It really has been a while since I last posted anything of much interest on this blog. Heck, I have my own blog and even that I don't update as much as I would like to. So I've decided to drag myself to the dashboard and start typing woohooo =P
I've been reading lots of Warhammer 40K books of late, and the storyline of this particular series, The Horus Heresy, basically appeals to me:
1. Tells us that the path of man's good intentions always lead to doom or something like that as the saying goes(I forgot the exact saying).
2. Betrayal (I mean COME ONE, the word Heresy is a dead giveaway riight?)
3. Immaculate descriptions of everything; from war to the five senses of the human body, from planets to landscapes. Use the phrases if you wanna blow your English teacher away to Mars or something.
4. How eugenics is being used and its effects on the human race.
5. MORE BLOOD AND GORE!
6. You're Mom. Whoops, just kidding (;
So here's the story in a nutshell.
It's the year We have the Imperium of Man, which is of course the humans la dey. Their leader is the Emperor of Mankind (fancy title) and after winning control of Terra (that's Earth for us), he's on a Grand Crusade to conquer the outer reaches o the universe to bring glory to Mankind because hey, they just needed a reason to go about killing stuff ^^
Even the Emperor could not be everywhere at the same time, and accordingly he created twenty Primarchs using his own DNA. Primarchs, genetically modified superhuman beings who are second only to him in skill, ability and sheer power and most importantly, completely loyal and devoted to him.
Let's pick up the pace. However while the foetal Primarchs where still maturating inside of womb-vats, the Chaos Gods (bear with me here) somehow managed to spirit them away. Unable to destroy them, they still were able to scatter the Primarchs throughout the galaxy. However not everything was lost, and using samples collected previously from the Primarchs the Emperor was able to create Space Marines. In the creation of a particular legion he only used the material of a single Primarch. This created twenty distinct Space Marines Legions which he led into the Great Crusade. Note, a Space Marine, or commonly known as Astartes, were to a Primarch as the Primarchs were to the Emperor.
So the Emperor of course continued with his Crusade nonetheless, perhaps after watching Meet The Robinsons (the joke is in the context and the moral of the story in the movie =D). But one by one, he stumbled upon his Primarch sons in the worlds that he conquered. The first one to be found, was Horus Lupercal. Yeah, Horus Heresy is about Horus' betrayal of the Emperor. So how did he do it?
I'm too lazy to continue now, and also because it might get a bit too long for just one post, so stay tuned for part 2 (;
Sunday, August 31, 2008
On the Verge
Yeah, an online forum can be much better than a professional counselor or psychologist. Why? Because you don't pay for it. You don't have the impression that people are going out of their way to talk to you because it's their job or because they want your money, but rather because they understand what you're talking about, they've lived it, or they want to help.
Being a professional doesn't mean they can fully understand your situation, or that they ever lived it. It just means they got a diploma and the "knowledge" of psychology.
- Vonterul, GunZFactor Forums
Being a professional doesn't mean they can fully understand your situation, or that they ever lived it. It just means they got a diploma and the "knowledge" of psychology.
- Vonterul, GunZFactor Forums
One of the few places where we can come close to equality is the internet.
Picture largely unrelatedOn the verge...
And on the internet. This is what I found on GunZFactor Forums:
I'm so tempted to commit suicide, I can taste it. I think about it a few times a week. I think I'm gonna do it. There's nothing to stop me, nothing to change my mind. I have no reason to live, I have no support group I'm willing to talk to. You're my god damn support group. This is nearly anonymous. If we're being realistic, I don't even know why I'm making this topic. It's not like you can just say "Don't do it." over and over and it'll calm me down or change my mind. It will postpone it at best. I'm not in a state of depression, I'm in a state of disappointment. Why the **** am I not doing it? Is it some sort of survival instinct kicking in, making me hold back? No amount of music can calm me down. I can't wait to cool down so I forget about my troubles and become numb. I've been numb my whole life. I haven't trusted a single human being. I haven't felt fear in years. I've never been in a good relationship with a girl. I haven't felt alive in... probably a year ago.
-Jackolope
This is one response:
I find it futile to fuel this mans need for attention. I don't have time to sympathize with a guy who is thinking about suicide nor the energy. If he really is thinking about suicide then lets cut the horse**** and call his parents or whoever cares about him and get this **** done. I'm not in the mood to discuss how bad he has it in life.
- Waterbuster
This is another:
I know what you're going through man, and it sucks but you have to change your frame of mind. Change your outlook. It's easier said than done, I know, but that's your major issue. Like someone above me said, your entire life can change at any given point in time. Mine changed about ten months ago when my girlfriend and I split. At the time, she was the only stable thing in my life. She seemed like the only person who gave a damn, and then she really ****ed me over. It wasn't just a split, it was a life altering event. I had to ditch friends I had who were connected to her.. Most of my friends, in fact. Couldn't stand talking to them because everything about them brought up a memory of her. I mean, we were just about inseperable for three years.
Anyway I'm not here to tell you about my problems, but I'm just saying that I know what it feels like to have virtually nothing to look forward to in life. And I can tell you now that it's your mind, not your situation. Your mind might be affected by your situation, sure, but that doesn't mean it's permanent. Make lemons into lemonade, as they say. You have nothing? Make something. Do something. Do you have a job? If not, go get one. If so, ask for more hours. Save up a lot of money and start doing something you really like. Hang out with friends more and go out and socialize. Go paintballing or something like that. Hell, I dunno, whatever you're into. Point being, the fact that you can leave everything behind and just start over fresh means that you're capable of turning any situation into a win situation, as long as you have the mentality to back it up. And that means you can't just read what I'm saying, but you need to absorb it and really THINK about it and REALIZE what I'm telling you, don't just skim over it because you know the basic routine I'm typing out here.
I hope you feel better man. If you ever find yourself close to it or thinking about it, just remember that the only people who suicide are the people who didn't give themselves a chance to get over it.
-Paul
So, is Jackolope serious? Regardless of whether or not in this instance, a real person, sitting behind a real computer, is entertaining real dreams of suicide, the world (or at least the part that cares) is going to have to accept that the internet is no longer some sort of advanced telephone that lets you play games as a sidebar. Pitifully few people recognize what the internet is: it's a connection to the rest of the frickin' world. It's a world of it's own. It has its own culture, its own factions, its own laws. Too often we underestimate this fact, or choose to see only the aspects that are immediately useful to us.
Even if Jackolope is a troll and is faking it for attention, logical deduction based on the popularity and growing influence of the internet shows that people do treat other netizens, as real people. (Maybe that's because they are.)
We've already seen the evidence in many internet romances (failures and the underreported successes) and friendships (I have seen proof of this myself). The internet is no longer simply a place where people share funny jpegs. It is also a place for them to laugh about them together.
And yes, it has also become a place where people come to make very real real-world decisions. Look back at what Jackolope said above:
I have no reason to live, I have no support group I'm willing to talk to. You're my god damn support group.
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Okay, time to go do my maths after I type this.
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Mikana MIKANA mikana Mikana MIKANA mikana Mikana MIKANA mikana Mikana MIKANA mikana Mikana MIKANA mikana Mikana MIKANA mikana Mikana MIKANA mikana Mikana MIKANA mikana Mikana MIKANA mikana Mikana MIKANA mikana Mikana MIKANA mikana Mikana MIKANA mikana
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Added to list of things I want to write about/feature:
A group of voluntary counselors going around the internet saving lives. The counselors are very young.
That's the kind of stuff we should be seeing on TV, not that sci-fi superhuman crap (I'm looking at YOU, Heroes). That, or something on places like Darfur and Ossetia. Try watching an episode of Pokemon, or listening to your sister rant about sexual fantasies over the phone, or reading some article about a kid who won big bucks in a gaming competition, then turn to the page where they talk about what's going on in Iraq, in North Korea, in Darfur, in Ossetia. If that doesn't put things in perspective for you and make you absolutely loathe the reasons behind modern oversensitivity and censorship, then you need to tell me how you sleep at night, because this is partially why I can't.
People preferring to watch their Sunday cartoons so they can ignore the difficulties of others around the world. Then they go to their church or mosque or whatever, and then they pray for the welfare of themselves and their families. Makes my stomach turn.
Saturday, August 30, 2008
Debunking Ego accusations: Because it's size was too epic for comment box.
Dear Giant,
Being a writer yourself, you should have some literary experience and thus know that most prominent writers never use CAPITAL LETTERS for serious emphasis; it's almost always italics. The only time you see capital letters being used for this purpose is from the scripts of amateurs or the internet. Or when italics are unavailable.
Except in the comment box, italics are available for blogspot.
And before you jump to an assumption, non-capitalised does not necessarily confirm a non-joke, nor vice-versa.
And now to do this wall of text case-by-case:
1.
Benedict as PREDATOR
Benedict looking for girls on the internet. I don't know how you missed this, but the voice of the cameraman - was clearly tongue-in-cheek. The manner in which I showed people was the same. It's not meant to make people disgusted at Benedict or defame him. For proof:
Whereas TOFU, and I suspect, quite a number of people were deriding Benedict's slow mental capacity, I eventually turned around and decided to put a stop to it on (mainly) a personal level.
How many times have I mentioned that I watch porn and alluded to taking pictures of Mikana? If that isn't a glaring double standard, and in turn an obvious indication of the joking tone of the video...
And I haven't even begun on how 'predator' is another obvious exaggeration, which does not even depend on whether the video is legit.
2.
Pebble Fuckers
Obviously you don't consider me as part of the Pebble Fort authors, since I myself am a "Pebble Fucker".
It's a obvious joke, dammit.
3.
Thaksin's daughter
Referring to someone from our school, random reference (Ask TOFU).
4.
Anwar's coffee boy
So you guys can use it as a joke to harass our buddy but I can't use it to say I'm going to beat him?
5.
ALL YOU FUCKS
THIS IS NOT IN CAPITAL LETTERS LOLOL
6.
All your base will belong to ME!
Besides from making no sense whatsoever besides to internet pedestrians (and I don't mean the noobs that frequent Singapore sites and blogspot only), it's another in-joke (Ask Panzer). Even if you took it seriously, I have no idea what sort of offensive material you read into it.
7.
PREPARE TO GET PWNED MOTHERFRAKKERS!!!!!!!!!111oneoneeleventyNINETHOUSAAAAAAAAND
There are more than enough indications of being less-than-serious in this "statement". But yes, I do want to pwn as much as I can. Link me to your explanation how this is more offensive than "One down"? Is it because of the lang- O DEAR THE LANGUAGE
8.
