Penal Code s. 377A

I am saddened that pple in Singapore today still choose to oppress and criminalise sexual minorities like gays and lesbians, bisexuals and transexuals.

not thinking that because society has placed them as social rejects, the "weird ones", the "different ones", they are instead the ones that need our protection and understanding, and ACCPETANCE that they are just who they are.

Some are also unable to differentiate between DE-CRIMINALISING gay sex and Criminalising gay sex, the former doesnt mean we are legalising gay sex nor accepting them. Its an assertion that clearly states we should not treat other members of society any different from us just because of sexual, racial, or gender differences.

Instead, we are trapped in an illogical and disproportionate fear of homophobia in a society that defends itself simply by the reason of being "conservative" or "culturally unacceptable".

sunday couldnt come earlier

bali bound. can any of you wait?
anybody planning to pangseh or be late?


gosh. hope its not rainy there but im sure our combined prayers will bring us sunny beaches, hot babes, hot men??, nice dinners, fun clean parties, great shopping and lastly safety.


sunday really couldnt come faster.

bali bomb, bali bomb, bali bomb to hambali bomb.

okay.
i've decided to go for the trip. to my dismay.
here's a few thanks.


to greg. who settled the flight.
if it cock up u know who cock up.

to mark, who graciously offered to pay for the accomo in the face of grave danger of not getting all back.

to greg for being so nice about wanting me to come.
u'd be more persuasive if u stayed in a room with me. hurhur.


to ian who offered to find package which was a kind gesture.
would be nice if u organised the next trip uknow.
then we would be the ones worrying about being left out of the loop cos we'd be clamouring to you for travel info.

to the rest, shaun lam rols. sorry lah rols u last ah. someone had to be last.
but not in terms of importance ok. if u buay song can submit a buay song request with me.
yeah thanks for making it easy. like replying soon and shit.
oh yeah. "if i go he'll go. so if i dont go he wont go, hurhur -sheepish grin-"
in the end all go right wahlao...


and to jh and isaac. love to have u with us.
hope u can get off work asap and join us too. havent forgotten that.

bang bang bang

Can we each bring a loudhailer so we can sound like that electronic voice on CS? I think hearing "Counter-terrorists win" after pumping each other full of red paint is gonna be so damn cool.

OMG I CAN BLOG

omg i can blog!

interesting

thanks shaun and jh.

shaun for telling me what i do wrong.
i'm sorry lah. i'll try not to smoke so much.

jianhong for being pissed off and telling me.
cos its never easy and i appreciate the frankness.


somewhere between those lines, and my own recent blog post about greg scolding me for being stressed, i can see who my friends are.

priceless moments

Ultimate Sunday!

This Sunday 13th of May is officially deemed as Ultimate Sunday!

A day of R & R at the Singapore southern coastline surrounded by the sun, sand, sea and ships!
Meet us there straight at 2pm on the sands of Cafe del Mar or 1pm at Vivocity for lunch (as of now just me)!

Be there or be pie-ar square!

live for the swarm

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!! I'm turning into a DRONE!!!!

Next thing I know a great big arrow in the sky will click on me and ask me to mutate into a creep colony...

poh's lomo pics!

the pictures are damn nice. check out poh's facebook..

all other countries are run by little girls

Because of the great love and admiration for Great Warlord Premier Bush Jobs, I post this video in tribute:



Well since we're on a roll, here's to senor harrioso our local bak chor mee man too!!

http://www.mrbrownshow.com/?p=845

how-to-tie-a-tie.net

internship is uber fun la. meet new people, network, think about your future and your spending power. mother fun.

wear nice shirts and look pro.

why are you sulking isaac, you got the creme de la creme of pr firms. smile and bring more chicks out shopping ;)

tie-a-tie.net

Hello guys, I finish exams and you've all either buggered off to kiss maozedong's arse and get ripped off or driving desks 9-5. Oh wait, 9-6. Five day week now right? Work starts in 4 days and I couldn't dread it more. Shopping for office wear yesterday made me shudder at the thought of having to wear it for the rest of my life. If they bury me in a shirt and tie I'll wake up and ask for berms...well ok and maybe a beer. I hate this stupid pressure that the Singapore system places on you. I hate that everytime I think of taking a break all that comes to mind is the time I'll supposedly lose. So now here I am. About to embark on a 3 month internship and honestly not looking forward to it very much. Well I guess it could be worse. I could be working in a bank.

Hey when you guys are all investment bankers and such with weekly notices from the bank telling you how the sheer volume of your money is causing them problems, drop me a coin when you pass me living in my box.

Thanks

i fixed the blog...

... so your kukus can update us about your shanghai trip

some positive energy

cai i expect the blog to be up and running by the time you get back from shanghai

pick em up yourself

Cai after you're done with the exams its your damn responsibility to fix this blog.

Even the pink was waaaaaaaaayyyy better than this crap.

Your excuse that you ruined it so somebody will be compelled to make it better isn't even funny.

Pick up your own shit sir.

Since everyone's doing it:

Read my VisualDNA™ Get your own VisualDNA™

HAPPY BIRTHDAY STYX

Happy Bdae to my good Ol' Fren

but considering u have been such an ass about this blog, might as well bang u here first.


anyway, same thing, same stuff.. At least i think i'm the 1st to post it here :P Happy birthday Shaun!!!


Zhi Guang

LOL

at least its not pink

hey guys

be positive k. this layout is nicer than pink and white.

and some elements of the initial colors blue.


if u really buay song.
ask the old master to come back.

and btw, old master. can u put up the chatterbox? thanks

this is quite cool

Read my VisualDNA™ Get your own VisualDNA™

- bored. = dashboard.

hey guys. hope u all had fun last night with your respective chicks.

i gotta be honest man.
i have no clue how i peeled myself off that place after all those drinks.
and zouk after hello. yo.
im not me anymore i guess.
but that game with johnny and quek was damn fun lah.
even in a sober state i tell you that game is fucked up man.


kinda wished we sentosa-ed today though. been awhile since we tossed afew.
love you all.



