Thursday, August 17, 2006

’The fox knows many things, but the hedgehog knows one big thing’

- Greek Poet Archilochus (700 BC)

This quote has filled me with a lot of inspiration lately. If you were to google this phrase you'll see tons of stuff written on it but as it is said, the best literature has many meanings. Here is mine:

Lets think of this in a very literal way, lets talk about defence...the fox knows many ways to defend itself. It can run, act fierce, play dead etc. The fox is known to be a tricky creature in nature and with good reason too. It possesses a large array of abilities that enable it to survive in the wild.

Now the hedgehog on the other hand has only a very simple defensive gesture. It will just roll into a ball with its quills facing out. Now, this can be said to be the ultimate defence, for it is very difficult to break past it.

I know my explanations are very simplistic but pls take it for its meaning...both animals achieve the same thing but with different approaches. I feel there can be many ways of living life and people with their unlimited wants are always scurrying around looking for things and various means to find meaning....be it fame, fortune etc. This is the fox.

What would the hedgehog do? it would just find one thing...one thing in life that would immediately make all things meaningful. You could say it to be love, or even God. Simple? Yes. Its not to be mistaken as Occam's Razor where being simple is just good. Rather its just like black/white where its just 2 sides.

Maybe i'm just a very unfocused person and am never spending enough time on one thing. While there is nothing wrong with that, being a jack of all trades, whats bad is that i feel something is wrong and amiss. So in my quest to heal myself, i must learn to be a hedgehog.

drawing from Occam's Razor,

Tuesday, August 15, 2006

Moving on

We forge on coz thats all we know
we forge on even when we do know where we go
perhaps in our mindless wanderings we hope to find
some recourse, some comfort, some ease of mind
some time away from a hurting heart
some peace inside this dreadful part
i know the pain that sits inside me still
in a way its good that i even feel.


Monday, May 01, 2006

QUOTES

"I do not seek. I find." - Pablo Picasso

"I do not calculate. That is why those who do, calculate so much less than I." - Pablo Picasso

"Knowledge of the means to express our emotion is essential - and is acquired only after very long experience." - Paul Cézanne

"When I have won a victory, I do not repeat my tactics but respond to the circumstances in an infinite variety of ways." - Sun Tzu

"I fear death...and in doing so fail to live." - Me

"You have to be first accountable yourself before you can hold others accountable" - Someone

"You can taste iron in blood" - Someone

Wednesday, April 26, 2006

I HATE Jellyfish!

Ok, Sarah and I just came back from a trip to Cebu Phillippines which we went to do some diving. Since the diving wasn't as great as the place we went before (the Maldives - duh), we decided to take our Advance Diving cert too. Everything was going well till at the very last dive, i got viciously attacked by a jellyfish!

It felt like this wet piece of paper sticking to your face suddenly from nowhere and then suddenly there was this giant burst of pain and i almost buckled from the force. I still continued with the dive (as i really didn't want to screw up my adv test) and beared with the pain. Luckily it soon subsided. The next day, my face was covered with welts and rash (too gross to show here though i have a pic). Luckily it was the same day we were going back home.

So basically went home and immediately went to the doctors to get some medicine, he prescribed the following which works really well, chlorphenimine (anti-histamine) for itch, Dexamthasone for the swelling. After drinking lots of water and taking lots of rest at the same time, im ok now (my handsome face still intact :D)

Now gettting jellyfish stings and sea lice (baby jellyfish) bites are common in diving. However, i really HATE it so i started researching how to prevent this in the future. Here is what i dug up, this would not only be useful for divers but for anyone who has any form of contact with the sea. Wakeboarders or even casual beach goers. For some reason i am VERY susceptible to these stings and always get it.

Safe Sea (http://www.nidaria.com/)- the ONLY anti-jellyfish lotion available in the world, there is a local distributor who i am buying it from. Has SPF30 sunblock and costs $22 SGD. Haven't tried it personally yet but my friend Eric who bought it with me did and he says it really works great! Check out their site, has lots of useful info on jellyfish too.

Some other sites that give info on sea lice:
http://www.fau.edu/safe/sea-lice.html
http://www.diversalertnetwork.org/medical/articles/article.asp?articleid=10

All that said, i still love diving and can't wait to do it again: here are some pics of us UW


Fearless Review

My first encounter with this show was Jay Chou's MTV of it, which was fantastic. So i was having really high expectations of the show.

Well on the whole it wasn't bad and its the kind of show that makes you think about it even after the next day. The fighting was really really good though i think the story could have been depicted x100 times better. Honestly i don't think Jet Li is such a good actor and his character in the show wasn't well potrayed by him. Perhaps its the timing and pacing of the show i don't like, some parts (esp the middle) is very draggy esp when juxtaposed with the high paced action sequences.

The show is actually a sad show rather than a kungfu movie, i tink u'd appreciate it more if you see it that way. Themes involve chinese pride, honour among warriors and self respect. I esp like the idea of how to truly be a winner.

