Looking at the steep increase in h1n1 cases reminds me of a computer virus which spreads through spam and got everyone's computers stuck with that lousy trouble of laggy systems and being blamed by friends for spamming viruses. This h1n1 case has got everyone worried about travelling, hanging around in crowded areas, and wary of people's sneezing and coughing.

I always imagine it's like a mastermind trying to spread this h1n1 virus around as fast as possible, and when the day comes, he will press the "activate" button and all the infected people explode. Or imagine a bad weather coming and all the carriers suddenly turn into zombies.

Just wanna say that life is short. Do the things you want to do in life (I mean those still within moral standards). Especially in this period where calamities strike in every form. War, pandemics, economic crisis, natural disasters (actually not that natural). All these are enough to make minds go bonkers. Life is as fragile as a snail's nowadays. It's time for mental strength to come into play.

Last week, my friends Desmond Yaocai and I decided to go back KL for a short trip. We knew it wouldn't be as happening as climbing Mt Kinabalu (which we have planned to go for our next trip), but it actually turned out quite happening.
I was still reminiscing the wonderful football by Messi and co. on the ultimate final clash on our way to the airport when we headed for the airport to catch our early morning flight. We kept reminding each other to check whether we brought our passports. And it was until I flipped on the pages then did I realize my passport needs to be renewed. Less than 6 months. The feeling sucked big time. It was unforgivable, given that I had all the time in the world to renew it or even notice it as I was on leave during the past month. And the worse feeling dawned on me when I knew the chance of crossing the border would be zero. Really felt that I let my friends down, whom had already taken leave just for this trip.
My friends decided to go down to ICA with me as a last resort to try our luck, even if it meant catching a later flight. I was still in a self blame mode on our way there, and the security guard in ICA telling us about the mild chance didn't make me feel better. It was when I went to the counter to appeal for this situation then I started to believe. Therefore, I talked to a fatimah in a closed room, paid a $15 fee and I got to collect my temp pass in 2 hours time.
Instead of going to KL on the morning, we had to get an additional ticket which was scheduled at night. What a relief. Really thought that I would be sulking at home for the next few days for disappointing my friends.
Actually that was the most happening event of our trip. The next day, we went to Kanching Waterfall for some relaxation on the cool waters. Many malaysians go there to relax too. The batu caves was not so happening though as the monkeys there looked defiant as they tried to provoke visitors. It was a long day walk as we combed KLCC, Berjaya Times Square, and Petaling Street for something nice to shop. In the end, we bought nothing. Went up to The Beatles bar for a drink and sang some english songs.
It was rather a cosy place for nesting.
Next day, we took monorail and KTM to sunway pyramind for some cheap movie and shopping before we headed back home.




Next stop, Mount Kinabalu. Whoever wants to join us, we can go climb Bukit Timah hills for a dozen times to train up, or climb my flat's 25 storey stairs for a start.

Last Sunday, I completed the 15km passion run organized by the PA. Gosh, it wasn't that easy after all.

I'll talk about how forgetful I can get first. My friend reminded me the day before to remember to bring my number tag. But I didn't put it in my bag. Therefore when I was travelling on the mrt, I spotted someone with the tag on his shoes. Damn it. I had to rush back home by cab, get it, fetch my friend, and take a cab to ECP.

Wow. I guessed around 10k people joined the run. When we reached the place, waves of red were already jogging down the tracks. We got ready for the 2nd wave and I was pretty confident I could finish it with a good timing.

Well.. when we started, we couldn't really run the normal pace as all the 15km runners clustered themselves like ants returning to their hives. Not really interested in the pong pong girls, I started to deviate from my friend who seemed engrossed chatting with his colleagues. For the first 8km, it was smooth riding. Managed to take over a lot of people with ease. But I was still trailing behind loads of reds. As I haven't trained to run 15km before, I knew it would be a problem in the later part of the run.

