MOVED

http://modified-persona.tumblr.com/

Its better, wordier, more awesome, and the blogger is back in business after a long hiatus. Keep on reading and tagging yea? The tagboard's still available for comments on the new site! :)

I have moved guys! See you at the new siteeee!!! :)

F1

Lewis Hamilton should just go take a break. We need somebody new in the F1 Scene, so...

Nico Rosberg for the win! GO TEAM WILLIAMS!

Happy Hari Raya!

Before I begin, here's a belated HAPPY HARI RAYA to all muslims worldwide! =D

Will update on the latest happenings so far really soon yea?

With regards to the week, it has been great, yet all the fun and laughter is coming to an end.

Mundane life begins again on Thursday, and no I am not looking forward to office :(

The Mistake

Sometimes its not good to give too much. I've been always putting others before myself, and now I realized how much this has been screwing my life up. People just expect more and more. They dont care about you, no? All they care about is their own happiness.

And when you start to spare some time for yourself doing things you like for a little change, they make noise and throw all kinds of accusations at you, behind your back.

Spending time with yourself, pampering yourself, thats a basis of human rights. By not awarding me this, you're basically treating me no different than an animal, maybe worse.

God made us all with logical thinking, yet unfortunately, I don't see much of that in the human breed today.

Let's not talk about IQ for now, you don't even have much EQ to begin with

The Problem With Celebrities

And this is exactly the problem with celebrities. Just when they're at the peak of their careers, they forget about their humble beginnings and proceed to do stupid stuff to prove their worth. I won't call that proving one's worth, I call that sheer stupidity

Kanye, how could you be so heartless?

Well, at least Beyonce's still sane. It was really sweet of her to give her moment to Taylor Swift to right the wrong Kanye made.

Is it any wonder still why we all love Beyonce? :)

Memories of UDI

Memories of yesterday still lingers
That feeling of numb still running through my fingers
Exhausted faces, tired souls, all vivid reminiscence
It's ended, it's gone, now all I hear is total silence

Remember the days with the adrenaline pumping action
With marches and drills all conducted as a section?
Where mistakes were unaccepted, unforgiven not
They had better show standard, or half rights they got

Tests of endurance began with no one to spare
Their ends in sight, that prestigious lanyard to wear
Four gruelling days they withstood, all in the name of perseverance
For the sake of their schools, they nodded in adherence

With the surfacing end, they achieved their goals
They now hold stronger, more defined roles
Matured individuals they are, with discipline uptight
All ready to guide their units towards an ascending flight

Leaders of Apache, Bronco, Cougar and Dragon
Give it your all and see yourself a soaring Falcon
The end of this course marks a new beginning
Towards an excellent unit, of spirits unfaltering

The empty barrel makes the loudest noise. It sounds as if it has ventured past the seven seas yet it fails to realize that it has only barely tackled the shore

In Conjunction With Teachers Day

We all have had our own fair share of encounters with teachers at one point or another. They have been there for many decades, educating the future leaders of tomorrow, and they will remain doing that for many years to come. I remember myself as a student back then, and I am sure all of us have questioned the existence of a teacher at one point or another.

What not, we all never had good impressions of teachers back then. Teachers, to us, led easy lives, for in our viewpoint all they did was teach, give us homework and torture us for us to perform at the final year examinations. Teachers were a symbol of misery, as they pushed us and stressed us unnecessarily. However, while there may be some truth to that, we often do not realize how myopic such a viewpoint is.

Coming from someone who had experienced teaching this year, both as a relief teacher and an Assistant Field Instructor, I now fully understand the hustle and tussles of the life of a teacher. It definitely is no easy feat, with teaching comprising only a very small portion of what a teacher does. Whoever knew that teachers had to handle so many other stuff with ongoing meetings, countless administration affairs, marking, the setting of exam papers, just for us to progress and develop our characters to become better individuals? They sacrifice so much for us and though it seems as if they are idling around, they are actually back stage workers who work to help us all survive through the year. They do things in private, and they never announce out loud the many things they do for us. Being humble is one of the virtues of a great teacher.

Truthfully, being a teacher is not an easy one, and contrary to what some might say, it takes more than just any random Tom, Dick or Harry to become one. The roles of the teacher have already shifted off its original course, and teachers nowadays have to do more in order to be seen as outstanding. They aren’t employed to teach, they are employed to teach and perform to ensure their deliveries are interesting enough for the attention span of the students to be sustained. They need to have that special connection with their students in order to reach out to them and make them learn optimally in terms of academics and moral values so as to become good contributors of society in the future. They also need to have good communication skills, be empathetic and understand their students emotions and feelings, know their stuff well and more importantly, be caring and patient in order to succeed for the world of teaching is one full of impending obstacles. These obstacles are there, you just don’t know when they’ll hit you.

