Thursday, April 27, 2006
Immortality True.
Are you afraid of death?
"Not at all.. Death is a great friend."
Do you.. believe in your personal immortality?
"Yes. Insofar as I am immortal, I will be immortal. To me, young has no meaning, something that you can do nothing about, nothing at all. But youth is a quality, and if you have it, you'll never lose it. And when they put you into the books, thats your immortality."
-Frank Llyod Wright, Architect
"whoso must be a man must be a nonconformist. Nothing is at last sacred but the integrity of your own mind."
-Unitarian passage
jOhn thought at 4:52 PM
Wednesday, April 26, 2006
Holy Uncle
One bright happy saturday morning, John went to Toa Payoh Central for a nice happy breakfast at a nice happy foodcourt.
John: La la la dum dee dum doo doo bee boop... (just joking)
-Flag-selling Sec One boy approaches enthusiastically-
-John eyes him warily...-
Boy: UNCLE, would you like to donate??
John: 0.o....
No, seriously, wth?? There I am, wearing a very normal, very poly-student-like green Freshbox tee shirt bought from Bugis with a simple pair of pants, slinging a practical little white and grey Converse bag over my shoulder, walking at a brisk pace, and a boy calls me an UNCLE??
I mean, 'Sir' or 'X-cuse me' or even 'Oei' would be fantastically fine, but.. UNCLE??
Must be my studies.
Hear that, peeps? ARCHITECTURE MAKES YOU AGE FASTER.
jOhn thought at 12:43 PM
Sunday, April 23, 2006
The Work Of The Delicate.
"Sometimes, it is not the strong who should build a memorial, but the weak, the emotional. They aren't cold in their hearts. Only they would know how to feel, only they would know what goes on underneath it all." -Me
Thats what I think whenever I see the Vietnam War memorial in Washington D.C.. Designed via open competition by a 21 year-old Asian architecture student named Maya Lin, it is an amazing story of the will of one girl who wanted to give a nation a chance to reflect, a chance to remember on the horrors of war, in a memorial unlike any other.
Instead of a huge tower or a fancy sculture, the Vietnam War Memorial is shockingly simple: a 'V' shaped black granite slit in the earth, its axis carefully positioned towards the Lincoln Memorial and the Washington Monument, its surface etched with about 58,000 names of American soldiers who died, in chronological order, instead of alphabetical.
Although she has since become a famous U.S. architect well into her 40's, her evocative memorial, to me, stands as the greatest testament to what one girl achieved when she believed in her young, inexperienced self, against an entire nation still nursing wounds from the first war it didn't really win.
Most importantly, I think she taught America how to go past the outer masks of oneself; to discard the masks of ego and desire for recognition, and to go to the inner temple of the soul, and to build a memorial that serves as much needed closure for the hearts of families who lost people they loved.
No other building does it better than this.
Vietnam War Memorial - Wikipedia
jOhn thought at 6:25 PM
Monday, April 17, 2006
My my, Johnny-boy, how you've grown!
Here I am, sitting at 11.18pm in front of my computer screen, after ironing 4 shirts and 2 jeans, having a good bath, and all after spending $90 on stationery from Popular just to assuage my conscience that I am ready for school.
"8am at Block W5A", the timetable says. Same school, same classmates, same likes and dislikes. We are all like ships in the middle of the ocean, as observed many times before by history's greatest philosophers. Hmm. Philosophers are not wastrels; they're the ones who actually took a step back when everyone was rushing ahead, and opened their eyes, listened instead of talked, calculated instead of impulsed.
2nd year of education in Architecture is starting for me, and what a milestone it is. Its a terribly long journey... we all hope our journey ends in riches/honour/grace/success/children/power, don't we all? Eh?
May my 2nd year be filled with success after success. Should I have failure, let it be at the start, not at the end of this journey. Do not let me waiver from my path on which I walk; let it be straight as a laser, as lithe as a panther, as sharp a sword so well-honed it can split a rock. May I wield power with decisiveness, though I may falter, I shall never be trampled.
"This world is mine for the taking, make me king."-Marshall Mathers
"Idealism drives the world. Without it, don't bother living."-Me
jOhn thought at 2:32 AM
Thursday, April 13, 2006
Separate Realities.
Let me tell you about my second life.
I am named John (dUh), High Elf, also known as the Altmer in my homeland of Summerset Isle. Trained and raised in the art of magic, my elf lineage unfortunately makes me susceptible to damage from destructive spells, though my high levels of training allows me to control the world of magic like no other race can.
