Tuesday, July 29, 2003
We found a new eating place today in Canteen 3... Really near to our MLT but very much less crowded! And... It's air-conditioned too! Heh! Had my Ipoh hor fun (My fav back in camp...) w/o the chilli... It's still very good~! Hehez... I guess that'll be my main operating base from now on man... ( ^^, ) Besides... There was free Milo peng today @ Canteen B... From those little green vans which mysteriously turn up for most Sports Day to bring smiles to the faces of children... (And mine too!) As for those who ordered Milo peng from Canteen B this afternoon... ( -___- ) == BRAINZ!!!
Made a comeback to Warcraft3 upon reaching home... And wat a comeback! 3 straight losses and I never looked like winning... ( -___- ) Gawd man.... Where have all my skills gone? Perhaps I should go back to my tutorials? I see a little more success there? ... ... Nah... Tutorials can go kiss my shiny ass! Gaming rocks! LoLz...
Big "Hi" to Juin, Xuanwei, Shaofeng and all RECCOSians... If you're reading my Blog that is... Sign my guest since you're @ it... d ( ^^, ) b
Quotes for the Brain and Funnybone!:
"Tell a man there are 300 billion stars in the universe and he'll believe you. Tell him a bench has wet paint on it and he'll have to touch it to be sure." ~ Murphy's Law
"A person who is nice to you, but rude to the waiter, is not a nice person." ~ Dave Barry
Gawd... I'm certainly one person very guilty of being rude and impatient with incompetent waiters (Or other types of services...) Man I am bad! Yummy? (Charlie's Angels... Hehez!)
And abt the 1st quote... Hmmm... I remember many of my cockster ARMY frens believing all the cock things I've said in the world... But simply refusing to listen to simple instructions... I'll write my view on this... In days to come!
Made a comeback to Warcraft3 upon reaching home... And wat a comeback! 3 straight losses and I never looked like winning... ( -___- ) Gawd man.... Where have all my skills gone? Perhaps I should go back to my tutorials? I see a little more success there? ... ... Nah... Tutorials can go kiss my shiny ass! Gaming rocks! LoLz...
Big "Hi" to Juin, Xuanwei, Shaofeng and all RECCOSians... If you're reading my Blog that is... Sign my guest since you're @ it... d ( ^^, ) b
Quotes for the Brain and Funnybone!:
"Tell a man there are 300 billion stars in the universe and he'll believe you. Tell him a bench has wet paint on it and he'll have to touch it to be sure." ~ Murphy's Law
"A person who is nice to you, but rude to the waiter, is not a nice person." ~ Dave Barry
Gawd... I'm certainly one person very guilty of being rude and impatient with incompetent waiters (Or other types of services...) Man I am bad! Yummy? (Charlie's Angels... Hehez!)
And abt the 1st quote... Hmmm... I remember many of my cockster ARMY frens believing all the cock things I've said in the world... But simply refusing to listen to simple instructions... I'll write my view on this... In days to come!
Monday, July 28, 2003
Erpz... 1st tutorial week and wat a BANGING way to start my day! We were late and we ended up getting to NTU @ abt... 0835 hrs? LoLz... Meet my tutorial class for the very 1st time... And to my surprise it was a rather big class... Abt 25 of us... ( -___- ) And I thought in universities... The classes are smaller so that the teachers can concentrate on us better...
Well... I didn't have a good look @ my classmates either... I made a beeline for the empty seat cos I was oredi damn paiseh as it is... Being late and interrupting the class like that... "But in the corner of my eye..." I think I saw a rather cute gal... Sitting to my far right... Maybe she was cute! But then again... Maybe she wasn't... I'll know in time to come... But as it stands... I'm still... MEGA-NERD No. 1! d (^^,) b
Oh yah... showtime.nicherra and myself signed ourselves up for ODAC as members... The "no-strings attached" policy... Well as members... We get to enjoy the benefits of being an ODAC... Like going on trips and hikes and such @ discounted rates (Usually $5 off normal price...) whenever there is any activity for juz $5 a year! Heh! And being a member means not having to paint banners... Plan and organise trips or hikes or watever social gathering activities... And the best part is... We HAVE the OPTION of going for watever activity we deem fit and not go if we juz dun feel like going! WeEeEeEeE! Freedom of choice... And being in control... Something I like!
Quote of the Day:
"Nothing is more difficult, and therefore more precious, than to be able to decide." ~ Napoleon Bonaparte
My life... My choice... My freedom...
Well... I didn't have a good look @ my classmates either... I made a beeline for the empty seat cos I was oredi damn paiseh as it is... Being late and interrupting the class like that... "But in the corner of my eye..." I think I saw a rather cute gal... Sitting to my far right... Maybe she was cute! But then again... Maybe she wasn't... I'll know in time to come... But as it stands... I'm still... MEGA-NERD No. 1! d (^^,) b
Oh yah... showtime.nicherra and myself signed ourselves up for ODAC as members... The "no-strings attached" policy... Well as members... We get to enjoy the benefits of being an ODAC... Like going on trips and hikes and such @ discounted rates (Usually $5 off normal price...) whenever there is any activity for juz $5 a year! Heh! And being a member means not having to paint banners... Plan and organise trips or hikes or watever social gathering activities... And the best part is... We HAVE the OPTION of going for watever activity we deem fit and not go if we juz dun feel like going! WeEeEeEeE! Freedom of choice... And being in control... Something I like!
Quote of the Day:
"Nothing is more difficult, and therefore more precious, than to be able to decide." ~ Napoleon Bonaparte
My life... My choice... My freedom...
Sunday, July 27, 2003
[For future posts... This one's a lenghty one... But an award-winning post... Be sure to look out for it... I'm still perfecting it...]
And here it is...
Outraged
Had some sort of a quarrel with one of my closer frens ard... I see her as a really nice fren... A close soul-mate... Someone you can confide in... Really sad that things had turned out this way... Here's how the story goes... (Dee-da di...)
[It started with a msg like this...]
Berd's fren: "Bernard... Can you help me? I really need your help and support now. Can you support me?"
It left me thinking... And I was like... WTF? This isn't the 1st time she's been trying to get me to buy some product from her network-MLM-like company... And all these while... She has been targeting people like me... Her frens... For her sales... Nothing wrong with that... Perfectly fine by me... Cos if there's anything good I think I should as a fren... Get to know of it 1st! But wat I'm absolutely dismayed by... And VERY MUCH against here... Is her method of approach... TOALLY DISAGREE... Here's why...
Wrong concept of sales... Method of approach totally wrong...
[With reference to the above cited example... Which is an actual msg from her...] By msging frens, relatives or whoever that's close to you... To support your product and buy your products out of friendship or watever relationship... Isn't exactly the right thing to do... Because by doing so... You have indirectly placed this responsibility as your fren... On our shoulders to buy your product... And by not doing so... We have... In a way failed as your fren... (From how I look @ it that is...)
Whether or not we see the need for your lameass product... Whether or not we like your product... Whether or not we have the money for your product... It is still ULTIMATELY my CHOICE... Not my duty to you as a fren! No sales should be done on such a principle... It doesn't make much sense to me! Don't make it an obligation to buy your product... Make it MY CHOICE!
Non-agressive marketing... Passive marketing... Not pro-active pls!
Well here's a viable solution... Perhaps such sales-people can make themselves less of a nuisance by using passive marketing instead of their agressive pro-active style... Wat do I mean? Here's an example...
Berd: "Hey guys... I'm currently into sales and I'm currently selling digital cameras... A wide range of brand and models... So if you or any one of your frens happen to be on a lookout for a good reliable digicam @ bargain prices... Contact me and we can arrange to meet up... Thanks!"
See? Isn't it more pleasant sounding than the above "Buy-my-product-or-dun-friend-you-liao" kind of msg pasted above? This way... You can not only let others know of your product... But also leave the door open for them to come back to you sooner or later! Give people the option... And let them decide for themselves... Dun go bugging them to buy your product oh-so desperately... It's counter-productive and it's bound to leave a very negative image on you... So much so that any msg from you is a dreaded msg... Every call from you is an irritating call! That's certainly wat I felt of her @ the point of time when she was desperately trying to persuade me into buying one of her stuffs... Wat a pest!
Of course I know that by being passive abt it... And not being agressive abt your sales... Will eventually lead to no sales... Especially so during this economic downturn... But here's my point... Would you rather step on everyone's toes and try to get them into buying your product... And lose your frens and friendship that you've painstakingly forged all these years for some short-term success? And if you eventually succeed... Now wat? Clap hands and celebrate with the dog? That would be one hell of a party?!
So the big question of all is... Why didn't I tell her what I thought of the whole issue... And perhaps she might wake up her bloody idea and quit that company? Well the actual fact is... I DID! I seriously did! I told her that her PoS (Principle of Sales -- Wahaha... I'm being some sort of a professor here with new found theories and thesis...) is totally wrong and that she should take up a more non-agressive approach to such sales... Cos us being students still... We certainly dun have much spare cash to splurge... Not that your product is totally worthless and useless... My question is... How badly do we need it? I mentioned all of the above to her... Thru the phone and SMSes... And here's her brilliant reply...
Berd's fren: "All I'm asking for is a little support from you... Is that too much to ask for from a fren?" [She still doesn't get my fucking 1st point on "Choices... Not Obligations...")
Berd: "Yes we should support you... In some way or another... But I dun exactly need your product... And besides... I've been saving up for my bike and that's all I ever wanted..."
Berd's fren: "It a health product and it bound to help you one way or another... How can you say that you do not need it? Nvm thanks anyway. Sorry for irritating you. Sorry."
Berd: "Hey wait... Look that's not wat I meant... Yes you'd get on my nerves some point of time back... But that's because of your approach... Change that and I believe everything's fine!"
Berd's fren: "Like that who would buy? Anyway thanks. Sorry for irritating. Sorry."
Berd: "If you're struggling... Why not quit this job and take up something lighter... Like tuitioning... It's not labour intensive... And it's more stable than doing sales like these... I certainly dun see you going into this for long..."
