Are You Sick of It Yet?

As my unofficial graduation happens in less than 14 days, I've been doing some reflection. And I happen to remember a particular online chat I had with another senior when I was in my first semester, more than 2 years ago. She was also in Computing, and in her final semester. So I took the chance to find out more about the course.

One question I remember asking her was whether she was sick of the college canteen yet. Without hesitation she answered "Yes!" And we laughed a little (in online chats, that's usually a 'haha' or a 'hehe' for those uninitiated among you).

But now as my turn comes to leave the college, I thought about the food. Sure, it's not the best food around but I'm not a picky eater in the first place. So if another junior asked me that same question I would say "No, I'm not sick of the food here. In fact I 0might just miss it a little".

How can that be possible? People who live in big cities might understand the following scenario. In Penang when I want to go out to eat (regardless with whom), we'll be having a volleyball game.

One person will ask, "Eh, where do you want to eat?"
"I dunno leh. You decide la."
"No la, you choose this time. I anything also can."
"I anything also can wat. I'm tired of ."
"OK, we won't go there then. So where do you wanna go?"
"I already said you decide lor!"

After we reluctantly decide on which place to eat, then we have to drive through endless traffic and idiotic drivers to get to that place. Or if we couldn't decide where to eat, we would just drive aimlessly around town until we are so frustrated of the traffic that we'll just stop at the nearest place without complain.

Of course, "stopping" is not as simple as making your vehicle stationary. There's the issue of parking, and in crowded places like Penang, parking can be hellish. If the place is packed, we have to tread the fine line between parking at a valid spot and parking on a yellow line. Or we could just go to another place, which would restart the whole volleyball game again.

Lastly once we settle down at the eatery there's the unenviable choice of actually choosing what to order. We'd be scanning around the place looking for some food we haven't eaten for a long time. We'll be creating mental checklists such as this:

• Char Kuey Teow: Too heaty
• Wan Tan Mee: Had it last night
• Kuey Teow Th'ng: Too bland tasting
• Curry Mee: So popular! Don't wanna wait that long
• Chicken Rice: The chicken looks more like sun-dried chicken than roast
• Nasi Kandar: Too damn pricey!

If you're lucky, you'll find something you like. If not, you'll circle the place until you get tired and order the same thing you had for lunch.

So, can anyone blame me for thinking that eating is such a chore back home? Over here, we only have 2 canteens with a total of about 15 shops. At least 50% of them suck, which leaves 7 shops for me to choose from. Since I don't like taking chicken rice, that leaves 6 shops, four of which are economy rice stalls.

That basically comes down to making a simple choice between Stall A, B, C, or D. That's not much of a dilemma, with no parking to think about and practically no travel time involved. And prices are (generally) reasonable so it's not like we're paying a huge premium for this convenience.

So in conclusion this post proves two things: I'll miss the food here and I'm lazy.

Down with Orange Fever

Don't worry, it's not some mutated form of Yellow fever that I'm stricken with. It's just a sudden obsession with all things orange! I didn't even notice it, but I am currently consuming a jar of orange marmalade, packets of orange wafers, and sucking on Fisherman's Friend lozenges (Mandarin & Ginger flavour).

I wonder what's with all the citrus tendencies?

Reduced to a Small Boy Again

The other day after my Viva I went to Jaya Jusco Seremban 2. I wanted to look for a new pair of sports shoes as I destroyed my previous pair while in Cambodia. I bought my last pair more than 5 years ago so it was way overdue to get a new pair anyway. The problem with getting a new pair of shoes, some of you might remember, is that cheap brands do not carry my size. Since I'm never going to pay more than RM300 for Nike Air, I need to stalk around the local Bata shop to find a suitable pair.

And in fact, there is a particular pair of Power sports shoes that I have been eyeing for quite some time. More than a month ago when I took Mum to Mid Valley I spotted the RM79.99 beauty displayed on the shelf. Unfortunately they were out of size 11, which is the minimum size I can go into. I would prefer a size 12 actually, but local shoe makers don't make 12 for some lame economic reason.

