mattleon87's lion's den

First Thoughts about Clinical Years

2009-07-07T06:38:00.000-07:00

Yeap, it's the 7th week in my first posting for my clinical years. Mixed feelings here. No doubt, medicine IS fun, and it makes you feel proud when you can correctly diagnose and think of the management needed to make your patients all well and able to go home. But that again, what ever possessed me to take a course that is so taxing on the brain? T.T My gray matter is gonna have hyperthermia and necrose all over, and I'll probably end up in the hospital myself... Opps, right. I already am. Anyway, thoughts about clinical life in the first 6 weeks, simplified as much as possible:

Week 1

Oh yeah!!!!! Gonna clerk patients, gonna clerk patients, gonna clerk patients... (Yells) WOOIIIIII!!!! Got clubbing leh!!!!!!! And can you get a load out of this murmur here!?!?!?! AWESOME!!!!

Week 2

Wooooot!!!! Alrighty then, let's look around, look for someone whom I can use for my case write-up (due on the 5th week, mind you!) Ah yes! Atrial fibrillation, with all the gadgets and gizmos, perfect for discussion purposes! MWAHAHAHAHAHAHA....

Week 3

Well.... Supervisor handed our livers to us on a platter.... But nevermind... I'll just try to do my best today, clerk one patient, do at least 1 short case today... Come on, I can do it!!!! ....I think

Week 4

Oh yeah, case write-up due next week... Eh? NEXT WEEK? Darn, haven't finished it yet! Sigh, alright, clerking patients is enough, gotta try to finish this case write-up first (as if I really wanted to clerk anyway...)

Week 5

Right, handed in the case write-up, after trouble getting it printed. guess I'll try and take it easy... Do my job and it's back to hit the sack....

Week 6

..... Are all these morning sessions really necessary? Have to wake up at 7 and trudge all the way there to sleep... And what's with all those specialists coming for the MO's ward rounds? They don't teach, and they being there effectively zips his mouth! Sigh, nevermind... Just go and look for a worthy case to do, or else it's nap time...

..... Yeah, I know....Kinda got lazier, right? Oh well, that's clinical life for you... But don't worry, I do what I'm supposed to do... Mostly...

Anyway, finished my observed long case with an amazing professor, WOOT! Going for my Hawaii vacation, er, I mean JKM posting in 23 weeks time. See ya there!

The Climb

2009-07-07T06:28:00.000-07:00

Lol... Not bad. She can come up with really inspiring songs:) Love the meaning behind the words.

The Climb - Miley Cyrus

I can almost see it
That dream I am dreaming
But there's a voice inside my head saying
"You'll never reach it"

Every step I'm taking
Every move I make feels
Lost with no direction
My faith is shaking

But I gotta keep trying
Gotta keep my head held high

There's always gonna be another mountain
I'm always gonna wanna make it move
Always gonna be a uphill battle
Sometimes I'm gonna have to lose

Ain't about how fast I get there
Ain't about what's waiting on the other side
It's the climb

The struggles I'm facing
The chances I'm taking
Sometimes might knock me down
But no, I'm not breaking

I may not know it
But these are the moments that
I'm gonna remember most, yeah
Just gotta keep going

And I, I got to be strong
Just keep pushing on

'Cause there's always gonna be another mountain
I'm always gonna wanna make it move
Always gonna be a uphill battle
Sometimes I'm gonna have to lose

Ain't about how fast I get there
Ain't about what's waiting on the other side
It's the climb, yeah!

There's always gonna be another mountain
I'm always gonna wanna make it move
Always gonna be an uphill battle
Somebody's gonna have to lose

Ain't about how fast I get there
Ain't about what's waiting on the other side
It's the climb, yeah!

Keep on moving, keep climbing
Keep the faith, baby
It's all about, it's all about the climb
Keep the faith, keep your faith, whoa

Remember, it's not the reaching the end that counts, it's how you get there, and who you lean on to help you reach the finish line. Even if you fall, know that you can pick yourself up, cos' He will never fall. :) Cheers people, and run the race!

New Chapter

2009-05-16T09:18:00.000-07:00

Phew! As I'm typing I am sitting here in a cube reachable only by 5 LONGGGGG flights of stairs, located in the heart of Hospital Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Cheras. Yes, my friends, this isthe official (promised!) first post from my life as a third year medical student of PPUKM (Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia's Medical Centre). And to give you a feel for the new digs..

So as you can see, small but cozy, though mosquitoes are known to plague the unfortunate tenant, and hence the presence of a very handy mosquito repellent (though with a questionable amount of repellent liquid left) handed down by the previous victim of said attacks. Other than that and some very shoddy workmanship with regards to the bed, it's..... well, small and cozy.

That being said, it's now time to rant about the connection here. Seems like the wifi provided courtesy of JARING is user-based, which means you need to register, which means you need to give them what the bomohs would call 'pengeras' AKA money (perhaps the spirits need solidifying?), and which finally means, as Phua Chu Kang would say: 'No money no talk!'

And so as the reps placate us with promises that they are doing something for us (' Kitorang dah beritau kat Bangi, tapi mungkin proses ini lama sikit, mungkin Jun boleh siap kot' - Translated: The main campus is imformed, but don't expect anything till June, so buzz off!), we are left with the trusty LAN cable (also the legacy of my kind predecessor... whoever he was) to supply my online needs. Well, they block off everything including Youtube and leave Facebook and Blogger, so what do you know... Guess that's the lot of the KTDI in-hostel student. Oh well, at least I can get to go online in between enduring orientation and sleeping, since I discovered this blasted cable thingy actually works. Now for my next project...

Darn, did I just remember that I will be spirited away to Besut on Monday? :( Oh well. Another week of Internet silence it is then. Sigh.

Return

2009-05-04T10:38:00.000-07:00

Yes, finally, I return. As I enter into a new academic year, and into new, uncharted territory, I thought really seriously about reviving my blog. Yes, reviving, not just temporary a la Pheonix Down reviving but the real deal. As I continue studying medicine, I think that this blog can also function as a way to make studying more light and hopefully more interesting.

To tell the truth, Symeon gave me the idea way back when he was in Batu Pahat, telling me exactly why his blog has such a funny name: sckhsmg. Apparently the first 4 initials are his name (duh!) and the last 3 stand for... err..... well, something to do with School of Medicine for Dummies (Alright, maybe not, but that's what it is now, too bad!). So what he did was to publish cases he encountered on his blog, leaving out sensitive material so that friends can view them and comment. Not too bad an idea if you ask me.

So, hopefully this post marks an era of new sights and sounds, new beginnings, and of course, new impetus to actually sit down and write something down for a change. Hehehe. So, adios for now, and keep your fingers crossed!

Feelings

2008-05-01T10:19:00.000-07:00

What are feelings? Ever felt like asking that question? Medically and scientifically, it is controlled by a part of the brain that is the most underdeveloped, and maybe that accounts for why we have the least control over it. Yeah, but what are feelings?

Well, feelings are like dreams. Who has ever heard of life without dreams? Dreams keep you sane, dreams tell you things that are about to happen (I get those often, the so-called deja vu), dreams, sometimes, for people gifted with prophecy by God, tell them what God wants them tell others. And then there is the other type of dreams, the dreams that drive you, the ambition that directs your acions and which you work hard for.

Do you know the true meaning behind your dreams? Sure, sleep researchers or even old wives tales say that dreams tell you if you're stressed, you're tired or you're scared, but I don't think dreams do just that, right? Dreams are so vivid, so detailed, so... ALIVE. And what about dreams of ambition? Easily explained? Well, you dream to become somebody, but why? because you want to have that wealth or respect? Why again? Because people around you do the same? Or is it because you want to leap-frog over them in that aspect? Alright, easier question: would you be satisfied after you get that? And will you really be content that you became what you become? Some would say yes, some would say no, and others... won't know.

And that is what feelings are, or really, in essence. Feelings are so unreliable in life, they cloud up the things you see, and even for the things you do see, they are distorted. But that again, feelings also keep you the way you are. True, feelings alone make a mess out of things, but solid logic and reasoning without feelings in the form of values and moral ideas (they ARE intwined and part of each other, if you bother to acknowledge it) make a man a monster capable of anything. Feelings give a context of their own to a puzzle, to a situation, to perception, and in the end, that, coupled with other things, gives you what you need to act, to feel, and finally, to care.

But then, why do feelings cause you to be hurt? Maybe it's because feelings also cause you to be happy, to feel like you belong, to feel like you have meaning in this world, to make you feel stronger than you have never been before, to make the world seem such a bright and lovely place. Maybe that is why, like our dreams, we hold on dearly to our feelings, because in the end, we know that these feelings are part of us, and it has made us into what we have become. but beware of its trap, lest it cripple you and disable you forever. But if you know in your heart that what you feel is real, and there is no way you can let it go willingly, maybe it is best to hold it close, always hoping, always searching and forever watching that horizon for what you believe in.

Man, I didn't know I could be that emo. LOLZ. Well, lessons are learnt, and maybe that will be what leads you in the future. That and feelings, I suppose. =>

A Musty Den

2008-04-30T06:09:00.000-07:00

Ah yes, finally I return to the den. Wait, why does it smell like it was abandoned? Oh yeah...

Sorry all, but I HAVE been so very busy with studies in medicine school that I really can't find the time to blog... Or even to go to the cyber cafe regularly (connections at college... sigh, let's not go there, shall we...) But now, with the first year behind me and 6 blissful weeks of holidays in front of me... Mwahahahahahahahaha =>

Anyway, updates! Finally got a new camera, with which I shall endeavour to capture some juicy moments of my time in university life... However, don't keep your hopes up too high, I can't guarantee you much...Anyway, in this course of time, I went to Hospital Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia in Cheras (yes, my university has it's own hospital, duh!) => and the photos taken are below....

Alright, that is the building, HUGE... Took me a while before I could really find my way around the place... All wards look the same... Well, sort of. Anyway, Was clerking patients (nope, its the term for taking history [nope... Sigh, you get the idea]) for my Clinical Science module, supposedly an exposure into the world which I will end up in during the 3rd year onwards...

Had other outings during the semesters, one of which was the Khidmat Masyarakat (Community Service) project. Had a great time at FELDA, doing some clinical screenings for diabetes, a variety show, and so on and so forth...
A picture of the clinical booths we set up.... I was in charge of history taking, my 'foster brother' for the project was at blood pressure, Karen and some of the girls were at the BMI, blood glucose tests and such...

This was my group presentation, a singing presentation... Sang a medley of many songs, both english pop and some malay oldies, as well as some new ones. No, didn't win, thanks for asking...

And that will be my foster family during my stay. Really nice emak and abah, forever feeding us to the brim with my personal favourite, fried fish.. *licks lips*

Anyway, I also had what we call 'faculty night', attended by all members of my 1st year medicine faculty... But that I will write on in detail, in another post. Lolz... And so, the year passed, with new friends and new beginnings, new insights and new discoveries into the soul. Somehow, I feel it was a roller-coaster of sorts, but if I were given the chance, I'll go through it again. Thank You, God, for opening doors and leading me here. I am so blessed. :) Alright, enough babbling for now, g'nite!

Home At Last!

2007-09-07T10:34:00.000-07:00

Home sweet home! Yes, I am finally home after 2 months of wandering the streets of Kuala Lumpur... Well, actually, the streets of my college, which is nothing to shout about... Anyway, finished my formative assessment for the module (don't ask how it went, you wouldn't want to know), rushed back to the apartment to pack, and managed to put in a round of DOTA before my parents picked me up. Well, I need to de-stress too, you know? Oh, and Soon Lee, I think I pick Rouge Knight as my regular, though I like Bristleback and Lord of Olympia as well...

Hey, where am I going? Oh yes, coming home. Firstly, went to the MATTA fair in PWTC (it stands for Malaysian Travel something-or-the-other, didn't really catch the last bit) where you can find tour packages and travel flights galore... Well, my mom wanted to go, so we spent the better part of a half-hour looking for the darn parking bays, and off we went. Honestly, the extent of the thing was HUGE! Took up three halls just to fit in all the different booths and what-nots. Especially liked the Yokoso! Japan booth, with the pleasing colours and fake sakuras. They even dressed up in yukatas to make it look authentic... Anyway, after filling 2 bags with travel flyers and brocheurs (which STILL doesn't make up for the RM9 entry fee, even if we sold the whole lot to the old newspaper man...), went to Jalan Ipoh for some bak kut teh (incidently, the same joint I went to right before I went to UKM), which was simply superb! Okay, for the confused/curious, bak kut teh is literally translated as 'meat and bone tea', which means meat broiled in a sort of 'tea' made from certain herbs, absolutely mouth-watering stuff, this... Then, HOME! Oh, how glorious it is to be home, to be among family, among familiar and comforting sights, my dogs and SUPERULTRAFASTWIRELESSSPEEDS!!!! Mwahahahahaha....

Ok, lost myself there for a moment... Sorry, guys. Anyway, headed to the usual place for a lateh session with the remaining two survivors in Batu Pahat, Yeong Tai and Song Lin. Well, not for long... SL is going off Sunday, and YT is leaving Tuesday... Talked a whole load of crap as usual, before heading home... And now it's time to hit the sack, so GOOD NIGHT PEOPLE! And hello, my comfy bed! ZZZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzz......

Updates!!!! (Sort Of....)

2007-08-29T04:23:00.000-07:00

Hi guys, here again for another update after a long hiatus of sorts... Hey, it isn't my fault that I have absolutely lousy wireless here, you know... Anyway, besides all the problems that I routinely complain about, I have had a pretty good time at the university. Besides the fact that I am getting sick of poor quality Malay food, my apartment stinks and I am feeling oh-so sleepy...... Opps, sorry, starting to rant yet again...

Anyway, I have just finished a module on Cellular Biomolecules, and had a formative assessment done on that module... Guess what? No, I didn't fail, fortunately. Not telling you the results though... =p Anyway, everything's in full swing now, Problem-Based Learning sessions (PBL) that are meant to emulate real-life differential diagnostic procedures, Clinical Skills Learning (CSL) for better history-taking and rapport building between patients and so on and so forth. Well, once you get used to it, life in university is not so bad...

Oh, and a piece of news for you people out there, we have LAN parties over here as well. No kidding. Just because we do not have constant Internet facilities dosen't mean we can't abuse, er, make use of the local networks here right? Installed Warcraft 3: Frozen Throne, so you know what is next... Played DOTA (Defence of the Ancients) till 3 in the morning, so that is that... Wasn't my fault though, my friends wanted round after round... Anyway, lucky for us the guard was nowhere in sight, or else 3 medic students walking around in the middle of the night would be hauled up to the office of Pak Kas (Prof Dr Kas), the principal of Kolej Tun Syed Nasir for interrogation (ouch!). Anyway, still surviving, and making full use out of the Monorail and taxis around to go arounf the city. Watched Perfect Stranger with a friend, and all I can say is.... If you are a Halle Berry or Bruce Willis fan, don't watch this movie, or you'll cry in frustration... 'Nuf said.

Anyway, that is all I can think about for this round... (See, I told you it isn't a good update, really!) So, take care and happy pawning, people! (Sigh, I had better delete that stupid programme soon...)

Not Been Home... =<

2007-08-12T06:07:00.000-07:00

Yeap, I haven't been home for a month now... Normal, you might say? Agreed, except that I was SUPPOSED to be home this week, I mean I sort of had my mind made up that I would go back home this week, since after my formative assessment I had the day off, and I did not have HM this week... Hmmm? Formative assessment? Oh, that. It's the equivalent to a test, only that it comes after a module... How did I do? Good question. I came back from the assessment, tuned the radio to Hitz.FM, cranked it to full volume and sang my heart out... Any ideas on how it went then? Coupled with two of my roommates going crazy and starting to splash water at each other? Well, everybody has been saying that they will fail, but me... I think it went OK, though the allocated time was slightly short... Thank God...

Anyway, I digress. Why didn't I get myself back home? Well, it's partially my own fault, I suppose... The college debate team organized an outing... to watch Rush Hour 3! Well, I was 'seduced' by that, I guess. Well, I can always go back on Saturday, right? Wrong... Yes? The movie? Oh, it rocked! I still get a buzz seeing Jackie Chan kick some @$$ in his own, entertaining way. And I gotta admit, Chris Tucker did a great job giving the comic relief, especially in the French cabaret where he pretended to be Mr. Bubbles, the costume designer... *clears throat*

I am getting seriously sidetracked here, right? Sorry bout that... Anyway, prior to the debaters outing, went to Sungei Wang Plaza for karaoke... Unfortunately, it was fully booked till 4 pm, which meant I couldn't get to sing... =<>

Scooted off to KLCC for the movie then, using the monorail, then interchanging at the Kelana Jaya line to get there, instead of following Stella's advice and going all the way back to the faculty and getting a RapidKL bus... Hehehe... See what you can do with a map? Anyway, headed to Kinokuniya for the books (whoop! LOLZ) before meeting Stella and the others... She had a sushi buffet, the lucky girl... grumble, grumble, grumble... So we went for the movie, and I found myself next to Bernard, probably one of the most original people on the planet... Hehehe... Laughed my head off all the way back from KLCC, till I realized I lost my matrics card... Crap.

And the next day was the day. Cher Linn managed to corner me and 'convince' me to get myself to the debate training in the Bangi campus... Goodbye, home visit...=< It was slightly boring, since they talked about Human Rights! Yikes! I hate political issues... (Yes, Fea, it is! No matter what you say...) Had the talk by Fea and the other seniors before 'cabut-ing' to FGA with Prisca and Huan Ching... Nice service, with the latest songs from Hillsongs (no surprise there) and a message, followed by dinner (yay!) and cell group... not bad, if I say so myself... Lolz...

