Wow, can't believe it's been a week since I last blogged. The week just kinda zipped past. I guess as the term comes to an end, more and more things seem to fill up the days and it's hard to realize that 7 days have passed. Don't think I'm gonna do a 'what happened this week' kind of blog. I'll just talk about some things that stayed in my mind.

1. Celebrating TC's bday on Monday was quite fun. I think the board should do more stuff like that.

2. I think I should consider starting a business in organising conferences/training programmes. It's really big business with all schools trying so hard to find good courses to send their teachers and students. Maybe this could be the change I am looking for.

3. Some people are just plain lucky at Baby Park. Maybe it has something to do with the simplicity of that track. Maybe some people just aren't wired to handle tougher, more complex tracks, so they excel in simple elliptical ones.

4. Shark Tale is very boring. Watching fish act like fish in Finding Nemo was fun. Watching fish acting like humans in Shark's Tale is just plain boring.

5. Ratchet & Clank: Going Commando is pretty fun. Certainly one of the better platformers.

6. WHY does it take Amazon so long to send a package!? It was apparently sent last Saturday and I've still not received it. I know it says 10 to 16 days... but.. I wanted to watch the stuff this weekend! Now I have to wait till next week. Sigh.

7. Mustaffa Shopping Centre is not that fantastic. Sure, the prices are not bad. But it really isn't rock-bottom-jaw-droppingly cheap.

8. My brother's going to GDC in SF next week. He's probably going to E3 in May. I hate him.

Yeah.. that's about it for now. It's week 9 next week. Holidays coming soon....

Woke up today at almost 10.30am. If I hadn't received a call, I probably would have slept all the way to 12 noon! Experts say it is not good to wake up differently on weekends and that we should keep to similar sleeping habits all the time. I dunno, I don't think there is gonna be enough arguments or incentives for me to wake up at 6.30am even on Saturdays and Sundays.

Tonight I had a CNY gathering with some teachers. It was quite fun. We brought food, chatted, watched tv, played with the children who were there... basically did normal, non-teacher things. The highlight for me was watching the Chingay parade on tv. Now, it's been years since I last watched the parade. I can't even count how long ago... maybe since my primary or secondary days? Anyway, we first started arguing about why the name 'CHINGAY'. We had serious answers like how it sounds like the chinese 'Chuang Yi' and we of course had the obligatory answers like 'it's a parade for chinese gays...', thanks to yours truly. :-)

Well, we had fun making fun of the floats, laughing at what we were watching, UNTIL we heard the commentator introduce that the next float was from RJC and RGS! We immediately fixed our eyes on the tv wondering if we would catch sight of any former students. At first, we were kinda disappointed at the dance... some kind of boxercise thing, then we were kinda glad that we saw only girls and did not spot any boys, then we saw some boys on the top of the float, but they were just doing some mock boxing but we couldn't really see their faces, so it kinda ok. But the greatest shock came at the end as the float and dancers were moving off, we caught sight of a few guys dancing at the back. I'm not against guys dancing, but I couldn't believe that the guys were wearing very costumes that were totally similar to the girls' with the flowing cloth at the hands and they were also dancing similar steps... I mean, couldn't they have gotten more guy-type costumes with more guy-type steps? Well, we didn't really recognise them coz the shot didn't linger too long (thankfully...) so I guess we'll accept that they weren't our former students for now.

I guess RJC must have been invited to send in helpers or something. Some of the floats after that had students which we started recognizing. Well, I guess this is some form of CIP... getting involved in the community right?

Time to stand & stare?

I'm soooo tired. It's 3 days after my CNY + MC break and I must say school is not letting up. I was so tired, I fell asleep during American Idol tonite! Ok, to be frank, it was a boring episode. I think the producers were trying something different, and it just turned out boring. Anywaez, since school restarted it's been like hitting me in the face full force. Monday, had CEC Council meeting until I think 5 plus. Then Tuesday there was staff contact time where I had to present two thing. It was a looooong meeting which ended at 4pm and that was followed with an RIPB exco meeting until 7pm. The meeting was fine.. but it was just tiring. Then today, there was CEC Investiture Rehearsal until 4.30pm then I had to stay back in school to draft some admin stuff until around 6.30pm. Well, there's still marking to finish. Whoopee! Ain't teaching fun! haha.

