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Tuesday, November 30, 2004 Outrageous I would very much like to be a fence sitter. Really. Some people think Singapore Idol's bogus. Some think it's one of the hottest entertainment shows around. To each his own. I can leave it at that. But I think it's just outrageous when an educational institution gets dragged down. The first Singapore Idol from the first poly! First of all, what does Singapore poly has anything to do with anybody winning the contest? And I don't see a need to overplay the word first. The first Singapore Idol. Well, DUH it's got to be the first if all we do is rip off someone else's handywork. Because when people are having their second and third we're still starting our first! First poly. Now what does that has anything to do with anything? They're just desperate for attention is all I have to say. No, I'm not stupid. I know one of the contestants who made it into the final was from Singapore Poly. But so what? Does the poly teach him how to sing/perform/put on make-ups ?(which it doesn't of course or the poly'll have to be closed down fast - the only face that's less made-up than their face's probably opera singers Heh) Regardless of my sentiment towards the show, I think it's indecent for any educational institution - who still has an ounce of dignity left in her - to tag along, to ride in the wave of his student's achievement (if you can call that achievement which is arguable but let's use that word for the sake of this argument). An achievement that has nothing to do whatsoever with whatever course the institution is offering him. It's almost like a piano teacher telling everybody how his student's winning the golf tournament and claiming subsequently that it makes him a better piano teacher. Yes, that's right folks, you're supposed to roll your eyes here. Well, of course technically it can work both ways. While Singapore poly rides on his wave, he might be riding on their waves too. Besides, where would he get his flock of voters from if not from his own school? In a word of fairness though, the trick works. It generates some people a lot of money. From advertising all the way to all the smses people send. So am I saying all those people voting are stupid? No, I wouldn't so far as to suggest that. But think, if anybody ever appear stupid, don't you wonder why? All things are relative. All i say is that whoever creates this Idol buzz -including the ripper- is smart. They exploit people successfully and i can't quite say the same about myself. And one more thing. People have been beating themselves in anguish, telling everybody how Singapore Idol is but a popularity contest. Yes I suppose that much is clear. But I need to point out, a lot of things in life is. If you want to bitch about Singapore Idol being a popularity contest, i suggest you bitch about presidential race being a popularity contest first. There's meritocracy yes, but there's also this thing called connection. And as long as a network of connection brings power (it has to be or there is no point in socialising, is there?), meritocracy won't stand on its own. In fact I think it never will be, it's too idealistic - call me a pessimist. Okay i suppose that's enough said about Singapore Idol. Just, please..don't even try to persuade me to vote. And I'll leave you alone with your idols. Heh. Grinning Goat at 11/30/2004 11:56:00 PM pontificated | {buzzz out} Monday, November 29, 2004 Thank you The moon is full and low. And I'm old. Thank you for all those smses guys! I'll keep it short then since Wedy's been bugging me. Grinning Goat at 11/29/2004 11:04:00 PM pontificated | {buzzz out} Sunday, November 28, 2004 "Night" by Elie Wiesel Okay this book has kept me awake. Couldn't stop reading it. I should get to bed soon. Heh. I just need to write this while it's still fresh on my mind. It's an autobiography of a 15-year-old who survived the Holocaust. Not thick, but enough to keep me awake. Since I don't think that a picture paints a thousand words (My Biochem lecturer seems to understand this perfectly. If you just look at his lecture notes, it's reduced to mere pictures! He just has a way of making everything looks simplified. Like the way he always says citric acid cycle is nothing but______. Everything is nothing but something. Heh. I sidetrack), I shall just quote Francois Mauriac in the foreword. (Besides I don't have a bloody scanner). Commenting on Wiesel who lost his faith after the ordeal, And I, who believe that God is love, what answer could I give my young questioner, whose dark eyes still held the reflection of that angelic sadness which had appeared one day upon the face of the hanged child? What did I say to him? Did I speak of that other Jew, his brother, who may have resembled him - the Crucified, whose cross has conquered the world? Did I affirm that the stumbling block of his faith was the cornerstone of mine, and that the conformity between the Cross and the suffering of men was in my eyes the key to that impenetrable mystery whereon the faith of his childhood had perished? If you read the book, the irony is striking. There's beauty in irony. And somewhat that's a paradox in itself. I want to talk about about something else that I thought about while I was reading but it'll have to wait. Sleep time. Grinning Goat at 11/28/2004 09:06:00 AM pontificated | {buzzz out} I don't overanalyse guys R: Geez look at that. Did you see the shadows on the wall? They shouldn't have been there. In real life, the light will be too diffuse, there's no way we can get such a sharp shadow. Dedel: ...that's just a weird way to watch a movie. Can you just watch in peace? R: This is not so bad. In Passion of The Christ, they did something worse. The supposedly deceased Jesus squirted blood when someone poked him with a spear. Dedel: erhh...so? R: You don't squirt blood when you're dead, because the heart's stopped