KeepOnTyping - keeping it real since 1952

Moving to Tumblr

2011-03-22T23:47:00.000+11:00

Hey all, just letting you all know that I'm moving to Tumblr and bringing over all my previous posts with me. I'll see how it goes and I might move back to blogspot. But for now here's the new sight

http://keepontypingblog.tumblr.com/

"keepontyping.tumblr.com" was already taken so I had to add the extra word "blog" into the site. So Tumblr, here I come.

Deadline

2011-03-21T23:37:00.001+11:00

This is my process when dealing with assignments.

First, I write down on my calendar the date it is due.

This also involves mentally planning 2 weeks in advance which section I'm going to complete on different days, leaving me with enough time left to review and correct my work 3 times, and in 4 different languages.
I then proceed to completely forget all about this assignment for the next 2 weeks.

Only by the reminder of another clueless friend do I realise the impending doom of the assignment deadline.

Friend: Hey man, can I have a look at your assignment? And by look I mean copy.
Me: Wha?...What assignment?
Friend: The one due tomorrow.

My 2 week concise plan is now crammed into 12 well thought out hours without a single second to spare. I systematically divide the hours into workable blocks in which I can effectively complete my work. I then proceed to go on Youtube for the next 5 hours.

After wasting my time on pop culture, I now have to cram all my thought out plans into 8 frantic hours. I then realise that 12 minus 5 is actually 7 hours and that sleep is no longer an option for me. Sleep is for the WEAK!! and those that are sleepy.

So I begin writing out my report with renewed determination. The words start to fly out of my fingers and an insane speed of 2 words per minute. 20 minutes later, I log into facebook and read the many, many interesting and worthwhile updates. And by many, I mean none. Absolutely none.

The hours drag on and on and I slowly inch my way towards madness.

I then use the rest of my time to reach the minimum word count requirement by writing nonsensical crap that probably has nothing to do with the assignment, or even anything to do with anything on the physical plane of Earth. I then retreat to the comfort of a 40 minute sleep. And within this grumpy, disorientated state, I say to myself once again "Next time, I'll start my assignment early".

I have a lot of assignments thrown on me lately and hence deadlines are on my mind. The deadlines I'm thinking of aren't really academic though. I've read someone else's blog post a while back about what their new years resolution was. One of the points that stood out on her list was "Be Happy". I wondered if she gave herself a time frame to complete that resolution, or even how she would even define what 'being happy' meant. But I guess she would know what it would mean when she'd achieve it. I've still yet to have a moment in my life where I can say "I am completely content with everything happening right now". I don't know how long that moment will last, or if it even exists somewhere in the future, but I use to give myself deadlines on when I would have that 'moment'. So many deadlines and I couldn't meet any of them. It was disheartening every time, so I made myself stop giving out these imaginary time limits to myself. My birthday is coming up really soon and I think that's made me think about my deadlines again. I think it's gonna be another one I'm not gonna make. I don't know, maybe next time.

Nothing is Wrong

2011-03-08T00:25:00.020+11:00

If someone were to ask
"what's wrong?" with a voice of sincere concern
This is what I would say
with all the honesty in my breath
"nothing is wrong"
And we would move on, smiling
comforted by our talk

If someone were to ask...
but they don't, no one asks
Only silent speeches
Words that come and go, that don't speak up
that don't stay

There are no words here,
none to hold up the scaffolding of my thoughts
Outside these corners, I hear them
the doubts of yesterday gathering
crashing into my walls, clawing their way in
They are angry at me,
they are blaming me

I am quietly here, muted
in this empty space of mine
Staring at the cracks in the walls
I feel them nearing, shattering
My strength is tiring away, and I don’t know why
Louder and louder they scream
I must fight back, I must...
but I can’t
I’m alone...I’m scared

In this empty space of mine,
I feel myself begging
"Please...fix me"
They’re closing in, breathing down on me
Breaking, Tearing, Suffocating
they won’t end
I blindly reach for an answer, anything that will hold me through this
I need to find it. I need it, I need it, I need it...

Then, everything stops
and all I hear is silence
Nothing
Not a memory to comfort me, not a reason to solace me
And that is all
When I am weak,
when I am in need,
when I foolishly wish for another chance at hope...
There is Nothing...only Nothing

With all the honesty in my breath
"Nothing...Nothing is wrong"

* Inspiration

2011-02-17T21:31:00.000+11:00

I thought I'd share this scene from Rocky 6. I watch it sometimes when I feel like I need a pick-me-up on those days of doom and gloom where I feel sorry for myself. Inspiring indeed.

Click for Rocky's Inspiration Speech

The embed feature is disabled on this clip, so I can't show you the clip on my blog, but trust me, this clip is worth watching and learning from.

* Why so serious?

2011-02-15T22:51:00.000+11:00

I don't know how my blogging update pattern is going to be in the next couple of weeks once uni starts again, but I do have an idea of the type of things I'm going to be writing about. I've come to think of this blog as a place where I can vent my mind. I'm not really sure what kind of material you (the readers) really want to read as I don't get much feedback on this site, so I'm gonna just have to write what I feel I need to get out of my head, whether it's with humor or not. I can't promise that everything I post will be with the intention of being funny, but it will be real and honest. Hopefully that'll be enough for you to keep on reading.

Love

2011-02-10T23:42:00.000+11:00

That feeling, how are we suppose to describe it? How do you know it's there?

Some say it's the feeling you get when you find someone that you can't live a day without. Others would find that scenario overly suffocating, instead saying it's the moments when they're not there, when you miss them like crazy, that defines it. Some think it's a feeling that happens and clicks as soon as you meet that gorgeous person, while others believe that something that strong moves slow. Maybe it's that feeling when you're completely afraid of ever losing them, or maybe it's knowing that you can walk out at anytime but choosing to stay. The feeling that'll pull you back to solid ground at the worst times, or maybe the one that'll make you feel like you're flying. The feeling of being so close to someone without saying a word, or the feeling of being able to say the words that you can't find anywhere else.

Maybe that feeling is all of these, or just a combination of some. Or maybe all of these are still not enough. If someone were to tell you what they thought love is, I don't think it'll be exactly the right answer. It's different for everyone. What we feel, how we get to that feeling, what we do with it. Everyone's answer is different (even if they might share similarities). Even the same person's answer might change over time.

And it's definitely not perfect. The feeling is easier for some, painful for others. You might feel it more quickly for one person than another, but mean more with the latter. You could have that feeling with someone, but still not feel as happy as you would hope. You could be lost in the moment with someone that you know is your love, but know that they won't be your last.

The answer of 'what it is' isn't clear, at least not for me. You might have this entire checklist set up in your head but, even with all the boxes checked, still not have that feeling. Almost impossible to have a definition that encompasses the entirety of 'love'. We might not be able to describe it or know what the hell it is, yet when it's there, we are sure. Without a doubt in the world, we are sure.

I think that's what we all really want. We just want to be sure, even if only for a moment.

FML

2011-02-08T22:57:00.000+11:00

Urban Dictionary Definitions:

1) Acronym. Stands for "Fuck My Life". Used liberally in posts on social networking sites, instant messages, and text messages. Generally used as shorthand for "nothing is going right in my life" or "my life sucks"

2) An acronym for 'fix my leg'

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Although I don't doubt the need for some people to urgently get their leg fixed at a designated leg fixing facility, this post/rant is directed towards those that use FML as the more widely known acronym for "Fuck My Life".

It is posted on facebook way too many times, and over the dumbest things. Over dramatic whining all over the place, trying to passive aggressively convey how hard life is by blowing out of proportion a small incident that is by no means difficult.

"I spilled orange juice on the floor. FML"
"It's raining, even though I wasn't even planning to go outside anyway. FML"
"I'm bored...FML"
"I forgot what day it was. FML"

Just one of the many things that people whinge about.

These are the people who can't sleep and like to let other people know about it. Do you know how other people are able to sleep? By NOT going on facebook. If you want to go to sleep, just get off the computer, go to your bed, and close your GODDAMN EYES! Typing nonsensical complaints has never been an effective way of curing insomnia, so stop being stupid!

You're complaining because you're doing something and getting paid!? Do you not understand that money is about to given to you? Fair enough that you complain about work, but c'mon 'FML'? If you hate the job that YOU chose, that YOU applied for, and that YOU drove to, then just quit and go back to relying on government welfare. And oh yeah, you're an idiot!

Isn't this the 4th time this week that this person has put up this status? Well if you're always late for the train, how about getting there earlier!? Seems like such a simple solution to unfuck your life. If the train comes at 12, get there at 11:50! The distance from your house to the train station never changes, so you should already know what time to leave your place to catch the train on time. Your life isn't f'd, you're just stupid!

What I'm trying to get at is, out of all the things in the world to complain about, the little things in life shouldn't be one of them. No need to complain about things that you'll forget about in a weeks time, just have a laugh and move on. And at the end of the day, mishaps and misfortunes turn into great stories to tell. Just chill out people!

* I'm workin' on it

2011-01-23T10:25:00.000+11:00

I know my updates have been few and far between, but I just wanted to assure you all that the frequency of posts is gonna pick up in the next couple of weeks. My good friend Will and I are hard at work filling out that book of ideas, so stay tuned!

What the Hell's Goin' On?

2011-01-19T23:47:00.000+11:00

I find myself in many conversations where I have no clue what's goin' on. My facial expression says "I am very interested and invested in what you are currently saying", whereas my mind says "Whhaaa?? Watchu talkin' bout Willis?" Yes, my jokes are very retro.

Such topical conversations include cars. My friends are into cars. I am not. They like to go into detail about car models and their specs, getting their vast knowledge of automobiles from various car magazines and conversing with other motor heads, whereas I get all my car related information from Mario Kart 64.

Almost always, I have no meaningful contribution to these types of conversations.

I often feel very stupid when I'm part of a conversation that I'm totally lost in, but I pretend to know what they're talking about. This is important for many situations - for example, acting like I know what's going on when my boss explains a job to me. It often gets very technical, and I have to use everything from my bullshitting arsenal to make it seem like I understand without raising suspicion.

This includes:

nodding in agreement every time he finishes a sentence
avoiding eye contact with him at all cost to hide my confusion
always concluding a request with "Yep, too easy"
acting interested by asking detailed questions, whether or not they relate to the job

Boss: "We're gonna have to do a boundary survey, securing any SSM's and their positional coordinates on MGA through the S6 unit."
Me: "So what's the advantage of using MGA coordinates instead of Katy Perry's video clip of California Girls?"

And most importantly, saying long and overly detailed answers with confidence, even if I don't understand what it is I'm saying

Basically, I have to try anything I can to not get fired.

What are we suppose to do when we have absolutely no idea what's goin' on or why things are happening? You know the saying - "fake it 'till you make it." And yes, that is a very important skill to have, but it can only get you so far. Eventually it will all catch up to you, leaving you wondering "what the hell is happening!?"

It's inevitable that we find ourselves in these situations. Hell, I'm in it all the time, just trying to improvise my way through it most of the time, with absolutely no clue whether I'm right or not. But I'm learning. I think that's what it's all about - learning. We get lost in something, fail and fluke through it so many times until we eventually just 'get it' and move on until we're stuck again somewhere else.

What I've learned in 2010 was that life ain't easy yo. Shit, it's one of the hardest things that will punch any of us square in the face. It's daunting and overwhelmingly scary when that realisation draws on you...but we learn to be better, to chip away the burden we hold, to make things easier on ourselves, to keep going, and we learn to be at ease with our own little world. Till then, we just gotta wing our way through it.

So I'm dedicating the year of 2011 to learning. Here's hoping you'll teach me something this year =)

* Why so Rainy?

2011-01-03T17:12:00.000+11:00

While I was waking into the shops, it was sunny, with only traces of clouds looming in the distance. When I got out with my trolley full of groceries, it started to intensely rain down on me and my shopping. The walk to my car was not very pleasant. Too much hydration for my liking. Someone needs to invent a trolley with retractable umbrellas, or at least waterproof sandwiches.

* Hoping for a Change

2010-12-23T00:42:00.000+11:00

There was a birthday being held at a bar on this Wednesday night. I had come back from a long day at work and wanted some much needed sleep to fuel myself for the following morning of scheduled employment. I was in no mood to be heading out tonight, but I forced myself to grudge through the routine of getting ready to go out, doing so while half asleep. An event on a Wednesday work night is unusual for me. I wanted to do something different, secretly hoping for (maybe even needing) a change. Maybe it would lead to something different happening in my predictable routine. Maybe I'd meet someone who's going to have some meaningful impact on my life. I didn't want to miss out on a chance on 'maybe'.

So, I went. And that was it. There was no change. Just a night out. A nice night out nonetheless, but one that will have no significant effect on the rest of my coming days. I know that tomorrow will be exactly the same as yesterday, with no progress between the two. Tonight made no changes, but it was different. And that should hold me over, at least for tonight.

* Who are you?

2010-12-21T21:26:00.000+11:00

There has been an insurgence of Facebook quizzes that accurately determine what kind of person you are. And by 'accurate', I mean it tells you your closest equivalent in various (and questionably scientific) topics. People are flooding the news feed with their results of what type of Vampire/Superhero/Greek God/Pokemon/Vacuum Cleaner are you? It's gotten out of hand. Seriously people, just be yourselves!

* Lip Balm

2010-12-08T21:59:00.000+11:00

I have learnt a very valuable lesson. Do not put your mini glue stick next to your lip balm, not unless you want your lips to be all sticky and your documents all glossy.

* Nostalgia

2010-12-06T23:19:00.001+11:00

If you know me, or have been following my blog for some time, then you would know that I am a huge John Mayer fan. This post isn't about his music, but of this video clip he posted up on youtube. It's a small side reel of his trip to Japan. I just love the atmospheric tone that this clip conveys.

I had also gone on a trip to Japan almost 2 years ago. And watching the above clip reminded me of those dormant memories. I remember the hustle and bustle of the Japanese city night life, but what stuck with me most on that trip were actually the places where tourists didn't usually go. The places that gave me quiet moments.

Walking down a quiet street in a suburban town. Climbing up an empty set of steps with the sound of a waterfall around the corner. Looking outside the bullet train as rows of rice fields and traditional Japanese homes sweep by.

The quiet allowed me to take in all the new sights without the distraction of others. My eyes wondered, and my mind went with it.

I've started to do the same back here at home. There's something about staring out the window of a moving car, bus or train. Every time, I notice something new on the same trip. A different house, a winding bike track, someone tending the garden. I always wonder about the people living in those houses, or using those tracks, or even tending to their flowers. How on earth did they end up there? Out of all places they could've been, they ended up where they are, just like how I ended up where I am. It's in these quiet moments where I try to take in everything I see and just wonder.

Back in Japan, I took one of the local train lines to Miyajima Island. There was an elderly man on the same train sitting across from me. He had noticed that I was speaking English in quite a strange accent. He asked me about it (in surprisingly good english himself). That's when I told him I was from Australia, hence my different English accent. That's when he started telling me about he's story. He was a farmer going through a bit of a rough time with growing crops in the current season. I asked him how he learnt English, and it turned out he had taught himself. He had never even been out of Japan, yet he chose to learn a different language. The conversation was short lived as he got off the train about 10 minutes later. It's not the kind of conversation I'd ever forget, yet I know that, just like thousands of other faceless strangers, I would never see this inquisitive man ever again.

With all these window observations while alone with my inquiring mind, I sometimes get a bit lost in it all. It's in times like these that I can't help but wonder, with the world as big as it is, where do I fit in all of this? I think I'll figure that out one day.

Sarcasm

2010-11-29T23:39:00.000+11:00

I, like many of the disheartened and soul-drained youth, have mastered the art of sarcasm. Sarcasm is said to be the lowest form of wit. Now that can't be true, because I use sarcasm all the time and that would imply tha...oh wait a minute...FUUUUU-!

People think I'm sarcastic all the time, but it's not that. I just seem to have a really monotone voice, making it really difficult for people to know if I'm serious or joking most of the time. This can sometimes work in my favour when I make a joke that noone laughs at. I can just play it off as though what I said was a serious comment. And you may be saying "I bet you bomb out with your jokes all the time, right?" And let me tell you, that is definitely not-true and never happens! Well maybe not definitely never...more like mostly never. OK, let's say "kinda" not-true, in the sense that truth is a relative thing depending on wher...Yes, it happens all the time.

But it especially backfires when I'm meeting new people who have yet to become accustom to by sarcastic-monotone speaking patterns. They often mistake my jokes for seriousness, and my seriousness for derogatory sarcasm.

90% of the time, I am sarcastic. 89% of the time, people think that I am serious. Let me paint a specific scenario for you. I was going through the Maccas drive thru. After I ordered my meal, I drove around the bend to find that another car was driving thru in the wrong direction. Since the drive thru was obviously only narrow enough for one car, the driver (who may or may not be of Asian orientation) realised his mistake with the directional help of the McDonald's staff and reversed his way out of there.

After the insane driver cleared way, I proceeded to roll towards the pick-up window. The Mcdonalds cashier who had just witnessed the bizarre incident finally took her gaze off the reversing car and looked back at me. Thinking that I was funny, I decided to sarcastically say to her "I think you need to widen the drive through".