And after evading the guards again, back home for bed... And today was interesting: nothing doing! Stayed at home the whole day, watching Full Metal Panic! (again, but it's still fun) and sleeping... Speaking of home, maybe I'll have to find some time to take off for home, for real, tis time...

WHY ISN'T THERE ANY WIRELESS!!!!!????

2007-08-01T02:18:00.000-07:00

Hi guys, and no, I'm not dead yet, just extremely, severly, horrifyingly starved of Internet access. Can't even use the browser, because my hostel has NO WIRELESS signals at all. Sigh, life as a university student...

Which reminds me, I should recap on what I have done on the last 3-4 weeks of university life. Not much on the photo front, mainly because I do not have a camera. =<>

Week 2: After we settled down in college, had a few rounds of tours conducted by PERSIAP (the Medicine faculty society) and had some games with the lecturers, or more precisely, games among ourselves organized and supervised by the lecturers. Won a LOT of the games, including the musical chair game and the laughing game... Really liked the latter, honest! Anyway, the best overall group:

Not my fault for the picture, as you can see.... And then after 3 days of unpacking, we get packed off to Ulu Kenas, Perak for a PPD Camp! Well, at least this camp is more fun than some I had been to, in some respects... Basically what we did here was 'bonding-time' with our groups that will be in place for the whole semester, and a lot of reflection time by the facilitators.... Add into that a swim in the river and a jungle-trekking segment, it was not THAT bad of a camp... =P Got back Saturday, only to find that trouble was brewing...

Shifting house, that's the trouble! From a slightly small 2-bed room we were forcibly removed to a 12-man apartment with ZERO wireless access (not that we had any in the old room...) and 2 toilets, 2 bathrooms. Well, at least we don't have to contend with 20-30 other residents... And the roommates are fine... More notable among the lot is Qi Long aka Tai Lo, Soon Lee my roommate in Bangi, Chris my roommate in the older new room (=>), Albert and Simon from Sarawak. Merry crew they are, and lots of fun... Even went to see the Eye on Malaysia and the festival they put up here in Lake Titiwangsa...

And now we come to the last two weeks. Still hanging on here, coping with studies... Got involved in the debate society (which is WAY different from highschool debates) and TaeKwon-Do (which I had given up or more precisely 'forced' to give up during Form 1). Concerning the debate, lost out to KUO in the semi-finals of the Vice Chancellor Cup... You were good guys, but I WILL have my revenge.... MWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAA..... *cough, cough* Anyway, just finished an IO conducted by the Chinese seniors here so I'm safe for the meantime... So I guess that is all I have to say... Oh yes! The CF seniors here are VERY nice to us, and I love this band of brothers and sisters here... => Ok, guess that is all I have to say, so catch up with you guys when I have the time... AND the access! Sigh.... =P

Farewell, Batu Pahat...

2007-06-29T09:36:00.000-07:00

Hello, dear readers. This particular post is a special one, since it will be the last post I will publish here in Batu Pahat (in a long while). I will be leaving this town which has been my home for the last 17 odd years, and travel up north, to start life anew as a university student. Will leave on Sunday early morning, so please pray for me, guys!

Anyway, this post will feature mostly my friends whom I will no longer be able to see for some time. But of course, priority is family, so this first part is for the people closest to my heart... Will miss all of you while I'm studying away from home.

Dear dad, thank you for being there for me all the time. Even though you are always so busy, you never sacrificed your time with us, and made us feel secure and protected from every angle. You are the rock in my life, dad, and I know that whatever you do, the love, the instructions and the the chastisements, you meant it for my best interest. Through you, I see what my Father in heaven is like, and for that I am truly grateful. Love you lots, Dad.

Mom, you are the perfect mom from heaven that everyone dreams they had, and no matter what, I would never have chose anyone else to be my mom. I know that you would most probably be the most worried among us for me, and I know that you will be praying for me every single moment, without fail. Thank you mom, for all the love mom, for I know that your whole life is one act of sacrifice and abounding love for each and every one of us children. Love you to bits, Mom.

Malcolm, dear brother, you have been the closest companion I ever had, through all the years. All through the videogames, the music, the loads of fun we had, you were the one that put up the most with all my nonsense and playfulness. Love you, bro, and study hard, do well so that you may one day carve your own path with the Lord's grace. Fear not and lament not, and I will always be there to help you if you need me. Love you too, Mal.

Dear Girly, I will miss not being there with you and arguing with you (=>) while I'm studying. But remember, I love you, dear sister, and I would not have any other person in the world to be my sister besides you. Grow up strong, dear sister, and let the Lord be your guide all the way. May you grow to be even more beautiful inside and outside than you already are, and become a patient, loving and caring person, a glowing jewel reflecting His glory. Love you, dear Amanda.

Now for all my friends here in my old class, thanks for all the wonderful memories during my time in Form 6. Looking back, I thank God that I stayed back, so I could meet all of you. To my brother Rafi, miss you bro, keep in touch, and remember this crazy fella when you become a big time politician... Hehehehe... To the crazy fellas there, WK, SY, YK, PT, KR, SZ and of course AM, best of luck to all of ya, all the best, and live life to the max! SK, may you accomplish what you desire in that field... The four girls in the second row, CS, LL, SC, and SS: best of luck! XY: hope you enjoy yourself in Sabah, and don't you dare forget me! SQ, good luck! and KN, best of luck and don't be a stranger! The crazy four Malay guys there, don't go too nuts okay! Especially Affandi, Zainal and Lebai, thanks for the memories, old and new!

Now to the people among my old friends and my brothers: Yeong Tai, Kwan Wen and Tai Seng. YT, may good fortune and luck be with you bro, and may your life be filled with joy. KW, be cheerful always bro, and study hard. TS, enjoy life in your new/old environment, and remember to 'jio' me 'lateh' when I come back... And Song Lin, my bestest bro, Y NOW ONLI I REALISE U DIN TAKE PHOTO WIT US? Celakatoi betul. Anyway, to you bro, thanks for everything, for listening when I needed to talk, for cannoning during the fun times and supporting me throughout school life. Will miss you, bro. And for all those whom I have not mentioned, be you from HS, tuition classes or just in passing: thanks for the memories and don't stay far away. Without all of you, my life would never be this complete.

And of course, dear Lord, thank You for all I've experienced, all I have learnt, and most importantly, Your love, mercy and grace you have showered upon me all the time. Looking back now Father, I see Your Hand at work and I praise You, for You love me beyond my imagination, and have my best interests at heart. Without You Lord, I am but dust. Please Lord, continue to smile upon me and hold me close to Your side, even as I walk this path You have set before me. Let me reflect Your light to the world, that I may glorify Your name.

Goodbye, and good night all!

Varsity's Beckoning...

2007-06-25T08:40:00.000-07:00

Hi all, been a long time since I updated my site, like some people have been telling me... =< Well, been busy lately (as you will see in a while) and besides my quite considerable store of anime is being 'updated'. In other words, I am hurrying to read and watch as much anime before I depart to a place where Streamyx is not available... University, that is... Hehehe.... Well, shall I start with what some of you may already know, my placement in the Malaysian public universities? This period of time is one of the uplifting periods of my life, and also one of the most draining...

Well, it began on last Monday, when I got up as usual (12-ish, mind you...=>) and checked the online site of the MOHE (Ministry of Higher Education) website for changes... Nope, nothing there... And not an hour later, Yeong Tai called me with an urgent question... (editedfor flavour, LOLZ)

"Hoi, wat did u get?"

"Huh?"

"IPTA (Malay acronym for public universities) lar!"

"WAT? Just checked wat! Nothing mar..."

"Go n check again lar! Got dy!"

Hurried again to the website, whereupon I discovered a new link to the website where you find out what course you got, and where. Huh, angka giliran? Oh that... Where is my STPM cert again (!)... Oh ok...

Then I saw it, in bold letters:

TAHNIAH! Anda telah berjaya ditawarkan program seperti berikut :

PERUBATAN (DOKTOR PERUBATAN)

UNIVERSITI KEBANGSAAN MALAYSIA

And my mind went..... what? Anyway, not funny, I know. What WAS funny was the fee structure... I also applied for Medicine in IMU, and the total fee due to that prestigious university was a whopping total of RM 333,000.00 . *jaw drops* And here, my father and I burst out laughing when we saw the total fee due for UKM : RM14,000.00 (or something around that). That was a difference of, what, 300,000 ringgit? Looks like my dad will be able to afford a new Mercedes with the money saved.... MWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA....

Anyway, the website for UKM was slightly strange as well. When accessed, they will ask you for their answer to the offer, online. The problem was, if you accepted the offer using the fields there (didn't try rejecting it, I won't cut off my head unneccessarily, alright!?) and you refreshed the page, you will STILL see the same fields there, asking the exact same thing... Hopefully it dosen't matter THAT much....

And today was the tiring day. Now, the background. Yesterday I was in JB, seeing my granddad for what was going to be the last time in a very, very LONG while (don't ask about it, I won't be seeing freedom in the form of holidays anytime soon). Then Yeong Tai messaged me, telling me that tonight Vincent Ki was calling for a 'la teh' session (little did I know that the occassion was his birthday... Happy birthday, Vincent... Again...) at 9 pm. Made it back at 10.30, and rushed there to chat and swap stories around. Then, of all people, Chee Kim appeared. Nothing against him, but sessions with him around, in my experience, turn out to be all-nighters as we laugh and laugh and laugh at his cannonades at all manner of subjects, mostly off-colour. As expected, we went home at about 2 in the morning, when the proprietor started looking, no glaring at us... Did I mention that the 8 of us drank a total of RM 9 in tea and such (all paid for by the birthday boy, of course. Thanks Vincent). I think our faces will be on the blacklist of the shop very soon...

And the next day, business as usual... Or maybe not. At 6 - sends siblings to school. Around 7 - reaches home and plonks on the bed again. 7.30 - wakes up to wash-up and head to the outpatient clinic along Jalan Kluang for the clinical check-up required by the university. Get the picture? Not to mention that when I got there the place was packed, and I had 2 and a half hours of running to one counter, running to the opposite counter to pay for the urine and X-ray tests, running back to the urine counter, and a whole lot of waiting around doing absolutely nothing. Actually, the latter accounted for 80% of the time I spent there. And after getting a light breakfst and dozing for a few minutes in my dad's office, sped to the other side of town to get the X-ray done. Yet another bout of waiting here, though here the lines moved noticably faster due to the speed of the X-ray machine, though the snag was the girls requiring an extra 3 minutes each to remove clothing that matter (my guess is even an X-ray can't go through so many layers of cloth) and get their rays done. No offense, just an observation. Sorry girls. =p

Anyway, after getting the X-ray, sped back to the outpatient clinic to get inspected by the doctor, FINALLY! yeap, good question. But don't ask me why, I have no idea... Well, finished EVERYTHING at 4.15 pm (my mom helped with the payment of the initial fees), 7 hours of waiting (almost!) with only 3 hours of sleep and a light breakfast in between. Came back in time to send Malcolm off to tuition and to crash for 2 hours of peaceful sleep on the couch... Ah, bliss.... Finally.... ZZZZzzzZZZZzzZZZZZ...

Fathers...

2007-06-18T10:12:00.000-07:00

I am biased, I know, but this is the World's Greatest Dad!

Father - Amazing Love, Hillsongs Australia

Amazing love has won my heart

I am in awe of all You've done

You gave us Jesus, and with Him

You freely gave us everything

Amazing love sets me free

From all that would weigh down on me

You are my strength, my help, my friend

And my hope, life without end

Father, my Father

I'm so secure in You

Your perfect love

Drives away all my tears

Father, I love You

For You have loved me first

And I am grateful

For amazing love

This is a belated post in honour of Father's Day. A big shoutout to my dad: the family man, the diligent bread-winner, and the one who gives without wanting to receive. He has brought all of us three children up in discipline and love, always giving us the best, often witholding his portion for us (especially when it comes to food =>). He is different than some parents (and most Asian parents) because he displays his love in tangible means: hugging and kissing us. And he puts family ahead of everything else like money, work or pleasure. He is always fair and just, never blindly siding with any faction when we siblings get into an argument. (and that is often enough =p) In times when discipline is needed, he is suitably strict and would not brook any nonsense from anyone. This post is in honour of him, my father, and I say that I am truly blessed to be his son.

And that again, another Father is also there, this time unseen, but every bit as loving and protective as my earthly dad. Heavenly Father, this post is also about You. In times when I needed help, and no one could understand me, You were there, crying with me. In times when I thought my heart would break, You were there holding me. In times when I was frustrated, lost, and unfairly blamed You for everything, You never turned away, but You gently guided me, saying that it would be alright in the end. When through Your power I succeeded, You were there celebrating with me. But most of all, Father, You gave me something no one else could: life as a son in Your Kingdom, and eternal life. Though it took Your Son, and broke Your heart, You did it, because of love. Oh Lord, Your love is unimaginable, and I love You, because You first loved me.

To all fathers out there, Happy Father's Day.

Full Metal PANIC!

2007-06-13T09:08:00.000-07:00

Okay guys, I know I've not been very recent with my updates, so bear with me... Sort of blogger's block, of sorts... Okay, same excuse again, I know... Anyway, this is an anime I really, REALLY enjoyed, so let us get down to da review!

Okay, ever met some of those so-called 'freaks' that go on and on about a certain subject nobody wants to hear? Yeah like this one right here *points at self*, the anime freak, can't stop spouting nonsense bout anime... Meet any war-freaks? People who can name each and every gun on tv, and give running commentaries on war techniques and facts when a military-themed movie is on? Well then, met anyone who actually acts like a born-on-the-battlefield soldier? Well, if these musings are remotely striking a chord somewhere (or if you actually understand what the heck I'm saying), imagine a real-life, teenage dyed-in-the-wool specialist soldier pushed into school after spending all his years on a battlefield. Real messy, no?

Welcome to the world of Full Metal PANIC! then, boys and girls! Yeap, I meant exactly what I've been rumbling about up there.

Sergeant Sagara Sousuke, codename URUZ-7, is a soldier of Mithril, a top secret NGO that operates in secret around the world, protecting world peace via covert military operations. An Arm Slave (AS, giant machines armed with heavy artillery and armour, used as an extension of the pilot's body... Just think of it as a very low-tech GUNDAM) specialist, he was born and bred on the battlefields of Afghanistan, therefore his life was that of constant war and survival. An excellent soldier, he has served in many missions for Mithril, and was recently attached to the submarine Tuatha de Danaan, under the command of yet another teenage prodigy, Teletha Testarossa. In one of the early episodes, in a battlezone while covering for civilians, he recovers and pilots one of Mithril's top secret AS, a prototype model known as the Arbalest unit, equipped with the mysterious Lambda Driver, a mode that apparently synchronizes the actions of the Arbalest with the brain-waves of the pilot, allowing for feats impossible for ordinary AS. As the original technician died in a raid, he is the only one currently capable of piloting the said Arbalest. Then he is sent, for reasons of age, to Japan, where he is to go undercover as a high school student to protect a girl known as Kaname Chidori. (the gal with the blue hair above... Don't ask me why anime characters have all these funny hair colours...) Well, with juggling two jobs, protecting Kaname AND piloting Arbalest to save the world, that must relly be the limit, isn't it? Well guess what. As he has and always been a soldier, HE HAS NO IDEA HOW TO ACT THE PART OF A NORMAL HIGH SCHOOL KID. Get the picture? No? Ok then, let me spell it out for ya... Kaname, from the very get go, guessed that Sousuke was trailing and watching her, what with all the FBI-style gunpoint interrogation techniques on people who just wanna talk with her... When asked for a diversion to steal term papers by Kaname, he threw a smoke grenade into the room... Blowing up the locker room because he was suspicious of a love letter in his locker... The list goes on...

However, you are wrong if you think that this anime is all about laughter and fun. A secret organization, the anti-thesis of Mithril, Amalgam, is on the lookout for Kaname. To the point, they are after her secrets... No, not those Secrets! Kaname, as it turns out, is a Whispered. Okay, for the lost... Whispered are exceptional individuals that possess secret technological knowledge that are either buried within their subconciousness or are present in their active conciousness. Kaname is one of the former types, while Tessa (the captain of the de Danaan, Teletha Testarossa) is the latter. In order to obtain this so called Black Technology (which actually gave birth to the Lambda Driver technology), Amalgam seeks these individuals out for ends only they know. So you still get that war and battle fix, fans of military battles... However, like all anime, what's an anime without some good old love angles (or rather triangle in this case), especially when it is punctuated by a lot of laughter and slamming on the part of the poor hero... Haih... *grin*

Alright, review time! This anime stretches over 2 seasons, Full Metal PANIC! and the sequel, Full Metal PANIC!: The Second Raid, so it is quite a long one, with an added spin-off called Full Metal Panic? Fumoffu. (some maintain that Full Metal Panic? Fumoffu IS the second season, but I'll leave the debate there...) Both Full Metal PANIC! and The Second Raid focus on war and the development of the angle between Sousuke and Kaname, his growing frustrations with the Arbalest and the hounding of his footsteps by Gauron, an old adversary while he was still in Afghanistan. Fumoffu, however, is a spin-off with ENTIRELY 100% laugh-till-you-drop scenes. So if you want the anime itself, with the character advancement, love triangles and haunting war scenes and the sort, take the two proper seasons. IF you have a bad day and wanna laugh till you drop dead, take Fumoffu. Honest. This is now my recipe for laughter online, with Hardo Gae coming in a close second. Hehehehe... All in all, a great anime, lovely artwork (though some scenes may not be suitable for young kids, you know, slight nudity, gore, violence, yadda yadda yadda...), real military operations and fleshed out characters. Definitely a 5 star rating from me, anytime.

