a nice speech given last year by Chee Soon Juan. really recommended reading.
Reality of the state of democracy in Singapore
[ http://www.singapore-window.org/sw03/030916sj.htm ]
i've also done some tinkering with linux. virtual consoles are cool! and so are pipes, which redirect output from one program into the input of another.
Tuesday, August 31, 2004
Monday, August 30, 2004
my immortal
i love to immortalize stuff.
so here's what my lovey said in response to the thinness issue (reverse ordered for easier reading.)
am: thanks for the post about the situation in singapore where many women are dying (figurative and literally, mentally and physically) to be thin
am: so much more awareness needs to be raised and yet it's such an uphill battle given the blistering force of the mass media.
am: but your post is a step in the right direction, and it means a lot, and perhaps even more so, because you are a man.
am: it's just like sexual assault (at least the more frequent way in which it occurs). men need to recognize the problem, and not abet it, or deny it, but fight against it as well.
she's a psychologist, by the way, so she certainly knows what she's talking about! with regard to the sexual assault, i believe a responsible person should be at liberty to get a gun. there should be reasonable background checks and stuff but someone like me should be able to get a gun (and they should require people who want to get guns to go for training and such, like police training for dummies). the relation of this to sexual assault is that with a gun, strength is not so much a factor and even grannies can protect themselves from thugs. the granny bit probably relates more to theft/robbery.
what the? they arrested people protesting bush in new york? seems like just the anarchists. anyway, i say the fixation with looks and thinness is ridiculous, and ridiculously harmful. it's the primitive part of ourselves that persists, this superficiality. and materialism, too, might as well, since i'm at it. spending all that money on trivialities like make-up and things not really needed, when the money could put children in school and feed people.
i was so tired last night. slept and woke up for lunch, then slept and woke up for dinner. by the way, seems like my gastroenterologist needs to push back my appointment, so... sheesh. i was wondering whether there are any NS requirements for males with down syndrome, say. would seem ridiculous if there was.
since there's still a month it might be worth looking into relief teaching. it's annoying, maybe the army can find some way of enlisting me first rather than just making me wait...
by the way, with video technology being what it is already, i don't know why they don't have virtual referees for sports like soccer. can instant replay and all that and make better decisions, plus don't even need the referee to be on the field occassionally in the way of the play...
so here's what my lovey said in response to the thinness issue (reverse ordered for easier reading.)
am: thanks for the post about the situation in singapore where many women are dying (figurative and literally, mentally and physically) to be thin
am: so much more awareness needs to be raised and yet it's such an uphill battle given the blistering force of the mass media.
am: but your post is a step in the right direction, and it means a lot, and perhaps even more so, because you are a man.
am: it's just like sexual assault (at least the more frequent way in which it occurs). men need to recognize the problem, and not abet it, or deny it, but fight against it as well.
she's a psychologist, by the way, so she certainly knows what she's talking about! with regard to the sexual assault, i believe a responsible person should be at liberty to get a gun. there should be reasonable background checks and stuff but someone like me should be able to get a gun (and they should require people who want to get guns to go for training and such, like police training for dummies). the relation of this to sexual assault is that with a gun, strength is not so much a factor and even grannies can protect themselves from thugs. the granny bit probably relates more to theft/robbery.
what the? they arrested people protesting bush in new york? seems like just the anarchists. anyway, i say the fixation with looks and thinness is ridiculous, and ridiculously harmful. it's the primitive part of ourselves that persists, this superficiality. and materialism, too, might as well, since i'm at it. spending all that money on trivialities like make-up and things not really needed, when the money could put children in school and feed people.
i was so tired last night. slept and woke up for lunch, then slept and woke up for dinner. by the way, seems like my gastroenterologist needs to push back my appointment, so... sheesh. i was wondering whether there are any NS requirements for males with down syndrome, say. would seem ridiculous if there was.
since there's still a month it might be worth looking into relief teaching. it's annoying, maybe the army can find some way of enlisting me first rather than just making me wait...
by the way, with video technology being what it is already, i don't know why they don't have virtual referees for sports like soccer. can instant replay and all that and make better decisions, plus don't even need the referee to be on the field occassionally in the way of the play...
Sunday, August 29, 2004
exercise
played table tennis with my dad this morning and then met up with jasper. we walked from my house along yio chu kang road, did a stopover at the yio chu kang market, then walked all the way to thompson road, then walked to thompson plaza, did a stopover for dinner, and then walked to ang mo kio. then took a bus home.
that was kinda crazy; it's the most exercise i've done in a long long long time. i think we did about 5 or 6 hours walking in total. we even jogged a bit and sang army songs. started getting really tired, at least i did, so got quite crazy, as is natural. you lose your inhibitions (if you have any) the more tired you are.
played virtua cop in the arcade also before meeting jasper. it's fun! now at least i can almost win the beginner level in one game, though the boss is quite mean lor. it's much more fun than house of the dead because in house of the dead you need to shoot so many times before the zombies die.
also helped my mom gamble a bit. when you win something at jackpot machine you can go double or nothing, choose whether red or black. lost 10 coins. then won 30 coins. then lost 10 coins. then lost 10 coins and then 10 coins again. so better off not gambling. anyway, i think if go casino the best bet is to play odd/even at roulette, because that pays 1-1 and the odds are also 1-1. but even better is don't play lah.
well, one of the things we came up with during our walk is (jasper): love is not about possession, (me): it is about obsession. oh, and i saw this buddhist poster that said that buddhism is like fluoride toothpaste. need to apply it for it to work. equally applicable to many things. at the bookshop also they got "raising smart kids for dummies".
the weekend is over, but since i'm a slacker with nothing to do this just means i'll be doing my own thing. still have yet to totally organize and clean up my room. still have yet to go through the linux books and really play with the system.
i'll take the liberty of cutting and pasting the comments from a post on yvonne's blog: Ewong De Gu Shi [ http://juggleress.blogspot.com/ ].
the comments can be found at the bottom of this post.
--------------------------------------------
On : 8/28/2004 9:57:23 AM pf (www) said:
who got married?!
and yah there's a huge problem with the obsession to be thin in singapore. it's incredibly and scarily exaggerated.
On : 8/28/2004 2:03:26 PM juggleress (www) said:
nus classmate, not anyone from our class. if it's from our class the news will spread to everyone in 3 minutes.
ya i beginning to think so too. my friend from america keeps commenting that the girls here are just way too skinny and small. they (she and another american fren) can hardly fit into the clothes and shoes they sell here!
and of course wanyi says that 1 in 2 welsh women are fat. (and still wear short skirts)
i just watched a local chinese talent show and the judge told this girl she's too fat for tv! and she's not lor!! it's a conspiracy to make everyone anorexic.....
On : 8/28/2004 2:36:00 PM pf (www) said:
it's a whole lot of irresponsible superficiality and extremely irresponsible ignorance as well. the media either doesn't realize the kind of message they're sending out or they do and don't care, and are just concerned about making money / getting viewers and having an audience.
it's a subtle indoctrination that has led to the average citizen instinctively labelling as "fat" anyone who isn't thin, especially if they appear on TV. i heard they were saying zoe tay "still looks pretty" or something to that effect because she hasn't been able to keep much food down during her pregnancy.
On : 8/28/2004 3:20:28 PM juggleress (www) said:
yeah i agree. look at fann wong and her xando diet pills ad. there was a columnist who criticised the ad and wrote that if pple didn't know where singapore is, they might think we're from africa.
i'm surprised the girls in US are not reed thin on average (from what i heard from friends there), since all the superstars from there are reed thin. the cast of friends, nicole kidman, halle berry..all of them are like sticks.
i guess the media from every country is like that, but maybe singaporean girls buy the thin theory more.
i agree with the instinctive labelling too. there can be so many more ways to describe someone. "untoned", "flabby", "big sized", "on the plumb side", "chubby".
hmm, karen carpenter became anorexic because the newspapers said she's chubby so maybe that's not a gd word to use.
or better still, like my fren in sec 2 once said " you're not fat. well you're not thin, but you're not fat."
some pple are way way too thin. and yeah, if you're not thin, you're fat. it's all nicely back and white.
On : 8/28/2004 9:02:33 PM pf (www) said:
i think the thing with america is that the media isn't monopolized and is somewhat smarter, meaning there are subversive media and a whole lot of media criticism going on, so at least more people are aware.
this is also connected to the greater awareness of mental health issues too, in a general way. not that everyone knows about psychological well-being, but more people do, and it's talked about more.
but of course there's still stupid women's magazines that can't stop talking about how to lose weight, etc. and showing ads of super-thin models and stuff. yet there definitely isn't this proliferation of ads for slimming centers, at least not in regular newspapers like the new york times or whatever.
