Here it goes again

Let me get this out before I begin -

Happy New Year!

Bitch.

So what can I say? It's been a nice year. 2009 was like the beginning of a new chapter in my life. No wait. It's an entirely different story of my life. And 2009 was only the first act of the story. Act Two is about to begin in 2010. Let's see how this goes, eh? For better or worst... Bring it.

So what have I done during this first act? Plenty. This year changed me a lot. In more ways than I every I could have imagined back in 2008. My attitude, behavior, style, habits, talking manner, and health has entirely changed from what I used to be a year ago.

First off now, my social circle has increased two fold.

Poly life exposed me to different kinds of new people. People I could relate with. People I could fool around with easily.

Before poly, I was more or less your typical average loser. Yes, you can see that from my older photos. I didn't talk much or do much and I'd keep to myself more or less. I still do that from time to time. But watching others around me, I've managed to pick up a few styles for my own and I've built my own personality. How did I put it to the test? Entering poly. And I dare say, I feel like a better person than before.

It's fun to meet new people. Not saying I would diss my old friends, they're still cool. Just that the new people I've met are much awesomer. It just made my whole poly experience a lot more enjoyable.

So speaking of poly, I think I've said enough just how awesome Media Studies is. Tiring, dreadful, and not forgetting stressful. But hell yeah, I wouldn't have it any other way. Maybe I was fated to enter NYP's Media Studies all along, and not Ngee Ann's Mass Comm. It was all part of the plan of a higher power above. I'm blessed and thankful for this. What's more I'm in the correct class, hanging out with the right people. I'll never be a social outcast ever again. Huzzah!

Oh, and I've lost weight.

Well, you see. All this time, I've been the center of every fat joke. I took this as way of motivating myself. One day, I just decided to fuck it all, and just shed those pounds. I've been running, gym-ing, playing sports, and doing every active thing I could think of for the past 4 months. So far, I've lost 10kg.

Before


After

See how I've changed? I like it. I don't mean to brag, but I just have to. I want to be proud of my accomplishment, and I'm still working on it. Hard work pays off, it's true ... I guess.

With that said, I'm not exactly looking forward to 2010. I more or less can figure out where I'm going and what might happen. But hey, in this world we live in. ANYTHING can happen. Nothing is impossible anymore. You'd never know.

Till then. Cheers.

[Insert Generic Holiday Greeting Here]

(Deck the halls with boughs of holly fa-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la)
(Tis the season to be jolly fa-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la)

Outside the carolers start to sing
I can't describe the joy they bring
Cause joy is something they don't bring me

My girlfriend is by my side
From the roof are hanging sickles of ice
Their whiny voices get irritating
It's Christmas time again

So I stand with a dead smile on my face
Wondering how much of my time they'll waste
Oh God I hate these Satan's helpers

And then I guess I must have snapped
Because I grabbed a baseball bat
And made them all run for shelter

It's Christmas time again
It's time to be nice to the people you can't stand all year
I'm growing tired of all this Christmas cheer
You people scare me
Please stay away from my home
If you don't wanna get beat down
Just leave the presents and then leave me alone.

Well I guess it's not cool to freak on Christmas Eve
Cause the cops came and arrested me
They had an unfair advantage

And even though the jail didn't have a tree
Christmas came a night early
Causes a guy named Bubba unwrapped my package (hot damn)

It's Christmas time again
It's time to be nice to the people you can't stand all year
I'm growing tired of all this Christmas cheer
You people scare me
Please stay away from my home
If you don't wanna get beat down
Just leave the presents and then leave me alone

I won't be home
I won't be home for Christmas
I won't be home
I won't be home for Christmas (please post my bail)
I won't be home
I won't be home for Christmas (please post my bail)
I won't be home
I won't be home for Christmas (please post my bail)
I won't be home
I won't be home for Christmas (please post my bail)
I won't be home
I won't be home for Christmas


-----------------------------------------------
And a Happy New Year.

(Montage made by Me.
Pictures courtesy of Google, Izismile.com, Failblog, and my iPhone)

Am I Just Paranoid; Or Am I Just Stoned?

It's been a rough week. Ain't it always? Hmm... I'm not gonna elaborate much on that, since it's so god damned cliched to bitch about all the bad things that happened to your life on your blog. I'm done with that. I'm just going to review these past few weeks, for the sake of reviving this dead blog of mine.

Alot of shit went down this month. For one thing, it's ICA week. Again. As usual. When will they ever stop? Ehhhh, never. The constant bombardment of work will never cease, especially in a coveted course like Media Studies. And Management.

This term (or semester, so far) has been a challenge. I've had more on my plate that I could have ever imagined, and most of it were either against me or not with for me entirely. It's hard to keep my cool, but sometimes my angst just gets the best of me. Throughout the whole week, I've had to go home from school at night.

The scene I visit every night since Sem 2 began.

The fun factor is there. How can you not have fun with the Army of Jubohs? Amirite guys? Haha. But, I've been drained to the point where sometimes when the guys crack jokes and would go on laughing, I just can't get into it. I'm just tired. Exhausted. My body is running, but my heart and mind are just running on reserve by now. But I'm still surviving and doing fine for the most part. Fortunately.

My good friend Aaron Mossadeg here seems to be doing fine, though....

Oh the jokes we have. We had this new one. Ever been to the Grinning Gecko, in NYP? I'm sure you'll be served by a nice uncle... but after ordering your meal of choice, he'll go on ahead and asking for either

a) Rice
b) Drinks
c) Sauce

Haha, he does it almost always. Even after you've already said what you want. It's hilarious.

Sadly, the joke died as quickly as it was born. I guess that's trends for you. They come and go just as easily.

So okay. ICAs. Everyone is tired of it. Moving on.