pumping. No pressure, get it? Dedel:... Today, courtesy of my neighbour I was watching this Indian movie. It was alright. I mean i wouldn't expect much from the plot because they just have a tendency to come up with typical, guessable plot (with a happy ending of course) but I can see they try to make it big scale. Almost Hollywood-ish even. It was alright if I just ignore the fact that the male lead never ran out of bullet. Yes, okay he held two pistols. But how many bullets can two pistols hold anyway? They're not even riffles for goodness sake. Or the fact that the supposedly brilliant world-class spy is actually stupid enough to jam the radioactive tube inside the terrosist's mouth. And what I can't stand is this: they actually say the radioactivity doesn't spread because the temperature's very low (the setting's in some snowy mountain). Yeah, right. The male lead doesn't even get cancer! (That won't be in line with the happy-ending plot you understand). This is the catch. The terrorist's actually stupid enough to not see through the lead's disguises. Some terrorists they are! When the female lead obviously manages to recognise him in his disguise. Oh and by the way the disguise involves only a fake moustache (or beard or goatee, take your pick), new hairstyle (dyed, long, short, curly, etc etc etc), and sunglasses! TA-DAAAAAAAAA!!! Not even a plastic surgery. But then again it won't be in line with the handsome kick-ass spy story they're trying to project. (Think Michael jackson and you know what I mean) Don't be shocked if you see me on the street tomorrow in some grandma's suit claiming to be some minister's grandmother. Oh wait, you're not supposed to know that the grandma is me! I suppose I should be thankful my neighbour's lending me the movie. It's not that bad really, we just have to overlook... Okay let's not start all over again. Thank you Shahnas! Grinning Goat at 11/28/2004 05:15:00 AM pontificated | {buzzz out} Friday, November 26, 2004 Clean up up up Okay as I cleaned up my room just now, I stumbled upon this piece of yellow paper. Papers we used to scribble messages in the library. And it's yellow because that colour supposedly woke us up. Not that I can testify to its efficacy but then again maybe it's just me. These are what's written: Don't sleep!!! Starving... Munchie monekys has calamari rings I can also go at night. It closes at 9 then you help me pack dinner or are we even eating dinner? indecisive fickle-minded women... HUNGRY! sandwhich machine Don't stone! Is nothing something? Toilet break? What's Minah doing? Did you ditch her? She so poor thing...haha =) ROSS STUDY!!! Motivate my sorry ass You know the moth DIED! The one on third floor!!! TEACHER in training Teacher trained HAHA Thank GOD Dinner at 6? I think spies are nearby people. Haiizzzz -------------------------------------------------- -5 kg middle +5 kg Ben Are you sure we have to read everything? Now I'm hungry, what did y'all eat? Did you notice the intense pre-occupation with food in general? The mood for some nonsensical and some philosophical discussion? The tendency to stare at the papers and do nothing else but staring? PHew but it's all over folks... Grinning Goat at 11/26/2004 07:25:00 PM pontificated | {buzzz out} It shouldn't be a matter of defining the boundary PSLE results were out and we're supposed to register and all. It's been decided that Wedy's going to accompany Ono to school while I sleep in peace. But oh no it wasn't meant to be because they need someone above 21 to sign the whatever bureaucratic bullshit of a paper. And since Wedy's in her school uniform she couldn't pull off a lie even if she tried to. So I dragged my lazy ass there. And I'm not even 21 yet. But of course being the convincing liar that I am....heh that's not the point...but I'm so not going to call my uncle just to sign the paper when I could bloody well sign it myself. 21 or not. Seriously, what is it with 21? It's not when you turn 21 everything will change drastically right? Not like you're going to be a saint after spending the past 5 years screwing up your life. It doesn't work like that. Not like that at all, mate. So you can watch RA. What's the big deal? If you're so inclined you can always sneak past the guards. They aren't as smart as they look. All you need to do is look adult-ish. So you can vote. Your vote won't make a big difference in the general scheme of things but that's not the point. Again, it's not like you're going to be a politics-conscious person after spending half your life being an ignorant brat, are you? If you don't know who Hon Sui Sen or Lim Swee Say is, it's unlikely you're going to know it when you turn 21 unless you start reading the papers. So you can buy alcoholic drinks. Ironic really. Most people drink anyway, whatever the age because whoever's buying the drink may not be the one who gets to drink. It's almost like a random pick you know. 21. Why not 20? Hell, why not 22? It's as though they pick 21 just so they have a boundary. Some age limit to define adulthood. But that's simplifying adulthood too much eh? In Colombia you can have people as young as 16 working, feeding their siblings, thinking about the state their country's in. Yet in here we can have people as old as 25 and can't differentiate the washing machine's on from the off button even if it's staring at them. We have people serving NS bringing back the laundry home. Mr Macho Man doesn't even take care of his own laundry. It's a little like the passing mark. A little difference creates a big gap. Like 49 is a fail but not 50. The passing mark is there just so that a boundary is created. Ah humans just like to put everything into classes and ranks. I'll say we have our own superiority complex. So yes, 21 is just like any other age. No big fuss please. 19. 20. 