The last day of the year is upon us~ It's been quite a year ain't it? I spent a good first half of 2008 in Taiwan, which was a really interesting and enriching experience.
It's almost 6 months since I arrived back in Singapore and I've completed yet another semester in NUS. Hopefully the coming year will be a good one for me and all my friends and family.
Resolutions? Nah... I don't really have a habit of making resolutions hahaha... but for 2009 I would wanna be less judgemental and build more self confidence LOL
Oh yeah! And I want to go on a nice, relaxing graduation trip haha... whether it be in the Asian region [Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, Myanmar, Thailand (not really Bangkok) or in Europe (Austria, Germany, Switzerland etc etc you get the point hahaha)
Onwards to a better year! "Yes, we can."
Last but not least, I wish for world peace.
To all potential Miss Universe particpants out there, flash that victory sign on cue and give that megawatt smile! wahaha...
Wednesday, December 31, 2008
Monday, December 29, 2008
Back from Malaysia
Happy holidays to all~
The visit to Malaysia was quite a refreshing and interesting one. Went to Melaka, KL and Genting Highlands all in the matter of 3 days (1 X room change everyday ahaha...)
The interesting thing was that Meleka was the location that caught my eye the most out of all 3 places. Maybe it's because I haven't been there in...say... a decade or more? Yeah when I was a kid I used to think the place was freaking boring and all Melaka had to show for its splendour was the Big Ol' crimson-coloured church haha...
A 2nd visit almost 10 years later and it's a whole new experience. Listening to a live band while drinking a bottle of Heneiken (woo~) in the cool weather, walking around the narrow streets at night; it's all very relaxing and tranquil.
Not to mention that the rich history of Melaka and the unique architecture which can be found there makes it a photographers' haven. Will post pictures up soon once I process them haha...
I did suffer a bit of a burnout when I took the photography module in school because (like I mentioned to my friends) I thought of photography as a hobby and I wasn't really adapting well to the idea of producing surrealistic and conceptual pictures haha... but the module has sorta pushed my imagination to its limits so perhaps I might experiment with such themes in the future, but for now though I guess my main interest is still tilted towards the photojournalistic perspective hahaa....
The visit to Malaysia was quite a refreshing and interesting one. Went to Melaka, KL and Genting Highlands all in the matter of 3 days (1 X room change everyday ahaha...)
The interesting thing was that Meleka was the location that caught my eye the most out of all 3 places. Maybe it's because I haven't been there in...say... a decade or more? Yeah when I was a kid I used to think the place was freaking boring and all Melaka had to show for its splendour was the Big Ol' crimson-coloured church haha...
A 2nd visit almost 10 years later and it's a whole new experience. Listening to a live band while drinking a bottle of Heneiken (woo~) in the cool weather, walking around the narrow streets at night; it's all very relaxing and tranquil.
Not to mention that the rich history of Melaka and the unique architecture which can be found there makes it a photographers' haven. Will post pictures up soon once I process them haha...
I did suffer a bit of a burnout when I took the photography module in school because (like I mentioned to my friends) I thought of photography as a hobby and I wasn't really adapting well to the idea of producing surrealistic and conceptual pictures haha... but the module has sorta pushed my imagination to its limits so perhaps I might experiment with such themes in the future, but for now though I guess my main interest is still tilted towards the photojournalistic perspective hahaa....
Sunday, December 14, 2008
A good meal or a good brain?
I just read an interesting article by Wong Kim Hoh in today's "Lifestyle" section of the Sunday Times. Before people start proclaiming that ST is propaganda material lol... let me just say that the article was a column written by Wong, reflecting on the nuances of social life.
The article talks about how "a growing number of politically correct people who will chew you up and spit you out if you dare say the wrong thing," which reminded me of an incident which occured at the 2902 gallery, where I just blurted "That's stereotyping" to my photography module teacher when she said that computing students were generally better at numbers haha...
Could I be one of those PCP (politically correct politburo/people)?
