Esther

Happy Birthday to JC, and a Merry Christmas to all readers! :)

Nehemiah

First off, I know this is a bit late, but I would like to thank everyone for the Birthday wishes a few weeks back. The good thing about turning 25 is that I have now joined the ranks of those who are considered Category Y for my army fitness test (IPPT). Which just means I'm not in my prime anymore, and so the standard for passing that test has been lowered. Which is ironic, considering that due to all the running and exercise that I have been doing, I am now at my fittest level. I am running even faster than when I was in the army. So now it is easier to pass and get my monetory incentive.

Speaking of running, I managed to complete my 21.1km run in a time of 2 hours 1 minute and 8 seconds. I think it is a good time, and my next daunting challenge is the 42.195km run in May. I have signed up for the Adidas Sundown Marathon. A few years ago, I thought it mad to join such runs. Now I have joined that very asylum for the mentally disturbed. What makes a person do such things? According to Psychology 101, every person must have a purpose in life. A challenge that rewards. I guess I can finally see that completing such runs is possible, and achievable. With some training, it can be done. I could never see that before. But slowly, as I did the 10km, and now 21.1km, I can finally see that the seemingly impossible distance is now possible. Not that it will be easy, but it is possible. Completing such a run might seem a waste of time, but it is that feeling of accomplishment, that I did something that I formerly thought impossible, which makes it a worthwhile experience. So all the best to me on my next challenge.

Speaking of my next challenge, I have applied for a degree course at KAPLAN in Psychology. Now I wait to see if my application is approved. If it is, I start studying again in January.

Lastly, Christmas is just 6 days away!!! Woohoo! All my cousins from overseas are coming down, and I have yet to start on my Christmas shopping. Damn late already. I am too good at procrastinating. I can give out lectures on the subject matter. But I am still looking forward to Christmas. It will be the unofficial start of the new year, with new challenges ahead, new problems, new goals, and new targets. I am at that point in life where I am finally seeing where I should be and can be in the future, and the roads that lead in that direction.

I wish everyone in advance a very Merry Christmas!! May the reason for the season never be lost in our hearts.

Ezra

I watched '2012' lately. Quite frankly, I think it is overhyped. It is just a family surviving one disaster after another. The luckiest family that ever lived. But maybe, that's just me.

I have nothing much to mention for now. My 21km training is going okay now. I feel good and ready to take on the terror. And Christmas is still not here yet. Such is life. So short post for today. And Ynnib Nai would like to impart some words-

"Never test the depth of the water with both feet."

Chronicles

Chronicles: A retelling of events.

Like the poster above? A lot of offices have such 'motivational' posters in their office. So I decided my blog should start putting up such posters too. More to come.

A while ago, Christmas didn't seem that far away. It seemed like it could come by tomorrow. Or the day after that. Now, after 'many days', I am just getting a tad impatient. The world really needs more Christmases, cos is it just me, or is everyone just a tad more grumpy the rest of the year? The only other time people are just as happy, is Chinese New Year. And that is because the Chinese actually close their businesses for 2 days (which is the greatest miracle ever), and the rest of us are happy cos the streets are a tad less crowded.
I recently won a ticket to catch the 'This Is It' movie. It was okay, and I only receommend it if you are a big Michael Jackson fan. The biggest beef I had, was that I had won 'A Ticket'. Not 'A Pair of Tickets', which is usually the case, but just 'A ticket'. And there were so many empty seats around, which means they could afford to actually give away 'A Pair of Tickets'. This was my first time watching a movie by myself, and I must say that it felt awkward, and not as fun. After the movie, there was no one around to talk about how cool Michael Jackson danced, or how wierd he was, etc. This just makes me more convinced to never watch a movie alone ever again.
My training for my 21 km run, which is on the 1st week of December Sunday, is going along fine. My original training plan was to run 21 km 2 weeks before the actual half-marathon, 15 km 3 weeks before, and 10 km at least twice a week for the rest of the weeks. I have now changed all that. I have decided to run just 10 km 2 to 3 times a week, and then go for the 21km on the day itself, and wish myself all the best. To think there was a time I vowed to not run such 'mad' distances.
Lately, I have come to realise that I think a lot about stuff in my life, and each day I make a different decision and opinion on the same topic. It all depends on my mood and my train of thought on the day. Things like music, videos, etc, can also sway my thoughts one way or the other. It goes the same if I am hungry or too full. This is screwed up. It's more screwed up that I am aware of this. What a life.