21. Adulthood should be more meaningful than that. Definition by age. That's just way sad. Grinning Goat at 11/26/2004 01:53:00 PM pontificated | {buzzz out} Technologically intoxicated I missed the last bus AND mrt. So i was stuck in the middle of nowhere feeling pretty pissed. Then this taxi came along. I was just about ready (not mentally) to bankrupt myself with the taxi's midnight surcharge. When the argometer broke down. HAHAH. I couldn't believe my luck. But that wasn't the best part. The best part was when the taxi driver mumbled to himself, "How...how to count.....the machine spoilt....roughlylah...roughly.....six or seven dollars" Hmm I thought I might be no expert in taxi fares, but SIX dollars from Bedok to Serangoon. That's well...inexpensive. (I wouldn't say it's cheap eh, because if it is what's a bus ride? very cheap?? I don't think so) And it's bordering midnight. But of course I let him mumble a little. I didn't say yes, neither did I say no. It wasn't my idea. I didn't technically cheat him off his money because all i did was sit and kept quiet. Ah anyway, that wasn't the point. Isn't it just sad the way people are relying too much on technology they're rendered somewhat hopeless once it's taken from them. Take this uncle. He's probably been driving taxi half his life but his approximation of taxi fare isn't even anywhere near accurate. Then there's the issue of students relying too much on calculators. Gone are the abascus day (heh did they even use abascus around here back then?) Internet for exchange of informations. Tv for source of information and entertainment. Handphones. Hell, people still use handphone when they're in the same building! I suppose there's no turning back. Once you have a taste of the good things you can't eat anything less than that. Sad. Grinning Goat at 11/26/2004 01:24:00 PM pontificated | {buzzz out} Trust our own Jurong Bird Park Wedy: Is penguin a mammal or bird? R: errr.... Wedy: well??? R: No idea....mammal??? Wedy: Have you ever heard people say, "penguins are the only mammals that can't fly?" No right? You hear people say, " Penguins are the only birds that can't fly" R: That's just such a brilliant way to deduce... Wedy: Fine. Go ask your friends... :: :: R: Hey is penguin a mammal or bird? Sq: A bird. R: You sure? Sq: Yah. I think. R: My sister said the "yah" was so convincing but the "I think" wasn't. Sq: Hahaha. Well Penguins are in Jurong Bird PArk, so they must be birds right? R: Cockroaches are in Jurong Bird PArk too... :: :: R: Hey, you're right. They are birds... Sq: See? You should trust our own Jurong Bird PArk. R: Errhh...ok fine... Grinning Goat at 11/26/2004 01:05:00 AM pontificated | {buzzz out} Tuesday, November 23, 2004 What the fuss is all about It's a matter of will. Murder or euthanasia. Rape or mutually-consented sexual intercourse. Murder or a suicide. Will is the only difference. So if we're mindless walking killing shagging machine, they are all inseparable. We're all control freaks. Will is about the only thing that we can really control in life. We can't control nature. We can't really control other people. So we stick to the concept of free will. Hell, even in Bruce Almighty, God can do anything but revoke men's free will. Politics is about control too. And so is hierarchy. And those two are probably one of the oldest concepts we came up with. One of the few things that survived history. We need to have leaders (yes, so everything can be put in order because we're all hard to control etc etc etc) and subordinates. We can't take it lying down being ordered around, so the concept of having someone lower in rank than us gave us that little bit of power - or rather the sense of having the non-existent power. I'll call it the dog society. Isn't that what dogs do? Categorising everything into classes. Dogs are hierarchical. I wonder what it would be like to live in a cat society. But I suppose that's wishful thinking because I want to order people around too you know. And seeing how everything is a matter of will. Will ironically is among the hardest to control - despite all the cries for more free will/freedom/blah blah blah. If it's so easy to control, we won't have : 1. Lazy people 2. Fat people 3. Gangfights 4. Catfights 5. Stupid name-calling 6. Murder 7. Rape :: :: I suppose in defense of mankind in general, people will say that without free will, what are we? (Does free will define mankind? but that's not to say animals don't have free will. They're sentient creatures too you know, no matter how you wish they aren't) But I'm not even suggesting we shouldn't have free will. (Besides now that the concept is so deeply ingrained in society, who am I to change that?) I'm saying, can we handle having all those choices laid before us? Think, if NS is optional (money aside), would anybody come for recruitment? If exams and test are optional, would anybody willingly come to sit for it? It might as well that environment makes the decision for us sometimes. If it doesn't, we'll just be this one big mess. If we won't get fat or health problems eating all the time, would we all overeat? If we won't starve not working (forget charity and wellfare), would we all stay at home? If shopping doesn't diminish your allowance, would we all shop 24/7? A little bit of environmental pressure can push us the right way sometimes. Because we're just this sad piece of walking carbon who thinks life is about having free will. Grinning Goat at 11/23/2004 04:58:00 AM pontificated | {buzzz out} Friday, November 19, 2004 General knowledge R: This is just stupid. Listen to how this toothpaste publisizes itself. " Extra cool and contains no sugar..." Hah. Ne: extra what? R: Can you pay attention to where it matters? Ne: Uhuhh...so it contains no sugar... R: Hey if it does, who in their right mind would brush their teeth? Ne: Some toothpaste contains sugar. R: Oh really? Ne: Yea, that's general knowledge man... R: Bush choking on a pretzel is, THAT wasn't. Ne: WHAT? Bush choked on a pretzel? R: Yea that's general knowledge man... Grinning Goat at 11/19/2004 03:32:00 AM pontificated | {buzzz out} Wednesday, November 17, 2004 An insight into the benefits of balding 1. First off, I'll give a singaporean answer, since I live in this bedeviled place: You save on shampoo and conditioners. Wait there's more. Combs. Hair cut. Hair treatment. And if you're proud of being bald, you'll save on those wigs too. Wigs aren't cheap you know. Or those trips to hair specialists. 