After reading the article, I realised why some people like to call arts/social sciences graduates "fluff" machines hahaha... I think it's the way some academic papers are written. These papers often use "cheem" jargon and tiptoe around words and ideas rather than just go straight to the point.
The article cites examples such as:
The Blind = Visually Impaired
Mad People = Mentally Challenged
Blackboard = Chalkboard
I personally find it quite tiring to constantly think of politically-correct terms all the time when having a conversation with someone. It's really quite difficult to be on your toes all the time during a conversation without you being mentally drained at the end of it, especially when you just want to have a good meal.
I quote the article:
"Hawk-eyed and sharp-eared, these zealots wait to pounce and censure anyone who exhibits behaviour or uses words that may upset women, ethnic minorities, homosexuals, the disabled, the overweight, the ugly and even the environment."
Being careful in your choice of words and not getting carried away with stereotyping is good, but having to think of every single word to say to someone (just in case it is at odds with their ideals) is just really really tiring.
Sadly, when one encounters a slip of the tongue and says something politically incorrect (without any malice and not harbouring any prejudice); sometimes he is potentially subject to criticism at an instance.
Perhaps thats why people find it very tiring to talk to arts/social sciences students? (Look at me! I'm stereotyping! wahahaha...)
God did give us a brain to think, and I totally agree that we should use it more often rather than just following instructions blindly, but sometimes, you just really want to sit down and have a good meal. God also gave us one mouth, so just enjoy the food first and chill hahaha...
The discourse can be conducted over drinks later LOL.
The article talks about how "a growing number of politically correct people who will chew you up and spit you out if you dare say the wrong thing," which reminded me of an incident which occured at the 2902 gallery, where I just blurted "That's stereotyping" to my photography module teacher when she said that computing students were generally better at numbers haha...
Could I be one of those PCP (politically correct politburo/people)?
After reading the article, I realised why some people like to call arts/social sciences graduates "fluff" machines hahaha... I think it's the way some academic papers are written. These papers often use "cheem" jargon and tiptoe around words and ideas rather than just go straight to the point.
The article cites examples such as:
The Blind = Visually Impaired
Mad People = Mentally Challenged
Blackboard = Chalkboard
I personally find it quite tiring to constantly think of politically-correct terms all the time when having a conversation with someone. It's really quite difficult to be on your toes all the time during a conversation without you being mentally drained at the end of it, especially when you just want to have a good meal.
I quote the article:
"Hawk-eyed and sharp-eared, these zealots wait to pounce and censure anyone who exhibits behaviour or uses words that may upset women, ethnic minorities, homosexuals, the disabled, the overweight, the ugly and even the environment."
Being careful in your choice of words and not getting carried away with stereotyping is good, but having to think of every single word to say to someone (just in case it is at odds with their ideals) is just really really tiring.
Sadly, when one encounters a slip of the tongue and says something politically incorrect (without any malice and not harbouring any prejudice); sometimes he is potentially subject to criticism at an instance.
Perhaps thats why people find it very tiring to talk to arts/social sciences students? (Look at me! I'm stereotyping! wahahaha...)
God did give us a brain to think, and I totally agree that we should use it more often rather than just following instructions blindly, but sometimes, you just really want to sit down and have a good meal. God also gave us one mouth, so just enjoy the food first and chill hahaha...
The discourse can be conducted over drinks later LOL.
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
Early New Year's Resolutions
Seems that my ang moh New Year's resolution seem to create themselves out of nothing, without me even giving much thought into them.
Yeah it's been a week filled with lots of jello legs, carbohydrates and triple A (AAA) species of the male kind hahaha...
More updates to come!
Yeah it's been a week filled with lots of jello legs, carbohydrates and triple A (AAA) species of the male kind hahaha...
More updates to come!
Sunday, November 30, 2008
An Open Letter
This came to mind at a odd time of 4.30am haha... don't know why but I'll just write it down before I forget it.
