College Day 06

This is a much delayed entry about College Day. Sorry, but there were more pressing things. At least now I can get on with this and hopefully divert my attention away from other things that I'd rather not think about just about now.

The school really changed a LOT during this half year that I've been away. Notable ones include the SnT centre! This state of the rat (lol, ok lah, just being lame..it's state of the art) Science and Technology centre is the EastZone designated research hub, which is located within VJC! Many interesting projects have come out of here courtesy of the teachers, students, staff and affliated associations of the Science Research Society (SRS). Some even made their way to prestigious international competitions like the International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF)! So, here's an all new look to the SnT centre to accompany the all new batch of budding researchers=)

As you go into the college there will be a BIG logo right outside the SnT centre, showing the familiar blue microscope. If you would care to detour to take a look at the centre, there's a LARGE diamond structure awaiting you. It is hanging right above the garden of time, which is a project funded of MOE. The idea is to shine specific wavelengths of light on the flowers, which will be induced to bloom in sections, thus becoming a sort of biological clock that will tell you the time of the day exact to within an hour. Haha, you didn't expect it to bloom so accurately so as to tell you the correct time of the day right down to the very second, did you?



Garden of Time.








Diamond! Behold, Chemistry students. Oh, ye who have anguished, woe to ye no more! Where in times past there was gnashing of teeth and much sorrow, I say to you: Rejoice! The days of being unable to picture a diamond structure is gone, never again to return! Therefore, I bestow unto ye, the DIAMOND!







And here's a lively outer shell for the SnT! Heh..
The Bio lab is now called Synapse (mayhap after synapses within the nervous system of nervous people..lol) and the Chem lab is now labelled Synthese (definitely the place for people to synthesise pretty much whatever they can)


I heard that there was more within, but since it was Saturday, the lab was closed. Oh well, maybe next time!

Since I arrived quite near 1.45pm, I thought I had better hurry to the briefing or risk losing the chance to go onstage to receive my award-_-" After much delay, finally most of the prize recipients arrived. It was so good to finally be able to meet up with friends after so long! Haha, it was actually like a SDD..a quick photo-taking session. Haha..

Not long after the briefing teacher in charge came in. Haha, should have guessed. It was Larry Choy, again! Haha..real funny fella, always ready with responses that'll stop you in your track. Like when somebody asked him for permission to leave early just in case she felt sick, he was like "I need an answer now. Either you go and take your award, or you don't." The usual choice selection that doesn't really leave you with a choice at all. Forgot what it's called..there's a particular name for such a thing, which incidently was taught by Larry Choy, but I forget, and I digress.

Met Mrs Choo in the Performance Theater after that. The PT is this concert hall in VJ that costed a bomb to build but is worth every single 5 cents (Hey, there isn't any coin for 1 cent in Singapore ok?). The accoustics were superb, which was affirmed during the performances by the VJC choir, CO, Malay and Indian Cultural Soc, and the Symphonic Band. Anyway, Mrs Choo was good as ever, no sign of the toil that infant-rearing usually leaves on parents. She says it's cause of strong family support, especially from Dr. Choo and her mother. I guess that's really an integral part of a family..the whole support system thing. Hard to find families with such good backing these days. Oh, the ignorance during my younger days, when I thought everybody's family was as good as mine. I am blessed, thank God!



Here's Mrs Choo. Wonderful teacher, supporting mentor, overall in-charge of SRS. Wins awards every year for the wonderful work she does in school! Excellent friend. What more can I say?
Yes, that's another bar of choc in her hand. She's right, seems like I keep giving teachers chocs, not to mention taking loads of pics everytime I come visiting=)
Might have even outdone myself this time. Most of the pics were actually taken with a video cam instead of the usual still cam!

Settled in after that to listen to some speeches. Mrs Chan as usual gave a stunning presentation, with the help of iComp. Kudos! The Minister of State on the other hand, was quite ok. At least there were attempts at jokes, including blogs and how people are connected.

Waited for a real long time to get the award. There were nearly 100 people getting awards I believe, maybe more? Haha..this girl beside me, Sheryl, won the award for best French student. Félicitations! Heh..and poor thing was not feeling really well..not to mention blur me told her we should be the first few to receive awards..haha..turns out we were the last and she had to endure for so long..lol
Btw, it was a nice bowl-ish award! Haha..no matter it's not as gold-y as it was when it debuted, such a big award is still an award! Haha, especially when your name is engraved on it for later generations to see! All the best in your course! Double major isn't really easy man..

The performances were certainly the BEST part of college day=) Always was, hopefully always will be! VJC choir performed 2 pieces. Simply astounding! Not just singing, but complete with actions! Haha, this is the best! DON'T ROCK THE BOAT! SIT DOWN! Haha..
Good thing my dad caught it all on tape. Nevertheless, here's something I'd like to ask.
Is there anybody who has the CD of the choir's performance? Maybe not from college day, but from the Hawaii competition? Really want to listen to those songs!
Btw, VJC choir is this outfit of around 100 people. They have been winning awards as long as I knew about them. First was the Choir Olympics in Bremen, Gemany. Gold medalists! Then this time it's winner of the Hawaiian choir competition. Superb! I tell you, they're really something! Ranking by Musica Mundi, the comittee of Choir Olympics, puts VJC Choir at an impressive 8th place! Have a look:

For the full list of top 500 choirs around the world, click me! Interestingly, even Ethiopia and African nations are in the list. Obviously, Malaysian choirs are nowhere to be found. No offense to my friends who are involved Malaysian choirs, since it's not your fault. The rest of your choir members sometimes really cannot make it all the way there.
PS. Thanks kokosing for the links!

Next up was a collaboration of Chinese Orchestra, Malay Cultural Soc and Indian Cultural Soc. A very ingenius pairing, but perhaps one of the few choices available. It was a drum orchestra, with the xylophone-like instrument. Not sure what each instrument is called (yea, I'm a noob), so please forgive my course descriptions. =P Nevertheless, the piece called "Lion" was very lively. The Chinese drums unsurprisingly had the biggest slice of the audio pie, while the poor Indian fellow's drums could only be heard once during the whole thing. It was just too soft ;( Was wondering why they didn't increase the number of ICS members playing, until my friend U. De told me that it followed the racial composition of Singapore's 3 largest races. Well! Haha..6:4:1. More or less the same ratio over here too..except that for us it's the other way round. Haha, talk about inversion=) Interesting concept though!

The band was next. Very nice playing of the Circus Suite. Indeed, very familiar piece, just that I cannot pinpouint where I've heard that before. Our Symphonic Band is a real gem, winning awards in various competitions around Singapore! Ended the whole college day with their rendition of the VJC school anthem=) (Btw, they DO play every Fri at the assembly, though with a more march-y feel to it) Choir members lined themselves steathily around the PT during the band's performance just prior to the anthem and gave us a good performance of the anthem! Real sneaky, didn't realise they were all lined up till they were all lined up. Haha..not making much sense..heh heh

After that was the tea reception for guests. Haha, finally got to partake of those nice foodies after 2 years of being barred=) Lots of photo taking and catching up during that time. And yes, concourse has a new look, again! =)

Well, not much after this. Being back in VJ brings back memories, long hidden, stored away in cold storage. Ah..those were the days..