On the whole i'll give the show a B+ (plus comes from Jay's MTV influence). Watch it but don't expect much.
Focus

Being a very type A kind of person, i feel that at many times of my life im moving too quickly, taking on too many things and just in general not appreciating a lot of stuff. I always feel that there is not enough time to do all the really cool things i want to do so i quickly try to rush through my life doing everything i can possibly do, squeezing time for every drop it has.
But from now, im going to try to take things slower and not take up any more new things. Rather, i would like to focus my attention and effort on all the things i already have. Coz its not about the quantity of things you achieve or all the stuff you rack up, its more of appreciating what you do and enjoying it freely.
Gotta try to spend more time doing less things, sounds anti efficient? Well, life is about efficiency ya?

Prawn Fishing

WHAT
Prawn fishing, prawn sizes range from really small to huge ones! People have even reported catching crayfish. There is even pomfret catching, crab catching and of course fish catching.

WHERE
Pasir Ris Park Fishing Pond (near Pasir Ris MRT)
Open 24hrs (Do it at night (after 10pm). Prawns are noctournal so there.)
Cost: $13/hr, 3hrs get 1hr free, can share 4 hrs with 2 rods

EQUIPMENT
They give you a choice for long or short rods, for me i prefer long rods coz it can access far places in the pool. For beginners take short rods coz they are easier to control. Chances are if you use a long rod you'll panic when you get ur first catch and fling the prawn (claws all snapping) to unwary bystanders (Sarah kena this a few times already, i mean kena flung AT)
Bring a nice sharp knife to cut the cockles in thin slices, quality of knife is IMPORTANT coz baiting is VERY crucial so you need to cut the bait exactly the way you want it.
Bring a cloth to wipe your hands too and some water to wash your hands with and also for those who are scared to hold a live prawn.
Drinks not really necessary coz nearby theres a stall
You don't need bags to keep your prawns etc coz they will provide it to you.
A pair of LONG NOSE pliers (with a hook at the end) is VERY important. This is used to fence with the prawn claws and rip them off (haha!), also useful to remove the hooks embedded in their mouth. The more 'PRO' guys dun need this but me being not so pro and a bit of a gu niang when it comes to these things makes it invaluable.
Spray OFF on yourself.
Bring some handsoap coz the bathroom doesn't have any

BAIT
They give you chopped fish or squid, use cockles from NTUC (95cents for more than u need)
Cut small pieces, roughly 1.5cm in length. Be sure to remove the bloody parts as they don't hook well.
What you want to do is the 'coat the hook' with the bait, such that you HIDE the point of the hook INSIDE the bait. Its REALLY hard to tell you exactly how u do this with just 1.5cm of bait but just follow this fundamental and you'll be fine. This is THE MOST IMPORTANT thing to do so there.

Heres a pic i drew because of a request (yes i know its bad), hopefully this helps.




TRAWLING
Ok put the hook and float anywhere in the water and slowly trawl across the water. When i mean slow i mean like 1 foot 4-5secs. There is no point going back to the same area so use your eyes to mark out a search area and cover that whole area. Prawns cluster together so basically you need to move your hook till you hit them. It is less likely they will come to you.
Prawns like to hang out near lights and OXYGEN so you see those bubbles, go there. They will not be UNDER the bubbles, but rather at the tip of the wake the bubbles make. Imagine the bubbles take some time to dissolve so they will be at that spot.

THE BITE
After awhile, you'll surely feel something tug the line. When you do so, keep the rod still and slowly move it back to the point where the tug began (put the rod on top of the float).
The 1st tug is where the prawn catches the bait with its pincers so you are waiting for it to put it in its mouth.
Once you are above the float and completely still, wait 10 secs (its varies when this happens) for the prawn to put the bait in its mouth.
And then with just one fluid movement, lift the whole rod vertically upward (NOT towards you) and IF you did your bait properly you 'll make a catch!

POST PROCESSING
Ok prawns have 2 claws that HURT.
They are also VERY unhappy when you do this kind of things to them.
So here is where the pincers come into good use. Just use the pliers and rip them off.
WARNING: When you hold the prawn on a string in front of you and use the pliers to pull off its claws, 2 things can happen:
1) The hook may slip off and the prawn will start flying around on the floor snapping.
2) Worse yet, the hook may NOT slip off and you may carelessly pull the prawn into your face where the OTHER claw will get you. Something like this happened to my dad when he so bravely grabbed ONE of the claws just to have the other claw get him. Yes it hurt.
After you get it off, use the pliers to remove the hook then put it in the net (provided by the shop) and place the net in the water so that the prawn can say goodbye to its family and friends. When you are done, just give the net to the guy/girl at the store and they will pack it into a plastic bag for you.