Berd's fren: "I see this as my career and my future. You don't want to help nvm. Sorry for irritating. Sorry."
[By now I was hopelessly loss for words... And knowing that this isn't getting nowhere with her not seeing my point and not taking any of my advise...]
Berd: "Okay then if you succeed... Pls dun forget me then! A cup of tea and a chat is all I ever ask for..."
Berd's fren: "Yah sure can... Thanks anyway. Sorry for irritating. Sorry."
Berd: t (-.- t) [Wa... Wa... Wat can I say man? I dun believe my conversational skills have failed this time round lor... It has never!]
It ended like that... Rather sad... Although she'd never bother me abt her sales again... (My partial loss...) But that isn't a way to end a friendship man... Haiz... Sad day for humanity and for Berd... Will I ever see her name pop up in my HP again? Dunno...
I dun think I was over-doing it at all... And I dun think I'm wrong in any way for rejecting all her products... Cos I seriously dun need or want them... Yes my purchase could stand in your way in being promoted for being the top-seller in your group... Okay great well done... Wait... Then again... That's not my fucking problem... Neither is it my concern! If you're finding it too tough to cope... And the only sales you're making are the ones you bought for yourself out of your own pocket money for your parents or whoever... For goodness sake... Pls quit!
Major scam... Be wary!
My take is... These new-generation companies are targeting such types of sales... Wat do I mean? For any newcomers... They usually start working their sales on their friends, families and reliatives... And try to extend to friend's relatives and relatives' frens and so on and so forth... Until it is more or less saturated before they start emphasising on the importance of leverage and recruitment... Recruit some people under you and leverage on them... So that these new recruits WERE like you... Working their sales on their own circle of frens, families and relatives and so on... And the cycle continues... And in the long run... The whole of Singapore gets saturated... On and off... A new product comes along... And yet another wave starts... This time more rapidly cos the networking has oredi been established...
But at the end of the day... The manufacturers are the ones benefitting... Getting the lion's share of the pie... (Although we consumers do get the products... But then again that's a different story liao...) And perhaps some of the pioneers and the people higher up in the food chain... Leveraging on you and others below you...
Go ahead and jump into this line... Be used... Be leveraged... But be warned... Dun come knocking on my door ringing my HP to try force me into it... Leave me alone... I seriously dun see myself going into this kind of business in a million years... Leave a sample type of your product on my doorstep... And I'll be getting more from you if I like it... If I need it... Otherwise... You'll always be welcomed in my house... For a cup of tea... And a good long chat... Cheers!
Quote of the Day:
"Neo: Then there are only two possible explanations, either no one told me, or no one knows.
Architect: Precisely, as you are undoubtedly gathering the anomaly is systemic. Creating fluctuations in even the most simplistic equations.
Neo: Choice, the problem is choice." ~ Taken from the transript of conversation between Neo and the Architect in Matrix Reloaded.
Well said Neo... Well done Mr Architect... Spectacularly crafted... Legendary Andy and Larry Wachowski... Choice!
[Challenge me with your thoughts and comments on this highly sensitive issue... I would like to hear what you think of my opinion (Besides the fact that I suck...) and my action-reactions to this... It had me fuming for nights... Tell me I'm not alone... Tell me... HERE!]
And here it is...
Outraged
Had some sort of a quarrel with one of my closer frens ard... I see her as a really nice fren... A close soul-mate... Someone you can confide in... Really sad that things had turned out this way... Here's how the story goes... (Dee-da di...)
[It started with a msg like this...]
Berd's fren: "Bernard... Can you help me? I really need your help and support now. Can you support me?"
It left me thinking... And I was like... WTF? This isn't the 1st time she's been trying to get me to buy some product from her network-MLM-like company... And all these while... She has been targeting people like me... Her frens... For her sales... Nothing wrong with that... Perfectly fine by me... Cos if there's anything good I think I should as a fren... Get to know of it 1st! But wat I'm absolutely dismayed by... And VERY MUCH against here... Is her method of approach... TOALLY DISAGREE... Here's why...
Wrong concept of sales... Method of approach totally wrong...
[With reference to the above cited example... Which is an actual msg from her...] By msging frens, relatives or whoever that's close to you... To support your product and buy your products out of friendship or watever relationship... Isn't exactly the right thing to do... Because by doing so... You have indirectly placed this responsibility as your fren... On our shoulders to buy your product... And by not doing so... We have... In a way failed as your fren... (From how I look @ it that is...)
Whether or not we see the need for your lameass product... Whether or not we like your product... Whether or not we have the money for your product... It is still ULTIMATELY my CHOICE... Not my duty to you as a fren! No sales should be done on such a principle... It doesn't make much sense to me! Don't make it an obligation to buy your product... Make it MY CHOICE!
Non-agressive marketing... Passive marketing... Not pro-active pls!
Well here's a viable solution... Perhaps such sales-people can make themselves less of a nuisance by using passive marketing instead of their agressive pro-active style... Wat do I mean? Here's an example...
Berd: "Hey guys... I'm currently into sales and I'm currently selling digital cameras... A wide range of brand and models... So if you or any one of your frens happen to be on a lookout for a good reliable digicam @ bargain prices... Contact me and we can arrange to meet up... Thanks!"
See? Isn't it more pleasant sounding than the above "Buy-my-product-or-dun-friend-you-liao" kind of msg pasted above? This way... You can not only let others know of your product... But also leave the door open for them to come back to you sooner or later! Give people the option... And let them decide for themselves... Dun go bugging them to buy your product oh-so desperately... It's counter-productive and it's bound to leave a very negative image on you... So much so that any msg from you is a dreaded msg... Every call from you is an irritating call! That's certainly wat I felt of her @ the point of time when she was desperately trying to persuade me into buying one of her stuffs... Wat a pest!
Of course I know that by being passive abt it... And not being agressive abt your sales... Will eventually lead to no sales... Especially so during this economic downturn... But here's my point... Would you rather step on everyone's toes and try to get them into buying your product... And lose your frens and friendship that you've painstakingly forged all these years for some short-term success? And if you eventually succeed... Now wat? Clap hands and celebrate with the dog? That would be one hell of a party?!
So the big question of all is... Why didn't I tell her what I thought of the whole issue... And perhaps she might wake up her bloody idea and quit that company? Well the actual fact is... I DID! I seriously did! I told her that her PoS (Principle of Sales -- Wahaha... I'm being some sort of a professor here with new found theories and thesis...) is totally wrong and that she should take up a more non-agressive approach to such sales... Cos us being students still... We certainly dun have much spare cash to splurge... Not that your product is totally worthless and useless... My question is... How badly do we need it? I mentioned all of the above to her... Thru the phone and SMSes... And here's her brilliant reply...
Berd's fren: "All I'm asking for is a little support from you... Is that too much to ask for from a fren?" [She still doesn't get my fucking 1st point on "Choices... Not Obligations...")
Berd: "Yes we should support you... In some way or another... But I dun exactly need your product... And besides... I've been saving up for my bike and that's all I ever wanted..."
Berd's fren: "It a health product and it bound to help you one way or another... How can you say that you do not need it? Nvm thanks anyway. Sorry for irritating you. Sorry."
Berd: "Hey wait... Look that's not wat I meant... Yes you'd get on my nerves some point of time back... But that's because of your approach... Change that and I believe everything's fine!"
Berd's fren: "Like that who would buy? Anyway thanks. Sorry for irritating. Sorry."
Berd: "If you're struggling... Why not quit this job and take up something lighter... Like tuitioning... It's not labour intensive... And it's more stable than doing sales like these... I certainly dun see you going into this for long..."
Berd's fren: "I see this as my career and my future. You don't want to help nvm. Sorry for irritating. Sorry."
[By now I was hopelessly loss for words... And knowing that this isn't getting nowhere with her not seeing my point and not taking any of my advise...]
Berd: "Okay then if you succeed... Pls dun forget me then! A cup of tea and a chat is all I ever ask for..."
Berd's fren: "Yah sure can... Thanks anyway. Sorry for irritating. Sorry."
Berd: t (-.- t) [Wa... Wa... Wat can I say man? I dun believe my conversational skills have failed this time round lor... It has never!]
It ended like that... Rather sad... Although she'd never bother me abt her sales again... (My partial loss...) But that isn't a way to end a friendship man... Haiz... Sad day for humanity and for Berd... Will I ever see her name pop up in my HP again? Dunno...
I dun think I was over-doing it at all... And I dun think I'm wrong in any way for rejecting all her products... Cos I seriously dun need or want them... Yes my purchase could stand in your way in being promoted for being the top-seller in your group... Okay great well done... Wait... Then again... That's not my fucking problem... Neither is it my concern! If you're finding it too tough to cope... And the only sales you're making are the ones you bought for yourself out of your own pocket money for your parents or whoever... For goodness sake... Pls quit!
Major scam... Be wary!
My take is... These new-generation companies are targeting such types of sales... Wat do I mean? For any newcomers... They usually start working their sales on their friends, families and reliatives... And try to extend to friend's relatives and relatives' frens and so on and so forth... Until it is more or less saturated before they start emphasising on the importance of leverage and recruitment... Recruit some people under you and leverage on them... So that these new recruits WERE like you... Working their sales on their own circle of frens, families and relatives and so on... And the cycle continues... And in the long run... The whole of Singapore gets saturated... On and off... A new product comes along... And yet another wave starts... This time more rapidly cos the networking has oredi been established...
But at the end of the day... The manufacturers are the ones benefitting... Getting the lion's share of the pie... (Although we consumers do get the products... But then again that's a different story liao...) And perhaps some of the pioneers and the people higher up in the food chain... Leveraging on you and others below you...
Go ahead and jump into this line... Be used... Be leveraged... But be warned... Dun come knocking on my door ringing my HP to try force me into it... Leave me alone... I seriously dun see myself going into this kind of business in a million years... Leave a sample type of your product on my doorstep... And I'll be getting more from you if I like it... If I need it... Otherwise... You'll always be welcomed in my house... For a cup of tea... And a good long chat... Cheers!