On another note, all the best to vege too! Hope your Big Move was ok! Keep in touch, hopefully you brought a pc..haha..chatting is way better than international sms..not as laggy=)

To all my friends: Stay your course if you feel it is the right one. All the best in your endeavours, I shall sorely miss you all.

You're Gone!

I guess after all that rambling, what I truly wanted to say is this.

Go there without regrets or anything holding you back. I can vouch that it will be a life-changing experience, that is definitely for the better. After all, I only got to be a true vector of lameness after going through 2 years there. And you should know how fun it is =) Then again, had I not met you (and the rest of the CG people), there wouldn't be many victims for me to spread my lameness!
So, enjoy yourself over there. All I ask is just a spot in your memories, and that you'll keep in contact. (I'm serious about the lecture thingy! Need directions to blend in!) After all, even your name says it all. In japanese, it means a short farewell followed by a reunion quite soon, as opposed to sayonara which is a really long departure (eg. permanent separation). It's like au revoir, as opposed to adios.
Enjoy, and may God continue to mold you and use you for His purposes!

To the one who embodies the feelings of a poem

Ah, songbird, friend, supporter, and person who understands my lame jokes!
This perhaps is just something I feel like letting off my mind.
Maybe, just maybe, I am turning more and more into what the Eveready bunny will be like once it runs out of charges. My battery is running low, can somebody please pass me the charger?
Seperation is never easy, and for me, acknowledging it and saying goodbye was never my forte. Maybe it will never be.
I will NOT say platitudes that drive people crazy. Things like "don't change" or "stay the same". Those things are never going to happen. Ever. Period. Times change. Situations change. People change. This is natural. Evolution dictates that we are the products of our surroundings, where circumstances change us. (Ok, maybe not immediately but over a period of thousands of lifetimes. Lol) Physics, via the teachings of Newton (his 3rd law in particular, which was not really related to the apple incident but does have implications regarding the apple and his head when they made contact under a tree.), teaches us that once our surroundings change ("the ACTION") we are compelled to change along with it("the REACTION").
I accept that fact. Change is good, provided that we change for the better. In your case, that has always been the case. No doubt about it. So, as Pastor Lawrence taught us, I shall apply it. Since you are imitating Christ with such a great degree of precision, I shall be a good flaterrer and try my best to imitate you. Indeed, following in your footsteps has shown me my noobiness, and changed me for the better.
I thank you once more, for everything. Now, nocturne has set upon me, and I will have to search for another source of light for now. Fear not, the light of the Father will always shine for me, that you have made clear enough. I shall trust Him, and you. Either my desires will be granted, or I shall know the error of my ways and be lead on to other paths.
Enough of my random ramblings. I really need sleep, haha. Still can't beat the nocturnal on her home ground!
That's it I guess. All that's left is just to wish you all the best, God bless!

Oh yes. One very last thing. Simple tradition I guess:
Take care, nitezz..

Man, I really am starting to miss you. Thanks for being one of the few who could share in my lameness and finally get infected by this vector! =)

Happy Anniversary AGA

Happy 25th Anniversary Agape Gospel Assembly!
*Praying that it won't rain tonight and turn out will be exceptional*
*Praying that performances will be touching and work out as planned*
*Praying for souls to be saved*
Gtg, practice starts at 1pm!
Once again, happy anniversary church!

You got a problem?!

Yeah, that's right. You got a problem with VJC's dress code? Specifically the skirt length? Hmm?!

VJC's skirt length is fine by me! My goodness, are you cock-eyed or something(to borrow a phrase from shi yuan's lexicon)? The skirt is as long as a mini-skirt? Get a life. Experience life. Then you will finally know the dimensions of a true mini-skirt and a VJC skirt!

Seriously, I'm starting to think that this is your way of getting back at VJC. Maybe you are a sour grape who didn't get in? Or worse still..you are super BO LIAO! Haha..take a look around you. Maybe you just moved into Singapore. Or maybe you are just too walled up and didn't take a look at your surroundings. If it's the first I would recommend that you spend some time absorbing the local environment and all that it entails, after which you should do some actual critical thinking, then only decide on whether this is really a bo liao course of action. If it's the second..well, let's just say you follow the advice that I just wrote. After all, you would really seem more like a foreigner than a local. Yea, boo to you.

Anyhows, to clarify things, so far all the colleges in singapore have skirts of the same length as their dress code. If you got a problem with this then you got a problem with all the other colleges too, not just VJ. So, bring it up with MOE (education, not entertainment, you smart aleck). Heck, go all the way to Tharman if you want too. The last few times he visited VJ he did not raise any objections to our dress code, so that's gotta mean something right?

After all this is through, I hope it doesn't come out that you're some lonely geezer with crazy ideas about what and how people should dress. If it's so, you're in the same book as those crazies who preach that women get raped because they deserve it or are asking for it from the way they dress or the way they look.

Enough said. You really are sickening man. Nothing better to do with your time. And if I go on I think it's only going to be a waste of my time. So there.

VJC RAWKS! Viva la victoria!

Welcome Back Nocturnal!

This is kinda late..Haha..never been good at being punctual. Lol..Hope it'll change soon=)

Well, this is it: WELCOME BACK! Haha..hope QET will turn out ok..should be with your standard!

Better late than never I guess..But being on time is still the best>.<

What's the Internet for?

Just a little something I saw on Hoony Bee's blog.
Hope you enjoy it!

What's the use of Internet?

What Really Happened in Penang~

Haha..That's a catching title if I do say so myself. Lol..
We went to the airport after dinner. Chaffeured around by Ah Chui again=)
And guess who we saw at the Coffee Bean shop at the airport. Haha, ONG KA TING! Of all people. For those who have no idea who I'm talking about, he's the new President of MCA, which is the main chinese political party in Malaysia. Coincidentally, he's also the Housing Minister, kinda like the head of HDB.

Couldn't help it. I just had to go ahead and ask him for a photo. Haha..poor berry was like "Don't want lar, funny lar you, asking people for photo when he meeting with his members."
Lol..
And he was asking her where she was from etc. When he heard she was from Singapore, he was like, "Singapore not very nice right? Not many places to go. Not like Malaysia. MANY many places to play!" Dots -_-"
And I can't believe it! We took the Airbus A320 back to KL! Woot! It really is a nice experience. This is THE newest commercial jetliner and certainly feels that way too=) Here, have a look:









Too bad the plane arrived late. Later on in the flight we finally found out the cause - the entire crew were held up in traffic in KL on the way to the LCC-T. My goodness..That's how bad traffic in KL can be..even affecting flight times..Haha..Finally arrived home around 1am. Lol..lucky larry got a free ride home from my place courtesy of the taximan since they stay around the same area. =)
Feel free to call the taxi guy. He's real courteous and arrives way before time to pick you up from the airport. Only thing is that he specializes in the Seremban - LCC-T or Seremban -KLIA route.
0196212199 Ah Nga
He didn't ask for double charge even though our flight was delayed for an hour and it was a midnight trip=) Thanx Ah Nga! Haha..

