C A M P



CAMP was a way-cool show! i always love walking into a movie theatre with no expectations, only to be pleasantly satisfied by the time i come out..

this show is about a theater camp filled with many diverse teenagers with an equally diverse range of problems. In fact, every one of them is a social misfit of some kind. The fact that they are teenagers somehow makes them much more interesting than the average cynical adult with the usual adult issues (whatever they are). The story deals with betrayal, deceit, pain, anguish, joy and hope, and i enjoyed the numerous moments of subtle and not so subtle humour...

great soundtrack (definitely will buy CD), great acting and singing, funny and moving storyline, and refreshing new faces (all never seen before), including this amazing picture-perfect boyband looking guy Vlad (Daniel Letterle) (who, believe it or not, is my desktop wallpaper for the next few days.. wahahahaha..) :p

oh well, go see it.. it's not a high-profile show (in Singapore, at least) but a refreshing change :).. if you need to find out more about the storyline, click here

Emoticons

i think i need more emoticons in my online conversations..

if you happen to have chatted online with me before, or exchanged a casual email or two, you would have realised that i am only capable of these four:

:O
:)
:p
:D

hahaha.. just realised how limited it is ... doncha think so??

i just found this to add to my repetoire of online feelings...High-Tech Dictionary Emoticons

Read also: The Art of Conversation

Which tree are you?

try here

Fir Tree:

"Mysterious Extraordinary taste, dignity, cultivated airs, loves anything beautiful, moody, stubborn, tends to egoism but cares for those close to it, rather modest, very ambitious, talented, industrious uncontent lover, many friends, many foes, very reliable. "

umm...

i know i've been putting up a whole bunch of personality tests on my blog lately.. i don't really know why.. maybe it's because i just happen to come across more of them.. or maybe subconsciously i've been drawn to them because of the endless streams of uncleared thoughts in my head..

anyway, i found this bloginality: weblogger personality thingey just now - looks like i'm not alone.. :p

Henry Park relics

Lynn just emailed me to inform me of this news:

School notes - SEPT 29, 2003:

"HENRY PARK SEEKS ITEMS FOR ITS MUSEUM

HENRY Park Primary wants the old school uniforms, photographs and textbooks of its alumni. It intends to use these in the Heritage Centre it is setting up in the school. Former students can drop off items at the school in Holland Grove Road on Saturday during its first Alumni Day, between 10am and 4pm. Teachers past and present will be there, and there will be a lunch reception. "

i dug around my cupboard and realised i no longer have any of the old HPPS stuff i thought i had.. must be because of all the nomadic activity my family has been engaged in these few years.. moving 3 times in 7 years is no joke, believe me..

but i managed to find my old report book and some of the remarks read:

Primary 1: "A very well-behaved girl" (hahha...)
Primary 1: "A conscientious and hardworking girl." (wah... industrious from a young age...haha..)
Primary 2: "A quiet and well-behaved pupil."
Primary 2: "A hardworking gril and a good leader." (wahh..:))
Primary 3: "Tends to be careless" (oops.. )
Primary 3: "A good pupil" (way too vague ....no? either that or nothing else to say..)
Primary 4: "A quiet and well-behaved girl" (i guess it must have been true then..)
Primary 4: "Huiiling is a nice girl. Should try to be more responsive during class discussions" (err... i think now the problem is just the opposite..)
Primary 5: "A well-behaved girl." (for lack of anything else to say??)
Primary 6: "A cheerful and helpful girl." (:))
Primary 6: "A steady worker. Shows enthusiasm in her work" (steady leh... :p)

feeling "blank"

should this site be just about sweet, wonderful things that happen to me?

should i constantly write only things that are uplifting, inspiring, philosophical or, at the very least, meaningful so the people who stumble onto my site walk away feeling all fuzzy and happy?

honestly, i'm feeling a bit blank and "zonked out" right now.. worst still, when i thought about some real, "emotional" issue just now, i found myself strangely un-moved and unaffected.. that's when i realised i've become somewhat "emotionally detached/dead".. i've become as "emotionally alive" as that terracotta pot of cactus that's sitting on your window sill .. the one that needs watering cos it's looking a wee bit parched..

oh well, guess maybe i'm physically fatigued as well.. let's see how things go.. don't really like to be so "unemotional".. feel more like a sack of rice than a walking, breathing human being..

and here's something really strange i just found online..
"Microsoft Announces Ads for BSOD (Blue Screen Of Death)".. pretty absurd how pervasive advertising is.. besides, i question how successful this form of advertising can be when people see it in the midst of being frustrated with a "hung" computer! :O

another shocking revelation: "10 percent of Windows machines crash every day, or any given machine will crash about three times a month ".. which makes it.. "70 million crashes every 24 hours"??? :O

damn those Windows machines!

