Lifting Shadows off a dream

2006-08-08T08:00:00.000+08:00

Have you heard of the 1000 angels theory?

I was up till about 3:30am last night studying for a psychology test. When we were about done, we went downstairs to grab a glass of water and we realized that we had run out of bread. My grandad eats bread for breakfast and dinner. In fact he must have bread for his breakfast as he has to take his meds. So we hopped into the car, I was at the wheel and Santhiyaa was reading me the psychology notes we had just made. I turned out from our estate and I was heading down this say 3km road only broken by a few stop signs. While heading down this road, I saw another car approaching. So we got nearer, and nearer. I was in my lane, he/she was in his/hers. And just as we passed each other, I heard a thud from under the car!

First, get a picture of this. The roads aren't lit at all. We don't have street lights or lamps like in Singapore. So as I was passing this other car, engulfed in darkness execpt for what's ahead of me and being temporarily blinded by the other car's headlight, I got a brief glimpse of a small, furry ball of innocence hop onto the road!

I slammed on the brakes, undid my seat belt, swung the door open and staggered out hating everybit of myself. I could not conceive what had just happened. So I headed back to where it happened and in the dim rear lights of the car found myself looking straight into the eyes of a rabbit!

I immediately bent down to pick him up and he didn't flinch. It is otherwise impossible to watch one of these guys. You see them around once in a while, they come into your backyard but you can never catch them. They turn on a dime, leap a distance over a meter and maintain a speed even your eyes will have trouble keeping up with. Plus they have an underground burrow system as or more intricate than the subway in Tokyo. Anyway, So I examined this bunny. For signs external and internal. There was no blood, no wounds, no sign of broken bones, no evident internal damage. There wasn't a scratch on him!

I took him back into the car and took a even better look and still nothing. The only thing about him was that he was in shock! He just layed there cradled in my arms, refused to move. I assumed that he was traumatized by the whole incident so I'll kept him in the car, drive to Walmart, buy the bread and return to the car. What I found was a totally different bunny!

This one was twin turbo charged, Nismo tuned mind you. He was all over the place. Like in a pinball machine. That fuzzball was leapin off any hard enough surface and bouncing off every surface in the car. It was in this point in time that I knew that he was fine. So in an effort to grab him to examine him again I reach forward to the "coiled" position he was in on the ground. As I grabbed, he leaped and gave me a square headbutt straight in the nose!

This point in time I confirmed that he was fine. In fact, in that point in time he was doing better than me. His nose wasn't throbbing and I swear I tasted blood in my mouth. So I drive back to where I found him. Gather all my skills, compose myself, grab the dude and check him one last time. He was fine. I walked over to the field and when I caught a moment that he wasn't kicking and twisting as much, kissed him on the back of his head and layed him on the grass. No sooner did his feet touch the ground did he bolt. 2 secs, he was out of sight but definitely not out of my mind.

The thousand angels theory is that when you are in trouble or your life is in danger, you are surrounded my a thousand angels that protect you from any harm. That bunny had his angels out with him last night, I swear.....

This isn't the exact one but the same breed we have running around here. Got this picture several weeks ago from that same stretch of road.

2006-05-24T14:27:00.001+08:00

It hurt soo much. I felt like crying.

Today I went downtown to pick up Santhiyaa's friends mum who is visiting Houston to do some shopping. It went well but it was a very hot day. Had a nice lunch at Chapalla's. Fajitas taste so good. I then proceeded to pick Santhiyaa and Keiran from school. On the ride home....

Which of course was a slow and jolly drive until I got cut off by a Mustang driven by some teeny bopy chick with her 3 equally lame looking friends. 193 horses driven by a 3.8 liter V6. Bad move. I then picked up my stride, not by much mind you. Must have been doing 55ish MPH. Smoothly accelerated till right behind the steed then pulled out of the lane and gave it a lil more gas. It felt good. And it of course got the attention of them children in that Mustang. Not a P51B or D but the one that runs on wheels. I then filtered into my right most lane to turn right. Duh! And the Mustang came rolling up on the extreme left lane and stopped at the light. Then the funniest thing happened. The Mustang inched forward little by little. Till the driver could get a peek of me. She wanted a steal a glance at the humble asian wolf in his little Toyota Corolla. DX. Haha. As soon as I twitched my head to the left, she threw herself into reverse and backed in behind some truck. We found that so hilarious we burst of laughing. Me and my 4 small hardworking cylinders. Cheap thrills? Maybe. But thrills none the less.