Ok, this is nearly the end. We went to KL for the next 2 days. Mainly for shopping, though didn't really get to buy much since berry bought a WHOLE lot of stuff in HK! Haha..there's more choices and it's way cheaper than here due to the numerous factory outlets there.
First day we met her AGFA friends over at PJ. They were so nice, even ferried us to Soul-ed Out and treated us! YEA! Thanks guys! Berry was so happy she forgot to activate STM..but hey, haha..it's cool. Here's "uncle", our chaffeur for the night. Thanks to him we got around easily, and berry managed to find that pair of shoes for her mum. Wow, I tell you man. Being a 30+ year old bachelor does have its perks=) He knows the whole of 1 Utama shopping complex inside out! Haha..







He does look a LOT like sortoise right? =)




Speaking of the sortoise (yea, it's not entirely correct..should be devil, but then again give me some creative leeway ok?), we met him and his girlfriend at KL the second day. Poor fella got his 2 lower wisdom teeth extracted about half a week before that. They actually used lasers and stuff to open up his gums, break the teeth into pieces and pull it out. According to him, it sounded like when a fly smacks into the purple lights that are designed to fry flies, and SOUNDED exactly the same too. Haha..Poor thing, now he's got 2 less wisdom tooth. If he was really lame before this, imagine what comes next? At least he has a reason to back him up=)

Had lunch at DOME, where sortoise said the Nasi Lemak was good. Not bad really, but a tad too big portioned. Haha..Surprisingly, berry couldn't finish it. Haha..No wonder Uncle said something about typical Singaporean attitudes >.<









Well, that's done. Such a long long trip. Squeezed into so little time. Sigh..
If only we had time enough..
We'll miss you berry! Come visit whenever you can! =)
All the best in all you do..

Penang Food!

Ok, here's the Penang food rundown. Please be informed that I will most probably use the names that I'm familiar with, ie Hokkien names. I'll include alternative names if possible. Forgive me but it's just food and as long as I can order it I don't bother with other names. lol

Here's what we call lychee kang. It's sweet syrupy soup thingy, filled with ice cubes, and a whole lot of ingrediants like barley seeds, some white fungus, dried lychees etc. Not sure of everything. Haha..it's not bad. Then again, Singaporeans should have a more intimate knowledge. Their dessert selection is WAY better than ours. Hawker centres even have a special stall selling desserts numbering at least 50 types! Haha..hard to find here I think. Would usually find such stalls here that have merged with the drinks stall.


Ok, this here is Penang mee. Well, at least that's what Penang-ites call it. It's called prawn mee elsewhere. Not too bad a version. Just that since the gahmen increased petrol prices by 30sen the prawns have shrunk to ridiculously small sizes. Looks just like he bi prawns. Ceh~~




This here is assam laksa. Ok, it wasn't that great at all.
In fact it was not really nice. Haha..couldn't resist ordering though. I really like it. Tastes slightly sour and sweet. Tastes good if there's enough fish to make it thick and prawn paste to make it sweet.
Berry didn't like it. Laksa without oomph wasn't her thing. Haha..



OKies! Now this is great! It's called char kway teow, and only lousy cooks (like me) actually take it literally and make it charred. Lol..The white stuff is coconut shavings and makes it taste better and lends a crunchy feel. OOOHHHH!!!! I want it again!
Btw, get this from the side opposite the coffeeshop. The one on the coffeeshop side is just bad.





This is fried tofu. Eaten with sweet black sauce and chilli. Not exceptionally nice, but not too bad either. Would have preferred Thai-style tofu, but it's not available there.






Mmm..or chian. It's translated as fried oysters. Well..there's other stuff in there too. What, you think people would just fry oysters on their own? Haha..It's a mix of eggs, cornflour, spring onions and oysters. The right proportion is the key to making a good or chian. Not bad sia!



This is chee chiong fun. Really nice. I can't find this in my hometown. Basically long strips of cooked dough-like rolls that are mixed with sweet black sauce and chilli. A sprinkling of sesame seeds on top is a MUST! Haha..Different from HK style though. Berry can attest to that. HK style is much more smooth and is stuffed with yao char kway.




This is cuttlefish and kangkung mixed with prawn paste. Not bad at all. Cuttlefish is not too tough nor soft. Gives a nice crunch if mixed with the kangkung.






Porridge. Didn't turn out to what I thought it would be. Bought this numerous times before. A bit too wet. But it tasted quite ok besides that fact.
Oh, remember to get this from the stall on the coffeeshop side. The other one is worse.




Kway teow t'ng. It's kway teow soup with duck meat. Berry nice! heh heh..It's just nearby the porridge and cuttlefish shop.

Berry in Msia Part 2

Ok, after much dragging of feet (hey, I've got a life besides being a blogger!), here's the rest of the trip story.

First up, let's see some pictures taken in the room, of the room. Yea, I know, it's sad but we weren't allowed to be picture furnitures. So there's no real look at us in the room, except perhaps larry who got a sneak view=) Notice his legs sticking out from the bottom left corner of the right picture? lol














After a night at the City Bayview hotel, which incidently is a 4-star hotel (! omg !), we went down to the in-house restaurant for buffet. The Flamingo offered quite standard stuff, sadly. But what amazed us all was the stomach capacity of a certain person, who was actually quite thin! Larry was already lazing around like somebody who had too much to eat, and I was quite maxed out, but "that person" was going back for more! Haha..I can still remember the look on Larry's face when asked if he wanted anything more! All he could say was, "Er, I think I'll get some fruits for you guys..." Wahaha..
Btw, I wonder. There were like a big bunch of policemen coming in for buffet breakfast too. Complete with uniforms and tags that said "I'm anti-corruption! =)" I wonder if they were at the hotel for some function too, since the only other explanation is that they pon their work en masse just to have a RM30++ buffet breakfast. Hmm, if so how come there wasn't any sign there mentioning their function? I know for a fact that the minerologist and geologist seminar was advertised VERY loudly in the form of an enormous banner. Maybe they were some undercover cops going for a course of "Undercover 101: The basic skills" and didn't want people to know! Haha..
Sorry, STM was off that morning. So no food pics for you people=(

Checked out the swimming pool after that. It was on the 4th floor (floor 3B to all you superstitious people out there) and was looking quite deserted. Either it was due to lack of demand since it was a low peak morning, or maybe it was just run down. Haha..









Oh, and here's our car, parked outside at the parking lot. It's disgusting that a 4-star hotel doesn't have underground parking. *blek* Oh well..









Tried to visit the Mahsuri Tomb and the Snake Sanctuary, both of which we found out later required us to buy tickets. That is so NOT the way man. Haha. Oh, Mahsuri was this princess who was framed for some treasonous actions and was executed. Before it was done, she swore an oath that she was innocent. To prove it, she said her blood would be white if she was really innocent. And if and when it came to that, Langkawi would be cursed for 7 generations. Well, lore says that her blood really did come out as white, and I remember a news article years ago saying that Langkawi really DID suffer from lousy economy for 7 generations after she died. The curse apparently was finally lifted during the 8th generation, which was about a decade or so ago. Then again, Mahathir did make some plans and approve projects trying to improve Langkawi's economy. So, it could have been a self-fulfilling prophecy. Haha..oh right, here's another of Mahathir's projects. The Eagle, or Lang. It's located at Eagle Square, just next to the jetty. Hmm..berry seems to like filming it's butt. Haha..












