tired

Argh I'm too tired and brain-dead to work... I don't even know what I'm doing. I didn't quite realise how tired I was yesterday until I woke at 4am to find that I'd fallen asleep on the sofa. Come to think of it, that's something I haven't done for a long long time.

Anyway, read something that made me think. I'd like to think that I'm not someone who angers easily, but I do remember a few instances when I felt that very sharp bite of instant anger.

One instance was back in my student days, doing project work for a module. There were 4 of us, and only one girl was familiar with the topic we were working on (and it wasn't me). Let's call her X. We decided to split the presentation because we were given a couple of questions to answer, and since we were given an individual in addition to a group grade, no one wanted to take the difficult question. Therefore me being me, I took it. X, who knew the topic best, took the easiest question. Grabbed it before any of us could indicate our preferences.

Night before presentation. The other 2 girls were panicking because they didn't understand their questions, and X couldn't be contacted. Then they somehow got the idea that I was the best person to ask, and therefore I stayed up all night helping them with their questions when I wasn't even sure how to answer my own. I actually started on my own answer only AFTER I'd helped them out.

Day of presentation, everything went fine, except that the lecturer pointed out some gaps in my answer.

End of presentation, X came up to me and commented 'You didn't do very well on that did you?'

I rarely flare up, but I really really wanted to wring her neck back then. She had chosen the easiest question even though she was best qualified to take the hardest. She didn't help any of us at all, caring only about her own part. I would understand if her grades were suffering and she desperately needed to pull them up, but no, she was a Dean's Lister. Most of all, her tone of utter bitchiness, and the way she looking down her nose at me. Plain, unjustifiable bitchiness.

So after a moment of absolute stillness, I glared at her, raised one eyebrow and said 'Oh?' That was as far as it got, because the other two girls stepped in to defuse the situation. I can only imagine how tense the situation must have looked to the other two. And no, no apology or explanations or questions from X. She just walked away.

I don't think most of my friends have seen me being confrontational, largely because I'm not usually like that. Usually people just fail to offend me because I tend to assume there're some extenuating circumstances that could justify people's behaviour. Which, I feel, is the best way to live. But the few instances where I got really angry, I remember them with startling clarity, and I can't remember them without feeling horridly angry all over again. (LSB will probably know of one other incident that had a lot to do with the person I am now.) I guess I'm not the sort to forgive and forget?

*moment of introspection* I guess it's something I have to work on. *sighz*

Pugs can talk!

via Cute Overload.

Argh I wish I'd thought of teaching my dog how to talk.

They don't make playwrights like they used to

So I read LSB's newest creation. Yes, I know it sounds like we should have been sitting on the grassy banks of a drowsy river where he nervously presents me with a bundle of ink-stained paper and stares intently and lovingly at my face with meltingly intense brown eyes, waiting for my reaction. But actually, we were both working on our laptops, I was playing with his stuff and saw it, and he was like, you can look at it if you want, and then continued doing his work. He was complaining on Sunday that he felt like writing a play instead of doing work, so I suppose he must have written it then. (And no, he NEVER says 'I feel like taking a romantic walk at the seaside with you instead of doing work.')

Yes it sucks.

You know, from time to time I used to bug LSB to write for me, back in the days when I foolishly daydreamed of being a muse for a handsome brooding artist. (I watched Shakespeare in Love recently.) I've given up on that, having figured that if I ever appeared in an LSB play, it'd be of the taming of the shrew instead of the what-light-through-yonder-window-shines variety. As a matter of fact, I paused reading halfway, stared daggers at him and commented that he seemed to be a man of many grievances.

(An aside: My Lit teacher in secondary school once mentioned that she'd like the lines 'Beauty too rich for use, for earth too dear' on her tombstone. I'm totally stealing her idea.)

