Poor Fool, He Makes Me Laugh

Just finished watching The Phantom of the Opera. And I really enjoyed it. The story is cool, the acting great and the songs were kickass. Maybe one day I'll actually see a stage production of it. Apparently it's still going in the US and UK. So half a chance that someday I'll be able to see it.

Ordered some books from Infinitas. Two books from the new Robin Hobb series, Shaman's Crossing and Forest Mage. I wanted Polity Agent by Neal Asher, but the hardcover copy is not in stock and they have to order it which takes (plus delivery) 1-2 months at best! The paperback copy comes out in July, so I guess I'll wait until then.

Besides that, the month is not exciting as I thought it would be. I guess the books I've ordered masked most of the feeling, but it hasn't arrived and I'll finish them quickly. Anybody organising a day out or something?

Besides the books, I'll probably resist spending my money on anything else. As a habit, I don't buy anything that I don't really need and hoard the money, eventually putting it into the bank and letting it build up. Chinese New Year brings some hope, but I'm not expecting that much money anyway. Getting a casual job would be nice. Ideally, work at a games or computer shop would suit me best, but I'm not too picky. Unfortunately, timetables still haven't come out, so I can't commit to anything. But more money would be nice, so I can hoard more.

Still it's a good month to formulate long term plans. I would like to get a new computer, take advantage of Vista and all that jazz. But that's furthur down the road, maybe near the end of the year or early next year. And regarding education I'm thinking that after I graduate, I'll get a job and continue part-time studying. Or maybe continue long-term studying if I can keep the pace.
But that as well is down the road a fair while, so I still have time.

Only played a few hours of FFX. Still haven't been able to get into a rhythm. I left it for such a long while. I tried playing Day of Defeat: Source but it feels so weird after playing DotA for so long. Ahhh well...

The cicadas are pissing me off. I don't know about other places, but the cicadas start their droning buzz and it starts to get louder. Imagine the buzzing of the cicadas. Now imagine that the sound gets louder and louder, until you can't hear the lawnmower next door. Then imagine the sound keeping up so you starting screaming in a cold sweat, but no one hears you since the the buzzing is so loud. Then the buzzing cuts, and your ears are now ringing from the deafening silence. Rinse and repeat. Arrgh....

So yeah, someone plan a day out or something. City, net cafe, whatever. And give us our damn timetables USyd, you mugs. Anyone does anyone have a few RAV4s or something, because here's a splendid idea for some fun:

Music of the Night

Occasionally I find myself utterly unable to sleep at night. No matter how much I toss and turn, my eyes refuse to shut. So I hop onto the net and surf to the dark recesses of the internet. And I have struck gold! Gold my friends! Well, at least to me. Infinitas is an Australian bookshop, specialising in 'sci-fi, fantasy, horror, speculative fiction, roleplaying gaming, popular science and other books, artwork, games and figurines'. Say goodbye to the boring month of February because now I know where to spend some cash. I already have my eye on some Neal Asher and Robin Hobb. Now, if only I could find a casual job for some more cash...

I know Charles knows of a prospective job at his workplace, but until I get my uni timetable I can't commit to anything. Damn USyd! Give us our timetables already! UNSW students have their timetables, what about us?

Has anyone seen a tv series called Black Books. It's hella awesome. It's some comedy gold. Do note that it does clever wordplay and some surreal situations, so if you're more into slapstick or Jackass antics, it's not really for you. But watch it anyway. Since it rules so much. So hard to find some decent comedy sometimes. Ever since The Sketch Show was taken off air, the standard hasn't been high.

I ran across this trailer for The Phantom of the Opera, a 2004 remake of the musical, which is based on the book. The trailer looks hella mad and since I haven't really watched or know much about it, I'm trying to get my hands on it. And the music is quite good as well. Oh, and on that subject, someone made a 'Vader of the Opera' on Youtube. Obviously, this person(s) have too much time on their hands. A link is at the end.

And on a random note, you know that commercial for Maccleans Lemon Mint toothpaste? What about other flavours? Like chocolate? Or sweet chilli? It will make brushing your teeth fun. Holy crap...I think I'm onto a winner of an idea here...