As a whole
Simple logic: If I had a large ego, I would believe that there would be no need for me to work harder. What, you think theat post was sarcastic in proclaiming that I would work harder and try to get marks to rival the best (real-life identities of the nicknames Anwar's coffee boy, Thaksin's daughter, Mikana, not to mention ourselves as the Pebble Fuckers, aren't exactly getting seven F9s)? The post, if you read into it at a deeper level is (ironically) a simple "I gotta work harder". Even at face value it says more or less the same thing, and as proven above, the face has been made over-satirical so that you either take it as a joke or you go read the subtext, which in light of the fact that the subtext says "I suck, I need to work harder" makes your accusation of ego absolutely ludicrous.
9.
And to drive home the nail in the coffin, I posted that conversation I had with TOFU, which gave you another easy interpretative route to follow: I was "drunk" and it was all satire.
10.
Coincidentally I just realized I can use HTML to insert italics in the comment box. Damn.
11.
And (yes, I am aiming for overkill) just in case this is on your mind (or you're withholding it for backup argumentative ammo), I do think Predator and Prey Part 2 stinks. It lacked imagination, lacked believability, lacked deft and depth, and was worse than free porn. It was shit. But most importantly, this is a professional opinion and has nothing to do with you personally.
12. In conclusion,
EGO EGO EGO EGO YOU ALL SUCK AT A MATHS BLA BLA BLA
14. There is no thirteen.
15. ?????
16. Profit!!!
Yours sincerely,
A big faggot
Thursday, August 28, 2008
Unbranded - 28/8
So my father just handed me an unbranded box, and guess what was inside? An... an iPod?
How much did it cost?
$48.
Nope, it's as unbranded on the inside as on the outside. Features seem pretty lame. The only thing that interests me remotely is the 4GB space, which I can use as a large thumbdrive. Perhaps to keep my playlist and Mikana in cold storage, should my SATA hard disk ever die on me.
So why did my father buy such a piece of trash?
1. He thought it was a good deal. (Maybe, lol)
2. Out of parental obligation
3. He wanted to buy my love
I would be asking these questions even if I had received a real iPod (not that I want one), or something I really wanted (a laptop). I want to be impartial on these things.
Today I had my Lit exam. All was well. There was this question that asked me to identify a character who had been caught up in material pursuits. (Unrelated: While everyone probably took the easy path and picked Paper for their story, I grabbed Elaine from Evening Under Frangipani. More "special kid" marks for me.)
Then it was off to the hall, to watch a concert that had been organized for Teacher's Day. It was compulsory. Probably to make sure that the work that went on behind the scenes was duly appreciated. But why a concert in the first place?
1. Need to appreciate teachers
2. Tradition (touchy touchy)
3. Part of MOE's effort to keep teachers happy and contributing by making them feel appreciated.
Yeah, we do need No.3. I'm an amoral guy. I have no moral problems with this. But although I don't believe in conventional good and evil, I have, like I said before in India, certain preferences.
I just feel disgusted at how appreciation for the men of women of the education system is reduced to a bunch of girls dancing in shorts to pop music. I can't see the link. You're wasting my time with bull shit. Now this is very important: I don't give a shit if the teachers enjoyed it or not. I just think that if I was a teacher, I wouldn't need (or want) to be patronized like this. You appreciate me? Fine. Sure. Appreciate me. Whenever you want.
But don't come to me on Teacher's Day and give me a fucking card because you're obligated to. That' empty. That's bullshit. That's lying.
But what do I know? In practical terms, we probably need a gazillion white lies to keep our infrastructure running. Keep the weak-willed and poorly-motivated knowing that they are doing good. Stuff like that. That's how Stalin did it, that's how big brother does it, and... it's worked out pretty well so far.
And while I'm on a roll, I would like to dedicate this rant to Miss Aza. Yes, I know it is ironic considering what I'm ranting about. But the dedication isn't because of the occasion. It's because its long overdue.
Thanks Miss Aza, for your sincere efforts. I don't think I should be your best student.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
TOFU came up with what he thought was a great idea for the beginning of a play.
A bum is sitting on a bench, idling. A man enters and sits beside the bum.
Then he leans over and asks the bum,
"Hey - do you know the meaning of love?"
At first, yes, cool. But on hindsight, not really.
This does not have the makings of a good play; the makings of a good beginning, maybe, but good play?
I could cite a hundred and one reasons (no I can't) why not, but the one that strikes me now is how, through a play, a facade, a great pretend-show, writers and directors try to convey very real and relevant meanings to their audiences.
We don't die the same person that we were when we were born.
That said, what is the meaning of love? Maybe if I steal enough pics of Mikana at cross-country tomorrow I'll find out.
Wednesday, August 27, 2008
Logo/front blog picture
Not that I despise our new 'logo', but I think it'd be more refreshing for everyone if we took turns to put up a new pic every month just like we're doing with the blog title/tagline. Maybe expand this to letting one author control all aesthetic functions on the blog (including title, template, background, frontpic, etc.). Allows each of us more creative space to snazz it up(or to not snazz it up, depending on what we feel like).
I would also like to take this opportunity to open the floor to discussion on whether one month for every change of title is too long. A more regular aesthetic makeover Pebble Fort sounds attractive to me; should we switch turns per week or fortnight instead of a month?
Unrelated:
Panzer and TOFU, we need to get back to juggle Eurotrip planning and exam study. ASAP.
If I get elected, I promise that Pebble Fort will not become a Mikana shrine.
I would also like to take this opportunity to open the floor to discussion on whether one month for every change of title is too long. A more regular aesthetic makeover Pebble Fort sounds attractive to me; should we switch turns per week or fortnight instead of a month?
Unrelated:
Panzer and TOFU, we need to get back to juggle Eurotrip planning and exam study. ASAP.
If I get elected, I promise that Pebble Fort will not become a Mikana shrine.
Tuesday, August 26, 2008
The ultimate answer to procrastination is motivation. There was this one Singaporean guy, some ordinary looking university grad, who wrote a book called "I Can Do It, So Can You!" that shot to bestselling status in Singapore (didn't check this statistic, but I can bet my ass that it was at least highly popular, it was well composed after all). It was highly sought after by worried parents of Singapore's overcomplacent.
From what shit I can recall, the writer was pretty fucking shitty at primary school. In Secondary School he continued to be noob. So noob that his Sec 2 teacher called his parents to ask why the fuck he didn't remember basic shit that he should have learned back in Primary 4. It was GG for him then. But then he went to this motivational talk or something and had a miraculous revelation and dropped 7A1s for his O Level and fuxpwned his A Levels.
Anyway, that faggot wrote something I can still remember (besides a Yoda quote, lol). There was one piece of advice, quite small, occupying only a single paragraph in the book. He said, in an epic voice,
"if u wanna be pro liek mi u shld go tell all ur frens and ur parents and tell dem wht results u plan to get. SRS! it werks becos nao u have the presure of kipping ur word to dem tht u wil do well in ur examz. lolpeniscockvagi-"
tl;dr (means "too long; didn't read" in netspeak):
I want to pwn Mikana in O Levels.
And the rest of you - The Pebble Fuckers, Thaksin's daughter and Anwar's coffee boy! ALL YOU FUCKS! All your base will belong to ME!
PREPARE TO GET PWNED MOTHERFRAKKERS!!!!!!!!!111oneoneeleventyNINETHOUSAAAAAAAAND
The ultimate answer to procrastination is motivation. If I don't get my 6A1s I promise I'll ride that rollercoaster with you Panzerz. And play chess on it.
Sunday, August 24, 2008
Passing the Torch
Tonight, as we witness the closure to a very fine Summer Olympics at Beijing, it also marks the handing over of the Olympic torch from Beijing to London, for the 2012 Summer Olympiad.
However, unbeknown to many, tonight's ceremony will mark another passing of torches for us students sitting for the GCE O Levels this year. It marks the handing over of torch from Slacking and Relaxation (watching the Olympic Games) to full-time study. I for one, am willing to welcome this change, even though it pains my heart to do so, for I love the telly. Nevertheless, we now have less excuse to watch tv and not revise/practice.
SO HAND OVER THE EFFING TORCH ALREADY!
However, unbeknown to many, tonight's ceremony will mark another passing of torches for us students sitting for the GCE O Levels this year. It marks the handing over of torch from Slacking and Relaxation (watching the Olympic Games) to full-time study. I for one, am willing to welcome this change, even though it pains my heart to do so, for I love the telly. Nevertheless, we now have less excuse to watch tv and not revise/practice.
SO HAND OVER THE EFFING TORCH ALREADY!
Projects in the pipeline
Projects in the pipeline for Nosedigger:
Halcyon Sun retelling (cancelled)
Halcyon Sun is an old neglected spaceflying sim that suffered from poor marketing, despite solid writing and plot, which is as many of us know hard to find in video games. I was going to record and upload Halcyon Sun's cutscenes on Youtube and release them as a drama series, but it would take a lot of my time (and disk space) that could be better spent.
Halcyon Sun Trailer
Actually I've already made one, but that doesn't really count as its too short. I want to make a full length 2 minutes theatrical trailer to honour the legend of Halcyon Sun.
GunZ multimedia project
The world of GunZ has always been fascinating for some unexplainable (read: batshit crazy) reason. Former ventures into the world of GunZ include the 'Breaking Entering and Exploding' shorts, the unintentional Scroll Dynasty plagiarism, and involvement in Zephyre's Pistol Ninja Series. There's a large folder in my hard disk full of stuff on what the GunZ world is: what important themes to look at (for example Responsibility in a world where many people have magic powers, and the more difficult role of the government in dealing with freedoms in such a world) what major events there are, blah blah blah. Stuff in the pipeline include Voice-acting for the next Pistol Ninja machinima, my own GunZ machinima, and maybe a couple of short stories.
Kunai Clan Movie
I promised this long ago but failed to deliver, because of rendering problems. Going to try all over again using a different song, The Remedy by Jason Mraz.
TF2 Frag Movie
EHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEH maybe.
Scar
Going to set a shitload of Battlestar Galactica's space battles to something thumping, then finish off with Starbuck's epic toast in "Scar".
Underemergency Project
I'm going to want a sequel to Underemergency, set after the implied euthanasia has begun.
Resignation from Moderator position in GunZFactor
Still waiting for right time.
Kept In
A play wherein a group of kids get stuck in a computer room. Observe group dynamics and shit.
Partition
I'm quite looking forward to finishing this play. This play is science fiction and looks at the overprotective community in the future. Is murder still murder when you can preserve the victim in cryonics to be revived at a later date? What about the ethical qualms of removing the memories of convicts to 'rehabilitate' them? Dividing society into levels, where the 'better' levels get better lives?
Go to the blogs of everyone I know (and maybe some I don't know), and then post "Nice cock" or "Nice sock" on their tagboards.