While reading LSB's creation, I heard this song immediately:

As Time Goes By
You must remember this
A kiss is still a kiss
A sigh is still a sigh
The fundamental things apply
As time goes by

And when two lovers woo
They still say I love you
On that you can rely
No matter what the future brings
As time goes by

Moonlight and love songs, never out of date
Hearts full of passion, jealousy and hate
Woman needs man, and man must have his mate
That no one can deny

It's still the same old story
A fight for love and glory
A case of do or die
The world will always welcome lovers
As time goes by

Here's looking at you kid.

Sober

Construction crane topples over at NUS, killing 3 men

It was really really sobering and saddening to know that while I was doing my work, just a 10mins' walk away, 3 men were dying.

For some reason, the moment I heard about it, I thought of this poem by Rupert Brooke. I don't really know why; it doesn't really fit. But I suppose it's because of the connection between death and soil (construction site), and perhaps, death far away from home.

The Soldier
If I should die, think only this of me:
That there's some corner of a foreign field
That is forever England. There shall be
In that rich earth a richer dust concealed;
A dust whom England bore, shaped, made aware,
Gave, once, her flowers to love, her ways to roam;
A body of England's, breathing English air,
Washed by the rivers, blessed by suns of home.
And think, this heart, all evil shed away,
A pulse in the eternal mind, no less
Gives somewhere back the thoughts by England given;
Her sights and sounds; dreams happy as her day;
And laughter, learnt of friends; and gentleness,
In hearts at peace, under an English heaven.

I guess in sovereignty-conscious Singapore this is the only way we willingly yield land to other people huh. Yay for the Youth Olympics. (which, incidentally, is top CNA Singapore story, much more important than other, less significant events)

Bleaugh being irrational :P

Beagle Puppy at 3 weeks

*dies of cuteness*

Oh and for you philistines who don't like dogs, there's a very watchable human (male) in there too ;)

romance

I was reading one of the many perfume blogs out there (oh come on, I haven't done that in ages!), and came across the most romantic lines in the entire universe.

Colombina might argue that until her, I did not know how to make the connection between fragrance and romance, owing to my limited understanding of fragrance.

I would counter by saying that until her, I did not know how to make the connection between fragrance and romance, owing to my limited understanding of romance.

The most I got out of LSB this V-Day was 'I wanted to buy you flowers, but I thought you were carrying too much stuff already.' At which point I pointedly expressed my disbelief that there could be any inclination on his part to buy me des fleurs. There's romance, and then there's romance.

Hmmm do you suppose there's any chance I could get LSB to start wearing perfume?

do you think i could normalise relations with them?

I shall never be cheapskate when it comes to cosmetics again.

I've had to use lipstick quite often in the past 2 weeks, and having airily dismissed magazines that tell you you're supposed to dump your cosmetics after a few months, I DIDN'T throw my lipsticks away, and instead, went ahead and covered my lips with coloured goo. Coloured goo that has been stuck in my drawer for months, probably a year even, giving the multitudes of bacteria plenty of time to have hot bacteria sex and have many many many bacteria babies. And then these babies went to school and learnt all their lessons well, and so they're now helping their bacteria mummies and daddies build a bacteria kingdom (get this straight) ON MY LIPS.

My lips have been drying up for days, and my arsenal of lip balms is making no difference at all. I have 1 tube of Kiehl's, 1 stick of Palmer's & 1 tub of Body Shop lip butter. When I've been desperate (recent development), I use all 3 at once. Impressive weaponry right? but useless against them bacteria. They are my little (read: microscopic) Cuba. I swear I might just have to nuke my lips to be free of them.

Ooh and don't my lips sound kissable?

my love affair

Despite it being 2am on V-Day (I'll always remember my JC lit teacher being horrified by people wishing each other 'Happy VD'), I'm going to talk about the BBC and my piano instead of darling LSB.

This morning I had an excellent piano practice. It's still 3rd movement, Moonlight, but this time even though I still made tonnes of mistakes, everything clicked. Notes became textures instead of timekeepers, crescendos became exhilaration instead of volume, the speed was easily mastered and at that speed, somehow all the 'singing' of the melody made sense. Excellent stuff. But I was so tired after that I went back to sleep for a few more hours before heading down to work. *sigh*

Also, my love affair with the BBC has been a long-lasting one. How can anyone resist the BBC? They're so entertaining! I spend more time with the BBC than I do with LSB!