However, despite all the hardship a teacher goes through, I am proud to say that neither of these factors will stop me from becoming one. I’ve had many different responses whenever I say that I would like to be a teacher. Some were really encouraging, telling me to pursue this as a career as it suited me and that it was a very noble and respectable job. Many others though, thought I was crazy to even think of going down that route for the hardship and stress I would be going through. To them, being a teacher is not satisfying enough as the pay is not equivalent to the stress teachers go through. Dealing with problematic students also form part of the reason why the idea of being a teacher turns them off immediately. These people have bold dreams and would rather aspire to become world class businessmen or engineers who earn tens of thousands rather than go down the conventional route to become a teacher.

Having said all that, my passion still lies in the path of a teacher. I realized that I absolutely love being in the company of teachers and students as there are really a lot that we can learn just by being with them. More than anything else, it gives me great satisfaction when I see my students and cadets grow and progress from who they originally were. I’ve had my fair share of encounters with students, and many times have I felt this great sense of achievement within myself when my students and I simply connect . When my students grasp all that I have taught and show improvement in their exams, it makes me happy. When I tackle students with disciplinary issues and they finally go up to me one day to tell me I have impacted their lives, the satisfaction attained is overwhelming. Seriously, there’s nothing better like enriching the lives of the young and knowing you were part of that process. These lives you impacted will remember you all the way, and I dare say ten years down the road, should you meet any of them, they will still remember you clearly and tell you how thankful they are to you for all that you have done for them. The respect you earn from these people, the special bond you create with them, all these lasts a lifetime and that’s something money cannot buy.

Not even the tens and thousands you earn from being a world class businessman or an engineer

So to all those out there who are teachers, be it whether you're a piano teacher, religious class teacher, school teacher, tuition teacher or any form of teacher, thank you for all you have done. This day is specially for you and you truly deserve it.

HAVE A HAPPY TEACHERS DAY! =D

Back from IPPT, and looks like I survived with a pass :)

I actually managed to do 8 pull ups this time round! HURRAY!

The run went horrible and I flunked it, but at least the time was a passable time, so not to worry. The fact I finished it while fasting early in the morning in itself is already left me very satisfied with myself.

Now's the enduring part.. Thirsty, thirsty, I need water and I can only get what I want in 8 hours and 7 minutes.

The Second Challenge

Survived the first round of torment with a really bad skin peel which left me looking as if I attempted skin bleaching....

Now it's part two with IPPT on a fasting day. Imagine having to run 2.4 kilometers with no water at all before and after. It will be tough, but lets see if I survive this one :)

The First Challenge

No no no, this is definitely NOT the point of drinking so much water in the morning.

Drank a total of 8 glasses in the last 6 hours but I peed like 4 glasses out... You're supposed to stay inside my body to keep me hydrated, not discharge and leave me waterless! Our body works in essentric ways no?

I'm faced with my very first challenge of Ramadhan, and that's to undergo Adventure Training Camp and Level 1 Kayaking Course whilst I'm fasting itself. We all know how dehydrating such activities are, especially kayaking, hence to be able to withstand it for a day without food and drink would be such an achievement

Not to mention, a good plan for a weight loss routine :)

Wish me luck guys!

The "full" effect

You know, drinking water as you eat really helps fill your stomach so much faster to give you the "full" effect although you're not really there yet.

Hence, for those of you on a slimming regime, why don't you try this? I just realized this. Today I practically ate so many things and I still feel quite hungry, and I suspect the reason for this was cause I did not drink any water together with my food like I usually do.

There, you learnt something new!

Teenage love breaks more than it makes, so just forget about it...

The shocking loss

I was just laughing at my brother last week when Liverpool lost and suddenly, this week, karma strikes back at me and Man United loses...

Seriously, how could they have lost to Burnley?

Well, perhaps Burnley could be a little too hot for them to handle at the starting stages, get it, Burnley? Ok lame.

My take on this would be the fact that Van Der Saar, Vidic and Evans were injured and these are part of the key players of Manchester United. When they come back, Manchester United will be in full force, and nothing can stop them from winning the title, just you see.

If you take note of Man U's patterns of playing, that usually is the case for them. Starting off on a not so good note, and slowly working their way to the top much to the amazement of the other teams. I can still remember Man U being 7 points behind Liverpool last season and I felt it was the end, but suddenly things happened and Man U triumphed over Liverpool and the rest in the end to claim the title.

We all have our bad weeks, maybe this week is just man u's bad week.

Don't worry, we'll come back.

And I'll gleefully await the day your team has its bad week :)

Cuteness redefined

Primary school kids can really have very cute antics... They're simply so innocent, it seems almost impossible to scold them although they really deserve it sometimes.

