Ego-Sam

You know how the last letter in Singapore's car plates are defined by the 4 numbers preceeding it? I just had a definite moment where I am dead set on getting a car plate with the letters SPZ **** T in it and God damn to the numbers that dicate how that "T" comes about. Even if it is 4444. :D

So, car plate no. "SPZ 4444 T" prepare yourself to sit on my VW Golf GTI. Hahahahahaha

Too Funny To Pass Up

Recently read this on a blog and felt it too funny to pass up and not spread the word. All rights belong to the original author at :Insanepoly

8 Common Things Between Men in Black and Men in White

Fictional account of an all powerful elite organization that keep constant watch over society. Operates in secrecy- its activities causes horrific havoc but are above accountability. Takes extreme measure to neutralize its enemies. Enemies are locked up, forgotten by society and often never seen again. Occasionally fucks up and let lose dangerous aliens. Employs insidious brainwashing techniques to mask their activities from the general public. Uses trashy tabloids as a useful source of information. Humorless main protagonist goes by the name of K.

Fictional account of an all powerful elite organization that keep constant watch over society. Operates in secrecy- its activities causes horrific financial havoc but are above accountability. Takes extreme measure to neutralize its enemies. Enemies are locked up, forgotten by society and often never seen again. Occasionally fucks up and let lose dangerous terrorist. Employs insidious propaganda techniques to mask their activities from the general public. Uses trashy newspaper as a useful source of misinformation. Humorless main protagonist goes by the name of LKY.

Life is Good

"Life is good. Everyone just over-reacts....even me"

Hard and Strong

Song: A&E - Goldfrapp
Book: WoT Book 8 - Robert Jordan

Most people mistake these two to be one and the same, that their meanings are synonymous, even though they couldn't be more different than dogs and cats. Being a 'hard' man doesn't equate to being a 'strong' man.

A 'hard' man refuses to let events affect him. Mutely taking the knocks from life, he bears and endures with the hardships and stands resolute in his beliefs no matter the situation. Thus the tension in him increases as the stress and strain of life's reality test him time upon time. Until he passes his tipping point and has his hopes and dreams deflated like a balloon. Suddenly and dramatically. A 'hard' man is unforgiving, both to others and himself.

A 'strong' man, on the other hand, does let the events around him affect him. Accepting them and learning from them, he allows himself to be shaped by the lessons taught by life. Bending and twisting himself into the best possible sculpture with the materials made available to him, he changes and adapts and most importantly, he evolves. Changing for the better.

So folks, don't be too 'hard' on yourselves, but do rule yourselves with a 'strong' and firm hand. We all need a little discipline sometimes.

Christmas

Christmas is still roughly a month away and the glittering lights are popping up all over the shopping malls in Singapore. There might be a recession going on right now, but the stalls are still going all out to woo consumers to spend during this festive season. What I truly miss though, is something far far away, on the other side of the globe: the Christmas Markets in UK... especially the one in Manchester!

To my horror and dismay, I don't actually have in my possession any proper photos of the markets to speak of. No talking moose head on top of the wooden shed selling mulled wine and eggnog. (They are very friendly too, offering free cinnamon cookies to accompany your beverages as you warm yourself up).

The best start to visiting the market has always been this drinks shed as you pick from various brews like Mulled Wine (yes I am biased towards this, I am an alchie, so what?!), Eggnog, Hot Chocolate with flavourings like hazelnut or almond, Irish Coffee, etc. etc. You then cosy up in a corner with your friends as you warm up from the freezing temperatures and take in the crowd, smells, lights and fantastic atmosphere. From your excellent vantage point you spot an opening in the snaking queue around the Bratwurst Stall commanding the centre of St. Albert's Square and slip right in to claim some of those huge German Sausages before proceeding to browse through the offerings of the other stalls.

The old stalwarts of Danish Cookies and Chocolate coated fruit on sticks aren't to be missed. However, you don't have to rush there either because they will be there for the rest of the month, ready to gratify your sinful cravings (a mid-day or after school snack perhaps? City is sssssssssoooooooo near to Northern Campus after all) so for now, you are satisfied with just strolling amongst the crowd and checking out the newcomers and their wares. Over the past 3 years there have been delightful additions like giant choux buns, the pungent garlic cheese (I think there was once Brian, Clarence and I all bought a wedge of this back home within a day of each other), paellas were the newcomers 2 years back and hugely popular.