On : 8/28/2004 11:19:31 PM Beautiful Hair (www) said:
erm,spelt plump not plumb(means draining toilets)
that was kinda crazy; it's the most exercise i've done in a long long long time. i think we did about 5 or 6 hours walking in total. we even jogged a bit and sang army songs. started getting really tired, at least i did, so got quite crazy, as is natural. you lose your inhibitions (if you have any) the more tired you are.
played virtua cop in the arcade also before meeting jasper. it's fun! now at least i can almost win the beginner level in one game, though the boss is quite mean lor. it's much more fun than house of the dead because in house of the dead you need to shoot so many times before the zombies die.
also helped my mom gamble a bit. when you win something at jackpot machine you can go double or nothing, choose whether red or black. lost 10 coins. then won 30 coins. then lost 10 coins. then lost 10 coins and then 10 coins again. so better off not gambling. anyway, i think if go casino the best bet is to play odd/even at roulette, because that pays 1-1 and the odds are also 1-1. but even better is don't play lah.
well, one of the things we came up with during our walk is (jasper): love is not about possession, (me): it is about obsession. oh, and i saw this buddhist poster that said that buddhism is like fluoride toothpaste. need to apply it for it to work. equally applicable to many things. at the bookshop also they got "raising smart kids for dummies".
the weekend is over, but since i'm a slacker with nothing to do this just means i'll be doing my own thing. still have yet to totally organize and clean up my room. still have yet to go through the linux books and really play with the system.
i'll take the liberty of cutting and pasting the comments from a post on yvonne's blog: Ewong De Gu Shi [ http://juggleress.blogspot.com/ ].
the comments can be found at the bottom of this post.
--------------------------------------------
On : 8/28/2004 9:57:23 AM pf (www) said:
who got married?!
and yah there's a huge problem with the obsession to be thin in singapore. it's incredibly and scarily exaggerated.
On : 8/28/2004 2:03:26 PM juggleress (www) said:
nus classmate, not anyone from our class. if it's from our class the news will spread to everyone in 3 minutes.
ya i beginning to think so too. my friend from america keeps commenting that the girls here are just way too skinny and small. they (she and another american fren) can hardly fit into the clothes and shoes they sell here!
and of course wanyi says that 1 in 2 welsh women are fat. (and still wear short skirts)
i just watched a local chinese talent show and the judge told this girl she's too fat for tv! and she's not lor!! it's a conspiracy to make everyone anorexic.....
On : 8/28/2004 2:36:00 PM pf (www) said:
it's a whole lot of irresponsible superficiality and extremely irresponsible ignorance as well. the media either doesn't realize the kind of message they're sending out or they do and don't care, and are just concerned about making money / getting viewers and having an audience.
it's a subtle indoctrination that has led to the average citizen instinctively labelling as "fat" anyone who isn't thin, especially if they appear on TV. i heard they were saying zoe tay "still looks pretty" or something to that effect because she hasn't been able to keep much food down during her pregnancy.
On : 8/28/2004 3:20:28 PM juggleress (www) said:
yeah i agree. look at fann wong and her xando diet pills ad. there was a columnist who criticised the ad and wrote that if pple didn't know where singapore is, they might think we're from africa.
i'm surprised the girls in US are not reed thin on average (from what i heard from friends there), since all the superstars from there are reed thin. the cast of friends, nicole kidman, halle berry..all of them are like sticks.
i guess the media from every country is like that, but maybe singaporean girls buy the thin theory more.
i agree with the instinctive labelling too. there can be so many more ways to describe someone. "untoned", "flabby", "big sized", "on the plumb side", "chubby".
hmm, karen carpenter became anorexic because the newspapers said she's chubby so maybe that's not a gd word to use.
or better still, like my fren in sec 2 once said " you're not fat. well you're not thin, but you're not fat."
some pple are way way too thin. and yeah, if you're not thin, you're fat. it's all nicely back and white.
On : 8/28/2004 9:02:33 PM pf (www) said:
i think the thing with america is that the media isn't monopolized and is somewhat smarter, meaning there are subversive media and a whole lot of media criticism going on, so at least more people are aware.
this is also connected to the greater awareness of mental health issues too, in a general way. not that everyone knows about psychological well-being, but more people do, and it's talked about more.
but of course there's still stupid women's magazines that can't stop talking about how to lose weight, etc. and showing ads of super-thin models and stuff. yet there definitely isn't this proliferation of ads for slimming centers, at least not in regular newspapers like the new york times or whatever.
On : 8/28/2004 11:19:31 PM Beautiful Hair (www) said:
erm,spelt plump not plumb(means draining toilets)
LindowsOS (now Linspire)
heard about this some time ago and chanced upon it again and it looks great. it's probably the best OS for most computer users. now called "linspire".
"While our name is changing, our passion for bringing choice is not. We strongly believe that most desktop software is too expensive because there has been a lack of healthy competition. Software should be much more affordable than it is and Linux is the solution. But Linux has been much too complicated for all but the most technically savvy, which is why we built CNR, a one click way to add software for hundreds of improving Linux programs, allowing you to update your system or sign up for services. Our mission at Linspire is to bring Linux to the mass market - be it home, school or business users. We want to commercially support Linux, so retailers will have confidence and will stock pre-installed Linux computers to give people an alternative to the expensive, virus-prone alternative. "
[ http://www.linspire.com/lindows_michaelsminutes_archives.php?id=125 ]
An overview of the OS:
[ http://www.linspire.com/sales_intro.php ]
also, Linspire is based on Debian, which happens to be the linux distro i've installed!
"Which Linux Distribution is Linspire based upon?
Linspire is based upon the Debian Linux distribution. A large amount of the code base of Linspire is Debian, but many usability and functionality improvements have been added on top of the Debian distribution."
[ http://info.linspire.com/publish/developers.html ]
so, might i recommend that you try linspire, though i haven't done so myself! the selling points are that it's effectively linux, meaning it's more or less open source, it's stable, it's cheap (upgrades are free, i believe, so don't pay for 98 then 2000 then XP and so forth...); and the reason why i'm recommending it to everyone is that it's just as simple to install and use as microsoft windows!
The Linux Home Page at Try Out Linux
[ http://tryoutlinux.com/ ]
microsoft software is incredibly expensive if you have more than one computer; linspire allows you to install on all computers in the family. so you might one day be able to use the same license to install linspire on your robot brother! (for checking email interactively.)
windows costs at least $100 for each computer (when packaged with a new computer), and microsoft office is an even greater ripoff. even if you don't feel like switching OS now (which i understand, no need to fix something that ain't broke, even if it's quite outdated), i highly recommend openoffice as a replacement for microsoft office.
OpenOffice.org: Home Page
[ http://www.openoffice.org/ ]
"While our name is changing, our passion for bringing choice is not. We strongly believe that most desktop software is too expensive because there has been a lack of healthy competition. Software should be much more affordable than it is and Linux is the solution. But Linux has been much too complicated for all but the most technically savvy, which is why we built CNR, a one click way to add software for hundreds of improving Linux programs, allowing you to update your system or sign up for services. Our mission at Linspire is to bring Linux to the mass market - be it home, school or business users. We want to commercially support Linux, so retailers will have confidence and will stock pre-installed Linux computers to give people an alternative to the expensive, virus-prone alternative. "
[ http://www.linspire.com/lindows_michaelsminutes_archives.php?id=125 ]
An overview of the OS:
[ http://www.linspire.com/sales_intro.php ]
also, Linspire is based on Debian, which happens to be the linux distro i've installed!
"Which Linux Distribution is Linspire based upon?
Linspire is based upon the Debian Linux distribution. A large amount of the code base of Linspire is Debian, but many usability and functionality improvements have been added on top of the Debian distribution."
[ http://info.linspire.com/publish/developers.html ]
so, might i recommend that you try linspire, though i haven't done so myself! the selling points are that it's effectively linux, meaning it's more or less open source, it's stable, it's cheap (upgrades are free, i believe, so don't pay for 98 then 2000 then XP and so forth...); and the reason why i'm recommending it to everyone is that it's just as simple to install and use as microsoft windows!
The Linux Home Page at Try Out Linux
[ http://tryoutlinux.com/ ]
microsoft software is incredibly expensive if you have more than one computer; linspire allows you to install on all computers in the family. so you might one day be able to use the same license to install linspire on your robot brother! (for checking email interactively.)
windows costs at least $100 for each computer (when packaged with a new computer), and microsoft office is an even greater ripoff. even if you don't feel like switching OS now (which i understand, no need to fix something that ain't broke, even if it's quite outdated), i highly recommend openoffice as a replacement for microsoft office.
OpenOffice.org: Home Page
[ http://www.openoffice.org/ ]
Saturday, August 28, 2004
hugs
yay, my lovey has made me feel special and snug with a virtual hug.
censorship in singapore is bordering on ridiculous. is "shit" a bad word? in avril lavigne's song, my happy ending, there's this line "all the shit that you do", and when it's on radio or mtv, it's either "all the stuff that you do" (nowhere near as powerful or melodic), or "all the *no sound* that you do".
i appear to have gotten diarrhea from the "wild plant" soba i had last night. should have stuck with udon with fried beancurd skin.
i like rap. in general i like songs with lots and lots of lyrics too. and rap has lots and lots of lyrics. and it's so bitch-ass.
censorship in singapore is bordering on ridiculous. is "shit" a bad word? in avril lavigne's song, my happy ending, there's this line "all the shit that you do", and when it's on radio or mtv, it's either "all the stuff that you do" (nowhere near as powerful or melodic), or "all the *no sound* that you do".
i appear to have gotten diarrhea from the "wild plant" soba i had last night. should have stuck with udon with fried beancurd skin.
i like rap. in general i like songs with lots and lots of lyrics too. and rap has lots and lots of lyrics. and it's so bitch-ass.
it's over!
australia won with a golden goal at the end of the first period of extra time. got a shot corner right before the time was up. a setpiece, the keeper had a touch of the ball but it went under his extended leg, which deflected the ball somewhat. there was a defender behind him but the deflection took the ball out of the defender's path and into the goal.