Situation 1
I came across 2 students arguing and proceeded to try to resolve the issue.

Student A: Teacher, you see lah he!

Student B: What! I didn't do anything, you don't anyhow.

Student A: You don't lie lah! You say liverpool not good just now.

Student B: Ya, say like that also cannot izzit?

Student A: Liverpool very good, you don't anyhow say they very bad. Bad, bad, man U then bad!

And I was dumbfounded for the first time. Arguing over trivial matters, and although I had to stop to intervene, I must say I found this situation quite hilarious. I never thought football would play THAT much an influence in the lives of primary school kids but how wrong I was. HAHA! I swear, a normal person would have received a lecture from me for condemning Man U that way but hey, he was just too cute to be lectured :)

Situation 2
As shocking as this may seem, I took a malay class today, and gosh was the class so hyperactive. The kids would not let me get even one minute's worth of rest, as they all proceeded to somehow get my attention by doing funny things. Some would jump across and shout for me, some would run across the class and some would just pull my hand and bring me to their desk to have a 'chat' with me. They all gathered around me and demanded to know my real age, like some protest or something. I told them I was 19, and THEY DID NOT BELIEVE ME! They all claimed I look more like a secondary school kid who just finished his O Levels and they wanted to know what secondary school I came from and how well I did for my O Levels. I insisted that I was already in NS and past my A Levels and nobody really wanted to buy my story until...

Student C: He look like 23 la! I think he married already, cause my father get married at 18.

Its amazing to see how young children behave around you, and its really fun to get to listen to how they feel about issues. Surprisingly, these kids are actually quite well informed if you ask me.

Being around kids just makes my day. Perhaps this is the route for me in the future I guess.

But then again, being around kids can be a rather saddening thing, for it reminds us that we're not as young as we once were. They have pure innocent minds, whilst ours are corrupted and too filled with unnecessary knowledge.

Sometimes I have this wish that I could start off as a little boy all over again

3 months in

Gosh the evilness of work made so so caught up in it that I totally forgot for a moment that I actually have a blog to update! hehe.. so sorry to my readers for the long hiatus, so here's an update regarding whatever that has been happening so far:

For a start, I guess most of whatever that has been happening so far goes to NCDCC. The unit I've been posted to for my NS vocation seems like a heavenly one. People say that being an NCDCC officer is like being on cloud 9, cause all you do is slack, scold people and continue the cycle daily without having to care about anything else that's going on around us. People keep insisting we, as officers, lead a slacky life cause face it, as much as we want to be appreciated, we are not operational people. If there were a war in Singapore, do we as officers get mobolized? No, hence we get looked down upon.

But here's my question to you, WHO educates the young regarding civil defence so as to allow them to get a better picture of what to do during times of emergency. As much as people think we're living a great life, they fail to see the bigger picture, or rather whatever happens behind. The many sleepless nights, countless proposals and phonecalls made, pre-event preparation, stress and anxiety, we experience this on a weekly basis. And don't you forget, we too have our own social lives to lead. The very fact that we're devoting our lives as officers to cadets show how dedicated we are in serving our nation. We work on most days and there is a price to pay for this, which is that we sacrifice our social lives just for the nation.

I don't know if anybody is actually far sighted enough to weigh the factors up to this point, but well if you did, then probably you'll get whatever I've been blabbering about. Period.

On the brighter side, here's all that has been happening in NCDCC for me:





Going down to schools on a weekly basis to conduct talks, lessons and many other aspects of learning related to NCDCC. Its fortunate that I've been posted to NCDCC, a vocation close to something really fond to me, which is teaching. I've got this passion towards teaching others, and there really is this big sense of satisfaction attained when you see your students learn from whatever you have been trying to bring across to them. Footdrill, first aid, its really heartwarming when they credit their success to you and inform you that you have helped make an impact upon their lives. The picture above was taken 2 weeks back when I went down to Juying Secondary School to teach the NCDCC cadets first aid dressing. Tough it was, and I was really afraid that I screwed up big time, but at the end of it I realized that the cadets did learn something from myself and they even requested for myself to come back in future to educate them as they personally told me that they feel comfortable and enjoy my presence there as an educator towards them. Touching words, and such are the pleasures I experience which make me press on with every little bit of motivation I get.

There are times where things get really stressed up and you feel as if you just want to give up, then these are the times where the colleagues, friends and cadets really play a part in encouraging you to press on. Its just been 3 months, yet I'm really glad to have met all these people who have been with me throughout...