Without any kind of reaction, she blankly looked back at me, and dryly said "Oh no, we don't have to. That guy was just driving the wrong way."

I had made a sarcastically and obviously ridiculous comment, but she responded as though what I said was a serious suggestion. She also added the obvious detail of "that guy was just driving the wrong way", to reinforce why my suggestion would not be a viable form of traffic control.

I have learnt that Sarcasm can be a cruel, cruel burden to have. But it can make for some very interesting stories that I hope you guys enjoy to read.

Reader: "Wow, your blog is really funny!"

Me: "REALLY???"

Reader: "...No"

* Crunch Time

2010-11-15T22:27:00.002+11:00

Hey, I know I haven't been posting anything in the past week, but I'm afraid it will continue that way for the next 2 weeks or so. My finals are coming up and I really need to spend as much time as I can hunkering down to study.

This is my current studying habitat. That completely disorganised mess holds all the information I need to pass these upcoming exams. As you can see, I have everything under control...

I might post up a couple of mini updates here and there, but I'll most likely won't have enough time to post up proper posts. So why not read up some old posts and just pretend that they're new/funny. Here's one that I wrote a year and a half ago after I had finished my exams back then. It seems like such a long time ago.

Well time for me to get back to studying (which comprises of 10% of reading, and 90% of praying to every religion out there for mercy). And to you all, whatever it is you're doing for the next couple of days, good luck!

Social Interactions

2010-11-07T23:46:00.000+11:00

Me: Oh, Hiiiiiiii! How are you??
Person: ...do I know you?
Me: ...no...you just looked really friendly =(
Person: *stab in the face*

Greeting people can be awkward when you've only met the person (briefly) once before. You might've seen them at some social gathering where they were the friend of a friend of someone's long lost cousin's pet. So you know of them, but that's as far as it goes.

Then comes the second encounter with this person. You make eye contact from a distance, which is when the mind games begin. The first thing you try to figure out is "Do I know this person well enough to say hello?" You go for it anyway and try to say hi, but you're greeting goes unnoticed as the person has turned in the opposite direction the exact same moment you opened your mouth. The failed greeting attempt is then further hindered by various other people conversing with the person you tried to say hello to.

So that's the end of that phase. There's a time limit between when you first make eye contact (which means both parties have acknowledged each other) to when you actually say hi to the person that you've barely met once before. Leave that gap too long, and it's too late to say hello, or else it'd just be awkward. So once that time limit is reached, the next phase begins where you pretend you don't know each other. This involves the avoidance of all eye contact, even if you are in close proximity to the person, your line of sight must not meet in order for the level of awkwardness to not escalate.

Instructional picture follows:

This whole process is called "I know you, and I know you know me, but I'm not gonna say hi and I know you aren't either, so I'm gonna pretend to not know you and I know that you're gonna pretend to not know me." This doesn't only apply to people you've only met briefly before. It also applies to:
     * people you haven't seen in a long time and have no intention of reconnecting on any social level
     * people you know you won't be able to sustain a conversation with (VERY important to employ the avoid-all-eye-contact rule when you know it would otherwise result in an awkward hour long train ride home)
     * distant family members who don't speak English
     * people whom you owe money to
     * Peter (you know why, you arsehole!)

Then there's that awkward conversation situation that involves you, a friend, and a friend of that friend. Let me explain with the aid of this diagram.

So in this diagram I am person C, my friend is person B, and person B knows person A (whom I have never met before). B has a conversation with A (represented by the red arrows) which I am left out of. This is only one aspect of the awkwardness. At some point in the red conversation, B mentions something about me to A.

B: Hey, do you know this guy (referring to me) does engineering too.
A: (looks at me, but then turns to B) Oh yeah, what major does he do?

Let me explain what just happened there. B just introduced me into the conversation. A acknowledges me and has questions (represented by the grey broken arrow), but instead of conversing along that grey path, he continues the conversation along the red arrows, which only end up at B. B then repeats exactly everything A just said to me (via the blue conversation arrows). I could, at this point, create a solid conversation path to A, but because it was B who asked me the question (even though on A's behalf), I am socially obliged to reply to him via the blue conversation. B then relays exactly everything I said to A. This awkward conversational echo continues as B continues to mediate between me and A until the conversation goes on to another topic where I am once again left out of the red. Awkward.

This also happens when you order at the drive-thru at McDonalds. The Driver, the Passenger and the Cashier are all in hearing distance of each other. But the conversation nevertheless must proceed like this:

C: Hi, how may I help you?

D: Hi, can I get a big mac please.

C: Would you like anything else?

D (to Passenger): What do you want?

P: A cheeseburger

D (to Cashier, even though she perfectly heard him): A cheeseburger

C: Do you want chips with that?

D (to Passenger, even though he perfectly heard her): Do you want chips with that?

P: Yeah

D: Yeah

C: What size chips do you want?

D: What size chips do you want?

P: Medium will do

D: Medium will do

C: That'll be $10.50

D: That's $10.50

P (to D): That's a fucken rip off! I'm not paying that!

D (to C): ....well, you heard him.

* KeepOnWriting

2010-11-04T22:01:00.001+11:00

I have all these ideas that I have in mind for future blog posts, but these ideas are more like bullet points vaguely swirling around in my head, and I don't seem to have the time lately to put these ideas down into well constructed sentences and paragraphs.

It usually takes a couple of weeks from the idea popping into my head to me actually typing it all down into an entry. Those thoughts would usually just 'stay' in there 'till I bothered to write it all up. But lately I've started writing them all down into...well, I would call it a diary, but that just sounds gay. I'll just call it a book.

The first page was written when I was thinking of writing about sixbillionsecrets. The second page was written while I was on the train.

As you can see, the pages are nonsensical and all over the place, which evidently means I'm the only one that'll be able to understand it. This book/journal/gay diary isn't secretive or anything. Most of the stuff I write in here will end up on this blog in its complete form some time in the future. I just needed somewhere to write down my thoughts before they get lost in the already crowded head of mine. And that's how I came to title this book "KeepOnWriting"

OK, not everything in this book will be about future blog posts. I also use it to draw rough sketches of things that I want to draw up when I have free time. This page here illustrates how much I want an electric guitar! Particularly the Fender Standard Strat. The cheapest one I've found goes for $809. And I want it, I want it, I want it, I want it! I could easily afford it and was actually thinking of spoiling myself this christmas. But I think I'll hold off this year and instead get myself a decent steel string guitar instead. I haven't been playing the guitar long enough to warrant a full fledged electric machine.

The moment I wanted a Strat was when I saw this video clip. The guitar work in this is so in your face, but in a melancholy way. It's subtle throughout the song, but it guides you through the entire lyrics (which in itself have a huge impact) until it picks up for the crazy guitar solo around the 3:40 mark where the emotional impact just sky rockets. For the 2 minute solo, it sounds like the guitar is really crying and...man...it's just so awesome.

* Saw 3D

2010-11-01T10:46:00.001+11:00

Just went to watch Saw 3D. What I saw in Saw was really....such an eye sore. I saw people getting sawed, which sure made my adrenaline soar, as what I saw in Saw sure made me sore in places where the people were getting sawed. I sure wish I never saw what I saw in Saw. What I saw in Saw was, for sure, one of the worst thing I've ever saw, but sure not as bad as when I saw Jersey Shore. I also wish I didn't fall off that see-saw (totally unrelated incident, but the fall sure made me sore)

SixBillionSecrets

2010-10-19T23:20:00.133+11:00

If you ever heard of it, there's this site where people post up stories of themselves. It's called sixbillionsecrets. It's where people go, usually anonymously, to post up some of their secrets. Most of these secrets are quite full on, showing how people feel of what they're going through.

When I first found this site, I was so compelled to read through every single secret that had been posted up, seeing all the insecurities and hard times those people were/are enduring. Even though they were all anonymous, it felt like they were showing their most inner self with the world. Maybe it was because they were anonymous that they were able to share what they really are inside, without ever telling anyone who they are.

But then I started thinking about the people who reading through the same secrets as me. What do the readers feel. Do they relate? Empathy, or maybe sympathy?

"There are people with worst problems out there, so you shouldn't worry." It's what we've been told at some point in our lives, and there are even some people who live by that. And of course, hearing messed up stories does put things into perspectives, but we can only experience these stories from the outside looking in. Our own experiences are the only thing we can truly base everything on, and because of this, and the fact that we can only ever really view other people's lives from the outside looking in, it creates a disconnect. We're able to take other people's lives into account, and even though what you feel at your worst might not be as bad as what someone else is feeling, it is the worst that YOU have ever felt, and sometimes you're own feelings overrule any empathy you might feel for others. It's selfish, but it's human.

There are so many stories on sixbillionsecrets, all completely messed up in so many different ways than I could ever imagine. And even though they're all different, I think there is an underlining feeling that they are share - loneliness. Their pain is not only from the problems they're going through, but that they're going through it alone. And eventually, it's this loneliness that becomes a problem in itself. And I think that's why people post up on that site, not to gain any sympathy because of their problems, but to feel less alone - to feel connected. It's impossible for us to understand someone else's situation, but we can relate to the feelings that these situations evoke. It's not a competition to see who's going through a shittier time than another. If anything, it's about reaching out and hoping that someone out there understands and acknowledges the emotions we're going through. And that's what we all really want, to feel connected with someone else, so that whatever is happening in our lives, we don't feel like we're going at it alone.

I use to think that there were people who needed help, and those that were giving it. But it's not that simple. Everyone needs help in their own way, don't they? But they're also able to give help as well. Helping others might not help out our own problems, but what it does is bring us closer to someone else, breaking down that underlining feeling of loneliness. It's nice to lean on someone who's leaning on you too.

Well that's what I think sixbillionsecrets is all about. It might mean something different to you when you read through it, but to me, it's all about knowing whatever is happening, you're definitely not the only one feeling that way. So like Philosopher Efron once said, "We're all in this together"

Imagination on Fire

2010-10-18T22:08:00.000+11:00

This post is dedicated to a good friend of mine who had her birthday last Saturday. She's a really talented drawer. Actually one of the most realistic sketchers I've ever seen and she easily puts anything I draw to shame. But she's recently been too busy with uni and hasn't drawn in over a year, and I thought that that was such a waste that she would let her talent slip away like that. I think it's a shame if anyone let's go of a certain part of their talents due to lack of time, whether it be drawing, playing a musical instrument, professionally or even as a hobby.

So my present to her was a couple of art supplies and this artbook, which I hope would motivate her to draw again. I would love to see her complete that book one day, but because she is quite busy, I thought I'd help her out by filling out the first page for her.

Happy Birthday Libby

* Train Ticket, Part 2

2010-10-17T20:06:00.001+11:00

Carrying on from my previous post. I had forgotten to withdraw from my debit card the day before, which had caused me to be in the current predicament (I figured I would type a smart word that I would never say in real life) I had found myself in. So after wasting time watching the train's doors open and close for what seemed like enough time for me to make enough sandwiches for a small Asian family, I turned to the ticket operator window to see that I could've used my debit card on their EFTPOS machine. The next train wouldn't arrive to the station for another half hour and I was already too late for uni as it was, so I resigned for the day and went home.

The following week, I found myself in the exact same circumstances. 2 minutes left, dashed across the bridge, onto the platform, ran to the automated ticket machine, punched in my destination, then whipped out my wallet only to find that I was, once again, monetarily lacking. Learning from the previous week's mishap, I quickly turned to the ticket operator with my debit card in hand.

Me: "Hi, can I get a return ticket to Central, please."
T.O.: "Yep, that'll be 7 dollars."
Me: "I'll be using EFTPOS"
T.O.: "Sorry, EFTPOS is only 10 dollars minimum."
What I said: "....oh...."
What I should've said: "...oh...can I get a return ticket to Central with large chips, please."

Needless to say, I did not make it to uni that day either (I was not going to waste an extra 3 dollars on a redundant ticket just so I would make it uni, a place where I spend 50 bucks an hour to sleep) . So lesson learned: always drive.

* Train Ticket, Part 1

2010-10-13T00:18:00.001+11:00

I was on my normal Wednesday routine where I catch the 11 o'clock train to my uni. Normally I arrive there 15 minutes before the train comes, as I usually have to walk about 3 to 4 streets down from the closest parking spot I can find, then over a pedestrian bridge onto the platform, and if I miss this train, I would have to wait another half an hour for the next.

But on this particular morning, my poor time management skills and the overuse of the snooze button caused me to cut it pretty close. I got to the pedestrian bridge, and saw that I didn't have much time to beat the train. I only had a minute to get across the bridge and get myself a ticket. I made a mad dash up, around, then down the bridge to the other platform, and ran to the ticket machine seconds before the train got there. I punched in my destination just as the doors were slowly starting to open. With success so close, I whipped out my wallet, only find that I had no money. I could only stand there, for what seemed like all the time in the world, and watch the train drive away, taunting my current ticketless situation. Lesson learned: Don't try so hard.

How it Feels to be Free

2010-10-10T21:05:00.000+11:00

* Why so Poor?

2010-10-07T23:18:00.001+11:00

Why does money disappear quicker than we get them? It's like we have this false sense of security, coupled with youthful ignorance, when we find ourselves having a constant stream of income. So we always, naively, buy more than we're getting paid. The more we earn, the more we spend, the poorer we get.

Me: How much is this Mars bar?
Cashier: 6 dollars
Me: WHAT!? THAT'S A RIPOFF! I'll take 3.

* Mini

2010-10-07T23:17:00.001+11:00

Sorry for not updating for the past 2 weeks, but I've been completely loaded with assignments. I had 3 exams, an 8000 report, 2 assignments, a presen...

Random Reader: No one cares!

...oh, fair enough. Well anyway, I finally have some extra time to start blogging again. But I've realised that I still won't have enough time to write my posts as frequently as I would like. I also spoke to someone that use to read my blogs the other day, and they said that they've stopped reading it because it felt like they were reading essays. They also inferred that I was homosexual. My family can be so mean... Well anywho, as a result, I'm now going to post mini entries in between all my 'essay' ones. This will mean I'll be able to update my blog more regularly (like a good blogger should), while trying to please all the people who just want light reading and those who don't mind my long, random rants . (The length of this post itself is bordering in between what I consider a mini update and a proper one)

Starting from now, only my normal updates will be shamelessly plugged on facebook. My mini posts will be updated randomly, but more frequently, so you're just gonna have to check back every now and then to see what random junk I post up.

My first mini post is posted right after this one, and if you want to quickly read it, click this link [Why so Poor?]

...Did you click? 'cause it doesn't do anything lol, you idiot. But seriously, go read it.

Going up?

2010-09-26T23:29:00.000+10:00

If someone told you to get inside a huge box, wait patiently while they close its lids, shuffle it around, re-open it, and it'll get you closer to where you need to be, would you do it? Well if you said no, think about it the next time you board an elevator. And if you said yes, you obviously weren't paying much attention in primary school when they were teaching you the safety of knowing "stranger danger!" and "you can't touch me there!"

I find it a little awkward waiting for elevators to open. It's like I press the 'up' button to call the elevator, but it's still stuck on its current floor. I then go to repeatedly mash the up button, thinking it would make the elevator notice me, but it's like the elevator just replies "Yeah, just wait man! Take a chill-pill while I meet and greet some peeps along the way between where you are and where I am currently at." I don't know why the elevators I imagine are ghetto, but I find them very rude.

Whenever an elevator is opening just as I arrive in the foyer, I immediately jump in. And when I say jump in, I mean I dive at the closing doors with my outstretched arms and retardedly try to pry it open with my finger tips. This causes the people waiting in the foyer to look at me like I'm some sort of crazy man. The person inside the elevator presses the 'open-door' button, but of course they always press it too late, and by the time the elevator opens up again, I've already looked like a zoo's baboon trying to scratch its way into a crate of coconuts. Of course, the doors are designed to open when it senses something between them, but in my mind, I just opened steel doors with my fingers. I'm bloody superman.

At this point, it's too late to ask the elevatoring commuters "is this going up?". I've already swan dived into the damn thing. I have to commit. And with my luck, most of the time the elevator goes in the opposite direction that I want. As it descends, people leave floor by floor, until there's only me and another person left in the elevator as it approaches the last floor. At the very bottom floor, the elevator opens up, and the other person walks out. Knowing it is the only floor left to get off, the guy looks back at me bewildered as to why I'm still in the elevator. All I can do is look back with an expression that says "I screwed up", and feel slightly stupid as the elevator goes back up. I shrug it off, and move on from the awkward situation. Until the elevator returns to the foyer level, and I feel the stares of the people who saw me babooning into the elevator, still inside the very same elevator. I have no idea who these strangers are, but I still feel deeply embarrassed.

This is just my own opinion from too much analysing of things I shouldn't, but I think that people only see themselves either on the way up or on the way down. We are never ever really 'in the moment'. I mean, we all experience 'moments', but upon reflection, we don't treat these experiences as isolated instances. We compare it to moments that preceded it, moments we expect to come, and all the moments connected to the newly thought up ones. We're either on our way up, where we're looking forward to the promises of having more tomorrow, or on the way down where we're frantically clawing for the possessions of yesterday.