I am almost a shadow of the night, if I desire, you don't, and won't see me. My armour is specially crafted to blend into darkness of the night, and this in addition to the constant casting of Death Visage on myself, a spell that renders me totally invisible. I can break into homes, steal things, murder people in their sleep, and no one would ever suspect a thing.
However, should things get out of hand, my skills of the blade, School of Conjuration and School of Destruction spells form my first line of defence. If somehow discovered and attacked, I would summon a Frost Atronach, a giant made of ice, from the planes of another dimension. That trusty guy wold cover my retreat, attacking and damaging anyoen who tries to get past him. However, I know that he can't serve me for forever, and am working to train myself to control more powerful beings.
I am a Silencer of the Dark Brotherhood, having risen from the ranks of Murderer, Slayer, Eliminator and Assasin. The contracts assigned to me are merciless, and one even involved Purification, which meant to kill everyone in a branch Sanctuary of the Brotherhood, because a traitor had been detected. All this although I had come to love and endear to them, as they were the Brothers I first knew. 6 of my brothers died that night under my sword, while they slept. At present, I am hunting down the children of an old lady, and all 5 of them, including her, must perish, as stated by the contract paid for by the Dark Brotherhood's shady clients. It's tough, and they are spread far and wide across the land, but I would accept such a grand challenge any time. Love live the Brotherhood!
Okie. Please don't be freaked out. The game in question is Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion, and it's mighty fun respite from the boredom of daily activities. This ain't one of those you-can-tell-what-goes-on-in-his-mind-by-the-games-he-plays kinda psycho-schitnzy-babble kinda test, so don't let your mind wander too much. Sorry for the terribly grainy pic X_x. Haha. This High Elf bids you goodbye!
jOhn thought at 1:30 PM
Friday, April 07, 2006
An Explanation For The Lack Of Pictures.
"A picture paints a thousand words, but most of the time they beat around the bush."
-Me
jOhn thought at 2:58 PM
Thursday, April 06, 2006
Linguistic Poseurs.
SP Poly Song
Peter Low
We believe that we want to learn and achieve
We believe we can make the goal
We believe in commitment to our quest.
We believe in pride in our best
With soul and heart we'll strive to attain
the heights of human art
and hand in hand with might and verve,
our POLY we will serve.
Chorus:
Shine POLY forever more in visions yet unknown
Shine out your light throughout our land forever may you stand
Shine POLY forever more in visions yet unknown
Shine out your light throughout our land forever may you stand.
SAJC School Song
John Oxenhham
Lives are in the making here,
Hearts are in the waking here,
Mighty undertaking here,
Up and On! Up and On!
We are arming for the fight,
Pressing on with all our might,
Pluming wings for higher flight,
Up and On!
Up Saints! Truest fame
Lies in high endeavour;
Play the game! keep the flame
Burning brightly ever!
Fair before us lies the way,
Time for work and time for play;
Fill the measure while we may,
Up and On! Up and On!
Life and time will not delay,
Time is running fast away,
Life is now today; today;
Up and On!
Up Saints! Truest fame
Lies in high endeavour;
Play the game! keep the flame
Burning brightly ever!
Foes in plenty we shall meet,
Hearts courageous scorn defeat;
So we press with eager feet,
Up and On! Up and On!
Ever onward to the fight,
Ever upward to the Light,
Ever true to GOD and RIGHT,
Up and On!
Up Saints! Truest fame
Lies in high endeavour;
Play the game! keep the flame
Burning brightly ever!
First and foremost, before I rage about the songs, let me tell you what I know about both of them.
First. The SP Song. Sung only once during a student's entire poly life and sounding like a messily-cobbled-together jumble of big words, it appears to be written by someone who grew up Chinese educated and attempted to translate a completely Chinese song wholesale into English. Lacking rhythm, a constant tune or even meaningful words, it reminds me of a weak Communist propagandistic-nationalistic tune, filled to the brim with words of greatness of inspiration, but failing to string them together in any conceivable decent way. Even the rhymes sound thrown-in to save an already broken song. Heck, the rhyming words look like they were manipulated just to rhyme with their corresponding word in the following line. The bold "POLY" words (Yes, the official lyrics has it as caps lock. No kidding.) had me walllowing in incredulity. Which learned man would insert such a vague, childish reference into a song that is supposed to inspire? Those words sound like the school wants to teach its already mature students how to pronounce P-O-L-Y.