What, you thought I was kidding?
Halcyon Sun retelling (cancelled)
Halcyon Sun is an old neglected spaceflying sim that suffered from poor marketing, despite solid writing and plot, which is as many of us know hard to find in video games. I was going to record and upload Halcyon Sun's cutscenes on Youtube and release them as a drama series, but it would take a lot of my time (and disk space) that could be better spent.
Halcyon Sun Trailer
Actually I've already made one, but that doesn't really count as its too short. I want to make a full length 2 minutes theatrical trailer to honour the legend of Halcyon Sun.
GunZ multimedia project
The world of GunZ has always been fascinating for some unexplainable (read: batshit crazy) reason. Former ventures into the world of GunZ include the 'Breaking Entering and Exploding' shorts, the unintentional Scroll Dynasty plagiarism, and involvement in Zephyre's Pistol Ninja Series. There's a large folder in my hard disk full of stuff on what the GunZ world is: what important themes to look at (for example Responsibility in a world where many people have magic powers, and the more difficult role of the government in dealing with freedoms in such a world) what major events there are, blah blah blah. Stuff in the pipeline include Voice-acting for the next Pistol Ninja machinima, my own GunZ machinima, and maybe a couple of short stories.
Kunai Clan Movie
I promised this long ago but failed to deliver, because of rendering problems. Going to try all over again using a different song, The Remedy by Jason Mraz.
TF2 Frag Movie
EHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEH maybe.
Scar
Going to set a shitload of Battlestar Galactica's space battles to something thumping, then finish off with Starbuck's epic toast in "Scar".
Underemergency Project
I'm going to want a sequel to Underemergency, set after the implied euthanasia has begun.
Resignation from Moderator position in GunZFactor
Still waiting for right time.
Kept In
A play wherein a group of kids get stuck in a computer room. Observe group dynamics and shit.
Partition
I'm quite looking forward to finishing this play. This play is science fiction and looks at the overprotective community in the future. Is murder still murder when you can preserve the victim in cryonics to be revived at a later date? What about the ethical qualms of removing the memories of convicts to 'rehabilitate' them? Dividing society into levels, where the 'better' levels get better lives?
Go to the blogs of everyone I know (and maybe some I don't know), and then post "Nice cock" or "Nice sock" on their tagboards.
What, you thought I was kidding?
Saturday, August 23, 2008
religion and its detractors.
Enjoy =D This is what you get when you give an atheist too much time with cartoons... *glares at Panzer* xD
Friday, August 22, 2008
Thursday, August 21, 2008
National Asthma
I sincerely think our national anthem is too long. I mean, it does have nice AND meaningful lyrics complete with a nice melody (rare these days). But the fact is, it is written and composed by a professional. As a result, it follows the arrangement of the pop music genre, which is usually stanza 1, chorus, stanza 2, chorus, stanza 3, chorus, chorus fade out, end.
This results in us having to sing all 3+ minutes of the song. Why can't we learn from other countries, such as Britain or Germany, where the song is sung socially, and usually only a stanza is sung (usually the first) . Yea, I understand the idea behind the whole song and the singing of the whole song, but I think it really has become too tedious a ritual.
On that note, I really wish to share with you Germany's Anthem. They usually sing only the third stanza. But hey, they are patriotic as hell la.
Ref: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Das_Deutschlandlied
Vid: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C91u-j1po9o&feature=related
Enjoy.
This results in us having to sing all 3+ minutes of the song. Why can't we learn from other countries, such as Britain or Germany, where the song is sung socially, and usually only a stanza is sung (usually the first) . Yea, I understand the idea behind the whole song and the singing of the whole song, but I think it really has become too tedious a ritual.
On that note, I really wish to share with you Germany's Anthem. They usually sing only the third stanza. But hey, they are patriotic as hell la.
| German lyrics | Approximate translation |
|---|---|
| First stanza | |
| Deutschland, Deutschland über alles, | Germany, Germany above everything, |
| Second stanza | |
| Deutsche Frauen, deutsche Treue, | German women, German loyalty, |
| Third stanza (Germany's National Anthem) | |
| Einigkeit und Recht und Freiheit | Unity and justice and freedom |
Ref: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Das_Deutschlandlied
Vid: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C91u-j1po9o&feature=related
Enjoy.
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
Apple Empire
please do comment.
Iphone announced to be released 22 this month...costs quite a bomb...as much as I know it kinda sucks and I'd be better off with another phone, I also know I'll regret it if I don't get the phone. Decisions decisions.
-PanZerz
Tuesday, August 19, 2008
19 August
I bought some Red Bull too, but hopefully I can set aside some time to sleep early.
So... I lost my handphone about two weeks back. Stupid thing, but luckily my new modem came with a free phone so a replacement was immediately available.
Miss my old phone to some extent. It was simple, agrarian, minimalist, practical. Didn't need an extra camera, music player, or a colourful interface. But too bad. Now I have them. I get to set a wallpaper. A photo of Mikana was the logical choice, inspired by how TOFU used to have Stephy as his wallpaper. Nothing really good was in my folders, despite that I've surreptitiously grabbed a few shots of her myself. In the end, I got my wallpaper from her class blog.
Not altogether unexpectedly, a few people began popping eyes at the revelation of Mikana's identity (someone thought it TOFU was Mikana), although quite an armful have known since Sec 3 and it became an open secret last year; why hide it?
Keep in mind that this is not the "why hide it?" of a couple trying half-heartedly to keep their relationship under wraps. I'm not proud of my superficial side but there it is. In yowwingly frank terms, Mikana is physically the most beautiful and attractive girl I know of, and that's it. (Well actually there's a bit more, but that's just a bit of symbolism that'd bore you.)
Now this is the kind of luv I'm interested inSomeday Mikana will be gone forever - same with everything else - and I'll miss her. That's true. I'll keep the photos. I might even remember her. But don't think for a moment that I'll pick having any kind of friendly relationship with Mikana(or anyone I'm attracted to over physical attribute) over being with people that I really want to talk to. Or a particularly satisfying TF2 session. Or sex. But TOFU says that's overrated.
Heterosexual sex, anyway.
*wink*
Awaiting judgement on whether I've managed to make an emo post worth reading.
Russian salmons
As the world watch in awe as Michael Phelps smash several world records and capture a record 8 gold medals at the Beijing Summer Olympic Games, Europe watches in horror as a liberal country is 'invaded' by its powerful northern neighbour on 7th August.
The Georgian President called the rogue states 'criminal regimes' which he vowed to overthrow and regain control upon. The Russians called it 'geonocide'. The two breakaway regions of South Ossetia and Abkhazia broke away from Georgian control as early as the early 1990s. This renewed conflict in a desolated location in the world provides some interesting food for thought for observers.
Well, what many people wouldn't know was that the American Secetary of State, Dr Rice was in Georgia a few weeks before conflict erupted. The Georgians probably carried out the offensive with American support. Since Georgia had a contingent of 1000 troops fighting the backwash war in Iraq, Mikheil Saakashvili (Georgian President) probably thought his big brother would come in to save his ass in case of Russian intervention. The Americans miscaluculated as the Russians punched through the border to 'mantain' peace. The Russian steamrolled the opposing forces and provided the world to a rude awakening of Russia's post Cold War military might.
In a televised address a few days ago, President George W. Bush condemn Russia's act of an invasion of a 'sovreign nation' and invading a 'democracy'. I thought Bush's well timed speech was amazing, something we could all learn from. After all, it was he who went half way around the world to Iraq to beat the shit out of Sovereign Iraq and slap Saddam Hussien to his hole in the ground. I'm very sure Bush is in a very good position to condemn these attacks.
Just a few days back, in what I would call a fuel to fire affair, German chancellor Angela Merkel went to Georgia and promised Mikheil Saakashvili that Georgia would join NATO. There is only 2 things I find wrong in Mrs Chancellor's actions. Firstly, Georgia is in goddamn central asia, its called the NORTH ATLANTIC treaty organisation for a reason. And secondly, I'm SURE Georgia joining NATO would solve the problem. I do believe that Georgia's close ties with the west was one of the reasons for Russian intevention. Probably the Russians reminding the region that their livelihood still depends on them and not Mr Eagle holding the talon and olive branch.
Whether or not Russian intevention is justifiable, I cannot say, but what I can say is that, America is in no position to judge the Russian actions. This will not be a new cold war, but this is a signal of a new era of Russia's emergence as a big player in European affairs.
The Georgian President called the rogue states 'criminal regimes' which he vowed to overthrow and regain control upon. The Russians called it 'geonocide'. The two breakaway regions of South Ossetia and Abkhazia broke away from Georgian control as early as the early 1990s. This renewed conflict in a desolated location in the world provides some interesting food for thought for observers.
Well, what many people wouldn't know was that the American Secetary of State, Dr Rice was in Georgia a few weeks before conflict erupted. The Georgians probably carried out the offensive with American support. Since Georgia had a contingent of 1000 troops fighting the backwash war in Iraq, Mikheil Saakashvili (Georgian President) probably thought his big brother would come in to save his ass in case of Russian intervention. The Americans miscaluculated as the Russians punched through the border to 'mantain' peace. The Russian steamrolled the opposing forces and provided the world to a rude awakening of Russia's post Cold War military might.
In a televised address a few days ago, President George W. Bush condemn Russia's act of an invasion of a 'sovreign nation' and invading a 'democracy'. I thought Bush's well timed speech was amazing, something we could all learn from. After all, it was he who went half way around the world to Iraq to beat the shit out of Sovereign Iraq and slap Saddam Hussien to his hole in the ground. I'm very sure Bush is in a very good position to condemn these attacks.
Just a few days back, in what I would call a fuel to fire affair, German chancellor Angela Merkel went to Georgia and promised Mikheil Saakashvili that Georgia would join NATO. There is only 2 things I find wrong in Mrs Chancellor's actions. Firstly, Georgia is in goddamn central asia, its called the NORTH ATLANTIC treaty organisation for a reason. And secondly, I'm SURE Georgia joining NATO would solve the problem. I do believe that Georgia's close ties with the west was one of the reasons for Russian intevention. Probably the Russians reminding the region that their livelihood still depends on them and not Mr Eagle holding the talon and olive branch.
Whether or not Russian intevention is justifiable, I cannot say, but what I can say is that, America is in no position to judge the Russian actions. This will not be a new cold war, but this is a signal of a new era of Russia's emergence as a big player in European affairs.
Sunday, August 17, 2008
Olympic Animals
Heard this on the news: "Following Phelps's stunning victory with 8 gold medals this summer olympic games, there has been a spike in interest in sports, especially swimming.."