Kings

You know how I mentioned before that I will be taking a degree in psychology? Well, that was some time back, and I have yet to take it. Everytime I think I am ready to enroll, something comes up to throw me off. And I have to be honest, I am scared.
There are a lot of things that I am willing to try, eat, do at considerable risk.
But ask me to study, and I start to freak out. I am really afraid. Afraid that I will fail. Afraid that I will lose interest when it gets tough. Afraid that I will drop out. Afraid of failure and that it won't work out. You see, I have never really been good at studying, and exams. The moment the exams come around, I panic and everything just leaves my brain when I need it the most. And my past results from Kindergarten, to Primary, then Secondary school, and lastly Poly, have all been average or below average. Studies and me never seem to work out.
But the thing I am most afraid of, is losing the freedom that I have now. Without the studies, and just working, I have been able to get to a healthy lifestyle, and I have also been able to travel, a lot. Once I start on my degree, I will have to undertake a mugging lifestyle. Someone told me that all the 'freedom' can be gained back, once I finish studying. That I would need to make sacrifices to achieve that degree. But what a sacrifice. And I am really afraid of it.
If I work and study, then juggling both would be tiring. But I will still have income. If I quit my job and go into full time studies, I will be able to concentrate on school better, but I will be back to being next to broke in no time.
So many things to consider. So many options. So much that life has to offer, and so much that can happen from now till the next enrollment date, which is at year end, that could even throw up another unforseeable option.
Right now, I feel like I am in 'no mans land'. That I need to take my life in another direction, and soon. So much to think about and consider. The choices we take in life shows us what we are made of. What am I made of?

Samuel

Samuel- Under God's laws the rights of all people, rich and poor alike, were to be maintained.

Ruth

Well, I went to Kota Kinabalu 2 weeks back, and had a damn good experience and a darn good time. Me and 4 others set off on Sunday, and came back on Friday. The goal- Conquer Mount Kinabalu. To be honest, when the idea was suggested to climb it, I did not think it was a big deal, as I did not think it was a very famous mountain. So not famous = easy task? I was so wrong.
We set off for the climb on Monday. Eventhough I thought it should be an okay climb, I was training, and so, the 1st day climbing up about 6km was ok for me. But then again, we did take a lot of breaks. Practically every sheltered area (called 'Pondok'), we rested, and ate and drank. After hiking up for about 6km, we came to our lodge, where we would spend the night with dinner provided, before waking up to set off at 2.30am for the climb to the peak.
I realised it is warmer to just keep moving, but because of the picture moment opportunities, I had to endure the freezing cold winds to keep still and smile myself silly. But it was worth it in the end. The view was breathtaking, and to know you are standing on top a mountain, just gives you that feeling of achievement and accomplishment. A contented fuzzy feeling that just makes you feel good all round.
Little did I know that it was time for the hardest and most difficult challenge- getting down the mountain. Sure, seems easy in theory AND practical. I mean, would you prefer to climb up or down the stairs given the choice? Of course 99.9% of us would choose down (Just like dettol killing germs). It is a given. But going down the mountain was different. Of course coming down was faster, but by the time I reached the bottom, my knees were screaming in pain, cos the cartiledge in my knees could not take the pounding. It did not help that it rained when we were coming down, so there was the added fear that we would slip, fall, and roll to our deaths (or fear getting a broken ankle, which feels like death!). We waited for a van to take us back, and the pain grew and I found myself unable to kneel. Not that it was too painful, but my legs just refused to bend to that extent. I feared getting up the next day, as I was not sure if my legs would be able to move when I woke, but when I did wake up, my legs were actually feeling better.
Thank goodness we had no plans on that day. Just rest and relaxation. It was a Wednesday, and lo and behold, it was Movie day! Movies going for like RM$5! It was such a good deal, and being Singaporeans, we had to take advantage! So we watched 'GI Joe' and 'The Proposal'. 2 movies in a day. I'm not going into details of the movies, but I will just say that 'The Proposal' was funny, 'GI Joe' only had action to offer.
The next day we set off for White Water Rafting- level 3 and level 4. Water was muddy, but apart from that, it was fun. Was scary when the bus was trying to go up the mountain and stalled, and started moving backwards, but we arrived safely at our destination. Took an old train to the mountain which passed by villages and kampongs. It was an experience to see and take in all this.
So overall, I thoroughly enjoyed myself, and I actually hope to do more of this in future. But I have stopped exercising since the trip and need to get in shape again. Anyway, I shall sign off here with a sign, and a question- what do you think this means?

