All For You, Lord

"The Objectivity of Subjectivity" o.O

2010-12-15T14:19:00.002+08:00

If it is true that reality is mind-independent, it is thus inclusive of objects that are unknown and not the subject of intentionality. Objectivity inreferring requires a definition of truth.

The difference between these two important ideas is the difference between fact and opinion. Facts are objective and provably true; however, if no clear facts exist about a topic, then a series of balanced opinions needs to be produced to allow the reader to make up his or her mind; opinions aresubjective ideas held by individuals and so are always biased. If unbalanced opinions are presented as if they are facts, they act as propaganda or persuasion, e.g. a newspaper headline might state: "Youngsters are the prime cause of trouble in this area". This is presented as an objective fact but is clearly a subjective opinion.

An objective piece of information, therefore, needs either to be the whole truth and at least be unbiased or balanced, whereas a subjective point of view is biased because it is either not the complete picture or it is merely a viewpoint or expression of feelings.

When studying literature, it is best to be objective when you consider a text's qualities. Of course, literature read for pleasure should be approached subjectively as this allows you to 'be there' with the characters, feeling involved with the plot and so forth. But when you discuss literature for an essay, it is far safer to 'stand back' and see it objectively for what it is: no more than an attempt to engage and hold your attention, build trust in its writer, and persuade you to a way of thinking - the writer's way!

Looked at objectively, a text is no more than a 'vehicle' for communicating a persuasive message. This applies to characters and settings, too - all highly compelling and believable 'vehicles' for the writer to convince you to think his or her way!

Interesting reads amidst the unending pile of boredom

2010-12-15T11:30:00.005+08:00

*I was reading up on some of Plato and Socrates' works when i realised that they REALLY came THIS close to salvation- being such great thinkers, they arrived at so many of the same conclusions...but they didn't get saved. And i was moved to (almost) tears for so many of these people who are such great thinkers, and do not get saved. Maybe because they refuse to acknowledge that there is Someone who has control over all things? Or maybe they refuse to believe that they cannot control their own lives?

Returning debts owed, and helping friends while harming enemies are common sense definitions of justice [*Yeah, and its in the Old Testament!] and that, Socrates shows, are inadequate in exceptional situations Socrates agrees with Polemarchus that justice includes helping friends, but says the just man would never do harm to anybody. [*What Jesus says in the New Testament about turning the other cheek!]

[an account of what transpires between Socrates and Thrasymachus]...Socrates has trapped Thrasymachus into admitting the strong man who makes a mistake is not the strong man in the precise sense, and that some type of knowledge is required to rule perfectly.

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Plato's two brothers, Glaucon and Adeimantus, challenge Socrates to define justice in a man. According to Glaucon, the only reason that men are just and praise justice is out of fear of being punished for injustice. The law is a product of compromise between individuals who agree not to do injustice to others if others will not do injustice to them. If people had the power to do injustice without fear of punishment, they would not enter into such an agreement. Glaucon uses this argument to challenge Socrates to defend the position that the just life is better than the unjust life. [*I would not dare argue with either, but i do propose a third viewpoint- that the godly life (i.e. a life with God in the main picture) is better than the unjust life! :D ] Adeimantus adds to Glaucon's speech the charge that men are only just for the results that justice brings one- fortune, honor, reputation. Adeimantus challenges Socrates to prove that being just is worth something in and of itself, not only as a means to an end.

Glaucon's speech seduces Socrates for it is in itself contradictory. Glaucon has openly, passionately and forcibly argued for the superiority of the unjust life, something truly unjust men would never do in public.

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Interesting!

Equinox!

2010-12-06T00:44:00.002+08:00

No, i dont think im entering my 'blogging phase' again. At any rate, i cant afford to HAHA cos if im blogging it means ive been doing alot of things where their only remote relation to study is "anti-".

But some pictures from today :D Couldnt resist. Equinox is only 70floors from the ground, after all ;P

Gingerbread house.

Like SERIOUSLY. WAY AWESOME RIGHT.

Andrew actually went to check it out and its REAL gingerbread!

Of course, once you walk past it you can already smell the unique gingerbread smell lol.

Cigars on display. I never knew they were THAT big o.0

Parents! It was a good time of catching up i guess. (:

I like this picture. Lol! And yes those are snowman chocolate lollies WAY COOL i so wanted to take them but my camera's spoilt :(

Good catch-up!

Okay i needa point out that the dessert (that particular one on the left with the pistachio nuts) is my own creation and its great :D

The PADANG. Oh my goodness im relating everything to study huh (Sports Sociology ftw!) hahahaha but thats good.

Ingmar Bergman- Wild Strawberries

2010-12-04T15:46:00.002+08:00

"Where the friend I seek, at break of day.
When night falls, I still have not found Him.
My burning heart shows me His traces.
I see His traces wherever flowers bloom.
His love is mingled with every air.
His voice calls in the summer wind."

o.0

2010-12-03T15:02:00.002+08:00

... weird habit of 'starting things and not finishing them' would be apt in this particular case, rightly said by yix. Haha!

But basically that previous post was the result of my ipod touch hanging before i could finish posting it. Its really hilarious now that i see where it stopped.

Anyway, what i MEANT to say originally (if im not wrong) is that i have a weird habit of going through/doing stuff in phases. My blog being a case in point. I can have periods whereby i blog every day, and then periods where i stop blogging for like 6months.

Ah well (:

After Exams i'll probably try to get this habit going again. I realise blogging (for me) is quite a reflective experience. Like, i can pass my days without reflecting on them, but when i blog it kinda forces me to reflect on them? (cos i needa blog about it, duhhh hahaha).

Till then,

here's me singing the farewell song.

"So long, farewell, auf wiedersehen, goodnight!"

New School, New Start

2010-10-09T22:31:00.001+08:00

I have not blogged in aaaggggeesss. I realise that i have a weird habit of doing things in

Thank God

2010-07-11T21:46:00.003+08:00

1. Thank God we got the cash (: Even though i was praying otherwise, i'm really excited to see where the Lord wants us to go and what He wants to do with us.

2. Thank God for my eye allergy. Because i was forced to wear my specs, i now realise my limit before my rash comes (okay, about there leh at least haha) and so i know how much specs-wearing i can take now (it was worse in the past but i think its getting better now). This also means i can now wear my specs more often. YAY! :D

3. Thank God for unity among the youth/youngadult girls (: I actually think this is the most important thing to me now and i really treasure it alot. Also, its obviously been God's hand at work because we never could have achieved this unity on our own. Especially for the few who come for prayer meetings (Yix, Char, Cheryl, Jasmine, Elaine, Sheree, Serene, Carina, Jiamin, Xiaowei... who else have i missed?) cos we are seriously so, so completely different but yet we have a bond. Most of us mentioned were already in church in the past but God chose to give us this special, delightful bond now and im so glad to witness and be part of it! Honestly, we didn't work at it, nor did we try to create opportunities, but we were just GIVEN opportunities to form close bonds... anyhow, i'm just really glad and i really praise God for this!

4. Thank God for allowing me to go for a mission trip again. Though i must admit that i actually wanted to go to another country with a different language and culture... God saw fit to bring me to China again! And i nearly didnt go, so im really greatful for the opportunity (:

5. Thank God for... friends. In all senses of the word (:

6. Thank God for pastor. Haha even though this is the 6th thing listed it doesn't mean its of any lesser importance than the 1st! But i do thank God for a pastor who, although having flaws and faults (more than the other pastors i know? HAHA ;P Or maybe just cos i know him better than i know other pastors), is humble enough to admit it and to seek prayer from his congregation. Who knows, and shows, and tells us, that he is just as capable of falling as any other man, and that the difference between us and him is that he has to answer to God FOR us when the Time comes. A calling is a wonderful thing, but it is also a fearful thing, because the responsibility of the pastor (to God) is much, much greater than one of his members'... and when i realised that, God also showed me that what i needed to do now was to stop criticizing him and picking out aall his flaws and faults, but to love him and pray for him. To be like Aaron and Hur who held the hands of Moses up and gave him a rock to sit on, because if Moses' hands fell, he would be watching his people die. And Moses was afterall, merely a human. A fallible human.

Haha i have more things to thank God for (alot more leh i dont think one can ever finish thanking God! But often we forget to thank Him and praise Him, doncha think?) but no time to jot themm down. Too many thoughts... 'When the burdens press, and the cares distress... Oh yes, He cares!' Amen, thank you Lord, that You care!

Wedding Tmrr, LEH!

2010-07-09T22:17:00.002+08:00

So,

Im dead tired.

Went to work and then headed down to NTU (which is a terribly huge place i am awed) for medical check-up and also to hand in the tuition grant form. Ended up half an hour late cos the kind girl i asked directions from (who kept calling me a freshie lol i honestly thought they only use these terms in like America or somethin) wanted to show me where the administration building was as well before she left. But everyone was nice! :D The girls whom i asked directions from, the registration people, the different stationed people and even the guy-i-thought-was-a-student-but-turned-out-to-be-a-staff -.-" .

So i am gladddddd :D

Other than my super aching feet from walking. I was at the medical checkup and the woman there totally took sooo long checking my ankles/feet/ligaments. Apparently she notices it lol. The looseness of my ligaments, i mean. AND i was like the last person so everybody at the other stations had to wait for me. Pffft so embarrassing can. But like i said, all of them were really nice about it thank God!

Oh also really thank God we got the cash! :D I seriously cannot wait to see what God wants to do with this, and us (:

Okay back to today. So im finally home. And apparently i AM wearing a dress tomorrow. Says my mum, who found out that even Char is buying a new dress so 'why should you be in normal sunday clothes!'. Spoil market lah Char. Haha. I dont know if she will want me to put n makeup tomorrow but i kinda hope not. But then again, some things just cant be helped i guess. Afterall, i might 'throw the bride's face' or somethin if i go cos beside all those people wearing makeup (yeah i know so spoil market sigh) i'd look like a ghost. MORE like a ghost since im not blessed with dark genes like Sisdency and Yix -.-"

Sorry im really just rambling. Hha. Im actually trying to memorise the chinese song now so i can sing it with gusto tmrr and not stumble over all the words, that would seriously be mortifying. Not to mention a major letdown.

Did i mention that im terribly scared? Ive never been this prominent in weddings ( i meean like ahyi, usually im just in the choir) so i seriously dunno what to do. Im like the one who just adds noise to the party, not the one planning it... if you get what i mean... haha.

Ciao!

Busy Days

2010-07-06T14:33:00.001+08:00

Argentina vs Germany, 0-4

2010-07-05T01:01:00.002+08:00

I was a 'complete emotional wreck', like how Van would say it. Haha. Inside, that is. Cos i support both teams in this World Cup (Portugal, too) and now they have to play each other. AND the winner has to play Spain, the nemesis which kicked Portugal outt grrrr :(

So... for every goal Germany scored, i was ecstatic, and also very sad. LOL. But im sure Germany will have a better chance against Spain than Argentina would have, cos Argentina practically just has Messi... and maybe Tevez... but the Germans, while quite unknown, have an awesome teamwork. So, no fancy plays and footwork, but great teamwork. Spain is more like Argentina, with a couple of fantastic players (okay maybe Torres is kinda off-form but Villa was like wow-ing the crowd in the POR-ESP match) who keep the goals coming, lol. Im hoping they wont make it through Germany's tight teamwork though.

More thoughts but no time so, sayounara!

2010-07-02T17:17:00.002+08:00

I think God is hitting me with the fact that he really DID greatly bless me with good chinese in China. Thinking back to the last time i went (in Dec), im also amazed at how i got through it. Of course, at that time prior to the trip i was awfully scared, and so i really kept praying for God to use me to bless and encourage these chinese folks. So He DID use me!

And i think that good trip made me kinda careless about it. Cos i felt like 'HEY I CAN DO IT! MY CHINESE IS REALLY NOT THHAAATTT BAD!".

So... God has been hitting me repeatedly concerning my great lack when it comes to speaking chinese. I just totally get laughed at every day by the people in office (who speak chinese and cantonese i think)... in the affectionate kind of way, of course. Haha they do that cos they know my family so well already, so they know i won't be hurt or anything. And im not! Haha but it DID kinda wake me up to my SERIOUSLY poor chinese. Again.

Need yr prayers as i go to China! Really! (:

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On another note, someone totally spammed me like idunnohowmany times with a message that said

"THIS IS A SPAMMING SERVICE BROUGHT BY YOUR FRIEND TO YOU."

And i have no idea who that is :( I even smsed the spammer back but 'it' didnt reply either :( WHO IS IT HUH!

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Did i mention that i am exhausted. and have a splitting headache? The stress of responsibility is getting to me ;P

OT, OT, OT. Also partially cos i have a workaholic dad. And i think i might have inherited his genes ;P In the sense that i like to complete my work before i leave, no matter how tired i am. I just don't like to leave things undone cos i know that i'll have muuuch more the next day. And i also get a bigger sense of fulfillment hahaha.

For those of you who don't know what OT is... LUCKY YOU!

I didnt figure that out till like. This year. HAHA.

Hopefully im in good time... and health...for the party...

2010-06-30T01:00:00.000+08:00

Penalty shoot-out?!!!!!!!!

What a way to decide the winner, lol.
But I support neither of the teams, so...

2010-06-29T08:21:00.000+08:00

Oh, and I really hope Portugal wins tonight. But I haven't watched Spain play yet and since it is/was apparently the favourite to win the WC... Ah well! But Tiago and C.Ronaldo played really well the other time so ... there's still hope! Haha.

The two matches last night were quite predictable. I was kinda hoping Chile would win though, the only reason being that Brazil looks like they're playin better and better as more matches go by. And they have pretty strong players there too! :(

2010-06-29T08:13:00.000+08:00

I just realized that on my bottle of eyedrops, there is a small red warning label which reads "POISON".

Now THAT'S disconcerting to know.
Hahaha.

On another note:
GERMANY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

If I'm not wrong, I've got a post previously on Germany as well. Unless I forgot to publish it -.-" shall go diggit out when I have time.

Oh and by the way,
Ohayo gozaimasu!
;P

STALEMATE :(((((((((((((((((((((((

2010-06-26T00:24:00.003+08:00

STALEMATE :((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((

Portugal played like the SUPER team they are when the game started. But Brazil caught the fire in like the last 15-20 min and showed what they're capable of.

But of course i wanted Portugal to win. AH WELL. Its a stalemate again. But at least this game was exciting. Lol. Had to go down to macs to watch it and met Pengkhoon there too. Yay Macs Clique! haha.

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Next exciting Match: England VS Germany!

I suddenly feel a strange urge to visit Uncle Patrick... ;P HAHAHA.

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Oh yeah. Is anyone playing 'Pets LIVE'? IM PLAYING TOO :DDDD

Random Updates

2010-06-25T10:11:00.002+08:00

i am officially sick of ---ing. Hahaha.

And I have an eye allergy! :( It started on the day that i came home from sending Dr Jim Binney off, and decided to rest awhile on the sofa downstairs before leaving for church at 930am. Well, 'awhile' became about 7 hours. HAHAHAHA. I was totally out of it until 3pm! And my entire household (of about 8 other people) must have passed by to go in and out, and i didn't even realise!

So the point is, i slept in my contacts for 7hours. Not that i haven't done it before lah. But when i got red eyes my parents immediately pounced on this fact. SO... we went to see the eye specialist. And it turned out to be NOT due to over-wearing of contact lenses (PHEW, no more disapproving glares from parents HAHA) but due to an eye allergy!

But i still have to stay off contacts until my allergy is gone, cos the eyedrops she gave me cannot be used with contacts.

So anyway, yesterday i played badminton. IN SPECS. With a PLASTER ON MY NOSEBRIDGE to keep the specs from irritating the skin and causing the rashes -.-" Its like being stuck between a rock and a hard place? Either wear contacts and risk inflaming the allergy, or wear specs and get a skin allergy/irritation.

But then again, like everyone says, 'you only got 1pair of eyes'... so i'll wear my specs! That, unfortunately, also means NO SWEATING. Or walking around with a plaster on my nosebridge. Grrrrr. How to play frisbee like that huh :(

Hhahaha. Okay lah im just a bit disgruntled. But im gonna make the best of it! Maybe i shall, in the meantime, play less sports, and maybe start reading a few. (:

If you guys are reading this, do pray that i'll be healed soon? (: Gracias!

OH, and im starting workkkkkk :D

OH NO i just realised, cos its very potentially 'sweaty work', that means im gonna HAVE to wear the plaster on my nose! :(((((( Sigh... okay lah. I never really thought i was vain, but having to wear a plaster on my nose is seriously a bit humiliating.

AH WELL. Less pride is always good! Haha. I have muuuuchhh to much pride anyway. Thanks, God! (:

2010-06-22T17:03:00.002+08:00

Hooray, hooray, hooray!

My Blueblack is better today!

hahaaha. And so are my cramps. Not thetimeofthemonth, Not gastric... just plain cramps. Someone suggested that i could've overstretched the muscle there. Thats actually highly likely now that i think about it, cos i've been doing exercises to strengthen the core muscles to support my back! (Yeah i got scared after even Yix got a slip disc).

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Anyone wants to go to the NLB Sale? haha. Info below. Their classifications are kinda weird, though... so where do books like Harry Potter stand under? I mean, kids, young adults AND adults love them! Lol. They should classify them under Fantasy/Sci-fi/Medieval...