Yeah, I know a student's life is not much better. I've been hearing from students, about how they finish CCA at 6.30pm/7.00pm then have to travel home, then eat, bathe and then immerse themselves in the seemingly endless stream of homework, projects and tests. Frankly guys, you have my sympathies. If I had my way, I would declare a 'no homework rule'. Stay in school, do CCA and other stuff. Go home at 6.30pm and rest and relax! Wouldn't that be sweet?

Unfortunately, I am but a lowly teacher. So, sorry lar, can't help you nor help myself!

I'm soooo tired. It's 3 days after my CNY + MC break and I must say school is not letting up. I was so tired, I fell asleep during American Idol tonite! Ok, to be frank, it was a boring episode. I think the producers were trying something different, and it just turned out boring. Anywaez, since school restarted it's been like hitting me in the face full force. Monday, had CEC Council meeting until I think 5 plus. Then Tuesday there was staff contact time where I had to present two thing. It was a looooong meeting which ended at 4pm and that was followed with an RIPB exco meeting until 7pm. The meeting was fine.. but it was just tiring. Then today, there was CEC Investiture Rehearsal until 4.30pm then I had to stay back in school to draft some admin stuff until around 6.30pm. Well, there's still marking to finish. Whoopee! Ain't teaching fun! haha.

Yeah, I know a student's life is not much better. I've been hearing from students, about how they finish CCA at 6.30pm/7.00pm then have to travel home, then eat, bathe and then immerse themselves in the seemingly endless stream of homework, projects and tests. Frankly guys, you have my sympathies. If I had my way, I would declare a 'no homework rule'. Stay in school, do CCA and other stuff. Go home at 6.30pm and rest and relax! Wouldn't that be sweet?

Unfortunately, I am but a lowly teacher. So, sorry lar, can't help you nor help myself!

It's 2.33am. I can't sleep. I've been in bed for the last 1.5 hours but all I've done was toss and turn about. I've got to get up in 4 hours for school.

I'm screwed.

It's the end of the long break for me... including Chinese New Year, I've been away from school for 12 days... but thanks to CNY, I've missed only 4 days of lessons. Phew... otherwise, there would be plenty of catching up to do.

It's gonna be hard to wake up early tomorrow. I've had almost two weeks of late mornings. Maybe it would be a good idea to start school later! I was reading somewhere that NJC starts lessons at about 8am or something like that. Not bad eh? But I guess, if you start later, it just means school will end even later. As if school doesn't end late enough as it is right now with CCAs, third lang, etc, etc.

CEC Investiture is up next so my week is pretty much gonna be taken up with rehearsals and other preparations. Yeah.. never a dull moment in RI.

Howl's Moving Castle

I made my way to Suntec today to catch Howl's Moving Castle. Glad to see that the demand for Anime is going strong coz the cinema was pretty much a full house. Before I talk about the movie, I shall give a brief assessment about food options near the cinema.

I ate lunch at the kopitiam on the 3rd level outside the Rock auditorium. I tried the Ayam Pangang (BBQ Chicken) at the very first stall on the left. It's a similar concept to the Ayam Pengang at Plaza Singapura (which I happen to love!). Well, frankly, this kopitiam copy cat was quite a disappointment. The chicken was coldish, meat was tough, sauce was insipid, soup was too salty. In short, dun try it.

However, I went to the food stalls outside Carrefour at level one to get a drink and found that they had revamped the food items. Not bad.. they have a very interesting pineapple rice (for only $1.90) and you can add stuff like teriyaki chicken and drumsticks. Also had nice japanese tempura and udon. Next time, I'll probably go straight there for my food instead. I like the way they reinvent themselves quite regularly.

Back to the movie. Studi Ghibli really has a special touch when it comes to cartoons. There's this air of innocence and simplicity in their animation and storylines. But behind the simplicity is a thought-provoking story which does appeal to your heart. The animation standard is great (as usual) and the characters are really interesting. You can't help but grow comfortable to the characters and start to feel for them as the story progresses. My only gripe is that the ending was a little abrupt. It all ended very quickly and neatly and there was this 'happily ever after' conclusion which seemed to come out of nowhere. Compared to Princess Mononoke and Spirited Away, I would have to put this one in third position. Spirited Away was a fantastic movie. I'm looking forward now to the re-release of Nausicca on 22nd Feb. That's one movie that I have been searching for for many years.

Today, I almost went back to normal... spent some time at Kinokuniya at Takashmaya to stock up on my regular magazines and comics. It's the beginning of the month so most of them have just been released; EGM, Edge, Empire, Total Film.. Pretty much centred around games, movies, comics, anime, etc.