Judges

Take time to relax especially when you don't have time for it.

My last post had this comment left by a random reader who stumbled upon my blog. She said she loved reading my post, and will keep reading my blog often. I was glad when I read that comment, knowing that someone really enjoyed reading my blog, and would visit often. I felt inspired and thought that I would write as often as I can. That was about 4 months ago. By now, I think most people would have had already decided not to come back here, seeing that I have not updated for a long long time.
My first order of business, was to take down that annoying Michael Jackson tribute that I had put up. I have not a clue what possesed me to put that up. But it is gone now. If there are still people reading this, well, now you can read in peace.
I realised I have not had a day to myself for the last few weeks. Today, I originally had 2 appointments. But both were cancelled. Which I why I have actually found time to blog. Cos I have practically been home the whole day.
I have been keeping myself very busy lately. There are a few lifestyle changes I have had to make, cos of various reasons.
Of course a lot has happened within these past few weeks, and there a lot of things to come in the following weeks as well. So much so, I am not sure where to begin.
In summary, there was the Langkawi trip, Genting trip, Jasmine's Birthday party, The Liverpool saga (very heated debate going on now), and a visit to the aged living in Toa Payoh.
And in a weeks time, I will be flying off to Kota Kinabalu. I will be going hiking up the mountain and white water rafting. So I have been training to try to get in shape to survive that trip. I will fly off on National Day itself. I think it is best I start there. Starting with National Day. Singapore celebrates National Day on August 9th. And as we near it, there is a debate going on about Liverpool having played Singapore about a week ago. First off, let me just state that I am a Liverpool supporter. When I heard that Liverpool was coming to Singapore to play, I could not care less who they were going to play against. I just wanted to watch Liverpool play their beautiful game. So I paid a whopping $88 dollars to watch them show off their stuff. I enjoyed myself, having seen the players do what they came to do, and there was the Liverpool 'You'll never walk alone' song that was played that added more to that fun atmosphere. Now, there are people asking why the National Anthem was not played, and why the supporters did not cheer for Singapore. I think I already explained why I did not cheer for Singapore. I have the advantage of seeing Singapore play whenever. But to meet and see Liverpool play over here is not as common as seeing the National Team play. So darn right I cheered for Liverpool. After all, it was a Friendly. It should not be a big deal. No one boo'ed Singapore as I recall, so what is the big hoola about it?
And on why the National Anthem was not played, seeing as it was not an International match, or a serious competition, I don't think it should be a big deal that it was not played. Why was the Liverpool anthem played? To give us an experience of hearing that anthem being played on the stadium speakers, to us. I believe the organisers were just trying to be nice and give us that Liverpool atmosphere that we listen to and watch on tv, whenever there is a Premier League game or Champions League game on.
I feel that it is unfair to 'take appropriate action' as the FAS put it, against the promoters, who I believe, had Liverpool supporters best interest at heart. I'm sure it was not their intention to belittle the Singapore team. Did they belittle Singapore? Seeing as how it was just a friendly soccer match, I do not believe they did. If the Singapore team, or other Singaporeans, are unable to take all this in the name of fun, then perhaps next time if Liverpool visit again, we should just have an S-League selection playing against Liverpool. Or even a foreign selection, so that we Liverpool supporters can truely have our dream of participating in an Anfield like environment in peace.
Well, I think I have really trailed off in this topic. So I should just end here and let Ynnib Nai leave you with some wise words of wisdom-
"Sex is like nose picking. It's fine as long as you practice it yourself, but it's disgusting watching someone else doing it."