Gundam SEED : Destiny

2007-06-08T05:07:00.000-07:00

Sorry guys! Slightly busy these past few days, as some of you can attest to, not being online on MSN... Anyway, lets start on yet another part of the Gundam SEED series, Gundam SEED : Destiny. Oh yes, before I forget, to those who are new to the Gundam scene, there are actually a few series of Gundam running currently, like Gundam Z, Gundam Wing and the like... I personally have not seen them all, so I really won't know about them...

Anyway, Gundam SEED : Destiny is the continuation of Gundam SEED, taking place a few short years after what happened during the end of the Bloody Valentine War.

WARNING!! SPOILER PARAGRAPH!! It has been a few years since the Bloody Valentine War, where the country of ORB was destroyed, or more accurately, blown up by its leaders to deny the advancement of the forces of the Earth Alliance under the influence of Blue Cosmos, a group of miliants with powerful members committed to eliminating the Coordinators at all costs. With the murder of the father of Athrun, Patrick Zala by his own subordinate, the destruction of GENESIS, a giant beam cannon in space, and the death of the mad ZAFT commander Rau Le Creuset, the war between Coordinators and Naturals was brought to a halt by a treaty mediated by ORB, now under the control of Cagalli Zula Athha, the twin sister of Kira Yamato. The war now seems like a memory, but somehow in that uneasy peace, a sinister force lurks...

The beginning of the series shows Cagalli travelling as an ambassador to the ZAFT colony to meet the new leader of the ZAFT forces, Chairman Durandal in the care of her bodyguard, none other than her lover, Athrun. There, the couple meet with an attempt to steal three special Gundam prototypes from ZAFT by Extended pilots from Blue Cosmos of the Earth Alliance. As Athrun protects Cagalli, they meet the young pilot, Shinn Asuka, piloting yet another new Gundam, the ZGMF-X56S Impulse, a Gundam said to be the most advanced and efficient one yet, made up of three different parts fired from its mothership. This enables the Impulse to change ammunation and recharge its power at any time to suit the flow of combat. However, all these fail to catch the thieves, who escape with help from their captan, the enigmatic Neo Roanoke. Deciding to travel with the Minerva, the mothership of the Impulse, they find out that Shinn is actually an ORB citizen whose parents and sister were wiped out during the attack on ORB by Blue Cosmos. Shinn still bears a deep seated resentment and anger towards ORB for failing to protect his family from being killed. The situation worsens when a group of rogue ZAFT pilots, acting on revenge towards Naturals decide to plunge the floating destroyed colony 7, now remade as a shrine towards Earth. Despite the efforts of ZAFT and Athrun, the colony hits Earth, causing the survivors of the accident to incite war against Coordinators again. At roughly the same time, a failed assassination attempt on Lacus Clyne forces Kira Yamato to once again climb on board the ZGMF-X10A Freedom which he has sealed up in order to find those responsible and to save the universe from tearing itself apart from war again...

Well, reviews! As the sequel to the Gundam SEED series, I find that if you liked the original series' conspiracies and twists, you would love ths series. And again, there are machines aplenty here, for the mecha fan. The development of characters here is full and well-thought out again, and the artwork certainly has not deteoirated since the last series. All in all, another good anime to absorb yourself in, and who knows, it might even get you thinking... a lot!

Camping at Singapore!!! Or not...

2007-06-03T21:48:00.000-07:00

Okay! Right back from Kuala Lumpur and on to Singapore! The plan was to spend a few nights there under canvas, going fishing, blah blah blah... So took off on Saturday morning and headed to the Second Link. Stopped by at the R&R there for some breakfast. Really nice setup there, with nice garden chairs and everything. Had a not-too-bad breakfast before we sped off into Singapore...

Once in Singapore, we headed directly to our aunt's place, jumped into the car and went on a 'trip'. The plan was to go on some obscure package for Malaysians (apparently you pay the same amount as Singaporeans, but in Ringgit! So, 5 ringgit for a 5 Singapore dollar trip...) but ended up in Vivo City, a nice shopping centre located near the harbour front. After that, sped off to Sentosa to.... look at the beach and to let the small kiddos go up into the famous merlion. At this point, No of 'Tourisy' Trips Went On: 0. Well, it is alright, not really interested, anyway...

After resting up, went for a HUMONGOUS Japanese Buffet at Suntec City. It was Heavenly! LOLZ... The tempura was nice, the sashimi was good, the crab was supreme, the teppanyaki beef was.... Okay, better stop before I start drooling all over again. Hahahahaha... Now I really am pissed that I can't show you the pics... Celaka...

Anyway, spent the night INSIDE the house, no fishing, unless you count fishing the koi inside my aunt's pond... Woke up the next morning to eat breakfast and do what I do best on Sunday afternoons: sleep. LOLZ. Went to Marine Cove on the East Coast Park for cycling, tandem style! A note to those in front when cycling a tandem: try your hardest to control the bike and don't let the fella at the back determine your speed, and the fella at the back: STOP MOVING YOUR NODY FROM SIDE TO SIDE!!! Anyway, had McDonalds there, played some arcade games at one of the sorriest arcades I have been to, really bare... It was the kiddies' idea, you see...

And now! Finally! Pictures! Saw these beauties at the park while waiting for the transports to arrive: Now everybody say: WOW!
Especially love the Harley here... The male side of my family has a fascination for bikes, but barred from having any by Mom... Anyway, had a late dinner/supper at this resturant: Different Taste... Some sort of soup, with crab and mushrooms, and whatever...
Curry fish head! With lots of bendi! (Lady's finger)
Chicken in sweet and sour sauce...
Kangkung! Or at least I think that's it...
And fried chicken... Not bad...

Anyway, went back to the house to pack up and get ready to go home. After blowing out the cake for one of the kids, we went back to Batu Pahat, somehow satisfied with the trip, even without the camping and fishing... Largely due to the scrumptious Japanese buffet, hehehehe... Okay, last picture before it ends: a family photo.

The birthday kid is the one in pink, Joyce. Below her, Jayn (the youngest) and Faith (with Flurry the dog). Uncle Woon is there beside Faith, and my aunt is between my bro and mom. Okay? Good. Gotta go now, so see all of you soon!

I'm Still Alive!!!

2007-06-03T20:20:00.000-07:00

Dear readers, sorry for the wait, but I AM BACK!!! *Applause please...* Actually I have been slightly busy the past week, running here, there and everywhere... *runs away from readers booing and throwing things at him* Ok, ok! Bad excuse, I know! Sorry, alright!

Anyway, in the tradition of my mentor, Dr Symeon Chiam, now currently working his butt off in Alor Setar Hospital and unavailable to do his usual act of blogging, I will now present you with a few juicy parts of my last trips... However, even though I was pretty pumped up (yeah right) to tantalize your taste buds in that manner, it looks like an internal glitch (I'm not saying anything) has somehow denied me that pleasure, because I no longer have the photos... Alright, whatever...

My KL trip was part of a last minute decision to apply to IMU, as a safety net of some sort in case my other applications did not go through. So, went there to hand in the documents and wait a day for my interview at the same venue, and also to satisfy a craving of some sort.... At Coliseum!!! Yes, a wonderful and historical cafe/restaurant where you can get one of the world's best Mixed Grills, at phenomenal prices! LOLZ... What a pity that the photos are not around... Anyway, stayed over at my aunt's house, full with dogs and cats, beautiful ones... There's a total of 3 dogs and 8 cats in the household. ('yikes!' do I hear you say?) However I only saw Cadbury, Patches, Pebbles (the 3 dogs), Mickey and Coco there... All the rest of the cats have apparently been er, scouting out the neighbourhood... Spent an afternoon with my cousins when my return home was pushed back, (due to unavailability of tickets to Batu Pahat, hahaha) whereupon I played an extremely violent game...

Get the picture? It more or less chronicles the story of the 'new' Greek God of War, Kratos, the Shadow of Sparta. It is VERY bloody, so please don't pick this game up if you are squeamish or are under 18... Played this really interesting game as well:This is a really nice one, with nice graphics and such. Okay, lets say that the hero is the size of a pea. Then, the colossus is.... a coconut. Something like that. Now to save the damsel in distress, you have to kill off a certain number of colossi (I think that's the plural, oh well). So you have to climb the gigantic colossus using their fur and girdles (wonder who does their tailoring) with only your bare hands, a bow and a magical sword. Cool, huh?

Got back on Friday, and that is that... And right after that, went over to the island of the Merlion, Kiasu Land, Singa(ber)pura... But that is a story for another time....

Gundam SEED

2007-05-25T09:37:00.000-07:00

Ok, now I have reviewed the tame, the funny, and the slightly risque anime, so now its time to go on... Now this anime is meant to put to rest the notion that some scoffers have, that is, all anime are for kids. True, not as vicious as those who claim that all anime are sexually explicit, but almost as annoying. Let me tell you, scoffers, if you can feel the same way after you finish watching this anime, I take my hat off to you. Well then, let me begin. Oh, a word of warning, the next paragraph is the background story of the anime, explained piecemeal throughout the anime. So if you are interested in watching the anime as it is, without all these extra information, please skip the next paragraph.

In this mecha anime (mecha is short for mechanical, this term refers to anime where the usage of robots or mechanical devices are a main theme), in the near future, or Cosmic Era, genetic manipulation has advanced to such a stage that the populance has been divided into two: 'pure humans' and genetically modified humans, called 'Coordinators'. Mutters against genetic modification and the envy of pure humans towards the more agile, more talented Coordinators have caused strained relations between the two groups, finally erupts into war when the humans begin killing the 'non-human' Coordinators. The war finally came to a head when the human military, the Earth Forces send a nuclear onslaught to the space colonies of the Zodiac Alliance for Peace Treaty, ZAFT (the military protecting the Coordinators), causing complete destruction of a heavily populated space colony. This tragedy is given the name Bloody Valentine, and the war that followed, the Bloody Valentine War. The highly technologically advanced ZAFT (perhaps due to their genetic advantage) retaliated by sending MS (mobile suits, a machine-cum-body armour piloted by the Coordinators) with Nuclear Jammers to the Earth, thus negating the Earth Forces' significant nuclear arsenal. The war then went into full throttle, with battles taking place on land, sea and outer space.

In the midst of war, Kira Yamato, a brilliant student was living a quiet life in a neutral colony run by ORB, the powerful nation that maintained a strict neutrality, welcoming both humans and Coordinators to its doors. However, his life was turned upside down when he and his friends were attacked by ZAFT forces in his professor's lab. In the confusion, Kira meets a strange girl, and while attempting to rescue her, comes across five MS in a military base belonging to ORB. He is separated from the girl and finds himself with an Earth Forces officer, who is desperately protecting the MS from the onslaught. As the injured officer and Kira make their way across the MS, Kira comes to terms with what he learns: that the military base was actually used by the Earth Forces with permission from the ORB government to develop a new model of MS, based on technology used by ZAFT. Then he meets someone he did not expect to see: an old friend, working on the side of ZAFT, Athrun Zala. As the two friends respond to meeting the other with shock, the factory starts falling apart. Athrun immediately jumps into the nearest MS and flees with it. Kira and the officer then jump into the only remaining MS, as the others have already been stolen by ZAFT soldiers. In a fit of pique, some ZAFT units started attacking the colony itself, endangering the lives of Kira's friends. Seeing this, Kira takes over the controls of the MS, easily defeating several ZAFT MS. As the invaders flee, the officer, impressed with Kira's skills, swears him and his friends into the service of the Earth Forces, inside the Archangel, a massive space battleship originally meant to house the five MS. As it turns out, Kira is actually a Coordinator, an 'enemy' to the Earth Forces. Though reluctant to fight on any side, he is the only one possesing the skills and reflexes to pilot the MS. He learns that these MS are a prototype of a new version of MS, one that would render all other MS ineffective and clunky comparatively. All the five MS were developed for various areas of combat, such as close range melee attacks, far range artillery, stealth and speed, but his MS, the GAT-X105 Strike, was developed for all-round combat, able to adapt itself into whichever way battles turned. As he somewhat reluctantly pilots Strike to protect his friends aboard the Archangel, he faces the guilt of killing, betrayal, opposing loyalties, manipulation, friendship and love, as he quests to protect his friends, and to return peace to the universe.

Now that was complex, right? You bet! If you are a machine-lover, you will go mad over the many types of MS and battleships represented in this anime. Sometimes I wonder where the mangaka gets his ideas... Battle strategies and tactics are also used unreservedly here, for those interested in military strategy. And the various emotions and actions of the highly complex characters fleshed out in this anime will appeal to those more in touch with their emotions. It is an anime that has something for almost everybody. Notice the almost? DO NOT watch this if you do not like war nor the sight of someone of killing someone. That theme is prevalent in this anime. And to those who have preconcieved ideas (like me during the first few episodes), the matter of who is right and who is wrong is not in black and white, but is a very greyish shade of grey in this anime. All in all, good artwork (especially those GUNDAMs, very well drawn) and storyline, if you do not mind the complexities. The characters are well fleshed out and are seldom not what they are... If war and machines are your cup of tea, this is the anime for you.

P.S. - GUNDAM is the name given by Kira to all MS developed during and after Strike's development. It is actually an acronym for what appears on the main screen in the pilot's cabin when the MS is started up. If I am not wrong, it stands for General Unilateral Neural Defensive Autonomic Manuever.... Hahahaha.... SEED refers to a state of mind for some humans (though more prevalent in Coordinators) where they lose control over their emotions, making them brutal and efficent killing machines, also known as a beserker rage. Familiar to some gamers out there, I am sure...

Love Hina

2007-05-22T09:21:00.000-07:00

Alright! It seems that I have not been doing reviews on anime for some time now, so looks like it is time to start on a new series. Yes, the series' name is Love Hina. I have personally seen both the anime and the manga, so looks like I will have more to talk about this time. Oh, for the record, the anime is mildly 'tame' while the manga is slightly more... Well, I will get there soon enough. Let's just say that underaged children should be supervised when watching the anime, and should not really be reading the manga...

Okay! From centre and then clockwise: Naru, Keitarou, Shinobu, Motoko, Kaolla, Kit.

Okay then! What do you think of the artwork? Nice huh? This is the creation of Ken Akamatsu, a mangaka famous for his, errrrr, 'creativity' in capturing the human body on paper... Well, hope that wasn't too subtle... Errrr, right! On to the story! The opening episode shows a solitary figure by the name of Urashima Keitaro arriving at his grandmother's inn, called Hinata-sou, or translated as Hinata Inn. (hence the 'Hina' in the name...) A two-time ronin (exam retaker) aiming to enter Tokyo University (or nicknamed Todai), he was pratically thrown out of home for persisting to try to enter said university, even though he clearly wasn't scholar material. Now, the reason for this is a childhood promise between him and a girl from 15 years ago, at the very same inn, where they promised to enter Todai together, and find happiness. (This is apparently a myth they have, which is central in this story) Because of that, he has been trying his best to enter Todai, and failing, not to mention being avoided by the girls (for reasons obvious later). Entering the inn, he finds it 'empty' and proceeds to take a bath in the famous hot springs located in the inn's premises. Then he is shocked as someone walks him on him, who is none other than: Narusegawa Naru! This pretty girl walks in naked (well, I did try to explain), sits in the bath, assuming the person in the bath with her was a friend, until she realises her mistake. This signals a general scream for help, and the getaway of our hapless hero as he runs for his life, and bangs into four more other girls in only his bath-towel.... Guess you know what will happen next... No, fortunately for him, he bumps into his aunt, Aunt Haruka who mans the tea-shop just next door. After some frantic explainations and some protests on the girls' part, he ends up being allowed to stay in Hinata-sou (which was actually remade into an all-girls dorm in Keitarou's grandmother's absence, which accounts for the general lack of acceptance to him staying). However, he accomplished that by capitalising on a mistaken assumption of Haruka, who thought him a Todai student already. In short order, he had lied outrageously to cover the initial lie, and was exposed before his guilty feelings could make him confess. Expelled from the dorm, he was later found by Naru at his favourite joint: a sticker-photo booth (.......any wonder for the lack of girlfriends?) He is allowed to return to the inn, since his absent grandmother has named him the owner of Hinata-sou and the land surrounding it, provided he becomes the kanrinin (manager) of the place. That starts his life in adapting to living with the inhabitants of the inn, all of them with their own quirks and personality traits, and their habit of literally kicking him around whenever he crashes in by pure accident while the girls are in... ummmmm... compromising positions. Well, for starters, there is, of course, the hot-headed Narusegawa, whom you have met, the master of sending poor Keitarou packs of pain everytime, like in this picture:

Surprisingly, (or not) she is also the top scholar in Japan, also aiming for Todai because of a promise (It isn't... But yet, it is!) and whos obsession of studying has ruined her eyesight (that's why she mistook Keitarou for someone else...) and giving her a love life of zero. Moderation, friends, moderation... However, since she is the heroine, and Keitarou is the hero.... You get the idea. Then there is Maehara Shinobu, a shy and introverted girl who at first hates Keitarou for his lies and 'accidents' involving her, but later develops a strong crush on him... The ideal housewife, as she is the best cook among them and enjoys doing chores around the house, and also the most prone to crying... Then there is Aoyama Motoko, a child of the Shinmeiryu discipline of sword mastery, who spends her time sharpening her sword skills upon the balcony, and upon poor Keitarou... A tomboy, she can't stand Keitarou's so-called 'sissy' attitude and antics. And then there is Kaolla Su, a foreigner who is obsessed with electronics, mechas, guns, cannons, and kicking Keitarou as a form of greeting. The one with a smile carved on her face, she also has a mysterious side... And of course, we have Monno Kitsune, or Kit, the money-faced schemer and chain-drinker who enjoys 'tempting' Keitarou just for kicks.