Did something good in the evening. Went to the gym. Worked out a little. Nothing too strenuous. Rode the cardio stryder to Acid Rain and Blackened and did some reps. Came back and played some CS. Then went to shower......

It must be the adrenalin filled, testosterone oozing pits we call bodies that sprung into the call of nature. Keiran was standing there; I caught the gleam in his eye; the rise of the hands into a ninja seal formations and it began. We sparred. In a tight and cluttered room. Surrounded by beds and tables and guitars. It lasted for about 15secs and a failed block resulted in a foot straight to my right nut. (Please refer to line one)

2006-05-24T02:28:00.000+08:00

I've been here for almost two weeks now. In this time I have registered for school, picked my summer classes, settled my insurance, paid for school and bought my laptop. Next I have to look into getting a car. Hope to get a job soon as well. Gotta start making the arrangements for that.

In the mean time, back at home, it has been brought to my attention that Daniel is in trouble. I feel so helpless because there is absolutely nothing I can do about that. I have cared for him for over 6 years. From the time I first brought him home to the several times I have upgraded his accommodations. He has grown to be a part of me. Along with Jack. I'll bet Jack will miss him as much as I do. Daniel has seen Jack more that he has me. They have an ongoing six year love hate relationship. That all too familiar sound of the clash on the cage either meant a front paw charge or a tail whip or headbutt. But I can't help but think that its a show that's put on in the presence of people. And with all that time together they might even have fomulated a way to communicate and are the best of friends.

Jack, I know I will see you by next year. Stay happy and take care of the family. Keep that smile and that youthful glow always. In my eyes, you will always be a puppy. That innocent yet rascal of a pooch that I picked out of the many. You called out to me and I answered. Daniel, I know I have let you down. Thank you for all the education of have provided me of your kind. You have made me read and understand your wonderful species and classification of animals better. I have entrusted you in the hands of people I trust very much. Its funny how you can't depend on your own blood sometimes. I will see you someday. No matter what it takes! I promise to pursue the dream that the both of you know very well about. The two of you will be proud of me one day. This I swear.

On Sunday I went to the park. My cousins and I took their dog(Vader) for a run at the park. Bear Creek park its called. It held a collection of animals that could rival a small zoo. They had Hawks, Parrots, Macaws, Cocktails, Cockatoos, Owls, Ducks, Swans, Peacocks, Emus, Texas Longhorns, Goats, Pigs, Sheep, Deer and even Bison. Isn't that amazing. I bet Vader enjoyed that inter species meeting as much as we did. We took him to the field and cut him loose to chase his ball. We all had fun. Running, chasing, throwing, grabbing, wrestling, tackling, leapin, sliding and pinning. That was the game. Got some pics.

The Chase. Notice his eyes in the distance.

The Slide.

The Tackle.

The Pin.

The Drive Home.

It was a day well spent. But woke the next morning to be greeted by the news of Daniel.

2006-05-19T03:33:00.000+08:00

Hey, what can I say? I really don't know. I guess I'm still numb.

To those who saw me off at the airport. Melvin, Mark, Mitsuye, isaacs bottle, Belle and Jeremy. Thanks for being there. I wouldn't say that you guys made it any easier on me but I wouldn't have it any other way. Joel you made me tear when getting on the plane and Jenny you made me sob when I was in it. Thanks for the ride Mark. You made it easy for everyone to be there. Can't thank you enough for that. Melvin, your blog entry made me think. You always have been special. Mits, thanks for understanding. Felt I got to know you a lot better just before I left. He is all yours now. Haha. Zac, take care of yourself man. DON'T DO ANYTHING STUPID!! Thanks for the card Belle and that crystal you gave me will be something I will treasure all my life. You are more than just a friend. And dude, you know who you are. What can I say. Time wasn't sufficient. But it seems that it was just right. Your blog is something I will look at everyday.

2006-05-16T02:13:00.000+08:00

So I haven't blogged for a while. I've been busy. As many of you would know. I am now siting in a library in the school i'll be attending the next two years experiencing the wonderful world of WiFi and waiting for my beeper to sound so I can go see my advisor. Will update on how that went....

2006-04-05T20:35:00.000+08:00

I'll bet everybody feels that they have the best friendship. I think I've found mine. Caring yet reckless, intelligent yet ludicrous, illustrated yet impulsive, humble yet brash, prudent yet impulsive, mindful yet loquacious. I cannot begin to explain. Let this....