Anyway, when I went to Seremban a couple of days ago, I saw the same shoe again and I quickly asked the staff to bring me a size 11! I was ready to whip out the money to pay for this but she said they were out of 11 too. That is a huge bummer but I decided to delay my purchase again.

Then as I walked past Jaya Jusco's shoe section, Albert asked me if I wanted to look there for my shoes. I was hesitant because only Bata shops carry Power shoes, and departmental stores usually stock the upper-range brands. But they were having all sorts of sales and I eyed a pair of shoes from Admiral. Don't ask me, I've never heard of that brand either but it is supposedly an "England" brand. But at RM63, I'm pretty sure the shoe was made in a Chinese sweatshop.

So I tried on their only pair of size 11 and was satisfied with it. I liked the adequate breathing space around my toes so I could wiggle them up and down comfortably. The design isn't as pretty as the Power shoes but this one will have to do, since it's RM17 cheaper as well. So I bought it.

I was quite happy buying it as it's difficult to get a good bargain for shoes that I can fit into. Along with the after-effects of Viva, something just came over me and I changed my shoes into the new one right there in the middle of Jaya Jusco. I don't think anyone really cared, but looking back I acted just like an impatient small kid who is unwilling to wait until he got home to open his new toy. However, I'm usually not an impulsive guy, so I don't really mind being uninhibited once in a while.

Sequels Ahoy!

Not long after my Viva, I went to watch Pirates of the Carribean 2 at Seremban TGV. It is a good solid flick at 2.5 hours long, but I didn't like the ending.

Actually, it's hard to even call it an ending as it's more like a cliffhanger. When did big screen movies become small screen dramas? Traditionally, big screen movies are supposed to pack the beginning, middle, and end into a single film while small screen serials are allowed to have cliffhangers leading from one episode to another. But nowadays the lines have blurred and big screen movies that are seen to have "potential" are automatically extended for 2 or 3 sequels.

The first film I remember doing this "unholy trinity" is the Matrix. After their unprecedented success, the greedy makers felt tempted to sign on the actors for two more sequels. And it sucked, big time.

The next one was of course the Lord of the Rings. Just like Pirates of the Carribean, the 2nd sequel felt "empty" as it didn't quite have a real ending. Due to this, my interest in the final installment waned and I only watched The Return of the King once. Compare this to the five times I watched The Fellowship of the Ring on DVD.

But perhaps the worst offender of this trend is the Harry Potter series. We'll get not one, not two, not three, but SIX sequels! And since they're spaced so far apart, it's quite hard to like their movie adaptations anymore. Yes, there is a mystery each year and they are solved at the end but the fact remains that Lord Voldemort is still out and about. And it's not over till Harry slays Tom Riddle. Not to mention that the lead actor's acting skills are pretty "wooden". Someone needs to tell them that once they pass the "cute" age, they'll have to start displaying some real emotions to be believable.

Speaking of Harry Potter, even J.K. Rowling is getting on the bandwagon! Her latest Harry Potter (Part 6, The Half Blood Prince) is filled with... lots of air. There's not much of a plot, but more of a preparation for the final battle in Part 7. And as you might have guessed, the ending didn't close off the issues introduced in that book so we're reduced to paying RM80 for the final Harry Potter.

And that is the end of today's rant! Yup, no cliffhanger tricks applied in this post!

Tears from Heaven

I woke up this morning to a lovely surprise - it was raining! And not just any rain, but heavy rain which has been ongoing for about an hour or more! I'm trying to remember the last time it rained so heavily, but I really can't. I think it has got to be more than 2 months since our last heavy rain fall. There have been smatterings of heavy rain here and there but none as persistent as this. I can only hope that this is the start of a REAL rainy season.

Ding Dong! The VIVA is Dead!

I'm now sitting at the lab PC in such a high state that I would probably fail a tox screening. The presentation went on without a hitch, and the supervisors did not feel the need to bombard me with any difficult questions.

I had rehearsed my speech for about 5 times prior to this. I was afraid I would forget some lines but the words just popped out from my mouth naturally. There was a part near the middle where my voice suddenly cracked as if I had just reached puberty, but I quickly regained control and went on as usual.

