昨天和女友谈起麻将,我们俩都心痒痒的,
这次过年实在打的不够过瘾--
所谓的不够过瘾, 不是因为没得打,
如果没得打,那还好,因为"瘾"这东西就不会被激起,
最要命的是,有得打,而且还打得不少,只是又还不够.
新年的三天里,有1/4的时间在打牌(扑克牌+麻将)中过去的,
因为家里人有五个(我父亲今年很旺,所以不敢和我们打)人,
所以通常都不打麻将.
回来新加坡以后, 手还是痒痒的,偏偏家里的电脑刚REFORMAT过,
格式化后的电脑里没有我们最爱的"麻将三缺一"!
哈哈,就和女友讨论了一下,是不是要买一副真的麻将,
因为家里那副莫名其妙少了一张牌,打起来也不爽.
可是,我们在努力省钱中啊~~~~~~~~~
还是BT下载"明星麻将三缺一"实际些...
:D
Inspired by Suki's recent encounter with Melvin (her blog is a private one, so I can't link you there), I decided to recount the good deeds I have done... with either a funny outcome or a funny process.
5) The good uncle (that fell...)
It was 2003, Chinese New Year period, my family decided to drive up Malacca's A'Famosa for a short break. We were queuing for entry tickets happily at the Water World's entrance.
There was this little girl who stood about 10 steps away from us, and was playing with a big big ball, and she somehow lost control of it. As the ball was rolling towards the busy road, I decided to run over and help her pick that ball up.
The running was smooth, the catching of the ball was perfect, but as I was about to turn around, I slipped.
Yes, and I slipped and fell heavily on my buttocks. There was this pause of silence for about 2 seconds, everyone was looking at me, the little girl's parent's eyes were very big, and I can feel that they were about to burst out laughing...
I gracefully stood up and return the ball to the little girl, who didn't know what happened actually... but as I turned and saw my family (my younger brother, elder sister and parent), they were all laughing so hard T__T
4) The good student (that fell again)
Being a good student at school, and well-taught of courtesy on bus, I will normally give up my seat to those in need. However, there was once where I actually... yes.. fell T__T
It was on the public bus to school, and the bus was in the midst of climbing up a little hill where this old lady shakily boarded the bus. Being the good student I claimed to be, I immediately stood up and offered my seat.
The old lady gratefully took my seat and thanked me by saying "想不到宽中还有好学生", which made me proud of my school. But just as I was about to say "宽中到处都是好学生", the bus started moving.
I was standing near the front door of the bus, and the heavy bag I was carrying pulled me to fall, I tried to maintain my balance and failed -- And so I half-stumble-half-falling towards the end of the bus.
There was a malay lady who was sitting at the rear, she got hold of me and prevented me from falling on her. The entire process took just about 1 1/2 seconds. Again, I felt that the whole world is about to laugh at me (eventually nobody did la...)
3) The stupid student (who didn't fall this time)
Again, it was on the bus when this happened. Having finished playing basketball at school, I wearily began my journey back home. I was almost falling asleep on the bus where an Indian lady boarded on. Being the courteous student I claimed to be, I judged that this lady must be pregnant and I immediately stood up and offer my seat.
The lady's reaction was furious. She looked at me in total anger (plus a bit of puzzlement) and yelled out: "I AM FAT! NOT PREGNANT!"
She left me standing in total embarassment, while she unwillingly took the seat.
The point is, I did actually done a good deed (by giving her my seat), its my judgement that has problem. This incident has left me with a very deep and vivid memory, and that is why nowadays, I do not actually offer my seat to ladies that I can't deem whether they are just purely fat or pregnant.
2) The friendly uncle (that got it right finally)
I was working in Singtel, and it was 6:40 pm, the place was Woodlands Checkpoint. CY, Chung Ee and me were rushing (as usual) towards the checkpoint, have our access cards cleared and fight for a seat on the returning 170 towards JB.
There was this little boy in his school uniform who looked totally lost. Based on the result of eaves-dropping his converstation with the bus driver, he was supposed to alight at Woodlands Centre road but failed to do so, the bus driver impatiently told the little boy to take the route back to another checkpoint exit, where the 170s is set off for Singapore.
The problem was: How can the little kid possibly understand such complicated instructions?
And so, the friendly uncle (which is me) volunteered to bring him back. I ushered CY and Chung Ee to go back first (as it might take a long time), and brought the little boy up towards the escalator.
The little boy then finally understood my instructions, and he was confident enough to make his own way there, so I decided to turn back and catch up with CY and Chung Ee.