2. It might just be the new fashion statement. Hey it may not take another hundred years to happen...just wait til all the trend-setters in this world go bald. Oh wait, there's Beckham...all it takes is for him to go bald and all the sad ass Beckham wanna bes will follow suit. Heh. 3. It's easy for people to spot you. Hey, it's something to make up for your height. 4. Fleas begone. Enough said. 5. You'll get a lot of sun. Imagine, sun-tanned scalp. How healthy is that? 6. You can find comfort in the knowledge that you'll no longer have to be kept in suspense - whether you'll go bald by the age of blah blah blah...whether the hair specialist's trying to cheat you off your money, whether the magic oitment/spray is working, whether anybody will be able to tell you're wearing a wig to cover the bald patch. 7. Let your head breathe. It'll be kind of cooling up there. Brings a new meaning to the term "cool-headed". Say, who knows it improves blood circulation to your brain? Might just bring your IQ a notch higher - pit bottom's not exactly a good place. 8. You know you look damn good even when everybody else says you don't. 9. No worrying over whether your hair's in place. Whether you put enough gel.... 10. You stop staring into the mirror. Period. Okay so I'm overcome by this irrational fear of balding. Arrrrrrrrrrrggggggggggghhhhhhhhhh Grinning Goat at 11/17/2004 04:00:00 AM pontificated | {buzzz out} Tuesday, November 16, 2004 Trivia - literally I realise I've been writing about trivial stuff. But hey, this is exam period you understand, let it end and I'll write something serious, like why and how Arafat's death will affect the Middle-East peace process. In the mean time, let me write something stupid. Because it reflects the banality of life after all. There just HAS to be something going on whenever I go to the reading room. Okay yesterday we had some chocolate-throwing (oohhh not just any chocolate mind you, it's ferrero roche...). It's supposed to hit Owlie but instead by some sheer luck it hit me square on the face. Amazing really, because I was sitting opposite OWlie and technically she shielded me, with her notebook and all... But wth, I get the chocolate. Then we had this irritating guy who thinks he's living in temperate countries. Setting the temperature of the air-conditioner to be so low everybody was freezing. Oh wait, not everybody, just me because everybody -thinking they're living in temperate countries too- brought/wore a jacket. And as the night wore on, I knew that breakfast would turn into lunch. At around 5 when the reading room became silent because everybody's leaving and I was in the middle of assessing the brilliance of Cannizzaro reaction, there's this indian guy who studied with his ear-phone on. And he was humming along. No, let me rephrase. He was grunting along. Like WTH? So I took out my pretty phone and blasted by own MP3 player full volume. But then he changed his mind and deciced to share his music with me. So I sat through some exotic indian songs (there's this particular one that sounded like a disco song. I couldn't wait for it to be over), some aerosmith and some nickleback. Ah yea I forgot to mention, after we ate the chocolate that hit my face, I asked Owlie if we wanted to make mock-chocolate. And she became very excited at the idea so I took a piece of paper, rolled it into a ball and made my brand of ferrero roche. (Perfect with all the stickers and labelling, just perhaps not round enough) And it was revenge time. I threw it to the guy who hit me. Woohoo But missed and hit the blockhead (not blockhed blockhead, silly) Yea so I lost my pretty chocolate. Grinning Goat at 11/16/2004 03:14:00 PM pontificated | {buzzz out} Monday, November 15, 2004 It's all about mental power When you're stuck in the reading room. With your neighbours hunching over some books. Everybody poring over sheets and sheets of paper. You'll do nothing else but study. Short of thinking about food. We're just hungry all the time. Owlie definitely is. Said she has a high metabolic rate etc etc etc... We need some decent food. Something other than instant noodle. Something other than chocolate. Or yogurt (Everybody's been surviving on this guy's yogurt on the fridge - his supply's running low fast I'm telling you). Or dinner which tastes like chilli (okay so I add the chilli myself, but hey what am I to do when dinner's tasteless?). Or chips. Or milk. Or egg sandwhich. Try lasagna. Hmmmmm. That'll be a good start. Heh, I'm not supposed to talk about food. I'm hungry dammit. Okay, time to sleep it off. One thing I know for sure though is that my metabolic rate's probably at a record low. How can it not, when all you do is sit and sleep? I should maybe try to conjure up lasagna in my dream. Heh. Grinning Goat at 11/15/2004 05:23:00 AM pontificated | {buzzz out} Sunday, November 14, 2004 Lack of breathing space breeds insanity Seven days to my first paper. Ok for the past two to three days, I've been in my room. The lousy 2m x 3m space (that's a mere 6m2 mind you) Places I visited: 1. Toilet 2. Kitchen 3. Dining Hall Sad huh? It's almost like a prison...bleh. Places I could've visited but didn't: 1. Neighbours' room : Out of bounds; Trying to lengthen my lifespan and not getting a black eye at the same time. 2. PGP with the minimarket and lots and lots of food supply : I've been having bad face day and bad weight day. So i thought, very well...as long as it doesn't turn to bad face month and bad weight month. 