Quote of the Day:
"Neo: Then there are only two possible explanations, either no one told me, or no one knows.
Architect: Precisely, as you are undoubtedly gathering the anomaly is systemic. Creating fluctuations in even the most simplistic equations.
Neo: Choice, the problem is choice." ~ Taken from the transript of conversation between Neo and the Architect in Matrix Reloaded.
Well said Neo... Well done Mr Architect... Spectacularly crafted... Legendary Andy and Larry Wachowski... Choice!
[Challenge me with your thoughts and comments on this highly sensitive issue... I would like to hear what you think of my opinion (Besides the fact that I suck...) and my action-reactions to this... It had me fuming for nights... Tell me I'm not alone... Tell me... HERE!]
Saturday, July 26, 2003
Shocking Discovery!
Goodness! Juz found out yesterday while doing the G164 Maths tutorials in NTU library that... My solutions to the 3 tutorial questions I did the other night... (Thursday nite Friday morning...) WAS WRONG! Gawd... I used the wrong method to do the question... And although the answers were right... But the method of solving it was TOTALLY WRONG MAN... LoLz... Besides... I forgot how to use a calculator... And ended up getting all sorts of funny answers to simple qns... Simply b'cos I somehow got confused on how to use the sin-cos-tan functions in deg mode and radian mode... ( o.O )
Goodness! Juz found out yesterday while doing the G164 Maths tutorials in NTU library that... My solutions to the 3 tutorial questions I did the other night... (Thursday nite Friday morning...) WAS WRONG! Gawd... I used the wrong method to do the question... And although the answers were right... But the method of solving it was TOTALLY WRONG MAN... LoLz... Besides... I forgot how to use a calculator... And ended up getting all sorts of funny answers to simple qns... Simply b'cos I somehow got confused on how to use the sin-cos-tan functions in deg mode and radian mode... ( o.O )
Thursday, July 24, 2003
**Yawnz...** Juz did 3 qns of my G164 tutorial! Heh... Well @ least that's a start... Really cant recall anything abt my F.Maths and Maths C... Confused by the simplest fundamentals of Maths... Like... Like... Argh what the heck... Cant remember....
But before I retire to my bed... Let me share this wonderful song with one and all... This song goes out specially to those gals who have enchanted me with your lovely eyes... People like... Aiyah cannot say lah... Good night everyone!
Blessid Union of Souls (1997) - Light In Your Eyes
I can't remember the last time that we kissed goodbye
All our 'I love you's' were just not enough to survive
Something your eyes never told me
But it's only now too plain to see
Brilliant disguise when you hold me
And I'm free
I've been thinking and here's what I've come to conclude
Sometimes the distance is more than two people can use
But how could I have known girl
It was time and not space you would need
Darling tonight I could hold you and you would know
But would you believe
There's a light in your eyes that I used to see
There's a place in your heart where I used to be
Was I wrong to assume that you were waiting for me
There's a light in your eyes
Did you leave that light burning for me
Cards and phone calls and photograph pictures of you
Constant reminder of all the things you get used to
Is there a chance in hell or heaven
That there's still something here to build on
Or do you just pick up the pieces after they fall
But after all
There's a light in your eyes that I used to see
And a song in the words that you spoke to me
Was I wrong to believe in your melody
There's a light in your eyes
Did you leave that light burning for me
Should I keep on waiting or does love keep on fading away
Fading away
It's been a while since I've seen you so how have you been
Did you get my letter I wrote you, but I did not send
I tried to call your old number
But the voice that I heard on the phone
I recognized but she told me the number was wrong
There's a light in my eyes but it's too bright to see
And a pain in my heart where you used to be
Guess I was wrong to assume that you were waiting here for me
There's a light in your eyes
Did you leave that light burning for me
But before I retire to my bed... Let me share this wonderful song with one and all... This song goes out specially to those gals who have enchanted me with your lovely eyes... People like... Aiyah cannot say lah... Good night everyone!
Blessid Union of Souls (1997) - Light In Your Eyes
I can't remember the last time that we kissed goodbye
All our 'I love you's' were just not enough to survive
Something your eyes never told me
But it's only now too plain to see
Brilliant disguise when you hold me
And I'm free
I've been thinking and here's what I've come to conclude
Sometimes the distance is more than two people can use
But how could I have known girl
It was time and not space you would need
Darling tonight I could hold you and you would know
But would you believe
There's a light in your eyes that I used to see
There's a place in your heart where I used to be
Was I wrong to assume that you were waiting for me
There's a light in your eyes
Did you leave that light burning for me
Cards and phone calls and photograph pictures of you
Constant reminder of all the things you get used to
Is there a chance in hell or heaven
That there's still something here to build on
Or do you just pick up the pieces after they fall
But after all
There's a light in your eyes that I used to see
And a song in the words that you spoke to me
Was I wrong to believe in your melody
There's a light in your eyes
Did you leave that light burning for me
Should I keep on waiting or does love keep on fading away
Fading away
It's been a while since I've seen you so how have you been
Did you get my letter I wrote you, but I did not send
I tried to call your old number
But the voice that I heard on the phone
I recognized but she told me the number was wrong
There's a light in my eyes but it's too bright to see
And a pain in my heart where you used to be
Guess I was wrong to assume that you were waiting here for me
There's a light in your eyes
Did you leave that light burning for me
Geez... Spent a chunk in the afternoon trying to get my printer online but to no avail.... Damn it... Even bought a new black cartridge costing me $39.90 juz to see if there's any problem with the cartridge but of course I ended up using the other brand new one... "/ I'm seriously out of ideas man... Simi "Check your printer connection" and "We cant detect the ink cartridge"... Gawd...
1 thing that did work out today was the calculator bit... Heh! Bought a brand new calculator for $20.10... WeEeEe! Although it's only similar to my previous but I can see that it is better than it by quite a margin... The only thing I dun really like abt my new Casio fx-350MS is that the resolution of the screen is not sharp enuff... The display is fat and ugly... EeEeEeEeeeee...
Found out that I've got a lecture in the afternoon... Was (somewat) dragged into going by Niche... Even worse... We found out very much later when chatting with old frens in NTU that that's not all... Lecture Grp A will have 2 more make up lectures from 1730 hrs to 1930 hrs... YEAH! Argh wat the heck... Niche and I ended up on the bus anyway... ^^
Met MC and his gf today... Very sweet of his gal to accompany him for lectures when on holiday even though she's not even studying his subject~! Trully a very loving couple... Really happy for them...
Okay as I try for the rest of my night to attempt my Maths tutorials... I can only hope that my memory can serve me well... Pls bu yao...
Quote of the Day:
"Love is missing someone whenever you're apart, but somehow feeling warm inside because you're close in heart." ~ Kay Knudsen
Go Ming Chiang Chiang Chiang Dong Dong Chaing! You rock!
1 thing that did work out today was the calculator bit... Heh! Bought a brand new calculator for $20.10... WeEeEe! Although it's only similar to my previous but I can see that it is better than it by quite a margin... The only thing I dun really like abt my new Casio fx-350MS is that the resolution of the screen is not sharp enuff... The display is fat and ugly... EeEeEeEeeeee...
Found out that I've got a lecture in the afternoon... Was (somewat) dragged into going by Niche... Even worse... We found out very much later when chatting with old frens in NTU that that's not all... Lecture Grp A will have 2 more make up lectures from 1730 hrs to 1930 hrs... YEAH! Argh wat the heck... Niche and I ended up on the bus anyway... ^^
Met MC and his gf today... Very sweet of his gal to accompany him for lectures when on holiday even though she's not even studying his subject~! Trully a very loving couple... Really happy for them...
Okay as I try for the rest of my night to attempt my Maths tutorials... I can only hope that my memory can serve me well... Pls bu yao...
Quote of the Day:
"Love is missing someone whenever you're apart, but somehow feeling warm inside because you're close in heart." ~ Kay Knudsen
Go Ming Chiang Chiang Chiang Dong Dong Chaing! You rock!
Wednesday, July 23, 2003
Totally wasted my day today playing with the baby and sleeping the afternoon away... Haiz... Couldn't bring myself to start on those tutorials for some reason or another... My very valid excuse? Calculator spoil. Which brings me to another point... DAMN IT MY FAV CALCULATOR IS SPOILT! AND I'M NOT USED TO OTHER MODELS! Grrr... My Casio fx-D400 is an obsolete model (Juz like Terminator...) and there's hardly one like it now in the market! Oh no... That oh-so-important SHIFT button is spoilt... Meaning I cant do sec, cosec and cotan functions... Exponential and cube root! And worse of all... I cant even off my dumb calculator... Oh gawd...
Had a good supper @ Bukit Timah... Juz opposite Beauty World... Stingray-TomYam Seafood-Kang Kong... Wahaha... Bloated now... Let me juz sit on it before sleeping man...
Five for Fighting - Superman (It's Not Easy)
I can't stand to fly
I'm not that naive
I'm just out to find
The better part of me
I'm more than a bird:I'm more than a plane
More than some pretty face beside a train
It's not easy to be me
Wish that I could cry
Fall upon my knees
Find a way to lie
About a home I'll never see
It may sound absurd:but don't be naive
Even Heroes have the right to bleed
I may be disturbed:but won't you conceed
Even Heroes have the right to dream
It's not easy to be me
Up, up and away:away from me
It's all right:You can all sleep sound tonight
I'm not crazy:or anything:
I can't stand to fly
I'm not that naive
Men weren't meant to ride
With clouds between their knees
I'm only a man in a silly red sheet
Digging for kryptonite on this one way street
Only a man in a funny red sheet
Looking for special things inside of me
It's not easy to be me...
Had a good supper @ Bukit Timah... Juz opposite Beauty World... Stingray-TomYam Seafood-Kang Kong... Wahaha... Bloated now... Let me juz sit on it before sleeping man...
