Watching The Facebook Feed.

I love watching the Facebook feed.

You know why?

See, here's how it goes.

Most of us are angry youths, right? It's the curse of being a teenager, we just get so consumed by anger and emo-ness and all these negative emotions.

Emo-ness normally leads to anger, anyway.



And more often than not, we're angry at other people.

Hatred boils within our souls; bubbling and rising higher and higher until we feel like we have to say something against the (in our opinion) guilty parties.

So we use our Facebook Wall to say it.



And this is the best part, really.

We're all going:

"ALRIGHT LAH, LET'S GET THE BUGGER(S) THROUGH THIS POST! FREEDOM OF SPEECH BABY! IMMA GONNA USE IT! READ THIS UPDATE AND CRY!"

But when the post/status update is all done and uploaded, it's the epitome of what my fellow Malaysians and I call "potong stim", aka anticlimactic.



Why is it anticlimactic? Because it's never direct.

Like, let's say a girl gets cheated on. Let's say her boyfriend's name is...I don't know... let's say "Jack".

And as much as she wants to write something like, "Jack, you're the biggest piece of sh*t the world has ever seen and I hate your guts and I'm gonna tell your parents that you're a man-whore", it never comes out that way.

It comes out as some lousy "Some people think they can cheat on girls and not get caught. *angry face*"



I think this is like some cultural happening, man.

At the end of the day, we're Asians. And as much as we can hate certain people/things, we can never find it in ourselves to break away from that old Asian value of being respectful and having a No Confrontation stance.



Maybe that's why we don't have the Freedom of Speech in our countries.

Do we really deserve the Freedom of Speech? What's the point of the freedom to give out our opinions if we aren't going to use it?

And I don't have any backing on this point, but I think that the Freedom of Speech has to come with an understanding that everyone can have his/her own opinion, and as such, one shouldn't take another's opinion too seriously.

It's this idea of a willingness to calmly Agree to Disagree.

I don't think Asians have that yet. Anything too direct would be too hurtful; there's hardly ever any amount of pure, cool, rational discussion.



And until we get to that point, until our minds are forward enough to adopt stances that allow us to have the Freedom of Speech, we're going to have to rely on soft, lousy Facebook messages to deliver our opinions. Like:


"I hate arrogant f*cks who think that their way is the only way and and hold no regard for anyone else."


That's a real post on my Facebook feed, by the way. Angry, huh! :D

I'm not complaining, though.

I kinda like it that way. Reading these Facebook posts is kinda like solving a mystery; you're trying to find out why that person is pissed and who they're pissed off at.

And if it's ever about me, I'd just go, "But wait! Nobody said *insert name here* was talking about meeee!!" *Cue Very Shocked Face*

Asians ah. Deceptive like anything. Or maybe that's just me.



Goodnight World!

Boomz.

I just want to say something which has been bugging me for some time now.

I really don't get how people can still be so amused by the mistakes that Ris Low made in that Razor TV video.

Boomz and Zebra Preenz. Okay fine. It was funny.



But really, how long ago was it? Two, three months?

The fact that it can still be one of the articles flagged out on the front page of 8Days is just sad. I mean, come on man.

It's stale news. It's a stale joke.

Just how little creativity do people have nowadays?! Come up with newer jokes lah, rather than stressing on one person for two whole months. That's like 60, maybe even 90 days of Ris Low.

Come on man, you guys can do better than that!



But perhaps it's not the media's fault that they're still harping on it.

Perhaps they're forced to keep writing articles about Ris Low and her mistakes because some people just can't get enough of it

And if that's the case, that's pretty screwed up.



Let's make something very clear. Or in Obama's words, "Make No Mistake!"

I'm not at all defending Ris Low, or the mistakes she made. Yes, yes, fine. Oh goodness, she's Miss Singapore, how embarrassing blah blah blah. I got it.

All I'm saying is that I really can't be bothered about the girl any more. And I don't think Singaporeans (or whoever else)should continue to be bothered.

For those of you who are still amused by the whole thing, those of you who still hang on to every article poking fun at Boomz or Preenz or whatever:

Please. Get a life.

The girl's out of the contest. She's not representing you guys any more.

And you just sink to new depths every time you use her as some cheap little thrill.

MOVE ON LAH.



So there.

Goodnight World.

Hell Semester.

This, ladies and gents, is my assignments calendar for the month of January.

See all the little coloured rectangles? Those each are separate assignments that I'm supposed to finish up, whether individually or in a group.

The week starting with the 11th will see me tackling 6 assignments in 3 days.