sleepy
i'm like falling asleep, and didn't catch much of the middle of the second half. australia was much in charge of this half. took an early reverse-stick goal and had another reverse-stick shot that flew beautifully but was stopped by the goalie's glove. no luck with their shot corners, the goalie saved several shots.
the australian goalie blocked some shots too, notably two in succession. extra time and perhaps penalty shootout? yawn... this is exciting but i'm sleepy... i'm totally gonna crash when this ends.
the australian goalie blocked some shots too, notably two in succession. extra time and perhaps penalty shootout? yawn... this is exciting but i'm sleepy... i'm totally gonna crash when this ends.
half time
the netherlands scored a nice goal, with a long run to the goal and then to the right past the goalie and a tap in. the netherlands goalie saved lots of shots. and an australian crashed into another australian, who got injured from it.
it's gonna take some time for jasper to remember that i'm vegan. or as he calls it, a vegetable. been going out with him an average of 2 times a week but his first suggestion for food is usually some place like kfc.
anyway, there's too many games playing now, they were showing boxing just now so missed a bit of the first half. and now they're showing beach volleyball...
we watched secret window, which featured good acting by johnny. of course, i'm probably slightly biased but i think depp is simply awesome. he's cute with his messy hair and careless unclean look.
it's gonna take some time for jasper to remember that i'm vegan. or as he calls it, a vegetable. been going out with him an average of 2 times a week but his first suggestion for food is usually some place like kfc.
anyway, there's too many games playing now, they were showing boxing just now so missed a bit of the first half. and now they're showing beach volleyball...
we watched secret window, which featured good acting by johnny. of course, i'm probably slightly biased but i think depp is simply awesome. he's cute with his messy hair and careless unclean look.
hockey
eh, i really hope that they're showing the hockey finals on TV lor... this is the first time i looked at the schedule online and actually planned to watch something, and it's not looking good... ah, ok, it's on now.
Friday, August 27, 2004
36 Gmail invites
that's 36 GB of storage space. I wish I could redeem that for a new hard disk or something. Anyway, the women's field hockey finals ended 2-1 for Germany, who were supposed to lose, or so the commentator claims. There was a cute narration by him, when Scully had the ball, and passed it, he was like "Scully... over to Mulder... just kidding".
I'm meeting Jasper tonight. He asks if we should watch Secret Window or 13 going on 30. My preference is probably for Johnny, but he probably prefers to watch the latter show.
So, just to repeat, I have 36 Gmail invites to give out, and they'll most probably be useless soon, after Google decides to take Gmail out of beta and allow anyone to sign up. Google's launched its IPO some days ago, in case you haven't heard.
One of the biggest problems I've had with linux so far was shutting down. As you can see, I haven't really played with it much yet. The Debian login screen didn't allow me to log in as root, and as a user I don't have shutdown privileges. Luckily my network card or whatever was properly detected and I could go online and surf for a solution. Of course, I could have simply fired up the other computer to go look too, had I not been connected to the internet.
The solution is to open up a terminal and issue the command 'su', which stands for 'switch user', and if you just write su then it automatically switches to root (and prompts for password). Then as root, issue 'shutdown -h now', with the -h switch standing for 'halt', which is a state from which you just press the power switch to power down.
Feel like playing hockey after watching hockey games on TV. The women are quite good, though definitely not as good as the men. Their equipment quite cool, lor. They were wearing this glove-like thing on their left hand, which is puffy on the knuckle side. Prevent grazing when putting the stick to the ground on the left side.
And the Spanish men's team had these masks they wore during the shot corners. Presumably to protect the face, but it also looked very garang and fierce. That's the idea. It was a red and yellow swirl design, to go with their outfit.
I'm meeting Jasper tonight. He asks if we should watch Secret Window or 13 going on 30. My preference is probably for Johnny, but he probably prefers to watch the latter show.
So, just to repeat, I have 36 Gmail invites to give out, and they'll most probably be useless soon, after Google decides to take Gmail out of beta and allow anyone to sign up. Google's launched its IPO some days ago, in case you haven't heard.
One of the biggest problems I've had with linux so far was shutting down. As you can see, I haven't really played with it much yet. The Debian login screen didn't allow me to log in as root, and as a user I don't have shutdown privileges. Luckily my network card or whatever was properly detected and I could go online and surf for a solution. Of course, I could have simply fired up the other computer to go look too, had I not been connected to the internet.
The solution is to open up a terminal and issue the command 'su', which stands for 'switch user', and if you just write su then it automatically switches to root (and prompts for password). Then as root, issue 'shutdown -h now', with the -h switch standing for 'halt', which is a state from which you just press the power switch to power down.
Feel like playing hockey after watching hockey games on TV. The women are quite good, though definitely not as good as the men. Their equipment quite cool, lor. They were wearing this glove-like thing on their left hand, which is puffy on the knuckle side. Prevent grazing when putting the stick to the ground on the left side.
And the Spanish men's team had these masks they wore during the shot corners. Presumably to protect the face, but it also looked very garang and fierce. That's the idea. It was a red and yellow swirl design, to go with their outfit.
men's field hockey finals
public service announcement: men's field hockey final 1:30am saturday "morning" singapore time; there's the 3rd/4th game before that.
women's field hockey finals playing now, germany is leading 2-0 against netherlands and still more than 10 minutes left to the first half.
women's field hockey finals playing now, germany is leading 2-0 against netherlands and still more than 10 minutes left to the first half.
Thursday, August 26, 2004
lonely and depressed
i feel lonely and depressed. could've guessed from the title, but i'll say it again. why not. got nothing else better to do.
i think i'll try to cheer myself up by reading the linux book and playing around with the newly installed OS.
i think i'll try to cheer myself up by reading the linux book and playing around with the newly installed OS.
debian: smoooth
watched the men's field hockey semi-finals. damn good. dunno how come no pakistan or india, thought they quite good one? anyway, the finals is netherlands and australia, and third/fourth is between germany and spain. australia scored a big win over spain, 6-3. the game was incredible.
the debian installation is going well, no major problems yet, breezing through the prompts. though haven't tested the system yet, but that will come later.
the debian installation is going well, no major problems yet, breezing through the prompts. though haven't tested the system yet, but that will come later.
Tuesday, August 24, 2004
tiredness
i'm so tired now. good thing, since i'm planning to sleep earlier. though i guess now would be considered late by most, but it's a start. so good night.
Monday, August 23, 2004
drowning in Gmail invites
it's like being a rich man with too much money and not knowing what to do with it. and, like money, it's just paper afterall, unless it's coins, then it's just metal. anyway, lots of gmail invites to give out, so don't shy, ok?
the day was relatively routine, going to seletar club and playing ping pong and working out at the gym and going swimming. except that it's jasper's birthday, so there was a considerable amount of activity after that.
had vegetarian food at the bishan s-11, and had my first taste of fake fish. fucking awesome, if i say so myself. an amazing recreation: it looks like the real thing and tastes just like it! it's the sorta fried style of thin fish steaks (cut slices perpendicular to the length of the fish). the "skin" surrounding the edge even tasted like fish skin!
went to play pool after that, and raced virtual cars, and played photohunt. photohunt is one of those games that's suck ass boring if you play yourself, but rather fun if there's like 4 of you playing at the same time. of course, it's easier too, but definitely more fun. because it actually becomes fun.
now to work on LaTeX formatting for say yang's book. i'm now a part-time odd-job person, let me know if there's anything that needs to be done, i can probably do it. though i still intend to install gnu/linux and neaten up my room eventually...
the day was relatively routine, going to seletar club and playing ping pong and working out at the gym and going swimming. except that it's jasper's birthday, so there was a considerable amount of activity after that.
had vegetarian food at the bishan s-11, and had my first taste of fake fish. fucking awesome, if i say so myself. an amazing recreation: it looks like the real thing and tastes just like it! it's the sorta fried style of thin fish steaks (cut slices perpendicular to the length of the fish). the "skin" surrounding the edge even tasted like fish skin!
went to play pool after that, and raced virtual cars, and played photohunt. photohunt is one of those games that's suck ass boring if you play yourself, but rather fun if there's like 4 of you playing at the same time. of course, it's easier too, but definitely more fun. because it actually becomes fun.
now to work on LaTeX formatting for say yang's book. i'm now a part-time odd-job person, let me know if there's anything that needs to be done, i can probably do it. though i still intend to install gnu/linux and neaten up my room eventually...
