An entry in the author's guestbook:

Hi, just want to say how much I love your books. I very nearly failed my dissertation because of the Black Magician Trilogy, (my housemate had to hide the High Lord from me, so that I'd actually do some work - we're only just back on speaking terms - chuckle). I'm about to tuck into the Last of the Wilds, and so far this trilogy is every bit as exciting as the BMT. You rock x p.s. my friends all think i'm a big geek for being so obsessed with your books, but honestly - how can you not throw yourself completely into these new worlds?!?! I defy anybody to read your books and still manage to keep themselves grounded. It's impossible. I've been living in Kyralia for some time now....

I think I would not be so miserable if I didn't like the characters who died in the story. Finishing the book did sort of eased the obsession but not in the way I expected. Boo! People died... I realise why they had to die in retrospect. Wish I had seen it earlier. I realise...the main character is king. Hai... Like Harry Potter. Sirius Black can die, Dumbledore can die, Cho Chang can die (I have no idea who actually dies), but Ron and Hermione won't die. Same with the Black Magician trilogy. So sad. Oh the author wrote her books in 1996 and the first Harry Potter book was published in 1997 so there is no link between the two. I think I would be more excited about the sequels if I weren't so upset with the deaths. =( But the first book won't be out till at least late next year. So many adoring fans' excited comments in her guestbook. I wonder if I'm the only one depressed by this last book..

I really love your books they are absolutly great. Yesterday I finished your Black Magician Triology and I will read it in the hollidays for a second time because that are so great books. But I musst say that I`ve cryed at the end of the story you certainly know why. I`ve still the hope that maybe that character will come back in one of your later books because I really really like him, he`s just so cool (I can`t think about Black Magician books without him). I can`t say names because of spoilers but I think you know wich character I mean. Best Wishes and a lot of respect from Germany (and sorry about my bad english)

Oh I'm not the only one. =) I guess I know I couldn't possibly be the only one lah. Oh she also wants dead characters to come back alive, like me. Ha.. But I think the deaths were painful but necessary. Otherwise the story can't go anywhere. Must subtract then can add.. Oh that day I watched 881 I saw a boy at Yoshinoya carrying the book. Heh. It looked new but wasn't in a bag so must have just bought it and reading it.

I know, indeed, that any type of spoiler is fobidden, so I shall try and be quite ambiguous with the message of emotional distraught. Firstly, however, I would like mention you are an amazing and involving writer (and my great attachemnet and upset to one of the ehem..endings.. to one book is proof of that). I just wanted to mention that I am so very deeply saddened and in shock to one of your books I just finished (I hope that you will guess which one...) that I felt you should just know (and perhaps consider not having similar tragic endings in any other of your books (again not mentioning which one..) as I fear I shall be unable to deal with another quite as distressing. I know there is an aftermath of books to this saga - but I'm not sure it shall ever be the same. Even so, I wouldn't have minded if anything happened to all of the other characters, non exclusive, but to that one .....ahhh that really struck a cord. Also I felt that what occured in the eplilogue to this was no replacement :-(. I may perhaps now pic up the following saga - but fear that nothing will compare or fill the emptiness left by this book. Overall, I feel I may have come very close to the boundaries (or ruless) set for this guesbook, but hope I haven't breached them :-) I wish you well ^_^ Sabina


I am sorry if my previous comment seemed at all accusing. I really am in love with your books - I just feel a little depressed now is all *sobs* - (this is after 'The High Lord') - but again this just shows how involving your writing is and how great your character builing is that I am so attached. I would indeed not want to depreive myself of your great work and therfore shall see if I can get hold of ' The age of Five Trilogy' while I am abroad on my year out (as I currently am). I would eventually like to perhaps carry on with more Kyralia books, but currently the wounds are still fresh and the pains too raw. (I didn't expect to take this so hard - but I suppose then again, it just displays your skills as a writer). If you could perhaps, in some way, reassure me that nothing too similar shall happen in which ever other saga I shall feel much better while reading it (and may also pick it up a little sooner - without any nagging accompanied worry :-S) Wish you all the best - you perpetuating writer, you. (You do indeed have a way with words ^_^)

Got sent home to work today, or rather, yesterday, again. (Too many commas?) Hence the last post. =P I decided to read a bit of the book before going for tuition. Basket. Make me more depressed 'cos somebody died. Boo! Make me cry.. So depressing! I was in a daze, going for tuition until I encountered faulty traffic lights. It was working a few seconds ago and then the red light started blinking and the other pair of lights started blinking orange. I hardly go to that area so I didn't realise it wasn't supposed to do that so had to run across. The kind-hearted me called LTA to report. The other people who saw it didn't loh. Sheesh. That erm, box full of I-presume-wires had a sign with the LTA number to call in event of faulty traffic lights and the number to quote for that particular set of traffic lights. I was wondering how to tell them where the place was. So convenient. So that's my good deed of the day. And then I boarded the bus and continued obsessing... =P

And then I was too pissed off with my student to remember the book. He's getting really horrible. I conclude that the school produces jerks and assholes because my brother was from that school too. Somemore my student is a prefect loh. Tell him to study for his own sake still must tolerate this kind of rubbish. I just told him I don't care if he gets into normal loh. That shut him up. I was quite surprised by the effectiveness of it. Good! Damn whiny and rude. Spoilt brat..

I decided to finish the book soon because I'm sure the ending would not be depressing. But the guy died...sequels won't have him... Unless he comes back alive. I realise I always half-expect the characters I like who dies to come alive again, somehow or other. Ha.. But only because they are important characters so it's hard to believe they are killed off. So sad.. Boohoo... Basket, make me cry. <- This line is stuck in my head since I read it off Mr Miyagi's blog (whose name is similar to mine!).

http://miyagi.sg/2007/08/881-and-42nd-national-day/

He wrote about the movie 881, which I just watched! I think it's quite good. But I don't understand the dialect so had to keep reading the subtitles. Might have missed some stuff. Wah biang I didn't know it was going to be half in dialect. I know the song would be but dialogue also loh. (Singlish creeping in.) May and Choy's Chinese was very cringe-worthy. I cannot stand it. Lucky it wasn't much. Is the point of the guy carrying the rooster simply for the director to make jokes and show the extent of his sacrifice? He didn't explain why he kept carrying it in the first place. At least make up a reason lah. Anyway I like Mindee in the show. She's so skinny. And her mouth makes her face look even skinnier. Her mouth is quite big but not ugly like, erm, you know who lah. Ha.. I wonder if she really shaved her head or was it just computer-generated. Looked as scary as it's supposed to be. Anyway, must support local film. =) And it's quite good too. Oh I think one of the younger ladies, who is a real getai singer, really sings very well! Ha.. I think she can go Taiwan cut album. If she hasn't already. =P

Catchword of the movie: Techno!

Your Power Element is Metal

Your power colors: white, gold, and silver Your energy: contracting Your season: fall You are persistent (and maybe even a little bit stubborn). If you see something you want, you go for it. You have a lot of strength, and it's difficult to get you down. Very logical, you tend to analyze everything going on in your life.

What's Your Power Element?