The little boy said, "哥哥谢谢你,你人很好喔". And I was floating on the sky liao :D
However, the result was... I was late to catch up the bus, and the factory buses entered the causeway, hundreds of workers flocked towards the access card gantry, and I was late home... for 45 minutes.
Poor PY waited for my dinner... of course, I got a scolding la T__T
1) The weird uncle (that drenched himself)
Again it was during the SingTel time, I was walking back from an interview (my contract was ending then, so I was actively looking for a job). And it began to rain heavily.
As I was crossing the overhead bridge, a little girl in her uniform walked up the bridge slowly, without an umbrella. The scene was very pathetic, the little girl couldn't hold her head up due to the big rain, and her body was drenched.
I stopped and turned back, and offer her my umbrella. She looked at me alertly, which is correct. (As Mama has always said: "Do not follow nor believe in strangers".) And she didn't want to accompany her obviously.
We stood there for about 5 seconds, and I gave in, I stood out of my umbrella's coverage and left her alone under my umbrella, while I was still holding it. Then, she and I held a safe distance.
Then she began walking.
I escorted her towards her school, which was right behind my company, and she didn't dare to utter a word nor a look at me. So I just kept quiet. When she reached at her school, she finally said: "I have shelter inside, here will do." and she ran towards the entrance as if her life depended on it T__T
Well, finally I get to have my umbrella's coverage back, but I was already soaked in rain water T__T and I was teased by every single person I told about this story...
Keow Lin: "Ah Boy你也有今天啊..."
Kris Laoda: "Ah Boy 长得这样不是你的错..."
CY: "怪叔叔做好事啊..."
PY (not suki, this PY is my gf): "如果是我,有个怪叔叔拿伞来遮我,我也会怕..."
T__T 我也不想这样啊...
Sunday (25th February) is PY and my 6th Anniversary being together :D
This year, we decided to have Japanese food for celebration.
Oh gosh, there are plenty of Japanese restaurants out there, and which one should we choose? After filtering out nearly 20 outlets, we decided that Sushi Tei probably was the best choice.
PY was very impressed by the food presentation on the website, and we chose Raffles City's Sushi Tei, as we have always thought that "nobody shops at Raffle City's, so nobody dines at Raffles City" :D
And we were proven wrong.
Although there were no queues, the restaurant was very packed, and we had to wait. The friendly manager took down my mobile phone number and told us we could have a walk outside first.
Now this is something I liked, why queue? I can use this time to shop where I like... Although eventually it took them only 5 minutes to find a couple's seat for us :D This is good news, as both of us were VERY VERY VERY hungry
Now let's have a look at what we've ordered.
Golden Roll (See left pic)
This king prawn + mango + salmon roe sushi is very delicious, we had a similar sushi back at Kinsahi in JB, and was terrified by the poor taste and unripe mango, this time around, its well worth the money. (SGD 13.00)
Asama (Salmon, Tuna and Yellow Tail Sashimi)
The sashimis were perfect. No odd taste and top fresh. It tastes best without wasabi as the restaurant's shoyu (soy sauce) is not too salty and brings the best out of the meats. (SGD 12.00)
Umaki (Unagi wrapped with egg, see left pic)
This dish is not really that delicious, but being a fan of grilled unagi, PY and I enjoyed this dish. The only thing to complain is that the tiny bones of the unagi were not picked out thoroughly enough (a problem found in most Japanese restaurants, but believe me, I've eaten unagi's that have all the tiny bone picked out). (SGD 6.00)
Hotate Miso Mayo (Baked Scallop with Cheese and Mayonaisse)
THIS GOTTA BE THE BEST FOOD OF THE DAY. I have never eaten scallops baked at such quality and freshness in my life. THIS IS A MUST TRY! The scallop just melts in your mouth, and the cheese makes it tastes sweeter (together with plenty of garlic I guess). Too bad one serving only have 4 of them, and it costs SGD 8.00. And I wonder how come this dish is not in the Chef's Recommendation of Sushi Tei's website.