Library Book Sale 2010
Date: Saturday, 10 July 2010 – Sunday, 11 July 2010
Time: 9.30am – 8.00pm
Venue: Singapore Expo Hall 6A
Free Admission

Select from a large collection of used library books at bargain prices at the Library Book Sale 2010!

Price of books:
Books in all four official languages will be on sale.

English and Chinese books will cost $2 per copy;
Malay and Tamil books will cost $1 per copy;
English and Chinese magazines will cost $5 for a pack of 10 issues; and
Malay and Tamil magazines will cost $5 for a pack of 20 issues.

Limit of purchase:
Each customer can buy up to a maximum of 60 items (a pack of 10 or 20 issues of magazines is considered as one item).

Categorisation of books:
The books are categorised under 'Adults', 'Young People' and 'Children'. Under each group, they are sub-divided into 'Fiction' and 'Non-Fiction'.

The magazines are categorised under the four official languages.

Payment :
Payment can be made by NETS, CashCard or cash only

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Okay gtg, ciao!

2010-06-21T20:42:00.002+08:00

i Finally picked up on the Naruto episodes from where i left off. Let's see.. that was at episode 120? After the Kakashi Chronicles. Was supposed to dinner at the Chern's but i couldn't imagine myself going there and plastering a grin on my face for 3hrs. HAHA no im not saying that everything i do is a pretense. But seriously, ain't there times you just wanna be alone? Im having cramps so when each sharp pain comes i don't wanna be desperately hiding it while grinning like a clown, nor do i wanna be a 'party-pooper' and do my own things quietly there. But don't mistake me... i love ya'll ALL over there! Hahaha very very very much :D And thankyou for the surprise visit too (:

I now have 3 events on Wednesday (okay, maybe 2 lol). Its interesting how its right smack in the middle of the week and yet people wanna go out. But anyway the rest of my days are also taken up so im kinda really hoping my cramps disappear soon. Its not gastric cos i've eaten and its still there ROFL.

Look to the Cross!

2010-06-20T23:26:00.003+08:00

I just logged into MSN again (for like 1min) just to clear all the outstanding chatboxes and all. Its quite hilarious seeing people msn me thinking i am online, when im actually not. I mean, im logging in at a rate of about once a month now ;P Someone recently just asked me if i have MSN and that got me wondering: am i considered weird because i dont use MSN? It seems like almost everyone around me uses it. Even if they appear offline, they STILL log into it.

But ohwell. I DO have my periods of logging-in-but-appearing-offline, but it hasn't been so for about 4 months now, lol.

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Did i mention that i really miss camp?

Not only for the uplifted spirit that it brought me, but also the sense of freedom from everything else in my 'world'. I mean, i don't have auto-roaming so i was uncontactable (and all my smses jammed so i wouldn't have received anything from the 5 days anyway HAHAHA), the resort didn't have free wifi (that means all my need-to-check-comp-once-a-day friends went without internet access YAYYY i feel a bit selfish HAHA)... and just everything lah.

Its like now im back and thrust back into the world's pace of life which is kinda making me dizzy. But then again, isn't ministry like that most of the time too? That's why we don't/can't do it in our own strength... we were never meant to! :D

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Anyway, sending Dr Binney off later at 5am so i'd better get some shut-eye. See ya'll ;P

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Brewing. :(

Lonely!

2010-06-20T17:59:00.002+08:00

So,

Rachel accepted Engineering in NUS, haha. Which means that i technically don't know ANYONE doing the same course as me!

Okay except for Clement. But he's not in my school! )`:

And except for the 'passerby' on my tagboard. But i don't know who she/he is ):

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Hahaha ah well. Im still really excited to be in SSM and i do have the peace of mind that God wants me here, at least at this point in my life! (God's DIRECTION and TIMING go together, remember!)

Not to be PROBLEM-conscious, but to be POWER-conscious (i.e. God's power).

Manyyyy things learnt in the camp, really thank God for inspiring Dr Binney regarding what to preach to us :D Loves!

2010-06-18T21:13:00.003+08:00

Dropped by the library on the way back and got myself a couple of books. SUCH a feeling of deja vu, i tell you. I felt like i was walking back into the past- that's how much time i spent in the library when i was a kid :D

Then i realise that i AM getting older. And more mature, thankyouthankyou *bows*. Cos i borrowed only TWO fiction! The other two were non-fiction. Okay, so they were on Sports, but sttiiilll at least they're not fiction :D

I wish i was back in June Camp. But that's not the point, is it? The point of June Camp is to refresh us spiritually/physically/emotionally and prepare us for going back! (: But the meagre 5 days is really too little to get myself into all these good habits. But then again, who's complaining? Its in God's plan for me. So hooray!

2010-06-18T13:00:00.002+08:00

I have a HUMONGOUS BLUEBLACK. Cos on the day of the treasure hunt, at the tennis courts, while i was rushing around trying to explain stuff to the frantic groups crowded around... i banged my leg against the thing jutting out of the pole. I don't even know what it is. And it didnt hurt that much so i forgot about it.

Now i have like a HUGE bruise. Its about half to 3/4 the size of an ipod touch.

HAHAHAHA.

I feel a crazily immense sense of satisfaction at having gotten it. I mean, its the first time i've gotten one that Big! (as far as i can remember).

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And my parents ended up not having time to read for me. :( So i have to plough thru that thickkkkkk book myself. Butanywayimgoingoutnowsoidonthavetimemaybeiwilldoittonight! I wish they would reorder the info and sort them out by their date-of-handing-up. aha. Good idea right maybe i will write in Lol.

Till then :D

2010-06-17T23:01:00.002+08:00

Just some random things.

1. You know how i've been going on about my getting a new pair of my beloved, worn out croc flats. Well, i JUST realised something today. God already replaced it! With Birkenstocks! :D (Sorry did i spell that correctly i dont even know lol). And JUST when i needed them too. Thank God, its really amazing how He works (:

2. I have started working. HAHA nahhh only today. Its THE WORK DAY (happens once every year) where all of us at JHC will gather and do the National Day Parade catalogs which are to be sent out. Can i say this again? I HATE ADMIN WORK. My arms are killing me and my back is hurting :( But the company is good lah and so is the fellowship :D So i guess i'll still do it every year (:

3. I got my NTU package today. Okay, so i got it in the course of last week while i was in camp, i guess. But i only saw it today. And i opened it and looked through the handbook thingy which was a SERIOUS headache by pg 1, and then i looked thru the list of freshman camps... which were not very appealing as well ;P Maybe im just not like that anymore, lol.

So i put them away and continue with my work. AND in the evening, my mum comes and tells me 'Aunty Diana says .............. and she says we (she and my dad) should help you read thru as well in case you miss something out".

YAYYYY! I totally grabbed the its-giving-me-a-serious-headache-package and shoved it into her arms :DDDDDDD Gracias! Arigatou Gozaimasu! Hahaha.

4. Did i mention that this camp has really seriously been such a wonderful blessing? More on that later... i hope.

Welcome To the Family

2010-06-17T11:37:00.003+08:00

I know i haven't been here in Eons, with a capital E... but i really really wanted to put this on my blog. Its a song i used to sing when i was in PLMGSS, like during Orientations and stuff. And i never really 'felt' the meaning behind the lyrics of the song in its God-meant context. But now i do! All cumulated into the abounding joy of answered prayer, the exhilaration of a wonderful new friend (not only to socialize but also to FELLOWSHIP with) and all that stuff!

So, Just For You:

Welcome to the family!

We're glad that you have come to share your life with us

As we grow in love and

May we always be to you

What God would have us be-

A family, always there

To be strong and to lean on!

May we learn to love each other

More with each new day

May words of love be on our lips

With everything we say

May the Spirit melt our hearts

And teach us how to pray

That we might be

A true family... (:

[Chorus]

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Love you alot and im really so glad! :D

*Pats yr shoulder and pokes your cheek*

:DDD

2010-06-09T23:56:00.003+08:00

Wow i just realised that i havent blogged for quite long! Haha. Ah well.

Anyway, just a link i was interested in.

http://he-still-answers.blogspot.com/2010/06/paul-why-do-you-serve-god.html

SO LONG NO POST!

2010-06-03T11:37:00.002+08:00

I am going through job withdrawal. HAHA. But seriously, i really miss the 2 days @ Intercontinental, it was almost like a dream come true! :D So much so that i even started to consider hospitality/ tourism management. But... nah, i'll stick to what i've already decided (:

Almost REALLY went to Sentosa yesterday, but decided against it in the end since i wasn't feeling well. It would have come to naught anyway ;P

Seems like the older i grow, the more i realise that there are so many things about this world that i don't know. I don't, however, think that ignorance is bliss; rather, a knowledge of this world and its depravity, added to a fixed and steady gaze to the cross, is essential :D

2010-05-24T23:37:00.000+08:00

((((((((((((((((((:

Waterbottles?

2010-05-24T20:26:00.001+08:00

I just realised (like, JUST), that i really seem to have a very particularly strange affinity with waterbottles. That is, a particular affinity. How weird is that.

2010-05-21T21:58:00.001+08:00

I am seriously wearing out my red croc flats :(((( Gonna need another pair soon, i hope the sale comes again! :DDDDD

@ Changi, and then some

2010-05-19T00:05:00.003+08:00

Today was great, thanks! :D

And chillaxing with the Cherns and Char's friends at some super ulu place -.-" When i got there i was like.

And the ppl were staring at me so i pretended like i knew where i was going and just kept walking HAHAHAHAHA. But yes i finally went out with them and theyre seriously quite hilarious. Plus i got a ride home even though we ended up at Kovan macs, heh.

THENNN Jasmine had to mention the rooming and... hmm i might need to retract my statement HAHAAHA.

Oishi Sushi

2010-05-18T01:50:00.003+08:00

'Home-Made' Sushi! Oishii desu ne... not made by me, though. And. I STILL WANT ONIGRI hahahaahahahahaha just cos ------ --- --.

Arigatou Gozaimashita!

Johnny One Note!

2010-05-15T22:09:00.002+08:00

CHARISSAAAAA this is Johnny One Note! Its hilarious and cool AND its in the list of ABRSM songs lol so listen (: i like the one in the link better, but it couldnt be embedded so i found another one to embed. But the Christina Skeleros (hope i got that right) is better/ more fitting/ easier lol (:

Christina Skeleros:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tbknQH4ZWwc

Spare the Rod and Spoil the child!

2010-05-15T08:40:00.002+08:00

"He who is often rebuked and hardens his neck, shall be suddenly destroyed, and that without remedy."

Thats the verse that caught my attention today... i've definitely read it before but forgotten it. And... even though the cross-referenced verses (e.g. 2 Chro 36:16, Prov 6:15) are referring to more extreme cases of 'hardens his neck'... i can't help feeling that i have been doing it as well. I mean, i constantly bring up my own example/experience with my parents to others when i am trying to get them to understand my belief in 'some hard, some soft' methods in dealing with kiddos. (i.e. some are scared of authority and others warm up from love), and basically my experience has been that of a 'soft' one cos when my parents caned/used the ruler on me, i would just seriously, silently let them cane me and sullenly never utter a word. Teachers were also another interesting experience...in retrospect, i realise that i never work well with the kind of teachers/tuition teachers who use alot of authority in their teaching; rather, i really warm up (and thus am motivated) to those who show you their love, concern and care.

So basically, that would be my point of reference (my own experience) to support my belief that some people take 'hard' methods (its true! I DO see people who take advantage of the kind, loving method some people use, and only change when they see people who scold them) BUT some take soft and resist the hard-method-people.

But... yet i realise that what i have said is not biblical. Afterall, the Bible DOES say that "He who spares the rod hates his son; but he who loves him disciplines him promptly.", and "Do not withhold correction from a child, for if you beat him with a rod, he will not die. You shall beat him with a rod, and deliver his soul from hell."

And, God's Word is DEFINITELY true, 100%! So i was thinking about it, and i finally came to the conclusion that... i think spanking alllways works! BUT, when coupled with a loving, supportive relationship between the parent and child, AND making sure that there is always encouragement given to the child. Because, remember that the Bible also speaks often (maybe the most) about love- God's love for us, why He died to save us, how we should be like Him... (: So, the most important thing is love! And its terribly important, i believe, not to let the bond between yourself and the child break/droop. At least on your part. We need to be always there for them, and be showing them our testimonies, and not be a 'pot calling the kettle black' kind of person. Easy to say but hard to do aye?

Many other thoughts i have on this subject, lol. But this would have to wait im going out again -.-" haha...byeeeee

2010-05-15T01:47:00.002+08:00

God answers prayer! :DDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD i know you know that i know it, but its just amazing to see it, and in such a short time too. May this be an encouragement for us to keep interceding for others.

Andddddddddddd. Hectic week. last, this, next... when is it gonna end! I already miss my times at home -.-" Lollll. But that is not to say that i don't like this either, hahahahaha... Its funny how things go aye? Like, when you're at home you just are kinda lazy to go out, but when you know you're gonna be out for dinner, its like 'might as well go for this then dinner' and so on, and you end up being boooooked. And when 'dinner' is not just dinner either... thats even longer out but (:

Oh well. Anata kawaii desu ne, totally ;DDDDDD

Am finding more Naruto fans (or at least ppl who read/watch) so its cool :D

And i thank God for letting me find my ezlink card, which i dropped on my way home tonight. I retraced my steps while praying... and He let me spot it! Yeap, thank God (:

Sorry for all the random things but i was just thinking also today, that it feels amazingly weird for me not to have my ezlink card- i mean the one with identification- cos technically now, if i dont carry my IC with me, i am... a nameless, identity-less person! The thing was that my card finally expired and so i brought it to the Ticketing office to get the value out, and they gave me a receipt to 'come back in 10 days and get your refund in cash', AND kept my ezlink card (yes, the one with identification)... :(

So, today, i went to the ticketing office with the receipt to claim the refund, and the person was like 'Can i have some form of identity?' i dug around for my ezlink card before i realised that I ALREADY HANDED IT IN AND THATS THE REASON WHY I AM NEEDING A REFUND RIGHT NOW SO TECHNICALLY I DONT HAVE ANY IDENTIFICATION ON ME -.-" Its a good thing i remembered that i recently signed up for the Advanced Theory Test and it had my identification on the receipt. Mua ha ha :P

'nandemo' and 'itadakimasu' today aye (:

Wear Your Best?

2010-05-14T10:55:00.002+08:00

Recently i have been thinking- should we wear our BEST to the Lord's house? As in, 'best' referring to the kind of clothes we wear for...weddings, maybe.

My mum has brought up the issue of my lack of diligence when it comes to changing my clothes every Sunday (as some of you know, haha, and agree)... and the truth is that, i DO usually wear about the same clothes! But my reasoning behind it is that i feel that this set of clothes is adequately formal, and not overly-flashy. Cos i guess... when i(yes, me) dress up elaborately,(no seriously im talking about myself here and myself ONLY) its easier for me to be more self-conscious, be bothered about the way i look, and stuff like that. Know what i mean? Of course, this does not mean i wear like berms and a shirt, either. Just not overly-dressed-up. (Also, i don't have thhaaaat many Sunday clothes, cos alot of my clothes are either too casual or the dresses kind which i consider 'elaborate').

My mum also said stuff about wearing your best for the Lord... but then that gets me thinking about what is best? How come so many people buy new clothes specially for weddings, and Chinese New Year, or even choir presentations... but we choose to wear our older clothes for Sunday services... would that be our best?

I seriously am wondering about it, and im not trying to pick a fight or be antagonistic haha. Ad i wonder if anyone has ever thought about it before. I mean, if i were to simply decide 'okay i will wear my best', i would be wearing my dresses and high heels every Sunday. And maybe wear make-up (okayyyy maybe not since i dont even wear them to weddings hahaha). Would that be too elaborate? But... that's "best", right?

I think in a country like Singapore where most people are used to wearing stuff like that and have lots of clothes (i.e. not like in the poorer countries where they have 1 set of good clothes and the rest all rags), its so hard to apply this concept :(

L.O.L.

2010-05-10T12:42:00.002+08:00

"Women don't want to hear what you think. Women want to hear what they think- in a deeper voice."

"What if there were no hypothetical situations?"

____________________________

I seriously loved this article when i read it in the Sept 2008 issue of Reader's Digest:

"Why Men and Women L.O.L."

'...The group with the neurological damage didn't get the joke, but did show "a preference for silly, slapstick humour"...Of course, this is not to suggest that most men have the humour sensibilities of a brain-damaged patient. Well, actually, I guess it does. Nyuk nyuk nyuk.'

-by Doug Colligan

Really, L.O.L.!

Mum's Day

2010-05-10T01:12:00.004+08:00

i didn't even know it was Mother's Day until after i agreed to your plans :(

Phheeewwwww. I officially got through this week! :D

I know i know, it's 1am. so 'what on earth am i doing awake', right? I slept just now when i came back so im still pretty awake now, thats why -.-" These few days have seriously been ALMOST intolerably hot. And somehow, this makes me tired more easily...? Haha. Ah well, another (but a little less) busy week coming up!

And... its busy of course, but i really loved/love doing this (: But it kinda makes me a little confused sometimes.

Oh, well! Ganbatte! (:

Speaking of which... the funny thing is, im realising- now, when i've started watching Naruto, i realise that not all that many of my friends watch it after all. In fact, very few of them watch it! Or maybe because i've taken to asking everyone i meet if they watch Naruto, hahaha. Most are more hung up on dramas/serials and the like. Today i was chatting with Aaron and i asked him, and he went "Oh, isn't that the anime?"