Took the 2.30pm ferry to Penang after that. Tremendously fun trip or terribly agonising trip, depending on who you were and your perspective. Haha..Initially thought it was a 45 minute trip, but it turned out to be a 3 hour trip! OMG! Haha..Everyone was fine initially, until the ferry reached choppy waters. It was real fun in the sense that the whole boat was going up and down like some kind of crazy aqua rollercoaster. The first time it did that I was thrown up so high that my feet left the ground! Whee! Since I was having so much fun I thought, hey, might as well call larry up to the observation deck so that he could accompany berry and enjoy the ride. Turned out to be a bad decision. Lol..As I sat down I started getting quesy. Haha..must be that when sitting down the whole body goes up and down along with the boat, causing a nauseating feeling. I still remember the cold sweat erupting all over me. Lol..not to mention that our seats were right smack at the front of the boat where the oscillations were the greatest! But I guess that's not as bad as larry was experiencing. After a while, berry came down and asked me to look after larry. He was in worse shape than I was! Haha..can't imagine why til he puked later. His digestion system was seriously slow! Haha..there were some vegetables leftover from breakfast *ewww* And there I was, thinking that being up on the observation deck helped to ease the nausea since you can sorta "ride the wave", ensuring that the head is at a nearly constant level. Oh well, at least he felt better after that. Good thing I didn't tell him it was a 3 hour journey there and then. Just before he puked, he told me something like, "This is a real long delay! If it's going to be a 2 hours trip I don't think I can survive~~"
lol

Anyway, all's well that ends well. Managed to reach Penang without further incident. Maybe because all of us just gave up and went to sleep. Haha..berry's the best, no sign of nausea at all! Lol..
When we reached we took an unofficial cab. Haha..the guy was a little old and his gear shifts were slightly delayed, but hey, it was ok. He was quite genial and let me haggle a little with him in Hokkien over the price. Even stopped later on and helped us to take pictures of the Penang bridge at night=) Here's his contact, if anyone ever needs it.
0164814623 Ah Chui
It roughly translates as Water Guy.
Went around looking for famous tau sah pia and beh tee saw. Too bad the usual shop I get my stock from was closed=( At least he found another shop that sold us another brand, but it tasted ok so I guess it's not all that bad.
Dinner came next. Whee! Finally, some Penang food! =) Unsurprisingly, berry activated STM again! Haha..
Ok, so here's the whole gamut of food we ate at New Lane. FYI, it's near Komtar tower and some say it's slightly more expensive since mostly tourists go there. Oh well, I've always been eating there along with the locals, so that's that. After all, there are so many choices!

Hmph, looks like somethings going wrong again. Pictures are taking forever to load. I'll add them during the next post. Which will be really soon. I promise!
Hey, when have I ever broken my word when it counts? =)

New Skin!

I kept getting a half loaded page when I opened my blog recently. So, with a sudden impulse I just embarked on a short journey to change my skin. Halfway through, I realised that I accidentally deleted the rest of the code during one of my skin tweaking sortees. Dang. Oh well, just had to continue, since I was nearly there. Check it out.

Btw, this is not really as striking as the last skin since I can't get the font to change into its orange color. Too bad since I'm still a noob at code. Maybe if I get a good software? Hmm..

Guess I'll have to be content with this for now.

HELP!

Help! Haha..to all those kind souls out there, please help me with this. Comments and suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Either insert as comments or type it in the tagboard on the right. ----->

Here's the title of the super long essay:
"The school has many facilities and expertise that can be utilized in the building up of the community. The community on the other hand, has many facilities, expertise and ideas that can be channeled to help the school. So, how can the school and the community work hand-in-hand to address the problem of deviant behavior of students?"

My thanks and gratitude in advance to all the kind souls out there! =)

Musings...

Sigh, berry left for some days already and I havn't yet finished the post about our trip.

Feeling a bit under the weather today. Wonder why. Been having feelings of..I'm not even sure of what they are too. Emptiness? Nostalgia? Haha. Such things should be relegated to my twilight years, after which they should be assuaged when my family comes a-visiting.
I guess this could be the first time I'm feeling such feelings for a long, long time. Maybe I just miss my friends a lot these days. Does this harken of any forebodings?
Maybe it's due to the fact that I was thinking of a conversation with berry on the way back on saturday. (Don't worry, your life is private and will not feature in this blog or anywhere else without your consent=) After all, what's a doctor without patient confidentiality?) However, thinking back on things that were and of things that are to come, I'm left wondering. Is tanN right?

Does out of sight = out of mind?

Bio Sciences course at a certain university taught me that such a concept is actually how an infanct views the world. Supposedly after a certain age, which is much much less than 5 years, the child would have already overcome such a hindrance to thought. Even if something is not seen it should be still assumed to exist. Then how come such a concept still lingers on in certain aspects of individuals? Is this a childish remnant in us? Especially emotionally..

Will plans that have been made and executed for years be discarded?
Will there be another obstacle in the path leading to our futures?
How come things start to seem like a waste?
Or maybe I'm just too fickle-minded for my own good?
Or worse..the child within has always remained there..never to grow up, perpetually stuck in neverland?

Sigh..

They say that battles are fought and won from within. If I just do what Micheal Jackson says, asking the man in the mirror to change, maybe things will work out. Be more outgoing, speak up and speak out, be more open with your friends. These I have all tried, to a certain extent. Perhaps there should be more before I am a more worthy friend to all. Then maybe, just maybe..my winter will end. And spring will have come.





I feel a bout of Escapism and Denial coming on. I wonder which phase am I stuck in now..BS has totally deserted me. Could this be repayment for my lack of effort in that area? (ok, yea, I admit it is)





I think I better go check out susan's blog..Got some growing up to do..

Project Genesis

Haha, just read something from Eddie's blog. It's about this thing called Project Genesis.

Project Genesis

Btw, Genesis is the 1st book of the bible, which generally tells of how the world and all its inhibitants came to be. Jehovah is one of the numerous names of God, while Lucifer is the arch-angel who later rebelled against God and was called the Devil. The others are just other angels.

Berry in Msia

Reports from various parties have shown that women ARE better at endurance than man, and this includes things like being in the army, withstanding emotional stress etc. However, just being with pink berry proves this! Man, nobody can keep up with her when she sets her mind on it. Haha! (No offense ya? It's meant to be a compliment. The world needs more people like that.)
After a grueling 4 days at OBS camp at Ubin island (YES, Singapore DOES have ulu places..haha) that ended in the evening, she came to Malaysia on the night flight looking none the worse but for a little bronzed look. Even then, she only slept around midnight. Haha, I would've just thrown in the towel long ago and hit the sack!
Went out to the market for some beef noodles (try it out guys, it's a specialty of my place!). Brought Nocturnal along too. Hopefully both of them can be good friends later on, seeing that both would be course mates soon.
Plane to Langkawi left at 1250 pm. Here's some pics berry took:

Clouds above someplace in Malaysia. Hopefully the subsequent downpour wasn't very bad=)











The Boeing that we took. I think it's a 727 or 737. Not really that good with it being cramped and all. Prefer the A320 we took back from Penang. But hey who's complaining? A plane that gets us there safe and sound is a plane that gets us there safe and sound!



