Libera Me from Hell

With all the recent events and absurdity and banality exemplified in most of my fellow country persons, this is dedicated to them:

International day of solidarity

Personality & Multiple Intelligence

Some results from a fun test. Not sure how accurate they are since the tests are all free :)
For those who know me, maybe you can add your comments to it.

Sayonara, sayonara

Just wanna upload here for easy access.

When we were young, people used to ask us this...

"What do you want to be when you grow up?"

I don't think most of us ever had a fixed list, more likely we have an ever growing list starting from being a policeman, astronauts, doctors, postmen etc. Once reality hits when we turn 18, the list gets cut down... a lot. Well, this one is dedicated to us all, the young uns, once were and still is until we hit 35 and thereafter...

Readability scale

I've found a cool online site that rates how readable a passage or article is.

The link is: http://www.online-utility.org/english/readability_test_and_improve.jsp

An example of how it works using the first line of this post:

Number of characters (without spaces) :	63.00
Number of words :	15.00
Number of sentences :	1.00
Average number of characters per word :	4.20
Average number of syllables per word :	1.33
Average number of words per sentence:	15.00

Indication of the number of years of formal education that a person requires in order to easily understand the text on the first reading
Gunning Fog index :	6.00

Approximate representation of the U.S. grade level needed to comprehend the text :
Coleman Liau index :	6.94
Flesh Kincaid Grade level :	5.99
ARI (Automated Readability Index) :	5.85
SMOG :	3.00

Flesch Reading Ease :

78.81

Depressed

Reasons?

My English sucks, sorry Vesance, it's the truth. I can't do proofreading for you or anyone else to save my skin.

I have no job yet.

Bye bye.

The Room: Memories of Temburong

Outside, the rain poured torrentially down from the heavens , I nudged the plain wooden door with it ageing dull green paint peeling off, and entered the private dwelling of the barber. The room was dark and had a gloomy atmosphere but strangely, at the same time, gives me a feeling of the simple contentment that its occupants have of towards life. Standing there, pausing for the moment; breathing in the heavy musty air lingering in the room, the first object which grabbed my attention was the large rectangular wooden bed that occupies a large part of the room. It reminded me of the old traditional bed utilised by the callous-skinned coolies of days long gone within the small confines of hazardous shop houses in Singapore's old Chinatown. Of course, except, without the ubiquitous opium smoking set.

What was striking was that the bed seems to be the platform, the focal point, for the conducting of daily rituals: blankets neatly folded atop a couple of pillows in the far end edge against the wall. At the other extreme was the electric kettle with its black cord dangling among the darkened wall and shadows. Stacked around the stained rice cooker was some crockery that had seen better days. A pile of clothes lined up alongside the wall opposite the bed, forming a nice little alley within the room.

Thunderous growls of the giants roared outside and one easily hears the wails of the fickle winds as it grew in strength with the ferocity of angry gods.

Hanging on the wall-hooks among the sets of Sunday best, was a simple aluminium-framed badminton racket. Oh, how it brought back visions of the simple childhood for me. Of days when the joy of being able to successfully return the wicked serves given by older siblings made me the champion of the world. The ability to experience undulated joy of seeing those feathered shuttlecocks flying through the air, I hoped, was not lost on me yet.

Slowly as I walked, I could feel cold drafts of air flowing in like a little mountain stream through all the unseen gaps and crevices, creeping up onto my back. As I passed by the piece of metal contraption with its taps and brass pipes winding and extending underneath, I spied the little confinement of space, of which was my goal and object of relief.

As I stepped into the tiny cubicle, a spicy sulphurous scent waltzed its way into my nasal passages; glancing around, I noticed a box of pink onions lying surreptitiously on the floor half-camouflaged by the shadows thrown up by a weak fluorescent light somewhere. I proceed to carry out my business.

After I was done relieving my stressed bladder, I crept back along the way I came in, not daring to disturb the ghost of the memory I left behind. Opening the door again, the sight of a smiling barber greeted me. Smiling back, I admired the new haircut he had given me earlier in the mirror lining the shop, then, I stepped out into the cold wet air.

Something's wrong?

Had some sort of a short pep talk with a friend earlier. It's not so much of a prep me up type of talk, more of a you should do more and wake your idea type of talk. It's a little demoralising of course but this is Singapore, where it's easier to be contented and to play by the social rules.

The talk reminded me of a little line someone, now half hibernating in Canada, said to me on MSN once: "The system in Singapore makes you feel lousy about yourself". This is easily evident in the examples my pep-talk friend cited: in an previous interview he attended, the interviewers scrutinised his results since his 'A' Levels, and easily found out he had repeated his 'A's based on the year his Chinese 'AO' results were reported in. Furthermore, compared to my peers, I am 2 years behind most of them, never mind what reasons. And I reckon most employers won't give two hoots about why and how you fail to keep up with the system. As long as you did at some point in your life, you are effectively a defect. I would think.

But nevertheless, it will be indeed self defeating to keep on thinking in negative terms like this. So I guess I will add a little deviation: "The system in Singapore can make you feel lousy about yourself, but you can choose to make yourself feel better".

Resumè

One resumè:

Two continents + six friends: ∑ [Head-hunter, Auditor, Masters Graduate, Service engineer
technician, 2.Graduate student ]^(many comments/opinions) = Ten revisions

Let revisions = A pair of sore eyes, one cranky going stale graduate

Greetings 2007!

Greetings to all in the new year!