2009. Hope that my interview went well.

To have peace and calmness in my mind, heart and soul - I did achieve this but... what I face in work just zapped out all that I had achieve. So... solve the root cause. ;)

Now, for my 2008 wishlist, what had I achieve.

Photography
Nikon D3 - Nope, change of mind, waiting for other models
Nikon FM3A - Yes, my greatest catch
Nikkor 50mm f1.4 - Yes, now is my favourite lens on my FM3A
Nikkor 85mm f1.4 - Nope, well... Almost...
Nikkor 24-70mm f2.8 - Far from it. :(
Think Tank Urban Disguise 60 bag - Nope, didn't buy

Other Gadgets
Wireless Keyboard and Mouse for my Laptop - Hmm... Do I need these things?
PSP - Never wrote this but I got it in 2008. Haha...

Other thing that I hope to achieve
Get my Thesis done and graduate with my M.Eng - In Progress
Get a good job - Ehh... Read my previous comments
Learn BnW Photography using film - Yes, now considering setting up my own Darkroom. Hehe...
Find a girlfriend - :)

Marina Barrage (InfraRed)

It has been long since I went out with my IR group for phototaking. Went out with Teerex, Dennis and Tan to the Marina Barrage and took some photos. Just to share some with all. Enjoy.

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Merry Christmas 2008 to all

Wishing all my visitors to my blog a Merry Christmas. May all your wishes come true and hope that this blessed season is a season of change. Changing for the better in terms of economy and stability, peace to earth, green movement that help to change the whole world to a better place to live in.

New Logo after the Financial Crisis

Got this from a friend of mine. Hope that you will get a good laugh. Enjoy.

Music Back on Blog So High

Finally got my music back and working. Got a big problem previously as my Filefreak account was terminated as I never login for more than 45 days, so my account expires. Tried signing up but never receive my activation email.

Anyway, finally got it settled. So, enjoy the music. Since Christmas is around the corner, just like to share some Christmas songs with all. Enjoy.

More than 1,000 species discovered in Mekong: WWF

For those who knows me well enough will know that I like animals and wildlife a lot. This news of new species been found just make me more excited to find out how these creatures look like. Extract from Yahoo news...

Scientists have discovered more than 1,000 species in Southeast Asia's Greater Mekong region in the past decade, including a spider as big as a dinner plate, the World Wildlife Fund said Monday.

A rat thought to have become extinct 11 million years ago and a cyanide-laced, shocking pink millipede were among creatures found in what the group called a "biological treasure trove".

The species were all found in the rainforests and wetlands along the Mekong River, which flows through Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam and the southern Chinese province of Yunnan.

"It doesn't get any better than this," Stuart Chapman, director of WWF's Greater Mekong Programme, was quoted as saying in a statement by the group.

"We thought discoveries of this scale were confined to the history books."

The WWF report, "First Contact in the Greater Mekong", said that "between 1997 and 2007, at least 1,068 have been officially described by science as being newly discovered species."

These included the world's largest huntsman spider, with a leg span of 30 centimetres (11.8 inches), and the "startlingly" coloured "dragon millipede", which produces the deadly compound cyanide.

Not all species were found hiding in remote jungles -- the Laotian rock rat, which the study said was thought to be extinct about 11 million years ago, was first encountered by scientists in a local food market in 2005, it said.

One species of pitviper was first noted by scientists after it was found in the rafters of a restaurant at the headquarters of Thailand's Khao Yai national park in 2001.

"This region is like what I read about as a child in the stories of Charles Darwin," said Dr Thomas Ziegler, curator at the Cologne Zoo, who was involved in the research.

"It is a great feeling being in an unexplored area and to document its biodiversity for the first time both enigmatic and beautiful," he said.

The new species highlighted in the report include 519 plants, 279 fish, 88 frogs, 88 spiders, 46 lizards, 22 snakes, 15 mammals, four birds, four turtles, two salamanders and a toad -- an average of two previously undiscovered species a week for the past 10 years.

The report warned, however, that many of the species could be at risk from development, and called for a cross-border agreement between the countries in the Greater Mekong area to protect it.

Mosquito style

Happened to see this Youtube clip in a thread posted in Clubsnap. I think it is rather funny and I will like to share with all. :) Enjoy.