Five for Fighting - Superman (It's Not Easy)
I can't stand to fly
I'm not that naive
I'm just out to find
The better part of me
I'm more than a bird:I'm more than a plane
More than some pretty face beside a train
It's not easy to be me
Wish that I could cry
Fall upon my knees
Find a way to lie
About a home I'll never see
It may sound absurd:but don't be naive
Even Heroes have the right to bleed
I may be disturbed:but won't you conceed
Even Heroes have the right to dream
It's not easy to be me
Up, up and away:away from me
It's all right:You can all sleep sound tonight
I'm not crazy:or anything:
I can't stand to fly
I'm not that naive
Men weren't meant to ride
With clouds between their knees
I'm only a man in a silly red sheet
Digging for kryptonite on this one way street
Only a man in a funny red sheet
Looking for special things inside of me
It's not easy to be me...
Tuesday, July 22, 2003
We had our 1st lectures today... 3 in fact all in a row @ MLT... Starting with Calculus... Wait a minute... Wat's that? The lecture started rather smoothly and I think I got to as far as -1 = i(square)... Subsequently... As the lecturer went on and on abt Binomial Expansions and Summation series... I cant help but notice this really big and mysterious question mark on my head... f ( -_____- ) ???
I gathered that learning @ a University is really a lot more independent than @ any other level of education... We're expected to have read and tried the tutorials and lecture notes even before stepping into the auditorium... Grrr... Guess I've got a lot of catching up to play... But I haven't got no notes to help me with that... My F.Maths and Maths.C notes are completely missing! Haiz... Nevermind that for now... I've got 2 free days thanks to NTU Flag Day tomolo and Nanyang Day-cum-ECA Fair on Thursday... Since I'll be needing no ECAs for hostel points... And wanting to be the nerd that I almost am... I dun have to go for some lame flag day to chalk up useless ECA points... So I'll see what I can do from now till Friday... The actual mayhem starts next week... Tutorials will commence from next week onwards... *Gulpz...*
Had a breakthrough today... Managed to get my PC linked to my bro's via a network after playing with some settings... And in his PC I found... THE (working) SCANNER DRIVERS! WoOt! Quickly got down to business and now my scanner is officially online! My printer is temporary down no thanks to the ink cartridge... It's empty... Really happy to have sorted out the scanner part... So you people can expect more of my pics to go up soon... But then again this depends on my availability... I'm really starting cold here going into Engine with almost 2 years of brain inactivity... ( "/ )
Bought myself 2 more blue pens... Juz to get myself ready for a marathon of tutorials I suspect that is coming my way... Except that my sis didn't have papers for me to work on... Her's are all with the school logo... ( -___- )
Quote of the Day:
"It is a thousand times better to have common sense without education than to have education without common sense." ~ Robert G. Ingersoll
I totally agree... Some people can be so study-smart... But they dun have much of a common sense... Not @ all street-smart... Such people may get all the success in the world... But not after missing out on countless opportunities before them... They too can get on others' nerves easily (Mine especially...) whenever they do things with illogical sense... I hate that! My preference on which I would rather have given a choice? Definitely COMMON SENSE! Good night...
I gathered that learning @ a University is really a lot more independent than @ any other level of education... We're expected to have read and tried the tutorials and lecture notes even before stepping into the auditorium... Grrr... Guess I've got a lot of catching up to play... But I haven't got no notes to help me with that... My F.Maths and Maths.C notes are completely missing! Haiz... Nevermind that for now... I've got 2 free days thanks to NTU Flag Day tomolo and Nanyang Day-cum-ECA Fair on Thursday... Since I'll be needing no ECAs for hostel points... And wanting to be the nerd that I almost am... I dun have to go for some lame flag day to chalk up useless ECA points... So I'll see what I can do from now till Friday... The actual mayhem starts next week... Tutorials will commence from next week onwards... *Gulpz...*
Had a breakthrough today... Managed to get my PC linked to my bro's via a network after playing with some settings... And in his PC I found... THE (working) SCANNER DRIVERS! WoOt! Quickly got down to business and now my scanner is officially online! My printer is temporary down no thanks to the ink cartridge... It's empty... Really happy to have sorted out the scanner part... So you people can expect more of my pics to go up soon... But then again this depends on my availability... I'm really starting cold here going into Engine with almost 2 years of brain inactivity... ( "/ )
Bought myself 2 more blue pens... Juz to get myself ready for a marathon of tutorials I suspect that is coming my way... Except that my sis didn't have papers for me to work on... Her's are all with the school logo... ( -___- )
Quote of the Day:
"It is a thousand times better to have common sense without education than to have education without common sense." ~ Robert G. Ingersoll
I totally agree... Some people can be so study-smart... But they dun have much of a common sense... Not @ all street-smart... Such people may get all the success in the world... But not after missing out on countless opportunities before them... They too can get on others' nerves easily (Mine especially...) whenever they do things with illogical sense... I hate that! My preference on which I would rather have given a choice? Definitely COMMON SENSE! Good night...
Monday, July 21, 2003
Today's Inauguration Ceremony for 2003 NTU Freshies is one heck of a waste of time man! I went for the goodie bag and the only useful thing I got out of it all is a torch that can be used for my future fishing expeditions~! Okay maybe the exclusive NTU tie can come in handy next time but... Seriously... There wasn't anything important to be told there... Nothing! And worse of all... We were made to dress up for the occasion (Wat occasion?!) preferably in long sleeves pants and leather shoes... Gawd... That is so NOT ME! I guess one of the main reasons for me showing up was b'cos... AWOL-ing on the 1st day of school isn't exactly a very good start... Had to put up with those long talks... Those "wise" words... Those cliches...
"Work hard... But play hard too~!"
"Work hard... But work smart..."
Geez... I've heard these countless of times over... But the food wasn't too bad... Don almost had his breakfast, lunch and dinner there! Goodness! Haha... When we were done with the eating... We went over to Zixter's bunk for a house visit or some sort... The journey to his hall was nothing short of an ordeal... It's so far... The weather was so hot... And it was almost 1km++ in distance from North Spine! (Wait a minute... Or was that South?) Good luck to him... I still prefer my home... Where there's free air-con, free laundry services... Free area-cleaning... And best of all... My smelly bolster... Although all of these can be bought or installed... Then again that place certainly doesn't have very much a homely feel to it... Perhaps I really cant stand staying in... Like we have done in past years in various camps... Maybe I need to see the little naughty she-devil that comes to my house every morning whenever I wake up... (My mum baby-sits...) Maybe I juz love to explore what's new and edible in my fridge... Maybe maybe maybe...
Quote of the Day:
"If there were no schools to take the children away from home part of the time, the insane asylums would be filled with mothers." ~ Edgar W. Howe
No wonder my mum always wants to chase me off to school...
No wonder no wonder!
"Work hard... But play hard too~!"
"Work hard... But work smart..."
Geez... I've heard these countless of times over... But the food wasn't too bad... Don almost had his breakfast, lunch and dinner there! Goodness! Haha... When we were done with the eating... We went over to Zixter's bunk for a house visit or some sort... The journey to his hall was nothing short of an ordeal... It's so far... The weather was so hot... And it was almost 1km++ in distance from North Spine! (Wait a minute... Or was that South?) Good luck to him... I still prefer my home... Where there's free air-con, free laundry services... Free area-cleaning... And best of all... My smelly bolster... Although all of these can be bought or installed... Then again that place certainly doesn't have very much a homely feel to it... Perhaps I really cant stand staying in... Like we have done in past years in various camps... Maybe I need to see the little naughty she-devil that comes to my house every morning whenever I wake up... (My mum baby-sits...) Maybe I juz love to explore what's new and edible in my fridge... Maybe maybe maybe...
Quote of the Day:
"If there were no schools to take the children away from home part of the time, the insane asylums would be filled with mothers." ~ Edgar W. Howe
No wonder my mum always wants to chase me off to school...
No wonder no wonder!
Sunday, July 20, 2003
A handful of soccer faithfuls gathered @ JI this morning for a practice match against each other... Although the weather almost killed our session but we managed to enjoy or game nevertheless (minus a quarrel somewhere that ended the game eventually...) A good practice session for the most of us... Stroking the ball ard and switching play from left to right and vise versa... As usual... I passed on my proper warm-down and now I'm left with awesome aches all over my body... And leg especially... Arrrrhhh?! **Grimaced face...**
Slept till late afternoon before making my way down to East Coast for (previously known as) Lee Xuefen's birthday BBQ... Had a little problem with her present but sorted that out... Met a lot of familiar faces over there @ the BBQ... From ex-schoolmates to ex-St. John's friends... From Crystal people to soccer acquaintances... It was nice to see so many of them again... And more so it really warmed my heart that I am still not forgotten but in fact cherished by many... Had a good chat with most of them... And shared with them some of my more interesting stories and experiences I've had the past 3 years or so... Really enjoyed myself humouring them... Hope they enjoyed my little story-telling session too!
Okay... Wanna keep my daily Blogs short... 1stly cos I wun be having much time to be posting long Blogs soon... Due to increased work load... (I foresee that...) and 2ndly... I've been receiving complains on my lengthy posts... Saying "It takes ages to finish loading the page... More so to finish reading it~! (Psst~! That's your fault remember? You're supposed to read it frequently... B4 it snowballs~!)
Last but not least... Here's a few SHOUT-OUTS to the people I've met... (If you're reading this that is...)
People of BPGHS St. Johns: You people have changed quite a bit I must say... Some shrunk in size... Some appear more beautiful... Some Chinese-speaking turned ang-mor... Had me fazed for a moment... But dun worry... I know your names still... I think... LoLz!
People of Crystal Tabernacle: It's really great to see all of you again... People like Jon, Pam, Diana, Jingyi, Carol, Daniel... Re-lived some of the good old memories in 1999-2000... Nice meeting Sarah and Elizabeth too... Had a lot of fun talking to you people... Stick together like before and may you all grow from strength to strength... For those reading this... Help me say a big "Hi" to people like Jessica and Wantian pls... Missed them (as in their presence) @ the BBQ then!
Claudia Lee Yi aka Lee Xuefen: Once again HAPPY 21st~!!! Send me those pics yah?
