Long time no post

Wow, it's been a long time since I last posted. I guess I felt that it was quite pointless to post random stuff that did not really matter, and bore whoever happened to chance upon this blog. Or perhaps I was just too lazy.

I'm learning quite a lot in terms of work, and my view of the world has definitely broadened a lot in these couple of months. It's interesting how I always feel that I've matured much as compared to a certain point in time, and time again, I look back and feel the inadequacy of my knowledge, experience and maturity. There is a great deal of wisdom in the words "活到老学到老".

On a lighter and more random note, some guy (I guess in 20s) called me "uncle" as I was walking to the MRT yesterday. I was like -_-'''. Do I really look so old?

Quotes

I realised that my blog must be pretty boring, since I really have nothing meaningful to share. Perhaps some quotes which I hear or read may help to make it just slightly more interesting and /or memorable. At the very least, it's worth a read or worth a little laugh yea?

Quote of the day from Lord Denning on proof beyond reasonable doubt:

“That degree is well settled. It need not reach certainty, but it must carry a high degree of probability. Proof beyond reasonable doubt does not mean proof beyond a shadow of a doubt. The law would fail to protect the community if it permitted fanciful possibilities to deflect the course of justice. If the evidence is so strong against a man as to leave only a remote possibility in his favour which can be dismissed with sentence ‘of course, it is possible but not in the least probable,’ the case is proved beyond reasonable doubt."

I have always marvelled at how Lord Denning is able to put such deep thoughts and theories into such beautiful quotes and analogies. And yet at the same time, it all seems so much of common sense!

It is of course common sense that reasonable doubt does not mean shadow of doubt, yet lawyers seem to have trouble understanding that. Perhaps it is due to the limitation of the circumstances, but really, how likely is it that any case can be proven beyond a shadow of doubt?

What? It's already Monday?

Wow the weekend really flew by. Celebrating the 1st birthday of my cousin's little boy and attending the wedding of my sister's friend occupied the whole weekend. And managed to make me feel pretty old.

A couple of moments ago, I was suddenly missing my primary school days. The days when I was happy doing assessment books, and waiting for my parents to come home so that we could perhaps go downstairs to cycle around the void deck.

Back then, waiting at the void deck for my parents to return home was such a moment worth looking forward to. What happened to all those joyful moments? I can only hope I can find such happy moments in my life again in the future.

And suddenly, it's Thursday

Time seems to be passing in a blur these few weeks. Perhaps it will continue to be so for the rest of my working days. Week after week, we follow the same routine and habit, passing day after day, months after months.

Many a time, when I read storybooks, or even watch the drama serials where there is no notion of weekend, or not even a clear definition between work and life, I can't help but wonder what it will be like in those worlds. Perhaps only then will people really do what they love for a living. After all, your work is your life. Then again, with the emphasis on work life balance, how will this ever be possible?

Whatever the case, I'm glad that I'm enjoying my work, and enjoying my life. Cheers everybody.

Amazing people

I've been a fan of running man since I started watching it last year. Since then, I've not only watched every single episode, but also went as far as to watch family outing, the variety show that preceded running man.

I've got to say these Korean artistes are amazing people. Imagine their recording schedules when more than 10 hours of recording is consolidated into less than 2 hours of an amazing show weekly. All we see on the show are nothing but a fraction of the hard work by the entire team.

I can't imagine what life will be like now without watching such shows. I'd probably not have such a deep appreciation of the effort and hard work put in by artistes,  especially those who bring so much fun and laughter to everyone around the world.

I can't say how thankful I am to the team who produced running man. You guys are amazing.

P.s. there are many other amazing people out there such as doctors and firemen who deserve our appreciaion too. Here's a general thank you to all those people. :)

Fire Drill

There was a fire drill at work today. It was interesting how everyone took their time to walk down the stairs slowly, and make their way to the assembly area. More so when you see how everyone is equipped.

I bet all the pedestrians are wondering what the hell is going on with this huge bunch of people crowding around, especially people with all kinds of umbrellas, fans and stuff like that. Picture that; a fire occurs, and people grab umbrellas and fans.

It seemed long ago when I last had a fire drill. My last fire drill was probably in secondary school. I recall that I used to imagine what would happen if we had a fire drill in JC. I mean, with 7 levels of classrooms people would probably just take the lift right? Or possibly some of us may just go home or something.

Now when the whole building of 24 levels evacuate, it just seems especially awkward to have a fire drill. I mean, it is a must to familiarise everyone with the procedure and all, but picture 2,000 people crossing a small road (with a zebra crossing). The cars waiting to turn will never make it out for half an hour! (I think that is what happened, except that I didn't wait to see if someone eventually stopped the crossing crowd)

Familiarising everyone with the procedure is good, but no one ever knows what will happen in a real situation. Then again, hopefully we'll never need to find out.