What Your Hands Say About You

You are logical, analytical, and rational. You have good verbal skills. Bold and daring, you're not afraid to change your life if you think it needs an overhaul. Consistent and reliable, you like to count on structure and routine in your life. Your emotions tend to be nervous and potent. Your energy - both positive and negative - deeply impacts your life.

What Do Your Hands Say About You?

You Are Spider-Man

Quick and agile, you have killer instincts (literally). And that kind of makes up for the whole creepy spider thing.

What Superhero Are You?

You Are 56% Control Freak

Generally, you are in control but not a control freak. You life is usually in order. However, sometimes you get too obsessed with making everything in your life picture perfect.

Are You A Control Freak?

You Are Not a Cheapskate

When it comes to money, you're very fair. You're generous when you can be, and you never cheat anyone out of what they deserve. If you have the money, you enjoy splurging. But you never overspend.

Are You a Cheapskate?

You Are Paper

Crafty and creative, you are able to adapt freely to almost any situation. People tend to underestimate you, unless they've truly seen what you are capable of. Deep down, you're always scheming and thinking up new plans. Your mind is constantly active. You are quite capable of anything you dream of. You can always figure out a way to get what you want. You can wrap a rock person up in your sheet of trickery. A scissor person can sneak up and cut you to pieces. When you fight: No one can anticipate your next move If someone makes you mad: You'll attack them mercilessly when they're unprepared

Are You Rock, Paper, or Scissors?

You Are 44% Intuitive

Your intuition is often right, and you use it more than you may realize. Your gut feelings are usually a good guide, but you need more to go on when making a decision. You'll often check to see if the facts back up your feelings. And when your intuition is wrong, you work to improve it for the future.

How Intuitive Are You?

Your Dominant Thinking Style: Exploring

You thrive on the unknown and unpredictable. Novelty is your middle name. You are a challenger. You tend to challenge common assumptions and beliefs. An expert inventor and problem solver, you approach everything from new angles. You show people how to question their models of the world.

What's Your Thinking Style?

What Your Face Says

At first glance, people see you as driven and ambitious. Overall, your true self is moody and dynamic. With friends, you seem thoughtful and interested in ideas. In love, you seem mysterious and interesting. In stressful situations, you seem selfish and moody.

What Do People Think Of Your Face?

What People Think of Your Mouth

People see you both as reserved and sweet. You tend to be very sensitive and detail oriented. The smallest things can please or annoy you. You tend to be internally moody. Perceptive and intuitive, you understand people quickly - though you usually won't tell them.

What Does Your Mouth Say About You?

You Are 12% Happy

You know that there's more to life than how you've been living it. Life can be rough at times, but most of your unhappiness is self-inflicted.

How Happy Are You?

Your Depression Level: 52%

You seem to have mild depression. A lot of people fall into your range, and it's quite possible you don't need treatment. If you've been feeling this way for a while, you may want to seek help.

Are You Depressed?

I remember why I hated aki....

My boss asked me to do a digital model of a gallery to show the flow of the place. Tried a new programme that's supposed to be easier and faster than the one I used to use. It is easier when things don't need to be accurate, as is my case now. But still damn confusing and frustrating when I couldn't find the stuff that the online help said to use. No help at all, man. Doesn't help that I'm still depressing over the book. =( *cry* But I think I finally figured out most of it. Yay! Now just to add the exhibits in, which would be like decorating the place, and figure out how to save the stuff in a readable format. Will do that after tuition later.

Just now an old classmate called me and said something about another friend. She sounded very ambiguous and business-like so I suspected she is selling policies or something so I asked if she's trying to sell something. Then she said (in a curt manner, no less) No, are you looking to buy something? (Duh, no..) And then she went on to say she recently met up with that friend and found a lot of loopholes in her financial planning, blahblahblah... Right, you're not trying to sell something... If selling something is not your ultimate goal where are you going to get your income? I hate it that they can't be more honest loh. So irritating. When I said I already have a financial advisor she asked if he or she is also an independent advisor "like me" and that it's good to have another advisor for another opinion. No, thank you.. I have enough stuff to deal with at the moment. And I'm still depressed. =(

On the other side of nagging

Apparently, today is International Nagging Day. Didn't know that existed. Ha.. Heard it over Power 98 from Harry. I hate it that I have to nag my students so much. Can't thay be more "automatic"? Why is it they have to be nagged to do something that benefits them and ultimately, only them? It's not like I'm nagging them to tidy their room, pick up your shoes, lock the frigging door... I keep getting sore throat this year. #*%@....

Hai...I should be working...But I'm so reluctant to do so... Sent home to do some work because cannot anyhow install programme in office's computer. I keep thinking about the book. =P Read till 3am this morning. And read more on the way to work and back from office. I wonder if I should have savoured it more slowly. Then again, my normal reading speed is quite slow already. But I think I definitely read this book faster than other books because it's so exciting. Ha.. I wonder if I looked silly smiling to myself on the train and bus. =P But it's funny! But I hate the parts where many people died. =( Parts. Plural. Think more people going to die. I've stopped reading because I don't want it to end... =( I'm already depressed now because I'm finishing already. Less than a hundred pages left. Boohoo..so sad... So many questions in my head because these people...so dishonest. Ha.. A lot of plotting so it's not clear who the bad guys and good guys are. I'm so sad it's going to end. *cries* Hai... I don't want to know because I don't want it to end......... So frustrating.

I think I shall need to work after tuition tonight because I'm too distracted. Shall ramble on here for a while. Yesterday while reading, something raised a big question mark and I flipped around the back, a bit tempted to know what exactly is the truth but I stopped myself lah. Did I mention I don't want the story to end? Ha.. Anyway, here's a very funny anecdote from the book. (Sonea is a girl and a novice is a young magician in training.)

'So how are we going to lure an Ichani away from the main group?' Zill asked.
'I hear Limek has a good tailor,' Cery said, giving the bushy-haired Thief a meaningful look.
'Fancy yourself in robes?' the man said in a deep voice.
'Oh, they'd never believe a magician could be so short,' Faran scoffed.
'Hai!' Cery protested. He pointed at Sonea. 'There are short magicians.'
Faran nodded. 'I suppose you might be convincing in novices' robes.'

Not sure if it's funny out of context but I was trying not to laugh on the train. =P Cery is supposed to be a powerful and resourceful "Thief". It's a totally made-up world and even animals have different names. The characters' names are a little strange too. Because there's magic in the story, I suppose many people would compare it to Harry Potter. But Harry Potter is after all a children's book series. I haven't read Harry Potter so I can't really judge, but from the movies, I think I much prefer The Black Magician trilogy. It's more for adults. More interesting and more twists I guess. More issues raised. Definitely Harry Potter doesn't discuss homosexuality. Ha.. Though I don't really know why the issue is in the book. Don't really see any link. Oh well. That's not a "highlight" of the book. Anyway I don't like to read stuff that the whole world is reading either. I much prefer to discover good books on my own. More exciting. Does that explain why I don't read newspapers? Haha... Really must start reading though. I think I abandoned my Lord of the Rings because of all the hype also.