Secondly, I had to lead a ragtag team of Drama mates to do a 5 minutes mime skit for NYP's lunchtime performance. Easier said than done. Planning and executing the ideas took a toll on me. Not to mention, it was a near-last minute effort and the rehearsals and events coincided with my important schoolwork and presentations. We managed to pull it off. The main plot for our story was basically (don't laugh):

"The Vampires of Twilight, face off with Michael Jackson, in search of the Bandung drink"

There! You're laughing! I told you not to laugh. ):
It was a TOTALLY random idea that just popped out of nowhere. But we managed to rolled on it and with some work the whole act was actually pretty awesome. Too bad no one was there to see it. Guuuhh.

One thing I've learned when it comes to public events/gigs ... Never be the show's opening act. You're just gonna waste your effort.

So just right after that, my stage arts thing didn't quite ended just yet. We still had Alumni Night to settle. I didn't do much for this but follow orders. However, it was still painstaking and tiresome to come for rehearsals at odd hours during the worst possible days ever (one of the days I had to wear formal attire. So I had to prance around in a long sleeve shirt and formal pants throughout the whole day).

In the end the whole StageArts Alumni Night was a success.

Me and Fin being douchebags in the play

After it ended, it was like a huge burden just got lifted off my shoulders. And new ones being dropped on seniors.

Congratulations to Sarah Jane, Hazwan, Hanisah, Vicki, Nadirah, and Neela for getting a post in the ever exuberant StageArts. All the best in your endeavors to bring up the name of our CCA.

And with that, I'm already a Year 2 drama student person guy thingy....

ANYWHO!

Back to the month.

I entered a NYP Jam at the very last minute. Like really really last minute. Throughout the whole month or so, I've been telling people I'm not joining that competition. Why? I can't exactly find a proper band to play with. But at the very last hour of the audition day. I found an opportunity and a slot to fill. Encouraged by Seran, and remembering the Adam Khoo's motivational word poster thingy on my wall ("You HAVE the Power of CHOICE.... CHOOSE to Grab OPPORTUNITIES" ... Cute, right?) I didn't had a second thought. I went in, sang "Letters To You" by Finch, and came out happy.

Hey, at least I got to perform. I could care less about the 'getting through the next round' part.

As for gaming, Modern Warfare has got the most of me. Despite coming home at 10 or 11pm every night, I still find time to squeeze in an hour of gameplay. It's just too addictive.

Not my finest moment....

I'm Level 65 now. During the Hari Raya Haji weekend, I jolted up by 10 levels pretty quickly. And slowly, I've been going higher and higher. Some nights I get good kills. And some nights I don't. It really depends on my mood. It's a great way to let my daily stress out. Really let it out. Really, really let it aaaaaallllllllll out.....

Sometimes when I can't seem to get a kill, I'll scream and yell vulgarities, though within the volume boundaries of my own room. I may feel like shit, but after awhile it feels good. It freshens me up for the next day, you can say that.

I'm just five levels away from reaching Prestige mode. I can already smell it. But WAIT! What's this? I GOT A NEW GAME!? ALREADY?! NOOOOOOOOOOO.

Yes that's right -

I loved the first game, albeit it's repetitiveness. And so far I'm already loving this one. Oh boy, Modern Warfare 2 is facing some stiff competition to get my attention. And the holidays are coming! My social life is forever ruined once again. Thanks gaming.... Nah, just kidding.

Ah wells, I still have the remainder of this week to go. As Nick, from Left 4 Dead 2, would say - "I have not... Come this far.... To Die now".

I'll survive. Just one more measly presentation to do, and I can be lazing on my arse all morning, in front of my TV screen, and waking up at 3.30pm everyday. Till then... Cheers.

Spare me a dime.

Here's a question. What's the top problem, every Youth, out there have today?

No, relationships are not what I had in mind. What I'm talking about is money. Yes, we've all been there, done that. "Shit, I'm broke" or "I'm gonna go work for extra pocket money".

The evil that the world revolves around every night

We, as youths, are ecstatic when we get hold on even an extra dime of cash. We go out of control, like as if we can buy the whole world with that amount of allowance our parents would give us monthly. Well to be honest, most things out there are pretty expensive. But to be even more honest, most things we want ARE these expensive stuff. It's a pity fact, but hey... We're young and we wanna enjoy with whatever we can before we are dragged into the world of the mundane.

Well speaking of money, I'm currently right now in a pickle. I'm in that state of broke-ness. So hey, welcome me into the club. This is kinda actually my "official" first time being totally out of cash. From the day I got my ATM card, I've been careful to not overspend at least have a hundred or two in my bank at the end of every month. However, lately, I've been a little too care-free. I mean, I don't even have money to buy lunch now. I'm dead serious.

But how the hell did I get here. From being someone who would always have an extra bit of cash on hand, to being completely broke until the almost-never-arriving coming month.

I don't shop a lot. Even when I do, I'll just get what I need or really really want. And done, I'll be on my way. Same for this. Just that, this time what I needed, was a bit out of my budget, and I blatantly closed an eye just so I can get it. All at one go. I wasn't patient enough. Or I had patience, but it was limited, and I ran out of it.

So over the past two months, shall we review my Statement of Expenses? (failed POA pun there)

ITEM #1
Rally Neosound Semi-Electric Guitar

Remember Margo? Well, she's yesterday's news now. Move aside Miss Telecaster, say hello to Lady ES335.

This baby cost me a nice $400. It's pretty cheap for a guitar, but $400 is basically 2 months of my allowance. It took me 7 months of planning to get this guitar and 3 months to save enough to get it. I've been wanting a semi-electric for quite some time now. It's true. Blame Foo Fighters, Blink 182, Marty McFly, and so on and so forth. It has a distinctive sound and feel to it. It just matches the way I play. And I'm loving it right now. Still, because of this guitar, it took a large chunk of my allowance away from me. It was worth it. More or less.