Happy Thanksgiving 2008

A bit late for this but Happy Thanksgiving to all. Hope that the economy will recover under the leadership of Obama and pick up and the whole world back to normal.

Still can remember how is the feeling like when it is Thanksgiving time in US. Quite a warm and cozy feeling because it is one of the most important festive season for them.

Well, it just make me miss my stay in US again. Hahaha... Ok, take care and have a great holiday. Enjoy.

Area Under Development...

Finally got the chance to go out to take some photos. Enjoy.

Latest Christmas carol for 2008 !!!

Got it from my friend. Have fun. (I just Ian will enjoy it. Haha...)

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You'd better watch out
You'd better not cry
You'd better keep cash
I'm telling you why:
Recession is coming to town.

It's hitting you once,
It's hitting you twice
It doesn't care if you've been careful and wise
Recession is coming to town

It's worthless if you've got shares
It's worthless if you've got bonds
It's safe when you've got cash in hand
So keep cash for goodness sake, HEY

You'd better watch out
You'd better not cry
You'd better keep cash
I'm telling you why:
Recession is coming to town!

Finance products are confusing
Finance products are so vague
The banks make you bear the cost of risk
So keep out for goodness sake, OH

You'd better watch out
You'd better not cry
You'd better keep cash
I'm telling you why:
Recession is coming to town.

Love Oneself

Has been long since I wrote any article to share with all. Wanted to write this article for a long time but never find the time to do it except now. The topic that I want to share about is Loving Oneself. This topic came about when EeHua posted this article on her blog and Ian commented on it. I happened to saw it and added my comments. Now, I will shared out my thoughts on this topic.

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For some, to love is to give wholeheartedly to the one we loved but before we can learn to love others, we must learn to love ourselves. When I said loving oneself, I don't mean to have that selfish mindset of 'Me' or I' attitude or that we should think too highly of ourselves and become arrogant. Some will say that we cannot possibly love oneself but yet still love another. This is true if we are too focus on loving ourselves, taking care of only our own interests and concern with only on how we feel. For this type of love, it is an extreme thinking of loving oneself, in some sense, this become Narcissus aka The Self-Admirer. Hence, how can one even possible love another when he or she is loving himself or heself more.

In the case of loving oneself, it is more of accepting oneself as who he or she is and not trying to be what others wanted them to be. Loving oneself include accepting ones own weakness and strength, appearance and background. In reality, how many of us are able to accept ourselves as who we are? Don't we usually want to be someone else in life, such as to be taller, to be more handsome, to be fairer and etc. There is totally nothing wrong for wanting to be someone else or wanted more of this or less of that to make oneself more beautiful or handsome. But towards the extend of wanting to be another and start hating oneself with what he or she was given, that is not loving oneself.

The Divine has given and bless us with what we have today, how we looks, our environment and surroundings, our background and our passage of life. If we never learn to love ourselves and accepting what is given to us, then we will always live with sadness and depression and anger. Then in this case, how can we even learn to love others and give to the one we loved.

I used to hate myself in the past. With many things in fact, I used to hate the way I look, the way I talk, how life seems so unfair, why am I thinking like this and so on and so fro... but as I slowly learnt, life is never perfect. So I understand the meaning of life is not so much of changing to suit others but learning to accept and understand ourselves better outside and inside and accepting what is given to us. That is to love oneself, then I can learn to love others. ;)

So think it about.

No Post, No Photos...

Is this blog still alive?

Yes it is. Just that it has been slow in posting, updating and most of all... No Photo.

Well, I have been really busy. Really sorry about that. Working on my thesis, sending out resumes, yes... I wanted to change job and also bad weather is putting off my plans for photo shoot. Strange enough, I also have been running around attend to wedding receptions, lunch and dinner, not sure why a lot of people getting married during this period of time. Hmm...

Work wise is getting busy. My manager loaded me with years of work which I think it is totally sickening. Can't bring myself to face it everyday... I do hope for a brighter future, but with the poor economy around, chances and hopes are slim...

Do wish me luck for my future prospect. In some sense, maybe I need someone to see the treasure in me and also to bring out the best of me. I hope...