I just checked out the author's website. She wrote a sequel trilogy and prequel! =) I was reading parts of it and then I saw the warning at the top to not read without finishing the Black Magician trilogy. I quickly closed the window. Ha.. But the national library doesn't have those books yet. Oh she hasn't even finished writing them yet. Ha.. Will have to wait a few more years for all of them... Saw the different book covers for the Black Magician trilogy. Some have illustrations of the characters. I don't like. Doesn't leave much to the imagination. Lucky those here don't have. I think I might buy the book. Heh. But only this third one and not the first two.

I realise people don't like to read long entries? Better do some work. Ciao...



From her site's FAQ: "...Which meant a gay romance. Some people expect that, if you're going to include a relationship like that in a story there's got to be some kind of point driven home. Why can't characters just happen to be gay? If I had a point to make, it was only that I shouldn't have to have a point to make!" Well, sorry I asked. =P

So exciting....

As I read the book, I kept thinking So exciting. Ha.. I would have finished the book had I not been distracted by my new toy and latest member of my Black club. My mp3 player is black, handphone is black, wallet is black, umbrella is black...anything else? I have a black watch. Ha.. My next camera and laptop have to be black too then. Oh everything black, so fun. Ha.. Wish I can take time off work to finish the book. =P I still have some work to do now. Shall put off part of it for another day so I can read. =) So exciting...

Oh I forgot to mention what my new toy is. Ha.. It's my PSP. They ran out of white so I bought black. It's supposed to be a National Day promotion. So how come they didn't sell red and white PSPs? Hmm... The game I wanted was fun, and it had other options of gameplay that I hadn't played before so I'm happy with that. But the other games were not very fun. 3 of them were basically the same thing with different characters and settings. Cheat people one. Bleah. Oh well. At least the game I wanted was fun.

Oh well. Hope I don't read till too late and wake up late for work tomorrow. =P

Yes...

Oops a bit too busy to change my blog to red and white.. But I wore red and white today. Heh. I think this year's ndp is the best so far. I liked the eh.."defence" segment. Don't know what it's called.. But it looks exciting. Every year I fall asleep while watching ndp. =P But usually is during the front part and then I will wake up. The show this year reminded me of Sentosa musical fountain. In primary school our band performed at the Sentosa musical fountain for 2 nights I think. Or just one night? Don't really remember. But I remember I wanted to shoot a rubber band up to see if it would disrupt the laser show, even for a couple seconds. Ha.. We were right below the laser beams. Don't know why there was a rubber band there in the first place. Anyway Sentosa was very nice. They let us tour Sentosa for a whole day for free. We spent the day at Asian Village, when it still had all those rides. Super fun! Especially fun with such a huge group. We took all the rides. Pirate ship, ferris wheel, and my absolute favourite - Bumper Cars!! XD I wanna play now....

I digressed. =P I like this year's ndp songs the most. Especially "Will You". The opera singer very prominent. Ha.. And I like the lyrics. If your family doesn't support you and your friends don't care for your dreams and you are too comfortable with status quo, even if you have no reason to pursue your dreams, do it for your country. If Singaporeans don't do great things, less people will know of our existence. Every mention of "Singapore" in foreign productions makes me smile. =) Batman Begins had 2! Or was it 3? The "Singapore pirate" was damn disappointing loh. He didn't even fight. Much. Not much appearance either. The whole movie wasn't that great anyway. When my Mr. Davenport's character died in the movie I wanted to just leave!

Watching the Ch 8 show now.. Rui-en's hairstyle is similar to what I had at during CNY. She copy me. Ha.. But she has more hair so has more shape than mine. When the series just started, Maggie was promoting this show on Power 98. I thought it was strange because it's a Mediacorp show. I thought she just really enjoyed the show so much, and that crazy about Tay Peng Hui. One time they were introducing the cast and Hossan was reading out the names and Maggie just went Tay Peng Hui, Tay Peng Hui, Tay Peng Hui... Did I mention Tay Peng Hui? Ha.. Later on Sebastian also talked about the series in his show then I realise it's because Power 98 is SAFRA radio. No wonder. I realised today is 987 (9 Aug 07). Which means 7 years ago was 980. Ha.. Don't feel like writing liao. Ciao...



My wish for Singapore is that more of the world will know us, for respectable reasons.

Celebrations

Lifehouse celebrates National Day with us! Ha.. You'll have to watch the vid to know why...

We're crashing
Into the unknown
We're lost in this
But it feels like home

Today I was in office alone all day. So happy. Ha.. I was watching videos on my mp3 player and singing. I even looked for the lyrics online and sang myself hoarse. Ha.. =P Lucky got mints in the office. And lucky that when my colleague came in in late afternoon I was too tired to sing already. Haha.. If I'm always in the office alone I won't be getting much work done... Plus I'm collecting interesting newspaper articles that I come across at work. =P Another day then scan them in and upload here. I don't know how to use the scanner in the office and the scanner at home must dig out from storeroom so...wait till national day holiday ba.

I was reading this article about a girl winning a writing contest and she had written against showing R(A) movies in Singapore. I didn't know it was only brought in in 1992. It was originally set at 18 years old and then changed to 21 after protests, I think. Anyway, she thought such things couldn't possibly be artistic and was (as I perceived) violently against it. Towards the end of the article she was quoted saying she wants to be a linguist or translator..something about liking to read.."i read the bible"... And I snorted at that and thought no wonder... Oops. Haha.. So sorry. I think I have something against Christians/Catholics/Anglicans/whatnot. =P It's just very annoying that they keep pushing, shoving, stuffing their religion down other people's throats loh. It's rude and disrespectful, especially when they do it to people who already have their own beliefs. Okay, you can let other people know more about your religion, show people what else is out there, but you don't have to be so pushy. And some of them damn narrow-minded loh. I think when I went for my aptitude test at NUS this lady, Christian or something, trying to ask us to join their club, was talking about the government allowing homosexuals to join the cabinet or something (I know no politics) and she was so against it. She said homosexuals are promiscuous and they always change partners and are not reliable. Wth. I can't believe an adult in NUS (she was quite old) actually said something so dumb. You mean there are no promiscuous heterosexuals? *makes a disgusted face* Anyway this inclination is in their genes loh. It is as natural to them as being straight is to us. (The second book of The Black Magician trilogy has a quote on this. Forgot to copy it down...borrow again next time.. I got the third book already!) My (older) colleagues also like to criticise young people and talk about the stupid things they do. I can't believe people are so stupid they don't realise there are exceptions to everything. One day I couldn't stand it and just blew up. I said, there are stupid young people and there are stupid old people too loh. You have something against young people? Just because someone is young doesn't mean they don't have experiences. Excuse me, wisdom does not come naturally with age. There are plenty of stupid old people around. I really did say most of what I typed here k. I was that irritated.

I wonder if we'll have that much of a generation gap with the next generation. I think the generation gap between us and the older folks now is partly because our generation is more widely educated. Was that phrasing right? As in more of us are educated, compared to their generation. I don't know.. But then having experienced the torture of being misunderstood by the older generation, would we be more tolerant of the younger generation? Then again ah, didn't they have generation gap with the older ones too? So why don't they understand. Stoopid. I think maybe because they're historians so especially lao kok kok (LKK). They're not even that old loh. Only 30+ and 40+. I don't like LKKs. Power to the young!



