Kinabalu 2007

At 4000 plus metres above sea level.. What have i gotten myself into?

From Talkingcock.com

Stressed. Felt as if i was going mad. Clicked on Talkingcock to unwind. Guess what i found to read.

SEOW LEOW! Signs We’re Going Gila Posted on Monday, March 12, 2007 Topic: We, The Citizens

by Kway Png & K.K.Cheow According to the State’s Times, 1 in 4 Singaporean teens and young adults could develop psychological problems and mental diseases like schizophrenia, anxiety, depression, psychosis, personality disorder, paranoia, delusion and hallucinations. 25%! Seow leow! That’s a lot! TalkingCock.com presents a list of signs to help us Singaporeans recognize if we’re going gila: 1. You speak in different accents depending on who you’re talking to 2. You’re always looking over your shoulder whenever you complain about the Gahmen, in case ‘others’ eavesdrop and report you 3. You copy down the license plate numbers of cars involved in accidents because you believe others’ misfortune might bring you good luck 4. Not so long ago, you were even copying down numbers you thought you saw on the bodies of fish 5. You suspect there’s one man controlling your life from behind the scenes 6. You have the inexplicable urge to urinate in lifts 7. Your mind is full of contradictory notions – for example: a. you think people are inconsiderate when they don’t leave their table immediately after eating at the food court but think you have every right to take 25 bites to finish the last red bean in your ice kachang. b. you insist on enrolling your kids in Speech & Drama classes, and then pray they won’t go into the arts when they grow up c. you think that giving the poor a lot more money will discourage hard work, but paying politicians million dollar salaries will not 8. You think food tastes better when eaten by a longkang 9. The stuff you see depicted on local TV doesn’t seem to bear even the slightest resemblance to real life as you recognize it 10. You thought you saw your MP dancing hip-hop recently 11. You’re scared to walk around naked even in your own flat 12. You elected a guy even though he’s rumoured to have slapped someone 13. Why can’t you believe that the reporting in newspapers is unbiased? 14. You lash out with lawsuits even over the slightest criticism 15. You whack people over Hello Kitty 16. You’d rather drink your own pee than pay other people more for water 17. You see Men in White everywhere 18. You still haven’t emigrated Got any more signs? Let us know!

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In the heat of saturday night fever.

Quite a number of events occurred so getting to the gist of matters.

18 march (sunday) 5.50am outside hougang plaza.

struggling to stay awake while dragging my feet to the MRT station.. what am i doing there in the wee hours of the morning on a sunday? You may ask.. Well, i was on my way to Bt Timah for the weekly train up.. anyway coming back to the point.. i was walking past a group of teenagers seated on a bench and sobering up after their saturday night out i guess (and some of them, obviously still drunk).. so as i was walking past them, i heard one of them shouting out, "Eh Keling!"

Something just shot up my spine. i do not take well to racist remarks you see.. and i take it a bit more violently when the dumb ass is a bloody teenager..but i just continued walking, trying my best to avoid any form of conflict and screw up my beautiful morning. But NO... those rash punks could not let it rest. a few of them just came across my path and asked if i was deaf or what. To which i forced out a small smile and said excuse me. At this point of time another scantily clad and barely sober girl in a sweat drenched white tube top staggers into the group confronting me and asks them to knock it off.. i was quite impressed with her drunken sobriety and subtly said, please take your friends sound advice before anything gets out of control. concurrently some of them were back stepping already, except for this one dumb ass who was really fated to get it today. He asks me "Eh C*** B** Keling, you think you bruce lee ah.. you wan go 1 on 1 or not.. i mah bok also can take you down..etc." the soberly drunken girl comes back to drag him off to which i simply smiled at her and thanked her. Our hero cannot take it already.. he grabs my t-shirt and asks " you dare to smile at her!?" [ i dare to do more than that and i do not need to be bruce lee.. dimwit. i am a pissed indian thats enuff.. Keling is it... dun worry you definitely will hear "Kling" when i am done ]

Anger had already consumed me beyond control.. Pride has enraged me beyond rationality... and Ego has empowered me beyond restraint. so in return, i grabbed his windpipe and gently* pushed him a few steps back. Suddenly i found a bar stool in my hand and i realised instantly that that stool look much better on his face then in my hand. so i decided to put it in its befitting place. I took out my phone to call my buddies that i will be late to the hike but i guess they thought i was calling them down to hougang.

