poncho parasol

alive

2009-01-22T13:06:00.002-05:00

it is not coincidental that alive sounds like a life.
to be truly alive, live like there's only one life

2009

2009-01-06T13:23:00.003-05:00

Happy 2009!

Work is the end of the road. Everyday's a holiday.

NBA playoffs

2008-04-20T06:28:00.002-04:00

are here again, unberieveable~!

the original 90's houston team i supported has changed so much, and now they are also without yao ming...not much hope there of makin it to the finals but golden state did beat dallas last year in 1st round so.

still, lots of exciting match-ups in the west, plus the new rise of boston makes for potentially one of the most thrilling nba finals...

a pity fun teams like chicago bulls and la clippers ain't up to it this season after a refreshing last season...still...with SHAQ in suns...KG in celtics...JASON KIDD in dallas...what the hell man, all the dynamics are shaken up and i wish they will show every match on local tv

a shame spurs have to meet the suns so quickly...but i'm rooting for suns...they are going to be more entertaining! they also deserve a chance at silverware...before the team dissemble (i predict)

kobe vs iverson will be fun too :D

可怕的宇宙学！！

2008-03-31T05:36:00.003-04:00

THE MOST POWERFUL THEORY IN THE WORLD REVEALED TODAY - 宇宙学！！！！

the theory basically relates the size of the universe to anything you want.

how to use:

1.
"i'm having relationship problems."

"the 宇宙有这么大。（hands stretched out) 你有这么小。(point to a dust) 你的问题是 negligible!! 你没有问题！”

“ok. 谢谢你，可怕的宇宙学！"

2.
"i'm having money problems."

"the 宇宙有这么大。（hands stretched out) 你有这么小。(point to a dust) 你的问题是 negligible!! 你没有问题！”

“ok. 谢谢你，可怕的宇宙学！"

3.
"i'm having homework problems."

"the 宇宙有这么大。（hands stretched out) 你有这么小。(point to a dust) 你的 exercise book 有这么小。(point to an amoeba) 你的问题是 negligible!! 你没有问题！”

“ok. 谢谢你，可怕的宇宙学！"

4.
"i'm having universe problems."

"the 宇宙有这么大。（hands stretched out) 你........... 你.........没有问题.”

“ok. 谢谢你，可怕的宇宙学！"

dreamless days, dreamful nights

2008-02-11T10:33:00.000-05:00

sometimes i feel like, i forgotten how to think
how to dream
and how to be excited

is it like this with everyone's ns period? busy busy, then overexposed to the same work, then a grind out to the end of our service...in the past 18 and a half months, even as i learned some technical skills, i feel my life's gearbox slowing to neutral and my aspirations naught. is it always so difficult to find out what you want, and things that makes your heart beat lil faster? maybe its end of student life. maybe its growin up, without being ready to be grownup.

given myself 2 years to figure out what i might wanna do and time is running out, yes, even the supposedly slow-passing time that exists in ns world.

then again, no expectations means no disappointment. no roller-coasters, no vomiting your breakfast. still...i kind of admire those with a big goal. working towards one must surely make you feel alive. like how i felt at 6 dropping a coconut a few times from the 4th floor with a neighbour to get at the juice and flesh inside. or going to a new class or school or country with no friends.

those were the days :)

i forgotten i have a blog

2007-10-28T12:50:00.000-04:00

YES!!

first blog of 2007! very very lucky, it would appear that the blog was dead, if i did not have an entry at least once a year. erm. ya.

it was a close shave. i forgotten i had a blog, until my friend reminded me abt it and asked if i'm going to update it! the feelin is akin to findin back ur baby after abandonin it at someone's doorfront for a while. i guess i did not have much to blog abt after comin back from nyc to resume my love for my nation. everyday its just WORK WORK (in wc3 orge accent). life's a lot more boring-er now. heck, i even missed rushing homeworks minutes b4 the deadlines coz it was actually quite exciting (esp when you had a housemate who's just as terrible, horrible, and vegetable at procrastination.) (that's u, ringo.)

anyhow, here's to 2007! promise to blog again at least once more in 2008.

2006-05-02T00:12:00.000-04:00

my feeling is up! i want to remember this....