Sporadic Times

So what's happening everybody? Right now, I'm bored and the month of February is starting to offer the same. At the end of the HSC, I was like "hooray, 3 months of holidays!', now I'm like "let something happen.."

So what do people do at home during this time, when they are not out and about and having fun? Playing games, reading books, obsessing over things...me? The ocassional game, cricket and chores. It seems that I spend most of my time now cleaning the house, doing the laundry, scrubbing the dishes. Since my parents are off at work and I have nothing to do, I've taken over the main role of mess exterminator. Which is a tough job for someone who creates mess like me. Granted though, this role has given me an epiphany. Cleaning sucks, but necessary. When I buy a house, I'm going to put my vote for a single-story house. Can you imagine trying to clean a two-story house, juggling a job and children. The future is far off but fills me with dread.

But messy is the new neat. According of Eric Abrahamson, a professor of management, 'moderately messy systems outperform extremely neat ones'. Apparently, people who have extremely neat and organised systems (read:rooms and tables) devote energy to cleaning it up when that energy could be put to more better use, like family time or creative stuff. Finally scientific evidence against cleaning my room. Hey dad, mum! I'm not cleaning my room at this moment because it is more efficient! That said, it does note that a moderate amount of mess is productive. Too much and you won't get anything done because you can't find what you want. The professor has a book out about this subject; A Perfect Mess: The Hidden Benefits of Disorder. Sign me up for one.

A friend of mine was going through his history stuff, cleaning it out and so on, when came around some notes he had copied. Funnily enough, one part stood out. HitlerxMussolini. For those not in the know, in fan fiction, authors sometimes romantically pair characters together using this format so for example taking Naruto as an example: Sasuke and Sakura becomes SasukexSakura or Sasukura, like TomKat or Bradgelina. The pairing doesn't necessarily have to be straight either. Ironically I did find a single line of HitlerxMussolini, but it was rather disturbing. Basically involves Hitler's moustache. *shudders* Let's leave it at that, ok?

Waiting until tomorrow. I'll be uncapped then. I think House season 3 is not up to episode 11 and I'm waiting of Doctor Who season 3 to be released, but it probably won't come until April-May.

And I think Phuong has deleted her blog, again. I'm assuming anime addiction. At least, I hope it's anime addiction.

Hey, there's a ceiling in here

Back from trip and it was okay. It wasn't a mindblowing experience, but it had its fun moments. We went camping at Blacksmiths, which is a little suburb just on top of Swansea. The first day was hella boring. A little bit of driving around Lake Macquarie (which is a hella big lake) then stayed at camp until sundown then slept and whatnot.

Second day was more exciting. We met up with some other family friends and drove to the Stockton sand dunes. There is nothing more exciting then driving on the sand dunes, with the possible exception of paintball and getting shot at. 4WDs only please. The key is to lower your tire pressure (14-16psi should do) and never ever stop or slow down. Once you slow down especially on the steeper slopes, you will get stuck. And forget about pinpoint control. You pick a destination and point the car in that direction. The sand can get very soft and steering becomes hectic.

We wanted to slide down the sand dunes, and so my cousin, my brother and I debated about whether it was possible to do it with a bodyboard. The bottom was a bit rubbery, but we decided that enough speed meant enough momentum to overcome friction between board and sand. We were wrong. I took a running start, threw myself forward and then stopped. Well, the board stopped and I rolled down the sand dune. So I was covered in sand and hella dizzy. And it was rather windy. So when we returned to camp, our portable gazebo was literally blown away.

Today would have been quick, except after leaving Woy Woy (where you can find the BEST fish'n'chips) we got stuck in a massive traffic jam. But while this little trip was fun, an issue keeps bugging me. The prejudice we encountered while driving in the sand dunes.

Generally, Australia is pretty cool. Except Tasmania. Probably the worst place. We have these CB radios so our convoy can communicate to each other, generally in Viet. But the furthur you travel from major city centers (like Sydney, Melbourne etc) the worse the prejudice becomes. It's like the people who live there are ineducated bogans who don't understand shit about Australia and how great a place it is. So while in the sand dunes, there was a variety of insults aimed at us. These insults are fairly common and don't vary too much. I wanted to counter-insult but my dad wouldn't let me. But if I ever get the chance I will. Below are the insults I have encountered.