Even the thought of "going up" is still relative. Imagine a building where every floor is progressively better than the one below. We start off at level 5. Where this has been our level of "normal" for as long as we can remember, and all you want is to get higher and make your way to level 7. And then you're allowed to jump to level 8. Of course, you're ecstatic at first to have moved up. You're at a better place than you were yesterday. But over time, level 8 doesn't feel higher anymore. You get use to the surroundings of the 8th floor and eventually it becomes your new 'normal'. And then you're able to go to level 10. Ecstatic at first, but eventually the feeling of normalcy hits. You continually progress higher and higher until you find yourself stuck at a floor that you just can't get above. You're stagnated at the highest point you've ever been so far, but eventually, this becomes your new and only level of 'normal'. And eventually, normal won't be good enough anymore.

If you don't have anything to look forward to, then you'll be stuck. Change is inevitable, and if you can't go up, then, sooner or later, the only way for you would be down. Everyone knows what it's like to be on the way down, it sucks. I think the way to reverse the trend is to have a reason to believe, a promise, or have the hope that tomorrow will be better than your yesterday. I'm not saying that people are always wanting more and are never happy. What I'm saying is that you can be happy, but still want more at the same time. Good enough is should never be what we're aiming for. I think happiness is the continual act of knowing you have something to look forward to.

I've actually had the general concept of this blog entry in my head for the last couple of weeks, but I've never known how to end it to reflect where I stand on this whole "up or down" trend. And if I had written this 2 days ago, or anytime before that, I think I would've ended it on quite a gloomy note. I mean, nothing has really changed, I still feel I've been idle on a floor that I've been wanting to get off of for such a long time, and there doesn't seem to be any indication that I'm gonna be moving up anytime soon. But, for the first time for as long as I can remember, and for absolutely no reason at all, I am hopeful.

* Why so busy?

2010-09-14T21:40:00.001+10:00

Sorry I haven't been updating as frequently as I would like, but I am currently drowning in all my assignments right now. I have an online assessment due this midnight, I have another assignment due on Thursday, and an 8000 word report due on Friday. Next week (which is the week my "holiday" is suppose to start) I have an mid semester exam on Monday, a Lab session on Wednesday, and another mid sem on Friday. And I am currently sick. But no matter, as you can see from the picture which represents my upcoming fortnight, I am completely handling everything.

There's always that point in the semester where, up until then you think "I got this uni thing all under control", and then, out of nowhere, you're screwed. Deadlines like to be hidden when it's all the way down the calendar, but when it has you in shouting distance it likes to surprise rape you from behind. Pain in the ass.

Okay, I know I've said that I'm against updates that recount day-to-day, but bear with me. Last Saturday I went to a dress up birthday party. The theme was "groups", i.e. you could dress up as anything you want, as long as you were in some sort of duo/trio/quartet/fivetet/sixpaloo/etc. I dressed as one of the MIB. I even made my own ID card.

My new driver's Licence

Despite how it looks, I actually put a lot of effort into that. Even though I had my costume prepared, I realised that I didn't have any friends that would dress up the same as me. I also realised that I didn't have any friends. So I decided to make one. Literally.

He's like a friend, but better...because he can't leave you...but he can melt in water though, that dumb idiot

Anyway, I am really swamped! I'm rushing to get everything completed, I shouldn't even be doing an update, but all of you are just too damn cool. So I'll go back to proper posting in about 2 weeks time. So why not just read old posts and pretend they're new..and funny. So until then, come back for me? Please? I LOVE YOU ALL!!! (except for one of you. YOU know who you are! (kidding...bitch (sorry...(spaghetti!!!))))

I want...

2010-09-05T00:18:00.000+10:00

Just came back from cousin's wedding not that long ago. It might have had something to do with the candle lit backdrops and the amount of booze that I consumed, but seeing two people get lost in each other's teary gaze as if they were the only two people in the room, knowing that they had found the person of their dreams. I know I'm sounding super corny, but it sure was...something...And it really got me thinking.

By no means am I just gonna rush out and just try to find someone to call my own. I'm not gonna be with someone, just for the sake of being with someone. But it still makes me wonder about those days where I give up going out to the city at night, and instead opt to stay home to catch up on those last minute assignments. What if, by not going, I missed out on meeting the girl of my dreams (if there even is such a thing)? Then I realise that that girl isn't going to be clubbing at 3a.m. Even if she is, I wouldn't want her to chat up a stranger, in this case me. I want someone who'll have the time of her life, while being contained when it comes to sleazy advances by randoms. I want someone who can catch my attention, and actually be able to keep it. I want someone who likes bands, but doesn't love them to the point where she won't listen to anything else. I want someone who can make me feel like what I'm doing is worth a lot, yet at the same time not enough, making me want to constantly improve on who I was yesterday. I want someone who can say to me "Hey, how 'bout you hang out with your boys tonight while I hang out with my girls." I want someone who's waiting for me to call her, but is too stubborn to call me herself. I want someone who wants to be with me, but doesn't need to be with me. I want someone who'll not necessarily complete my list, but make me forget I even had one in the first place.

This girl of my dreams is, most likely, right now with her boyfriend, albeit a lame boyfriend. And she's already starting to know that he's lame. Probably a nice guy for her to be around, but no interest or sparks are happening between the two. And I want her to be with her lame boyfriend for now, so it gives her something to contrast me against when/if she finally meets me.

I want...I want...I just want to go to sleep for now...I'm tired, groggy and a little bit tipsy. Goodnight everybody, hope you all sleep well tonight.

* Why you speaking this way for?

2010-08-25T21:21:00.002+10:00

Why is it when we (well at least the majority of us) speak to ethnic, mostly older, people, we don't say sentences correctly. As soon as we hear them talk in a funny accent with grammatically incorrect sentences, we start to talk back to them in broken english as well. We leave out adjectives, verbs and generally any conjoining words, as though making the sentences as short as possible will make it easier for the ethnic person to understand what we're saying.

Old Chinese Man: "Herroo. Is you know where twan stasun?"
Me: "Sorry?"
OCM: "How you say da...uhm... d-d-d-da twaan stasunnn?"
Me: "Train station?"
OCM: "Yis yis, this one"
Me: "Ok. You see there, take the left. Keep going. You see the lights. Go the right"
OCM: "Erm...ehh? Why you der speaka this way for?"
Me: "...me no speak english."

Maybe the only reason ethnic people speak the way they do is because everyone else continually speaks retarded english to them because we think that's the only way they'll understand. They're probably thinking that the way they talk is fine because that's the way everyone else is speaking to them. Maybe if we all just speak normally to them, using verbs, adjectives and, heaven forbid, words with more than 2 syllables, maybe that'll turn them into fluently speaking Englishmen.

Old Chinese Man: "Herroo. Is you know where twan stasun?"
Me: "Sorry?"
OCM: "I said, can you please direct me to the nearest train station? Your deafness is horridly idiotic, if I must say so myself"
Me: "...Why you der speaka this way for?"

Perspective

2010-08-19T23:43:00.000+10:00

What do you see when you look at the above picture? You're probably just thinking "what the hell? It's just some blob on the page." Or maybe I'm just too lazy to draw something to accompany this post. Just keep guessing. I'll tell you the answer at the end.

It's very awkward/weird when I see someone from an obscured angle, at say a train station, that I think I might know from an encounter about once or twice before. I can only see the back of their head with maybe a glimpse of the side of their face. I'm not certain enough whether or not it's them and decide some further investigations must be taken before I decide to say hi. So to get a better look, I do that walking-past-while-peering-at-the-corner-of-your-eye-while-pretending-to-look-at-something-else maneuver. I think I'm being clever with this sly move, but I most probably just look like this

So I'm walking around like a creep, with this person, that I may or may not know, blurred in my peripheral vision, and I still have no idea if I know them or not. I walk a bit further to get a better perspective on the person. I get a head on view and I'm far enough to get a good look without raising suspicion or alerting any nearby officers. But now, my memory becomes hazy and I can't remember what they really look like. So I criss-cross the face I'm seeing at the train station with the hazy memory in my mind thinking to myself "Err...yeah it kinda looks like them, but not really..but kinda.." And I try to figure it out by continuing to stare at the person that I have pretty much been stalking for the past 10 minutes. Of course by this time, she sees me and stares blankly back. I come to the conclusion that I do know this girl and walk over to say hi. "Hey there Ja..." But as I get too close, I realise too late that it's the wrong person. She now feels threatened by my previous creepy ogling and BAM! third time I get stabbed that week.

"Well that was a boring story Trung, now tell me what the hell that picture is suppose to be!" Wow...the people I imagine reading this blog are really aggressive...

Well anyway, if you're wondering what you're suppose to see, it depends on your perspective. But it is just a blob. Nothing special about it. A tiny insignificant smear on the page, yet that's all we see, completely ignoring the other 95% of the picture which is made up of pure clean white. No matter what perspective you look at it, it's still an imperfection. We try so hard to get that 100% white, but our efforts at cleaning it off either smudges it around more, or causes another blob to appear when we're too occupied erasing the previous one. Sometimes they're small and out of sight, while other times they're overgrown and persistent. Sometimes we're able to tuck them away into the corner, while other times they're smack in the middle of everything. No matter what we do, they will always be there. But maybe, that's ok? I don't believe anyone is strong enough to stare at their own pages without seeing their stains, and it's too cliche to say and almost against human nature to "accept what we can't change". I don't know what I'm supposed to do with mine. But whether we're nearing acceptance, hiding it from view, or continually struggling to clean up the mess that's centering our minds, I think it's very important that we don't lose sight of the other 95% that's filling up our page.

* Why Chilli?

2010-08-15T18:40:00.002+10:00

Why do people enjoy eating chilli? I mean, I know people have different tastes when it comes to different foods, but I don't understand people who enjoy chilli. It's like a burning sensation that unrelentingly hooks onto your tongue without letting go. The persistent pain is comparable to getting hit in the nuts. There's an initial shock followed by a constant pain that seems to never let up. I don't like to be kicked in the nuts while I'm eating, thus, I don't like chilli.

Don't Discriminate, Appreciate

2010-08-06T20:49:00.000+10:00

I'm starting to distinguish the difference between appreciating someone's ability and talents as opposed to admiring it. So that's what this post is gonna be all about. And before I carry on, I have to mention that the title of this post was taken from my friend David when he did his speech for history back in year 9. Not only was it funny, but it also rhymed. So there you go, my jokes are original, but I do reference my material when I quote, unlike all you other bloggering thieving bastards!!

Around the middle of last year, my taste in music dramatically changed when it started moving towards more acoustic songs. This lead to my admiration for guitar players. Especially, Sungha Jung. If you youtube him, you'll find out that he's a 12 year old guitar playing korean kid who happens to be a musical genius prodigee i.e. a friggin' alien with a bowl haircut! I had always admired this kid's skills, but it wasn't until I picked up a guitar of my own that I actually appreciated the way he was able to play the damn thing. Back at my internship, my guitar mentor Rod explained the intricacies of starting to play the instrument: "Playing the guitar ain't easy, man. If it was, every dumb cunt out there would be playing one." Elegantly put.

I think the difference of admiration and appreciation could be said for anything that people do in life. When you know nothing about doing something i.e. playing the guitar, you're stuck in a situation where there are only 2 levels of effort that you can perceive: Knowing nothing, and playing the guitar. You're in the "know nothing" category, while anyone else who can play is bunched together on the other side of "playing the guitar". It's not until you cross that line from knowing nothing, to attempting to play that you realise that there are many, many more layers inside of that "playing the guitar" level. Suddenly you realise that's there's varying stages of effort and talent that's to be reached, and goddamn are they hard to reach. It's not until you try yourself that you can appreciate just how gifted some people are.

That's why I also appreciate the way some people draw. Can you believe how unbelievable that is? They're able to grab an image from their imagination and able to transcend that image from the unrestricted realms of their brain into reality and imprint it onto paper. That is just amazing. I'm still trying to make my drawings seem half as beautiful as what my imagination is intending. It's like my mind gives me an image of a gorgeous burning phoenix, but all I can draw is a retarded mangled duck

When you know nothing about doing something i.e. playing the guitar, you can't really appreciate what the pro's do in anyway. Sure, you know what they're doing is very talented, but there's no way to determine the amount of effort that's put into what they do. There's even a part in your brain that goes "I'm sure I could do that if I gave it a go." Hell, I'm like that with people who play Bass. I can appreciate people who can play the guitar really well, but that same level of understanding doesn't translate to Bass. I'm very sure it's difficult to play, but all I see is a guitar with only 4 strings. The same with cooking. I can cook eggs and toast, but that's about as far as I've gone with creating a culinary masterpiece. I watch masterchef, and there's the part of me that goes - "Doesn't look too hard...he's just throwing a bit of chicken on a grill..."

Of course, playing the Bass or cooking isn't easy, or else every dumb cunt out there would be doing it. But saying that, just because something isn't easy doesn't mean you should shy away from at least trying. Even if it doesn't work out for you, at least you can finally appreciate, instead of admiring from afar, the many people who do make it work, because there's nothing more gratifying for someone than being appreciated for the effort they put into what they do.

* Change of Grade

2010-07-29T22:18:00.001+10:00

As you may have noticed, this blog has become a bit more...blue (or maybe you haven't, sorry if I offended any of my colorblind readers). Thought it would be a nice change from the dreary white on black color scheme that all my readers (yes, all 3 of you) have come to know and love. Well this blog is going through some changes, so get use to it BITCHES.......sorry.

So during my complete writer's mental block, I went through a couple of other people's blogs. Normally I wouldn't read through other people's personal updates of "Today, I went to the shops and I saw Jill. She is the biggest bitch ever!...but I loved her shoes", but I have stumbled across some that were personal and somewhat interesting too. It's surprising what other people can spill out of their minds into written form, especially when you know them in real life and think that not much must be happening in their heads. But saying that, I'm pretty communitively retarded in real life too, as opposed to the fluent, grammatically elegant author of this blog. Ok...that sounded gay. The point is, if you give a person a pen and enough time with their thoughts, they will surprise you.

My writer's block has disappeared because I now see blogging much differently now. My writing had always concentrated on being funny first, with any deep personal messages always being tucked away in the last paragraph behind some lines of humor. If I had something to say, but couldn't think of anything funny to correspond with the topic, I would usually discard the idea. No one wants to read anything boring, and I'd always thought personal equated to boring in terms of blog writing. And in most cases, that's true. Personal blogs can get so cheesy, but they can be real and interesting. Of course my humour (or lack thereof) isn't gonna disappear in my postings, but they won't be the only driving force of my writing. As long as it's interesting, people would keep reading. So that's the change that I'm going to undertake with my blog. Real and interesting, minus the cheese...just like a pizza for the lactose intolerant.

* Hello Again

2010-07-14T21:46:00.001+10:00

Man, I've been so slack with my blog updating. I can blame the absence studying for my finals, going to work everyday, and just plain writer's block. But now all my exams are over, internship has finished up and my brain is beginning to actually be somewhat inspired once more. When I started, this blog was just meant to be me trtying to be funny and posting up random ramblings. But it's grown into an outlet for my brain to explode on, and it would be a shame for me to stop writing on it now. So check up on this space in the weeks to come for more wacky brain exploding updates =D.

So yeah, like i said. Internship just finished up yesterday. I spent the morning of it handing out going away presents to my team that I had been working for the whole internship. The presents included a bin for Farshid, who had never had one of his own at his desk and always used mine, a couple of pen holders for Bob, who would always store/hide everyone's pens in his drawers, a set of coffee cups for Rod, a coffee addict who would usually spend half an hour every morning searching for cups, a dictionary for JB, who's spelling was just plain bad, and a kid's life vest for Jim, who was able to swim 30 laps in the pool in an hour while I was drowning after 1. Obviously, all these presents were meant as a joke, and everyone had a good laugh. I was sure to have bought presents that they would keep around the office as a reminder of my time there. Ha! Lame, i know.

At 12, a bunch of people from the office took me to Star Lao/Thai Restuarant for my farewell lunch. It was a really nice gathering. And then at the end, my boss gave a speech, along with the other member of my team who shared stories of me and my time there. It was really heart warming.

Back in the office, the hours were rolling quickly past. It was almost 4o'clock, and the very last time I would be filling out my time sheet as an employee. I went around the office and said my final goodbyes to everyone, and everyone had congregated around to say their farewells. With everyone around, one of my work mates asked me to play a song for everyone. So as my parting gift, I played for them. So I was there, playing some tunes out of my guitar, with everyone standing around to watch and listen, with the spotlight all on me. It made me feel so... awesome.

So I dedicate this post to the people of Fairfield City Council who have kept me company for the past 6 months. I've learnt so much there and met so many people. It was such an awesome place to work and to just spend everyday at. I have definitely become a better person for being there. So to everyone there, thank you. You will all be remembered and greatly missed.

The past 6 months

2010-06-02T22:47:00.000+10:00

I’ve had this blog now for over a year now and I’ve been asked a couple of times “Hey Trung, you should write a post sometime about your personal life”. My response has always been…wait a minute… didn’t I already start a blog like this before? Well I realised that the last time I wrote a blog about my “personal life”, it was just a bunch of music tracks with my interpretation of the lyrics, where the interpretation was just a reflection of my personal life. No reflection this time. Actual attempt at a personal blog, here we go.