Remembering the 19th of Nov 2004

Time flies and 4 years had passed.

Today is a day that I will always remember. The day that over 20 trainees flow over from Singapore to Illinois for training. The start of a new chapter which changed my life and thinking. To me, it was really a happy and carefree period of my life which I won't forget.

Thinking and remembering it just make me miss those days in Pembrook Club, Gurnee, Libertyville, George Court, Dominicks and so on. I really feel like taking time off to re-live that period of my life again. I really wish...

Has Technology Improved Our Life?

Was reading this article which I will like to share with all. It sets me thinking, has technolgy improved our life? Or has it make it worse off? You decide...

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Confronting the IT backlash

While technology can be a timesaving boon, could the increased use of instant messaging and emails in the workplace cause our interpersonal skills to regress? Lee Xieli finds out.

Derek Massie

Human resources director

Acergy Asia and Middle East

Personally, I am an enthusiastic user and supporter of e-communication tools. It has played a significant role in globalisation and in “shrinking the world”. However, I have some concerns that as with all tools, it has its pitfalls.

An over-reliance on this form of communication can lead to a culture of “I have sent the email” and the sub message “I have done my job”. This is a particular issue in cultures where there is discomfort around confronting openly with tough issues and emails can become an easy answer, but not a solution. In fact, it becomes an issue avoidance tool.

Whilst generation X and Y love electronic media such as emails and social networking sites such as Facebook, I am concerned the overuse may result in less well-developed social skills and relationships. This is a business and a social challenge. Lastly, despite email codes and charters, people still overuse the e-communication tools. They forget that with the absence of more critical message supporters such as body language and tone of voice, email messages can be easily misunderstood.

In summary, electronic communication is a way of life in business, but it is only a tool. Leaders need to emphasise that interpersonal skills and emotional intelligence are what develops relationships and achieves business goals. Companies can encourage their staff to work efficiently without losing the face-to-face communication. For me, the only solution is creating a culture of valuing interpersonal skills – start at recruitment, induction, appraisals and most importantly, via coaching and leadership behaviours.



Maurice Chua

Regional human resource director

AES Asia & Middle East

When you look at this from a wider perspective, face-to-face interactions were already reduced with the advent of the landline telephone. The availability of higher end technology via mobile phones, internet mail and emails simply sped up the pace of interactions. What we have today is a higher frequency of work interactions, so I do not think the increased use of technology has impacted the as-needed face-to-face interactions.

The key word is “as needed”, because face-to-face interaction is, and will continue to be, necessary if a manager wants to build good working relationship with their employees. I enjoy working in companies with a strong advocacy for employee engagement. My current company is one such company. Even though more than 80% of the employees carry a Blackberry, our business leaders continue to hold face-to-face interactions with the employees at every opportunity.

Some may argue that it was technology which increased the pace of the business world and I cannot disagree with that. However, everything is relative and the pace will always be seen as fast whether you are in the era of the landlines or mobile phones. In the future, when newer technology comes along, our current pace will be seen as slow. Everything is relative.

Systemically, it is good for the organisation to ensure the business moves at a pace they want. And when you look at the softer side of people management, it is not technology but the individual that influences the increased or reduced face-to-face interaction.

One side note though – in the interest of better work-life balance, individuals should let technology take a backseat at certain periods of their days and during weekends.



Talleah Teo

HR manager for Asia Pacific & Japan

Hewlett-Packard Asia Pacific

Nothing has actually remained the same since the impact of technology has taken over our lives. After all, when was the last time someone took the pain to circulate memos by hand once technology has presented us with the use of emails? These days, it is a matter of minutes to communicate a memo to the employees and management. While the email system seems to work pretty well, but is it a good or a bad thing?

The pros:

• There are no yucky stamps to lick, no impossible-to-decipher waybills to fill out and no trips in the freezing cold to mailboxes when sending emails.

• No matter where you send your email from, even the most rambling missive takes only seconds or, at most, minutes to reach its destination.

• Outside of our normal online connection charges, email and instant messaging (IM) cost precisely nothing, especially to overseas contacts.

• Because they’re electronic, saving emails are a breeze. It also means we use fewer natural resources.