James: "Hi I'm Bernard and you are?" This is certainly 1 small world... See you in NTU...
Erpz... It's getting longer now... Gotta go!
Slept till late afternoon before making my way down to East Coast for (previously known as) Lee Xuefen's birthday BBQ... Had a little problem with her present but sorted that out... Met a lot of familiar faces over there @ the BBQ... From ex-schoolmates to ex-St. John's friends... From Crystal people to soccer acquaintances... It was nice to see so many of them again... And more so it really warmed my heart that I am still not forgotten but in fact cherished by many... Had a good chat with most of them... And shared with them some of my more interesting stories and experiences I've had the past 3 years or so... Really enjoyed myself humouring them... Hope they enjoyed my little story-telling session too!
Okay... Wanna keep my daily Blogs short... 1stly cos I wun be having much time to be posting long Blogs soon... Due to increased work load... (I foresee that...) and 2ndly... I've been receiving complains on my lengthy posts... Saying "It takes ages to finish loading the page... More so to finish reading it~! (Psst~! That's your fault remember? You're supposed to read it frequently... B4 it snowballs~!)
Last but not least... Here's a few SHOUT-OUTS to the people I've met... (If you're reading this that is...)
People of BPGHS St. Johns: You people have changed quite a bit I must say... Some shrunk in size... Some appear more beautiful... Some Chinese-speaking turned ang-mor... Had me fazed for a moment... But dun worry... I know your names still... I think... LoLz!
People of Crystal Tabernacle: It's really great to see all of you again... People like Jon, Pam, Diana, Jingyi, Carol, Daniel... Re-lived some of the good old memories in 1999-2000... Nice meeting Sarah and Elizabeth too... Had a lot of fun talking to you people... Stick together like before and may you all grow from strength to strength... For those reading this... Help me say a big "Hi" to people like Jessica and Wantian pls... Missed them (as in their presence) @ the BBQ then!
Claudia Lee Yi aka Lee Xuefen: Once again HAPPY 21st~!!! Send me those pics yah?
James: "Hi I'm Bernard and you are?" This is certainly 1 small world... See you in NTU...
Erpz... It's getting longer now... Gotta go!
Saturday, July 19, 2003
Frustrated
Today was certainly a frustrating day... And the weather certainly didn't help... After a heavy and noisy downpour this morning... The afternoon heat became rather bad... (Although nothing compared to the heat wave experienced a couple of weeks back...) But the no. 1 distressing thing of the day has got to be my problem with my HP Scanjet 3200C driver that bugged me for the entire afternoon...
My PC has been formatted over zillions of times due to poor PC performance... Some mysterious blue screen problems... Some hardware problems that can be rectified by formatting (Senseless I know... But it works! Maybe I really should circle it...) But due to careful partitioning of my 60gig hard-drive... Only the OS portion of it is affected... Meaning no data lost... Juz needs some re-installing of system drivers and programs...
1 such driver is my HP Scanjet 3200C... I've never felt the need to install it until now... With my Uni starting in abt 2 days' time and my current passion for HTML coding... I wanted to get more pics up on my Blog... And that means scanning in some of my more recent pictures... But I was presented with a ridiculous problem... And here's how it goes...
The Installation CD for my Scanjet is rather old... Hence it only allows itself to be installed on Win95 and Win98... Mine being WinXP... Is rejected... Senseless... So I went over to the HP official website to download their patch... However it appears to me that their driver is also not compatible with WinXP... However... They do provide with a patch that will make the driver work with WinXP...
Fine... D/led unzipped install... Failed... I'm not able to patch it properly... Fine... Off to driver.com for more help... Found another file that can be used to install my Scanjet 3200C... Fine... There was also a comment available there that says how a guy succeeded in bringing his Scanjet up on his WinXP... I followed his method word for word... Action for action but still to no avail... The same problem occurred... The same fatal error that occurs when patching... Okay so I guess it's the patch's fault...
But the thing is @ the end of the day... I'm still unable to install my Scanjet... And the furthest I've got was to get my PC to recognise my Scanjet under device manager but still it wont work... After 4 hours of searching and searching on the Net for available drivers and forums offering possible solutions... Really had me reeling man this bloody issue...
And if that's not all... When I asked ard for some workable viable solution to such a simple problem... Someshallow smart ill-advised intelligent simpleton samaritan I met in some forums came up with doomed suggestive and brainless innovative solutions like... "Try hp.com dude!" or "D/l from internet pal!" Thanks huh... I overlooked that... If those people had told me in my face to buy a new one... I could see that off as a joke... But but... Grrr!
Took a nap to recover from my rising high blood pressure... Woke up really late to meet up with the rest of the guys over @ Plaza Sing... Didn't exactly have a fantastic meal... But it did fill my stomach @ least...
Haiz... Knowing well that technology can make and break you... I guess I'm still overly-dependent on it... It can really @ times frustrate you... Leaving you hopeless helpless and desperate... Well fortunately for me... I still know how to deal with most of the common problems... Some of the people I know can be really bad @ this... Well I sure hope to be able to resolve this soon... Before I become a Neo or a John Connor...
Quote of the Day:
"All of the biggest technological inventions created by man - the airplane, the automobile, the computer - says little about his intelligence, but speaks volumes about his laziness." ~ Mark Kennedy
True... All the convenience brought about by technology is being taken for granted nowadays... I felt that juz yesterday @ Turf Club when I couldn't even make a phone call... Geez!
"Modern technology
Owes ecology
An apology. "
~ Alan M. Eddison
How very true... Food for thought... Nite!
Today was certainly a frustrating day... And the weather certainly didn't help... After a heavy and noisy downpour this morning... The afternoon heat became rather bad... (Although nothing compared to the heat wave experienced a couple of weeks back...) But the no. 1 distressing thing of the day has got to be my problem with my HP Scanjet 3200C driver that bugged me for the entire afternoon...
My PC has been formatted over zillions of times due to poor PC performance... Some mysterious blue screen problems... Some hardware problems that can be rectified by formatting (Senseless I know... But it works! Maybe I really should circle it...) But due to careful partitioning of my 60gig hard-drive... Only the OS portion of it is affected... Meaning no data lost... Juz needs some re-installing of system drivers and programs...
1 such driver is my HP Scanjet 3200C... I've never felt the need to install it until now... With my Uni starting in abt 2 days' time and my current passion for HTML coding... I wanted to get more pics up on my Blog... And that means scanning in some of my more recent pictures... But I was presented with a ridiculous problem... And here's how it goes...
The Installation CD for my Scanjet is rather old... Hence it only allows itself to be installed on Win95 and Win98... Mine being WinXP... Is rejected... Senseless... So I went over to the HP official website to download their patch... However it appears to me that their driver is also not compatible with WinXP... However... They do provide with a patch that will make the driver work with WinXP...
Fine... D/led unzipped install... Failed... I'm not able to patch it properly... Fine... Off to driver.com for more help... Found another file that can be used to install my Scanjet 3200C... Fine... There was also a comment available there that says how a guy succeeded in bringing his Scanjet up on his WinXP... I followed his method word for word... Action for action but still to no avail... The same problem occurred... The same fatal error that occurs when patching... Okay so I guess it's the patch's fault...
But the thing is @ the end of the day... I'm still unable to install my Scanjet... And the furthest I've got was to get my PC to recognise my Scanjet under device manager but still it wont work... After 4 hours of searching and searching on the Net for available drivers and forums offering possible solutions... Really had me reeling man this bloody issue...
And if that's not all... When I asked ard for some workable viable solution to such a simple problem... Some
Took a nap to recover from my rising high blood pressure... Woke up really late to meet up with the rest of the guys over @ Plaza Sing... Didn't exactly have a fantastic meal... But it did fill my stomach @ least...
Haiz... Knowing well that technology can make and break you... I guess I'm still overly-dependent on it... It can really @ times frustrate you... Leaving you hopeless helpless and desperate... Well fortunately for me... I still know how to deal with most of the common problems... Some of the people I know can be really bad @ this... Well I sure hope to be able to resolve this soon... Before I become a Neo or a John Connor...
Quote of the Day:
"All of the biggest technological inventions created by man - the airplane, the automobile, the computer - says little about his intelligence, but speaks volumes about his laziness." ~ Mark Kennedy
True... All the convenience brought about by technology is being taken for granted nowadays... I felt that juz yesterday @ Turf Club when I couldn't even make a phone call... Geez!
"Modern technology
Owes ecology
An apology. "
~ Alan M. Eddison
How very true... Food for thought... Nite!
Friday, July 18, 2003
Ron and I paid a out-of-this-world visit to the Singapore Turf Club (STC) today... With him arriving late... (Usually it's the other way round man...) It really hit me hard how massive the crowd over @ Kranji was... And I used to think that horse-racing was a small-gun thingy... Wonder if the crowd can get as emotional and rowdy as those fans in Italian Serie A or even worse... Istanbul...
Entry fee of $3 to me was kind of a rip-off initially... Until I stepped in... I realised that the entire place was very well-thought thru... There wasn't a single pillar or stool or wall out of place... However... I feel the restriction of usage of mobile handphones is a little too harsh... Made me feel a little out of place nevertheless... Back to STC... Upon entering the gantries... You will have to walk up this gentle arching slope towards the main building... Which is equally massive...You'd pass by the viewing gallery where all the horses that will be racing in the next race will be put up for show... Some sort of a fashion show... Whereby their owners will stand by their precious... Take some pictures... And perhaps talk abt some multi-million deal amongst other millionaires... Haiz... Wished I could be one of them...
To either side of the main building... There are food courts where the hungry can feast on some of the more famous local delicacies... Like Laksa, Chicken rice and Mac... (Wat the?) Ron and I had some Mac before getting down to business... Horse punting... It took me 1 race to figure out the name of the game... Basically juz buy the 2 favourite horses to come in 1st and or @ least be on the podium (Win-Place combi) to break even... With that in mind... Ron and I proceeded to the centre part of the building where the booths are...