Okay, before you read on, this is a long blog post. And I mean LONG. It’s the longest post I have ever written, and is about 3 times longer than the “Retro Update”. I started writing and just couldn’t stop. So you’ve been warned about the length of this post. If you have a lot of spare time, and If you want to know about me better or you're just curious about the life and random erratic mind of that guy on keepontyping.blogspot, then have fun reading what’s to come.

The main (but not only) reason I decided to write a post like this is because of my internship. It was suppose to go for 6 months. And according to my contract, it’s gonna be over at the end of this week. It’s almost already over, but I’ve asked to have it extended by an extra 6 weeks. From early responses, it’s most certainly gonna go ahead and get extended. One reason I want it extended is for the extra moolah. I just want to be stinkin’ filthy rich. But why I really want the internship extended is because I just love it so goddamn much. Best part of my uni life so far. I’ve learnt more in the first 2 months at my internship than I did in the first 2 years of uni. I found a place where I actually don’t mind going to work every morning.

My previous job completely sucked balls. I use to work at a call centre for charity. Even though it was for charity, I was getting paid, so it made it feel more like a job than an act of kindness. It was such a chore, calling up people knowing that you were about to annoy them for money. At first you sympathise with the people on the phone, thinking to yourself “Hey man, I’m one of you people. I understand if you say no. I’d say it too!” But as the weeks go by, you start to slowly go lose all respect for mankind. Trust me, telemarketers hate you as much as you hate them. It was just such a shit and unnecessarily dull job for me. One day, I went through a whole shift of calling up strangers, and filled up my roster for the following two weeks. As I walked out of the building, I thought to myself “Man, this is a shit job”. Pretty much a normal Monday. Why don’t I just quit then? I asked myself. And at that very moment, I did, completely leaving out of spontaneity. 2 weeks after that, I had an interview and was offered my new internship. I celebrated by turning up to my old job’s Christmas party and using up their free bar tab. All turned out well.

It’s such a relaxing place working at the council. I spend my mornings just walking around and having a chat with people. I enjoy they’re company, and believe it or not, they like having me around too. The people working at my branch are just so funny. I’m always laughing at the random and often gratuitous jokes. There’s really no point me writing an example. It’s more of a ‘you had to be there’ moment. I just don’t want it to end yet.

When the 6 week extension was accepted, I was also given an offer for an extra 6 months working there. I couldn’t really give an answer straight away. I mean, that place is great, but that would mean I would have to hold off uni again. I haven’t had a full uni semester in over a year. And I know I should be thinking “Are you crazy!? Who the hell wants to do nothing but assignments every 2nd day of the week? Take the 6 month extension!!!” I still have another month and a half to think it over, but I don’t think I’ll be taking up the offer. That place is, without a doubt, the most awesome place to be. And it does make me feel good to know that I was offered to stay there longer, and that the people there actually want me to stay there too. Nice feeling of belonging. But no matter how happy I am to stay around the people there, it can’t offer me anymore in my career. I want to be an engineer who designs buildings, bridges and just in your face structures, so that every time I see one of my designs constructed and standing, I can be proud knowing I helped create it. I want my work to be my lasting mark. It will be my version of “Trung was here” that I leave on this world. Well that’s the dream anyway. But it’s still a dream worth following, and as much as I am really happy where I am, it’s not leading me to where I want to end up. I don’t see it going anywhere, so I don’t think I’ll stay for the extra 6 months. It was really good while it lasted though and I’m gonna really enjoy these last 6 weeks. It’s time to move on. God, it sounds like I’m breaking up with the internship lol.

Going back to uni again. I haven’t had a full semester in over a year. I can’t believe it’s actually been that long. Uni is hated by people all the time, but I actually don’t mind it. I mean, of course doing assignments constantly week in week out is total crap and I’d feel better being attacked by a giant polar bear instead. But there’s something about the whole going to uni and staying in the city that I still admire. Most of the time I spend my time on the hour train ride sleeping, but I still don’t mind the times while I’m awake on it. Looking outside the windows, seeing all the stations go by, the shops at Auburn, the huge platforms at Strathfield, and the old train yard between Ashfield and Redfern. I only go uni once a week during the night classes. There’s just something about going to UTS at night. I still remember the shortcuts in and out of each building, the places where I love to eat, and the music that buskers play as you come out of the Central tunnel. In a weird way, I kinda enjoyed all that uni hustle. I’ll most likely regret these words in about 5 months time when all of my assessments are lined up all at once to kick me in the nuts, but I’m kinda looking forward to uni life again.

If I’m doing a personal blog about the last 6 months than I guess I’ll have to talk about ... ASUFgbgjadgbtuoqqewE. I didn’t know how to start talking about it so I just mashed the keyboard hoping the words would come. Guess it didn’t work. I’m not gonna write about anything specific, that story is only for those who need to know. I’ll try explaining this a different way, this story about ‘her’.

It was like she was at the top of this very tall hill. There I am at the bottom, with just me and my bike. So I get on the damn thing and started riding my way up there. It’s pretty easy at first, just cruising along at an easy pace. Then the hill starts to become steeper, but I keep at it, continuing to traverse upwards. As I start to get use to the slope of the hill, it changes its grade once more and becomes twice as steep, this time, sending traffic down my way. Each passing vehicle scrapes my bike, continually building up the scratches that each leaves behind. The further I go, the steeper it gets while the traffic volume keeps multiplying and speeding faster. I learn to get better at riding and dodging, and continue travelling up this relentless hill. At this point, the slope becomes too steep and the traffic becomes too much, and people start telling me to get a grip and come back down before I get hurt. Common sense tells me I should listen. Normally I’d listen to reason and stop being stupid. But this time, I decide to attach rockets to my bike and soar my way to the top. I feel like I’m flying as I get closer and closer. Everything that I rode through starts to become all worth it... then I smash head on into an oncoming truck. It sends me halfway down the hill. I barely manage to keep riding. Cars continue to pummel downwards on me. I try to dodge again, but my bike has become all messed up. I no longer have control of its direction. I try as hard as I can to turn it back down, but it has become fixated on steering upwards. I desperately try to keep the bike upright, continually spinning the wheels, while the bike endures damage from all sides. I try to apply the brakes, but realise that I had removed that thing a long time ago. I try to keep moving, but the gears have become lodged into the bike’s mangled frame. Each revolution of the peddles just grinds the gears, cutting them deeper and deeper into the bike, fucking it up from the inside. And then, after hearing something, seeing something and knowing something I wish I hadn’t, I stop peddling. And just stare as a semi-trailer comes crashing down towards me, sending me all the way down to the bottom, with just me and a completely shattered bike. It stops working, no longer having to deal with anymore steep hills or oncoming traffic, or even the feeling of flying. And that was that. The person at the top of the hill has long moved on, but that’s ok. I’m gonna spend a little bit more time here at the bottom. Spend that time repairing my bike. I’m gonna pimp it all up, with larger wheels, a flashier frame and swifter peddles. Make it bigger and better than ever before. Though I must admit, I had a very beautiful view on my way up that hill... Well for now, time to rebuild my bike, this time, I’ll remember to install working brakes. And when I’m ready to go bike riding on hills again, maybe I’ll be stupid enough to throw those brakes away, and maybe I’ll be lucky enough to make it without crashing.

And that’s the end of that story. Well... it was supposed to be the end of it. Time for a switch on the analogy. A relationship is like a bear. It starts off as an innocent cuddly thing. Then it eventually grows. The warmth you get from it builds as you get closer. And as it grows, so does its teeth and claws. As you feel more comfortable with it, you also become more vulnerable to it. It takes two people to put in the effort to look after a damn bear, and if one person leaves, the one that’s left is unable to contain the thing and gets mauled and broken by it. Even though that bear was growing, she could not get past the sight of its teeth and claws, so decided to lock and cage the thing up before it could do any real damage and left it at that. And there I am, being stupid and continually prodding at that friggin’ bear, with what little strength it had left thrashing around, and seeing it too many times come free of its cage, just to be quickly locked back in with another goodbye. I just wanted so badly for it to stay free, but I wanted her to want that too. But maybe that’s just wanting too much. I try not to disturb that bear anymore. It’s left fading away in its cage. I don’t check up on it anymore, afraid that I might see it still breathing... or see that it has already died.

Well that was that story. If the analogies weren’t even close to being coherent, than oh well, it’s the closest I can get to making an already jumbles situation make sense. And it sounds overdramatic, but you know what. It’s my story that I wrote, so I can make it as dramatic as I want. ASd84ASD8Sd8AS@*)7580A... mashing on the keyboard...

I’ve been learning to play the guitar since February. Picked it up and I really love it. I’m in my own zone, where it’s just me and the melodies of my guitar. It’s weird being attached to an inanimate object. It lifts my mood when I play it and relaxes the mind. But it can also frustrate me as well when strings aren’t sounding right and the chords I try to play don’t sound like they should. In these moments of frustration I just feel like ripping the strings apart. Ever since the 2nd week I started playing the guitar, I’ve been learning to play the acoustic version of Edge of Desire by John Mayer. I sometimes am able to play that song and make it sound half decent, but often the tune of the strings I’m attempting to pluck just sound shit, ruining my mood making me just go aAGG@oUASBG!GBT!T9-YGH!@!... mashing the keyboard ... strange how I badly want to play song about wanting something so badly.

Edge of Desire
“I want you so bad I’ll go back on the things I believe. There I just said it, I’m scared you’ll forget about me”

I’m still into John Mayer. His songs are just friggin’ magic. I thought I’d share some of my new favourites that I’ve heard over the months. So the next few paragraphs are pretty much me becoming a fangirl over John Mayeruloooooooooo!!!

In Your Atmosphere
“I’m gonna steer clear, ‘cause I’d die if I saw you, I’d die if I didn’t see you there”
When I went to John Mayer’s concert a couple of weeks ago, the atmosphere in there was wild. Everyone cheered and sung/screamed along to every song that man was playing on stage. But when this song came up, everyone shut their mouth and just got lost in the words of this song. Most powerful moment of the night.It has become one of my favourite songs of all time. It’s about no longer wanting to go to a place that you use go to with someone that you were once close with. Because it’s hard going somewhere where you know they might be. You’re constantly looking around and hoping you’d find them again, and you feel down when you don’t. But when you do see them, it’s like someone has kicked you in the lungs, jumpstarting your heart again. But then you realise that you’re both no longer what you use to be, and you’re all but strangers to each other now. That jumpstart feeling you had in your chest is crushed back to nothing as you both walk away. You just lose either way.

In Repair
“Oh, it’s taking so long, I could be wrong, I could be ready”
I’m so into this song. It’s such a nice lift me up song. It’s as though John is saying to me “dude, everything is gonna be alllllrrrriiiiggghhhtt!” And I’m like “really? SAWWWEEEEETTT JOHN MAYER!!!” And then we jump in the air and high five each other < /gay imagination>. The explanation of this song is pretty simple, but I like John Mayer’s explanation of it better:
JM: “This is a song about being fucked up but coming out of it, you know. When you’re a kid and you get a tennis ball to the nuts, it’s one of the worst feelings in the world. But as all men will tell you, there’s no better feeling than when it stops hurting.”

Say
“It’s better to say too much, then never to say what you need to say again”
I’ve had this song playing on a loop as I write this blog. I feel kinda vulnerable writing all this ‘personal’ stuff, but you know what. I’m gonna say it anyway.

I love mellow songs. So easy to relax to. I’m relaxed about a lot of things. Woke up late for work? Eh, relax. Missed the train to a compulsory tutorial at uni? Don’t worry about it, catch the next train. Assignment that’s half finished that’s due in 2 hours? Relax, it’ll get done. Being the first person to do his presentation out of the whole class and is completely unprepared? Oh well, I can wing through that easily. Amazingly, all these things actually happened to me in the past 2 weeks. I don’t worry myself with such things. Not because I’m a mellow person, it’s because I know that there are more important things to worry about. Like with family. They’ve been through a lot over the years with news from afar, and I just have to hope that everyone is doing ok and that they’ll get through it all and remain happy. Worrying about who I can talk to about problems. Just gotta talk to people I trust about it. And if they’re too busy to talk, then I just have to wait. If they’re still too busy, then I’ll just have to wait longer until they’re free to help or until I convince myself that the problem no longer matters anymore and move on. And also worrying about other things...like dealing with my own doubt.

It’s not very often, but it’s a really dark feeling when there’s all this doubt. Especially when I begin to questions things about myself. Why are you drawing? Why are you playing the guitar? Why are you writing? And it’s a crap feeling when the response in my head says “don’t bother, no one’s watching, no one’s listening, no one’s reading. Even if they are, they’re not that impressed”. That voice comes out whenever I feel like I’m completely exhausted, and my will power is unable to fight back. I hate being like that, when it feels like all my accomplishments mean nothing because I have no one to share it with. It’s as though what I do isn’t enough and that it’s not worth much. The only time I feel like I’ve failed.

Whenever I read personal messages scrawled up on facebook, I’m always pissed when someone is overly down on themselves. And reading back on what I’ve written about myself in this blog, I’m pissed off again. There’s no reason for me to be doubting myself. I’ve worked hard to be who I am. I put so much effort into all the accomplishments I’ve gotten, and none of it was easy. My inspiration for my drawings has taken me years to get to where I’m at, even if they’re nowhere near as good as other people I know, I can still be proud of what I’m able to scrawl up on a page. I became the fastest learner in my guitar class because of all the hours I poured into practicing the damn thing every week. And this entire blog, dating back to the very first post back in March 2009, is a result of all my experiences that I’ve had put into words of humour and reflection. Everyone hurts. That’s just how it works. Life is just a bunch of random things that happen. There are no completely good or completely bad situations. Just a random combination of both, with the outcome of it depending on your perspective of what you see. I just have to believe that I’m worth more than I’m given credit for and that I deserve a lot more than what I’m given. I’m not naive enough to say my life is perfect, or selfish enough to say it’s shit. There are things that have made life easier over, and others that have made it that much harder over these 6 months. But even if I don’t perceive myself to be happier, I know I am definitely better and stronger than I was. So whatever happens in the next 6 months, be it new opportunities, the feeling of flying, broken bikes, or even unbearable heartaches, bring it all fuckin’ on!

Starling St

2010-05-25T20:36:00.000+10:00

"7:00, got 30 minutes to go" I mumble as my gaze diverts from the dashboard clock back onto the road.
I pull up to the first intersection and squint through the glare of the headlights to read the nearest street sign.
     "Starling St...never heard of it. Good start" I mumble to myself again.
     Not that long to get to my destination. Well no point just sitting here, time to drive. Left turn, right turn, left turn, two more rights, a left, 2 street lights and a flying pigeon to the windshield.
     "7:12"
   I pull over and read the closest sign, trying to get my bearings.
     "Mediun St....never heard of it."
     Damn my ridiculously random navigational skills. Wait, what am I saying? I'm not lost; everything around me is just not where it's supposed to be. Undeterred by these ridiculously random streets, I keep driving. I'll bound to be somewhere if I keep moving.
     Right turn, left turn, red light, right turn, green light, straight ahead, dead-end, U-turn, green light, left turn and a flashing petrol light.
     Confident in the power of dumb luck, I pull up to the nearest street sign with certainty that it will have letters arranged in a familiar order.
     "Loest St"
     At least I know where I am now. Too bad I just don't know what Loest St is.
   I slowly redirect my eyes to the clock, hoping time would be kind enough to be a bit sluggish than it'd usually be.
     "7:32"
     I'm not late. Everyone else is just early.
     As I begin to move again on another frustratingly random detour, a pair of lights creep up into my rear view mirror. I strain my eyes through the darkness and vaguely make out the driver. Well dressed man in a suit. He looks like he's going the same place I am. But what's the chance of him actually going to where I need to be...but then again what's the chance of him NOT going to where I need to be.
     "7:35"
     Crap, no time for logic. Follow that strange man. If I get lost, I can just blame it on him.
     Right turn, right turn, green light, left turn, green light, straight ahead, red light, left turn, right turn and a brake light.
     The strange man I'm stalking pulls up to a driveway and into a garage. He wasn't going somewhere, he was going home. How inconsiderate of him. I try to re-regain my bearings and read the nearest street sign.
     "Starling St"
     WTF!!!???
     In my frustration, I grab the club lock and start bashing the steering wheel. My hissy fit starts to slow down enough for me to stare back at the clock.
     "7:42"
     I should probably look for my map. Why didn't I look for it earlier? Why didn't I ask that question earlier? Why am I asking questions instead of looking for it? Why!?
     I wildly rummage through my glove box. Finally! I found my sunglasses. Been looking for them for weeks. But it doesn't help me now, it's in the pitch of night. The world is not bright enough for me to be wearing sunnies. Where's that map? I didn't lose it, it's just not where it's suppose to be..... ARRRGAUGGSAHH!!!
    "7:45"
I'm very un-early to whatever it is I need to be, situated wherever it is I'm currently not.
Off in the distance, I see a tall man in a hoodie. Ignoring the warnings I often hear on the news of crazy serial killers roaming the streets, I foolishly, and retardedly, wave down the potentially deadly pedestrian.
"What do you want?" The man asks as he comes up to the window.
I show my surprise at his straight-forwardness by spastically stringing together non-coherent noises.
    Irritated at my apparent retardation, the man lets out a frustrated grunt and starts to walk off.
"Wait!" I shout back at him, prompting him to reluctantly walk back.
    "What?" He says, with nostrils flaring.
    Knowing I only have one chance before he walks off for good in complete annoyance, I ask the most sensible question that comes to mind.
    "Have you seen my map?"

