Sunday, July 26, 2009

Nothing spoils fun like finding out it builds character.



"Life is an onslaught of difficult problems.

And the ones who find the correct answers get to survive.

In which case, i think everyone wants to get as many right as they can."
- King Barragan's Fraccion, Arrancar Findor Carias in Bleach Episode 219: Hisagi's Shikai! The Name is...

There are times when life presents you with the opportunity. Its up to you to either grasp it with both hands, or to ignore it.

I prefer to seize any chance to make my life more interesting.

“The trickster, the riddler, the keeper of balance, he of the many faces who finds life in death and who fears no evil; he who walks through doors”
- “Brisinger” by Christopher Paolini

Saturday, July 11, 2009

This is Ensui, your flight captain speaking. Just to reassure you that, yes, there is someone up front.



“A man from The Tape Gallery told me the other day that a car can never be art.

Because for something to be art, it can have no purpose other than itself: No function.”

- Jeremy Clarkson in "Top Gear" Season 11 Episode 4

Sunday, July 05, 2009

A dazed Spaceman Ensui crawls from the smoking wreckage of his ship! Our hero now regrets not buying a towing rider on his insurance policy.



"New Divide"

I remembered black skies
The lightning all around me
I remembered each flash
As time began to blur
Like a startling sign
That fate had finally found me
And your voice was all I heard
Did I get what I deserve

So give me reason
To prove me wrong
To wash this memory clean
Let the floods cross
The distance in your eyes
Give me reason
To fill this hole
Connect this space between
Let it be enough to reach the truth that lies
Across this new divide

There was nothing inside
The memories left abandoned
There was nowhere to hide
The ashes fell like snow
And the ground caved in
Between where we were standing
And your voice was all I heard
Did I get what I deserve

So give me reason
To prove me wrong
To wash this memory clean
Let the floods cross
The distance in your eyes
Across this new divide

In every loss in every lie
In every truth that you deny
And each regret and each goodbye
Was a mistake to great to hide
And your voice was all I heard
Did I get what I deserve

So give me reason
To prove me wrong
To wash this memory clean
Let the floods cross
The distance in your eyes
Give me reason
To fill this hole
Connect this space between
Let it be enough to reach the truth that lies
Across this new divide
Across this new divide
Across this new divide

Sunday, June 28, 2009

In tribute to the King of Pop.



"Black Or White"

I Took My Baby
On A Saturday Bang
Boy Is That Girl With You
Yes We're One And The Same

Now I Believe In Miracles
And A Miracle
Has Happened Tonight

But, If
You're Thinkin'
About My Baby
It Don't Matter If You're
Black Or White

They Print My Message
In The Saturday Sun
I Had To Tell Them
I Ain't Second To None

And I Told About Equality
An It's True
Either You're Wrong
Or You're Right

But, If
You're Thinkin'
About My Baby
It Don't Matter If You're
Black Or White

I Am Tired Of This Devil
I Am Tired Of This Stuff
I Am Tired Of This Business
Sew When The
Going Gets Rough
I Ain't Scared Of
Your Brother
I Ain't Scared Of No Sheets
I Ain't Scare Of Nobody
Girl When The
Goin' Gets Mean

[L. T. B. Rap Performance]
Protection
For Gangs, Clubs
And Nations
Causing Grief In
Human Relations
It's A Turf War
On A Global Scale
I'd Rather Hear Both Sides
Of The Tale
See, It's Not About Races
Just Places
Faces
Where Your Blood
Comes From
Is Where Your Space Is
I've Seen The Bright
Get Duller
I'm Not Going To Spend
My Life Being A Color

[Michael]
Don't Tell Me You Agree With Me
When I Saw You Kicking Dirt In My Eye

But, If
You're Thinkin' About My Baby
It Don't Matter If You're Black Or White

I Said If
You're Thinkin' Of
Being My Baby
It Don't Matter If You're Black Or White

I Said If
You're Thinkin' Of
Being My Brother
It Don't Matter If You're
Black Or White

Ooh, Ooh
Yea, Yea, Yea Now
Ooh, Ooh
Yea, Yea, Yea Now

It's Black, It's White
It's Tough For You
To Get By
It's Black , It's White, Whoo

It's Black, It's White
It's Tough For You
To Get By
It's Black , It's White, Whoo

Sunday, June 14, 2009

War-On-Flab: D-Day Minus Eight

Gentlemen. We have astonishing news to report on the war front.