FAQ
I keep feeling bites but why can't I hook them up?
ANS: its your baiting technique OR you are just too impatient and the prawn did not put the bait in its mouth
Why don't I feel any bites?
ANS: Are you trawling properly or slow enough? Try to cover the entire pool in small movements, you'll surely hit a prawn. ALSO, please check whether you still have bait and that it did not drop off. In more advanced cases, your hook may be too high up, be sure not adjust the floats when they give it to you.
What is an average good catch rate?
ANS: Went prawn fishing the other day and managed to catch quite a bit, we were averaging about 1 prawn every 5mins, inclusive of baiting, unhooking and storing the prawns, which take on average abt 3mins. Lots of time wasted there, the pros just sit at the edge and do everthing in 1 fluid movement always getting like 1 per min. Its DEFINITELY not going to be worth your while catching prawns than buying them UNLESS you eat them on the spot which then makes sense. The pond kindly provides electric BBQ equipment for you to freely use.

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Ok there, hope this FAQ helps out. Please leave some comments and feedback so i can keep improving it. Also let me know if this advice works for you. Share your experiences! I do not profess to be a prawn expert, but i've done lots of thinking about it because it irritated me a lot when i could catch any. So im just sharing what i've learnt (and proven). So, there, ENJOY!!!
Memoirs of a Geisha

i've never read the book and i heard that people who have read the book think the movie is pretty bad which is usually the case anyway. I used to be a fan of ZZY and i can tell you this is not her best acting THOUGH she speaks the most english in this show! not just "the soup is too salty!" kind but really actually speaks WHOLE sentences, so im pretty impressed. I think the child actress playing ZZY is good and perhaps even better than zzy herself. Gong Li is pretty ok in this show as well though i think its in her nature to be bitchy so it probably takes less acting skill.

*SPOLILER ALERT*Character development wise is very lacking. I was actually very intrigued by the idea of the 'space of a geisha'. they say the geishas have their own space, between the wife and the prostitute, not a mistress but in a space entirely of their own. however they didn't develop this idea much and focused on some lovey dovey themes. the story revolves much around zzy who is trying to be a geisha so that she can get together with this rich pedophile, which she eventually does at the end. interestingly is that the pedophile doesn't grow older though zzy grew like 15 years older. i mean, i tink they handled the theme very well though i just can't get the fact that he fell in love with her when she was SEVEN YEARS OLD!!!
So basically you don't really learn much abt geishas though u get a pretty good insight to them. you do learn about some jap history which is esp cool coz we were on 'the other side' during the war. so its pretty strange to hear something like, "Let us celebrate Hitler's victory!". Other than that, its pretty much the same themes in any love story so there.

Good thing about the show is its art direction and music. I think that is definitely a point to watch the show on its own. very beautiful scenes all nicely choreographed (can't be bothered to spell check) and good use of light and colours. nice costumes and good makeup work too. basically its a pretty show la.

The show does leave me with an impact long after the show and i sometimes reflect on it and the themes so i guess it appeals to me on a deeper level. All in all, watch it la.
Initial D - The Movie

ok first of all im a bit biased to this show coz im a JAY fan! however im even a bigger anime fan so i would say straight off that that movie kinda sux (if you watched the anime). ive watched the anime (all 4 seasons) so i can't really give an objective review. I heard from friends who have not watched it that they liked the movie a lot so i guess its good if u din watch the anime la.

Character development is pretty good for that short span of time, jay is not really exp in acting but i tink he managed to pull off the Takumi character pretty well (in his own way of coz). The love story in the show was WAY underdeveloped and the female lead (some hot jap girl - not hot in my own opinion) wasn't developed properly too. In fact i feel ALL the characters weren't developed. This is my anime thing speaking.

So basically the show is abt fast cars and cool guys doing dangerous stuff and taking everything too seriously. Something worse than the classic 'Young and Dangerous' series (which i wanna watch again) but not as bad as those 'Fast and Furious' and 'Transporter' stuff.

So unless you really like racing, just curious abt anime-real life conversion or are a jay chou fan, then i tink u should give the movie a miss and watch the anime instead.

With all that said, the anime really ROCKS so go get the anime, its really easy to find and of coz u can always ask me.
Happy Days

sunny days and sunny skies
deceitful hearts and happy lies
lurking in shadows, i heard it so much
freedom & love?
its just about luck!

choices and plans, thinking ahead
just leave me alone to cry in bed!
family and friends, i love and fear
i crave their pain it keeps me clear...

what am i going to do
seems my soul is seeping through
force a smile to love my pain
all i really want is rain.
The English Language

Someone forwarded this to me:
1. If Fed-Ex and UPS were to merge, would they call it Fed UP?
2. Do Lipton Tea employees take coffee breaks?
3. If people from Poland are called Poles, why aren't people from Holland called Holes?
4. Why is the man who invests all your money called a Broker?
5. If horrific means to make horrible, does terrific mean to make terrible?
6. Why is it called building when it is already built?
7. If vegetarians eat vegetables, what do humanitarians eat? Humans?
Life is not about proving a thesis but learning a lesson.
- Me