Me: *Excited* "Yeah!"

Him: "Huh? You mean girls also watch this kind of thing?"

Me: *-.-"*

Hahaha. But, its okay. Im really glad i watch Naruto, i really learn/apply new concepts to the christian life from it! I know, how random right. The most random thing i drew from watching Naruto probably happened tonight... During dinner tonight my parents and i were talking, and my dad was just telling me about how sometimes people focus/think so much on a particular thing and 'make something out of nothing' (i.e. over-read into matters), and i was somehow immediately reminded of the 'Rasengan' that Naruto creates by really concentrating and focusing the chakra in his palm. From something that won't hurt, we focus and focus until it becomes something really powerful and capable of causing serious damage! How silly of us, ain't it (:

Liked today's message, thank God for it! :D Especially on retrospect.

Beeeezzzzzzzzyyyyy

2010-05-05T12:57:00.003+08:00

Meeting, Dinner, Outing, Dinner, Dinner, Lunch, Dinner...

I am officially going crazzyyyy.

But its going good, thank God... (:

And i won't forget about Prayer Meeting tonight, i KNOW today is Wednesday!

So many events have happened over these few days, which has helped spiral me back out and on track. But, this also means i barely have time to painstakingly copy down Japanese words (i mean romaji, not the kanji/katana characters) or sit down and work at memorising them. Ah well! I do hope i can learn a bit though, before school starts. Its gonna be pretty hectic starting from now cos im gonna start learning driving soon, and there's the matter of preparing the campbook (did i tell you, i realise i type REEAAALLLY slowwwllllyyy -.-" ), my work, and all.

And i thought these 6 months were gonna be less tiring- i think now that holidays are just meant for Singaporeans to learn skills/ do things they didn't have time to do while schooling. Such as learning driving, being tasked with other stuff, etc. Ah well, thats why we are all of different ages with different capabilities and talents, to help each other out at different times! :D

Now that i (and other people know that i) watch anime, i feel like i have entered a new 'zone' of sorts, haha. I actually have more things to talk about with people whom i never thought i could talk to on this level, LOL. I guess its really a good thing when your interests match, cos both parties are sincerely interested in that particular subject and this leads to becoming more open (and letting yr guard down, i might add) with each other. Really cool! But of course, its terribly important not to get carried away by these things (:

And. ALOT of people watch anime / read manga. Never knew, how interesting! Lol. And i just found 2 people who feel the same way as i do about cartoons, hooray! :D Hearts (:

2010-05-01T23:43:00.001+08:00

A rest that allows you to go back out and do your work.

never thought about it that way before (:

2010-04-30T22:18:00.001+08:00

'Everyone makes mistakes at time
It's not something embarrassing
Don't waste these scars
Keep on going laughing, and it'll all be good'

So there, you (: Cheer(s)!

Campbook Preparations...

2010-04-21T23:41:00.002+08:00

...Have Begun!

At least on my part, haha. Unfortunately, its yet another job where i have to glue my eyes to the computer screen for extended periods of time. Which is :( But well, its service to my Lord, so how could i ever complain? (:

Think the theme is still terribly ambiguous though. Will need more in-depth study into it before i actually am able to search for the articles. Images should be fine, though- the only problem is getting a large enough resolution? I think, lah.

Working on the campbook is like totally new to me, but im glad for this experience! (: Hopefully after this i won't be such a goof in that aspect anymore :D
_______________________

Was at Kovan just now and i realised THE HAWKER CENTRE HAS CLOSED FOR RENOVATIONS AGAIN -.-" Not that i was going there, but the point is that its been closing (for renovations) faaarrr too often! Like, once every 2months? On my way there i got stopped by a woman who was (it looked like it, at least) she was bringing her elderly mum to the Hawker Centre [FYI: Our hawker is pretty well-known for their food (; ]. She was in distress as she asked me if there were anymore places to eat, and when i mentioned that there were only coffeeshops left, she went like "Huh, no other hawker or foodcourt?". Lol. Maybe she brought her mum here specially to try something from our Hawker only to find out it's closed. Pffft, its really closing too many times. And i was supposed to go with Bestie next wk! Grrrr :(
_______________________

My back hurts. I honestly don't know HOW i did it. I hurt it 2 weeks ago during badminton, and so i didn't go for last week's badminton. It was alright by last Friday, BUT NOW IT HURTS AGAIN AND I DONT KNOW WHAT I DID TO MAKE IT THAT WAY! Boy i hope it heals cos i've got a trip on Friday... at this rate, i won't be able to go! (Cos when i hurt my back i cannot sit for long)..................................... ha.

Donoyouni? ...

The Last Days

2010-04-21T16:06:00.002+08:00

Sorry, i was just watching some random youtube video and i suddenly remembered something i wanted to blog about last night. While having dinner, i was watching some show- i think its some drama series thing with Shaun Chen in it- and they had a kissing scene.

I immediately averted my gaze, but...
I was terribly aware of the fact that most of the kids were watching it too (i.e. my cousins, including the likes of Andrew, Faith, Hazel and Claire). Yeah, i think quite a few of my cousins are quite addicted to this kind of drama shows. I don't mean the kissing scenes but the shows itself. So, when these kind of shows add kissing scenes to them, its very... i don't even know how to describe my feelings. Lol. Gross? Morally degrading?

My aunt, who was also with me, was like "Wah, i didn't know now TCS (or rather, Mediacorp) now allows such scenes."

And i realised, they didn't have these kinda thing in the past!

What has happened to our moral standards, i wonder. Where so many are now perfectly comfortable to see in public what should be kept more private. I guess i thank God that im living with my cousins because this makes me exceptionally aware of what i'm watching when i turn on the tv at home. Watching tv alone would probably make me compromise my moral standards, but watching it with my young cousins actually hones these standards of mine, haha ;) Thank God!

I cannot remember who i was talking with recently (i think Bro MY) about the religious sensitivity of people in Singapore nowadays. The spark causing such an uproar over religious sensitivity would probably be due to the two Mega-churches' buying over / collaboration with secular companies to build shopping malls, etc, which has raised ALOT of discussion (also about the rising POWER of christian groups like those, i guess). The government seems to think that Christians are quickly on the rise to disrupt the 'fragile environment of peace and religious harmony' in multi-religious Singapore.

i wouldn't say this increasing suspicion and 'oppression' is the fault of the government ONLY, because we Christians also have played a part in arousing this suspicion. Some overly forceful Christians, some cults claiming to be under the branch of Christianity, some who claim to be christians but act in completely undesirable and unbiblical manners... you get what i mean.

And so, they are watching like hawks. It is getting increasingly dangerous to do things like Street Evangelism and the likes. It is also very hard for christians to do things like booking retreats ( i heard from Sis Dency, haha) for the youths, and even holding an event outside (remember our Easter Sunday plan which was cancelled due to the difficulty in securing a place to gather legally?), etc etc.

Oh well. I don't really know what's happening, but (i think this was said by my Uncle KW) we shouldn't be surprised cos... God's Word already tells us that the last days will be difficult! [Recall to mind one passage i hold very dear- 2 Tim 4:1-4] And... still, He also says that 'All things work together for good to them that love the Lord...'.

So, in anything and everything we do, let us strive to do it by the grace of God and don't let the devil get us down! :D 'Resist the devil (because the Lord has already won the battle, and we ARE on the Lord's side!) and he will flee from you'

Loves!

2010-04-21T15:21:00.002+08:00

Hmmmm.

I forgot to mention, in my previous post. This thought has also crossed my mind (and what finally spurred me to actually start that notebook on Jap words ;P )- that maybe in the future i can go to Japan for mission work. Since i've been hearing (alot of times) that most Japanese there refuse to speak to you in English even if they know how to... (yeah like the French, lol).

Heh (:
But it has only CROSSED MY MIND a few times, this of course does not mean that i am set full-speed for this course, haha. Just making preparations for 'in case He calls, anytime' ;P

Oh, yeah. And... Social Work has also been on my mind. but only NUS offers this course. (Did i mention i prefer NTU to NUS? Somehow. Like the campus and all... more serene and quiet, haha). So... i'm honestly undecided. BLAAAHHHHH.

Thanks Sis Dency & Yix for answering some of my doubts on social work and changing courses respectively :D

Anyhow, i have till 1st June to decide, so... time to get talking to people, maybe? Find out what EXACTLY is in store for me in the respective courses. Thats really the main reason im so undecided,really. Im referring to my severe lack of knowledge about each course's details.

Adios!

AND VAN, I AM NOT ANGRY AT YOU LAH I AM JUST BUSYYYYYYYYYY! AND TALKING TO YOU ALWAYS MAKES ME INDULGE IN EMOTIONS (cos we always end up talking about me lol) which i don't exactly have time for. When i indulge in my emotions i can go overboard really easily, im finding out. So YES VAN.

Prayer Requests

2010-04-21T10:07:00.001+08:00

Yangon, Myanmar: The Thangs

1. Upcoming church youth camp in which about 100 boys and girls are expected to be involved.
2. Evangelistic and revival meetings conducted in May- Church revival!
3. Orientation on June 1, students of God's choice
4. Mr Kham Bawi's (Grace's husband) work in Malaysia.
5. Hannah Zun's (Grace's daughter) health and growth.
6. Joseph & Elizabeth Thang's education and future studies
7. Niang and Bro. Thang's health and wisdom for them to lead the family, church & school.
8. The graduates and their respective ministries
9. Churches planted and aided by Grace Baptist Church
____________________________

China: Lawrence Goh

1. Good health and spiritual guidance for Bro Rod Keng & himself as they lead the group.
2. Spiritual growth of newcomers to the group.
3. Decision to be baptised- Jimmy (saved, June 2009) and Jamie (saved, Dec 2009)
4. Speedy recovery for Sis. Wang Qing (Operation in Dec 2009)
5. Lawrence & Daisy as they prepare for their wedding and settle living arrangements
6. God's guidance regarding the China Bookshop Project.
___________________________

Taiwan: Mark Lehman

1. Mother's Day children's activity (May 8) as he has been asked to tell a 10minute gospel story to the non-christian children & their parents.

2. As he preaches in the services, speaks to the youth, teaches in the adult sunday school, and speaks on special occasions.

3. Future trips.
___________________________

Nairobi, Kenya: The Canfields

1. Their lives will reflect Christ to whoever they come into contact with.
2. vehicle Fund.
3. That Makayla Greenacre's body accepts the bone marrow transplant and God heals her completely.
4. Their Nation and Government.
5. Josh as he moves back to Oregon, and for his spiritual growth.
6. Bible Institute as it starts its next class in May.
7. Finances needed to purchase additional plots for church in Santon.

2 Cor 7:14
_________________________

Philippines: The Tangs

1. ISOM (International School Of Missions) bible graduates and undergraduates.
2. That God would touch more young people to consecrate their lives to the Lord.

Sports Science & Management, NTU

2010-04-20T16:02:00.002+08:00

Yeeeeaaaappp.

So i've done it! I've gone and gotten myself accepted into NTU's Sports Science and Management.

Honestly, i don't know how i was accepted but (yeah im not completely sure) i think it is God's will for me to go there? [i am not completely sure, i'll explain in the next paragraph]. Cos... i never officially joined a sports CCA -yeah, even though i play sports and am in love with frisbee- and my grades are not fantastic.

But... recently, i've become more interested in languages, Japanese in particular. So, what i've done is get a notebook and begin filling it with Japanese words and phrases. I know, so hardworking right ;P Taihen desu ne... fortunately, im interested :D So the point is, i was thinking i might get into my third choice, Linguistics & Multilingual Studies. AND, i was starting to think that that might be a better choice! Yes, thats why im not so assured that this is the path for me to go anymore. But then again... Hahaha i probably sound confused- no, i AM confused. Lol.

After all that, though... its probably a 90% chance i will accept this.

____________________________

My mum totally went hysterical after hearing the news (she was with me when my aunt took out the mail and passed me the NTU letter).

Apparently, or so she says, she was actually worried that i wouldn't be able to go anywhere with my grades -.-" Even AFTER countless times of telling her that with these grades God has given me, i can technically, logically, rationally definitely enter both NTU and NUS. Thanks mum, for that vote of confidence -.-" lol.

Andd, she was getting reeeeaaaaally anxious about it because for the past two weeks, everyone else in church has been talking about getting calls to interviews and such (completely ignoring the fact that some of the courses i chose DID NOT REQUIRE INTERVIEWS...).

...So there. I have been accepted! And i thank God for it (: I must say that my enthusiasm was reasonably dampened after my mum's hysterical rampage ("Let me see! HUH! REALLLY! No let me see! Let me see! Let me see the letter! Let me see! WAHHHHHH!")[you know like as if i got a scholarship or something]... but yes i really thank Him! And i would thank Him no matter which course He placed me in. Owing partially to the fact that i honestly am not very sure of what i want myself ;P

Sayounara!

That Made Me Laugh

2010-04-12T23:34:00.000+08:00

Thanks Van!

2010-04-09T23:09:00.000+08:00

Maybe,

A hurricane tomorrow...
Hahaha (;

2010-04-08T22:37:00.000+08:00

I.

AM.

SO.

Pfffffffffft-ed
At myself.

I really need to get it OUT OF MY HEAD.

:(
Stop it, ---------, stop reminding me.

Baka!

2010-04-07T11:20:00.004+08:00

Did you know, that the Hebrew word for 'Fool' is 'Racca', and the Japanese equivalent is 'Bacca', or 'Baka'.

Interesting... (:

Anyway, I'm quite excited: i'll be going to Malaysia in 2week's timeeeeee! My daddy offered to recce the campsite and so we're going to go to Thistle Port Dickson on 23rd April and staying the night. I think the Chows are coming along too cos they wanted to see the place as well. Well, its not terribly interesting, but at least its somewhere oouut from the stuffy confines of Singapore. Don't get me wrong- i love Singapore! *Cheesy Smile* But sometimes its drudgery, this place.

I hear there are Jacuzzi baths. I wonder if thats true... haha.

Oh, by the way, did you guys know? My granddad is going for Camp! :DDDDDDDDDDDD After quite a few years of blatantly refusing to go, cos of some incident that happened the last time he went (4-5yrs ago??) When i heard the news, 'O you of little faith' just popped into my mind. How true! Need to learn to put my complete trust in the Lord, not in a passive way, but in an active way! Thats gonna be really hard, so i'll be taking it slow (: Praise God!

Naruto

2010-04-05T12:54:00.002+08:00

Disclaimer: This post is long, and horribly difficult to interpret. Cos i didn't really mean to wwrite it, but it just... poured out when i started typing about Naruto? And you're probably wrong if you try anyway, so (: and ;P

Its a really interesting anime, haha. I never thought i would become an anime fan... but i guess things just fall into place!

How it all started? I heard about Naruto a pretty long time ago, but at that time i placed anime at the same level as those irritating Korean dramas which are generally, REALLY frustratingly similar. (Yeah, that annoying "Chen2 Jun4 Ge1 !" has been embossed into my memory- till now, i am unable to forget that whiny plea, the exact tone and inflection of the voice -.-" ).

If you told me i'd actually start FOLLOWING anime a few years back, i'd have scorned the very idea, cos i always had the impression that anime was always just the cute, 'kawaii!', cartoon version of Korean dramas. At least, most of them, excepting shows like Pokemon (which i like OKAY).

However, i was recently under a barrage of 'attacks' regarding Naruto- as in, fueling me to watch it, haha. Basically, i think there was a sudden surge in the number of people i knew who watched Naruto. Like, a flood. Suddenly, almost every day, i learn of another friend who is watching it. But that wasn't enough to turn my head... the 'Turn-Head Point' was when i was having dinner with a bunch of classmates, and they were talking about Naruto. And i was like 'Yeah, yeah, talk all you want, i don't believe its THAT good'!

And then the guys were like "Oh, yeah lah, but i guess girls just don't appreciate these kind of things. The shows they watch are those..."

"OH WOW. I AM SO GONNA PROVE YOU WRONG!"

So, being well-versed in the art of answering the GP Comprehension Questions (Yeah like real HAHA) i realised that in order to prove them wrong, i would need to fulfill 2 requirements:

1. NOT be the kind of girl who watches the typical, girly, sobbing, 'Awwww'-ing, Korean dramas. (Which i have already proven.)

2. Actually attempt to watch a Japanese anime- in this case, Naruto.

And so... i DID! (: Admittedly, i did it with the intent of watching ONE episode and then going back to them and saying "Yeah, well, i DID watch Naruto but it was just YAWN boring... SO THERE!"

But... i cant lie to myself... Naruto IS good!

And i discovered that it is the kind of show that i really like watching- its funny, it has alot of action... and its a tearjerker BUT not in the romantic way. To sacrifice, to put one's life on the line, to keep a promise no matter what, to stay true to friends... I guess alot of people might call this kind of thinking idealistic? But i believe that its because we have idealistic people in this world, that the Christians lasted in China's communistic reign, that people have died, are dying and will die because they will not deny the Lord Jesus.

In our realistic world (which really IS a good thing too- that people are realistic, i mean), some people shake their heads at the 'stupidity' of those people who will not say 'i deny Christ' in the face of death. This is because the realistic, practical rationale is that If We Stay Alive, We Can Still Spread The Gospel. This kind of makes sense, but then again, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego didn't do it the 'smart' way!

And this is just one of the things i have been thinking about while i watch Naruto. (Yeah i know, i am frankly quite amazed that even through an anime, God leads my thoughts into these things, haha, praise Him!)