Let's dance in style, lets dance for a while
Heaven can wait we're only watching the skies
Hoping for the best but expecting the worst
Are you going to drop the bomb or not?

Let us die young or let us live forever
We don't have the power but we never say never
Sitting in a sandpit, life is a short trip
The music's for the sad men

Can you imagine when this race is run
Turn our golden faces into the sun
Praising our leaders we're getting in tune
The music's played by the mad men

Forever young, I want to be forever young
do you really want to live forever, forever and ever
Forever young, I want to be forever young
do you really want to live forever? Forever young

Some are like water, some are like the heat
Some are a melody and some are the beat
Sooner or later they all will be gone
why don't they stay young

It's so hard to get old without a cause
I don't want to perish like a fleeing horse
Youth's like diamonds in the sun
and diamonds are forever

So many adventures couldn't happen today
So many songs we forgot to play
So many dreams swinging out of the blue
We let them come true

2006-03-02T02:01:00.000+08:00

This is the story of my life. Saturday Jeremy and I were supposed to go for Asian Aerospace. We were planning for about a week. We were supposed to get tickets early in the week and Saturday we were gonna see a few iron Eagles and Falcons pushin some G's in the sky. Everytime we met during the week to buy tickets, we found something else to do. So on Friday night we agreed that on Saturday morning we were to head to Sistic to get tix and head for the show. By the way this post is written, Im sure you guys know that NOTHING went according to plan!

Firstly, after repeated reminders, the dude gets up late! We arrive at the Sistic outlet 30 mins before the first bird was set to take flight. Nevermind that, we were greeted by a approx 150 man long queue. I tell you at that moment our hearts felt like a handful of wet toilet paper falling on the floor. Splat! We were pissed, upset, annoyed and any other word in the english language associated with feeling cheated. Basically we were screwed over. It was after wasting precious moments deliberating that we decided that we could head to the beach and still catch a glipmse of the birds. So, we race to the interchange, check on the bus we need to take and board the bus. Now wait, do you really think my life treats me so fair and allow things to go that smooth. NOOOOOO. Just before we join the queue for the bus, the dude realises that he's got no money in his ez link. When we headed to top it up there was a queue! So we waited and got that done. About now the time is 1150. Mind you the show started at 1130. We get on the damn bus and it proceeded to move us to our destination. In the bus, we are in high spirits again. Talkin about that we were gonna see and stuff like that. Then when things seem just alright, the big man in the sky deals us another bad hand. We get stuck in the bus. The doors wouldn't open. And the driver had to stop! We are still a good distance from our destination and we decide to alight. By forcing the door open or course.

We are standing at the roadside looking at each other. This thought came quick. Nevermind, we take a cab there. Then of course, no cab. We are stuck in the middle of some heartland about to miss the one important thing we wanted to do all week. At that moment there was only one thing to do. We laugh! More laughing and then further laughter. Then suddenly, our laughter is pierced by the thunderous roar of two Pratt & Whitney F100-PW-100 turbofan engines piercing the skys. We scramble to get to the highest point possible and kept our eyes peeled to the skies. We see nothing. We waited and waited and nothing. Then like the mammoth appearance of a humpback whale out of the water and fitted with wings and four Rolls-Royce Trent 900 engines we saw the Airbus A380 take to the skies.

This is turning to be a really long blog post. Although all the fun stuff happened later, I am going to summarise it in one line. We ended up in Pulau Ubin and had a ball of a time. Oh yah, and I was stuck all day wearing a pair of tight skin coloured shorts. Thanks Zac. Well, since I aint writing about it, here are some pictures from the Ubin escapade.

Notice the really tight skin coloured shorts?

Lastly, here is an exclusive photograph of a rare sighting of UBIN MAN. This creature is known to be a highly trained soldier, deadly accurate in the use of firearms, has a scar over the right eye and is said to be going to Thailand sometime soon. If ever encountered in the wild, it should be treated with extreme caution. Do not look it in the eyes. Notice that the above photo captures what is believed to be a sighting of UBIN MAN. We can presume that UBIN MAN has BROKE BACK tendencies from the way it's eyeing my shorts. Ubin native have mentioned that the creature can be subdued when offered booze and Ang. VIEWER DISCRETION IS STRONGLY ADVISED!!!

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

Lastly here are a couple of words that will put a smile on someones face.