3. My house : where I'll just fall asleep and do not wake up until the exam's over...too late by then. God can't save my sorry arse. 4. Orchard : Movieesssss...moviesss...moviesss....I should've known better. Having a hard time as it is now, resisting temptation that is TV. 5. The lounge on second floor : With the air-con blowing and TV! Hmmm temptation island.... 6. The airport 7. The zoo 8. Bugis 9. Junction 8 10. Chinatown 11. Jurong Birdpark 12. Mc.Ritchie Reservoir 13. Hell, Bedok Reservoir... 14. Suntec city 15. Holland V 16. City Hall 17. The Esplanade 18. East Coast 19. Sentosa 20. Hell, Pulau Ubin!!! Arrrggghhhh just you wait... Alrightie...now...back to the books. Heh. Grinning Goat at 11/14/2004 01:14:00 AM pontificated | {buzzz out} Saturday, November 13, 2004 Found it in the lost and found department. Woohoo Found it. I've been trying to find the title of this song. It was part of some sort of a commercial so they always cut it off before it ends in the radio. And when I asked Owlie today, "Hey do you know this song that goes 'sometimes I feel like I'm drunk behind the wheel?'" And she went all "yea I have that song" Whoopeee. So I get the song. And ladies and gentlemen, it's called Out of my head by Fastball. There you go. Do listen to it. It's like the kind of song Uncle Cracker sings. And I love Uncle Cracker. And now I can't stop listening to it. It goes like this: (the lyrics are kind of cheesy but hey I can't be arsed, I get the song - the song they always chopped off) Sometimes I feel like I am drunk behind the wheel the wheel of possibility however it may roll give it a spin see if it can somehow factor in you know there's always more than one way to say exactly what you mean to say Was I out of my head? Was I out of my mind? How could I have ever been so blind? I was waiting for an INDICATION it was hard to find Don't matter what I say only what I do I never mean to do bad things to you so quiet but i finally woke up if you're sad then it's time you spoke up too (x2) Was I out of my head? Was I out of my mind? How could I have ever been so blind? I was waiting for an INVITATION it was hard to find Don't matter what I say only what I do I never mean to do bad things to you so quiet but i finally woke up if you're sad then it's time you spoke up too And at around eleven just now this bunch of people came over to my room. With a goodie bag! Goodieeee..just when my supplies are running low. But I guess what makes it somewhat nice wasn't the goodie bag (although I certainly wouldn't refuse) it's the fact that they were there to pray for me. With the exams coming etc. I mean I may not believe in their God and all but it's just nice that they actually bothered to make visits like that. Even to non-believers. I feel disturbed though. For the same reason I feel disturbed coming to a church/mass/religious places. It's not that I don't respect religion, I do. In fact, I think it's something sacred, which is why I'm so out of place in those places. Because I don't really believe in things they believe in. Like an impostor. A fake. Sure, everybody wants to be blessed bla bla bla...but how can they (want it) when they don't even believe in whoever's going to give it? Am I making sense? Heh. Yea so I felt wretched but good at the same time. I just wasn't sure where the balance tipped towards. In the mean time, I have Out of my Head for company. NIce song. Niceeeeee songggg. Grinning Goat at 11/13/2004 05:36:00 AM pontificated | {buzzz out} Look who's coming Arafat died. From a disease nobody knows about - or perhaps is willing to divulge. See, it's interesting to see what country sends who. It's not so much the name of the person that matters, it's the position. People can then judge how different countries see Arafat. As an important man? An enemy? A hero? The US, for one sends only some deputy minister. Most countries send either a lowly officer or foreign minister. Guess who sends their president. Heh. It's not that Arafat doesn't deserve the respect, don't get me wrong - I'm pretty neutral about this whole thing - it's the priority the country puts on international issues. Like a funeral is good and dandy, but how about visists to strengthen economic ties?? Oh I forget, would anybody want to make economic co-operations in the first place? I thought all they're interested in is to take over the whole property. And if you notice, everytime a new leader is elected, they'll start to make visits. For whatever reason. I just can't get rid of my suspicion. It's almost almost like seeing somebody who just strikes it rich you know. And that can't be a good thing. Not when they're supposed to be leaders. Not blood-suckers. In Indonesian: Norak banget seh....mumpung gratis kali ye... I wouldn't go so far as to say I am saddened by Arafat's death. But it's like something is missing. I still remember my days as an 8-year-old listening to the news - the Gulf War with the name Arafat being mentioned several times. How he supported Saddam and how it pissed some countries. He's been in power for what, forty years? When it's that long, his name tends to stick to mind. (Unlike the name of ministers where I came from. I still remember there's this period of time where there's almost almost total reshuffling of the cabinet and we're supposed to memorise all the bloody names and positions. WTH. It didn't work. Obviously) The thing about dying while you're still in power is that people still respect you. It's pointless if you're in power for a long time, made some mistakes (or rather, failed to COVER UP some mistakes) and get your name tarnished. It almost erased all your good deeds- if you had any. So perhaps a good might come out of this. Grinning Goat at 11/13/2004 01:14:00 AM pontificated | {buzzz out} Friday, November 12, 2004 Not my fault Okay I just realise Aamir Khan's picture is bigger. Not my fault, really. You know how indian movies are always