After that, I went over to Sim Lim to stock up on some VCDs and DVDs. After being out of action for more than a week, there were some new stuff which had come out. Bought Last Exile Vol 2, Orphen and a few other movies. Not sure if I can watch tem over the weekend, but I guess I'll watch them sometime... heh.

Then I went over to Toa Payoh, hoping to catch the new Studio Ghibli movie, Howl's Moving Castle. There was supposed to be a 3pm show, according to the movie listings in the Straits Times. But when I got there, I found that it was a mistake and there was no 3pm show. What a bummer. I was quite fed up, but then again, what can I do? Sigh. Now I'm hoping to catch it on Saturday afternoon instead. Hope there won't be another misprint...

Met up with my friend for kopi. He has been away in Cambodia on a Singapore International Foundation programme. Basically, he took some time off teaching (no pay leave) to be posted to Cambodia to teach the students and adults there. It's kinda like a third-world CIP thing. It was good to catch up with him and find out how things have been. Quite a few years ago, I had considered signing up for the SIF programme as well. Thought it would have been a very interesting experience. I'd actually signed up, gone for the briefings, interviews, etc, but I had to pull out after that... partly due to my health. Well, that's one experience which I guess I'll kinda regret not having. Back to my friend.. well, as expected, life in Camboida is so much simpler.. he was talking about how he had time after work, and how people basically spent evenings gathering with friends, drinking kopi, hanging out.. haha.. I don't think this can happen in Singapore any more. With the demands of work and pace of life here, things just move too fast for such a leisurely lifestyle. Maybe it's a matter of choice.

Tonight, I watched CLEAN on DVD. It's this arty farty film starring Maggie Cheung. I think she' s a pretty good actress, so I thought I'd give the film a chance. It wasn't bad... but the ending was so... arty. No nice and neat hollywood ending. I think we are so used to the 'happily ever afters' that when we get an open-ended conclusion, it just throws us off. The film just ends. Just like that. Leaving you to wonder what's gonna happen after that. Quite unnerving actually.

Two more days before school resumes. sigh.

Day of Liberation

I walked today. It felt good. After being cooped up at home and rolling around in my room on my office chair, I am glad to be able to stand on my own two feet again. There's still some swelling and it still feels a little sore at some parts, but basically, I can walk.

And as is typical of me, I could not help but make plans to get out of my house. So tonight, my brother and I went to Great World City to watch Constantine. Heh, I was still limping a little but I was glad to be out of the house, watching a movie which I was really looking forward to watching for a while. Hope I didn't overstrain my foot. Otherwise, I might end up chair-bound again.. ha.

Constantine was, in my opinion, quite good. I liked the mythology surrounding heaven and earth which the author had crafted. Keanu Reeves was pretty much in his element. It's the kind of role that he was made for. I know many people have said how similar this show is to the Matrix. Frankly, I don't think there are many similarities other than having Keanu in both both films. The effects were well done and I think this is one of the best angel wings effect that I have seen. For those who have not watched it, remember to stay to the end of the credits. It reveals a little something which gives a nice touch to the story.

If all's well tomorrow, I hope to watch Howl's Moving Castle. I've been so looking forward to that!

Disappointing Finale

I was a little disappointed with The Amazing Race 6 Finale today. First off, I thought this season was a little boring when the last few teams were made up of all the 'pretty faces'. It's just a little more fun to root for the underdogs, like old couples, or handicapped people.. or plain-looking-ordinary people. Secondly, the last leg of the race was really a letdown. I mean, the thing that really decided who won was the flights from Honolulu. So, basically, whoever won the earlier leg, would simply go on to win the finale. And the last challenge was a big joke.. after seasons where we see people eating obscene amounts of caviar and other weird stuff... what did the final 3 teams had to do? Eat half a SMALL size deep dish pizza! That's sooooooo difficult!

Yeah, so basically, I didn't think the ending was very fun. Just wanted to rant a little cause it's as if I'd wasted my time watching all the earlier episodes.

Happy Rooster Year!

Once again, after 11 long years, I am able to celebrate the year of my chinese Zodiac animal! I think the Rooster is one of the best animals in the Zodiac. Let's see.. rat, rabbit, tiger, dragon, buffalo, monkey, snake, horse, goat, dog, pig... I wouldn't mind Tiger or Dragon.. but that's like very aggressive. But (my apologies to some of you) I really wouldn't want to be like a rat, or rabit or snake or monkey...