Picture this... Abt 8 rows of 12 counters... Situated back to back in the middle of the building... With toilets ard the corner... That makes your level 1... There's also this extended viewing gallery beyond the gallery on level 1 right in front of the race course where the masses can gather to sit squart stand and cheer their fav horses on... One that is slightly sloped to provide elevation at the back so that all can see the massive screen and odds board... Something I find very well-thought thru... You can even go right to the front of the extended gallery to have a super close up view of the horses in action... These mightly beasts... As they gallop past you... You can really feel the ground trembling... Juz like in the movies...
And on the 2nd level... It's exactly a mirror of the 1st minus the extended viewing gallery + air-con and of course... A better view... But that's only as close you can get to the heat of the action... I still think the $3 seat is best if you really wanna have that close-up view... Not juz in the comfort of your seat in a air-conditioned room...
Okay enuff of the orientation of the STC... I think horse punting is such an endearing activity to many... Because the actions happen thick and fast... Juz like a week of S-League punting multiplied 10 times as fast... Take for example this weekend's match between Jurong and Sembawang... You'd probably analyse the teams with various information made easily available on the Internet 3 days before a match... Before mustering and conjuring up all courage within you to place a $10 bet on Jurong to draw with Sembawang... And on matchday... You gotta wait 1h 45min for the action to be over... Before you'd know the outcome of your decision... And sometimes... Things can get really slow and boring...
However in horse-racing... Things happen a lot faster (Something I like...) and a lot more furiously... You have abt 30 minutes before the action starts and after some agonizing analysis of the race ahead... After considering countless possible winning permutations... You finally decide to bang on these 2 horsies... Paaaawwwwww and away they go... Racing down the 1.6km maybe 2km track with live coverage all the way from the start... And as the pack draws closer to the last straight... You can feel the crowd getting more emotional and audible... Chanting some nonsensical prayers in a bid to spur their horses on faster... And as they rumble towards the finishing line... You really would hold your breath with heightened anticipation that the flap on the horse's back would unfold and correspond to the number on the ticket you bought... YESSSSSSS!!!!! or SHHHIIIITTTTTTT!!!! Either way... Your adrenline's pumped... And you gather your breath for a moment... But because things happen so god-damn fast... The images somewat flashes past you and you're left wondering if your delirious mind made that up? Or did it really happen? Did my 95-Emperor really win? Or did Titan Bliss really did come in 2nd? As you wait for a slow-motion replay on the giant screen to confirm your thoughts... Your mind glances furiously back and forth between the giant screen and the odds board to check how much you'd win if the results was confirmed in your favour... And with that over... You'd quickly flip that handy "Punter's Book" again to check on the next race to see if there's yet another good deal... Time left to next race... 18 minutes...
See what I mean? Things happen a lot faster... And it's a lot more furious... Compared to a soccer match... Horse racing is like watching 2 attacking-minded football teams flooding one another with fearsome counter-attacks... Each ending in @ least a goal... A hit off the post... Or maybe a last minute clearance off the line... So much more intense... So much more exciting... Definitely enjoyed myself today... Oh and juz for the records... My total profits today excluding all expenses... A respectable $39... Heh!
I recommend horse punting to those adventurous looking for one hell of a time... Armed with a lot of free time and with a little spare cash... But be warned... There is no such thing as a "sure-win" bet... There is no shortcuts in life... Play only with spare cash... Enjoy the action more than the monetary aspect... Definitely not for one to make a living out of... So pls... Know your limits and don't get your hand burnt... Also... This passtime is definitely not for the faint-hearted...
Quote of the Day:
"The wagon rests in winter, the sleigh in summer, the horse never. " ~ Yiddish Proverb
Pity those horses who are blinded when racing... It must be frightening for them to race @ top speeds not knowing where they are going... Although some of them juz have their field of view narrowed... It's still cruel... In my opinion @ least... Horse racing I feel shouldn't juz be about how well trained the horse is... Or how good the jockey can be to instill the kind of confidence in the horse to make the beast believe that the end is near juz give it your best... It should also be a measure of well the jockey and horse can bond together and win a race... Telepathy between human and horse... Oh well... Juz my 2cents worth of thought...
As we all know... Horse racing involves a huge amount of money... No wonder their owners love their horse so much... When viewing the finishing in sow motion... These horsies can be so majestic... So impressive... Each bulk of muscle working @ full throttle to thrust the jockey and horsie forward... Wat a sight to behold...
As I leave you guys to favour the details I've put up here on my Blog... I would like you readers to leave some comments on the link below juz @ the end of the post... Or maybe a little something in our trash-talk bulletin thru the link on my right... Tango yankie out.
Berd's Winning Horsies for the Day: (Juz for the record...)
Race 3: Rythm of the Bell (No. 2) & Dual Citizen (No.8)
Race 4: Light of Success (No. 3) & Titan Bliss (No. 6)
Race 6: Lord of the Pines (No. 6) aka Lord of thePenis [LoLz!!!]
Entry fee of $3 to me was kind of a rip-off initially... Until I stepped in... I realised that the entire place was very well-thought thru... There wasn't a single pillar or stool or wall out of place... However... I feel the restriction of usage of mobile handphones is a little too harsh... Made me feel a little out of place nevertheless... Back to STC... Upon entering the gantries... You will have to walk up this gentle arching slope towards the main building... Which is equally massive...You'd pass by the viewing gallery where all the horses that will be racing in the next race will be put up for show... Some sort of a fashion show... Whereby their owners will stand by their precious... Take some pictures... And perhaps talk abt some multi-million deal amongst other millionaires... Haiz... Wished I could be one of them...
To either side of the main building... There are food courts where the hungry can feast on some of the more famous local delicacies... Like Laksa, Chicken rice and Mac... (Wat the?) Ron and I had some Mac before getting down to business... Horse punting... It took me 1 race to figure out the name of the game... Basically juz buy the 2 favourite horses to come in 1st and or @ least be on the podium (Win-Place combi) to break even... With that in mind... Ron and I proceeded to the centre part of the building where the booths are...
Picture this... Abt 8 rows of 12 counters... Situated back to back in the middle of the building... With toilets ard the corner... That makes your level 1... There's also this extended viewing gallery beyond the gallery on level 1 right in front of the race course where the masses can gather to sit squart stand and cheer their fav horses on... One that is slightly sloped to provide elevation at the back so that all can see the massive screen and odds board... Something I find very well-thought thru... You can even go right to the front of the extended gallery to have a super close up view of the horses in action... These mightly beasts... As they gallop past you... You can really feel the ground trembling... Juz like in the movies...
And on the 2nd level... It's exactly a mirror of the 1st minus the extended viewing gallery + air-con and of course... A better view... But that's only as close you can get to the heat of the action... I still think the $3 seat is best if you really wanna have that close-up view... Not juz in the comfort of your seat in a air-conditioned room...
Okay enuff of the orientation of the STC... I think horse punting is such an endearing activity to many... Because the actions happen thick and fast... Juz like a week of S-League punting multiplied 10 times as fast... Take for example this weekend's match between Jurong and Sembawang... You'd probably analyse the teams with various information made easily available on the Internet 3 days before a match... Before mustering and conjuring up all courage within you to place a $10 bet on Jurong to draw with Sembawang... And on matchday... You gotta wait 1h 45min for the action to be over... Before you'd know the outcome of your decision... And sometimes... Things can get really slow and boring...
However in horse-racing... Things happen a lot faster (Something I like...) and a lot more furiously... You have abt 30 minutes before the action starts and after some agonizing analysis of the race ahead... After considering countless possible winning permutations... You finally decide to bang on these 2 horsies... Paaaawwwwww and away they go... Racing down the 1.6km maybe 2km track with live coverage all the way from the start... And as the pack draws closer to the last straight... You can feel the crowd getting more emotional and audible... Chanting some nonsensical prayers in a bid to spur their horses on faster... And as they rumble towards the finishing line... You really would hold your breath with heightened anticipation that the flap on the horse's back would unfold and correspond to the number on the ticket you bought... YESSSSSSS!!!!! or SHHHIIIITTTTTTT!!!! Either way... Your adrenline's pumped... And you gather your breath for a moment... But because things happen so god-damn fast... The images somewat flashes past you and you're left wondering if your delirious mind made that up? Or did it really happen? Did my 95-Emperor really win? Or did Titan Bliss really did come in 2nd? As you wait for a slow-motion replay on the giant screen to confirm your thoughts... Your mind glances furiously back and forth between the giant screen and the odds board to check how much you'd win if the results was confirmed in your favour... And with that over... You'd quickly flip that handy "Punter's Book" again to check on the next race to see if there's yet another good deal... Time left to next race... 18 minutes...
See what I mean? Things happen a lot faster... And it's a lot more furious... Compared to a soccer match... Horse racing is like watching 2 attacking-minded football teams flooding one another with fearsome counter-attacks... Each ending in @ least a goal... A hit off the post... Or maybe a last minute clearance off the line... So much more intense... So much more exciting... Definitely enjoyed myself today... Oh and juz for the records... My total profits today excluding all expenses... A respectable $39... Heh!
I recommend horse punting to those adventurous looking for one hell of a time... Armed with a lot of free time and with a little spare cash... But be warned... There is no such thing as a "sure-win" bet... There is no shortcuts in life... Play only with spare cash... Enjoy the action more than the monetary aspect... Definitely not for one to make a living out of... So pls... Know your limits and don't get your hand burnt... Also... This passtime is definitely not for the faint-hearted...
Quote of the Day:
"The wagon rests in winter, the sleigh in summer, the horse never. " ~ Yiddish Proverb
Pity those horses who are blinded when racing... It must be frightening for them to race @ top speeds not knowing where they are going... Although some of them juz have their field of view narrowed... It's still cruel... In my opinion @ least... Horse racing I feel shouldn't juz be about how well trained the horse is... Or how good the jockey can be to instill the kind of confidence in the horse to make the beast believe that the end is near juz give it your best... It should also be a measure of well the jockey and horse can bond together and win a race... Telepathy between human and horse... Oh well... Juz my 2cents worth of thought...