P.S shaun okay i've had enough.
i wanna change the background. i'll take control of the blog if u wanna man your prettypixiespeeing photoblog. do i need a password or anything?

Going Green.. Its About Time

The New buzzword in town, Green, green, green. If you havent noticed, everyone everywhere is talking about going green, from renewable resources, to waste reduction, to carbon cutting, to trading of green stocks, to new technologies, to global treaties.

What can we do? what can insignificant you or me do to help in this whole big plan?

First, watch "An Inconvenient Truth" by Al Gore which won an Oscar, and guaranteed to inspire. I watched it, and I think everyone who has a chance should watch it too.

Well, its about time Singapore did something too. You would be pleased to note, we singaporeans are pumping in $170 million into reserach on solar power as reported by the Straits Times, 17 March 2007.

wow. that is alot aint it? Europe is considering carbon taxing, setting carbon reduction targets, and the European Commission planning to raise renewable fuels to 20%. UK is considering a green tax. on top of that, actively recycling. US starting on tightening automobile standards. take a look at news.BBC.co.uk for the whole wide expose on different measures, controls, methods and plans in the pipeline. and we are just starting to "research" green technology mainly because it will spur more jobs. seems like a small step for us, a giant leap of catch up to do.

The world is changing, and change we must to stay ahead. But how fast is that change? considering we had our last hottest summers in the last 5years for the whole of 2000years, and the most number and severe of thunderstorms, floods, droughts, seems like that change aint as slow as we thought. It is upon us to act now, and to act, we must be aware. To be aware, we must be perceptive and willing to acknowledge change is necessary. Should we even be concerned or remain aloof and apathetic? I think the facts speak for themselves.

The Things We Miss

As term comes to an end, some lucky few get to head back to motherland.

me, on the other hand, am stuck here..

suddenly thinking of Majullah Singapura makes me think of...

Katong Laksa, steam!!!

Still Road Bak Chor Mee

Changi Village Nasi Lemak

Balestier Bak Kut Teh

Ang Mo Kio Hokkien Mee

Yio Chu Kang Roti Prata

Geylang Hor Fun + Tau Hui Zui + Yiu Tiao

Bedok Fishball Noodles

Bras Brasah Turtle Soup

Serangoon Gardens Chomp Chomp Oysters

Marina Bay Steam Boat

Chinatown Red Star Restaurant Tim Sum

Orchard Paragon Sushi Teh Sashimi

Merchant Court Hotel Buffet

AND I CANT EVEN BUY MILO-peng HERE... NBCB!!! talk about 1st bloood.. i just wish i had a scroll of town portal for 135gold.

another way of looking at things

I was going to do my bit and blog some crap about how I've never figured out how girls can go to a hairdresser and carry on a running conversation that encompasses everything from life in the corporate world to staying away from sharks while scuba diving.

Well yes I suppose I'd be eavesdropping.

Instead I find myself put in an extremely sombre and contemplative mood as a result of just having watched Paradise Now. In a nutshell, it chronicles the last 48 hours of two Palestinians who find out that they've been selected to carry out a mission in Tel Aviv. I can't say I wholly agree with everything being put forth in the film but one thing that really struck me is how we always seem to think we can understand where these people are coming from. We've seen so many Osama videos on al-Jazeera many of us just see them as the ravings of an old tired man with not much to hold on to. We dismiss the martyrdom speeches of suicide bombers as the ravings of mad, irrational men. And yet many of these people are products of circumstances not so much unimaginable as completely alien to us. It was really poignant to see the disparity between Israel and Palestine. All that seperated bustling, tree-lined streets and sandy beaches from bombed out buildings, scrapyards and dusty unpaved roads was a metal fence topped with hurricane wire. Whats more, while the movie was being filmed, a car just down the street was brought under missile attack from Israeli helicopter gunships and one of their own crew was kidnapped by a Palestinian group. Putting yourself in their shoes is one thing, being born in them is quite another.

Oh wow look I'm writing a movie review. I have to acknowledge though that this is obviously a screenplay very heavily weighted towards the Palestinian side but at the very least it gives the outsider an idea of what things look like from the inside. Anybody know of any good films about the Israeli side of things? Like say from the perspective of one those conscript soldiers?

classified

hi, anybody wanna sell his/her acoustic guitar to me?

$250 is as far as im willing to go.


i need some music to soothe this frazzled mind.
come on guys, save a blog.

if u see this

happy birthday greg.


come back soon to celebrate!

next wed - mission.

hey guys,

mandy's velvet on wed.

if you're name is tan tan tan sim ng seow cai.
come. must wear dark colour. must look HAMSUM.
must buy PLAAASENT. must not publicly embarass the birthday girl.
okay guys?


side note: i know some of u hate/quit clubbing. so be gentlemen and inform her if u're not going okay? maybe your non-presence will free up the real estate in velvet for some other hot chick for the benefit of your fellow friends.

nei ge nei ge

hey guys,

have u guys recovered from your v-day sexcapades?
is there anything going on today?
dont shy leh. say say say.

do u see anything behind the smoke?

zhiguang we still miss you.

okay guys, here's some new years party pics.

Friday the ninth

thanks guys for all the laughs,

ppd blinking into trees, greg walking into pillars.
and jh oh jh. the classic.