52 projects



This "52 projects" thing sounds really fun, especially when some of the "projects" suggested seem, on the surface, actually quite "pointless" but take on a deeper meaning when you are willing to think about them for a while... at the very least, i can imagine how they can help to break the monotony of daily existence..

have you ever come up with a list of "Personal Projects" that you wanted to do? I remember (now that we are at the tail-end of this year) that around January this year, a group of close friends and I sat down for dinner and we wrote out some "personal projects" that we each wanted to do in the course of calender year 2003..

i can't remember why we didn't want to call these ideas "New Year's Resolutions".. anyway, we called them "Projects" and they included stuff like "setting up a PC", "learning web designing", "having an exhibition", "cataloguing our collection of books", "writing for a magazine" etc.. none of these are "mega-projects" (like writing a book etc) that can take a whole lot longer to complete... maybe a 3 to 5 year time frame??

anyhow, i'm quite looking forward to getting together with this bunch of friends again soon to see how much each of us have accomplished this year.. *gulp* and also to hear what excuses we have for not getting around to doing some of these projects.. i sure have a few i know i never got around to doing..

p r o c r a s t i n a t i o n ? or just distracted??

Pathways to Peace

this "Pathways to Peace" presentation was a joy to receive in my email box this morning... it's worth those few minutes watching through it.. click on the on/off bit at the bottom to turn on the soothing music..

a dose of hope, peace, charity, kindness and more can't do any harm, eh?

"Chew On It!"

what a gem: found the Chew On It! website..

one of those truly Singaporean things... like, er.. Newater?? :O

stress factors

i spent part of this afternoon in a foodcourt sipping iced coffee reflecting on the events of the past week.. initially, i didn't want to post about this as it is somewhat private. but then, i realised that this "methodology" i came up with for analysing the stresses in my life is actually pretty cool (pardon me for the unabashed self-praise.. :p) and i should share it 'cos it really helped me to see where i am now..

what i did was as follows:

1. I sat down with a sheet of foolscap paper and a pen and wrote down all the "significant events, people and thoughts" that i encountered this week. I came up with a hefty 25. I define "significant" as what i can recall, quite easily, off the top of my head.

2. On another column, i put a tick for those events that either (a) clearly caused me stress or (b) could potentially create feelings of stress in me..

3. Similarly, in the same column, I put an "O" for those events that, on the other hand, gave me either (a) support or (b) confidence

4. I totalled up the ticks and the "O"s.

5. Guess what? The ticks exceeded the Os by 1. I had 13 ticks and 12 Os... no wonder I am "under considerable stress" and yet "able to exert control"... almost a tie, with the stresses winning a little..

umm...

anyhow, i thought this week's "Theme Thursday" theme was really good: "All Is Good".. i submitted this sunrise panorama I took this morning as my participation entry.. :)

Hwa Chong is tops!

the news

hooray!

nuff said.. :)

non-sequitur picture:



i always thought the fine was a little, er, extreme??

Linguistic humor, The English lesson

We'll begin with box, and the plural is boxes;
But the plural of ox should be oxen, not oxes.

Then one fowl is goose, but two are called geese,
Yet the plural of moose should never be meese.

You may find a lone mouse or a nest full of mice,
Yet the plural of house is houses, not hice.

If the plural of man is always called men,
Why shouldn't the plural of pan be called pen?

The cow in the plural may be cows or kine,
But the plural of vow is vows, not vine.

I speak of my foot and show you my feet,
If I give you a boot, would a pair be called beet?

If one is a tooth, and a whole set are teeth,
Why shouldn't the plural of booth be called beeth?

If the singular is this and the plural is these,
Why shouldn't the plural of kiss be named kese?

Then one may be that, and three may be those,
Yet the plural of hat would never be hose;

We speak of a brother, and also of brethren,
But though we say mother, we never say methren.

The masculine pronouns are he, his and him,
But imagine the feminine she, shis, and shim!

So our English, I think, you all will agree,
Is the craziest language you ever did see.

I take it you already know
Of tough and bough and cough and dough?
Others may stumble, but not you,
On hiccough, thorough, slough, and through?

Well done! And now you wish, perhaps
To learn of less familiar traps?

Beware of heard, a dreadful word,
That looks like beard and sounds like bird.

And dead; it's said like bed, not bead;
For goodness sake, don't call it deed!
Watch out for meat and great and threat;
They rhyme with suite and straight and debt.