Fish. I've never seen my calendar this packed before. Which only means one thing.

This semester is going to be Hell.

Goodnight World!

The Boy and his Bear.

Today I learnt of something that really, truly horrified me.

Read this.

WHAT THE HELL.

The girl in the picture is the new Christopher Robin!


Okay well, I realise now that this has been happening for quite some time already. But that's not going to stop me from ranting about it.

I can't believe Disney actually did this! You can't replace Christopher Robin! You just can't!

I think that so much of the charm in the Winnie The Pooh series comes from Christopher Robin and his relationship with Pooh.

There's hardly anything more charming than the lifelike friendship between a boy and his teddy bear.

And that charm was embodied in Christopher Robin!



Call me a romantic, call me elitist, call me whatever you want. To me, it's simple. The fact is that Pooh is not Pooh if he's not with Christopher Robin.

They're like a duo, man. You can't have one without the other!

Oh, oh. And the reason for the replacement just kills me, you know: Christopher Robin just doesn't sell well.



All faith that I had in Disney just crumbles with that reason.

I mean, sure, it's a company. Sure, it's profit-oriented. Sure, it's their right.

But if it were up to me, I'd pay more careful attention to the fact that so many people around the world grew up loving Christopher Robin and Pooh.

And I think I speak for many of those people when I say that it's really painful to think of Pooh sharing that special relationship with someone else. I haven't been following the series, but I bet there's hardly or not any mention of Christopher Robin anywhere.

If that's true, it's as if Pooh doesn't even miss him. As if that relationship never meant anything special. Which is just wrong.



To me, this just shows that Disney has no respect for what it's been built on. It just shows me that Disney is nothing more than a cold-hearted corporation.

Something in me was holding on to the hope that perhaps Disney stood for more than that; that it actually took pride in the good that they were doing for kids and kids at heart.

But I guess that's not the case.

Sigh.



Dear reader, I understand if you don't get why I'm so upset.

And it's okay. But just realise that the concept of the boy and his bear was, and always will be, important to me.

And that boy was Christopher Robin. No one else.



In other news. I'd advise you not to watch 500 Days of Summer, unless:
a) You want to be depressed
b) You want to know the story of my life

It's a good movie lah. That, granted. It's just so. Freaking. Depressing.

Goodnight World.

Get Facebook Away From Me!

I REALLY NEED TO GET STARTED ON MY STUDENT INTERNSHIP PROGRAMME (SIP) REPORT! IT'S DUE ON MONDAY!

Cehh, as if I'm feeling that jumpy and uptight about it. I'm not.

I am, however, feeling jumpy and uptight that I'm not jumpy and uptight about the report. It's like I'm panicking because I should be panicking, but I'm not.

And all this is an incredibly weird sensation, to say the least.



It doesn't help that Facebook is just a click away.

It doesn't help that I've got Flight of the Conchords DVDs beckoning to me.

It doesn't help that my bed looks more comfortable than ever.



It doesn't help that I don't understand what I'm supposed to write for the report.

1. INTRODUCTION
1.1 Purpose
• tells the readers what you want to achieve through the report - state
the objectives you have set for the report.

I mean, let's be frank here.

Real Purpose Of The Report: I want to achieve a 'pass' for my SIP, so that the past 6 months of my life wouldn't be flushed down the drain. And the only way I can do that is by completing this report.



But obviously, academic reports can't handle the truth. So I have to come up with some lousy half-baked unrealistic crap like:

Through this report, I hope to provide the reader with a visualisation of the daily undertakings in MediaCorp's 938LIVE newsroom.

I don't even know whether that's the right answer. It probably isn't. It doesn't sound chim enough.



The good news, though, is that my Creative Juices seem to be flowing pretty well.

At this point in time, I just thought of a sexual innuendo in relation to the line above. But that just shows how active and creative my mind is right now.



So wish me luck, people, as I venture into the Final Frontier (of the SIP programme)!

Goodnight World!

Say Frog!

Thought I'd share this with you guys.



Don't you just want to pinch those cheeks?!

There are other videos of her on YouTube too. All incredibly adorable.

Goodnight World!

PS: Yes, Sunshine. I'll be doing that post on How Pokémon Is Bad-ass soon! Promise!
PPS: Everybody seems to be getting hitched nowadays ah. Leave me behind only. Babi lah you all. Next comes Janice Lee. Confirm one.

Sleeping on Paper.

I utterly despise how my secondary school friend Desmond Lim taught me how to sleep on a desk, using blank paper as a pillow.