"uncle four pork chop noodles and one zhu pa mian for me pls"
u guys rock.


love, -enigmatime

the things we can do with herd mentality

sentosa

guys guys guys

it's hard to get everyone free so please do try ok
Isaac and Jh can't make it on saturday so we try sunday
but i don't wanna waste sms sending out so just say whether you can make it or not
cai doesn't want to go unless everyone goes
so if sunday isn't a good day either, i don't mind just going with ian mark greg to toss a few

competition's coming up so let's try for gold instead of just playing for fun alright?
3 weeks.

challenge me
challenge accepted.

p.s. 3km warm up run

KKK

That's the in-thing running around my house these days. No, my family is not white-american. Neither are we racist. We don't discriminate, we merely differentiate. :)

Anyway, move aside Ku Klux Klan, there's a new Klan running the 'hood. Make way for Kitty Kat Klan.

Thank to my sis and her ingenious boyfriend, my new network is KittyKatKlan. Marvelous. Absolutely marvelous.

my lunch

my lunch for the day. maggi mee, hash brown topped with sio ba (roasted porku/babi/pok--rk house), some fruits.. and banana milk. and im eating alone.. while reading the book never eat alone.

australian open here i come

hey guys, frigging tennis game yday.
played like shit.
cannot do anything at all.
lucky my partner damn steady. win all the points for us whilst the opponents aim me.

anyway, that was at 10pm yday. at 1045, at 7-2 with my partner serving at advantage kr, the frigging lights went out.
now i gotta stay back for the continuation at 9 tonight. which totally spoils my schedule.


will be late if i meet u guys today. met up with isaac just now. he's seriously a chick magnet. bern if u read this, u're one of them.

the world according to (some) singaporeans

Found this on mrbrown and just thought it was really funny

wawaweewa

Jagshemash,

Today, I finally caught Borat. There's not many shows that will make me laugh in front of my computer but Borat made me laugh my balls off. It was so retarded (retired) that I'm embarrassed that I've watched it.

I'm still surprised that he's alive today and didn't get killed by those Americans for all the retired things he did. Sacha Baron Cohen is what you get when you rolled Johnny Knoxville and Rowan Atkinson together. He is honestly, a British Jackass. And he's got balls of steel. Respect.

So, from everyone here in Kazakhstan, I wish you all sexy time and enjoy many many romantic explosion. High five!

just us.

One meal a day

GENTLEMEN.....

Which portion is bigger? 2 $3 bowls of laksa? or 1 $4 bowl of laksa add hum ($1) add noodles ($1) to make $6 laksa?

I went for my career foundations class last week..and the tutor told us about a genuine case whereby an NTU undergrad was being interviewed by the MD of Goldman Sachs. The interviewer asked him "as the last question I would like to ask you what your friends think of you"

and you know what the fella said? he said "my friends think I'm God. because I know everything" He said it with a poker face. Up till now, 2 years after graduation, he still hasn't found a job.

Sigh, NTU's reputation is really going down the drain..filled with rapists, peeping toms, and msn password stealers threatening feeble girls for photos of their breasts, I wonder if there's anything I CAN DO to make NTU a better place.

Happy studying all..till friday when the shadows call again :)

can't sleep

Hi guys, I can't sleep. and its 5.56am.

Thought i would just do a bit of blogging, and let you guys know whats driving me these days. I really enjoy finance. No, not the money side, i mean wages do matter, but money is but temporal. you can't carry money into your grave. so thats not what i long for. I know you would know about this, but i dropped Geography in JC. it was my best subject and my favourite. I dropped it so i could hang on to my physics, which i felt was a safer choice.. I could go into engineering. wrong move. i liked physics, but it didnt bring me to engineering. During the army, i developed a love for presentations during my S2 training. I felt that talking to people is a skill, convincing people is a skill. But i was still lost. I didnt know what to do with my life, or what would happen after uni, all i knew was that i would go to smu.

In smu, FA (yes fa...) was the first finance topic i ever took. and guess what? i really enjoyed it.. Chua's finance also prodded me deeper into the world of finance. Not just finance, but corporate finance. I watched these shows, Family Man, Boiler Room, Wall Street and Barbarians at the Gates. Family Man was a show that showed nicholas cage as a senior investment banker in a boutique firm. All he cared about was work work and work. He would work on christmas and boxing day and everything. until one day, he woke up, and he found out he wasnt on his regular posh bed and room. he was a father with a family..

Boiler Room was about a young intelligent man who was conned into a firm trading scam stocks called JT Marlin. They would call up potential "whales", sold them huge amounts of stocks and the stocks would crash. Such things still happen in the markets nowadays btw.

Barbarians at the Gates is my all time favourite. It was about the leveraged buyout of RJR Nabisco. (They sell oreo cookies and a lot of other things). It was 1987 and Nabisco was facing a crisis. henry kravis from private equity firm KKR (kkr is the most prestigious PE firm in the world. super elitist) recommended the idea of an LBO to the CEO, Ross Johnson. henry kravis owned buyouts at that time. he was the one who created LBOs. However, Ross Johnson took his idea and banded a few friends (people from shearson lehman and amex) together and tried to buyout the company, without henry kravis. kravis launched into an allout offensive to bid for the firm and soon, a bidding war arose. I will leave the end out as we will be watching the show soon. (we = poh ian greg youyi flea) anyone else wanna watch let me know! sch library course reserve viewing room.

Anyway, to cut a long story short. My aim is to enter an investment banking firm as an anaylst. learn as much as i can, the rudimentaries of deal-making and valuation. talking to clients and how to pitch a convincing deal. after i've done learning, i want to move to a PE firm. possibly a firm like texas pacific or bain or even kkr. Im dreaming, i know. but i deserve to dream. Everyone deserves to have his own dream. Because only when you dream, then u know what you truly want.

alright, thats about all the details i can bore you with about my life. this is me. take it or leave it. thanks shaun and ian for dropping by my place tonight, it was a really good chat. felt like jc/eunos coffeeshop/lorong sarina/burnfoot terrace/jalan ishak/telok kurau once more. good night folks.