associated with guys chasing girls around a tree and a lot of dancing and singing? Bollywood's the antitheses of Hollywood, except for the good-guy-shall-never-die-unless-for-a-dramatic-purpose concept. (because if you see it, it's either they get killed trying to save the country, trying to save their daughter/son/wife/friends or getting killed in an accident just to add a bit of realism and make audiences shed tears for nothing i.e. no reason to enhance the plot whatsoever) Their jokes are different. The conversations are different. See, in american movies, you'll get either gung-ho-I'm-a-smart-ass lines or cheesy overused lines people don't really use in real life (think Troy). In Indian movies, you'll get (cheesy) poetic lines (that I think people don't really use in real life) too, but in a different context because you can almost sense the bonding within the community. Not the military sense of camaraderie, more like this brotherhood of men within the population. Sometimes it's not the plot that stirs interest (it's pretty straightforward really. The movie I just watch? It's about this arrogant officer during British's occupation in India who made a bet in cricket, if the Brittons win, they'll have to pay tripple the tax, if the Indians win, they'll be freed from paying tax for 3 years and it doesn't take much to guess who's the winner in the end) it's more about how they do things. Villagers are potrayed as loyal bunch of people. You know the kind that will kill someone who punch their friends. Perhaps the trait's so appealing because nowadays who'll kill for much of anything but money?? Not that murder is good, don't miss my point. Loyalty is something you don't see everyday. Unless in movies/tvs where they magnify everything tenfold for an added effect. Hmm actually I have no idea why I'm rambling on and on. It's the escapism thing. I refuse to study. Heh. Grinning Goat at 11/12/2004 04:55:00 AM pontificated | {buzzz out} You don't think they look alike? Think again Instead of studying like the good student that I And the guy who played lead was this guy 
Which upon close observation (see, it has to be close observation because NUScast's quality is just so so low) looks like Eminem. I'd even say he's the indian version of Eminem. Or (just in case someone accuses me of being racist) eminem's the caucasian version of this guy. 
And since I think I give decent pictures here, observe (need not observe too closely - I bet your eyes aren't insured) and tell me they look alike. Grinning Goat at 11/12/2004 04:28:00 AM pontificated | {buzzz out} Wednesday, November 10, 2004 One of the most nonsensical things Orientation. I don't understand people who actually like orientation. For one thing it's this fake meeting of all kinds of people. It makes you see the insecure side of people - something you don't see everyday. I can almost say it's interesting except for the fact that the whole orientation business is one big hoax. An event where people look like they bond when they don't of course. Okay first up, we'll have the jokers. Always running around trying to crack jokes nobody thinks is funny but feels obliged to show some sort of a reaction. Which reminds me of this guy in school who always tries to get a ride in Jackie's car. It's not so much that he did anything really. He's not malicious - or I think he's not - he didn't do anything in particular that will harm us. Yet all of us dislike him. Nobody tells him that but I think he knows. And nobody tells him why...WHY..to other people he's so detestable. Heh. I almost pity the guy if not for my own irritation towards him. Inexplicable. Sheessh I sidetracked. Jokers are irritating. They don't understand that what they think will attract attention -which they thought will bring companies along- can actually backfire and make people develop itchy fingers. That's when you feel like boxing someone. Then we'll have the uphold-er of the laws and stuff. The preachy kinds. Religions included. Enough said. We have the people with the silent treatment. They'll barely say a word. The kind which perhaps is either too tired to even try to blend in or too didactic/boring to incite the interest of anyone in a conversation even if they try. You have the inane talkers. Who talks about the weather. Their pet cats/dogs/canaries/fish/rabbits/hamsters. Ahhh not to mention...some cute guys/girls living somewhere who always visit the whatever place at whatever time or who dates who, who's trying to date who, who has a crush on who....Awww God it's endless. The bitches and bastards who's all of the above and act bloody differently around the opposite sex. How original. Hey woman, don't you know it's alright to spit around us women because those stupid guys won't know anyway as long as you don't spit in front of them? Of course, I'm a female too you know, you can swear around me but not in front of those guys because I appreciate people swearing around me...no...really.....I'm not joking.... It's like the image you form of someone you meet during the orientation can sometimes be very different from the image you'll build along the way. The bitch for example may be a very nice person - no, I'm not convinced myself, a bitch will always be bitchy orientations or not. For one thing, some people that I thought was boring/irritating turn out to be very loyal friends. Who's capable of having a real conversation. No stories about some guys living somewhere, who has a crush on who. Yadda Yadda. Fitting in is some serious business eh? Look at how people ridicule themselves like that. Probably why I won't ever become a politician. I can't handle the pretentiousness of it all. Because when it's down to changing yourself to fit the others - risk losing your self-identity or getting steeped in self-loath in the process - and being shunned for being different and somewhat anti-social? What would you pick? Grinning Goat at 11/10/2004 03:11:00 AM pontificated | {buzzz out} Monday, November 08, 2004 Some big shot's in the house Yesterday afternoon I went for lunch with my neighbour - and her family. We were in this small restaurant downtown. And after waiting for God knows how long abd finally got ourselves seated, some guy had to come over and asked if we could switch place. My friend's mother was like "switch?? Like to where But the guy owner just sort of snubbed us off with a quick-move-move-your-asses look. Apparently some minister was in the house and the bootlicker of a restaurant owner wanted to do well...some bootlicking of course. I don't know what's so special about that place but there was the -whowasitagain?