New coaching plans are that athletes in training (youths >18) will no longer have to wake up at 4.30am to train. They can do so at 7.30am due to the removal of their having to contend with daily social lifestyle. They only have to contend and focus on their sports.
What does this make them? This reminds me of cattle. The cattle's' day to day activities build up and fruition only in their death, which eventually leads to our dinner plates.
The athletes? Exactly the same. They will be neglecting all other forms of social life and activities, just so they can train. And organizations are all for it, having pooled up money to support their entire lives.
For glory and gold, we are willing to convert these humans into animals?
Wow. Totally blew me over. Where can I sign up? Can I do that for my children too? At least I can secure their future post-peak oil. Hopefully.
New coaching plans are that athletes in training (youths >18) will no longer have to wake up at 4.30am to train. They can do so at 7.30am due to the removal of their having to contend with daily social lifestyle. They only have to contend and focus on their sports.
What does this make them? This reminds me of cattle. The cattle's' day to day activities build up and fruition only in their death, which eventually leads to our dinner plates.
The athletes? Exactly the same. They will be neglecting all other forms of social life and activities, just so they can train. And organizations are all for it, having pooled up money to support their entire lives.
For glory and gold, we are willing to convert these humans into animals?
Wow. Totally blew me over. Where can I sign up? Can I do that for my children too? At least I can secure their future post-peak oil. Hopefully.
Saturday, August 16, 2008
The 7 Things We Hate About You
No offense to all women out there. And please, do not send your ultra-secret Feminist Ninjas after me for writing this.
1. Mood swings
We never know what is gonna happen next..
Even if it is just a minute.
2.Time
God.. you take forever.
And the privilege is limited to only you.
3.Greed
As usual.
Completely Insatiable.
4.Noise
The noise you generate.
Completely intolerable
5.Assumptions
I don't know if its your excitement to prove anything, but seriously, why jump at every small thing? Especially since you have no idea what is going on.
6.Pettiness.
If we can produce flash drives like women's brains, we have officially pulled off a miracle.
7.Pretense
Why must you keep putting on acts?
Explains why women are coveted actresses..
These are just some. And really, its no wonder homosexuality is on the rise these days. Especially amongst men. Lucky for me, I have my fingers in both pies. And I'm liking it too.
1. Mood swings
We never know what is gonna happen next..
Even if it is just a minute.
2.Time
God.. you take forever.
And the privilege is limited to only you.
3.Greed
As usual.
Completely Insatiable.
4.Noise
The noise you generate.
Completely intolerable
5.Assumptions
I don't know if its your excitement to prove anything, but seriously, why jump at every small thing? Especially since you have no idea what is going on.
6.Pettiness.
If we can produce flash drives like women's brains, we have officially pulled off a miracle.
7.Pretense
Why must you keep putting on acts?
Explains why women are coveted actresses..
These are just some. And really, its no wonder homosexuality is on the rise these days. Especially amongst men. Lucky for me, I have my fingers in both pies. And I'm liking it too.
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
Ignorance is sweet
As I begin my run up to my oral examination tomorrow, I can't deny I'm feeling a little jittery inside. I sill know I'm going to pwn those noobs hands down, but I also feel uneasy at my oral arrangement. I'm right after Sangeetha and right after me is Jing Yong and after Jing Yong is Hong Ping. All pros who are 30 over pointers for the oral examination. This is the bad part, being in grouped in consecutive order with distinction cases can only serve to bring down my score as the examiners moderate it among us.
I'm not particularly afraid of the oral exam itself, the different components are rather easy, so it seems. I hope I don't struggle with the picture discussion as I pull my mind together to remember the format while simultanously trying to entertain the teacher with my description of the picture. I never had high hopes for the picture discussion anyway. I'm still banking on my conversation to get my high distinction. I'm pro when it comes to shitting my way through and I can tell a darn good story (lie) when the topic is there. All I can hope for is calm nerves tomorrow. I don't need any shit luck to get my distinction, the examiners are not my enemy. Its myself, me and my nerves. Got to remain calm and composed.
-------------------------------------------------------------
Ignorance is sweet, so they say. After a good 4 years of education in secondary school. I can safely say how secondary education did nothing to educate these bunch of monkeys in my school. CME has failed us horribly, someone even commented how he felt more guilty doing CME papers. Its all so fake. We get that 'A' grade for our CME by knowing what is right or wrong, but the applying is another thing.
This even applies to situational awareness of our enviroment, our earth. 16 year olds are not as matured as they used to be. Sex, drugs and societies do not make a grown man. Screw this.
And I thought it was beginning to get fun.
He's dead he's dead.
stabbed.
I'm not particularly afraid of the oral exam itself, the different components are rather easy, so it seems. I hope I don't struggle with the picture discussion as I pull my mind together to remember the format while simultanously trying to entertain the teacher with my description of the picture. I never had high hopes for the picture discussion anyway. I'm still banking on my conversation to get my high distinction. I'm pro when it comes to shitting my way through and I can tell a darn good story (lie) when the topic is there. All I can hope for is calm nerves tomorrow. I don't need any shit luck to get my distinction, the examiners are not my enemy. Its myself, me and my nerves. Got to remain calm and composed.
-------------------------------------------------------------
Ignorance is sweet, so they say. After a good 4 years of education in secondary school. I can safely say how secondary education did nothing to educate these bunch of monkeys in my school. CME has failed us horribly, someone even commented how he felt more guilty doing CME papers. Its all so fake. We get that 'A' grade for our CME by knowing what is right or wrong, but the applying is another thing.
This even applies to situational awareness of our enviroment, our earth. 16 year olds are not as matured as they used to be. Sex, drugs and societies do not make a grown man. Screw this.
And I thought it was beginning to get fun.
He's dead he's dead.
stabbed.
Blog title (TEH BIG ISSUE)
My proposal: Every month we each take turns to change the blog title (if we want to). You'll notice that to the right of the Pebble Fort(which is still our 'real' name, no mattur wut) I've arranged the authors in alphabetical. We simply follow this order. Every month we just change it. No voting. No fuss. We take turns.
Ez solution.
Ez solution.
Random - XKCD,
This is the first of my weekly dosage of random. Nice cock. Nice cock. Nice cock.
I feel like talking about my day before anything else, ADD-saturated whore I am. English Oral (conversation) was okay for me. Which is bad. Oral should be GORRAMFRAKKING PRO, not "okay". They asked me about my favourite hairstyle, of all things. After a quick few sentences on the practicality of baldness, I began talking about why the fuck hairstyles are important at all. Then they asked me about CCTVs and cams in public places, and I basically went rehashing the same point continually; by the time I found myself again it was too fucking late.
But fuck that! On to the randomness.
I want to introduce you to a neat little webcomic called XKCD. It's written by an intellectual, but more importantly, he's pro at random and his serious ones are nice too. So! A few samples (quick load times, no worries):
http://xkcd.com/68/
http://xkcd.com/137/
http://xkcd.com/283/
The infamous picture that sparked all the GB2Kitchen jokes:
Next week I'll organize by theme. A random image will also serve as my epigraph from now on.
I feel like talking about my day before anything else, ADD-saturated whore I am. English Oral (conversation) was okay for me. Which is bad. Oral should be GORRAMFRAKKING PRO, not "okay". They asked me about my favourite hairstyle, of all things. After a quick few sentences on the practicality of baldness, I began talking about why the fuck hairstyles are important at all. Then they asked me about CCTVs and cams in public places, and I basically went rehashing the same point continually; by the time I found myself again it was too fucking late.
But fuck that! On to the randomness.
I want to introduce you to a neat little webcomic called XKCD. It's written by an intellectual, but more importantly, he's pro at random and his serious ones are nice too. So! A few samples (quick load times, no worries):
http://xkcd.com/68/
http://xkcd.com/137/
http://xkcd.com/283/
The infamous picture that sparked all the GB2Kitchen jokes:
Next week I'll organize by theme. A random image will also serve as my epigraph from now on.
Roots are but cells, language are but words, but an F..ROFOL
Im very content with my pass in Chinese, not exactly over the moon, but pleased to know that for the second time in my life, my culture and 5000 odd years of history has not let me down. Its not that I hate Chinese and reject my culture because i'm somewhat a twinkie (or twiggie in Singapore). Actually, that a half-truth, but rather it has failed me more that I can remember. It all started in primary three, where for the first time in my life, I failed Chinese. Now this was a surprise at the time as being brought up in a kind of "prestigious" kindergarden, my chinese was never bad. In fact, I refer back to my K2 work on poems and shit, It's hard to imagine I could actually read that well. Hell! I don't even recognise some of the words now. Then fail,fail, fail and meeting noseh where I realised that there were others too.
I still remember receiving my PSLE results, it was because of god-fucking chinese that I got fucked to this fuck-hole, now, I was pleased that I got a B, but it wasn't good enough. 230. Neither here nor there. Fuck this. Since then, I prided myself on failing chinese. Not that I no longer had a desire to succeed. But I realised a greater goal. Instead of tring to swim up the river, I decided to release my seed at the bottom and prove they'll grow to become much better. ( Salmon terminology) Thats when I proved that Chinese was bollocks compared to what I capable of. I almost proved and I quote noseh " that F9 would become a joke". It did, and I liked it. Being top in humanities only made that partial sucess more "in your face" to all that ever tired to tell me otherwise.
Living with my maid for most of my infanthood and living in the states for half a year and more taught me that my culture was but what made me special. I like my culture, for all the firecrackes and stuff but it also came with a hefty price, Chinese. It was cool to be able to speak Chinese and English fluently in America, i really loved it there.
I want to retake, but yet I think about the countless times it has failed me and I decided, I had accomplished what I set out to do and I sincerely think that I really DO NOT want it to fail me again. To go on the same emotional roller coaster of anticipating a pass only to get a nice F. Well its a C now, and good riddens.
-PanZerZ 1 down..6 to go
I still remember receiving my PSLE results, it was because of god-fucking chinese that I got fucked to this fuck-hole, now, I was pleased that I got a B, but it wasn't good enough. 230. Neither here nor there. Fuck this. Since then, I prided myself on failing chinese. Not that I no longer had a desire to succeed. But I realised a greater goal. Instead of tring to swim up the river, I decided to release my seed at the bottom and prove they'll grow to become much better. ( Salmon terminology) Thats when I proved that Chinese was bollocks compared to what I capable of. I almost proved and I quote noseh " that F9 would become a joke". It did, and I liked it. Being top in humanities only made that partial sucess more "in your face" to all that ever tired to tell me otherwise.
Living with my maid for most of my infanthood and living in the states for half a year and more taught me that my culture was but what made me special. I like my culture, for all the firecrackes and stuff but it also came with a hefty price, Chinese. It was cool to be able to speak Chinese and English fluently in America, i really loved it there.