This next section of text contains profanity and material that may offend some viewers. These comments are not aimed at everyone, but to the bastards that bring a bad name to Australia and the people who live there. This situation is not common to all of Australia and I wish to advise that the idiots here comprise only a small part of the Australian population. If you are easily offended, you may want to skip this next passage of text.

• "I don't know if you know, but you're in Australia and we speak English here. So why don't you stop talking shit and speak some fucking English like the rest of us, you gooks." (Usually shortened to "Speak fucking English." or any variation of the above)
• "Why don't you go back to your own country you fucking chinks!" (Or any variation of this)
• "HAHAHA! SMALL PENIS! HAHAHAHA" (very common insult)

My response? Well I don't know if you know, but we're in Australia, which is a free and multicultural society. Freedom of speech means I can speak in whatever language I damn want and I'm speaking in Vietnamese because my friends and family are more proficient in it. You should shut up or better yet change to a different channel. You are ruining Australia's reputation and this kind of behaviour is unacceptable and unAustralian. Australia is my country and I am an Australian. So I can't go back to my country because Australia is my country. And the last insult? You should see someone about your possible low self-esteem. My counter-insult for the last one would have contained loads of swearing, facts about the population of Asia and Australia and some racist overtones so I'll hold back on that one.

Damn, thats good to finally get out of my system. Unfortunately, as far as I can tell these idiots will continue to exist. Multiculturalism will only get Australia so far in my opinion. These idiots are rare in the city but become more common as you travel furthur away from cities. That is to say that you shouldn't venture out of the city. You should. Australia has some beautiful flora and fauna and it is well worth seeing. Just get out there and maybe with more contact with other races, these idiots might rethink their ways and become a lot less common.

Damn idiots.

Versusity

I'll be out of communicable range until Sunday evening. For the Australia Day long weekend, my family is going camping in Swansea and indulge in a bit of fishing. A few other families will be going as well. I say camping, but it's not in the wild bush or anything. It'll be in a caravan park so there will be showers, toilets and kitchens.

Had one of those deep sleep moments last night. I went to sleep at 11pm and then woke up at 5am, feeling perfectly refreshed and ready for the day. It was a deep dreamless sleep, and I felt fine today. Hmmm...6 hours of sleep only? Usually I need and few extra hours.

Those of you who do medical courses or whatnot that require clinical placement will undoubtedly receive some notification about getting all your vaccinations shots of the most common diseases. So today I went to the doctor to get a blood test to see what shots I need. And I have to find a Chest Clinic eventually to screen for tuberculosis. But what about the uncommon-but-common-in-hospitals diseases? I keep hearing about MRSA and that sucks man. Oh yeah, and I need to get a first aid certification somewhere along the line as well.

Overall the confirmed number of people going to USyd Cumberland has increased! David Vuong is going and Sabrina is going. That leaves Sophia and Nam to be confirmed, but since Sophia is doing Speech Pathology, she's probably most likely to go to Cumberland as well.

So now the fever of enrolment is over, it back to boring days until Orientation swings around and then finally Uni!

My Way

Enrolment can be summed up in one word: LONG. Or maybe BORING. It's basically filling out forms, then getting the forms checked, and then handing them in.

I came in early, and started filling out the forms. There are a whole bunch on enrolment, criminal checks and a whole bunch of notes on vaccination and whatnot. Filling them all out took around 20 minutes. I probably could have finished faster, but I was reading the forms carefully for info and mistakes. Apparently, my suburb is Rosehill. Had to change that.

Then it was waiting in line for the forms to be checked. So far the waits had been minimal. Then came the student ID card. One of the machines crashed and it was taking ages for cards to be processed. After waiting for 15 mins, without moving forward, I hopped out and paid my student contribution. $3000 a semester which is $6000 a year, which is $18000 for the entire 3 year course. Ouch. I hopped back into line, and then waited for an hour before I could get my ID.

You're standing there waiting, and its boring as hell. I struck up a few conversations, but they didn't last too long. So it was a broing wait.