More from the BBC

Secret Jacobite ring to be sold

A ring used by Jacobite agents to identify themselves while carrying secret messages from Bonnie Prince Charlie has been put up for auction.

'Jesus' cosmetic row in Singapore

A leading retailer in Singapore has withdrawn a cosmetics range with a Jesus theme after complaints from local Roman Catholics, local media report.

The Great Interview Experiment - Interviewed by Monica

I also had the good fortune of being interviewed by Monica. I love being interviewed! Makes me feel like a star! *flounces* Read on, & even you guys who know me might learn a bit more about me ;)

QUESTION ONE:

Your blog posts date back to 2006. Where are you located? What event(s) or writer(s) inspired you to start blogging at http://justareed.blogspot.com ?

I'm from Singapore (currently in the library), and I've actually had many many blogs before my current one at justareed. I love blogging, but I tend to get sick of it very easily, so every few months I'll swear off blogging, and a few months later I'll start up again. I'm sort of surprised my current blog has lasted so long. As for inspiration, I don't think there's any specific event/writer that influenced me. I just found out this was possible and started. I mean, be able to tell everyone what I think of them and their dog? Excellent! Also, I find my blog very useful because it allows me to talk about random/amusing (to me) stuff that I want to share with my friends at their reading leisure. Plus it's a good place to rant.

QUESTION TWO:

Can you explain what your poetic tagline means to you and when did you create it? "The true gods sigh for the cost and pain, For the reed which grows nevermore again, As a reed with the reeds in the river."

I didn't come up with that, so I'd better not claim credit! It's taken from a poem by Elizabeth Browning (http://www.cs.rice.edu/~ssiyer/minstrels/poems/839.html), as is the title of my blog 'Making a poet out of man' (although in Browning's poem it's 'making a poet out of A man'.)

Browning's poem is about the god Pan, who takes a reed out of the river and turns it into a musical instrument. I'm not too good at literary criticism, so I'll just stick to my very subjective interpretation of these lines. I guess they express my sentiments on humanity and religion and self-expression. The pain of a human living and dying to express the beauty/goodness of God is too high a price to pay, and I cannot reconcile this with my image of a 'true god'. To me, a true god should be one who allows each individual to live for his own purpose, amongst his own people. I've titled my blog 'Making a Poet Out of Man' because I believe that it is not up to any god to make a poet out of man; it is up to us (and our writings) to express our humanity and our poetry and our beauty, making poets out of us all. (no offence to anyone I hope!)

QUESTION THREE:

Your recent blog posts discuss your frustration and boredom, as a NUS student at your local library. What are you working on, at the library?

Actually, I'm not an NUS student anymore! I've graduated, and am looking for a job. I've been looking through Singapore's parliamentary debates since 1955 (thankfully we're a young country), but I'm a bit uncomfortable with revealing my research topic and the reason for my research, so I'll just leave it at that. :P

QUESTION FOUR:

How much more time do you have to be imprisoned at the library? Do you have an escape plan?

I foresee I'll be stuck here till the end of Feb at the very least! In the meantime I've concocted dozens of escape plans, including burning down the library, overthrowing the government and encouraging riots on the streets so I can't come to the library and therefore have a perfect excuse not to work, murdering everyone who's chasing me for the work. On the other hand, I could just finish my work and never have to return here anymore!

QUESTION FIVE:

Your blog shows a cute video of a panda toaster. Do you have your own panda toaster? If yes, how often do you use it?

No, unfortunately I don't have one!

QUESTION SIX:

How much longer will you be a student? What are your career plans?

As I've said above, I'm no longer a student. As for career plans, I'm still working on them. ;)

QUESTION SEVEN:

Regarding your blog post titled 'insecurity'; have you finished that chocolate bar in your fridge? Have you snagged a friend that shares their chocolate bars with you?

