my patriotic chore

Running barefoot has been the best thing that has happened to me…and ironically it’s also the worst thing that has happened to me.

Darned blisters.

The only thing I love about my 11B is that it entitles me to (most of the time) free essential medical services at government hospitals. Take wisdom teeth extraction for example, one of the most common medical procedures NSFs would go for during their 22/24 months of service in the SAF. Its free (less the $19~ you pay for medication, which fyi is already subsidised) and you get 6 days of MC!

Aiyah, since we’re already doing fufilling our obligation by enlisting don’t say we all chao keng (malingering) or anything lah. And it is our parents’ (taxpayers’) money anyway.

Anyway, its the 9th of August, so HAPPY BIRTHDAY SINGAPORE! Too bad it drizzled or else it would have been almost perfect, minus the little boo boo that happened. The only other problem was that the Olympics opened the previous day so in contrast, the NDP might have seemed umimpressive.

OMG, the 3G iPhone is rumoured to be launched later this month. Hopefully StinkTel won’t overprice the already overpriced piece of junk. The only reason I’ll buy it is cause of OS X integration and the user interface + apps. Twitterrific, Facebook and Wordpress already have apps out for the iPhone/iPod Touch. And with GPS, one can easily geotag photos or update his location directly on Twitter. Who needs a notebook?

I believe leadership is an innate trait or rather your affinity for leadership is fixed. Its either you are (or can become) a good leader or you just stink at the whole entire thing. Being stuck in a hierarchical organisation for about 6 years taught me a lot of things about leadership. And sometimes people who just plain suck are put in positions where they are about as useful as a piece of meat. Sure sure, they can be the most enthusiastic person in the entire world but whats the point if they can’t lead. The worst part is if they are stuck in this distorted, warped reality of theirs that they actually can!

Don’t get me wrong, they aren’t necessarily “bad” people but they can be put to better use somewhere else. And with this sucky leadership thing going on, your subordinates are sure to scream, shout, kick and throw a tantrum like some 3 year old because things are just not working out. The worst thing is if the entire situation takes a political twist, now thats where things get a little more fun. Soon you’ll see the “I Think I Can Be Better Than You”, the “I Think We Should Overthrow You and Get Someone Else” guy, the “I Like To Tell Everyone How Much You Suck 24/7″ and the guy who simply doesn’t care.

Actually I think I’ve been rambling on so much I have no idea what the heck I’m going on about. Anyway its like, the biggest misconception people have about leading is that you just lead. The biggest thing you have to do is service. It is only in service that you can find true leadership…you just can’t find it in self-service.

Oh dear look at the time.

[00:43:15] choobs says:
we went to inagiku tonight

[00:43:27] choobs says:
we opened the menu and then closed it

[00:43:39] ek says:
HAHAHAHAHHAH

Is justice ever the same wherever you go? Is there such a thing as universal justice?

Of course the justice I’m refering to is more of an ethical point of view rather than the legal system blah blah.

Everyone has his own set of ethics and morals…so how can there be such a thing as universal justice? Can the human conscience ever be universal? What makes us all different? And if you talk about this from a legal system pov, then what makes this set of right and wrongs, right? What makes it acceptable by the general public?

Communist tyrants, Mother Theresa, your mother, friend all have their own differing standards. Whats this thing then that makes us all different? Our tolerance for ‘evil’ and the wrongs that are not right.

The things that have happened recently are a clear example of this. It shows how people manage to surpress their conscience and continue going ahead with what is wrong. And in the end…you just have to face the music.

The past week has been nothing but gastronomical.

Lunch on Saturday was at Central TomTon which signature dishes were centered around tonkatsu. You get to make your own dipping sauce by crushing sesame seeds with a pestle and mix it with some soy sauce thingy. The only booboo the restaurant made was when one of our dishes went over to another table and by the time we found out they (the other patrons) had already squeezed lemon all over the chicken. No restaurant in the right mind would present the dish to you again after its been “contaminated” so to speak…but thats exactly what they did. Only after Victor’s “no we don’t like lemon” thing did they change the entire dish albeit reluctantly.

Wednesday was dinner at Porta Porta with Randy since Yan Cheng and Shawn were busy getting screwed back at Hendon. The setting and decor was very cosy and heck we even entered through the kitchen (the carpark is behind the kitchen, walking one big round to the main entrance wouldn’t make sense anyway).

We ordered the “fa tei” set, min pax 2 @ $48 per person. Basically the chef decides what to cook from start to finish. The entire meal consisted of a couple of starters, soup, pasta, meats and seafood and desert. The seafood is definitely worth mentioning, the mussels with ??? sauce was just zomg. The calamari was the thing that made travelling all the way to Changi so totally worth it. The batter is so paper thin its almost non-existent and the whole thing just melts in your mouth. All the dishes were served in quick sucession (partially maybe cause we were the last customers to walk in) and for the price you pay, you’ll definitely walk out feeling incredibly stuffed and satisfied.

Thursday was a night out at Wine Garage with my dad and sister in lieu of Fathers’ Day. Located along Merchant Rd at Riverside Point, if you’re the al fresco type you can get a pretty view of the Singapore river.

The indoor dining area is in itself long but not that narrow with a wide variety of wines stacked on the wall. The opposite wall cum chalkboard comprises of a series of wine related quotes (which were mainly humorous in nature) kinda inserts a cosier touch to the industrial inspired decor. The antipasto platter consisted of parma ham, olives and chick peas, salmon, vegetable thingys and sauces/dips. The thing to die for was the skewered pork with watermelon. The pork was cooked just right with the right crispness, contrasted with the sweet taste of the watermelon, it was absolutely yumilicious.

I’m so cutting down next week.

[23:36:11] plasma says:
that’s either damn profound or that made no sense at all.

[23:36:30] ek DIE IRELANDDD. says:
or you could be stupid. thats a third option!

[23:36:34 ] ek DIE IRELANDDD. says:
haha

[23:36:41] plasma says:
lol. ass lah.

So far things have been quite dandy.

By sheer and pure luck, I managed to book my Basic Theory one month ahead of schedule. I am one step closer to that $2000 piece of plastic.

AND I think I’ve figured out where I want to pursue my studies.

The thought of finally being able to know where I want to go, triggered a procrastination response kinda thing. I feel too lazy to do anything about it. I have somewhat been stuck in the same few pages of my SAT thingamajig book for the past month. Its feels like a mixture of excitement, eagerness and anxiety. Maybe its the fear of something new. The fear of the future. Uncertainty.

Will I ever get what I want…what I hope to be?

Disappointment, failure and fear.

Its as if some part of my life is on pause and I just can’t push the play button.

- whats that beeping sound?
- its the reverse sensor jiang lai, don’t they have those in china?

You don’t have a clue
What it is like to be next to you
I’m here to tell you
That it is good
That it is true

Birds singing a song
Old paint is peeling
This is that fresh
That fresh feeling

Words can’t be that strong
My heart is reeling
This is that fresh
That fresh feeling

Try
Try to forget what’s in the past
Tomorrow is here
Love,
Orange sky above lighting your way
There’s nothing to fear

Birds singing a song
Old paint is peeling
This is that fresh
That fresh feeling

Words can’t be that strong
My heart is reeling
This is that fresh
That fresh feeling

Some people are good
Babe in the ‘hood
So pure and so free
I’d make a safe bet
You’re gonna get whatever you need

First theres the moment when you think you think it.

Then theres the moment you think you know it.

Theres the moment you know you know it but you can’t yet say it.

And then theres the moment when you know you know it and you can’t keep it in any longer.

Months of procrastinating later, this is what I get.