A moth is not a moth in mother,
Nor both in bother, broth in brother.

And here is not a match for there,
Or dear and fear for bear and pear.

And then there's dose and rose and lose,
Just look them up, and goose and choose.

And cork and work and card and ward,
And font and front and word and sword.

And do and go, then thwart and cart.
Come, come, I've hardly made a start.

A dreadful language? Why, man alive,
I'd learned to talk it when I was five,
And yet to write it, the more I tried,
I hadn't learned it at fifty-five!

it ain't so funny if they make you say this in "Use of English In Teaching" lesson.. that's what we did today.. haha..

Calcutta

think City of Joy.. think Mother Theresa.. Rabindranath Tagore.. and in-your-face type of human existance...

suddenly, "Calcutta" sounds like an almost romantic place to go to..

i can almost visualise the photography i will be able to do there.. the sights, the sounds, the smells.. the experience..

i can't get it out of my head.. i have the chance to spend a week or so in Calcutta at the end of the year, after my YEP community service trip to Sikkim, or to go to somewhere else.. maybe less overwhelming, like Nepal or something..

but somehow, grimy Calcutta has this magnetic hold on me at the moment.. umm.. but i know it is going to be so hard to find a travel companion who would want/is quirky enough to want to extend the trip by spending it in this city with me...

*ponder ponder*...

they're gonna say i'm nuts...

Colorgenics Personality Test

My Colorgenics Personality test just revealed:

"You are under considerable stress and you are almost about to 'blow your top' but you are fortunate enough to be able to exert control. Control is the name of the game and it is so good to realize that whatever the situation may be at this time - it will pass. You need to get away from everything for a while and if you do, you will find that, strangely enough, it will seem that most of your problems and situations will seem to wash away, just as the sea may wash away 'footprints' in the sand.

Being a likeable person you get on well with neighbors and friends. You don't need anything to 'Rock your boat'. You want to 'love' and to be loved'.

Loneliness is soul destroying and at this time you feel lost and lonely, perhaps it is because you feel so frustrated that you are prepared to go out of your way to become emotionally involved with someone who could accept you for what you are. You are egocentric, antagonistic and quick to take offense, although it must be said, you can control your pent-up up emotion and thus avoid open conflict.

Matters have not gone well for you. You are experiencing severe stress trying to guard yourself from further disappointments. It would seem that all of your hopes and dreams have not been realised and you are now beginning to doubt yourself. You no longer wish to be further advised by anyone and you insist on going it alone - to control your own destiny. Even though deep down you doubt whether things will "

wow.. pretty negative... :O time to examine my subconscious??

English Tests

Spelling Test:

"You have 11 from 15 questions correct.

Absolutely fascinating! You probably knew you were going to get a good score! Some of those were a little tricky, yet you got a next-to-perfect or (probably) perfect score! Amazing! Count on winning the spelling bee! Grade:A"

umm.. was it THAT good?? oh darn, SPELLING BEE?? i think this refers to Grade 3 kids??

Grammar Test:

"You have 20 from 25 questions correct.

Excellent! You can now pass the eighth grade."

what??? darn! only the Eighth grade?? i thought i'm supposed to be TEACHING them?? :O

classroom faux pas

I committed what some people will describe as “classroom faux pas” on Monday.. now, you must be wondering what this can possibly be.. especially in an “open”, “exploratory” institute like the one I am in now.. Let me explain:

you see, I tickled a cow.. yes, not just any cow, but someone’s “sacred cow”.. after months of studying in this place, I figured that since we were at the forefront of education and educational research, and with all this talk of critical thinking, necessity for changes in teaching, and being open and all, I could afford to be vocal in class and to express some of the real-life challenges I see for teaching. Deep in my heart, I believe that it is only with the open, honest discussions that we have in class, without fears and concerns, while we are in the protected environment that we have now, that we can “dissect the theories and models” we have in front of us. This is the time we can figure out which methods are practical and which are not, and finally bring our own learned conclusions to the classrooms and “mould” the future.