I've finished the chocolate bar that WAS in my fridge when I was writing that post, but now TWO more chocolate bars have magically appeared inside! I don't know how this happens! Well, actually I do. My friend was in Berlin and bought two chocolate bars for me... I don't know if that counts as sharing since she gave me the whole lot, but from now on those chocolate bars are mine! And I don't share my chocolate! Mine! *hugs chocolate protectively*

QUESTION EIGHT:

I read your funny blog post titled 'Bimbotic post - shoes and dresses'. Have you found yourself a new pair of flats, other than your pink crocs? What are your favorite places to shop for bimbotic dresses and shoes?

Most unfortunately I'm wearing my pink crocs now and the shoes clash horribly with the rest of my outfit, but I'm in a rut and am lugging my ultra-heavy laptop around today, so comfort trumps fashion sense.

Ah, if you ever visit Singapore, there's mall called Far East Plaza. Loads of little stores selling cheap and trendy stuff. Beware though, goods are not always the epitome of quality and sizes are limited!

QUESTION NINE:

You state that you have a mood for every food on your blog. What mood / food combination are you with today?

Let's see... It's almost dinner, I'm in the library, I'm probably going to have to settle for fast food... so I want Japanese food! I'd love some sashimi and miso soup please! (I tend to want food that I can't have.)

QUESTION TEN:

What were your New Year Resolutions for 2008? How are your resolutions working for you so far?

I've got plenty of resolutions! They include:
1. I need a healthier lifestyle. Until 2 weeks ago, I hadn't exercised regularly in 4 years!
2. Moratorium on shopping.
3. Better budgeting.
4. I want to continue learning french, to practise my piano and violin regularly, and to take up art classes.
5. End my delusions of grandeur.

Unfortunately, except for 2 & 3, I'm not being particularly consistent.

QUESTION ELEVEN:

Your blog post states that your favorite childhood memory is of sitting in a car at night with your parents driving through Malaysia. What kind of car was it (big, small, new, old)? Who was driving? Were you driving through a countryside scene or busy city streets? What language was everyone speaking? What was the starting point, destination, and reason for the drive?

We drive to Malaysia very often because our extended family is there and we go visiting during the holidays. While us kids (there're 4 of us) grew up in Singapore, we came from Malaysia and still retain our citizenship. Unfortunately, because we grew up in Singapore and are Chinese, we don't know Malay and therefore speak mainly English and Mandarin.

Most of our car journeys to Malaysia take us along the expressway through huge swathes of the country, so most of the journey is through the countryside - jungles, plantations, mountains. I grew up in Singapore, which is all city and no countryside, so I love it when we drive through the rural areas in Malaysia at night. I love seeing a vast expanse of sky not blocked by buildings and stars that aren't dimmed by streetlights. My mum is used to these sights and calls us city-kids.

My family car has changed a couple of times. In the past it was a 5-seater, but now that the kids (there're 4 of us) have all grown up, we've changed to a 7-seater. My parents do ALL the driving!

QUESTION TWELVE:

Your blog states that your favorite day is Sunday. What is a typical Sunday like for you? What do you do on Sundays, that is differant than other days?

I like Sunday a lot because when I was young, all the exciting family outings happened on Sunday! We would go to the zoo or the park, and all the school homework would be left till after the outing (bad habit). Even though this is not the case now, and my family only does boring things like going out for dinner, Sunday retains that special aura. My Sundays aren't that different from the other days, but I still feel as if I have permission to neglect my work in favour of more exciting things. :P

QUESTION THIRTEEN:

Do you have a toy dog? Did you really name him StarBucks McCigarettes or StarBucks McCiggy? (many more questions, depending on your answer :)

Yes, I do have a toy dog. My boyfriend likes to give me toys (probably because they're cheaper than diamonds), and this was a present he got me while he was in Bangkok. I've named the dog Starbucks McCiggy despite objections from all quarters, and my boyfriend mutters under his breath everytime the offending name is mentioned. If only he knew that his very amusing reaction is the main reason for the name. ;)

QUESTION FOURTEEN:

Regarding your post about your 'X-Men Dreams', what superpowers do you wish for? What would you enjoy doing the most with your super powers? Can you think of any reason your new superpowers might get in the way of your current lifestyle?