I have been thinking about some other things too, some which i am unable to type out. But i guess a scenario i could use to explain this is one where someone stabs you, and then, just when you think you can bear with the pain... twists the knife. And again. And again. HAHA im not being morbid here. Maybe cos i got this scenario from Naruto, so its a fighting scenario.

Well, but a big part of why i like Naruto is because... the guy never gives up! No matter how much of an idiot he has been, he learns from it. And he is idealistic, AND he wants to stay that way! (For those of you who watch it, remember the hospital scene (after Naruto and Sasuke fought at The Valley Of The End) when Jiraiya told Naruto to give up on Sasuke, or 'you can continue being an idiot, thinking you can bring Sasuke back'.

Naruto's reply to that was 'Well, then, i'll stay an idiot forever!' because Sasuke is his best friend, and he will not, at the cost of his life, allow Sasuke to be used by Orochimaru.

So, there (((:

By the way, i didn't think that was idiotic of him, either (:

I am, adventurous by nature. And passionate, and, i will admit, stubborn. And sometimes i do things to try to prove that i CAN be trusted. When i move ahead, i pretend not to care about whats happening behind, but i always make sure there are followers. I charge ahead to show that i am able to take care of myself, should i be alone. I manage to make out the network maps. I prove myself to the others and am in charge of the keys. And i never lose them.

Andd then, i am immature.

Andd, everybody asks.

Oh, well. Someone recently asked me 'What do you want from me?', and i guess i was always asking the same thing. Too expensive would be okay. But, --------? oooooh. Very, painful.

But, no matter what, i STILL know that everything is in God's plan for me! (: And i am learning something from this. Even though i may not know what yet. (:

Sleeeeeeep

2010-03-30T00:04:00.003+08:00

i have not slept since i woke up at 0815 on Sunday morning. The reason for that is a frustratingly simple one- I had a veeeery placid Sunday until nighttime when my senses were put into 'hilarious' mode. So this huge contrast in my 'mode' during (almost) bedtime left me with super alot of adrenaline. I was left wide awake till 2am and seething at the fact that i was wide awake. In the end, i decided to stop trying to sleep and so i got up and watched Naruto...

So that made me feel better (as opposed to tossing and turning endlessly) but this means i ended up not sleeping. Then it was morning. And then it was night again... -.-" No sleeeeeeep!

Okay, that it, discounting the 30/45 min 'sleep' i had from 6.30-7pm before my dad woke me up telling me there was an impromptu dinner thing with the Cherns. i was REALLY knocked out then (yes, blessed sleep came suddenly), so much so that when he went 'Sandra!' and it penetrated through my fuzzy brain, i jerked awake. There went my hopes of sleeping from 630pm-9am the next day -.-"

Anyhow, it seemed rude not to go, and especially since Tinkerbell was gonna be there too... so, i dragged myself outta bed and went.

And now, im still wide awake. Im actually quite amused, in a -.-" kinda way. But i SHALL have a placid night tonight. Im determined.

Thoughts

2010-03-27T23:57:00.002+08:00

Have been having meet-ups with the MOST RANDOM people the past week, added to the people i usually meet... And i really thank God for it! (: off the top of my head, there was already

-Jacinta, Yix, LEOOOO :DD

-Cheryl, EJ

-TJ mates

And, i've really learnt alot of things. Like how when (sometimes) we stop focusing too much on what we need to do (and over-stressing ourselves) and just, like, 'sit back and enjoy the ride', things sorta fall into place somehow. *Qualifier: Im not saying this is correct ALL of the time, or even MOST of the time, but sometimes things turn out well this way too.

While i have been enjoying these meet-ups, i have also been faced with growing anxiety regarding my finances. A few of us were complaining that when there's no school, your money REALLY slips through your fingers like waterrrrr... Sigh. And i have been trying (almost to the point of desperation) to keep my spending within limits. Erm when i mention spending here, im talking about expenditure on recreational activities like dinners, lunches, brunches, meet-ups, etc. So i have been very careful with my spending, and im glad for that (: Im also glad that for the activities i choose to go to (to be very honest, i do weigh the company and the prices haha), the Lord has always made it so that somehow, I don't really end up paying so much.

Take today's meet-up with the TJcians for example. We were supposed to go ice-skating (which i declined in the end due to choir being at 430pm AND the price being a steep $17.50 for a miserable 2hrs of skating haha), but in the end they changed it to Dinner! Andd, the dinner was supposed to be at City Hall, but they changed it to Tampines Mall! Anddd. Even though they chose to eat at a Steak House (Phin's, was it?) which is typically expensive, there 'just happened' to be an introductory offer for a main course. So, everything worked out REALLY well. And i am still within my budget! ((((((((:

Thank God, really. I mean, im sure that my parents would give me more if i asked, but thats not the point, i believe. Im learning to balance social life and budget HAHAHA i feel like an adult (:

Loads more thoughts about this, im really waiting in anticipation for what God wants to give me, andd what He wants to teach me. I honestly think He taught me maaaaaaany things in the past few years, especially these last few months. Somehow though, this phrase from a song 'To whom much has been given, much more shall be required' sometimes floats into my mind. Im so glad that our Holy, Perfect God would even want something from this very very unworthy child of His! I have been spoilt, unruly, wild, rebellious, temperamental, more obstinate than a mule... and the list goes on and on. I keep on stumbling, tripping, sometimes falling flat on my face. And yet, my ever-loving, ever-forgiving Lord keeps on gently rebuking me and teaching me greater things!

This Is My Temporary Home

2010-03-25T10:52:00.003+08:00

Well, that IS something i do really need to bear in mind as i go about my daily, mundane life!

I realised that as I start looking at university courses in the various universities, and 'exploring options', I begin to really start considering the job scopes I would like to work in given no choice ( I mean JOBS as in... Jobs lah, not like missions kind)... ;P

And. Doing this makes me less aware of the fact that, this is my temporary home! In fact, just this morning, i was just suddenly struck with the fact that this might be my last day. And... What Would Jesus Say to me if He calls me up today? What would He say about my life- my actions, my thoughts? Have I been heaven-minded, or too concerned and blinded by the issues of the world? Have I been actively seeking Him and petitioning Him for the souls of dear friends and family, or have I been too absorbed in myself, seeking my own entertainment and pleasure without thought of these lost souls?

And, perhaps, most overarching-ly, not Redeeming the Time?

What would Jesus say

If He called us up today?

(:

2010-03-17T20:07:00.002+08:00

Often times the problems just seem so great, challenging and uncertain.

But, we should always remember to look at things from God's perspective- and see the Big Picture! (:

2010-03-17T20:05:00.000+08:00

IDJIT......... i totally posted this wrongly. -.-"

Lame-y is like me.

She likes small corners to settle in (:
______________________________

Had a wonderrrfffuuulllll time with LEOOO, YIXX and JASS today :DDD Such an oddball mix of people that i don't know what to say. But, kids DO break the ice! not that there was much ice to be broken lah anyway. lovelovelovelovelovelovelovelove (((:

Different Week!

2010-03-15T10:41:00.002+08:00

This week will be a weird week. Hahaha, that's from all the different factors.

-School Holidays
-My uncle and aunt (Eryi) taking a trip and leaving Josh and Drew in our care.
-My granny gone these two days for an operation
-Lame-y the kitten/cat (affectionately termed by my cousins, all 5 denying that they started calling her that)

Im actually going to buy food for Lame-y now.

I guess its different cos now my life doesn't revolve around just my parents and i in the family unit, but this week it revolves around us + Joshua + Andrew. And not forgetting Lame-y. Haha. And to a higher extent, my grandpa and grandma (since my granny is in hospital).

More laterrr

Prayer Requests

2010-03-15T09:07:00.004+08:00

Luke & Eileen, China:

-Pray that the Lord would be merciful and give the Yunnan people rain as they are experiencing a serious drought.

-That this disaster would cause people to seek God and that the believers' trust in Him would be strengthened.

-For strength and provision for one of Luke's B.S. students and family as that student's hometown has been recently destroyed in the recent earthquake.
______________________

Mark Lehman, Taiwan:

-Pray that God would strengthen Mr Huang [the only christian in his village] as he lives for Christ in his community.

-To guide Bro. Mark's choices [furlough replacement pastor at Kaosiung; many other churches inviting him to preach in other parts of Taiwan]

-To allow the church members to effectively go from class to class in public schools to give the gospel clearly [with permission]
_____________________

The Hannas, Taiwan:

-As they minister to the Youth Group, which is a struggle as Bro. Matt Hanna has not been trained in this particular area and is still 'struggling to learn the ropes'.

-that they would be able to discern God's direction and leading for the next steps to take the church.

-for a couple they have been having B.S. with, as the husband is still bound by superstitious background, that God might clear his confusion and make the gospel plain to him.

-for wisdom for the Hannas as they continue holding personal B.S.s., and as they attempt to take the Bible School ministry to the next level, to accommodate those who have expressed a desire to serve the Lord in full-time ministry.

-for wisdom with regards to purchasing a new property for future church building.
_________________

Tim & Lulu, Vietnam:

-For an appropriate home-school tutor for their children
_________________

The Lams, Papua, Indonesia:

-As they learn the new language

-For protection from the wildlife [snakes, etc] and from common (there) diseases such as malaria and dengue fever.

-For God to open a way for them to travel to the interior by granting them a local (i.e. in Papua) sponsor and clearance from the police.
________________

Leon Cross, U.S.A:

-For growth in personal devotions, holiness, purity, joy.

-For the smooth application process as Jacintha applies for a resale flat, so she can go over hopefully in April.

-For the Chinese Ministry started by him and two other friends, that the Lord would:
1.Provide the East Block Room at Morningside, so that they would have enough space to teach the individuals.
2.More unchurched chinese to attend their English as a Second Language (ESL) and chinese service every Sunday.
3.That their current outreach efforts would yield fruit.
4.For wisdom, godliness and endurance for those serving in that ministry
5.For the people in their ministry who have not yet accepted Christ.

Scholarships?

2010-03-11T11:21:00.001+08:00

Hahahaha. I honestly don't even know why i am attempting to apply for scholarships. I mean, i only offer 10 academic units (when there are probably hundreds of them offering 11 or 12 units) which is crazy haha.

But anyway, my parents want me to try and apply so since i am free ANYWAY, i shall attempt to. I just checked out the list of scholarships available, and the ones i would consider applying for are:

Community & Social Service Sector (MCYS & NCSS)

1.VCF Social Service Scholarship (Local)

VCF offers local scholarships for the study of the following disciplines at the Diploma, Diploma to Degree conversion, Bachelors Degree, Graduate Diploma and Masters levels:

Social Work
Counselling
Psychology
Physiotherapy
Occupational Therapy
Speech and Language Pathology
(That's like everything i'm considering. Lol except maybe psychology)

2.Lien Foundation Scholarship For Social Service Leaders (Local)
-Master of Social Sciences
________________________________

Creative Industries Scholarships (Arts, Media & Design)

1.NAC Arts Scholarship (Overseas)

2.NAC Arts Scholarship (Local)
________________________________

Health Promotion Board

1.Overseas Undergraduate Scholarship (Full-term)

Preferred fields of study:
Economics
Gerontology
Marketing
Nutrition
Psychology
Public Health/Health Promotion
Social Work
Statistics
(Social Work, haha, Public Health? Interested in the Youth Health Division)

2.Local Undergraduate Scholarship (Full-term)
________________________________

Housing & Development Board (HDB)

1.HDB Undergraduate Scholarship (Local/Overseas)

The HDB Scholarship is a gateway to a rewarding career in an organisation where you can realise your dream and build a future of possibilities. Our scholarships are open to Singaporeans and Permanent Residents, and are tenable for degrees in most disciplines (except medicine and dentistry) at reputable universities in Singapore or overseas.
________________________________

Land Transport Authority (LTA)

1.LTA Undergraduate Scholarship (Mass Communications)(Local/Overseas)
_______________________________

Ministry Of Education (MOE)

1.MOE Teaching Scholarship (Local/Overseas)
______________________________

Ministry Of Health (MOH)

1.Health Science Scholarship (Physiotherapy, Medical Social Work?)(Local/Overseas)
(My physiotherapist is in the website, how cool is that LOL. From TJ Somemore)
______________________________

Ministry of Home Affairs

1.Local Merit Scholarship (LMS)
(Singapore Police Force? ;P)
"Through counselling wayward youths, lending a sympathetic ear to the desponded, and
consoling the grieving, reassuring the frightened, I have learnt the difference I can make
if only I try."
______________________________

Ministry of Information, Communications and The Arts

1.MICA Information Scholarship (Local/Overseas)

Disciplines:
Mass Communications
Public Relations
Journalism
Media Studies
(:
_____________________________

National Healthcare Group (NHG)

1.Health Sciences Scholarship (Degree)(Local/Overseas)

Disciplines:
Audiology
Diagnostic Radiography
Dietetics
Medical Social Work
Optometry
Occupational Therapy
Physiotherapy
Podiatry
Prosthetics & Orthotics
Radiation Therapy
Respiratory Therapy
Speech Therapy
__________________________

National University Health System

1.Health Sciences Scholarship (Overseas)

Disciplines:
Diagnostic Radiography
Dietetics
Medical Social Work
Occupational Therapy
Pharmacy
Physiotherapy
Podiatry
Prosthetics & Orthotics
Radiation Therapy
Speech Therapy
________________________

Singapore Airlines Ltd

1.Singapore Airlines Cargo Local Undergraduate Scholarship (Local)

2.Singapore Airlines Open Scholarship (Local/Overseas)
________________________

Singapore Tourism Board

1.FIREfly-STB Scholarship Scheme (Local/Overseas)
________________________

PHHHEEEWWWWWWWW.
Thats all. And i spent a good couple of hours just doing this. Hahaha. How many days do i have to decide, and apply? 4 days. Wonderful.

2010-03-11T00:53:00.000+08:00

From Van's Blog (from Youtube)

YOU. GUYS. HAVE. TOTALLY. GOT. TO. WATCH. THIS.

hahahahahahahahahahahahahaahaha.

Decisions, Decisions

2010-03-09T17:24:00.000+08:00

I met an old (2007 TJ) friend yesterday at Ubi, haha. Interesting to find out he wants to do Architecture, which is... unexpected! Haha. But its cool meeting these old friends and all.

Also, i was just looking through NUS and NTU's websites... and i discovered that i don't have the PIN number NUS sent me. I think i might have accidentally thrown it away with the envelope? Cos i only have the letter and a postcard thingy. Pfffft that means i have to go allllllll the way to NUS to get my PIN number to apply for Uni -.-"

Quite open to these few courses, so people, if you've got any advice about these courses, i need them! Haha.

NTU:
-Communication Studies
-English Literature
-Linguistics and Multilingual Studies
-Sociology
-Sports Science and Management? (Inspired by my physiologist HAHAHA who is featured in one of the articles in the Scholarships Bag i think ROFL)

NUS:
-English
-English Literature
-Theatre Studies
-Communications and New Media
-Social Work
-Sociology
-Music (??!)

__________________________

Overseas:
Haven't seen yet, haha. I'm already lost looking at these two Unis -.-" Looks like its gonna take me quite awhile! HEEEEEELLLLLPPPPPPP.

When Seems Interesting

2010-03-08T01:01:00.000+08:00

Sociology

English Language

English Literature?

Theatre Studies

...So Far, that is.

2010-03-07T23:26:00.000+08:00

I just started taking out the various flyers / magazines / newspapers / bookmarks / postcards / knick-knacks that the different companies use to promote their scholarships. And its really ridiculous, the amount of stuff i am going to have to read and research on!

I already feel like giving up. But my parents seem to think that applying for a scholarship is a great idea, no matter how far-fetched it sounds for an ABD student to apply... LOL! I feel silly just looking at those scholarships. Not only silly, but also bewildered. Cos i have no idea what im in for when i apply. Like, applying for HDB scholarship..?!! What am i gonna do when i graduate and have to be bonded for 4 years!?

And i still have yet to read through my Basic Theory test materials, haha. Tmrr's my mock test! BLAH. Time is passing sooo fast these few days, its unbelievable, really. Or maybe cos i've been resistant to the idea of searching for suitable courses and uni courses. Boooooo

2010-03-07T22:46:00.000+08:00

Whats more embarrassing,

getting mistaken for a 14 year old,
or,
Riding a scooter (yes, a kick-scooter) to buy dinner and finding that the coffeeshop is veeerrry crowded.

2010-03-06T23:25:00.000+08:00

The funnier thing is that,

Apparently,
i am doing it too -.-"

An Interesting Title For A FB Event

2010-03-06T10:33:00.000+08:00

I just received a FB invite to an event. I clicked on it cos the title said "21 GIRLS FOR A 21ST BIRTHDAY BASH" and i thought it was an invitation to girls celebrating their 21st.

In the end, i realised the 'event' was created for the express purpose of finding 21 girls to surprise a certain friend (of the creator) on his birthday.

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAAHA.

2010-03-06T10:23:00.000+08:00

"Today I found out my boyfriend took my friend home and at a red light they were stopped next to a car of people who were blasting rap music and head bobbing. My boyfriend was flipping through the radio and lands on a classical music station, turns it up to full volume, opens all his windows, and he and my friend start head bobbing. The other car was quite shocked. Did I pick a keeper or what? MLIA"

"Today, I found a letter that i wrote when i was seven, addressed to the future me. I decided it to open it a little early then what was written on the envelope. The whole thing was pretty funny, especially the last sentence, which said "Please write back." I'm not quite sure what i was thinking when i wrote that. MLIA."

