i'm a goofy goober YEAH!

Moved

2010-11-21T22:27:00.001+08:00

Oh hey did I tell you guys? I've moved. http://pfalcon7777.wordpress.com/

THE GIST

2010-10-16T12:21:00.001+08:00

LKH: This is good because it tells us more about the gist of Galois Theory.

(After the tutorial)

Me to JL: So what's the gist of Galois Theory?

JL: Dunno.

Me to VL: So what's the gist of Galois Theory?
VL: Err.. i don't know.

That pretty much sums up everything that's been going on for the past few weeks.

~Falcon, OUT!!

EMO

2010-10-02T01:03:00.002+08:00

He has left. I'm 300km away and yet I'm emo-ing here.

All the best man. You rock always!

~Falcon, OUT!

ONCE IN A GREEN MOON

2010-10-02T00:08:00.001+08:00

Reading his blog inspired me to post something. I'm currently feel as if I'm drowning. I need to find something. I need a boat to come rescue me. I need a helicopter to come pick me up. I need... I need... I need...

GOTTA TURN IT ALL AROUND TONIGHT

2010-07-15T00:19:00.001+08:00

THE THIEF ON THE CROSS

2010-06-02T13:34:00.002+08:00

People who believe that one does not need to be baptized to be saved sometimes give the argument that the thief on the cross was saved, and he was not baptized!

We then say that that is not a valid argument, because the thief was still living under the Mosaic Age, under the OT Law, and hence does not require baptism.

But they came back and said Jesus actually died before the thief! So the thief was living under the Christian age!

Now then, we say that the commandment to be baptized was given AFTER Jesus was resurrected! (Matt 28:18; Mk 16:16) Therefore, again this argument is not valid.

I rest my case. FALCON, ouT!

THE FISH

2010-05-13T12:33:00.002+08:00

A story was told about a man who loved fishing. One day he came across a lake with the best of fishes. Unfortunately, the lake was in a compound owned by a very successful businessman who loved his fishes very much so much so that he disallowed people from fishing in that lake. The man, however, had a friend who was very close with the businessman. So he tried to ask a favour to allow him to fish in that lake, and eventually he was given permission to do so.

So the man fished there regularly and got a lot of good catches. Then one day while he was fishing, the businessman happened to walk by the lake. He saw the man fishing, but the fisherman dude thought that he was already given permission to fish, so he went about his thing.

The next day, the businessman told his friend's friend not to fish in the lake anymore.

Now, do you know the moral of this story?

QUOTES

2010-04-21T14:36:00.002+08:00

"You really need to practice, unless you're a genius... like Terence Tao!"

"See, sometimes you cannot come up with examples, because you don't do enough number theory! You're supposed to be familiar with CONGruences, but you're not!"

"So so so so so so.. the CONtent, is very important!"

"So this is this, isn't it, isn't it?"

"Oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh sorry sorry sorry sorry. Lemme say again lemme say again lemme say again lemme say again lemme say again."

"See, you need to understand the deFiNiTION!!!"

"See, I saw some of you write this, but do you write it?!?! Ya there's nothing wrong with it, but tHis is NOT relevant!! See this shows that you don't really understand what you are writing! Wha, wha~, what does this mean??"

"I want you to write it down! I wanna.. I wanna see.. how you, how you write it.."

This sem has been fun!

~Falcon, OUT!

THE IDEALS

2010-02-10T22:27:00.003+08:00

In Game Theory, now we are considering static games of incomplete information. But consider this.

Let S and T be rings such that S is a subring of T. Then, the probability that S is an ideal of T is 1. What is the probability that T is an ideal of S??

I'm working it out. I still don't know the answer.

~falcon, OUT!!!

HOME

2010-01-09T01:48:00.002+08:00

Tell ya one thing,
No matter where you go, no matter what you do,
Whether you're feeling happy, or whether you're feeling blue,
If you have secrets to share, if you have news to tell,
Or if you need at times, a wishing well,
Whether you are with friends, or whether you are alone,
Tell ya one thing, there's no place like home.

I miss you all!!! I really wished I could stay. There's so much to do, but I have to go fulfill my obligations in this part of the world first. If the LORD wills, we will meet again soon!

~Falcon, OUT!!!

STUFF

2009-12-31T01:22:00.002+08:00

Sometimes, things happen. Things that we don't to happen. Things that we think is bad for us. Sometimes, things that happen, happen out of our control. But sometimes, they happen because of our decisions.

Take for instance, Eve. Because Eve ate the fruit, both her and Adam were banished from the garden of Eden. Consider also, David. God delivered his father, Saul into his hands when Saul was hunting down David. David had the chance to kill Saul. But he chose not to.

In Eve's case, punishment was the result, and in David's case, reward was the result. In these situations, it is clear.

However, sometimes things happen because of our decisions, but we don't know whether they are good or bad. It leaves us confused, not knowing what to do. After awhile, we are driven to the point where we start to feel down and out, thinking the world is going to end. Tears are shed and sometimes, tantrum is thrown.

But firstly, we should remember that things that happen, happen because of our decisions. This is a fact we all have to come to terms with. For instance, you are reading this because you chose to, and not anything else. Now, since things happen because of our decisions, we have to learn to live with it, whether it be good or bad. If it is good, then great! But if not, and it is irreversible, we need to keep in mind that it is NOT the end of the world.

Judas Iscariot, was a negative example of this. When he realized that his betrayal of Jesus was wrong, he went and hanged himself. But Peter, when he realized that he had sinned by denying Jesus three times, he repented, and eventually became a great servant for God! This is the attitude we need to have!! Remember Rom 8:28, that all things will work together for good to those who love God, and to those called according to His purpose. Also, Eph 3:20 - Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly, abundantly, above all that we can ask or think. You see, sometimes we see no way out of our situation, but keep in mind that God has other plans, and He will help us, only if we continue to trust in Him and go to Him for help. James 4:7 tells us that if we draw near to God, He will draw near to us. Prov 3:5,6 says that we should trust in the Lord with all our heart and lean not on our own understanding. We must NEVER lean on our own understanding, but look to God!

Remember when the people of Moab, Ammon and other with them decided to battle against Jehoshaphat (2 Chro 20)? At that time, it seemed like there was no way out. It was many against 1, and Southern Kingdom was going to fall. But have a look at vs. 12, part of King Jehoshaphat's prayer, which says, "For we have no power against this great multitude, ..., nor do we know what to do, but OUR EYES ARE UPON YOU."

Judah set their eyes upon the Lord for deliverance, and we can read the deliverance of God. Likewise, we should do the same!!

The new year is fast approaching! How much have we trusted in the Lord for the past year? Let us make fulfilling Prov 3:5-6 a part of our resolution for the coming new year.

May the Lord bless us all!

Falcon, OUT~!!

THE WORK OF THE CHURCH

2009-12-29T15:42:00.002+08:00

Few can deny that one of the work of the church is benevolence work. Paul wrote in Gal 6:10, "Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all, especially to those who are of the household of faith." We also read of the benevolent work of the church in the first century (Acts 4,5,6 among other examples).

Today, we have many institutions which are also carrying out benevolent works. A preacher taught that these things are wrong. It is wrong because these works are to be done by men, for men's glory and not for God's glory. He further adds that it is God's wisdom to set up the church to do this work, and if anyone does it outside of the church, he does it in a different way. When he does so, then he is doing it on his own wisdom, and this implies he is putting his wisdom above God's wisdom. He finally concludes by saying that robbing the church of its work is robbing God of His glory.

What are your thoughts on this matter? Do you agree or disagree? Does the Bible agree with these things?

Comments in the tagboard are welcomed.

~Falcon, OUT!!

YES I WIN!!

2009-12-13T05:07:00.002+08:00

Yes I totally beat Chippy!!

20

Buahaha!!!

Btw. The quotes are up and ready, but I just don't feel comfortable posting them on the blog. Ask me if you want them, and I'll send em to ya!! You can notify me by email, IM, fb, tagboard, word of mouth, snail mail, or you can send your request by DHL. Actually use FedEx, since DHL is Dua Hari Lambat. And if you use UPS, u pun sama.

In Turkey now. Pics coming up soon.. hopefully.

~falcon, OUT!!!

POST-EXAM PRESS CONFERENCE

2009-11-29T01:20:00.002+08:00

Him: First up, MA2. A solid 2 hrs, solving up to 6 questions. What are your thoughts on that?
Me: Well, going into that paper, we were in a very good position. The questions were not that difficult, the first five at least. We did all we could and we are confident we can score enough points. For the last question, well, we are not so sure, but I guess we will see when the final result comes out.

Him: How do you think the others did?
Me: Well, really how the others did is not my concern. That is the grader's concern. I have done all I could and I believe the others have as well, so it's all up to the grader to decide how he wants to rank us in the class. For sure we would like to be at the top, but that is not ours to decide.

Him: Moving on to ODE. Killer paper, everyone thought. Were you confident when you went in, and was it a killer for you as well?
Me: Again, for this one, we were in a very good position going into this. We are amongst the top, and so if we could keep up the momentum, then it will be a very good result for us. But unfortunately, yeah the paper was a killer and so it was very difficult to solve those problems. I got stuck even on the first question itself, so that tells you how tough it was. But hopefully since everyone thought it was a tough one, hopefully it's not going to be that bad. But the damage is already done, and we can only hope and pray for the best.

Him: NLP was an interesting one. Tell us about that.
Me: Well for this one, we were not really sure what to expect. The midterm went extremely horrible, so we really had to give it our all for this final. And what happened was that we did exactly that, and surprisingly everything went well for us. The questions were not really that difficult, just that probably there wasn't enough time to get down the solutions properly. But in any case, we are not getting too carried away. Plus it's over now, so there's nothing we can do except wait.

Him: Alright, thank you very much for your time.
Me: Thanks.

BREAK UP

2009-11-16T23:24:00.002+08:00

Today I found out that Roger Poh's niece broke up with her bf. That was surprising, thinking that it was only a few weeks ago she was talking about marriage and phd overseas and all... Heh. I guess you can never be sure.

Funkily I hardly have any drive to study for this coming final. I wonder why. I alrd finished my revision for MA3110. You can have that exam tomorrow, I wouldn't mind. In fact, I would prefer to quickly get it over n done with. That means I only have MA3220 and M3236 to study for. But for some reason, every time I look at my MA3220 book which is on the table right now as it has been for the past few days, I don't feel like going through it. Sigh.

Wish be all the best!!

~falcon, OUT!!

WHY?

2009-11-07T11:51:00.003+08:00

People say, "God will help those who help themselves."

The Bible teaches, "God will help those who trust in Him."

If such is the case, then why is it that we see people so successful in doing things that are not according to God's will? Is it because they trust God will help them go against His will and hence, they emerge victorious?

Sometimes we think that God is not on our side. Sometimes we feel that God has abandoned us. Sometimes, when bad things happen to us or to those around us, we question God. We say, if God is so merciful and loving, why does He allow these things to happen?

People believe that they are in control of their own destiny.

The Bible teaches, "God is always in control no matter what."

When natural disasters come and claim many lives, or destroy spares the living but destroys their ricebowl, their roof over their heads, it causes suffering. In such cases, people again begin to question God, asking why does He let this happen, if indeed He is loving and kind?

These are the reasons by people believe that there is no God. But we cannot say like that.

In PC1322 lecture we learn that the universe existed from the Big Bang. This is not a huge explosion at some point in time, but rather a random sprouting of a highly dense and hot matter which continued to expand until we have what we see today. We also learn that the universe will continue to expand, and possibly soon contract, depending on initial conditions.

Recently, my friend, who was part of the Astronomy Club in my uni, and I had a discussion about this while studying for the test next Monday, and he mentioned that the Big Bang Theory is, for one, just a theory to explain why things are they way they are. Another thing he said was that the Big Bang is generally accepted by scientists because they think it sounds cool and it properly explains the origin of our universe.

The Big Bang cannot explain everything. Combined with the Copernican principle, we have two statements: The universe has no center, and the big bang is happening even today.

These are things I do not agree with. If the Big Bang really did happen, then the universe has a center.

First we assume that the first matter appeared at only 1 place and began expanding from there. Then its expansion must be uniform. If it is not uniform, then the level of energy is not the same at every part of the matter. This cannot be, since the first matter began at a point, which has only 1 part. So it must be uniform. And if it was uniform, then its expansion created a ball, which has a center!

But then we think: What if the universe did not begin to exist at one point? What if several matter sprouted at finitely many different points and began expanding? But we rule out this case, because the probability of one matter appearing at one point is so much greater than the probability that more than one matter appearing at different places, AT THE SAME TIME!!

But this is difficult, because 1 matter does not have enough energy to expand itself!! And by the Law of Conservation of Energy, we cannot add anymore energy to it!!

But!! If we think back - if there was void at the beginning, before matter appeared, then how could it appear in the first place?!?! This violates the Conservation of Energy!!

At the end of the day, we always have to go back to the reasoning that someone must have created the matter!! If no one created matter, then matter cannot exist! So God exists.

But if God exists, then going back to the stuffs above, why is it that God allows bad things to happen to bad people?!?! Why is it that God allows suffering in this world?

This is why we have the Bible. The word of God will answer these questions for us. And we know that even though it seems that people are getting away with evil, they cannot escape the final judgment. Ecc 12:14 says God will bring every work into judgment, INCLUDING every secret thing, whether it is good or whether it is evil!

So we have it!! We know that God will finally deliver justice to all. This is why we do not seek revenge on our own, because God Himself has said, "Vengeance is Mine, I will repay." (Rom 12:19).

Finally we ask, is this a satisfactory answer? While most of us, including me, may answer no, it is the only answer we have. This is the hope we cling on to.

~falcon, OUT!!

UPDATE!!

2009-11-01T22:52:00.002+08:00

Hey all,

Have been getting inspiration after inspiration to post.. but never really finding the time. They include:
1. A post of PC1322 lecture regarding where we came from (apes?? absolute rubbish!)
2. A post on Where is God in all this suffering???
3. My views on what can Liverpool do now

But right now, I have to care about
1. PC1322 Term Test 2
2. MA2289 presentation
3. Tutorials and Homeworks
4. METRIC SPACES!!!!!!
5. Clearing up my stuff before I get back to Klang!
6. Studying for final exams
7. Writing an article for Jurong Outreach which I wanted to do months ago!!!

Pray for me!

Falcon, OUT!!

IS IT COMPULSORY???

2009-10-14T22:30:00.002+08:00

I always wondered about this - are lectures and tutorials in university compulsory?? Must we attend every single one? Is it wrong to skip??

They always say, "You are all adults alrd. We don't have to tell you what to do." What, is that your way of saying we are supposed to attend??

Why did Prof Loke tell us to take a course and skip all the lectures because you already know the material? Does that mean it's ok to do so??

There's an answer to all this.

~Falcon, OUT!!

EXISTENCE AND UNIQUENESS

2009-10-14T00:25:00.003+08:00

Sometimes in proving statements, there are some crucial steps that may not seem clear, and so have to be justified rigorously.

Often I have lost marks for hand-waving certain arguments when writing proofs in exams. When I tell my lecturer that it's clear, he says no, you have to justify.

In life, it is sometimes not that straightforward. Quote Yu Shih-Hsien, "Life is not that simple, ya..."

So... how? Should I take the finesse, or should I try a squeeze? Or perhaps endplay my opponents?

After awhile, you ask yourself, does a solution exist? Naturally, the next to ask is, is it unique?

Then sometimes you think it is. Sometimes you think it is not. Sometimes you just don't bother. Sometimes you just don't even know.

Currently, all you can do is say, "You're Terry, wright? Yeah I thought so."

~Falcon, OUT!!!

BENT

2009-10-05T21:43:00.000+08:00

I seriously don't know what's with you. I sincerely hope you don't become another Bent.

-out.

THE HOX

2009-09-22T23:10:00.003+08:00

Hi all. Imma back! Did I mention this post is going to be interesting and great and all? Well... heh.

I bet you have been checking here everyday awaiting the wonderful post right? Heh. Well, now that you have seen this post, you may say to yourself, "AH, POST! I FINALLY FOUND YOU." But then, when you think about it, and as you're reading this, there isn't really anything interesting about this post. IT'S JUST A POST. Everyone thought it was interesting, but in fact, it was just a HOX.

Sigh! What a letdown! Write such a post to promise such an interesting post, and create all this PRAABREM (problem), and came here since ARH-HUA (alpha) and in the end after you PRUG(plug) in your computer, you find nothing special. Sigh. Such an event really CHALLENGES YOUR IMAGINATION, doesn't it? You feel like RUNNING TO THE POST AND HUGGING AND KISSING IT right? Sigh. Well, if you're going to do that, make sure your LUNGS DON'T EXPLODE or YOU BE FLATTENED INTO A ROTI PRATA.

Oh well. Might as well. Last night I dreamt PY couldn't do maths. Then she wanted to ask AXG but he wasn't around. I offered to help but she ignored me. Weird dream eh?

Meanwhile, midterms are coming. I'm going to fail ODE. Just you wait and see.

~falcon, OUT!

O.T.O.T.

2009-08-20T23:56:00.003+08:00

I can't believe this. It's only week 2 and I'm already behind.

Here are my targets by 1/9/09:
1. Get my tutorials, homeworks and lectures up to date.
2. Source out at least 2 articles for GEK1520.
3. Choose a mega church and its teaching for the term paper.
4. Finish up MA2101 PYP.

Hope I get things done soon. Btw, wait for the next post - it'll be great!

~falcon, OUT!!!

FIRST WEEK QUOTES

2009-08-15T09:45:00.002+08:00

Hey all. I'm back. This week was the first week of the new Academic Year. Who knew, I'm already a year3 student!! Heh. Anyway, for uni ppl, remember the experience of the new semester? Everytime you hit a class, your first lecture, you meet the new lecturer, and he/she throws first impressions at ya. Heh well guess what? This time round, I've compiled each and every amusing statements made by my lecturers. Read it and you'll can go have your first impressions (or perhaps a better thing to do is to ponder why girls like to pierce their ears(or perhaps a better thing to do is to go calculate the volume of the water in the sea if the water was sucked out and stored in someone's stomach, intestine and liver (or perhaps a better thing to do is to consider better things to do))).