ITEM #2
Home Recording Equipments

The day I went to get Rally, I went all out on shopping. The reason why it took 7 months of planning was because of this. Since I was going to shop for music stuff, I thought to myself, "Hey, why not I just get everything I need for home recording all at one shot?"

Me and my brilliant ideas, eh? Well, I bought a Behringer Condenser Microphone, a Mic stand to go along with it, some cables and other miscellaneous stuff. It cost me a nice $200 plus in total. And I'm still missing a Mixer. God dammit. That's why I don't have any full recordings up yet. You can say, this project is still more or less in the making. And because of that blasted mixer, what was thought to be a Holiday self-recording home project, turned out to be just another delay in cog machine.


ITEM #3
Video Games



I'm a gamer. Watcha' gonna do about it? It's my bread and butter. Like a cigarette to a smoker, I enjoy gaming and I need it. It keeps me sane and entertain in those long periods of nothingness and puts my mind away from other things.

But, again like smoking, it's an expensive habit/hobby. Each game can easily cost a nice $80. Sometimes more. Depending on the console that is. For PC, it's much cheaper, but some games are better played with a controller, so they will cost more for the Xbox. Just recently, I bought the highly anticipated Modern Warfare 2, a game so good I'll review it on my own when I get the time. And pre-ordered Left 4 Dead 2, a soon to be released hit. They both cost me, give or take $150. Yeah, $150 for just two measly games. Crazy huh. But I know what you're thinking. I'm such a n00b. No one buys anymore, it's all about the torrents and rapidshares. Well, tell that to the developers who worked tirelessly hard to produced this game. The artists that worked overtime in order to get their concepts out before the deadline. The maketing team who spend a lot out of their own will to get their work known to the public. It's their job, and they need to get payed too. So by downloading for free, it's as good as making them work for free. And no one likes to do that, now do we? It's only fair, they deserve the same amount of respect they give us as their consumers.

So screw you piracy.

ITEM #4
Bus Concession/Transport Fares

Guuuh. This is the part of my spendage that I disdain the most. It's not that I want to pay for it, but I HAVE to. Otherwise, how the heck am I going to get any of my stuff anywhere? It's already sad, as a Poly Student, I'm paying full adult price for bus rides, and it's friggin' expensive. Seriously. I take the bus everyday. Usually, during secondary school $10 could last me for about 2 weeks. Now $10 can last be 5 days for bus rides. I need the concession rates in order to get my transport fix. It cost $50, and I'm paying it on my own. This was the latest thing I spent on. And after paying my concession for this month, I have officially become broke till god-knows-when.

ITEM #5
Driving tests

I'm not going to elaborate much on this, on the count of how embarrassed I am for failing the test twice. They cost $6 per test, and yet I'm too much of a Spongebob Squarepants to pass. How sad. I'll just continue to walk.

ITEM #6
Self-indulgence and Food

Food ain't exactly the cheapest thing anymore either. And so are stuff that I need to keep me satisfied, which I won't mention. But, it's not really a problem. It's when I buy stuff like a Venti Green Tea Frappachino from Starbucks that frightens me. But, meh. I'll be too busy enjoying the drink to care.

So that's about it. With that said, I'll be counting the days till I get a top-up so I can start saving up as per usual again. I've more or less got all the stuff I need. It's been fun spending. Now I'm going back to rehab and and I'll learn to save my moniezz again. Till then, I'll survive on food stuff from home, and not indulging myself too much. Cheerio.

FYI.

Actually, there is a blog post I've been holding back since, well, last month.

It's a taboo subject, and it's basically my in-depth thought about it, since I'm now part of it.

But for the sake of keeping my reputation pure, I'll keep it confidential till I deem it safe enough to post, while still not lose the trust of a few good friends.

If you wanna read about it though, give me a nudge. I'll think about considering first though.

Cheers.

Just pretend I'm dead.

Well hello there. It's been awhile hasn't it? Yeah, as you can see, I'm a class-A procrastinator. I've been wanting to update this dusty blog of mine, but every night it's "I'll do it tomorrow" and so on so for forth. But well, since I'm procrastinating my schoolwork, I can't be procrastinating with two things now, can I? That's just not fair. So let me update on what I've been up to.

Cue dramatic music.


What's new? School is back, that's for sure. Week 2's down, yo. Remember when I said "gah 7 weeks, what am I going to do?!".. well that 7 weeks just flew faster than Lewis Hamilton on the Singapore F1 Circuit. Before you know it, all of us were due back to school. And days prior were just as shitty.

The break was a feel good drag. I've done a lot during that 7 weeks, and it more less left a smile on my face. Only to leave me a little moody during the aftermath. I managed to go out with someone , took part in a theatrical production, played covers with Rachie :3, aaaaaaaannd spent more than $500 in less than hour on musical instruments and equipment. Huzzah. MLIA.

Oh and I even found out that I had a Spongebob green packet from Hari Raya!

AWESOME! \m/

So anyways, on the last week of the break we got our time table. I knew there was something fishy. Who would have thought, a whole school of it would swim through us. Night-classes are cool and all, but it's not cool to have a "Non-Media-Related" module end at 10pm, only to be followed by another NRM on 9am the next morning. When they said Semester 1 was a honeymoon, they weren't kidding. It doesn't help that the lecturer is a douchebag either. But, eventually, it'll grow on us. We have to move on and continue living. So shut the fuck up and let's work on our 4.0 GPAs.



Speaking of GPAs, I got a 3.167. There, I won't elaborate anymore on that.
Done.