ALOT OF RINGS
BANG
EH OK AH!!!!
PANZIE
BROKE BACK

2006-02-23T20:37:00.000+08:00

A freshman at Eagle Rock Junior High won first prize at the Greater Idaho Falls Science fair. He was attempting to show how conditioned we have become to alarmists practicing junk science and spreading fear of everything in our environment.
In his project he urged people to sign a petition demanding strict control or total elimination of the chemical "dihydrogen monoxide." And for plenty of good reasons:

1. It can cause excessive sweating and vomiting
2. It is a major component of acid rain
3. It can cause severe burns in its gaseous state
4. Accidental inhalation can kill you
5. It contributes to erosion
6. It decreases effectiveness of automobile brakes
7. It has been found in tumors of terminal cancer
He asked fifty people if they supported a ban of the chemical.

Forty-three said yes and six were undecided. Only one knew that the chemical, "dihydrogen monoxide" was water. The title of his prize winning project was, "How Gullible are We?" He feels the conclusion is obvious.

2006-02-18T18:49:00.000+08:00

Today I took off all the bed sheets, washed them, dried them, soaked Joel's shoes, handwashed them, dried them, wiped the living room console, swept the whole house then mopped the whole house and I'm still probably gonna get nagged at....

2006-02-08T15:53:00.000+08:00

Well... Here it is. I've not been bloggin for a while huh? I've been told it's a reponsibility! Geez, like I need any more.

Nothing much happened this past week. My friend's sisters were in town last weekend and I took them clubbing. Went to Momo and Zouk. Over two days of course. And honestly, I was so bored. It's either that I'm gettin old or that I just hated the music. Either way, I don't think I'll be clubbin for a while after this. I came across this in an article and I think I'll share it with you guys...

10 THINGS NOT TO SAY TO THE POLICE OFFICER WHO'S JUST PULLED YOUR CAR OVER!!

10) Thanks officer! I'm gonna tell everyone how fair you traffic policemen are! You're the fourth officer this week to let me off with just a warning!

9) Sorry for speeding, but I've got a date with your wife!

8) Come on, I wasn't goin at 140!! It was more like 160!!!

7) It's ok officer. I'm personally teachin my dog how to drive!

6) SPEEDING?? No way! I'm too drunk to speed!!

5) I was speeding, officer, because this cocaine needs to be delivered my dawn!

4) Stop sign? Tsk, I can't see anything without my bloody specs!

3) (After windin down the window) Can I get two cheeseburgers and a coke?

2) Can you hold my beer while I look for my damn licence?

And the best of all!!

1) Sorry officer. I'm not used to this car yet. i just STOLE it!!!

Haha. Hope you guys enjoyed that.

Here is a commercial that was aired on TV when I was in the states. It's so cute that I think the world should see it! Thanks to Sana for helpin me out with the link.

2006-01-31T13:33:00.000+08:00

Whao! What a week? I saw my Prog Rock idols in concert....again. Totally excellent gig. As opposed to the last time I saw them, I was in front this time. And I mean right in front. 27 Jan 2006. An Evening with Dream Theater. 20th Anniversary Tour. I arrived an hour before it was supposed to begin. Bought an official bootleg DVD of the "When Day and Dream Unite" concert I attended in 2004. Was inside by 7:45pm. DT came on at 9!! The moment the lights were turned down, everyone rushed forwards toward the stage! Managed to nuzzle my way to the front and enjoyed a 3 hour performance. And to top off an already kick ass night. I caught Portnoy's drum stick! It was meant for me. He threw it at me! He aimed 3 at me. Obviously I missed the first 2. He didn't stop till I had one. As soon as I got it, I clutched it, beat it against my chest and held it high in the air pointed at Portnoy. He smiled, and nodded at my with teeth clenched! I was in ecstasy!

That's how it looks. Just that mine says Octavarium World Tour on the side. Thanks to Jonny for passin me his pass later. Managed to get myself a signed poster as well. We even tried camping out at Carlton after the gig hoping to catch them but we weren't that lucky. Here are several pictures from the gig. Well, all had was my phone but these are the shots you get from RIGHT INFRONT!!!
So, how are them pics? Insane huh? I know!!!

That's Titan and Luna. First pic has Jack. Hokay, I think that's enough for this post.

DREAM THEATER ROCKS!!!!

2006-01-25T00:30:00.000+08:00

Went to the gym today. However this time, my body doesnt ache at all? Is it because I didn't do enough or did my body already get used to it? I wonder. Then again, the pain only came in the night the last time i went. And it lasted for amost 3 whole days. Went back to Terry's place after gym and he had a whole 1.5l bottle of egg white! So we poured ourselves a bowl and had it steamed in the rice cooker. And it wasn't as easy to eat as it seems. So much of white just seemed boring. I just kept eating and eating and NEVER got to the yolk. Geez. It was quite an experience.