Let me be frank, this is a romance-themed manga, though heavily tempered with 'violence' (hahaha, upon Keitarou, mostly!). At one point along the way, almost half of the residents fall for the blur Keitarou, with a few others joining the fray later, thus setting up a highly complex and confused love triangle (or more specifically, a hexagon of sorts...) that sorts of endears the story, though I really went through all that because of the sheer amounts of laugh factor induced. All in all, something girls would like and guys could learn to appreciate, though for varying reasons. Eye candy all the way, and humour slapped on without restraint. Truly something that readers and watchers (of a proper age!) can enjoy. =>

Genting Highlands Part 4

2007-05-21T09:19:00.000-07:00

Alright, as promised, the last and final chapter of my trip to Genting Highlands! Well, remember that we left off at the Outdoor Amusement Park? Well then, it was time for dinner then! Had a buffet dinner at the Genting International Convention Centre, right beside the hotel. (Forgive me for the lack of photos, most of my photos were taken on-the-run, so they are either too blurry to be put up, or not there at all. =<) The lamb curry was good, but that was about it. Left as soon as they started putting singers on-stage, partly because the group decided to take off, and partly because those dimwits at the sound system pushed the volume and treble to the max, nearly breaking my eardrums in the process. Then it was time for some walks around the area. Luckily for us, Kwan Wen and Jeanette (one of the girls) had a friend from National Service days who happened to work in the area, and who graciously gave us a tour. (By the way, this was the same friend who held up our group earlier, but it wasn't actually her fault, it was "somebody's" lousy sense of giving directions...) So we went to the front of the Hotel to a very nice garden, where the next shots were taken...

Yeah, I still have a lot to learn, I know...=<>

Slept at 4.00, and woke up at 10.00, to start the second leg, the Indoor Theme Park! However, we did not buy tickets for the rides, as we considered them 'boring' compared to the ones outside... Anyway, scenery shots:

Yeah, slightly blur, I know... Anyway, a few points of interest: notice that there are a few landmarks here that look awfully familiar? Like the Big Ben and the Eiffel Tower? Apparently you are supposed to be able to spot a total of 9 international landmarks inside the mall, namely the Eiffel Tower, the Leaning Tower of Pisa, Australia's Sydney Opera House, our very own Petronas Twin Towers, the Singapore Merlion, the Statue of Liberty, the Great Wall of China, Japan's Mount Fuji and the Taj Mahal. I personally think that it is a scam, and I back it up with photographic evidence:

I rest my case. Anyway, lucky Yeong Tai was given three free arrows to spend at the archery range, so off we went.... He even had basic instruction!
Nice photos for the missus, YT, maybe I'll pass them along to you... And as for his archery... Let's just say he could do better. Then it over to the more sophisticated side: the rifle range. Each of us did 20 shots, and I didn't do too bad. Yeong Tai, on the other hand... As I said, he could do better... After all that, it was back on the bus and back to BP, and my nice warm bed... Okay, before we end, some more points of interest in the mall... The much-acclaimed SkyVenture skydiving simulation centre, which we gawked at but did not try out because of monetary problems and the reticience of the girls...
And this... odd device which is part of a 'raree' show... You are supposed to sit in the benches, peer into the box courtesy of the red peek-holes, and see whatever is in there, accompanied by the sound of gongs and chimes produced by the puppet-master (or whatever he is called...). Again, financial matters and the language barrier prevented me from giving a better description...

Phew! Finally done! Thank you to all the bored (and the not-so-bored) readers out there who actually took the time to go through all my rubbish... Much appreciated. Oh, and to those wanting to go there for a holiday, DO NOT think that 30 bucks will get you through two days there. Trust me, it won't. My wallet is half-empty as of now, for obvious reasons. =<>

Genting Highlands Part 3

2007-05-21T00:48:00.000-07:00

Hi! This is the third installment of my trip to Genting Highlands... Well then, no need to go through with the lenghty introductions then, right? =p

Alright, this picture where you can *FINALLY!* see our friends Yeong Tai and Tai Seng's faces was taken from a bridge overlooking the ride, named Bumper Boat. Need to know how it works? Well then, a picture paints a thousand words, so...

Yeah, you get the idea. As for why I'm taking photos instead ofjoining them on the ride, errrrr.... because you have to wait for a full 10 minutes for the boat to come back? Hehehehe.... That's an evasion, btw... Ok then *changes subject*, the ride next to it is a family ride, the Boating ride. You can see part of the ride here, as it is adjacent to the Bumper Boat area, but for those who can't take the time to zoom in....

Arghhhhhh!!!! Oh, it's them... lolz I really must discard my habit of blasting my friends online... Hehehehe... Anyway, you just have a boat for two where you propel yourself along by pedalling all the way... You steer using a handy steel bar that is located in the middle... Like so:Opps, you can't see it either... Wait, are they holding hands or something? WAHAHAHAHA.... No worries, CG, they are not making out... Hahahahaha.... Anyway, after the water amusements, we stopped to take a few group photos...
Respectively, the thorns among the roses, and the guys... Even had some extra time to fool around and look for nice spots to take some scenery shots as well:

I also took some shots that can only be called 'fool-around' shots: Me with the famous Arena of Stars in the background, looks like some big time artists are coming next month, hence the practises going on inside... But all were in Cantonese, so being a 'banana' can't really appreciate them....

Oh yes, this shot! Wondering why on earth did I take this particular picture? Hmmmm, don't really know, but it kinda reminds me of something... *scratches head* Errrrrr... Oh yes! I remember now!

Errrr, hopefully you get that... LOLZ Well, next was the famous Flying Coaster where you can pretend to be Superman, flying through the skies as you go through a fast-paced ride, horizontal...
Hey, wait! That design is Spiderman's! And he dosen't go flying about like that! Oh well, maybe that way they evade the trademark and copyright infringements.... And about the above picture, I didn't see the photographers until the very last minute, so please moderate your laughter.... =< href="http://bp1.blogger.com/_JMPWb_p5wEo/RlFpr1jLjUI/AAAAAAAAANs/EYpkHBEH_vw/s1600-h/P1130471.JPG">

THE SPACESHOT! The ride thats sends you easily a few hundred metres into the air, only to release you in midair and send you hurtling to your doom.... Hahaha, don't worry, it's safe, and it's not a execution device... However, those prone to heart attacks and pregnant ladies should refrain from this ride, and those with long hair, make sure your hair is under control... Just a precautionary measure, don't make me explain... And of course, the next ride is every bit as exciting...

The Corkscrew! See that beautiful corkscrew right there? Try going through that at a hundred miles an hour and you will feel pure adrenaline rushing through your veins..... MWAHAHAHAHAHAHA..... A must-try there, together with the SpaceShot... Only make sure that you do not pee in your pants... lolz

Okay folks, watch out for the fourth and last part of my trip to Genting, coming soon! Ciao!

Genting Highlands Part 2

2007-05-19T06:35:00.000-07:00

Okay, second part of my Genting Highlands trip entry. A little late, but couldn't be helped, I was errrrr.... Busy! Yeah busy! Oh never mind, you won't believe me anyway...=p Anyway, due to some deft and clever manipulation on the part of Vincent, who was also our 'tour guide' of sorts, we were all signed on as part of a Johor Super Savers deal, which meant that we paid for the entire duration of two days and one night stay in the hotel, the bus expenses, and a buffet dinner for the total price of... RM 55. Thanks Vincent. So, this is the hotel we stayed at:

Now, anybody who has been to Genting before can attest to the fact that this particular hotel has a very... uh, interesting look...

Hey, I personally think it is quite 'attractive', in a sense.. Lolz... Anyway, we checked into our rooms, which were definitely MUCH larger than those at the 'old' tower of the First World Hotel. Hehehe, thank goodness... And at least the shower dosen't have a transparent door... Okay, I digress... Stashed our bags and went to start the PARRRTTTTTYYYYY!!!! Managed to get to the meeting place ahead of Tai Seng and Co, even though we started off at the same time... Goes to say how much sense of direction differs from one to another... Okay, sorry Tai Seng, just messing with ya... This is the meeting place:

The entrance to the Genting Outdoor Theme Park (yeah, I know it is 'senget', but thats nice as well! ....Right?), where we waited for the tags to be given out by Mr 'Tau Yu', Vincent... That is, for the majority of us... A few people (who just happened to be in my group) had decided to buy off their tickets from a friend working there, at half-price! Unfortunately, half-price tickets are not easily shipped over, so in the end we (the rest of the group) elected to go in first. Now, a few things I noticed:

Yeah, a dragon bush, two bears flanking a fountain, and a giant star on the ground near the Spinner. Talking about the Spinner, we actually got on it once before the stragglers joined us for the second round.. lolz

This is the Spinner. What it does is spin you around at different angles and at speeds high enough to get your heart racing. Coupled with the cool air and the sensation of you hurtling into the air at any moment, it can get you high.=> Oh, better watch your landing too. Because your feet are definitely gonna be cold (especially if you're wearing slippers), hitting the ground hard would not be in your best interest, as Yeong Tai can testify. OW!

See Tai Seng sitting there on the steps? There is a reason for that... and that is the same reason why I am snapping photos instead of going on the ride... =<>

Alright! The Cyclone! As you can see, it is the oldest roller coaster in Malaysia, so it is kinda short, but still fun. And you get to go through the track in a 4-seater, so it's not that bad. Still gets your heart pumping... LOLZ. And from there you will see the Teacup! That annoying little ride where you sit in a teacup upon a platform that will turn you around at a comfortable speed. Of course, you have the option of turning the teacup itself using a handy wheel in the centre of the teacup in any direction and speed. Be careful though, at best, you will get a little high and wobbly-kneed, but at its worst, you won't have the stomach for another round... Literally! Hehehe. BTW, no photo here, forgot... Next is the kiddy ride, the Flying Jumbo, which was taken by our dear friends Yeong Tai and Kwan Wen, as well as the 4 girls that tagged along.

Okay, vanity speaking here! None of my friends can do a perfect shot of two fellas going round in circles at speeds you cannot chase after... Well, maybe some of them can but not all of them! Case in point, one of the four girls on the ride tried snapping me and Tai Seng as they went round. As expected, all we saw was ground.... Okay, last picture before I call it a day! This was taken at a bridge point where the management claimed you would get a perfect photo... And it was! Sort of...
See, not bad at all right? Okay, time for my siesta! Watch out for more updates soon on my Genting trip! Ciao!

Genting Highlands Part 1

2007-05-17T09:03:00.000-07:00

Ahhhh HOOOOOOOOOO!!!! I'm back, OKAY..... LOLZ.... Well folks, I am indeed back, alive and kicking from my trip to Genting with my schoolmates and friends from my Form 6 days. Yes, this is the last major trip for us before we are scattered all over the place as we gear up to enter university life. Well, enough of me chatting about the boring bits, let me start the update proper. Another point I wanna add: I am not the family 'pro photographer', that spot is reserved for my bro. AND I prefer scenery shots compared to people shots, so bear with me.... Ok, for those who are asking me about the weather there, take a guess from this picture:

Still cool and windy there, my friends! Though hotter than what I have experienced in the past, it is a heck of a relief from the heat in Batu Pahat. =<

At the right hand bottom corner is where my friends and I sat, we stayed more or less in a group the whole time. Me, being a naturally faster eater (due to family cirumstances, Symeon would testify to that) than Kwan Wen, Yeong Tai and Tai Seng, I finished eating and snapping photos before they were half-way through... Hehehe... This caught my attention somewhere along the line of shophouses:

A whole line of 'alleged' Ming vases paraded on top of a shop selling... well, you can see the moon cake, bak kwa, and other stuff. Interesting designing, not to mention expensive.... lolzA candid shot of Aik Munn, Yong Kuan, Ser Yuan and Wai Kit before we took a short trip to this place (chocolate lovers, eat your hearts out! =>) :

Basically a specialized chocolate shop selling all kinds of chocolate (obviously!). The guy in white is Kwan Wen, orange-shirt is Thai Seng... Well I DID tell you I prefer scenery shots... Bought a box of Tiramisu chocolate for the family, and saw these on display as well:I think the half-broken-off (or was it half-eaten??) words read 'Chocolate House'.... Kinda reminds me of owls' houses... Or is that from watching too much Winnie the Pooh? O_o Anyway, nice piece of art, as well as the below:Yes! Easter bunnies and a ship surrounding what I took to be a coral reef... Beats me how the shopkeepers manage to relate bunnies to the sea.... And yet another display:

Notice the similarity of the reef to the one above? Guess the sculptor was in Redang somewhere before doing these pieces... (Yeah, wanna go there too, Minny... Lolz). At least there aren't any sea-bunnies around here... Oh, I take the last ingredient to mean 'Vanilla', pardon the English stickler in me breaking out...

And that ends part 1 for my Genting trip update. Sorry, but felling slightly tired, so gonna hit the sack early today IF you consider 1 'o' clock early (which it is, in the morning that is...). Anyway, updates coming up later, so stay tuned!

GENTINNNGGG!!!

2007-05-15T05:20:00.000-07:00

Hi all! Just to tell you that I am gonna be AWOL for the next two days, as I would be taking a break from the terrible heat wave that has struck Batu Pahat. I will be up here enjoying the cold blasts of air (as opposed to the hot air I get, wait, I'm not insinuating anything here...) where the Singaporeans (AKA Kiasus) call 'Jern-thing' (Yeap, I DO know quite a few Singaporeans, so this is a real observation). Alright, to put it in a not-so-random and slightly more to-the-point way, I will be there enjoying the cool air (or what is left of it), the roller-coasters, the excellent casino facilities (MWAHAHAHAHA... Oh wait, I don't have the cash... Oh well =P) and the freezing nights of Genting Highlands with a bus-load of friends. Yeah, I know what you guys are thinking :
Hehehehe.... I will be back soon, I promise! Don't need to worry.... Oh, you're not screaming because of that? Oh, I get it! No, these friends are alright (for the most part), I will not have people hunting my head behind my back, nor anybody trying to stick a knife into my back.... Oh, that's still not it? ...HUH? You're screaming out of envy? No concern for me whatsoever? Tsk. FINE! *grumble, grumble*

Well, in either case, I will have a few days to enjoy cold, frigid atmospheres, while the rest of you:
MWAHAHAHAHAHAHA... Live with it! LOLZ... Uh wait, guys, no, I didn't mean to, please don't... ARGHHHHHHHHH!!!!!

Ok, that was lame, alright. Better go before the heat completely kills off my brain cells...=> Well, then, will be back on Thursday, so watch out for updates!

Celaka Copyrighters...

2007-05-14T05:17:00.000-07:00

Wondering about the topic? Well, it happened when I was in the office today, as I was sitting in front of the computer. "Okay, I'll update my blog at home, I'll check my mail on my laptop, so what will I do? I know, why not stream some anime?" And thats what I did, or at least tried to. Avoided Youtube, knowing that any anime that otherwise would be there WOULD NOT be there, and went to my current favourite anime streaming site, MangaSpot. Searched for Tsubasa Chronicle (Chronicle of the Wings, a really COOL anime) and to my surprise, I was slammed with the words : 'No matches for the keywords "tsubasa chronicle" '. Strange. Tried again, but met with the same words over and over again : "No matches for the keywords..."

And then I tried a new technique : using a secondary site to locate the anime and play it. But then the screen flashed a message : instead of the usual opening credits of the anime, I got a 10 second clip, saying 'The said video has been removed because it is copyrighted and we do not want to get shived'. And then it struck me : the copyrighters have done it again.

Now as far as I know that as the legal owners of the said products, the copyrighters have the right to sue anyone who puts up anime copyrighted by their companies on the web, it does not change the fact that it manages to piss off the community of anime lovers on the web that do not depend on torrents and whole day downloads of their favourite anime. I mean, we do not have the time, hard disc space or the patience to watch them, so you are depriving us of a way to enjoy our favourite anime without having to wait the whole day for them to finish downloading. You may say, well, we bought it, so get used to it, we do not want to hear your complaints. Well guess what, bozos. Users of Youtube who are anime lovers have been heavily criticizing the disappearance of their favourite animes, all because of the money-grubbing hands of the copyrighters. Do you demand streaming sites to remove these anime episodes because you wanna make more money? Well, if I find out you are the ones who did these, then rest assured you will never catch me dead buying even one cd of your stupidly-dubbed, badly subtitled and jumpy-quality copied anime.

Alright, cool down, Leon. So looks like it's all about downloading via torrent again. HAIH... Hehehe, but seriously, I laugh at these people who actually take (wasted) time in dubbing these anime episodes. In all sincerity, the end result sounds completely off, completely fake, and does not fit in with the flow and beauty of the original anime. Give me a break and subtitle it instead! =P Ok, now I will have to find SOMETHING to keep me occupied online...

A Morning Ill Spent?

2007-05-12T06:46:00.000-07:00

Today I woke up at about 6.00 A.M. to my brother's handphone's alarm. Yeah, nice choice of song, Mal, those annoying 'Woo-oo, WOO-OO!' verses ARE irritating enough to wake me up from my beauty sleep, no offense to Gwen Stefani, Akon and co. Anyway, stumbled out of bed, went down, got some breakfast (Note to Dr Symeon, is Cintan in the morning a balanced meal?), got in my car, and drove at breakneck speed to school, Malcolm in tow. I guess I was pretty sleepy and my mind was cloudy, so it was upon arriving at said school gates when I suddenly realised: "Where the heck IS everyone!" Then my mind (I guess it was Leon finally going lucid) went, "Silly boy! It's Saturday!" "Wait, why am I driving to school on Satur... OOOOH."