When I reached the 10km mark, I started to feel cold. It's like someone plugged out my power plug or something. Yes, I do have some reserve batteries with me, but as I ran, I felt my body reaching my limit as I could feel the tension within my joints. I tried not to think about it and pushed myself forward. The morning sun didn't help as it continued wearing me down. People started to overtake me and I realized I was trying to minimize the exertion of my muscles. Whenever there was a drink station, it became an excuse for me to stop and have a drink.

During my last 2km, I knew I was out of fuel. My mind had to take over to intercept my body's message. "Go on, the finishing line is near" was defeated by "Seriously, you should stop to take a rest" a few times. The finishing line seemed forever.

When I saw the finishing line, people were overtaking me as they knew they wanted the best timing for themselves. But I was reserving my energy in case I faint before I could get my goodie bag. Sad to see someone tripped himself before the finishing point. Alas, mission completed. It took the hell out of me seriously. And to think I was so optimistic to join the marathon run end of the year. Crap. I need more training. This isn't good enough.

Libraries now allow you to extend your book loan for 3 more weeks. Logon to www.pl.sg to do it. (some clever friend of mine actually went down physically to extend)

I went to return my book today. And realized I must pay up for my overdue loan fees before I can borrow! What the @#%^. Maybe too many ppl just don't bother to pay up.

Haha. Haha. Ha... Aw.. I need a revamp in my life. Fast.

Travelling is fun. You get to meet lots of new friends, see lots of sceneries, read lots of maps, and get lost lots of times. But it is worthwhile. I wouldn't say my trip is totally hardcore backpack like those ang mohs, but it really helps in preparing for my future trips to other countries.

My first stop was Bangkok, a vibrant city full of hardworking people. The lives they led are pretty good as I don't see many beggars lying around. My friend Cuthbert brought me around shopping during the first day, and there's so much to see and buy. But we wouldn't want to bring loads of stuff to Cambodia later, so we simply bought some toys for our friends. Travelling around such a busy city was made easy by Cuthbert, who had been here for a few months and picked up quite important phrases in Thai. And we started to think that we got blended into the city when people came talking to us in Thai language. Well, Singaporeans don't have a unique look and are only distinguishable when they speak Singlish.

On the 2nd day, it happened to be Buddha Day. A stranger just came to us, gave us a note of the itinery for the day, and we coincidentally hopped onto a tuk tuk who drove us around to those places with just a small fare of 20 baht ($0.80sgd). The temples had many buddha statues and donation boxes around them, and it was quite a sight. Then before we headed to the Thai jewellery export, a lady coincidentally told us how we could buy the jewelleries and sell them back in Singapore (she still specified Peninsula Plaza as the hot market). Personally, I really felt a bit drama how we were led to places and people who spoke volumes of 'scam' when we didn't even intend to go to those places at first. But we just acted like dummies and didn't buy anything, so we only spent a bit of money for the transport.

There was a place where we were faked into paying for some corn to feed pigeons. Crap. The locals simple threw corn into our hands and pigeons flocked around like we were vultured. The next thing, we were ordered to pay 150 baht for the feeding. Sucks. Well let's move on. We reached the grand palace pretty late and so we didnt pay for the entrance fees in. And certain buses were free that day, and we managed to save some of our transport fees. Singaporeans, the usual style.

The final day in Bangkok, we brought some friends to a praying hall, and it was nice spending some time with thai people. I asked one of them about the place to buy a toy, and guess what, they really drove me there. It just explained how hospitable they can get. And yes, they brought us to a lovely retro place for dinner, where Cuthbert obliged with a 甜蜜蜜 song.

Next, the much awaited border crossing to Cambodia. Early morning the next day, we went to Bangkok train station to take a 5 hour long train to Aranyaprathet. Quite a nice ride with lots of sceneries of Thailand, be it rain or shine, countryside or city. We saw locals which were given tough treatment by the officers and they left to stand by the end of the trains because they were on good seats. And the officers knowing we were tourists really took care of us.