Anyway, I realised I tempted wb into considering buying PSP too. Ha.. I wanted the white one but apparently the keys get yellowish. =S So maybe will get black. How come they don't have yellow? Oh they have limited ed gold I think. Min can buy. Ha.. Hopefully can finish reading the book on thu then can play PSP over the whole weekend. Heh. And then monday go office charge batt. Haha..

I have this feeling that my penpals abandoned me.. =( Taking very long to reply loh. But when I decide that they're gone, the letter will appear. Hmm.. Penpals so far away a bit not convenient.. Digging up my old letters made me feel more like having a local penpal. I wonder why I didn't continue with my angel in JC. That one was from junior class and was quite fun. I had her no. but lost it with my beloved nokia 8310.. =( Didn't really keep in contact with her much even just after JC tho. The sad face was for my phone. Ha.. The st nicks "penpals" weren't that fun actually. The "fun" ones were those who thought I was their penpal. Ha.. I like confusing people. =)

Okay that's enough crapping for today. Ciao babes! (Maggie says this so much on Morning Jam it's in my head liao..)

If you want to be interesting, you have to be interested...

Nonstalgia

Yesterday I found a letter from NEA at my doorstep saying their officers had been to my place several times to check for mosquito breeding 'cos there's a dengue case in my neighbourhood but "had been unable to do so as it was found locked". Duh. Even if we were home the place will be locked too.... Phrasing damn salah. Anyway, because they want to come and check I have to clean up my room. Major operation because it's in such a huge mess. So while cleaning up I came across many many old things. And it "inspired" me to dig out my "band box", in which I put st nicks band related stuff. POP presents etc. Not as many things in there as I thought, sadly. But I saw my SP letters and my nick/pen name on the letters - Devilot. I couldn't remember where that name came from but it stirred up happy feelings and I definitely remember that I liked it a lot. In one of the earlier letters my SP asked what is Devilot and I was thinking yah, what is Devilot? Ha.. But after a while I remembered! It's from Super Puzzle Fighter! It has characters from Street Fighter. Very fun. And very cute. Devilot is a secret character and very powerful. Looks like an evil little girl. =) You can tell why I like. Ha.. Don't know where my brother got the game from but I loved playing the game. At least he was good for that. I always played the games he dunno-got-from-where. Anyway, I really want to play the game but couldn't find the game online and found PSP has it so I'm going to buy PSP. Yay. Actually PS, Xbox, Gameboy etc all have it. (Dunno why PC games dun haf.) But PSP more convenient and the PSP game comes with other CAPCOM puzzle games too so I prefer that. Maybe next time too much money will buy PS for that. Heh. Big screen look nicer mah.





In celebration of National Day I'm wearing red and white earrings. Ha.. I'm so happy mediacorp showing Homerun for National Day. Because it was banned in our neighbour country for the water well insinuation. Last week I was typing newspaper articles for an environmental project and the whole file were articles of that stupid neighbour complaining about our land reclamation project and water agreement. Wth. I loved the analogy a person wrote. Team A challenged Team B to a soccer game and Team B won 3-1. Team A raved about how wonderful their goal was, ignoring the fact that Team B scored 3 goals and had in fact won the game. They complained about our land reclamation project and brought the case up to international court. We won and they still make noise. Damn noisy. The letter ended with "MXX boleh!" Ha.. At the end of the project when we were supposed to label the files, that thick fat file didn't quite fall in any of the categories given so I suggested "MXX making noise". Ha... Damn appropriate loh. So much junk and I had to type for about 4 hours all those ridiculous accusations on us. Made me so angry. It reminded me of this stupid old hag of a colleague I had in my first job after A levels.

During lunch one day the old hag saw me and my friend charging our phones. She told us not to cos later overload and will short circuit the entire office. Excuse me, I was working in IRAS. The place is huge and it was lunchtime, ie. not many people in the office, much less using computers. Charging my little puny phone will cause a blackout? Anyway I told her my phone battery was dead so I had to charge a little while so she said ok but not too long. After that she still come and remind me to unplug. In the first place, she wasn't really my colleague. I don't know what she does but she wasn't working with my group of people. The next day early in the morning she was yakking away behind me (where she sits, back facing back) as usual and I did a gesture to my friend about her yakking and I think she saw. That old hag ah, she went and did a despicable act. I was listening to radio on my hp and then suddenly a colleague received a call and told me to stop listening to radio because the supervisor/boss said it's not allowed. Everybody there were shocked loh. Some of the perm staff were whispering that they sometimes listened to radio too and that wah, so far can see ah? I looked over my back and the hag wasn't there. I know must be that old hag go and make noise loh. My friend (actually not really friend) who used to work there till he went for NS, and is the boss's nephew, used to listen to his cd player with big headphones loh. I know the boss only did that because the hag made noise. And that stupid woman thought she had won. Duh. I don't think anybody likes her. She's fat and she's crude. She wears skirts and she sits and walks with her legs wide open loh. So disgusting. She's a missus so I pity her husband and children. Her husband must be hen-pecked. She's always walking around yakking away loh. And flirting with men. Disgusting. The department I was in, I think was the lowest. She is so going to be stuck there. Picking only a temp little girl? That is just poor taste. Shows she's not doing her job loh. She reminds me of our dear neighbour. So I must be Singapore! Singapore will always have the last laugh. Although we are too polite to actually laugh.

Happy 42nd Birthday Singapore!

I'm upset now

I'm sulking. For different reasons now. =( Sam died in the Ch U 10pm show...so sad... He doesn't look very nice in suit though. =P And the book I'm dying to read is/are (?) all loaned out in the national library. =( Boo! All 8 books on loan or reserved! It's the third book of the trilogy and I just finished reading the second book last night. It got me so intrigued I'm so upset that I can't get the book now! So frustrating. Been sulking since I checked online during lunch today. Boo! Don't wanna buy the book 'cos I'm a poor little girl...(who's going to be surviving on less than 2k pay for dunno-how-long).. Don't think I'll read my books again so don't see the point in buying. That's what library is for right? The library happens to earn a lot of money from me because I always forget the due dates. =P I want the book!!! I noticed the other 2 books were almost all loaned out too. And the other titles by the author were half gone. How come people are reading the same thing as me? It's not like I'm reading Harry Potter! Speaking of which, that Dolores woman in The Order of the Pheonix totally reminded me of Mrs Yellow. Such a horrible witch. And disgusting giggle! The only reason why Mrs Yellow didn't do the same things is that she is in the real world. Does anybody realise how scared the teachers are of her? Even my sec 4 form teacher who's so fierce (Throw you down from fourth floor!) is scared to death of her. One time our class was at the family lounge practising graduation dance during our civics period and Mrs Yellow passed by and looking very fierce, asked our form teacher what we were doing there. Our form teacher looked like she was going to cry loh. Anyway I think our form teacher was really just a little girl acting tough in front of us. Which is stupid, in my opinion. Oh the day after I watched the Potter movie I saw an article whose headline read: 'Beauty Queen Dolores' helps school win debate. Ha.. I just laughed loh. Neither of them likely to win a beauty contest but act like they did.


I just placed a reservation in nlb. I'm number 2! The earliest due date is 10 Aug. Such a long wait. Maybe should rent it somewhere...