The awesomest people you'll ever get to work with in my opinion :)

And to end it all off, this is the vocation that has enabled me to gain so much experience that I would never have garnered elsewhere. Just three months in, yet so many experiences gained. This is the beauty of NCDCC. One event I'll really remember would be being involved in NDP 2009 as a trainer for the NCDCC marching contingent. This really made me realize how much effort and hard work is put in by all the participants each year just to make NDP a stupendous event for Singaporeans to watch and enjoy. It may be in August, but training starts way early, in fact as early as March or April, and seeing the pre-preparations made in front of my very eyes made me realize how much we ought to appreciate all these people working behind the scenes just to make sure that NDP runs smoothly. I was honoured, and that patriotic feeling towards Singapore in me did increase by a few notches, just because this time round I was an active participant instead of a passive viewer.











Just five months in, and I'm sure there are many more opportunities for me, just waiting for me to open the door when it's knocked upon...

I'm blessed to be surrounded by these people, I really am. This year's in fact, one of the worst years ever for me, having been rejected for so many things so many times, some of which are seriously once in a lifetime opportunities. Its painful to know that, yet I always believe that there's a reason why everything is happening. To be frank its hard to believe this when a blow comes at you consecutively without giving you enough space to breathe and absorb the full impact. Yet these are the very people who have both directly and indirectly helped me through the tough times.

They give me reason to believe.

The booksmart or the streetsmart?

Its been a while since I last wrote an argumentative essay, but this question has truly been bothering me, hence I really need to express this out or I think I'll just burst.

Of course all of us would really love to have both but given a choice, would you rather be book smart or street smart?

Before we actually proceed on, being book smart simply means "succeeding academically" . By saying someone is a booksmart it basically means that the person is your typical high flier with a varieties of certificates and A grades to produce when asked for it. The scholar.

well street smart on the other hand is defined as "having the shrewd resourcefulness needed to survive in an urban environment"

If you ask me on my personal opinion, I would have to say that being street smart would be my pick should I be given only one of these 2 choices.

Being a street smart means that we have all the skills needed to survive in today's society. Its not so much of communication, all of us can communicate. Its a matter of whether we're proficient enough at communicating via our methods and skills. At also I feel that in today's society, to survive we've gotta have EQ. Without EQ, its goinna be really difficult for us to socialize with others cause many at times we may say the wrong things and all without even realizing it.

Hence in this sense I feel being a street smart is really important.

Being street smart gets you the necessary skills to be employed. A street smart can aim to study hard enough to finally achieve both aspects and perform really well in his career.

A book smart, on the other hand, simply cannot, for his strength lies in the realm of the brain, with words words words. He simply does not have much experience in the real world to make it big. The booksmart can really be clever and go on to get degrees and masters, but is that really all that matters in todays society? We are judging humans by pieces of papers and not how well skilled they are, isnt that ridiculous? This might sound like the case here in Singapore but I firmly believe the traditional idea of looking out for skills is still important.

If being booksmart really did matter to Singapore, they would not have implemented the rule with regards to CCA and Direct Schools Admission via skills and talent. They would not have reiterated the importance of being all rounded apart from simply being academically inclined.

Remember 'The Apprentice'? There was this particular season where the booksmarts were pitted against the streetsmarts and who in the end survived? Not the one with the degrees. The streetsmarts had the necessary experience to sell their products and interact with customers while the booksmarts simply relied on their textbook knowledge to help them do the job, which was a wrong move.

Albert Einstein wasnt a booksmart. Well, yes he may be intelligent enough to come up with his own formulas and all, but he was afterall a street smart. A dropout of school who worked his way around this entire episode known as a failure by many, to eventually make it big as one of the world's most respectable figure.

Evidently, the street smart still wins at the end of the day.

Liverpool VS Singapore Match

I swear, I actually had faith in Singapore doing well for this match against Liverpool. The way they played during the first half was rather convincing and here I was thinking that they would at least be good enough to draw against the 'legendary' Liverpool but no how wrong I was.

Mistake number one: Slacking off during the final few seconds of the game leading up to half time

And that really did cost Singapore. No, it was not merely an issue of ONE goal, rather it was the beginning of a sliding downhill confidence and spirit. The lions were really bothered by this one goal, we can tell, and this led to them letting in another FOUR goals to make it a grand total of five goals.

Then again, kudos to Singapore for fighting on and giving it all they've got despite being really thrashed by the liverpool players. One watching the match could easily note the difference, especially in speed, of the players of both sides. It really was a contrasting difference.

Ohh well, things happen. Its alright Singapore, use this as a learning point and work hard towards the next match. We all start off with a couple of failures, but what really matters is we don't give up in climbing up that ladder of success. Well done Singapore for this aspect.

As for Liverpool, yes congrats, you beat Singapore fair and square. Your much needed confidence boost is here. Don't you just love that familiar feeling of happiness and satisfaction after having lost to Manchester United in the Premiere League not too long ago? :)

Solar eclipse

One of the disadvantages of living in Singapore, clearly, is the fact that we do not get to experience the things the other parts of the world get to experience, and a good example would be the recent solar eclipse.