Remembrance

Received word today that my great-grandmother passed away. Though I only met her a total of less than 10 times (she lived in Taiwan), it still deeply saddens me to know that she has passed on.

I still recall in 2008, when my family was leaving Taiwan after a 2-week visit, great-grandma was waving goodbye to us while wiping her tears. I had to look away to hold my tears in. Although we were living so far away from her, she cared so much for us. How I wish I could be there for her one last time..

In remembrance of her hometown, here's a beautiful piece about the deity guardian of Kinmen.

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/q3eKIwX8i_I" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

You will be dearly missed, great-grandma.

No appropriate title

Went to the supermarket with my family yesterday, and noted that the supermarket has changed its trolleys to accept new $1 coins or old 50c coins. I've always thought that there won't be any changes to the trolleys, since the new 50c coins are roughly the same size as the old $1 coins.

On a side note, the coin deposit policies in the banks have always dettered me from depositing coins to the banks. I doubt this applies to me alone. I mean, who will want to deposit coins when the bank charges a percentage out of the coins you deposit? What's more ridiculous is that they will charge for exchanging notes to coins too! In a situation like this, the government will have to keep producing coins to meet the demand. It's a little wasteful if I put it mildly.

On another side note, the weather is getting inceeasingly warmer. How I wish that Singapore has a cool weather. That's really my only complaint of the climate in Singapore. I'd love to have cool weather here, so that we don't have to spend so much money on air conditioning. Instead, we'd probably spend more on clothes. Girls would like that huh?

Mid-autumn

Long ago, in the southern province of China.. Ok who am I kidding. My history knowledge is very much limited to stories and folklore. Maybe some limited knowledge of modern history, but definitely inadequate.

I digressed. It's mid-autumn! I've not had mooncakes for some time now. I used to love mooncakes as kids (I actually still do) but I just somehow am too lazy to actually find some good mooncakes and eat them. Then again, mooncakes nowadays are so expensive, it isn't really worth buying.

It was said that the Chinese once used mooncakes to start a revolution during the late Yuan dynasty. Imagine if mooncakes cost as much then. I think my imagination has run wild. Good night then.

Of holidays, seasons and sorts

Went on a short holiday to Genting over the weekend. How I love the cool weather over there. I've always loved the cold weather. Everytime you're cold, you'll appreciate the warmth of your family nearby, the warmth of fire, the warmth of the delicious food..

Everytime I travel, I seem to have a lot of afterthoughts. Perhaps because my mind is free to rest, and it has time to form all these random thoughts. This time, I once again felt amazed by how much the world has to offer, and how little one actually needs to live a happy life.

When I was in Genting, all I needed was food, clothes and a room to sleep in. In fact, isn't that really all we need in life?

Anyway, it's 2 days to mid-autumn. Once again, I marvel at the Chinese who came up with the lunar calendar. I cannot imagine how much thought and wisdom went into it. We have always learnt of the great astronomists who studied astronomy in ancient Europe, and why the calendar has 365 days. But how many people actually know how the lunar calendar came about? How many records are there of the wise men who studied the moon, and came up with a calendar that is so complex that it always (literally) coincides with the seasons, and matches the English calendar every 19 years?

I for one, have never come across such records. Maybe I should go and find some.

Deteriorating Mind?

It seemed that not too long ago, I could just easily come up with 4,000/5,000 word essays without much thought within a couple of days, and the essay could flow. Yet now when I have to produce a report for work, it takes forever for me to come up with a single paragraph.

Things which I could do with much ease in the past (preparing powerpoint slides) now require much more effort, and conscious thought. Am I reading too much into what I do now that it is part of my work? Or am I simply just not as good as before?

Perhaps my mind has deteriorated much in the past year due to the lack of sleep.

Life and sorts

A couple of days back, some staff at my work place were awarded long service awards. Seeing them get long service awards of having served 25 years, when I'm just about to turn 25 years old sets me wondering what I will be doing 25 years from now. Will I still be in the same job?

During the weekend, while relocating grandfather's remains from his tomb to his final resting place, I saw how in the end we all end up the same: just quietly spending the rest of eternity in a tomb, or an urn. And with Nick Vuijicic's motivational talk about life, everything just seemed to kept signaling to me that I need to fight for what I want in life. Yet still, I'm uncertain of myself, unwilling to take the first step.

A lovely song that I heard on my way to work this morning:

The Sad Truth

While everyone seems increasingly concerned about work-life balance, many of the professionals still work more than 10 hours a day. I chanced across this recent article:

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/my-socalled-life-asan-internat-merrill-lynch-8782735.html

It is not the first time articles like this are written. It definitely will not be the last. When the world is competitive, and time is money, workers will always suffer. Especially workers at the bottom of the food chain.