Firstly, the City-of-Pullups. As we have last reported, the enemy, Weak-Arms, have taken control of the city and are heavily fortified. Despite the Discipline-Artillery, the Persistent-Rangers and Keep-Trying-Paratroopers, the results have been mixed. Neither side has been able to control the entire city. Fighting has been fierce in the built-up areas. Casualties are mounting, but I believe we were gaining ground slowly and steadily.

However, on this final day of reckoning, a miracle happened. A typhoon broke out and wiped out almost all of our enemies. Our troops, stunned by this occurrence, pushed through the remaining token resistance and secured a famous victory! The City-of-Pullups is ours!

Secondly, the Cliff-of-Shuttle-Runs. Due to its close proximity to the Coast-of-Jogging, Flabby-Thighs were divided to concentrate on these two areas, and hence our army did likewise. Buoyed by the victory at the City-of-Pullups, our army fought hard at the Cliff-of-Shuttle-Runs. The battle was short but arduous. However, we have secured a slight advantage over the enemy and are planning for the next decisive operation. We have every confidence that we will defeat them in the next few days.

Thirdly, Sit-up Town. With the additional supplies and reinforcements, our army has taken over the town and eradicated the enemy, Spare-Tire Tummy! We do not expect any further trouble from Sit-up Town.

Fourth, the Forest-of-SBJ. To be frank, this area had come as a shock to us. We had not accounted for this surprising obstacle. Our first few attempts in trying to push through this forest, were met with strong resistance. Scouts and reconnaissance troops were sent to verify the strength and identity of the enemy. The enemy was identified as Weight-and-Disuse.

After much discussion, we deployed the Practice-Guerrillas to combat this new threat. Before the final day of reckoning, a few exercises were conducted to ensure that we have sufficient preparation. The extra effort paid off as we pushed back the enemy who were no doubt surprised by our teamwork and efficiency. The Forest-of-SBJ is ours!

Lastly, the Coast-of-Jogging. Despite our constant barrage and frontal attacks, the enemy has held firm. We thought we were succeeding in this war of attrition, but they launched a surprising counter-attack and regained their lost ground. In addition, recent reports suggested that the enemy had additional resources and had an advantage over us.

Thanks to your continual support, we poured additional resources and troops into this front. Before the final day of reckoning, we managed to decimate much of the enemy troops, Flabby-Thighs. Encouraged by such news and with all the victories at the various fronts, our troops charged once more on the final day and won the Battle-for-Jogging!

In summary, we have secured victories in all of the fronts except the Cliff-of-Shuttle-Runs. However, we are in various stages of discussion and are determined to win this final battle front. We shall not fail and disappoint! We shall prevail and overcome!

This concludes our report on the War-On-Flab. Thank you.

The meeting is adjourned.

Sunday, June 07, 2009

I call it “Lookout” Hill because that’s what you yell whenever we go down it.

"You don't fear your own strength, do you?

Or your enemy's strength...

You've reached your limit.


The sword you wield...

Those who do not fear the sword they wield, have no right to wield a sword at all.
That's what i was taught."
- Ninth Squad Vice-Captain, Hisagi Shuuhei in Bleach Episode 219: Hisagi's Shikai! The Name is...

Sunday, May 31, 2009

What I would give to be a latchkey kid.

Does anyone have a enormous hard disk that i can borrow?

I need to download the Internet. xD

Sunday, May 24, 2009

Next time I’m going to tag you out with the bat instead of the ball.

When I'm trying to undo people's mistakes, i get tired.

When i get tired, i get irritable.

When i get irritable, i lose my temper easily.

When i get irritable, i try not to interact with people because i might lose my temper and they do not deserve that.

So in short,

When i'm trying to undo people's mistakes, i lose my temper easily.

When that happens, please avoid me.

If you do not avoid me and feel the wrath of my anger, i hope you understand and do not blame me for losing my temper.

Sunday, May 17, 2009

Despite that amazing display of cunning, reflex and physical prowess, your tail still has a death grip on your butt.