Sunday, August 22, 2004
$$$ --> $....$....$
"Follow the Money" by David Sirota and Jonathan Baskin
[ http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/features/2004/0409.sirota.html ]
[ http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/features/2004/0409.sirota.html ]
ow
it doesn't really hurt anymore, but got a few scratches from a fall. was rollerblading and everything went fine until i came to this downhill in nanyang poly, and thought what the hell, why not go for it, then halfway down, realized i didn't know how to stop, and i was kinda like on the road though it was deserted, but i was headed for a fork, and i valued life too much to risk it so just fell backwards and to the left in case a car came by, so i fell, and it wasn't a bad fall, though the stuff fell out of my shirt pocket, my cell and my sunglasses, but they were fine. i was not bad either, just a few scratches on my left elbow and fingers and my shorts took most of the abrasion instead of my thigh, thankfully.
got a coke and walked a long time looking for a place to recycle the can. didn't find anything on campus, didn't find anything at yio chu kang mrt, so i pretty much walked to ang mo kio mrt and there was this coffee shop with a place to recycle cans.
interestingly enough, i went online to apply for an exit permit and incredibly enough my application got instant approval. so if i really wanted to i guess i could push back my re-enlistment arbitrarily! this exit permit that i just tried to apply for i just anyhow put the date, so i said i'll come back in november. and it just went through, a javascript application without bugs.
song lyrics: (mario winans, i don't wanna know)
And I don't want to let you leave
Can't say I didn't let you breath
Gave you extra cheese
Put you in the SUV
You wanted ice
So I made you freeze
Made you hot
Like the West Indies
(i especially like the part where he gave her extra cheese.)
got a coke and walked a long time looking for a place to recycle the can. didn't find anything on campus, didn't find anything at yio chu kang mrt, so i pretty much walked to ang mo kio mrt and there was this coffee shop with a place to recycle cans.
interestingly enough, i went online to apply for an exit permit and incredibly enough my application got instant approval. so if i really wanted to i guess i could push back my re-enlistment arbitrarily! this exit permit that i just tried to apply for i just anyhow put the date, so i said i'll come back in november. and it just went through, a javascript application without bugs.
song lyrics: (mario winans, i don't wanna know)
And I don't want to let you leave
Can't say I didn't let you breath
Gave you extra cheese
Put you in the SUV
You wanted ice
So I made you freeze
Made you hot
Like the West Indies
(i especially like the part where he gave her extra cheese.)
Friday, August 20, 2004
massive amounts
it really takes a long time to download a CD worth of data... i probably chose the wrong mirror... took an australian one, which is giving me about 14K/s.
anyway, i wrote some time back about women's weightlifting, something like 200kg by a 48kg woman. i watched women's weightlifting last night and this 200kg figure is actually the combined lift of the snatch and the clean+jerk. so it's about 100kg they were lifting each time. usually the clean and jerk can lift more. there was a world record, i think, by a chinese woman, in the snatch. if i recall correctly, it was something like 130kg and she was in the under 68kg category, i believe.
the korean women's handball team is really something. truly truly amazing to watch. they just slam in the goals so accurately and powerfully and effortlessly. it's amazing how precisely they throw the ball and the goalkeeper truly has no chance, even though she's flailing her arms and legs all over the place. in case you're wondering, handball is like a combination of basketball and soccer.
anyway, i wrote some time back about women's weightlifting, something like 200kg by a 48kg woman. i watched women's weightlifting last night and this 200kg figure is actually the combined lift of the snatch and the clean+jerk. so it's about 100kg they were lifting each time. usually the clean and jerk can lift more. there was a world record, i think, by a chinese woman, in the snatch. if i recall correctly, it was something like 130kg and she was in the under 68kg category, i believe.
the korean women's handball team is really something. truly truly amazing to watch. they just slam in the goals so accurately and powerfully and effortlessly. it's amazing how precisely they throw the ball and the goalkeeper truly has no chance, even though she's flailing her arms and legs all over the place. in case you're wondering, handball is like a combination of basketball and soccer.
success!
it works! partition resizer rocks! now all i have to do is download and install linux, which should be more glitchy, since this went on without a hitch. i also have to create ext2fs partitions using linux fdisk.
partition resizer
the partition resiszing is going well, the program has a nice and simple UI, and it seems to know what it's doing. the ultimate test is to see if anything's damaged, but probably everything will be fine. it's still running, taking some time because i'm moving quite a bit of stuff around, but managed to free up more than 4.5 GB of space for debian "woody" .
working on the desktop now, naturally. i shouldn't be sleeping too late tonight, for i plan to go blading in the late morning, then come back, freshen up, and meet jasper. freshen up. i've never actually used the phrase, it's usually something my mom tells me to do.
i think i've kinda settled down and started applying myself. here i am about to install debian linux, looking forward to hacking and heartache (from frustration), and i also intend to bring a book around with me to read while waiting (so i at least attempt to read all those books gathering all sorts of tropical microbes on my shelves), and i intend to go rollerblading, which should improve my fitness ever so incrementally.
i think i can only do about 2 or 3 pull-ups now, which is nowhere near acceptable if i go back to OCS. of course, it's much more fun working on my computer.
there is still a stream of ants on the wall. chickens from malaysia are banned because they discovered bird flu there. and the malaysians are saying it's ok one, don't so kiasu. it's pretty much the same thing with any business, the one selling the stuff is usually more interested in making money than watching out for the people the stuff is being sold to. which is why unnameable ingredients go into animal feed, and a few wounds and sores on an animal aren't enough to keep it away from the dinner table. and that whole big "unsafe at any speed" business with the cars from Ford.
the TV content providers have found what kind of TV programming really sells, and it's sad. it's the creation of "real" human drama, and singapore idol is milking this to the point of exaggeration. and the process of selecting and ridiculing participants is dragged out as long as possible for maximal airtime.
but, such is TV. how lovely it would be if i had cartoon network and adultswim. it's semi-interesting to play roller-hockey sitting on a castor-wheel chair.
working on the desktop now, naturally. i shouldn't be sleeping too late tonight, for i plan to go blading in the late morning, then come back, freshen up, and meet jasper. freshen up. i've never actually used the phrase, it's usually something my mom tells me to do.
i think i've kinda settled down and started applying myself. here i am about to install debian linux, looking forward to hacking and heartache (from frustration), and i also intend to bring a book around with me to read while waiting (so i at least attempt to read all those books gathering all sorts of tropical microbes on my shelves), and i intend to go rollerblading, which should improve my fitness ever so incrementally.
i think i can only do about 2 or 3 pull-ups now, which is nowhere near acceptable if i go back to OCS. of course, it's much more fun working on my computer.
there is still a stream of ants on the wall. chickens from malaysia are banned because they discovered bird flu there. and the malaysians are saying it's ok one, don't so kiasu. it's pretty much the same thing with any business, the one selling the stuff is usually more interested in making money than watching out for the people the stuff is being sold to. which is why unnameable ingredients go into animal feed, and a few wounds and sores on an animal aren't enough to keep it away from the dinner table. and that whole big "unsafe at any speed" business with the cars from Ford.
the TV content providers have found what kind of TV programming really sells, and it's sad. it's the creation of "real" human drama, and singapore idol is milking this to the point of exaggeration. and the process of selecting and ridiculing participants is dragged out as long as possible for maximal airtime.
but, such is TV. how lovely it would be if i had cartoon network and adultswim. it's semi-interesting to play roller-hockey sitting on a castor-wheel chair.
Thursday, August 19, 2004
censorship
what is the point of beeping out words? beep beep. it's so beeping obvious what they're saying. ate lots of mangosteens just now.
will really be going blading tomorrow, i swear. bought a 50-pack of CD-Rs for $20. it even came with a mystery box, which turned out to be a CD-wallet. neat.
have defragged my drives, and will soon be launching into the partition resizing. i might even do more resizing than i planned to, to leave even more space for cute little linux.
bought a battery for the cordless phone for about the same price too, which is probably worth it for the freedom it provides.
will really be going blading tomorrow, i swear. bought a 50-pack of CD-Rs for $20. it even came with a mystery box, which turned out to be a CD-wallet. neat.
have defragged my drives, and will soon be launching into the partition resizing. i might even do more resizing than i planned to, to leave even more space for cute little linux.
bought a battery for the cordless phone for about the same price too, which is probably worth it for the freedom it provides.
ants
i don't know why, but there was a long stream of ants on the wall behind my computer. 'was' because i killed a whole lot of them with a piece of tissue paper a couple of minutes ago. i also deleted a logical drive using ms-dos fdisk, and will defrag my hard disk before moving on to the partition resizer.
i'd better read again the documentation before i use it. after contacting shaowei by sms, he contacted me some days later, and arranged to meet me, and he's decided to kill more birds with the same number of stones by holomorphically transforming the situation into a class outing.
i'd better read again the documentation before i use it. after contacting shaowei by sms, he contacted me some days later, and arranged to meet me, and he's decided to kill more birds with the same number of stones by holomorphically transforming the situation into a class outing.
Gmail invites...
this time, i have several more Gmail invites to give out. any takers?
anyway, i didn't go rollerblading today; maybe tomorrow. i have decided on using fdisk to delete a partition, and then using
Partition Resizer
[ http://www.columbianet.gr/~zeleps/ ]
which supposedly can non-destructively resize an extended partition. it's not open source, but it's freeware, so at least it won't cost me. still, i'll be thankful to the software author if it works out well.
just backed up my documents, hopefully i won't have to call on them. most probably thinking of debian linux, since it's supposed to be the freest of the freedom ware.
the definition of the GPL copyleft is found here:
GNU General Public License - GNU Project - Free Software Foundation (FSF)
[ http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/gpl.html ]
i had a discussion with james about this some time ago and i wasn't sure about the copyright stuff, but i think it's basically whoever created the software initially and releases it is the copyright holder, not anyone else who makes a modification and then releases a new product.
it's cool that i've still got the basics of hockey, can dribble the ball around. the living room is a nice place to knock the ball around at night. i'm still having this bad habit of staying up at night. it's 3:20 a.m. now and my sister isn't back yet.
so, hopefully the partition deletion goes without a hitch, and then i'll either download and burn a debian CD, or buy one.
they're supposedly showing futurama on star world on sunday at 7pm. i think it's rather late now and i'll shut down my computer and do the stuff tomorrow.
anyway, i didn't go rollerblading today; maybe tomorrow. i have decided on using fdisk to delete a partition, and then using
Partition Resizer
[ http://www.columbianet.gr/~zeleps/ ]
which supposedly can non-destructively resize an extended partition. it's not open source, but it's freeware, so at least it won't cost me. still, i'll be thankful to the software author if it works out well.
just backed up my documents, hopefully i won't have to call on them. most probably thinking of debian linux, since it's supposed to be the freest of the freedom ware.
the definition of the GPL copyleft is found here:
GNU General Public License - GNU Project - Free Software Foundation (FSF)
[ http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/gpl.html ]
i had a discussion with james about this some time ago and i wasn't sure about the copyright stuff, but i think it's basically whoever created the software initially and releases it is the copyright holder, not anyone else who makes a modification and then releases a new product.
it's cool that i've still got the basics of hockey, can dribble the ball around. the living room is a nice place to knock the ball around at night. i'm still having this bad habit of staying up at night. it's 3:20 a.m. now and my sister isn't back yet.
so, hopefully the partition deletion goes without a hitch, and then i'll either download and burn a debian CD, or buy one.
they're supposedly showing futurama on star world on sunday at 7pm. i think it's rather late now and i'll shut down my computer and do the stuff tomorrow.