Directions

2010-05-03T20:33:00.000+10:00

Ok, I have to admit to everyone reading this right now. I am directionally impaired. If I ever say I know the way to a place, I'm lying. I'm just guessing. And if I somehow do arrive at my destination, it is all due to dumb luck and google maps. If I'm ever lost driving, screw it, I'll just buy the nearest house. Well I was lost, but now I live here. I have severely improved my predicament. (joke stolen from Mitch Hedberg)

Well I'm obviously exaggerating about my lack of directional skills. I do know how to get to places, it's just that I only know one way to get there. I can drive anywhere, as long as the starting point is my house. If I'm at destination B and need to get to destination C, i'll just drive back to my house from 'B' and make my way to 'C'. This unnecessary and, admittedly, retarded detour adds about half an hour to my trip.I could've just spent that half an hour opening the street directory and learning the new routes, but that'd just be silly.

My geography isn't so crash hot either. Being at uni, you meet alot of people from all over NSW. So naturally I ask people where they're from. But they answer with a suburb that I've never even heard of before. So the next thing I ask them is "Where's that?". And instead of telling me in terms of directions in relation to the position of Sydney, they tell me 4 surrounding suburbs that sound just like random noises to me. So at first I was unsure about 1 area, now there's another 4 that I have to google. Screw you! Just move to Liverpool and make it easier for all the questionairers!

My internship often requires me to inspect road sites. And since I'm in my council uniform, quite a few people stop and ask me for directions. One time, this lady had pulled over and asked me where the Canley Heights Shops were. I knew the area quite well from this out-of-the-way street. So I told her the directions to the shops, even adding details such as when to expect traffic lights and roundabouts. After I had confidently directed her with my spastic left-turn hand gestures, she thanked me and drove off. It wasn't until she turned the first corner did I realise that I had just given the completely wrong instructions and she was actually driving in the complete opposite direction of her destination. So if you happen to be in Whoop Whoop and you happen to see an old, tired and most likely hungry lady asking for directions to Canley Heights Shops, tell her I'm sorry.

I've also been on the recieving end of direction giving. And I blame it all on miscommunication.

Joe: Turn left, right now
Trung: What? Turn left or right?
Joe: Alright, Left.
Trung: All Right? Then a left...what?
Joe: Turn left!
Trung: Oh ok...when?
Joe: Now! You're about to drive into a tree!!

And then there's the too-late direction giving. When you're in a conversation with a passenger who's in charge of which way to go and cut-off half way through one of their a sentencesand say:
"Oh shit, you were meant to take that left. Sorry."
"That's okay. I'm not gonna do a U-turn, so you can walk home from here. Sorry."
Of course I'm only joking. I'm not that heartless. I'd offer them an umbrella. They can use it as shelter when it's raining or as a weapon when i drop them off at Canley Vale.

We sometimes need directions to guide us to what to do next. And if someone was to ask what am I suppose to do next, the most honest answer i can give is "Fucked if I know". Of course you can always try to think up the most logical or best way of moving forward, but unless you actually go ahead with it, there's no way of knowing if that's the right thing to do. Hell, how do we even know what 'right' even means. When we choose a direction, that'll just lead to another crossroad where you have to choose another direction, which will then lead you to another. It's all just one big chain reaction of choices. One wrong choice could lead to a right one, and one right choice could lead to many, many wrong ones. You're momentarily lost, then found, only to lose your way again, waiting to find it once more. All we can do is to just keep on doing what we do without being afraid to ask for a little help with direction from time to time. As for me, I just have to keep on doing what Trung Huynh would do, knowing that I'm the only one that can.

And with that, I'll end this post with some wise words from Ghandi:
Whatever you do will be insignificant, but it is very important that you do it.

Happy Typing Y'all =)

The Kind of Funny

2010-04-18T21:00:00.000+10:00

Trying to think up of something funny to write about is hard. Have you seen the news lately? Nothing funny about it. All deaths and disasters happening around the world. And also a crazy barking dog man. So instead of picking a topic and trying to be funny about it, let's talk about the topic of "funny" itself. And by "talk", I mean I'll do all the writing and you just sit there on your fat ass and read. With all the effort I'm putting into this post, you better be laughing! I can hear when you're NOT laughing, you know!

There are lots of kinds of funny. The kind of funny where you laugh at someone else's expense. Like a small child falling on flat on their face. Ok, maybe that's a little mean. Let's say a grown person falling off a skateboard. The moment they hit the ground and you hear a loud thump, you immediately just burst out laughing. After about 5 minutes of cracking up, you go over to them to try to figure out why they haven't been moving for a while. They slowly lift up they're head and you kindly ask them if they're OK. If they say yes, then you can continue on laughing guilt free. If they tell you they think they're seriously hurt, screw it. Laugh again anyway.

The kind of funny where it's just completely random. Where something just occurs completely out of nowhere, changing a normal situation into one that's completely ridiculous. Like a paragraph that's just full of sentences, none of which are funny, until the very end. Purple gay rhinoceros.

The kind of funny where you laugh when you're not suppose to. Where a serious situation just gets more and more funny as the story progresses.
Jane: Oh my god Trung! My dog died!
Trung:Oh no, that's terrible!
Jane: *cries* I accidentally ran him over with my skateboard
Trung's Brain: ...uh oh...i'm about to laugh. Whatever you do Trung, DON'T laugh! Must hold in laugh...Must not even smile
Jane: He was the best cocker spaniel ever.
Trung's Brain: No point trying anymore man. Just laugh in her face already
Trung: hahahaha.....I'm sorry....*pause*....HAHAHAHAHAHAHA
Jane: -_-

You know what I find funny, that "-_-" emoticon. I use it all the time. It's meant to portray the expression of annoyance over MSN, but now that i think about it, isn't that how asains' eyes are normally? If I use it, I'm not saying I'm irritated, I'm just saying my face is normal.

Bob: Hey Trung, I didn't piss you off did I?
Trung: -_-
Bob: Err, so what are you saying? That you're annoyed or that you're chinese?

The last kind of funny I'll write about is best summed up in this short story I once read

----
A circus had set up in a small town, not too far from the waters of the ocean. A great circus it was, with the main act being none other than the great Pochinko the clown himself. All who came to see his act would never fail to laugh at the great clown's ability to create humour out of nothing. The entire town and all its people were filled with joy ever since the arrival of the circus. All but one. A man had went to visit the doctor, with a desperate plea for help.
"Doctor" the man said with tears starting to form around his eyes "my heart is empty of warmth and I cannot get rid of this terrible sadness that has filled its place. Is there anything you could do to help me?"
The Doctor thought over the man's dilemma and came up with the perfect solution.
"I know what you can do!" The doctor exclaimed with enthusiasm "You must go and see Pochinko the clown. For he is the greatest at what he does and not one person has been able to walk away from his act without a smile on their face"
The man stared wide-eyed at the Doctor's proposal and immediately bawled his eyes out with his face buried in his hands. And through his tears, he cries out "I AM Pochinko!"
----

The irony of being in a situation where there's nothing to do but see it it all go downhill. The kind of funny where you're just left reflecting on how amusingly wrong you were. The kind of funny where you don't laugh.

KeepOnListening

2010-04-04T23:31:00.000+10:00

I've had this blog now for over a year now and I've been asked a couple of times "Hey Trung, you should write a post sometime about your personal life". My response has always been "I would, but I want people to actually READ my blog though". This one post will be my first (and maybe only?) exception. No wait! Don't run off just yet. Crap, you're already out the door. I didn't know people could run that fast...and through walls.

Anyway, this entry won't be about my actual personal life but rather about my taste in music and the things I'm listening to. It won't have any (intentional) humour, so if you'd rather read an older post of mine that's funny-intended and music related, then try reading this old blog entry I wrote about lyrics in songs. Well this entry might be boring or interesting depending on how intrigued you are about me and who I am.

Well if you know my taste in music, then you would know that I'm into John Mayer's songs. I'm a huge fan of his work. My admiration for him borders homosexuality actually. And I know most of you think "John Mayer is just a huge jerk!" Well he's just portrayed as a jerk because the media has scrutinised everything he said ever since he broke up with Jennifer Aniston. My defending him sure doesn't make me sound less gay... Anyway, despite wether he's a jerk or not, there's no denying he's a lyrical genius. I find it hard it enough to express a quarter of what I need to say in coherent sentences. He's able to do it all to a friggin' melody.

There are many John Mayer songs that I just love. Too many to list "Your Body is a Wonderland", "St. Patrick's Day", "Slow Dancing in a Burning Room", "Friends, Lovers or Nothing". Well here are some others that rank up high in the list.

John Mayer - Daughters

"Now I'm starting to see maybe it's got nothing to do with me"

A really catchy and sweet song. I've always liked this song but didn't understand the meaning behind the song 'till a while after I first heard it. It's about the importance of a father and his love to a daughter. In John's own words, it was about a girl who couldn't love or trust a man because the very first man she knew, her father, didn't love her. Maybe 'interesting' is the wrong word, but it is interesting how boys aren't as affected by the care,or lack thereof, from our parents as girls are.

John Mayer - Gravity

"Gravity...stay the hell away from me"

I my opinion, this is quite an angry song. About a person refusing to be be saddened by 'gravity'. This whole song is like a big 'Screw you world! You ain't bringing me down!'. At the centre of pain is the desire for more than what you have. "It's wanting more that's gonna send me to my knees". Sometimes to continue standing, we fight the pain instead of letting go of our desires.

John Mayer - Heart of Life

"No it won't all go the way it should, But I know the Heart of Life is good"

Very sweet song, and incredibly catchy. Lyrics are pretty much self-explanatory with this song. If you fall down, you'll get back up (eventually,that is). Whatever happens, it's all good. Hmm, this song makes me happy, even if it's a momentary sort of high.

John Mayer - Edge of Desire

"Don't say a word, just come over and lie here with me"

This is my favourite song of John's from his new album. Heck, maybe my favourite song from his whole discography. Sometimes there are songs that have maybe 2 or 3 phrases that represent how you're feeling. Every single line in this song has hit me hard. I don't know if this song is meant to be a happy or sad one, but I do know it gives me the feeling of an exhausted and almost desperate attempt to reach someone. The time where everything is said and done, and all that's left is to lay all of yourself out with no more walls hiding yourself away. It's quite a powerful feeling to have. And the consequences of it all is summed up in one single line: "There I just said it, I'm scared you'll forget about me."

People may not know this, but John Mayer is actually an incredibly good guitar player too. Some of his guitar rifts are insane. I've been recently learning the guitar, and one of my goals is to be able to play one of his songs. Still a looooooong way to go, but I'm getting there. There are a few ways of playing the guitar, but my favourite way is the finger-picking style. Personally, I think it sounds just so much more nicer than the usual strumming way. Here are two clips of two people who are VERY good at this stlye of guitar playing.

These two are experts at what they do. And one of them is only bloody 12! I'll be lucky if I can manage a quarter of their talent. But watching and listening to them play does inspire me somewhat to keep learning. I really do enjoy playing the guitar. It's a good mood lifter. And whenever I finally get a part of a song that I've been working on for so long, I get a sense of "Fuck Yeah! Accomplisment!!". And the reward is a sweet sounding melody that I know I can tune out.

For me, a bad music video can really ruin a song. I can hear a song on the radio that's been played for weeks and find that it's really good to listen to. But when I see that the music video has been LadyGagaish-WTF-CrazyAbstract-ed, I'm just put off the song. Stupid music videos just plain ruin songs for me. I no longer hear a song as a song, I'm always in the back of my mind thinking about the weird ass clip that some idiot thought was artistic. But on the flip-side, a really good music video can actually make a song that much more meaningful.

Paramore - Only Exception
" But you are the only exception"

This clip goes so incredibly well with the song. Almost no frame is gone to waste with this video alongside the music. Probably wondering what's the importance of this song to me. With some songs, it's nice to imagine yourself as the receiver of the lyrics. It'd be nice to know that you were the stand out in someone's list. But...it'd also be nice to be a billionaire. What's the chance of that happening anytime soon?

In terms of sitting down and listening to music, I'm not really into the R'n'B kind. I mean, I can listen to them from time to time, but my preferred genre is more acoustic and that guitar/piano sound. But when someone on youtube combines them both, it just becomes musical gold.

Iyaz - Replay (Cover)

"Nananana everyday"

This is such an awesome acoustic cover of Replay. Lyrically, this song has almost no interest to me. But you don't have to listen to a song for the words, you just gotta listen to it for it's incredible tune and the fact that it makes you feel happy for absolutely no reason other than the fact that it sounds good in your ears.

Usher - Burn (Cover)

"Deep down you know it's best for yourself, But you hate the thought of her being with someone else"

I have always loved this song, ever since it was released back when I was in year 9! This acoustic version has just reinvigorated it back into my playlist. It's a bit weird with this song. It's always been in the "sounds nice" category when I first heard it, but it wasn't a long while after that it became lyrically important.

How about some cheer up music? This next song got me through some rough times. Back around when I had a mini quarter-life crisis during the middle of a very boring and uneventful uni semester when it felt like everything around me was stalling and nothing was changing. It took a while, but things got better. Some/most of it anyway, depending on my perspective on things.

Panic at the Disco - New Perspective

"Stop there and let me correct it, I wanna live a life from a new perspective"

Well that was a lot of songs to listen to, and I still havn't mentioned some of my other favourite artists, such as Rob Thomas, Maroon 5, The Fray, Coldplay and quite a few more. This has actually become quite a personal blog entry. Well all of mine are actually, it's just that this one isn't hiding behind a wall of 'comedy'. This is a pretty lengthy post, and most likely impossible to go through in just one sitting, especially if you're juggling between this blog, facebook and msn. Hell, I wouldn't even be able to listen to this whole blog in one go, it's over 40 minutes long. With me, I can just sit down and just listen to a song, with absolutely no distractions around me. Just me, completely absorbed in the words of the melody. I think the kind of music you listen to reflects the kind of person you are, so if you want to know me a bit better, than feel free to revisit this blog.

Well that's that. I may or may not make another entry about myself. We'll see. Time to conclude this long ass blog post, and i think the best way to end it is with none other than the man himself:

John Mayer - Perfectly Lonely

"Nothing to do, Nowhere to be, A simple kind of free"

Thanks for listening =)

Train Ride

2010-03-27T16:17:00.000+11:00

"Doors closing. Please stand clear"

Shit shit shit. Gotta run down these stairs. Damnit old lady, get out of the way! Stop being so old and slow! Should i push her down? If I don't I'm gonna be late for uni, but that would be a horrible thing for me to do. I would be charged for assault on an old lady, but if i get on the train noone would be able to find me...ahh crap, the doors already closed. Missed the train again. Yep, definitely going to push her down.

"Doors closing. Please stand clear"

I can't believe I actually waited half an hour for another train. That's 15 consecutive two-minute noodles!

"This train will now stop at Fairfield"

Okay, time to look for an empty row of seats. Great, all taken. Stupid people that I've never met before, selfishly taking seats when they know I want to sit down. Alright, there's a guy sitting on the aisle seat with an empty window seat next to him. Is he allergic to glass or something? Oh well gotta get past him. He will either get up off his seat and let me through, or be an asshole and make me worm my way through to the window. I'll just have to see what he'll do...damn it, he decided to be an asshole.

"This train will now stop at Yennora"

Oh my god, why is this train going so slow. Okay, I can see a car outside the window driving along the same direction as the train. The car is beating my train. The car is stopped at a red light. The car is still beating my train. The car is parked. Yes! My train is now winning! The man got out of his car and started walking. The man is beating my train.

"This train will now stop at Guildford"

I'm only at Guildford!??

"This train will now stop at Merrylands...This train will now stop at Granville...This train will now STOP at Auburn...This train will now STOP at Lidcombe"

Shutup you stupid automatic speaker machine! Of course the train is going to "stop" at its next designated station. What else is it gonna do, a backflip!?

"This train will now stop at Strathfield"

I'm feeling so sleepy...I can take a power nap for 15 minutes, wake up at Redfern station, then be fully awake by the time the train gets to Central. Aha! My full proof plan can't possibly fail.

"This train will now stop at Central"

Zzzz..arggh? SHIT! Plan failed. And I think I just drooled all over the windows...C'mon man, let me out of the seat! Are you trying to get off the seat to let me through, or are you being an asshole and just wiggling your feet around 'cause you think 5 cms of walking space is enough to get be through? Like i thought, you're an asshole. Damnit, gotta ninja snake my way past here...and YES! my bag flew into your face!

"Doors closing. Please stand clear"

I'm rushing from my seat to the door. Only seconds left. Everthing around me slows. I can see the door quaking from its hinges. I exhaustedly leap for the opening that's rapidly closing me from the outside world . I don't know if i can make it...oh shit, I made it. Well that's my exercise for the week.