I want to retake, but yet I think about the countless times it has failed me and I decided, I had accomplished what I set out to do and I sincerely think that I really DO NOT want it to fail me again. To go on the same emotional roller coaster of anticipating a pass only to get a nice F. Well its a C now, and good riddens.
-PanZerZ 1 down..6 to go
Tuesday, August 12, 2008
Chinese O Level & DPA Results
We're very close to O Levels, and even closer to prelims. I look at the dumbfucks not bothering to pull themselves from the abyss and I feel part disgust, part satisfaction at knowing that they will have a fun, fun life.
I inked "FSV@NP" on the back of my wrist, my real short-term goal. I'll re-ink it every day. I've decided that even with Peak Oil lurking on the horizon, my life is going to be meaningless if I don't at least push for what I want to do. This is my dream; if I don't go for the big one then it won't matter if a worldwide economic catastrophe ends the human race or not.
Today many of us came one step closer to realizing our dreams, seeing them sharpen into clarity as our Mother Tongue results were announced. If I'm not wrong, both Panzer and TOFU were able to break their fail streak and scrape a pass. A shitty pass, yes, but at least now Junior College is an option, a confirmed option, for both of them. Sorry I spoiled the surprise for you TOFU, just couldn't help it.
What about me? In the rush of anxious students thirsting to know their results I nonchalantly stepped up to the whiteboard and nonchalantly read off my F9 mark while my peers cheered for their Bs and As. The revelation of my results much less hit me in the face than it fell into my lap, whereupon I held it between my fingers and raised my eyebrows at it. Hmm. Definitely not surprising. Not particularly disheartening either (though getting moved to Chinese B to continue studying does suck).
My moment came in the comlab while me and a friend were looking for our DPA results. I confess that I was a hundred times more afraid of DPA than my MT grade. My MT grade was expected; my DPA interview caught me up short and I didn't say half of what I could have said. Furthermore, I was afraid I would be posted to Mass Comm, my second choice.
Why would that be a problem? Mass Comm, while holding many interesting things, is not FSV. It is not storytelling. It is advertising, journalism, public relations. Not exactly my cup of tea. But in a Peak Oil future, political parties will need Mass Comm graduates to handle their propaganda. If I take Mass Comm, I will at least have a chance of eking out something in the worst-case scenario.
But I don't want to take Mass Comm. I don't want to have to make another choice between my dreams and the reality of Peak Oil (among the increasing competitiveness, and the fact that I'm not a genius, and am ASIAN).
So yes, my "ARRRRRRRRRRRRR WOOOOOOOOOOHOOOOO" in response to the confirmation that I've been offered direct admission to FSV at Ngee Ann Poly was pretty much justified. Pretty fucking justified.
Next goal: A set of distinctions on my O Level cert to make my single F9 look comical.
I inked "FSV@NP" on the back of my wrist, my real short-term goal. I'll re-ink it every day. I've decided that even with Peak Oil lurking on the horizon, my life is going to be meaningless if I don't at least push for what I want to do. This is my dream; if I don't go for the big one then it won't matter if a worldwide economic catastrophe ends the human race or not.
Today many of us came one step closer to realizing our dreams, seeing them sharpen into clarity as our Mother Tongue results were announced. If I'm not wrong, both Panzer and TOFU were able to break their fail streak and scrape a pass. A shitty pass, yes, but at least now Junior College is an option, a confirmed option, for both of them. Sorry I spoiled the surprise for you TOFU, just couldn't help it.
What about me? In the rush of anxious students thirsting to know their results I nonchalantly stepped up to the whiteboard and nonchalantly read off my F9 mark while my peers cheered for their Bs and As. The revelation of my results much less hit me in the face than it fell into my lap, whereupon I held it between my fingers and raised my eyebrows at it. Hmm. Definitely not surprising. Not particularly disheartening either (though getting moved to Chinese B to continue studying does suck).
My moment came in the comlab while me and a friend were looking for our DPA results. I confess that I was a hundred times more afraid of DPA than my MT grade. My MT grade was expected; my DPA interview caught me up short and I didn't say half of what I could have said. Furthermore, I was afraid I would be posted to Mass Comm, my second choice.
Why would that be a problem? Mass Comm, while holding many interesting things, is not FSV. It is not storytelling. It is advertising, journalism, public relations. Not exactly my cup of tea. But in a Peak Oil future, political parties will need Mass Comm graduates to handle their propaganda. If I take Mass Comm, I will at least have a chance of eking out something in the worst-case scenario.
But I don't want to take Mass Comm. I don't want to have to make another choice between my dreams and the reality of Peak Oil (among the increasing competitiveness, and the fact that I'm not a genius, and am ASIAN).
So yes, my "ARRRRRRRRRRRRR WOOOOOOOOOOHOOOOO" in response to the confirmation that I've been offered direct admission to FSV at Ngee Ann Poly was pretty much justified. Pretty fucking justified.
Next goal: A set of distinctions on my O Level cert to make my single F9 look comical.
Sunday, August 10, 2008
The 2008 South Ossetia War
Russian PM Vladimir Putin was in Beijing to see the opening ceremony for the Olympics, when he warned the country of Georgia that Russia was "compelled to retaliate" against its "aggressive actions". This was two days ago; 8 August.
Before the day ended, Russia had entered the 2008 South Ossetia War.
Georgia is an Eastern European country, close to the Black Sea and Russia. Within the nation, there is a distinct ethnic group called the Ossetians, different from the Georgian ethnic group. Ossetia is a region sandwiched between Russia and Georgia, which contains most of these Ossetians. Some of them settled in North Ossetia, which is part of Russia. South Ossetia was under the Georgian government until 1992, where they had a war and broke away. Since then there have been many armed clashes between South Ossetia and Georgia. South Ossetia is not recognized as a country by the UN; they're officially Georgian separatists.
South Ossetia has rejected offers to return to Georgia, despite being promised a large degree of autonomy.
On August 1, fighting began to get intense between Ossetian paras and Georgian troops. The Georgians began to shell civilian settlements. Evacuations of many civilians to Russia were made in response. This was a sound move, as in a matter of days Georgian forces pushed into the South Ossetian capital city, Tskhinvali, causing hundreds of civilian deaths. The Georgians reiterated their offer to re-assimilate into Georgia as the devastation of Tskhinvali continued.
What does this have to do with Russia?
Apparently, many South Ossetians have been given Russian passports and citizenship, such that more than half of the residents in South Ossetia are either holding Russian passports or are Russian citizens. To "protect Russian citizens", the Russian army moved into South Ossetia on August 8 and by nightfall had retaken Tskhinvali from the Georgians. The Russians are adamant that Georgian forces return to the positions they held before the war began. Georgia has so far, sent back conflicting messages about where its forces are and has not proposed any ceasefire.
Abkhazia, another Georgian breakaway country (also officially unrecognized), just sent 1000 men on South Ossetia's side, today.
Read more here.
Before the day ended, Russia had entered the 2008 South Ossetia War.
Georgia is an Eastern European country, close to the Black Sea and Russia. Within the nation, there is a distinct ethnic group called the Ossetians, different from the Georgian ethnic group. Ossetia is a region sandwiched between Russia and Georgia, which contains most of these Ossetians. Some of them settled in North Ossetia, which is part of Russia. South Ossetia was under the Georgian government until 1992, where they had a war and broke away. Since then there have been many armed clashes between South Ossetia and Georgia. South Ossetia is not recognized as a country by the UN; they're officially Georgian separatists.
South Ossetia has rejected offers to return to Georgia, despite being promised a large degree of autonomy.
On August 1, fighting began to get intense between Ossetian paras and Georgian troops. The Georgians began to shell civilian settlements. Evacuations of many civilians to Russia were made in response. This was a sound move, as in a matter of days Georgian forces pushed into the South Ossetian capital city, Tskhinvali, causing hundreds of civilian deaths. The Georgians reiterated their offer to re-assimilate into Georgia as the devastation of Tskhinvali continued.
What does this have to do with Russia?
Apparently, many South Ossetians have been given Russian passports and citizenship, such that more than half of the residents in South Ossetia are either holding Russian passports or are Russian citizens. To "protect Russian citizens", the Russian army moved into South Ossetia on August 8 and by nightfall had retaken Tskhinvali from the Georgians. The Russians are adamant that Georgian forces return to the positions they held before the war began. Georgia has so far, sent back conflicting messages about where its forces are and has not proposed any ceasefire.
Abkhazia, another Georgian breakaway country (also officially unrecognized), just sent 1000 men on South Ossetia's side, today.
Read more here.
Saturday, August 9, 2008
The locally foreign.
I wanted to post a video but i guess Beijing took a copyright claim of their opening ceremony. Well, "Singapore" paddler, Li Jia Wei was dragging the Singapore flag on the floor when Singapore marched into the Bird's nest stadium. Now not only is that a capital offence, it also sparked some anti-ah tiong sentiments and became the latest buzz in the many Singapore forums.
Then there's the argument that the flag's too heavy, thats a weak excuse. What made it worse was that New Zealand, the country after us (cos we all have the chinese character "xin") , had their flag held the highest. Anyway, it was a good opening ceremony and I wish all of them the best of luck.
But frankly this argument wouldn't have happened if they had let a real Singaporean hold it. (born and bred). Everyone would have let it go as an honest mistake.
With almost 1/5 or 1/4 of our population now foreign, this is becomming an increasingly alarmming matter. We don't need that big a population and I seriously cannot see why our government want so many people? To put more gantries? More people would only mean more mouths to feed right? I am not vehermently against foreign TALENT, those who work in MNCs. After all, they ARE MULTI-NATIONAL.
But seriously, waiters, cashiers, and even MIDDLE-CLASS OFFICE GOERS?!?! Thats talent?!
I think we are taking our multi-racial harmonious society for granted. How long did it take us to see ourselves as Singaporean? After the riots, killing and all the other shit, just to combine Malay, Chinese and Indian as Singaporean and now other Chinese, Indian and a whole lot of other people come? Then expecting to them to integrate like *click* magic? This is not lego. However, most do, and their children too and it does, like the government says, make Singapore a more vibrant, diverse nation.
But it is also normal for locals to hate people who come and take their rice bowl. Look at America, Australia, they bloddy hate foreigners, and at this rate, we may also end up like them.