So Semester 2 is running, and it's been okay for the most, except for Tuesdays of course. Some modules are more fun than others, and for our very first assignment from our PEM, Mr. Shariff (it's actually the first time we are interacting with him since SBM Orientation), was to make an introduction of ourselves through new media. And well, almost immediately, I had an idea in mind. After some scriptwriting and a day of production. This was what I came up with.

Enjoy watching me selling myself our for humor.

Of course, only Media Studies people might get half the jokes there. Inside jokes ftw.

So okay enough of school. Yesterday was Halloween. I didn't do shit, and it was a Saturday night. A dark and stormy Saturday night (how fitting). The first Saturday that I actually stayed home all day. It was weird, and I felt sad. Why? Everyone else had to rub it in by posting their Halloween party pics on Facebook. Sadface. Oh wells. At least the guys hosted an epic TF2 match. It made my day.

SO THERE. I MANAGED TO UPDATE THIS GOD-DAMNED WEBSITE. Awesome Ballzzzzzz. Now let me go back to playing Borderlands. This game is sick, yo. (sick as in good)

Rachie and Luqqie - "Everytime"

enjoy.

For the record, it's just a joke.

Oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooohhhhhhh ouch.

Freaking Driver.

So I was going home today. From a nice day out with friends, and a really nice ending to the night that lifted my mood more than any of this week. I was walking home from the station. Minding my own business. Listening to my songs, while mouthing the lyrics silently to myself. I was about to take the staircase, I took a quick glance and saw my dad's car. Alright cool, fine. Then I realized, there was a friggin' taxi parked disturbingly close to it.

My first thought was that, "Okay, so maybe there's a guy waiting" because that spot is usually taken by people who are temporarily pausing their vehicles to await someone. But, the driver isn't present in that taxi. Shit. My dad is so going to be pissed off if he sees this.

I mean c'mon look at this:

my dad's car is the black (almost invisible one)

Take a look at that, and tell me that taxi isn't disturbingly close to my dad's car. It's parked at a very dangerous angle, and it totally blocked my dad's car from exiting the spot. What an ignorant bastard.

For all I know, he could have made contact with my dad's car and scratch it. But that's the least of my concerns. Thing is, my dad is taking the nigh shift for his job and he's supposed to leave in about an hour later (yes I did came home late, sue me). I can't imagine the rage he would go into when he finds his car in this position and he has to get to work on time.

He would have probably roared his lungs out in the empty parking lot and hunt down the bastard, and strangle him with his own bare hands.

It's scary to see how ignorant and inconsiderate people can be. Can't you leave your vehicle elsewhere and not block others? Didn't it ever occurred to you that perhaps the driver of that vehicle you're blocking might need to use it soon? I mean c'mon, I know the parking lot is full and all, but find somewhere else that won't hamper with anyone's personal space.



Fortunately, the taxi driver drove off in the nick of time, just when my dad was leaving home. I did alert my dad about the situation though. He wasn't too pleased to hear about it either.

Either way, I managed to take down the plate number of the taxi - SHB5334Z.
In the event that perhaps there are scratches or damages on my dad's car, I haz evidence to whom the culprit is.

Courtesy people. I thought Singapore is supposed to be filled with it. Apparently not.

I haz wood. lawl.

Wanna see my wood?
It's hard.
And I just played with it.
It's fun!



Lawl, innuendos aside, I meant drum stick. Aha. It is made of wood, and .. it's hard. (Hurr...) I got it randomly from Bras Basah, and with the suggestion of Andrea because well 1) I needed drum sticks for jamming, and 2) the one she took out looked cool.

I never really had a chance to utilize it though. For 2 months it just stayed in my room. From time to time, I'd pick it up and do air drums just to get the feel of it and practice my sense of rhythm. But what's the point of that? Instead, I began trying to bang on some random stuff. That only made my mum mad. What, I can't even practice drums now? Okay fine, I was banging those stuff at 2am in the morning. Point taken.

It was an awesome looking pair of drum sticks! It was black with hot pink gradient at the top. Okay, I know that sounds totally gay, but when you look at it, it does look cool! Fo' shizzle.

But yesterday I went jamming, and finally got it to use. After the first few songs, I was shocked to find out that that my drum sticks have officially been ... ravaged. By the end of the session, this is what's left.

Nice wood, eh?

Lol, I never thought it would ever end up like this. I'm never buying coloured drum sticks ever again. But Luqman, you over caring newbie of a musician, they're just cheap drum sticks, and making it all damaged like that is good, like battle scars proving that you've been practicing a lot!

Well, for you experienced drummers, you know this a normal thing. But I'm still an amateur, so cut me some slack for being sentimental on my first pair of sticks. I'm sure you felt the same thing for your first pair of sticks.

It still works fine, but it doesn't look cool to bring it on stage and play with it anymore. Sadface.


Oh, Word of advice. Never start something you know you probably wouldn't stop. That is all. Remember when I said I quit? Apparently I suck. Now I feel bad for doing so. You probably know what I mean. Puff.

Forever in debt to your priceless advice

As of now, I've been awake for almost 30 hours straight. My head hurts. I refuse to sleep. I'm not taking any chances hampering my bio-clock. I'll hit the sack in 2 hours time perhaps.

Why? I've just seen epic shit that will probably live as a vivid memory to all who had partake in the events of last night. I was merely a witness. It was fun enough.

Watching your friends in a state of delusion, confusion, and a little touch of madness is hilarious and all, but also leaves you an impression on them. It doesn't necessarily have to be a bad one. It's fascinating and entertaining.

I had a class chalet. The point of the chalet was to bond the class together and have fun together. You can say that's more or less accomplished.