- national bowler (or was it swimmer? I can't be arsed to verify). I seriously don't know what's so fantastic about that place. The food was alright, nothing too brilliant. I certainly have tasted better things. Heh. See, the point isn't even us moving table. I'm sure my friend and her family was alright with exchanging table and all (especially if it's cleaner) but it just didn't sit well with me when the guy just brushed us off like some flies because some big shot was in the house. It's not like Mr.Minister would remember his service in finding table in the shortest time possible. WTF. And like my friend pointed out, we've ordered, we didn't just sit around the table. Bloody bootlickers. And my friend's little brother, listening to my friend complaining was like, "PAP has just lost a future vote," I wonder if anybody should celebrate the day kids stop talking about Playstation, ToysRUs or CS. Heh. Bad service. Not so magnificent food. The fly treatment. I suppose that's enough to make anybody think twice about coming back. Minister/national swimmer/bowler or not. Bloody hell. And today I am reminded again at how out of place I feel in any religious procession. Especially a christian mass. It's like they're too enthusiastic. Too errrhh devoted - if that's even the word. Or at least LOOK like they're devoted. It's scary. You probably wonder what's Ross doing in a place like that, being the self-declared free thinker that I am? Well I've learnt along the way that the best way to reject an enthusiastic devotee who tries to make me a convert -it's a feat, really - is sometimes to not reject at all. To just follow along and let the person drag you to wherever he wants to drag you and basically let him see how out of place you look. Then it'll start to dawn on them that trying to convert you is simply quite quite impossible. Besides, there's just a tinge of pleasure looking at your friend looking uncomfortable looking at you being uncomfortable. Yes? So yep, I still am a free thinker. And proud of it too. SHeesssh do I say that too many times? Grinning Goat at 11/08/2004 11:05:00 AM pontificated | {buzzz out} Friday, November 05, 2004 Everybody's a thief I just finished writing my term paper. We were supposed to submit the soft copy to this plagiarism detector service called Turnitin. I tried downloading some plagiarism detector freebie some time ago (it's somewhere in my archive) and it was to put it simply a piece of crap. I tried to plagiarise my own website (yes, this one) and they didn't detect it. And it was a matter of copy and paste, I didn't even modify a single thing. Turnitin on the other hand is not some freebie plagiarism detector because its service is fee-based, meaning NUS actually has to pay fees to engage their service. Naturally I'd think it'll be better than the cheapo freebie I downloaded. So the question is what constitute plagiarism? Stealing of ideas? or simply word by word copying? The problem with identifying plagiarism as mere word by word copying is the questions that arise. If we change a couple of words, say to their synonyms...or rephrase the sentence, will that still constitute as plagiarism? To what extent must we rephrase so that our work is not considered as plagiarised materials? And if plagiarism is about stealing ideas, I think all the students will fail. Because it's not everyday people can generate fresh ideas that haven't been thought of or published by other people before. Besides it's hard to rephrase facts. Facts are that - facts - nomatter how you turn it around to make it sound different. And how do you exactly rephrase statistics anyway? It's the same with opinions. They are not all that distinctive. How different can your opinions be? There will always be people out there who share the same thoughts, follows the same logic. We are more homogeneous than we give ourselves credit for. We're different because we think we're different. Because most of the times, we need others as a reference point to distinguish ourselves from them, to create some sort of a self-identity. Usa's best explanations -which I accepted- was that plagiarism is more towards word by word copying. So far there's no machine/software that can detect stealing of ideas. Besides that was how education works. You take someone's idea, combine them with ideas from a couple more people, formulate it in your head and try to present it from your angle. And really, the point of it all isn't about detecting plagiarism (Even with the fee-based, supposedly of a higher quality Turnitin). Like Usa pointed out, it's about deterence. Making sure no duplicate copies are submitted (no copying from your seniors. Too bad!) Making sure that the copyright laws aren't being breached. Having Turnitin work for them is about being politically correct. My stubborn brain refuses to succumb to the idea that plagiarism involves mere word by word copying. I think it should be more that that. And should the world decides that my opinion shall be adopted as the general consensus, everybody plagiarises at some point in their lives. Today marked the last class. No more friday morning class. The tedious climb up the slope to Biz. The trying to stay awake in class when i didn't sleep the night before. No