Hey, so it's 2012 now. Facebook has been alight the past few weeks on how much we have to look forward to and how we can face any challenges head-on (which is complete and utter crap cos you'll just go back to whatever routine you had the previous year anyway but let's stay positive for the moment... 2012, yeah!!) In any case, I have a guilty pleasure... I hate using that term because a) noone really feels guilty when they do it, embarrassed yes but not guilty and b) you don't derive all that much pleasure from it anyway. Using guilty pleasures for things like having that extra piece of chocolate or splurging on dinner just belittles actual guilty pleasures... like going to playgrounds and trading lollipops for sexual favours from children. That would be a guilty pleasure. It'd be more of a problem if it wasn't a GUILTY pleasure. If I was a child rapist and someone said to me "oh, double dipping is my guilty pleasure. I hate myself for doing it but I just can't help myself", I would reply with "Yeah? No shit. I get the same feeling whenever your son's around". Bam. Now it's awkward. You shouldn't have brought up the double dipping thing. So, small guilty pleasures should really be more of an "embarassing thing I do".
So, an embarassing thing I do is to check the stats for my blog every once in a while. Just to see how it's doing. And feel good about myself. Until I actually see the amount of people who visit the blog. Then not so much on the feeling good about myself. But in any case, I found that the most visited posts are the ones with pictures on them. Specifically, my top two posts are 1) the one with the picture of Andrew Garfield as Spider-man and 2) Pippa Middleton's ass from the royal wedding. Whatsupwitdat? My blog is basically frequented by nerds who can't wait to check out Spiderman's costume and horndogs for gratuitous photos of Pippa Middleton.
Obvious enough, the emo rants are never visited... fine, saw that coming a mile away (y'all have no sympathy) but you would think that a somewhat quirky and whimsical post with a touch of observational humour that I strive so hard to perfect would be somewhere in the top 3, wouldn't you? Actually it is number 3 but that post is tainted by a video of a Thor trailer parody so visitors might actually be skipping the humour altogether.
Now, what should I do with this new information? The wannabe economist in me wants to run behavioural economics experiments.... let's try this on:
Megan Fox naked Abbey Clancy naked Katy Perry naked nude sex leaked photos hardcore pornography Call of Duty: Modern Warfare
That should generate some traffic.
5.1.12
26.12.11
Nice one
Okay so happy holidays to all. Get this, right? I was in Liverpool Street station trying to get to Old Street when this guy shows up and stops me. He was wearing this worn green jumper and smelled like he hadn't showered in days. So he asked me if spoke English to which I answered yes, obviously. He looked relieved like I just told him the meaning of life and then asked me for 2 pounds to get on a bus back home. Now, it is at this point that he proceeds to tell me all about his woes. Basically, the man got into a pub brawl on Christmas Eve and got himself arrested thus spent Christmas in jail, away from his wife and daughter and now needs the 2 pounds to get back home to them, not having seen them in two days. Or at least, that's what he said.
Now, having a working knowledge of how the criminal justice system works, I know with a certain amount of certainty that he is lying to me. To top it off, I could still smell the tobacco on his breath (and if he could afford a smoke, he probably would be able to afford a bus ride home)... but I gave him the money anyways. Why? Cos in the off chance I was wrong, I did not want to deprive his daughter of a father on Boxing Day, even if he's a shit who went to a pub on Christmas Eve instead of spending it at home with his family (even if his story is true). But in any case, the message here is to relieve my guilty conscience of any sense of cheated feelings I may have. The story, taken at it's best, I helped a guy get back home. At worst, a guy gets 2 pounds off of me. No sense lingering on it. And I know the homeless guy isn't reading this, this is more for me, but homeless guy? Pay it forward. Merry Christmas.
Now, having a working knowledge of how the criminal justice system works, I know with a certain amount of certainty that he is lying to me. To top it off, I could still smell the tobacco on his breath (and if he could afford a smoke, he probably would be able to afford a bus ride home)... but I gave him the money anyways. Why? Cos in the off chance I was wrong, I did not want to deprive his daughter of a father on Boxing Day, even if he's a shit who went to a pub on Christmas Eve instead of spending it at home with his family (even if his story is true). But in any case, the message here is to relieve my guilty conscience of any sense of cheated feelings I may have. The story, taken at it's best, I helped a guy get back home. At worst, a guy gets 2 pounds off of me. No sense lingering on it. And I know the homeless guy isn't reading this, this is more for me, but homeless guy? Pay it forward. Merry Christmas.