It was a freaking fun night. We went swimming, played street soccer (literally), and the highlight of the night was the late night/early morning drinking session.

I didn't had a touch of liquor. My reasons as to why is strictly religious, so don't call me out as a pussy, you fuck face. Those who did took a major toll on themselves. It was entertaining to watch them. Watching them rambling on things that affected their lives. The people around them. How they're feeling. It was a high point in their lives, literally. The hours passed as they try to regain control of themselves and all I could do is sit back, take a smoke, watch, comfort them and mingle with the other sobers.

Before long, day break and everything was back to normal.

Oh and yes. I smoked. Nothing wrong with that. People have always smoked around me, so why not just give in. 'Sides, everyone's doing something out of the ordinary, might as well do something. But don't worry, as of 6am that morning, I officially kicked the habit. Aha.

It was a great fun, and the morning after was filled with simple conversations and long silences. After that, getting home was a bitch.

Guys, let's do it again. Pretty awesome, I must say. I wouldn't have it any other way.

Gay-lung, Slowing the Fast, and ODST.

The grueling heat, the faceless crowds, the howls of sellers echoing through claustrophobic tents, the blurry smokescreen, the intense stench of sweat, cigarettes and cooked food, and not forgetting the disturbingly endless line of shops that sandwich a heavily trafficked road.

That's how I'll describe the annual Hari Raya bazaars at Geylang Serai. I hate stepping foot onto that place, especially during day time when we're fasting. It's a struggle to get from point A to B, and shopping is awkward (especially for clothes) with a million eyes watching you. I never been one for large crowds, except for concerts. I can't stand it. It's hard to breathe, let alone move. So whenever my parents offer a trip to Geylang Serai during this "festive" month, I lament. Fortunately, this year I only step foot on that dreaded place once. An improvement from previous years. Even still, I made sure we wouldn't stay too long inside. Gah.

Enough about that, Ramadhan is officially over. As of 8 hours ago (as I am writing this, it's almost 3am, yeah). Awesome!

Tomorrow (or should I say today), is Hari Raya. But frankly, I'm not really in the festive mood to fully celebrate Hari Raya all-out this year. Why? Don't know. Maybe I've been in school too long and not enough break to get me in the mood. Oh wells. Let's just get it over with, I want my break anyways.

So what have I been doing since Production was over? Gaminggggggg. Call me a nerd, geek, techie, whatever. I've been missing out on my gaming ever since school started. TF2 doesn't count. Finally got Batman Arkham Asylum, but the game refuses to let me play it properly. It keeps crashing all the time. Damn you Joker!

And speaking of which, I stumbled upon a Gaming Convention at Suntect City. GCA. Don't really know what it stands for, but whatever.

rawr

Point is, they showcased the latest games right now. Even Halo 3 ODST. Damn right, the most anticipated game this season.

They had a real Recon Armor on display! D:

I was awed by it. Unfortunately, all I could do was watch from the sidelines. There was a Demo booth for the game. But, it was hogged by 14 year old kids and their friends.

Little pricks.

Damn them. I stood there and asked politely if I could have a try. But no, they hogged the consoles as if it was theirs. You little pricks, it's a public demo, not your friggin' home. Let others try out. Go back home you fucktards. Seriously felt like punching them in the face. They stood there playing forever, ordering their friends around. I couldn't take it. After half an hour of endless waiting, I left the booth.

Instead I played Rock Band Beatles.

Woo, Beatles. Me and Khai tried it out. Him on Bass, me on Drums, and some dude on guitar. It was friggin' fun, though I nearly had carpal tunnel from playing the drums. Khai was having slight of a problem getting into the rhythm, but the dude who played guitar showed off his button mashing skills on expert, and I think he didn't miss a note. Wow.

So anyways, I better get ready for tomorrow. It'll be a long day. The only thing I'm looking forward to is meeting my cousins again. Other than that, meh. We'll see.

Fail

Today, I got a call from an official number, and they informed me that I was selected to be a finalist and contestant for the show "Don't Forget the Lyrics" on TV. I was to go to the studio at MediaCorp this coming Monday. This made me very excited and so I told everyone about it. Five minutes later, they called back. Turns out, they got the wrong Luqman Hakim. FML.

It appears the holidays have arrived.

SEMESTER ONE IS OVER.

Holy shit that was fast. When I said Poly life was fast, it sure as hell is. School almost just begun, and now it's break time.

Well, it's that time of the year again. To rot at home. That makes it twice. I already did my fair share of rotting from January till April. Two friggin' months of holiday seems pretty long, but I'm sure it'll fly by faster than a bullet-train across the English Channel.

So okay, exams were forgiving. Only because I studied. Yeah. Studied.

In your face Mr. John Ho.

I finally studied and understood your god damned module Now lay off me and quit targeting me. Lol. But don't worry, I don't hate him.. He's a cool guy. Just quit targetting me. Seriously.

Still, it's because of his constant nag and pin-pointing that got me all stressed up to study. I had less than two hours to cram as much information related to the 4 P-Marketing Mix thingy. I was this close to just giving up, but I'd rather suffer than repeat the module.

So what am I going to do to pass the time.. Currently, it's fasting month, so I am more or less restricted and obligated to not do some things. I'll probably drown myself in video games again. Speaking of that, I tried to play my Xbox now after not touching that bugger for almost a month now. Guess what, it friggin' Red-Ringed on me.

So what did I do? Called Microsoft. They did the necessary background checks (yeah, paranoid much?) and assessed my problem. The guy I talked to was nice. He sounded, soft and gentle but he was patient enough while I blabbered, bantered, and bitched about how the console was giving me a hard time. He asked me to some necessary steps, and it kinda worked for awhile. But ehhhhh, failed. The console died again, so I called up, coincidentally I got him again, and he registered me for an exchange.