Well then I remembered, Malcolm being Head Prefect was supposed to be early to school for the annual 'Majlis Anugerah Kecermerlangan Akademik' (Academic Excellence Awards Ceremony, for those without the Malay language advantage.) Anyway, I was part of the ceremony as well, for my achievements in the last STPM examinations. Well, some of you might be excited, even exhilarated at getting prizes in these ceremonies, my mom and Malcolm being prime examples, me and my dad being prime ANTI-examples. Don't get me wrong, I don't hate the idea of receiving prizes, but in this case, the disadvantages of the said awards ceremony FAR outweighs the advantages. Well, I will let my story be my point...

But first off, I was awakened at 8.00 A.M. by mom to get ready for the ceremony... WHY 8 o' clock may I ask? Civil servants start work at 9.00 A.M. (Okay, they don't, but let's give them the benefit of the doubt shall we?), heck, even my FATHER complains that he dosen't go to work that early... Anyway, dressed in a brown Converse T, and slacks. Formal enough for you? Well, apparently not for my mom... "Are you sure you wanna go in that?" Well, I could have argued, but lets go with the inevitable, and go change into... a checkered short-sleeved shirt :

Huh? Looks like I'm going for my wedding? Heck, sure feels like it! Hehehehe, ok, bad joke that... Okay, no issue with the clothes... yet. Left at 8.30, figuring that if we went for breakfast (oh, in hindsight, that Cintan packet was more of a snack...) we would get to school just as the speeches winded up. But no, we came just in time for the first speech, then the second, then the third... Born loser, me. And, I find to my exasperation, this:
Notice: SHIRT, SLACKS (that is me, btw, and the rest are my friends, here for the ceremony as well...); T-SHIRT, slacks; T-SHIRT, JEANS; T-SHIRT, JEANS; T-SHIRT, JEANS andddd... T-Shirt, Jeans. Ok, mom, to be honest, I kinda expected that. Well, never mind, don't mind the discomfort... and the stifling heatwave that seemed to have struck Batu Pahat... and the... But I digress.

So in the trapped heat of Highschool's Dewan, we waited... and waited... and waited.... Notice that Mom is missing the usual Sudoku puzzles and Malcolm, being the Head Prefect, had to pretend to be listening to every single word from the VIPs... Haih, pure torture, and here I thought torture was illegal... Oh wait, this kind of torture was legalised long ago... Cheh...

And so, after sweating it out, I got the award from the VIP, Wakil Rakyat (Assemblyman) Koh Chee Chai. Eagerly I looked at the package, and what I got was : a certificate, standard issue, with some flattering words and stuff ANNNDDD... a voucher from Bank Simpanan Nasional. Okay, maybe not that bad (heard that last year's batch got at least RM150)... Wait, let me see that voucher.... "RM60" Wait! ALL THAT WAITING AND SUFFERING FOR 60 measly dollars? Haih...*Slumps* too.... tired .... to.... throw... tantrum....

No Tears HOOOOOOOOOOOOOO~

2007-05-10T09:55:00.000-07:00

Close your eyes and imagine your average city street, moderately busy, with people walking here and there minding their own business. Imagine the sunlight glinting off shop windows as the shopkeepers busy themselves with the day's work. Imagine finding a bit of peace and tranquility in that moment, as you direct your gaze down the street, taking in colours, shapes, and people, blending into a harmonious memory in your mind. Then just as you prepare to walk away, something catches your eye. A shadowy fiqure, in black coming towards you.....

'HOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!'

WAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!! This scene always cracks me up... *ahem, ahem* Okay, I know that people are not always happy and they are not always in the best of moods. Well then, this is where I introduce my very own version of medicine, that is, PURE LAUGHTER!!! (Doctor Symeon's approval included! HOOOOO~) [WARNING! I do not imply any joke or ridicule to anyone who feels strongly about the below. If you do not like it, I'm sorry. That also applies for the prodigious amounts of HOOOOOOO!!!!s below. =p]

Welcome to my entry about one of the most entertaining fellas on the planet, namely, from downtown Osaka.... RAZOR RAMON SUMITAMI-des! HOOOOOO!!! (No relation to famed superstar Scott Hall of WWE fame) This wacky fella is also known as the one, the only......

HARD GAY!!! WHOOOOOOO!!!!

Alright, Hard Gay (pronounced Hardo Gae, Hardo Gaei, Hardo Gei.... watever, you get the idea) or simply called HG, is a Japanese wrestler and comedian. Coming on regularly on the Japanese show called Bakusho Mondai no Bakuten, he is now a celebrity in Japan, loved by the people and the media for his crazy antics, ridiculous capers and his trademark pelvic thrusts. OKAY!!! He, my friends, is the comic relief of the Japanese people. Coming on the show with his trademark pose and with Ricky Martin's song Livin La Vida Loca coming on, he would make even a sad day into a remarkably hilarious one! As part of the show, he would often do things that would either:

A, help people out, or :

B, promote himself.

All his efforts will end up with hilarious results and lots of red faces (on the people unlucky, I mean lucky enough to interact with him.) Alright, for example: he devotes an entire afternoon helping out people in the episode 'Hard Gay and Social Improvements'. Events include helping a man to carry crates of beer into a van, helping a lady to give out tissues (Hard Gay Tissues? lolz), helping a street performer to get more attention on the streets (or more likely making people looking at him with giggles and avoiding both of them, for OBVIOUS reasons), and manning a gas station for the owner ('Welcome to Hard Gay Stand, HOOOOOO!!!').

In some episodes, he looks for children with aversions to some food (OKAY! This time it is GREEN PEPPERS! *pulls out a green pepper out of the front of his hotpants* Errrrr, maybe the kids shouldn't see this...) How does he do this? Why, first, by setting the mood! Music please! Errrrrrrmmmm, don't bother trying to see what the lyrics are, you REALLY don't want to know... HEHEHEHE.... And if setting the ambience dosen't get the job done? Then it is time for HARD GAY COOKING! He cooks up a simple meal using the said food, and the kid eats it. Success! In yet another episode, he helps an ailing ramen (Japanese noodle) restaurant get business by giving out flyers (Come to Hard Gay's Ramen Restaurant, you have the choice of your favourite noodles being Hard, Hard or Hard. XD).

As for his promotional stunts, he once mentioned a company using his trademark HOOOOO! without his permission. The company, of course, is YA-HOOOOOOO! XD Then he insists that Yahoo! allows him to be in one of their promotional advertistments. Going up to Yahoo! Japan headquarters, he then proceeds to 'convince' them to do his ad.And in the end, this is the result :

Ermmmm.... I rest my case. In another episode, he claims that he, being Razor RAMON, and a television magazine, being LEMON, he HAS to get the magazine to use him as a cover model(???? Logical? *shrugs*). He then invades the month's photo shoot and humorously blotches up the shoot with certain, ah, 'parts' of his anatomy (now, look at the video before you start commenting, you perverts! =P) till he gets his way. In yet another episode, he uses singer Hiromi Go (who happens to sing a Japanese version of Livin La Vida Loca AND is also 'HG') in a promotional video, all without the singer's knowledge. WAHAHAHAHAHA.! In yet another one, he invades toy company TOMY to make them produce this:

A Hard Gay version of TOMY's best-selling toy, Pop-Up Pirate! Hahahaahaha, what a whacko! He even challenged TOMY's CEO to a game just to make him do it! (P.S. It seems that this particular edition of the toy was sold out at an unbelieveable speed, so TOMY was grateful to him after all.)

Well! If I were to start telling all of you all his exploits, then there won't be any end, so watch the episodes yourself! They are on Youtube, and if you want subtitled ones from the source, the link can be found below:

http://www.bakakage.net/

Well, it's time to go! Sleep HOOOOOOOO!!!!!!

Other facts : Hard Gay is actually NOT gay, he married a swimsuit model and has a kid and he has a degree in Commerce (!). He once wrestled in a team with RG (Real Gay), another wrestler before his retirement from wrestling, though he was involved in Japanese wrestling show HUSTLE! for a few of their shows. Hard Gay products are selling like hotcakes! WHOOOOOOO!!!!

Magician

2007-05-08T09:05:00.000-07:00

Alright, this is for those people who have no idea what anime is about, but would love to burrow themselves in a good book. This is a review of the very first book done by my favourite author, fantasy genius, Raymond E. Feist. I was captured and enthralled from the very first time I received this book from my aunt, who had it somewhere stored in her bookcase. Anyway, a bit of background on the author (what little I know about him, anyway).

The author was born and raised in California, and graduated with honours in Communication Arts at the University of California, San Diego. If my information is correct (and I think it is), he used to work as a videogame developer before he became an author. The world of Midkemia featured in his books is an idea created by the Thursday Nighters, a group of his friends who got together and made this fantasy world. He has written many books, and has collaborated with other writers such as Janny Wurts and Joel Rosenburg to produce books based in the world of Midkemia and Kelewan (this world will be explained later.)

Okay, so on to the book itself: Magician has been around for a long time, but recently has been republished in two books, namely Magician:Apprentice and Magician:Master. (the reason for this is that the original is DARN thick, with roughly a thousand pages...) The cover of the book looks like this :

Alright, the story of this book concerns a boy named Pug, an orphan boy who is raised in the kitchen of the castle of Crydee, a duchy in the Kingdom of the Isles. He meets the magician Kulgan, advisor to Duke Borric of Crydee, who then realises that Pug has an untapped talent for magic. At the Choosing, when all boys of a certain age are apprenticed to a craft, Pug is left unapprenticed to any master in the end. Kulgan, out of pity, apprentices Pug to the study of magic. Life changes again for Pug as he later kills a few trolls using magic while protecting the Duke's daughter, Carline. He is adopted into the line of Duke Borric, and is made a squire. Then, just as Pug is getting used to his life, strange things begin to happen.

A strange ship from another world is found washed up on the beach of Crydee after a violent storm. Upon examining the ship, Pug and his childhood friend, Tomas encounter a strange warrior from another world. Risking their lives, Father Tully and Kulgan delve into the mind of the dying warrior and a mysterious message found on the ship, only to report grim news: the warrior is of the powerful empire of Tsuranuanni, from the foreign world called Kelewan, and the strangers have the power to travel from their world to Pug's world, Midkemia. Alarmed, the Duke consorts with the elves, who confirm sightings of the invaders near their forests. The Duke, together with his son, Arutha, Kulgan, Pug, Tomas and his guards set out to warn the King of this coming danger. Along the way, they met the dwarves who offer them a way to the King. Tomas is separated from the party when a wraith attacks them in the MacMordain Cadal, a mine passing through the mountains. Separated from his friends, Tomas finds refuge with a dragon, who gives him magical armour, sword and shield before its death. Pug and his party arrives at the capital of the Kingdom, Rillanon, only to find that no help will be forthcoming from the King, who is losing his sanity. On the journey back, they are ambushed by the Tsurani. Pug is captured and taken to Kelewan. There is where Pug realises his full potential of his magical powers, even as his friend Tomas is changing into an ancient terrible power in Elvandar, the city of the elves....

Alright, if you got lost in that condensed summary, I apologise. But it is difficult to condense such fine writing into two short paragraphs. In all sincerity, the author is a wonderful storyteller. His descriptions are vivid, his characters are perfectly developed and fleshed out, and the story is gripping and imaginative. Words cannot describe the true art of this book, so.... GO GET THIS BOOK AND READ IT! You will not regret it, I promise you.=>

Fullmetal Alchemist

2007-05-07T02:28:00.000-07:00

Alright, now since that I've broken the ice with Chobits, it's time to look at yet another anime with slightly darker themes... No, it's not about nudity, but it is a slightly gory and scary anime. Yes, in this anime you may see violence, blood and death... Not a good idea for those below 15 years of age. So....

Fullmetal Alchemist is based in a world where alchemy is as highly developed, if not more advanced, than technology. For the unknowing, alchemy is an ancient art of turning or 'transmuting' an object into a different one. The most talked about example is the turning of lead into gold, which needless to say, failed. Hehehehe... Anyway, some practices of alchemy have brought about certain discoveries in the field of science, but that is a topic for next time... Anyway, the anime is based on the lives of the Elric brothers, two alchemists in an alternate Germany. Edward Elric, the younger brother, is a State Alchemist, in other words, he is an Alchemist in the employ of the military. He is given the name 'Fullmetal' beacuse of his steel mechanical arm and leg. Alphonse is the younger brother, but stands a full head above his brother... as a moving, talking steel suit of armour. They travel the whole world in order to find the ultimate holy grail of alchemy : the Philosopher's Stone.

You see, alchemy is a process that follows a very strict law : the law of equivalent trade. Lets say you want to make an iron bar using alchemy. Then you would have to present an item of equivalent value or worth to exchange for the bar of iron. Using the Philosopher's Stone, the user is allowed to negate that law for any transmutation, even those concerning the forbidden tranmutations : humans. The brothers search for the Stone, to return themselves to their original forms, and reveal a dark conspiracy from within the military...

*WARNING! SPOILER PARAGRAPH!*

The reason for the brothers' loss of their bodies and limbs are made clear in a flashback of their past. They were two budding alchemists in the care of their mother, after their father left them while they were young. Their mother died due to an illness and this drove them to do the forbidden : to transmute a living person. They failed, and as 'payment', Edward lost his right leg, while Al was completely absorbed. At that moment, Edward saw a strange gate, which opened to reveal the secrets of all alchemy, in exchange for his leg. When he returned to the present world, all that was left of their experimental effort was a pile of 'dying' bones and flesh, something that wasn't human. Edward, in desperation to save his brother, transmuted Al's soul into a suit of armour nearby using the knowledge he gained. He managed to do it, but at the price of his arm. Blaming himself for what had happened, he set off to find the Philosopher's Stone, to return Al to his former self.

*END OF SPOILER PARAGRAPH*

Alright, after all the stories and the mystery, let's see my review! All in all, this anime is GOOD! Artwork that is easy on the eyes, great thought to plot and character development and intriguing concepts. It has a HUGE following in Japan, with an extra movie added to finish up the end of the anime story. HOWEVER, this is an unusual anime in the sense that the anime has been completed BEFORE the manga, so the story differs in many ways. I have not read all of the manga chapters yet, so I can't comment on it... yet. Well, all in all, an enjoyable, short anime (20+ episodes, if I recall correctly) that will be interesting to those wanting more serious, thought-provoking anime.

P.S. : There are actually TWO different anime with the name Fullmetal, that is Fullmetal Alchemist and Fullmetal Panic! I will be doing a review on the latter when I am done watching.

Teaching? Me? (Part 2)

2007-05-06T09:11:00.000-07:00

Okay! Back again with Me Teaching Cass Chemistry (also featuring Symeon, Class Clown lolz), Part 2! In case you're new, I have been teaching Cass here how to solve a certain Chemistry question. The drama and the trills of the first part is linked here :

Teaching? Me? (Part 1)

Oh, if you're wondering why this fellas crazy mug is up here, I do it for the class morale... LOLZ Well, ready? Lets Go!!!! Continuation.... (C=Cass, S=Symeon, M=Me)

S:u wanna blog this? so boring... (hmmm, why did I start here? Oh yeah, to blast him again...)
M:haih, symeon... you will be surprised... (MWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!! Can you dig it, dokter!!)
S:hahaha, but dat last 1 funny, with A**** (Sorry, personal stuff! You'll see why...)
C:A****???
S:eh cass, do ur chem
M:dont bring in other matters lar! teacher kii dy (celakatoi punya budak , main-main dalam kelas....)
S:cass has a veli low threshold in reacting to things (har, that I i din say ar!)
M:slowly do lar cass
S:but then matt, dat 1 kenot blog 1 (why are you STILL bothering the class, mr symeon...)
M:dis fella, wanna throw him out of d classroom dy
S:(yes, at it again...)i want badly 2 blog... unless we use diff name lar!
M:don siao lar! celakatoi
S:mwahahaahaha... u write susah a bit, i write ok, coz no 1 expect me 2 noe
M:wahliao, don lar, afterwards our informant oso kena sucked in... don hii ppl lar (lolz)
C:(cutting in) eh if i get 16x=11.2(24+x) correct dy har (WAHPIANG!)
S:??? negative answer lar cass (WAHDOI! How you count 1?) hehehe, matt, OT still waiting
M:(yeah, it's YOU this time!) hahaha... k lar cass, i admit its rite... but how did u count dat?
C:huh?? i also donno la... (WAAAAHHHHH)
M:wah doi...*foaming at mouth* hhh....eeeellppp
S:epilepsy pulak! TRIAGE TRIAGE! (*BEEP!* This is purely fiction. Any resemblence to any event is purely coincidental*BEEP!*) nurse! stratify the risk of this patient, now! confirmation, call up cath lab... cath lab, responding.. baloon angioplasty ready, but no cardiologist... MWAHAHAHAHA (Ohhhkkkaaayyy.... Any ideas why Symeon is the 07 Class Clown?)
M:okay lar... seizure pass dy
S:cass, still there?
C:yeah, still blur... (what else is new....)
M:(slightly tired, all of a sudden) SLLLLOOOOOWWWWLLLYYY think. i go watch anime 1st, while im stil not completely blur...(walks out of classroom, muttering...)
C:(runs up) mass of M=11.2/x? (finally! some progress!)
S:yeah hampir there liao
M:yeah! try to figure out d rest...
S:ok, i try 2 explain, u watch anime lar...
C:i dunno what to do after that dy...
S:i try 2 explain... (hmmmm, I have a bad feeling about this... oh well *shrug*)

*INTERMISSION* lolz!