Dear friends,
It is unfortunate that the recent terrorist attacks in Mumbai have resulted in the deaths of over 140 people. The number of dead and injured could still be rising even as we speak.
It is especially unfortunate to hear of the passing of Ms. Lo Hwei Yen, a 28-year-old Singaporean lawyer. The Late Ms. Lo became the first Singaporean to come directly into harm's way via an act of terrorism.
With more Singaporeans heading overseas on working assignments, it is only a matter of when, not if they will be directly affected by acts of terrorism. Let us learn from this incident to be vigilant, but will we be able to draw the line clearly between paranoia and vigilance?
Rest in peace. Ms. Lo.
Dear friends,
It is unfortunate that the recent terrorist attacks in Mumbai have resulted in the deaths of over 140 people. The number of dead and injured could still be rising even as we speak.
It is especially unfortunate to hear of the passing of Ms. Lo Hwei Yen, a 28-year-old Singaporean lawyer. The Late Ms. Lo became the first Singaporean to come directly into harm's way via an act of terrorism.
With more Singaporeans heading overseas on working assignments, it is only a matter of when, not if they will be directly affected by acts of terrorism. Let us learn from this incident to be vigilant, but will we be able to draw the line clearly between paranoia and vigilance?
Rest in peace. Ms. Lo.
Saturday, August 23, 2008
B'z B'z
hahaha damn busy for the past week... got film school, got paper to write, got readings to read lol... so not much time to update the blog...
Anyways I've decided to post my remaining pictures from Japan and SEP on my facebook account haha... so can go there and check them out.
Anyways I've decided to post my remaining pictures from Japan and SEP on my facebook account haha... so can go there and check them out.
Friday, July 25, 2008
Thoughts before more pictures...
Was reading a couple of blogs belonging to NUS students who had gone on SEP during the same semester as me. I'll list one here: http://vsrabbit.blogspot.com/ (went to China for SEP)
Haha... I sort of realised that almost all the students usually comment that SEP changed their outlook on life someway or another haha... I gotta say the same for myself.
During SEP, you experience things that you sometimes will never experience before. You're thrown into a somewhat foreign environment (esp. for those going to America or Europe or Scandinavia regions) and you're required to adapt to the local environment as quick as possible.
This is the time where one shouldn't always see the flaws in the foreign culture and say that "Oh... this country is so inefficient/messy/disorganised compared to Singapore". All I can say is that this is the time to acknowledge the difference in culture and recognise or even pick up pointers on how improve your own well-being.
Best part is you'll learn how to appreciate what you have in Singapore. The nice facilities, the quick and efficient automated systems, the organised planning of anything and everything. Sure, the frustrations showed when I was there in the beginning, but then you begin to take a step back and learn how to slow down your pace of living.
Take a slow walk and enjoy the foreign atmosphere (and skip lessons/be late for class wahaha)
Here's a quote from the above blog link: "never come to conclusions about anyone (including yourself) and other countries till you've really seen everything inside out of it."
Haha... I sort of realised that almost all the students usually comment that SEP changed their outlook on life someway or another haha... I gotta say the same for myself.
During SEP, you experience things that you sometimes will never experience before. You're thrown into a somewhat foreign environment (esp. for those going to America or Europe or Scandinavia regions) and you're required to adapt to the local environment as quick as possible.
This is the time where one shouldn't always see the flaws in the foreign culture and say that "Oh... this country is so inefficient/messy/disorganised compared to Singapore". All I can say is that this is the time to acknowledge the difference in culture and recognise or even pick up pointers on how improve your own well-being.
Best part is you'll learn how to appreciate what you have in Singapore. The nice facilities, the quick and efficient automated systems, the organised planning of anything and everything. Sure, the frustrations showed when I was there in the beginning, but then you begin to take a step back and learn how to slow down your pace of living.
Take a slow walk and enjoy the foreign atmosphere (and skip lessons/be late for class wahaha)
Here's a quote from the above blog link: "never come to conclusions about anyone (including yourself) and other countries till you've really seen everything inside out of it."
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