The cons:

• We’ll be exchanging pleasantries with friends and colleagues, subscribing to mailing lists and online journals, and trading info with complete strangers. Before we know it, you can spend most of your day just reading and responding to the online deluge.

• Anyone with the right amount of technical know-how can easily intercept our emails and snoop through it without us or the recipient knowing. This is where IT security and firewall play very important roles.

• There’s a downside to the easy storage of email messages. A saved copy of our tirade against a boss or colleague could easily resurface and come back to haunt you sometime in the future.

While technology can facilitate our daily lives and workplace effectiveness, we must be more sensitive and carry out face-to-face interactions when necessary.

Ways of Life

Got this from an email which I find it quite meaningful and will like to share with my readers. Take some time to read through them.

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ONE. Give people more than they expect and do it cheerfully.

TWO. Marry a man/woman you love to talk to. As you get older, their conversational skills will be as important as any other.

THREE. Don't believe all you hear, spend all you have or sleep all you want.

FOUR. When you say, 'I love you,' mean it.

FIVE. When you say, 'I'm sorry,' look the person in the eye.

SIX. Be engaged at least six months before you get married.

SEVEN. Believe in love at first sight.

EIGHT. Never laugh at anyone's dreams. People who don't have dreams don't have much.

NINE. Love deeply and passionately. You might get hurt but it's the only way to live life completely.

TEN. In disagreements, fight fairly. No name calling.

ELEVEN. Don't judge people by their relatives.

TWELVE. Talk slowly but think quickly.

THIRTEEN. When someone asks you a question you don't want to answer, smile and ask, 'Why do you want to know?'

FOURTEEN. Remember that great love and great achievements involve great risk.

FIFTEEN. Say 'bless you' when you hear someone sneeze.

SIXTEEN. When you lose, don't lose the lesson.

SEVENTEEN. Remember the three R's: Respect for self; Respect for others; and Responsibility for all your actions.

EIGHTEEN. Don't let a little dispute injure a great friendship.

NINETEEN. When you realize you've made a mistake, take immediate steps to correct it.

TWENTY. Smile when picking up the phone. The caller will hear it in your voice.

TWENTY- ONE. Spend some time alone.

Obama wins US election, to become first black president

WASHINGTON, (AFP) - Americans elected Democrat Barack Obama as their first black president, handing him an historic victory over Republican John McCain, television networks projected.

Obama, 47, will be inaugurated the 44th US president on January 20, 2009, and inherit an economy mired in the worst financial crisis since the 1930s, two wars in Afghanistan and Iraq and a nuclear showdown with Iran.

Television networks projected his victory over Republican John McCain after Senator Obama solidified traditional Democratic states and cut deep into the Republican territory which his rival needed to control to win the White House.

Obama's historic inauguration will complete a stunning ascent to the pinnacle of US and global politics from national obscurity just four years ago and close an eight year era of turbulence under President George W. Bush.

What a Week… Glad it was over…

Finally have some time to update this blog. Sorry to be out of action for so long but it has been a hectic week for me last week. Starting from the day I touch down in Singapore from Taiwan. Maybe just to share my schedule with all.

26th Oct – Touch down in Singapore from Taiwan. BBQ session with my primary and secondary friends
27th Oct – Deepavali. Went back to my parent’s house.
28th Oct – Back to work again
29th Oct – Supplier audit at Batam (Whole day)
30th Oct – Type Audit Report
31st Oct – Ben and Charlotte’s wedding, helping out as Ben’s brother and coordinator
1st Nov – Back to NTU to do experiment for Master thesis report
2nd Nov – Prepare slides for First Year Report presentation on 3rd Nov at 3:30pm
3rd Nov – Prepare speech for presentation in the morning, Presentation to Chairman of Examination Panel, Reviewer and Supervisor

Thankfully, my First Year Report presentation got through. Life is slowly getting back to normal. Well, my next step is to correct my Master thesis report, include the next experimental results and submit it by the end of the year. Wish me luck.

Don’t worry. I will continue to blog. Cheerz. :)

I'm Back... Finally

I'm back, yes. Finally after almost away for 20 days in a foreign land.

Was onboard an overnight flight from Taipei leaving at 11:10pm and reached Singapore around 3:30am. Shared a cab with Ronnie and got home at 4am. Finally, home sweet home.