M:okay, im back! macam mana?
S:tak habis lar (cheh, dah agak...)
C:weiii... after i got mol for m2o3 and mol for m, i did (mol of m2o3/mol of m)=1/2
M:hmmmmm, kk, boleh juga. u noe y?
C:then?O_o?? (wah.....) hmmm ratio?
M:u faham completely wat u wrote?
C:yea... no ar? (ohkay.... better get some aspirin...)
M:okok, sub d mols inside...
C:den cross multiply... 2(8/24+x)=11.2/x? (YES!YES!YES!OHHHHH YES!)
M:yeah! den solve lor
S:??? (uh oh...)
C:i got 16/24+x=11.2/x larrr....
S:wrong lar! (WHAT?) later u get x squared! lolz quadratic equation
M:(celaka celaka celaka...) no lar! its ok lar... u got study maths or not? (YES! headshot!)
C:hahaha... lousy lar (MWAHAHAHAHA.... stab through the heart!)
S:(still trying to salvage something?) wrong larr! u get negative value
C:den? O_o (wait! correct lar! don't listne to him....)
S:2(8/24+x)=11.2/x... dis 1 wrong lar matt... look! 1 x up, i x down... (what? hey, get new specs man...)
C:... (exits conversation...)
M:wah, she blur liao lar!
S:hahahaha....
M:wait 4 her to come back in lar (darn! she ran out of the class ! students nowadays...)

*yet another INTERMISSION*

C:hi, comp batt flat (*falls*)
M:okay back to where we were....
M:....
M:....
M:....
M:hey! *poke* u stil there?
C:yalar.. haha... trying to do the math... hahaha got it dy liao lar... just now at the beginning got correct dy but symeon says negative... haih
M:hahahaha... u teruk lar symeon... make ppl takut onli
C:yeah lar... lol (double team! yeah!)
M: got it now?
C:yeah, could have got it sooner tho *glare*
S:*runs and hides in toilet bowl* (MWAHAHAAHAHAHAHAH)

CUUUTTTT!!!

Okay! finally done! Now, looking back, I guess that I am alright as a teacher... (Hey, she got it, right?) Hehehehe... Probably one of those hidden talents I have... LOLZ... Oh btw, Symeon, you know you're a clown, so you should be happy... right? Hahahaha, thats okay then. Cass..... Let's just say that you are errrrrrrr.... NVM, it's nothing... MWAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!! Okay then, class dismissed! *cracks whip*

Teaching? Me? (Part 1)

2007-05-06T08:06:00.000-07:00

Ohkayy, here goes a post about something that just happened. Cass just came online on MSN Messenger and pulled Symeon along for the ride. The purpose? To teach her how to do a certain Chemistry question! Okay, I must admit, I am good at Chemistry, and I really enjoy teaching, so I don't really mind teaching her. At this point, Symeon was poking me and saying, 'This should be good material for your blog, lolz' If you have been to his blog, you will find a similar post there, also concerned with teaching Cass Chemistry. Here's the link :

My 'No'ledge (Knowledge)

When I got this picture, I could somehow guess why the teacher-student thing wasn't working out, mwahahahahahaha. Okay, anyway, here's the question (sorry to those who can't understand, you will later, I hope =p):

The empirical formula is M₂O₃, if 16.0g of the metal oxide was reduced to 11.2g of metal, find the relative atomic mass of M.

Alrighty then, I thought, easy-peasy! First, the reaction formula, which is a reduction reaction, so oxygen is taken away, therefore...

M₂O₃ + 6H₂ ------> 2M + 3H₂O

Then from that you assume you use y amount of moles of the metal oxide in the beginning, which would net you double that amount of moles of M at the end, or 2y. So, using the same assumption, and assuming the RAM of M is x :

16 (mass of M₂O₃) /2x (RAM of M) + (16x3) (RMM of 3 O) = y ------- 1

Ohkay! Following that, for the other side of the equation :

11.2 (mass of M) / x (RAM of M) = 2y ------- 2

So therefore, substitute 1 into 2, and you get :

11.2 / x = 16 / x + 24

Cross-multiply, solve the equation, and you will get x=56! Easy! Okay, then, I thought that was easy, but that wasn't anything yet... What follows is the heavily edited version of our 3-way conversation, but nothing I changed will affect the flow... Mostly it's more about taking away unneccessary 'hahaha's, 'lolz's and the like. Oh man.... (C=Cass, S=Symeon, M=Me)

C:thats the question
S:M2O3 is a batch in IMU ler
M:bosan dy lar dat joke
C:huh?
M:hahaha, faham lar (she's still blur as always...)
C:how to do?
S:i got 74.7 (??? What???) hahahaha sounds like wrong
C:yeah, it is. answer given is 56 larrr
M:i got 56 (mwahahahahaahaha)
C:how?
S:how come i get 74.7?
M:u lar, cacat. (lolz) ok, listen carefully
C:hahaha i noe u very good lar (cheh, I take that as a compliment!)
M:reduced means take away O, so the reaction is like this (shows reaction formula)

(at this point Cass takes off to get paper, leaving me gesturing to thin air. HAIH!)

M:wanna explain 2 u... wahhhhh
C:get paper lar, ok go on
M:understand so far?
C:yupp, got that
M:ohkay, (explains the premise and the following equation) faham?
C:... (she blurred out, again!)
M:blur liao izzit? don understand mus say... read slowly again
C: yeah don get it, wait. why 16/2m?
M:haiya, how do u get no of moles?
C:mass/RMM?
S:?!?!?!?!?! apa ini? 4.8g of O, divide 3, eh, divide 16, get 0.3. 3 mol of O = 0.3, 1 mole of O = .01
S:11.2/x = 0.1, x=112, but got 2M, so 1M=56 (WHAAATTTT? Don't ask me, I have no idea...)
M: (anyway) slow lar symeon
S:but kolek
M:yeah lar, i explain 2 her 1st, den u explain
S:but my way wont full marks (HUH? It will be a wonder if you get ANY!)
M:yeah lar, dats y im explaining. blekz. okay, faham?
C:ummm, i stil don get it (*FAINT*) lol.. no
S:kenot lar, MSN very hard 2 explain (OBVIOUSLY!)
M:okay, step by step (explains the whole 1st equation)
C:(when I came to the mass) mass of wat (wahdoi!)
S:hehehe, matt, angina dy (Errrrr, don't ask me to explain that, ask HIM!)
M:(*sigh*) oxide lor, Symeon don say dy lar, pek chek dy. hahaha, no lar, stil can tahan. understand? so RFM? (I realized that maybe she dosen't understand) or RMM watever...
C:48 + 2X?
M:ha, pandai pun, so continue on.... ganti inside the info wat u get?
S:MOLES!!! (wahdoi Symeon!)
C:8/(x+24)?
M:yeah lar
S:O_o?
M:simplified dy lar Symeon
S:yeah ok, yayayaya (haih)
M:okay, so if u use y moles at d beginning, in d end?
C:huh? (WAAAHHHHH, wanted to cry dy)
M:T_T
S:hehehe, streptokinase ready. wait call OT 1st, ha OT available, scrub nurse on... can boh cass?
C:no (heartache, heartache!)
S:want my unprofessional explaination
M:no marks 1 lar (hehehehehe) okay go again. (explains again....)
C:oh wait let me try... (tick tock tick tock)
M:......... (maybe I have to break this up if I do post this...)

Ohkay, Part 1 over! Lolz... You can see me, the teacher having a LOT of headaches because of this student... Haih... Kesian juga those teachers.... Hahahahaa.... Ok, coming back with the second part after this short break!

Can't wait? Here's Part 2!

Teaching? Me? (Part 2)

Secrets Behind Matt/Leon

2007-05-05T05:50:00.000-07:00

Okay, a friend told me recently told me that I was putting up a lot of reviews and experiences and stuff like that, but I was neglecting something : posts concerning myself! And I was saying, 'Why on earth do you want to read about me?' .....Okay lar, actually I'm not THAT comfortable about talking freely about myself, for certain reasons.... Maybe I'm too shy? Or maybe I don't want people to know more about myself? Well, who knows.

Well, okay, maybe I will start by explaining my handle, or nick. (whichever term you call it, a spade is a spade, lolz) Some people, like my dad, have seen me chatting and they say, "Why on earth do you call yourself mattleon?" Yeah, I do get that sometimes. Okay then, assuming that people know I'm born in the Year of the Rabbit, 1987 to be exact, I can skip the numbers then. The Christian name given to me was Matthew, so you can surmise about the first section. What about leon? Well then, it's a name coined by a character that was in my favourite game of that time...

Yeah! It's Squall Leonhart, gunblade-master and SeeD of Balaamb Garden, of Final Fantasy VIII fame. Yeah, some of you don't really like it, but give me a break, it was the first Final Fantasy I ever played! And later, he became :

Leon, mystery swordsman of Traverse Town, later resident of Hollow Bastion AND its previous incarnation, Radiant Gardens. Confused? Play the Kingdom Hearts series to understand. LOLZ. By the way, Squall and Leon are lone wolf types, preferring to say little and keep their feelings inside, but are dependable in any situation.

Anyway, the reason for my moniker is a bit on the psychological side, I guess. I'm Matt, and I'm also Leon, in a sense. And no, I'm not schizo, thank you. It is just a matter of seeing things. People who have met me under jovial circumstances have met Matt, the fun-loving, joking, mad-caper, laughing side of me. On the other hand, when I'm on the job, like during prefect duties or during drill in Boys' Brigade, that is when Leon is in effect, the discipline, serious, no-nonsense, (sometimes angry) side of me. People in school can attest to the fact that I can easily switch between identities on the right day. So there, you now know, I'm a complex person sometimes. =p

And this recently put me into a philosophical mood, thinking about certain happenings in the past. In times when Matt plays the fool and gets into trouble or ridiculed because of it, Leon will whack him hard and chide him for getting into so much trouble, all because he did not stop to think. However, Leon will sometimes blow his top, and then Matt will whack him equally hard and laugh at him for taking things so seriously. So then, like the concept of yin and yang, both Matt and Leon are two sides of a coin, but acting in different spheres of my life, each with their strengths and weaknesses. So these two 'forces' colour and affect my life and gives me the leisure to reflect what I have gone through.

Okay, if I go on I might confuse even myself! But in all reality, both Matt and Leon are merely parts of my personality that come through at different times. I'm still Matthew and God still looks at me with love, and perhaps that is what matters in the end!

Chobits

2007-05-04T03:45:00.000-07:00

Okay then, now is about the time when I move slightly away from the no-nonsense-at-all genre of anime into a slightly racier side of the anime industry. MWAHAHAHAHAHAHA.... Okay, just to clarify, THIS anime I'm writing about is LESS child-dangerous than most Hollywood movies or Singaporean serials I have watched, so lay off, okay? Don't hate on anime just because you don't know how to appreciate it. =p

Okay, Chobits! An earlier work by CLAMP, (the five women team of mangaka, remember?) this anime's theme works around A.I. (artificial intelligence, duh) and humanity. The setting is the near future, where technology triumphs in creating the ultimate computer : the persocon, a fully-functional computer given the likeness of human form. In other words, girls and boys which can send and receive e-mails, connect to the Internet, download files and access maps... you get the idea. Not to mention, they are cute to boot. The hero, Motosuwa Hideki enters as a country boy ronin (exam retaker) aiming to enter one of the many universities in Tokyo. Being a man from the countryside, he is poor, jobless and ... computer illiterate. He sees the people of Tokyo with their cute persocons and he says : 'I gotta get myself one of those. Then I can FINALLY surf each and every porn site there is! Hahahahaha!!!' *Kid nearby* 'Mom, what is that guy doing?' 'Hush! Stay away from him.' *Hideki freezes, realizing he said it out loud...* Well, that's the general idea of his personality. Hmmmm? Chobits? Oh sorry, back to my story... He finds a nice apartment to rent and on his way back from cram school, bumps into a female persocon wrapped up in bandages, lying lifeless on a garbage pile near his apartment. He brings it back, and switches it on. It starts up, but with seemingly no programs installed inside, no, not even an operating system. So you get... a persocon that moves and acts like a human (baby), only being able to say 'Chi'. So there begins a love story, with a dark enigma surrounding Chi (the persocon) and her relationship to the top secret Chobits persocon series...

Alright, as I have said earlier, this anime is not meant for the kids in certain episodes, such as the first episode, where Hideki has to switch Chi on, and the switch is located.... okay, you get it. However these episodes are few and far in between, so kids can actually watch this anime, under the watchful eyes of their parents of course... However, this is a cute anime, with a flowing and touching story of persocons and humans, and the forbidden love between man and machine... Thought-provoking, yes? Final verdict : good anime, with a nagging question and enough feel good romance moments for those interested in love stories... Hehehehe, variety is the spice of life, you know... Try it, you may like it.

Interviews Over!

2007-05-03T09:00:00.000-07:00

Phew, the ordeal is finally over! Finally I'm back home in Batu Pahat and I'm back in my safe, comfortable home. Not that my previous accomadations were bad, mind, but I just had a feeling of what Mandarin-speaking people would call 'sien', which can be loosely translated as a mixture of boredom, longing and irritability. Well anyway, I have passed this hurdle, now it's up to God to do the rest.

Alright, as I have promised certain people, I will now proceed to describe the interviews and tests that follow the successful shortlisting of a candidate into the Medicine and Dentistry faculty of the National university of Singapore, with a few embellishments from yours truly.

Let's start with Dentistry. As in one of the previous posts, I have explained the Manual Dexterity Test for this section of the Dentistry admissions programme. You are brought into a lab where you are presented with a block of plasticine, a cylindrical block of chalk, two wires, acrylic models, a scapel, a ruler, a pencil, a wire-cutter (shared among candidates) and a sheet of paper detailing your test. You are given three hours, and in that time, shape your plasticine into a replica of the acrylic tooth, sculpt a replica of the acrylic cylindrical block with a cube with a hole on top, and shape the wires to follow the shapes you see on the paper. Sounds easy? Some people are not good with their hands at all, so please reserve your comments. Well, face it, some people can make a Magnum Opus while others are lucky to have people who say insincerely that your painting is nice... Ok, let's go on.... The interview is a basic kind of thing, three associate professors who asks you all manner of questions, from 'What do you know about dentistry?' to 'Do you play any sports?' Yeah, strange, I know, but you DO have to answer...

For the Medicine side, you are ushered into yet another lab to sit for a WRITTEN ESSAY TEST. Hahahahaha.... And NO, it is not for determining if you have the messy writing of a doctor, it is for determining your 'personality', I guess. Well, it is a logical explanation! They will give you topics that are 'grey' such as subsidies for all or for only those who look after their health, in the sense they don't smoke, don't drink, yadda yadda yadda... They even throw in a phychometric test that supposedly dosen't affect your admission... It's basically a HUGE personality test, 170 questions, true or false, with an extra 10 IQ questions. After you rush through that, its the interviews. You have two sets of interviews, one with the admissions committee (I think, probably consists of some big shots, associate deans, administrators, blah blah blah) and the next one is with some doctors and professors. They will ask you some standard questions, such as 'Why medicine?', some personality questions, 'How far do you think patient-doctor confidentiality should go' and even some from the personal statement you sent in earlier. Be careful, not all of them are gonna be smiling all the way.

Okay, that pretty much covers everything for this section, I hope I have answered to everyone's satisfaction. Before I leave, another word of advice : If God wants you to get in, then by hook or by crook you're going in. That's final. Okay? See all of you around.

Cardcaptor Sakura

2007-04-30T05:11:00.000-07:00

All right then, another anime review for you all! RELEASE! Hehehe... This is yet another anime that is kiddie-safe, with no physical violence and plenty of kawaii (cute) factor, Cardcaptor Sakura. This is actually an old anime, from 1998 (Hey! It isn't THAT old after all!) but it still has enough magical power to ensnare anime-hunters like me... MWAHAHAHAHA....

Alright then, the premise of Cardcaptor Sakura is thus: Kinomoto Sakura is an ordinary girl that finds an old locked book in her archaeologist father's library. She opens it to find 52 cards, but these aren't ordinary cards... Each card has a name, such as Windy, Firey and Shield, accompanied by a picture of the description. Sakura scatters the cards by accident, calling out the Beast of the Key, Kerberos (Cerberus, they mean). Kerberos tells Sakura that the cards she had scattered were made by Clow Reed, a powerful magician from olden days and that he (Kerberos) was the Guardian of the Clow Cards. He hands her the magical key that locks the book (with the right incantation, it turns into a magical staff), thus making her the new cardcaptor. She is to hunt down the scattered cards, which have reverted into their physical forms, turn them back into cards, and keep them as their new master. Sounds easy? Well, that depends...

In this anime, Sakura meets and befriends many other people, and that in itself is an integral part of the anime. Of course, there is Kerberos (affectionately called Kero-chan) who looks like a cute plush toy in his initial, powerless form. He LOVES sweet things and would often raid the family fridge in search of the stray piece of cake (it doesn't help that the whole family are good cooks). He also LOVES video games and plays them non-stop when Sakura is at school (hehehe, starting to sound like somebody I know...) Then there is the father, who loves his daughter and son and takes the place of the family dad and mom (Sakura's mother died while Sakura was young). There is the older brother, Toya, who loves to tease Sakura all the time but will always keep an extra eye on her (they say he has a sister complex, don't know what it is exactly =>) There is Tomoyo, Sakura's best friend and second cousin, who ADORES Sakura, making her battle outfits and insisting on filming her cardcaptor battles and other other important stuff lolz. Then there is Yukito, a form-mate of Toya who makes Sakura feel positively dreamy everytime she thinks of him... Whoops, I will never get anything done if I start describing every single character in this anime...