*sigh*

Orientation is on the 1st of March, but since Cumberland is such a 'little' campus, the main USyd campus basically doesn't want to know about us (officially) and refuses to acknowledge our existence (unofficially). So all the cool O-week stuff on the USyd site is for the main campus, not us.

Timetables come out in the first week of February and the good thing for DiagRad is that for the first year I don't have to choose any subjects. The notes and stuff look so hardcore. I already know the Structure, Function & Disease A is going to be a bitch. Might as well start buying notebooks.

Is anyone else going to Cumberland or know someone who's going there. So far I know that David V is going (saw him at enrolment), Nam might be going (pure hearsay) and since Sophia is doing Speech Pathology she might be going as well (pure guesswork).

So give a shout if you are, so I can meet up with you all at Orientation.

Wave and Dance

[quote] i need help - what's with this no.of units?? and what's diagnostic radiography??[/quote]

In response to Sabrina's question, let me answer the second question first with a bit of cut'n'paste:

Diagnostic Radiography provides optimal diagnostic images and health care during a range of radiographic investigations. It involves the use of many digital imaging systems, the most advanced being Magnetic Resonance Imaging. This is a very sensitive method of imaging some parts of the body and is a rapidly expanding speciality which allows the radiographer to be 'on the cutting edge' for advances in technology and associated research. Diagnostic Radiographers are in high demand in Australia and overseas. This course is accredited by the Australian Institute of Radiography.
-from USyd website

To answer the first question...well...I'm sure you know that for Uni you have to choose subjects to study within the course you've chosen. For example, in my course, I have to choose subjects like 'Image Processing', 'Integrated Diagnosis' and 'Treatment or Structure, Function and Disease'. The subjects are all worth a certain amount and each semester, it is expected that you complete a certain amount. I'm assuming it's the same for whatever course you've chosen. Actually from what I can decipher and analyse from the handbook and other sources, I don't have to choose units of study for the first year, since the lessons are shared initially in Medical Radiation Science. MRS is encompasses 3 streams; Diagnostic Radiography, Nuclear Medicine and Radation Therapy. So hopefully, I just have to enrol. I'll probably check with the MRS people on enrollment day.

On a side note, I've been having these weird, trippy dreams. I don't remember details, but I wake up in the middle of the night in a cold sweat, wondering 'what the hell was that all about?'. And some of these dreams seems so real. Damn. I think it all started when I watched that Sony Bravia ad on Youtube with all the exploding paint.

Far out.

And here's a little something-something that's been floating around Youtube. 11+ million views can't be wrong. It may be NSFW, so take care with the volume, eh?

I bid three twos

Offers out yesterday, and I managed to get my first choice offer. I accepted it right away. It's a Bachelor of Applied Science at USyd, in Medical Radiation Science, studying for Diagnostic Radiography. The x-rays, MRIs and CAT and stuff. Medicine-related, without actually doing medicine itself per se.

It was pain trying to log in though. 60-something thousand anxious students hammering both servers of UAC trying to find out what offers they had got. It took me half an hour to finally get in. Now I have to enrol on Tuesday 23rd at the Cumberland campus. Today was spent trying to understand the terminology of university and getting the paperwork done for my tax file number. I kinda wish that I got my number at school; it was so much easier. The crap thing about applying to the tax office is that it takes 28 days to get a tax file number. I have to make do with a certificate of application.

On the way back from the tax office, I stopped at ARC and grabbed a new Geforce 7600GT, replacing my old Radeon 9600 Pro. Hooray! For now I can run Splinter Cell Double Agent, when I get it. Ironically, I haven't been playing games so much. mainly studying about units of study and HECS-HELP. Which leads me to...

I don't know about everyone else, but the USyd handbook for health sciences (including my course) is crap. The online version is basically a copy of the paper version. I know that we have to choose units of study to fill out the semester or whatnot, but the handbook doesn't make it clear how credits worth of study units to choose, and what we can choose and what we can't. Obviously the weekends will be spent analysing the handbook in detail so come enrollment time, I can choose the right units.

Unfortunately, it seems that the majority of Seftonites are going UNSW in the city. Which kinda sucks since I'm relegated to the the Cumberland campus of the University of Sydney. Apparently, David Vuong and Nam are going there, but it'll be pretty lonely for Seftonites down there.