Ebi Tempura (Prawn Tempura)
We have not much interested in those Yasai (vegetable) tempura, so we decided to order something that is plainly our favourite -- prawn! The tempura was perfectly fried, although PY commented that the flour was tasteless, it is best eaten with the sauce they provided! :D (SGD 10.00)
Salmon Teriyaki (Grilled Salmon)
The salmon grilled at Sushi Tei appears to be different from the others. It is over-grilled (intentionally i guess). You can tell that they use real fire to grill (other places uses an oven to grill), and the burnt taste of salmon is reallllllllllllly very appetizing! Its like eating Kenny Roger's grilled chicken -- where all the fats have been burnt out, the salmon was relatively dry, but very crispy on the skin and very tasty on the meat. SGD (9.00)
At the end of the day, we didn't get to order desserts as PY was too full (we had two bowls of white rice to go along the above :D). We budgeted SGD 100.00 for this dinner, and we managed to save almost 30 dollars :D so we decided to take a cab back home... :D Which costed 16+ >_<
（很喜欢写梦 因为可以天马行空 更可以一厢情愿）
昨夜又是一轮折腾 我说我会认床
你也会 直到身体累得不再能够计较
辗转 再辗转 然后沉重
颜色 竟有说不出的名字
明亮却又不刺眼的柔和 填满整片天空
你唤这片天气为阴天 我却觉得更似魔幻
远方不似远方 因为伸手可及
我是顶天立地的巨人 为你摘下一朵七彩斑斓的云
你笑 就像天使那样美丽
只为搏得你的一笑 我什么都愿意给
这里的鸟不啁啾 因为不需要
它可以给你一个眼神 你便明暸这个世界
这里的花从不开 因为不需要
鸟告诉我 花 是要开在心中的
我把头探出云端 叫不出名字的颜色的外面是无垠的黑
鸟又告诉我 其实你懂
我看着你 你往一个远得我勾不着的地方指着
说那是你的家
黑 是我唯一认识的颜色
我却没办法想象你从哪里来
你说那不重要 因为即使你想回去也不行了
我称你为堕入凡间的天使
你只是笑了笑
不知怎的 你的笑让我觉得好痛
一点也不快乐
黑啊黑
不断的膨胀
连那些我叫不出名字的颜色也逐渐被吞噬
你渐渐缩小
哦
还是我越来越大？
地球变得象个篮球
你也变得比蚊子还小
鸟呢 也不见了
黑越来越大片
越来越大
越．．．
是闹钟的叫嚣
哎...
记录依然保持着 -- 只要一过年,就会生病的魔咒已经缠着我五年了吧?
这次是喉咙痛.
不用想也知道,是因为新年其间的大吃大喝迟睡迟起造成的吧.
虽然这次我比较乖,喝的都是白开水,而且每天都睡超过八个小时以上.
没办法.一年一次嘛.反正我也已经一整年没有报过病假了.
现在这样好整以暇待在家里休息也是好,至少工作上来说,拿病假也不会造成什么太大的困扰.
悠哉闲哉的快活日子,毕竟所剩不会太多. :)
Woohoooo!~~~~ I'm back from my CNY break!~ This year's CNY was far more relaxing than last year's... See below of the differences I've spotted for this year's CNY!~
5) No relatives came back this year
It was a very very very very very quiet CNY period this time around, as most of my relatives (20 of them? definitely more) came back to Malaysia last year August for my grandma's 80th birthday, none but one of them came back this year...
Although the number of Ang Paos decreased significantly, I still appreciated that we were saved the hassle to visit every one of them and sit there oddly watching the TV and engaged in meaningless conversation like --
"So, where you working now?"
"Oh, NCS."
"Same as last year?"
"Ya."
"Ah hahahaha, I see."
"Ah ya lor... hahaha"
*Cold end*
4) Lots of Mahjongs this year!
Hadn't had enough MJ last year, this year around I've been playing MJ for 3 full nights, although we (PY and I) lost RM 12 in total (thanks to her, I think i've lost 20+ and she won some back for me), I've had great fun playing MJ.
MJ was one of my favourite "sport" (if you call that sport -_-), wahahahahaha.
3) Big Ang Pao this year!
As I have stated previously, the number of Ang Paos decreased as at least 5 or 6 uncles/aunties did not come back this year... but we still received more money than last year :D
Its because my parent gave us a bigger ang pao this year!~~~~
2) No shopping on CNY!
Last year we had too much time (after visiting so many uncles and aunties), so we shopped for three straight days at the same shopping mall...
But this time around, we didn't shop at all!~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ All time were spent at home playing MJ and poker and a bit of blackjack, and we found out that we actually saved more money :D
1) THERE ARE MORE GOOD FOOD THIS NEW YEAR
Last year... as my grandma has aged a lot... her cooking wasn't as impressive as ever... this year, she let my auntie coook, so we had better food. And I get to eat lots of nice (not necessarily expensive) food at home (see point number 2) instead of outside :D
从我懂事以来,我就有恋裙癖.