Random pics

heres some random pictures just to make this blog more colourful..

This was just yesterday. At the dinner after the cognitare business case challenge. It was a L'Oreal acquisition case. Pretty simple case, but we went kinda out of point. Thankfully we still made it to the finals.

Here is Felicia and Youyi. Also known as Flea and Josiah. The other 2 members in my team. Poh's missing cos he pangseh the dinner and go find lee...

This is Rachael Yamagata. I think shes really hot.

This was last year's christmas. I dont know why? but christmas always seems to pass so fast. faster than everything else. Maybe because christmas is the most enjoyable time of the year? and fun times always pass the fastest. - at the ugly/pretty/golden tree.

Finally. this is what i made for my new year's eve dinner with cell group. Potato Salad Italian style! A lot of effort and hard work went into this.. Anyways, parting note. About exchange matters next year, i really hope everyone will get to go to where they truly want to go. Italy, Spain, France whereever.. we can meet up in summer! or visit each other and can bunk in and save money.

bang bang bang

HENRY HO SEH LA!!!!!!

jh don't sour grapes can? :P

fear

What is your biggest fear?

YATA!!!

I am so high now it'd take one of China's new satellite busting missiles to bring me down.

Excuse me while I go put on my red jersey.

noh alam shasha

Since we're on the topic of football I must say that I've been bloody impressed by the Lions so far. Well ok Laos was a joke but Vietnam and Indonesia were no pushovers and I've never seen the Singapore attack look so potent before. The way they ripped the Indo defense to shreds was sheer joy. Defensively they're still a bloody heart attack waiting to happen but dammit, Indra and Noh Alam Shah are more than making up for it. Ok I'd guess probably only Cai would know what I'm talking about.

On another note COME ON LA LIVERPOOL!!!!!! Got few enough things to celebrate already.

rooftrellen's ulti is called...?

Heeding cai's call to blog more here cos I'm bored in FIIM class and reading soccernet for the 897394718457928834th time.

It never fails to capture my attention that David Beckham, the man with the magic right foot is going to earn 500,000 pounds a week at his next club, LA Galaxy. I don't care if he is going to be taxed 40%, 50% or 60%, it's still a crapload of money.

For those unfamiliar with the exchange rates, 500k pounds is more or less S$1.5 million, give or take 100k. I swear if he comes to Singapore, he can single-handed boost the national GDP by a few percent. I really don't mind being David Beckham for just a week. Okay, I won't be greedy, a day will do: kick a few balls, pose for the camera, speak in his Mickey Mouse voice, horseplay with Victoria, help him make amends in the affair department (e.g.: choosing classier ladies other than Rebecca Loos), earn S$200k, etc.

A day in David Beckhams' body; Wawaweewa! I can't hardly wait.

tsktsk

good news everyone,

i'm blogging again.
took time off my busy recuperation schedule to type some shit here.
shitshitshit.

can we all start posting regularly?
i dont know whether this chick magnet blog has lost its purpose since everyones gotten their own now. but nonetheless a presence of personal blog has also deprived me of some group blogging time for sure.
dunno about pixel and dummerboy.
=p

sigh, humans inately have short attention span, holiday too long also sian. school start also sian. school start but no work to do, lagi sian. such is life, nothing is objectively fun, or sustainable. u do it after awhile, its sian. for me, im sian of hero killing in dota. SIAN. haha. thanks ian.

nonetheless since we're a bunch of smelly sneaky guys, i dont expect u to air your laundry out here about who you've been sneaky sneaky with. just post some random happenings about SMU or outside life which may be remotely interesting. like the noodles auntie pouring soup on your hand and u screamed like a chicken in kopitiam. or u went to the gym and slept while everyone else worked out.=p. or your tutor asked the class if anyone knew how to pronounce the word siobhan and u realise your gf's name is siobhan.

okay i think i'll stop here. i need to get some fresh air. err. shaun i think i owe u a blog revival proposal. here it is.
not so much a proposal lah. its more like a plea for help.
SOS GUYS. our blog needs YOU.

heard the latest news?

blue horseshoe loves anacott steel.

put your best customers in it.

blue earrings 

one of the many chocolate fountains in the house.. 

ok i look kinda drunk 

this was at the jalan jurong kechil party..30dec.poh downing a bottle. isaac .. i dont know what hes doing.  

the ice bar.. 

evil elmo and barney the pink dinosaur? 

Happy New Year TEG

This is a little overdue but it's important to me enough at least to post it. Take heed that this took a little over 6 hours to compose so it's going to be a very long one.

Five years on, I'm going to do a review of each of us and my New Year wishes to all of you. Please take what I have to say with a pinch of salt. I mean no harm and I only seek to say what I believe in. It is my personal views so question me in person if you are not happy with what I said. I apologize now to any bouts of anger you might experience while reading this entry. Also, I will refrain from talking about DotA because I'm honestly, a little sick of how pervasive DotA has become in our lives. A little less DotA won't kill us. So here goes, in alphabetical order so no one will complain.

CAI:
Our dearest Cai Po. Honestly, I have nothing really good or bad to say about him. And that in itself is a testament to his character. He has been a good friend and on a whole, I would say that he is a genuinely nice person to be around with, except for the fact that he tends to shoot his mouth off rather quickly, much to the ire of some people around him (Shaun, myself, his parents, etc.). But he is quick to realize his mistakes and always apologizes promptly.

Generally, I enjoy chilling with him because he usually has a lot to say about a lot of things. With him around, there is always a healthy dose of conversation, which is something I enjoy. It is a point to note that we haven't clashed much during our friendship except the time he told some girl something I said outside Zouk that became misinterpreted. But I was really pissed that time. However, it's all in the past now and I sincerely feel that Cai on the whole, is a great friend to have. I treasure his friendship very much and wish him all the best in his relationship, sailing endeavors and life in general. It's the caizman, yo!