I'd love to be able to teleport myself to anywhere in the world (saves me the airfare). I'd become a perpetual tourist, but I don't think I'd get any work done.

QUESTION FIFTEEN:

Who is your hero today? Who was your hero, when you were a young child?

When I was young I really idolized Sherlock Holmes (ok this is slightly embarrassing) because he was really cool and could probably do all my homework for me. Nowadays my inflated opinion of myself gets in the way of putting people on a pedestal because nobody's great enough to be my hero. Kidding! I just don't think much about it, but I bet there are plenty of heroic/great people around. But if I had to choose, I'd have to say my parents. They've given me everything that I need, and if I ever win an Oscar I'd definitely mention them in my speech!

QUESTION SIXTEEN:

What languages do you study, speak, and write?

I speak and write English and Mandarin. I speak a bit of Cantonese (a Chinese dialect), and I'm learning French. I hope to learn Japanese too, but methinks I'm getting a bit ambitious.

QUESTION SEVENTEEN:

Have you been able to identify the 'watchacallit' that you discuss in your blog post titled 'violin results'?

Not at all. I think it has something to do with chords.... (my violin teacher'd have a fit if she knew)

QUESTION EIGHTEEN:

How long have you been playing the violin and piano? Do you play any other musical instruments?

I started learning the piano when I was 4 or 5, but stopped for a long while and picked it up when I was 10. As for the violin, I started when I was 20 while waiting to get into university. I don't play other instruments, but I think I'm going to remedy that.

QUESTION NINETEEN:

In your blog post titled 'am i that boring', you discuss the deep connection that you and a little doggy find, while you wait at a bus stop. Have you and that little doggy played with ringtones again, since your first meeting?

The dog has been somewhat elusive since then. I don't really know why he hasn't been contacting me. We had such a good thing going. Maybe he's a commitment-phobe.

QUESTION TWENTY:

Is to their anything else you would like to share? Do you have a funny joke to tell today?

I'm devoid of humour today, so I'd better not try making jokes. (actually I just can't think of a joke at the moment, but let's ignore that.) Feel free to email me more questions if my answers were incomprehensible/incomplete/obscure etc, or simply for fun. I hope my response wasn't too long! I enjoyed answering the questions, and I hope you have fun reading :)

-- end --

The Great Interview Experiment - Interviewing Kathleen

If you guys didn't know, a Great Interview Experiment has been conducted, and I'm a participant! (no, I'm not getting paid for it) I had the chance to interview Kathleen, someone with whom I felt a connection, especially in 2 ways - applications (given that I count myself among the ranks of the unemployed), albeit different types of applications, and grey hair. Read the interview below to find out more!

Interview with Kathleen

- Could you tell me more about yourself? Any personal
information/details you're willing to disclose? Where're
you're from? Are you working? As what? 

Anyone who reads my blog with any regularity will know the
answers to most of these questions.  I don't mean to
sound difficult at all here, but especially when so many
of my credentials are up for public scrutiny during my
review for admissions to law school, I don't really want
to link them all in to one googletastic answer.  Sorry.

- You seem to keep tabs on American politics quite a bit!
So here's the question: what's the most fascinating
thing about American politics, and why? (and is the
American media that bad?)

The short answer is - yes, most of the American Media *is*
that bad. There are exceptions, of course, but it's sad when
some of your most balanced "reporting" comes from fake news
shows like The Daily Show and The Colbert Report.

As for the most fascinating thing, I can't pick just one.
I have a firm believe that if you don't follow politics and
you don't vote, than you don't have a right to complain
about what's going on.  You don't have to have the same values
as me, but you do have to put your vote where your mouth is
and prove that you're "about" something.

- Why do you blog? Are there any downsides to blogging for
you? What do you think of blogging in general? Why is your
blog called 'Unsettled'?