Now I have to go to friggin' Funan with the heavy console on Monday. Anybody willing to follow me? I don't want to get weird looks in the train for carrying such a heavy bulk. I'll probably get stopped in the station to do a spot check, thinking I'm carrying a bomb. Yeah, a bomb. A bomb that costs me $400 and now about to be repaired.

Hopefully the exchange is a quick process. I heard they give out free 1 month gold subscriptions for Xbox Live. Awesome. Free. I love Free. 'Cause it doesn't involve money, unlike other Microsoft products. Hurrr....

Team Awesome

What happens when you get a group of awesome guys, laptops, and a hard drive to share games? A friggin Lan Party.

And an awesome one actually.

When I first met these guys, I honestly didn't have a clue they'd be awesome gamers. I knew they play video games, but I was like, "Yeah, they play games. Cool. Would be cool if we could play some day,". And we sure as hell did.

For the most part, I kept my gaming passion a secret, to hide from coming out as a nerdy geek kind of person. But around these great bunch of people, there's nothing to hide.

Meet, Team MS0901

From left to right: Joseph, Seran, Russel, Shawn, Aaron, Hakim, Me

Picture editted by me. Dubbed - Media Studies Rangers. Faces belong to Media Studies lecturers respectively. Lol.

Inbetween breaks, after classes, or even at home when we're bored. Someone will call out - "TF2", and everyone will go unanimously "Seetttt!!!". Before long, we're all gearing our laptops for game time.

Mouse? Check. Power socket? Check. Hamachi/Garena? Check. Host? Check. Go Go Go!

And when we play, we play. For real. Like our lives depend on it. We'd shout out orders, laugh at our enemy's demise and stupidity, congratulate each other after each victory, suck in defeats and jeer each other constantly. It's always a thrill to be behind that laptop and playing with these guys. Sometimes during the heat of the fight, we'll even be serious to the point that even the slightest of mistakes or annoyance could tick us off. That's how much we're into the game. It's awesome. I wouldn't have it any other way.

At first we started playing Counter Strike. A simple game for the most, but it got old, boring and repetitive after awhile. When Hakim and Me introduced the rest about the wonders of Team Fortress 2, the whole gaming fad became alive and strong once again. Now, I've been playing TF2 since, well, Day 1. So, you can say that I'm a veteran. Introducing these guys the game puts a smile on my face. With the help of Hakim and his ability to outsource the game from the Video Game dictator, that is Steam/Valve, we were able to get a copy of the game each .. free. It's not piracy if the game has been modified to be able to play on multiple computers now would it?

So after boot camp, the guys more or less now know how to fight and play. After the first hour, it was like taking crystal meth for them. Before you know it, the first session was over, and everyone was hungry for more. They got better, and everyone now know what to do in the game like the back of the hands. That's where the fun begins.

BLU ftw

So we'll play and play. The longest one we've ever played was after our final presentation. Deprived of gaming due to work constraints, it was refreshing to finally do battle once again. Heck, we were so desperate, we had played all the way into the night until the school library was closing. The longest and most epic battle we'd ever played. Sadly, my team lost. Gah.

In fact, we just ended a session a couple hours ago. What holds in store for us gaming media dudes? What other games will we jump into the fray? Will this gaming fad last all the way till we graduate? Only time will tell. Till then, I wouldn't have it any other way. Awesome.

I Appreciate your Concern. You're gonna stink and burn.

If you wouldn't mind, I would like to blew

If you wouldn't mind, I would like it lose

If you wouldn't care, I would like to leave

If you wouldn't mine, I would like to breathe

It's the end? No? Yeah. Not yet. I'm still not done. Well, most of it is anyways. What am I talking about. School work I mean. Yeah Yeah Yeah. You've heard it a million of times. Always bitching about the same old same old. School work sucks blah blah blah fooey. I just completed a marathon of presentations and an artillery barrage of assignments that didn't seem to end till late into the night. And it's pretty obvious, the shrapnel had hit me. Going up infront of your lecturers talking like some big shot (when you're not) and selling yourself for grades really isn't the way I had pictured presentations to be. It's like, standing infront of a firing squad. When they asked you a question, it's a full volley of bullets being shot at you. Whether you survive that fray, depends on how you manage to answer their questions.

More or less, I got through it all alive. Barely though. This past week made me realised something. I'm a hardworking son of a bitch. Remember how I always complain I'm such a procrastinator and shit? Well, looks like I've got the change I wanted. Over the few limited weeks, I've managed to squeeze in a shitload of work that I would usually take a month to complete. I've managed to single handed-ly complete a supposingly group work (this included a 1,500 report and mock up and powerpoint, which failed). A full storyboard with script. Code of Ethics and Journal Entries complete with arts and craft decorations. Report after Report. Powerpoints after Powerpoints. All done within that small period of time. I didn't relent. I just wanted to get them over done with. And I'm actually proud of myself. I always saw myself as a slacker. Always. Heck, I didn't do shit during secondary school. I almost never handed in homework. I guess change is here. NO thanks to President Obama. (random).

I guess this habit of sudden hardworking-ness kinda began ever since the term began. I remember, running around half of singapore to find a single DV tape for Abzul's class the next day. I promised my group I'd get it, and damn well I did. I went beyond the call of duty to find it. Aha. Even for the talent, I had to beg like a dog. Even that, I more or less failed. After that, I started to get my work done and going beyond just to get things done. I'd go beyond just to get stuff done. Even spend an extra buck or two.

But it's all done and over with. Just give my grades and I won't fight back. I don't want to think about it anymore. Bullshit.