P.S. I'm totally fine with foreigners converting to becomming citizens because they like Singapore and wish to be Singaporean, actually I quite like that. But I hate those who still think of going back or feel patriotic to thier homeland. Singapore is Singapore. Do you see Americans feeling patriotic to UK because the whites were from there? Or even Singaporean malays patriotic to malaysia? (except for head perfect)
-PanZerz
Then there's the argument that the flag's too heavy, thats a weak excuse. What made it worse was that New Zealand, the country after us (cos we all have the chinese character "xin") , had their flag held the highest. Anyway, it was a good opening ceremony and I wish all of them the best of luck.
But frankly this argument wouldn't have happened if they had let a real Singaporean hold it. (born and bred). Everyone would have let it go as an honest mistake.
With almost 1/5 or 1/4 of our population now foreign, this is becomming an increasingly alarmming matter. We don't need that big a population and I seriously cannot see why our government want so many people? To put more gantries? More people would only mean more mouths to feed right? I am not vehermently against foreign TALENT, those who work in MNCs. After all, they ARE MULTI-NATIONAL.
But seriously, waiters, cashiers, and even MIDDLE-CLASS OFFICE GOERS?!?! Thats talent?!
I think we are taking our multi-racial harmonious society for granted. How long did it take us to see ourselves as Singaporean? After the riots, killing and all the other shit, just to combine Malay, Chinese and Indian as Singaporean and now other Chinese, Indian and a whole lot of other people come? Then expecting to them to integrate like *click* magic? This is not lego. However, most do, and their children too and it does, like the government says, make Singapore a more vibrant, diverse nation.
But it is also normal for locals to hate people who come and take their rice bowl. Look at America, Australia, they bloddy hate foreigners, and at this rate, we may also end up like them.
P.S. I'm totally fine with foreigners converting to becomming citizens because they like Singapore and wish to be Singaporean, actually I quite like that. But I hate those who still think of going back or feel patriotic to thier homeland. Singapore is Singapore. Do you see Americans feeling patriotic to UK because the whites were from there? Or even Singaporean malays patriotic to malaysia? (except for head perfect)
-PanZerz
Wednesday, August 6, 2008
Symbolic analysis of "Pebble Fort"
As promised, a symbolic analysis. Call it practice for Literature.
References: http://pebblefort.blogspot.com/2008/07/pebble-fort-original-story.html
When I first wrote "The Pebble Fort", I had little inkling of what it should represent. It was mostly there as a childish game to unite my two characters. Sometimes, the fun isn't so much in creating symbols, but in picking out an object that has been there previously, realizing suddenly that it holds a hell lot of symbolic potential, then running with it. These unprecedented motifs and themes crop up a lot when you're storytelling, and it can be awesome, especially when they work really well. Since no one planned for them, they just feel natural. This is similar to a phenomenon where a character in a TV/movie/comic/novel series where a minor character unexpectedly evolves into a major one, evoking major lulz and <3 from everyone. Kat from Battlestar Galactica(Re-imagined), Nicky (or arguably, Pax) from the Bourne Trilogy, Celia from Order of the Stick, Ade Bennett from the Wess'har novels.
The Pebble Fort started out as a simple plot device; now it is the face of holing up behind our childhood. It is what we come back to when we feel overcome and overwhelmed by the harsh realities of the adults we're all turning into: a defiant but ultimately weak show of futility as life's truths gnaw down and roll aside the pebbles, and the whole facade with it.
It's not real, and letting it conflict with what is real will be suicide. It is the haystack, the welcoming bed, the fan, the room, the cool empty loft where you just sit back and relax and struggle to brush off whatever the fuck happened today, or will happen tomorrow or next week (who cares?). But like everything else, it'll be gone someday. We won't even remember it.
...
MUAHAHAHAHAHAHA
References: http://pebblefort.blogspot.com/2008/07/pebble-fort-original-story.html
When I first wrote "The Pebble Fort", I had little inkling of what it should represent. It was mostly there as a childish game to unite my two characters. Sometimes, the fun isn't so much in creating symbols, but in picking out an object that has been there previously, realizing suddenly that it holds a hell lot of symbolic potential, then running with it. These unprecedented motifs and themes crop up a lot when you're storytelling, and it can be awesome, especially when they work really well. Since no one planned for them, they just feel natural. This is similar to a phenomenon where a character in a TV/movie/comic/novel series where a minor character unexpectedly evolves into a major one, evoking major lulz and <3 from everyone. Kat from Battlestar Galactica(Re-imagined), Nicky (or arguably, Pax) from the Bourne Trilogy, Celia from Order of the Stick, Ade Bennett from the Wess'har novels.
The Pebble Fort started out as a simple plot device; now it is the face of holing up behind our childhood. It is what we come back to when we feel overcome and overwhelmed by the harsh realities of the adults we're all turning into: a defiant but ultimately weak show of futility as life's truths gnaw down and roll aside the pebbles, and the whole facade with it.
It's not real, and letting it conflict with what is real will be suicide. It is the haystack, the welcoming bed, the fan, the room, the cool empty loft where you just sit back and relax and struggle to brush off whatever the fuck happened today, or will happen tomorrow or next week (who cares?). But like everything else, it'll be gone someday. We won't even remember it.
...
MUAHAHAHAHAHAHA
Tuesday, August 5, 2008
5 August 08
Listening to:
The Pretender by Foo Fighters
Butter-Fly by Wada Kouji
So there's a big thing happening in our educational institution right now. A bunch of people, at least 8, probably more, duplicated family day coupons and handed them out to fellow students. The teachers got tipped off somehow, and on Monday the Secondary 4 level was warned that if the culprits did not own up by the end of the day, the police would be called in.
These events provide a firsthand view into this aspect of Singapore. Let's analyze.
Firstly, it is clear that the people involved (plus bystanders) were surprised by the crime's severity. A dude I talked to wasn't even aware that with real money involved, duplicating coupons was as good as counterfeiting money, a serious offense. We don't think; we react. We react to impulse. We're raised in a society where morals are a stack of notes and the fearsome Singaporean strictures are rotated with bedtime horror stories. We're black and white. We don't understand, we memorize. Too bad that makes for shitty adaptive mechanism, n00bs.
Secondly, the school is not organized/united/serious enough about educating students about what goes and what doesn't in Singapore, or they have some other fundamental error in their approach somewhere. Maybe they believe that CME classes are enough. Maybe they let the parents do it. But most likely, it's because of the emphasis on grades. Not that I'm not glad about CME classes being booted once and for all (I'm amoral), but on principle, kicking out CME and keeping PE doesn't make enough sense. The CME stuff they give is epic fail in themselves. They never bothered to nurture constructive discussion when we were younger, so asking for a discussion to happen is probably a big bunch of useless. Or too much work. Either way, when we look at CME notes, and find out that we won't be punished if we don't take them seriously, we go back to our handphones under the table. We're not taught to question these things(or much else, for that matter; SBQs are notoriously hard for many). Fundamental fuck-up.
----------------------------------------
I had Narain for English today. He gave us a handout that talked about whether Singapore's system is totalitarian. Then he went off on a completely different tangent about how our principal turned our "backwater Congo" into a value-added institution.
The dates of Narain's and our principal's first arrival at our school is only three months apart. We were pathetic back then. What he described sounded like the lower echelons of my former primary school - gangs, bastards, complete disregard for anything that is pure and good, the teachers were afraid of the students, and loads of people were getting 2 passes for O Levels. Half of the graduating cohorts had nowhere to go after tertiary.
Our new principal came in and replaced the weary teachers with fresh new ones. She effectively told the Upper Sec to go to hell and concentrated efforts on the new batches of kids. She just dumped all the useless faggots in the Upper Sec, and in four years, our school's academic ranking had jumped by about a hundred.
NOW you know why you hear about Mr Loy at odds with the principal over whether to give up on the Normal Tech people. NOW you know why she's so Nazi about keeping our academic and disciplinary standing. She brought the school out of a cesspit, and she's not going to let it fall back in on her watch.
To probably everyone else, I suppose, this had completely no link with the topic about totalitarian Singapore. But I think the underlying issue he was musing about, consciously or subconsciously, was that whether Singapore is totalitarian/Nazi/communist doesn't matter nearly as much as the question of how effective it is. Dictatorships need strong, decisive, and pragmatic dictators that don't flinch at breaking a few eggs to achieve a greater goal.
Our principal broke some eggs (already rotten anyway) to revitalize the school. I'd say it was worth it.
The Pretender by Foo Fighters
Butter-Fly by Wada Kouji
So there's a big thing happening in our educational institution right now. A bunch of people, at least 8, probably more, duplicated family day coupons and handed them out to fellow students. The teachers got tipped off somehow, and on Monday the Secondary 4 level was warned that if the culprits did not own up by the end of the day, the police would be called in.
These events provide a firsthand view into this aspect of Singapore. Let's analyze.
Firstly, it is clear that the people involved (plus bystanders) were surprised by the crime's severity. A dude I talked to wasn't even aware that with real money involved, duplicating coupons was as good as counterfeiting money, a serious offense. We don't think; we react. We react to impulse. We're raised in a society where morals are a stack of notes and the fearsome Singaporean strictures are rotated with bedtime horror stories. We're black and white. We don't understand, we memorize. Too bad that makes for shitty adaptive mechanism, n00bs.
Secondly, the school is not organized/united/serious enough about educating students about what goes and what doesn't in Singapore, or they have some other fundamental error in their approach somewhere. Maybe they believe that CME classes are enough. Maybe they let the parents do it. But most likely, it's because of the emphasis on grades. Not that I'm not glad about CME classes being booted once and for all (I'm amoral), but on principle, kicking out CME and keeping PE doesn't make enough sense. The CME stuff they give is epic fail in themselves. They never bothered to nurture constructive discussion when we were younger, so asking for a discussion to happen is probably a big bunch of useless. Or too much work. Either way, when we look at CME notes, and find out that we won't be punished if we don't take them seriously, we go back to our handphones under the table. We're not taught to question these things(or much else, for that matter; SBQs are notoriously hard for many). Fundamental fuck-up.
----------------------------------------
I had Narain for English today. He gave us a handout that talked about whether Singapore's system is totalitarian. Then he went off on a completely different tangent about how our principal turned our "backwater Congo" into a value-added institution.
The dates of Narain's and our principal's first arrival at our school is only three months apart. We were pathetic back then. What he described sounded like the lower echelons of my former primary school - gangs, bastards, complete disregard for anything that is pure and good, the teachers were afraid of the students, and loads of people were getting 2 passes for O Levels. Half of the graduating cohorts had nowhere to go after tertiary.
Our new principal came in and replaced the weary teachers with fresh new ones. She effectively told the Upper Sec to go to hell and concentrated efforts on the new batches of kids. She just dumped all the useless faggots in the Upper Sec, and in four years, our school's academic ranking had jumped by about a hundred.