Joshua

If anyone did care that I did not wish April fools, here is your wish. And also I wish one and all a Good Friday, and in advance, a Happy Easter. I'm sure no one cares about an April Fools wish, but strangely, I still go ahead with it. It's not like a public holiday. In fact, it seems more like Tylers day. My close combat buddies will know who and what I am talking about.
Anyway, if you are wondering if I am going to be talking about someone named Joshua, I am actually not going to. So why title my post as such you ask? Well, I realised that every year, I have the usual cliche titles for my blog. For instance, around the begining of the year, it would read- Happy New Year, or around CNY, it would read- Happy Year of the... etc. Something most blogs would also have I guess. So I have decided to try something different. I will title my posts according to the books in the bible. So, the next book in order, is titled 'Joshua'. And I have nothing to write about anyone named Joshua, or even rhymes with 'Joshua' (I bet you are now thinking what rhymes with Joshua huh). So I will just proceed to blog about, what else- my mundane life. Yeah I know, I'm a strange guy.
What have I been doing recently? Well, I recently went cycling at Ubin, and visited Chek Jawa while I was there. I have been to Ubin a couple of times before, but up to this point, I have yet to have travelled to Chek Jawa. And it was my first time riding on one of those double seater bicycles. Why? Cos apparently, one of my colleagues does not know how to ride a bike. Yes, I went there with some of my colleagues. It was not a company trip. Some of my cool office buddies decided to go there for the fun of it, and so I went along. It rained, but we still managed to cover the whole length of the island. Bike rental being at $8 a whole day, we might as well make the best of it.
I read the New Paper today. Apparently, the reporter did an 'investigation' and 'found' the Geylang Serai market with cockroaches and rats. I can tell you right now how many coffeeshops and hawker centres are filled with cockroaches. Almost all! And I don't have to do any investigation. It has been like this for some time now. They make it seem so shocking, but cmon, who didn't know this? I see rats at Lau Pa Sat, an eating place that is apparently meant for tourists to come and eat at, to try and experience our food culture. The reporter than asks if people must die for us to change our mindset. You know what the sad answer is? The answer is a sad YES! You know what makes me even more sad? Once this incident blows over, people will get complacent again. The sad truth. The only thing that can fix this is for the government to step in and to make checks and punish those that do not keep to the proper hygene standards. If not, coffeeshops and hawker centres will continue with the same unhygenic ways even afer this incident.
Look at the SARS incident. Everyone was scared to come to the office and spread the flu virus. Now? People come to work with the flu, sneezing and coughing all over the place, probably thinking that they should do so cos it is 'only the flu'. So what if your germs spread right? So what if people around you catch it? Some even think they might score points with the boss, showing up sneezing around, showing that they still came to office sick to do work. Showing how hard working they are. How about showing how kind and considerate you are to others health and stay home?
Some may disagree with my statements, but hey, I pride my blog being an open place for discussion, so go ahead and disagree.
Well, tomorrow I have an Easter party to attend to at home. Will catch up with you guys another time. Anyway, here is a short poem about Easter-

"Little Easter, the comedienne bunny,
Tried too hard at being funny.
She juggled and she dropped the eggs,
They fell and smashed between her legs.

Poor Easter left the stage in shame
And thought that she might change her name.
But then that bunny read this ad,
"This Sunday we need help real bad."

So Easter Bunny kept her name
And through the years has gained much fame,
When Easter's Sunday comes each year.
She delivers eggs and we all cheer."

Deuteronomy

The rules of soccer are very simple, basically it is this: If it moves, kick it. If it doesn’t move, kick it until it does

Deuteronomy- A series of addresses.

A wonderful week for Liverpool fans, as Liverpool advanced to the next stage of the Champions League with a 4-0 thrashing of Real Madrid, and then proceeded to thrash their greatest english rival Manchester United 4-1. I don't want to be biased, but being a Liverpool fan, I have to. So here is a series of newspaper summaries of Liverpool's last 2 games-

Liverpool 4 Real Madrid 0 -

Following Liverpool's victory the Spanish newspapers were quick to heap praise on Rafa's Reds. A typical reaction came from Jose Samano in El Pais, who wrote: "Liverpool had everything that Real lacked: energy, purpose, aplomb, speed, shape and flair.

"They were facing a team reduced to rag dolls. It was an exercise in demolition, with an imperious Torres and Gerrard and (Xabi) Alonso and (Javier) Mascherano running the show."

Pictures of a tearful-looking Iker Casillas contrasted with shots of his jubilant international colleague Torres, and the Spanish champions were variously dismissed as "pathetic", "lamentable" and "provincial".