Have other things to blog but I'm tired..after reading the book late into the last few nights and working every day last week. Ok, half days on Sat and Sun 'cos I had tuition so couldn't work the whole day. Actually 3 tuits were cancelled so not that bad lah. And one of the P6 sacked me and I'm very happy. Yay. Cos that one I know cannot make it. Really very weak. And the most irritating thing is that they always cancel or change the tuition just one hour before the lesson. As if I'm very free. I happen to have tuition just before theirs so I won't see the message or missed call till half an hour before their lesson. And the mum just sms me an hour before the last lesson to cancel it for good. So rude. Is it that hard to foresee at least a few hours before that you can't make it for a lesson? It happens every week loh. So irritating. Good riddance.

I want the book!

The end is near...

Today I started on the 1989 newspaper clippings and I can finally see the end of work there.. Next week I can finish the 80s and start on the 90s and maybe finish it next month and take a few weeks to finish off 2000s while finishing off the other 3 lists of microfilms.. Then I can leave in Sept and hopefully have a new job then. Just have to slog a few weeks till PSLE is over then I'll just have 2 tuition left. Hoorah. Maybe can still work on this project on weekends after PSLE too. See how sleep-deprived I'll be first..

I'll be sulking this week. If you know why then you know why. If you don't, don't annoy me more by asking.

I threatened to leave immediately if my stupid student tries to scare me again. That moron must always announce his arrival with a loud shout to scare me from behind. Damn bloody irritating. I think it's been for months already loh. Bloody hell. I told him very solemnly that the next time I will just leave. He looked rather stunned and a little worried. Never seen him look like he knows he's in trouble before. Hm.. Anyway if he does it again I can go home early so that'll be a good thing. And he'll be in big trouble. So very good. Yay. And this time he will remember not to do it again. Since I just got my pay I don't mind losing one lesson. Ha..

I just checked my mail and I saw this email that a certain person added me to her Facebook and I couldn't remember who that person is. Thinking it might be a long lost friend who acquired an English name, I registered on Facebook just to see who it is. I don't even remember having a friend by that surname loh. Turns out it's this girl from aki whom I've never even spoken to. How did she get my email in the first place?? How do I "unbefriend" her? This is the reason why I cancelled my Friendster account loh. People adding me just to expand their list of "friends". Not that I was "popular", but had enough requests from people I don't even talk to. It's dumb loh. Like some popularity contest.

Anyway I wanted to blog about something, to vomit out all my frustrations about somebody, to that somebody, but decided against it. Maybe next time when I'm in the mood again.

After reading wb's old gangbook I feel like writing too! The above somebody isn't from the gang, by the way. I was trying to sleep just now but isn't sleepy at all leh. I read the book before trying to sleep and I felt like I was going to go back st nicks tomorrow. Ha.. Not for lessons, but to hang around in the family lounge with you guys. St Nicks minus science lessons, Mrs Yellow and illnesses would have been the most fun I've had, I think. Probably need to minus more things too, but I don't really remember now. Unhappy things are better left forgotten.

Going to change the skin soon. Don't like this puny one... Sister, you supposed to tell me how to change the background loh..

THANK YOU FOR SIGNING THE PLEDGE! PASS IT ON!


You join millions of others taking action to combat the climate crisis. Look for your name on July 7th on the screens at the concerts, online at www.liveearth.msn.com and on the global TV broadcasts! After 7/7/07 we'll display your name and commitments at www.LiveEarth.org. Forward this email to your friends and increase your impact!

I signed the Live Earth pledge and just saw the email they sent. Cool! So many people going to see my name. Ha.. Only I don't remember what name I used. Ha..

Answer the call

One of my favourite blogs to kaypoh: http://claycenterblooms.blogspot.com/
She takes really nice pictures. Her family looks fun... I wish I were related to her. =P Her nephew recently got married and the whole extended family had a "photo day". So fun!

Hai...

Wear green on 7th and 8th July! Apparently ch5 is showing the Live Earth concert 24 hours! I wish I can watch all 24 hours but...cheryl's comm is on 8th afternoon... =(
Oh I think can watch it online after the event. Yay.. Mediacorp is changing all their logos green on 7th Jul. Cool. But the ch U one looks really ugly. =P Go green also can choose nicer shades of green right?

Aiyah wb brought up Mr Davenport and distracted me from what I was doing.. Wanted to put a link to the very first episode of Coupling, which opens with Mr Davenport and his very weird friend. Ha.. But then the whole series episodes were taken down.. So sad.. Anyway I found this one. Must watch till the end. It is very, very funny.



http://youtube.com/watch?v=4GAooziWJus This the youtube link so you can watch others. =)

Jinxed

Damn my phone spoiled 6 months before I can renew my plan again! Last year my sony ericsson spoiled too and this time it's much worse. Sian..have to buy new phone cos panasonic parts are difficult to find so will be hard and mayb expensive to fix. Not worth buying 2nd hand phone. While looking up phones I shun bian looked at my current phone and apparently my pink phone is limited edition. So how come it was the only colour left??

Money money money....

Went to check out my hood colour for my academic gown (finally), even though I'm still not going. Think it's too late to change my mind anyway. Feel like buying the gown et al just for the heck of it because I like the colours. Poppy red and white. National colours! =) Must see if I'm feeling rich at that time. Online ordering has ceased so can only order it at the hall 22-29 June and I'll have time to think about it. I checked my commencement date too. It sucks! 10am on a Wednesday and it's only for bachelor degrees for my dept. And it's the last day! 11 July. The master degrees for my dept and dentistry are on the previous day, a Tuesday, at 8pm. Why does NUS always bully my dept? Hmph. I'm glad I'm not attending 'cos there wouldn't be anybody I know, I think, and don't think a lot of people (if any at all) would want to go there on a Wed morn for me. Oh well. Can still buy the gown and take photos in future with other people..



ooo..i graduated! hey it's red too!

If only school was like this cool

Huimin, did you watch this? It reminded me of Harry Potter because it made me wish I was in Hogwarts. The moving stairs and the Dinner and the magic looked so freaking fun. And Freddy the drummer in School of Rock reminded me of Draco Malfoy in Harry Potter. Oh Zack the lead guitarist reminded me of Allan, but a quieter Allan. Ha.. Anyway the kids were really playing the instruments in the film. They're really good. "Zack" (Joey Gaydos Jr.) released his own album in Dec 2004 and he was 13 in 2004. Amazing.

http://www.cinecon.com/interviews/schoolofrockkids.shtml
The kids are so cute. Sigh I feel old...

Damn it. I emailed the teacher some stuff for comments and he replied to thank me for my "contribution" and will discuss it in class. Argh! I wanted to say it's not an offering but I thought it was understooded cos I asked about some other stuff as well. Damn it. And he didn't even answer my other question. .... Maybe should have emailed him after the course but then he won't be obliged to reply already..



Damn and I ate too much.. Oh which reminds me of the sick joke my boss told us, which his wife told her niece. What does a pig say when it meets a cat?



"Burp"

(And the niece went "eww...")

Fuck

I was looking for sad images on the net because 3 friends flew off for their grad trips today and I found these and it made me happy liao. Ha..




Damn funny and quite me, I think. Esp this one:



If these magnets don't cost S$8.81 each I might actually buy them. I do not think I have too much money..