GREG:
I didn't really get to know Greg until my posting to BMTC. Honestly had quite an awesome time there, mostly because of Greg. From swimming, to canteen breaks, to visiting him when I book out, to mambo escapes and sleeping on stone benches, to Valentines' Day out in SITEST, he helped to make camp life all that more tolerable and for that, I thank him.

Greg is probably most famous for his decisions to play the neutral party. It is understandable that it would be difficult to take stands among friends but it does get on their nerves sometimes.

I feel that Greg's most notable strength is that when he desires something very much, he's not afraid to commit to that cause. While that is good, it is also his weakness in that he has the propensity to "All-in" and when the result does not go according to plan, he has the tendency to "Chui" for a period of time.

I want to apologize for scolding him once in NJ. It was quite a big misunderstanding. Greg, if you want to know why, ask me.

All in all, I wish you the best in your current relationship. It's good to see that you've settle down.

ISAAC:
If I had to sum Isaac up in one word, it would be sincerity. Isaac always tries to join us for whatever activity we have planned even if he doesn't really enjoy it. I appreciate that effort. Thank you.

But Isaac is very likely to say/do the wrong things at the wrong time, to hilarious effects. Don't take it to heart, Isaac, we mean no harm. I'm sure you know that.

I am very much for doing other activities other than DotA and clubbing. Perhaps some drinks at the pub, listening to live bands, or night-cycling for supper treat around Singapore would a nice alternative. You've been doing things that we like for quite sometime now, perhaps in 2007 it's time that we did something that you enjoy for a change.

Honestly, I feel that Isaac deserves more empathy than what TEG offers. Isaac's appeals kind of always falls on deaf ears (me, guilty as well) but maybe you should be more vocal about your concerns. Like the time at Sentosa for Cai's birthday. Stay and tell Cai off, he knows he's wrong. If you just walk off like that, nothing's going to change.

It was great having that small jamming session in your room that day. Perhaps one day, your dreams of forming a band may come true.

JIANHONG:
The Pro. JH and I go a long way back, since those days of waiting for bus 55 along Still Road and discussing whether 15 or 55 reaches VJ faster. JH has been around since the start of TEG. He also introduced jazz to TEG which I feel is an awesome contribution.

JH's strongest virtue is that, of all of us here in TEG, he probably has the best idea of what he wants out of life and he is not afraid to go for it. He knows what to do and where to get it and in that, I respect him. Sometimes, I secretly hope he would share some of his experiences and lobangs 'cause I want more exposure to this world. I'm not as pro as him at sourcing out such stuff. However, JH does have the mentality of a winner. He has a very strong competition streak that in its most extreme form alienates us a little. Which is a little, well, upsetting?

We definitely have had some great times together in the past but of late; he has become an enigma to me. Perhaps I don't really understand him anymore. But in spite of this, I know that JH is very clear with regards to his future and for that, I am happy for him. JH, whatever your endeavors maybe, you have my best wishes.

MARK:
Our resident mat brother, Mark has never failed to be misrecognized as Malay. Mat Seow, Muhammark Bin Seow, we hope that he can eventually return to his Cheena roots that's why we call him Ma3 Xiao1 now. Mark really enjoys his Teh Peng to the extent that he also drinks Teh Peng in Zouk. Partying with him is always awesome although sometimes (read: most of the time) he disappears to the river. Quite typical of him, he likes to disappear to the river when we do something else as well.

Okkkkkkkkkkk...I will break my promise for once and talk about DotA here because Mark is ALL ABOUT DotA! He organizes most of our DotA trips (99.9999%) and really hates to lose. His black face will become blacker. He is usually quite sensible in his decisions (quite like real life) except that he refuses to tank AND you absolutely cannot criticize him in a game otherwise he will be pissed off. But if he wins, everything will be a-ok later.

Personally, I feel that he has currently got the best life of all of us in TEG and he has a brighter future up ahead for him. I'm looking forward to great things from you, Mark! All the best to you and Grace and I maintain my stand that you two are extremely compatible.

SHAUN:
Peepeedog, it is hard for me, but I have to tell the truth. As much as I am not a physical person, Shaun is the ONLY TEG member that never fails to make me feel like punching him during an argument. He has these mood swings that tend towards the aggressive and I think he really likes to scold people. He is the most outspoken member against "Hoes over Bros" but he is also, by historical records, its most extensive practitioner. His pet phrase is "I don't care" but in honesty, I feel he does cares a lot, even if he doesn't show it. He has the most uncanny ability to piss me off (I have to state now that I have tamed significantly over the years and is as of today, a mild representation of my fiery past) because I feel he scolds me for no reason and doesn't do a good job of rationalizing why he is scolding me (To this he will say "I don't have to rationalize anything"). Shaun is driven very much by his emotions, as a result, he can potentially be your best friend, however, when he shuts you out, you can effectively F.O. from his current life. Regardless, Shaun and myself go a long way back to the days of brown shorts and long blue pants and I have always sought to treat him as a great, if not awesome, friend. He just makes the task impossibly daunting for me. And as much as our friendship has deteriorated over the years, I have always liked to see him as my best friend in TEG even if it is not reciprocated (To this, he would probably say: "I don't care").

I know I am doing him a great injustice here because his list of virtues would more than equal this bad list I have here. But words do him no justice anyway. You just have to know him better to experience the full extent of his enigmatic personality (or you can be a pretty girl).

For him, I wish him better luck in his endeavors, wherever they may lead him. Sometimes, you need a little luck to push you in the right way. And also better grades, not because he needs them, but because I think he deserves better.