Will be heading to Titan and Luna's place in the morning tomorrow and will be there for about 5 days. Gotta bring grandad to the hospital as well tomorrow. And maybe, just maybe, clubbing at night. But that will be without grandad of course.

This is my new desktop wallpaper. Its two of the things I like, rolled into one. Just thought I'll share it with you guys.

2006-01-23T00:32:00.001+08:00

YES!!! 1-0. Hahaha. Sweet victory. 91 min. Well done Ferdinand!

What a week its been. Bulk of it spent getting my computer up. Jeremy was over 2 nights this week doing all sorts of things to it. It seems to be working fine now and that's great. Let me try and remember the happenings of the week and put them down briefly. This will be a good test of my memory.

Monday : Out with Robin. Lessons learnt.

1) The Science Center is closed on Monday!
2) Short guys can get with tall chicks. (Not that I'm short. Just an observation)
3) Gramophone is no longer in Specialist center.
4) There is a new Gramophone at Scotts.

And, I got my Dream Theater tickets! Yeah!
Jeremy was over workin on my com Monday night through Tuesday morning.

Tuesday : Went to Yishun in the evening to meet up with the guys. Ended up staying there learning abit more about computers.

Wednesday : Computer fixing again. Watched Euro Trip and half of Swimming Pool. Euro Trip was funny. Swimming Pool was just twisted.

Thursday : Jeremy's Birthday.

Friday : At home. Didn't do much.

Saturday : Did household chores in the morning. Grandma's place for lunch. It was great. Grandpa bought me a new bulb for the fridge in my room. Met Lachu's new dog. It's great that she finally got one. She was the one who really influenced me heavily when I was a kid and made me the animal lover I am today. Hooked up with the gang later at night. Hung out at Pasir Ris park. The usual. Cats were fed, tree was climbed and of course, UNO was played......

Sunday : Church in the evening, Chinese for dinner and oh yes, Manchester United beat Liverpool. Excellent end to the week.

Thinkin about doing something funky with my beard.

2006-01-16T01:12:00.000+08:00

Just returned from watching The Chronicles of Narnia. I know its been running for a while now and I'm only watching it now. Anyway, about the movie. I feel that its just aight. Nothin that special. What I did enjoy though was the huge array of different animals that were featured in the movie. That brings me to something I'd like to say. Those who watched the movie will remember Maugrim. He was leader of the secret police and of course he had to be a wolf. Wolves have so conveniently been stereotyped as the bad guys. We have heard about the big bad wolf from fairy tales such as the three little pigs and little red riding hood. It truly is saddening to think about the plight of the wolves reputation. Anyway, Maugrim had his dark and devious voice provided by none other than Michael Madsen.

The wolf that was featured happens to be a Grey Wolf, Canis Lupus. The largest wild canid. Pack-living animal with a complex social organization. Packs are primarily family groups. The dominant pair breeds, with sub-dominant females under behaviorally induced reproductive suppression. Packs include up to 30 individuals, but smaller sizes (8-12) are more common. One would have to only have to read about the social structure of a wolf pack to cultivate both a deeper understanding and admiration for these dogs.

Anyone interested in further reading can check out this [link]

These are some screen shots of the magnificent wolves used in the movie itself.

So lets try and give these majestic beasts the respect and recognition they deserve.

2006-01-14T10:29:00.000+08:00

Arms feel better now. Thankfully. Was having trouble sleeping. I'm used to sleeping with one arm under my pillow, and the other over it. Meaning I sleep on my hand. And I wasn't able to do this with my aching arms.

So the blogs finally up. Long time coming. Don't know why I had it made though. I hope I use it as often as I should. I guess it was to give myself somethingelse to do when I use the computer cos quite honestly, there isn't much.

My com is infected with spyware. LIKE REALLY BAD! The system keeps downloading random software, it changes my wallpaper by it self, controls my internet and makes funny popping sounds. It is so irritating and I don't know what to do about it. I have tried cleaning it up with Ad-Ware but to no avail. Guess I should get it reformatted. Just a waste of $$$.

Thanks to Jenny for creating this blog. No way I could have done it myself.

That's all for now. Gotta go mop the house.

My Arms Hurt.

2006-01-12T12:54:00.000+08:00

My arms hurt a lot. Have applied Yoko Yoko. Hope it gets better.