Eh Live on Abbey Road is kinda boring today. Sian.. I liked the Damien Rice ep. Downloaded them from youtube and uploaded on my player. Yippee. Oh Love this clip:



After watching this I don't remember why I didn't think X3 was great. Ha.. But after seeing another clip I kinda remember why. Angel's part was rather disappointing. I like Jean Grey because of Famke Janssen in the movies. Halle Berry can go to hell. Don't think it would make any difference if they changed Storm loh. Dumb.



*whispers* I wanna learn elec. guit... =P Think min is going to kill me. Ha.. I keep saying I want but then no money etc.. Hai.. And no place to practise also. But I really want.. I played the music videos on my player very loudly on the bus (and in office too. Shh..) and it was damn high. Ha.. Can't find Shinedown's album in Sembawang and CD-Rama and I'm getting annoyed! I like the song by them in that clip, I Dare You.


I want to be someplace else.

草蜢

Just saw 草蜢 on the Ch 8 charity show. So cute. Ha.. Think they can still sing as well and can still jump around. Ha.. I meant the dancing cute, not the looks. =P The less good looking brother looks...lesser.. ha.. This clip is their 失戀陣線聯盟 which I remember my primary school band conductor made us play! I think I still have the score. Ha.. So fun... Sigh.


Oh to answer Cheryl's question, been busy working..giving tuition, learning calligraphy and with my copy course. Almost everyday is packed so I've decided to look for permanent job after the course and calligraphy classes are finished. Since I have a part time job now anyway. And it allows me to slack whenever I want. Ha.. But must earn money so must work more. Right now sorting stuff in the office because boss wants the bigger boss to give us petty cash for printing research so we won't have to use our own money first. Unfortunately that means I have to work normal office hours rather than going any time I like to the library for research. Boss bought lots of biscuits and stuff so I'm going to get fat.. Kept falling asleep last week. BUT I just bought my Samsung YP-T9 so I can listen to songs. Yay! I can listen to Hossan and Maggie in the morn liao. Yippee..

Oh while doing research for my homework I found this:



heh. still like its ending. =)

oh something(s) happened on Wed that made me very happy. If I had blogged that night I would have had "happy" all over the post. Ha.. But now not so happy liao. Sian. Oh well..

Spidey...

http://www.ultimatearcade.com/adventure/games/spiderman.html

This Spidey game is damn cute. It's quite dumb but it's super cute. Love the sound effect when Spidey drops. You have to press the spacebar to pass Spidey around. More like throw Spidey around.. Try pressing the spacebar randomly. Ha.. Cheap thrill~ Can check out "Fancy Pants" at that website too. It's quite cute. Though it's difficult to keep track where I'm going 'cause Fancy Pants runs kinda fast. Love the graphics and animation. Cute.

Shall blog again soon..tuition in less than 10 hours' time...

(Gay) May Day

Haven't watched cartoons for a long time.. Hoorah for holidays. Ha..

Yesterday I went for tuition half an hour earlier. How hardworking for me. Ha.. Didn't have anything to do at the office and didn't know will get there so fast. Was at the office because haven't gotten pay and previous claims for printing costs so we're broke. They better not screw up my pay this time again... Can't talk about my work because I signed an oath of secrecy. Don't know what's the big deal.. Plus, I don't know anything about the project in the first place. =P

Yesterday at tuition my student kept saying his friend (guy) very cute and showed me his class photo. Ha.. It's damn weird for a guy to say another guy cute loh. But "cute" not in the good-looking sense lah. He's his good friend. Then I kept disturbing him about his "cute" friend and he insisted that he's not gay. And accidentally blurted out that he likes somebody already. Then he went "oops". Ha.. After that he still clarified that "it's not a guy".

Talking about gay reminds me of the cute cute brother of my last p1 student. He had this guy good friend whom he always called. One day he was bored and disturbing the lesson so I told him to call his boyfriend. And then he started acting gay. So cute. Heh. Was a little surprised that an 8-year-old boy knew what gay meant. Then again, I think I knew "gay" in P3 already. But that was because I had a teacher by the name of Mrs. Gey and classmates were talking about it. That teacher damn defensive. One girl spelt her name as "Gay" and she got pissed off and clarified that it was "G-E-Y" and wrote on the blackboard. Duh.. There are people whose surnames are indeed "Gay" loh. Dunno so uptight for what.

Better be off to finish my homework...

Third language

I was kaypoh-ing the French "ex-penpal"'s blog (=P) and he's learnt to swear in hokkien..so horrible...tsk.. Aren't there better things to learn here? There was this stupid man on the bus cussing and using profanity talking loudly on the phone. And he wasn't even pissed off. Damn irritating. Really wanted to tell him to shut up. And my student loves to swear and curse too. Next time he goes on rambling profanity I'm going to whack his head. Which would probably be tomorrow because tuition is tomorrow. And I have whcked him before. Boys are annoying to teach, but the good thing is you can be harsh and whack them when they deserve it. If you want to be uncouth, why get an education?

Survivor...

Ahh..!! They voted off Edgardo! Edgardo is so cute. Ha.. Love his accent. His accent is very cute. He was born in Puerto Rico so I guess the accent is Spanish? He is very cute... They almost wanted to vote Mookie off. Was a little sad about that 'cos he reminds me of my student. Ha.. They are both rather annoying...and both black black, small eyes.. But that idiot Stacey suggested Edgardo. Strategy-wise it was clever but...why...? Damn. Last season I liked that who- can't remember his name already. Ha.. The guy who came in second. I knew the korean guy won before Ch 5 finished the series because this stupid pop-up on my computer told me. *curse and swear* Oh the korean was Yul. Just remembered his name. Still can't remember the other. But Yul was very decent and not annoying at all so I didn't mind and I just wanted the other guy to go as far as possible so I can still see him. But after the show, during the reunion show, that guy put on weight and didn't look good already. Which I guess explains why I don't remember his name. Ha.. Was quite annoyed at that time that Survivor: Fiji came out so soon after the previous season ended. Damn, what was his name? (*Ah, it's Ozzy. Went to check it up. Ha..) Anyway, Edgardo didn't do much at the beginning of the season so I didn't see much of him. And his pic on the Survivor website doesn't look good. He looks much cuter animated. Ha.. His leaving speech was so cute. I don't like Cassandra either. =P And I especially do not like Dreamz. He's damn annoying. He is so stupid and still thinks he is so clever. Duh. Erm, I'm not racist ('cos they are both black). I like Earl. Earl and Edgardo are both in Ad and Stacey is too. Yau Man is surprisingly great at challenges, even in the physical ones. This scrawny old Chinese man breaks many many spectacles....

100th post!

..and feeling quite suay today...

