Happy unbirthday to me.

Shh. I'll be two years old in a month's time. Nobody really knows when I was born, so we've all agreed that August 30th was a good time for me to turn a year older. Don't tell anybody though, I don't like people making fun of my unofficial birthday, and I already get enough attention as it is with the more periodic updates coming from Mark these days. I just feel like commerating the occasion with more comments from the masses and a bottle of cheap wine.

-by The Halls of Laminity
(1st post dated August 30th, 2004)

|

Did you know...

"...Then there was the famous story that Wal-Mart had discovered that sales of nappies(diapers) and beer were highly corrlelated. As young fathers dropped in at it's stores on their way home from work to pick up supplies of the former, they decided to stock up on the latter at the same time. Wal-Mart, the story goes, then put the items side-by-side on it's shelves, and sales rocketed."

-The Economist, June 10th, 2004

|

0120hrs at Adam's

Adam lies before me, his body sprawled across the floor like a dead chicken. I meticulously step over his carcass, being careful not to wake the dead up in the process. Propping myself onto the chair in front of his PC, I help myself to a half empty can of coke on the table.

It has ants on it. wtf.

And then I turn to look at the flickering screen. omg.

The reason I'm at this guy's house is that I needed him to help me with some of the stuff I didn't understand. Now, turning to look at the monitor, I realise that he's actually finished one-week's of work in 3 days and is now helping me to do mine (he already did up my template and all).

geez. I'm touched.

|

Wow. Thanks For Coming.

We were supposed to meet and discuss about how to distribute the workload for our new assignment. But he, my colleague (hereinafter “Mr F”), cancelled out on me because he felt “sian”.

And no, it wasn’t because there was an emergency. Nobody died, he didn’t have a girl to chase and there wasn’t a noteworthy TV show screening. So what did I do? I went to the fridge, reached for a coke, propped myself onto the couch and started thinking.

Such actions really unsettle me, but maybe not for the reasons that most people think. Perhaps what disturbs me about things like these is that these people believe that there isn’t anything inappropriate in doing what they did. They show no regret, and they believe it to be the norm for others to do what they did.
Maybe they don’t understand the intricacies involved? But given their age and experience, how could one not comprehend such issues? Maybe Paul was right, people do spend too much time thinking up excuses and rationalising their wrongdoings to make themselves feel better. And such actions, like poison, kill you slowly; your mistakes quickly become habits - together with stronger excuses to justify why you did what you did.

So what is the deal with this post anyway?

I think I’ve finally learnt to let go of my disdain towards such individuals. I don’t know how, but I certainly didn’t feel resentful when Mr. F called to cancel on me. Maybe all the ad-hoc badminton stand-ups, the late night mahjong cancellations and the knn “I suddenly got no mood to dine with you, sorry” phone calls has made me numb to such individuals. I am now for the notion that if these people do not realise that they have a responsibility towards others, that if they are not cognizant of the fact that mahjong will never work with only three kakis or a doubles-sessions with only three players, then even though they will suffer in future, I do not owe it to myself to tell them what I believe went wrong. I know all this sounds a tad arrogant and a bit selfish but hey, I’m definitely happier if I didn’t think about such issues.

Close friends, of course, are a different matter. Prepare to get fucked.

|

"HUH?"

Michelle to me: When you play KoF, you get to meet all kinds of guys. There's crappy ones like you, semi crap, semi serious ones like Paul, and serious ones like Empyrian!
-------
Elaine on MSN: I bought a skirt for $12 at this fashion today! 20% off!
Me: It has to be pretty.
Elaine: no.
Me: Then you must like it.
Elaine: no.
Me: you bought it just 'cause it was cheap?
Elaine: Jackpot! ahhaha!
-------
Someone (for the 32761th time): Gato's Jump D, kick DM is good.
-------
CH to a (female) lecturer on the subject of what a boyfriend means to her.
Boyfriends are like, dogs. Hell, maybe dogs are better.
(I DO NOT know what prompted the remark above)
-------

Me to Michelle's friend: Playing KoF is a good way to pick up guys though.
MF : Why bother? I just hang around Michelle.

(This actually makes alot of sense)

|

...will I ever see...you smiling back at me...

I would think it MAY not be a bad thing to drop a hobby, really.

There are two outcomes to such a decision: one, you will pick up another hobby in due time (like badminton? '.'/) which you may like more; if not, two, you will come back more passionate for your lost love. Either way, both outcomes will ultimately make you a healthier person.

Moreover, unfulfilled passions motivate you to realize those dreams. And life is nothing without a direction or a goal.

Regardless of your decision, one thing is for sure. You have proven that you have the maturity of thought and your priorities right. And of course, we'll be behind you all the way.

-John

|

Here fishy fishy fishy.

I know you read my blog. I also know that there isn't a good enough reason I can come up with to persuade you not to sell off your hobby.

But anyway, I'm still going to try.

The crux lies in the expenditure that you're going to incur from now till the day you graduate and find a job. The way I see it, there are 2 diffferent schools of thought. You can either ditch the hobby now and pick it up again when you have a job and the resources to finance it, or you can sustain it for approximately a year till you begin working full-time.

Either way, you will eventually get to pursue your hobby after a year.-so what's the difference?

When you discontinue a hobby with reasons other than for your own benefit, you disconnect yourself from a world that you once had held expectations, hopes and anticipation in. There is nothing to look forward to, because there is no purpose in doing something that doesn't yield results. The bookmark to the forums doesn't get clicked anymore, the once-a-month trip to the marine shop doesn't seem appealing and the chance of capturing rare moments on film doesn't happen no more. The once rich and bright tank that housed colourful clownfish is now filled with emptiness, despair and sorrow. You lose the memories that you could have made. you lose a hobby. you change. Just know that.

Still, whatever your choice may be, we'll be behind you.

-Mark

|

When in the Arcade, I

can't help but think the following:

-(against Rodney aka "ash guy") This game is too slow for him.

-(against NUS law undergrad) WTF is this guy doing at an arcade? Shouldn't he be burying himself in books? I guess you really meet people from all walks of life here.

-(Against Paul's Hayate) Boomerang. Run.

-(When talking to Rodney) Life is too slow for him.

-(Against Empyrian) Specialisation > Diversification : True of False? How will I manage my (financial) portfolio in future?

-(Against Ronald aka Griffon/Max/Clark Guy) Die already.

-(When looking at Rodney) I swear this guy's heart beats twice as fast as mine.

-(Against Michelle) When you play against Michelle, you worry more about her makeup rather than KOF skills.

-(Watching Paul and Michelle play)
1)She's going to walk over and Kao pei to Paul after the match.
2) Good guys get the wrong kind of attention.

-(Noticing Fei Lo's aka Mama's presence) - Keeps token.

-(Against Iori Beng) He's on steriods.

-(Against's Mama' Kids) Keeps token.

-(Against Bug user) Remind myself to choose Oswald and put him as leader.

-(Watching Jazu guy and Empyrian play) Keeps token, buys a drink and watches the show.

|