Arrived in Langkawi slightly past lunch time. First order of business was to get a car. First few counters offered a Kancil for RM50. Compared to peak times that price was quite ok. Nevertheless, I thought, "No harm trying to ask other counters." Just before I left to ask the others the owner got a little agitated, saying something about wasting my breath and time since all companies offered same price. Definitely not a good sign, for him I mean=) Such are the tactics employed by unscrupulous traders. The next few also offered the same price as the first, albeit giving guarantees of their cars being newer than the others. It really paid off later when I asked the last few counters. Their first offer was for a Wira Auto for RM50! Haha..no need to think already, just get it! Lol..





The Kancil. Named after a small lithe animal resembling a small deer. Compare to the Wira on the right. Notice how Kancil is actually half the size of the sedan Wira? Ok, maybe not. Haha..but it's true!

Lunch was KFC. Haha..KFC in Langkawi! Lol..but we were really rushing for time, and besides the good seafood restaurants only open at night. So there we were at KFC, with berry activating super tourist mode(STM). Haha..Get a look at the food we had:
Left for the numerous beaches around Langkawi. Beach no. 1 was Tanjung Rhu. It's located around the NE side of Langkawi, about 30 minutes away from our hotel City Bayview which is located on the SE sideof Langkawi. Ok, maybe it's a little nearer than that, but then you would have to consider that we used a Wira that could only achieve a topspeed of 80+ Kph and berry took a lot of pics. Haha..A nice scene would pass us by and somebody would go "Hey!" Next would entail either a sudden stop followed by reversing to the afore mentioned spot or a 3-point turn back to the place where a nice picture would be taken. What she said was quite funny, "Malaysia can drive off the road one ar?" haha..
Here are some samplings of what we saw before reaching Tg. Rhu:

Cow crossing!
So why did the cows cross the road? I dunno..since it's all fenced up I think they didn't even cross the road in the first place..haha..
A nice view of rubber plantations. Good effects=) It's not mist or fog or whatever btw..It's smoke..berry skillfully left out the fella openly burning rubbish..haha..
Arrived at Tg. Rhu without much ado. The roads there are a bit ulu, but then most of Langkawi is ulu. Haha! It's a real nice place to have a relaxing evening=)
Rushed off to Black Sands beach after that. Initially wanted to get some petrol along the way, but the place was a rip-off. RM2.02 per litre. Crazy man! Other places RM 1.90+ only! So beware, it's a small place near the roundabout leading to Tg. Rhu.
Ok, Black Sands beach is exactly that. A beach with sand that's naturally black. Please lor, Malaysians not so bo liao like those ang mors go make fake crop circles or in this case, making fake black sand. Imagine the amount of work put into constantly keeping it black! You'd run out of willing people before the project even started. Haha..
Enlarge this picture if you want to have a detailed explanation of why it's black. Don't ask me. I'm no geologist or minerologist. (Maybe if you asked when I was still there I would have dropped by the 1st floor of the hotel and popped in to ask the whole bunch of government minerologists there who were having some lawatan sambil belajar seminar thingy)
Rushed over to the other side of the island for the 7 wells waterfalls. From bottom to the peak was about was 638 steps or 480m. Took a wrong turn and ended up at the 7 wells instead of the waterfall. Haha..nevermind, since we didn't take swimming trunks along. Would have been sorely tempted to just jump in. Haha..
PS We took the car right up til the halfway point. Haha..bypassed 200+ steps. Haha..got some stares by some very tired people along the way. lol..Hey, we were rushing for time. To catch the sunset at Chedang beach.=) Shhh...
Managed to rush to Chedang in time for the sunset. FYI it was 7.30 pm instead of the 6.30pm the KFC manager mentioned. Haha..Good thing didn't go there so early. Would've been waiting there for a whole hour doing nothing much instead of visiting all those nice places we went. Haha..Although the main activity along a beach is to relax and DO NOTHING. Haha..
On a side note, I think I had better learn more Arabic if I am to go to any tourist spots in Malaysia with friends after this. Really man. Asked an Arabic woman to take pictures of us with the sun setting behind us. She happily replied ok and snapped away. Even told us proudly she took 4 in case some of them turned out unsatisfactory. Then when we checked later she took the SUNSET itself instead of together with us. Haha..so sad..but it looks good no? None of my ugly polluting the picture. Maybe that's why she didn't take us together with the sunset-_-"

Ok, that's all for now. The trip's been too long to post in 1 shot. Especially with the slow transfer rate of photoblogger. I'll add the rest up soon. Maybe. Perhaps. =)

Unknown endings part 2

TanN just told me more about the first part of unknown endings. Seems like the guy backed off for awhile. It just didn't seem right to make a selfish move. So, he just waited and hoped. Just like in the novel The Count of Monte Cristo.

"This is all we can do...Wait and hope. Wait and hope."
Dante
Excerpt from The Count of Monte Cristo

Kinda rings a bell within me. I think yeah, it goes that way. After all, learn to let it go, let her be free, to explore the vast reaches of her potential in greater lands. Let her be the best she can be. If she returns, then it was meant to be. If not, she would be like Noah's dove, flying away never to return. Flying away to a new world, signifying hope of better things for all.

Man, if I wasn't inspired by that, I would have just put all this into a new novel. Earn me the $ man=)
Show me the money!

Mentos + Coke!

Wow, I never realised that Mentos and Coke would make a really explosive revelation. Literally. Check this out.

Mentos and coke

WARNING!
This is a really dangerous experiment if you do not know or do not control what is going on. The information below is just for your knowledge only. I really DO NOT support you doing this on your own. Proceed with caution and with the knowledge that full responsibility lies on YOU, the experimenter.

It seems that the ingredients on mentos seem to interact with the water molecules in coke. This allows the trapped CO2 to emerge in a gush. Also, notice the pits on the surface of Mentos? This allows the gas to form bubbles on the surface of Mentos. Furthermore, Mentos is denser than Coke (which should be denser than the rest of us, except maybe blur me=p), causing it to sink downwards and release most of the gas trapped within the whole column of Coke. This sudden release of such high pressured and large amount of CO2 causes a geyser to erupt from the bottle, drenching everything nearby with Coke!
This is exactly the same thing that happens when you add ice cream to colas to make a float, or adding salt to colas for a layer of fizz. It's just that this is so much more powerful. And it should work wit h all colas, not just Coke. Trademarks of Coke and Mentos are registered by the respective companies.

Unknown endings..

Just remembered this from somewhere..boy meets girl, boy falls for girl but girl doesn't know. Boy and girl leaves for separate unis at vastly different places far apart from one another. Did/will they ever know the whole thing or will it just fade away as if it never happened before? Then again not sure if the Internet boom happened already when that happened..haha..
Sigh, another unknown ending.


On another note, I'd just like to thank God for His gifts to us. Blessed are those..