31.10.11
Freaks and geeks
The best part of being in a relationship is, taking everything else out, you know that you'll always have someone there with you, for you. Emotionally and physically.
To know someone will be there to hold your hand and make things alright when you don't know if things will, to be there to listen when your Conference goes to shit and you need to rant, to smile and suggest a movie when you're down or bored. To be the rational one in the argument when you're screaming your head off and not making sense. Just to be there in the next room when you knock.
But also, to be there with you when you want to try something or somewhere new. To try the French place even if it's not to your taste, to go shoe shopping, stand, linger and try your best to understand what the hell makes that pair of shoes "super cute" and offer a clumsy and nonsensical explanation of why you should take the boots over the flats (cos you have ten of them already), to actually want and be silently excited about going to museums and art galleries even when, in your whole life, you've never been to one voluntarily. Doesn't matter if it's not your cup of tea, doesn't matter if you're tired as all hell, you just can't bear the thought of her making a memory, and you're not in it. You don't want the option. She means too much to you to miss out on. So bring it on, because seriously, you'll enjoy it. No, not the shoe shopping mind you, that's seven levels of Hell wrapped up in an open-toed pair of heels, you'll enjoy that one moment (and there's gonna be that moment) when she smiles and it'll be worth it.
And if she leaves you behind, she better makes you dinner.
To know someone will be there to hold your hand and make things alright when you don't know if things will, to be there to listen when your Conference goes to shit and you need to rant, to smile and suggest a movie when you're down or bored. To be the rational one in the argument when you're screaming your head off and not making sense. Just to be there in the next room when you knock.
But also, to be there with you when you want to try something or somewhere new. To try the French place even if it's not to your taste, to go shoe shopping, stand, linger and try your best to understand what the hell makes that pair of shoes "super cute" and offer a clumsy and nonsensical explanation of why you should take the boots over the flats (cos you have ten of them already), to actually want and be silently excited about going to museums and art galleries even when, in your whole life, you've never been to one voluntarily. Doesn't matter if it's not your cup of tea, doesn't matter if you're tired as all hell, you just can't bear the thought of her making a memory, and you're not in it. You don't want the option. She means too much to you to miss out on. So bring it on, because seriously, you'll enjoy it. No, not the shoe shopping mind you, that's seven levels of Hell wrapped up in an open-toed pair of heels, you'll enjoy that one moment (and there's gonna be that moment) when she smiles and it'll be worth it.
And if she leaves you behind, she better makes you dinner.
20.8.11
3.8.11
Masterchef Australia
Haven't blogged since I got back to Malaysia, PS3 binge. Plus, handling BPP and visa (everything going well enough) so I have neglected this blog as parents neglect the middle child in a family.
I notice a lot of things have changed since I got back, mostly who I am as a person. I really think I grew up a little in the time I was in UK (grew sideways too). But that's for later (as it's a little gratuitous) however, I do not think I have matured at all while in the UK. At all.
Here's the crux of this post. I miss Mackinder Hall. God, i do. So much. Talking about Elisa alone can fill up three posts but she knows how much I miss us in MacKinder. This is about my friends.
I really miss waking up, heading to the kitchen and nine times out of ten, Jia Sen or Sher Hann would be there. Not in the morning though, then ten times out of ten they'd be dead to the world. But Jia Sen would be there having bagels with cream cheese, mashed potatoes, or trying out a dish his mom emailed him. Then, letting us try it. He'd be cooking dinner and we'd trade recipes and borrow stuff from each other's cabinets. It had an organic and communal feel to it. It helped that the guy was just so funny even without meaning to be. Fun to bully.
Sher Hann would be eating what she cooked two days ago (in advance, not leftovers). It's always so entertaining with Sher Hann, inside jokes and hypothetical situations always crack me up. I miss her curry. Her spicy chicken curry. And her salmon pasta. And lingam. She has lingam. I miss the impromptu dinners we had, the bustle of all four of us cooking in one kitchen, the ASDA online shopping meetings.
I mean, they're just really great people and they're so cool and I miss them so much. And Justin. Justin, Justin, Justin. Your kitchen was the host to our christmas dinner, our post-christmas dinners, our pre-christmas dinners. The dinner you and Tengy made for Elisa and I after Italy was awesome. I wanna cook for you guys when we get back there, kay? More than the food, it was also about the supposed-to-be five minute borrowing/returning of stuff that turns into two whole hours of chatting in the hallway against the heater. I'm sorry for all the time I wasted but it was so fun talking with you. Justin was actually the first friend I made in Law School back in first year. Haihs, so long ago. Tengy and him go really well together, it's maddeningly cute to see them together, you just wanna poke fun.