Touching down on the land, we were taken to a Cambodian comsummate where we were assisted in writing the arrival form to Cambodia. And given that we were Singaporeans, we did not have to pay for any visa. But the sucky part is when the guy wanted us to give some tips for them. I just hate remembering the extortion look. And given that I had already read up on this, I was rather disappointed that we still fell into the trap. But that's life. Experience it.

The customs in Cambodia really wasn't a professional one. The officer took more than 5 minutes flipping through my passport trying to find my extension stamp. And when he found it, he reported that I needed 6 months availability for my passport. Any kid would know that the difference from now until November is 7 months. I rebuked back and they got their calculations right.

We avoided the touting of kids and youngsters for trips to Siem Reap and joined a Hong Kong and Canadian traveller in a taxi to our destination. The Canadian named Neo Armstrong was already away from home since January and will be travelling around until July before he goes back to find a job. Compared to us, ang mohs really do not hold back when they do things. Kudos.

We parted with Neo and settled in a simple guestroom with Jason, our new found Hong Kong friend.
He too took the train from Thailand, would settle in Siem Reap for a few days before going to Phnom Penh and back to Thailand for the Songkran 'Water' festival. Cuthbert, Jason and Neo made me look old because they were all around 6-7 years younger.

I have been wanting to visit Ang Kor Wat for quite some time. And I really suggest reading up a bit on the place before you go. There are really lots of majestic temples having a one-day visit ticket is just not enough. We rented bicycles and roamed around the whole day visiting temples. Gosh, I realized I'm really old cause I couldn't catch up with them youngsters. During every station, kids would flood us with souvenirs to buy and their '3 for 1 dollar' ranting really had a hypnotic effect. And it's pretty sad to think that kids have been forced to make money when they should study and play hard.

The next day, we took a tuk tuk, followed by a motorbike and then a boat to see the village life. Wow. Eye opener it was. Kids roamed around naked, cows were working hard in the farms, it really brought us back to the simple life we were deprived of in Singapore. Kids still surrounded us with notebooks and pencils, hoping that we would buy from them. And it was really sad when we came back from our boat trip, they were still waiting at the bank. I didn't buy in the end because I will never get to use it. But I loved the smile of a young girl who told me how happy she was studying in her school and playing in the village with her friends. I always feel that contentment is a blessing. My friend did tell me that it's because they haven't seen the world. So their craving for more isn't triggered by their senses yet. Quite true. But I shall find the answer for that someday.

I'm back. And I realize that my future holidays shouldn't be simply be going to resorts to enjoy myself in gluttony. Experiencing their lifestyles seem more fruitful. Well, will plan out my next trip soon.. but not so soon.

Kenichi Matsuyama again! But this time he is not acting a psychotic detective trying to decipher who is holding on to the death note. He is playing a nerdy role of a graduate student who wants to fulfill his dream as a pop star singing sweet love songs, but ends up with unimaginable occupation of being a heavy metal lead singer.
Japanese just love to dream, so they manage to come up with this manga/anime movie. The inspiring part about this show is that it brings a dilemma to the singer when he cannot sing the songs he likes to, but yet inspires others with the songs he himself disapproves. Yeah, subconscious talent or whatever you call it.
So in the end, does it matter if he plays the music he likes and doesn't get recognized? Or is it better to stay with something he can be good at and inspire others at the expense of his own dream?
Sometimes, fighting for your dream versus sacrificing your dream to make dreams for others.. it's really difficult to make a call.

Sorry guys for the late update. I will be linking all my blogs to a new website soon. Still pondering whether to continue this 3 year plus blogspot site...

Anyway, I'm emphatic. Some friends of mine decided to gather and start a business. I have never imagined myself to be in this kind of situation, because I have never dreamt of doing a business. And during this drastic period, I guess having ideas and fail is still a success compared to not trying at all.