Today I tripped and fell on the lib stairs while hurrying up. Was feeling very suay so I knelt there and said Ouch. It was painful k. Have a bruise on my knee now. This nice girl walking beside me (a little in front) was a little shocked by it and asked if I was okay. I said yah and forgot to thank her. Reminded me of that time I tripped and fell on the stairs of the overhead bridge while trying to rush home to catch Lost. Because it was gravel surface I hurt my toes badly. It was quite dark so I didn't realise there was so much blood. Was wondering why it hurt so bad. I stood there quite long and looked back to see if I was blocking anybody's way. There was this lady a distance behind pressing her mobile phone. On the steps of an overhead bridge. Who stops midway on the overhead bridge to use the phone? I stood there a bit longer (in pain) before walking off. Midway on the bridge the lady was maintaining the same distance away from me. Duh. You don't want to walk past me because you don't want to have to help me or something, right? No need to be so hypocritical loh. I wouldn't grab you and beg you to send me home when you walk past me. If she had just walked past me I wouldn't think anything of it.

Happy anticipation

Yippee it's raining! And my Chinese Calligraphy class is definitely starting this thursday. Yay! Happy happy... This is the happiest I've been these few days. I hate unreliable people. Especially when these people are supposed to be good friends.

Was sneezing from last evening till this afternoon. My nose is sore from all that running and friction. Ouch. And my student was imitating me sneezing yesterday. Idiot. I told him I was allegic to him. Ha..

Been drowsy all day today because of this cold...

Yay, one more day to Calligraphy! I want to learn Chinese ink painting too but unfortunately it's on a thursday too. Hopefully next time can. Want to get a Chinese seal too 'cos the one I have now, I don't understand the writing.. Next time get a super cool one. For now, that one is great too. I've a feeling there's only going to be 5 people in the class. Ha.. The person said last week that they waiting for the class to have 10 people and they only had 4. I doubt there'll be 6 more in just one week. For your info, the class is for adults. They have classes for children so I won't be learning with a bunch of kids.

One more day!

Got this off Hossan's blog. Avril is so girly now (compared to before). I especially like the last part of the video..

Avril Lavigne’s new preppy and poppy single will be incomprehensible to some, but not because of her new hard-core Beverly Hills HS cheerleader slut look (that’s a mouthful).

The single “Girlfriend” has been released in 8 different languages, including a wild-ass Mandarin version. Word on the street and industry is that Lavigne worked her Canuk ass off with a language coach to make sure that every word and intonation was correct.

Girlfriend debuted at number one on Japan’s international and domestic charts, which we hear is something unheard of for an English-speaking artist. We also hear that she’s promoting her music through a Japanese-style manga comic, “Make 5 Wishes,” which will distributed via cellphone.

Hossan has the Jap version from youtube on his site too..
(Do I write like I know these people?)

Speaking of jap, I finally took my jap test and passed. Yippee. Considering I neglected it for 4 weeks and studied about 9 hours for it only, my embarrassingly lousy score was quite okay lah. Must console myself.. Lucky the cert doesn't reflect my score. Heh.

The day after the test (which was last week) I went to watch Letters from Iwo Jima and I think I only understood mizu, ichi, conjugations of write and listen. How impressive. Ha..

After watching the movie I still think the Japs are idiotic. Of course there are exceptions to everything and there are good Jap people too, just like not all the Americans in the movie were saintly. Don't think the movie aimed to purely gain sympathy for the Jap, more like pushing the blame to the people at the top. Obviously even if the people at the top were the ones who initiated the stupid and very selfish war, the soldiers weren't merely executing orders. Just like the American who shot the surrendered Japs. They commit evil because they are evil. No excuse. I think the most disgusting thing is that they refuse to admit to their perversely cruel war atrocities. Come on man. What the heck is your definition of honour? Definitely not the same as ours. Admit and apologise so the whole world can get over it already. You think by not admitting the whole world won't know the truth? I'm very curious as to what exactly do they write in their history textbooks about it. But I won't be able to read it. Ask wb translate for me. Heh. I remember in Sec 1 or 2 our history class was talking about WWII and the teacher was saying something about forgive and forget and Adeline said can forgive but cannot forget. The unremorseful doesn't deserve forgiveness. Not that they would care for it anyway.

The movie was not too bad I guess. There was one stupid Jap who did something very stupid and I don't understand the purpose of his existence. To mock them? It's very weird... Anyway, is it me or is Saigo's survival the most exciting part of the film? The shit pot scene was almost too exciting for me. Ha..


Oh and I watched The Pursuit of Happyness too. Jaden Smith is so cute! So cute! Kf said the person behind her kept saying "co cute" throughout the show. Ha.. The last knock-knock joke he told was damn cute. Not just the joke but Will Smith's response too. It's a very sweet show.

Postsecret

-----Email Message-----
Sent: Saturday, February 24, 2007 8:45 PM

I was having a bad day at work last week. I hoped my husband might send me some flowers to cheer me up but I know he’s busy right now. So I called the florist, ordered a bunch of flowers and had them delivered to his office. The card read “give these to your wife, she’s having a bad day.” The florist laughed, and so did my husband.

Magneto's bringing sexyback

Funny funny funny...hahaha...

Chinese New Year = Blisters

Every year the same thing happens. Wear new shoes, get loads of blisters. Go the same places every year, see the same relatives every first day of lunar new year... And same amount of money in the ang paos. Ha..

Anyway ah, Chinese New Year is excuse for bad service loh. I went to Macs (and saw many angmohs) and the Chinese guy serving my line was damn slow loh. People who came in 15 mins after me and joined the other line left before it was even my turn. I'm sorry you have to work on Chinese New Year but you are damn slow and annoying. When it was my turn I made a point to state very clearly my order and he still made me repeat everything. I ordered their Prosperity meal and he asked chicken or beef, that was ok. And then he asked wedges or fries, and then he asked what drink I wanted. Excuse me, your menu says the Longevity meal consists of the burger (beef or chicken), coke and fries, and the Prosperity meal consists of the burger (beef or chicken), mandarin green tea and wedges. Why do you still need to ask me about wedges and drinks??! Moron! You can just repeat my order to me instead of asking me about everything.

Today kena forced by my aunt to take photo with her. Feel so violated. Ha..

Aww...

You're Totally Sarcastic

You sarcastic? Never! You're as sweet as a baby bunny. Seriously, though, you have a sharp tongue - and you aren't afraid to use it. And if people are too wimpy to deal with your attitutde, then too bad. So sad.

How Sarcastic Are You?

Your Inner Child Is Sad

You're a very sensitive soul. You haven't grown that thick skin that most adults have. Easily hurt, you tend to retreat to your comfort zone. You don't let many people in - unless you've trusted them for a long time.

How Is Your Inner Child?

You Have a Phlegmatic Temperament

Mild mannered and laid back, you take life at a slow pace.You are very consistent - both in emotions and actions.You tend to absorb set backs easily. You are cool and collected. It is difficult to offend you. You can remain composed and unemotional.You are a great friend and lover. You don't demand much of others.While you are quiet, you have a subtle wit that your friends know well. At your worst, you are lazy and unwilling to work at anything.You often get stuck in a rut, without aspirations or dreams.You can get too dependent on others, setting yourself up for abandonment.

http://www.blogthings.com/whattempermentareyouquiz/">What Temperment Are You?

Arghhh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! AHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!! Why is this such a torture?????!!!!!!!

My wits are turning..... I am going mad.......

Your ideal movie mentor is wise, capable of performing impossible feats - and short.