"If you work very hard for this module, you will definitely pass. Maybe a B or B-." -TKC

"There will be no cheating sheets! This is some unique term I learned in Singapore." -YSH

"...Wikipik-dia." -YSH

"hoo-id..." - YSH (as opposed to fluid)

"If you don't know quantum mechanics, you can only wash tubes." -YSH

"Now we go back to our MANGO we want to do now." -YSH (as opposed to "main goal")

"...otomosphere..." -YSH

"We want to MA!-del..." -YSH (as opposed to model)

"Each segment of Brunei..." -YSH (as opposed to "blue line")

"Star-gazing means... gazing the stars." -CN

"It(the eclipse) is not visible in Singapore. Sorry, it is visible in Singapore... on TV. " -CN

Amazing, eh?

I never get tired of them. It's as funny as taking the Hobbits to Isengard.

~Falcon, OUT!

YETTANOTHER STORY

2009-08-07T00:18:00.002+08:00

Ever wondered how the name Caesar Salad came about? Here, let me enlighten you.

Remember Julius Caesar (JC)? Yeah, that old punk that went around fighting and building some empire only to die and let other people take over and is now in existence no more. Sad right?

Anyway, legend has it that one day, he came back from battle. He was dead tired. And hungry too. So he asked his chef servant guy (CSG) to make him some salad to eat.

(Unknown to many, JC was actually vegetarian. No one knew because he looked so buff and tuff, but in reality, all he ever had for his meals were vegetables and water)

Anyway, so his CSG was making some salad for him. While he was doing so, he accidentally cut his own finger, and a drop of his blood fell into the bowl of salad. He thought it was no big deal, since it was only a wee bit of blood. No one would realize. Right?

... WRONG!!! JC was furious when he saw a red spot on his lettuce. He summoned his CSG over and asked WHAT WAS THE MEANING OF THIS?!?!?!?!?!

His CSG got scared and lied and said that it wasn't anything, but his blood that fell from a wound he sustained during the battle. JC then thought, hmm. My blood eh? I wonder how it tastes like... then he ate. He absolutely loved it!! It was THEE most fantastic amazing wonderful thing he's tasted in millions of years! Of course, he's only been alive for about 30 years at that time, but still!

So the next time it was time to eat, JC would deliberately take a knife to have some of his blood fall on his meal. This time, after he ate, it was THEE most horrible atrocious terrible thing he ever tasted! He was confused! How could his blood which tasted so good yesterday be so bad today?

That night, he was trembling in bed. It was summer, but yet he was freezing! Soon after, he died of a frozen heart.

Ever since then, the salad he ate is now known as Caesar Salad, wherein whoever eats of it shall become cold. That's why people eat it in hot places like Malaysia - to cool themselves down. Moreover, if you look carefully, there is a distinct red drop somewhere in the salad. It symbolized the blood of the mighty Julius Caesar, who died by his own blood.

Remember this legend next time you ever see or taste, CAESAR SALAD!!!

~Falcon, out!

FIRST AUGUST

2009-08-01T01:20:00.002+08:00

Conversation btwn Eunice the ohsonotawesome and the ohsoawesome me...

sean: woohoo! woohoo! watcha doing up so late?
eunice: *mmm.
*good question.
*i dont know
*haha
*cant sleep.
*x)
*my whole family is awake
*we all cant sleep
*for some reason
*LOL.

sean:
*haha
*cool
*must be 1st august syndrome
*do u know?

×èûñïçéqûåý says:
*haha no
*enlighten me : D

sean wishes, "HAPPY SUPER BDAY, SAW VEE MAE n CHENG YUN YUN!!!" says:
*there's a syndrome
*called 1st august syndrome
*quite common in 1950s

- (: ×èûñïçéqûåý×™♥ here we go again ;] says:
*oohh

sean wishes, "HAPPY SUPER BDAY, SAW VEE MAE n CHENG YUN YUN!!!" says:
*there was once, on 1st august dunno was it which country
*i think filipinos ar
*didnt sleep on that day
*as protest against the spanish who were ruling at that time
*so nowadays when u cant sleep on 1/8
*its called the 1st august syndrome
*cool right?

- (: ×èûñïçéqûåý×™♥ here we go again ;] says:
*oooh
*whoaahh
*that's so
*cool
*hahah

sean wishes, "HAPPY SUPER BDAY, SAW VEE MAE n CHENG YUN YUN!!!" says:
*haha
*yea
*thats cool
*until u realize that its not true
**haha

Don't you just love making up stories...

(Psst. for the record, Africans DO keep lions as pets...

...
...
...

...or do they? *sinister look*)

~Falcon, OUT!

PRIMITIVE

2009-07-24T00:36:00.002+08:00

I wanted to like RVR. Seriously I did. Near Singpost, near MPSH...

BUT!
1. Far away from COM1, where my classes will be.
2. PRIMITIVE!!! Seriously!
3. So high up the hill! Troublesome.
4. Lazy cleaners. You can only imagine.
5. Restricted. I can't get out. No Bus 30. 96 last bus is 11.30pm. Like, whaaaaaat??? I can't go SCBA play anymore...

I MISS PGPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPP!!!!!!!!!

SUGAR OVERLOAD

2009-07-13T23:29:00.002+08:00

This is what happens when you get a sugar overload.

Background: Chat between my friend and I. We are taking the same course for the special term and we're discussing the midterm.

- 冰 `PinG~* - hey
- 冰 `PinG~* - sorry past few days working
Me: yeah its ok
- 冰 `PinG~* - tmr is 930am at sr1?
- 冰 `PinG~* - all 6 lectures ah?
- 冰 `PinG~* - wat did she say on weds?
Me: wat tmr!
Me: wah u really bz hor
- 冰 `PinG~* - WAT
- 冰 `PinG~* - WAT
- 冰 `PinG~* - OMG
- 冰 `PinG~* - WAT
- 冰 `PinG~* - FINISH ADY?
- 冰 `PinG~* - OMg
Me: check forum
Me: erpz
- 冰 `PinG~* - WHEN
Me: dont panic leh
Me: check forum
- 冰 `PinG~* - OMG
- 冰 `PinG~* - HAVENT RITE
Me: ...
- 冰 `PinG~* - HAVENT RITE
Me: *whack
- 冰 `PinG~* - OMG
- 冰 `PinG~* - FINISH ADY?
- 冰 `PinG~* - OMGNESS
Me: ...
Me: later i block u
Me: haha
- 冰 `PinG~* - wah
- 冰 `PinG~* - scare me
- 冰 `PinG~* - OMG OMG OMG
- 冰 `PinG~* - not tmr!
- 冰 `PinG~* - YAYS!
- 冰 `PinG~* - wahlau
- 冰 `PinG~* - scare me
Me: haha
- 冰 `PinG~* - sorry la
Me: ya
- 冰 `PinG~* - i tot over ady then i die
- 冰 `PinG~* - so
Me: ..
- 冰 `PinG~* - is tuesday 12pm to 1pm
Me: wont wan
Me: tat time got midterm
- 冰 `PinG~* - okay
Me: i will call u 10 mins before if ur still not there
- 冰 `PinG~* - hahaha
- 冰 `PinG~* - thx thx

PWNED!!!
(psst.. Loan Ping, no offence k? ^^)

UPDATES

2009-07-12T22:27:00.002+08:00

Changelog:
1. Linked Sue May. Her surname is Yeoh. Inside joke.
2. Linked Yun Yun. Her English name is June.

Random quotes during the week:
1. "CHIP!" - Me
2. "It's not wrong, but it's not necessarily right..." - Trevor, SRC Dreamers player
3. "You're alive!!!" - Me
4. "Girls can't play bridge. Yingdan is an anomaly." - Heng Liang
5. "ROFL zeus!!!" - Me
6. "The chicken is AWESOME." - Me, Buddhi, Annie, Vikram

Random happenings:
1. Finding people for TD course at SCBA.
2. Trying to study but can't.
3. Loving the fact that I'm going to finish my UROPS soon.
4. Looking forward to first week of August.

Changes people will see in me next time they see me:
If you're from Klang, you would notice I have got some funky tan. Reason, sunburnt in Singapore. My skin is peeling off!!! Stupid UV rays.

If you're from any other part besides Klang and haven't seen me since May, I have grown fatter.

That's all I guess.

Falcon, OUT~

CHUCK NORRIS

2009-07-08T23:36:00.003+08:00

Changelog:
1. Linked Alvin's blog.

Note:
1. For those of you who want to follow my blog, you can do so by blogger.com's functions.

Updates:
HAPPY SUPER BIRTHDAY to
1. SHARKS!!!
2. PY!!!!!!!!!!
3. "Four Knights No Lights" Nahim "No Trump" bin Zahur!!!

Hanxing has stepped down as NUS Bridge Captain. That means I'm in charge now. Heh. And I have to finish up by organizing NUS-NTU Challenge.

Funny:
1. For those of you who play Magic: The Gathering, this is absolutely hilarious!!!

That's all folks!!

Falcon, OUT!

FERNANDO

2009-06-27T22:15:00.002+08:00

Abba sang the song "Fernando". The first line of the song was "Can you hear the drums fernando?"

Well. I think that's sort of like, incorporated as Ong Jae "Fernando Torres" Wen's theme song already...

It just struck my mind that by altering the first line of that popular Abba song, we can tell many many stories. For example...

"Can you score the goals, Fernando?" - Fernando Torres
"Can you win the race, Fernando?" - Fernando Alonso
"Can you block the shots, Fernando?" - Fernando Couto
"Can you make the serve, Fernando?" - Fernando Verdasco
"Can you sing the songs, Fernando?" - Fernando Ortega
"Can you paint a scene, Fernando?" - Fernando Botero
"Can you play the role, Fernando?" - Fernando del Rincon

Cool, eh? After much reading, I found out that the song Fernando is actually about two veteran soldiers reminiscing about the past. How about that for no link!!

Still, for now, OFTJW's catchphrase shall be "Can you hear the drums Fernando?" Hey, maybe I can introduce it in YDP this year, just like how I introduced SMASHing for Eunice... haha...

Till next time. Falcon, OUT!!!

FGM

2009-06-25T10:45:00.002+08:00

I watched Family Guy movie the other day. Stewie Griffin: The Untold Story, they called it. I think one word best describes it.

Erpz.

Heh. On a different note, I found out that this is going to be a very busy holiday. Sigh.

~falcon, out!

GREAT SUCCESS?

2009-06-22T00:24:00.000+08:00

I just watched Borat and Wall-E last week. Wall-E was kinda nice... tho I still can't get around robots falling in love... +.+

Borat was... just... simply stupid. STOOOOOPID, I TELL YA, STOOPID!!!

That is all.

Falcon, OUT!

THAT SMILE

2009-06-19T00:28:00.002+08:00

I finally managed to catch Camp Rock yesterday! Fantastic!! I think it was a great movie just because it was a movie about music, and well, you know how much I love music! Tho I don't really have a specific type of genre that I like nor any artist that I adore very much, I just like music in general... and to have movie after movie related to music is just fantastic!!

Check out this MV by some person for the song This is Me by Demi Lovato feat. Nick Jonas!!

Tell ya one thing - I think this song is great!! Obviously, Demi should work on her dancing, but the song is absolutely great! No 2 ways about that!! Very expressive, and the way Nick and Demi sing together, they have such great chemistry...

By the way, notice Demi's smile? Look familiar? Maybe not to you, but I'd know that smile anywhere...

---

WARNING: Mathematical post ahead!!! If you cannot bear it, please scroll down to the END OF MATHEMATICS part.

Field: Set theory.

I recently learned that the thought that music is subjective and different people enjoy different music is not exactly true. This means that there are some arrangements that sound nice and is appreciated by everyone, while other arrangements are regarded as lousy and not good.

Now this got me wondering, so if this is the case, how many "good music" can we possibly have? Finitely many? Countably infinitely many? Uncountably many?

First, we give a definition. An arrangement is a finite sequence of notes.

Consider this: There are, of course, countably many notes. Now let N denote the set of all notes. Therefore, if n denotes the number of notes in the arrangement, each arrangement is actually an element of N x N x ... x N (n times). Now we know that a finite product of countable sets is countable, and hence, there are countably infinite number of possible arrangements in this world.

Next, we give another definition. A good arrangement is an arrangement which the general public accepts as good, however "good" is defined.

Now, suppose A is a good arrangement, and B is another good arrangement. We denote AxB as the arrangement of A and B put together, and clearly AxB is not equal to BxA, so the operation x is not commutative. Note that neither AxB nor BxA may be a good arrangement, and hence, this operation x is not closed.

However, it is reasonable to accept that AxA is a good arrangement, since repeating the same arrangement twice still sounds reasonably good. In addition, nothing can stop us from repeating this a further 3 times, 4 times, and so on. This means that each good arrangement can be repeated a n times, where n is a positive integer.

This implies that there are countably infinitely many good arrangements!!

--- END OF MATHEMATICS ---

Of course, you may ask, what significance did all this bring? Well, it turns out that there are infinitely many good arrangements in this world! That means that the music industry will go on forever since songwriters can keep producing different kinds of good arrangements! They just need to TRY and THINK HARDER!!!

Alright, that should be all for now.

~Falcon, OUT!!

FREE PASS

2009-06-16T01:14:00.002+08:00

Check this out. Stay My Baby MV by Miranda Cosgrove.

For those who think she looks familiar, it's because you've seen her on the super cool Nick series DRAKE AND JOSH!!!!!!!!!!! She played the super evil genius little sister Megan.

Anyway, it seems that, nowadays so many young actresses gets a free pass to the singing world... All you have to do is gain some stardom points by acting in some show, then make a few guest appearances here and there, and look good (duh) and suddenly, voila! You're a singer... It's so... fake.

You know why fake? Coz... this song isn't original. It was Amy Diamond's single in 2007.

Of course, you may say, Miranda's that only ONE case!! Heyhey!! She's not! Remember our funky High-School-Musical-actress-turned-overnight-star-sweet-cute-face-and-then-screwed-it-all-up-with-the-leaked-nude-photos Vanessa Hudgens?? After 2 appearances on HSM and HSM2 respectively, she suddenly comes up with a "hit single" Baby Come Back.

Listen to the song? Heh. It sounds so... unoriginal. It sounded like they took pieces of arrangements from other songs and fused them together. That's completely rubbish!!

That's why singers who were once actresses nowadays, for me, aren't really such a big hit since I feel that they were not that good to begin with. Yeah they have good looks and good voice, but then, what good is it if your composer doesn't come up with original songs?

Then again, if that's the case, then it's not the singers' fault, it's those songwriters!! They're running out of ideas so much so that they have to steal other people's stuff! That is absolutely disgraceful!!

You want real singers, get those from AI. Now THOSE are singers. And if they can act, hey, why not? It generates extra revenue. So far, I've seen Swift and Daughtry on TV shows already... next thing you know, Lambert's going to act in some gay movie... who knows...

Speaking of which, it's a total shame and embarassment for Lambert to be gay. Seriously... this is part of Obama's plot. Get a good gay who can sing well. Put him on national TV. Then, after he gets his fame, tell the world that he's a homosexual and earn the "understanding" and "respect" from people. That. is. absolutely. rubbish. 'Nuff said.

till then. falcon, OUT~

Y.E.S. 2009 QUOTES

2009-06-12T23:07:00.005+08:00

Hi ALL.

Y.E.S. 2009 was over and done with. Here are some interesting and memorable quotes...

Eunice: Hi. My name is Eunice. I'm 14, and I like to...
Me: ...smash?
Eunice: ...I like to smash.

TW: Evelyn, who's this?
Evelyn: Eunice.
TW: How old is she?
Evelyn: 14.
TW: What does she like to do?
Evelyn: Smash.
TW: HAR?!
Me: No, you know the badminton smash?
TW: ...

JW: Hey Sean.
Me: Hey Fernando. Can you hear the drums Fernando?

Tze Ren: Evil Boon Chin.

Chien Chern: Any choices?
JW: 595.
ES: 397.

ES: Takeeee my hannnnnd, leeeeet me standddddddd...

thsexysmasher aka eunice: 191!!! 191!!! 191!!! 191!!!

Me: We got -4 points. Hey, in golf, that's good!!

ES: (to Tze Ren) If you win, I give you my life.

ES: Eh, can lend your shampoo? I forgot to bring mine.

TW: Guys not allowed in girls room, girls not allowed in guys room.

Krystle: Supporting Mulberry!

Joan: What what blueberry?

Jonathan: There once was a dog, comma...
Me: Coma was a very special dog...

(On the mic): BDAAAAAAAAH!!!! Ze BANYA!!! ZI Babib! Zi WAWA!!!
(On the mic): BDAAAAHH!!!
(On the mic): BDAAHH!!!
(On the mic): BDAH!!!
(On the mic): BDAH!!! BDAH!!! BDAH!!! BDAH!!! BDAH!!! BDAH!!! BDAH!!! BDAH!!!

OEB: Wahhhh!! I eat la I eat la!!!

Christine: I want go MAMAK!!!!!!!!!!!!! So hungrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrry!!!

Daryl: You're so stupid, you make Bryant look smart!

ES: Ah my kidneys!!!

Me: Hi Cedric. Cedric Diggory... Expelliarmus!!

Daryl: Football playing king in space.

ES: There is a jaguar on 1 side and a lion on the other. You have 1 bullet and 1 gun. Which do you shoot?
thsexysmasher aka EUNICEQUAY: the lion?
ES: Yeah, you shoot the lion and drive the jaguar.

Cedric: Hey, have some jaguar, eh sorry, guava.
Daryl: Yup, try some jaguar.

--Right, that should be all for now..

~FALCON, OUT!!!

UPDATED

2009-06-03T11:40:00.000+08:00

It's updated, the links page... go look on the right and you can see...