So anyhow, I did a quick search on the Internet and saw the following write-up for my Chinese Zodiac:

Rooster is often seen as the original strong silent type...... Most people consider them quite eccentric. Sad to say, relationships with other people are often strained. They are quite moody and can be too outspoken. They are often self-centered, but can be quite brave when the situation calls for it. On the other hand, Rooster People are quite talented and capable. They are always devoted to their work and have a reputation for being the hardest of workers. Rooster People are deep thinkers and are pioneers in spirit. They can experience the greatest of joy in complete solitude. Even though often alone, they rarely experience loneliness. Instead, they enjoy their own company and feel solitude helps them in their quest after knowledge.

Heh.. so for those who know me... how accurate do you think this is?

Toes Touchdown!

My toes can touch the floor today! I know that sounds stupid, but it is cause for celebration for me. You see, when the gout attack hits, my foot pretty much swells up, including the sole. So when I place my foot flat on the floor, my toes don't touch the floor. So, as the swelling goes down, one of the things that tell me it's better is when my toes get to touch the floor. So... yeah.. I'm glad my toes can touch the floor today!

Today was quite fun. Some 1Q guys and the Sec 4s dropped by after school and we had a fun time fighting it out on the Gamecube and Xbox. It certainly helped to pass the time but more than that, it was great to thrash TC.

This year's quite different for me. Not cause I'm stuck at home but for the first time ever, half my family are travelling during the Chinese New Year period! My mom left for Israel on a Holy Land Tour last weekend and my sis and her husband are leaving for New Zealand today. That pretty much leaves my brother, his wife and me in Singapore. So for the first time, I don't have a reunion dinner to go to on CNY eve. Well, not that I don't have one at all, we kinda had it a couple of days ago when I was able to hobble about abit. Well, that also means no visitations this year! That's good news. I dunno. I know it's important to retain our culture, but I really find visiting relatives whom I don't see for the whole year a chore. And there's all the meaningless small talk. 'Oh what have you been doing?', 'Not married yet?', 'Still teaching is it?', and the list goes on and on. Sometimes, I just don't feel like answering cause I wonder just how much do the questioners really want to know the answers. I'm so tempted to give really stupid answers.

'Oh what have you been doing?' - I have been in drug rehab for about six months.

'Not married yet?' - Oh not yet, but my girlfriend is pregnant and we hope to get married soon.

Heh... wouldn't these answers be fun?

Oh well, it shall be a nice quiet CNY this year.

To everyone reading this blog, hope you have a good time over the next few days and may your angpows be more than last year!

Thanks 1Q for the cool 'Totally Spies' card & Spongebob VCD! Hope everyone has a BOUNTIFUL Chinese New Year!

I've discovered how to do something today. It has brought a very silver lining to my otherwise dreary days at home. Today, I learnt how to burn divx files into DVD and CD formats!

See... the point is, I've got a friend who has been supplying me with ENTERPISE episodes which I had missed. But they are in Divx format, so the only way I can watch them is on my computer monitor. Considering that I have a 17inch monitor, it really isn't a bad thing. But... somehow, I just hate the experience. It just feels horrible to sit in front of your computer to watch a show for 45 mins.

Well, today, for some reason, I decided to see if I could convert these Divx files into a VCD or DVD format so that I can watch the episodes using a conventional DVD player and my normal TV. The results were more that wonderful! Heh heh. It takes about 30 mins to convert and burn the whole episode into a VCD or DVD. Then I get to enjoy the episode in the comfort of my armchair and nice big TV. Wow.. pure bliss. So, most of my day today was spent doing that. Watching an episode while another was being burnt.... SHIOK.

OK.. I know this sounds hypocritical, but I really don't support piracy. If these episodes were available in the market, I would gladly buy them. Unfortunately, it's probably gonna be years before they are released. So...yeah... I'm in somewhat of a dilemma... but... for those of you whom I've been 'suan-ing'.. gimme a break... I'm in pain... :-P

Oh yah.. the pain today seems to have gone down a notch. Hopefully, like I said in my last post, yesterday was the peak of the pain... if it doesn't get worse from here, it should take another couple of days for it to clear up. I'll miss going out with some friends over the Chinese New Year, but I guess that can't be helped. Will have to make it up to them after I recover.

Well, this week is almost like a one week break for everyone... so enjoy it!