简单来说,我就是有那种"女孩子一定要穿裙子才好看"的人生观.
连我理想中女孩子美美的样子,也一定要是直直长长的头发+长长的裙子.
还好我女友喜欢穿裙子(她说因为她矮),然后喜欢留长头发(因为以前学校不准) :D
到现在工作了接近四年, 又忽然发现我特别偏爱走OL (Office Lady) 路线的女生. 没错,特别是那些穿黑色裙子的OL. 我上班的地方在工业区,所以女人们通常都不作这种打扮.不过偶尔还是有机会看到的.
OL的魅力在于看不到的性感,我是那样觉得的. 尤其喜欢看女孩子穿着衬衫加件外套配上黑色及膝窄裙, 看了就格外赏心悦目.
不要误会我, 我有恋OL癖并不代表看到她们会有生理反应,这纯粹是一种欣赏 :D 谁不喜欢看美的东西? 所以我整天怂恿我女友穿OL装, 只是她现在的工作只要T-恤牛仔裤而已.... :(
所以我说... 裙子绝对是上帝赋予女人最伟大与最美丽的发明... :D
This got to be the worst Valentine's Dinner we've ever had -_-
We made a reservation at Jack's Place @ 7:30 pm, and we were shock to see that there was a very very very very long queue waiting to enter the restaurant.
So I made my way through the long queue and approached the waitress, and she said: "I see, you are Mr. Chiew, please join the queue behind and wait for your turn."
It was 7:20 pm. Damn.
At 8:00 pm, we were at the front of the queue already, and then this manager pops up and took over the scene, this is where the disaster begin.
Due to some lack of communications, the manager DID NOT KNOW that the long queue was those with reservations, and she thought that the other shorter queues are with reservations.
And some inconsiderate couples begin cutting queue, entering the restaurant rightaway and asked for a seat.
At 8:15 pm, we're the first in the queue already, and I got so flared up I told the manager that there were many people in the long queue who had a reservation, and that the people that she served were all ad-hocs one.
At 8:20 pm, we finally got our seat.
The soup was average, the salad was okay, and the main course sucks big time.
We ordered fine-done tenderloin steak, and it came at medium. PY had problem swallowing the steak because it was too bloody.
Then came the dessert. For some reason, the raspberry yogurt blah blah blah cake was too sour to go with coffee/tea -_-
Overall, we spent nearly $100.00 for such treatments... ARGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH
We didn't even bother to take photos, hahahaha... and right after we stepped out of the restaurant, we decided not to let this shit bother us anymore.
Moral of the story: It is always better to cook ourselves at home. :D
Suki said that Valentine'S Day should be Very Stupid Day...
Well, no matter how many people think that Valentine's an extremely commericalized day, even more people will be busy celebrating today's event.
PY and I will be heading for Jack's Place this year. It is quite different from where we have been to on previous occassions, but she was very impressed by the quality of the food of Jack's Place =D
Last year we cooked ourselves a sumptuous dinner, but were left very tired by the aftermaths... so this year should be alot easier ba :D
今天莫名其妙地在来公司的路上想起一首歌,
这已经不是第一次了,虽然我还是头一次想起年代那么久远的歌.
郑智化,一个许多新一代新加坡人没有机会也没有兴趣认识的歌手.
抛开立场上的不同, 郑智化的歌其实代表的是一个年代--
一个我们都早已忘记或不愿想起的年代.
其中, <<别哭,我最爱的人>>是他作品中少有的,
不愤怒,不讽刺,不嘶吼,不批判.
只是简简单单的旋律,短短扼要的歌词,
带出的忧伤却超过人们所能承载的重量.
别哭我最爱的人
今夜我如昙花绽放
在最美的一刹那凋落
你的泪也挽不回的枯萎
别哭我最爱的人
可知我将不会再醒
在最美的夜空中眨眼
我的梦是最闪亮的星光
是否记得我骄傲的说
这世界我曾经来过
不要告诉我永恒是什么
我在最灿烂的瞬间毁灭
不要告诉我成熟是什么
我在刚开始的瞬间结束
http://qhcn.net/luntan/uploadfile/2006-4/200649123820897.wma
片名: 死亡笔记2 -- 最后的名字 Death Note 2 -- The Last Name
主要演员: 藤原龙也 松山健一 片濑那奈
中村狮童 户田惠梨香 藤村俊二
首先必须承认死亡笔记电影版的第一集并没有那么好看,而之所以会捧它的场,纯粹是冲着原漫画的情意结.