-Falcon, OUT!

POST SEM PRESS CONFERENCE

2009-05-31T23:51:00.002+08:00

I: First of all, let's start with Algebra. A strong A-. Happy?
M: Yeah well, I don't think it was a strong A-. I actually couldn't do a lot of the questions so of course I'm not happy. I was expecting worse, but I got away with an A-.

I: There's been speculation that you are thinking of switching your focus from Analysis to Algebra. Can you tell us a bit more on that?
M: Yeah, if you compare the results of Algebra and Analysis, you see that there is a clear distinction. I only took 1 Algebra course so far and I scored higher in it than both my Analysis courses. However, I still enjoy doing Analysis, just... not in such a short period of time. But, we'll wait and see what happens.

I: We've looked at your Analysis result. Satisfied?
M: More relieved actually. Again, I was expecting worse, because there were some questions that were actually very simple but I couldn't do, and then there was that question where I applied Liouville's Theorem wrongly. So yeah, I was expecting something worse, probably a B or B-, but this is fine. I'll take it.

I: So overall, you haven't been really happy with your results?
M: No. Definitely not. We expected so much better, and what we got was very disappointing, considering how hard we worked this time round.

I: So what do you think is the cause of it?
M: I don't know, really. Maybe we're just not good enough.

I: Your CAP hasn't changed. Is 4.25 still possible?
M: I don't know. I think it's still Mathematically achievable, but if it was difficult before, it is even more difficult now.

I: So with this sem's results, how would you approach the following sem?
M: Our target for next sem is simple. Get an A+ and at least B+ for everything.

I: You haven't gotten an A+ before.
M: That's right.

I: Then it won't be easy.
M: Of course. In fact, it's near impossible for us.

I: But it's still your goal for next semester?
M: Yeah.

I: OK. Thank you for your time.
M: Thank you.

DREAMCAR

2009-05-23T00:21:00.002+08:00

Few nights ago, I dreamt I was an F1 driver for McLaren-Mercedes. My teammate was Heikki. It was so super cool!!!

It was Sunday, race day. We were starting in 3rd and 4th, behind the 2 Ferraris ahead of us. Then, we got on the grid, and boom! Formation lap. We got off... and into the first corner, Heikki's car slowed and suddenly stopped. I slowed down to check out what happened. After that, I realized my car was coming to a standstill as well. No drive. Freak.

Double retirement for the team even before the race started. How sad.

NO EYE DEAR

2009-05-19T17:19:00.001+08:00

I can't come up with a good post.

Someone gimme inspiration!!!

SEM QUOTES YET AGAIN!!!

2009-05-11T11:11:00.002+08:00

Here we go again!! The all exciting quotes from this sem!!

"Ahh, and you get this." -Yannis
"Binomial, ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!" -Yannis

"Hey, did you know Nic is Vietnamese?"

"So, uhhh.. you, errr... see that, uhhh.............." -TWK
"U-uu-uh--rr-ee--errrr..." -TWK
"So uh... we want to find the woots of this polynomial equations... so if the degree is n, then there are n woots." -TWK
"There was a Mathematician who name his dog Cauchy. Yea, because it leaves residues at every pole." -TWK

"It's the. saaaaaaaaaame. riiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiight??" -ZCB
"Ya, ok, see... *pulls pants* " -ZCB

OK, so that seems to be all. Interestingly, these quotes are much funnier when you hear 'em rather than read 'em. You get to experience the tone and the style with which they were actually presented, so hey! If you see me along the streets, get me to do one! It's only RM1 for each quote! ^^

-Falcon, OUT!

A PLEASANT SURPRISE

2009-05-07T21:13:00.002+08:00

This afternoon I got an SMS from Kareen. All the way from Singapore. She said:

"Just so you know-It's a lovely day. And you are missed :) have a blessed day!"

Hmm. Either she's really really really happy today, or she really is just sending out sweet random msges around..

Either way, it was fantastic to hear from her!!

IN MEMORY OF AYRTON

2009-05-02T09:51:00.002+08:00

Friday marked the 15th anniversary of Ayrton Senna's passing on. He died from a crash during the 1994 Imola F1 GP. Here is the video of this crash.

Looking at the footage itself, it's hard to believe such a crash was massive enough to cause a fatal injury. But it did, and he lost his life at the age of 34. How sad to die on Malaysia/Singapore's Labour Day.

Compare that to this.

Now if you were to watch that footage, which was Robert Kubica's crash 2 years ago in Canada, you would have guessed that the guy is probably six feet under by now. The real outcome? He sustained a sprained ankle, and that's it. +.+

It's amazing how the advancement in technology has been put to such good use that a guy can even be conscious even after such a crash... As one of the comments in one of the crash videos on youtube put,

"HANS could protect his neck from breaking, but he would have died from inner bleedings and organ ruptures. He slowed down from 250 kph to near 0 in a few centimetres, which means a deceleration of far over 200 g. U cant survive this."

HANS here refers to the Head and Neck Support System, the thing that drivers have on their necks as a brace for crashes like that. But seriously, no one survives 200G. That's outrageous!!!

I doubt the crash was over 200G in terms of impact, but you can only see how dangerous it was.

Again, you really gotta give props to Dr. Robert Hubbard for inventing this system. It was helped to keep F1 safer so that the fans and drivers can focus on the driving and not worry so much about their safety.

Once again. In memory of Ayrton Senna.

JUDGEMENT DAY PREVIEW

2009-04-24T11:34:00.003+08:00

Here we go. The preview to the Day of Reckoning.

Day 1: MA2216
I call it MA2216S. It's really THAT tought.

I: How're you feeling ahead of the first paper?
M: Anxious, really. It's been a great time. We got full marks for Assignment 1 and hopefully the same for Assignment 2 and the tutorial participation. The final will be worth 65%, and with the final paper worth 65 marks, it's 1 mark for 1%. So every mark counts. I think that we've done well so far, and we have to keep working hard to make sure we're ahead of the pack.

I: A Saturday morning paper, not a good way to kick off the season?
M: Well yes and no. Morning paper is always good, because it's when I'm freshest. Of course, I would sleep a little earlier than I usually do, purely and simply because rest is very much needed for morning papers. On the other hand, I really dislike the prospect of waking up early on Saturdays, what's more to sit for a final paper. I think it's ridiculous, and to think some others have to do it on Sundays is really unacceptable.

But, after all's said and done, it's been scheduled that way, and there's nothing much we can do about it. We'll just have to go and do it, and hope everything turns out alright.

I: No calculators nor tables needed. Many people are fearful of the thought that we will have 5 theoretical questions. What is your take on that?
M: Yeah well, theoretical questions for me is alright. In fact, to be honest I think I prefer it to computational questions since I always make careless mistakes there. But I don't think it'll be all theoretical. There should be some simple computational questions where we will need to apply some theory learned to compute the probability. It's just that there will be no complicated computations involved.

Day 2: CS3230

I: Moving on, Day 2 is Design and Analysis of Algorithms. A good start to the sem, but finishing not too well? Talk us through that.
M: Yeah the start was fantastic. I could not have asked for anything better. The first part of it, the analysis part was very mathematical, so it was really in my element. I scored well for the 1st 2 assignments as well as the midterms, so I was really feeling positive about that.

But unfortunately we haven't been doing well for the last few assignments after that. I think I lost about 60 marks in total for the assignment. The good thing is that it's only a proportion of the 40% that I'll be losing, so it's not so bad. The bad part is that a good many actually got those marks, so it's bad news for us because it puts us on the wrong end of the bell curve.

The final exam is 40%, which is not much, but we're hoping to get everything we can from it and see where it takes us.

I: What will you be expecting from the finals?
M: Nothing much really. We're just hoping that we can do every question correctly, score well, and hopefully, at the end of the course, get at least an A-. But it will not be easy for us, so we need to really work for it and hope everything turns in our favour.

Day 3: MA3111
I: MA3111, Complex Analysis I is what you have for Day 3. How's your preparations for it so far?
M: Good, really good. I don't think we can more prepared than we are now. We've done up the PYPs, seen the lecturer, got every help we can possibly get, and so we'll have a good idea about what might come out for the finals. It is worth about 65%, so it's quite a huge chunk of marks we can get if we do well.

I: Full marks for homework, perhaps above average for the midterm, you're set up well to get a good grade?
M: Yeah the homework has turned out well for us. We lost a bit in the first one, but since he only took the top 4, the first is discarded since the remaining 4 we got full marks for it. So that's good for us. We were a bit concerned for the midterm because we could not manage to complete the final 2 questions, but we were sort of handed a lifeline because we got some partial credit for it. So that's good, and we'll be hoping to get maximum grade for this.

Day 4: MA2202
I: Finally, Algebra I. You've been attending the S-version lectures. How much help has it been?
M: A lot, certainly. We've learned more than what the regular students are learning, and it's been a huge plus for us.

I: So then I suppose you will be feeling confident about the finals?
M: Not really actually. We haven't really started studying for it since it's so far away. I took a look see at the PYP and it sort of seemed managable, apart from the 1 or 2 tough questions. I heard that Prof. Zhang actually sets some tough questions for the exam, so I believe it's going to be a challenge for all of us. It will not be easy, so we will have to really put in some effort to squeeze a good grade out of this one.

I: You lost some marks in the HW assignment. Not too well?
M: Yeah I lost 10 marks in HW2. I actually had a typo which misled me into doing something else. But it doesn't really affect the overall marks too much. 10 marks is only about 3 or 4%, so it's fine. The important thing is that we have done really well with the midterm, and I'm really proud of the guys. It wasn't as good as expected but it was good nonetheless. So we will be looking forward to this final and hope we can continue our good run.

I: That's all. Thank you.
M: Thanks.

THE GAY-NESS

2009-04-22T22:19:00.003+08:00

I just came across the mail.com news saying that Miley Cyrus and Heidi Montag are somewhat flaming Hilton, telling her that gay and lesbians are fine and should be accepted.

Now that in itself it not a surprise, as we can see it's somewhat a growing trend in the world, especially in the USA nowadays. Now, what makes me LMHO (laugh my head off), is this.. BOTH Cyrus and Montag used the (wait for it... drum roll...chimes... )

THE BIBLE!!!

to defend their position on homosexuality!!! Listen to this:

"God says in the bible that we should love our neighbor and he created us all as equals. I know in my heart that gays and lesbians should have the same government rights that Spencer and I will when we get married. So, yes, this blonde Christian believes in gay marriage and I hope to one day go to YOUR wedding, Perez!!!"

This was from Montag. Cyrus here even used Jesus and the whole God-love-you thing... Check it:

"jesus loves you AND your partner and wants you to know how much he cares! thats like a daddy not loving his lil boy cuz hes gay. and that is WRONG and very sad! like i said everyone deserves to be happy. i am a christian and i love you - gay or not. BECAUSE you are no different that anyone else! we are all gods children! i am not. saying this so would be nice on your site (though that would be nice jk;) but because the LORD has spoken "love cuz god loves."

Alright, let's dissect Montag's comment first. She starts off by saying "God says in the bible..." and then what does she do? "I know in my heart..." Oh wow. How convenient!! Start with GOD SAYS!! then suddenly use your heart as authority, as if "your heart" has the same authority as "the Bible".

Now isn't this the same typical response we're getting from so many people nowadays? Use the Bible and claim that God created everyone equal. Then conclude that because of that, homosexuality is fine.

My dear Montag, please read 1 Cor 6:9-10. Please, please, oh please, do not abuse the Bible by taking only 1 part of it and leaving the other. Know that, "the sum of God's word is truth" (Psalms 119:160), and not just a part of it.

Now, Cyrus' comments are something like what a false teacher would say. Take some truth, and mix it with lies, and people can't tell the difference! Someone give her an award for being able to apply Game Theory so aptly in religious topics!!!

Of course Jesus loves you. Of course God loves you. But that does not mean God loves your sins too. A sin is a sin. If you really do love God, you would do as He says (John 14:15).

As Hagrid puts it... "There's a storm coming... We'd best be prepared for it when it comes."

Are we prepared?

(P/s: Some Liverpool fans may be gutted by Liverpool's 4-4 draw with Arsenal. Relax. It makes not much diff. MU still has to lose 2 matches. I see a potential in their Arsenal game. Another, I have no idea. That's why I STILL think MU will take it again this season... So please don't shoot me)

MAGICAL

2009-04-18T00:12:00.000+08:00

Oh no I suddenly got a craving for Harry Potter. How? My exams are coming!!!

SO FAR...

2009-04-16T21:09:00.004+08:00

Hey all.

Yeah I know I haven't been updating. I've been busy. What d'ya expect?!?! Yeah so, since I have time, I shall update now. Ok. What shall I say? Hmm...

1. I'm back in Klang. Yeah. It's 2 weeks to my exams and I'm back in Klang. Cool eh? Shall do my exam preview thoughts like I always do soon enough. Probably next week.

2. Liverpool lost. to Chelsea. in the UCL. Did I see it coming? Yes. Was it expected? Yes. Postmatch thoughts? I saw it coming, it was expected. A look at the Premier League title? I still think Liverpool will most probably not get it. Reason? There's not enough opportunity for Man U to drop points. They can lose to Arsenal, yes. But they need to throw 1 more game away. And to whom would that be, you ask? That's the question I'm trying to find an answer to. After Aston Villa, I already don't know who else can push Man U enough to not win. Hopefully fatigue from chasing after 2 other tropies will cause Fergie to rotate, thereby disrupting the rhythm of the squad, and then causing them to self-destruct!! Long shot? Seems to be the only way.

Oh and don't forget, Liverpool need to win all their games too. Do they? Actually they don't. If that happened to Man U, Liv can manage 1 draw. They have superior goal difference. Eat that, Fergie-who-boasts-that-Man-U-have-a-superior-goal-difference-before-they-lost-to-Liverpool-at-home-by-a-4-1-scoreline!!

Hey did you know? If you spell it like this: Manu. It sounds like an Indian guy's name. Haha!!

3. China GP this weekend. McLaren not in good shape? Agreed. Can they turn it around? Yes. How? I don't know. Well, for qualifying I don't know. But for the race, Lewis, I know is a good racer. I've watched videos of his karting days where he went from last to first. In GP2, he went from last to 3rd. So this guy knows how to race and push. No worries about that.

4. I think we all know, that after the finals... comes a long awaited...

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!HOLIDAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Now, do I have anything planned for the holidays? Of course I do!! Here's what I plan to do:
a. Learn Game Programming. In C++
b. Get started on my UROPS report
c. Do something nice for PY's birthday
d. Meet up with the old gang
e. Teach Add Maths
f. Learn to cook more stuff so that I can cook for my friends back in PGP (I hope no one from Singapore reads this...)
g. SLACK!!!

Hmm. Of all the things I plan to do, I wonder how many will get done. Seems like we always plan to do so many funky things, but in the end, all we end up doing is slacking and enjoying as our holiday goes by. One thing's for sure though: I WILL NOT FEEL BORED!!

YES!! I know many many people get bored after a long holiday. In fact, some people feel so empty after their exams. Like their lives have no purpose anymore. Me? I don't feel the same way. BREATHE FREEDOM!!! Smell freedom!!! Taste freedom!!! Imagine! The thought of being able to do anything you like, for the next few months!!! It. Is. FANTASTIC!!! How can you feel bored? It is not possible. It is never possible. It cannot be possible. Sigh. Some people.

5. I can't believe I failed to get the PYP Latexify Chairman position!! I was so looking forward to it! Imagine. I get to work with BM, YH. Moreover, it's a good chance for me to get closer to the Mathsoc people. But I failed!! I didn't get it!! Sigh. Some people.

6. I think Chippy's getting more and more obssessed with shoes. Look at her!! It's her holidays, and what does she do? Surf internet looking for shoes! Sigh. Some people.

7. The Bridge League is ongoing. We at NUS A had our first match with guess-who-NUS-B. The result? A whopping 8-22 to our secondary team. Overall result? With just one game played, we are sitting 3rd from bottom. Impact? Not so good considering our next match is a almost-surely-lose fixture with Rosso. Of course, the 1st round knock out in the Cup Competition by CO didn't help. Now we'll be unseeded for next year's Cup draw, and we'll probably be facing Mokymouse or something. Sigh. But hey, it's only 1 match played. 9 more to go. Of the 9, how many wins to do you think we can get? Let's see...

We'll count BTCC, SRC Dreamers, CO. 3 most possible wins. That's not much. We MUST WIN if we're to even stay in Division 2. And our captain is hoping we fight for promotion. Sigh. Some people.

Alright. That's all I guess.

-Falcon, OUT!!!~

SURPRISE SURPRISE

2009-03-09T13:16:00.003+08:00

"Sean, SOS my pc got prob kenot open d programe..its crash wit d other filename leh..2mr i got test..can u cum2my place n help me a while right after ur church?"

This was the msg I received during Bible Class on Wed night. Of course, being the kind person that I was, I consented. I replied and asked what kind of problem is that, I didn't really understand.

And after she explained, I still couldn't understand. I wondered if the whole thing was just a plot to spring a surprise on me for my birthday. With that in mind, I decided not to push it. She might breakdown and reveal everything, and I didn't want to spoil the fun for her and probably, CHK and Likiliki.

I dropped off at the bus stop just outside the PGP backgate off the number 30 bus that night. I msged PH saying that I've reached. Then we agreed to meet at the R5 entrance so that she could bring me up.

As I was walking, I wondered how they were going to do it. They could wait for me at the entrance with the cake in hand, all ready. Or they could hide in PH's cluster and wait for her to bring me there. OR, they could hide in PH's room and wait for her to bring me there. Thoughts and guesses were racing through my mind. Of course, I told myself I must not look as if I'm expecting something. I MUST remain calm. As if I AM really going to help her with her laptop. Of course, it could be that she really is in trouble and needed my help.

But then again, she would have said that Likiliki didn't reply even after 1 hr. He's not that type of guy. Hmmm.