"Forever you may stand?" WTH? The poly is a body of thousands of students, an instituition of thought, and not maybe a king or queen or someone afraid of dying and needing to remain alive forever. Maybe the composer wants the school of THOUGHT to stand forever. Even then, saying it that way makes the song sound, firstly, terribly idealistic, secondly, unrealistic, and thirdly, childish, like a child wanting his beloved pet dog to live forever. Sad to say, this reflects the standard of English at most, if not all polys: pretentious.
Second. The SAJC song. Not only sung by SAJC, but by all the 3 St. Andrew's schools (the pri and sec schools are boy's schools, so the words "Up Saints!" becomes "Up Boys!" for those 2 schools). What can I say. This song is composed entirely of short sentences of at most 7 words a line, yet could not be more well written, compared to the infinitely inferior SP school song. It encompasses every aspect of the fire of youth, beautifying them, yet not sounding kitsch and cliched, or unrealistic. This beautiful, almost poetic anthem can bring tears to the eyes of alumni, and exhort anyone who doubts themselves (Lives are in the making here, hearts are in the waking here, mighty undertaking here! Up and On! Up and On! We are arming for the fight, pressing on with all our might, pluming wings for higher flight! Up and On!). This refined coterie of words really, really, REALLY inspires and motivates the school's students to do well and pursue ever higher goals in life. This proves that you dont need big bombastic words to put your point across. If your command of the language you are using is strong enough, the words that flow from your soul would automatically drive home their meaning deep into the hearts of both singers and listeners.
After 4 years of sec school, I was admitted into SAJC, albeit only for the 1st 3 months. Standing on their field for the first time, facing the school's flags with all the other students, singing the same words that I sang 4 years ago (no doubt, without knowing what the words meant... that was primary school!) was the queerest experience I ever had, complete with tHat strange tingling sensation through my body. It was moving, those words, and revisiting them with the ability to interpret what they mean almost welled tears in my eyes. Its not only a song; its an anthem, one that can stay with you throughout your life and form your mantra, guiding you and exhorting you; one that makes students who first step into St. Andrew's say 'Yes, this is where I belong, this instituition will take me to glory.'... "Foes in plenty we shall meet! Hearts courageous scorn defeat! So we press with eager feet,
Up and On! Up and On!"
"Up Saints! Truest fame lies in high endeavour! Play the game! Keep the flame burning brightly ever!"
Yes, I will keep that flame burning, after I graduate; no matter where I am. I will never lose sight of the goals imbued in me, by You. I'll endeavour for greatness, because that's where I belong, not in mediocrity. I'll play the game right, and I'll win, all because You showed me, You showed me how to get started in life, and yet when I floundered and needed help, You were there for me.
In comparison, hearing SP's song made it hard for me not to burst out in laughter fits right there in the auditorium. Already, mocking smiles could be seen on the faces of fellow students, and rightly so. AND it made me worry about my future in a school with a lousy song to kick off 3 years of learning.
Moral of the story? Language is a sword, and if you dont know how to use it, DON'T. Go and learn it well and practise, before you become the laughing stock of others who already master the language and its power. Worst still, if those very masters are your students whom you are (supposed!) to have authority over, they won't respect you at all.
jOhn thought at 5:16 PM
The Stagecoach Driver
North America in the 1800s was a wild, unexplored place. Anyone who wanted to head west to what is today known as California had to traverse the unforgiving terrain of the Rocky Mountains, mostly in rickety horsedrawn stagecoaches.
The mountain roads were terrible. Winding, ascending paths turned and dipped sharply, and their impossibly narrow width made it all the more challenging to any stagecoach driver. Nowadays we have the Greyhound bus service. How fortunate we are. Hur hur.
Anyway, a company that operated such stagecoaches had recently lost a few of its best drivers in terrible accidents, often falling off the sides of the mountain paths and into deep ravines. It put out a notice of employment, and soon its offices were filled with eager young men looking to be stagecoach drivers. Many of them were skilled at their job, some having driven stagecoaches all their lives.
While waiting for their turn to be interviewed, they gathered eagerly in small groups, boasting loudly to each other how close they could get to the edge without falling off, and how fast they could navigate corners with their horses, in the hopes that maybe the manager would overhear them and be impressed.
However, one man sat in a corner, looking sadly at the rest. Once he spotted the manager, he said quietly, "I wish to withdraw my application". Stumped, the manager asked, "Why? All these young men are rearing to be our drivers and you wish to withdraw?"
Sighing, the man said, "I'm not the kind of guy you want. They all boast about how close to the edge they can get. As for me, I drive as far away from it as possible."