To Rafael Benitez:
If you're watching this - but obviously you won't be watching this because you are frothing at the mouth because you've eaten so many sour grapes - but IF you're watching this by mistake:

Eat dust.

We've claimed our 18th English Premiership League trophy, and there will be more to come. And just to give you an idea of how serious we are, here's some poke-in-the-eye information.

Goalkeepers: Ben Foster, 26, Tomasz Kuszczak, 27

Defenders: Rafael Da Silva, 18, Fabio Pereira da Silva, 18

Midfielders: Nani, 22, Rodrigo Possebon, 20, Zoran Tosic, 22

Strikers: Federico Macheda, 17


To Chelsea:
Get your act together. Or rather get a manager that will last you for more than one season. THEN you might be able to challenge us.


To Arsenal:
Another season in transition? How many more seasons do you need before your babies become men?

Sunday, May 10, 2009

A voice cackles in Ensui’s radio, “Enemy fighters at two o’clock!” “Roger. What should I do until then?”

After close to six months, there is now a marked difference.

A general recognition. A sudden knowledge that i've been accepted and fitted in.

“I pulled myself up to stand straight. I shook my head, and I swear I almost felt my brain settle. “Verity,” I said, and embraced his consciousness to mine. It was easy; it had always been easy, but before I had believed there was something to lose by doing so.

We did not meld into one person, but instead fit together like bowls stacked in a cupboard. He rode me comfortably, like a well-loaded pack. I took a breath and lifted my axe. “Again,” I said to Burrich.”
- “Royal Assassin” by Robin Hobb

Tuesday, May 05, 2009

I couldn’t read it because my parents forgot to pay the gravity bill.



"Won't Go Home Without You"

I asked her to stay but she wouldn't listen
She left before I had the chance to say
Oh
The words that would mend the things that were broken
But now it's far too late, she's gone away

Every night you cry yourself to sleep
Thinking: "Why does this happen to me?
Why does every moment have to be so hard?"
Hard to believe that

It's not over tonight
Just give me one more chance to make it right
I may not make it through the night
I won't go home without you

The taste of your breath, I'll never get over
The noises that she made kept me awake
Oh
The weight of things that remained unspoken
Built up so much it crushed us everyday

Every night you cry yourself to sleep
Thinking: "Why does this happen to me?
Why does every moment have to be so hard?"
Hard to believe that

It's not over tonight
Just give me one more chance to make it right
I may not make it through the night
I won't go home without you

It's not over tonight
Just give me one more chance to make it right
I may not make it through the night
I won't go home without you

Of all the things I felt but never really shown
Perhaps the worst is that I ever let you go
I should not ever let you go, oh oh oh

It's not over tonight
Just give me one more chance to make it right
I may not make it through the night
I won't go home without you

It's not over tonight
Just give me one more chance to make it right
I may not make it through the night
I won't go home without you
And I won't go home without you
And I won't go home without you
And I won't go home without you

Monday, April 27, 2009

The only bright side to all this, is that eventually there may not be a piece of the planet worth fighting over.

The first thing you notice as you descend, is the sudden peace. An absolute silence punctuated only by the sound of your breathing into the regulator and the air bubbles escaping into the surface.

As you descend, you start to notice a second thing: Blue. Lots and lots of blue. The vibrant color surrounds and engulfs you, with the sun rays piercing the surface occasionally.

As the last bit of air bubbles out of your BCD and you exhale slowly and calmly, the weightless feeling sinks in. The sound of your breathing and air bubbles makes a constant musical backdrop to the scene unfolding before you. As the pressure builds up while you slowly reach the bottom of the sea floor, you equalize constantly.

Once at the bottom of the sea floor, you check that your buddy is with you and you two set off in an adventure like no other.



The closest thing i can describe that is akin to diving, is flying. The weightless feeling, the sense of complete unrestrained movement and the gliding above the sea floor. This is what a bird must feel like when it flies: A sense of joy and unbridled freedom.

As you quest forward, the sea unveils its treasure to you. Fishes swim in schools, shimmering in vivid colors of red, blue and green. Stony corals placidly shelter teems of sea life while providing a fascinating background of colors and shapes. Soft corals wave lazily at you, while shy fishes peek out from their hiding places. Occasionally, a brave white fish will swim up to have a curious investigation of you before darting away.