I met her at the R5 entrance. The way she behaved, it was as if she was about to cry. Then, I thought maybe it was the real thing. Nevertheless, I chose to sweep all of it out of my mind as we travelled up the lift up to her floor. She led me through her cluster door, past the cluster toilet, and past the cluster kitchen, all the way to her room. When we arrived, she opened her door. No one inside, I thought. She turned on the com. We chatted awhile while waiting for it to warm up and totally load.

Later, she was doing as if the internet connection wasn't working, I couldn't tell whether it was real or not...

Suddenly. Came a knock on the door.

"RA ROOM CHECK!" the voice boomed.

Surprised, shocked, terrified, I hid behind the door. Then she opened the door and signalled for me to come see. Well what d'ya know? 4 people stood at the door. Stan, HK, Teriyaki and Vietnamese Nic.

Now that's what I call a birthday surprise.

BOOKIE

2009-02-26T17:38:00.001+08:00

Hey all,

New book out. Check it!!

THE RACE

2009-02-23T01:22:00.002+08:00

There's been much talk about the title race in the EPL going on now. Some people are writing off Chelsea, some are tipping Man U to dominate and take it all the way, some even suggest Aston Villa might snatch it.

Being a Liverpool supporter, I've heard a lot of stories from both sides about our title bid. Some say we're not good enough, some say we can do it. Here are my thoughts: We can win it. But. Not this season.

Look at this. We just drew with ManC 1-1. This has made us 7 pts behind MU. Being 7 pts behind a leading team is bad enough, and if it's MU, well, that's it.

The way I see it, we can't win. Even if we beat them at Old Trafford, it's not enough. Plus, I believe we'll drop more and MORE points if Rafa doesn't change something. If we win it, it will NOT be because of our "brilliant" manager.

The guy is disillusioned - he thinks what he's doing is right. Just because he gets some wins here and there, he thinks whatever he's doing is right, but he's blinded by so many things.

1. You don't expect to win a match just by playing with a lone striker up front, and put Kuyt on the right. C'mon la. Get real. 1 target man will give you such limited options. Even with Fernando. And Dirk Kuyt is a striker! A forward!! You know, like, a person who gets the ball and score goals??? He's not some funky crosser and runner. He can't take defenders on, he's slow and he's short!! What does he have to offer (compared to Robbie Keane)???

2. The team lacks creativity. So many times I've seen Liverpool's attack to be 1-dimensional. Get the ball to the flank, swing a cross in and pray for a Liverpool man to head the ball into goal. Seriously, there's so little they can do. They can't even play it down the midfield!! There's no one who can find a clear defense-slicing pass which will allow Fernando to be away on 1-1 and score goals. The chances we create, we waste so many of them. That's why we can dominate a match but yet not score. That's why when teams come to Anfield with a packed up defense, we can't get a goal. Ever so often our goals have come from 2 players - Stevie and Fernando. Where are the rest?!?!

3. Rafa names the horriblest starting line up ever. What's the point of putting Mascherano and/or Lucas when you're out to win the game?!?! What can these defensive midfielders do?!?! Masch just sits and absorbs tackles, and then signals the ref to card him. He has a big mouth, and everytime he tries a shot on goal, it goes well wide. C'mon la. Play Stevie and Xabi!!

4. The way Rafa makes his subs bewilders me. We can be 0-0 down, and he waits till the 68th minute to bring a new player in the game. Then, the next sub comes in on the 80+ min, and the last near stoppage time. Seriously. If I were the manager of a team currently chasing a game, I'd make my 1st sub at 50+ mins... and the subs he brings on, oh no!! Of all the players who can actually score a goal, he brings off Robbie Keane, and who does he bring on? David N'gog. What a joke.

5. His man-management skills are terrible. When Robbie Keane was high on confidence, he leaves him on the bench, and eventually doesn't even put him in the squad. Then, he sells him at a lower price, and straight after that, Stevie gets injured and no one can cover for him. He could just play him alongside Fernando, leave Dirk Kuyt out, and let those 2 form a formidable partnership! Let's face it: Robbie is better than Dirk any day.

To sum it up, I say, sack Rafa. Bring in a manager with common sense please. And when I say common sense, I do mean common sense. Ranieri doesn't qualify as a person with common sense. Same goes for Erikson, McClaren and especially not Wenger.

If they do get rid of Rafa, who's to replace him? To be honest, I can't think of any who's fit enough at the moment. Come to think of it, Sammy Lee seems good. So too Phil Thompson, Martin O'Neill. Anyone else? Jurgen Klinsmann is alright I guess, but I'm not sure if a German manager will suit English football. Hiddink is good as well, but he's not available.

Next we must increase our funds and negotiation skills. We need more quality depth. Currently we have depth, but it's of rubbish quality. Stevie and Xabi is out, who you put in CM? Masch and Lucas. What a joke.

After all that, could we then properly challenge for the title? Who knows la. I'm just frustrated by the whole thing.

-Falcon, OUT~

HAPPENINGS

2009-02-16T22:57:00.002+08:00

Yesterday, I told Zelda she looked elegant. She smiled and broke a leg in thanks... Now that's what I call elegance!! Hehe...

Yesterday, I realized Pei Ying is happier and more cheerful since the last time I saw her... Maybe because it's THAT time of the year. Yup, even I am much happier this week!!

I enjoyed Valentine's Day by doing my tutorials and having lunch with Xiao Chen and dinner alone... it was good tho! Worth the wait. The wait for what, you say? Heh. That, well.. let's leave it at that for now, k? ;)

From now on, things are going to get tough... ~ and I can't wait!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

FALCON, ouT!!

PARANOIA

2009-02-07T01:23:00.003+08:00

To say the least, I. am. afraid.

I seriously hope what I think is going on isn't going on. Otherwise, I'd don't know what I'd do...

In situations like this, what do you do? Do you treat it as if it's not happening and do what you usually do, or do you try to deal with it??

Life is tough. Decisions... I just made one and now I have to make another one again...

I sure hope I finish my tutorials and homework before next week!!

Falcon, OUT!

HELPING HANDS

2009-02-06T00:10:00.002+08:00

It's 12.23am. I have a 8am lecture and I'm staying up to help my friend do his MA2108S tutorial.

I should be sleeping now, but I haven't even changed.

Sometimes you wonder why you help people so much. You know you're not getting back anything in return. Yet, you sacrifice so much of your time just to make sure the person gets all the help the person needs. Then, the person says thanks, and that's the end of the story.

In situations like these, you wonder why you even bothered to help at all. That's the case with me sometimes.

Prov 19:17 says "He who has pity on the poor lends to the LORD, and He will pay back what he has given."

Here Solomon describes helping the poor as lending to the LORD. When we think of it that way, we do not worry for ourselves, because the Bible promises that God will repay us. This is the assurance that we can have.

I guess when it comes to helping people, it's analogous. At least, that's why I still continue to do what I do. And I like it. I like helping people. The feeling you get after someone gets his/her problem solved... it's indescribably amazing... for me, there's none like it in the world.

After all's said and done, I still need to sleep!!!

~FALCON, out!!

HEYHEY

2009-02-02T18:52:00.002+08:00

My apologies to Chippy for stealing her "heyhey". I realized I've been using that a lot lately. Heh.

Interestingly, today in the canteen I met someone who sounded like her. Oo.

There's a Brand's Essence of Chicken on my table. It's been there since... few weeks ago. When's a good time to drink it? Who knows.

I spoke to my ex-classmate yesterday. She gave some interesting suggestions. Interested in trying them, but I wonder how I'll execute them tho...

Note: V Day is coming. You can tell from the roses they're selling. What shall I do then?? Hmm...

~FALCON, out!!

GREEK WORDS

2009-01-19T23:10:00.000+08:00

Today our Probability lecturer, Yannis Yatracos said...

"Things will start flying soon."

"This is the part of the course which will drive everyone nuts."

This'll be an exciting sem with him. Look out!!!

-FALCON, out!!

A NEW BEGINNING

2009-01-17T23:33:00.002+08:00

I know this is kinda late, but...

It's a new sem and a new year.

Argh freak. I'm turning 20. Nooooooo!!!

Ah well. I guess coming into the new year, I realized that hey look, I'm a 2nd year uni student now. I left my hometown, came here and I'm living on my own. One word springs into mind: Responsibility.

That dreaded word. But the time really has come. As young as I may be, I've been with people older than me ever since I was 10, so, that's not going to take much adjusting. Only thing is that, I'm going to have to be more mature now. No more kiddy stuff! No more relying on people so much. Got to learn to do things on my own. Handle my own problems. Bear my own load. Of course, whenever required, my friends will always stick by me. My OLDER friends, from whom I constantly learn and draw wisdom from.

After all's said and done, I gotta say, I don't regret skipping Std 4 in Primary School last time. It has made me a better person and has given me the edge over those same age as me who did not skip. It's made me grow quicker and faster. Of course, the learning curve is really steep, but hey, it was worth it, and still is.

I jumped into the Dragon Year, the year of baby boom!! You can only imagine the competition we had in schools. Heh. Of course, after that, I avoided them by taking a 1-year pre-u in College and going to uni after that. I said goodbye to my Dragon Year friends and said HELLO!!! to my Rabbit year friends, who are mostly here in uni now.

This has been the period of time where I think I've matured the most, especially in the 2nd sem. Living on your own is so much different. There're no parents to rely on to clean your room, or do your laundry, or tell you to do your homework. It's all on you to get things done. It's in times like this where I've felt I've learn the most, even more than what I've learned in my lectures and tutorials.

When you come to think of it, at the end of the day, you attend classes, you learn new things, you sit for exams, you get results... at the end of it all, you realize how it doesn't really matter, because you learn the most outside of class rather than inside it, and it's that that you've learned that will carry you through your working life after you graduate.

Well I guess that's life. What to do? Heh.

---

Today was totally crazy. How is it that we scored 420 pts, but our scoresheet wrote only 50 pts and the top score was 200?!?!

Seriously, we have a looooong way to go in Computer Science. And who was it who said there's no prospect in that field nowadays?!

~Falcon, OUT!!!

NORTHERN TRIP

2009-01-06T22:52:00.013+08:00

The journey upnorth was err.. shall I say, fulfilling. I woke up early in the morning excited. It was my first time in a loooooooooong time being there, and the thought of actually spending time up there was enough to get me going.

Sleepy as I was, I couldn't care much. I told myself I can sleep in the bus, it didn't matter.

Dad drove me all the way to BU to the Bus Terminal. I exchanged my booking itinerary for a ticket, got on the bus, and off we went.

Of course, before that I bought a stick with 3 cucur udangs and ate em on the bus. So, when they served that mini-sized Turkey Ham Subway Sandwich, I left it till 12pm to eat. Took it as my lunch, together with a cup of Milo I ordered. After that, I alternated between bouts of zzz and Happy Feet on the TV. Of course, I caught more zzz's than feet tapping. Spammed messages with my friends coz I was bored.

Five hours later, I arrived. I called my friend to check if he's arrived to pick me up. And he was. That. Was the first time in a long time I stepped foot on Penang soil.

Day 1
Went back to Kenny's house. Funny thing. I actually pictured it to be some funky Terrace or Semi-D or something.. I mean, an actual house, and that I'll be sleeping in the guest room... but when we arrived, I was like, oh. It's just an apartment. Ok. Heh.

Btw, for those Penangnites reading, his house is just opposite SuperTanker. Haha. I heard everyone knows it, so there!

Well, as usual, Kenny's same question everytime. What's the plan?!?!

Well, actually he just took me out for err... lunch? I'd consider tea. We went to pick up Sharks as well. Ate the Penang Hokkien Mee and tried that Penang specialty drink - Hampalang Siewbui. At least, it sounded like that first time I heard it. ROFL. Then we went to look for Jalan Helang to find the church building I'll be going to the next morning.

And then we went back, and he asked. What's the plan?!?!

It was late in the evening. So all I could say was, LIVERPOOL!!!!

We went out for dinner at the Cherry Blossoms with Kenny's family and that's when we realized that the Liverpool game was at 1.25am.

I think Kenny spoke well when he said, "SLEEP LA!!!"

Day 2
Guess what? Kenny was SICK!!!

I went to worship with the Penang Church of Christ. Preached there, on the Value of Truth. Members were encouraged, so I guess it was good.

After that, CHURCH LUNCH!!!

Yummy!!! Met a few members from there as well. Allegedly, Andrew is working at Bukit Raja. But he doesn't go to Klang. He worships with Subang COC. Woh Yon is from KL, but she's studying at USM. So she'll be with the Penang church for awhile.

I went back after that, and stayed there. Kenny was bed-ridden. Fever till want to die like tat. So we couldn't go through with our Kek Lok Si and Penang Hill visit. So what did I do? Smallville!!!

Watched 2 episodes, played Velocity, then Kenny put on 2 DVDs for me to watch - The Click and Paycheck. Interesting shows!!

Day 3
Supposed to go pick Sharks up and eat breakfast at 10+. But, at 10am, guess where Kenny was? I'll give you a hint. It was where he mostly was yesterday.

Yup. Freaking sleepy head was still in bed at 10am. Grrr...

So anyway, we picked up Sharks and went to eat Dim Sum.

After that, we went to St. Xavier, Him Heang and Penang Hill. Guess what happened immediately after we reached the top of Penang Hill? Woohoo. It rained. That was cool. Know why? What comes after a rain?

It was just magnificent!!! Hardly anyone can ever say, "I went up Penang Hill and saw a rainbow!" But I can!! Coz I did!!! YEAH!!!

So after that, we headed off to Gurney. Entered Gurney Plaza, and heyhey!!! Guess who we met right there??? I'll give you a hint: She's sweet, beautiful, smart and has one of the most beautiful smiles I've ever seen.

Ok, so our meeting wasn't a coincidence. Haha. She seemed extremely busy during the holidays, so we didn't have time to do anything but just eat, talk, and walk around Gurney Plaza and the new wing.

End of Day 3.

Day 4
Went to Kek Lok Si. Went back Kenny's house to pack. Went to bus station. Went back to Klang.

All in all, it was a great trip, despite the fact that I couldn't go to a few places I wanted to. But, oh well! There's always next time!!!

Meanwhile, I gotta get ready to face another gruelling new sem. ARGH!!!

~FALCON, ouT!!!

REVERSE

2008-12-26T13:18:00.002+08:00

Interestingly, English has several words in which, if you reverse the syllables, they actually produce different meanings! Check it:

1. welfare vs farewell
2. upset vs setup

Anyone found anymore, let me know!!

Falcon, OUT!

THE MOMENT

2008-12-24T22:30:00.002+08:00

1 hour. 60 minutes. 3600 seconds.

As equal as those time durations are, it really is different when you look at it in different units. And the difference - context.

Sometimes, we fail to realize, that in 1 moment, in just 1 short, significant moment, things can happen.

Within 3 seconds, someone steals the ball and scores a goal.
Within 1 second, light has travelled from Malaysia to USA.
Within 1 second, sound has travlled from KL to Singapore.
Within 5 seconds, 16 words are typed.
Within 2 seconds, someone finds out someone loves them.
Within 0.008 seconds, Hamilton pips Massa to pole.

Ok I think you got my point. Anyway, coming toward the end of yet another year, I guess, like John Dykes, I shall have my own "of the year"s...

Moments of the year:
1. I think you can consider each of the Justin quote moments as moments of the year...

Justin: Err.. kai fan one.
Stall owner: Kueh beng?
Justin: Err....... no, kai fan one.

Justin: ABCDEFG... HIJK... MNLOP... Eh? eh... sounds correct wad!
Krystle: ...
Justin: Correct right?

Justin: (Presses hose-near-toilet-bowl) Eh why no water wan?
Hao Qi: Oh, you must turn on the tap.
Justin: (Turns on sink tap) Eh why no water wan??
Hao Qi: +.+

2. Nianz's death
This happened much much earlier in the year. I think she was travelling from KL to Penang. The bus she took, a Konsortium bus, the driver, who had 10+ outstanding traffic summons lost control of the bus and crashed. She was among the 2 who died.

I guess hers, along with Ben's on 27/12 the year before, reminds us of how fragile life can be. The Bible describes life as a little vapour which appears for a little while, and then vanishes away.

3. Cambodia trip
It was amazing. The scenes that we saw brought us back to nature.. The structures we visited at the Angkor area showed us how intelligent people in the past were... building structures so huge, even without nails...

The prison in Phnom Penh, turned into such from a school during the reign of Khmer Rouge and Pol Pot showed us how cruel men can be...

Some Autobot from Transformers in the Transformers movie claimed that human life are so primitive and violent... but, I guess there is always a flip side to it... It also implies that there is a good side to humans... It's the Law of Opposites... and it's great to know, that despite all these cruelty, somewhere out there, someone is doing a good deed.

Just a few days ago Kai Yee and her Red Cross friends travelled to China for some charity work with the less fortunate children... I really admire people like them.. willing to travel so far just to help people... Preachers who train themselves just to travel a few thousand miles to Africa, Russia, China, to preach the gospel and save souls.. all because of their love for them... It's amazing...

4. YDP
We can never forget that. Every year. Must. attend. A great opportunity to meet up with youth from all around Malaysia and Singapore. A good time to meet new people and encourage one another...

This year I enjoyed spending the last night with them. We started off singing songs to God. Of course, when my voice cracked, I decided to let it rest awhile...

Played games all the way till I couldn't stand it, I slept. Haha.

I must say, tho.. the planning for games could be better. The lessons was alright.

Hated the talent show. I'm growing out of it!! I'd take the gala dinner anytime!! Can't stand practising for some funky skits... The thought process for ideas is just torturous!!!

5. F1
Of course, who can forget Lewis Hamilton's dramatic drive of victory in Brazil!!! Going into the last round, he was in the lead, all he needed was 4 points, which is a 5th place finish, and anything Massa does would be in vain!! And in 4th place he was, until the dying stages of the race where rain started to come. The first 5 cars pitted for intermediates, while 6th place Jarno Trulli elected to stay on with the dry tires, and as a result gained a place into 4th, pipping Lewis and Sebastian Vettel.