Not too long ago, I was also working like there was no other thing in the world to do. Though I knew there were so many things to do in life, there was always work, and my false sense of responsibility made me continuously return to work on weekends.

Fortunately, I made up my mind to discontinue the life that consisted only of work. Hopefully one day everyone will make up their minds and discontinue the vicious cycle of working extra long hours. Then again, this day will probably never happen any time soon.

Brilliant song

Out of the blue, I just felt like listening to this song. I've always felt that the lyrics of the song didn't make much sense. Yet when I look at him singing the song, everything made sense. You don't really care about the lyrics when you're trying to express yourself, and your mind is burdened with so much emotion. Well, nothing else matters as long as you get to express what you want to express. And this is what I want to express.

After note: just realized that this post which was supposed to be posted last week was somehow saved as a draft and not posted.

Music of the night

Went to watch the Phantom of the Opera yesterday, and couldn't help marveling at the how powerful music can be. It's not my first time marveling at the powers of music, and definitely won't be my last. But I think it's my first time putting it down in words.

Music - something which is so extraordinary, nothing else can be compared to it. It is a perfect combination of science and emotions, and can be presented through so many different mediums. Be it your voice, a windpipe instrument, a string instrument, or a percussion instrument, music can be transmitted through various mediums.

In fact music is a science, an art, and a language on its own. There is no such thing as a language barrier in music. Even if a song is in a foreign language, anyone can still enjoy the melody and the rhythm. The emotions that are transferred through the musician's expression of the song are so real. It can reach out to any person, whether a layman or a professional. It is just so beautiful that something like this exists in this world.

Watching the Phantom yesterday, I couldn't help marveling at the genius of the composer. Here's a glimpse of his genius (and the brilliance of the musicians performing it as well):



An alternative version here:
http://youtu.be/v8Zci-3ZvYg

Mind goes blank

Recently my nights are either spent watching TV, or letting my mind goes blank. Somehow when I had no time, there was so much I wanted to do, yet now when I have more time, there is nothing I want to do. All I want to do is to sit and do nothing. Then again, that's probably because I've already done the things I want to do. Or perhaps I just enjoy stoning.

New Blog

These couple of days, I've been thinking about starting a diary. Something that can be left behind if I ever pass on. Then again, with technology this day and time, it seems more apt that I share my thoughts in an electronic format. Perhaps I will still keep a diary for more private purposes, but a new blog would be a good avenue for me to share links and perhaps thoughts that are not-so-private.

As I move on into adult life, settling into reality that I will never be a student again, a lot of things have changed. It is strange how perspectives can be shaped by so many factors around you. A couple of years back, I was still an ambitious young student, wanting many things in life. A good career, time to do my own things (such as playing PS 3), enough money to own a car.. The list goes on. Yet with just a couple of years, and a few significant events in life, my perceptions have changed such that there are really only a handful things which I really want:

1. More time to be spent with my family
2. A lifelong partner
3. A good career

Considering that I am rather happy with my job right now, I'd say I'll be happy just maintaining status quo for number 3.

Number 1 is something which most people already know. Yet with each passing event that reminds you that the time you have with your family is limited, the desire for more time to be spent with your family seems to increase, such that there is never enough time. And when these events quietly slip into the memories lost in time, the desire dies down, and we forget that time is limited, till the next event occurs. It is hence important that one reminds himself of the need to spend more time with family. Having encountered a couple of events in the past years have really made me realise my desire to be with my family. I am thankful that I still have time, and I have a strong desire and need to spend the best quality time with my family.

It may be ironic, but my desire to seek a lifelong partner is even stronger than my desire to spend more time with my family. I guess it is due to the fact that I have at the very least, spent time with my family, whereas I am still much lacking in option 2. The most ironic thing is that no matter how hard you may try in this, it may never ever work out the way you want it to. Interestingly, there were some shares on facebook regarding having serious relationships in the 20s. In essence, the article states that it is important to start giving time to serious relationships, as we have finite time, and even if relationships do fail, we do need the practice.

The article is at this link: https://medium.com/architecting-a-life/cff4161f551c

I couldn't agree more. Yet I am unable to step out of that comfort zone and make the first move. All the what-ifs come into mind, and the fear of rejection, ever so real. The dilemma of keeping a good friend as a good friend or risk losing the friend due to a failed attempt at moving your relationship beyond being a friend is something which I cannot make up my mind on. If there's one thing I'm absolutely bad at, this must be it. A usually optimistic person, I'm downright pessimistic when it comes to this, and I know next to nothing about relationships, how to talk to girls, or read any signs from them, let alone have the guts to ask them out.

This is life. The one thing which you wish for the most is likely to be the one which you're worst at. Life will make you fight the hardest for the things you wish for. Perhaps only then, will the reward feel the sweetest.