"Today, my friend came up to me wearing a fake mustache. With a completely straight face, she said, "I mustache you a question." MLIA."

"Today, I was browsing the internet on Mozilla Firefox when it unexpectedly crashed. I tried to reopen Mozilla and it said, "Well, this is embarrassing. We can't recover your tabs. Start a new session?" It's okay, Mozilla. We all have our embarrassing moments. MLIA."

HAHAHAHAHAHAHA

2010-03-05T18:19:00.000+08:00

"Hey how are your results hmm"

_______________________________

"Hello?"
"hello..."
"...(awkwardly)errr, you know what day is it today?"
"...friday lor..."
"...(more awkwardly) yeah your erm results day right?"
"...oh yeah lor..."
"(clearly extremely uncomfortable now)..oh erm okay okay err so you take care ah, err bye!"
"(silence, quite a long one, then...) HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA"

"(silence)... WAH! YOU!"
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA.
_____________________________

In all things give thanks to God. Sometimes its easier, sometimes its harder, but i pray God would, above all, keep my REACTIONS right. (:
_____________________________

And, thanks to ALL who remembered, and prayed, and cared :D Really! Love you all. God sees and knows yr care and concern for us (:
_____________________________

Something I Would...

2010-03-02T17:36:00.003+08:00

1. Believe
"Today, I told my best friend that 74% of all statistics were made up. He believed it. MLIA "

2. Like To Do To For Entertainment
"My boyfriend and I went to a small cafe for a coffee the other day. Finding ourselves rather bored, he proceeded to (rather loudly) blurt out the statement, "so I ended up kissing my brother and it was crazy!" The looks on the faces of the people behind him were priceless. My potential soulmate? I think so. "

This Is, getting My Mind Off (:

2010-02-28T21:53:00.000+08:00

I had an interesting time today.

I think, Leo's sweet innocence, gentlemanly behaviour and delightful smile have captured my heart. The way he gets my attention, the bewildered look on his face followed by his easy, open laugh... (: I think i wanna video him and record his voice before he leaves. And Jacintha is really SUCH a dear! Honestly.

LOL i just re-read what i typed and realised i'd better clarify: Leo's like, 2 yrs old.

Anyhow, i was really glad for today, cos my Sundays are usually passed (erm, sadly? ;P) by myself since my parents have FBI. [Of course, today was also 2808's class outing but couldn't go for it, LOL these things always happen to me]. So, today was a... no, not a fairytale. HAHAHAHA. But it was a good time, working under the hot sun (so hot you can't think, LOL), and voicing some thoughts during the car rides. The company was totally God-given too: Two of the few people who are able to ask me thought-provoking questions, talk 'deep', able to listen and understand, and who i (mostly) speak freely with. Most people do not fulfill all the criteria, haha.

[Okay i know this random but i JUST found out that criteria is the plural form of criterion. Sounds like a pokemon -.-"]

I digress further, but i was just thinking that my dad's jobs are REALLY quite cool. This job was an installation (set-up of banners/pennants etc) for the ESPZen tournament, which is basically a soccer tournament held amongst the neighbouring countries' International Schools. THAT means, the teams come from Indonesia, Thailand, etc, but since they are international schools, all their players are mostly 'Ang Mohs'. Isn't that honestly quite cool! This is their 22nd year holding the tournament, and its Singapore's turn to host the tournament.

So the installation (and dismantling) was at Singapore Sports School and Innova JC (cos the schools are beside each other, so there are more soccer pitches to hold concurrent games). And i saw SSS for the first time... cool! i reeeaaaallly don't think i would like playing on Astro-turf though. So... artificial. And slippery of course.

After that we had to make a trip down to Turf Club to return the banners.

THE PLACE IS PICTURESQUE. YH, CHER AND WHOEVER, WE SHOULD TOTALLY TOTALLY GO AND SNAP THERE. [I shall bring my pathetic, nothing-compared-to-your-DSLRs digital camera, Lol. Its really too nice to resist! Yh agrees its nice :D YH please plan ;P] If my camera batt wasn't flat, i'd have stopped my daddy right there and then to take some pictures!

So, i thank God for today (:
From YH: "Alerting someone to your plight is not complaining". I agree to a large extent :D

So i am not complaining [and honestly do not believe i am either!], when i say that i think its strange how come my activities all come in... bunches. Like, when i have something on, there will be something else going on. [Like today, after quite a few alone-Sundays, i had the dismantling job, AND the 2808outing, AND Wesley's bday -.-"] Well, i guess, i AM learning to prioritise! So, Thank God for these things that happen(:

Came back and had a good family dinner cum Uncle TK's bday celebration, followed by the usual Wang/Tan/Ng Saboteur sessions. Which let me have time to come up here and blog, haha.

Did i mention that i watched Happy Feet? Not all of it, but enough to make me go 'Awwwwh' over the main character [ i dunno his name, but he's the emperor penguin] and love his friends... and laugh when my XiaoYi (Irene)asked (when she saw the elephant seals), 'What are these?!!!! .....Are they extinct?"
LOL.

I hope i'm tired enough to fall asleep tonight. Grrr for last night :(

Oh yeah before i forget. New people are joining our GCSS class! The 18/19yr olds are mooovin' up! Thats a total of EIGHT of them, can you imagine?! Cheryl, Sheree, Carina, Andrea, Elaine, Serene, Diana, Sylvia. Think my class might be getting the non-teaching ones, cos Bro Mingyong thinks our class has too many people liable to rush off every week. [We already have Weifang, Darren and myself rushing off, and Van's gooone :( ]... that would leave a choice of 3 people from Andrea, Sheree, Carina, Diana and Sylvia. But its not confirmed yet. Don't know who's gonna be in but i know it'll all be in God's plan and His direction so im excited as well! :D

I Realise...

2010-02-27T23:11:00.000+08:00

When a person starts off fine, but starts using a crutch to walk (for whatever random reason)... when this person is made to walk without the crutch, it takes awhile getting used to.

Maybe a long while.

haha. I honestly feel very bummed. Unexplainably so. okay maybe partly explainable. But don't worry i'm not emoing ;P

I Realise...

2010-02-27T01:48:00.000+08:00

(In Random Order)

The sun really affects me. I get headaches and a shorter fuse :/

People can knock into benches so hard that they tear their pants.

I can go without sleep(>1hr) for more than 24 Hours.

I really AM going to miss Van a whole lot. Like, a LOT.

Results are coming back (probably) next week.

I have been having a Van-load of fun.

I will really miss the NSC :/

I actually have quite a lot of things to do.

I need to go and sleep.

Goodnight, World

2010-02-24T16:23:00.000+08:00

Im off, to stay at the CHALET! ((((((:

My days are SO gonna be packed these few days...

Updates

2010-02-22T21:57:00.000+08:00

We're Back Together Again, at least, how i feel. Hahaha if you know what im talking about (: Yay!

Watched two movies I don't like. "Overheard" and "Bodyguards & Assassins" (i think), one in Cantonese and the other in Chinese. Don't like either, cos both were... heart-wrenching, in a word. And, there was no happy ending. More like a grim justice of sorts. However, the company made it bearable ;) One at home and the other at pastor's place.

Going out with van tomorrow, we'll look like TWINS! :DD Such a couple of idiots ;P

Sigh, Im gonna miss her when she's gone lah. I'm sure things won't be the same since we've been hanging out pretty extensively since she came back. But... i'm sure its all part of God's plan! And...she might be coming back for June Camp!

Don't think he can see this, but i just wanted to remember Matin for always managing to put a smile on my face (: THANK YOU!

Average Lives

2010-02-22T13:28:00.000+08:00

"Today, I wanted to see how well I could imitate my cat's meow, so I started meowing loudly. My brother in the next room yelled at my cat to shut up. I'm unreasonably proud of myself. MLIA"

"Today as I was walking across campus, i jokingly yelled "Accio water bottle". Two seconds later a water bottle hit me in the face. The guy walking ahead of me had thrown it when he heard the spell, came running over, pointed at my cut and yelled Episky. I have a new best friend. MLIA."

"Today, there was a small pile of apples in the front of the cafeteria at the catholic elementary school I work at. I was worried they were going to run out before all the children got one, so I put a sign up that said, "Take only one, God is watching." Later, I noticed that at the other end of the lunch table was a pile of chocolate chip cookies. A child had written a note, "Take all you want, God is busy watching the apples." MLIA"

"Today I had a dentist appointment. I felt like I was about to sneeze so I was desperately making noises for the dentists to stop. Suddenly the sneeze went away and I told them it was a false alarm. Just as they put all their drills and stuff back into my mouth I sneezed. MLIA"

I love this man.
"Today, my friend expressed a wish that she could send texts with her voice talking instead of typed words. We informed her that that is called a phone call. MLIA"

ROFL

2010-02-21T18:24:00.000+08:00

Posthumous Post-Modernism

Customer: “Can you help me find a book?”

Me: “Sure! What are you looking for?”

Customer: “It’s called The Scarlet Thread.”

Me: “I haven’t heard of that one. Let me look it up really quick.”

Customer: “It’s by Jane Austen if that helps.”

Me: “Um, I don’t think it is.”

Customer: “No, it’s by Jane Austen.”

Me: “I’m sorry ma’am, but I’m pretty sure Jane Austen never wrote a book called The Scarlet Thread.”

Customer: “Oh, well you probably haven’t heard of it because I think it’s one of her new books.”
_________________________________

W.W.J.D. Extremity

(I check in families to our kids’ program. An older woman approaches me with her two grandkids. I give her the form to fill out).

Me: “Oh, ma’am, could I get your birthday? You left that line blank.”

Grandmother: “No.”

Me: “But ma’am, we need that to identify you as an adult. We can’t enter you into the computer without that information.”

Grandmother: “Would Jesus have to give his birthday?”
_______________________________

Caught Calling The Kettle Black

(Note: ‘Where The Wild Things Are’ has just been released at the cinema. When movies come out, the book usually sky rockets in popularity.)

Me: “Good morning, how can I help you today?”

Patron: “Hi, I was wondering if you have a copy of Where The Wild Things Are?”

Me: “I’m sure we do, but I have to warn you that since it has just come out at the movies, there will probably be a waiting list.”

(I look up the book, and sure enough there are 12 reservations)

Me: “I’m sorry, there are currently 12 reservations in place. I can put you down for a reservation but you probably won’t get it for another 4-6 months.”

Patron: “What? That’s ridiculous! It’s such an old book. Why are people suddenly interested?”

Me: “Well, when a movie is made out of a book, people are suddenly interested in reading the book.”

Patron: “That’s stupid. I don’t see why they should want to read it just because the movie has come out.”

Me: “Why did you want to read it?”

Patron: “Because the movie has just come out!”

2010-02-21T13:52:00.000+08:00

I just saw the NTU Bike Rally 2010 people cycling along the road outside my house. And the poor Road Marshals HAHAHAHAHAHA.

Anyway, I don't have my Games Event thing tmrr cos it has been postponed!

So, I have my Monday FREEEEEEEEE :D

The rest of my thoughts, or at least, the thing that has been creeping into my thoughts very very often [which is weird cos it's all linked indirectly], is erm not for this blog, haha. If you wanna know, you can ask me :D
[Mann. I think i know who is gonna ask, lol. But yes i am perfectly willing to tell. Its not really bothering me, but the way it manages to creep into my thoughts is sometimes unnerving. I don't know if it's from inside or outside, if you know what i mean ;P Maybe its both. i seem to have a bad relationship with this. HAHAHHAHA total pun man.

Asian Shows -.-"

2010-02-20T13:44:00.000+08:00

I was just having one of many rather meaningful discussions with my mum, regarding the melancholic movies the Asians (China, Taiwan, HK, Korea, whatever) seem to looooooooooooove to make.

We turned on the TV downstairs and there was this super depressing show (drama?) about these two girls who are best friends, and who then fall out over... guess?

Right, of course. A guy. And misunderstandings. And miscommunication -.-"

It ALWAYS happens this way in shows. Like the typical i-leave-the-note-there, it flies off somewhere and you didn't receive it, then you think blah blah...

And it only serves to make me more, erm, melancholic. And since i honestly think im a typical girl (at least in the sense that i get affected by shows the same way, haha), i really wonder WHY PEOPLE STILL OBSESS OVER THESE SHOWS!

I mean, its not like they leave you satisfied, right? Tales and intricately-spun webs of deceit, betrayal, and the Bleak 'Fate'... I'd watch a comedy anytime! Or even a romance. Haven't we gotten enough of that in the real world ;P

Digressed with my passionate rants, haha. Anyhow, I was just commenting on how depressing that show was, and my mum agreed. She was talking about how its similar to the real world and the vast amount of deceit, uncertainty... and depravity there.

And when i started ranting (like what i was typing in the first part), she agreed with me.

So, after i ranted and she continuously nodded and 'mm-hmm, true'-ed countless times, i said "Okay, so can you change the channel, and we watch something else?"

Mum: " *looooooong indeterminate pause*"

Mum: "Aiyah nevermind lah, let's just continue watching."

Me: *super ultra (-.-") *

Maybe every girl/teen/woman knows this. But, they still cannot tear their eyes away from these stories.
Now, whose fault is it that more and more people are sinking into depression / becoming increasingly emo?

What is my True Fear?

2010-02-20T01:30:00.001+08:00

hahaha. I was supposed to sleep, but i suddenly remembered that i needa charge my mp3 and the ipod touch, so i had to get up and turn on my lappy to do so. And i happened to go to someone's blog, happened to see a quiz, and happened to decide to do it, and happened to get...

What is your True Fear? Your Result: Disappointment You are a fun-loving, energetic, and cheerful person. You love adrenaline rushes, and going out at night. You constantly have to be having a great time to feel completely happy. Your biggest fear is not having anything to do, or having a huge disappointment/let down in your life. You hate being sad, and if something in your life suddenly went wrong it would be extremely hard for you to deal with. Just remember that everyone has to deal with hard times. Stay strong, and pretty soon your fun, party life will get right back the way it used to be.
Being Alone
Looked down on
Losing Someone
Where Your life is Going
Commitment
Death
What is your True Fear? Quiz Created on GoToQuiz

Interesting, ain't it.

Today, 18th feb

2010-02-18T23:45:00.000+08:00

I just neeeaarrrrly lost a shirt, HAHAHA. VAN, IT WAS THE PRISONBREAK ONE ;P
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And... i liked today.

Apart from the fact that it seems my friends have been giving me quite a bit to think about... hahaha.

And i realise that my life is filled with... ------------ problems. So far counting, 2. Not mine lah hahaha. Not counted. I should really take up a job relating to that haha.

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OH MAN TODAY IS 18th FEB! Which means i have to work next monday :(

China- Safely Home

2010-02-16T12:15:00.000+08:00

Quotes from the book, and some chinese proverbs i never knew existed till i read it, in english, from the book.

"In China, 'copyright' means 'right to copy'"

"If someone says to you, 'Religious freedom in China is like this', don't believe him. That is like saying 'The weather in America is like this- always sunny or always snowing.' It depends on what part of the country you are in, and what season. In China the sun is always shining somewhere. Somewhere else the snow is falling. But the government is capable of magic- they take you to places where it is usually snowing and show you a glimpse of sunlight so that you can go back and say there is no snow in China. You write your column or say from your pulpit that you saw no persecution, only freedom. You are telling the truth- but a truth that misleads."

That reminded me of a picture i took in China, when we were on the mountain, where the entire mountain was sunny but at the very peak, in one small corner, we saw frost, and my family and Bro Davy's family took turns to take pictures at that little spot. If you saw the picture, you would think that the entire place was like that, you wouldn't imagine the rest of the place was sunny.

"Dr. Martin Luther King said, 'If a man is called to be a street sweeper, he should sweep streets even as Michelangelo painted, or Beethoven composed music, or Shakespeare composed poetry. He should sweep streets so well that all the hosts of heaven and earth will pause to say, Here lived a great street sweeper, who did his job well."

Reading this brings tears to the eyes. Amen!

"Capitalism says 'You scratch my back, and i'll scratch yours.' Communism says 'You scratch me back, or i'll break yours.'"

"Do not use a hatchet to remove a fly from your friend's forehead."

When i read this i immediately thought of the correcting of our friends- whether we do it in the condemning, lambasting, puritan, high-and-mighty-I-am-SO-better-than-you way, or humbly, in love, knowing that we are as much of a sinner (or worse, cos of our tendency to be proud!) as the person we are correcting.

"Those who say something cannot be done should not interrupt the person doing it"

Talk about motivational, haha...

"Do not cook your hunting dog"
(Do not bite the hand that feeds you)-the english proverb for this

"If you are looking for a religion centered around yourself, I must agree that Christianity is a poor choice."

2010-02-16T00:32:00.001+08:00

http://www.thiscowispurple.com/2010/01/25/ready-to-face-the-world/

2010-02-15T21:21:00.000+08:00

Came back with puffy eyes last night AND i very probably might end up the same way tonight, if i continue reading, HAHA.

But you all should really read it. (:
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On another note... i just realised (yeah random i know, thats just how my mind works) how much im 'outta the loop' cos i don't use FB often -.-" That is, 'use' being the going ONTO FB's Home Page and looking at status updates and live feed and whatever (I use gmail notifications you see, so i go directly to wherever ppl comment on my stuff haha).