Then, in a split second, Lewis made a mistake, and Vettel somehow managed to squeeze past him to displace him for 5th. It put Hamilton in 6th and in danger of losing the title to Felipe who was going to win. Then, just as Felipe crossed the finish line, going into the last corner, Jarno Trulli's Toyota slowed a great deal, with a lot of trouble with grip with the grooves and let Vettel and Lewis through, allowing Lewis to win the title by 1 point. Woohoo!!!

Oh well. I guess that's long enough for today. C'ya around!! And have a super happy new year!!!

Happy birthday to Canida and Janelle too!! =D

~Falcon, OUT!!

PYRAMIDS IN SINGAPORE PT II

2008-12-10T00:47:00.002+08:00

Ok, so.. 2nd part about how pyramid scams work.

Say I plan to start a pyramid scam. So. I start with $0 capital.

Then, I just convince A and B to invest say, $10 each. I promise them 70% ROI. So currently, the wealth distribution is such:

Me: 0; A: 10; B: 10

After they "invest":

Me: 20; A: 0; B: 0

Alright, so... when A puts in 10 and B puts in 10, all I have to do is take the 10 from A, and 7 from B, and give them to A. I then keep $3 for myself...

Me: 3; A: 17; B: 0

At this point, A may only be half convinced. Ok, I've got extra $7, he thinks. So I talk him into "reinvesting" his earnings to earn more. At the same time, I also get him to convince his friends to invest as well. A gets A1 and A2, and both put in 10 each.

Me: 33; A: 7 (keeps his earnings); B: 0; A1: 0; A2: 0

Then, I shall just take 17 from what I have and give B.

Me: 16; A: 7; B: 17; A1: 0; A2: 0

Notice how in the previous round, I have more money than anyone else. So all I have to do is repeat the process over and over again, until it becomes a huge huge sum, or until there are no one else to talk into "investing", in which case, I take all the money and run to Hawaii, and everyone else gets conned and in the end, earn nothing.

Simple, you think? Too simple, until so many get tricked over and over again. Why?

Because! They always decorate such scams with nice packaging!! They rent buildings, put a nice decoration around it, give itself a super cool company name with a super cool catch phrase, and just pretend as if they are running some serious business for profit.. All to keep up a facade! Yeah.. cruel. It's sad that people go to great lengths to cheat others off their hard-earned money.. even sadder that many people fall for it time and again.

~Falcon, OUT!!

THIS SEM: FINAL THOUGHTS

2008-12-05T12:23:00.002+08:00

Finally, some final thoughts about this semester..

I could not have survived it if it wasn't for these people:
1. Goh Jun Le
Always there to help with Linear Algebra assignments, questions and Set Theory tutorial. He is just simply amazing.

2. Sharks
Lent me her nail clipper when I lost mine. Heh.

3. PY
On the morning of my CS1102 PE, she msged me to wish me all the best. That was all I needed to keep me motivated and going.

4. Heng Liang
My new OBP. Woohoo!!

5. ASEAN
Whose money I can never thank enough for!

6. GOD
After all's said and done, man can but say, "How great Thou art."

I love you all!!!

NUS QUOTES - YEAR 2 SEM 1

2008-12-05T12:06:00.002+08:00

It's time again, for NUS Quotes!! Featuring:

1. AP Tan Kai Meng
2. Wong Weng Fai
3. Dr. Johanna Franklin
4. Dr. Ku Cheng Yeaw

Let's begin..

"So, how's Assignment 5? No problem, right? Yeah, I think you should be able to manage yourselves.." (1)

"I mean, uhh.. I mean, what you want to look at here is that, uhh.." (1)

"Should I prove this? Hmm......... k la, I shan't be lazy." (1)

"I'm sorry, this... this is just beyond me..." (1)

"Ah, yes, what? Hmm.. I always miss the joke." (1)

"This is just like my office. Get anything new, just put it there. Then, when you want to find it, search the WHOLE office." (2)

"Har. So, so.. when you overwrite you own memory address until you overload it, that's you own problem. Who ask you to overwrite until like that?" (2)

"How can you not get this? This is so trivial..." (2)

"That would be nice, right?" (3)

"So this is a fact, and you are going to prove this yourself"
Me: +.+
"Oh, don't give me that look! You know you're supposed to do something in your own time." (3)

"So, uhh.. am I supposed to give you a break?" (4)

"Summing up these terms in the series would take forever. We cannot afford to do that. We have more important things to do, like shopping!" (4)

"So, uh.. I call this a peak... not pig yeah.. (laughs)... so.. (laughs).. so... (can't stop laughing)" (4)

"(points to an expression) So, this guy here, what's this?" (4)

"So, do you get it? Or..... you don't get it? Or... you don't care? Yeah, right? We have more important things to think about. Who cares if this is true or not..." (4)

That's all, folks! Anyone remember anything new, let me know!!

~FALCON, OUT!

FINAL 3: PREVIEW

2008-11-24T22:50:00.001+08:00

The following are my thoughts for the finals.

1. MA2108 - Must win
2. CS1102 - Must win
3. CS2100 - Damage limitation
4. MA3205 - Happy to collect some good points
5. MA2101S - Damage limitation

That said, it's time to rock 'n' roll tomorrow!!!

-Falcon, OUT!!

PYRAMIDS IN SINGAPORE

2008-11-18T10:27:00.002+08:00

Imagine one day, someone comes to you and say, "Hey, guess what? I found this new investment opportunity, it's going to make you rich!"

You raise an eyebrow and asked how.

Then he says, "Oh, it's simple. All you have to do is give me $1000, I'll guarantee you $700 in return. That's 70% ROI (return on investments)!!! That is WAY WAY WAY more than any banks or financial institutions can offer you, more so in these times of recession!!"

"Any strings attached?" you asked.

"Well, not really, no.. all you have to do is keep getting more people in our scheme, and soon everyone will be rich rich rich!! Isn't that great?"

You were at first not to keen, but after hearing of his stories of success and his enthusiasm, you put in $1000.

A month later, he comes back, bringing you $700, together with your $1000. Great, you thought, 70% ROI. It really works!! Convinced, you excitedly put in $2000, expecting $1400 in return. You continue this for 5 months, raising your investment by $1000 every month.

So it' s $1000 in the first month, $2000 in the second, $3000 in the third, $4000 in the fourth and $5000 in the fifth.

In 5 months, you are expected to get 700 + 1400 + 2100 + 2800 + 3500 = $10,500!!!!

And you do!! Fantastic!! So now, you get greedy and want to earn more and more and more!!!

So you dump in $50,000, hoping that with the $35,000 you get back, together with a bit of loan, yay, you can get a new car!!

So you wait. 1 month, he doesn't come back with the money. Maybe he's got some problems. Never mind. 2 months. He's not here. Ok, probably some political problems in the company. 3 months. You can't contact him. He's missing from his house. 4 months. You realize he's never coming back. All your money is gone. And this "friend" of yours. He's probably on Hawaii enjoying every last cent of your "investment".

Pyramid scams are just like a Nuclear Warhead. They are very enticing deals, offering shortcuts to earning a lot without working much. And after they've made you believe such a thing exists, they draw out their knives and stab you in the back till you bleed and hurt so much, but you never die and hence, the pain does not go away.

Want to know how it works? Stay tuned for part II!!!

-FALCON, out!!

BUS LIFE

2008-11-07T18:00:00.002+08:00

I think that it is good, that despite all the criticisms that they receive every now and then, it's good that at least we write something good about our internal shuttle bus drivers.

I mean, let's face it, without them, we would probably be walking at least 3km to and fro Science and PGP everyday. Otherwise, some crazy public bus company would stamp their transportation monopoly there and start charging people for using it.

This is a post, a tribute to all our bus drivers for the previous academic year.

1. Ang Ah Too
I remember him as that fat old man with the same name as some lady singer. He's a pretty decent bus driver, very patient with us, and drives well, just like most bus drivers.

PY told me once about an incident where he was stopping for some guy to cross the zebra crossing. Then after that, he started cursing to himself about how slow that guy walks. I don't know, I've never seen him do that before, so heh. But I guess I believe her. In some sense.

There was also this time on the way back to PGP, the junction after the NUH bus stop is an upwards slope. The traffic light in front was red, so he tried to stop, then accelerate up again so that he does not have to do that balancing act when the light turns green. Unfortunately, he failed. TWICE. And the drivers behind him honked like mad +.+

Ah well, I guess everyone makes mistakes every now and then.

2. Thiruselvam
He is the only Indian driver I've noticed that drives for NUS. He's quite a good driver as well. The first time I went up his bus, I was thinking to myself, "Oh look, it's a non-Chinese driver. Ooo.." +.+ Heh. But like all those other drivers, he's not with us anymore.

3. Yeang Kean Boon
This guy is Teddi's good friend. I remember Sharks told me once that he made a comment about how rude Indonesian Chinese are. Interestingly, Teddi, who is an Indonesian Chinese, was right beside Sharks when he made that comment. Heh.

Another incident. He was driving an A2, and reached the Biz bus stop. A group of Indians wanted to get on the bus. A guy asked him how to get to Little India. Then, this guy told him to take the A2. After the guy got off the bus, he closed the door and drove off.

I looked at his windscreen to make sure I was in the right bus. IT WAS AN A2!!!!! +.+

4. Toh Poh Lian
The thing I can remember most about him is NOT about him, but about his bus! +.+ I once saw that he was driving a D bus, and noticed his front left bumper of his bus was smashed. Oo, I wonder what happened. Hehe. That was in the first sem. Of course, in the second sem, he got that thing fixed.

Also, remembering all our drivers that have served us so well in the past year:

5. Saifuddin
6. Mohd. Atan
7. Oh Eng Teck

And others whose name escapes me! =D

Thank you all for serving us ever so well last term! I remember clearly once as I was getting down an A2 bus at PGP, I thanked the driver, and he reminded me to "hao hao du su ar..." haha! That was so nice of him to make such a remark!!

We have new bus drivers this year. Most of them PRCs. PY pointed out that they are quite reckless. And rightly so. I noticed how hard these drivers this year are on the brakes. During the middle of the semester, you can always see them driving so quickly, then when they have to stop, they punish the brakes so much so that the bus screeches everytime it comes to a standstill!!! ARGH!!!!! And it doesn't help that my room is just above the PGP Foyer. +.+

Also, they are less patient. Last time, when you were running for a bus at the PGP Terminal, even if he was about to leave, he will stop for you. Now, heh. Even if you run fast enough to catch it, he'll close the door and signal for you to take the next bus.

Well. Hope they get better.

Falcon, OUT!

VEGE-THINGS

2008-11-03T22:22:00.002+08:00

Going vegetarian for 7 days have taught me lots.

1. Vegetarians have a very very small stomach capacity.

I noticed that, I can eat a normal meal, all vegetables. 1 hour later, my stomach growls. Maybe it's just my big appetite. Heh.

Nicholas asks where does all by energy go to. He suggested that it goes to my brain. Me? I honestly don't know.. hehe...

2. Vegetarians have a very healthy relationship with their toilet bowls.

It seems that the more I eat, the more frequent I have to go to the toilet. But I guess too much fiber isn't too good for the body either.

3. Honestly, I have no idea how these people live out their whole lives not knowing how meat tastes like. It's horrible, I tell ya.

Currently, we have 3 more weeks till our finals. 5 papers, 4 days. How will we fair? How's the progress so far? Only time will tell.

So stay tuned!!
Till then, FALCON, OUT~

THE STORY

2008-10-25T09:50:00.002+08:00

As we walked up the stairs, we noticed the sign which said, "3rd Storey".

"1 more floor to go," he said.

Once there was a very beautiful princess. She was an amazing princess! She was a very sweet girl, but yet one who was very diligent and hardworking in all that she did. She smiled a lot and was always very cheerful, and many thought that she had the most enchanting smile! As youthful as she can be in appearance, she was also very mature, her ideas and speech demonstrated knowledge and experience far beyond her age. Indeed, she was a very capable girl. Her big, bubbly eyes were very hypnotizing. One could just stare at it and get lost in it forever... like falling in a bottomless pit, but yet feel good about it. Above all, she was stunningly beautiful.

She was most desirable lady in her land, but alas, an evil witch had to kidnap her and keep her in a dungeon. The witch was trying to create a potion so that she could steal people's beauty and intellect, and this princess, as she was, proved a very good test subject.

Fortunately for the princess, before the witch could lay a hand on her, her brave young knight tracked down the princess and it led him to the witch. He wielded his double-edged sword, fended off her spells and killed the witch. He then went up the dungeon and rescued the princess. The princess was very grateful for his efforts, so much so that she decided to marry him and they lived happily every after.

And that, my friends, is one storey. We have reached the 4th storey.

One equal, one big D!

~Falcon, OUT!

Yeah. Tag.

2008-10-12T19:15:00.003+08:00

Yeah so, I haven't been getting enough inspiration lately, all due to the midterms and all.

So, err.. decided to do this..
Stole this from Christine's blog.. hope you don't mind!! Heh.

Time: 7.17pm
Name: Sean aka pfalcon
Sisters: countably infinite
Brothers: countably infinite
Shoe size: undefined
Height: 170++ cm/ 5'3''
Where do you live: Klang, Selangor, Malaysia. But currently, I'm in NUS campus +.+
Favorite drinks: Water. Yea, I'm boring. But I like banana milkshake too ar!!
Favorite breakfast: nasi lemak/mcd/half-boiled eggs/BAK KUT TEH!!!!!!!!!! ( I miss bak kut teh...)
Have you ever been on a plane: Of course!!! I took one when i was 6 to the USA for holidays, australia when i was 8, and now i take it to travel frm kl-sg. Hey, I'm not rich, k?! it's jz so cheap!!! ZERO FARE!!! how cld u resist??
Swam in the ocean: yeah.. it's cool, minus the salty water.. +.+
Fallen asleep in school: never. unless you count uni. but you didn't hear that frm me ya!! =p
Broken someone’s heart: not really sure... I might have.
Fell off your chair: Used to. now i'm so pro at balancing the chair on 2 legs!! buahaha.
Sat by the phone all night waiting for someone to call: nope. nvr had to anyway..
Saved e-mails: some. my nus email, i save programming mails, for my personal email, i save things that are dear to me..those on a more personal basis, if you know what i mean.. heh.
What is your room like: not like a room. more like a study room. well, that was what it was before it was my room. (hope you caught that. haha)
What’s right beside you: nothing.
What is the last thing you ate: chicken chop rice. i just came back from dinner. +.+

Ever had
Chicken pox: nooo.. might not ever have it, thanks to the "lifetime" vaccination
Sore throat: yes.
Stitches: dono. maybe yes, maybe no.
Broken nose: ROFL. You got to be kidding.

Do you believe in love at first sight: no. not at all. you got to do more than look at the person first before falling in love with, in my case, her.
Like picnics: hmm.. it's alright la.
Who was the last person you danced with: myself? heh. i dont like to dance. prefer to do more ahem, meaningful things with my body. heh.
Last made you smile: pei ying.
You last yelled at: dono. must've been a loong time since i yelled at anyone...

Today did you
Talk to someone you like: ehh.. define "like". Does msn count? heh.
Kissed anyone: no. not today.
Get sick: no. i'm still good.
Talked to an ex: i dont have an ex. +.+
Miss someone: yea... many, many people. but obviously, some more than others...

Best feeling in the world: feeling at peace. with God, and with everyone else..
Do you sleep with stuffed animals: i used to.. my timon, koala and lion. Now, koala is dead, timon sits by the bottom left corner of my bed and lion is on the chair i put my hp and watch and specs on when i sleep at night...
What’s under your bed: which bed? I have 2, now that i have lived at 2 places +.+
What time is it now: 7.31pm. Time flies.

Randoms
Is there a person who is on your mind right now?
Now that you've mentioned it, yeah. there is.
Do you have any siblings?
Yea i do. countably infinite siblings.
Do you want children?
of course!!! That's wat we were supposed to do, right? Heh.
Do you smile often?
Define "often". But yeah, I do smile considerably a lot.. I guess...
Do you like your hand-writing?
I feel it's alright..
Are your toenails painted?
I'm a guy!!! C'mon!!!
Whose bed other than yours would you rather sleep in?
the bed of my future wife?
What colour shirt are you wearing?
white. It's my KH chess club t-shirt.. miss those days.. good times.. sigh.. *nostalgic look
What were you doing at 7:00pm yesterday?
eating dinner at bukit timah. and talking about the bridge match we played earlier that day.
I can’t wait till…
HERRRRR finally accepts!
When did you cry last?
Last month? Not sure..
Are you a friendly person?
well.. i'm trying to be..
Do you have any pets?
i had 2 hamsters once, but now no.. i miss them!!
Where is the person you have feelings for right now?
She just said she gtg on msn. prob she went out for dinner...
Did the last person you held hands with mean anything to you now?
Can't even remember who it was!!+.+
Do you sleep with the TV on?
no of course not. but, i do fall asleep in front of the tv watching football though sometimes.. hehe..
What are you doing right now?
this. and thinking of herrrrrr... *sigh
Have you ever crawled through a window?
Not sure.. probably. Can't remember.
Can you handle the truth?
Sure. if i knew what it was...
Are you closer to your mother or father?
probably mother. but i try not to do that. i wan to love both the same!! =D
Who was the last person you cried in front of?
probably my friends from Jurong.. but that was like, super long time ago!!!
How many people can you say you’ve really loved?
erm, many many. God, my family, the church, 1 or 2 girls..
Do you eat healthy?
i try to. heh. Oh no I'm getting bored of this.
Do you still have pictures of you & your ex?
no. i dont have an ex!!! I THOUGHT I TOLD YOU D!!! Aih, some ppl..
Have you ever cried because of something someone said to you?
yeah, when I was little.
How often do you go to church?
twice a week. wed nights and sunday mornings. in klang, it's friday nights and sunday mornings. hey, it's actually nice to spend friday nights among the church, k?! very nice fellowship!!! I love it!!
If you’re having a bad day, who are you most likely to go to?
God, and one of my closer friends...
Are you loud or quiet most of the time?
Define "most of the time", coz most of the time, I'm alone. My Windows Media Player makes more noise than me..
Are you confident?
If I have a reason to be, then yes.