ZHIGUANG:
What can I say about ZG that is good? Hmmmmmm...never mind, I'll just talk and maybe something good will pop up somewhere. No, but really ZG is a great guy. You just have to dig through all his bullshit to find it. My first impression of ZG is that he was frivolous and superficial but it took awhile to find that it was just a cover to the person within. He really likes to joke around and he doesn't mind being "the joke" as long as it doesn't go overboard. I admire his ability to be TEG's perennial whipping boy because not everyone can stand being "the joke" all the time. He has shown that he can "take it like a man".

It took this year's Xmas night to see his true colors. Hanging out with him and his friends, chilling at the Cannery with some drinks, I dared say that I had a great time chatting through the countdown. Why can't we see more of THAT side of ZG?

In spite of all the times we made fun of you, I'd like to say that I'll miss your presence when you go back to Durham. As the English say: Godspeed.

IAN:
Most people who know me can probably draw up a list of the bad faster than they can sum up the good. I must admit that the way I represent myself can be less than satisfactory sometimes. I can be harsh, stubborn and though I do apologize for my misgivings, I seldom admit to be wrong because I always think I'm right. I am lazy and apathetic. I am powered by reason but driven by emotion. I am known to explode in spectacular fashion, burning everyone around me with my caustic tongue (I have mellowed tremendously but that doesn't mean I'm incapable of such a cataclysmic event). In the recent years, I have tried to be nicer to everyone around me but if you've not seen my better side then I'm sorry. Perhaps you were simply unlucky. Before my twenties, I certainly admit to being a notorious brat but give me credit in that I have matured significantly since then. I always tell you the truth you need to hear because friends shouldn't sugar-coat things for each other in such a situation. I AM ALWAYS LATE but trust me when I say that I'm trying, even meeting girls I'm late, I'm that bad so you can surely understand. Give me credit when I'm early, you know that was a humongous effort but don't make me wait; you know an eye for an eye doesn't work with friends (or anyone else for that matter). And you know I have improved. I am not one to ask for help but when I do, please help me because you know I really need it this time. I DON'T DRIVE, not because I am lazy or seek to take advantage of my friends but because I don't see a need to, yet. I don't ask for rides and I don't expect any but if you offer I will take it up. Sincerely, I thank you all in advance.

But I am not a fair-weathered friend. Whenever you need a listening ear, I will be there. When you are in trouble and want help, I won't leave. When you seek advice, I'll tell you straight to you face what you need to hear. Give me credit there, you know it's true.

Dear friends, my wish for this year is for you guys not to play emotions with me. I'm not very good at that, that's why I screw up with girls. Don't ask me to chill when I'm upset or angry because I don't know how to chill. I am a man of reason and reason always calms me down. Don't leave me alone either because it has the same effect as leaving a boiling kettle on a stove: everything overflows. I would like you guys to know that in life I seek neither personal glories nor individual victories, I seek friendship and appreciation. I seek to treasure the relationships I find in life because they are the ones that make one's mundane life pass with more meaning.

TEG:
For the whole group, I wish we can play less DotA because even though it's fun and enjoyable and we really like hearing TRIPLE KILL and MMMMMONSTERKILL, it doesn't do anything to further forge our friendships and it's sick to face the computer screen for 6 hours a night. Any given day, I'd rather toss a Frisbee or chat over drinks or even have a barbeque. Even in DotA, please don't settle for IMBA teams. Our individual skills vary significantly amongst certain members and as much as you enjoy having 20-0 on your scoreboard, spare a thought for the little guy you've been mercilessly slaughtering on the other side who is 0-20. Nobody likes to be stomped, even if it's "just a game". We're friends, not random newbie strangers on the net.

With that, I conclude. Remember to take everything here with a pinch of salt, take it easy, I don't mean to bang anyone.

Happy 2007 TEG. May we grow in strength, together.

Everybody's Free To Wear Sunscreen

Ladies and Gentlemen of the class of '97... wear sunscreen.

If I could offer you only one tip for the future, sunscreen would be IT.

The long term benefits of sunscreen have been proved by scientists whereas the rest of my advice has no basis more reliable than my own meandering experience.

I will dispense this advice now.

Enjoy the power and beauty of your youth. Never mind. You will not understand the power and beauty of your youth until they have faded. But trust me, in 20 years you'll look back at photos of yourself and recall in a way you can't grasp now how much possibility lay before you and how fabulous you really looked.

You are NOT as fat as you imagine.

Don't worry about the future; or worry, but know that worrying is as effective as trying to solve an algebra equation by chewing bubblegum. The real troubles in your life are apt to be things that never crossed your worried mind; the kind that blindside you at 4pm on some idle Tuesday.

Do one thing every day that scares you.

Sing.

Don't be reckless with other people's hearts, don't put up with people who are reckless with yours.

Floss.

Don't waste your time on jealousy; sometimes you're ahead, sometimes you're behind. The race is long, and in the end, it's only with yourself.

Remember compliments you receive, forget the insults; if you succeed in doing this, tell me how.

Keep your old love letters, throw away your old bank statements.

Stretch.

Don't feel guilty if you don't know what you want to do with your life. The most interesting people I know didn't know at 22 what they wanted to do with their lives, some of the most interesting 40 year olds I know still don't.

Get plenty of calcium.

Be kind to your knees, you'll miss them when they're gone.

Maybe you'll marry, maybe you won't, maybe you'll have children, maybe you won't, maybe you'll divorce at 40, maybe you'll dance the funky chicken on your 75th wedding anniversary. Whatever you do, don't congratulate yourself too much or berate yourself, either. Your choices are half chance, so are everybody else's. Enjoy your body, use it every way you can. Don't be afraid of it, or what other people think of it, it's the greatest instrument you'll ever own.

Dance. Even if you have nowhere to do it but in your own living room.

Read the directions, even if you don't follow them.

Do NOT read beauty magazines, they will only make you feel ugly.

Get to know your parents, you never know when they'll be gone for good.