2006-05-01T17:45:00.000-04:00

i am so stressed over my thesis...i started too late, worked too little, read too little, know too little, my sample is not random, my measures seem dubious, and worst of all, my results are not too conclusive...

can't decide if the main problem is a bad design, or lack of effort, or maybe its a combination of both *^^* ... deadly...

perhaps, a better word than stressed, is "worried", or "sick of". i'm sick of looking at the thesis, and sick of worrying over the amount of work left, and sick of worrying about the quality of the so called "thesis" i'm churning out. just want to move on to doing my final homework and studying for my exams. just want life to be simpleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee....why do someone like me have to do a research paper? i'm here to learn, not research...*^^*

ok! i'm here to learn... learn about consequences when you slack big time and goof off thinking work will get done by themselves, or that time is infinite, or that productivity magically rockets skyhigh when it comes to the last minute.

help!

2006-03-08T00:35:00.000-05:00

the road on which we tread
is often not as clear cut as we wished
when the road we tread is clear cut
its not always leading to where we want to go
knowing where to head
does not mean we won't get lost
and getting out of the maze
does not mean we head back the right way

a wise man once told me
pointing to a house
that before it was a house
there was nothing at all

but someone made a plan
and decided to make it true
he laid a piece of stone
and then the next one

he might never finish
before his life ran out
but in laying those stones
he's steps closer to the house

if happiness is behind that house
then the only thing
that will make you happy
is to move towards it

the old man asked me
what is it i want
he heard so many answers
like dreams and goals and wealth

and no matter the answer
he would say the same
What you really want
Is simply happiness

whatever it is
you think that you want
you only want it
because you want happiness

you want money and health
because you want happiness
you want to achieve
because you want happiness

you do charity
because it makes you happy
you want someone happy
because it makes you happy

and the last thing the old man
told me before i got off
Always listen to your heart
And never to your head

2006-02-21T10:00:00.000-05:00

In the end, sleep prevailed.

Should I do my work first then sleep? Or sleep a couple of hours first then wake up early to work? These are always the questions facing me at the end of a slacking period as I face deadlines. In the end, I let my body win over my pride. And my body answered:

"You shall sleep, and you shall sleep a full decent amount of sleep."

Late homeworks in the making!

How to Wake up Early: The Cure to Inability to wake up early

2006-02-10T09:13:00.000-05:00

You are studying overseas. You sleep late and wake up late, usually at lunch time. You do this consistently even though you tell yourself everyday its time to change the bad habit. Sounds familiar?

Anyway I discovered how to cure this today.

1. You need to leave your music on.

2. You need to sleep in the opposite direction, ie your head is on where your feet normally are.

3. You need a friend to call you from overseas, not knowing that its morning over at your country, and have a nice conversation for about 10 minutes at least.

And it really works. I will explain my hypothesis on the mechanism later. This is a big step forward for future ponchos!

Days

2006-02-08T01:41:00.000-05:00

Today 오늘
Yesterday 어제
Tomorrow 내일
Day Before Yesterday 그저께
2 Days Later 이틀후
3 Days Ago 삼일전
3 Days Later 삼일후
Now 지금

How to Count from 1 to 10 in Hangul

2006-02-08T01:32:00.000-05:00

1. 하나
2. 둘
3. 셋
4. 넷
5. 다섯
6. 여섯
7. 일곱
8. 여덟 (p. 여덜)
9. 아홉
10. 열

How to Count 1 to 10 in Sino-korean Words

2006-02-08T01:28:00.000-05:00

1. 일
2. 이
3. 삼
4. 사
5. 오
6. 육 (p. 륙)
7. 칠
8. 팔
9. 구
10. 십

System Inquiry

2006-01-17T02:49:00.000-05:00

WHO IS THE BOSS HERE? WHY SO LONG NEVER UPDATE ONE? CHAO SLACKER...

2005-12-21T00:42:00.000-05:00

幾個朋友，在這個冷漠的季節，都和女友分手了。。。其實人在外囯，都是想開闊視野，但也往往牽動到感情的不穩定，人與人，心與心的距離。在這個來領的聖誕節，或許我會懷疑，我的幸福幾時才到來，但朋友們卻可能在苦苦思索，爲何美麗的幸福被奪走了。。。朋友們，振作吧。。。因爲我也為你們感到難過。。

Rules of the Last Minute Worker

2005-12-13T22:09:00.000-05:00

RESPECT THE ALARM CLOCK
the alarm clock is our god. it gives us direction and indications in life.

OBEY THE ALARM CLOCK
consequences are heavy when you do not listen to the alarm clock. do not test god's wrath. you will live a life of regret.