NOW you know why you hear about Mr Loy at odds with the principal over whether to give up on the Normal Tech people. NOW you know why she's so Nazi about keeping our academic and disciplinary standing. She brought the school out of a cesspit, and she's not going to let it fall back in on her watch.
To probably everyone else, I suppose, this had completely no link with the topic about totalitarian Singapore. But I think the underlying issue he was musing about, consciously or subconsciously, was that whether Singapore is totalitarian/Nazi/communist doesn't matter nearly as much as the question of how effective it is. Dictatorships need strong, decisive, and pragmatic dictators that don't flinch at breaking a few eggs to achieve a greater goal.
Our principal broke some eggs (already rotten anyway) to revitalize the school. I'd say it was worth it.
more equal. <=
BTW Tofu, its not a pun. Its the FUCKING TRUTH!
In our current society, we always try to see all human beings as equal which is good. No discriminination and all and we all live happily ever after. But is it "equal" to the majority? What I'm trying to say is, lets have an example, no on MRTs and LRTs they have 1-2 priority seats on every row of seats on every carriage. Now that isin't the problem, you know cause we need to give way to the elderly and pregnant and all but do we really have so many people with special needs right now? I mean yes it is good that there should be a law in place to stop employers from sacking or refusing to hire people with special needs, but to also be given the exact same salary despite having to have more medical leave days or special care given? Now is that really equality? If you want to be treated equal, you have to get there on your own merits, not complain about how you may or may not be "discriminated".
The same problem also appears with women. Now not to be sexist or anything but some women really don't know who they are. There are of course the femenists who want totally equal rights and men and then there are those who still want to be treated like princesses. Now the problem is, there "princesses" learn about femenism and the start wanting equality as well like...WTF? Kind of like where maybe your signifiance other wants you share equal load of the house work. You think thats fair and you agree. But then she also expects gifts and also to pay for everysingle meal. Seriously woman, you got the word femenist wrong.
-PanZerz
In our current society, we always try to see all human beings as equal which is good. No discriminination and all and we all live happily ever after. But is it "equal" to the majority? What I'm trying to say is, lets have an example, no on MRTs and LRTs they have 1-2 priority seats on every row of seats on every carriage. Now that isin't the problem, you know cause we need to give way to the elderly and pregnant and all but do we really have so many people with special needs right now? I mean yes it is good that there should be a law in place to stop employers from sacking or refusing to hire people with special needs, but to also be given the exact same salary despite having to have more medical leave days or special care given? Now is that really equality? If you want to be treated equal, you have to get there on your own merits, not complain about how you may or may not be "discriminated".
The same problem also appears with women. Now not to be sexist or anything but some women really don't know who they are. There are of course the femenists who want totally equal rights and men and then there are those who still want to be treated like princesses. Now the problem is, there "princesses" learn about femenism and the start wanting equality as well like...WTF? Kind of like where maybe your signifiance other wants you share equal load of the house work. You think thats fair and you agree. But then she also expects gifts and also to pay for everysingle meal. Seriously woman, you got the word femenist wrong.
-PanZerz
Operation Continent Jump
So Panzerz and me went to Singapore Expo to check out eurotrip.
Here are the stuff we managed to sniff out.
We got a tentative flight date of 19 November on SQ334 (Departure)
and, we got a landing date of 5th December on SQ 325.
We checked out the prices of transportation. The flight would cost us $1900 on Singapore Airlines.
Eurorail passes for 3 countries would cost us 300 euros. The pass would allow us access to the railroads to enter 3 coutries within a 2 month period. The travel agency would book all the train tickets for us and all we need to do is arrive at the right train station on time and take our trains out.
So the total cost of our transport would be roughly around S$2300+. Factoring in our survival cost, the entire trip is estimated to cost around S$3500 or so. Plus minus around there. Minor details to be ironed out, and as soon as we get those done, europe awaits us.
We still have the booking of hostels left to do. Thats quite crucial. When I say backpack, I didn't meant sleeping on the streets in WINTER. So we need a hostel where we can link up with cute girls from all over the world. (pun)
Lets get the stuff ironed out ASAP and booked out tickets. That way, we can concentrate on our exams knowing that Europe awaits us after finishing those papers.
Here are the stuff we managed to sniff out.
We got a tentative flight date of 19 November on SQ334 (Departure)
and, we got a landing date of 5th December on SQ 325.
We checked out the prices of transportation. The flight would cost us $1900 on Singapore Airlines.
Eurorail passes for 3 countries would cost us 300 euros. The pass would allow us access to the railroads to enter 3 coutries within a 2 month period. The travel agency would book all the train tickets for us and all we need to do is arrive at the right train station on time and take our trains out.
So the total cost of our transport would be roughly around S$2300+. Factoring in our survival cost, the entire trip is estimated to cost around S$3500 or so. Plus minus around there. Minor details to be ironed out, and as soon as we get those done, europe awaits us.
We still have the booking of hostels left to do. Thats quite crucial. When I say backpack, I didn't meant sleeping on the streets in WINTER. So we need a hostel where we can link up with cute girls from all over the world. (pun)
Lets get the stuff ironed out ASAP and booked out tickets. That way, we can concentrate on our exams knowing that Europe awaits us after finishing those papers.
Monday, August 4, 2008
Underemergency
The reason it's not "The Unemergency" anymore is because unemergency hints that it's not an emergency; it is. Just that some characters in the play refuse to recognize it as such, doesn't undermine the facts. Underemergency has a link to the word understatement so it's better for the themes I'm pushing. Many pacing problems in it, but hell:
DOWNLOAD LINK
Wish I'd changed the title before I submitted it. Top prize of $700 will go into our Europe trip if the competition hasn't hiked up much from last year. It's a sorry-ass, shit-laced, pessimistic playscript about Peak Oil, written in less than 24 hours so don't expect A Midsummer Night's Dream. As promised, the word 'oil' is hardly mentioned. It looks at how the complacent, pampered attitude works in a close-to apocalyptic world.
One fascinating thing about Underemergency is that the night after I finished it, I couldn't sleep. I closed my eyes for a few minutes and I woke up, heart pounding. I felt terrified and desolate. I was thinking about death, and a shitty future, and dying alone, and living alone, and death again. I couldn't stop myself going into a frenzy about it. I had to get up and switch on the light, and read a book (it was nonfiction, mind you) to get rid of that black hole in me that had suddenly opened up and was sucking me in. I managed to calm myself eventually, but my, it was freaky. I didn't feel like that at any point at all during the competition. Maybe it was Underemergency, maybe it was the sleep deprivation, maybe it was the withdrawal from human contact. Oh well...
Battlestar Galactica for the win!
DOWNLOAD LINK
Wish I'd changed the title before I submitted it. Top prize of $700 will go into our Europe trip if the competition hasn't hiked up much from last year. It's a sorry-ass, shit-laced, pessimistic playscript about Peak Oil, written in less than 24 hours so don't expect A Midsummer Night's Dream. As promised, the word 'oil' is hardly mentioned. It looks at how the complacent, pampered attitude works in a close-to apocalyptic world.
One fascinating thing about Underemergency is that the night after I finished it, I couldn't sleep. I closed my eyes for a few minutes and I woke up, heart pounding. I felt terrified and desolate. I was thinking about death, and a shitty future, and dying alone, and living alone, and death again. I couldn't stop myself going into a frenzy about it. I had to get up and switch on the light, and read a book (it was nonfiction, mind you) to get rid of that black hole in me that had suddenly opened up and was sucking me in. I managed to calm myself eventually, but my, it was freaky. I didn't feel like that at any point at all during the competition. Maybe it was Underemergency, maybe it was the sleep deprivation, maybe it was the withdrawal from human contact. Oh well...
Battlestar Galactica for the win!
Good morning Mr Night
Screw it. I'm up trying to finish my linear law exercise in the middle of the night. Linear Law is hardddd, and it takes super long to do.
I still got shitloads of other homework. Notably my oral transcripts. I have 2 of em' to finish. Damn. And my oral exams are on 14 August. How does transcripts help us? Argh, damn the O's. Because I'm so freaking lazy, I need help in so many crappy subjects. All my subjects suck to the core and it would take a hell lot of crap before I can fully grasp the different papers. And hello, my Prelims are here already. holy crap. I got to stop this procastination and get my ass back to doing some work.
Prelims, oh my goooooooodness.
Save me.
I still got shitloads of other homework. Notably my oral transcripts. I have 2 of em' to finish. Damn. And my oral exams are on 14 August. How does transcripts help us? Argh, damn the O's. Because I'm so freaking lazy, I need help in so many crappy subjects. All my subjects suck to the core and it would take a hell lot of crap before I can fully grasp the different papers. And hello, my Prelims are here already. holy crap. I got to stop this procastination and get my ass back to doing some work.
Prelims, oh my goooooooodness.
Save me.
Sunday, August 3, 2008
Post-24h
Not only do I feel tired and confused, I also feel lonely. Strange that this has to happen after the competition has ended. Maybe I bottled it up and its trickling out now.
I tried to sleep when I got back. I couldn't do it for very long, before my head began to spin and spin. I'm not going to attempt any homework today.
Sometimes I miss Mikana. Then I realize that I still see her every week day. I miss the pretense. I miss my Drama days when I could just basically waste my afternoons trading shitty jokes with my juniors and ogling Mikana, waiting for when she had a 'wardrobe malfunction'. Then there was the pretense. The pretense that this could go on indefinitely, that maybe I had a chance with Mikana (although my sensible half has always frowned upon this). Yeah, I liked to play pretend. I've run these fantasies through my head so many times that when I boot one of them up now I'll probably feel exhausted. It gives me fatigue, imagining this stuff, but I don't get 'tired' of it.
It sucks when your best moments in life never happened. If I do well for my O Levels and get into FSV... and overcome Peak Oil... godammit, Peak Oil.
http://www.lifeaftertheoilcrash.net/
I tried to sleep when I got back. I couldn't do it for very long, before my head began to spin and spin. I'm not going to attempt any homework today.
Sometimes I miss Mikana. Then I realize that I still see her every week day. I miss the pretense. I miss my Drama days when I could just basically waste my afternoons trading shitty jokes with my juniors and ogling Mikana, waiting for when she had a 'wardrobe malfunction'. Then there was the pretense. The pretense that this could go on indefinitely, that maybe I had a chance with Mikana (although my sensible half has always frowned upon this). Yeah, I liked to play pretend. I've run these fantasies through my head so many times that when I boot one of them up now I'll probably feel exhausted. It gives me fatigue, imagining this stuff, but I don't get 'tired' of it.