Singapore Superhost

Just caught a little bit of the Superhost contest. It's total bullshit man. Seriously. A showoff between 2 contestants to determine who to kick out of the show was held. 2 of them were given a recorded clip of a caller who asked for their views on the many such shows that feature in Singapore. For example, Superhost, Singapore Idol, Superstar etc.
The first was a little effeminate fellow. Cried at the smallest issue. He clearly did very badly, since he spent half of his one minute to give examples of such shows. The remaining time was dedicated to one reason that he joined this show. Clearly, he did not think of the reasons that he joined til he was halfway through his time.
The second fellow was much more composed and gave a few solid reasons for joining. He was, in essence, the better of the two.
A judge came out to comment on their answers after that. Disappointed, he lambasted them for not answering the question of "give me your VIEWS", but rather replying WHY they joined the show. Very perceiving of him!
Later the remaining contestants were asked to vote who to kick off the show. The first 4 of them immediately voted contestant number 2 off without batting an eyelid. Kudos to them, for if you are set on doing something, do it ASAP. This meant that contestant 2 was out. Nevertheless, the rest were allowed to vote too, just to see their opinions. The next fella made a show of having to face some really phenomenal dilemma, face scrunching up and all, then voted to boot contestant 2 off doublequick. Haha, if you want to fake it, put in more effort la! Aiyoh..haha..At least the last guy followed his guts. He booted the lousier contestant off, which after that is revealed as being synonymous with the judge's view.
Who in the world comes out with such a program? Where remaining contestants with obviously vested interests are allowed to vote to kick off contestants? Ok, maybe Survivor-_-"
But seriously, you know where this is held. Those kiasu people would have kicked off the better man even though he was the better man. Or rather, because he was better. Even the judge commented on this, saying the first fellow would obviously never make it to no.1 and that the loser was in fact better. Kudos to him, losing with grace is what I call this. He just accepted it, saying no rules were broken. Wow!
Stupid show, not going to watch it anymore. The first will be the last. Alpha is omega. Wasting my time only. *blek, makes face*

so sick~

Listening to So Sick by Ne-yo
It's superb..haha..not that it's balm to a broken heart..I'm not yet that lucky to even get a girlfriend let alone getting dumped..haha

Hey ho! A pirate's life for me!

Yo ho, yo ho, a pirate's life for me!
Whee! Caught Dead Man's Chest on premiere day! Really nice graphics, absolutely fantastic acting on Depp's part. (He looks gay at times though..haha..) A truly captivating story with many comic moments! Not to mention spooky parts too=)*covers head*
Since many people did not have the fortune to catch it yet, no more shall be divulged..except maybe something..heh heh=)








Warning! Spoiler!
Ending is kinda cliffhanger..too sudden..guess another movie is afflicted with middle part syndrome..oh well, let's wait a little while longer for the final ending. Liz was really surprising, especially at the final moments..really unbelievable that she would do that=(

Time Traveller's Wife

Just reread a nice book that day. Yea, I do get sentimental at times, and this is a great book to satisfy my cravings for romance. Haha..except perhaps the unneeded over-abundance of descriptions of procreation actions.
Basically it's a love story with a new twist. None of that boy meets girl things. It's more of a 38 year old man meets 6 year old girl. Then the same man, albeit at different ages, repeatedly meets girl as she grows up. Girl falls for man. Finally 20 year old girl marries 28 year old man.
Yup, it's the Time Traveller's Wife!
Haha, caught my attention last year on the racks of MPH at PP. Finally got some $ to buy it after nearly a month of deliberation, and I have not regretted at all since. It is actually quite a good romance novel, the type I like, where there's love and loss. The wife doesn't know when the husband will disppear and when he'll be back since it is usually triggered by even the slightest stress. Wonderful story, woven beautifully=)
Try it people..haha..if and when you get sentimental like this old geezer..lol
For a review check this out:

Review link

Had we but world enough, and time..

RU Stupid?

Try this..it's not RU486, but it's near enough. Presenting, RU stupid?



Well, since this is a stupidity test, the lower you score the better. I mean, the lower the less stupid. Or what ever you make of it. Haha..All the best folks!

There they go..

Wow, what a whirlwind of fun! Having long time friends around after a period of separation really does wonders. I mean, since when do you see me going on so long on so little sleep? It's personally impossible, at least when I'm on my own. Haha..
The train for Singapore left about an hour ago, bringing along with it my friends and leaving behind some respite (which is sorely underused seeing that I'm online-ing now..lol) and another vacuum..I guess I have to get used to more of such separation in the future. =(
Haha..I remember the day they came over. It was so easy to recognise each other even after so long. To me, it's just 2 familiar faces in a throng of strangers. To them, a yellow and white VJC PE tshirt. Haha..Hey, it's a good landmark ok? Actually I wasn't really planning on wearing that specifically. Just a coincidence I guess. Or my subconsciousness acting. Haha..
Berjaya Times Square was the first stop, unless you include my house. Haha..I seem to be in a good mood, hmm..Haha..Too bad they didn't get enought sleep on the train. Don't know why they chose the seats. Really uncomfortable having full blast lights on throughout the night and you're trying to sleep.=( At least they had some shut-eye at my place before leaving for breakfast and KL. =) Not to mention Jason slept the whole way to KL Sentral. Haha..that will be a recurring scene throughout the trip..not to mention Yixiang will be bringing it up a few times..lol
Jason bought a pendent for his sis' upcoming birthday there. Real good fellow. Gets her jewellery every year without fail. Too bad the saleswoman was real AP. I understand you want to make a sale, but that's really uncalled for. Don't label all Singapore jewellery stores as if they were peddling cheap knockoff synthetic studs as the real thing. Too bad your sis got conned, but please don't make it seem as if everybody's a liar. You would have made the sale without such comments anyway. Actually Yixiang would have bought something else too if not for your attitude. Oh well~
For all it's floors Berjaya isn't really an excellent shopping paradise. Too many floors I guess. After the 5th or 6th floor it was mostly empty lots and EXTREMELY huge numbers of salons. I wonder why? ..
Nevertheless we had some fun there. Went to this shop called 天山(tian shan). Didn't realise it was Chinese MUSLIM food. Haha. It really looked like some posh chinese restaurant. Oh well, the food was actually very chinese. Except for the lack of pork and non-halal ingredients. Heh heh. But it was quite good actually, especially the choice of seasoning. (That's what the 2 pros said..and they ordered the food too, which made life so much easier for me..haha)
Get a load of this!
Here's the soup Jason ordered. Had some veggies, tofu and whatnot inside. Please don't ask me the name. I thought that was clear. Lol


That's the fish we ate. Not bad really. Smooth and soft. Just the way I like it=)








o.0 Beans! Biological value of 100!
Anybody interested? ;)






This was some other animal meat that we ordered. Sorry ah, my memory not good anymore. I forget what it was. Haha-_-"




After lunch (it was around 3pm) we went on a trip to Silk Road. Yup, the famous now-defunk-China-trade-route! Look at us there!


Ok, that was uncalled for. Haha..
After lunch, we went to KL tower. You know, scenery and all..Too bad we walked there. We had this crazy idea to save a little and enjoy the actual KL environment. Haha..Good thing it wasn't too far. I mean, what's 2.5 monorail stops to 3 guys who got at least a silver for NAPFA? Haha..