然而,<<最后的名字>>却让我有种重生的感觉. 很少电影可以赋予原作新的生命,更别说超越原作. 但是对于<<最>>,我是那么觉得的 -- 故事的铺排乃至结局的破格都精彩得让人拍案叫绝.
主题围绕着死亡,所以难免禁忌.
特别喜欢故事将第三,四,五个奇拉都融合成一位,避免了原作中虽然精彩但是过于繁琐的逻辑叙述,直接而简洁地交代了原作故事中夜神月如何利用第三,四,五个奇拉来帮自己对抗L/弥亚.
电影另外一个成功的地方是在于把L,弥亚和梅洛融合成一体, 在电影中看到L带着梅洛于结局所带的面具,认真地惊喜了一回. 虽然结局难免会有一点伤感,可是对于广大的<<死亡笔记>>迷来说,应该是比原作更让人满意的结局.
毕竟为了漫画去看电影的人,潜意识里头都难免会希望出现自己意料之外的情节发展, 对于把原作翻过不下五遍的我来说,这种结局让我完全忘了我之前对于<<死亡笔记>>所下的预设.
至于演员方面,松山健一的L形象非常立体, 虽然不是很喜欢他偶尔面露狰狞地宣布奇拉死刑,可是整体来说还是相当不错的. 特别喜欢结局时候L身旁放着渡的照片那一幕 -- 在原作里完全没有提到的,L视渡为自己父亲的那微妙的感情,处理得相当感人.
藤原龙也的邪气这一次终于派上用场, 如原作中夜神月放弃笔记拥有权后"变成"好人一样,龙也的演技是少一分也不行的.
看<<死亡笔记>>,重点就是那两个天才,其他人只是陪衬,虽然我觉得月的妹妹夜神庄裕很漂亮,完全不输给弥海砂.
阿木给分: ＊＊＊＊／（４ １／２）
从S.H.E的第一张专辑开始就注意到, "人美歌甜" 这四个字用在S.H.E身上是完全贴切的一种形容. Selina的可爱甜美, Hebe 的知性气质, Ella的活泼率真, 配上两高一低的声线, 在视觉与听觉上都是一种完全不同层次的享受.
<<女生宿舍>>里的青涩, <<移动城堡>>里成熟的突破与对歌曲的驾驭能力, 比较起来简直不可同日而语. 可在观看完所有演唱曲目后, 竟然发现有些东西还是不会改变的.
譬如说三姐妹的感情依旧深厚; 譬如说三人的本性依旧没有改变过.
虽然人们都说女大十八变, 所以Selina跳起火辣辣的椅子舞, 所以Hebe打起爵士鼓, 所以Ella苦练钢琴...
青春美少女/台湾第一女子组合的演唱会卖弄的不能不是视觉与听觉的极端融合的享受, 可是我最期待与最满意和最惊叹的依然是三人几乎天衣无缝的合音.
从开幕曲"恋人未满", 到结束安可曲"Superstar", 从动人心弦的慢歌"我爱你"到快节奏的"十面埋伏", 三人的合作无间, 虽然偶尔还是会有小小的误差,可是整体来说, 对于又要唱又要跳又要兼顾舞台的S.H.E, 演唱功力已经可以媲美许多实力派歌手.
Selina的舞艺进步最大, 三人一起跳舞尤其明显; Hebe的舞步最笨拙, 虽然每个动作都作足,可是还是觉得没有Groove (节奏感)...
Ella在演唱会结束前痛哭那一段, 看在眼里, 努力不哭的Selina和哭不出来的Hebe 反而更可爱.
DVD 2 里的幕后花絮让我看到了最美的Hebe -- 一脸素净,头发梳得比演唱会那莫名其妙的浏海头好看N倍, 是看这片DVD最大的惊喜.
Ella 扎戏与排练两头忙,看得人也心疼. 抑郁症? 天, 想不抑郁也难吧.
和五月天的轰轰烈烈不同, S.H.E 演唱会自然有她们自己的卖点,虽然我还是比较偏爱五月天的.
阿木给分: ＊＊＊／ （３ １／２）
In order to make me happy, or at least make me felt at ease during work, are as follows:
Those highlighted in red are those that I'm short of currently.
5) Comfortable Environment
Quiet surrounding -- Designing or writing program codes requires a high level of focus. I am normally good at filtering out noises, but not at work. Picture this: I'm seated around a bunch of admin staffs, who constantly/consistently/always complain about our external customers or whoever they are interested in. Talking in high decibels, its a sound contamination!