So I guess that's it - 7 months of hard work encapsulated within 25 minutes. It was one hell of a ride, and I'm particularly happy because this was a project I had wanted to do since Semester 1, and I did it!

Now it's time to move on to better things in life... like sleep.

P.S. If possible, I will upload the complete system up at my project website.

All Prepped Up

Checked: New pair of long-sleeved shirt in a nice shade of tan

Checked: New pair of dark blue pants that fit me perfectly

Checked: Borrowed Jackson's dark blue tie which goes well with my shirt and pants

Checked: Wiped the cobwebs off my fake leather shoes

Checked: Got my hair cut

Checked: Coloured my hair to hide the grey ones. Used a conservative colour though

I'm not particularly happy about my hair cut. I purposely went to a "higher class" salon to get something more presentable than the usual close crop. In fact, I told the lady boss to recommend something suitable for a presentation. 20 minutes after, I went out with... the usual close crop.

The hair wash was better though. I shampoo my hair everyday so I rarely need to pay shampoo girls to do the same thing. But I figured I deserved to relax a little bit after a harrowing 7 months doing my project. And her massaging and squeazing and kneading definitely helped me loosen up.

The only thing I have to do today is to work out the kinks in my presentation.

Tell you all about it tomorrow!

Dilemma

If you are a girl, imagine for 2 minutes that you are a guy. For guys, remain a guy (unless it turns you on to imagine yourself a girl).

Consider this scenario: you're peeing at the urinal and someone comes to pee next to you. Instinctively, you look to your side and you happen to meet his eyes as well. He looks kinda familiar, but you don't remember him. You smile at each other and continue about your business.

Two seconds later you remember that he is the brother of your good friend. You haven't seen him for a long time, but you're pretty sure he remembers you (since he did smile back at you). What will you do? Exchange pleasantries and chat about what he has been up to while answering nature's call? Or wait until both of you are done peeing but risk appearing rude and "unthoughtful"?

Unhappy Words

As you can see, Microsoft Word's spelling checker is not too happy about my English:


P.S. 4 more days to my VIVA. Updates will be more frequent after Wednesday.

I Can't Decide...

I can't decide which is worse:

Britney Spears marrying an unknown stage dancer for "love"; or
Siti Nurhaliza marrying an unknown rich Datuk for "love"

Vote!

The Joys of 3-Ply Toilet Paper

I recently ran out of toilet rolls. I usually use those Cutie Compact ones since their radio commercial boldly proclaims "Two rolls for the price of one!". And in fact, I agree. They are indeed more compact and the cardboard in the middle is smaller than others. Maybe it's more like "1.5 rolls for the price of one!" but let's not get into the debate regarding truth in advertising, shall we?

Anyway, I knew it was pointless buying a new packet because I will be leaving college soon and I want to minimise baggage. So I decided to buy them in loose form from the mini-market. I was initially hesitant because my penny-pinching alter ego knew the RM0.80/roll price was heavily marked-up. Plus, he whispered to me, "Must I remind you that it's not Cutie Compact? It's one roll for the price of 1.5!"

But cheapskate or not, there are worse things than wasting RM0.20, like... an unwashed anus? (Oops, once again I forgot to warn those who may be eating.)

So anyway, I bought a couple of rolls and was delighted to find out that they were high-quality, 3-ply toilet rolls! Imagine that! It was even embossed with flower motifs! And they are soft! My ass has never felt such pleasure before!

I would never be able to look at Cutie Compact the same again. Sure, it's 1.5 rolls for the price of one, but it breaks easily and is not embossed with abstract art. So for now, I'm enjoying every wipe with the 3-ply. Oooooo.... (squeals in enjoyment)

Gullible Part 1

When I was very young, Dad would sometimes bring me along to the snooker parlour. No, I wasn't there to shoot billiards with Dad's friends. You see, the parlour had a small arcade that I would hang out while Dad used a long stick to shoot balls into holes. Each game was only 20 cents (ahh... the good old days) and Dad would change 10 tokens for me at the counter. I would then have the freedom to play the games until I ran out of money. I guess I felt empowered by the fact that he trusted me alone. Nowadays parents would just be scolded for leaving their 7 year old in an arcade while they enjoyed themselves.