Be nice to your siblings; they are your best link to your past and the people most likely to stick with you in the future.

Understand that friends come and go, but for the precious few you should hold on. Work hard to bridge the gaps in geography in lifestyle because the older you get, the more you need the people you knew when you were young.

Live in New York City once, but leave before it makes you hard; live in Northern California once, but leave before it makes you soft.

Travel.

Accept certain inalienable truths, prices will rise, politicians will philander, you too will get old, and when you do you'll fantasize that when you were young prices were reasonable, politicians were noble and children respected their elders.

Respect your elders.

Don't expect anyone else to support you. Maybe you have a trust fund, maybe you'll have a wealthy spouse; but you never know when either one might run out.

Don't mess too much with your hair, or by the time you're 40, it will look 85.

Be careful whose advice you buy, but, be patient with those who supply it. Advice is a form of nostalgia, dispensing it is a way of fishing the past from the disposal, wiping it off, painting over the ugly parts and recycling it for more than it's worth.

But trust me on the sunscreen.

I remember listening to this song when I was in sec 1 and wishing the guy would just shut up. Funny how it seems so relevant now.

A Tribute

As we enter the new year of 2007, heres a tribute and another toast to the past, the present and to the future.

Its been a long year for me, back last year when i spent 2005 Christmas and 2006 New Year in London all the way to Dec 2006 spent wif TEG at Isaac's place.

Heres a big thank you to all the frens and pple who have been nice, not so nice, supportive, great and simply being there for me. Contrary to what other pple might do, I felt that sharing some emotional issues wif frens definitely helped lessen the pain and hurt that i would have gone thru if not for them. I know I am one who would put in 101% effort in trying, and another 101% effort in trying to make things work if it doesnt. and thats why i shared and I am glad that those who understand have helped prevent me from going back.. from going back to trying to make things work when things i know at the bottom of my heart, would not work.

special mention goes to Styx, my all time, All Stars best fren.. guess u and me although in different circumstances, somehow going thru the same stuff.. well.. all the best to u and me.. i love arguing wif u just to see u pissed, hopping mad even.. cause end of the day, tough times bring tough men closer.. Greg, Jian Hong and Isaac too.. brothers in Christ.. not forgetting Cai, Ian, Mark Siao.. great Dota players.. even greater guys. and grace too, somehow my kindergarten schoolmate.. at least u allow Mark the liberty to come play Dota wif us so often.. i hope..

At present, sry guys for not turning up at Dota tonight, my deal wif my parents was enjoy for 1st two weeks, then work for next 2 weeks before i head back.. of course not barring some fun in between. zouk on wed eh?

Now, come wat may, heres to a successful Uni life so that the past decade of studying have not been in vain. And pentultimately, the finding of partners that will support and be there for u.. just as great frens will be..

Happy New Year TEG!!

PS: v6.39 released today : ) any takers for tomolo dota on wed?

2007

happy new year everyone,

hope this year has more to offer to everyone than 2006. Here's some well wishes and some personal notes for you guys to take home with you. No offence, just my two cents worth.

To Mark: I love you mark cause you're honestly too nice to everyone and that's why you're being abused. I try not to hinder you in anyway if i can help it so i hope you love me too. Wish you and grace all the best on your brighter future together and i hope to see babies soon. hurhur. Thanks for organizing all the dota sessions, being on time, sentosa etc etc. You're always there for us although sometimes you disappear and don't reply sms or phone calls. Dunnoe what you doing but i think playing mahjong at windy heights. I hope you do better this semester in school and continue to rock cathay ben and jerry's. I'm your most loyal fan pls remember me when you're famous. Happy New Year!

To Isaac: Thanks for hosting the party with us even though you were not there 50% of the time. Wish you all the best in your studies in NUS and hope you do better this semester. You can come on down to SMU to study anytime you want, though i think you'd prefer bukit timah campus. I wish you all the best for your relationships, not only girlfriends but all other relationships as well. Remember, when something you are doing something you don't like, repeating it ten thousand times won't make it better (IE clubbing, dota etc..), especially when you repeat it to someone who enjoys the thing you're not enjoying. Stop blaming the dragon knight when he dies cause it's not his fault, neither is it the CPU or the monitor or the mouse or the keyboard. Stay chill and have a great year ahead!

To Zhiguang: Fuck you Cb stop scolding me.

To Cai: I wish you all the best in your Sailing and other sea activities. I hope you get into S.E.A. games this year(?) and bring singapore home a gold! Then you won't be financially dependent on your parents anymore. At least less dependent. Don't be so stubborn sometimes, sail the fucking 5 man boat for a change. I hope you find the time to learn your driving as well, and just finish it up. Then you can drive your other half home. (read: i don't wanna send you home anymore) I also wish you all the best in your studies, and i promise to study with you in SMU and not jack you about coming down. You've been a great friend and a great demon witch. All the best for your relationships as well, the doors that have opened for you and don't dwell on the doors that have closed. Be civil to your dad and eat your vitamins and fruits your mom gives you when you're leaving the house.

To Greg: Here's wishing you all the best in your relationship(s), and please make sure you know what you want for certain before investing your time and effort. I hope you find the one you're looking for and settle down. Thanks for being there for me when i'm down and out, and thanks for being reliable at all times. Please learn to be a CB and stop that mediator shit, it doesn't work anymore. It's been a great year especially the times in new jersey and the long tiring drives. Work hard next sem and don't let anything distract you. Don't be sad about bourbon, i'm sure he's with scamper(and lucky) looking down on both of us.

To JAY-AYECH: Wish you all the best for the new year and retain your uber mega high GPA(grade pt average/girl pt average). Thanks for being genuine when helping your friends. Like helping me with my resume and FA among other things. Try to think more for your friends in the future, in terms of making them go out of their way for you so that they can suit your schedules. Also try to be less sensitive because after all we're all really good friends and there's nothing that can't be talked about. I wish you all the best for your relationships this year, and i hope you find the one you're looking for as well. I hope work at dragonfly opens your eyes to the real world out there and cements your ambitions. I also wish you all the best in your future internships with the big players.