Like, HOW MUCH. (Uhuh, Yix?! I totally saw).
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Anyway... back to reading (:

Dedications

2010-02-15T18:34:00.000+08:00

Have had a looooooong few days, since... lets see, the Fish Market Day? lets do a review...

Thurs:
2am- Fish Market
Restoftheday- Sick, Sleep :(

Fri:
12pm to 9pm- Flyer Distribution

Sat:
10am- Polish Dad's Car
12pm to 430pm- Flyer Distribution
7pm to 11pm- Grandma's (Dad's Mum) House

Sun:
9am- Church
1130am- Bai Nian (Grandma's)
2pm- Bai Nian
630pm- Pastor's place
12am- out w KYH TYX Cher

Mon:
12pm- Wake Up (Whoa, i HARDLY wake up this late)
1230pm- Head Downstairs to... Socialiiiiiizzzzeeeeeee
6pm- Head upstairs with a headache (when the party is overrr)

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So... much... activity.

hahaha. I was/ am supposed to be at Uncle Patrick's place for a party but i was really too tired to go, with my headache and everything.

Since i couldn't sleep, i decided to take out a book and read, and i came across one of my super favourites- "Safely Home", by Randy Alcorn. Even though its a novel and not some biography...

"Note From the Author:
The city I've called Pushan is fictitious. As far as I know, there is no Pushan in the area I've described. If there is, I've never been there and have no knowledge of it. While many things in this book have actually happened in one way or another, I have made up the story. Still, I have attempted to keep it authentic and true to life in as many details as possible. nearly all my characters are fictitious. Some are composites of several real people. Whenever I was thinking of someone in particular I changed his name and life details so it would be impossible to identify him."

And, the dedications...

"Dedication:
To Graham Staines,
who left his home in Australia to serve lepers
in India for thirty-four years.

To Philip Staines (age ten) and Timothy Staines (age six),
who at half past midnight on January 23, 1999,
as their father held his arms around them,
were burned to death by a mob in India;
murdered because of Whom they knew and served.

To Gladys Staines,
who continues to minister to lepers and who said to all India,
'I am not bitter or angry. I have one great desire: that each citizen
of this country should establish a personal relationship with
Jesus Christ, who gave His lie for their sins.'

To Esther Staines,
Graham and Gladys's daughter (then age thirteen),
who said, 'I praise the Lord that He found my father
worthy to die for Him.'

To the hundreds of Men, Women, and Children killed for Jesus Christ each day,
ignored by the world but watched by the eyes of heeaven-
those of whom the world is not worthy."

Hallelujah, Amen?

2010-02-13T20:14:00.000+08:00

I think,

i shall take a break from Flyer Distribution for awhile. Hahaha.
But i must say that i really learned alot while distributing. And made new... acquaintances, lol.

-A cool Security Guard who wants to go to NUS
-The people working in that shopping mall who chat with me. LOL
-The staff at Citygems who treat me more like a helper than a... flyer distributor hahaha

I forgot what else i wanted to blog about -.-" The show on Channel U now is just too distracting anyway ;P I mean, Jackie Chan! Bye, loves :D

People, pEople, peOple, peoPle,....

2010-02-13T00:14:00.000+08:00

(:

- Tyron
- Sis Dawn
- David Ong
- Delia
- Wei Hui
- Hi/Bye/Guy

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And, i was just thinking (halfway during the givin out) how ironic it was that its ME giving out these CITGEM flyers... lol.

And,
Other than almost fainting in the afternoon, it was a good job ;P
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Picture Posts

2010-02-12T11:23:00.005+08:00

The other day i was giving out flyers at SIM, and i saw this bus:

I was laughing cos i thought some sign dropped.

Then recently, i was flipping through the Basic Theory Book (Driving) and then i realised that you are SUPPOSED to put this triangular sign behind your vehicle if it stalls, so the other vehicles know.

Hmmm.

And, i love my grandma's hair, its uber cool! The purple in front and all haha.

Actually i like the red highlights. If i were to EVER do something to my hair, it'd have red highlights. Or streaks. Or streak. ;P

"You wanna go? Oops you're working"

2010-02-12T10:35:00.002+08:00

A conversation i had with Matthew on why Temp jobs are better than Permanent jobs. Or vice versa, in his case. Neither won -.-"

Culmination.

2010-02-12T10:19:00.002+08:00

Had a baaaaaaaaaad yesterday. Imagine

1. Reunion Dinner- Seafood (Mussels, etc)

2. Out till 4am (Senoko Fish Market)

3. Having my thetimeofthemonth come.

...And all in the space of 24hrs. Like i was telling my daddy, "I'm not weak! And i don't usually cramp, but it's the culmination of these three that made my cramps so bad."

Thankfully (thank God, and thanks Ernest!) Ernest took over my 5-9 flyerdistribution slot. I slept away the entire day, till about...6pm.

Well, im feeling much better now (:

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Polished my dad's car this morning, and i must say its easier than i expected. Tough work, sure, but easier THAN EXPECTED. Since they charge like quite alot for polishing services (i hear). I might be doing my uncle Kokwing's cars too soon. Well... anyone wants a car polish? HA HA :D

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2010-02-08T20:10:00.001+08:00

Oscar Wilde

The Model Millionaire

A note of admiration

Unless one is wealthy there is no use in being a charming fellow. Romance is the privilege of the rich, not the profession of the unemployed. The poor should be practical and prosaic. It is better to have a permanent income than to be fascinating. These are the great truths of modern life which Hughie Erskine never realised. Poor Hughie! Intellectually, we must admit, he was not of much importance. He never said a brilliant or even an ill-natured thing in his life. But then he was wonderfully good-looking, with his crisp brown hair, his clear-cut profile, and his grey eyes. He was as popular with men as he was with women, and he had every accomplishment except that of making money. His father had bequeathed him his cavalry sword, and a History of the Peninsular War in fifteen volumes. Hughie hung the first over his looking-glass, put the second on a shelf between Ruff's Guide and Bailey's Magazine, and lived on two hundred a year that an old aunt allowed him. He had tried everything. He had gone on the Stock Exchange for six months; but what was a butterfly to do among bulls and bears? He had been a tea-merchant for a little longer, but had soon tired of pekoe and souchong. Then he had tried selling dry sherry. That did not answer; the sherry was a little too dry. Ultimately he became nothing, a delightful, ineffectual young man with a perfect profile and no profession.
To make matters worse, he was in love. The girl he loved was Laura Merton, the daughter of a retired Colonel who had lost his temper and his digestion in India, and had never found either of them again. Laura adored him, and he was ready to kiss her shoe-strings. They were the handsomest couple in London, and had not a penny-piece between them. The Colonel was very fond of Hughie, but would not hear of any engagement.
'Come to me, my boy, when you have got ten thousand pounds of your own, and we will see about it,' he used to say; and Hughie looked very glum on those days, and had to go to Laura for consolation.
< 2 >

One morning, as he was on his way to Holland Park, where the Mertons lived, he dropped in to see a great friend of his, Alan Trevor. Trevor was a painter. Indeed, few people escape that nowadays. But he was also an artist, and artists are rather rare. Personally he was a strange rough fellow, with a freckled face and a red ragged beard. However, when he took up the brush he was a real master, and his pictures were eagerly sought after. He had been very much attracted by Hughie at first, it must be acknowledged, entirely on account of his personal charm. 'The only people a painter should know,' he used to say, 'are people who are bete and beautiful, people who are an artistic pleasure to look at and an intellectual repose to talk to. Men who are dandies and women who are darlings rule the world, at least they should do so.' However, after he got to know Hughie better, he liked him quite as much for his bright buoyant spirits and his generous reckless nature, and had given him the permanent entree to his studio.
When Hughie came in he found Trevor putting the finishing touches to a wonderful life-size picture of a beggar-man. The beggar himself was standing on a raised platform in a corner of the studio. He was a wizened old man, with a face like wrinkled parchment, and a most piteous expression. Over his shoulders was flung a coarse brown cloak, all tears and tatters; his thick boots were patched and cobbled, and with one hand he leant on a rough stick, while with the other he held out his battered hat for alms.
'What an amazing model!' whispered Hughie, as he shook hands with his friend.
'An amazing model?' shouted Trevor at the top of his voice; 'I should think so! Such beggars as he are not to be met with every day. A trouvaille, mort cher; a living Velasquez! My stars! what an etching Rembrandt would have made of him!'
'Poor old chap! said Hughie, 'how miserable he looks! But I suppose, to you painters, his face is his fortune?'
< 3 >

'Certainly,' replied Trevor, 'you don't want a beggar to look happy, do you?'
'How much does a model get for sitting?' asked Hughie, as he found himself a comfortable seat on a divan.
'A shilling an hour.'
'And how much do you get for your picture, Alan?'
'Oh, for this I get two thousand!'
'Pounds?'
'Guineas. Painters, poets, and physicians always get guineas.'
'Well, I think the model should have a percentage,' cried Hughie, laughing; 'they work quite as hard as you do.'
'Nonsense, nonsense! Why, look at the trouble of laying on the paint alone, and standing all day long at one's easel! It's all very well, Hughie, for you to talk, but I assure you that there are moments when Art almost attains to the dignity of manual labour. But you mustn't chatter; I'm very busy. Smoke a cigarette, and keep quiet.'
After some time the servant came in, and told Trevor that the frame-maker wanted to speak to him.
'Don't run away, Hughie,' he said, as he went out, 'I will be back in a moment.'
The old beggar-man took advantage of Trevor's absence to rest for a moment on a wooden bench that was behind him. He looked so forlorn and wretched that Hughie could not help pitying him, and felt in his pockets to see what money he had. All he could find was a sovereign and some coppers. 'Poor old fellow,' he thought to himself, 'he wants it more than I do, but it means no hansoms for a fortnight;' and he walked across the studio and slipped the sovereign into the beggar's hand.
The old man started, and a faint smile flitted across his withered lips. 'Thank you, sir,' he said, 'thank you.'
Then Trevor arrived, and Hughie took his leave, blushing a little at what he had done. He spent the day with Laura, got a charming scolding for his extravagance, and had to walk home.
< 4 >

That night he strolled into the Palette Club about eleven o'clock, and found Trevor sitting by himself in the smoking-room drinking hock and seltzer.
'Well, Alan, did you get the picture finished all right?' he said, as he lit his cigarette.
'Finished and framed, my boy!' answered Trevor; 'and, by-the-bye, you have made a conquest. That old model you saw is quite devoted to you. I had to tell him all about you - who you are, where you live, what your income is, what prospects you have--'
'My dear Alan,' cried Hughie, 'I shall probably find him waiting for me when I go home. But of course you are only joking. Poor old wretch! I wish I could do something for him. I think it is dreadful that any one should be so miserable. I have got heaps of old clothes at home - do you think he would care for any of them? Why, his rags were falling to bits.'
'But he looks splendid in them,' said Trevor. 'I wouldn't paint him in a frock-coat for anything. What you call rags I call romance. What seems poverty to you is picturesqueness to me. However, I'll tell him of your offer.'
'Alan,' said Hughie seriously, 'you painters are a heartless lot.'
'An artist's heart is his head,' replied Trevor; 'and besides, our business is to realise the world as we see it, not to reform it as we know it. a chacun son metier. And now tell me how Laura is. The old model was quite interested in her.'
'You don't mean to say you talked to him about her?' said Hughie.
'Certainly I did. He knows all about the relentless colonel, the lovely Laura, and the £10,000.'
'You told that old beggar all my private affairs?' cried Hughie, looking very red and angry.
'My dear boy,' said Trevor, smiling, 'that old beggar, as you call him, is one of the richest men in Europe. He could buy all London to-morrow without overdrawing his account. He has a house in every capital, dines off gold plate, and can prevent Russia going to war when he chooses.'
< 5 >

'What on earth do you mean?' exclaimed Hughie.
'What I say,' said Trevor. 'The old man you saw to-day in the studio was Baron Hausberg. He is a great friend of mine, buys all my pictures and that sort of thing, and gave me a commission a month ago to paint him as a beggar. Que voulez-vous? La fantaisie d'un millionnaire! And I must say he made a magnificent figure in his rags, or perhaps I should say in my rags; they are an old suit I got in Spain.'
'Baron Hausberg!' cried Hughie. 'Good heavens! I gave him a sovereign!' and he sank into an armchair the picture of dismay.
'Gave him a sovereign!' shouted Trevor, and he burst into a roar of laughter. 'My dear boy, you'll never see it again. Son affaire c'est l'argent des autres.'
'I think you might have told me, Alan,' said Hughie sulkily, 'and not have let me make such a fool of myself.'
'Well, to begin with, Hughie,' said Trevor, 'it never entered my mind that you went about distributing alms in that reckless way. I can understand your kissing a pretty model, but your giving a sovereign to an ugly one - by Jove, no! Besides, the fact is that I really was not at home to-day to any one; and when you came in I didn't know whether Hausberg would like his name mentioned. You know he wasn't in full dress.'
'What a duffer he must think me!' said Hughie.
'Not at all. He was in the highest spirits after you left; kept chuckling to himself and rubbing his old wrinkled hands together. I couldn't make out why he was so interested to know all about you; but I see it all now. He'll invest your sovereign for you, Hughie, pay you the interest every six months, and have a capital story to tell after dinner.'
'I am an unlucky devil,' growled Hughie. 'The best thing I can do is to go to bed; and, my dear Alan, you mustn't tell any one. I shouldn't dare show my face in the Row.'
< 6 >

'Nonsense! It reflects the highest credit on your philanthropic spirit, Hughie. And don't run away. Have another cigarette, and you can talk about Laura as much as you like.'
However, Hughie wouldn't stop, but walked home, feeling very unhappy, and leaving Alan Trevor in fits of laughter.
The next morning, as he was at breakfast, the servant brought him up a card on which was written, 'Monsieur Gustave Naudin, de la part de M. le Baron Hausberg.'
'I suppose he has come for an apology,' said Hughie to himself; and he told the servant to show the visitor up.
An old gentleman with gold spectacles and grey hair came into the room, and said, in a slight French accent, 'Have I the honour of addressing Monsieur Erskine?'
Hughie bowed.
'I have come from Baron Hausberg,' he continued. 'The Baron--'
'I beg, sir, that you will offer him my sincerest apologies,' stammered Hughie.
'The Baron,' said the old gentleman, with a smile, 'has commissioned me to bring you this letter;' and he extended a sealed envelope.
On the outside was written, 'A wedding present to Hugh Erskine and Laura Merton, from an old beggar,' and inside was a cheque for £10,000.
When they were married Alan Trevor was the best-man, and the Baron made a speech at the wedding-breakfast.
'Millionaire models,' remarked Alan, 'are rare enough; but, by Jove, model millionaires are rarer still!'

2010-02-08T16:52:00.001+08:00

Excepting Mrs. Pentherby

It was Reggie Bruttle's own idea for converting what had threatened to be an albino elephant into a beast of burden that should help him along the stony road of his finances. "The Limes," which had come to him by inheritance without any accompanying provision for its upkeep, was one of those pretentious, unaccommodating mansions which none but a man of wealth could afford to live in, and which not one wealthy man in a hundred would choose on its merits. It might easily languish in the estate market for years, set round with noticeboards proclaiming it, in the eyes of a sceptical world, to be an eminently desirable residence.
Reggie's scheme was to turn it into the headquarters of a prolonged country-house party, in session during the months from October till the end of March -- a party consisting of young or youngish people of both sexes, too poor to be able to do much hunting or shooting on a serious scale, but keen on getting their fill of golf, bridge, dancing, and occasional theatre-going. No one was to be on the footing of a paying guest, but every one was to rank as a paying host; a committee would look after the catering and expenditure, and an informal sub-committee would make itself useful in helping forward the amusement side of the scheme.
As it was only an experiment, there was to be a general agreement on the part of those involved in it to be as lenient and mutually helpful to one another as possible. Already a promising nucleus, including one or two young married couples, had been got together, and the thing seemed to be fairly launched.
"With good management and a little unobtrusive hard work, I think the thing ought to be a success," said Reggie, and Reggie was one of those people who are painstaking first and optimistic afterwards.
"There is one rock on which you will unfailingly come to grief, manage you never so wisely," said Major Dagberry, cheerfully; "the women will quarrel. Mind you," continued this prophet of disaster, "I don't say that some of the men won't quarrel too, probably they will; but the women are bound to. You can't prevent it; it's in the nature of the sex. The hand that rocks the cradle rocks the world, in a volcanic sense. A woman will endure discomforts, and make sacrifices, and go without things to an heroic extent, but the one luxury she will not go without is her quarrels. No matter where she may be, or how transient her appearance on a scene, she will instal her feminine feuds as assuredly as a Frenchman would concoct soup in the waste of the Arctic regions. At the commencement of a sea voyage, before the male traveller knows half a dozen of his fellow passengers by sight, the average woman will have started a couple of enmities, and laid in material for one or two more -- provided, of course, that there are sufficient women aboard to permit quarrelling in the plural. If there's no one else she will quarrel with the stewardess. This experiment of yours is to run for six months; in less than five weeks there will be war to the knife declaring itself in half a dozen different directions."
< 2 >