Start to pack all my stuffs, washing up and so on.

Feel good to be back. Must start catching up with my life. On the other hand, feel quite strange as I was starting to enjoy my time in Taipei. I can see all the sad faces as some of the servicemen feel reluctant, I believe they enjoy their time in Taiwan too. Well, I am going to miss the last 20 days that I had in Taiwan. :)

Half Way through... Alive and Kicking...

Now reporting live from HuKou Camp, inside the computer room with Internet access. Yes, I am really surprise but it is true... But, yes, there is a but... It cost me 10 NT for 30 minutes and the room condition is terrible. No air-con and the room is really warm.

Anyway, just a quick update. Everything is still going well with me. I am still fine. Very much alive of course. Hehe... The training is halfway through and I am looking forward to next Monday which is the major and last phase of the whole exercise before we return the stores and go for Rest and Relax ( R & R) on the 24th and 25th. Then I will take the night flight on the 25th and reach Singapore on the 26th. :)

Ok, won't want to go too deep details about the living condition. All I can say is that it is like living in a squatter area. But still bearable. Oh well, got a choice? Haha...

Ok, got to go now. Take care and thanks for dropping by.

(PS : Kelvin, which camp did you go to the other time when you are here for training?)

Taiwan, Here I come

Sorry for the lack of update. Have been very busy with my work and also my In-Camp Training (ICT). My ICT started on the 2nd Oct, this training is an overseas training exercise and I will be flying to Taiwan in a few hours time for my training. I will away and only return on the 26th Oct. So there will be no update till then. Sorry about that. Ok, got to go now. Wish me luck. :)

Marina Barrage (Night Shoot)

Sorry for the lack of update. Have been extremely busy for the whole of last week. Was on 12hrs shift on board vessel counting chain links while under the hot and bright daylight. Next, was jam pack with activities on the weekend. One baby shower and one wedding to attend.

Finally, was asked by PUB to take some more photos of Marina Barrage again. This time round, with more people, I was with Mike, Edward and James to take some shot for the architecture of the whole place. Not ideal as there are still construction work around the area, rubbish unclear and the worse of all, the weather... It is gloomy and hazy. Was rather disappointed but managed to capture some shots to share with all. Enjoy.

手牵手

手牵手 - 张小娴

男人追求女人，总是千方百计，患得患失牵着她的手，一旦让他捉住了，便不肯放手。

女人喜欢一个男人，也总是希望他主动牵着她的手，这种暗示，胜过千言万语。

在静悄的夜街上，她想他牵着她的手，送她回家，临别依依，拾不得放手。

在繁忙的街上，人潮汹涌，他紧紧地拉着她的手，生怕她会走失。一旦两双手给人群撞开了，她总是焦急地寻觅他的一只大手掌。

在他驾车的时候，我希望他只用一双手控制方向盘，另外一只手和我十指紧扣。

做为男人，应该懂得只用右手驾驶汽车。

跟朋友吃饭的时候，也希望他在桌下牵着我的手。

我们形容一男一女结束情侣关系是“分手”，因此，两个人相爱，无论如何要手牵手。

最舒适的手掌，是大而厚，可以把女人的小手牢包里面，给她安全感。切忌手汗多，弄湿人家的手。也不要太粗糙，软才有温柔感觉。

非常感谢特别的妳，让我牵妳的手。我好向往十指紧扣着妳的手，爱护妳，保护妳，永不放开。

Phone Line

Applied for a land line recently so that can make calls at a cheaper rate. Was at Causeway Point last week to settle my application and the telcom finally activate my line today. :)

For those friends who want my land line number, just drop me a SMS. :) Cheerz.

Marina Barrage

Was out with Mr Goh this afternoon to recce the Marina Barrage which will be officially opened on the 31st of Oct by PM Lee. Today is a Monday I know, and yes, I have to work today. Ok, that is not the point. Back to the topic. :P

PUB has invited PSS to shoot photos for the Marina Barrage which 5 best photos will be selected for Commemorative Postcards which will be presented to the Prime Minister on the day of opening. So, Mr Goh asked the Council Members during the last meeting on who is interested. I am really interested to find out new places to shoot. So I went to Marina Bay MRT to meet Mr Goh. To my surprise, the whole Marina area is totally different. It has become a ghost town... It lost its old days of bowling and Steamboat BBQ. Sigh...