The English press were equally gushing in praise of Liverpool's win with The Times declaring it "a result that will resonate through Europe and go down in the modern history of both clubs".

The Daily Mail said Liverpool simply "pulverised" Real. "There is no other word for it," wrote columnist Martin Samuel.

"Fittingly for a team nick-named The Meringues, Real Madrid were splattered and dispersed over a wide area of Anfield in the manner of an airy fairy dessert.

"One that has been run over by a steamroller. Then another one then. Then a herd of rampaging elephants. Driving more steamrollers."

The Independent added: "This was Liverpool playing like European royalty, delivering a four-goal cuffing to Real Madrid, their biggest defeat in the Champions League.

"This was European football's most successful club humiliated, eliminated, eviscerated. A rout."

Liverpool 4 Manchester United 1 -

Liverpool stormed back into the Premier League title race with a stunning 4-1 victory at leaders Manchester United on Saturday.
Rafael Benitez's side, fresh from their midweek thrashing of Real Madrid in the Champions League, responded in remarkable fashion and left the champions reflecting on the most goals conceded on home turf in 17 years.- Xinhua Online

Liverpool yesterday thrashed arch-rivals Manchester United in an astonishing game.
It was the Merseysiders’ biggest win at Old Trafford for 76 years.

It represented Liverpool's biggest win at United since 1936.
Benitez played the mind games afterwards. When asked whether this set-back might undermine United’s title defence, he said: “Maybe it puts a question mark in United minds.”- Sunday Mirror

The Red Devils saw their lead at the top of the Premier League slashed to four points as Rafa Benitez’s men handed United their heaviest home defeat since 1992. It really doesn’t get much worse than this.
The Scousers were buzzing - and the 3,000 away fans went mental moments before the break as Patrice Evra clipped Steve Gerrard just inside the box and a spot-kick was awarded. VDS guessed the right way - but Gerrard scored, kissed the badge and celebrated in front of a shell-shocked Scoreboard End.

United struggled to even feign a late comeback as the fans streamed for the exits. The misery was complete in stoppage time The defence failed completely to deal with Reina's goal-kick and the ball fell for Andrea Dossena who drilled home a delish long-range lob. What a shambles.
A terrible result and performance for the fans on derby-day. This is up there with the 5-1 humbling at Maine Road as moments to forget in recent United history.- ManUtdWeb.

That last bit from a Manchester United site says it all. Anyway, that I believe will be enough for now. And Ynnib Nai has something to say about soccer-
"Soccer is simple, but it is difficult to play simple".

Numbers

Happy belated Friday the 13th and February 14th (aka Valentines Day). I shall not be biased and just celebrate the good days. The bad days deserve just as much attention, don't they? Speaking of bad days and numbers, can anyone tell me how to survive 2 weeks with a few measley dollars? I am going into the red.
Come March, my pay will come along with the GST credits and all wil be well again. The universe can start singing and the earth can resume it's beloved rotation. Till then, I will have to start thinking of cooking the maggi mee noodles in the pantry for lunch/dinner/brakfast to save money. I am digging for money. Literally, I am looking through old bank accounts that I still have but have not touched, due to the fact that those accounts do not have much to survive on, to see how much I can scrounge up to last these next 2 weeks. Every cent counts, and I am fast becoming a charity cause. My colleague practically insisted on buying me a drink, even though I told her that pantry water has all the vitamins and minerals I need, God bless her. I must have looked really pathetic when I turned down buying a can of drink to save money.
There are a lot of good movies that are out- Valkyrie, Defiance, and I heard Underworld: Rise of the Lycans was not that good, but I still want to catch it, being a fan of the 1st 2 Underworld movies. Guess I'll just have to wait for the vcds to come out.
Enough of the bad news for now. Updates on other matters- I am thinking of getting a degree in Psychology. Kaplan has told me I qualify, and a friend has suggested that I try James Cook University for the course. I am considering all factors, and if you have any info or suggestions on the course and good, accredited and recognised schools to go to, do let me know. I can only take a part-time course by the way. I need all the help and all the advice that you, my dear friends, can offer. I would like to hear it all and make a good informed decision. So just go ahead and tick my ear off with advice. I would welcome it with open arms and embrace it like my own son.
I do have some unconfirmed travel plans, but will not divulge yet, cos it's all tentative at the moment. Will also depend on wheather I take up the degree course this year. So a few uncertainties this year. Goals may need to be shifted and changed up a bit.
Other than that, another running countdown is on. This time it's the Adidas Sundown. I will be in a team of 4, including myself, and running a distance of 10.5km. All this takes place on the last Sunday of May. So it's training time once again. This time I wil be eating more to make sure I don't lose too much weight and protein. I now know a little better on how to eat and train better. All the best to me.
So i shall sign off here, and leave with some love advice from Ynnib Nai-
"Put your hand on a hot stove for a minute, and it seems like an hour. Sit with a pretty girl for an hour, and it seems like a minute. That's relativity."