Wednesday, August 18, 2004
clear thinking
now that i've had a bit more time to think about it, it's not so simple just deleting a partition on my hard drive and creating a linux partition. because my hard drive has a primary and an extended partition, and there are several logical drives on that extended partition. so, even if i delete a logical drive, that doesn't free space on the drive for a linux partition, because the extended partition still fills up the drive.
my options now seem to be either get some software to non-destructively re-partition, or use another hard drive, most likely attached to the desktop.
i just did a google for partitioning, and i might try
Partition Manager
[ http://www.ranish.com/part/ ]
and pray that my data doesn't get wiped. i should definitely back up my files before trying this...
my options now seem to be either get some software to non-destructively re-partition, or use another hard drive, most likely attached to the desktop.
i just did a google for partitioning, and i might try
Partition Manager
[ http://www.ranish.com/part/ ]
and pray that my data doesn't get wiped. i should definitely back up my files before trying this...
Tuesday, August 17, 2004
boom businesses
observations about singapore: it seems that the two businesses that are doing best are the mobile phone and slimming/beauty industries. everywhere you go, there are mobile phone shops. literally for every 3 or 4 stores, 1 of them is a mobile phone shop. and if you look around, say, in the newspaper, there's 2 ads for slimming clinics on the first page, 1 on the last page, and maybe a couple more within the thin volume of Life!
the library's really nice, though, the one at ang mo kio! i just went there, they had a display, showing lava lamps and asked interested kids to go look up fluid dynamics, and a 3d holographic display that projected out of top of the case. cool. getting kids interested in science. props to them. borrowed 2 o'reilly books on linux, "running linux" and "linux in a nutshell". loan period is 3 weeks.
i've decided to go blading tomorrow, there's quite a few places nearby that would be nice to take my rollerblades to. went in to nanyang poly, near my house, where there's a hockey pitch, where we used to train. i'll probably blade there and go blading around the campus, since it's quite nice, and maybe head down to the park opposite the library, where we also used to train. that training was sprints and runs, that kind of stuff. quite shiong.
my liver ultrasound results are back, everything's normal. i'm planning to delete a windows partition on my hard drive and install linux. hopefully it won't be a problem that this is a laptop. there were several of feynman's books at the library.
i am glad to report that there have not been incidents with the multivitamin since the previous time. i have been sure to use a cup always, not a bottle. and according to some TV channel that was showing at the polyclinic, something like 1 out of 10 singaporeans has an IBS-type condition. that's really a lot of people! sounds fishy. but apparently it's that prevalent.
Digestive Disease Library
[ http://www.hopkins-gi.org/pages/latin/templates/index.cfm?pg=disease1&organ=6&disease=43&lang_id=1 ]
courts was selling this keyboard bundled with a wireless mouse for $28. was tempted to buy it though i had no use for it whatsoever. the nice thing about the keyboard was that it had something like 12 programmable hotkeys. and it was supposed to be new-generation ergonomic, with "A-shape"... kinda like this:
Welcome to www.A4Tech.com
[ http://www.a4tech.com/en/product2.asp?CID=2&SCID=14&MNO=KBS-627 ]
not exactly that one, but it's the same company. the wireless mouse runs on AAA batteries. on the miscellaneous side, i bought a refill for my pen and replacement "sponges" for the earpieces of my handphone's handsfree set. and 2 dozen AAA batteries for a dollar fifty. that's really cheap and i don't think the batteries are that lousy, though they're probably quite lousy lah. just keep replacing lor.
one thing about singapore's weather is that things like books go bad pretty fast. many of my books are browning... but still ok. my bike is still ok, so that can last a while. my backpack is also still ok, which is good. but me misses my lovey.
the library's really nice, though, the one at ang mo kio! i just went there, they had a display, showing lava lamps and asked interested kids to go look up fluid dynamics, and a 3d holographic display that projected out of top of the case. cool. getting kids interested in science. props to them. borrowed 2 o'reilly books on linux, "running linux" and "linux in a nutshell". loan period is 3 weeks.
i've decided to go blading tomorrow, there's quite a few places nearby that would be nice to take my rollerblades to. went in to nanyang poly, near my house, where there's a hockey pitch, where we used to train. i'll probably blade there and go blading around the campus, since it's quite nice, and maybe head down to the park opposite the library, where we also used to train. that training was sprints and runs, that kind of stuff. quite shiong.
my liver ultrasound results are back, everything's normal. i'm planning to delete a windows partition on my hard drive and install linux. hopefully it won't be a problem that this is a laptop. there were several of feynman's books at the library.
i am glad to report that there have not been incidents with the multivitamin since the previous time. i have been sure to use a cup always, not a bottle. and according to some TV channel that was showing at the polyclinic, something like 1 out of 10 singaporeans has an IBS-type condition. that's really a lot of people! sounds fishy. but apparently it's that prevalent.
Digestive Disease Library
[ http://www.hopkins-gi.org/pages/latin/templates/index.cfm?pg=disease1&organ=6&disease=43&lang_id=1 ]
courts was selling this keyboard bundled with a wireless mouse for $28. was tempted to buy it though i had no use for it whatsoever. the nice thing about the keyboard was that it had something like 12 programmable hotkeys. and it was supposed to be new-generation ergonomic, with "A-shape"... kinda like this:
Welcome to www.A4Tech.com
[ http://www.a4tech.com/en/product2.asp?CID=2&SCID=14&MNO=KBS-627 ]
not exactly that one, but it's the same company. the wireless mouse runs on AAA batteries. on the miscellaneous side, i bought a refill for my pen and replacement "sponges" for the earpieces of my handphone's handsfree set. and 2 dozen AAA batteries for a dollar fifty. that's really cheap and i don't think the batteries are that lousy, though they're probably quite lousy lah. just keep replacing lor.
one thing about singapore's weather is that things like books go bad pretty fast. many of my books are browning... but still ok. my bike is still ok, so that can last a while. my backpack is also still ok, which is good. but me misses my lovey.
addendum: a footnote
since i made a reference to women's gymnastics, i wish to note that "perfection" is over-valued and never worth the sacrifice.
Salon: The Awful Truth
[ http://www.salon.com/weekly/cintra960805.html ]
Salon: The Awful Truth
[ http://www.salon.com/weekly/cintra960805.html ]
Monday, August 16, 2004
cartoons
this guy's comics are funny!
BAD Reporter by Don Asmussen!
[ http://cagle.slate.msn.com/news/BADreporter/main.asp ]
parents, or to generalize slightly, people who love/care/dote on you are generally more amenable to selfish motivations than selfless, altruistic ones. such as, getting them to buy something for yourself versus donating their money to charity; going vegetarian for health reasons rather than "sympathy" for the suffering of animals.
selfish reasons are easier on the people who love you; they are more willing to sacrifice for you than for the others you wish to help.
i'm treading into "deal with the devil" territory if i suggest to them that i can eat fish/seafood if they agree not to eat other kinds of meat too, right? haha...
more furniture rearrangements in the house, this time in the living room, where my laptop is. it's right next to the desktop. anyway, it used to be on this small little table that had just enough room for the laptop and a mousepad. now, this other table, suitable for use as a study table but all this while simply used as elevated real-estate (previously, tuition used to be received at this table), is now being used as a computer table for me. and it's sweet, because it's so big, and even has a cabinet on the right.
now tux is on the table too, and i found a pair of speakers, and am listening to radiohead. my external cd-burner is also on the table. and so is the phone. so this is a veritable office space. where i have no work to do. and i have my rollerblades and skateboard leaning against the table. plus a lamp.
by the way, the gmail invites have been used up, somehow people who visit my blog never seem to want gmail. and my sister still isn't back, though it's almost midnight. she usually gets back around 2 i think. so it can't be said that my parents are too strict, can it?
but that day, at seletar club with aaron, before say yang and jasper arrived, and we were playing table tennis, the two of us, there were an unprecedented number of people there too in the table tennis + pool room, and there was this family; the mom was really a case study in "strict parenting style".
she was teaching her kid how to play table tennis, and hardly allowing him to have fun or explore the game for himself. give him a feel for how the ball bounces off the bat and the table and the delicate, pleasant trajectory of the hollow plastic shell, for goodness' sake! she put pressure on him all the time and even spoke of how if in a match cannot like that one...
which reminds me, last week aaron and his girlfriend and jasper and me went to east coast park, and we tried to teach jasper how to ride a bike. he almost got it.
this is getting to be quite a long blog post, huh. i guess when you get started, it's easy to go on. i initially planned only to give you that link.
seiyu at junction 8 is selling big Donatello for about $40. if i do end up getting it, i would probably get the smaller one, because $40 is quite expensive. just think of how much more kids in poverty would appreciate the money. that kind of thinking can be quite crippling, of course, so i usually try to cut out things that i can cut out, and cut myself some slack.
the olympics are underway, and i must say the event that has impressed me most was the gymnastics thing with the horse i think it's called, which is long and thin and these people are doing sommersaults and cartwheels and landing on their hands and on their feet and not losing their balance. jumping and flipping round and landing on their hands or feet. on the horse.
but also there's weightlifting, though i didn't actually see it, but i saw that the winner of the women's 48kg lifted something like 220kg. that means someone weighing 48kg or less lifted something like 220kg of weight. i know that "that means" doesn't explain much, but, well, you know what i mean.