There they were all enthusiastic about this phenomenon that occurs once in a blue moon and here we all are living our daily lives as usual cause well, it was not even able to be witnessed in Singapore. At around the time the eclipse occurred, I was in a meeting which ended about 3 to 4 hours later.

Awesome =X

Anyone managed to catch the solar eclipse?

New hobby!

A new found hobby, PHOTOSHOP! =D

Picking up new things can be rather annoying when you don't get it, but when you finally do the feeling is just indescribable. That being said, I still have alot to learn before I reach world class status.

Bleah, cya guys!

Never take someone for granted
Hold every person close to your heart
Because you might wake up one day
And realize you've lost a diamond
While you were too busy collecting stones

Rejected...again

My theory all this while has been true afterall. NS DOES close many windows of opportunity for us all involved in it and it's really annoying to know this.

I was originally selected as an emcee for the Youth Olympic Games but now they sent me another mail to 'reject' me and inform me that they have posted my name to another department to help out. Yes, I'm still in the Sports Department itself, but I have been denied perhaps what's seemed as the most prestigious role in YOG for me, being an enthusiast in the area of emceeing. The inability to commit myself thanks to my hectic schedule in NS was perhaps it.

Man, this six months has been really horrible, perhaps one of the darkest moments of my life ever I must say. There are times I really feel like just giving it all up but I will fight on. I need to brave through this, strong. In everything that happens there must be a reason. Yes, there must. Maybe in all that has happened, there is a silver lining and I'll emerge a stronger better person.

At least if you post me to the disc jockeying department I promise I won't be so annoyed

ASIAN YOUTH GAMES 2009

And another memory was created. Asian Youth Games 2009 was awesome, and though I didnt manage to help out in the closing ceremony, well I was part of the opening ceremony! It didn't feel like work though, with the presence of those I love around me making the entire process enjoyable. Interacting with the foreigners as I ushered them to their seats and back was also a really cool experience as I managed to learn more about their varying cultures which impressed me alot. Of course there was this huge language barrier stopping us from communicating further, yet we countered this by using hand signs as well as basic english. When the heart wants to do something, it will find a way about the obstacles hindering it :)

Some pictures from the event itself:



Nasrul and Michal! I'm really proud of my two flag bearers representing NCDCC :)



Trevor! I kinda like this shot, it shows two people looking towards their futures with full of anticipation.



Syahir and Prakash!



My dearest senior male HO's! It rocks having them around.





Sakinah the female HO! Her jokes lighten up the day, and without her around I dare say that work would not have been as exciting and fun as it was that day :)





And the 2 pictures I took with my Asian new found friends. I'm missing them already!

Newfound friends made, and the bond remains there forever to come

I'm in need of music therapy. The many things I'm currently handling are enough to make me suicidal =X

And I just realized I havent been listening to the radio as much! Its about time I started don't you think so?

DRAG ME TO HELL

I have long been waiting for a movie to freak me out beyond wit's end. The last movie to do that to me was, well, exorcist, and the rest of the movies that came after were just prain lame. Today's mindset of a horror movie is simply ghosts, pontianaks, skulls that go around chasing after people and we have seen way too many of such scenes to actually be scared, hence contributing to the failure of horror movies nowadays. Come on directors, wake up your ideas.

That was before Sam Raimi entered the scenes with Drag Me To Hell. Personally when I first heard this title, I was convinced it was another failure attempt at a horror flick, but after seeing how reviews gave it so much credit, I was determined to give it a watch myself.

The experience, my friends, was simply one of a kind.

The director definitely knows how to make good use of his genres to come up with an amazingly unforgettable movie. For starters, the ghosts inside this movies arent actually your normal floating females and skulls, but rather, an old woman.

Yes you heard me, an old woman whose back for vengeance biting people with her false teeth. As ridiculous as this may seem, it was true. I don't know why, but I personally get more fear and excitement watching horror flicks with old women and witches being the ones scaring people. They do a way better job than anyone else, probably because of the chilling aura surrounding them as a result of us hearing freaky stories about witches and all back during our young days. They are more despicable, they kill.

Another thing which amazed me was the fact that this movie was not all about horror. Can you imagine yourself both laughing and screaming during a horror flick? Well I thought this was impossible too, until I watched this movie. It's a dash of comedy while the rest are specially reserved for the horror scenes. You'll never know what to expect. One moment you could be laughing out loud due to the hilarious scenes and the next second you'll choke as your laughter turns into screams of fear due to the sudden appearance of a horror scene.

Finally, it actually gives you a test of your morals. The director made the movie in such a way that the victim was faced with many morally challenging questions that would be bound to make you think and reflect upon what you would do if you were given the same position.