Anyway, my all-time favourite game there was Street Fighter 2. I remembered I could come up with the basic fire ball and dragon punch, but wasn't really good at it to win. There was one time when several much older kids (early teens? I don't remember) came in while I was playing the game. I was losing quite terribly and one of the kids offered to play for me and win. Being the gullible boy that I was, I allowed him to play. And he won. I just stood by the side and watched as he played my money away. I don't quite remember if I was stupid enough to give him more money, but I clearly remembered letting someone else play the game for me.

Disturbing

Does anyone else think that the following button looks sexually disturbing?

Or is it just me?

(Source: StarUML software)

To Be the King of Fighters

I guess most of you have heard of Street Fighter, but have you also heard of King of Fighters? It is also a fighting game, and it has been around almost as long as Street Fighter. Of the two, I like King of Fighters better. They have a new version out almost every year, and I began playing the game in 1996 with the King of Fighters '95 on the Game Boy. I then progressed to '96 on the same platform, and when I got a Playstation 1, I migrated.

It was also a favourite game among my classmates, and so we would play regularly. I began to be quite adept at it, and I continued playing the series until the King of Fighters '99. I stopped right about then because the next versions were only released for the Playstation 2.

Fast forward to this year. Thanks to the wonderful technology of emulation, I was able to play all the games in the series on my laptop. I invested in a cheap USB gamepad and it has brought me countless hours of fun beating David to a pulp. I am still best with the '99 version, but am able to hold my own ground in other installments.

Last week as I was walking past the notice boards I saw the announcement of a King of Fighters 2002 tournament. My heart skipped a beat. A competition! It's strange that the college allows such videogame events to be organised, but I couldn't care less. This is the time for me to shine! I have been playing this series for a decade, and it is time for me to face off against other challengers.

The only problem is that I'm not very good at 2002. My forte has always been '99, and when I loaded 2002 into the emulator, I was faced with a very different (and more complex) fighting system. I won't bore you with the details, but the short story is that I had one week to prepare for the competition. And with my packed schedule, it is much harder than you think.

So yesterday I went for the competition. There were 4 prizes, and all I could hope for was not to be eliminated in the first round. Before the competition started we could warm up, so I did. Things didn't look good. The controller's right direction key wasn't very sensitive and so I couldn't do many of the command moves at all. This was certainly a handicap for everyone.

A total of 11 players turned up, and the elimination round was definitely nail biting. Luckily, I comfortably beat my competitor so I moved on to the next round, where a matrix style was used. Again, it came down to a tie and so I had to fight for my place in the semi finals. The stars seemed to shine on me as I breezed into the Final Four.

It was a nerve-wrecking match. For those who have never played this game, each player has 3 characters in a team and we are supposed to defeat all 3 of the opponent's characters. I started off badly but I managed to gain some ground. Finally we were both using our last characters and our life was just as short. One kick was all that is needed to proceed to the finals. We quickly stood far apart to catch our breaths for a moment and assess the situation. I was on the "wrong" side of the screen as I couldn't use my special moves. I took a deep breath and proceeded cautiously. The timer was ticking and I needed to give him that one hit first. My eyes were also tired so I couldn't think clearly. As I went in for the attack my opponent blocked it. I was getting ready for his counter-attack so I quickly blocked. Unfortunately my mind blanked out for a milisecond and I saw that bastard bend down and sweep the floor, thus killing me. A wave of frustration swept over me - how could I have let that chance pass by so easily?

But I maintained my respectful face and shook the victor's hands anyway. I then had to play one more game to decide if I should be in the 3rd of 4th place. I won the match, but not by much. My competitor wasn't very professional as he kept using floor sweeps. It's not illegal, but it sure was annoying. The finals wasn't very exciting as I kinda guessed who would be victorious. In a way, I didn't felt jealous because I lost to both of them earlier so they had earned their spot. The event ended with the winners being handed mock cheques. I got RM20.