BAD Reporter by Don Asmussen!
[ http://cagle.slate.msn.com/news/BADreporter/main.asp ]
parents, or to generalize slightly, people who love/care/dote on you are generally more amenable to selfish motivations than selfless, altruistic ones. such as, getting them to buy something for yourself versus donating their money to charity; going vegetarian for health reasons rather than "sympathy" for the suffering of animals.
selfish reasons are easier on the people who love you; they are more willing to sacrifice for you than for the others you wish to help.
i'm treading into "deal with the devil" territory if i suggest to them that i can eat fish/seafood if they agree not to eat other kinds of meat too, right? haha...
more furniture rearrangements in the house, this time in the living room, where my laptop is. it's right next to the desktop. anyway, it used to be on this small little table that had just enough room for the laptop and a mousepad. now, this other table, suitable for use as a study table but all this while simply used as elevated real-estate (previously, tuition used to be received at this table), is now being used as a computer table for me. and it's sweet, because it's so big, and even has a cabinet on the right.
now tux is on the table too, and i found a pair of speakers, and am listening to radiohead. my external cd-burner is also on the table. and so is the phone. so this is a veritable office space. where i have no work to do. and i have my rollerblades and skateboard leaning against the table. plus a lamp.
by the way, the gmail invites have been used up, somehow people who visit my blog never seem to want gmail. and my sister still isn't back, though it's almost midnight. she usually gets back around 2 i think. so it can't be said that my parents are too strict, can it?
but that day, at seletar club with aaron, before say yang and jasper arrived, and we were playing table tennis, the two of us, there were an unprecedented number of people there too in the table tennis + pool room, and there was this family; the mom was really a case study in "strict parenting style".
she was teaching her kid how to play table tennis, and hardly allowing him to have fun or explore the game for himself. give him a feel for how the ball bounces off the bat and the table and the delicate, pleasant trajectory of the hollow plastic shell, for goodness' sake! she put pressure on him all the time and even spoke of how if in a match cannot like that one...
which reminds me, last week aaron and his girlfriend and jasper and me went to east coast park, and we tried to teach jasper how to ride a bike. he almost got it.
this is getting to be quite a long blog post, huh. i guess when you get started, it's easy to go on. i initially planned only to give you that link.
seiyu at junction 8 is selling big Donatello for about $40. if i do end up getting it, i would probably get the smaller one, because $40 is quite expensive. just think of how much more kids in poverty would appreciate the money. that kind of thinking can be quite crippling, of course, so i usually try to cut out things that i can cut out, and cut myself some slack.
the olympics are underway, and i must say the event that has impressed me most was the gymnastics thing with the horse i think it's called, which is long and thin and these people are doing sommersaults and cartwheels and landing on their hands and on their feet and not losing their balance. jumping and flipping round and landing on their hands or feet. on the horse.
but also there's weightlifting, though i didn't actually see it, but i saw that the winner of the women's 48kg lifted something like 220kg. that means someone weighing 48kg or less lifted something like 220kg of weight. i know that "that means" doesn't explain much, but, well, you know what i mean.
Saturday, August 14, 2004
another Gmail invite
anyone? you can just ask me for it, or if you really really want it then i'll give it to you if you make a donation to a charity (e.g. UNICEF).
Thursday, August 12, 2004
kill and swallow
i'm afraid i've at least temporarily a phobia of taking my multivitamin. last night i killed a cockroach and a mosquito. this time, the cockroach was a smaller one, which heartens me, because hopefully i've killed the parents and so now the orphan doesn't have to be an orphan anymore. i just hope they don't re-populate so they won't have to be killed.
lee hsien long is now giving his speech as the new prime minister of singapore. and in case this is the main source of news on singapore for you, goh chok tong is now senior minister and lee kuan yew is minister mentor.
interestingly enough, this vegan thing has got my parents trying to tell me that morals aren't that important. that we are too small and insignificant to make a difference.
lee hsien long is now giving his speech as the new prime minister of singapore. and in case this is the main source of news on singapore for you, goh chok tong is now senior minister and lee kuan yew is minister mentor.
interestingly enough, this vegan thing has got my parents trying to tell me that morals aren't that important. that we are too small and insignificant to make a difference.
small
felt so small and helpless just now. usually i get lucky when i swallow my multivitamin, but tonight my luck didn't work. it was like when i was a kid again, and the pill seemed destined to dissolve in my mouth. i tasted the bitterness of health, or at least the placebo effect of health.
mention vegan and somehow people will think of green vegetables and think that vegans don't eat enough and don't get enough calories. but think about it. staples are all non-animal: rice, bread, potatoes... carbohydrates are the bulk of our energy source and they come mainly from non-animal stuff.
i'm still organizing my stuff, and each day there's improvement. definately by the time i go back for my medical checkup and re-enlist, i should have a neat room.
right now, there's so much stuff i want to do and need to do before that time...
mention vegan and somehow people will think of green vegetables and think that vegans don't eat enough and don't get enough calories. but think about it. staples are all non-animal: rice, bread, potatoes... carbohydrates are the bulk of our energy source and they come mainly from non-animal stuff.
i'm still organizing my stuff, and each day there's improvement. definately by the time i go back for my medical checkup and re-enlist, i should have a neat room.
right now, there's so much stuff i want to do and need to do before that time...
Wednesday, August 11, 2004
links
i haven't been doing many links lately, so here are some:
Advocacy Resources (Vegan Outreach)
[ http://www.veganoutreach.org/advocacy/resources.html ]
Amazing Ping Pong Video
[ http://www.princeton.edu/~puttc/godlypingpng.asf ]
The Dark Side of Recycling - Rendering Plants
[ http://www.judyshealthcafe.com/articles/rendering.html ]
i guess that isn't much, but the first link has lots of stuff to explore. knock yourselves out!
Advocacy Resources (Vegan Outreach)
[ http://www.veganoutreach.org/advocacy/resources.html ]
Amazing Ping Pong Video
[ http://www.princeton.edu/~puttc/godlypingpng.asf ]
The Dark Side of Recycling - Rendering Plants
[ http://www.judyshealthcafe.com/articles/rendering.html ]
i guess that isn't much, but the first link has lots of stuff to explore. knock yourselves out!
PES D
i'm a temporary 1-month PES D, while they wait for me to see the liver specialist and the doctors decide what they want to do for me. so one more month of slacking. anyone know of anyone who wants short-term (1-month) physics/maths tuition? very cheap one, maybe $20 an hour.
got a new bookshelf at ikea. it was an "as-is" item, meaning it's defective or whatever and they display it and you inspect it and buy it if you want. rather cheap at $55. usual price is also quite cheap already, $89. interestingly enough, they sell the same thing but with a wood-like finish for much more... $75 "as-is" and usual price $129. apart from how it looks, everything seems the same. the one i got is white with a black back-board. managed to set it up already, together with my dad, and my room's looking much neater already. got most of my books into the shelf. and it isn't too big, so it could actually fit in the corner without me moving anything out of my room.
oh, and it's been some time since i wanted to say that there was a lunch my maid cooked one day and it was really yummy! spiral pasta with mushrooms and fake char siew and probably some other stuff but there wasn't any spaghetti sauce or anything, and it was yummy! sorta peppery-spicy too.
plus, i've killed 2 big cockroaches since i came back. now, you might be thinking... cockroaches... don't they have feelings and feel pain, too? don't they deserve to live? well, last night when i whacked the cockroach it still seemed to be alive so i whacked it several times more to put it out of its misery. i guess when something's a pest i have no qualms killing it. that's terrible, isn't it? what about rat poison then? what about the dog that crosses your path? what about the person who pisses you off? where does the rationalization end? i'm thankful i don't have to deal with rats, but what if i did? cockroaches are insects so i'm still quite ok with that, but rats are mammals... that's quite tough...
my D-link router is working, did i mention that already? anyway, the first time i set it up, the reason why it took me some time to figure out how to make it work was because after it prompted me to restart the router, i restarted it, but had to wait several minutes before the router actually negotiated a connection to the internet. and if perchance the modem or router is switched off, what needs to be done is go to "status" in the web-configuration menu and choose the "connect" button. not that anyone's going to have problems with their router and find this post helpful.
went rollerblading the other day at east coast park, which was fun. it's been a long time since i've rollerbladed. maybe next time can bring my skateboard and try it out. though i've never had much luck with the skateboard. now, i wonder where it is...