Pantry -- Our pantry's good, its clean, it has free milos and coffees... Newspapers are always readily available. There's a great scenic view from the pantry as well, good place to rest my eyes when I'm tired or worn out.
4) Defined Job Scope
At the end of last year SBTL mentioned in a meeting that all staffs under his department will have a defined job scope. But just one month into the new year, I've been told to move on to another project (the SAFTI project), and needs me to continue support the current SingTel project, together with the SMU project.
In short, I was told to do EVERYTHING.
Now, where's the "defined job scope" he mentioned? You know, an undefined job scope can truly demoralise a staff.
3) Sufficient Time
Often at work, what you will see is we are always rushing for time. And those are totally avoidable -- by having proper planning of time and resources, and accurate estimation + good project management skills.
I mean, why commit something that can be done only in 5 days and only give us 2 days after spending 3 days discussing whether to do or not?
I mean, why push for a deadline and rather give up quality and rollout something that is nothing but bug-loaded?
Bosses always say "they are other constraints", and then we spend 2 full days having meeting without any actions... of course no time la! T__T
2) Go home on time, no OTs required
I forced this. In my company, the rule of thumb is always "do as much as you can", bosses will give you those "Why are you going back so early, its only 7 pm" look EVERYTIME.
This is very sad. Very very sad. I have already proven to others that I am able to finish the jobs being assigned to me within office hours, why the hell do I need to stay till so late then?
And so, people begin to think that I've got too less work to do, and started assigning me more things. And then, I finished all of them within office hours again.
Its up to you to choose right? I've seen people coming to work at 10 am, and leaving at 8 pm, those are "hardworking" people. I've also seen people who go for tea-breaks three times a day, and had a 2 hour lunch break, and OT-ing till 9 pm, they are "hardworking" people as well...
What on earth happened? I come to work 8:30 am everyday, do not go for tea-breaks, have a 45-minutes lunch break and go home on time, and I was given that "you are not hardworking" look!
1) Pay, High Pay
Everybody is paid, but not everybody is under-paid.
Especially after I came to know that many incompetent colleagues (incompetent as in, they have been sacked a few years back at my company) is getting 40% more than my current pay... what's wrong with the world? T__T
Maybe I should start looking for job >_<
Took a day's leave today -- for no apparent reasons. I just felt like resting, but it wasn't like resting physically, just pulling myself away from work. It had been months since I did something so... unrelated to work.
5) I can still play basketball
Went to play basketball for an hour or so... I just found out that I managed to make 50 free throws in 78 attempts. That is good for 64%. I used to hit around 70%, and I thought I'd be much worse than that after such a long time.
Oh yeah, and I didn't feel tired at all, thanks to the stairs climbing (yes, its one of my new year resolution, and I've been climbing the stairs at least once everyday...)
4) There are nice people around me
I had breakfast/lunch at 11 am @ McDonald's, it was very surprising to find out that people actually clear their own leftovers before they leave. I observed for 20 minutes and found out that all the 4 groups of people cleared their own mess (by throwing the leftovers into the dust bin and returning the tray).
I cleared my own too, for the first time =)
3) If you treat house chores as something fun, you'll feel fun
I used to hate house chores are from hell -- they are time-consuming and you will always need to do it again and again (...and again and again...)...
But I looked from another angle today, and surprisingly, I had fun cleaning the house, mopping the floor and even washing the toilet :D
How? Not sure leh, it's just in your mind, switch to the right mind :D
2) There's nothing better than a day off from work
And I mean a full day off from work. I only replied an SMS from jensen today regarding a question, and I wasn't even thinking of work for the whole day, its amazing!
I used to think about work all the time -- during holidays, off times, at home, at work...
Now, in order to keep myself fresh (the mind of course), I find out that leaving work where it belongs to is the best way :D
1) I can read a novel REALLY fast
I spent 1 hour the previous night reading this novel, and today I managed to complete this 400+ pages novel in less than 3 hours, impressive eh? I was quite shock too, but when I'm totally engrossed in reading, I can read REALLY fast! :D
作者: 伊坂幸太郎
因为看了<<死神的精确度>>, 才会促使我看<<奥杜邦的祈祷>>.
喜欢<<死>>, 因为作者抽离的近乎不可思议地看待死亡. 把死神当成是一个理所当然存在的个体, 再时不时加上人性化的描写. 矛盾, 永远是最美的.