Although this thinking and vocalizing of my views was well-received in most other classes, little did I know that, along the way, I actually came close, in this particular Monday class, to being condemned as “slaughtering someone’s sacred cow”... you see, after my wonderful school experience last week, I came back with the feeling that some of the things that we were being taught now in the institute, had in reality limited practicality in a real-life classroom setting, for various reasons. After I vocalized this in Monday’s class, I was quickly cautioned, privately, by a few of my classmates that this teacher may not be pleased with what I said as I brought up one of her “pet” research topics in my sharing..

fearing that I may have offended her, I sent her an email and got a somewhat strongly worded reply back. In her own words, she said she was “taken aback” after hearing what I said. She told me that she was “rattled” by my remark, worse still because the class appeared to “give me much support” (err… did she try to figure out why that was the case??).. as a result, she felt that she “had fallen many steps back”.. I was shocked that she had taken my remark so personally, and in some ways, was disappointed that she felt that I was “attacking” what she was teaching rather than that I was just “discussing”, since that was the angle which most classmates felt I was coming from… an innocent remark meant to generate discussion.. i even thought this feedback and empirical evidence i had for her would have been invaluable for her own academic research in this area.. but i guess she didn't see it this way..

we managed to have a private chat today where I articulated to her more clearly where I came from. Hopefully, the message got through to her.. At the end of the day, however, I guess it left me thinking and slightly sad... I know there is a lot of work still needed to be done to move towards improving the education system.. and this single event could be the very first hurdle I will face, even before I step out there..

wow, this could be a big challenge after all.. :| .. lucky i'm not one to give up so easily..

Swimming Pool



i wish i could figure out what Francois Ozon's French/English movie Swimming Pool is really all about, at a deeper level.. watching the exciting trailer, one could get a rather different picture than what the movie is (i think..).. that single-dimensional view that somehow seems frustratingly inadequate.. umm.. at the very least, the movie was almost surrealistic, if you know what i mean.. after a while, you wonder if you are watching what is actually happening, or only what is in the actors' minds or imaginations or fantasies..

still, i find it quite interesting to walk out of a movie theatre with a whole bunch of questions to ponder on, as well as self-reflections as to why some of the scenes had the ability to create a definite sense of "unease" in me, for whatever reason..

as the New York Times Review says: "The movie is alluringly insubstantial, like the light and air of the Luberon. You can't hold onto it, but it lingers in your senses and plays tricks with your memory."

aptly put.

good show nonetheless. worth watching.

Update: I found this particular review (mind you, it's full of spoilers) that really analyses the movie thoroughly.. quite well done. take a look if you watched the movie and was left as puzzled as i was..

exam wishes

hey, to all those of you "stressed-out" folks who are taking your 'O's, 'A's, promos, prelims, or whatever exams soon, ALL THE BEST and HANG IN THERE!! these dreadful exams will be over before you know it! then it'll be PARTY TIME! :)

it always seems really hard at this time but when you look back years later, you'll be glad you put in your best effort at this time - whether or not you may be wondering now if these exams will really matter many many years from now.. (i know 'cos now i am "looking back" at what happened those many "years ago", when i was in your shoes .... er hmm.. (feeling old-ish.. :p ).. i guess putting in our best effort at every stage of our lives (as long as we don't burn out) will always be worth it, especially for those who believe in living life to the fullest..

carpe diem! (*Seize The Day!*)

don't waste it on procrastination, indolence or apathy.. do what you can so you don't live to regret!

on a rather unrelated note, someone just sent me this disturbing pic:



it begs the question: is this for real?? :O (gasp!!!)

"nowhere in africa" & more mbti balderdash



caught Nowhere in Africa this evening - last year's Academy Award winner for Best Foreign Language Film. it's a movie based on "the extraordinary true tale of a Jewish family who flees the Nazi regime in 1938 for a remote farm in Kenya... abandoning their once-comfortable existence in Germany,"

i was stunned by how beautiful the movie was - the pace, the storyline, as well as the realistic protrayal of human strength, weakness, adaptability, fear, love, lust, friendship and trust...

though the show was no less than 3 hours long, rarely does a gem like this come along - go watch it soon before it disappears..

and from terence's page, i got this link that gave me a bit more information about us ENTP types..

ENTPs are interested in and talk about everything that is new and unusual even if it is not in their main field of knowledge. It is as if they are magnetised by all brand new theories and are fascinated by all phenomena that can not be explained with logic or reason, for example: ESP, telekinesis and UFO's. They cannot logically explain their ideas as they are always intuitive and vague. Most people cannot fully comprehend their concepts, they simply believe or do not believe. (hahahaha.... ufos.. hahahaha..)

The main peculiarity of ENTPs behaviour is an incredible absent-mindedness. They usually leave items where they used them and have a tendency to constantly lose smaller objects. ENTPs work place and personal belongings are often kept in disarray. They invariably forget what they have already done and what they need to do. However, they are quick and shrewd in day to day matters, taking advantage of every opportunity that arises. Because of this others may consider them to be crafty or shifty. ( oops... ex-colleagues please do not comment on this... :p)

The other main peculiarity of ENTPs behaviour is the ability to mobilise in extreme conditions. If somebody puts pressure on them they immediately counterattack, often with more than equal force. They also like to give people advice on how to extricate themselves from difficult entanglements, often proposing the most radical solutions. (hahahaha.. anyone remembers the weird advice i've given you???)