alright, found it in the store room. i'm really happy about the bookshelf, actually. it's sweet. oh yes, today at the army medical checkup, they did an ECG and a chest x-ray, as well as a mouth x-ray. i'll need to see my dentist soon. i hope my teeth are ok, because the "dentist" doing the checkup mentioned something about caries...
and i bought a pen today. a pierre cardin pen, but it's not as expensive as it sounds. about $14. i like it, except for the fact that it's a roller ball (the inky kind) -- i'd rather get a ballpoint. but i've got the pen now, as well as a pink notepad (so i can write stuff in NS). and i went to the sunglasses shop and got the guy to do something about the lens that didn't fit properly, and it's actually quite simple, because the frame is plastic, so just a little bending did the trick. i thought need to get new lenses or something. now the glasses fit better too.
i think i'll be a lot more productive once my room is in order. and it's close, i can almost see it now. the floor.
got a new bookshelf at ikea. it was an "as-is" item, meaning it's defective or whatever and they display it and you inspect it and buy it if you want. rather cheap at $55. usual price is also quite cheap already, $89. interestingly enough, they sell the same thing but with a wood-like finish for much more... $75 "as-is" and usual price $129. apart from how it looks, everything seems the same. the one i got is white with a black back-board. managed to set it up already, together with my dad, and my room's looking much neater already. got most of my books into the shelf. and it isn't too big, so it could actually fit in the corner without me moving anything out of my room.
oh, and it's been some time since i wanted to say that there was a lunch my maid cooked one day and it was really yummy! spiral pasta with mushrooms and fake char siew and probably some other stuff but there wasn't any spaghetti sauce or anything, and it was yummy! sorta peppery-spicy too.
plus, i've killed 2 big cockroaches since i came back. now, you might be thinking... cockroaches... don't they have feelings and feel pain, too? don't they deserve to live? well, last night when i whacked the cockroach it still seemed to be alive so i whacked it several times more to put it out of its misery. i guess when something's a pest i have no qualms killing it. that's terrible, isn't it? what about rat poison then? what about the dog that crosses your path? what about the person who pisses you off? where does the rationalization end? i'm thankful i don't have to deal with rats, but what if i did? cockroaches are insects so i'm still quite ok with that, but rats are mammals... that's quite tough...
my D-link router is working, did i mention that already? anyway, the first time i set it up, the reason why it took me some time to figure out how to make it work was because after it prompted me to restart the router, i restarted it, but had to wait several minutes before the router actually negotiated a connection to the internet. and if perchance the modem or router is switched off, what needs to be done is go to "status" in the web-configuration menu and choose the "connect" button. not that anyone's going to have problems with their router and find this post helpful.
went rollerblading the other day at east coast park, which was fun. it's been a long time since i've rollerbladed. maybe next time can bring my skateboard and try it out. though i've never had much luck with the skateboard. now, i wonder where it is...
alright, found it in the store room. i'm really happy about the bookshelf, actually. it's sweet. oh yes, today at the army medical checkup, they did an ECG and a chest x-ray, as well as a mouth x-ray. i'll need to see my dentist soon. i hope my teeth are ok, because the "dentist" doing the checkup mentioned something about caries...
and i bought a pen today. a pierre cardin pen, but it's not as expensive as it sounds. about $14. i like it, except for the fact that it's a roller ball (the inky kind) -- i'd rather get a ballpoint. but i've got the pen now, as well as a pink notepad (so i can write stuff in NS). and i went to the sunglasses shop and got the guy to do something about the lens that didn't fit properly, and it's actually quite simple, because the frame is plastic, so just a little bending did the trick. i thought need to get new lenses or something. now the glasses fit better too.
i think i'll be a lot more productive once my room is in order. and it's close, i can almost see it now. the floor.
Friday, August 06, 2004
honest warranty
i bought a router, see, and bought a LAN cable too, and on the packaging for the cable, it says:
"LifeTime Warranty
For life of the product,
ATake warrants that this product
shall be freeof (sic.) design, assembly,
material and workmanship."
how remarkable. when people issue warranties they should be honest. did they just wake up one day and pull out cables from their hair?
"LifeTime Warranty
For life of the product,
ATake warrants that this product
shall be freeof (sic.) design, assembly,
material and workmanship."
how remarkable. when people issue warranties they should be honest. did they just wake up one day and pull out cables from their hair?
digital analogies
the guys are soon to resume downloading service pack one for OCS (operating crud system). it's too soon, it's too soon...
one thing that i can't figure out about the gas stoves i've seen in singapore. you have a round knob, and from the off position, you turn a bit and you get max gas, and you turn some more you get min gas. rather counter-intuitive. plus, it also means you can't get an arbitrarily small flame, because there's a limit to how much you can turn the knob, and also when you switch it off you must go through a large burst of flame. and producing sparks is an add-on utility (spark gun), not integrated into the stove.
i've got a new cell phone number, so if you didn't get an SMS from me about that, leave a comment or get in touch with me via email to get my number. it's one of those phones that cook and clean and maybe even write your papers for you if you figure out how to use it.
did i already write that i affixed a rear-view mirror for my bike? using tape, because the blasted thing somehow doesn't seem to have an attachment... i should have looked at it closely first to make sure....
my room is in a mess. but no longer an utter mess.
one thing that i can't figure out about the gas stoves i've seen in singapore. you have a round knob, and from the off position, you turn a bit and you get max gas, and you turn some more you get min gas. rather counter-intuitive. plus, it also means you can't get an arbitrarily small flame, because there's a limit to how much you can turn the knob, and also when you switch it off you must go through a large burst of flame. and producing sparks is an add-on utility (spark gun), not integrated into the stove.
i've got a new cell phone number, so if you didn't get an SMS from me about that, leave a comment or get in touch with me via email to get my number. it's one of those phones that cook and clean and maybe even write your papers for you if you figure out how to use it.
did i already write that i affixed a rear-view mirror for my bike? using tape, because the blasted thing somehow doesn't seem to have an attachment... i should have looked at it closely first to make sure....
my room is in a mess. but no longer an utter mess.
Wednesday, August 04, 2004
D-Day
i guess this friday is the day the guys go back into OCS. downgrade or not, i won't be joining them now because my medical checkup is next tuesday.
i'm eating haw flakes now.
i'm eating haw flakes now.
haircut
i'm told i've a strange haircut. well, that's not so strange, considering that i cut my hair myself, and i only cut the hair at the back of my head.
i think i'll make a suggestion to NTUC for them to carry soy ice cream. i think there's definately a market for that, and it should be really profitable. lactose intolerance aside, there are many concerned about cholesterol or have other issues with cow's milk. ethical issues, say. and it probably won't be that much more expensive than regular ice cream.
by the way, guozhi, if you're reading this, i've got your gyro. speaking of gyros, they're selling this wicked remote control motorcycle. with a plastic figurine riding, and they say it can even do stunts, like you know, 360s and all that. that's really amazing, if the gyros are actually able to stablize the bike. costs about $80 (singapore dollars).
right now it's just past midnight here, and my lovey's probably doing orientation for her internship. she'll be back in singapore in about a year. speaking of orientation, my sis is also on orientation at NUS. and me, i guess i'm orienting myself to singapore, and i try my bestest to stick to english as far as possible though many transactions are carried out in chinese. it's pretty cool at the polyclinic that most of the workers are somewhat polyglots.
the toilet paper here (at least in my house), in comparison to the stuff we buy in the US, is somewhat tougher. the stuff in US might be fluffy and soft, but is nowhere near as tough. meaning that i usually use 2 sheets (folded once) to a wipe now, compared to 3 or 4 sheets (folded twice) in the US.
they were also selling non-OEM printer ink, meaning another company makes ink that can fit in say, a canon or an epson printer. and they sell the kits to refill ink cartridges also (buy a refillable cartridge and some contraption and some ink). the ready-to-use ink sells at about half the price of the OEM ink. i guess in the US they also sell such things, but i never saw them sell it.
i've converted my US driving license to a singapore one too, bypassing the expensive and time-consuming singaporean process of getting a driving license. though i don't intend to drive. i intend to either get a new bike or just buy new tires. the rest of the bike is rusted, but it's still fine, but the tires are in bad shape.
i don't know if anyone's interested, but i also bought multivitamins (CENTRUM). so next tuesday, the day after national day, is my re-enlistment medical checkup. so maybe national day will rouse in me a desire to serve and die for my country. or not. i wonder if my mom has bought more floss, since i use it up at what some might consider a somewhat alarming rate. i guess the same goes for bars of soap.
the shop 'n save in ang mo kio has quite a bit of frozen vegetarian meat. no soy ice cream still. someone should definitaly invest in a soy ice-cream distributor in singapore, if there isn't already one.
somehow i had no socks when i got back to singapore, so i bought several pairs too. now i've got an exciting life, with socks to line my way. we bought a new printer too, since the old epson came with complimentary compulsory highlighting for all my documents. the printouts were pretty, if not functional, with lines of all colors printed across the page. and guess what, we were told that it would be cheaper buying a new printer than fixing it. we got the cheapest canon printer, because epson has this stupid and evil way of making you buy more color ink. it refuses to print in black and white if the color ink runs out. with the canon, it's possible to remove the color ink catridge altogether and print with just the black.