On a happier note, I now have two As under my belt. Damn right son. My first As for Poly. First for Creative Thinking, the module I disdain, and another for Digital Film & Video Production. The first one was for a written test in which we had to argue with our own opinions. Honestly, I thought I would fail. I didn't study, not even a glance at the powerpoint slides graciously given by our dear Miss Soo. Still, I managed to argue my way enough to get an A. This is where blogging comes in handy then. Bitching about your day, it's almost like arguments. Without the constant use of vulgarities of course. The other A is for DFVP's ICA4 Drama production. Haha. I think I'm really getting into this film making thing. I honestly, had no idea how to make videos before I entered this course. All I ever though about was to become a writer. Well, that plan didn't quite worked out (I've been getting Cs for the writing module). Filming is cool shit, and editting is fucking awesome. It's tiresome, but satisfying at the end of the day. Of course, I couldn't have done it without my awesome team mates. Seran was in my group, and that practically gave us a much needed advantage. I still remember, just after getting our brief for ICA4, us guys were saying "We need 2 guys in a group, that way can own the ICA", and look at that. The theory worked. Awesome.

Well, I don't mean to brag. But seriously. I never saw each of these coming. I can back this up, by saying before I even knew about this, I was having the most shitty day. Ever. Hearing that I got an A just basically balanced my day. Or it could be karma. I don't know.

Firstly before knowing the results of the Creative Thinking written test. I had to wear my old NCC uniform and wake up early at 6am to visit my old NCC juniors and support them in their endevours as Guard of Honor. On the way to poly, apparently, Taxis like to avoid North Vista Secondary. I had to stand at the roadside in my stuffy army uniform for a non-existent cab for almost 45mins. I left early, in the end I ended up late. Best of all, I had no cash with me. The first chance I got a cab, I asked the uncle for Nets. He didn't have. I said it's okay, I'll just draw money when we get there and pay you. He agreed. When we get there, guess what. The fucking ATM at school wasn't working. So how was I supposed to pay the taxi driver? I was already half an hour late for class. I panicked, and had to ask a random stranger for cash. Thank his kind hearted soul, he allowed and I had to pay him back during the next school day. I managed to pay and hauled ass to class, only to be ridiculed for wearing a uniform. By classmates and lecturers alike. Damn Abzul.

For DFVP, the story goes like this. Remember when I mentioned I single-handedly finished a group work? Well, ironically, that group work was for Creative Thinking as well (see how much I disdain that class). We had a presentation last week. We had to present on something I alone made up. I already did the powerpoint presentation nicely the night before. I was so happy that I managed to finish a bunch of shit. Firstly, I was late again. Actually early, but since I had to go print the final mock up for the presentation, I was 5 minutes late. I had to sit outside of class and get my marks deducted. What a nice start to the day. When I did get to enter, I checked my laptop to prepare for the presentation. The friggin powerpoint was lost. How the heck are we supposed to present without a powerpoint? Fail on epic levels. I could have just breakdown then. I worked so hard only for my carelessness to get the best of me. Nice. In the end we had to present with a poor man's version of a powerpoint. But still, it was a life saver. Thanks Vanessa. At least we had something, eh? So we couldn't be as creative as we though we could be. Meh. So be it, what is done is done.

So yeah. That's basically my whole month or Term 2 in a nutshell. Well, a very big nutshell. I've done my blogging for the week. Only 2 more weeks and 2 papers. Once it's over. I'll start a new adventure. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'd like to enjoy this brief moment of doing absolutely nothing at all, before I have to start rolling again. Cheers.

FEEDER

OMG IT'S BEEN SO LONG SINCE I'VE UPDATE THIS AWESOME BLOG OF MINE.

DAMN YOU SCHOOL WORK AND ASSIGNMENTS!!! DAMN YOU ALL TO HELL...

Watch this space. I'mma rant on more things to come

Omg Is that me with Short hair?

Love of mine some day you will die
But I'll be close behind
I'll follow you into the dark

No blinding light or tunnels to gates of white
Just our hands clasped so tight
Waiting for the hint of a spark
If Heaven and Hell decide
That they both are satisfied
Illuminate the NOs on their vacancy signs

If there's no one beside you
When your soul embarks
Then I'll follow you into the dark

In Catholic school as vicious as Roman rule
I got my knuckles bruised by a lady in black
And I held my tongue as she told me
"Son fear is the heart of love"
So I never went back

If Heaven and Hell decide
That they both are satisfied
Illuminate the NOs on their vacancy signs

If there's no one beside you
When your soul embarks
Then I'll follow you into the dark

You and me have seen everything to see
From Bangkok to Calgary
And the soles of your shoes are all worn down
The time for sleep is now
It's nothing to cry about
'cause we'll hold each other soon
In the blackest of rooms

If Heaven and Hell decide
That they both are satisfied
Illuminate the No's on their vacancy signs

If there's no one beside you
When your soul embarks
Then I'll follow you into the dark
Then I'll follow you into the dark

------
Yes, yes I do have short hair now.

Cap that point!

Today is a special day. Why? No, I'm still single. And it isn't just because I'm blogging once again. Today I am officially saying goodbye to my favourite cap ever. My NOD Military cap.

It has served me well over the years and been my trademark look ever since Secondary 3. But now after 4 years, I'm retiring it from duty and it'll be kept in my drawer and archived for the years to come. It's worn and torn and it's battle scars are becoming more prominent. It's best that I retire it before the whole thing is reduced to nothing more than a mere strand of cloth.

I just bought a new cap anyways. So no biggie. I wouldn't want to say that I'm replacing my favourite cap, that would just make it sound harsh. So lets' just put it as a retirement for my old cap.