One more peculiarity is the element of chaos and destruction that ENTPs bring to every field of their activity. This is especially noticeable in well established institutions where strong discipline is commonplace. However, they implement this chaotic element creatively, generating reform from the destruction. Because of this quality ENTPs often become leaders. (heh heh.. watch out world... :p)

personality test galore

i know this is going to show how distracted i am, but hey, look at these personality tests i just took (via puppylove)

A: Enneagram

Conscious self	Overall self

Take Free Enneagram Test

i'm not entirely sure what this "Enneagram" thing is all about, though i've heard of it before.. sounds a bit new agey.. anyhow, i found the results above rather inaccurate (for reasons i shall not disclose here), so i decided to take the online free Myers Briggs Type Indicator test instead..

B: Myers Briggs Type Indicator

Extroverted (E) 61.11% Introverted (I) 38.89%
Intuitive (N) 65.71% Sensing (S) 34.29%
Thinking (T) 51.43% Feeling (F) 48.57%
Percieving (P) 52.78% Judging (J) 47.22%

ENTP - "Inventor". Enthusiastic interest in everything and always sensitive to possibilities. Non-conformist and innovative. 5% of the total population.

Take Free Myers-Briggs Personality Test

amazingly, these were the same results i got 10 years ago! :O i've done the test three times in my life so far (including this one) and the results have always been almost identical (except for the first test where i was more introverted.. seems like i have shifted slightly to the right since..haha.. durrhh.. maybe i am a virtual extrovert but a introvert in real life?? :O)

C: Word Association Test

and these are some things i have issues with, apparently (i enjoyed a good laugh after this - it's hard to decide if it is accurate.. could be a really subconscious thing afterall) ..

I have issues with...

genetics weather nature destiny money

Take Word Association Test

D: The Big Five Test

and finally, the most popular The Big Five i- apparently the most accepted personality model in the scientific community at the moment. The Big Five emerged from the work of multiple independent scientists/researchers starting in the 1950s who using different techniques obtained similar results. Those results were that there are five distinct personality traits/dimensions.

The Big Five Personality Test

Extroverted	||||||||||||||||	68%
Introverted	||||||||||	32%
Agreeable	||||||||||||||||	70%
Aggressive	||||||	30%
Orderly	||||||||||||	46%
Disorderly	||||||||||||||	54%
Relaxed	||||||||||||||	60%
Emotional	||||||||||	40%
Intellectual	||||||||||||||||||	72%
Practical	||||||	28%

Take Free Big 5 Personality Test

Details on each dimension:

Extroversion results were high which suggests you are very talkative, optimistic, sociable and affectionate but probably not very reflective.
Friendliness results were high which suggests you are very good natured, trusting, and helpful but probably too much of a follower
Orderliness results were medium which suggests you are moderately organized, reliable, neat, and ambitious.
Emotional Stability results were high which suggests you are relaxed, calm, secure, unemotional and probably too unobservant of your feelings.
Intellectualness results were high which suggests you are very creative, original, curious, imaginative but probably not very practical.

Overall, you scored highest on Intellectualness and lowest on Orderliness.

gosh, it's 10am! i really need to get started on my essay!! :O

"The Great Prawn and Shrimp Debate"

long have i pondered, in the quiet of my room on a warm sunday afternoon, in the solitude of a long and lonely bus ride home, in the course of a corporate meeting that has dragged on too long, in the middle of a conversation with someone who clearly prefers monologues, this question: "Prawns and Shrimp: Are they Different? Or Actually The Same?"

i have heard many answers: "Prawns are big shrimps, or shrimps are small prawns". "We call them prawns, they call them shrimps"... etc..

finally, i've found the answer here at this site : "the only biological difference being that prawns have their second abdominal flap (counting from the head towards the tail) overlapping the first and the third.“ see the site again for the pic that shows the subtle difference...

so there IS a difference! there you have it! next time, before you tuck into your dish of drunken prawns/shrimps or cornflake prawns (Lynn's favourite) at that 10-course Chinese dinner, pause a little while, check that belly bit of the crustacean and eat in peace knowing that you KNOW what you are eating...

:p ... sunday morning madness.. sitting in front of the computer with a pile of unfinished assignments and surfing the net for "prawn" ... (aiyoh! not porn! prawn!! durrhh... hahahahaha...)