I will gladly admit that I am guilty of frequenting the Christmas Markets in St. Albert's and St. Ann's square way too often. I've even managed to find pick out respectable Xmas gifts from the trinkets stalls more than once. Oh yes, I am definitely a sucker for them. Maybe the Markets cast some sort of enchantment on me with their gay spirits and sprinkled Christmas dust onto me. Yes I am rambling, I know. But honestly, Christmas in Singapore just pales in comparison.

This Tree-Shrew Could Outdrink All of You

From BBC:

This little mammal is apparently the most alchie one amongst us all primates. Enjoying its beer every evening, it consumes enough alcohol to put 36% of the human population to shame under the table.

So, this lucky little critter sleeps the whole day and then spends his waking hours in perpetual stupor as he goes drinking from fruit to fruit like how we go on pub crawls and suffers no ill effects for it! How lucky.

"Humans may even preserve a relic of the shrews' love of alcohol that has lasted through millions of years of evolution."

So that's why I like beer too eh?

What's Left?

It's the final countdown. Last few days in Manchester before I fly to Greece and then home to Singapore. I find myself wandering alone on the streets of this city more and more everyday. How many days can go by before you utter a single word? The last time I went mute, it lasted.. a week. I just didn't have anything to say. Silence, however, is deafening.

So... what to do? Nothing. I shall wait for the sun to come out and go for another city excursion. :)

I'm Fed Up! Stop Raining!

Stop raining! Alright, I know being rained on is part of what living in Manchester is about, but give it a break already and let me enjoy this final summer in the UK. Seriously, counting the real number of days I have left in Manchester, it amounts to no more than 8 days. After I return from my trip with Mom and Sis, it is almost immediately off to Singapore I fly.

So...stop raining. Let the sun out. It'll be too late very soon.

feeling: rained on

Cause and Effect

Mentioned to a. that I have been walking around town alot lately. Well, it hasn't been without consequences. Especially since summer sales are now on with discounts from 50% and up. What's happening Sammmmm... you are shopping so often lately! People do change after all I suppose.

Short sleeve Diesel shirt worn loose casual

The same shirt now buttoned up.

Didn't get that in the end. Too expensive!

Found another shirt - yes, I know it's black AGAIN

Finally, this was the shirt I decided on in the end.

I need to start working and earning some money soon...

www.failblog.org

Pages and pages of funny pics at www.failblog.org. Check it out, I laughed quite hard at a few of them.

Time to go...

So it begins. The time to get my feet wet and start slaying these papers have begun. The imagery in my mind is something like that of a trench battlefield - just try your best to last through it all and don't make any stupid mistakes. First up, Management 3!


Oooo...It seems that going to NY might be possible after all this summer. We'll see how things go after SIA and Krisflyer gets back to me regarding that free ticket.

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Now playing: Ryan Cabrera - In Between Lights
via FoxyTunes

A Jedi, You Will Be?

Taken from Wiki

England and Wales

In England and Wales 390,127 people (0.7 percent) stated their religion as Jedi on their 2001 Census forms, surpassing Sikhism, Judaism, and Buddhism, and making it the fourth largest reported religion in the country. The highest percentages of such responses were typically in cities with high student populations.^[10] In the 2001 Census 2.6 percent of the population of Brighton claimed to be Jedi. The percentages of religious affiliations were:

• Christian: 72.0%
• No religion: 14.8%
• Chose not to respond: 7.7%
• Muslim: 3.1%
• Hindu: 1.1%
• Jedi: 0.7%

Read in the news about how the founder of the Jedi Church was assaulted by a man with metal crutches while screaming "DARTH VADER!". The irony of the situation really got me laughing and piqued my curiosity enough to try and find out how true this 'religion' is. Seems like the Jedi faith is strong! It's the 4th largest religion in England and Wales.

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Now playing: Dave Matthews - Ants Marching
via FoxyTunes

Ah! Found it!

Like a thunderbolt out of nowhere. I realise the word I was grasping for that day is bourgeois.

Now, back to revision.

Fragmented Thoughts

Found out another friend is 4 months pregnant after trying with her husband for 2 years. This is the year of marital/familial bliss for my batch it seems! With marriages and pregnancies and births going around.... (No I am not feeling left out) My friend has asked me for suggestions in naming her baby and Samuel seems to be her top choice for a boy and Amelia for a girl.

Can eyes pop out from too much revision? Tired...