There are only two complaints I have - the controller and the LCD projector. Every four seconds, the screen will flicker and disorient the players. In fact, I blamed this for not seeing the floor sweep that ended my progress. And if the controllers have been more responsive, you can be sure I won't be exiting so early. As it stands, I couldn't use my preferred formation and that could have been a factor.

Gosh, I'm so tired now that my grammar is all messed up. I have no regrets for being the 2nd runner up, and in my golden years I will remember King of Fighters as one of the games I am good at.

High 5 Meme

Another meme tagged by kekex! I owe him big time for recommending Dalacin T, but that's another post.

Without much ado...

10 YEARS AGO I WAS :
In Primary 5 (Std 5). This was my prime time as a boy Scout (stop snickering!) and I was actually a Camp Staff. However, I was much too young and innocent. One day our advisor got really mad and scolded us. He told us if we wanted to quit, just don't go to the meeting the next day. I didn't go. Very drama, right?

5 YEARS AGO I WAS :
In Secondary 4 (Form 4). Guess what, this was also a prime year! I knew I wouldn't be able to do much in Form 5, so I really went all out. First, I was the school magazine sub-editor (one of the youngest at that time). Then, I was the library board vice-chairperson (one of the youngest at that time too). And then there was Red Crescent, and several other small clubs. I began to build a strong profile for myself and managed to shed the shy boy image.

1 YEAR AGO I WAS :
That's what blogs are for right? 1 year ago I was worried that I'll do badly in my course, considered going to Australia, had quite an experience dyeing my own hair, and punctured my tyre in Bagan Lalang.

YESTERDAY I WAS :
Preparing notes for a Tuesday test and did some programming. Boring student stuff.

5 MOST RECENT SONGS I LISTENED TO :
Keane - Nothing in My Way
Nelly Furtado - Showtime
Groove Coverage - Summer Rain
Pink - I'm Not Dead
Dannii Minogue - Gone

5 SONGS I KNOW ALL THE WORDS TO :
The Corrs - Breathless
Katie Melua - Piece by Piece
Kelly Clarkson - Because Of You
James Blunt - Tears and Rain
Madonna - Vogue

IDEAL PLACES FOR RUNNING AWAY TO :
The crowded mall
The temple
The home

5 THINGS I REALLY WANT :
Some TLC (Tender Loving Care)
Professional full body massage
An A for all my subjects this semester
Playstation 2
iMac

5 THINGS I SHOULD BE DOING RIGHT NOW :
Studying.
Programming.
Studying.
Typing reports.
Studying.

5 BIGGEST JOYS IN MY LIFE :
Family
Friends
My CGPA
My health
My (relative) wealth

5 PEOPLE I TAG :
This ought to be obvious by now-
Jackson
Calvinsanity
William
Joshua
Skyler

Holding Back Myself

I know I haven't been writing great posts lately, as Joshua's cyanide-laced comment pointed out. So I've decided to refrain myself from vomiting out everything that goes through my mind. As a wise man once said,

If you have nothing good to say, for Pete's sake shut the hell up!

Posts may not come as regularly, but hopefully they'll be better.

(This is just a lame attempt to excuse myself from blogging daily. My schedule should relax somewhat by the end of the month.)

Medicinal Plasters

I slightly sprained my back yesterday while cleaning the room. Maybe it has something to do with me having not cleaned the room for a month, but I'm blaming it on bad posture anyways.

It's not very serious, but I am planning to workout today so I decided to accelerate the healing process by using those capsicum plasters. You know, the huge stickers with holes that old people stick everywhere on their body? Not a flattering sight, yes, but let's just say I'm preparing for my old age. Say what you want though, coz some of these plasters are really strong and work 500% better than using an analgesic cream.

So anyway, I ran out of them (yes, I keep them in stock. Sue me.) and had to drive down to Watsons, the closest store that will sell these things. It's actually quite dangerous for me to enter a Watsons stall because I'll end up buying something else as well. The potential for impulse buys is just too much, as my new Pantene Leave-on Conditioner can proudly attest.