It's just so utterly amazing how my cheek can actually sense the difference in texture between just the flat desk, as opposed to the flat desk with a piece of paper.



And it's this difference which tricks me into believing that the paper is actually rather comfortable.

Because the paper is softer than the hard wooden desk. Or plastic desk. Or metal, or glass. Whichever.

Before I know it, I'm asleep. On a piece of paper.



Dammit, why does paper feel this good?! And on a second note, why can't homework complete itself?!

They should invent that machine in The Matrix which lets you master stuff in the blink of an eye.

But then again, that would allow the scientists in Iran to learn the expertise it takes to build a nuclear bomb. Well, that's assuming they've got enough enriched uranium to make the bombs.

Argh. I hate homework. Homework makes me boring.



And on another note, my friend Vanessa Ho just got a papercut. From plastic. *sniggers*



Okay bye. I've got work to do.

Goodnight World!

*falls asleep on paper*

"SOME PEOPLE TALK DEM LOUDLY LIKE THE WHOLE WORLD WANTS TO KNOW!"

The above line is attributed to Sunshine. I think it's a phrase quite contrary to the kind of vibe one would expect from a name like "Sunshine".

You see, right now I'm sitting with my debate squad mates. We've been separated into two teams leading up to the Inter-polys - Team 1 and Team 2.



Team 1 is busy preparing fact sheets on various countries in Africa.

Team 2 is busy running through some debate cases that they've prepared.



Sitting nearby are a Group of Idiots.

Otherwise known as members of the Temasek Polytechnic Dance Ensemble.

Now don't get me wrong. I don't think all members of the TP Dance Ensemble are idiots. I'm sure there's a chance that many members in the group are perfectly fine individuals.



But these buggers are different.

These buggers seem to think they've got a license to make noise around people who are doing work quietly.

And they're taking the rights that come with this imaginary license to incredible extremes.

I'm sorry, I just think that when you make noise in the presence of people who are enjoying the (previously) quiet surroundings, you are either:
a) Stupid
b) Inconsiderate
c) Both



And I'd throw in "ugly" for good measure.

I strongly believe that its easier for us to judge unattractive people negatively.

Observing the aforementioned buggers, I am now even more convinced that my theory is accurate.

There is nothing attractive about wearing oversized t-shirts and huge-ass three quarter pants, on purpose.

Really, you know.



So I really wouldn't blame Sunshine for exploding and indirectly telling them off with that fiery line.

Extremely annoyed at the noise, she had turned over to glance at Team 2, and one member of Team 2 looked back and signalled at her to calm down.

Fat lot of good that did.

Sunshine replied the signal by taking in a large breath, opening her mouth and shouting the line above.

"SOME PEOPLE TALK DEM LOUDLY, LIKE THE WORLD WANTS TO KNOW!!!"

Sunshine got balls, man.

The words reverberated on the walls. Bouncing. Echoing.

Silence fell.



Then came the whispers from the Buggers.

Probably malice-filled, but who cares. Nobody cares about the sentiments made by stupid and/or inconsiderate people.



They left after a while, and peace filled the air again.

Good riddance, I say. I realise that I can't possibly rid the world of all idiots, but at least its some kind of consolation when they leave me alone.



I really should get back to work. There's a ton for me to do. So I'll finish up this post.

Here are the morals of the story.
a) Don't make noise when other people are studying/doing work
b) Don't let your momma dress you funny



Goodnight World!

The beasts awake.

It's 8am, and slowly but gradually the current residents of Chalet No. Q02 stir to consciousness.

One, like me, has been awake for the past half an hour. And yet I can't say for certain that we're both awake; we stare at our individual screens with eyes that seem rather half asleep.

Stoned, that's what you'd call us. All movement seems slow and sluggish.



No, there was no alcohol intake last night. At least not since I was around, anyway.

But then again, someone could have taken a quiet swig of the vodka when everyone's back was turned.

I glance at the bottle standing no more than 20cm away from me. It's covered in a case made of red sequins, with a label saying:

"In an Absolut World, every night is a masquerade."

Irritation pricks at my semi-conscious state. What the heck does masquerade really mean, anyway?

I pick the bottle up, give it a rather half-hearted shake. Yup. Not full.



By now, another has joined us in the living room. Both observe a TV screen; Praba is using Dhalsim to pick on some old Chinese Guy.

Praba shoots the newly awoken friend a question. A grunt, more like it. Something to do with using "combo's". And surprisingly enough, my friend answers, with another intelligible noise.