As you glide along marveling at nature, fresh air is brought into your lungs steadily and reassuringly. You move along, trying to see as much sea life as you can. Constant monitoring of your SPG soon indicates that you don't have much air left. Reluctantly signaling to your buddy, you two head up to the surface, with the wonderful sights deeply embedded into your mind.

I'll be back, you fervently promise.

Sunday, April 19, 2009

I call a ten year time out to grow some more.

Eh. I don't think i'm sitting in your car. If i do so, there will be three people at the back. If there's a jam, they are going to suffer.

Okay lor. I anything one. But why you so stupid? Got car to sit, you don't want.

*outrage* Stupid?! I'm trying to be considerate here. I'm thinking for those people at the back.

*chuckles* Okay lor. Whatever.

Why is it that when you try to be considerate, people laugh at you for doing so?

I had always believed, perhaps childishly, that if you followed the rules, you would be protected, that things like that would not happen to you. Afterwards, I felt … tricked. Foolish. Gullible, that I had thought ideals could protect me.

Honour and courtesy and justice … .they are not real, Fitz. We all pretend to them, and hold them to us like shields. But they guard only against folk who carry the same shields. Against those who have discarded them, they are no shields at all, but only additional weapons to use against their victims.

- “Assassin’s Quest” by Robin Hobb

Saturday, April 11, 2009

If you don’t get a good night kiss, you get kafka dreams.

"Take my memories of my mother, and the feelings that went with them. I do not want to know them at all.

Take the ache in my throat when i think of Molly, take all the sharp-edged, bright-colored days i recall with her. Take their brilliance and leave me but the shadows of what i saw and felt. Let me recall them without cutting myself on their sharpness.

Take my days and nights in Regal's dungeons. It is enough to know what was done to me. Take it to keep, and let me stop feeling my face against that stone floor, hearing the sound of my nose breaking, smelling and tasting my own blood.

Take my hurt that i never know my father, take my hours of staring up at his portrait when the great hall was empty and i could do so alone.

Take my memories of that tower-top, of the bare windswept Queen's Garden and Galen standing over me.

Take that image of Molly going so willingly to Burrich's arms. Take it and quench it and seal it away where it can never sear me again..."
-"Assassin's Quest" by Robin Hobb

Saturday, April 04, 2009

Isn’t it sad how some pple’s grip on their lives is so dicy that they’ll embrace any preposterous delusion rather than face an occasional bleak truth?

So anyway, you know when you're trundling on the so-called path of life, your body changes in unexpected ways.

Puberty is a good example, but not one which i'm thinking of...

Sometimes you will find that the food that you love to eat since you were young, will suddenly and unexpectedly disgust you.

Durians are a good example. For all your life, you've loved to eat durians. You probably eat one or two boxes of durians with little or no problem at all. But one day, for some explicit and unexplained reason, your body decides that durians are disgusting. Thats sad, isn't it?



And talking about durians, there are one or two old wives' tale about durians.

Such as drinking salt water from the empty durian husk will flush out any impurities of the previously eaten durian. And that if you get pricked or injured by a durian, for quicker recovery, you can use the remaining flesh from the durian husk to massage on the injured area.

But old wives' tale rarely have any credentials to them, do they? So we should use this opportunity to test this old wives tale of using the remaining flesh from the durian husk to heal durian-caused injuries.

A healthy body is preferable for this line of research. In order to conduct this research effectively, varying degrees of injuries should be performed on the body. Caused by a durian, of course. Three (3) varying degrees of injuries should be sufficient.

It is recommended that the durian should penetrate the body by 5mm, 10mm and 15mm. A general tolerance of ± 1mm is acceptable.

By the nature of this research and its objectives, a comparison must be made. The general recommendation of the second method is to leave the injuries untouched. It is possible but highly improbable that the body should bleed to death due to the second method.

However, since two (2) methods are used and three (3) varying degrees of injuries are performed, the healthy body must have a minimum of six (6) sides to perform this important research.

To truly complete the research, a third method should be used to compare between the first two (2) methods. Since there is a comparison between leaving the injuries untouched, and healing them with the remaining flesh from the durian husk, the third method should be healing the injuries via other means.