But I digress.

Watsons have a really poor selection of capsicum plasters. Actually, there's only one - Salonpas Hot. Let me just skip to the moral of the story by asking you not to buy any Salonpas products. They are too mild to do any good. Based on my product experience, there are two types of medicinal plasters.

One is menthol and methyl salicylate based. These are no different than smearing Deep Heat on a plaster - it just provides an initial rush. The other is based on capsicum extract. Now these are really strong (at least the good ones are) and they last for about 6 hours. My favourite capsicum plaster, Vorwerk, is a force to be reckoned with. I'd advise against using Vorwerk just before any big presentation - unless you enjoy grimacing in pain in public.

So, the normal Salonpas plasters are methyl salicylate based. I've tried them before and they suck. Last night, I saw the Salonpas Hot plasters which claims to use capsicum. It was the only one there so I decided to take a gamble.

I lost.

So, boys and girls, stay away from Salonpas products! Unless your have REALLY low pain threshold. For the rest of us masochists, look for Vorwerk.

A Certain Air of Cheapness

I just read on someone's blog that he was given a Haagen-Daz birthday cake that cost 60 Singapore Dollars.

SIXTY SINGAPORE DOLLARS.

When I read the price my heart ached as if I failed my semester. Oops, touch wood touch wood.

Seriously, S$60? Sure, it has strawberries on top and expensive ice-cream inside, but I would never pay that much. I guess the most I can muster is a RM60 cake from Secret Recipe and even then my heart would have ached as much as my wallet. I can get perfectly tasty 500g cakes for RM24, so why should I pay that extra RM100?

To all those who are thinking about dating me, I understand if you wanna keep things casual for a while first.

Bring Him Home

Ronan Keating, I mean. I thought his career has disappeared along with Nick Carter and Justin Timberlake. I believe it's their karma for leaving behind the boy band that made them popular. But I was wrong, and now Ronan has a new album "Bring You Home".

It's loaded with sentimental songs that are quite mellow, such as "Superman":

Don't you know I'm no Superman,
But I'll love you the best I can,
I'm just flesh and bones,
But with you I feel like flying,
Don't you know I'm no Superman,
But I'll always be your man.

Corny and mushy, yes. But it's good to just sit back and relax with his songs as they are never overpowering and fit nicely into your daily work. Good stuff.

Breaking All the Rules

The college recently had a career fair on Monday and Tuesday. About 10 companies were invited including MDEC, Dell, and Mobile88. MDEC didn't show up but I guess that's fine because I don't need a low-paying programmer job in Cyberjaya anyway.

The only serious IT company I liked was Extol. Actually I didn't know anything about them until I went for the walk-in interview on Monday. They are an IT security solutions provider based in Subang.

Now, I've listened to talks on how to handle an interview. I've read articles on personal grooming tips for interviews. I've been through enough interviews to know how to act and look. But on Monday I broke many of the rules. It's really hard to blame me because I could hardly walk around without feeling the need to puke. The evil, evil carrot juice was still circulating around my insides and I was in no mood to be in an interview. But Calvinsanity had come to see us and I had no choice but to "give face".

So I dragged myself out of bed and put on a t-shirt. When I got there I saw Jackson applying at Extol so I just joined in. As I was waiting for my turn to be interviewed by the company's CEO, COO, and another senior employee, I realized to my horror:

• I was wearing an orange t-shirt


• My t-shirt was not tucked in


• My hair looks like a dead racoon, and probably smelt that way too


• I didn't shave, and so I had this uneven stubble


• I was wearing casual sneakers instead of black, fake-leather shoes

Talk about first impressions! Thankfully I did bring my resume and transcript. I let it do the talking, so to speak. And I'm sure my personality shone through. Or was that just the oil on my unwashed face?

Skyler is Right!

Skyler's recent post is a tight slap across my face (and other bloggers too):

Why do some of you people like to make me type in gibberish letters like "sncofhr" or "byeskhtue" or "jorohebodl" just to leave you comments?!

You hate comments so much is it?!