Oh, I saw Sortoise's apartment! The Jelatik 1...Or at least I think it's that..The location and close proximity to PUTRA line station kinda told me that. Or I misinteprated the hint. Haha..So if it's wrong drop me a note and the correct picture and I'll change that..lol

We actually managed to have a quickie at Midvalley Megamall after that! Bought some Cinnamon rolls back. Yixiang liked it=) Good taste..guess Fujian people have good taste! Wahaha..
Packed like sardines on the way back. Good thing lotsa people left at South Lake City. Btw, heard some engineers commenting on the YTL group planning to build a Maglev all the way to Singapore. Kudos to that! I hope it goes through. Then, I'll be able to go down south in like 1.5 hours! Whoohoo! Goodbye KTM=) Hope the price won't burn a hole though..
Saturday saw us at Sunway Lagoon. Had Nando's before playing. Thank God didn't kena apendicitis. Haha..We were literally flying during the tobaggan ride. Haha..some mad idea to try to apply physics to the ride to increase our range and finally reach the end of the runway. Lol..too bad none of us did..even thought we tried all sorts of funny poses, starting pushes, lifting up the tobaggan mats or whatever. Haha. Guess Jason was right. Heavier people tend to reach further. And Yixiang and me kept achieving the longest distance. Haha..says tons about our tons..hehe
Wanted to learn some tricks of iceskating from Jason after dinner. Too bad there were too many people and he didn't feel like skating after seeing the commotion there. Haha..Good thing too, don't want to hurt my bum too much. =) I think even a Ninjitsu backfall would be useless..my fingers would be sliced off clean by the person right behind me..scary~ I love my body!
Sunday was a free and easy day. Let them sleep while I was in church. Jason needed it after the Germany-Portugal match, and Yixiang's parents expressedly forbid him to ever get involved with Christianity. Oh well~
Brought them to find Larry. His house looks so..ordinary. Haha..was expecting more clutter from what he usually described..especially the part bout birds and some Yap camping=)
Drove them to Jusco (measly compared to KL, but then, it's enough for us). As usual seriously hard to find parking. Played a round of pool. Lost to Jason-Larry team by 1 ball. Oh well..beat them at Tenchu vs mode later on at home though..haha..
Dinner was at Hee Lai Ton. Glad they enjoyed it as much as me. Seems that the cooking is well matched to Fujian cooking, which has a less full-bodied taste than Hebei cooking.
Left for Genting early Monday morning. Not much to say there. Heavy fog. Good thing we got to finish the Outdoor Theme Park (half of it was under renovation anyway..boo) before it rained! Haha..lucky~
Something happened to the Corkscrew rollercoaster ride just before we rode it. After careful consideration and some maternal and nocturnal advice, I decided to maek the wise choice..sacrifice an adrenaline ride to ensure I keep my promise of meeting up with them. Haha..serious hypogonadism~ That didn't stop the 2 PRCs from having fun though. Haha..
Tried go-karting the first time in my life..kinda sad..but it was good..managed to sneak in an extra round since yixiang and I were quite fast..haha..but it was not too fast considering the speed of Genting go-karts..none of that Genting drift mind you!
Food at Genting is seriously EXPENSIVE! Not to mention small portioned..
Watched the Mysteria show at 9pm. I totally agree with Jane. Instead of a magic show, it should be rebranded as an ACROBATIC show. Really! The acrobat kids were terrific, especially when 9 of them were balanced on an arc of chairs. Pro! Bravo!
Too bad I couldn't smuggle myself into the casino. I didn't have a collared tshirt. Oh well, went in before so there's really no novelty left there. Jason was also kicked out for looking too young. (He's 1 month too young btw) Yixiang was the only 1 allowed in. Rightly so too. He is old! Haha..But casinos are seriously bad! Could smell the cig smoke way before I could see the casino entrance.. haha..it's a breeding ground for lung cancer!
Nevertheless Yixiang is really young at heart! He actually forced us to go on the carousel with him-_-"

The rest of today was just mainly recovering and basically a whirlwind of food tasting. Haha..Nasi lemak, home cooked food (none of mine I'm afraid..so far only spaghetti is the only palatable thing-_-"), fish head noodles, yao zhar kway etc.
Well, hopefully they arrive safe and sound in Singapore in..5 hours time! Ok, enough is enough..my emptiness is temporarily filled, the anguish languishing in the vacuum evacuated and replaced by pure lethargy.
All the best in NUS in days ahead my friends! Hope to meet y'all soon!

Jane's lame place

Haha..this shows that I spread the lame disease way too fast and to too many people. My goodness..Jane just showed me this, it's cool..really!

iGod

Try chatting, with a whole new experience!

PS. Obviously this is not meant to be real. People don't chat with God through software. It's through prayers. Just so you'd know. Haha..

Nice Joke

Here's a nice joke, courtesy of MMMC hardgay. You're so lame man!

Eh, your China friends. They speak Chinese ar?

-_-" """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
Dots to that

Sunway Pyramid

Took them to Sunway Lagoon. Wow, really had some nice fun there. Havn't been there in YEARS! Haha..Did you know you could actually FLY when you take the tobaggan ride? Wow..spent hours trying to figure out a way to extend our range and reach the end of the path. [FYI, we did improve but never quite did touch the end=( ]
Too bad the locker guy spoiled it all..But that's a story for another day. Yup, procrastination is good=)
Later we went to the pyramid. Initially wanted to iceskate, but too many people. Sigh. Oh well, I gotta learn it from somebody else then..too bad since Jason's a pro at this. Haha..
Funny thing is, both of them remarked that Sunway Pyramid is so much nicer than Berjaya Times Square and Midvalley Megamall! They even thought it was the newest. Haha..Even though it is the oldest. Maybe cause they know how to maintain a nicer facade? Hmmm..

PS. Pardon my language here, but this is a must:
SCREW YOU Sunway. Especially the management. Who in their right minds force you to repay RM3 just because you wanted to take $ from your wallet which was locked in a locker to rent equipment totalling RM30?! Especially after they never informed you that the equipment even needed to be rented. AND you had to walk all the way across Sunway Lagoon to get your $$
And don't give me that crap about you being low-level drones with no knowledge of management policies! And for goodness sake, don't be an ASS and tell me that "I'm sorry. This happened many times already without any change, so there's nothing I can do." That's bullshit and you know it. If it happened that often, something NEEDS to be changed!
And FYI, every policy needs to have a reason. Don't ask me to trudge all the way to your cozy management office to get that reason. Especially after making it so bloody inconvenient just to rent something.
Most importantly, your actions have really disgraced not just yourselves, but also Malaysia. 2 PRCs have witnessed this firsthand and are really disappointed. Ergo, enjoy the consequences!
*sticks tongue out*

End of rants. Thank you for putting up with my language.

Welcome to Malaysia

Jason and Yixiang are here! Woohoo! Now, now we will have some fun! =)
Ah, the memories..

Nursing

Whoa..This is a new thought..
Maybe I should just change courses..I heard that I look cute in a skirt! Haha..(Psst..Gotta shave my legs first..don't want any shock and awe tactics..although it would increase business in whichever clinic or hospital I work in..haha..a sudden increase in patients with fainting spells..Bwahaha!)
Hmmm..
*ponders away*

Then again, maybe not..haha..sorry to disappoint you N


Btw, this is in no way meant to offend the male nurses out there. I know for a fact that such an occupation exists, and male nurses DO NOT in fact wear skirts. Nor do they have to be gays, gayish, transexuals, cuckoo, or whatever. Ask Gay Focker. He's a male nurse. Or for a better representation, please refer to your nearest Health Ministry or local health centre.