To Ian: Here's wishing you a great year ahead (i dunnoe how many different ways i can say have a great year but i'm trying ok) You're a good friend to talk to sometimes about relationships and studies. I hope you continue to do well in school and may you get dean's list this sem. I also wish you all the best in your relationships and i think you need to settle down. Please start your driving because it's annoying everyone. i don't mind sending you back but only if you're putting in effort into learning to drive. Also try to make the world revolve around you less, in terms of favours from friends. Remember we're all good friends and will genuinely help one another if one another is in need, but once that's being taken advantage of, the animosity will build up. None of us owes each other anything therefore try not to take things for granted. Also, try to take more initiative in organizing things. anything in fact, ranging from dota sessions, creating dota games, hosting parties, sentosa etcetc. You're honestly a great friend to have and i would like to keep this friendship. Thanks for being a dota dictionary. i really had no idea that counter helix was triggered on "every attempted attack" and i didn't know enigma could blackhole with lothars.

To myself, this year has been a great year with many new experiences. Good friends there for me like TEG(everyday that i get older is one more day i think how retarded TEG sounds to strangers. Especially when it doesn't consist of people from the east). I enjoyed all those DVD nights with the boys and the girls (lamsters and leesters). I'm also grateful for all the friendships made this year and i wish all my friends a happy 2007. I wanna thank tiffany for all the jacking she had to put up with and being there for me no matter what. Although she always abuses me and makes me pick her up when it rains and makes me late for school, this friendship is really ... (insert adjective). Thanks for being with me through thick and thin and through our FA together. I'll always be here for you if you need me, after all i'm always on call to you.

I haven't slept at all so forgive me if i forgot to mention anyone important. But since you're important i shouldn't have forgotten you no matter what. So that means you're not very important. Anyway I know i scold you guys alot and i will try to scold you guys less, especially when you call me when i'm half asleep. Some of the guys are annoyed, others just ignore me. Whatever it is i'm sorry, but i really hate being awoken. Also i'm a very frank person and i don't mince my words at crunch time, so please don't hate me because i'm very very fair and impartial to everyone of you. This is something i will never change about me because i feel that when someone is in the wrong he has to know he's in the wrong, and shouldn't be pacified just so he can be happy again. Shaun isn't a charitable organization, that's why he's not nice and doesn't have a kind heart, that's why his ex doesn't want him back.

anyway i wish myself a great 2007 with great relationships with my friends and my family. I will work even harder than 2006 and start getting my life in order. No more part time student.

oh yah.

To Zhiguang: haha fucker. Wish you a great year ahead. Wish you all the best in your future relationships. Please choose your other half properly and think with the right head. Don't let them abuse you. I hope you know when someone is taking advantage of you and put a stop to it immediately. Also listen to those who matter to you when making decisions, not some USD$50 a night chick from SMU. Listen to your good friends. that's what we're here for. Thanks for the serious talks we had about whether god exists or the right to life and the fact that i can't commit suicide because i don't have the right to kill myself and also talk about relationships. You're a damn fucking great friend to have and i never regretted ambushing you at my birthday in primary 1. Just stop being an asshole to me just for the fun of it. Please brush up your dota then play on my team again. I wish you and your family all the best for the new year. I hope you do well in durham. I also hope you find that special one you've been looking for all this while. It's time to settle down and stop messing around. I'm sure if you're sincerely looking you'll find her. Good luck.

Lastly, to things that i have to let go, i pray for the strength and courage to move on, yet never forget the past, because the future may have more in store for both of us. Whoever you are who owns the world and my miserable life, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.

sigh

i hate to type this. but this is how my new year started on a bad note.

ok first. i rushed down to isaac's place really late.. the clock was tickin.. ticking.. it was 1149pm.

i thought i made it. i would countdown with the guys..

when i reached isaac's place, obstacle number 1. the security guard took so damn long to record my car number and even had to call upstairs to confirm that this certain mr sim is coming. nvm. its ok, new year. nvm. time is ticking.. i rush to park my car and ran to the lift. obstacle number 2. apparently to enter the lift lobby u must have a card access.. so i had to intercom 07-18.. and at last the door opened.. 1155pm. nvm can... got 5 more mins.

1-2-3-4-5-6-7 ting. the lift door opened. i ran out and into isaac's house. a group of uncles and aunties stared at me. SHIT i thought i was in the wrong house. looked at the unit number. 0718. correct what.. then isaac's dad came and told me .. "they're downstairs by the pool".

ok. RAN to the lift.. presss down. 7-6-5-4-3-2-1-B. it was 1158pm.

ran thru the carpark and appeared at the clubhouse. a whole bunch of residents were there playing with sparklers and stuff. they looked like they were waiting for countdown.. WHERE ARE THE GUYS?! 1159pm. i called isaac.

i spotted them!! right beside the pool! but i was on the 2nd floor and they were below.. and theres no staircase in sight that could bring me down....... i almost wanted to jump. (not wise.)

1159.30pm

found a lift in a corner. got into the lift and pressed level 1 furiously.. in walked a mom and 2 kids.

mom:" i dont understand why people like to celebrate new year downstairs.. might as well go back home and countdown."

me: " ..."

tick tock. tick.

FIVE FOUR THREE noooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo TWO ONE.

ok.

lift door open. i ran out of the lift.

thats the sad story of me spending new years in a lift. with a mom and 2 kids.

thats not the end.

i just got home. and got scolded by my dad cos he had to go to work and was waiting for me to get back. crazy. work on 1jan.

.
sigh