Some days I ask myself this same question.  Especially in
the day and age of feed readers when so few people actually
click through and comments are more infrequent, you can feel
a little like no one cares. However, mostly I blog for me -
it serves as a snapshot to where I am in
my unsettled life as any given moment.  Besides the five
years of archives you can get here, I blogged before this at
another location and lost those archives a while back.

The only downside I see is that a while back I had a pain
in the ass sibling discover my site and thought it was a good
idea to send it to all my family.  So, what I write is sometimes
very censored because I know that one of my siblings or even
my almost seventy year old mother might read it.  That part
sucks because said sibling pretty much ruined the
no-holds-barred approach I had had to blogging before that.

Mostly I use it to just work stuff out or mark time.  The thing
about blogging is once you write about something, you can
always find someone who has gone through it as well so you
don't feel so lonely.  I do resent that there have been things
in my life that have happened to me that I would've like the
public feedback on that I couldn't talk about, but moving at
this point would be ridiculous.

> - You're applying to law school, so any hopes/expectations/
dreams? Any anxieties/fears?

This is answered pretty simply - I want to get in to law school
to, you know, be a lawyer.  : )

And, of course there are anxieties and fears.  Mainly, during
this time, it's "What if I don't get in where I want to?  Wait,
what if I don't get in anywhere!?!"  Then it'll be, "Will
school come as easily to me as it used to?"  "Will my fellow
students think I'm "old"?"  Insecurities, mostly.

The whole thing is just one giant stress ball in my neck right
now.

- I've got tonnes of grey hair too! And it's a pain to dye. Any
tips to share on covering 'em up or any miracle cures? :P

Unfortunately, no.  Believe me, I've tried everything!  And my
hair is red so that means touching up my roots EVERY TWO WEEKS.
It is an unbelievable pain in the ass.  Thanks genetics!

- You were once a competitive skater? I play music, but I have
major nerves whenever I have to play in public. Did you ever get
stage fright before a competition, and if you did, how did you
overcome it (or not)?

You know what, I really never did.  I think I started so young
(at five) that it never occurred to me be nervous.

I'm much more of a basket case as an adult.  The beauty of that
timing is, however, that now I know all about the beauty and
wonder that is bourbon.  Best stage fright blaster ever!

- If you had the choice of any holiday destination, where would
you go and why?

Depends on the season.

Right now I'm in the middle of a New England winter so I want
nothing more than to fly to a beach somewhere, sit under an
umbrella, and have cute cabana boys fetch me fruity, girlie
frozen drinks.  Instead, I'm off to DC at the end of the month.

Hey, I hear it's been 70 degrees there this week so I'll take
it.  It's been in a state of perma-snowing all week here.

- What movies does one absolutely HAVE to watch? Music? Food?
 (anything else to recommend?)

My favorite movie of all time is Dead Poet's Society.  When those
students stand up on their desks at the end of the movie I cry
every time.  And Neil's poor dream killing father.  I also really
like Moulin Rouge and Love Actually.  I'm also the girl that
stops on Dirty Dancing every time I flip by it on TV.  But, I see
tons of movies - I saw everything from ratatouille to Paris
je t'aime last year.

My music tastes are all over the place.  I love everything from
Disco to current Top 40.  The only music I don't like is hard
rock and country. I love Broadway musicals, The Killers, Justin
Timberlake, Prince, Neil Diamond...  crazy diverse.

My food tastes are as all over the map.  Right now, I'm really
digging Mediterranean food.

-- end --

out of the woodwork

Yet another old friend contacted me. I swear all my long-lost friends are crawling out of the woodwork. Even if I don't think they'd appreciate that particular expression :P

But seriously, is it something in the stars these days? Nowadays I keep wondering who's next to reappear...

Charlie bit my finger - again !

Damn I can't seem to stop watching this...

Amazingly bad policy

If this isn't bad publicity, I don't know what is.

Tourists warned of UAE drug laws

Possession of painkillers like codeine and some cold and flu medication could result in a mandatory four-year prison sentence, Fair Trials International said.

In one of the most extreme cases, it reported a man being held after poppy seeds from a bread roll were found on his clothes.