5 things I was doing 10 years ago
1. At 9 years old, I was training for PTS exam. It's an exam where if you do very very very well in it, very well, as in, top 3% in your school, then you get to skip 1 year of Primary School. Glad to say, I did!!! =D
2. Owning every single one of my classmate at Chess. It was in Sec Sch when I met my match. And that was just the beginning... Heh. But that's a decade ago. I quitted chess since Uni. I'm in Bridge now!!
3. Playing Red Alert and Small Soldiers. I got my first CD-ROM computer. Imagine.. it was so long ago. Oh yeah, and Fifa 99 too.
4. I think I was studying Pri 5 sch work. No, I'm not a child genius. I have a fren here who took his A-levels maths when he was 12. He's waaaaay ahead of me.
5. I was also being a noob at football. Heh.

5 snacks I enjoy
1. Pringles
2. Mr Potato
3. Chipster
4. Fries
5. Ice-cream

5 of my bad habits
1. Selfishness - yea, it's smth I'm working on!! Help me, ppl!!!
2. Getting hungry straight after meals! - Oh no, do I have some sort of eating disorder?!?!
3. Laziness
4. Getting tired too easily.
5. Procrastination...

5 places I have lived in
1. Uhh... define "lived". Klang
2. NUS Campus
3. Ian's house
4. Zi Lin's house
5. USA

5 jobs I’ve had
1. Teacher. I got err.. RM50 for it? Miserable.
2. Tutor (there's a diff, k?!?! hehe..). I got RM100+ for it. Cool leh!!!
3. Painter. I got RM10 for it.. Super cool leh!!!
4. Stats collector. I got RM2000 for it. Super duper cool leh!!!
5. Bridge player. I got free accommodation for it. Even more super duper cool leh!!!

YES I'm done!!!

Btw, congratulations Alonso. Again.

Oh and erm, if you see me going vegetarian, it's probably because I didn't get lowest for my Linear Algebra II test. Hehe. It's a good thing..

Till then.
Falcon, OUT~

VREEEEEEEEEM... VRRRRROM... ZOOM!!!

2008-10-01T22:48:00.003+08:00

I was there!!!

I watched the Singtel Singapore Grand Prix 2009 Qualifying Session on the Marina Bay Circuit on Saturday!!! I even have pictures to prove it!! Check out my Facebook for pics!! I haven't uploaded them, though.. +.+

I had the wonderful opportunity of getting a free ticket the PIT GRANDSTAND, which was along the Start/Finish-Straight and also directly opposite the entrance to the pit lane the and Ferrari garage. We could also catch a sight of the podium from there.

The atmosphere was absolutely fantastic!!! And everything was great, except the fact that a Ferrari was on pole. It didn't matter, though, as they both fell out of the points scoring position and Lewis scored 6 points from 3rd. Well, it was all Ferrari's fault using such "high-tech" lollipops... +.+

Anyway, there was this time where Kimi ran wide during qualifying at the last corner coming on to the start-finish straight, he picked up dirt along the way. He zoomed past us, and guess what.. all the dirt he picked up flew right to our faces. Thanks a lot, KIMI!!! *chair1

Well that's all for now. Best wishes to me for my Linear Algebra!!! =D

~Falcon, OUT!

IMAGINE

2008-09-11T08:08:00.001+08:00

I dream of Klang.

I crave of Klang Bak Kut Teh.

I'm in need of KCOC.

I desire a break.

8 more days!!!!!!!!!!

THEY DON'T ADD UP

2008-08-22T18:25:00.002+08:00

Be that as it may, some of you may have had occasion to run into mathematicians and to
wonder, therefore, how they got that way...
—Tom Lehrer

This was quoted by my Set Theory lecturer, Dr. Johanna Franklin, in one of our notes. She's a wonderful lecturer, and has a great personality at that too!

Anyway, sometimes we do wonder how some mathematicians got that way. It'll be totally weird to encounter the following, erm... encounters:

Case 1: Asking for directions
You: Excuse me, sir, how do you get from Klang to Shah Alam?
Mathematician: The solution exists!!!
You: +.+

Case 2: Asking a mathematician for a meal
You: Hey, dude, come let's have lunch together in the canteen.
Mathematician: Assume there are N students and M staff. Then, assume all of them eat at the same canteen. Then the total number of people eating at the canteen at the same time is (N+M). The Axiom of Tables suggest that there are for all t in Z+, where t is the number of tables in the canteen, nYou: +.+

Case 3: Asking a mathematician a math question
You: I have 1 apple. If my uncle Bob gives me another apple, how many apples do I have?
Mathematician: You would have 1 apple more than you had before.
You: Correct. 1+1=2, right?
Mathematician: Not necessarily. Consider 1 as the multiplicative identity of the field, F. Then, assume field F has exactly 4 elements. We can then define 1 as the additive inverse of itself, and hence, 1+1=0.
You: +.+

Case 4: Asking a mathematician for an opinion
You: What do you think? Do I look fat in this?
Mathematician: Define fat.
You: Well, fat as in, really big in size?
Mathematician: Define big.
You: Big as in, huge?
Mathematician: Define huge.
You: +.+

Of course, I'm not like that. Am I?

~Falcon, OUT!

MESSY

2008-08-15T13:14:00.002+08:00

Today is the first day we ballot for our tutorial and lab slots.

I looked at my options... Here is what I need to ballot for:
1. CS1102 Lab
2. CS1102 Tut
3. MA2108 Tut
4. MA3205 Tut
5. CS2100 Lab
6. CS2100 Tut

In total, I will have 7 additional classes (including MA2101S Tut)...

Looking at my current balloting, it's going to be a messy timetable... hence, it's going to be a super hectic new semester... Sigh.

Nobody said it was easy...

FALCON, OUT~

THE ROAD AHEAD

2008-08-08T22:05:00.005+08:00

Alright, so.. we're starting Semester 3 next Monday. This is it. A whole new academic year. A whole new challenge. A basket of new things. A chance to restart, and retrieve what has been lost, to win what was lost, to return what was borrowed, to take back what was lent, to punish those that escaped, and to escape those that were punished.

Here's a preview of what will be coming up...
1. MA2101S
As far as learning has gone, I have enjoyed MA1101R the most. Nothing can beat the sweet smelling scent of LT25 when you enter it. The table, the chairs, the ambiance... it's like nothing you can possibly every experience in the LTs in the Faculty of Science.

After a very, very bright start to the Algebra section of Math, here we are embarking on a whole new adventure. This is going to be tough, no doubt, but we must believe... we MUST believe..... (too much Kung Fu Panda +.+)

But, well, it is going to be a very interesting module, and we will see what we can get from it...

2. MA2108
This is the first we'll ever encounter in terms of analysis. This is what they call the "basics" of analysis. Some call it the "fundamentals". Others, the "essentials". Me, I have 3 words...

I

DON'T

CARE.

Basics, fundamentals, essentials, call it whatever you want. There is only 1 word to describe such descriptions: RUBBISH. Exactly. A total heap of thrash! It has more lies than comments made by UMNO, and more useless than the President of US (joking!)...

Whatever it is, it will be another new challenge. We just have to take it, deal with it, and see where we can go from there...

3. MA3205
This will be a very interesting module. Set theory is something which was long considered to be the origin of mathematics. It's mathematics at its very core!!! Without set theory, there is no mathematics... and without mathematics, there is no God, and without God, there is no world...

Yup, it is that drastic!!! It's even more drastic than the time Justin drank a disgusting mix of Coke, soya sauce, cili padi, soya bean and pepper!!!

But once again, we're looking ahead to a very interesting encounter with Johanna Franklin, our lecturer and also a visiting fellow to the NUS, and we will see what we can make of it...

4. CS1102
This, people said, is going to be just fine. There's nothing to worry about. It's not so challenging. But what do I say??? Well...

RUBBISH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Usually when someone says that, it means the exact same opposite!!! I'm telling ya!!! Don't look at me like that, I'm TELLING YA! It's true!!!

But of course, like the other 3 modules, we'll see what happens...

5. CS2100
This is completely foreign. I think I would probably be afraid of this the most. But, coming towards the start of the new sem, I think I might actually get used to it eventually.

There will be dealings with electronic circuits, logical gates and all, but I suppose they shouldn't be too difficult. I mean, this is a course on computing, not on physics, right?

Well, it's like the OTHER 4 modules, we'll deal with it and see what happens from there.

So, what shall we say to these then???

I WILL SURVIVE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

That is all. FALCON, OUT!!!

STUCK

2008-08-03T22:42:00.001+08:00

There's been a delay. I can't get my photos up. Really sorrrrry!!!!!!!!!

BIG

2008-07-23T01:00:00.000+08:00

Something big is coming. Seriously, it's literally big. And till then, I shan't be posting anything up until that day. Hopefully it comes soon!!! Wait for it..........................................

DREAM TEAM

2008-07-11T14:28:00.004+08:00

The Klang futsal squad (1st position is preffered pos, 2nd pos is alternative):
GK - Sean "Shot-stopper" Lim
SW/CB - Joel "the Rock" Kirk
CB/SW - Bryant "Ironman" Lee
CB - "Ole Gunnar" Ong Ee "Materazzi" Ren
CB/LW/RW - Ern "Erny" Shern
CB/CM - Cheah "Peter Jr." Hao Qi
LCM - Khoo Tze "John Arne Riise" Wei
RM - Justin "Dumbass" Chan
CM/ST - Kirk
ACM/CF - Andy "Nuclear" Teh
ST - Ong Jae "Fernando Torres" Wen

ROFL. Just felt like posting this. Woot! (oh no, we have to substitute keeper! +.+)

A THOUGHT

2008-07-09T11:33:00.002+08:00

I seriously need strength to figure this one out. What should I do?

CYNIC

2008-07-09T00:06:00.002+08:00

Chuck Fishman on Early Edition said:

"It's easy to be cynical. Especially today, when it looks like all our heroes are crooks, our role models frauds. Every now and again, however, when you least expect it, the real thing comes along: someone who can find the heart inside the cynic and give those who hold nothing sacred something to believe in. It's not always easy telling the good from the bad, even if you do get tomorrow's paper today. Why, is why. Sometimes, to find the answers, you have to look in your heart."

I can't help but realize how true it is. Earlier this month, a certain friend of mine had a very, very painful break-up with her boyfriend. And she couldn't believe it. She believed every single word he said about loving her forever, and not letting her going through a lonely period with him in NS... but when it came down to it, he bailed.

It is so easy to be cynical nowadays. Today, people are doubtful as to whether such a being called God exists. Because when they look at how evil the world is, they wonder where is God when you need Him. They doubt. They scorn. They mock.

A psychologist will tell you that these people are just in denial. They went through a very heart-wrenching experience probably recently, or during their childhood, such that they act this way as a means of expressing their disappointment, their resentment, their frustration toward the world.

And perhaps they may be right. Perhaps there is something to what these psycho people are saying.

The fact is, today, people are looking for myths. They are searching for something, something to believe in. Something to give them hope. Something, just to prove to them that there is still good in this world, that there's something in this life worth living for. It's as if there's what was once a blaze, has turned into nothing but a mere flicker, waiting to go out, but not going yet because someone is trying to keep the flame alive.

Jesus gives people this hope they are looking for. Back when He was alive and walking this very face of the Earth, He changed the world. He taught things many could never have thought of. His wisdom was extraordinary, out of this world. Critics thought He was some mad man, a crazy person claiming to be the Son of God, claiming He came to seek and save that which was lost, claimed to have brought the truth.. But really, could a mad man have been that wise in his words, his conduct, and his choices? Hardly.

Never, in a million years, would someone be expected to love their enemies. Never, not even now. But He did. He taught that. And His reason, was that if we were to love only those who loved us, what reward have we, for even the bad people do the same!

Then there were those who accused Him of being a liar. He's the chief liar, and His disciples were all His fellow liars. Either that, or they were all greatly deceived. Deceived that He was who He claimed to be - the Son of God. But that again, does not make sense. Why, of all things, would a liar, suffer so much, be exchanged with a murderer, and crucified on a painful cross? No, no sane man would die for his own lie.. the risk and reward balance is totally off!! Unless he was a lunatic, but in which case we already have proven he couldn't have been mad!!!

Unless, He is who He really claimed to be! Yes, that can be the only explanation for it all!! There's nothing else that can prove otherwise..

Sometimes, I wonder why the smartest of people can never see through such obvious evidence...

IN NEED.

2008-07-08T01:13:00.002+08:00

After writing so much about courage, and not waiting too late, I think it's high time I take a hint from myself.

I'm in dire need of courage!!! But where am I going to get it?

It's not like you can walk into a pharmacy and say, "Hi, I'd like to buy a bottle of courage, please.. oh, it's RM3.50? Ok, here you go! Thank you very much!"

Sigh. SIGH, I tell ya, SIGH!

Oh well, Isaiah said those who wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength. They shall mount up with wings like eagles. They shall walk and not be weary, they shall run and not faint (Isa 40:30-31).

That's the hope we have as a Christian. God is always on our side. So, ONWARD! RAWR!

COURAGE

2008-07-04T23:07:00.002+08:00

There are all kinds of courage in this world.

First, there's the courage to do something others won't. Jesus showed this courage. His apostles showed this courage. They decided to do things others won't. To be different. Not just for the sake of being different, but that they were convinced what they did was right, even if they were the minority.

Then, there's the courage to do something you yourself would not have done in normal circumstances. Sometimes, it's this kind of courage that makes people take the leap of faith, makes them do something so wild or speak of such a wacky idea, so crazy, that sometimes, it works out, and the person who did it, the person who had the courage, he is glorified and gets his place in the history books. Well, maybe not always in the world history books, but that person will most certainly be in the history books of someone who cared and loved him very much.

Then, of course, there's the courage to live with your mistakes. In life, we do make mistakes, like it or not. What separates the ordinary person from the extraordinary is that the extraordinary person learns to live with it. See, the thing is, sometimes, or rather, most of the time, we find we cannot undo our mistakes. For some, they dwell in a dimension called "if-only". They wished somehow they had the chance to go back and change the past, and correct the mistake. Day and night, they think about it. Dwell on it. Shower themselves with all the guilt in the world. Until one day, they just can't live with themselves anymore. And they take their own lives.

So for someone to be able to live with their mistakes.. it takes a LOT of courage.

Yes, there are all kinds of courage. So next time, notice the person standing next to you in the train, or the person opposite you in the coffee shop. Look closer. Who knows? You might be looking at a hero...

EUROTRIP

2008-06-30T22:38:00.002+08:00

10 things I learned from Euro2008:

1. Turkey is for eating, not for watching.
2. When a country is named after a germs, it's probably best to wear white to show how germ-free they are.
3. People who have nice names usually play bad football. Take for instance, Adrian MUTU. Mutu, konon... Miroslave KLOSE. Close, close indeed...
4. A lot of people fail at Spanish because they fail to pronounce properly. David Villa.
5. Shebby is almost always WRONG! So, to you gamblers who put your money on his decision, it was better off putting your money AGAINST it. ROFL.
6. Someone who didn't watch Euro would say this: GO ENGLAND!
7. Italy were better at bringing up referees than coaches.
8. If Netherlands do well in the group stage, then they will definitely play their knockout rounds like they were going to the Nether Lands.
9. It is true. RUSSIA! Our women look like men. (internal joke. Hehe.)
10. The hosts usually lose. Hehehehehehehe...

MORE RANDOMNITY

2008-06-30T01:50:00.002+08:00

Alright, so... quotes time!!!

NUS

Cynthia: Hi HOR!
Mr. X: Wha's this??
Cynthia: What happen??
Mr. X: Really, I dunno what whore means... what does it mean??
Cynthia: Ok, first we evaluate the first few terms, get the feeling...
Mr. X: Ok, I do not take your answer and measure, oh, 5 inches, so 5 marks. I am not subway.
Cynthia: This is the idea.
Mr. X: Rubbish!
Cynthia: Oh what a retard! Pointing the thing to that thing...
Mr. X: The crap king! *Left hand salute*
Cynthia: I wanna go homeeeeeeeeeeee.........
Mr. X: Alright, so enjoy your holidays, but remember to... STUDY!
Cynthia: A2 just left...

After awhile, I thought about it and realized I did not have enough lines for any other groups other than NUS. Heh. Just goes to show which group I've been hanging around with most... (NUS peeps, you should be grateful! Heh).

No, actually, reality is, I just haven't heard enough words of wisdom from our KH group yet!! KWANG HUA!!! I spent 5 years there, and how many quotes do I know??? Heh...

...
...
...
Nope. I got nothing. Seriously. Sigh.

ME again, signing off!

THE WAIT

2008-06-26T23:26:00.002+08:00

The following was taken from a tv advert.

Ever since he was a boy, Raymond always wanted to know what ice-cream tasted like. What is it, such that every kid in town wanted to get a hold of it? Why did ice taste soooo good? What is it about it that it's alright if it melts in your mouth, but not when you're holding it. What's the secret of the ice-cream?

But Raymond's family was very poor. His father was but a garbage collector, and often times the only pay he gets are the tips from his pickup locations. His mother died when he was six. No one knew what the cause was. Some say his father abused and beat his mother so much that, one day, she couldn't take it anymore and took her own life. Of course, Raymond and his dad knew better.

So Raymond decided to save up until he was able to buy a cone of ice-cream. And one day, he did. He had more than enough to buy 2 cones. So after school, he would walk out the gate as usual, and stare at the kids happily getting their ice-cream. Only this time, he would be one of the kids.

But Raymond did not join them. He decided, maybe it was better if he tasted the ice-cream when he was 21.