From upstairs, the rumbling of Ian Cheng's snoring is the only sound that breaks the otherwise peaceful silence, apart from the minor tapping of Praba's PlayStation 3 controller, and my keyboard.

The snoring was the reason that I awoke in the first place. Bah. Lousy Ian Cheng.



But then again, I question whether I would want it another other way.

Perhaps that's the charm of spending the night in a chalet with close friends; being in close proximity of certain friends.

Again, I reckon that some would see chalets differently; perhaps to them, the vodka would play a more central role than just jokes and round after round of Street Fighter.



I might just leave soon.

At the end of it all, rather enjoyable as last night was, one thought really appeals to me right now.

Sleep. Pure, unadulterated, uninterrupted sleep. In my own bed. At home.



Goodnight World!

Don't Make Me Go Back To School, PLEEASE?! *puppy eyes*

Before I get into the post proper, here's a warm welcome to yet another episode of...

SPOT THE LOGICAL ERROR!

Okay so that's done.

Yesterday was officially my last day at 938LIVE. As most of you would know by now, I was working as a reporter at the station.

Well, at least for the first five months anyway. The last month was spent delving into the world of news editing.



And by golly, what has really struck me the most is how time flies.

It's been six months, people.

That's like, half a year.

That's like 15, 552, 000 seconds! Isn't that amazing!



The best (or worst, depending on how you look at it) part is that it feels like it's been just two months.

What happened on the very first day of internship is still fresh in my mind; as if it just happened yesterday.

Or, to be consistent with what I typed two lines ago, it's like it happened just two months ago.



I still remember walking into the radio newsroom for the first time and seeing this.

And thinking to myself, "Okay. This ain't no five star hotel."

I still remember being ushered into my supervisor's cubicle and being told very seriously that I could expect being thrown into the deep end from day one.

I still remember gulping at that moment, mentally exclaiming the word, "shitz".

I recall how I was falling ill on the first day, because I couldn't sleep the night before.

I was wearing a blue shirt with proper pants and shoes.

Someone later remarked that she thought I was one of the Tech Guys because I was dressed so formally.

She had assumed that the computer I had been sitting at was so screwed up that the "Tech Guy" had to sit there and work on it the whole day.

That's an insult. How could one even think that with my charming good looks, I could be a Tech Guy?! Cehhh.



Anyway. That was the first day. It was spent calling CEO's. Yeah.

Soon, I was assigned my own desk and computer. This is it.

It's aptly named "Wei-xun's Desk and Computer".

Okay I'm just joking about that. I didn't name it.

But if I did, I think I'd call it...Bob.



Within the first week, I was out on my first solo assignment.

And from then on, the events just kept coming and coming. I churned out report after report after report.

Assuming that I churned out about 7 reports a week, that means I would have written about 140 news reports during my stint at 938LIVE.



Sigh.

I loved that job. I loved my internship.

Every day was a new event. Every day was different from the day before. Every day was a new challenge; a new avenue for me to push myself to greater heights.

And I loved it for that.



I loved comparing my stories to the ones written by other reporters.

I loved the occasional pride that I felt when I thought my story totally kicked ass as compared to the ones written by others.

I appreciated the occasional sting of annoyance that I felt when I read a more superior story written by a rival reporter.

And at the end of it all, all these feelings, all these challenges came together as one brilliant internship.



Oh, oh, oh and true story here.

When I finished work yesterday, I packed up and left. It was a rather emotional experience, looking at my cleaned out desk and my boss's empty cubicle and all.

And as I left the building and walked away with music blaring from my earphones, KT Turnstall's "Suddenly I See" came on.

And my goodness, when the chorus played, it was like some corny scene from some chick flick movie.

I was standing there looking back at MediaCorp, with the words playing in my head:

"Suddenly I see, this is where I want to be. Suddenly I see, why the hell it means so much to me."

Daymn. Would you like some corn with that cheese?

My internship was such a great experience that I dread going back to school for my final semester.

No, I'm not saying school's bad. School's alright.

But I just hate knowing that when I'm back in school, everyday will not be a new day.

It won't be a new challenge.

Boredom will set in ever so quickly.

SIGH.



As I left today, I got offered a part-time job as an editor.

(Clarification: Yesterday was my official last day. But I still had to go back to the office today to clear up some administrative issues.)

And that's a pretty good thing, I think.

It sucks, though, that I've got less than a month until the next semester starts. And

I don't think MediaCorp would even hire me for less than a month.


I really wish for one thing right now.

I wish that an option would be opened to me to go through another six months of work as a reporter/editor at 938LIVE, in the place of my final semester in school.

I wish.



Goodnight World!