Anyway, just to share some of my shots taken at the Marina Barrage earlier. Enjoy.

Stirring up my passion for Night Photography

Was out this morning with EeHua for breakfast at Mac before she goes for her Jap class. For me, I will helping out with the PSS Distinctionship Grading later in the afternoon so I decided to hang around my favourite place which is City Hall for a while since I got a few hours to kill.

Was at Riceball seeing if there are any new books when a certain book caught my eyes. It is titled "Night Vision, The Art of Urban Exploration by Troy Paiva". It showcase very nice photos of night photography and light painting.

It really stir up my passion for Night Photography. Nope, I haven't lost the passion for night photography. In fact, I always wanted to do night photography but Singapore is simply too bright for it. I wanted to visit the States, out in those outback regions, away from the light pollution and capture beautiful stars trails, cloud trails and creative use of light painting.

I wanted to get that book but a pity it has been handled but too many people and there are folds and dog-ears. I requested Zhong Lin to get one copy for me as I really love that book when I laid my eyes on it.

Just to showcase what I am talking about, do visit Troy Paiva's website here.

烟花与流星 (Fireworks and Shooting Stars)

Was writing my previous article in Chinese about "Having and Lost" and too many thoughts flow through my mind at the same time. Diverted a bit of my thoughts but I just kept on writing. After reading through the whole article for a few times, I decided to cut a portion of it and start this new thread to continue with a topic which I wanted to talk about.

As stated in my title, I wanted to talk about Fireworks and Shooting Stars and how to relate love to it. I have been wanting to write this article for quite a while since I read on EeHua's and Colin's blog about Fireworks. As I was writing my last article, I suddenly relate all these together. Anyway, here is my article titled "烟花与流星". Enjoy.

烟花与流星

爱情或恋爱有时候就像烟花或像流星那样。
烟花与流星都是美丽，漂亮，灿烂的。
可是它们都是短暂的，它们也不会为人而停留。
我们人所能做的，也只是利用相机之类的东西来捕捉那短暂的灿烂。
世间上的东西都事事无绝对，这也包括爱情。
就算拥有的时光那么短暂，能够无怨无悔地去爱一个人，而为那一个你所爱的人付出，就是幸福。
爱的幸福。
爱情不用像烟花与流星那样灿烂，夺目，燿眼。
最重要的是懂得去珍惜拥有对方的每一分每一秒，这样的爱情也是甜美幸福的。

得与失 (Having and Lost)

Was on my way back when I reflected on the previous topic which I type about namely "Courage to Love". Reflecting a little deeper gives me the inspiration to talk about this topic "Having and Lost" or "Gain and Lost" if you wish to put it that way. From a monetary standpoint, "Gain and Lost" will sounds better, from a relationship and love standpoint, I will prefer to use "Having and Lost". But no point for me to write so much which term to use as I will be using Chinese to express my thoughts, so this is the topic I am going to touch on, titled "得与失".

Before I start, just a quote which I learnt from "The Leap Years" which is also related to this topic. "It is better to have loved and lost than never to have lost at all. - Samuel Butler"

得与失

上文所提到，面对爱是需要勇气的。
真正面对爱就会面对得与失的问题。
有失必有得。
失去了一段恋情，如果最终还是得回那一段恋情，或得到一段新的恋情，必然是好事。
但是，从多一个角度来看，有得也必有失。人们总是怕得到了一段美好的恋情，而因一时的误会或过错，失去这一份爱。
就是这种想法，人们才会不敢去面对爱。因为人们怕面对失败，心痛与寂寞。
得与失真的那么重要吗?
失去了，终究真的会得到吗?
得到了，终究真的会失去吗?
别因为在得与失的问题上看得太过重而使得你错过爱。
當一份美好的恋情出现在你的面前时，最重要的是勇敢地去爱与付出。
别因为怕会失去而无法用心地去爱别人或爱自己，使得你无法体会到得到爱的美。
也别因为得到了爰而忘了以前你所失去的痛苦。重要的是，了解为什么会失去而别再犯同样的错。
希望大家能够了解我所想表达的。祝大家快乐也希望大家能勇敢地去爱。

Courage to Love

Was chatting with EeHua earlier and she told me that she wanted to write an article on Courage to Love. Too bad the hour is rather late for us to talk about this topic as both of us have to work tomorrow, so we never really go into it. Was about to hit my bed and enter dreamland when I decided to come to my keyboard to post my thoughts.