Leviticus

Leviticus contains regulations for worship and religious ceremonies.
Speaking of which, Happy Chinese New Year to one and all. Yes, even to my non-chinese friends. Some might say I am a bit late, but a new year is still a new year. And in China, I am certain they are still on holiday. I actually attended a friend's reunion dinner. I was invited as I could not make it on the New Year dinner day on Monday. I still had to work during the Chinese New Year hols on Monday and Tuesday, and I worked during the afternoon shift which is from 2pm to 11pm. It was interesting. I learnt about some Chinese customs and traditions. Of course the reason why it is done, goes without saying. The reason can only be one of 2 outcomes, or both- Luck/Wealth. As much as they do all these, if they were questioned at the end of the year if they did receive the luck and wealth they desired by doing all these, most I'm sure would say no. Or not enough. But tradition is tradition, and some do it cos they put a fun spin on it. Like having the children stay up all night till new years day. It is like having an all night party. Throw in some booze and I would say a big hooray for tradition.
Did I mention the reunion dinner was vegetarian? Nothing to do with any Chinese custom. Just that my friends' family is vegetarian. The mock meat tasted like the real deal, and much better than the vegetarian places I eat at outside. It made me wonder, could the coffeeshops actually be serving us such mock meat, and not telling us? I mean, no one would know, and they would be earning even more. I have a conspiracy theory that some shops are doing it like this. Buggers!
Speaking of religious ceremonies, I gota go for another friends wedding tomorrow. I was picked to be one of the groomsman. At the end of the day, the big question on my mind is this: Do I have to give the couple ang pow money? I mean, just for this wedding, I had to buy my own pants, new shoes, and shirt. The only thing the groom paid for is the tie, and he helped rent our coat, which was $50. I had to buy new pants to match the coat because the coat is grey and I dont have grey pants. And the shirt color that he asked us to wear is yellow, which I also do not have. And finally, I had to get new shoes and not wear my torn shoes as, I say again, I am one of the groomsman. So after all I spent for his wedding, do I really really still gotta give ang pow money? I would do a poll on that, but I think it is too late, seeing as how the wedding is tomorrow. Maybe you guys can leave comments on what you think? Should I give, or let the groom face justice for this crime, and during such bad economic times I might add.
Speaking of money, I am broken, financially. That is not a typo. I am not broke. I am broken. Not sure how I am going to survive February. All my money was just splurged on that Lasik surgery. Everyone telling me how good I did to save up for it, but, let me tell you the sad truth. I apparently had not calculated everything that well. I am now in that stage where I am looking at the amount in the bank and calculating more than I ever have in life, even more than when I was in school during Math class, how every cent in my bank is going to be used. And going by how Math was never my strong subject, and how my calculations for Lasik also did not go well, it is going to be a nervy month. I think I should be able to scrap by though. I think... But let me tell you this as well, being broke for good eyesight is damn worth it! It is a whole new life. This is coming from someone who had to wear glasses since Primary school. Every now and then, I keep thinking I still got contacts on, and sometimes I put my hand up to my face to push my glasses up my nose, only to realise I'm not wearing any. It is a life changing experience. Just need to religiously administer those eye drops the doc gave me every now and then, for now. Other than that minor temporary inconvenience, it is great. I can see clearly now that the rain is gone.
Before I continue typing anymore nonsense, Ynnib Nai has informed me that he has actually made a new years resolution, and will share it with us-

"My New Year's Resolution: To tolerate fools more gladly, provided this does not encourage them to take up more of my time."