"Oh, come, there are only eight women in the party; they won't pick quarrels quite so soon as that," protested Reggie.
"They won't all originate quarrels, perhaps," conceded the Major, "but they will all take sides, and just as Christmas is upon you, with its conventions of peace and good will, you will find yourself in for a glacial epoch of cold, unforgiving hostility, with an occasional Etna flare of open warfare. You can't help it, old boy; but, at any rate, you can't say you were not warned."
The first five weeks of the venture falsified Major Dagberry's prediction and justified Reggie's optimism. There were, of course, occasional small bickerings, and the existence of certain jealousies might be detected below the surface of everyday intercourse; but, on the whole, the womenfolk got on remarkably well together. There was, however, a notable exception. It had not taken five weeks for Mrs. Pentherby to get herself cordially disliked by the members of her own sex; five days had been amply sufficient. Most of the women declared that they had detested her the moment they set eyes on her; but that was probably an afterthought.
With the menfolk she got on well enough, without being of the type of woman who can only bask in male society; neither was she lacking in the general qualities which make an individual useful and desirable as a member of a co-operative community. She did not try to "get the better of" her fellow-hosts by snatching little advantages or cleverly evading her just contributions; she was not inclined to be boring or snobbish in the way of personal reminiscence. She played a fair game of bridge, and her card-room manners were irreproachable. But wherever she came in contact with her own sex the light of battle kindled at once; her talent of arousing animosity seemed to border on positive genius.
Whether the object of her attentions was thick-skinned or sensitive, quick-tempered or good-natured, Mrs. Pentherby managed to achieve the same effect. She exposed little weaknesses, she prodded sore places, she snubbed enthusiasms, she was generally right in a matter of argument, or, if wrong, she somehow contrived to make her adversary appear foolish and opinionated. She did, and said, horrible things in a matter-of-fact innocent way, and she did, and said, matter-of-fact innocent things in a horrible way. In short, the unanimous feminine verdict on her was that she was objectionable.
< 3 >

There was no question of taking sides, as the Major had anticipated; in fact, dislike of Mrs. Pentherby was almost a bond of union between the other women, and more than one threatening disagreement had been rapidly dissipated by her obvious and malicious attempts to inflame and extend it; and the most irritating thing about her was her successful assumption of unruffled composure at moments when the tempers of her adversaries were with difficulty kept under control. She made her most scathing remarks in the tone of a tube conductor announcing that the next station is Brompton Road -- the measured, listless tone of one who knows he is right, but is utterly indifferent to the fact that he proclaims.
On one occasion Mrs. Val Gwepton, who was not blessed with the most reposeful of temperaments, fairly let herself go, and gave Mrs. Pentherby a vivid and truthful resume of her opinion of her. The object of this unpent storm of accumulated animosity waited patiently for a lull, and then remarked quietly to the angry little woman -
"And now, my dear Mrs. Gwepton, let me tell you something that I've been wanting to say for the last two or three minutes, only you wouldn't given me a chance; you've got a hairpin dropping out on the left side. You thin-haired women always find it difficult to keep your hairpins in."
"What can one do with a woman like that?" Mrs. Val demanded afterwards of a sympathising audience.
Of course, Reggie received numerous hints as to the unpopularity of this jarring personality. His sister-in-law openly tackled him on the subject of her many enormities. Reggie listened with the attenuated regret that one bestows on an earthquake disaster in Bolivia or a crop failure in Eastern Turkestan, events which seem so distant that one can almost persuade oneself they haven't happened.
"That woman has got some hold over him," opined his sister-in-law, darkly; "either she is helping him to finance the show, and presumes on the fact, or else, which Heaven forbid, he's got some queer infatuation for her. Men do take the most extraordinary fancies."
Matters never came exactly to a crisis. Mrs. Pentherby, as a source of personal offence, spread herself over so wide an area that no one woman of the party felt impelled to rise up and declare that she absolutely refused to stay another week in the same house with her. What is everybody's tragedy is nobody's tragedy. There was ever a certain consolation in comparing notes as to specific acts of offence. Reggie's sister-in-law had the added interest of trying to discover the secret bond which blunted his condemnation of Mrs. Pentherby's long catalogue of misdeeds. There was little to go on from his manner towards her in public, but he remained obstinately unimpressed by anything that was said against her in private.
< 4 >

With the one exception of Mrs. Pentherby's unpopularity, the houseparty scheme was a success on its first trial, and there was no difficulty about reconstructing it on the same lines for another winter session. It so happened that most of the women of the party, and two or three of the men, would not be available on this occasion, but Reggie had laid his plans well ahead and booked plenty of "fresh blood" for the departure. It would be, if any thing, rather a larger party than before.
"I'm so sorry I can't join this winter," said Reggie's sister-inlaw, "but we must go to our cousins in Ireland; we've put them off so often. What a shame! You'll have none of the same women this time."
"Excepting Mrs. Pentherby," said Reggie, demurely.
"Mrs. Pentherby! surely, Reggie, you're not going to be so idiotic as to have that woman again! She'll set all the women's backs up just as she did this time. What is this mysterious hold she's go over you?"
"She's invaluable," said Reggie; "she's my official quarreller."
"Your -- what did you say?" gasped his sister-in-law.
"I introduced her into the house-party for the express purpose of concentrating the feuds and quarrelling that would otherwise have broken out in all directions among the womenkind. I didn't need the advice and warning of sundry friends to foresee that we shouldn't get through six months of close companionship without a certain amount of pecking and sparring, so I thought the best thing was to localise and sterilise it in one process. Of course, I made it well worth the lady's while, and as she didn't know any of you from Adam, and you don't even know her real name, she didn't mind getting herself disliked in a useful cause."
"You mean to say she was in the know all the time?"
"Of course she was, and so were one or two of the men, so she was able to have a good laugh with us behind the scenes when she'd done anything particularly outrageous. And she really enjoyed herself. You see, she's in the position of poor relation in a rather pugnacious family, and her life has been largely spent in smoothing over other people's quarrels. You can imagine the welcome relief of being able to go about saying and doing perfectly exasperating things to a whole houseful of women -- and all in the cause of peace."
< 5 >

"I think you are the most odious person in the whole world," said Reggie's sister-in-law. Which was not strictly true; more than anybody, more than ever she disliked Mrs. Pentherby. It was impossible to calculate how many quarrels that woman had done her out of.

2010-02-08T14:34:00.001+08:00

My Friend Luke

I have a friend who must be the sweetest, shyest person in the world. His name is brittle and ancient (Luke), his age modestly intermediate (forty). He is rather short and skinny, has a thin moustache and even thinner hair on his head. Since his vision is not perfect, he wears glasses: they are small, round and frame-less.
In order not to inconvenience anyone, he always walks sideways. Instead of saying 'Excuse me', he prefers to glide by one side. If the gap is so narrow that it will not allow him to pass, Luke waits patiently until the obstruction -- be it animate or inanimate, rational or irrational -- moves by itself. Stray dogs and cats panic him, and in order to avoid them he constantly crosses from one side to of the road to another.
He speaks with a very thin, subtle voice, so inaudible that it is hard to tell if he is speaking at all. He has never interrupted anybody. On the other hand, he can never manage more than two words without somebody interrupting him. This does not seem to irritate him; in fact, he actually appears happy to have been able to utter those two words.
My friend Luke has been married for years. His wife is a thin, choleric, nervous woman who, as well as having an unbearably shrill voice, strong lungs, a finely drawn nose and a viperous tongue suffers from an uncontrollable temper and the personality of a lion tamer. Luke -- you have to wonder how -- has succeeded in producing a child named (by his mother) Juan Manuel. He is tall, blond, intelligent, distrustful, sarcastic and has a fringe. It is not entirely true that he only obeys his mother. However, the two of them have always agreed that Luke has little to offer the world and therefore choose to ignore his scarce and rarely expressed opinions.
Luke is the oldest and the least important employee of a dismal company that imports cloth. It operates out of a very dark building with black-stained wooden floors situated in Alsina street. The owner -- I know him personally -- is called don Aqueróntido -- I don't know whether that is his first name or his surname -- and he has a ferocious moustache, is bald and has a thunderous voice. He is also violent and greedy. My friend Luke goes to work dressed all in black, wearing a very old suit that shines from age. He only owns one shirt -- the one he wore for the first time on the day of his marriage -- and it has an anachronistic plastic collar. He also only owns one tie, so frayed and greasy that it looks more like a shoelace. Unable to bear the disapproving looks of don Aqueróntido, Luke, unlike his colleagues, does not dare work without his jacket on and in order to keep this jacket in good condition he wears a pair of grey sleeve-protectors. His salary is ludicrously low, but he still stays behind in the office every day and works for another three or four hours: the tasks don Aqueróntido gives him are so huge that he has no chance of accomplishing them within normal hours. Now, just after the don Aqueróntido cut his salary yet again, his wife has decided that Juan Manuel must not do his secondary studies in a state school. She has chosen to put his name down for a very costly institution in the Belgrano area. In view of the extortionate outlay this involves, Luke has stopped buying his newspaper and (an even greater sacrifice) The Reader's Digest, his two favourite publications. The last article he managed to read in the Reader's Digest explained how husbands should repress their own overwhelming personality in order to make room for the actualisation of the rest of the family group.
< 2 >

*

There is, however, one remarkable aspect to Luke: his behaviour as soon as he steps on a bus. Generally, this is what happens:
He requests a ticket and begins to look for his money, slowly. He holds up one hand to ensure that the driver keeps waiting, unsure of what to do. Luke does not hurry. In fact, I would say that the driver's impatience gives him a certain amount of pleasure. Then he pays with the largest possible number of small coins, which he delivers a few at the time, in varying amounts and at irregular intervals. For some reason, this disturbs the driver, who, apart from having to pay attention to other cars, the traffic lights, other passengers getting on or off, and having to drive the bus itself, is forced to perform complicated arithmetic. Luke aggravates the problem by including in his payment an old Paraguayan coin that he keeps for the purpose and which is invariably returned to him. This way, mistakes are usually made in the accounts and an argument ensues. Then, in a serene but firm manner, Luke begins to defend his rights, employing arguments so contradictory that it is impossible to understand what point he is actually trying to make. Finally, the driver, at the end of the last tether of his sanity and in an act of final resignation, chooses to throw out the coins -- perhaps as a means of repressing his wish to throw out Luke or, indeed, himself.
When winter comes, Luke always travels with the windows wide open. The first to suffer as a result of this is Luke himself: he has developed a chronic cough that often forces him to stay awake entire nights. During the summer, he closes his window and will not allow anyone to lower the shade that would protect him from the sun. More than once he has ended up with first-degree burns.
Because of his weak lungs, Luke is not allowed to smoke and, in fact, he hates smoking. In spite of this, once inside the bus he cannot resist the temptation to light up a cheap, heavy cigar that clogs up his windpipe and makes him cough. After he gets off, he puts away his cigar in preparation for his next journey.
Luke is a tiny, sedentary, squalid person and has never been interested in sports. But come Saturday evening, he switches on his portable radio and turns the volume up full in order to follow the boxing match. Sundays he dedicates to football and tortures the rest of the passengers with the noisy broadcasts.
< 3 >

The back seat is for five passengers. In spite of his very small size, Luke sits so as to allow room for only four or even three people on the seat. If four are already seated and Luke is standing up, he demands permission, in an indignant and reproachful tone, to sit down -- which he then does, managing to take up an excessive amount of space. To this end, he puts his hands in his pockets so that his elbows will remain firmly embedded in his neighbours' ribs.
Luke's resources are plentiful and diverse.
When he has to travel standing up, he always keeps his jacket unbuttoned, carefully adjusting his posture so that the lower edge of his jacket hits the face or the eyes of those sitting down.
If anyone is reading, they are easy prey for Luke. Watching him or her closely, Luke places his head near the light so as to throw a shadow on the victim's book. Every now and then he withdraws his head as if by chance. The reader will anxiously devour one or two words before Luke moves back into position.
My friend Luke knows the times when the bus will be fully packed. On those occasions, he consumes a salami sandwich and a glass of red wine. Then, with breadcrumbs and threads of salami still between his teeth and pointing his mouth towards the other passenger's noses, he walks along the vehicle shouting loudly, 'Excuse me'.
If he manages to take the front seat, he never gives it up to anyone. But should he find himself in one of the last rows, the moment he sees a woman with a child in her arms or a weak, elderly person climb on board he immediately stands up and calls very loudly to the front passenger to offer them his seat. Later he usually makes some recriminatory remark against those that kept their seats. His eloquence is always effective, and some mortally ashamed passenger gets off at the next stop. Instantly, Luke takes his place.

*

My friend Luke gets off the bus in a very good mood. Timidly, he walks home, staying out of the way of anyone he meets. He is not allowed a key, so he has to ring the bell. If anyone is home, they rarely refuse to open the door to him. But if neither his wife, his son nor don Aqueróntido are to be found, Luke sits on the doorstep until someone arrives.

2010-02-08T14:31:00.000+08:00

Louise

"The tea will be quite cold, you'd better ring for some more," said the Dowager Lady Beanford.

Susan Lady Beanford was a vigorous old woman who had coquetted with imaginary ill-health for the greater part of a lifetime; Clovis Sangrail irreverently declared that she had caught a chill at the Coronation of Queen Victoria and had never let it go again. Her sister, Jane Thropplestance, who was some years her junior, was chiefly remarkable for being the most absent-minded woman in Middlesex.

"I've really been unusually clever this afternoon," she remarked gaily, as she rang for the tea. "I've called on all the people I meant to call on; and I've done all the shopping that I set out to do. I even remembered to try and match that silk for you at Harrod's, but I'd forgotten to bring the pattern with me, so it was no use. I really think that was the only important thing I forgot during the whole afternoon. Quite wonderful for me, isn't it?"

"What have you done with Louise?" asked her sister. "Didn't you take her out with you? You said you were going to."

"Good gracious," exclaimed Jane, "what have I done with Louise? I must have left her somewhere."

"But where?"

"That's just it. Where have I left her? I can't remember if the Carrywoods were at home or if I just left cards. If there were at home I may have left Louise there to play bridge. I'll go and telephone to Lord Carrywood and find out."

"Is that you, Lord Carrywood?" she queried over the telephone; "it's me, Jane Thropplestance. I want to know, have you seen Louise?"

"'Louise,'" came the answer, "it's been my fate to see it three times. At first, I must admit, I wasn't impressed by it, but the music grows on one after a bit. Still, I don't think I want to see it again just at present. Were you going to offer me a seat in your box?"

"Not the opera 'Louise' -- my niece, Louise Thropplestance. I thought I might have left her at your house."

"You left cards on us this afternoon, I understand, but I don't think you left a niece. The footman would have been sure to have mentioned it if you had. Is it going to be a fashion to leave nieces on people as well as cards? I hope not; some of these houses in Berkeley-square have practically no accommodation for that sort of thing."

"She's not at the Carrywoods'," announced Jane, returning to her tea; "now I come to think of it, perhaps I left her at the silk counter at Selfridge's. I may have told her to wait there a moment while I went to look at the silks in a better light, and I may easily have forgotten about her when I found I hadn't your pattern with me. In that case she's still sitting there. She wouldn't move unless she was told to; Louise has no initiative."

"You said you tried to match the silk at Harrod's," interjected the dowager.
"Did I? Perhaps it was Harrod's. I really don't remember. It was one of those places where every one is so kind and sympathetic and devoted that one almost hates to take even a reel of cotton away from such pleasant surroundings."

"I think you might have taken Louise away. I don't like the idea of her being there among a lot of strangers. Supposing some unprincipled person was to get into conversation with her."

"Impossible. Louise has no conversation. I've never discovered a single topic on which she'd anything to say beyond 'Do you think so? I dare say you're right.' I really thought her reticence about the fall of the Ribot Ministry was ridiculous, considering how much her dear mother used to visit Paris. This bread and butter is cut far too thin; it crumbles away long before you can get it to your mouth. One feels so absurd, snapping at one's food in mid-air, like a trout leaping at may-fly."

"I am rather surprised," said the dowager, "that you can sit there making a hearty tea when you've just lost a favourite niece."

"You talk as if I'd lost her in a churchyard sense, instead of having temporarily mislaid her. I'm sure to remember presently where I left her."

"You didn't visit any place of devotion, did you? If you've left her mooning about Westminster Abbey or St. Peter's, Eaton Square, without being able to give any satisfactory reason why she's there, she'll be seized under the Cat and Mouse Act and sent to Reginald McKenna."

"That would be extremely awkward," said Jane, meeting an irresolute piece of bread and butter halfway; "we hardly know the McKennas, and it would be very tiresome having to telephone to some unsympathetic private secretary, describing Louise to him and asking to have her sent back in time for dinner. Fortunately, I didn't go to any place of devotion, though I did get mixed up with a Salvation Army procession. It was quite interesting to be at close quarters with them, they're so absolutely different to what they used to be when I first remember them in the 'eighties. They used to go about then unkempt and dishevelled, in a sort of smiling rage with the world, and now they're spruce and jaunty and flamboyantly decorative, like a geranium bed with religious convictions. Laura Kettleway was going on about them in the lift of the Dover Street Tube the other day, saying what a lot of good work they did, and what a loss it would have been if they'd never existed. 'If they had never existed,' I said, 'Granville Barker would have been certain to have invented something that looked exactly like them.' If you say things like that, quite loud, in a Tube lift, they always sound like epigrams."

"I think you ought to do something about Louise," said the dowager.

"I'm trying to think whether she was with me when I called on Ada Spelvexit. I rather enjoyed myself there. Ada was trying, as usual, to ram that odious Koriatoffski woman down my throat, knowing perfectly well that I detest her, and in an unguarded moment she said: 'She's leaving her present house and going to Lower Seymour Street.' 'I dare say she will, if she stays there long enough,' I said. Ada didn't see it for about three minutes, and then she was positively uncivil. No, I am certain I didn't leave Louise there."