Sadly, the pain has gotten worse today... not much pain in the knee, but the the pain on my foot is pretty unbearable. I'm kinda hoping that this is the worst... and that it will only get better from here on. I've been trying a different medicine, but it appears that it's not too effective.

Today has been tiring. Maybe cause I had to deal with the higher levels of pain. Can't even rest any weight on it. Sigh. To make things worse, the lunch & dinner at the dining hall was quite unappetizing. For lunch, we had boiled slices of sausage and some cabbage. It was quite miserable. For dinner, we had sweet and sour fish and two other kinds of veggies... I think cabbage again and some green ones. But the fish was totally fishy... I took a bite and basically decided it was not worth eating.

It's sad when you are cooped up at home and yet have to eat really crappy stuff. Doesn't really lift the spirits.

I've been playing Paper Mario on the Gamecube. It was supposed to be a super fantastic, highly rated game. Personally, I think it is kinda over-rated. Having played for quite a few hours, I find that parts of the game are becoming more of a chore than fun. It's quite different from 'Mario & Luigi Superstar Saga'. That game was quite similar but it was really addictive. I couldn't put that game down! I might give up on it soon... getting quite boring.

Today, the swelling seemed to get better. I managed to hobble my way to my doctor with my crutches. My mom drove me there. Nothing new actually, I've been having these gout attacks for so many years that I kinda know what the doctor will say. But what to do, still have to see the doctor or I can't get my MC.

After seeing the doctor, I went home (as in home and not boarding) for dinner. Half my family (ie my mom and my sis) will be away this Chinese New Year, so it's pretty much going to be a nice quiet time. Works out well since I'll probably be recovering form my gout attack.

Must thank 1Q guys for the nice gift.... If any of you are reading this... THANKS! I shall watch the VCD tomorrow. It's pretty unexpected but I think Spongebob will be a welcomed distraction to the pain.

What pain? Well, for those who are curious (I don't know why.. but since you are reading this, you probably are curious), the pain is quite unlike a sprain. First of all, the part that is affected kinda gets swollen. Then, it kinda feels warm to the touch. The 'best' part, the affected part kinda throbs with pain... yeah.. 'throbs' is probably the best word I can think of. You see, in a sprain, if you don't put any weight on it, you probably won't feel anything. With gout, the pain is there no matter what position you try to put it in. Sometimes, even the touch of a piece of cloth on the affected region can bring a scream. heh..

If you are still curious.. you can see a pic here: http://www.medicinenet.com/images/illustrations/gout.jpg

This time, my gout started from the knee... went down to the top part of my foot and right now, I think it's around the big toe (somewhere like the picture above). Sigh. It's just one of those things I have to learn to live with.

2nd day blues

MC for another day. I think I might be stuck in my lodge for at least a week. Sigh.

My right knee's a kinda swollen and my right foot is hurting. Not sure what triggered this round of gout. Might be my lack of drinking water. Stress? Possibly, since it was pretty tense until after PI. Thank God the attach didn't come before PI.

Started watching Last Exile... another Anime which I had bought but not watched. So far, not terribly exciting. Might give up after a while. Let's see how it goes.

Luckily I'm not missing too many lessons, especially with the Chinese New Year break coming.

SSDD. Those who've watched 'Dreamcather' know what that stands for. I was stuck at home the whole day as I've kinda gotten a gout attack. This time round, it's around my right knee, making it really painful to bend or position my knee in any way. So, I basically vegetated in bed and in front of the TV.

Spent the time really wisely... finished watching Chrno Crusade! The ending wasn't bad but I thought it could have been a little more heart-wrenching. Overall, it's a lovely piece of storytelling with enough twists and turns and emotional rides. If you like Anime, don't miss this.

Also caught up with some gaming... played some Pirates!. It's a real time sucker cause a big part of the game is travelling on the seas. Even the ship battles aren't exactly fast moving. I like the fencing bits and the wooing of the ladies bits. Quite fun.

This doesn't feel like a full attack so I might be up and about tomorrow. If not, I might be cooped up for a whole week. With CNY around the corner, I guess it's not too bad. Don't really mind staying home during that time.

Well... just means more time to blog! haha....

Here's the Tapwave Zodiac. It's a palm-based pda with a ATI graphics chip! I know I just bought a PSP... but I really couldn't resist the offer. It was $750 for a Tapwave AND an iPod. I found someone who wanted an iPod so we ended up buying the bundle together. In tehe end, I saved almost $150 from the actual price and he saved about $170 off the iPod! It's a cool machine, no?