"And the day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom."-Anais Nin

Next week, I will be going to Thailand and Cambodia with my friend for some sightseeing. Hopefully all will be fine as this will be the first time I fly alone. Well who cares. I have faith in AirAsia. Booked the flight from SG to BKK and from Siem Reap back to SG. From BKK to Cambodia, guess we have to take some long routes by land which may pose the most challenging. The flight is simply too expensive, considering the short distance between these two locations.

Ang Kor Wat. Here I come.

"The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeing new landscapes, but in having new eyes." - Marcel Pronst.

It's true that when you are doing something, you must be happy about it. Or else, don't do it. If you simply just do it to make people happy and you yourself are not, it's crap. Because people who are happy need you to be happy doing it too.

Now, what makes a person happy? To put it simply, anything that the person enjoys doing will make himself happy in the process of doing it. So in the end, it's your mindset. If you dislike drinking coffee without milk, you will put on a mask and hide the ugliest expression you can give even if your most beloved person ask you to drink it. But if you realize that coffee gives a great bitter-sweet aftertaste naturally, and you start to enjoy the greatness of it, you will be contented with it.

But what makes you unhappy about something in the first place? Usually, it's your past habit or experience that you have accumulated all this while that stops you from being satisfied doing something in a way you are not accustomed to. Or some people will deem it as "being forced to". And the fact that you have been in your comfort zone for so long without doing it, you will feel weird if it comes to you as a responsibility now.

Some people say life is about being happy. Well, people do things the way they want and they feel happy, but at the expense of others. Imagine a child wanting to give a try at an arts course, but parents want him to be a lawyer. For this instance, the child is trying to find his own happiness at the expense of his parents' comfortability in their vision of how their child should grow up to be.

Sometimes it's about being responsible. For you yourself, your family, your friends, for the environment you live in, and many more. Circumstances will make you unable to realize your dream as responsibility has stepped in faster than you have expected. But before that, a little bit more understanding of your own situation helps. So you can "enjoy" and absorb the responsibility.

Whether you are trying to achieve the goal set by you or by others, you must take full responsiblity for it. Whichever path ahead, responsibility is heavy. But without taking full responsibility for yourself, there will never be a day you can fend off all challenges in life and soar to the boundary that you have dreamed of.

I'm planning for a holiday trip. Why this time?

1) Oil price is cheap. You will never get cheaper flights than now.
2) Companies are forcing pay cuts and unpaid leaves. This should be the time to go on holidays with no impact to the business (in fact, they might be happier that you help them cut cost for the month).
3) Dollar exchange rate for certain countries should be quite worthwhile.
4) The increasing stress level escalated by the lousy economy should be channelled somewhere else.
5) Different environments and lifestyle might spur your creative ideas for your own business.

Life is an adventure. Before that, you need to be responsible for yourself and your actions. With this, you need not worry about (superficial) security issues in any aspect of your life. Mentally secured will be the key.

Cambodia anyone?

Recently realised that I have so many books to read, and I still keep borrowing some from the library. But I just love going to libraries to browse books, because there will always be some interesting book titles which I never dream I will come across.

Some books I am planning to finish fast:
1) Diet for a New America (dragged for more than a year)
2) Deep Vegetarianism (fresh from the library)
3) Vegetarian Resource Book A to Z Reference Guide ( fresh from the library)
4) How to break Web Software (fresh from the library)
5) Find Your Courage (thanks to some buddy who thinks I'm hum)
6) Mind Mapping (thanks to my bro who knows I'm creative enough to benefit from this book :D)

Okay, it's quite a tough challenge. Considering the fact that I seldom finish more than 5 books every year. But I guess this year I should be able to unleash the nerdy me. The books' greatest enemy has to be my laptop.

The owner of this blog is hooked to japanese dramas for the time being and risks not posting any blogs for the following weeks.

[Thanks to Veoh for it's unrivalled free movies and videos, can even download DVD quality somemore!]

Happy CNY!
Not many people have started coming back to work as my bus to work is surprisingly spacious.