For example, if you were given a cursed object and told that you would be haunted all your life unless you have it away as a present to someone else who would suffer for you, would you then do it to save your life? Are you willing to let someone else suffer and die in exchange for your own life?

Don't ask me, I wouldn't know what to do either.

Watch it guys, it's definitely worth your money for all the goosebumps and exciting opinions you're going to have by the time you step out of the movie theatre. Beware, this movie is going to drag you out of your seat :)

RANDOM STORY I WROTE

The loud clashing sound created by the thunder rudely interrupted the peaceful serenity of the atmosphere. Zack looked up to see what was once a sunny sky fast turning dark with cumulonimbus clouds. A strong gust of wind flew by, furiously sweeping the many dead leaves surrounding him. He knew a storm was approaching yet he chose to ignore the tell tales. He was just too hurt to care.

"Zack, I'm sorry, but this relationship is going nowhere. It has to end right here.. right now"

She did it almost too easily. She might have done it on impulse, but couldn't she at least spare a thought for his feelings as well? Two years of happiness and hardship was seriously no joke but she seemed willing to leave them altogether waiting for them to be blown far away as they get carried away by the winds high up into the sky, to be forgotten and never to be rediscovered.

"Why Amy? Why must this happen?"

By this time Zack felt the first few drops of rain on his cold bare hands. Normally instinct would tell him to hurry up in order to find shelter but this time round, the impact from the break up caused him to ditch instinct and simply lie out there in the open.

He still could not get over the fact that she presented him with a really dumb reason for their break up, which was that he was not spending enough quality time with her. She knew his schedule was packed yet she made it an obligation for him to pick her up from work and send her home everyday of the week. She claimed that he could not understand her needs enough, but she failed to see the big irony behind this, which was the fact that she herself could not understand his own needs.

He badly wanted this to happen, but no. Perhaps this just wasn't meant to be.

Move away from the darkness, before you fall deeper into the shadows

In times of failure, there are only two things one can do, which is to give up or to bounce back up. Many at times we find ourselves stuck between these 2 situations. Yes, failure is not an excuse for us to give up, yet if we were to think about it, with every failure the bounce back up just gets harder and harder.

How much more are we willing to give in before we finally decide enough is enough?

Being sick at this time of the month, especially when I've got truckloads of work to do, is definitely not a good thing...

Work's finally beginning to show its true colours and just experiencing the tip of the iceberg is enough to exhaust me out to the brink of sickness..

Weak? No, its just a matter of adapting I guess. You may say my job is easy but think again, you're just suffering physically whilst I get an added mental torture to come with the entire package. Cool? =X

On the brighter side, here's something I came across whilst bloghopping that day. We all have our ugly sides, even the 7 princesses of Disney. HAHA! Hope you guys are amused by this sight we rarely get to behold. Thanks Shahidah! :)



Have an awesome week ahead!

[Inessa]
HAHA i told you the parody was awesome. Yeap Singaporeans are really good when it comes to parodies. Im pretty sure you're much aware of the SARS song and all made back when you were still in Singapore. I must compliment our kind for being creative people! :)

IMPORTANT REMINDER

The flu and other funny illnesses are up and out to get us all, so everybody, here's a little something to remind yourselves to practice good hygiene! HAHA ENJOY! I found this really entertaining and needless to say, the message was brought across in a really ingenious way!

RANDOM

When you're free, we're really really busy.
However, when you're really really busy, we're free.

Welcome to the life of an NCDCC instructor.

Which reminds me... Its a Sunday today but I'm deployed down to Changi for camp.
And I came back at 12 am last night due to parade.

YIKES! =X

My MP3 died on me, so I guess its time to get a new one. Its really essential for long and boring trips when I have to go over to schools in the east or get deployed somewhere really far away from home like Changi. If not I swear, I'll get bored to death and that won't be a good thing.

The music freak in Zul has spoken :)

TAGGED: 8 CHILDHOOD MOVIES

I can always count on my friends to be cool and innovative! Thanks Syazwani for the awesome idea...

Instructions:
1. Copy and paste the instructions into a new entry.
2. List down 8 stories that you remember watching as a kid.
3. Write why you chose each movie.
4. Publish your answers.
5. Tag 5 friends to do this including the one that tagged you.

ONE: THE LITTLE MERMAID



I think this was the very first movie I watched as a child, if I remembered correctly. My dad loved taping down his voice reading storybooks and I'd listen endlessly to the stories, The Little Mermaid being one of them. A really sweet show, and I remember how I used to hate Ursula the witch as a child. The scene where she grabbed the Little Mermaid and her boyfriend with her tentacles, I wished I could just break off those annoying tentacles and allow The Little Mermaid and her boyfriend to live in peace. HAHA!