还好, <<奥>>并没有让我想起<<死>>, 甚至如果有人和我说<<奥>>乃出自另一位作家之手, 我也不会感到意外.
很喜欢小说里所营造的感觉 -- 一开始读者就犹如主角一样对于自己所身处的环境全然不能接受 -- 在一个依然奉行锁国政策(日本幕府时代曾经经历了长达百多年的与世界完全隔离的时代,史称"锁国")的小岛上, 有一个会说话和预知未来的稻草人.
人们生活和现实生活没什么两样 -- 小说里一直在强调这样的生活方式. 随着故事的前进, 越来越能感觉到所有事情的理所当然处 (为什么稻草人会说话, 为什么有个外面世界不知道的小岛...)
故事的内容不方便说太多, 重点是伊坂在小说里面所注入的生命力. 故事里每一个人都有缺陷 -- 有"因为缺少了父母的关爱"而说话整天得罪人的, 有天生就瘸了一条腿的, 有因为妻子离世而变得只会说反话的...
形形色色, 既超脱又那么人性.
小说虽贵为"推理类", 但是所说的道理却相当引人入胜. 作者随手一写即是神来之笔, 将现实社会里的所有不平等与残酷都化作幽默冰冷的文字, 看的人仍不时心凛.
这本书并没有"好人有好报"的结局,可也不是"坏人有好报"; 总之, 结局破格的相当精彩.
随着主角伊藤从一个凡事都逃避现实,连自己祖母过世的时候都不敢去看她最后一眼(这难道不像我们吗?)的男人渐渐地在小岛上因为"长得很像黄金猎犬却又有非常俊秀的五官"的日比野的陪伴和一连串案件的影响下渐渐变成一个体贴别人不再逃避现实的人, 自己仿佛也上了一堂课.
阿木给分: ＊＊＊＊
"关, 你没事吗?瞧你都被雨淋湿了."
"我没事,你怎么没吃啊?我不是叫你先吃吗?以后不用等我了啊."
"你还好说,你看你,明知道自己身体不好,还不把不喜欢带雨伞这坏习惯给改过来..."
"你还不是一样,叫你不要等我,你还是一定要等我..."
"哎呀,这样吵下去也没完没了的,你快去冲个凉,我等你出来好不好?"
许伊婷终于认输.她知道,要和一个男人,
尤其是一个理科毕业的男人理论是不可能的.
她从来不是个小女人 -- 她有大学一等文凭,
有经济能力,不喜欢依赖人,凡事都要亲力亲为.
只有在薛鸣关的面前,许伊婷才会完全失去自己.
是他那浑厚有力却又温柔沁人的声音;
是他那能够直视入你眼睛解读你内心深处秘密的迷人眼神;
是他那在你最脆弱的时候毫无保留毫无心机的一个拥抱...
薛鸣关什么都是最好的,许伊婷是真的那么觉得的.
"婷,你在想什么?"
"啊..没什么...你已经冲好凉了吗?"
"是啊,来,吃东西吧."
"嗯..."
许伊婷被薛鸣关打断的思绪一直不能平伏 --
薛鸣关就是有样东西不好, 他的身体不好,是天生的,
因为他是早产儿.
"老婆...." 薛鸣关暧昧的唤道.
"啊?" 许伊婷知道他要说些什么了.
"今天晚上...."
"什么?" 女孩子还是要矜持一下.
"你知道的嘛..."
那是半年前的事了.
片名：An Inconvenient Truth
主要演员： Al Gore
看这影片必须把政治观点完全抛掉,着重于戈尔身为环保工作者的身份来解读影片里的种种现象与数据, 那感觉将是非常沉重却实在的.
即便是必须承认人类是在自食其果般地给自己掘一个坟墓,而我们的地球便是陪葬品.
当学者被政治化,三十年来的呼喊呼吁都没有人们注意; 当人们被经济与科技的飞速发展而忘了自我自然的时候; 当冰川不再是冰川,洋流不再是洋流; 当生态系统以集合级数的速度被破坏的时候...
我们依然在告诉自己: 世界不会那么快生病; 即使要有问题,那也是几百年后我们的后代的问题.
在我公司的厕所上,贴了一则海报: 水,应该是我们传承给我们后代的宝贵的资源,而不是负担.
或许我们应该停止思考,因为思考会让我们避开现实. 停下来看看我们的世界变成什么样了.
恐怖份子算什么?战争算什么?我们都是生活在这个地球上的人类. 地球只有一个.