"If you could manage to remember where you did leave her, it would be more to the point than these negative assurances," said Lady Beanford; "so far, all we know is that she is not at the Carrywoods', or Ada Spelvexit's, or Westminster Abbey."

"That narrows the search down a bit," said Jane hopefully; "I rather fancy she must have been with me when I went to Mornay's. I know I went to Mornay's, because I remember meeting that delightful Malcolm What's-his-name there -- you know whom I mean. That's the great advantage of people having unusual first names, you needn't try and remember what their other name is. Of course I know one or two other Malcolms, but none that could possibly be described as delightful. He gave me two tickets for the Happy Sunday Evenings in Sloane Square. I've probably left them at Mornay's, but still it was awfully kind of him to give them to me."

"Do you think you left Louise there?"

"I might telephone and ask. Oh, Robert, before you clear the teathings away I wish you'd ring up Mornay's, in Regent Street, and ask if I left two theatre tickets and one niece in their shop this afternoon."

"A niece, ma'am?" asked the footman.

"Yes, Miss Louise didn't come home with me, and I'm not sure where I left her."
"Miss Louise has been upstairs all the afternoon, ma'am, reading to the second kitchenmaid, who has the neuralgia. I took up tea to Miss Louise at a quarter to five o'clock, ma'am."

"Of course, how silly of me. I remember now, I asked her to read the Faerie Queene to poor Emma, to try to send her to sleep. I always get some one to read the Faerie Queene to me when I have neuralgia, and it usually sends me to sleep. Louise doesn't seem to have been successful, but one can't say she hasn't tried. I expect after the first hour or so the kitchenmaid would rather have been left alone with her neuralgia, but of course Louise wouldn't leave off till some one told her to. Anyhow, you can ring up Mornay's, Robert, and ask whether I left two theatre tickets there. Except for your silk, Susan, those seem to be the only things I've forgotten this afternoon. Quite wonderful for me."

Short Stories

2010-02-08T13:07:00.001+08:00

The Spirit of Emulation

Among the inhabitants of the apartment building on Paraguay Street, where I live, the spirit of emulation is quite intense.

It's true that for a long time they limited themselves to rivaling one another in dogs, cats, canaries or parrots. The most exotic among them never went beyond little squirrels or a turtle. I myself had a beautiful German shepherd named Joey that was just slightly smaller than our apartment. However, besides Joey - and this was something completely unknown -, there lived with my wife and me a lovely spider of the species Lycosa pampeana.

One morning, at nine o'clock, while I was feeding my pet, the neighbor from 7-C - whom I had never even seen before - came by to borrow my newspaper for a moment, for who knows what confused reason. Afterwards, without managing to leave, he just stood there for a long time with the newspaper in his hand. He was staring, fascinated, at Gertrude, and in his stare there was something that made me shudder. It was the spirit of emulation.

The next day he came by to show me the scorpion he had just bought. In the hallway, the maid of the people who live in 7-D overheard our dialogue on the life, habits and feeding of spiders, scorpions and ticks. That very afternoon her employers acquired a crab.

Then, for a week, there was nothing new of note. Until one evening when I happened to be on the elevator with one of the neighbor women on the third floor: a languid, young blonde with one of those vacant stares in her eyes. She was carrying a big, yellow purse, the zipper of which was partially broken: every little while, through one of the breaks, there would poke out the tiny head of a golden yellow lizard.

The following noon, as I was returning from the grocery store, the bags almost flipped out of my hands when I bumped headlong into the large ant bear (or anteater) which was being lowered from a truck, en route to the doorman's office. One of the many onlookers who had congregated there mumbled - in a voice loud enough to be heard - that in truth the ant bear was not a real bear. The attorney's wife looked startled at this, and ran, trembling, to take refuge in her apartment. I didn't see her reappear until a few days later when, with a radiant and disdainful face, she came out to sign the receipt for the freight delivery men who had just brought her an American brown bear.
< 2 >

My situation was now becoming untenable. The neighbors denied me their greetings, the butcher refused me credit, and I was receiving insulting anonymous letters every day. Finally, when my wife threatened me with separation, I realized I could no longer endure an insignificant Lycosa pampeana a single day more. I then entered upon an unprecedented round of activities. I borrowed money from several friends, I became indescribably frugal, I stopped smoking... In this way I was able to purchase the most marvelous leopard you can imagine. Immediately, the fellow in 7-C, who always followed right in my footsteps, tried to outdo me with a jaguar. And, although it may seem illogical, he succeeded.

What hurts me most is dealing with people who lack aesthetic sensitivity, people who don't perceive quality, people who are merely quantitative. There wasn't a single neighbor who bowed before the superior beauty of my leopard; their understanding had been blinded by the greater size of the jaguar. At once, all the neighbors, spurred on by the boastful air of the jaguar's owner, gave themselves over to renewing their animals. I had to recognize that my humble leopard no longer provided me with my former status.

In the face of stealthy telephone conversations my wife was having with some anonymous gentleman, I saw that my only alternative was ironclad. With no remorse whatsoever, I sold the furniture, the refrigerator, the washing machine and the floor-waxer. I even sold the television. In short, I sold everything that could be sold, and I bought an enormous anaconda boa constrictor.

A poor man's life is hard: for only three days was I the hero of the building.

My anaconda boa broke every dike, it destroyed every sense of moderation, it brought down the most respected conventions. In all the apartments there now multiplied lions, tigers, gorillas, crocodiles ... Some even had black panthers, those panthers they don't even have in the municipal zoo. The whole building resounded with roaring, howling and chattering. We spent the nights awake; it was impossible to sleep. The intermingled odors of felines, quadrumanes, reptiles and ruminants turned the atmosphere unbreathable. Huge trucks brought tons of meat, fish and vegetables. Life in the building on Paraguay street became a little dangerous.

After a very long time, I had a disturbing experience when I once again shared the elevator with the languid, young neighbor woman on the third floor, who was now taking her Bengal tiger out for a walk around the block to go pee-pee. I recalled her lizard that stuck its tiny head out through an opening in the zipper. I felt moved to tenderness. How far behind we had left those first, difficult and quixotic days of scorpions and crabs!
< 3 >

Finally there came a moment when nobody could be trusted. The doorman, under the tense surveillance of several of the apartment owners, washed his two-horned rhinoceros with soap and water out on the sidewalk, and then - as if nothing had happened - he herded it into his apartment. This was more than the man in 5-A was accustomed to putting up with; a few hours later he triumphantly ascended the stairs, leading his hippopotamus by its bridle.

The building is now flooded and semi-destroyed. I am composing this report on the roof, in unfavorable conditions. Every so often, I'm startled by the plaintive trumpeting of the elephant that lives with the people in 7-A. I'm writing with my watch in view, since, at eight-minute intervals, I must take shelter amidst the ruins of the stairway so that the jet stream of vapor ejected by the blue whale in 7-C does not ruin these pages. And I write with a certain uneasiness, being, as I am, under the imploring gaze of the giraffe in 7-D, which, by sticking its head up over the wall, never ceases, for even one second, begging crackers from me.

Translated from the Spanish by Thomas C. Meehan

[From Imperios y servidumbres, Barcelona: Editorial Seix Barral, 1972.]

Short Stories

2010-02-08T11:18:00.002+08:00

I have been reading a couple of short stories online, and i found some which are really quite entertaining. Especially the re-written ones by Ambrose Bierce. (:
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The Hare & The Tortoise

A Hare having ridiculed the slow movements of a Tortoise, was challenged by the latter to run a race, a Fox to go to the goal and be the judge. They got off well together, the hare at the top of her speed, the Tortoise, who had no other intention than making his antagonist exert herself, going very leisurely. After sauntering along for some time he discovered the Hare by the wayside, apparently asleep, and seeing a chance to win pushed on as fast as he could, arriving at the goal hours afterward, suffering from extreme fatigue and claiming the victory.

"Not so," said the Fox; "the Hare was here long ago, and went back to cheer you on your way."
_______________________________

The Devoted Widow

A widow weeping on her husband's grave was approached by an Engaging Gentleman who, in a respectful manner, assured her that he had long entertained for her the most tender feelings.

"Wretch!" cried the Widow. "Leave me this instant! Is this a time to talk to me of love?"

"I assure you, madam, that I had not intended to disclose my affection," the Engaging Gentleman humbly explained, "but the power of your beauty has overcome my discretion."

"You should see me when I have not been crying," said the Widow.
_______________________________

Revenge

An Insurance Agent was trying to induce a Hard Man to Deal With to take out a policy on his house. After listening to him for an hour, while he painted in vivid colours the extreme danger of fire consuming the house, the Hard Man to Deal With said:

"Do you really think it likely that my house will burn down inside the time that policy will run?"

"Certainly," replied the Insurance Agent; "have I not been trying all this time to convince you that I do?"

"Then," said the Hard Man to Deal With, "why are you so anxious to have your Company bet me money that it will not?"

The Agent was silent and thoughtful for a moment; then he drew the other apart into an unfrequented place and whispered in his ear:

"My friend, I will impart to you a dark secret. Years ago the Company betrayed my sweetheart by promise of marriage. Under an assumed name I have wormed myself into its service for revenge; and as there is a heaven above us, I will have its heart's blood!"
___________________________

Two Kings

THE King of Madagao, being engaged in a dispute with the King of
Bornegascar, wrote him as follows:

"Before proceeding further in this matter I demand the recall of
your Minister from my capital."

Greatly enraged by this impossible demand, the King of Bornegascar
replied:

"I shall not recall my Minister. Moreover, if you do not
immediately retract your demand I shall withdraw him!"

This threat so terrified the King of Madagao that in hastening to
comply he fell over his own feet, breaking the Third Commandment.
_____________________________

Father and Son

"MY boy," said an aged Father to his fiery and disobedient Son, "a
hot temper is the soil of remorse. Promise me that when next you
are angry you will count one hundred before you move or speak."

No sooner had the Son promised than he received a stinging blow
from the paternal walking-stick, and by the time he had counted to
seventy-five had the unhappiness to see the old man jump into a
waiting cab and whirl away.
____________________________

The Angel's Tear

AN Unworthy Man who had laughed at the woes of a Woman whom he
loved, was bewailing his indiscretion in sack-cloth-of-gold and
ashes-of-roses, when the Angel of Compassion looked down upon him,
saying:

"Poor mortal! - how unblest not to know the wickedness of laughing
at another's misfortune!"

So saying, he let fall a great tear, which, encountering in its
descent a current of cold air, was congealed into a hail-stone.
This struck the Unworthy Man on the head and set him rubbing that
bruised organ vigorously with one hand while vainly attempting to
expand an umbrella with the other.

Thereat the Angel of Compassion did most shamelessly and wickedly
laugh.

Updates

2010-02-06T22:27:00.000+08:00

I Got A New Job! 4hr, $15/hr, Lot1, Dian Xiao Er :DDDDDDD
They are giving us such good pay cos its on the eve of CNY. 530pm-930pm.
Its a good thing my CNY dinners ("Tuan Yuan Fan") are on Tueesday and Wednesday so i can make it for the Sat one. My aunt and mum were joking that we should go help out together as a family since none of us have CNY dinner on that day. Easy $60 bucks! Just to rearrange chairs and clear tables. :DD
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I finally got an epiphany as to what i have been making every year for Thanksgiving. The eggy dish i make every year is known as Deviled Eggs! Yeah (:
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Brutus, or BooBoo, (as David ong's sis calls him) came today and is staying the night so we can see how he adapts to our place. If this works out, he'll stay at over place for 10days from 24feb as his owners (Bro David's parents) go overseas on a holiday. Update on him soon! Basically, interesting things...

Brutus:
-is 12 years old. Thats an 84 year old man.
-Is not sterilized.
-Gives me scratch marks on my legs. ALOT. Not the attacking kind, though, he is as gentle as...i dunno. Lol.
-David Ong's Sis calls him "Little old Man"/ "Booboo" (Mummy calls him bobo -.-") I stick with Booboo :D
-Humps me, thats why i have so many scratches on my legs, actually -.-"
(Mummy said "Is that him humping?" when he made a hurrmph sound while snuffling around. Since i NOW know what humping means, i was ROFL)
-Super adorable! But after awhile my hands have doggy-smell though. So do my clothes.

<3s
-Have to clear his plate (of food) before i turn in for the night... prob will go down and clear after blogging. Cos its in the garden, so my parents are quite ANT-SY about it ;P

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<3s again
"Orange Risotto"
"For your 21st Birthday" -.-"

I Keep Missing friends' birthday celebrations :( twice or thrice already! And this time i already bought the eclairs and all. Its just busy man, and the travelling takes up alot of time so i always end up not going :(

2010-02-05T21:58:00.000+08:00

I am going insane. This must be the 6th person from Venture Era who contacted me. CAN'T THESE PEOPLE JUST PUT THEIR COMPANY NAME WHEN THEY ADVERTISE ON GUMTREE!?

Or, when i reply to their offer. Can't they just SMS ME INSTEAD OF IMMEDIATELY CALLING ME.

And, they REALLY seem to abhor their company. Even when they call and ask you to go for the interview, they REFUSE to mention their company name! They just tell you the address. Its a good thing i've memorised it... so when they say
".. just come down for the interview tomorrow to see howthings are like and then decide if you want to join us?"

Me: "Oh... haha okay. Which company is this, by the way? And...Where is it?"

Them: *conveniently ignoring the first qn* "Oh, its at 190 Changi Rd, nearest mrt station is Eunos"

Me: " ................. is your company Venture Era?"

Them: *pause* "Oh, yes it is! How did you know?"

Me: "Because... 5 people have called me before."
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Im honestly not against them. Its just that since i know im not gonna join them (since like practically EVERYONE around me is not comfortable with me joining it), i would prefer not to waste my time applying for a position which i am not allowed to go for ANYWAY.

And they really always like to call. Some are pretty nice (like the girl, i forgot her name. And Kelvin.). But most are insistent. Some are VERY insistent. I really don't like people who try to force me to go for interviews, its crazy.
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Also, Subway is out. HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA to that person.

You Got Me!

2010-02-05T21:25:00.000+08:00

Things that 'Got Me':

1. "Ha ha ha you're so funny" was David Ong's sister's reply when i told her i finally knew what she meant when she warned me about her dog 'humping'. First-hand experience from Snowball! its not that bad lah.

2. "Ok ok... this idiot will pay to hear you sing"

3. Lukas Seet

4. "Scandal". -.-" Lol

2010-02-05T00:11:00.000+08:00

I remember that Pastor's message this Wednesday struck me. about how your life is not only made up of things you choose NOT to do, but also the things we choose to DO. Its Both, hand-in-hand! (: In this certain period of time, if we choose NOT to play our games, we must choose something else to do. I guess it struck me cos it was a revelation for me in... Dec 2006. About how when we choose NOT to think on certain things, we can ONLY accomplish it by thinking on OTHER things (thats why i honestly don't really believe in the meditation & 'clearing of the mind'.) Its impossible to NOT THINK of something, it will keep creeping back to you UNLESS you think of something ELSE in its place! :D

A Cup Of Comfort For Mothers & Daughters

2010-02-04T23:44:00.000+08:00

Excerpt from 'A Cup Of Comfort For Mothers & Daughters'; 'Great Expectations':

"At the heart of my discomfort, is this knowledge: I have become my mother. The cycle is repeating itself, in spite of my best intentions. I, who so chafed at my mother's inflexibility and lack of understanding, am treating my daughter the exact same way. I loved school; therefore you, too, must love school. I was college-bound; therefore you must be, too. My expectations of Morgan are not her problem. They're mine. But m initial, palpable disappointment in her announcement ("i'm not going to college!") is her problem, for I know she is translating it into my loss of love for her. That is a problem I must fix.

It's a precision dance, mothering. How do you have standards for your children and still love and accept them completely? How do you transcend your own experience as the yardstick for measuring their lives? How do you help them to grow, even as they make choices you can't stand?"

(`:
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Things Have Been Different Now.

2010-02-04T09:09:00.000+08:00

Yeah, they really have, after exams!

Besides the more obvious ones like:
-I don't have to wake up at ridiculous timings to go to school
-I don't have to GO to school
-I have muuuch more 'free' time
-I actually went overseas (sat a plane, rode on a horse, blah, all that jazz)

Also, among other things,
-I started going on MSN. Like, actually GOING. Now its auto-sign-in on my lappy!
-My crazy 'Spring Cleaning' has finally started. Now, i am freeing up space on my dad's Comp ;P
-I have actually been looking for jobs
-I have been making more new friends
-I realise i actually clique with more people than i realised
-I have been more exposed to the 'real world', albeit slowly, since my jobhunts so far include my principle of NO DESK JOBS (and therefore no office politics ;D )
-My eyes have been opened... more.

And, more recently (like REALLY recently),
-I have been meeting many old friends (from PL, TJ... okay the TJ ones are not very old)like in NUS yesterday!
-I realised that when you go to Uni, REALLY, the guys are 2years older! (Cos i was wondering, after meeting like a gazillion people i know, why they are all girls) Weird right.
-THEN, i realised that when its MY turn to go Uni, I will be meeting all the guys i know, not all the girls i know -.-" (cos i retained 2yrs lol)
-Alot of people have been adding me on MSN. Weird people. I don't know, maybe some joker wrote my email somewhere on a forum and people are adding me? Cos its like SUDDENLY.
-I have been having the weirdest dreams! HONESTLY.