After that the entire bench came running to him.. and a few of the other guys simply apologized and ushered me away. i humbly requested that i wanted to call the police to resolve our differences but they chose to be magnanimous and simply give in to my views.

Entire ordeal lasted 20 mins, i got so mood out that i just wanted to turn back home and sleep it off. but considering the amount of effort Nisa puts into organising all this training sessions and considering that Faizul and the rest all took the trouble, i decided to go ahead anyway. But it was a good call had a wonderful time there. All of them were gung ho and on form. It took my mind of things.

BEST STUNT OF THE YR - TAMIL MOVIE - The best video clips are here

the imperfect perfectionist.

tried to rectify the problems with the columns and spacing in the previous black template.. all i did was to further mess it up.. the funny thing is that i got it perfect the first time round.. just that i was not happy with it.. wanted to further improve it.. one thing lead to another and voila.. a freaking bloody mess.. so i decided to take the easy way out and do another theme from scratch.

The Victim and the Villain and a whole load of V's

"Voilà! In view, a humble vaudevillian veteran, cast vicariously as both victim and villain by the vicissitudes of Fate. This visage, no mere veneer of vanity, is it vestige of the vox populi, now vacant, vanished, as the once vital voice of the verisimilitude now venerates what they once vilified. However, this valorous visitation of a by-gone vexation, stands vivified, and has vowed to vanquish these venal and virulent vermin vanguarding vice and vouchsafing the violently vicious and voracious violation of volition. The only verdict is vengeance; a vendetta, held as a votive, not in vain, for the value and veracity of such shall one day vindicate the vigilant and the virtuous. Verily, this vichyssoise of verbiage veers most verbose vis-à-vis an introduction, and so it is my very good honor to meet you and you may call me V...."
[Goosebumps break out]
The opening lines of V, introducing himself to Evey in the dark alleys of London. V for Vendetta, a movie that i have grown to love and watch over and over again as and when time permits me.

Today was a blessing in a way. Drizzling and cold outside, no ones at home, and i just returned after a tiring day at work.. The refreshingly cold shower was very much welcomed after getting spat on and smudged with mucus. Out of my stinking sports gear and into a nice comfortable "sarong" and a singlet with a nice warm cup of "teh tarik" in my grasp.. The entire house is to myself... Dimmed the lights in the hall, turned on the fan to a nice gentle breeze blowing at me. Puffed up the cushions on my couch, set my comforter in place and proceeded to the DVD player and inserted... what else ... "V for Vendetta" before finally chucking myself into the couch..and the show begins...
It's a movie that i do not get sickened of despite having watched a dozen times. A movie that constantly questions man's integrity and his right of freedom of speech and thought; A movie that experiments with the multitudinous perspectives of the single word "Ideas". A movie that forecasts the fate of the developed nations in time to come. A movie that awakens dormant principles within me. Anyway enough praises about the movie, i know it is getting fulsome.

As i watched the movie, time and again i get confronted with this question in my mind.
" if you can make the difference.. would you?"
it is a simple question that bears different messages to different people.. it is subjective.. I know.
But welcome to my perspective.
We often lose ourselves whilst searching for that forever eluding better life. In the midst of the search, we lose our moral values, conscience and integrity.. If we do not lose them, we alter them to flow with the already guilty population. We lose our identity and we become sheep that follows the herder blindly.

It is a simple question that we often face in our everyday lives, but it is a damned difficult one to find an answer to. So difficult that at times, we choose to turn our backs on it hoping that that which is out of sight will be out of mind. A habit we Singaporeans[assumingly a majority] have honed to perfection with so many social problems as excuses or alibis.. We have become so self-centered and every little deed that is done, is done so in the expectation of a profit/certificate/favour/recognition/etc.

When was the last time you gave up your umbrella to someone who needs it more than you?
When was the last time you stood up for a colleague at work without worrying about the potential damage it can do to your career?
When was the last time you gave your lunch to the old woman silently begging at the entrance of the MRT station?
When was the last time you did something for another without getting anything in return, when was the last time you placed others before yourself..

I am equally guilty of the banes that i just mentioned which is why i used "we" to a large extent.. but i must thank God of presenting an opportunity to salvage some bits and pieces of my already degenerating humanity. salvage.. salvage the old school loyalty, sacrifice, service, brotherhood and camaraderie.. we are Singaporeans la dei... wake up your ideas... already the country so small, why u wanna segment it further?

think abt it la..." if you can make the difference.. would you?"