TWO: ALADDIN



And this is the second, and final fairytale in my list of 8. As a kid, I was really into the idea of magic as a kid and this element was greatly emphasized in the movie! =) Flying carpet, genie in a lamp, an annoying wizard with the ability to do magic, I still remember the movie well up till today. It is an awesome watch!

THREE: THE LAND BEFORE TIME



The only dinosaur show I watched. Up till today, I still havent watched any of the Jurassic Park movies ... This movie is really touching, a movie with great values for us all to learn from. Tell me, who hasn't heard of "If We Hold On Together?"



FOUR: THE SEED OF CHUCKY



Ahh this movie! At first I was fooled into thinking it was a movie for kids as there was a male doll and a female doll, and you know how dolls are associated with kids. How wrong I was, the movie was absolutely gory and gruesome. Ladies and gentlemen, presenting to you my first horror movie.

FIVE: A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET



Following that first horror movie, I started exploring more horror movies cause I liked the thrill from watching one. This horror flick is possibly one of the better ones, with the plot about people dying from living their worst nightmares. I like how the plot was really well srcripted with really original ideas, unlike today's horror movies which are bland and boring. We all need a blast to the past!

One, two, buckle my shoe
Don't sleep, don't sleep, Freddy's coming

SIX: THE SOUND OF MUSIC



This has got to make it into the list for all the children lovers. No, not referring to the paedophiles, but for all of us who really love children as young innocent cute ones, cause they were really adorable in this movie. Back in primary school, my music teacher especially would keep playing this movie to us all just for us to understand the origins behind that "Do Re Mi" song ... Remember that scene when the nanny sings to her children with a guitar on the hill to make them remember the music notes? Classic.



SEVEN: HOME ALONE



This has got to be the talk of the town back when I was a kid. In fact, this movie was so popular there were three other movies following the first successful one. I really enjoyed this movie just being stunned at the intelligence of the main actor in using creative methods to ward off the burglars from his home. Kids, learn from this.

EIGHT: THE PARENT TRAP



And my final show, the parent trap. Ahh bet you guys forgot about this show did you? A really enjoyable show about a pair of twins out to trick their parents into sending them to boarding school. Lindsay Lohan was sooo cute in this movie, and I used to remember being rather confident that she would grow up to be pretty elegant lady based on the image she portrayed on the Parent Trap. Well guys, sometimes things can happen along the way. Read between the lines, heh ... Either way, this movie is still a great one!

And the lucky five I would looove to tag are:

Tyqa, Vivian, Angela, Inessa, Shahidah

Doing this was actually amusing, fun and therapeutic. Guys, try it! :)

AMERICAN IDOL HYPE

As I came back home from camp, I realized how backdated I was cause by the time I actually settled down to look through my emails and facebook accounts, I finally realized the overwhelming hype with regards to American Idol.

Its amazing to note how people can be so emotive over a talent show like American Idol when it does not really concern them to begin with. Just take a look at how the media has influenced us all.

Alright, now for my two pence worth of thoughts...

This season finale of American Idol was very much like that of the previous American Idol finals. Back then if we all remember correctly, it was the David squared showdown between David Archuleta and David Cook. Two really talented singers sharing that one stage, and of the two, many of them expected Archuleta to win due to his awesome powerhouse vocals that would melt the hearts of even those with hearts of stone. Its really that powerful. Nobody can forget the time Simon mentioned that Archuleta was bound to win and all of us were almost certain he would bring home the crown, till the unexpected happened and Cook ended up winning.

Compare that with this season, and you will see the starking similarity. Lambert against Kris, both awesome on stage performers as well, and just when all of us expected Lambert to win and claim the crown, the unexpected happened yet again and Kris Allen won.

This caused a worldwide (no I'm not exaggerating) rage with many people demanding to know how in the world Kris Allen could have beat Adam Lambert to the winner's title. Poor Kris, getting criticized at, getting booed at, yet if we were to analyse the situation closely, he won the competition fair and square!

Personally I felt both of them were good. I would have been happy if either of them had won, cause both of them have proved themselves to be deserving of that place on stage. One's a rock star who dishes out really high note effectively and melodiously whilst the other has got the clean cut good looks together with a superstar charm and a wonderful voice.

Who cares if Kris won and Lambert didnt? This is only a platform for them to shine, and both of them did. Now all we have to do is wait and see who will be the more successful of the two. Winning the competition does not determine much at all, for the true winner would be revealed the moment their albums come out. The statistics will paint the picture, the statistics will tell the story.

Let's all face it, American Idol is a talent show, yet the winners are determined by more than just mere talent alone. In order to go far and win this, they have got to have luck, skill, and most importantly public value. To be loved by the public is by far the most crucial factor of all, cause the hard truth is the success of a superstar depends alot on how the public perceives them to be and how much the public supports them. You can be a really talented person with the voice of an angel, but what's the use if the public just plain hates you?