Then at 21, he decided it was better if he tasted it when he got married.
Then when he got married, he thought it better to get a cone when he retired.
Then he retired, and died. And Raymond continually lived his life wondering what ice-cream tasted like.

Sometimes, out of fear, or nervousness, or for whatever reason, sometimes we're just too afraid to take that big step. It's risky, yes, you know very well that it is. Well, not in the case of ice-cream, but yeah, you get the point. Sometimes, in the end you chicken out and say, OK, maybe tomorrow. I'll do it tomorrow.
I'll take that driving test tomorrow.
I'll ask Mr. Brian that Math question tomorrow.
I'll open my bank account tomorrow.
I'll confess my feelings for Cynthia tomorrow.

Then tomorrow comes.
And then you think, oh, the car probably has no gas. I'll do it tomorrow. It's probably filled up tomorrow.
Or, oh, Mr. Brian is probably busy. I'll ask him tomorrow. Maybe he'll be free tomorrow.
Oh there is a long queue in the bank today. Maybe there's a shorter one tomorrow. I'll do it tomorrow.
Erm, I think Cynthia is in a bad mood today. I'll confess tomorrow.

And then tomorrow comes, and you go through the same ordeal, over and over again.
Until one day...

Petrol prices go up, and you can't afford to pay for the license anymore.
Mr. Brian moved out of town under promotion.
The bank was burned in a fire and there are no more banks nearby your area.
Cynthia found a boyfriend and got married.

It's good to wait. Timing is, after all, important. But sometimes, we wait too late. Think about it.

~Falcon, OUT!

UPDATE

2008-06-26T13:41:00.001+08:00

Just a lil' notice to let y'all know that I've updated the links... So they should be all up to date now. Anything I missed out, please let me know. Thanks!!

-Falcon, OUT!

EMO

2008-06-26T01:05:00.002+08:00

Krys was right - lotsa people are getting emo these days...

Khairy: NUS wants me... should I want NUS?
Rusa: Mood very very bad... don't message me unless you wanna get f***ed.
Khairy: Maybe there's just a lot of things that I don't understand...(turns and walks away)
Rusa: Don't like this lah!!! Why won't you talk to me???
Khairy: Just don't like it.
Rusa: Sob... I have such a peabrain...

Lol!!! Isn't it cool to combine all the emo quotes together?!?! You form such a wonderfully creative conversation!!!

Let's try something else.. Non-emo quotes!!! (bracket indicates where the quotes came from: KH - Kwang Hua, SY - Sunway, NUS - NUS (like, duh!), CH - church, ME - me! lol, TV - tv!, OT - others)

Fortuna: Wotcher! (KH)
Kareen: Yooohoo! (CH)
Fortuna: You ok or not? (ME)
Kareen: Stylo the milo!!! (ME)
Fortuna: Wah. So fierce! (SY)
Kareen: Of course, we need for the function to first be continuous and differentiable, whatever... (NUS)
Fortuna: Alright, can you just give me about 15 minutes more first, then you can go to the canteen and enjoy your talking... Ok, can you please not talking? (NUS)
Kareen: Heh. If it was Brand's Essence of Chicken, I'd feel much better! (CH)
Fortuna: That's equivalent to a man wearing a singlet! (CH)
Kareen: What a dumbass!! (CH)
Fortuna: Good eggs make good omelet. If you give me bad eggs, you get a bad omelet. (TV)
Kareen: Never! That's completely idiotic! (TV)
Fortuna: No, it isn't! Here, let me help you! F is for friends who do stuff together, U is for you and me, N is for anywhere and anytime at all, down here in the deep blue sea! (TV)
Kareen: Okokokokokok no need to explain, no need to explain, no need to explain...
(NUS)
Fortuna: Failure is part of life. Accept it, with IS! (SY)
Kareen: Failure is the path to success. (CH)
Fortuna: (with Indian accent)Can I have some silence please? (NUS)
Kareen: (with Wang Fei accent)NO! (NUS)
Fortuna: (with Taiwanese accent) Ok. Keep talking then. Keep talking. Go. Talk. (NUS)
Kareen: HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!!! HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!!! HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO SUE ANN!!! HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!!! (NUS)
Fortuna: SILENCE! I KILL YOU! (OT)

Done. Phew!! Was wondering how I was gonna end it. Heh. I'll try to group the similar grp quotes together to form a meaningful dialog so my respective readers frm respective grps get to enjoy it wholesomely... hehe... till then, cya!!!

MEMORIES

2008-06-16T00:18:00.005+08:00

Have you ever had the feeling that sometimes, when you hear this song being played, it reminds you of someone? Well I do........ I always had.. and it feels weird, it's like, the tune and the lyrics suddenly bring to remembrance a certain figure in your life... Here's a list..

Ten Tenors - Rocket --> Yong Boon Kee and Zhi Hao
These people were some Shah Alam dudes that tuitioned in Delta when they were Form 3, at least, I met them in F3 class.. I remember during Science class, Mr. Ho would tell us, if they really are our friends, we would hit them if they were talking, or at the very least, tell them to shut up.. and oddly enough, that was what we did. Haha!!

Maroon 5 - This Love --> Abel Yap
Abel Yap was (or maybe still is) one of the strongest youth chess players in Malaysia.. I faced him during Selangor Junior Open in Sunway when I was in F4.. I played in the Gold category, which is for players with rating under 1600 --> i.e. highly wonderfully good players..

I started out the tournament with a win over a girl, I think it was Subra's sister or something.. but after that, it sorta went downhill.. the next day, I played and won a few matches and it got me up to the top 3.. Then I had to play Abel, who was top at that time, and so I did.. for some reason, the song was playing in my head, and I remember losing that match. No wait, did I say losing? I was totally BRUTALLY KILLED!!!

Scissors Sisters - I Can't Decide - Pua Siew Kin and B.San
Ok, this one is totally extremely crazily weirded... It just so happens Chippy was looking through some songs to sing for some graduation performance thinguppy, and so she sent me this song..

So I listened to it, and oh it contained vulgarities behind the catchy tune!!! ARGH!!! Eventually the song got stuck in my head.. and it just so happened I had to go to Eagles' Ranch for some Delta outing with the staffs.. and these 2 ladies.. Ms Pua was black, and BS was pink (refer below)... so there!!

All-4-One - So Much In Love - Kareen Lee Jianing
Right, this is.. probably the most recent.. she sent me this song, and somehow everytime I play it, it reminds me of her.. this song creates that all-famous Kareen-aura!! It's so.. obvious yet indescribable.. so clear yet difficult to explain.. well, as Kareen would put it, HEH.

Meanwhile...

Don't you just marvel at how some things just remind you of THINGS???

PART 2

2008-06-15T23:02:00.005+08:00

Right. Part 2 of this post.. This is SA n baltic speaking.. KL to Penang. For some reason, I noticed most of the Malaysians studying in Singapore are from Penang, KL, Selangor and Johor.. It's like, so interesting.. 1 north, 1 central, 1 south..haha.. anyway..

Yeah. Funny thing, you'd expect someone like Si Wen to be flying to USA by now.. but he's here. +.+ Reportedly, he's considering offers from 3 different universities from 3 different countries: NY, Manchester, NUS... My pick: Errr...

Errr....

Errr....

Um..... can I use my lifeline? +.+

Ok, I seriously wouldn't know.. I'd toss NY for sure..but a chance to live and work in the UK is very tempting.. so.. let's see what happens there...

So, after all that, we headed back down to Klang, and set off to meet Jen and Qi and TTW at Jusco.. I must say, the new Indiana Jones movie was kinda cool, though we were all thinking it should be some non-fiction movie, but who knew aliens were non-fiction.. well, I guess if you're a producer and director of a world-renown, surely-sell-out movie, you get to redefine terms like these.. Sigh. When will I get my authority to redefine words??

SO anyways! After we defined...... I mean, uh.. after we finished our movie, we took to KP for some bowling adventure.. These were pictures of our JOURNEY.. (Yeah, like which idiot takes pictures of journeys???)

We saw this buncha people standing by just about the start of the highway.. I was fortunate enough to snap a shot of them.. hmm.. wonder what they were doing... hehe.

So anyway, we went to the bowling center and guess what.. the lanes were all full. +.+ We had to put our names on the waiting list and waited more than 30 mins.. sigh. What we did during that time??

We took like, a few shots of that, of which I'm too lazy to post up 'coz uploading ONE single pic takes about a minute and I really don't have time for that. (I miss Singapore's internet connection..)

Ok then.. that's all for now.. c'ya!!

LONG LONG AGO

2008-06-14T14:19:00.003+08:00

Long Long Ago, on May 24th, Malaysians Students League (MSL) came to KL to organize a welcome tea session for the prospective undergrads from KL and Selangor..

Since Sue Ann kinda pestered me to go (and subsequently invited me to Penang for who-knows-what reason), I went. And I brought Stan along..

I realized it wasn't easy to sit down and take pictures at the same time........

More to follow!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! =D

EAGLE'S RANCH

2008-05-28T01:27:00.009+08:00

Earlier last week, most of the Delta staff, with their families, and some of the very very very very long-serving teachers joined up for a day's trip to Eagle's Ranch!!!

Yeah, I know, it was the venue for one of our YDPs.. but this time, the place had really sorta evolved!!! They have paintball, swimming pools, all those things they didn't have when we were there last time!! And they also didn't have much bugs at the eating place anymore!!!

Hmm, let's see... let's post pictures...

Part 1: On THE WAY!!!

Our first pitstop - BREAKFAST at Kota Kemuning McD's...

Ok, I HAD to take a picture of this - I mean, dude, c'mon la!! You police dudes drive a Kancil, while your criminals race away in a lambo - where's the logic???

Part 2: Here we are!!!
So then, we arrived. I immediately caught sight of what I thought was absolutely interesting, and I snapped a shot right away!!!

A telematch that the organizers from Eagle's Ranch came up with for us..

Our room:

What a fake fireplace. Heh!!!

Hmm, so after the telematch, we waited for some paintball action, in which it was the first time for ALL of them, except for me, I guess.. but t'was the first time I actually played "Capture the Flag".. all this while I was playing KILL ALL!!! BUAHAHA.. +.+

So my team lost both rounds 'coz the opposing team wouldn't run back after they got shot +.+ That is SO NOT FAIR!!! But, oh well...

Then we would take a break before our buffet dinner... I went GO-KARTING!!! Erm, to be honest, the kart wasn't that fast and the track wasn't suited for high-speed sprints anyway.. after a few secs, you had to slow down for a turn, but it would've been great for racing and overtaking, I reckon..

Then came dinner. And I gotta tell ya, my mum is BEST when it comes to making the most horrible errors because of blur-ness!!!

Ok, so we went to the same place we had lunch in, and we asked, or rather, my parents asked if the buffet was there for Mr. Low, and they said yes, so we sat, and took our stuff. Well actually, I only took the soup, and well, no one was there yet. So I began to wonder if we were in the right place, and I could sense my father had that suspicious feeling as well.. So he went to look for my aunt and asked if it was correct.. and she told us to go to MELTING POT (which was NOT where we were) for the buffet! There was supposed to be a speech and everything... Then, while my mum was busy NOT enjoying the rice and dishes she took, my dad came in, showed the time-out sign, and when there was no one in the counter, we scrammed!!! +.+

NOW! Up to this point, everything seemed alright. Right? NOT!!! We went to the MELTING POT where we were supposed to, everyone was there, so we couldn't be wrong this time, right??? WRONG!!! Turned out, there was absolutely no food there. +.+

So we checked with the management and guess what we found out? YES!!! The buffet was at the place we SCRAMMED!!! +.+ Talk about wonderful coincidences!!! Sigh...

WELL! SO much for that. Heh!! Haha.. Meanwhile.. at night we gather at one of the girls' room and played UNO!!!

And throughout all that, I could've sworn that girl in black beside the one in pink was totally having her eyes on me throughout dinner and Uno. Heh. Maybe it's just me being too perasan. Heh.

Anyways, it rained the next day, and I checked out the go-kart track to see how it was...

Judging by this puddle just by the hairpin, I suppose it would be great to see how this track ran in the wet.. plus, this hairpin is going downhill!!! How SWEET!!!

But, ah!! We had to go back anyways... so... too bad.. maybe next time. Heh.

MORE pics available on my Facebook!!!

-FALCON, oUT!!!

LIFE'S MOST UNANSWERED QUESTION IS NOW ANSWERED

2008-05-16T00:19:00.002+08:00

Upon knowing that I'm studying maths, most people start asking me...

"Why 1 plus 1 is 2 ar? How come like that? I want 1+1=3 cannot ar?"

Well, friends, life's most unanswered question shall now be answered!!! Brace yourselves!!!

Theorem: 1+1 = 2.

Proof:

By definition, 2 = 1+1.

Therefore, 1+1 = 2.

Q.E.D.

You see, basically it all comes down to definition... we can define whatever we want, however we want it.. if we define 5 = 1+1, then 1+1 = 5. That is the very core of mathematics - the definition.

But of course, because God made it a very very very very simple worldwide convention that 1+1=2, then why not just follow it? I mean, we're all Earthlings (are we?), we're all humans, we all have a brain, we all have been raised to think that 1+1=2, so just follow lah!!! Ask so much for what?!?!

And that's life's most unanswered question answered by a year 1 Math Undergraduate. Heh.

To the people in-charge of giving out the Fields' medal or the Wolf Prize, I'm waiting for my phone call/email. It's crazy_founder@representative.com. Thank you very much!!! Danke!! Gracias!!! Xie xie!!! How do you say thank you in French n Swedish? +.+

-FALCON, OUT!

THE MESSAGE

2008-05-14T01:11:00.002+08:00

1am in the morning... I opened up my email, for pretty much, the 3rd time today, hoping something interesting will pop up. For some reason, the internet is pretty slow at night, so I have to be REAL patient.. I mean, being patient is one thing, but this is like those 8kbps modems!!! Dude, wan2 load a simple mail login page also need to take 10 secs meh?!?!?!?!?!?! Sigh, sien...

Anyway, so I waited, and off I went into the login page, I logged in, and then.. I SAW IT!!! Oh, it was theee most amazing sight to behold!!! ONE(1) UNREAD MESSAGE(S). THis is TOTALLY great!!! Never before, in such a looooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooong time, have I encountered my email account telling me there's only ONE(1) UNREAD MESSAGE(S). THis is TOO GOOD to be true...

I clicked the link. "View Inbox". Alright, this is it. This could be the moment that makes my heart skip a beat, my legs skip for joy, my eyes close in excitement, my body unstable in its outpouring of endless delight.. I eagerly awaited for my unread message, and, and, and...............

It was nothing more than another stupid spam promoting viagra. +.+

I guess sometimes things just don't go out the way we planned it to be... Sigh.

ZOO + SCIENCE

2008-05-13T00:37:00.007+08:00

Ok, so erm.. at the end of the exam, we decided to slack.

Maths OUTING!!! Er..actually it was supposed to be Maths + Amoga girls.. right, and we were supposed to go to the zoo and night safari.. they even prepared sandwiches for us to take along!!!

But unfortunately, because earlier during the day not many people wanted to go - and here's the excuse - they wanted to - brace yourselves - this is the best excuse ever... - they wanted to.........

SLEEP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! +.+

I mean, who in the right mind would ditch a wonderful time together for fellowshipping with their pillows??? It's just NOT worth it!! C'mon!!!

So, ended up the guys took to...

And the reaction was...

Heh..actually wasn't so bad la... We still enjoyed ourselves... hehe...

I bet of all people, Jie Shen was most happy when he saw this.. tho we didn't spend time in it...hehe!!!

Well, I guess pictures speak louder than words, so... here we go! It's 1am, soo...

FALCON, OUT~

END OF THE YEAR

2008-05-08T09:22:00.002+08:00

The end of the 1st academic year has come for me. This is it, I thought to myself. I have endured the first year here in Singapore... Here's a review as to what has happened throughout this sem...

The new year could not have started worse. The death of Benjamin on the last day of YDP last year darkened things on what would have been a joyous occasion of ushering into the new year. Nevertheless, we thus rejoice that he is now in Paradise, comforted, blessed, and in the presence of God...

Then came the death of Nian Ning, in which, I must say, was a sudden shock to us... of all things to die of, she crashed and died in a bus accident involving some reckless driver with 11 outstanding traffic summons... Now this has surely set the scene - more than 2 deaths (others were not really unexpected, but it still made an impact) just as we started Sem 2 of Year 1, it has brought upon a big change upon me... with the new sem, sets sighted on pushing myself up to the 1st class area, which, on paper, does not look tough at all, and the death of 2 of my friends, 1 closer than the other, being a very very very very very early childhood friend, all but motivated me to push forward...

However, this sem, started off worse than I thought. I was forced to drop LAC1201, dropped MA2214 because of a rubbish lecturer, paid 200+ points to take up LSM1302 to replace MA2214 whilst others used only 1 point, and I ended up with 4 mods for the sem. So the stage was set - 4 modules, lighter workload compared to my coursemates, I needed to push HARD for my grades, and I mean HARD!!!

The first few months was all good, but the midterms of some mods had made me realize that this sem would be more of survival than of achievements... Contrary to people's estimations, having a lighter workload didn't really make much of a difference... At the end of the day, this is what I have to say:

"We have worked hard, and I'm very proud of the team... We did what we needed to do, we tried everything there was to try, and at the end of the day, I am very happy with the team, I'm very happy with the work rate of the team. I think we did a good job, and as to what happens and what results we get, it is out of our hands now... We did our best, and we can only hope for the right result."

Thanks to all who've stood by me and helped me out this sem in any way - Kareen, Rui Qi, Kenny, Sue Ann, Zilin, Ben, Pei Ying, Kai Yee, Jia Wei, XuShen, Jie Shen, Siow Chuen, Tina, Sis timbergurl, Bar Yong Lee..........

........Henry, Anthony, Zhi Hao, VT, Siong Thye, Tan Ser Peow, Ng Tze Beng and Leung Ka Yin.