Endrick was something really cool to have happened to me that I did not expect at all. First year and second, we did not roll in the same groups. Even though I knew him since A level years, we were always distant. He turns out to be such fun, a great chef, his sambal ikan bilis is to die for. He was just so sweet with his egg tarts and turns out he's the only guy I can have a conversation about Victoria's secret fashion shows with. The best thing about him is that he's so honest with me and it's so refreshing and direct.
I miss that atmosphere, always having a close group of friends around you, not even five minutes away. I miss the dinners we had, if we wanted to have dinner together, same day we'd get it done. Now, it's a week's planning on facebook. And even that doesn't come together sometimes.
Oh well.
I notice a lot of things have changed since I got back, mostly who I am as a person. I really think I grew up a little in the time I was in UK (grew sideways too). But that's for later (as it's a little gratuitous) however, I do not think I have matured at all while in the UK. At all.
Here's the crux of this post. I miss Mackinder Hall. God, i do. So much. Talking about Elisa alone can fill up three posts but she knows how much I miss us in MacKinder. This is about my friends.
I really miss waking up, heading to the kitchen and nine times out of ten, Jia Sen or Sher Hann would be there. Not in the morning though, then ten times out of ten they'd be dead to the world. But Jia Sen would be there having bagels with cream cheese, mashed potatoes, or trying out a dish his mom emailed him. Then, letting us try it. He'd be cooking dinner and we'd trade recipes and borrow stuff from each other's cabinets. It had an organic and communal feel to it. It helped that the guy was just so funny even without meaning to be. Fun to bully.
Sher Hann would be eating what she cooked two days ago (in advance, not leftovers). It's always so entertaining with Sher Hann, inside jokes and hypothetical situations always crack me up. I miss her curry. Her spicy chicken curry. And her salmon pasta. And lingam. She has lingam. I miss the impromptu dinners we had, the bustle of all four of us cooking in one kitchen, the ASDA online shopping meetings.
I mean, they're just really great people and they're so cool and I miss them so much. And Justin. Justin, Justin, Justin. Your kitchen was the host to our christmas dinner, our post-christmas dinners, our pre-christmas dinners. The dinner you and Tengy made for Elisa and I after Italy was awesome. I wanna cook for you guys when we get back there, kay? More than the food, it was also about the supposed-to-be five minute borrowing/returning of stuff that turns into two whole hours of chatting in the hallway against the heater. I'm sorry for all the time I wasted but it was so fun talking with you. Justin was actually the first friend I made in Law School back in first year. Haihs, so long ago. Tengy and him go really well together, it's maddeningly cute to see them together, you just wanna poke fun.
Endrick was something really cool to have happened to me that I did not expect at all. First year and second, we did not roll in the same groups. Even though I knew him since A level years, we were always distant. He turns out to be such fun, a great chef, his sambal ikan bilis is to die for. He was just so sweet with his egg tarts and turns out he's the only guy I can have a conversation about Victoria's secret fashion shows with. The best thing about him is that he's so honest with me and it's so refreshing and direct.
I miss that atmosphere, always having a close group of friends around you, not even five minutes away. I miss the dinners we had, if we wanted to have dinner together, same day we'd get it done. Now, it's a week's planning on facebook. And even that doesn't come together sometimes.
Oh well.
1.5.11
The Spider's Thread
It's this story about this criminal in Hell (or the Buddhist version of Hell, each religion seems to have their own version) and how he never did any good deeds in his entire lifetime save for one. On a walk through a forest, he decided not to kill a spider that he was about to step on. A small spider, hardly noticeable at all and it would not have affected anyone if he killed it and yet he chose to spare the spider's life.
So Buddha (I think it's Buddha, can't be sure... but probably Buddha) took note of this and lowered down a spider's thread all the way from Heaven down to Hell. This criminal noticed the thread and grabbed on to it, climbing upwards to Heaven.
Halfway through, he looks down and sees other residents of Hell grabbing the spider thread and climbing up, and worrying that the spider thread would break from the combined weight of all of them, the criminal yelled at them to get off, that the spider thread was his and only his. At that moment, the spider thread broke. The criminal and all the other residents climbing the thread, fell back to Hell.