did an ultrasound today of my liver. it went well. 60 bucks though. also, went to dinner at this "aiwo" (love thyself?) place in tanjong pagar, which touts healthy eating (not hearty, just healthy). it's conveyor belt health food buffet, in essence. about $17 per person for dinner, inclusive of tips and taxes. they have about 2 fish and 2 chicken dishes, and about 10 vegetarian ones. they go round and round in small portions on a conveyor belt. quite ok, though perhaps somewhat expensive, considering it's mostly vegetables. and dinner two nights ago was at JC kitchen in the basement of park mall, which was cheap and good. they have pasta and western food and local fare like mee goreng and hokkien mee, at prices like $4 and $5, so it's like hawker/food court prices in a clean, minimalist installation. the tables are square and black and wooden, and the stools are the same. the waitresses are nice and friendly.
the polyclinic doctor i saw, on the other hand, wasn't very friendly at all. spent most of the time scribbling stuff, avoiding eye contact, speaking softly when he did speak. just wanted to write referrals for me and be done with it. i've got a bruise on my arm from having my blood drawn, so i guess that nurse wasn't so good. though she seemed to have done the needle sticking right.
hello boon tat! i heard you mentioned me in some context, because i bumped into theng khuan (the RI+OCS one) in jalan kayu when i was having coffee with aaron. are you back in army yet? to all my loyal readers, i say to you, donate to charity and stop cruelty to people and animals!
i think i'll make a suggestion to NTUC for them to carry soy ice cream. i think there's definately a market for that, and it should be really profitable. lactose intolerance aside, there are many concerned about cholesterol or have other issues with cow's milk. ethical issues, say. and it probably won't be that much more expensive than regular ice cream.
by the way, guozhi, if you're reading this, i've got your gyro. speaking of gyros, they're selling this wicked remote control motorcycle. with a plastic figurine riding, and they say it can even do stunts, like you know, 360s and all that. that's really amazing, if the gyros are actually able to stablize the bike. costs about $80 (singapore dollars).
right now it's just past midnight here, and my lovey's probably doing orientation for her internship. she'll be back in singapore in about a year. speaking of orientation, my sis is also on orientation at NUS. and me, i guess i'm orienting myself to singapore, and i try my bestest to stick to english as far as possible though many transactions are carried out in chinese. it's pretty cool at the polyclinic that most of the workers are somewhat polyglots.
the toilet paper here (at least in my house), in comparison to the stuff we buy in the US, is somewhat tougher. the stuff in US might be fluffy and soft, but is nowhere near as tough. meaning that i usually use 2 sheets (folded once) to a wipe now, compared to 3 or 4 sheets (folded twice) in the US.
they were also selling non-OEM printer ink, meaning another company makes ink that can fit in say, a canon or an epson printer. and they sell the kits to refill ink cartridges also (buy a refillable cartridge and some contraption and some ink). the ready-to-use ink sells at about half the price of the OEM ink. i guess in the US they also sell such things, but i never saw them sell it.
i've converted my US driving license to a singapore one too, bypassing the expensive and time-consuming singaporean process of getting a driving license. though i don't intend to drive. i intend to either get a new bike or just buy new tires. the rest of the bike is rusted, but it's still fine, but the tires are in bad shape.
i don't know if anyone's interested, but i also bought multivitamins (CENTRUM). so next tuesday, the day after national day, is my re-enlistment medical checkup. so maybe national day will rouse in me a desire to serve and die for my country. or not. i wonder if my mom has bought more floss, since i use it up at what some might consider a somewhat alarming rate. i guess the same goes for bars of soap.
the shop 'n save in ang mo kio has quite a bit of frozen vegetarian meat. no soy ice cream still. someone should definitaly invest in a soy ice-cream distributor in singapore, if there isn't already one.
somehow i had no socks when i got back to singapore, so i bought several pairs too. now i've got an exciting life, with socks to line my way. we bought a new printer too, since the old epson came with complimentary compulsory highlighting for all my documents. the printouts were pretty, if not functional, with lines of all colors printed across the page. and guess what, we were told that it would be cheaper buying a new printer than fixing it. we got the cheapest canon printer, because epson has this stupid and evil way of making you buy more color ink. it refuses to print in black and white if the color ink runs out. with the canon, it's possible to remove the color ink catridge altogether and print with just the black.
did an ultrasound today of my liver. it went well. 60 bucks though. also, went to dinner at this "aiwo" (love thyself?) place in tanjong pagar, which touts healthy eating (not hearty, just healthy). it's conveyor belt health food buffet, in essence. about $17 per person for dinner, inclusive of tips and taxes. they have about 2 fish and 2 chicken dishes, and about 10 vegetarian ones. they go round and round in small portions on a conveyor belt. quite ok, though perhaps somewhat expensive, considering it's mostly vegetables. and dinner two nights ago was at JC kitchen in the basement of park mall, which was cheap and good. they have pasta and western food and local fare like mee goreng and hokkien mee, at prices like $4 and $5, so it's like hawker/food court prices in a clean, minimalist installation. the tables are square and black and wooden, and the stools are the same. the waitresses are nice and friendly.
the polyclinic doctor i saw, on the other hand, wasn't very friendly at all. spent most of the time scribbling stuff, avoiding eye contact, speaking softly when he did speak. just wanted to write referrals for me and be done with it. i've got a bruise on my arm from having my blood drawn, so i guess that nurse wasn't so good. though she seemed to have done the needle sticking right.
hello boon tat! i heard you mentioned me in some context, because i bumped into theng khuan (the RI+OCS one) in jalan kayu when i was having coffee with aaron. are you back in army yet? to all my loyal readers, i say to you, donate to charity and stop cruelty to people and animals!
Sunday, August 01, 2004
honolulu to tokyo to singapore
so i'm back. still no progress on the promised poem, so you'll have to excuse me. i've got a broadband connection here, so things are good internet-wise. watched brother bear on the plane, which was simple and nice. the sad parts were predictable but you could also have predicted that they made me cry. the poor bear...
then watched against the ropes, which was ok, but at the climax the cruellest thing happened: there was turbulence and the seat belt sign came on and i was like ok i know the seat belt sign is on but as you know there was an announcement over the intercom and the most critical portion of the movie went by without words. please return to your seats and fasten your seat belts... in japanese, then english. it was the part where the feature on the female boxing manager was being shown on HBO and the announcement came on and you could see on the screen the next second their faces just changed completely and i didn't know exactly why. i guess i could guess.
anyway, that was japan airlines, which continues its videos and audio even though there's announcement over intercom.
then stopover and then a united flight, and these guys know to halt the video and audio when an announcement is being made. watched along came polly, which was hilarious for claude, the scuba dude who speaks with such a wonderful accent. don't even know if you call it an accent. happy hippopotamus!
then watched road to perdition, which i watched with my lovey before. of course, it's not so scary once you know what's gonna happen....
and so i'm back, they don't accept exit permits at changi so i've got to go to CMPB (or maybe SAFRA) to return my exit permit. and the boxes i shipped back have also arrived. tried calling about my medical checkup for re-enlistment, but it's saturday, and no one answered. at one number i called, the recording told me that i was being transferred to voicemail and then immediately told me that person didn't have voicemail and so that was that. there's a website to apply for re-enlistment, but they asked what date i want to re-enlist. so i'm thinking maybe i can say 29/02/2222.
will need to get productive soon. sort out my stuff, organize my room, work on poems... it seems if you tell the army you're gay you get downgraded. http://www.yawningbread.org/guest_2002/guw-080.htm
the printer has some problems. it draws very nice colorful lines across the page, like a playful meticulous brat determined to ruin fine print. didn't find soy ice cream at NTUC. no cartoon network at home. got to get in shape. at least i'm sweating more now.
then watched against the ropes, which was ok, but at the climax the cruellest thing happened: there was turbulence and the seat belt sign came on and i was like ok i know the seat belt sign is on but as you know there was an announcement over the intercom and the most critical portion of the movie went by without words. please return to your seats and fasten your seat belts... in japanese, then english. it was the part where the feature on the female boxing manager was being shown on HBO and the announcement came on and you could see on the screen the next second their faces just changed completely and i didn't know exactly why. i guess i could guess.
anyway, that was japan airlines, which continues its videos and audio even though there's announcement over intercom.
then stopover and then a united flight, and these guys know to halt the video and audio when an announcement is being made. watched along came polly, which was hilarious for claude, the scuba dude who speaks with such a wonderful accent. don't even know if you call it an accent. happy hippopotamus!
then watched road to perdition, which i watched with my lovey before. of course, it's not so scary once you know what's gonna happen....
and so i'm back, they don't accept exit permits at changi so i've got to go to CMPB (or maybe SAFRA) to return my exit permit. and the boxes i shipped back have also arrived. tried calling about my medical checkup for re-enlistment, but it's saturday, and no one answered. at one number i called, the recording told me that i was being transferred to voicemail and then immediately told me that person didn't have voicemail and so that was that. there's a website to apply for re-enlistment, but they asked what date i want to re-enlist. so i'm thinking maybe i can say 29/02/2222.
will need to get productive soon. sort out my stuff, organize my room, work on poems... it seems if you tell the army you're gay you get downgraded. http://www.yawningbread.org/guest_2002/guw-080.htm
the printer has some problems. it draws very nice colorful lines across the page, like a playful meticulous brat determined to ruin fine print. didn't find soy ice cream at NTUC. no cartoon network at home. got to get in shape. at least i'm sweating more now.
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