So whats with me and caps anyways? So, okay, more or less everyone would have notice this by now. You will hardly see me around without wearing a cap. Yes, I love caps. I ALWAYS wear it whenever I go out. It’s a necessity for me, somehow. Haha, everyone has been telling me to take it off and just start wearing a proper hair style. But despite all that, I still persist on wearing a cap. I’m just too lazy to actually do my hair every day. I would just comb my hair normally, put on the cap (and maybe adjust my fringe so it won’t cover my face), and be all set to go out. The look fits me. In fact, I’ve made it my trademark look.

This cap-wearing addiction began long ago. I couldn’t stop wearing caps even when I was just a wee lad. My mum told me, that during my first Hari Raya that I ever celebrated as a toddler; my parents bought me a songkok (the malay traditional male head dress). They had me wear it for the whole first day of Hari Raya. And I never took it off. Not once. Not at all. Even when my parents tried to take it off, fearing that I would get too hot wearing it, they said I would resist even as a toddler. So I guess that’s how it all began.

After that, my parents would buy me caps. Actually, I have a bunch of them in my closet. Piled up and collecting dust. Many of them were actually given by my relatives, because they know just how much I love wearing caps. And since I was young, I was oblivious to looking good. So my parents would just make me wear caps on casual outings. Eventually I grew along with this habit. As I entered teenage-hood, the need to look my best was a priority to me. And since then I would always try to cap with my outfit. I’ve gone from normal caps to trucker/skater caps (those caps with nets at the back), and now what I’m wearing is what seems to be “Military”-styled caps.

The first impression everyone will ever get from me.

I don’t know. I just find myself feeling more comfortable wearing caps. Also another reason why I wear them is that I HAVE to flatten my hair. Without them, my hair would fluff out like nobody’s business and I would look horrendous. It happens all the time after I take a shower. I can’t keep it flat. So during my secondary school days, I would need to wear a cap every morning, just before leaving home, in order to keep my hair flat. But now in Poly, I CAN wear caps to school, so it’s more or less much easier for me.

Still, perhaps I should reconsider doing something with my hair, rather than just wearing a cap. I mean, sooner or later I’ll have to kick this habit in the working world. Haha, I’ll do something this long hair of mine. Oh, my hair length. Don’t even get me started on that too…

I will never be good enough for her

Recently I've been,
Hopelessly reaching
Out for this girl,
Who's out of this world.
Believe me.

She's got a boyfriend
He drives me round the bend
Cos he's 23
He's in the marines
He'd kill me

But so many nights now
I find myself thinking about her now.

'Cause obviously,
She's out of my league
But how can I win
She keeps draggin' me in and
I know I never will be good enough for her.

No, no
Never will be good enough for her.

Gotta escape now
Get on a plane now. yeah
Off to L.A and that's where I'll stay, for two years.

I'll put it behind me(i'll put it behind me)
Go to a place where she cant find me. yeah.

'Cause obviously,
She's out of my league,
I'm wastin' my time
'Cause she'll never be mine
I know i never will be good enough for her.
No, no
Never will be good enough for her

She's outta my hands
And I never know where I stand
Cos I'm not good enough for her
He's good enough for her (for her, for her)

'Cause obviously,
She's out of my league,
I'm wastin' my time
'Cause she'll never be mine
I know i never will be good enough for her.
No, no
Never will be good enough for her

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

A direct soundtrack for me right now.... D:

Vidja Gaemz Laiv

Guess what, I went to Video Games Live concert!

Thanks to my good friend Ananda who invited me along. Thanks a lot man, YOU ROCK!

And I must say, it was AWESOME!!

The screen was showing "All Your Base Are Belong To Us" .. LOL


The host and some models.. damn lighting


Oh and I bought a shirt too (cost me a friggin $35)

Basically it's a concert where some symphonic band plays all the music from Video Games soundtrack. Yup, games are not longer just about, well, the game. Even music now plays a big role in it. So okay I admit, I didn't exactly enjoy it totally. There were some games I've never even played before. Heard of, yes, but never touched before. So I didn't exactly know what I was listening to. Still, the performance was spot on, and the the crowd interaction was great. We got like, front row seats. Well not exactly front row, but we were damn close to the stage and we could see everything clearly. I didn't yawn at all. Now, if only they played the theme from Team Fortress 2. I would have jizzed in my Pants.

They played songs ranging from Metal Gear Solid to Super Mario Bros. to World of Warcraft to Castlevania and not forgetting - Halo.

Halo was the highlight for me, even though they didn't really emphasized on it so much. Oh well. Still, for some reason, some lame skinny-assed Master Chief cosplayer had to go prancing around. Lame. Lol.

As for refreshments, I totally got ripped off at the food stand. Like seriously, $6 for 2 cans of Iced Lemon Tea? $8 for a shitty Egg Sandwich that I could have made a bajillion times better with my eyes closed. What the fuck man. They know we need to buy food during these concerts, so they exploited this fact and purposely raised the prices sky high like nobody's business. Screw them, those Money-whoring sons of bitches.

Also, for some reason, they allowed my camera in. At first I was nervous that they were gooing to take it away (like during the MCR concert I went to, they confiscated my camera away from me), so I tried hiding it deep inside my bag, underneath my hoodie. I tried to not let the guards see as they were checking my bag, but nonetheless, they stripped it empty and found the video camera. To my surprise, they let me off with it. Haha. When I got into the hall, everyone had their cameras. It's weird, I thought big concerts like this would not allow the use of cameras. If I knew I could bring my in my video camera, I would have brought along my tripod. Seriously, holding a camera and recording the performance while trying to watch it myself can get really tiring after awhile.

Still, I managed to record a few performances. I only recorded the prominent ones, and songs that I actually know of.

I'll upload them and post them on another day.



In teh m3an tiem, I'mma go pley sum h3 fr abit kthxbai

AWESOME