So, what's the moral of the story? Don't be a selfish ass? Do a measure of good and receive a measure of reward? All possible but one aspect of the story that really sticks to me is this. The criminaldid not know where the thread came from, yet he grabs it and climbs up. I suppose anywhere is better than Hell, right? That's not the problem. The problem is that the game was rigged. Buddha would have known the criminal would have wanted the string for himself, He's in Hell, what does that tell you about him? And yet, why did he still lower the thread?
Yeah, I know people will be like, "Oh, that's compassion" or "Oh, despite having almighty power, there needs to be exercise of free will by humans" but if it really was compassion, then it's a false one. You give someone hope knowing they'll fall right back, even worse since they wouldn't have fallen without your "help". Secondly, the argument of free will only works if you don't tamper at all. Swooping in when it suits you hardly justifies all the other moments of free will, doesn't it?
The thing is, you can't blame the guy for grabbing on to the thread, you would have too. You can't blame him for yelling at all those other guys, he's desperate to get out, he's scared to fall back to Hell (irony). But those from up high probably shouldn't toy with us lesser beings.
On another note, the criminal really didn't have much to worry about (probably). Spider silk is actually pretty tough. It can stretch up to 1.4 times its length without breaking, so that makes it pretty tough. Apparently, the toughest silk produced by a spider is ten times tougher than kevlar, if you compare it at the same size and amount. So, he would have been fine.
Speaking of spiders make me think of Spider-man. Thinking of Spider-man makes me think of Marvel Comics. Thinking of Marvel Comics makes me think of Iron-Man. Or Thor. Let's go with Thor right now. Conan O Brien had this altered trailer of the upcoming Thor movie on his show, Conan. It's been around a while but still, if you haven't checked it out then you're probably living under a rock. Or properly studying for Law (good for you, give yourself a pat on the back). In any case, check this out.
I shall leave you with this, an eye for an eye leaves everyone with one eye.
So Buddha (I think it's Buddha, can't be sure... but probably Buddha) took note of this and lowered down a spider's thread all the way from Heaven down to Hell. This criminal noticed the thread and grabbed on to it, climbing upwards to Heaven.
Halfway through, he looks down and sees other residents of Hell grabbing the spider thread and climbing up, and worrying that the spider thread would break from the combined weight of all of them, the criminal yelled at them to get off, that the spider thread was his and only his. At that moment, the spider thread broke. The criminal and all the other residents climbing the thread, fell back to Hell.
So, what's the moral of the story? Don't be a selfish ass? Do a measure of good and receive a measure of reward? All possible but one aspect of the story that really sticks to me is this. The criminaldid not know where the thread came from, yet he grabs it and climbs up. I suppose anywhere is better than Hell, right? That's not the problem. The problem is that the game was rigged. Buddha would have known the criminal would have wanted the string for himself, He's in Hell, what does that tell you about him? And yet, why did he still lower the thread?
Yeah, I know people will be like, "Oh, that's compassion" or "Oh, despite having almighty power, there needs to be exercise of free will by humans" but if it really was compassion, then it's a false one. You give someone hope knowing they'll fall right back, even worse since they wouldn't have fallen without your "help". Secondly, the argument of free will only works if you don't tamper at all. Swooping in when it suits you hardly justifies all the other moments of free will, doesn't it?
The thing is, you can't blame the guy for grabbing on to the thread, you would have too. You can't blame him for yelling at all those other guys, he's desperate to get out, he's scared to fall back to Hell (irony). But those from up high probably shouldn't toy with us lesser beings.
On another note, the criminal really didn't have much to worry about (probably). Spider silk is actually pretty tough. It can stretch up to 1.4 times its length without breaking, so that makes it pretty tough. Apparently, the toughest silk produced by a spider is ten times tougher than kevlar, if you compare it at the same size and amount. So, he would have been fine.
Speaking of spiders make me think of Spider-man. Thinking of Spider-man makes me think of Marvel Comics. Thinking of Marvel Comics makes me think of Iron-Man. Or Thor. Let's go with Thor right now. Conan O Brien had this altered trailer of the upcoming Thor movie on his show, Conan. It's been around a while but still, if you haven't checked it out then you're probably living under a rock. Or properly studying for Law (good for you, give yourself a pat on the back). In any case, check this out.
I shall leave you with this, an eye for an eye leaves everyone with one eye.
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