PS. That's from Meet the Parents if you didn't get it.

Comic Soccer

Haha, looking how World Cup 2006 is going to end soon, let's check something out. Hope nothing like this happens at the finals, or else some heads are really going to roll. Haha..

Things you don't want to happen when your team is poised for World Cup finals

Incidentally, we are going to Genting next Mon and Tues. (Depending on where you resided when you heard this name the first time, the way it is pronounced differs. Like, if you were raised in Malaysia, it would be pronounced Geh-Nnn-Ting, like the "geh" of the word get. However, if you heard this name the first time when you were in Singapore, it would sound more like Gent-ting, as in ladies and gents.)
Must remember to ask somebody about the trip. Been there too many times till I kinda lost the novelty feel. Can't really say which is a nice ride. Haha..
Btw, here are some really good songs. Meaningful. At least to me=)
Amazing love
Thank you Jesus
Fall like fire
No other name

Hope all things go well tomorrow. A prewelcome to Jason and Yixiang. Hope I can wake up in time to fetch you guys=)

VH blog v2.0

Wow, da kat has been workin hard at it! Dodo too I'm sure..
Yes, ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, I'm happy to announce..*rumble* *drum roll*..VH blog v2.0 beta! Yes, that's what we have been waiting for anxiously for half a year! Check out my links and you'll know how to get there!
Attention all former VH boarders! Please sign up as soon as the site is fully operational. Since it is still in it's beta stage, please be patient as bugs have to be found and eliminated. Anybody with a generous heart and a new bottle of Baygon please feel free to donate it to the VH blog team.

In the meantime, you'll just have to be content reading the site feed or directly having a sneak peek at the site itself. =)

NSAID - friend or foe?

NS AID..what are those? (It's not some financial aid package for poor NS people..that's the government's job..lol)
NSAID = non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs
Ok, now that that's done, let's get on. NSAIDs are highly powerful painkillers. Something you would want if there's some really serious pain you're experiencing. (What are some terms that lay people would use to describe pain?) However, they are still medicines. Ergo, they come with side-effects. Among some of them include increased creatinine in the urine and as always, possible allergic reactions.
Which unfortunately applies to me.
Since I was a young kid, (ok, this sounds really cliche, according to Larry Choy) administration of certain NSAIDs always triggered swollen eyelids. Usually on the lateral side, left side, lower eyelid. Not a nice sight, and equally not nice to experience. Although not life-threatening, it is certainly irritating. Discomfort around the eye, discomfort among people around you ("hey, something's wrong with your eye dude"). Things like that. So, I've resisted taking them if I can.
Till today.
My dad came up with a nice experiment. Using me as the guinea pig.
Don't worry, it's completely voluntary, ethical and safe.
It goes like this.
Take NSAIDs.
Yup, take NSAIDs. When there's some pain, however minor, just take different types of NSAIDs that I have not yet tried before. It's not a bad idea. Since I might really need the oomph of NSAIDs one fine day later on. Today on the list was a COX-2 specific NSAID. Supposed to be much more specific compared to old-school types of NSAIDs.
Took 1 at dinner. The pain didn't really subside much, but then it wasn't really much to begin with, so that's not really relevent I guess. So far so good until about 2 hours later. All of a sudden my right eyelid starts to act all funny. Swelling appears just below the right lacrimal duct openings. Ok, so there goes another potential NSAID =(
Oh well, another day, another new opportunity. I'll just have to wait till the swelling subsides and proceed to the next candidate. And, not to forget, keep my trusty anti-allergy pills close. Good thing I'm not allergic to those. God knows what would happen if I were..Haha..don't want to even think about it.
So, you've been warned. Do NOT under any circumstance start with those usual questions or put on a shocked look on your face if you see my eye a little swollen. No "Hey, there's a sty in your eye", or a "Appleby, there's a fly in your eye". Okies..good
Catch-22 rawks man!

Mario

WOWEE!! I didn't know Minghuii could play such great piano! My goodness..Dang duck, you better teach me how you do that next time! =)
Watch him go!

Street Fighter love story?

Thanx Vincent for this. Not a bad production at all!
Street Fighter vs Mortal Kombat

EOS is over!

EOS is officially OVER! Wahaha =) *deranged laugh* Just hope that I'm not over too..LOL
Read beehoon's post about pain. Haha..I totally agree!
Really man, the things we endure just to finish this sem. Haha..
Pardon this particular rambling. The brain is still not adjusted to normal life after exam periods. The scribe should be alright after being deprived of zeitgebers today, and also after having a dopamine rush.

PS. I am NOT on drugs. If you don't understand what I just wrote, please feel free to pick up any respectable medical textbook and look it up. If you do throw it away without understanding what is written don't fret. At least then you can empathize with me rather than just sympathizing..

Superman Returns! And my friends leave=(

I don't care what the newspaper say. It's common knowledge (at least within my family..haha) that most of the local newspaper critics have totally different tastes in movies compared to us. A C for Superman Returns? My goodness..It was one of the rare movies in recent memory that actually nearly moved me to tears.
Nearly you ask? Yes..nearly..cause somebody kept bugging me during the movie. Actually there were two Janes there with me, one physically and the other electronically. Haha..How so? One was quietly enjoying the movie, the other was shooting questions off like nobody's business. And the questions had nothing to do with the movie actually. She was just being irritating. Good thing I'm stuck with the nice Jane most of the time=)
Anyway, those of you who can DO remember to catch this. I can't say I'm totally objective about this (hmm..sounds familiar eh vamiceli?) since Superman, Spiderman and Batman all rank among the highest among my favourite comic book heroes. Funny, their all men..lol..But the storylines that come along with those characters are real nice, complex and full of dilemmas - nicely mimicking real life, albeit a little exaggerated at times. HOWEVER, remember to shift your sitting positions once in a while. It is nearly 3 hours long, and a sleepy butt and/or DVT is really not something that one would like. Ever. Haha..
Even though Superman returns, my friends are leaving. So sad..But I've learnt that when you care for someone you should learn how to let go. Let them fly and soar, spread their wings, broaden their horizons, change their perspectives. These, in my personal experience, really DOES make a person better. If you care about them, you would want them to improve where ever and whenever they can. So, let them go. Even though the pain of separation is there, it will not last. There will be a day when we will meet again. Be it a second away, or a year away, there will be such a day. Like the song that goes "someday out of the blue, maybe years from now, or maybe someday soon; I turn and I see you, as if our love were new". It's quite fitting. The years will fall away when we meet again. Til then, take care of yourselves. Strive hard to reach your true potential!
(And for those who are a little more tech-savvy, instead of "years from now" let it be instead "someday soon". Get a webcam so that I can see you whenever we both chance to go online at the same time. Haha)
Everybody's taking off (some literally), when will it be my turn to fly? And when will we meet again? We'll meet again. Farewell, farewell! Godspeed, and may He return you to me..



Certain names have been changed to protect privacy. Jane = Jane Doe. Incidentally, both Janes mentioned in the article have the same names. One is the epitome of a good friend (thanks for coming to the movies, and also for the tomyam cure for sore throats), the other just destroys the good image I conjure everytime I hear that name. But don't be so bad lar, CSKing, calling people pork chop-_-"