WORSHIP THE ALARM CLOCK
place it in a worshipping place visible from all corner of the room with The Bed. pray to the alarm clock every morning.

CHECK THE ALARM CLOCK
do not double-guess the alarm clock. silence is not a guarantee of availability of more sleeping time. it is also a sign of sleeping past the Golden Hour.

ARM THE ALARM CLOCK
if you do not communicate your desires to god, how do you expect god to talk back to you?

RELOAD THE ALARM CLOCK
the alarm clock's spiritual power will always run out just before an important event. telling sign: having more than 24 hours in a day.

who is i spent thankgiving with yo

2005-11-29T03:03:00.000-05:00

yea yea yea yea on da thankgivin
went to a family who's livin
in pretty suburb housin
check it out, check it out
everybady in da house
the ridders in da house
my friend who's in da house
n yo its poncho in da house
all turkeys in da house
yea yea yea yea yea

studyin yo

2005-11-29T02:57:00.000-05:00

yea yea yea studyin is so fun yea yea
everyday got stupid notes to read and homework to do yea yea
crazy projects all coming yea yea yea
i'm lovin it i'm lovin it yea yea yea
yea yea yea yea yea yea

人生

2005-11-23T23:14:00.000-05:00

人生。。人生是什么？我们出生后，生活多姿多彩。但是，我们的时间却是有限的。我们是有感情的动物，所以我们会舍不得。舍不得再也见不到的人。

2005-11-14T05:46:00.000-05:00

wah can hav lunch in malaysian restaurant with jc friends in new york....that's how global the world is now! hmm...wait a min...the world IS global...

damn childish la, titus. cannot make it lar, so short....

another one...dun so childish can?

ok la i also want. wah this one look so pro!

At 6Flags Great Adventure, New Jersey

2005-11-14T05:26:00.000-05:00

There was man. Then there was 6-flags, a crazy amusement park not for the faint hearted.

The biggest ride had this sign. it also happens to be the world's highest and fastest ride. Kingda Ka. at the end of the ride the speaker will blurt out "Thank you for conquering KING-DA-KA!" its really very very very high up...if u look at the photo closely u can see how small the train looks on the top of the loop...

my crazy fren marc who's a roller coaster fan. anyway, i dun think i'll ever be scared of any roller coaster rides anymore. not after KINGDA-KA.....

dramas i caught since comin here

2005-10-30T21:28:00.000-05:00

Mianhada Saranghanda - very good korean drama released in 2004. its the best i've watched this year. The main actor and actress are top-notch.

恶魔在身边 - silly/exaggerated at times but somehow fun to watch. just bear in mind its a taiwanese drama and tolerate the silly bits and you will be fine. act cool to various degrees of success.

大长今 - currently on the first episode. nothing great so far, have to watch more.

2005-09-21T05:04:00.000-04:00

today i is declare myself da laziest person on world...i sleep in between class and i do no work! now it is very late and i still have 10000 pages of readings to do. i can't believe how lazy i am...i rather say here how lazy i am than do work....zz....z...z..........

idea

2005-09-16T03:49:00.000-04:00

as i brushed my teeth while looking at this current screen, i tot of a brilliant idea - inventing edible toothpaste. kids already have fruits flavored paste that tastes really yummy - surely they are edible??? if not make them edible! imagine the benefits: u dun need to go to the wash basin to brush ur teeth. u can brush anywhere, eg while sitting in ur room like i am now, and then just swallow it all when u're done! its so boring to brush ur teeth in the toilet. so sian. look at the mirror and do nothing but move ur stupid brush. its so dumb it makes me want to skip brushing and then totally regreting it when i do see mr dentist for my x-yearly checkup.