Well that trip set me back a bit. I'm now late 15 minutes for my next lecture. Oh well, time to go home.

Retro Update

2010-02-16T23:45:00.000+11:00

I recently dug up this really old blog post I wrote back in the old days of bebo, back in 2007, when I was in year 12... well anyway, it's been lost for a while so i thought i'd post it up again. This is a much longer blog post than usual as it's essentially 3 blog posts in 1. Let's reminisce shall we? And try not to fall asleep halfway.

-----------

HALF-WAY THROUGH YEAR 12

kid :" Hey dad, when i grow up, i wanna be a hairdresser"
- normal parents " well good on ya son, do wat u wanna do"
- asian parents "......get the fuck outta my house!"

well i just finished half yearlies and goddamn were they long. seemed to drag on for years. and u get those people who dont bother to do anything during the tests, instead they just do anything to annoy everyone else. like clicking pens! that was so annoying! iwas trying to think man. i was like " an exchange rate is ...*pens clicking a gazillion times*". well anyway, all thats over. got holidays now. woohoo! well i gess thats half way thru year 12. anther 6 months and school will be finished. for good! that shood sound like a good thing to hear but thats kinda scary man. i probably hafta get a job! nooooooo!!! haha well yeah. so who has strict asian parents nowadays? i think most people do, but mine are quite casual about it. they only got 3 rules:
- dont become a drug dealer
- dont become gay
- when ur 20, u get the fuck outta my house!
haha, i was jokin about that last one. theyre kickin me out when i turn 19.
well i gess most parents got expectations about their kids, like they shood do really really well in school and become doctors or a brain surgeon or whateva. but there are some people that jsut shoodnt go school. im not trying to sound mean, but some people shood just find a job early. like work at woolies, or telstra...or become a gay drug dealer. who knows. lolz. well next year, school will be gone. wat the hell do i do from 9-3 everyday? oprah is only on for an hour, 5 hours to spare. lolz well there'll be no more skool, if u get into trouble then u'd most likely go to jail, hafta go get a fulltime job, then ya hafta go get fired. so i gess a whole lotta shit is gonna change, maybe im thinkin too far ahead.i shood just think about what im havin for breakfast tomoro morning. well i gess ill just hafta hang on to these last 6 months of talkin about nonsense at lunch time, callin people sluts just so they cood call u a hairy bitch back, impersonating import teachers, and laughing nonstop about absolutely nothing in eco with that gaybo. u know who u are! lolz well anyway, i just wrote alot about nothing really. i dont know if i was trying to be funny, or trying to be serious..but it did make u read right? if u like it, then good for u. and if u hated it, then i respect that too....wait, no i dont..go to hell!! haha well thats all from me. catch y'all around!

----------

CLASS OF 2007

I just finished my last HSC exam today and also the last test that i will ever sit for within Bonnyrigg High School. 6 years of high school for 3 weeks of "all-important" tests. Just where did all those years go. I still remember the first day of bonnyrigg high, back in year 7, when i saw all those new classmates for the first time and thought, "Man, these people sure are ugly!". It seems not much has changed since year 7. Back in year 7, i use to look at the year 12s and thought that they were gangsters (well we did go to bonnyrigg, so this was probably true), but most of all, i thought they were really big. Now that im in year 12 (actually...i finished year 12...FUCK ME DEAD!), i feel like I have grown and that theres this warm fuzzy feeling inside of me thats also grown (i hope its not cancer...). Knowing what i know now, if i was givin the chance to go back in time and choose any school i wanted, i would still choose bonnyrigg high (its closer to KFC). I mean, bonnyrigg might be a crappy, run-down, out-dated, really ugly, super-mega-ultra-shitty school. But it was OUR crappy, run-down, out-dated, really ugly, super-mega-ultra-shitty school. Its not the school itself (which was probably designed by a drunken architecture who got his inspiration from a disorganised pile of lego blocks that an epileptic 4-year old decided to build) but the people in it that make it an okay place to be. I would like this oppurtunity to thank all the teachers for being really fantastyic teachers...but i won't, as they wern't. LOLZ!. It was the guys and girls of bonnyrigg that made it a bearable place to be. The first person that i probably remember back in year 7 is John. Remember how he used to be in the canteen and take our orders (i'd ask for a meat pie, then he'd give me the meat pie and yell out "YOU GOT SERVED!")..who'd of thought he would turn out to be our school captain (i sure as hell didn't). From serving meat pies, to serving the school. It seems whatever John's been serving has been full of shit. LOLZ!. John is one of the coolest guys to be around, he'd laugh at anything you say. You could ask him about his thoughts on exploitation of child labour and he'd just start to histerically laugh, then you, too, would start to laugh at disfigured children in africa. Other guys who have stayed in at school are Bandoll and Vince...since our days of the original 8 to the dwindling 3 that was left, Vince has never gone one day without eatting/stealing half my meat pies...those were the days. Our group had so many name changes: SKC, soul rendition, 5 gigs, 4 gigs, Trung and his Homies. Those were the days. Ever since year 10 in those volleyball days, ive had a great friendship with Winnie (aka Queen of Skankville.lolz, im only kidding...your not a queen). She's a cool girl, easy to talk to but unbearable to listen to (maybe i should stop with these insults). She's one of the coolest friends to have. She's like a cousin from melbourne who you would love to hang around with, but wouldnt want to stay over for the weekend (Yo coz...please go home now). There are probably many other people that i will remember but dont have time to write about (mostly because they won't pay the "Your name is on Trung's Blog" fee). The shuttlecock crew...who seem to always do push-ups for every single thing they do ("you dropped the shuttle-cock, 20 push ups!...you look like a girl, 20 push ups!...you have hepatitis B, 20 push ups!"), the people in my maths ext. 1 class who i seem to gamble with almost every day of the week (i had to re-mortgage my house to repay my debt), the fobs (WHAT THE FUCK YOU LOOKIN AT!?), the asians who havnt stabbed me (yet) and various other people who i can't be bothered making fun of. I will always remember every year 12 in my year (except the ugly ones), from the smallest (which is of course, lil Kenny) to the biggest person ( which is Alex...or if you're measuring horizontally, Crystal). I can see now that our year will have all kinds of people doin all kinds of things, from doctors, to accountants (ther'd probably be alot of these since most of bonnyrigg is asian) to engineers to funny ass comedians...but mostly i see future welfare recipients.
Looking back on all you people, i can honestly say that i will not miss you people. Because i know, even if school finishes, i will see you again. There's no way im gonna let bonnyrigg people outta my life. What i will miss tho is the school experiences and the days where we could have fun and call ouselves Bonnyrigg students. We've been through so much together, expecially in year 12. We saw many teachers leave, had an unforgettable time doing our year 12 concert (i reckon that swedish nerd guy was the coolest...i wonder who he was...), and even had a scare when someone died but turned out to be just one big prank (you know who im talking about....no, not Mr.Brady). But i gotta say, the most memorable, craziest and funnest experience was the year 12 camp. The guys in my cabin are one of the funniest guys i have ever been with. Even though a cabin full of guys might sound homosexual, it was the funniest (and fucken scariest!!) memorable night of my high school night. As year 12 comes to a close, i will remember year 12. I remember us as the class that had more suspensions than awards, the class that seemed to be overun by asian immigrants, the class that had the funniest people on Earth, the class that will always be in my memories even when i become a withered old man...the class of 2007.

---------

PRESENT - 2010

Hmm, strange how much has changed in a little over 2 years. I write so differently now then how I use to. Such a jovial tone with an upbeat vibe, constantly writing "LOLZ!" to emphasise the punchline of a joke which adds to the energetic posts. Compared to my now very sarcastic and dry humor, brought upon by the very cold world that has gradually beaten every once of joy and hope out of life....LOLZ!

Hmm, "there's no way im gonna let bonnyrigg people outta my life". It is nice catching up with old friends every now and then: random meetings on the train, getting drunk together at parties, seeing their faces on Australia's Most Wanted. There's like an unintentional mini Bonnyrigg Renunion that happens every friday night at mounties. The same old familiar faces every week. And that's why I don't go to mounties on fridays anymore. Haha. Like I said, it is nice catching up with old friends, but I wouldn't want to make it a regularly thing though, aside from the few who I do see almost all the time.

As much as I reminisce, and no matter how nice they are, memories are just memories. I genuinely did want things to stay comfortably the same back in 2007. But isn't that what progress is all about? Not staying put in comfortable routine and daring to venture on to something new. Eh, what do I know, I'm not that old and wise. But because I'm young, I believe I'm right haha.

I remember moments with people that make me laugh and smile more than any joke that I could ever possibly think up of, and also the times that made me think "man...what a social failure that was...". I think the most important thing I've learnt over the years is that if you're too worried about what you're doing, you'll most likely be in danger of doing nothing. I know that I did follow that lesson, though I know that I still could've done things better and maybe the outcome would've turned out a bit more to what I wanted. Still, I don't have any regrets. Looking back, I know that all the laughs, smiles, failures and internal defeats has led me to become this imperfect, yet best version of myself so far. And for that, I wouldn't have changed a thing.

KeepOnDrawing

2010-02-04T22:48:00.000+11:00

I've recently got back into drawing again. Here's the second batch of things i've drawn over the weeks. I've kinda been on and off with my drawings, but now I've done all I can with them. Click on them to enlarge. Enjoy, hopefully =)

Her

Staring Out

Behind the Smile

She

I Will Fight

When We Were Young

Be My Valentine

Understanding

2010-02-01T22:20:00.000+11:00

Ever since uni started, i have, for the first time in my life, looked at an exam paper and thought to myself "wtf are these words and squiggly symbols doing on the page??? ". Yep, a blog about understanding. Pretty simple to understand. Writing about understanding the actual 'understanding' of things which you gotta understand in order to understand. Do you understand what i'm talking about? You do? That's amazing, i didn't even understand what i was going on about. Oh wait, you didn't understand what i was talking about did you? I understand. < /random>

Well like i said/typed, uni exams are giving me the biggest "WTF!? Is this paper written in Arabic ???" moments. I can't answer the problem if i don't even know what the question is asking. Ok...i see a plus sign, a squiggly smiley face lookin' thing, and a normal distribution curve...is the answer 'pineapple' ? Alright, look around the room for an asian kid that i can copy off...oh shit, i AM that asian kid. Screwed. I just don't understand...stupid exam paper, WHAT DO YOU WANT FROM ME!?!?!. I guess i could always try that thing, but forgot what it was called. It's apparently an ancient voodoo technique that stimulates your mind and helps you retain information that can help you gain answers. Its called...err..oh yeah, studying.

And then there's the misunderstanding that comes from not hearing what people say properly, which could lead to very awkward conversations with friends, especially with people who like to mumble alot.

"*mumble mumble*"
"What?"
"*mumble mumble*"
"Speak up!"
"*mumble* Jan..*mumble*"
"Did you just say you want a pass on Jan and see her mum get laid!???"
"NO! I said pass me the Jam and Marmalade!"
"...get your own damn marmalade"

Language barriers. Because I am of asian appearance, Vietnamese people like to speak vietnamese to me. The problem is, i don't understand 90% of what they're saying. I can only vaguely understand what they're trying to tell me by stringing together random key words that i hear and try to come up with a reasonable conclusion as to what they're saying.

Ok...so im hearing "gibberish gibberish ...TREE..gibberish vietnamese-jibba-jabba ...WORK ...ching-chong-wikkity-wak ... UNIVERSITY ...vietnamese bing-bang-bao...". So from what i'm hearing, i've come to the reasonable conclusion that you're trying to ask me if I'm going to university to get a job as tree climbing monkey named wikkity-wak-baby-got-bak...well the answer is NO, you crazy old bitch!

And understanding facial expressions. Especially when people are trying to tell you to play along with what they're saying without actually telling you to play along. They start telling a story to someone which you know is a lie, and they know you know it's a lie but they need you to play along, and then they give you a retarded look which resembles someone getting punched up the asscrack, and you're standing there confused until, a couple of sentences too late, you realise that they wanted you to play along with their story.

Bob: "Hey Joe, wanna hang out tomorrow?"
Joe: "Oh..sorry Bob, we're kinda busy with that meeting at work tomorrow, right Trung?" *retarded face*
Trung: "What meeting?"
Joe: "You know, the one for work"
Trung: "What? Since when do we have work meetings?"
Joe: *continuation of retarded punched up asscrack face*
Trung: "What's with the face!? There's no meeting tomorrow! It's as if you're making it up because you want to avoid Bob tomor... OHHHHHH... yeah we're busy, for that meeting ...for work ...about ...erm ...the rise in ninja koala bears attacking in the office...?"

And the most frustrating of all types of misunderstandings is the the one where you are unable to make someone understand something that's so clear in you're head because you are unable to properly convey it to them. All the connections and ideas blend perfectly in your mind, but you're unable to find the words to properly illustrate what you're trying to say to the other person, mostly because halfway through my explanations I start to give up and start mumbling words. They just don't understand, either because they need further explaining, or because what they believe is completely different to what you do. Even if you believe you're right, chances are, they believe they are too. It's here you can either just give up trying to make them understand and just pretend you understand they're point of view, or you can just keep fighting you're argument until it escalates into a samurai showdown with swords and ancient egyption laser beams... with a ninja koala bear attacking the office...?

I guess what I'm trying to say..or ask..is that, how can you solve a problem if you don't understand it? You'll just end up goin around in circles not knowing what the hell you're doing. Am i doing too much, or not enough? Am I doing something wrong, or am I just not doing anything right? I don't understand why I'm failing... I may not understand, but I do know that I want this to succeed so badly. If you're stuck on a problem, there's no point just staring at the question and leaving the answer blank. Even if you don't understand, even if you don't know what the hell you're doing, even if the answer you come up with in your head makes you look like a complete idiot, you just gotta go with what you know and wing it. You write whatever, you do whatever, you try to scrounge as much of a non sensical answer as you can in the hope that it doesn't end up in a complete failure. Right or wrong, at least you're trying. What's so hard to understand about that?

"Trung, what the hell are you going on about?"

Creative Flair

2009-12-29T00:21:00.001+11:00

New Post. This time, it's not a post about funny observations, or story writing. Felt like i've lost touch with my artsy side over the years and thought i'd have a go at it again after so long. I think you can click on them to see the expanded view. Hope you like =).

Swings

Gabriel and Isaac

Reach

The Illusionist and The Beggar

2009-12-15T23:54:00.000+11:00

ACT I

A town, there was, at the turn of the industrial revolution. Often, there would be smog in the heavens, suffocating the very air it breathed. Today, however, marked the end of the autumn skies. Dark fogs parted and made way for the winds, bringing in soft, white snow which danced throughout the streets. The miracle of winter wasn’t the only magic liberating the lonesome town from darkness. Gabriel the Illusionist had arrived in town, stunning audiences with his captivating displays of magic and illusion.

A town, there was, at the turn of the winter season. A dark corner of a street, where the frosts of the skies and smog of the alleys intertwined, hid a poor, ragged beggar. Covered knee-deep in snow, the beggar lay, ignored by all who happened to cross by his small part of town. Ignored by all, but one.

The Illusionist himself, Gabriel, had perchance to take this path home from another of his shows, and perchance had noticed a tattered figure half-buried in snow, and by a stretch of fate, had noticed something about the poor, lowly man that no other had: a gold-plated pocket watch, clenched within his hands.

“Now how would such an intricately decorated watch happen to befall such a man as yourself, on the corner of this gloom street?” Gabriel asked.

Startled, the beggar gazed up at the towering figure. “I-it doesn’t work” he stuttered, still surprised that a voice was actually being direct towards him. “This little thing hasn’t ticked since as long as I can remember.”

Noticing the stammer in the beggar’s voice, Gabriel gently smiled. “Do not be afraid to speak, kind sir. What is your name?”

Taken aback by the generosity bestowed upon him, the beggar stuttered, trying to recollect the name which he hadn’t used in years. “I-it…it’s Isaac. My name…is Isaac.”

“Well Isaac, I wish to have that pocket watch you have clasped in your hands. Would you kindly part ways with it for me?”

“No!” Isaac exclaimed out at Gabriel, with his grip on his watch tightening, he retreated away “Y-you cannot have this!”

Calmly, Gabriel responded “As you said, the watch no longer works. Why do you wish to keep it?”

“It is the only thing I have left” with a tone of anger rising in his voice, Isaac continued “You’re Gabriel the Illusionist, are you not!? I see posters of you all across town. You’re acts of magic bring you riches and status. I do not have such an easy life as yourself, what would you possibly want with this watch!?”

To Isaac’s surprise, Gabriel continued to gently smile at him. “Well, Isaac, what if I told you my Illusions could bring you that ‘easy-life’ you so desire?”

Eyes wide open, Isaac’s expression of anger made way for pure surprise. “W-what do you mean?”

“My illusions are more than just petty trickery” replied Gabriel. “They extend into the realms of actual magic. If you let go of that watch that you so cherish, I will grant you the better life that you long for”

Shocked at the proposition being handed to him, Isaac reflected on the life that had been given to him and the loneliness he had to endure. Rising from the snow, he reached out his hand, letting go of the watch that he had grasped in his fingers since as long as he could remember. “T-take it…I…I no longer wish to be like this…”

Gabriel, unwavering with his calm smile, took the watch from Isaac’s hands. And with a flick of his wrists, Gabriel had transformed Isaac from the image of a ragged beggar, to a gentleman worthy of standing among the upper class.