Exodus

Exodus means departure.
Soon, I will be going for Lasik treatment and will be departing from wearing corrective eyewear, such as glasses and contact lens. In other words, departing from being blind. It will be a departure that I will be most looking forward to.
When I told my mum, her 1st reaction was to ask me why. Why do this surgical procedure with risks that knows no bounds and untold perils. Well, apart from my understanding that the risks are low in this time and age, it is a risk I am willing to take to get back perfect vision, and have naturally good eyesight. It is an investment worth going into. I was always willing to spend on my eyes. Got 'transition like' lenses to protect my eyes from UV rays about 3 years ago. Always treasured it.
Plus, the problems with corrective eyewear such as glasses and contact lens knows no bounds as well. Everytime I jog, or do some form of physical sport, the glasses keep falling off, or the sweat wears out and erodes the frame. Wearing contact lens helps a bit, till you realise the trouble it takes to put the lens in your eye. God help us all should there be a speck of tiny dirt in your lens when you put it in your eye, the irritation that your eye incurs as well as the nice red color you get as a result, will definitly help you get out your 1st curse word of the day. Worse when you are trying to take it out, and locate it, and when it does not want to come out of your eye, and it seems stuck to your eyeball, clinging to what seems like it's dear life. Again irritation and redness of the eye sets in, as well as your second curse word of the day. It is also not very possible and feasible to swim wearing glasses or contact lens. Did I mention the savings I will be making from discontinuing buying contact lens, contact lens solution, and new glasses? Enough said.
Apart from that, I also do not wish to be a part of the glasses wearing family. My whole family wears glasses, or contact lens. Not something to be proud off. Someone needs to break the chain. And that very someone is going to be me. Starting Monday, 12th January 2009, which is the day of the surgery. If all goes well that is. But that will be a tale that I will tell after Monday. So till then, wish me all the best (= Ynnib Nai, have you any wise quotes for us?
'Perhaps our eyes need to be washed by tears once in awhile, so that we can see Life with a clearer view again.'

Genesis

Warning: Dates in calendar are closer than they appear

I consider today, Monday, 5th of January, as the official start of the new year. For the past 2 weeks, work has been an easy ride. This is because the company that I support, Agilent, went on a shutdown during the Christmas and New Year period. Like a 2 week holiday. January 2nd was greeted by my boss with an email with the heading that read 'Happy New Year 2009!'. The message inside informed us that we would not get much increment, and there would be no bonus. Eventhough I am aware of the financial turmoil that this planet is experiencing, I was shocked, because my company does not pay that highly, does not give out big increments every year from what I heard, and does not hand out AWS. So my initial thoughts was that since the company is already saving during normal times, that it would not lower the already low yearly increment. I did think that they might lower the amount paid in bonuses, but did not expect them to scrap it altogether. The email did mention an increment in our shift allowance, but it was an increment that I felt should have been in effect from day 1, as our allowance is not that high as well. So on the 5th of January, the shutdown would be over, and all Agilent employees will be back to work creating work for us to do by asking for 'this and thats'. Life it seems, is returning to normal, after all the festivities.
2008 was all round good. Made good friends, and most of it was spent just being carefree, enjoying the company of the people around me, and trying to be more passionate about life. Went on trips here and there. Did quite a bit of rock climbing which I thouroughly enjoyed, for the challenge it presented. And for the 1st time, ran and completed a distance of 10km, which to some, might not be that big a deal, but for someone who hates running, this was like conquering a mountain.
Now I begin 2009 anew. Unsure what the year has instore for me. I must say, I wish I did more. Wish that I did something that involves physically giving my time and effort into helping people, for whatever reason. That is the only thing that I feel empty about. That would be a far greater learning experience. Much more interesting. And there is that small challenge and great responsibility that I am looking for in my life. But I do not know where to start. I might not find it in 2009, but I hope that one day, that will be something I will be passionately involved in.
I have a new poll out. A wise person by the name of F.M. Knowles once said- 'He who breaks a resolution is a weakling; He who makes one is a fool'. Which prompted the poll I put out. This time the period of voting is a good 30 days. Will see if that helps with increasing the number of votes.
Speaking of wise people, Ynnib Nai is back again to end this post and provide us with a quote to think about for 2009-
'People are so worried about what they eat between Christmas and the New Year, but they really should be worried about what they eat between the New Year and Christmas.'