As we all know... Horse racing involves a huge amount of money... No wonder their owners love their horse so much... When viewing the finishing in sow motion... These horsies can be so majestic... So impressive... Each bulk of muscle working @ full throttle to thrust the jockey and horsie forward... Wat a sight to behold...
As I leave you guys to favour the details I've put up here on my Blog... I would like you readers to leave some comments on the link below juz @ the end of the post... Or maybe a little something in our trash-talk bulletin thru the link on my right... Tango yankie out.
Berd's Winning Horsies for the Day: (Juz for the record...)
Race 3: Rythm of the Bell (No. 2) & Dual Citizen (No.8)
Race 4: Light of Success (No. 3) & Titan Bliss (No. 6)
Race 6: Lord of the Pines (No. 6) aka Lord of the
**Yawnz...** Yup... I went fishing overnight @ Sembawang jetty along with Kelvin... My good old buddy o' pal... Heh... It's been ages since I last saw him now... Still the same... Haven't changed much...
Ate dinner over @ his place... The portion of serving was MASSIVE! Cant believe these people eat so much... I've got a big bowl of soup which I cant finish... Along with a mini chicken chop and loads of vege and all... But it was afterall a very good meal... A good prelude to our fishing trip...
We got 200g worth of live prawns... And a bag of ugly smelly sea worms as bait for the day... Even got myself a double bell to attach to my rod to warn me of any underwater activity unseen by me... We got to our spot only to realise that we had forgotten all abt our snacks and drinks... How miserable! By then it was too little too late... Haiz... We took a corner of the jetty and made it our home... Setting up a hammock and a field chair after our 1st cast... And there... My enlightenment started...
2030hrs : Cool sea breeze...
2130hrs : Latest update from Bishan stadium... 2-0 to Home United! YEAH!
2230hrs : Started talking cock with a no. of people on my Starhub phone...
2330hrs : Cool sea breeze...
0030hrs : Very cold sea breeze...
0130hrs : Waiting for fish...
0230hrs : Falling asleep...
0330hrs : Had a mini-debate via SMS with the MJ great... KBK...
0430hrs : Fuck it... I'm sleeping!
Wah liew... Throughout the entire night... There was not 1 moment when my bell rang furiously indicating a bite... All my live prawns were either eaten by mean crabs... Or bitten off only at the head / tail leaving the lifeless prawn body there... Wah liew... hao wan... And by 2 plus... Most of my live prawns... Were DEAD... Yeah yeah...
Well @ least something did come out of this little fishing trip... Kelvin and I caught up pretty well with one another sharing our differences and NS lives with one another... Also... It's been such a long time since I last stayed out... Out in the open like that... Too bad we lacked some female company (LoLz... I was green with jealousy when I saw another guy with his sweet gf fishing! ARGH!) and loads of tidbits... And maybe a drink or two ya know...
A night to remember and forget... The pleasure and euphoric relaxation derived from lying half-asleep in that hammock wrapped up in my blue wind-breaker @ a jetty in Sembawang park... Surrounded by the serenity of the blissful night... Listening to my fav Sammi Cheng... Simply unbeatable... Although it was a fruitless night in terms of fishing... It certainly was a fruitful trip in the amount of true rest and relaxation I got from it all...
Here's a short little poem about to take away from my Blog... Something which I felt while fishing overnight... Enjoy...
Midnight...
O wild and wondrous midnight,
There is a might in thee
To make the charmed body
Almost like spirit be,
And give it some faint glimpses
Of immortality. ~ James Russell Lowell
This evening... Ron and I will be trying out Kranji Turf Club... Wonder if it meets my expectations in terms of the electrifying atmosphere pictured... Might place a wager or two juz for fun... Wish me luck!
Ate dinner over @ his place... The portion of serving was MASSIVE! Cant believe these people eat so much... I've got a big bowl of soup which I cant finish... Along with a mini chicken chop and loads of vege and all... But it was afterall a very good meal... A good prelude to our fishing trip...
We got 200g worth of live prawns... And a bag of ugly smelly sea worms as bait for the day... Even got myself a double bell to attach to my rod to warn me of any underwater activity unseen by me... We got to our spot only to realise that we had forgotten all abt our snacks and drinks... How miserable! By then it was too little too late... Haiz... We took a corner of the jetty and made it our home... Setting up a hammock and a field chair after our 1st cast... And there... My enlightenment started...
2030hrs : Cool sea breeze...
2130hrs : Latest update from Bishan stadium... 2-0 to Home United! YEAH!
2230hrs : Started talking cock with a no. of people on my Starhub phone...
2330hrs : Cool sea breeze...
0030hrs : Very cold sea breeze...
0130hrs : Waiting for fish...
0230hrs : Falling asleep...
0330hrs : Had a mini-debate via SMS with the MJ great... KBK...
0430hrs : Fuck it... I'm sleeping!
Wah liew... Throughout the entire night... There was not 1 moment when my bell rang furiously indicating a bite... All my live prawns were either eaten by mean crabs... Or bitten off only at the head / tail leaving the lifeless prawn body there... Wah liew... hao wan... And by 2 plus... Most of my live prawns... Were DEAD... Yeah yeah...
Well @ least something did come out of this little fishing trip... Kelvin and I caught up pretty well with one another sharing our differences and NS lives with one another... Also... It's been such a long time since I last stayed out... Out in the open like that... Too bad we lacked some female company (LoLz... I was green with jealousy when I saw another guy with his sweet gf fishing! ARGH!) and loads of tidbits... And maybe a drink or two ya know...
A night to remember and forget... The pleasure and euphoric relaxation derived from lying half-asleep in that hammock wrapped up in my blue wind-breaker @ a jetty in Sembawang park... Surrounded by the serenity of the blissful night... Listening to my fav Sammi Cheng... Simply unbeatable... Although it was a fruitless night in terms of fishing... It certainly was a fruitful trip in the amount of true rest and relaxation I got from it all...
Here's a short little poem about to take away from my Blog... Something which I felt while fishing overnight... Enjoy...
Midnight...
O wild and wondrous midnight,
There is a might in thee
To make the charmed body
Almost like spirit be,
And give it some faint glimpses
Of immortality. ~ James Russell Lowell
This evening... Ron and I will be trying out Kranji Turf Club... Wonder if it meets my expectations in terms of the electrifying atmosphere pictured... Might place a wager or two juz for fun... Wish me luck!
Thursday, July 17, 2003
Incredible~! Within a night... I've transformed my dead-boring Blogspot into one with so many added features~! No thanks to me working till 4.30 am after a day of Ubin cycling~! Heh~! Credits where credits due... I've got to thank BLOGSPOT for it's wonderful services... They have such great insight to make the HTML coding available and open to its users... Hence allowing us to modify and beautify our very own Blogspot! And with so many HTML codes made easily available all over the Net... No wonder I could have added so many things to my Blogspot within a night... (Opppps! I cheated...)
Added Features: (Within a night mind you!)
1. Background music for your viewing and reading pleasure - I've added a midi to my page... So that you can enjoy one of my fav songs as you read my Blog... Can anyone guess the name of the song and the artist? 1st one to post it under the "Discuss abt anything... HERE!" section stand to win a free Teh-C Peng from me... No demerits for any wrong answers not to worry... =)
2. Berd's Guest Book - This guestbook is for all my dear frens who have taken their precious time off to read my crap... Please leave your contacts... And some details... So that we can keep in touch~!!! For those who have their own webby... Pls too leave them down so that I can learn a thing or two from you too~!!!
3. Berd's Bullshit Bulletin - Also known as "Discuss abt anything... HERE!"... This link will bring you to a bulletin where all are invited to talk trash... Slander or mud-sling one another... Leave interesting posts or links or some out-of-this-world news you have juz read... Tell us abt your mishap... Or windfall... Anything basically... Juz to keep in touch... Rule of the game? If you read... Pls write!
4. Feedback Column - If you people have noticed... There's this feedback column at the end of every post... Click on it to send me your comment on the Blog you've juz read... On an everyday basis... Anything that I've missed... Or interpreted wrongly... Would love to see this portion filled too if you guys would... Pls...
Okay... As I ready myself for an evening and night of fishing... I hope my new-found interest in web-page building would take my Blogspot far... And make it one of the more interesting and alluring sites for all to visit... Hope you all would enjoy reading... As much as I enjoy Blogging... Last but not least... Your invaluable comments pls...
Quote of the Day:
"The charm of fishing is that it is the pursuit of what is elusive but attainable, a perpetual series of occasions for hope. " ~ John Buchan
That's exactly wat I'll be looking for... Along with some other aspects... Will keep you guys updated... With my subsequent post... So until then... FISH OFF!
Added Features: (Within a night mind you!)
1. Background music for your viewing and reading pleasure - I've added a midi to my page... So that you can enjoy one of my fav songs as you read my Blog... Can anyone guess the name of the song and the artist? 1st one to post it under the "Discuss abt anything... HERE!" section stand to win a free Teh-C Peng from me... No demerits for any wrong answers not to worry... =)
2. Berd's Guest Book - This guestbook is for all my dear frens who have taken their precious time off to read my crap... Please leave your contacts... And some details... So that we can keep in touch~!!! For those who have their own webby... Pls too leave them down so that I can learn a thing or two from you too~!!!
3. Berd's Bullshit Bulletin - Also known as "Discuss abt anything... HERE!"... This link will bring you to a bulletin where all are invited to talk trash... Slander or mud-sling one another... Leave interesting posts or links or some out-of-this-world news you have juz read... Tell us abt your mishap... Or windfall... Anything basically... Juz to keep in touch... Rule of the game? If you read... Pls write!
4. Feedback Column - If you people have noticed... There's this feedback column at the end of every post... Click on it to send me your comment on the Blog you've juz read... On an everyday basis... Anything that I've missed... Or interpreted wrongly... Would love to see this portion filled too if you guys would... Pls...
Okay... As I ready myself for an evening and night of fishing... I hope my new-found interest in web-page building would take my Blogspot far... And make it one of the more interesting and alluring sites for all to visit... Hope you all would enjoy reading... As much as I enjoy Blogging... Last but not least... Your invaluable comments pls...