The artwork in this anime is SUPERB, as expected of CLAMP. For the blur, CLAMP is a group of 5 Japanese ladies who are the mangaka (manga artists) of Cardcaptor Sakura and other works. They have won numerous awards in Japan for their work, so almost perfect artwork is expected. The fight scenes and the soundtrack are nice, suited for this particular type of anime. Well, if you don't want to see the anime for anything else, watch it just for the cute-factor. Hahahahaha, and that coming from a macho guy like me too... Hahahaha.... Certaintly in my top 5 list of favorite anime, a must-watch. Well then, time to run! Ciao! lolz

First Hurdle

2007-04-29T07:20:00.000-07:00

Hi all, can't stay the night, gotta sleep early tonight... Tomorrow marks the first set of interviews for admission into the National University of Singapore, for both the Medicine and Dentistry faculties. Tomorrow's interview for the Dentistry side is a Manual Dexterity Test, at 8.30 AM. However, my aunt tells me I would have to get going by 7 o' clock in the morning. *sigh* Why does this remind me of school? I thought I was past that already... LOLZ

Anyway, Lt Dr Lian tells me that the dexterity test, as the name implies, would test me on my dexterity. According to him, I would have to make models out of Plaster-of-Paris, bend shapes out of wires and such exercises. Kinda reminds you of pre-school doesn't it? Except that this time if you mess up you don't get kind words from the teacher, but rather a kick in the rump, marking your exit from the faculty. Oh, alright, I am exaggerating, but can't a fellow have some fun?

Anyway, to fellow brothers and sisters of Christ reading this post, please pray for an alert mind, stable hands and a calm spirit for me. Most importantly, pray for HIS wil to be done in me, not mine. Thank you, dear brethen. Alright, curfew is enforced! Get to bed young man! Erk! Alright! See you all later, and wish me luck! =)

My Arm Hurts!

2007-04-27T11:29:00.000-07:00

Even as I'm writing this, I feel a slight trobbing pain in my right shoulder, extending all the way down to my elbow. I feel like I have experienced something like this before.... Oh yeah, I had a similar complaint the last time... in my wrist. That came of playing Command and Conquer Generals for a whole day non-stop, if my memory serves me right. Ow! According to Dr Symeon, he said my muscles were cramped, and recommended some muscle relaxant.... which I do not have. Sigh...

Anyway, this reminds me of one exchange between my hero, Dr House (Yay! Power to House!) and a patient in the outpatient clinic. The patient was complaining about a pain in his arm, preventing him from sleeping, if I remember correctly. House was asking him if he used it in any way that might be medically relevant. The fella says that he sleeps on it (!). Okay, House tells him to go back and sleep on his back for a change, and get out of my clinic so I can make an early stop (he's always doing that, isn't he? lolz). Then the patient says he can't, he always sleeps that way (what the....) and asks House to think of another way. Then, in his usual style, House gets up, puts the file under his arm and says, ' Then it has to come off.' *Stunned patient gapes* 'Well, can't have you feeling uncomfortable on acount of your arm, can't we?'

....Ok, I admit that maybe I got the conversation and style wrong, but at least I got the gist of it, right? At least you see the connection between the arm and my arm problem, do you? Well? Guys? *Silence all around* *Grumble grumble...* Well at least I still have my sense of humour, so there! *Sulks in a corner* ..... And my arm feels just fine now! Thanks for the concern! I'm off to bed! *Runs upstairs, holding back sobs*

Yeah right, get a grip on yourself, Matt. Anyway, hopefully I get up feeling more alert tomorrow. See ya!

Yakitate!! Japan

2007-04-26T07:00:00.000-07:00

Phew! Finally finished this anime! It has been almost 2-3 years since I have been introduced to this anime by my Chea (Big Sis, my godsister, that is), and after all that time I finally have the leisure to watch each and every episode, and enjoy every one. Don't ask me why I took so long to finish it, I just got broadband 2-3 months ago, so downloading via torrent or such methods were not an option then. And I've found a more efficient method to watch them, via Youtube! Yes, people actually upload anime into Youtube for other surfers to enjoy. By the way, to those that are screaming at me right now about copyright issues and intellectual property and how I should not be promoting such stuff, I don't really know if I right, but subbed anime done by fans that are NOT to be sold are not against copyright laws, at least in my country, as I see it. Anyway, Youtube allows me to watch anime without jamming up my hard drives with *.avi files.

Alright then, lets forget about the legal issues here and talk about the anime at hand. Yakitate! Japan is an anime about..... BREAD! Oh es, you got it right the first time, the theme of Yakitate! Japan is bread: the baking of bread, the health benefits of such-and-such ingredients in bread, techniques of bread baking, yadda-yadda-yadda. Huh, puzzled about how such an anime can be interesting? Hehehehe, watch it and you will see!

The main protagonist of Yakitate!! Japan is Azuma Kazuma, a boy just out of middle school, who aspires to become a baker, but not just any baker. You see, he has a dream inspired by a baker who used to stay in his hometown, a dream to create "a bread made by and for the Japanese people, that can be presented to the world proudly!" You see, bread in parts of the world such as Europe has become a symbol of pride and identity to the local populance, thus French bread is different from German bread, for example. Japan, being a nation where the local staple is rice, has no such bread as its national icon. So therefore there is no choice but to create it, and that is what Azuma Kazuma is aiming for, with his Japan. Still it is tough, since bread is not a staple food, but that's where Azuma's love for bread, tenacity, genius (apart from bread, apparently he is a genius at maths too =>) and Solar Hands will get him through.

Alright, a few concepts for those who can't wait to find out for themselves, I won't spoil much, as these concepts will be explained in the very first episode. Solar Hands are hands that are warmer than usual, found only in certain people. It is a very rare gift, and coveted by bakers, as warmth helps fermentation in bread dough, making it rise better. And, more importantly, for your humour appetites, this anime is VERY pun and parody orientated. Take for example, Japan, pronounced Jah-pun (rhymes with fun). Pan is japanese for bread, so the pun in the name is obvious enough, I hope =P. You will see even more of this in this anime, in act in every episode LOLZ. And the parodies often come in forms of reactions, in other words, when the tasters of Azuma's bread are overcome with the taste and start hallucinating or acting weird. The anime makes parodies of some other anime, such as Gundam, Naruto, Dragonball and even the Lord of the Rings! Maybe this makes for some conflicts in the legal world, but just lighten up, will you?

Anyway, this anime ROCKS, seriously. You will be laughing at all the different reactions that the writer has come up with, and at the antics of the characters, in particular Kawachi Kousuke, a baker with the right reasons, but not the right gear for baking whom Azuma befriends. He is constantly going 'Naniatte?' (What?) whenever Azuma pulls something out of his bag of tricks. A Youtuber once commented that if you took a chug of beer everytime Kawachi says that phrase, you would be blitzed after 2 or 3 episodes.=> Mind you, I never tried it myself but I totally agree with that statement. The artwork is superb, too, and the soundtrack as well as the background music is kinda nice. Oh, and there is a tiny segment at the end of nearly every episode that tells you stuff about certain ingredients, bread or techniques used during that episode, called Yakitate! Seed of Knowledge.

Well, what can I say? Definitely on my top 5 list of favorite anime due to its neverending ability to make me laugh myself hoarse and make me feel good. Its highly recommended for those who are yet to be hooked into the realms of anime, and for those that are interested in anime that are non-violent and safe for kids. 14 over 10 for this one. Lolz Oh btw, Cass, good luck on finishing all 69 episodes,if you're reading this. Cheers.

P.S. There seems to be people selling bread licenced by Yakitate!! Japan somewhere in Japan. Cool, huh.

System Downed

2007-04-25T09:14:00.000-07:00

Woke up this morning, or was it afternoon? I guess it was somewhere around twelve... Well, my biological clock seems to have been through a serious adjustment. From only the last 3 months where I slept at 10 and woke up at 6, I seem to be shifting to sleeping hours of 3 to 12+ now. Well, being a free lark does allow you to do that.... Wait, larks are early birds, right? Wait, 3 in the morning IS early....

Oopps, okay, I digress. Turned on my laptop to get in a morning look at mail, and maybe to watch some anime while I was at it... But then I noticed that icon thingy with the two computers with the red cross there (yeah, I DO know that that is the network icon, thank you very much) and I was saying to myself, "That shouldn't look like that..." Anyway I popped down to check out the modem, and everything looked fine. (Later, my dad pointed out that the light marked 'Internet' was not on... Go figure.) So being Internet-crippled, I decided to continue my long-overdue continue in Rogue Galaxy (Great game by the way, will review it once I'm done).

It was only at 6 in the evening when my dad came back after having sorted out the problem and reset the modem that I was finally able to get back on the Net. Not that I wasn't enjoying the game, in fact, I played for at least 3 hours straight, but I was looking for something in the game and did not seem to have much success in finding it. That is usually where GameFAQs comes in. Thanks guys, 'preciate it =>. So it's good being back online and communicating with the outside world again. I'm beginning to believe what Symeon claims, "I can't live without the Net". Ok, maybe I won't reach that level of dependence anytime soon, but I DO appreciate the Internet. Where else can you see people from Batu Pahat and Penang meeting in a 3-way conversation like what I'm in now? This is how it goes : Symeon says something, Cass blasts him, and I lol at each exchange. Feels like some form of therapy to me XD. Oh, and Symeon, I with you all he way, bro.... Until Cass gets the better of you, that is. laf

Law of Ueki

2007-04-24T10:12:00.000-07:00

Ok, today's review is in the field of manga and anime. Recently, in my country there was an imbecile, opps, a columnist in the daily Malay paper that sent in an article saying that ALL manga and anime, period, were associated with nudity and sex. (I know, and I agree, fellow manga/anime lovers out there, it's an outrage.) For the viewers information, there ARE manga and anime that are based on that, but they are considered a branch of their own. Anyway, my point is, there are many mangas and anime that are wholesome and good for people of all ages.

That being said, I now bring up the review of the anime, which is a good point for my argument above. The name of the anime is Ueki no Housoku, or The Law of Ueki. It was shown on Animax for some time and that was how I noticed it. Ok then, lets go to the story...

The story is about a boy called Ueki and his quest to attain the Blank Zai..... Oh ok, maybe some of you are lost already, so I'll start from the beginning. The god of this world was due to hand over his powers as god to the appointed successor. Being pressed to find a suitable candidate, he proclaimed that a contest be held between god candidates to decide exactly that. However, there was a catch : the candidates were to use secondary school students to do the fighting. Candidates will give ONLY one battle ability to their chosen student and the student would battle other ability-given students to win. Candidates are not allowed to help their students during battles. Zai (normal talents, ranging from the studying zai to girl magnet zai XD) are used as points, defeat another ability-given student and you get one zai, but hit non-gifted people and you lose a zai. Lose all your zai and you...disappear. The final student to stand will see his candidate become god, and he will receive the Blank Zai as a reward. The Blank Zai is a zai that is *obviously* blank, so you can put in anything you wish.

Ueki Kousuke (for Westerners, note that for the Japanese the surname is in front, just like Chinese names...) was selected by Kobayashi to become an ability user, with the power to change trash into trees, hence the 'green' themes of this anime. He is selected not because of his strength (though he has a lot of that), but because of his strong sense of justice that Kobayashi was looking for. He pledges to get the Blank Zai, to prevent anyone from using it to do harm.

Well, comments.... It is a good anime (I haven't read the manga, so I'm basing this post purely on the anime), with nice artwork and music (fantastic! Both opening songs are really nice, I have them =>) and seiyuu (voice actors, somebody correct me if I'm getting anything wrong). The voice of Ueki particularly is done by Paku Romi, who has done the voices of Temari in Naruto and Edward Elric in Fullmetal Alchemist. The storyline is darn funny, with Ueki being really dumb sometimes and Mori Ai whacking him non-stop for using his abilites to punish non-ability users who were commiting crimes and what-not. It is also a short anime, with only 51 episodes, so it's good for those who do not want really LONG animes to watch.

All in all, really enjoyable and moving anime, for those who like a bit of action and love to see the good guy beat the bad guy against all odds in the end. And as I said earlier, there's NO NUDITY! I mean it! Just clean fun with even a few moral values thrown in for the mix. I really recommend this. =>

Transfer Pending...... Transfer Complete

2007-04-24T07:21:00.000-07:00

Alright! All done here with the transfer of my previous posts from my old blog to the current one. See, you CAN do it if you put your mind to it, right? => Ahhh, busy day alright. Aside from getting over my things over from the last blog, I was rushing about getting documents ready for my application to the Singapore university. So with running to school and then across town to Lt. Dr Lian's clinic for their signatures on my recommendation letters and manning the photocopier machine in my dad's office, it was a bit of a strain, coupled with the fact that I was tired after yesterday night. What was I doing? Well, in my school batchmates' terms, 'lateh' which roughly translates into 'drinking tea', although some food was consumed and conversation wandered away from food altogether.

We had the dynamic and perpetually 'cannoning' Chee Kim who could be relied upon to supply us with numerous stories, all of them outrageous and in my opinion roughly half untrue, and of course sprinkled with anecdotes that are not meant for everyone's ears... *clears throat* Anyway, the gathering started at 10, but with all the joking, occasional swearing (happens in boy schools all the time, trust me) and all round laughter... Anyway, checked my watch on a whim and then... Huh? 2 o' clock? No way.... Anyway that signalled a hasty drink and payment before all of us rushed home to get in before our parents decided we were to put up in the streets for the night. I DID get home before the dor was locked completely, but I had to wake up at 6 to fetch my bro and sis to school. =<

So now that the initial rush is over, I would enjoy a few lazy days before I scoot up to Singapore for the interviews. I really need the rest... XD Anyway, time to quit telling stories and hit the sack. Or maybe I will work on my pictures before I go...

Shifting the Den

2007-04-23T06:38:00.000-07:00

Hi all, mattleon87 here. After much deliberation and pondering, I have decided to move my entire blog to Blogspot. Just couldn't take it anymore, what with the hard-to-use settings and lame upload speeds with my old one, I have finally decided to move on... Well then, hopefully with the incentive of being able to publish more and at a faster rate here, I hope I will devote more time to keep his place up-to-date and more 'lived-in' than before. Hopefully, that is...

Anyway, I have moved my previous posts in the old blog here so that at least you can see some form of continuity here... I'm warning you though, it may not be the best blog in the world, so if you want to comment on a few ways I can make up for the lack of experience and creativity on my part, feel free to drop a comment or two. There, now that I've set up the basic furniture, maybe it's time to take a cat-nap for now. Zzzzz

Midpoint??

2007-04-23T01:11:00.000-07:00

In actual fact, I have nearly forgot about this blog altogether. Call it whatever you like, I just... I just... I just... Oh all right, I was lazy ok? *sigh* If not because of Symeon, I would have just forgotten it all together... THANKS A LOT, SYMEON! Hehehehe, don't worry, I appreciate the advice, and thanks for the huge packet of food in Penang. Geez, you would have thought that my family was facing a drought or something =P. Anyway, just got back from Penang, where my siblings and I were visiting previously mentioned godcousins Cass and Derrick while parents were in a Brigade Council Meeting. Had a lot of fun there, what with the food (every two hours, if the reports are to be believed), the late mornings and the fooling around. But the highlight in my opinion was the introduction of Symeon to my godcousins. Poor Symeon, getting shot after shot of pointed barbs and .38 caliber armor-piercing rounds... Hey Symeon, next time bring along more Kevlar, if not more ammo... Hahahaha, good times, good times.

Anyway, what was I talking about again? Oh, midpoints, right. I have just been asked to go to Singapore to take an interview for two faculties in the National University of Singapore, namely Medicine and Dentistry. That probably means that I will be scooting down to Singapore this weekend for the interviews starting on the 30th of April to the 3rd of May. Another letter from the University of East Anglia in England as well, offering me a Medicine course there. Well, perhaps a last resort, but an expensive one, with me paying international rates... As I am now stepping on the threshold of the next chapter of my life, maybe it's time to change a few things around here. In al probability, I will jump over to Blogspot in a matter of time. Don't ask me why, but I feel that I may more freedom there instead of Friendster's blog system. What is it with a limit of what, 25 pictures every month btw? Haih, decisions, decisions... Well, perhaps I will get down to it... later.

Calm Before A Storm

2007-03-21T23:10:00.000-07:00

It has been some time now that I have been lazing around, having obtained my results and applying for any suitable scholarships and education institutions available. Now that I have exhausted all applications that I have thought of, now comes a lull where I basically sit back with nothing to do, waiting for the next application to come, before the madness begins anew. This is, in effect, the calm before the storm. (For those that are ready to accuse me of not working during this few months, I would have you know that I have, to an extent, run out of tasks to do as an office boy : apparently I have taken care of work that has lasted the regular staff 2 years, in only 2 weeks. =p)

Now perhaps it is time to set to pondering and being thoroughly philosophical as to my situation. In a former post, I have mentioned a few things that could have been termed the biggest storm and 'aftershocks' of my life, to date. Well, at least I have time to catch my breath before the next wave comes.

This puts me in mind of many books I have read that mentioned storms during sea travel. During the storms, the captain is always shouting orders everywhere, the first mate is whipping up the crew and all aboard are holding on for their lives. During these times, the ship is tossed, masts are broken, sails are ripped and all objects not 'battened down' become extremely dangerous, flying to and fro at terrifying speeds. Storms also have a way of trying to break the whole ship in two by slamming the ship against the waves. After the storm, however, is a different story altogether. That is when the true extent of damage to the ship is revealed. However, that is also when the crew begins to busy themselves, fixing the mast as best as they can, putting up spare sails, repair damange to the hull and securing the cargo. The captain and the navigator are also hard at work, determining how far the ship was blown off-course and planning the next step.

In two different scenarios, a few things are clear : the ship cannot survive without some certain people. The crew, for example. Without the crew attempting to protect the ship, the ship's chances of survival will be severely limited, to the extent of being non-existent. The crew is important, for without hard work and cooperation, the ship is as good as done for. That goes the same way for the calm, if the ship is not repaired during the calm, the next storm will finish what the last one started. More importantly : the captain. A ship without a captain is a piece of driftwood. The captain is the symbol of discipline and order of the ship. Minus the captain, the crew will be running into each other, putting input into places that are not important, forgetting the important areas of the ship and generally causing confusion, bringing the ship to an early death. The captain is in charge of giving orders beneficial to the ship and its crew, and to ensure the ship stays on course as far as possible. It is said that a good captain goes down together with the ship, which is in effect saying that a good captain puts his heart and soul into making sure his ship stays afloat.