I want to be so nice and gracious and post a comment telling you I went to your blog and you want to put me through such boredom!

FROM NOW ON I WILL NOT POST ANYMORE COMMENTS FOR YOU PEOPLE.

She was of course, referring to the annoying word verification that most bloggers use to filter out spammers. When this feature was first introduced I quickly implemented it because even during the early days of my blog, spammers regularly posted links to their client's websites. I was very annoyed and the word verification feature helped eliminate all of the spam.

But it's also annoying. Some words are simple, but it can get pretty long. I've made mistakes sometimes and I just hate having to retype the verification code. Skyler's post made me realize what I've been inflicting on my loyal readers!

So with immediate effect, the word verification will be turned off. Your readership is worth more to me than having my blog spam-free. So you guys better comment. NOW.

(DICLAIMER: I might just turn on word verification again if the amount of spam is more than my regular comments.)

The One Where I Didn't Follow My Own Advice

Friday evening: Bought RM5 worth of carrots at the night market.

Saturday morning: Made fresh carrot juice.

Saturday afternoon: Gave a bottle of carrot juice to Alvin & Jay. Told them explicitly to "finish it by today".

Sunday afternoon: Drank about 150ml leftover carrot juice, undiluted. It smelt just fine.

Sunday afternoon: Woke up from my nap feeling very full. Suddenly felt the urge to go shit. Had a very bad feeling.

Sunday evening: Been to the toilet 5 times, passing out very watery shit.

Monday morning: Slept till 11am.

Monday afternoon: Had to stay in bed because I felt like puking everytime I sat up or walked.

Monday evening: Refer to (Monday afternoon)

Monday night: The urge to vomit was just so great that I tried to manually force reverse peristalsis. Twice. Didn't work.

Tusday morning: Less inclination to throw up in front of my friends. Had a little apetite and strength back.

Block Head

Last Saturday night I conducted a user evaluation session with a student at his hostel block. He told me in his SMS, "9pm at block l study rum can?". He is actually in Block L, but I mistook his lowercase L as an uppercase I. So at 9pm I went looking for Block I. Problem is, I couldn't find it. I felt strange as the block letterings go from G to H to J! Whatever happened to I? For a moment I was actually afraid that I forgot my ABCs! "ABCDEFG... H... I... J... Correct-lah! It should be here!" I kept repeating to myself.

I wandered around to and fro, checking out the block alphabets. I was late, and I hate being late (especially since I told him to be punctual). So I called him to ask where his block is. "Is your block next to Block H or Block J?" I asked. He told me he's actually in Block L and there's no Block I here. I felt relieved and went to find him.

I can't believe that in more than 2 years of staying here, I did not realize that Block I does not exist. That is just embarassing, which is why I felt duty bound to post it here.

Oh How The Mighty Have Fallen

I'm not a fan of football, and I would never stay up to watch a live World Cup match. But I listen in on conversations once in a while to find out who is winning/losing. I'm saddened by S. Korea and Japan's exit but it's not unexpected. However, this morning was indeed a shocker when I read the news.

Since I'm a fan of The Apprentice, let me put it in the words of Donald Trump:

"England and Brazil, you're FIRED!"

You're From WHERE?

For almost a month now I've been using Google Analytics, a website tracking service with a Google twist. You have to ask for an invitation code, but it's worth a shot. The gathered data is pretty standard (hits, page views, referral source, etc.) but they use pretty images (AJAX) to spice things up. For e-commerce oriented portals, they can set targets and observe the effectiveness of marketing efforts.

Anyway, they have a cool feature whereby they tell me where my readers come from. Sure, a lot of tracking software does that, but do they plot it on the world map for you?



If you look closely, you'll see that most of my readers are in Malaysia. However, I seem to have the occassional visit from people all over the world. They form a very small minority, but their places of origin are intriguing:

• Damascus
• Alhus Vadros
• Huntsville
• Hillsboro
• Plum Coulee
and probably the most exotic of all:

• Wijk Bij Duurstede

Try saying the last one quickly! Actually, I can't even do it slowly. Darn European languages.