As I watch Man United leapfrog the rest of the teams, and the other title contenders stumble themselves along the way, I can say that Man United's experience has triumphed again. Their peak form at this period spells trouble, and 11 clean sheets during this hectic season schedule is phenomenal, even for a team with countless wardrobes of titles.

Liverpool just have to hope Gerard and Torres click again, because their scoring source comes only from them this season. Chelsea seems to have become an aging team. And not much ideas too. Arsenal has never found back their attacking form since the departure of Flamini, and if Fabregas do not come back fast, they will have to switch to playing wrestling (below) and let Aston Villa have a run on the Champions League.

However, I do relish the end of the season survival fight as the bottom half teams are not very far away from each other. Watching them play with their hearts to avoid relegations is pretty much more interesting for me than watching top teams getting titles.

Ladies and Gentlemen, Valentine's Day is near. If you want to avoid the hassle of finding the perfect florist shop, you can actually purchase flowers online.

If you guys are free, can look at my bro's website. Click on the title for more info!

Guys, try jobscentral.com.sg. It doesn't only offer jobs. The articles there ranges from how to manage your finances during this recession, how to go back to schools or institutions to upgrade yourself, to articles on how to manage your work-related depression.

Hopefully everyone who got some stick during this period can pick themselves up fast, brave the stormy weather and find a path which sheds some light.

God bless.

当我和世界不一样
那就让我不一样
坚持对我来说
就是以刚克刚
我如果对自己不行
如果对自己说谎
即使你不原谅我
也不能原谅
最美的愿望
一定最疯狂
我就是我自己的神
在我活的地方
我和我最后的倔强
握紧双手绝对不放
下一站是不是天堂
就算失望不能绝望
我和我骄傲的倔强
我在风中大声的唱
这一次为自己疯狂
就这一次我和我的倔强
(music)
对爱我的人别紧张
我的固执很善良
我的手越肮脏
眼神越是发光
你不在乎我的过往
看到了我的翅膀
你说被火烧过
才能出现凤凰
逆风的方向
更适合飞翔
我不怕千万人阻挡
只怕自己投降
我和我最后的倔强
握紧双手绝对不放
下一站是不是天堂
就算失望不能绝望
我和我骄傲的倔强
我在风中大声的唱
这一次为自己疯狂
就这一次我和我的倔强
(music)
就这一次我和我的倔强
就这一次让我大声唱
lalalala...
就算失望不能绝望...
lalalalala...
就这一次我和我的倔强

I just came back from a run, and it's damn cooling with the nowadays wind. Surprisingly, these few nights, the wind is so strong and yet it doesn't materialize into any rain. Weird. But thanks to the windy night, I clocked myself 1 minute faster. The humid weather usually deters me from my smooth run because I will get breathless fast, but tonight is like running with air-conditioned environment.

Still far away from my marathon and IPPT gold standard. But it's just the start of the year. Haha.

Damn it, my friend just bought Sony A300, and it looks fierce. With my current $ earning ability, some fierce stuff are better left on the retail shelves. Never knew that even camera stuff also can get comparative cheaper prices across the causeway.

Talking about photo taking, I have downloaded Picasa 3 and never thought of photoshop since. Not that it has numerous features, but it definitely has the ones I needed to edit my photos.
And if there really is a need for editing of raw photos or creation of some designs, can use GIMP.

Open-source applications are really the way to go for poor people like me :D

I always believe that anyone can make an impact on others no matter how microscopically small you look to the world. And after chancing this guy who went on a bike from Singapore to Great Wall of China, I started to question how the hell he went through his torturous ordeals. Be it the weather, the grueling distance, the blistering fatigue he had to endure, the difficulty with languages in the various countries, the small budget he had, the morale he had to keep with his teammates: any of these obstacles can make one turn 180 degrees and head back home.

If I'm jobless one day and someone sponsors me 5k, I would do it too. Nah, I'm kidding. It's too much for me.

Guys check out the global warming links on the website too, they are quite interesting.