Saw a documentary on TV regarding sex addiction. Various chemicals named in it and how the chemical process stimulates the brain in numerous ways that could lead to something akin to drug addiction. Sure does empower sex's hold on life. Love still rules though. How often do you hear someone killing themselves after getting rejected sex? Compare that to how often you hear about depression brought on by emotional stress or love problems. Love is definitely more essential than sex.

Was watching Shutter yesterday on my computer during my lunch break. Thai horror film. I think my stomach/appetite for scary films is getting weaker with my advancing years. I was totally freaked out in my room as I watched it alone. Even though it was bright and sunny. Good movie though. Scared me BAD. Almost as bad as the Chinese horror film The Eye.

Pasta really is the quintessential student meal. Fast, simple, filling and endless variation.

I wonder how I even function efficiently when my thoughts seem to be trains on railway tracks bound to crash into each other from every other direction. If the proverbial train of thought is the typical landscape imagery for everyone's mind, I would think mine is more like a room of bubbles floating and bumping/merging/separating from each other in the mist. How lovely.

My Uni Education Has Ended

What? No fanfare, party poppers or thrown confetti? Hard to believe that just a few hours before the end of my final lecture I was still slogging over a final piece of coursework till 6am in the morning. And yesterday went something like this:

10am- Hmmmm... last piece of course work to finish :) Yay~~

10:30am- Breakfast!! Fruit n Fibre yum. *turns on anime*

12:30pm- GAH! Work!!!

3:30pm- Whew... last question left. Making good time. *beams*

3:45pm- Chicken Curry Noodles for lunch.

4:30pm - Last dash and I'm all done! *work work*

6:30pm - *work work??*

7:30pm - Ahhhhhh... Going round in circles and can't solve for a final unknown in the stupid edge front cracked question with symbols that are undefined and unreal......

8:30pm - Ok, not getting anywhere even after checking, double checking and re-rechecking workings...start again from the top.

9:00pm - *Sudden inspiration* Maybe I can tackle it from a different angle if I do a 2nd differential and incorporate the cyclic loading into the stress fatigue of the mild steel. Yah! *renewed gusto*

10:30pm - RAH!!!!!!!!! Stu..pid... wasdawdwasdawdaslkdjlkajsdlakwjd;alskjd;alkwjd;slakdj... GRAH. Ended up with a different unsolvable unknown instead. Can't do a simultaneous equation with previous unknown as that element is not present in this method after differentiating. *twirls pen in comatose silence and begins process of turning into stone*

11:00pm - Revives self and goes out for a walk to take in fresh air and makan.

00:00am - Throws lecture's notes aside and starts educating self on industrial standards and methods in analysing metal strength/integrity/stress intensity factor/life cycle.

4:00am - Attains mini-degree and becomes chartered Life Cycle Engineer

6:00am - FINISHES LAST SAID QUESTION!!!!!


Conclusion? I could have skipped all the lectures and just taught myself the module to take the exams in... 4 hours of intense work. GRRR...


11:12hrs 09/05/2008 marks the end of a long windy road that I sometimes thought I would never complete. Now after finishing the 5 papers that somehow serve to be the crystallisation of the knowledge gleamed, I'll be applying myself to the test of the real world.

Time Passes Too Quickly When You Enjoy Yourself

Went shopping today in town and with more than a little bit of help from Booh! I managed to get myself a pair of sandals for the upcoming summer. Yes, I went shopping, you can close that mouth on your gob-smacked face before a fly goes down that throat and chokes you.

Random thought of the day: You prepare for the same kind of weather in Manchester or Singapore in Spring/Summer. Rain and Sun. So you head out with an odd mix of sunglasses and raincoats/umbrella in your berms and sandals.

Was a little shocked though near the end of the day. Even worried. Really hope that this weekend isn't the last time I get to chill out in such a care-free spirit. I haven't enjoyed myself and bonded with someone so much in a long time and it would be depressing to think it could also be the last.

Other than that, EXAMS. 5 papers starting the 15th of May and come 30th May I will be taking the last paper of my undergraduate life. Time to break out that huge tea strainer again.



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Now playing: Orson - Bright Idea
via FoxyTunes

Loving Isn't Easy/Hard

忘 不

了 知
爱 不
人 觉
的 不
人 想
， ，
被 无
爱 文
也 无
不 心
知 无
福 思
。 。

很想去爱一个能知道爱的人。所以，在那之前，我得好好爱我自己。让将来遇见我的她会觉得我们俩都值得被爱。

Booked!