2005-09-08T20:04:00.000-04:00

registering for classes in columbia university is one of the worst experiences ever in my academic life. nothing works out, there's great amount of uncertainty and you are made to run all over the place.

firstly they have irregular hours and days during which you are allowed to register online during the clss registration periods. that is such a pain in the ass. then the classes fill out quickly and they don't allow you to join the full classes. thirdly, you need to get permission for some classes from the instructors or department and there are contradiction of such information depending on the sources - what the online system, the paper information and the departments tell you can be different. so you end up doing unnecessary running around over the university, or you encounter difficulty in joining classes when supposedly no approvals are needed. and although they make it sound nice like you can take different options from different departments, some departments only allow you to cross-register for their classes after a certain date, which by then are already flooded by their own students. and although students typically want to try the classes in the first week, the stupid online system don't allow any overlapping of classes times at all, or any over-subscription to classes. it is probably for good intentions and sounds like a smart system, but it makes everything so rigid, inflexible, and difficult for the student. you worry about whether you will like the class, you worry about the classes you potentially can take if you happen to drop another class, you worry about whether you are able to join a class in time, you worry about meeting the time slots given to you to register. the worst ever, most unthinkable shit happened today - a cross-school class i finally registered for in paper and on computer since last week, after much effort, is no longer confirmed. simply because my school was informed by the other school that "the class has hit the enrol cap." is this for real? is this really a university in a developed country?

i miss the old system of signing up for modules at warwick university. warwick was not very hi-tech. we didn't have live internet counting of the number of students in each modules. it was just a simple exercise of choosing the modules you want, and click "confirm". yes initially everyone overloads like crazy, and have clashing timetables but that is because initially nobody really knows how a class is like until we attend it. we get the chance to experience the lectures, and we can add or drop a module as late as the third term. nearly all modules have no rigid fixed cap on the number of pple which makes sense. if you like a class you should be allowed to take it. the university should be the one who deal with the demand, not students. and for the few truly popular classes that have a limit, there is pre-registration the year before to ensure you get a place. over here in columbia, the lecturers themselves are not even sure what courses will be taught the next semester. i can't believe that.

in general, you will need a lot of good luck and effort just to get into all the classes you truly want here.

Manhattan Bus Tour

2005-09-04T12:47:00.000-04:00

The Met

2005-09-03T12:44:00.000-04:00

Campus

2005-09-01T02:38:00.000-04:00

South Side Seaport

2005-08-29T13:59:00.000-04:00

Central Park and Brooklyn Bridge

2005-08-28T07:42:00.000-04:00

Low Memorial Library, Columbia

2005-08-27T04:32:00.000-04:00

Ground Zero

2005-08-26T09:01:00.000-04:00

Room

2005-08-25T11:31:00.000-04:00

Leaving Singapore

2005-08-24T17:50:00.000-04:00

Bali

2005-08-18T12:38:00.000-04:00

2005-06-20T22:13:00.000-04:00

i suck :(

separation

2005-06-07T20:31:00.000-04:00

with still one more exam to go, it is not exactly the best time to think about what's to come. indeed, having a late paper has given me the excuse to avoid facing the thought of eventual separation from friends i've come to know in my years here at warwick.

but there's no more running away from it as people around finish their exams, get ready to leave, go on holidays, celebrate their last birthdays in warwick, look into shipping companies to transport their belongings home.

what am i to do after my exams finish? i guess before i know it, its goodbye to many familiar faces, perhaps the last time seeing many of them in years in come. good friends keep in contact whereever they go, but ... that's not the point. i dun even keep in contact much with friends, i'm just not the type. the point is spending time together. being able to live life in the same community. that's going to be missing and that kind of sucks. and there's no way i can't stop it.

it was great munhou and i could dedicate a song for vidya on her birthday tonight. she's been the kindest to all of us here. i thought the song was really sad, like everyone is leaving soon. so i'm glad i had to chance to perform it for a friend, and i guess its kind of how i feel having to leave the friends i've made here one day soon.

If a picture paints a thousand word, then why i can't paint you?

The words will never show, the you i've come to know

If a face could launch a thousand ships then where am i to go

There's no one home but you, you're all that's left me to

And when my love for life is running dry

You come and pour yourself on me

If a man could be two places at one time, i'd be with you

Tomorrow and today, besides you all the way

If the world should stop revolving spinning slowly down to die

I'd spend the end with you. and when the world was through

Then one by one, the stars would all go out

And you and i would simply fly away

hai..

我发神经

2005-05-30T12:35:00.000-04:00

神经病，有毛病，去到医院没有病
回到家给妈妈打，还偷吃妈妈的维他命
啦啦啦啦啦啦啦啦啦啦啦啦！

2005-05-06T00:06:00.000-04:00

Polar Bear makes a phone call.