[Taken from Empire magazine, article titled The Top 10 Movie Mentors]

Life is all about obstacles and how best to overcome them. Whether your goal is winning a trophy, getting laid, seeking vengeance or overthrowing your multitudinous robot oppressors, you're going to have to surmount some kind of seemingly insurmountable barrier along the way. And you're going to need help. Which is where the mentor comes in. Through sage advice, harsh words, rigorous training (often handily accelerated via the ever-useful montage) and the occasional, brutal home-truth, movie mentors are the guys who turn Joe Nobodies into Captain Courageous, shunting our heroes up over that all-important character arc while channelling all of the best dialogue along the way.

Your ideal movie mentor is wise (a trait often hidden beneath a mundane or even comical first-impression facade), capable of performing seemingly impossible feats with little effort an, most importantly, short. Great power, it would appear, comes in small packages. Or at least, it's made more impressive when dealt in small packages; there's clearly a certain visual appeal to your typical big, striding hero being talked down to by a shrimp (not literally, of course). Plus, as the wisest of all mentors once said, "Size matters not."

Yes, Yoda - specifically, Yoda in The Empire Strikes Back - is the most glaringly obvious candidate for the mantle of ultimate movie mentor, and that's precisely why he has to be at number one. Not only has he become the blueprint for almost every mentor since, his name has virtually become a synonym for "guru", and the mangled syntax of his words of wisdom have slipped into the modern lexicon. To whit: "Wars not make one great"; "Do. Or do not. There is not try"; "You must unlearn what you have learned".

Yoda's not just any old mentor, either. He's a Jedi master, the mentor's mentor. It's not just Luke Skywalker he's trained: Qui-Gon Jinn, Obi-Wan Kenobi and Mace Windu all at one point or another attended Yoda's 12-step program to attain oneness with The Force, or at least basked in his swampy erudition. This guy's a hero factory.

I slack until super nua alr...even though I should be studying for my exam next Sat... I think I will really, really, really miss TV after I start working permanently. Watched A Knight's Tale (because Heath Ledger is in it). Was pleasantly surprised to see Paul Bettany (the albino in The Da Vinci Code) and the movie was actually better than I expected. It was funny and fun, easy on the brain.. Watched The Day After Tomorrow the next day. Queer title but kinda works I guess. It was so cool. Not being lame, thank you. But I think it'll be more impressive in the theatre. And in real life. Then again, you won't see the scale of it if you're in it. Oh talking of impressive, I watched Cirque du Soleil on Arts Central on Mon night. Spectacular. And funny too. Must be very fun to work with so many people. The stunts were damn impressive so of course I know it's tough. But I still like working with so many people. Band practices before the competition and performances were damn hell tiring but I enjoyed them 'cos there were so many suffering with me. Ha. I enjoyed my Pri sch ones the most 'cos the school loved us. Heh. The principal actually allowed us to skip classes just for practices because it was difficult to have the whole band together since we were split into morning and afternoon sessions. And most of the time when we had performances or competitions, we get to eat Macs. I didn't even realise what a priviledge it was until I went to sec sch and we had to pay money to eat lousy buns... Oh well.

I remember when I just joined the pri sch band, every Friday we would gather in the band room, (supposedly to practise but I don't think we actually needed them since there weren't performances coming up or anything) while the rest of the school was supposed to be doing silent reading in the hall. We would be playing (instruments or just simply playing. heh.) in the band room. With air-con somemore. Damn shuang loh. One time the seniors initiated this "competition" and separated us into 2 groups and we were supposed to answer some IQ questions or something to win. Guess who impressed the seniors with all the right answers? Hahaha... I remember this girl on the opposing team was crying 'cos they were losing. Ha.. Oops.. But I think the school sort of realised it was an unfair priviledge so it was gone...I think. Don't remember too well. At some point in my 6 years I remember reading with the rest on Friday mornings so it must have been abolished. Ahh so many fond memories in that band room, or the freezer as we know it on Wed afternoons. Oh we hated the Dance people because they would use the room every Sat morning so we had to practise on the porch. Hmph. Oh we used to pour saliva on the floor so it's actually quite gross for them to be dancing inside. Haha. Yah we were really gross that time. Well we were sitting on chairs when we were inside then. Who knows what they had to do on the floor? Serves them right. Hahaha..

*sigh* Too bad the band room is gone now. They got rid of it when they renovated the school right after we graduated. Damn, if not for that, the band would have gone for an overseas vacation. Instead we had a camp with 2 other schools. I think the band kinda went downhill after they converted from brass band to symphonic band because the conductor said the band would then have a wider range of pieces to play. I suspect he was looking for a bigger challenge after the band won 3 (or more?) consecutive golds. Oops, boasting again. Ha.. Actually I don't really know what happened because I didn't go back to visit. Eh because nobody wanted to go back with me 'cos the school moved to a temporary campus during the renovation. The school is rebuilding soon I think. Again. I'm glad I left just before all these overhauls. Oh I remember packing old books into boxes after PSLE for the big move. That was quite fun. Quite exciting to be moving I guess. But the temporary campus was kinda boring compared to the old school which had quite interesting architecture. I went back to do an aki project in my first year and the teachers were telling me they were rebuilding in 4 years' time (at that time) and asked when I'll be graduating so then they could engage me to design it. Wow I had an aki job in my first year of school already! Because they wanted to retain the feel and design of the old school which is rather unique among the schools here so me having studied in the old school would be very suitable to design. Unfortunately.. I do hope they can get a school alumni to retain the charm of the old architecture of the school.

Ookay..I digressed very far... As usual.. I was watching Project Superstar just now and the girls had to sing a Chen Weilian song. I know a lot of people still snigger and think he didn't deserve to win and all this support he has. But after hearing their renditions, I think his was still the most touching. Not that I don't think him winning Best Newcomer etc in Star Awards was quite duh.. He seriously cannot act loh. And that is not an insult. It is simply a fact. But still I think his songs are touching/emotional/whatever. I dislike cynical people. What, you think you know everything? You know everything that can and cannot happen? People who think they know everything are the truly ignorant ones.

Hmm something happened that I'm beginning to think is a figment of my imagaination because somebody didn't call me back. That person sounded quite desperate so I think she's not one of those stupid unreliable people. And also because she's a professor. Then again, that doesn't really add to her credibility. Once you've lost my trust you're so not going to get it back. Even if it doesn't seem that way to you. You can say I'm petty or whatever. See if I care.

These days I like Simple Plan's Thank You

So thank you for showing me,

That best friends cannot be trusted,

And thank you for lying to me,

Your friendship, the good times we had you can have them back.

You are The Emperor

Stability, power, protection, realization; a great person.

The Emperor is the great authority figure of the Tarot, so it represents
fathers, father-figures and employers. There is a lot of aggression and violence
too.

The Emperor naturally follows the Empress. Like an infant, he is filled with enthuiasm, energy, aggression. He is direct, guileless and all too often irresistible. Unfortunately, like a baby he can also be a tyrant. Impatient, demanding, controlling. In the best of circumstances, he signifies the leader that everyone wants to follow, sitting on a throne that indicates the solid foundation of an Empire he created, loves and rules with intelligence and enthusiasm. But that throne can also be a trap, a responsibility that has the Emperor feeling restless, bored and discontent.

What Tarot Card are You?
Take the Test to Find Out.

and a Happy New Year!