more Usa-style jokes and stories. No more Mt.Krakatau with his crappy summarize-what-we-already-know-smart-assy-opinions, but never mind that. Most of all I'm going to miss these two crappy friends I made along the way. Cheryl Fox and Dr.Robert Sim (of the Osim International!) Dr Robert Sim is obsessed with her cat. Which is ginger (by default) by the way. R: So what would you do if your cat dies on you? Would you cry? Dr.Sim: I'd just die R: Whoa...I shall not expect you to live that long then eh? Usa's class has been one of the most enjoyable. Damn I'm going to miss that class - Mt Krakatau or not. In the meantime, my term paper appears to be in the safe region. Less than 1% of the papers is plagiarised materials. Congratulate me. Grinning Goat at 11/05/2004 01:42:00 PM pontificated | {buzzz out} Tuesday, November 02, 2004 SHUT THE HELL UP Really you know, some people have a way of irritating the hell out of me just by opening their mouth. Which is probably why God designed humans to have two nostrils, two eyes, two ears but only ONE mouth. Observe things, hear some sound, breathe some air. Just SHUT THE HELL UP. Logic isn't so hard to understand is it? So let me tell you the logic of things. If you want people to know something, you'll tell them. If you don't, you don't. If you're not sure, you shut up. Easy enough to comprehend? Now follow that line of thought. So tell me, because I don't get it really. Why would any moron publicise things so that he'll get people's attention only to tell them later that he doesn't feel/think he should tell? Like WTF. It's either you do or you don't (if you're not sure shut the hell up). Now if you do, say the Goddamn thing so everybody can move on with life. How interesting can things get anyway? Like we don't have enough excitement in our lives. Heh. Now if you don't, why the fuck do you blabber so much about it?? I thought we're not supposed to know?? Shut the fuck up pal. Say it or drop it. I'm not so naive as to believe there aren't alternative explanations. People think by blabbering so much about it, it'd somewhat add value to their stories...like when some idiots start to beg them to tell. Well, that's just swell because I sure as hell ain't gonna ask and press for answers if they're not telling. Besides ,a good story like a good argument can stand on its own without much publicity. The value is there for all to see. Don't be such a bloody irritating bastard/bitch. Sometimes I wonder how much value people put on their dignity? I mean begging for half-assed stories from imbecilles? You'd think people have better things to do. Tell me I'm seeing things. Hell, is there such a thing as a half-mouth? I think a certain breed of people might just need it before they ended up getting butchered because of their mouth. Hmm come to think of it that might not be such a bad idea. Grinning Goat at 11/02/2004 05:08:00 AM pontificated | {buzzz out} Monday, November 01, 2004 At least nobody threw eggs at us The stage wasn't really up some hill. It was an elevated platform though. In the shape of the palm of a hand (complete with the fingers...) Rossli was saying during the performance the third finger would rise... We were there at around five where the crowd was still abuzz. It's the Singapore OK! week I suppose. Full of grandmas in matching tee (not matching the whole attire, more like matching the whole grandma population in perhaps thw whole of Buona Vista)Ah yes, being the emcee of the evening, the organiser woman made me memorise this, "Welcome to Sunday at Holland V. This event is organised by the Buona Vista Grassroots Organisation and North-West CDC, sponsored by the National Arts Council" I still remember. Heh. And when we were waiting for the rain to stop while eyeing our instruments in case of a (literal) daylight robbery, this old woman was sitting in a chair nearby holding her paper plate with all the food in it and started speaking to me in chinese about how I could actually take some of the food followed by some other sentences i didn't understand. And O and Behold, when Minister Lim was passing by, she immediately stood up to shake hands with him. Bleh. What's the big fuss lady? You're going to tell your neighbour you just shook hands with the minister? But oh well that's just me being grumpy because the old lady didn't really do anything except speak chinese to someone who looks perfectly like a chinese. The ironic thing was, besides all this brouhaha of a noise we're/they're making, the people in the adjacent block was holding a funeral wake in the void deck. So when someone from the band was eating the food supposedly provided for the occasion, LeeNa was like "You didn't get it from next door did you?" And so we were there for the whole evening. Steeped in the bizare situation, standing in a plam-shaped stage next to a statue of a little guy flushing the toilet (complete with the toilet bowl of course). A disturbing scenery. But one night in Beijing turned out to be pretty well-sang and played. In fact when Henry pointed out how high PJ's voice was and I commented that she was using her falsetto, he was surprised that her falsetto sounded like her real voice. So I guess PJ deserves a clap. It was kind of sad at first because not many people were around. Just some grandmas and grandpas, some youngsters and NC's friends he invited all the way from PGP. But it was exhilirating the way more people gathered around as the night went on. So we did make some noise! I'll put up the pictures in due time. Like after I get over the impending prospect of failing my chem test. Heh, burning midnight oil doesn't work folks. Not when they're assholic enough to give you 8 chapters at one go. Sigh. It was fun yesterday. It just wasn't fun today. God save my chem test. Grinning Goat at 11/01/2004 04:09:00 PM pontificated | {buzzz out} |
 "Stupid is as stupid does" Forrest Gump
Archieves for the-nothing to dos
SNEAK PEEK |