Mystery of the Galaxy in Time-space

2005-03-26T17:42:00.000-05:00

Everyone always wonders but nobody really knows - what happens when you put a magnifying glass over your watch. does time slow down, or do you just get a bigger wrist?

looking hard it does appear that a greater distance has to be covered by the second hard to make each unit of time, but since we did not increase the speed, surely time slows down?

empirically though, i get a fat wrist and my watch has to be loosened a couple of notches.

i think the real answer is, when you are desperate for time, you go crazy and ask crazy questions. and if all it takes is a magnifying to give me 2 more hours for my assignment so that i can sleep a bit more, who wouldn't be tempted to give it a go?

Back from the land of the sunny snow and evian lakewater

2005-03-17T19:05:00.000-05:00

Just came back from Switzerland today, and I must say we had the most perfect weather there- warm sunshine with plenty of snow in the mountains. No wind! No precipitation! Perfect visibility! We were actually staying at Geneva but we bought train passes (very expensive!) and went city hopping the second day, in a Start!-Lausanne-Montreux-Bern-Zurich-Go back sleep! kind of order. Lausanne and Montreux have endless postcard views along the beautiful Lake Geneva, while Bern and Zurich provide older and happening-er city atmospheres respectively.

In constrast, we spent our entire third day in winter wonderland Oberland region, which is Interlaken (this town is so called because of its location b/w two lakes) and the mountains ALL AROUND IT. EVERYWHERE MOUNTAIN. EVERYWHERE SNOW. SNOW SNOW SNOW. NICE THICK SNOW, LOOKS LIKE SMOOTH WHIPPED CREAM, LOOKS LIKE ICECREAM, I WANT TO EAT, I WANT TO JUMP INTO ALL OF IT AND BE HAPPY IN THE SNOW! The mountains were incredibly awe-inspirsing, but wah lau man, i more excited by the snowy snow lor, buay tahan, never see so much snow b4, sua ku lah, play snow until like siao like dat. From Interlaken, we took train rides to Lauterbrunnen (797m) where we cycled for hours in the glorious scenaries around us, before discovering we are too late to take the special ride to Jungfraujoch (3454m), the highest train station in Europe. Its ironic because I was put off by the hefty price of 100 over francs just for that 2 hr ride up, but when I decided to go for it, we discovered we just missed the last ride while we were at lunch. Chee bong. Anyway we went as high up as we could for free with our train passes to Murren (1624m) and Grindelwald and it was all pretty. Except for the violent snowfights and a phallic snow shape handmade by my fren. Wush.

its alive!

2005-02-11T22:13:00.000-05:00

blog is alive.
play basketball must train face. ball and face will come together. must train face.
conjecture: 恋爱就是为了失恋。sounds illogical. who goes into love just to fall out of it.
creatures of nature are noble. ladybirds always climb upwards before flying off.

Holidays

2004-12-14T03:29:00.000-05:00

Holidays are here...will there be a white xmas for once this year?

Cause and Effect

2004-10-11T14:22:00.000-04:00

life is like trading and gambling; you give some to take some. you give it attitude and it throws attitude back at you. you be nice and perhaps life deals you a better hand.

sometimes, you go on a lucky streak and every day brings fun and laughter, despite just being yourself. other times, you may step into mud even though you've been keeping to the kerb and seeking life's meaning.

today i stepped into mud. mud? who cares!

2004-08-27T13:25:00.000-04:00

today, i got asked to tuck in my shirt at work... 原来 the workplace behaves like a school as well. 真是有趣。

today, my tears fell freely before a stranger. i laid on my bed and i could see the ceiling clearly for once. it was very strange indeed. besides, my feet look bigger and my face looks fatter.

昨天，mAydAy, nut and me went for shepherding training. the sheep were not forthcoming so we promised the five sheep can stick together. damn jialat! kena bombed like crazy by the grenade-happy sheep. bad sheep, bad! as usual, nut showed an exemplary display of shepherdship for all to learn. unexpectedly, following the sheep came a - wolfie - as well. it was very challenging indeed.

杨过 is damn poor thing. even though i know he will meet 小龙女 again, you can't help but be amazed at the cruel cards dealt to him. 问世间，情是何物，直叫生死相许？

The Day After National Day

2004-08-10T11:52:00.000-04:00

Today is the day after National Day. I discovered that I need to play more igo.

2004-07-10T14:17:00.000-04:00

I fragged last night ah!
I fragged the night before~
Now I frag like I never frag before ah!

Fragging is no good. I shall change my ways and switch to tending to sofy cute fluffy sheep. Sheep is good. Got sheep?