There is no recommendation for the said "other means" of healing. Therefore it is dependent on the discretion and objectives of the researcher.

Hence, with three (3) methods and three (3) varying degrees of injuries, the healthy body must now have a minimum of nine (9) sides to complete this important research. Should the body have more sides to experiment on, the researcher may experiment by using different types of durians.

This is very important research. Any advances in this area will greatly help the medical field in trying to cure the durian-caused injuries, which are in all probability, performed by the ah-bengs in this country.

Sunday, March 29, 2009

Talking with you is sort of the conversational equivalent of an out-of-body experience.



"If I Never See Your Face Again"

Now as the summer fades
I let you slip away
You say I'm not your type
But I can make you sway

It makes me burn to learn
You're not the only one
I'd let you be if you
Put down your blazing gun

[Chorus:]
Now you've gone somewhere else
Far away
I don't know if I will find you (find you, find you)
But you feel my breath
On your neck
Can't believe I'm right behind you (right behind you)
'Cause you keep me coming back for more
And I feel a little better than I did before
And if I never see your face again
I don't mind
'Cause we gone much further than I thought we'd get tonight

Sometimes you move so well
It's hard not to give in
I'm lost, I can't tell
Where you end and I begin

It makes you burn to learn
I'm with another man
I wonder if he's half
The lover that I am

[Chorus]

Baby, baby
Please believe me
Find it in your heart to reach me
Promise not to leave me behind
(Promise not to leave me behind)

Take me down, but take it easy
Make me think but don't deceive me
Torture me by taking your time
(Talk to me, talk to me)

[x2]
'Cause you keep me coming back for more
And I feel a little better than I did before
And if I never see your face again
I don't mind
'Cause we gone much further than I thought we'd get tonight

Sunday, March 22, 2009

This is supposed to be great art. So why does it look like a bunch of decapitated naked people?



The world between Art and Engineering, exists only in our minds.

I can’t get this handle off. Pass me the hacksaw, will you?

Here's a trick question: How many working mechanical engineers are there in Singapore?

More to the point: How many design mechanical engineers are there in Singapore?

Engineering is not a job which pays well. Engineering is not a job which brings you fame either. You go into engineering, not because of the fame or fortune. You go into engineering because you have an interest in engineering.

And in the materialistic society of Singapore, if a job doesn't pay well, then its not worth working for. That is why our country is filled with business people, executive people, IT people, media people, financial people, accounting people, law people and doctor people. But few, if any, engineers.

How many students have studied and graduated with a engineering degree but are currently in a non-engineering job?

As for the engineers in Singapore, how many are not in the manufacturing sector? How many engineers are not in the sales sector? How many engineers are not in the electronics industry? How many engineers are not in the petrochemical industry?

More to the point: How many engineers are in the renewable energy industry? How many mechanical engineers are designers? How many engineers are in the M&E industry?

The engineering design knowledge base in Singapore is sorely lacking. More than that: its pitiful. How many mechanical engineers can claim to have design something in full, put it into production and watch it work successfully?

There was once an outcry about the lack of innovation and creativity in our country. That is simply the result of not having enough designers. Innovation and creativity are not subjects which can be taught in school, learned from the book or explained by a lecturer.

Art, yes. But not innovation and creativity.

Innovation and creativity comes from within. It comes from a need because of ambition or constraints, so engineers have to think out of the box. There is no point in being innovative or creative when it doesn't work. There is no point in being innovative or creative when there is alternative simple working solution.

Case in point: The Mercedes Benz 300 SL Gullwing was the first car to have gullwing doors. Not because the engineers wanted to be innovative or creative. It was because of the constraints they faced.



"Now, because of the way it was built, the door sills on the SL were very high and yet the roof was very low. That meant that there wasn't much room for the doors.

The solution came from engineers simply being practical, but it gave this car the most famous frontal silhouette in motoring history."

- James May in "Top Gear" Season Five Episode Five

Saturday, March 07, 2009

I can feel my brain beginning to atrophy already.

My younger brother participated in the biathlon at East Coast early this morning.

My youngest brother participated in the triathlon at Sentosa early this morning.

Me?

Utterly rubbish me slept from 11pm last night to 1pm this afternoon.

Oops. o.o