Isaac, feeling the bizarre, but strangely comfortable change within himself, glowed in exhilaration. He had finally risen from the depths of the slums. He had finally become somebody.

Before Isaac could express his gratitude, Gabriel’s stern gaze stopped him in his short celebration.

“Listen Isaac, I will show you around the circles of society and let you see your new life. But remember this; you are only a gentleman in appearance, for you do not possess the speech of one. You must not speak, for you are still a beggar. For that is the way things are meant to be, and how they should remain.”

Reflecting upon the conditions, Isaac smiled and nodded, accepting the new life that had been given to him.

ACT II

Isaac was soon invited to a prestigious ball, hosted by one of Gabriel’s highly respected associates. With his newfound image, Isaac walked amongst the people, optimistic in his endeavors in making newfound friends. At first, the people were suspicious of the silent stranger, but the charm of Isaac’s smile soon captivated them, winning over their trust and welcome.

The smiles that were returned to Isaac gave him great joy, for he had not known anything other than disregard from the people around him. Though with the newfound happiness that he had acquired, Isaac did not speak, for that is the way things are meant to be, and how they should remain.

Through the sea of people that had shown him warmth and kindness, there was one that had caught Isaac’s eye like no other. He could not stop himself from watching her move graciously across the ballroom. A stunning beauty dressed in a flowing, yellow gown, gliding across the floor with such elegance as she danced. For the first time since his transformation, Isaac was truly speechless.

Garnering all the courage within him, Isaac made his way across to her. Thoughts racing across his mind, Isaac imagined any possible way he would be able to get her to notice him, but before he could come up with a conclusion, she had already turned around, and smiled at him. With a skip of his heartbeat, Isaac moved forward and did the only thing he could do: he smiled back.

“Hello, my name is Isabelle. Please to meet your acquaintance” She said, as she bowed to greet him.

Isaac followed suit, and bowed back to her, though he did not say a word.

At first puzzled, Isabelle soon came to understood the silent greeting “You must be Mr. Gabriel’s acquaintance, Isaac.”

Isaac shyly smiled back and nodded.

“Well Mr. Isaac, would you care for a dance with me?” Isabelle asked.

Accepting the kind offer, Isaac extended his hand and the two locked arms as they soared their way across the ballroom. All those around them watched and were spellbound by the grace of their dance.

The two would continue to meet throughout the night of the winter weeks of December, captivating all who were fortunate enough to witness the beauty of their waltz. It was within those moments, that Isaac felt enchantment that even Gabriel himself would not be able to conjure up. He was happy.

ACT III

The night of Christmas Eve, Isaac sat at within his chambers, content with his new life, yet resenting how he was unable to speak his mind and thoughts.

“Isaac” Gabriel said, as he approached “You look bothered. What seems to be the matter tonight?”

And with a look at Isaac’s face, Gabriel soon knew what was troubling him.

“Isaac, I know it must be difficult, but you must not speak to anyone, especially to Isabelle. Remember, you are still a beggar, and that is how things are meant to be.” And with that caution, Gabriel left him to his own thoughts.

Isaac begun to heed the warning of Gabriel, but throughout the hours of the night, he’s determination waned. He decided to go see her, but promised himself he would not speak a word of his thoughts.

Isaac ran to see her one more time before the dawn of Christmas. And there she was, sitting atop her balcony, looking up at the night sky as snowflakes softly glided their way to the earth. Isaac gazed up at the part of the stars where Isabelle had been watching. As he looked back down, she had gone.

Darting his eyes back and forth, he tried searching for her once again.

“Isaac!” a voice exclaimed in excitement in the distance. It was Isabelle dashing across the doorway entrance to see him. “I didn’t expect to see you until the Christmas dinner planned for tomorrow”

As usual, Isaac’s response was to only smile. Though, Isabelle was the only person that understood what he was trying to say without him speaking.

Smiling back, Isabelle handed a box tied by a silky bow to Isaac “I was saving this present for you until Christmas, but since you are here already, I thought you would like to have it now”

Surprised, Isaac proceeded to unravel the box.

“When I came across this on my way to the jewelry store, I immediately thought of you. I do hope you don’t hate it too much” Isabelle chuckled.

As Isaac opened it, he saw what was inside. Hands shaking, eyes shocked. He stared blankly back at her. Inside the box was a ticking, gold-plated pocket watch. The very same watch, only now it was working.

“You know Isaac, I was only joking when I said I hope you don’t hate it too much. But that’s not a problem, I’ll try harder to get you a better present next year” Isabelle chuckled, this time with a slight hint of disappointment in her voice.

“No Isabelle…it’s lovely” Isaac replied.

Stunned, Isabelle could do nothing but just stare back at Isaac, and finally smile at the sound of his voice.

“Isabelle, I’ve been wanting to tell you something for the longest of time…” Isaac continued, as he began to tell her the thoughts which were hiding within his heart. Even though he was going against the warning of Gabriel, Isaac could not stop expressing his feelings. He didn’t want to stop.

Unbeknownst to Isaac, as he spoke, he no longer bore the image of a gentleman. He was turning back into his former self. Isabelle’s smile slowly faded to that of disgust. Before Isaac knew what was happening, it was too late. He was now a beggar. Seeing the true Isaac in front of her, Isabelle turned away and screamed, attracting the attention of all those near. The people around saw, not Isaac, but just a poorly, ragged man. And so, they chased him away, and Isaac ran, with the watch clenched tightly within his hands, back into the streets where he came from.

A town, there was, at the turn of the winter season. A dark corner of a street, where the frosts of the skies and smog of the alleys intertwined, yelled a poor, ragged beggar.

“Gabriel!!! Where are you!??”

And from the darkness of the night, Gabriel appeared.

“Isaac, I warned you not to speak. What had come to pass was your own doing.”

“Gabriel,” Isaac pleaded, “turn me back. Please! I know not to speak anymore, I’ve learned my mistakes!”

“I am sorry Isaac, but I am not able to do that. Not only did you speak, but you spoke from the heart, revealing who you truly are inside. No amount of magic can hide who you are now. You are a beggar.” And with those final words, Gabriel disappeared from Isaac’s life, never to be seen from again.

And there, buried knee-deep in snow, lay a poorly, ragged beggar, clenching tightly within his hands a gold-plated pocket watch that slowly began to slow down ‘till not a tick could be heard from it again. For that is the way things are meant to be and how they should remain.

Expectations

2009-06-25T13:12:00.000+10:00

Well I recently finished my final exams and now got some time to just write stuff on my blog. As you may have noticed, I haven’t been on this blog for a while. Or maybe you haven’t, that’s ok….please notice me…

So this semester was the first time in a while where I spent the one week study period actually studying. I’ve learnt a lot, mostly that studying is kinda boring. It can get kinda interesting tho, I mean did you that a structural member can undergo not only shear stresses but also asfgqeu;oasuh…oh sorry, my head just banged the keyboard when I fell asleep.

When I know that there’s something I need to do but don’t want to, such as studying, I usually set a time later for me to do it. Knowing I have a full day to study, I shuffle my mental timetable and stick the “studying block” in the later timeslot to where I’m currently at. So in the mornings I tell myself that I’ll start studying in the afternoon, then go waste time and watch Oprah (You may be thinking why I think that 12.00am is morning…or why I’m watchin Oprah…but you know…wait, what’s over there!? A change of subject??). Then in the arvo I’m all emotionally tired from watching single mothers raise their children while maintaining 2 jobs in the economic crisis while secretly being a samurai…an afro samurai, that is! So I reschedule my studying to later in the night, then take a nap…a manly nap, that is! By the time it’s night, I’m too buggered to do anything, so I tell myself that I have a full-free day tomorrow so I’ll wake up early and get a head start to make up for the lost time. Then when my alarm goes off at 8am in the morning, I wake up and say “F**k it! Screw you demanding-me-from-yesterday-night, I can’t live up to your ridiculous expectations!” I then fall back asleep and wake up again at 12…just in time for Oprah…sexy Oprah, that is!

Well my life story…I think I should stop thinking of what I should do, and just do it. Thinking of consequences is just time lost on doing what you could’ve done now. From now on I’m gonna live the now and worry less how it lives up to my expectations. It’s time for a change now…ehhh, I’ll do it later.

Just so Lyrical

2009-05-21T20:27:00.000+10:00

Some songs just have the weirdest lyrics, don't they? Why am I asking questions, I can't hear you reply. Or can I... Well anyway, did you just ask what kind of songs i like? Good question, but a better one would be to ask what kind i don't like. And the answer to that question (thanks for asking) is that i don't like the majority of R'n'B songs. Maybe I'm not hip enough. But I'm down with that, chu feelin' it all chu bitches (that's right sometimes my words are sexist, but all you hoes should know that I'm trynna correct this...). Well anywho lets get on with this blog.

The Ting Tings. Interesting group name. Was the group name ring-a-ding-ding already taken or something? Anyway, apparently the singer is angry at society for not knowing her name and decided to write a song about it. "They call me hell, They call me Stacey, They call me her, They call me Jane, That's not my name, That's not my name." That's interesting and all, but if she spent less time telling what her name isn't and more time saying what it is,then all this confusion and frustration would all be resolved. Seems like such a simple solution. I don't go to a restaurant and tell the waiter what i don't want to eat.
"How may i help you sir?"
"I don't want chicken, I don't want spaghetti, I don't want tortellini, that's not my name, that's not my name..."
"I'm sorry sir, but this is Super Cheap Auto"

Eskimo Joe also likes to write about names. You know the song, "Sarah, won't you tell me your name?". Its one of those weird ass situations where the answer is given before the question.
"Sarah, won't you tell me your name?"
"Yeah, it's actually Bob."

And this crazy song by Omarion, "I got this ice box where my heart used to be". I don't know about you, but if i woke up with one of my vital organs replaced with frozen water in a cube, I wouldn't write a song about it. I'd rush off to the hospital and make them check out the obviously serious and slightly unusual medical condition. "I'm so cold, I'm so cold, I'm so cold" Yeah i bet you're cold Omarion, there's no blood circulating in your body!

Yes, songs have weird lyrics. But it doesn't really matter does it. There are some songs that i like that have strange lyrics too. Lyrics that make me go "man, i totally get you bro". People listen to songs, not for what it says, but for how it makes them feel. So if you like a song that I don't, then I can deal with that. Everyone has different tastes in music...it's just that your taste is shit.

Happy Typing all

Think no Evil

2009-05-09T18:37:00.000+10:00

I think all of us are evil to some extent. Our actions may be pure, but there’s a tiny part of our brain that speaks evil thoughts. I watched an episode of House (you know the show about the doctor…I wasn’t just staring at someone’s home for an hour. The courts warned me twice already...) where a patient had some brain disorder, which made him say every thought that crossed his mind. This disability made him look like a jerk and pushed his family away because he couldn’t help say what he thought, no matter how cruel it was. Man, if I had that disability, I would probably be stabbed…

Yes, I have that tiny part of my brain that’s constantly voicing cruel thoughts. I call him Jerry. Man, Jerry says the most awful things. Going to the city everyday, I see a lot of different people, and Jerry’s always there to comment about them. Whenever a morbidly obese person walks by, Jerry usually doesn’t notice. But whenever a morbidly obese person who’s smiling walks by, Jerry says “Hey, she must’ve just eaten.” Not cool Jerry.

Once, Jerry felt kinda down, so he cheered himself up by mocking other people. One day, he sees a dweeby, chubby guy with a Cabramatta wardrobe, Parramatta haircut and Harry Pottermatta glasses. Jerry says “At least I’m not that guy!” There Jerry was, feeling mighty about himself; until he saw that the dweeby guy was holding hands with an incredibly hot girl. “Damn…” Jerry replied. He sure showed you Jerry.

Editor’s Note: I don’t really have another persona within my brain that I name Jerry. I just added that part to add some humour. I thought I had to add this bit of info just in case there’s someone reading saying to themselves “Man…I knew Trung was weird, but I didn’t know he was mentally retarded as well.” So I just had to clear it all up. I don’t have a part of my brain that I name Jerry. I actually call him Trevor.

At least thoughts can’t be heard by other people. What’s worst is when you don’t care about an issue that seems important. What’s worst than that, is when you don’t care about an issue and feel like laughing at the most inappropriate time.

I remember back in high school, I was sitting in class with a friend. Have no idea what I was talking about with her, but it must’ve been about drug dealing or something or other, because out of nowhere, another classmate decided to join in on the conversation. I won’t name names, but let’s just say that this guy was considered kind of a weirdo. The contribution he had to the conversation was very short, but what he said was this. “My cousin died a few months ago…” he said. There was an awkward pause before he added “He was a drug dealer”. At first, I didn’t care about his bit of news. I was uncaring about his situation, but at least when you’re indifferent you can pretend to care. But when he added that extra bit of info at the end, I suddenly found the predicament slightly funny. So I went from risking looking like an uncaring jerk to a laughing, inconsiderate prick. I had to try and not laugh. The number one rule to not trying to laugh is to not look at other people, especially other people who are about to laugh as well. I chose to disregard this rule that day. I looked at my friend. I could see that she was trying not to laugh, and she could see that I was trying not to laugh. So there we were trying not to crack up while looking at the other person suffocatingly holding in their teeth. When two people are trying not to smile, it’s inevitable that both will spontaneously laugh. So of course we chuckled, softly but loud enough to cause the guy who divulged his life story to walk away. So it seems both of us are going to hell. But at least we’ll go laughing.

So the moral of this story is that we all have evil thoughts, but that doesn’t make us evil people. We shouldn’t be judged on every thought we think, just those that we choose to act upon. You might think someone wearing a certain dress looks like a horrid sack of crap, but telling them that they look nice because you know it’ll make them feel better shows that you’re compassionate. It may be the thought that counts, but it’s what we do that matters.

Editor’s Note: Okay, I know this is kind of a very lame request from me, but if you’re a reader of my blog, can you leave a comment on it. I enjoy writing these blog entries and trying to entertain you people, and I’d like to think you enjoy reading it as well. So leave a comment on what you think of what I’m writing. You can even just comment about how you think my writing is a bit shitty today. Just try not to go overboard by writing “Your blog is total shit! I hope you jump out a window!” Well whatever you choose to do, happy typing y’all.

Short Hiatus

2009-05-05T19:31:00.000+10:00

Hello there. Sorry i haven't been updating for a while. I had 2 assignments due last week and spent most of my time not doing it. It turns out in order for assignments to be completed, you must do work. Outrage, i say. Anyway, you don't care. You're probably yelling "I don't give a shit! Where's my entertainment, god dammit!??". Well, you selfish bitch, i don't have time right now. Actually got a test tomorrow for Visual Basics. Its basically programming on the computer using exc- oh what does it matter explaining, you don't care. I'll try to post something up later this week. In the mean time watch this mocking of parliamentary debates by danny bhoy.

Anyway, have a good week y'all.

that was embarrassing

2009-04-20T18:36:00.000+10:00

Man, embarrassing moments in public. When will they ever end? What do you do when your in one? How do you avoid it? When will you answer my questions!??

You know the moments I'm talking about. Like losing your balance in public because you tripped over a non-existent pebble. You slip your front foot and you start to topple like a cut-down tree before you regain your equilibrium by awkwardly wobbling your arms and feet like a crazy monkey trying to fight for a banana. And you usually finish by mumbling "SHIT!" to yourself, but you say it loud enough to attract the attention of nearby people. Then they give you a look as to say "I'm most likely not going to be your friend..." Then you try to scurry away from the scene before a familiar voice in the distance yells mockingly at you "I saaaaaawwwww thaaaat!"

What are you suppose to do in these predicaments? You could start to do the windmill and pretend you were breakdancing. Or you could just lay down and just stay there hoping people would stop laughing long enough to feel sorry for you. Whichever you choose, they will both end with someone calling the authorities.

I wanna try just blowing it out of proportion. Tripping over a crack in the pavement, then me turning around and abusing the footpath. "SHIITT!! What the hell happened!?? Oh my god, this could've been a disaster! I could have seriously been injured or DEAD! Someone has to do something about this safety issue! Think of the children!! Those council motherf..." And I'll rave on like this for about 2 hours before someone calls the cops or Today Tonight.

I'm also wary of waving in public. Especially to people that I've only met once before. You risk mistakingly greeting a person you thought was someone you knew but was really a stranger. So I'm there 20 meters from the person, and I'm waving and walking towards them, then as I get closer I realise it's not the person i thought i was waving to. But by then the person I was waving to has seen me waving at them, and of course they have no idea who I am and they're giving me the look as to say "I have a gun and if you come near me, I'm going to shoot your family". At this point i point at the distance behind them, and as they turn around to look at what it was i was pointing at, I run around the nearest corner and hide. This is usually dangerous to do at night because hiding around corners in the dark can get you...you know...murdered.