From my perspective, it takes courage to love someone. Courage to overcome fear, courage to overcome all odds, courage to overcome the unknown and most of all, courage to face it all. Some people says, it takes courage to face lonliness but to me, I find that it takes even greater courage to face love.

Is Love that scary? Nope. Is Lonliness scary? Nope, neither. For someone who takes lonliness as a friend and protector, lonliness is never scary. In some sense, lonliness is just a state in the mind, are we really lonely at times, or are we just blind to the presence of the Divine whom is ferrying us through those tough and difficult times? In fact, when you learn and understand lonliness, it is never an enemy, nor is it a foe to be fear but a friend whom you can learn to embrace so that it can help you in tough and difficult time as you might have to face it alone.

Then what about Love, why does Love takes Courage? Some says that love is meant to be free, love meant to be happy. Then, why is it difficult to face love? My reply to this, are we ready to face and accept love when it comes? Love is like sunlight which shines. Imagine that our heart is like a room. When we haven't find love, the room is dark. We cannot see the state of the room, we never knew the condition of the heart. When we find love, it shines like a ray of golden light when peek through the window on the room which lights up our hearts. We can finally see the state of the room. To our dismay, we can see how messy and dusty the room is... Because of this, we choose not to see truth or the condition of the heart, we turn our back on love because we are too ashame to see it. Hence, we can see... it takes real courage to love.

Of course, it also takes courage to face rejection when we confess our love to someone. In fact, we are risking it all when we confess our feelings to that someone. We are putting the friendship, the bond, the happy moment that 2 person shared as friends at stake. Hence, there is much to lose which takes real courage to confess our love. There are people who tends to be more protective towards themselves as they don't want to get hurt. In fact, nobody wants to get hurt, neither do they want to hurt others. For them, they can't lift up the courage to face love. It is not wrong, it is because they love themselves a bit more.

Lastly, Love is a journey of unknown and uncertainty between 2 perfect strangers walking alongside each other. When face with many different situations which may arise, how will the couples react to it? Besides understanding and trust between the couple, it also takes courage to stand by love, stand alongside each other and overcome all odds.

Before I end, I will just like to share a quote which I read from a movie novel titled "摘星" written by Eric Wu aka 吴若权 which I find very meaningful and related to the topic, "Courage to Love".

"世间上，最美好的爱恋，是为一个人付出时的勇敢。即使因此被伤得体无完肤，也无怨无悔。"

So, to my readers, I hope that you all can find the needed courage to face fear, to face lonliness and most of all, have the courage to face love.

The Leap Years (2008)

Finally find the time to do a backdate log. :)

After a long wait and anticipation, I finally got "The Leap Years" DVD. I believe the DVD was release recently and I have been wanting to get it since the movie was released in 29th Feb this year.



I wanted to catch this movie but I was a bit busy during that period of time and no one wants to catch this movie with me. I was looking forward to the DVD release since the show ended. Very fortunately, I passed by The Gramophone at City Hall and saw the DVD and I just bought it.

I watched the show and find it quite nice and with many interesting quotes. Such as, "It is better to have loved and lost than never to have love before." Those who knows me well will know that I like to watch romantic and love movies too. Was thinking of watching the movies again and type out all the quotes to share with all. Maybe next time then. One more thing, most of the songs in this movie are from Corrinne May's albums which I simply loved it. Got to go now. Cheerz.

Travel and Creative Photography Assignment

Was out with EeHua this morning to Chinatown for my Travel and Creative Photography assignment shoot. Gotten only a handful of shots because I am more demanding and selective with my shots now ever since I completed my class. Hmm... I am wondering is that good or bad.

Anyway, wanted to share a very cute shot that I took. This one is especially for EeHua. :)



EeHua sent some of her pictures to me which I will like to share with all. :)