Quote of the Day:
"The charm of fishing is that it is the pursuit of what is elusive but attainable, a perpetual series of occasions for hope. " ~ John Buchan
That's exactly wat I'll be looking for... Along with some other aspects... Will keep you guys updated... With my subsequent post... So until then... FISH OFF!
Wednesday, July 16, 2003
Wat a wonderful day~! The 6 of us... Jw Ron Anil Michael Damien and myself went Ubin today for a round-island cycling trip... My 2nd in 2 months... Heh... Although we did not do much jungles as we did the other time ard... The time spent on gravel road was more than enuff to give me enuff practice for my @#$%&*@#$%&*. (Read on to find out...)
The day started with buddy boy Damien being awfully late... He got up only at 0938 when we were supposed to meet @ 0930... His reason for being late? He was too "early"... Getting up @ 7 plus to read my late minute msg saying the meeting time has been postponed to 0930... Being the pig we all are (Especially now that most of us guys are clearing leave...) Buddy boy conveniently fell asleep... AGAIN! Grrr... That aside... We had a rather B-E-A-U-tiful start to this wonderful day... Having (**free**) prawn noodle for breakfast whilst waiting for buddy boy... Before our new-found chauffeur Jw drove us to Changi Point for our transit to Ubin...
**Free prawn noodle**: This was a complete mis-understanding... When our drinks arrived... Anil offered to pay for all of us 1st saying "Eh nvm... Eat 1st settle later..." Same thing happened with the prawn noodle (Or so I thought...) Jw offered to pay for himeself and me 1st and "settle later"... It was only at Changi Village when I realised I short-changed the nice Uncle by not paying! Too bad so sad... It was Jw's fault... =D
Okay perhaps the only turnoff of the day... Was when those attitude bum-boat operators made us wait an agonizing 45 min for our ride to Ubin... Reason being there wasn't exactly 12 people who could fill his boat to maximise the trip to Ubin... Such mercenaries... Such profit-driven lackeys... But who could blame them? Commuters to Pulau Ubin isn't anywhere like the flow of traffic along Jalan Eunos man...
The 2nd hiccup (3rd including Damien's late rise...) was (yet again...) due to Damien's incompetency... Bringing along a flat digi-cam with a fresh memory card... you ge pi yong ah?! It was such a crying shame many our our more beautiful memories could not be captured... No thanks to Damien Heng... t ( -_- t ) To add insult to injury... MICHAEL had to bring an analog camera w/o a freaking film in it~! Grrr... Crippled by 2 dysfunctional cameras... Our outing nearly crumbled...
BUT THE SHOW WENT ON... With Berd dominating the scenes... We rented our bikes after some awesome bargaining skills from buddy boy... (If you're hoping that that has helped make up for your blunder... YOU'RE SoOoOo wrong dude!) We promised not to deal too much damage to the bikes by ramming it or trying some stunts or crash it or something... And had the price reduced from $7 to $5... (Wat the?!) With that... We were well on our way...
Throughout the ride... I practised my free-hand riding whenever possible... And I'm proud to say that by the end of the day... I was a master in it~! I could ride past humps... Negotiate winding roads and best of all... By the end of the day I could even complete a skill-course I set for myself~! Riding round a basketball court free-hand... Of which I had to make 3 bends... 2 of which were almost 90deg and the last one less than 90... Really elated when I could complete it... Such a childish accomplishment I know... But I guess no one knows how much THAT meant to me... My regret being able to go only anti-clockwise... Turning left on all 3 turns... My right free-hand didn't meet the mark... But still from 1/10 to 8/10... I think I've made marked improvements...
There was a short pour towards the end of our ride... It made the road and us wet true... But it also paved the way for yet another stunt that most of us soon picked up... The E-brake... Travelling @ a rather high speed... If you would jam @ your rear brakes and turn your steering slightly to either side... You could end up skiding on the slippery road... And if you put you leg down and pivot ard that supporting leg when you do the above-described brake... You could do a 180-brake... Spectacular and exhilarant... Haha... Really loved the sound of screeching rubber against gravel...
Soon most of us were jumping @ our brakes for no rhyme or reason... Doing all sorts of stunts... Like Anil's "Wagging Tail" (Bicycle tail sways from left to right to left while braking...) and Damien's "T-Brake" (Braking perpendicular to the motion of your bike....) Had a lot of fun trying to destroy the bike we promised not to... bu hui wan jiao che lah bosh...
We ended our spectacular day with one hell of a meal @ Jurong Ave 1... Somewhere near but not so near JJC... For only $9 per person... We had Sweet Sour Pork (gou lou yoke)... Sambal Chilli Kang Kong (ma lai feng guang)... Tofu Hotplate (tie ban dou fu)... Special Thai Chicken (Ah blah blah blah)... And my fav... Tom Yam Kung! (Seafood) Heh! XD~~~
And in preparation to tomolo's day out with my old pal Kelvin... I went over to my uncle's place to get my very own fishing rod for tomolo's expedition... Heh... But then again that will be tomolo's post... Till then...
Proudest Moments:
- Learning to cycle without the use of my hands and yet able to negotiate winding roads... From almost nothing to mastery... I'm born to be a JEDI~!
- Getting the hang of E-brakes... That was certainly fun...
As I take with me these lovely memories... I hope I'll be able to post some of the pictures taken today for all to view... Wat a day... Wat a wonderful day...
The day started with buddy boy Damien being awfully late... He got up only at 0938 when we were supposed to meet @ 0930... His reason for being late? He was too "early"... Getting up @ 7 plus to read my late minute msg saying the meeting time has been postponed to 0930... Being the pig we all are (Especially now that most of us guys are clearing leave...) Buddy boy conveniently fell asleep... AGAIN! Grrr... That aside... We had a rather B-E-A-U-tiful start to this wonderful day... Having (**free**) prawn noodle for breakfast whilst waiting for buddy boy... Before our new-found chauffeur Jw drove us to Changi Point for our transit to Ubin...
**Free prawn noodle**: This was a complete mis-understanding... When our drinks arrived... Anil offered to pay for all of us 1st saying "Eh nvm... Eat 1st settle later..." Same thing happened with the prawn noodle (Or so I thought...) Jw offered to pay for himeself and me 1st and "settle later"... It was only at Changi Village when I realised I short-changed the nice Uncle by not paying! Too bad so sad... It was Jw's fault... =D
Okay perhaps the only turnoff of the day... Was when those attitude bum-boat operators made us wait an agonizing 45 min for our ride to Ubin... Reason being there wasn't exactly 12 people who could fill his boat to maximise the trip to Ubin... Such mercenaries... Such profit-driven lackeys... But who could blame them? Commuters to Pulau Ubin isn't anywhere like the flow of traffic along Jalan Eunos man...
The 2nd hiccup (3rd including Damien's late rise...) was (yet again...) due to Damien's incompetency... Bringing along a flat digi-cam with a fresh memory card... you ge pi yong ah?! It was such a crying shame many our our more beautiful memories could not be captured... No thanks to Damien Heng... t ( -_- t ) To add insult to injury... MICHAEL had to bring an analog camera w/o a freaking film in it~! Grrr... Crippled by 2 dysfunctional cameras... Our outing nearly crumbled...
BUT THE SHOW WENT ON... With Berd dominating the scenes... We rented our bikes after some awesome bargaining skills from buddy boy... (If you're hoping that that has helped make up for your blunder... YOU'RE SoOoOo wrong dude!) We promised not to deal too much damage to the bikes by ramming it or trying some stunts or crash it or something... And had the price reduced from $7 to $5... (Wat the?!) With that... We were well on our way...
Throughout the ride... I practised my free-hand riding whenever possible... And I'm proud to say that by the end of the day... I was a master in it~! I could ride past humps... Negotiate winding roads and best of all... By the end of the day I could even complete a skill-course I set for myself~! Riding round a basketball court free-hand... Of which I had to make 3 bends... 2 of which were almost 90deg and the last one less than 90... Really elated when I could complete it... Such a childish accomplishment I know... But I guess no one knows how much THAT meant to me... My regret being able to go only anti-clockwise... Turning left on all 3 turns... My right free-hand didn't meet the mark... But still from 1/10 to 8/10... I think I've made marked improvements...
There was a short pour towards the end of our ride... It made the road and us wet true... But it also paved the way for yet another stunt that most of us soon picked up... The E-brake... Travelling @ a rather high speed... If you would jam @ your rear brakes and turn your steering slightly to either side... You could end up skiding on the slippery road... And if you put you leg down and pivot ard that supporting leg when you do the above-described brake... You could do a 180-brake... Spectacular and exhilarant... Haha... Really loved the sound of screeching rubber against gravel...
Soon most of us were jumping @ our brakes for no rhyme or reason... Doing all sorts of stunts... Like Anil's "Wagging Tail" (Bicycle tail sways from left to right to left while braking...) and Damien's "T-Brake" (Braking perpendicular to the motion of your bike....) Had a lot of fun trying to destroy the bike we promised not to... bu hui wan jiao che lah bosh...
We ended our spectacular day with one hell of a meal @ Jurong Ave 1... Somewhere near but not so near JJC... For only $9 per person... We had Sweet Sour Pork (gou lou yoke)... Sambal Chilli Kang Kong (ma lai feng guang)... Tofu Hotplate (tie ban dou fu)... Special Thai Chicken (Ah blah blah blah)... And my fav... Tom Yam Kung! (Seafood) Heh! XD~~~
And in preparation to tomolo's day out with my old pal Kelvin... I went over to my uncle's place to get my very own fishing rod for tomolo's expedition... Heh... But then again that will be tomolo's post... Till then...
Proudest Moments:
- Learning to cycle without the use of my hands and yet able to negotiate winding roads... From almost nothing to mastery... I'm born to be a JEDI~!
- Getting the hang of E-brakes... That was certainly fun...
As I take with me these lovely memories... I hope I'll be able to post some of the pictures taken today for all to view... Wat a day... Wat a wonderful day...