"If they find any amount - no matter how minute - it will be enough to attract a mandatory four-year prison sentence.

"What many travellers may not realise is that they can be deemed to be in possession of such banned substances if they can be detected in their urine or bloodstream, or even in tiny, trace amounts on their person."

蘇芮 一樣的月光

This is one of those songs I really don't want to like cos liking it is just... uncool. But I can't help feeling very impressed with the singer, and I can't help liking the song. Eeks I'm so uncool.

A note on the singer. I remember very distinctly coaching my mum in Kbox for her Mid-Autumn performance (hehe) in which she had to sing one of this singer's songs. My mum's quite a good singer actually, but she can't sing with the music, which is the problem I had when I first started playing the violin with piano accompaniment. So it was a full hour in Kbox listening to that song over and over and over. Urgh I'm a very filial daughter. Oh yes, what was I going to say? This singer's other song is very different. Ya, that's it.

Sleepy!

Guys just don't get it

Facing the prospect of yet another horrendous day in a secluded corner of the library until closing, what does a girl do? Of course she puts in a bit more effort dressing up.

Usually I just throw on a random top + a random bottom, grab my bag and go. These days I try to pick out clothes that I haven't worn in a while, coordinate them with stuff I haven't coordinated them with before, then fuss a bit in front of the mirror (and sometimes even change out of the outfit if it's horrendous). Nothing too dressy (since I have to wear my Crocs slippers because I have to lug my huge laptop around), but with a teeny bit more effort than usual. Then I bring out my perfume samples and meditate on which scent suits my mood, go through my accessories and do some matchy-matchy (forgive me for use of this *kowtows*) before I'm ready to go.

Yes, no one's looking at me, but who cares? Besides, that means that even if I get EVERYTHING wrong, no one's looking. :P (and yes, it's happened)

Guys have such inflated egos, they actually believe that girls dress for them. No no no *wags finger under noses* girls dress to make themselves feel better.

Anyway, I'm taking it easy tomorrow. (which means I'm going to work till sunset and no later)

qui aime le franglais?

I do!

Au revoir Mister Franglais

The French see it differently because English is taking over the world and French isn't. English doesn't need defending, but French, once the European language of freedom and culture, does. And English is not just 600,000 eccentrically spelt words in a very large book, it is, to some, a symbol of Anglo-American cultural imperialism, the language of junk food.

You might think we were talking about the last two speakers of a native American dialect, rather than French, which is used by more than 350 million people. But to some, a future of Franglais n'est pas un future at all.

This article really made me laugh. Why can't Channelnewsasia be more like the BBC?

That's my life

Can you believe that I'm excited at the prospect of being able to work at the National Library instead of NUS on Sunday?

haunted by Beethoven

There's this incredibly cool site where you can listen to music (no downloads or stuff). You choose your mood, music genre, era and off you go.

I hit dark, classical, and the next thing I know I'm hearing Moonlight Sonata 3rd movement. Which is, oh, just like the piece that's been invading my head for days. It's also the piece I've been trying to learn, and you know, there's this guy called Horowitz, and even though I've been practising on and off for a couple of months I don't know if I'm at half his speed yet. I keep increasing speed (on the metronome), and each time I'm surprised I can keep up, and each time I'm horrified to find out that I'm STILL not playing fast enough dammit.

Then again, I'm pleasantly surprised to find that I'm probably a much better pianist than I was when I just completed my Grade 8 piano. 7 years ago I'd never even have considered playing any of the stuff I'm playing now. I mean, I'm still no good now, but better. (which tells you how bad I was) I think it's something to do with my learning the violin. Learning the violin taught me muchos about playing music, even though it didn't really teach me how to play the violin well. And well, perhaps I'm actually interested in playing the piano now. I've got a bad bad feeling though, that if I actually get around to taking piano lessons again I'll find myself woefully inept.

Anyway, to all of you out there, life sucks quite a bit for me now, so watch out for the fangs and claws. (though you're probably more likely to get whines and buckets of angst)