Speaking of which, just for random's sake, I heard both renditions of No Boundaries and I very much prefer Lambert's version of the song as it was really heartfelt and just pleasing to the ears. Kris brought a rendition that was not that bad too actually...

So guys, let's give it to Kris for winning the competition fair and squre. He did sing really well and he's got the entire package to represent America as a role model.

Just for the record, this is coming from someone who was hoping for Lambert to win the competition :)

HELLO PRIVATE!

Recruit Zulhafiz is no more. He's now Private Zul :)

Updates on my 11 weeks in camp soon!

Time Flies

10 weeks down...









And I'm down to my final five days as a recruit ..

Time flies.. The next time I post an entry here, I'll be a recruit no more ...

GLORY GLORY MAN UNITED

I just found the most hilarious thing on the net today! :)



Whoever who created this must be a freakin genious!

21st CENTURY BREAKDOWN

Just listened to Greenday's comeback album and I found it really AWESOME! There was a whole range of different styles of songs they experimented with and they all sounded really great in my opinion.

I don't understand why critics are being so judgemental about the lyrics and the tune, cause its perfectly fine and cool.

What's with dissing their latest album just cause some lyrics are about greed and America and hedonism ? They're all an issue of perspective, and I feel the lyrics correctly point out the state our beloved world is in now. I guess they're guilty cause they could be indulging in it themselves.. hehe!

And so my verdict, for those of you who have not listened to the album, go for it! :)

AWESOME SATURDAY

Meet up with old pals are always the best. The familiar laughter, the familiar company topped up with fun activities can make even the most boring weekends fun!

Whilst with them I actually chanced upon 2 of my ex-students at Lot 1, both of which actually could NOT recognize me due to my botak head. One totally missed me and the other one took almost 10 seconds to stare at me before he finally registered me as Mr Zul... hahaha! My friends laughed at me when he called me that, but hey I seriously miss my students. Do I really look THAT different botak up to the point of no recognition? Tsk tsk.. LOL!

And for those of you who has not seen me totally botak, here's your chance :)

Reply to tags

[Cassandra]

GREENDAY! A few more days to the release of their album, and I seriously cant wait for them cause I missed them too! haha!

[Amalina]

Hello back at ya! :) Hope you're doing fine!

[Vivian]

I know you'll always do your best soo yup, I'm glad for you Vivian!

[Ayeen]

Hehe remind me to watch it during my free time okay. Usually yup its the sound effect that makes the scene scary and all, not the actual ghost itself.. hahah...

[Hidayah]

Yupp my sentiments exactly! If it weren't for him, I don't think Wolverine would actually be so highly focused upon as a character. Its the actor that makes the character, not the other way round... Haha.. He's seriously awesome!

And the paper says

After what seemed like eons of not catching up on the news due to my NS life, it definitely was a whole chunk of latest happenings I had to absorb when I finally read the papers for the first time in a few weeks.

For a start, the entire non profit organization saga involving AWARE and a whole lot of others. I never imagined something as trivial as this to spark fury in people, but in the age of the economic recession, well anything can happen afterall. To be focusing on trivial issues I shall not mention here when what others are really keen about is wanting to be secured and trying to keep up with the economy, now that's a grave mistake none of us should ever commit, ever.

Murders, killings, natural disasters, riots and cries of help from the third world countries, all these happenings seem to be getting more widespread and out of hand nowadays. We should start realizing the seriousness of this problem and do all we can to ensure that these happenings can be reduced hopefully ...

And finally with SARS finally out of our sight, now we say hello to swine flu. It seems 2009 is a year of gloomy outcomes with everything unpleasant encompassed into this year. Starting from the economic downturn, to social and political unrest in countries, and now this ...

Take care of yourselves guys, and lets all pray for this year to be a better one starting NOW! Afterall, we only see the rainbow after dark clouds fade away am I not right? :)

Replies to tags

[Cassandra]
HAHA I know la! I miss you guys too, and of course I have not forgotten you guys! Abit hard to right, since we've been through so much together in two years. HAHA! Lets go out soon, when NS starts giving me more freedom!

[Amalina]
Well hello there! :) Good luck for your exams ya!

If Vesak Day was on a Friday, I would get the day off. If Vesak Day was on Sunday, then I would have gotten Monday off..

So why why why must Vesak Day fall on a Saturday then? Totally no incentive for that day. Hmph!

Tag Replies

[Ayeen]
I heard wolverine wasnt as nice as what others expected it to be. Haha! And seriously? I heard jangan tegur is scary! I should go give it a watch myself soon :) Thanks for the recommendation ya! All the best with your exams!

[Haz]
HAHA I was singing that song to myself when I saw your tag and LAUGHED! Its addictive aint it?