And I'm also in those situations where strangers wave at me. My natural response to this is to start waving back. Then as she gets closer i notice how cute she is and i have this stupid grin on my face while waving. The only word to describe that facial expression would be 'Duuuuurrrrrhhhhhgghhh'. And, of course, i realise too late that she was waving at the guy behind me. So I'm there waving with my duuurrrhhgh face making a complete ass of myself in public, while the cute girl walks off with another guy laughing at something (most likely me), and to top it off, I hear someone in the distance yelling "I saaaaaawwwww thaaaat!"

The things we say…

2009-04-16T21:24:00.000+10:00

Update on my last post. Believe it or not, I forgot to take out the rubbish bin today. I wrote a whole post talking about garbage disposal, and I forgot to do what it was I was writing about. Oh the hilarious predicaments I find myself in…oh well, time to dump trash into my neighbour’s garden again. Take that society!

Okay, moving on. I’ve come to realise that I say things just for the sake of saying something. Just the other day, I walked past KFC and the first thing I said to the person next to me was “Hey there’s KFC, I’m hungry as man”. First thing I gotta point out is that I knew the person next to me, it wasn’t some stranger. I don’t walk up to random people and go “Hey man, I’m hungry. Do you have some chicken!??” Anyway, the point is that I wasn’t really hungry. I ate just half an hour before that. I said I was hungry just for the sake of saying something in the small gap of silence I had found myself in.

Asking questions that you already know the answer to. Another way to talk crap just for the sake of talking. “Hey, where’s our next class?” I know where the next class is, I checked my timetable just this morning, and, to my knowledge, rooms don’t know how to teleport. Unless you go to Hogwarts..or you’re stoned. So I ask it anyway. And when the person answers the question that you already know the answer to, and they answer it WRONG, what do you do then? Do you just go "Ohh...yeah...thanks..." and follow what they say knowing that if you correct them you'll reveal that you just asked a quiestion you already knew the answer to and risk them thinking you're some weirdo with no life, or do you confess that you knew all along and say “No, wrong! You a liar, BITCH!!”

Whenever there’s a pause in a conversation indicating a discussion has ended and a new subject must to brought up to keep the talk going, I say things just for the sake of saying them. As you can see, those things I say don’t have much importance..or make sense for that matter. I blurt out things like “What do you think it’ll be like to be attacked by a mafia mermaid with laser beams?”
Sometimes what I say gets misunderstood. Like when I like someone (it could be you! OH…not YOU, jeez, I do have standards), it’s hard for me to get the message across. What I mean to say is that I have feelings for them, but instead what comes out of my mouth is “You’re a skanky slut!”

So the moral of this story is sometimes people mean what they can’t say. You don’t have to say something to mean it. That, and I like to talk shit. This whole post was pretty much just me talking shit. I just posted for the sake of posting because I needed some interweb attention. Man, if this were a conversation there would be an awkward silence right now..…what do you think it’ll be like to be slapped by a jamaican samurai?

I know i was meant to do something...

2009-04-12T19:21:00.000+10:00

Okay, do you ever have those moments where you know you were meant to do something but u completely forgot what, so you leave it alone for a while but only realise what you had to do AFTER it was suppose to be done? I have a quota of 6 i-know-i-was-meant-to-do-something-moments a day.

Here's an example. I was told by my mum to do a chore for that day. I could've done it at that very moment she asked me, but Oprah was on and she was covering a very interesting story. Forgot what the show was about, i think it was about a man who saved orphans out of a burning church which was being raided by the yakuza. It turned out that that man was on drugs. And was secretly a SAMURAI!! Ok, maybe i made that part up. I sometimes make things up in my mind to make tv shows alot more interesting. I also do it everywhere else to add interest in the dull existence in which i call my life...

Well anyway, my mum told me to do something:
Mum: Trung, can you go do it now?
Me: I'll do it later..
Mum: Alright, just remember it has to be done before tomorrow.

Of course, by the time Oprah's finished, i go on to watch the next tv show, and then surf the net, then next tv show again. By the time there's nothing to waste time on, I'm thinking to myself "I'm suppose to do something, I'm sure whatever it was, i did it during one of the commercial breaks...what's that smell?" So I'm just sitting there, thinking I've already done whatever it was i forgot i needed to do with a weird stench in the air, and my Mum goes up to me and says:

Mum: "Did you do what i asked you to do?"
Me: "...Yeah, did it a while ago"
Mum: "Oh ok, i didn't hear you open the gate"
Me: "I open gates quitely. Like a ninja...with slippers"
Mum: "So you took the rubbish out then?"
Me: "OHHHH! That, of course..nope."

I don't know if this applies to all mothers, or just that of the asian variety, but mine
likes to remind to do a chore as many times as possible, even though she knows i'll forget
to do it.

8:00am
"Trung, take the rubbish out today."
8:30am
"Trung, remember to take your brother to school, and take the rubbish out"
8:31am
"Take the rubbish out!"
11:00am
"Remember to take the rubbish out, ok?"
11:45am
"I'm making lunch today. It's rice with sweet and sour take-the-rubish-out!"
1:40pm
"Trung! Why is your brother still not at school!?"

Maybe it's coz of my forgetful nature that i got to be reminded to do things, but the
more I'm reminded, the more likely i forget. So its just a endless cycle of me forgetting to do something, then being reminded to do it more the next time, then forgetting again, then being reminded more, then forgetting, and going on and on till my mum gets fed up and stabs me with a shovel. Hmmm...remind me to get rid of all my shovels.

But it doesn't end there, i sometimes forget to do something WHILE i'm doing what it
was i was wanting to do. Here's an example.

I want to do something, and while i'm doing it, I'm lost in thought. So i walk to the kitchen and grab a slice of cheese. By this moment I'm lost in thought thinking about koala bears. And i just mindlessly walk to the dinner table and wonder what it would be like to be attacked by a furry animal. When i get to the table, my mindless autopilot is turned off, and i snap back to reality. By this time, i'm looking at the cheese thinking "What the hell do i want this one slice of cheese for?" So i walk back to the fridge, and put the slice back. Then walk off. As i walk past the dinner table again, i finally remember that i was hungry and wanted a ham cheese sandwich, so then I got to go back again to the fridge and get the slice of cheese that i already got before...

So the moral of this story is...erm...i forgot...

Netiquette

2009-04-04T20:57:00.000+11:00

Yep another internet blog from me. Speaking of the internet, i'm gonna rant about it in this post. Particularly things people do on MSN.

How do you laugh? Would you say loudly, in an outward direction? If not, then "lol" shouldn't be used. It gives a wrong indication of the humour level within a conversation. Unless you really are laughing at a high level which would wake your neighbours, resulting in repeated visits by the police telling you to desist in your rampant gigglin, then don't lie.

And something else with "lol": It's an acronym standing for "laugh out loud". Why do people use variations of an acronym that would obviously change the meaning of it. "Lawl"?? And what about "lolz"?? What does that stand for? "laugh out loud zinger-burger"??

And those that end their portion of the conversation like this:

bob says: so yeah, that was funny.
bob says: haha
bob says: lol

Do you notice some people doin that? The double "lol". They laugh, and then they laugh again. There are pauses within their laughing patterns. Maybe they're doing some sort of action during the pauses. Something like...rolling on the floor!?? How can someone roll on the floor, and still be able to reach the keyboard to type an acronym describing how they're laughing. I tell you how: because they're lying to you!

And how many asses do you have? They must've fallen off about 6 times today. If my rear end dropped off regularly, i wouldn't be laughing about it, i'd go to the hospital and hope they could fix that serious medical problem.

This doesn't end on msn either, people are using "lol" in real life now. Why?? Laughing is a reaction that rumbles in ur stomach and causes you to crackle without much thought. Going "haha" after a joke is a natural thing, saying "lol" to a joke is just plain weird. And how do those people laugh at REALLY funny jokes? Instead of going "hahaha", do they say "lolololololol"?? Are people gonna soon replace laughinh with phrases? "Yes, that was funny. I would give it 7 lols out of ten."

So yeah, this clip below is weird. Its a song they teach in a korean primary school about good internet manners...and well...its weird.

That's it from me for now precious friends.

Japan Trip

2009-03-16T22:56:00.000+11:00

Yes, i went to Japan. Jeeeallllouus? No? ok.

So yeah, i went there over a month ago for about 2 and a half weeks with my cousin, her boyfriend and some of their friends. I actually forgotten most of the stuff i'd done there over the weeks, but looking through the photos yesterday brought back alotta memories that i though i'd share with all of my friends and stalkers.

Lets start from the beggining. It was 15 hour plane trip with a 2 hour stop over at hong kong. Was the plane trip enjoyable? In short, no. In long, noooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo. Oh, and don't buy food from the airport. It tastes awful and you get rauted six ways to sunday.

Look at this.
This is a 20 dollar burger from HK aiport. Look at the proportions of this burger. The bun is twice the size of the pattie. Couldn't they kill a bigger cow for me? Kill 5 cows if you have to, but dont charge me 20 dollars for 2 slices of bread with a rat in the middle of it.

So after the plane trip, we landed in Japan ( you know, our destination...). Our taxi driver was waiting for us right after we got out of customs. He gave us a long japanese speech and then bowed at the end. I didn't understand a word he said, and he couldn't understand us either. It was just one big language barrier. For all we knew, he could have told us the meaning of life and we could've achieved enlightenment that very day. He did know a bit of english tho. "Cash pay now"

I was told how to say "I can't speak Japanese" in japanese. I didn't remember it tho, it was quite long. I just googled it and the way you say it is "Nihongo ga hanashimasen". Now why would someone want to learn a 9 syllable sentence that is useless?? If you go up to a local and say "I can't speak Japanese" in any language other than japanese, they would come to the conclusion that you can't speak their language. You could even say "I saw a flying purple carpet ringing up a rainbow baboon" and they would still conclude that you cannot speak japanese.

Anyway, 6 hour taxi drive later, we arrived at Hakuba where we were staying at the Morino Lodge. A ski lodge. Where we were gonna ski. At a ski resort. And eat ski yoghurt.

So the first night they gave us a traditional japanese room to say in. You know the one with the bamboo-ish wood carpet and grounded bed mats.

Japanese style beds. Some assembly required.

It was pretty late (about 3am), so we thought that it was a pretty good idea to sleep.

So i stayed a week in Hakuba. Each day consisted of the same routine. Wake up at 8, eat breakfast, start skiiing at 9, fall over alot, have lunch at 12, skii and fall over again, go back to the lodge around 4, go out and find a restaurant at 7, go back to lodge, sleep. Here are pictures in no particular order.

I'm the cool one in the middle lookin cool. This was when we were still in front of the lodge.

And this is when we were up at the ski resort up in the mountains.

It might be a bit hard to see in this picture, but there is a blizzard going on at the resort. My face had never been that cold in my life. It was less than 2 degrees and factor in the wind chill factor and the loads of snow being pummeled into my face...it was cold. If someone ever says in Australia "Man, I'm really cold". I will slap 5 ways to africa. You don't know cold! It was so cold, my testicles turned into ovaries.

Relaxin back at the lodge. And would you believe it, they have a Wii in their lounge room! Those japanese, they got everything everywhere.

This dish is called Katsudon. Its rice with fried egg melded into pork chops. It is the best dish ever in the world of food. I am on a quest to find a jap restaurant that sells this in sydney. And if i can find someone who can make it, i will instantly marry you, regardless of your gender.

On the last day of our ski trip week, we decided to go to the top of the mountain and ski our way down. This is the view from the top.

After Hakuba, we stayed at Osaka. It was sort of like a hub that we'd stay at night, but go sight seeing in other areas of Japan during the day.

This is the front of the hotel where we stayed in Osaka. Mr.Bean, what do you have to say about the peculiar decor of this hotel?

I won't go thru in detail of each place we visited. Instead, here are random photos.

Vending machine galore.

Matsumodo Castle. The sign in the field says "I saw a flying purple carpet ringing up a rainbow baboon".

Imperial garden within the Imperial Palace in Kyoto. The water here is not only impure, its Im-PURE-ial Har har har ha... that bad joke made me cry...

This is the Dome. The only building to survive the Horishima bomb back in WWII. One of the reminders that an atomic bomb hit the place. If this building weren't here, you'd swear that Horishima was never been hit by a catastrophic explosion. There are buildings build in and around the area, resembling Canberra. After 40 years, the only trace left from the war is this one building that still stands to this day.

I didn't take a picture of it, but there was this hill that was fenced off a couple of metre's away from the dome. The sign next to the mound told how 10,000 people who had lost their lives because of the bomb were collected here and cremated together, with their ashes buried under the very hill i was looking at. As i was standing, thinking about the impact of death on such a large scale, the effect of war and the importance of this memorial site, i looked over my shoulder and saw a woman walking a dog that had just taken a piss on a nearby tree. Slightly humourous reminder that life moves on.

This is Miyajima Island, just a short ferry trip near Horishima station.

This is a giant bat.

The famous Shinjuku crossing, the busiest crossing in the world. So naturally, companies are advertising everywhere here.

This is the statue of Hachiko the dog in Shinjuku. Hachiko was an actual dog back in the 1920s.
In 1924, professor Hidesaburō Ueno brought Hachiko to Shinjuku. Hachiko was a very loyal companion to Prof. Ueno. Each morning, Prof. Ueno would walk to the station, accompanied by his friend Hachiko. Prof. Ueno would take the train to his university to lecture for the day, and Hachiko would wait behind for him. Everytime Ueno would return from his lectures, Hachiko, without fail, would always be there waiting for his master. Together, they would walk home. This carried on everyday, Prof. Ueno going away and returning to see his loyal friend waiting for him at the station.
This continued until May 1925. Prof. Ueno and Hachiko, as they usually did, walked to the station where Hachiko would see Prof. Ueno off. That day, Hachiko returned to the station the same time he always had and waited for Prof. Ueno to return. However, Prof. Ueno did not appear. He had suffered a fatal stroke and died, never returning to meet the loyal friend that was waiting.
Hachiko returned to the same spot everyday, waiting for his master to return. In sun, rain or snow, Hachiko would always return everyday without fail. As time went by, Hachiko's loyalty never faded, always awaiting his master day in, day out. This carried on for the next 10 years, where on March 1935, Hachiko died, still waiting for his long lost friend.
This statue was erected in memory of loyal Hachiko.

Yeah, sad story. If you didn't feel anything, then you're just a heartless bastard. Shame on you! Ok, enough about the dead dog, lets move on.

Ok, you're probably wondering "Where's the pictures of the freaky jap people, Trung?". If you think that there's alot of freaky jap people around...then you're right. They all all in Harajuka. Lets see some of them.

Alice in JapanLand

These are geisha cosplayers. Or more commonly known as "WTF!??"

She has a suitcase because she is moving...into my heart...

I seem to be doin the same pose over and over again.

Bears...
As you can see, i am veeery happy. I mean, we're from 2 different countries...but it could have worked. Who needs to understand one another these days...we could've had something special...i am so alone...

Well, that's more than enough photos. I actually have loads more, but theres just no time to post them all. Well i hope this post didn't bore you too much. I promise the future posts will not be this long. Unless i go to Europe or something.

Anyway, that's all from me.

Have a g'day,

Trung

Start of Blog

2009-03-16T22:21:00.000+11:00

That's right, i now have a blog. I have chosen to join the community of the interweb and waste time typing stuff that nobody is probably gonna read. Exciting stuff.

It probably would've been easier just to make a Facebook account, but that thing is just so goddamn confusing. I had an account for about 10 minutes and deleted after i saw how many buttons there were. There's a button for everything. There's a friggin button to poke other people online. Who came up with that idea, anyway? Some random facebook employee tellin people, "Hey, lets add a button that would let people on the internet to touch each other". Online has gotten wierd now. I can understand it you'd want to poke alot of people in real life tho. Too bad the courts don't let me do that anymore... So that's why i don't use facebook. That, and i only have 2 pictures of myself on my computer. Apparently there's a 50 luvo picture upload per week quota that you gotta fulfill or your account would be banned and you'll forever be shunned by the people of the interweb. Goddamn it, why do you people need to post so many pictures of yourself!? I already know what you look like, i don't need to see your face from 36 different angles coupled with a few blowfish face poses. And 90% of you are ugly anyway Harhar har...

So yeah, this blog is just to post thoughts and opinions of stuff that would hopefully entertain people. As you can see from the last paragraph, i was trying to be funny. And yes, i know, i read it back and it wasn't funny at all. I should've just deleted it, but my backspace button is missing. This makes it hard for me to edit my posts and make sure that my grammer and spelling is correkktd.

I use to have a blog back in the days of Bebo. Remember bebo? Man, who needs real friends when you can get 200 online ones. Well anyway, my blog had quite a following back then. Well, i only had 2 viewers but they were very encouraging, and its because of them that i decided to start up another blog. Thanks mum and dad.

So yeah, this is a blog. Unlike other blogs, i'm not gonna write about every single day of my life. You're never gonna get a post from me saying "Today my status is okay. I went to the shops. It was good. I saw Steve. He was wearing a blue shirt." I try not to swear in my blog, unless its tasteful and emphasises a point, i won't use profanity for the sake of using it. If you don't like this blog, then that's ok, you're entitled to have your opinion....and go fuck yourself.

Happy typing people!