... and all those whose names I forgot to mention... You guys (and girls) have helped me out in ways I cannot imagine... and I appreciate that!!!

As I was cleaning through my stuff, I found my book, in which was written my fellow Klang brethren's thoughts and wishes during 31/12 last year, and I must say, some of them brought tears, some memorable laughter...

"You're our ambassador in S'pore. It will be challenging there alone. But rest assured, everyone is proud of you regardless of how much you fart."

"Your faith in God is commendable. Keep it up.
Continue to pursue great things for God."

"All the best Sean for the coming year. Be a light to any church you go to. Remember be a light not fart ya. Haha take care and all the best."

"Just smell nice in front of God. Happy New Year."

"Thx for fetching me around. All the best in ur future! God bless."

Thanks guys!!! I love you all!!!!

Btw, to my dear uni students... STOP TREATING ME LIKE A 12-YEAR-OLD!!! I'M SICK AND TIRED OF IT!!!

K, now that I've got that off my chest... c'ya!!!

SIS XC AND JW

2008-04-26T01:02:00.006+08:00

Right, so... here's Round 4: Sis timbergurl and Jia Wei...

It was on April Fool's day... and the day before, Sue Ann first messaged my sis saying they were having an urgent meeting... then "accidentally" msged her again saying we're celebrating her birthday on 2nd Apr, and after she replied, Sue Ann said, "no choice ma, tmr got meeting..." I tell ya, she REALLY was fooled!!! I'm such a genius!! Heh. (Psst! Self praise is no praise...)

Right, so... PICS!!!

My dear sis and Jia Wei - both dressed in white for a white cake in a room with white walls on a white April Fool's day!!!

Unfortunately, all's NOT pure and clean...

Whoops!!! I guess having a similar birthday as a girl who's NOT someone you fancy isn't a really good thing... WATCH OUT, KENNY!!! MUAHAHAHA!!!

I agree I suggested the cap for Jia Wei, but I surely NEVER EVER even THOUGHT about buying THAT for my sis!!! Ewwww!!! I will get that Kai Lin for this!!!

The four stooges... - Is THAT really my hair?!?! Grrr... need a haircut...

Well, I guess that's it, eh??? Heh, wasn't that hard... lol.

Anyway... here's some gems...
The ORIGINS of...

1. Playstation
Once, a boy called Sony was driving his car to Esso to pump up his car. So while the dude was refueling, he went to the mart and said to himself, "Oh boy, it sure is boring here. I know! I'll take out my game console and play!!!" And therefore, he invented Playstation.

2. Playstation 2
Once, Sony and his friend drove to PETRONAS (YES! Petronas) to refuel their cars. So while they waited they both took out their Playstations and played together. Hence the name, Playstation 2.

3. Playstation 3
Sony's brother, Sunny, was jealous about how Sony and his friend was raking up the cash so quickly with Playstation and Playstation 2. So one day, he hacked into their computer systems, extracted the blueprints for Playstation 2, modified it, and introduced Playstation 3. But too bad, because it was named SONY Playstation 3 and not SUNNY Playstation 3, Sony got the money out of the sales instead of Sunny.

4. Then Sunny was so angry that one day, while his brother was sleeping, he broke into his warehouse, extracted all the gaming console circuits out of the Playstation 3, and fitted it into this tiny little bag. He then assembled them into a smaller gaming device - PSP, Playstation Portable. This time, Sunny was careful to kill Sony, and changed his name to Sony, claiming he had a plastic surgery, and HE raked in the cash.

5. Sunny's father, Munny, was quite proud of his sons, but at the same time, envious as well... So he thought of a way to earn more money so as to prove to his sons he was just as capable as them... Being a truck driver, he transported many many things... So one day, he borrowed one of Sunny's PS3 consoles, put them in one of his boxes, and headed off in this truck... He then stopped by one of the streets and tried to open it up. He couldn't, so he tried to use a blade to cut it open... He drew a cross with his blade, and hence, came up with a brilliant idea!!!

That's how X-BOX came along...

6. One day, as Munny was handling his X-BOX console, he accidentally spoiled it. He was so angry that he kicked his X-BOX and it turned a full round and stopped completely - So he upgraded his X-BOX system and introduced X-BOX 360.

More to come, I'm sure...

BIRTHDAYS!!!

2008-04-23T01:57:00.009+08:00

There are a whole buncha March and April babies within our NUS Math Malaysian group...

Result: Forking out of a whole lotta cash for birthday cakes and presents and squeezing of brain juices for surprise ideas...

After a whole 2 months of doing that, this is what we came up with...

Round 1: ME (done and dusted)
Round 2: Sue Ann (17th March)

Gathered at the PGP bus stop just to surprise her by singing a birthday song for her all the way down there while she's all the way up there in her room. That was Kai Yee's idea... Too bad I didn't have any pictures of the surprise, but what I do have, I show...

The Math Majors (or most of them anyway...) with Sue Ann...

Sadly, I can't seem to find anymore interesting pictures, so let's move on...

Round 3: Bar Yong Lee, Horace (21st March)
Honestly, you guys have absolutely NO idea how hard it was to plan this. Nope, not a clue as to what I've been through. NOT AT ALL!!! Seriously!!!

So anyway, here we go...

Surprise surprise!!!

Why was he so lucky to be surrounded by girls on his birthday?!?! I didn't receive such things on the 4th of March!!! This is SO NOT FAIR!!!

But oh well... Justice was served anyway... hehe...

HUH?!?!? So random!!!!!

Round 4: Sis Xiao Chen and Jia Wei (April FOOL!)
--> Ok, this is probably too screwed up... will do this next time...

Round 5: Tina (Apr 11th)

This wasn't a surprise. Well, no one was really in the mood anyway after knowing what happened earlier that evening. T'was sad indeed...

Ooo... someone's NOT gonna be too happy about this...

The birthday girl is the one holding the birthday gift... heh.

Random pic of the ever sweet Pei Ying!!!

Hmm... alright, my Liverpool game has started... See ya!!!

THE MOON...

2008-03-21T22:08:00.002+08:00

The moon tonight is full again... And it's absolutely beautiful to watch... I could just stare at it all night, but I have to study for my Gene&Soc test tomorrow... sigh...

"The heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmaments shows his handiwork." Ps 19:1-2

This is a wonderful verse which describes with great accuracy the things that God has created for us... It's absolutely wonderful when you think about it... when no development was made, when technology was not yet introduced... one could just go to a forest, smell the sweet aroma of the grass, enjoy the fresh air whilst admiring the marvelous mountains and hills just afar off. Even now, it is good to know that there are some people who are actually concerned about taking care of the environment and preserving the beauties of nature that God has created for us to enjoy.

No way you can say all this happened by chance. That all this, was a result of some random chemical reaction that somehow made everything formed, somehow made the Earth round and not prism-shaped or something... it's just impossible...

And while we continue to marvel at the delightful sight of the greenery and the sound of the birds chirping in the morning, as well as the dew which forms on the leaf, let's continue to remember that God still lives, and all is well, DESPITE what's going on in your life, "for we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, and to those who are called according to His purpose." (Rom 8:28)

Till then, best wishes to me for my test tomorrow... This is the Falcon, signing off!

FANTASIZING

2008-03-13T22:27:00.002+08:00

public class Woot
{
public static void main (String args[])
{
Life lf = new Life (Sean, 19);
House h = new House (Mansion, Taman Klang Jaya);
Car c = new Car (Ferrari, red);
Money m = new Money (1000000);
while (lf.age<60)
{
m.addMoney(100000);
h.renovateHouse();
c.neverBreaksDown();
lf.neverGrowOld();
}
}
}

Now if only life was like that...

WHEN THINGS GO THE WAY YOU PLAN...

2008-03-12T23:07:00.002+08:00

Imagine this:
You and your soon-to-be spouse are looking for a house to stay. You search and search and search, and then you find the place. It's just perfect. Not too far from the city center, efficient public transportation, easy links in and around the place, not that isolated. Good, you think to yourself.

One problem though: The house is on auction. It will go to the highest bidder. Argh, you think. No matter what, you MUST get that house. You place a bid as high as you know you can afford. 1 week later, you found out you got the house. Great!!! Wonderful!!!

But then, the general election has just ended and your state, which was all along run by the government was taken over by the opposition parties. That means the subsidy for the house is off. The next day, you find that stock markets drop heavily due to concern over political instability. Banks raise interest rates to attract savings. Oh no. Just when you thought you got the house, you just might be overburdened in terms of the refinancing... Uh-oh...

You see, the thing is, sometimes even when things go the way we planned, bad things eventually happen...

The above situation... may be what's happening to some Malaysians at this moment in time...

FALCON, ouT

THE NIGHT OF THE FOURTH

2008-03-05T00:27:00.008+08:00

The night of the fourth...

Falcon was on the way back from the Multipurpose Sports Hall 4. Bridge today was horrible. What could possibly get worse???

"Tmr night can u teach me n kai yee do lab5 at 10pm.jus awhile only."
"Tmr nite cant leh... I got cca every tue nite... Any other time?"
"Until wut time ur cca?"
"Dunno... Im playing bridge, will end abt 10+ latest.."
"Den 1030pm can?"

Those were the series of messages Falcon exchanged with SA. Guess tonight isn't gonna be so bad after all, he thought. After all this, he gets to go back to his residence and help someone in need...

*Ring ring*
"Hello?"
"Hello... hey, I have arrived at PGP"
"Oh, ok... can you come to Meeting Room 6A?"
"Hmm, okok sure"

So the Falcon went. He strolled through his usual route to the elevator to get to his room. Except this time, he wasn't going to his room... Instead of going to his right, he turned left, pushed the door open, and caught sight of the flight of stairs which would lead him to B1. He started walking down the stairs, through the door, pass the Laundry Room... He came all the way to Meeting Room 6A. Outside, it seemed dark. Weird, he thought. If she was already there, why would the lights be off?

Shaking the thought off his mind, he walked towards it. As soon as he opened the door, a smile came upon his face. He knew this was a day he shall remember for a very, very long time...

A whole group of Falcon's friends were there with a cake and a candle, waiting for him there.

He turned on the lights, scanned the room - no sign of her, but oh well, he wasn't about to let that ruin the night.

The Falcon and his cake!!! Thanks to all who bought it!!!

The Falcon EATING his cake!!! Chocolate cake - Yummy!!!

The Falcon lovin' his present!!! A unique Liverpool pillow with Stevie G's patch on it!!! Got it from F.O.S - Faculty of Science!!! +.+

The ones who made it all possible!!!
And yet again!!!

All on list:
1. Siow Chuen
2. Xiao Chen
3. Kai Yee
4. Sue Ann
5. Tina
6. Horace
7. Xu Shen
8. Jia Wei
9. Kim Chuee
10. Kenny(not in pic)

The Falcon was very very touched at this wonderful gesture... and he also feels very very very extremely amazingly blessed to have such incredible friends like y'all here...

Really, the Falcon can't thank you peeps enough for all this!!! The Falcon apologizes that he's not really good at expressing himself with words, and even if he was, words will not nearly be enough to express how he feels... Hope we will stick together all the way throughout our journey here in NUS...

Also special thanks to others who sent me their wishes... (in order as to who wished me first "P)
1. Mom and Dad!!! (I love and miss you guys very much...)
2. Canida
3. Saw Vee Mae
4. Lynette Goh
5. Loke Pei Ying
6. Kareen Lee Jianing
7. Tan Teck Wei
8. Zelda Chen
9. Chang Zilin
10. Willy Ling
11. Hanxing
12. Ler Rui Qi and many others who would have wished me if they remembered!!! "P

This is the FALCON once again, signing off!!!

CHINESE LIGHT

2008-03-01T01:18:00.002+08:00

Kwang Hua, supposedly literally translated, "Chinese Light" (according to Mr. Chua, at least...) is the name of my Sec Sch...

Ok, so, I'm only doing this because Chippy asked me to... so... I'm supposed to talk about how exciting my sec sch life was... so... here goes!!!

*scribbles......

oops, sorry, forgot I was supposed to TYPE it out here rather than write a 1000-page essay on it...
(isn't it great to know you don't have to write lengthy English essays for exams anymore?!?! w00t!)

Anyway...

Form 1
I entered Kwang Hua after the Chinese New Year break, since prior to that I was in La Salle Klang... Felt really awkward and weird as usual, y'know, first day of school, no one you know, everyone's speaking Mandarin, bla bla bla, yaada yaada yaada...

The principal actually wanted to put me in 1Q, but my mom insisted that I'd be placed in 1A, which was the first class... I could still remember what he told me... "Ok, I put you in 1A, you better study hard arh!!!"

LOL... Never, never ever before in my life had I had someone other than my parents to tell me that sorta thing!!! That was a first... Of course, being only at a tender age of 12 at that time, I couldn't grasp the significance of that advice... Until, of course, the monthly exams... SIGH... shall NOT elaborate on that...

Okok, I'm supposed to be talking about how EXCITING my sec sch was, not narrate the whole thing... heh!

Hmm, let's see... My first friend in Kwang Hua!!! Chong Lee Kee @ Stan!!! very, uhh... tall guy... haha... I remember during Saturdays, when I discovered the joy of IM-ing, we used to meet up on Yahoo! Msgr to chat... and talk and chat and talk about stuff...

Then, I met the principal's son, CCS... some small little smart guy, the fella... I guess we sorta grew closer because of our mutual interest in Chess, which we discovered we had after the final exams that year... and of course, one of our friends, Jia Yi entered the scene much later...

One interesting thing we did in F1 that I can never forget was POKEMON SURVIVOR!!! Yeah!!! Crazy Survivor fans we were, Stan hosted this internet survivor game with pokemon, and the immunity challenge and all... between 6 people... SIX +.+ and I won!!! Guess what I won???

50 cents!!!!!!!!!!!!! +.+

Oh, and of course, that year was when I had my first ever crush... but it was waaaaaaay over like, eight months later... now she and I are great friends, not to mention her family too... haha!!!

Form 2
I guess Form 2 was when I started building up my reputation and making a name for myself...

Became a prefect this year, a decision in which I later lived to regret... sigh...

But the highlight this year was in the St John Ambulans Malaysia uniform!!!
Area competition, cadet level!!!
Oh boy, you wouldn't imagine how excited I was to be given a chance to represent St John Ambulans Malaysia, Kawasan Pantai Selangor, Bahagian Kadet SMJK Kwang Hua along with 4 other members (1 of them was the sub... lol) to show them what we were made of!!!

I still remember the times Han Chun trained us... and Tuan Chong Wan Seng, our school's division's officer-in-charge... We spent lotsa time bonding together with them as well as our Nursing Team... I remember one girl from that team marches like a penguin... +.+ haha! Can't seem to remember her name, though... haha!

Well, participating in the Area Competition was one thing... we WON!!! Can ya believe it??? We actually won!!! I even remember the feeling!!! It was absolutely amazing!!! Imagine... first time participants, no prior experience... AND WE WON!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

And to think I kept complaining about the casualty... Such a n00b casualty... Ok, so I was aiding this casualty who was a victim of a train track accident, and it went like this...
Me: Miss, do you have any medical history?
Girl: ???
Me: Errr... do you have any history of allergies, something like bee stings, or food...?
Girl: ...
Me: Judge, what's this?! Casualty not responding!!!
Judge: Dunno, check whether she speaks English or not...
Me: +.+

Well, it turned out she DOES speak English, but... she was just BLUR!!! And to think we got 1st place for that category.. HAHA!

Form 3, Form 4
Wow, these 2 years marked the rise of ME in the Chess scene in Klang as well as the state of Selangor...

I made my mark playing in the HSK, the team I was in managed to climb up all the way to 7th, which was not bad for a first timer, plus I scored the highest in my team... 4.5 points, 1 loss and a draw, and others 4 victories... I could remember the draw...I got his Queen, and it ended up going nowhere coz he had a rook and a bishop and there was nothing I could do and nothing he could have done... so I gave up and offer a draw... and he accepted it... in which case later I found out I could have won... +.+

In Form 4, I managed to get high enough to represent Klang in the State Championship, in which I got 4th, but lost in the qualifying for the National Championships that year...

Nevertheless, t'was a great achievement on my part, and I thank God for such a wonderful adventure...

Form 5
This year was overshadowed by exams, exams and MORE exams... SPM year!!! ARGH!!!

Also the year I actually felt what it was like to be rejected by a girl... heh! And I realized that it's really not so bad if you prepare yourself for the worst... but hey, once again we're still friends, so nothing much has changed...

Kinda took me awhile to get over her, tho... but it's all alright now...

Conclusion: After such a lengthy post, I realized the best parts of school did not come from studies or As in the exams, tho it was important, but rather from episodes with friends, events and extra curricular activities...

Of course, such things didn't really exist when I entered college... Heh...

And that's my Sec Sch life... LOL! Take THAT, Chips!!!

RAWR

2008-02-16T07:47:00.002+08:00

Rawr!!!

Hi guys!!! It's been a while since my last post, and well, I shan't say nothing interesting was going on, since it was more like so many things happened at once that I had little time to write...

Ever since the previous post, we had the death of Nian Ning, then the NUS student that suicided by jumping, then came Achmed and his "SILENCE! I KILL LIU" antics...

Of course, who can forget to mention CNY celebrations... plus the fact that we had Valentine's Day right SMACK in the middle of the CNY... I guess what PY said was right, that the people running businesses had little time to quickly exchange red lanterns and "fa" signs with pink hearts and cheap discounts on cards, roses, bears, blablabla...

Someone please knock me on the head and remind me to take advantage of the cheap cheap sales next time round!!! RAWR!!!

Then, there were lab assignments every week, which started off with Clockwork, a program we had to write to determine the standard time... not very interesting...

After that was Guess, where we had to write a guessing game between player and computer... this was c00l!!!

Then Sticks, which is this week, a game of pick-up sticks between player and computer - whoever picked up the last stick loses!!!

Apart from that, hmm...

Here's a riddle! What do you throw when you need it, but pick it up when you don't?

~Falcon, OUT!