Now, there are many who have been excellent captains, such as Admiral Horatio Nelson of England, who was instrumental in England's navy defense a long time ago, but all pale in comparison to the great Captain of all creation, God. Our lives are a vessel, the crew is our values and beliefs, and God is our captain. In letting Him take over the wheel, we can rest assured, for God's navigational skills are beyond compare. Steering the ship to the right course is His joy. Though sometimes there may be storms, He will lead you through it, and He never will be lost on foreign waters, for He made them all. He will prepare you for the next storm, and will look after you until you reach the bright harbour of Heaven.

And that is where I am, sailing in the calm right now, with my beloved Captain at the helm, trusting in Him to guide me and to direct my heart and movements in such a way that no storms will be able to overcome my life. No matter how many times I face a storm, God is there to help me break through, till I anchor fast upon the heavenly shore, with the storms all past forevermore.

Kingdom Hearts II

2007-03-19T23:08:00.000-07:00

Hi all, this is one of the first many posts concerning my hobbies, which includes reading and of course, video games. Alright, this is a post of the very first game I completed when I got my Playstation 2, that is, Kingdom Hearts II.

For those who have not heard of it, and are wondering whether it REALLY is Mickey Mouse and his friends there, I can tell you that yes, it IS him. This game was made through a collaboration between Square-Enix, of Final Fantasy fame AND Disney, thus the presence of 'King Mickey' there. The first game, Kingdom Hearts for the PS2 as well, was so popular that both companies decided on more games together, thus the creation of Kingdom Hearts : Chain of Memories for the Gameboy Advance and Kingdom Hearts II, all set in chronological order.

I shall try to summarize the story from the other two games as much as possible, for context sake. WARNING! THESE ARE SPOILERS FOR KH AND KH:CoM. IF YOU DO NOT WANT TO KNOW ALL THESE, SKIP THE NEXT PARAGRAPH COMPLETELY!

Sora, a boy from an island (known as the Sunset Islands if I am not wrong) opened a door into another 'world' where he finds beings, born of ill feelings and bitterness called 'Heartless' are stealing hearts from people as an ingrained reflex, and in the process creating new Heartless. To prevent the Heartless from destroying the worlds, Sora, as a chosen person to wield a Keyblade that can unlock the worlds must journey to defeat the Heartless together with Donald Duck and Goofy, who are searching for King Mickey who has disappeared. They defeat Ansem, a Heartless with tremendous power and foil his plan of obtaining Kingdom Hearts, the largest and most important heart of all, thus joining all worlds together again.Then they end up in a place called Castle Oblivion in KH:CoM where floors are made based on past memories of Sora. He slowly forgets certain memories, in place for renewed memories of a girl he has all but forgotten, Kairi. In the end, they reach Kairi, held by a secret organization called Organization XIII but are frozen in time and space, for whatever the Organization has in mind...

And then comes KH2, where Sora wakes up and learns about the Organization and a new enemy: the Nobodies. It is another race to protect Kingdom Hearts again, and to reveal the truth behind the mysteries encountered thus far...

Anyway, enough of conspiracy theories and boring stories, let us go into the game. As you can see, the graphics are superb, as expected of Square-Enix (those who have seen Final Fantasy VII : Advent Children can testify to that). The gamestyle is in real-time, which means if you press jump, he jumps. You press attack, and he attacks. The items used as support for the characters in terms of equipment and healing consumables are also reminiscent of Final Fantasy games, where hardcore gamers will be very comfortable with. There are also abilities that supplement the characters' powers with more powerful or useful effects. New to the game is the addition of Forms, where you 'sacrifice' the help of an ally (the two characters fighting alongside you, you will only be able to control Sora for 98% of the game) to power up Sora's abilities to another level. As you progress, you will obtain more forms that 'sacrifice' differerent allies, or even both at once. As a sidenote, the Final Form is gorgeous, both in style and attack power, though I do wish it has the continuous float-air-skating movements of the Wisdom Form. XD

The presence of many sidequests and mini-games also add to the gameplay experience without compromising the storyline. I particularly enjoyed hunting down certain ingredients to create rare, powerful items through Moogle Synthesis. The worlds opened in the game are also superbly done, though I do miss visiting Traverse Town and hearing its background music =<. Most of the worlds are based on Disney's creations, such at Atlantica from The Little mermaid, Agrabah from Aladdin, and The Land Of Dragons from Mulan. This might be nostalgic for those who grow up watching those movies =>. As with the previous KH, Sora and friends will change costumes in certain worlds, and even their forms, as in Atlantica where they become mermen and in the Pridelands, where they become animals! For FF fans, there are also characters from the Final Fantasy world thrown into the mix, such as Leon (Squall Leonhart from FF8), Tifa, Cloud, Yuffie (FF7 all), and even the Yu-Ri-Pa combination (from FFX-2).

All in all, a truly enjoyable game, with rich artwork, superb animation (never get tired of seeing the slow-mo capture that kicks in when you defeat a boss) and compelling storyline. In my opinion, a classic that is not to be missed!

The Love of God

2007-03-19T23:06:00.000-07:00

Yes, amazing grace that saved my soul and placed me where God's blessings, love and mercy has been poured upon me like a raging river, cut loose from the floodgate of Heaven. This post is made in honour of the Lord and His divine mercy and workings in my life.

Perhaps it is proper to put in a bit of background story for those who do not know me well. The year was 2005, and it was around this time of that year that I received my SPM (O-Level for non-Malaysian readers) results. I can still remember that as I opened the results slip, incredulity and anger started to well up within me. I had only managed 11A1s (besides the A1 for the GCE 'O' Level English Paper, 1119) and... of all things, a B3 in EST (English For Science And Technology). In that very moment, my expectations were completely shattered. EST was, in my opinion, a piece of cake, something I could pass even if I had been blindfolded and had my right hand tied behind my back. I immediately appealed for a remarking for that paper, but my head was swimming. In a part of my mind, I guess that I started to question God and wanted to know just WHY did He did this to me.

A few months later, I attended an interview for a JPA (Public Service Department) scholarship that would help me study as a doctor. Perhaps my results, which still stood after the Ministry of Education informed me that the original grading of my EST paper was staying, made my application fall through the cracks. On top of that, being a 'banana' (in Chinese context, a Chinese that is poor in Mandarin and other dialects but good in English, therefore being 'yellow outside and white inside'), I was not informed till much later that the MCA (the main Chinese political party) were helping students with 10 As and above to appeal to the JPA for scholarships.
After much deliberation, I decided to enter Form 6 at my original school, Highschool Batu Pahat. I thought that it wasn't so bad, since a fair number of my friends were going to enter Form 6 as well. For the uninformed, it is not that Form 6 per se is a second-rate way to get into the universities, it is just a route not often taken. At the end of Upper 6, students face the STPM examinations, which is roughly equivalent to the A-Level examinations. HOWEVER, it is much more than just another exam. Its previous 'version', the High School Certificate (HSC) was once one of the top three most DIFFICULT examinations in the world. As far as I know, it has become ever so slightly easier, but it is still fearsome, so much so that students go into universities after SPM to avoid it, thus setting the 'leaving after Form 5' trend.

As the months passed, God began to show me His purpose in giving me those results. I matured, learning to depend more on grace, rather than self, learning to see things in different ways, and to deal with matters concerning other people, due to certain friendship problems with some people around me. Then, God showed His Hand. Just last week, I received a straight A result for my STPM, a result truly heaven-sent. Ask any family member of mine, and they will tell you that I am quite lazy where studying is concerned, as I use most f my time on the computer and books, science fiction and fantasy books that is. It is through pure grace and mercy that I have got this far, and I know that if God hadn't been there, I would most certainly have been derailed right from the start. Through it all, the pain and anguish, God has been there comforting me, and at the end, I look back and thank Him for His perfect timing and plan for me.

Permit me to finish this post with a verse from one of my favorite hymns, one less well known then Amazing Grace, but full of meaning and emotion:

The Love Of God

Could we with ink the ocean fill
And were the skies of parchment made
Were every stalk on earth a quill
And every man a scribe by trade
To write the love of God above
Would drain the ocean dry
Nor could the scroll contain the whole
Though stretched from sky to sky

O love of God how rich and pure!
How measureless and strong
It shall forevermore endure
The saints and angels song

Frustrations

2007-02-08T23:05:00.000-08:00

The 5th of February promised to be a start of a fresh new day for me. Got up early, went to work as always (alright, maybe not always but close!), got on the net, fiddled around on Friendster, and other stuff. But that day was slightly different, because it was the day that applications were open for....ok, let's forget bout that... Application time was at 12 o' clock, and that's when the rest of the day soured. For starters, the link to the application form on the MAIN PAGE wasn't really hidden, it was downright non-existent. The only thing I could see concerning the application forms were the FAQs, which did not include the most important thing : how to get to the darned link. After looking and prodding and clicking almost every link there, I gave up and tried to google it. Then came the elimination process, sifting through the many pages of information. Then, a short fuse later, I had the 'brilliant' idea to just whack in variations of the base link, hoping to get lucky. And I did (finally). The link showed up NOT on the main page, but on a separate page that is supposed to be an introductory page. Alright, you found the site, so things should start going smoothly right? Noooooo, far from it. They required me to input my IC number, a pin number and a password, with a field to make sure you don't screw up the password. Ok, taptaptaptap, .... WHAT THE ****, WHAT DO YOU MEAN MY IC NO IS WRONG??? Alright, calm down, try it again.... .... ****, MY IC NO IS FINE! FIX YOUR SITE, NOT MY PERSONAL INFO!!! Then I belatedly noticed that the password was to be alphanumeric, 6-8 characters. Ok, let's try that... Alright, I got in. STUPID WEBMASTER, IT WAS THE PASSWORD, NOT THE IC NO!!!! IC NO≠PASSWORD, IDIOT!!! Ok, at least I can start filling in the information..... Done. Let's get this over with.... WHAT IS IT NOW? A MISTAKE? *sigh* Alright, alright, let's go back... Eh? "You have pressed the Refresh or the Back button. Please go to the Recheck or Edit Information section." Grrrrrrr..... "Status Error!!!" At this point, my blood was boiling to the point you could see smoke... For the rest, repeat "Ok - smoke..." X 10, then continue here : Finally got the mistake, a missed IDD number in the telephone number section. Got the info printed, then stalked of home, fuming all the while. P.S. For the 'dearly beloved' webmaster of the site, you know who you are. Do SOMETHING!!!

Actually, frustration and anger per se are a normal part of human behaviour, as long as expressed in the right way. Me? I prefer to let go pent up frustration by beating up virtual monsters and such in my PS2. But this seems to be a lost cause, as the console seems to sense my mood and shift the difficulty level from 'KILL AND DESTROY THOSE MONSTERS!! MWAHAHAHAHA!!!' to 'Proceed to hand the current player a beating of his lifetime' automatically. Sigh, even virtual reality is a frustrating place sometimes. A note to everyone out there : keep it simple and laugh, don't take things too much to heart... Unless of course, they consist of the annoyingly strong monsters in the game or equally infuriating webmasters, whereupon you are licensed to roast them slowly over a fire. Just don't chew. 'Nuf said.

Salutations to the Good Doc

2007-02-04T23:04:00.000-08:00

In only a matter of days, a dear friend and fellow Boys' Brigade member will be leaving Batu Pahat for his hometown, Penang. Yes, our dear Dr Symeon Chiam, recently from Hospital Batu Pahat will be leaving for the Peal of the Orient, the final breath before jumping on the bandwagon, oops, into the working world of white lab coats, prods, syringes, drugs and badly written prescriptions.

It has been a genuine joy being able to know Symeon, considering all the laughs we had together, the meals devoured at the same table (in Penang it will be YOUR treat, so better line those pockets.... Mwhahahahaha.....) and the fun times of joking about all manner of things... Haih, all in all, it was a fun time. Thanks to him, I could delve deeper into the mystery that is medicine (? Mystery? More like a riddle wrapped in an enigma), considering that that is the field I will probably end up in, that or veterinary medicine =>.

A note to Symeon : God bless your road ahead and may He shower your life with grace, mercy and blessings, till you shout for mercy... Or maybe not. Just soak it all up and let the Lord guide your path always. BTW, I hope I don't see you in the Diagnostics Department, spouting rhetoric/nonsense and generally making everyone miserable... That will be a sure sign that you are taking House too seriously... => Oh well, hope to see you around soon, bro... => Keep in touch, and don't worry, we'll make sure you get to treat us to Penang's finest cuisine, and lots of it! Cherrio!

Rantings of a Busybody

2007-01-19T23:03:00.000-08:00

You know, for the past few days, I have been receiving some messages from friends concerning the finer points of law, but concerning an uglier side of the human nature. You see, apparently some of my friends have met a certain 'creature' called the 'cunning employer'. Well, to be honest, I would rather use 'fell beast' and 'irresponsible coward' and... Well, you get the idea. Anyway, this donkey of an employer has apparently witheld my friends' pay for no good reason and has cheated them out of a 100 ringgit for a suit that was supposed to be tailored in the employment aggrement, but has seen more seasons than a tortoise. Thus they asked for legal help in the matter, since my dad is in the legal line of work. Since then I have heard that they have received their due pay and compensation from the guilty party.

To be frank, I detest people who think they can mistreat people out of what they have rightfully earned in the first place. When I first heard of their plight, I felt the urge to put that person in the electric chair, pull the switch and leave it on overnight, just to be sure he got the message. Really, does he think that he can just lord it over his employees and mistreat them just because he has authority? Anyone who seriously thinks the same way should have his authority, and his oversized feet complete with mismatched boots rammed down his throat. It saddens me to think that there are people who act this way and can proudly call themselves human beings. Well then, sheep in sheep's clothing, be real and consider how you would like it if somebody crushes you under his heel like how you have been acting.

Well, now that that matter has been cleared out of my system, I am glad to see that my friends have seen justice in this unfairness. However, I think I am slightly dissapointed not to see the matter resolved in court. I would have enjoyed setting up the new TeslaChair EX2000 with the adjustable headrest......

Office Life

2007-01-09T23:01:00.000-08:00

Hi all, back again. finally had the time to really sit down and put in another post, what with the cable breakdown and such. .....Okay, okay, it dosen't have anything to do with that. In truth, the sweet lure of the Playstation 2 has kept me busy, killing Heartless and Nobodies in Kingdom Hearts II (which I have officially finished, 52 hours flat, great graphics and soundtracks, awesome new-old battle system, all around 9.5/10 game, would be 15 if Leon or Cloud were playable...), FPS action in FFVII:Dirge of Cerberus, and of course, hunting down Marks in FFXII (awesome game again, as expected of Square Enix, the graphics are mindblowing!). Anyway, I digress. Now I have a part-time job, at my dad's legal firm. Nothing like filing, preparing documents and performing clerical work to while away the time...I guess. I also have taken up the official duty as the family chaffeur, driving my siblings to school, tuition, music classes etc. Anyway, I still have some time to do the things I enjoy doing, so I can say, as I have been saying all along, "God is good, all the time." Now if I can only figure out how to kill that @#%&$ Trickster without being sliced into pieces everytime...

Losing...

2006-12-10T22:57:00.000-08:00

Yo all, this is de 1st post on my blog! This blog marks my newfound freedom from the secondary school system... From now till March 07 I will have nothing to do except watch the leaves fall and other distracting activities... Anyway, now I am playing gin rummy with my godma's family in Penang, and it seems like I am 'catching up' with the race leaders, my god-grandma (for lack of a better term) and my mom... For the uninitiated, the more points you score, the better...for the other players' pockets, that is...

(30 minutes later)
Nooooo.... I've lost!!! Grand total:1304 points, with the next player being 100 points away... Oh well, it's only a game, and we're not playing for money. (sigh of relief) Hopefully this post is not viewed by my church elders or I will have a lot of explaining to do... The session was supposed to end at about 3 . A . M but some of us were already getting blurry-eyed from 3 continuous nights of playing... My 'godcousin' escaped this night by going on camp, but messaged to say that she wished she was playing with us... Reeeeeaaaalllllyyyy.....

Anyway, Penang has really changed a lot from the last time I was here. It is now a shopper's paradise, with at least 3 new shopping centres in the last 5-6 years... Sometimes getting from one end of the island to the other will get you into a massive jam moving in slo-mo... Well, at least the scenery is nice enough... Will be leaving the island tomorrow for home... Holidays can be tiring sometimes, you know... I wouldn't be surprised that as the new year kicks in I would look forward to getting back to school to recuperate from the holidays... Wait a minute, now I remember. I have been kicked out of the school system, and I think the teachers are relieved, to say the least... Hmmm, life won't be the same anymore, or will it?

Bowling for Soup - Highschool Never Ends

Four years you think for sure
That’s all you've got to endure
All the total *****
All the stuck up chicks
So superficial, so immature
Then when you graduate
You take a look around and you say HEY WAIT
This is the same as where I just came from
I thought it was over
Aw that’s just great

The whole **** world is just as obsessed
With who‘s the best dressed and who‘s having ***,
Who‘s got the money, who gets the hunnie's,
Who‘s kinda cute and who‘s just a mess
And you still don’t have the right look
And you don’t have the right friends
Nothing changes but the faces, the names, and the trends
High school never ends

.....Slightly foul-mouthed, but sounds great and makes sense too... Or does it? Have to find out... Ciao!