It sucks when your best moments in life never happened. If I do well for my O Levels and get into FSV... and overcome Peak Oil... godammit, Peak Oil.
http://www.lifeaftertheoilcrash.net/
Fucking finished
Last stimulus: Taxi Cab
Submitted 10 minutes before deadline. Unemergency isn't going to be something I'm going to hang on my wall, to put it lightly, but it is a lot better than Heavy White Turtle in my opinion.
Will upload and post link when I get past the deluge of homework that I haven't done.
Submitted 10 minutes before deadline. Unemergency isn't going to be something I'm going to hang on my wall, to put it lightly, but it is a lot better than Heavy White Turtle in my opinion.
Will upload and post link when I get past the deluge of homework that I haven't done.
7 hours 20 minutes left
Just went on a walk all over Joo Chiat Road and it's satellite lanes. Was imagining how all the nice cultural buildings would look post-Peak Oil when this funny guy recognized me as the winner from last year. He was one of those people that got too friendly ("You're really smart right?"), so I bolted("What are you writing about??").
Play not moving along fast enough, and I haven't pulled off enough "moments" yet. Spending the night has made me feel really sleepy, despite double coffee servings.
Joo Chiat smells like dogshit. After Peak Oil I suspect it would be manshit.
Play not moving along fast enough, and I haven't pulled off enough "moments" yet. Spending the night has made me feel really sleepy, despite double coffee servings.
Joo Chiat smells like dogshit. After Peak Oil I suspect it would be manshit.
11 hours 40 minutes left
I'm more than halfway through the time limit. I need to go faster.
I finished the outline the character journeys of each member of my ensemble cast outside (battery ran out and I had to come back in), plus the first two scenes. The next bit will be tricky; the middle part always is.
Half the people here are sleeping, or look fucking sleepy. Maybe they've become immune to coffee from years of constant use, because I'm rather sprightly now, at 4 in the morning. Wish I could get you pictures of that hot chick, the night sky, and my cock, but I gotta return to my writing.
And they just ran out of toilet paper. Luckily I brought my own. ^__^
I finished the outline the character journeys of each member of my ensemble cast outside (battery ran out and I had to come back in), plus the first two scenes. The next bit will be tricky; the middle part always is.
Half the people here are sleeping, or look fucking sleepy. Maybe they've become immune to coffee from years of constant use, because I'm rather sprightly now, at 4 in the morning. Wish I could get you pictures of that hot chick, the night sky, and my cock, but I gotta return to my writing.
And they just ran out of toilet paper. Luckily I brought my own. ^__^
15 hours 30 minutes left
We all lined up with a piece of tissue paper; at the head of the line was the man who would give us our third stimulus. After assuring us all he wouldn't be secreting or squirting any body fluids, he dripped a few drops of something into my tissue. Apparently, the third stimulus is a smell.
This one was very open to interpretation. It smelled orangey, acidic, scratchy. I'm sure there's an use for it.
My outline is moving forward, but I have to start writing the real thing soon.
In other news: I noticed a chick that's cute in the same way as Mikana, but nevertheless I moved downstairs to this deserted restaurant called Quentins. The atmosphere is FUXPRO. Right now I'm sitting at a dark wooden dining table. Directly above me is night sky and a single visible star. To my right is Ceylon Road, which cars breathe past every few seconds. Ferns and oppressive trees all around. If the traffic dies down during the night this'll be perfect.
Internet is shit out here, so this post comes late.
This one was very open to interpretation. It smelled orangey, acidic, scratchy. I'm sure there's an use for it.
My outline is moving forward, but I have to start writing the real thing soon.
In other news: I noticed a chick that's cute in the same way as Mikana, but nevertheless I moved downstairs to this deserted restaurant called Quentins. The atmosphere is FUXPRO. Right now I'm sitting at a dark wooden dining table. Directly above me is night sky and a single visible star. To my right is Ceylon Road, which cars breathe past every few seconds. Ferns and oppressive trees all around. If the traffic dies down during the night this'll be perfect.
Internet is shit out here, so this post comes late.
Saturday, August 2, 2008
20 hours left
The second stimulus was given out an hour ago. It's "Beijing".
Cements the Peak Oil story. I can play it like a disaster movie without the CGI. The focus won't be on Peak Oil, but on how Singaporean ignorance and complacency is so completely fucking useless to the average individual in times of serious crisis.
The slacking around here seems to have died down. People are going into corners to write notes and I can hear typing. On my end, research is going along on how Peak Oil will hit Singaporeans, and China(I need to integrate Beijing into this).
I'm starting to get into things. Will update again in a bit.
Cements the Peak Oil story. I can play it like a disaster movie without the CGI. The focus won't be on Peak Oil, but on how Singaporean ignorance and complacency is so completely fucking useless to the average individual in times of serious crisis.
The slacking around here seems to have died down. People are going into corners to write notes and I can hear typing. On my end, research is going along on how Peak Oil will hit Singaporeans, and China(I need to integrate Beijing into this).
I'm starting to get into things. Will update again in a bit.
2 hours 30 minutes
They serve dinner at 6. WTF? I eat at 8!
I've walked around looking at what some other people are doing in the early stages.
A few people are writing/taking notes by hand
Someone's watching anime (and other stuff, judging by some people's expressions)
There're a group of four guys who've been gossiping for about an hour in a corner
A woman 's telling two other girls that actually we can request to go outside the competition venue... eat laksa, go 7-eleven...
Spamming free muffins into themselves
A dude across me is reading a thick book called "Empress Orchid"
drinking tea
Some funny things I can remember from last year:
One woman was playing MapleStory
A guy snored... really fucking loudly
A teenaged guy putting his head on a girl's lap (think they know each other?)
rampant toilet sodomy (finally an event where I did more than just watch)
Still waiting for second stimulus. Meanwhile, I've compiled a list of possible storylines:
I've walked around looking at what some other people are doing in the early stages.
A few people are writing/taking notes by hand
Someone's watching anime (and other stuff, judging by some people's expressions)
There're a group of four guys who've been gossiping for about an hour in a corner
A woman 's telling two other girls that actually we can request to go outside the competition venue... eat laksa, go 7-eleven...
Spamming free muffins into themselves
A dude across me is reading a thick book called "Empress Orchid"
drinking tea
Some funny things I can remember from last year:
One woman was playing MapleStory
A guy snored... really fucking loudly
A teenaged guy putting his head on a girl's lap (think they know each other?)
rampant toilet sodomy (finally an event where I did more than just watch)
Still waiting for second stimulus. Meanwhile, I've compiled a list of possible storylines:
Partition – In an uncompromising society that is defined formally by ‘levels’, and has locked down its children for fear that they be drafted into revolutionary groups, Syrene and Teja bond in a regimental tuition centre despite their social outcast status and relationships being prohibited at their age. They work to overcome their past crimes, though their memories of it have been purged from them. Josh, Teja’s rival, begins to understand the flaws behind the system, though his parents share a very different view. Samesh, the tuition teacher, is an outspoken critic of the current system, though he abides by it dutifully. Swee Chin is Teja’s legal guardian, committed to ensuring his ‘safe’ development. A natural disaster comes along, forcing everyone to make choices.
Protection Group – In a rough neighbourhood of people oppressed by gangs, a group bands together, determined to fix the situation. Though somewhat successful, they begin to be tainted by their harsh experiences and slowly become what they once stood against.
Peak Oil – A middle-class Singaporean family receives a nasty shock to their complacency and struggles not to lose its luxuries and each other as the world economy spirals into oblivion as world oil supplies dip and dip.
Car - A man gives up his life to start a new one aventuring in a car (or doing some other wacky adventurous thing)
Credits to Panzer for the car idea.29 minutes
I nearly missed it.
It is a testament to my careless and forgetful nature when I dump in at 2008’s 24hr playwriting competition at 15:59, one minute from the start time, without an indemnity form and without formal parental consent, having only informed them of today’s event an hour before. Maybe I didn’t want to wake up father up because I didn’t want to talk to him. Maybe I was overconfident about being able to reach the venue on time. Maybe I just forgot, like I forgot so many other important things. All that matters is not that I’m here, but it is the most paramount task I have right now, because of the time pressure.
Less than 23 hours to pull off a winning script – I say winning because it would be a shit in the face if I grab anything lower than second place. Last year could very well have been a fluke, I admit that. Maybe the competition was weak then. Maybe I’ll be facing real playwrights now. Regardless, writing is not just my niche; it’s going to be my life.
The participants will be provided stimuli that they will have to include in their scripts. Stimuli may take the form of an object, a snatch of dialogue, even a sensation (last year they made us drink some tasteless tea).
Last year’s first and second stimuli had me pondering in circles fruitlessly for roughly seven hours before I began to really type. I think I’ll wait for the second stimuli before I seriously pick my direction and start running. I don’t want to have to reconsider my whole convoy of creativity unless I have to.
I have some roughly preconceived ideas this year. First stimulus seems simple enough. It’s dialogue: “I don’t know. It has always been like this.”
A short list of what I’m packing:
This laptop (the same one I used last time, thanks Ms Zee)
A couple of unused ideas
My playlist
Headphones
An useless goodie bag, except for the free mug
My collection of Mikana pics (I was going to bring porn, but what if I get disqualified?)
Island Voices (School Literature text)
A wireless connection
A dictionary
Thesaurus
Rhyming dictionary
Malay-English and English-Malay dictionary
Toilet Paper
12 bucks
2 thumbdrives
Stationery
Umbrella
My list of ship names (posted in Pebble Fort before)
And over 9000 spartans.
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is it just me or is that ego speaking?
August 30, 2008 11:49 AM
Explain plz
August 30, 2008 5:59 PM
no actually, i'd rather not.
August 30, 2008 7:14 PM
What is it with this mentality that I can't handle anything but jokes? Is it because of India? What, my 'faggot' comments got to you? Who's the sensitive one then?
August 30, 2008 7:16 PM
on the contrary, i firmly believe that you can handle jokes, and anything else you wish to do. i am merely displeased by your strangely oversized ego that seems to be pushing people around. certain comments of yours could be some personal joke of yours, but i'm afraid i do not possess psychic powers, hence pardon me if i do not share your joke. pwn my ass? bring it.
August 30, 2008 7:46 PM
Whoa, don't leave it at "certain comments of yours" like some sort of wuss. Specify all the shit you have with me. YOU bring it.
August 30, 2008 7:48 PM
your post "Benedict as PREDATOR". you wrote "And the rest of you - The Pebble Fuckers, Thaksin's daughter and Anwar's coffee boy! ALL YOU FUCKS! All your base will belong to ME!
PREPARE TO GET PWNED MOTHERFRAKKERS!!!!!!!!!111oneoneeleventyNINETHOUSAAAAAAAAND"
care to explain please?