It's a done deal. I've gone and booked tickets for both Foo Fighters and Jack Johnson this coming summer! I am so excited for the end of exams for all the wrong reasons! Hahahahahaha

Beer Is Good For You! (yay~)

Basically, drink in moderation. It's good for you. Even helps with heart diseases. (Does secret cheer)

There's even a "8 healthy reasons to drink beer" slide show :)

Healthy Reasons to Drink Beer
Allison Van Dusen,Forbes.com
Posted: 26 March 2008 0950 hrs


Looking for a good excuse to tip back a beer?

A decade's worth of health research shows that regular, moderate beer intake--one to two 12 ounce glasses per day for men and one for women--can be good for you, especially if you're facing some of the most common diseases related to aging.

Experts say wine tends to get most of the attention when it comes to the health benefits of alcohol primarily because of the French paradox, a reference to the relatively low rate of heart disease in France in spite of a diet high in saturated fat. The idea is that daily sips of Merlot make the difference.

But a number of studies are showing that moderate consumption of alcohol, including beer, can have similar heart healthy effects, including making men 30 to 35% less likely to have a heart attack than those who abstain.

"Wine is still on moral high ground," says Charlie Bamforth, chair and professor of the department of food science and technology at the University of California, Davis, "but beer deserves just the same acclamation."

Interest in the health effects of beer has been growing over the past eight to 10 years in tandem with a rise in the popularity of craft beers--usually defined as products of brewers who make fewer than 2 million barrels a year, says Nancy Tringali Piho, a spokeswoman for the National Beer Wholesalers Association.

Unlike many mass-produced beers, craft beers tend to be brewed with a particular focus on flavor, appearance and aroma. Their appeal has attracted an upscale audience that's curious about the beverage and how it compares with wine health-wise.

The news is good, particularly for baby boomers, many of whom are dealing with obesity and high blood pressure, a major risk factor for heart disease and stroke.

Alcohol, including beer, in moderation raises high-density lipoprotein or HDL, known as good cholesterol, says Dr. R. Curtis Ellison, chief of the section of preventive medicine and epidemiology and professor of medicine and public health at the Boston University School of Medicine. It also appears to have a favorable effect on the lining of blood vessels, making them less likely to form a clot or for a clot to rupture and plug an artery, and may help protect against Type 2 diabetes.

"People should realize that a little bit of alcohol on a regular basis decreases the risks of aging," says Ellison, who specializes in researching, among other things, the relationship between moderate alcohol consumption and chronic diseases.

And earlier this month researchers at the National Institutes of Health released a study showing that frequent drinking in moderation may protect men from death due to cardiovascular disease. Men who reported drinking 120 to 365 days a year had a 20% lower cardiovascular death rate than those who drank one to 36 days a year. Overdoing it, however, can have the opposite effect. Men who knocked back five or more drinks when they did indulge had a 30% greater risk for death via heart disease.

Beer may also give your brain a boost.

Adults over age 65 who drank one to six alcoholic beverages over the course of the week turned out to have a lower risk of dementia than non-drinkers or heavier drinkers, according to a 2003 study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association. Likewise, a 2006 report that appeared in an American Heart Association journal showed that a drink or two a day might be linked to better cognitive function in women.

Consume With Caution
Of course, beer isn't good for everyone. Other studies have shown that consuming two or more glasses of alcohol a day may increase a woman's risk of breast cancer, and few medical experts will suggest that a non-drinker take up the habit just for the health benefits, when exercise and a good diet can produce similar benefits.

And Bamforth says he's not so sure that the growing selection of organic beers, those that don't contain sulfites, chemical preservatives and are made with mostly, if not all, organic ingredients, or beers flavored with antioxidant-laden super-fruits will have much of a health impact. It's the alcohol content, as well as vitamins and minerals, in beer that has proved to make a difference.

More important, he doesn't recommend that people think of beer as medicine. Beer is something to enjoy, he says. Just don't feel guilty about indulging.

"In moderation," Bamforth says, "it's part of a wholesome diet." -CNA/sf

Finally

You get as good as you give

Time for a breather after pulling off a 72 hours work stint. Sam Png is all used up and needs some loving, resting, travelling and basketballing.

Damn it feels good to finish this report.

Totally random: I think I'm becoming a Christian-Atheist-Free-thinker. Let me explain: I believe that there is a supernatural world or even a higher being, but all the religions in the world currently are so obviously flawed in their man-made forms that I don't really believe any one of them truly represents God purely. However, Christianity is probably the most updated of all the pagan based religions despite the myriad of lies and half-truths woven around it by the Church.