为什么叫An Inconvenient Truth? 因为我们始终不愿意面对.
阿木给分: 娱乐价值 －－ ＊＊ （２） 思考价值 －－ ＊＊＊＊＊
编者: 子告I've attended another course this Thursday and Friday (it was a two-days course). It wasn't as pleasant and as exciting if compared to the first course I've attended.
Nevertheless, some interesting findings during the course:
1) Singaporeans, and only Singaporeans, loved the term "Irregardless".
Come to think of it, how come nobody ever doubted the term Irregardless?
When we criticize somebody for not being responsible, we say that he is irresponsible. When we tell somebody that the information he given was not relevant, we tell him it is irrelevant.
Now, what do you mean by irregardless? It meant a "Not" + a "Regardless", but what they meant was actually "regardless"!
This was fully documented in dictionary.com, please see the quote below:
Usage Note: Irregardless is a word that many mistakenly believe to be correct usage in formal style, when in fact it is used chiefly in nonstandard speech or casual writing. Coined in the United States in the early 20th century, it has met with a blizzard of condemnation for being an improper yoking of irrespective and regardless and for the logical absurdity of combining the negative ir- prefix and -less suffix in a single term. Although one might reasonably argue that it is no different from words with redundant affixes like debone and unravel, it has been considered a blunder for decades and will probably continue to be so.
2) People like to doze off during courses
There are hyper-active participants during the course, and as the trainer efficiently used her dull tone to its maximum effects, these hyper-active participants began to allow their mind to wander to outer spaces... Subsequently dozing off.
Do not get me wrong, anybody who dozes off during a class/course/training program is totally unacceptable. Why do I bring this up? Its because I've heard some of them saying "I have learnt nothing during the course".
Another unacceptable excuse. You fell asleep, didn't you?
3) Working Overtime (OT) is a sign of hardworking
I'm a follower of its opposite theory -- Working Overtime is a sign of working deficiency.
Humans are programmed to work 8 (the most 10) hours a day, anything beyond that will result in slowed reaction and erroneous outputs. So why still work OT?
The trainer brought up a good point: Singapore is way too competitive. If you don't work hard, somebody else at a cheaper price may takeover your place.
How sad, isn't it? Well, I still hated OTs, and I've not OT for like 3 months, heh heh, maybe boss is already thinking of replacing me. Well, my company is very well known for hell-like working hours.
4) We all behave like students
The trainer's emphasis was to "Throw away your outdared mindsets as a student, learn new skills from scratch, learn the skills, not the information. Do not give me academic answers."
She also mentioned "There are no right or wrong answers, in fact, many questions have more than one appropriate answers".
And this is what happened, we weren't active at all in answering questions, as we fear that it might be the wrong answer... (Isn't it normal? However, its not a good sign of learning... and whats worst, the trainer reminds me of a very fierce secondary school teacher I had, so I had problem throwing away my student's mindset in front of her).
There was this brave guy (or girl, I forgot) who actually attempted to answer some of the questions, in a very timid voice of course...
And obviously that was not an appropriate answer... judged by common sense.
And the trainer just bursted out: "No!!! That is totally wrong!"
Wait a minute, I thought somebody just told me there were no right or wrong answers???
After that , the class became dead silent, prompting the trainer to comment "You N*S people are too quiet and obedient".
Ahh, whatever.
5) Courses aren't important from a boss' perspective
Picture this, our big big big boss (read: CEO) emphasizes that courses are important in building up an efficient team, adding values to professionals in stress management and interpersonal skills. I couldn't agree more.
And that is why new staffs had the chance to attend professional (and sometimes certified) courses for FREE. I felt grateful.
And yet our supervisors doesn't think so. Take this for example:
My mobile phone rang 3 times during the courses, just because my supervisor had something to ask; I had to sacrifice my lunch time to return to office, just to discuss something; I was called back to office for 1 hour during the course.
Why can't they just leave me alone? I'm officially on course, why call me back???????
Ah well, typical Singaporean company. Courses are important, but you attending courses are not important.
As I have planned in my objectives for year 2007,
I would like to complete at least 5 applications -- Gee..
Why do I set such an objective? T__T
Anyway, I plan to complete a Typing Tutor (no name for it yet...
I'm bad at names you know) program using C# 2005.
I previously wrote a typing tutor program in VB 6,
and was posted on www.freevbcode.com; I think my profile is still with them,
but I've long given up on Visual Basic...
So, no turning back!
Let's hope I'm able to finish the remaining 4 by the end of this year...
I really hope so! :D