He got the job.
jOhn thought at 11:45 AM
Sunday, April 02, 2006
The Danger Of Listening To Smart-Alecks
You meet them everywhere. They rub shoulders with you in class. They lead your CCA. They are the so called 'intellectuals' in your school. They argue with teachers on the 'intellectual' level, questioning things like school rules, law and order and civil liberties of students to tuck out their uniforms. They have huge masses of faithful followers subscribing to their divine opinions, and also the inevitable group of detractors who outcast them.
Who am I referring to?
Yes, the title mentions it. The term 'Smart-Aleck' is now antiquated, but the type of person it refers to is still very much a pest in society today, especially amongst the youth, and in the 'higher' levels of learning, especially junior colleges and unviersities, where opinions are flaming hot and firebrands are not in short supply. Anyone with a reasonably good command of the English language can straighten out their thoughts and publish them to the world in a spurt of literary venom, making them seemingly wise, and earning praise for 'expressing their views'. Rubbish.
Dictionary.com defines 'Smart-Aleck' as 'A person regarded as obnoxiously self-assertive'. In simple terms, it means 'a person that nobody can tahan, and everytime think they are right.' Let me take that one step further. The type of person I am referring to are those that talk a lot, communicate well, but worst of all, people believe them.
These are the type of people who grow up to be salesmen or their higher-class counterparts, 'marketing reps', and are so good at flowering their words that you'd happily buy a normal river pebble from them for $1000, believeing it has magical healing powers for that after-workout muscle ache of yours.
Well, I've encountered many such people, and can randomly shoot a few names off at will. Even my class has a few such character(s). So-and-so is so convincing, he/she can convince you that his $200 digital camera is better than your $900 model in every practical, usable way, and make you feel like you ought to throw yours away and get something like his model. Yep. Thats how good he is.
However, such bullshit will only fool others for a short amount of time. Anyone who takes what others say at face value is an idiot, and soon anything that cannot be validated, proven or felt will be exposed for being lousier-than-advertised.
Well, the point of this whole essay is to warn you against such people, and that in your respective social groups, classrooms or other circles, you should beware, sieve out and cancel out such people from your life. Don't listen to them; pretend to nod and agree just to get them to shut up, while shutting the gates to your mind very, very tightly. THEY ARE JUST A BUNCH OF BULLSHITTERS.
There. Finally got that off my chest. Go think about it =)
Now for those whose minds are whirring right now, you might think that I am one such person, and this is a case of the pot calling the kettle black. Ha, see, I can read your mind. Hey, this is mY blog, and I can run my mouth here. Like anyone living in a society that allows free speech, whether you choose to listen to me is entirely up to you, and I do not enforce this little "manifesto", and the accompanying statements and opinions, upon you, in any way whatsoever. There. There's that obligatory disclaimer. Booya! =)
But in my self defense, I assure you that I am nOt a smart-aleck, and you know that serious, non-joking issues are ranted about in my blog only when they keep nagging at me all the time.
The English word 'After' means 'anus' in German. Hmm.
jOhn thought at 3:47 PM
Saturday, April 01, 2006
Latest News Headlines!
George W. Bush converts to Islam, joins Al-Qaeda in the fight against 'immorality', encourages fellow Americans to follow likewise.
North Korean nuclear powerplant workers accidentally cause Chernobyl-style meltdown, Western media mocks Koreans' "sheer stupidity" and urges them to give up nuclear program, saying that "yellow skin Asians should no play with big boom booms".
Pamela Anderson ascends California's highest political position as Governor of California, succeeding Arnold Schwarzenegger. Millions of blonde jokes flood the Internet.
Celebrities hold electoral campaigns for political positions. Conservatives decry situation as an "invasion of mindless sex-driven Hollywood personalities".
U.S. Nevada Desert nuclear missile silo detonates, North Korea sends consolatry Rafflesia flowers with smiley faces in possible reference to U.S. media's mockery of an earlier North Korean nuclear accident. U.S. media cries foul, cites possible North Korean sabotage.
Chinese introduced as compulsory second language in all American and European Union educational instituitions, 'Global commercial compatibility' reasons cited. (Oh, the horror!!)
Island nation of Singapore's ruling political party dethroned after 50 years in power. "Political Expiration" reasons cited by general public. Academics and political analysts say that development is "long overdue" and likened to the fall of Rome.
Pesky tertiary students demand more civil liberties and free speech rights, media and adults snubs them out as "intellectual juvenile hooligans who don't know where their place in society is". Many agree.
jOhn thought at 6:27 AM