Ive been talking to people about the offers and it seems that a few are indecisive about what course to choose. Both courses (or more) are very good and they just can't decide. One of them asked me what course they should do, but hell if I'm supposed to know. I focused on my choices, I'm going to be an imaging technician, not a engineer or whatnot. But best of luck to the people still deciding. I'm sure you will make the right choice.

Well that's all. I'm making DVDs for my mum. She's loves watching 24 and missed the first season, so yeah.

Borderline

Unfortunately, mission not accomplised. Didn't pass my driving test today. The main reason given is that I don't do enough observing when driving, which I'm a little suspicious of since I went out of my way to check and double check before turning and stuff. So yeah, a little bummed out, but as that saying goes 'Shit happens'. I've rebooked for the 16th of February, but I might book earlier.

Anyway, besides that I've been kinda bored through this month. There's nothing much to do and Doctor Who doesn't come out until autumn at least. So when an email popped up from Land and Phuong calling for a trip out to the city, I decided to go. Not only would I get out and maybe be entertained, but also for the reason to give Phuong the Doctor Who Christmas Special she wants so much.

The group was smaller than I expected, only me, Phuong, Gloria, Ricknam, Shuai, Julia and Danny. We went to the movies first, watching Happy Feet. It was pretty good. Animation was slick, voice work was terrific (especially Robin Williams), and the plot was decent. For a moment, it had a saddish ending, and I thought' Holy shit, a director with the balls to have a sad ending in a kids film'. But, of course, it did have a happy ending. Didn't go with popcorn this time, instead I bought a packet of malteasers. Phuong and Julia invested in popcorn, but wanted my malteasers instead. Julia grabbed a handful, but I didn't know if she shared.

Next was Galaxy World in Market City and half of it was full of kiddies style games. I spent most of my credits on shooting and racing. They only had Time Crisis 3, not Time Crisis 4 that I saw at Timezone at Surfers Paradise. Eventually we tried to collect tickets, and in the end we nabbed quite a few. There was this roulette style game where if the ball landed on the right colour you selected you won anywhere from 15 to 75 tickets. We managed to hit 40 tickets prize a few times. The next was a light spinning thin, where you had to hit the button when the light reached a certain point. If successful, this turned another wheel with numbers to see how many tickets you won. 500 was the max, but i managed to hit 40 then 60 tickets. Some lucky bastards hit 500 though. Most of the tickets went to the girls because the prizes where like kiddies toys.
I think in the end, we had 700ish tickets altogether.

Had Macca's for a late lunch, then went to Kinokuniya which I didn't know existed. It's a massive book store, but it also stocks a large collection of manga. So there was a large group of people reading. I wandered around a bit (mangas not my cup of tea) and settled for two books to buy.

• The Chaos Point: The World at the Crossroads by Ervin Laszlo
• Brass Man by Neal Asher

Neal Asher writes some brilliant hard sci-fi, with great plots, detailed science, although character development is a bit lacking. Hard sci-fi tends to concentrate on the science and technology, often extrapolating future techs from present technological advancement. The other book is a bit of a philosophical treatise on the future of mankind, either total breakdown into violence and decay or breakthrough to the next level.

After, everyone started to leave. Danny and Shuai left early. Julia stayed for the manga. And the rest of us left for Town Hall. I think Phuong bought Battle Royale, the book.

So what now? Offers come out tonight. I have to get my tax file number. And maybe some Day of Defeat: Source. Except my brother keeps hogging it.

Till next time.

Shimmering

So I just want to has this right off the bat. The 2006 Doctor Who Christmas Special rules. It perfectly blends action, story and character development.

Holiday to Queensland was fun, but nothing worth recounting. We did the usual rounds and went to the usual places. Australia Zoo was quite good, but its main show is a stark reminder of just how cool Steve Irwin was. With his tragic death, the shows seems a little flat, even though they were really good.

Using my own funds (hell yeah!) I bought the Neon Genesis Evangelion Platinum boxset. All the episodes including 4 new director's cut edition, and a swag of special features, though it was the commentary that I really like. Hearing the english voice actors for Eva is really informative on the process of dubbing Eva although it's kinda weird, especially for Asuka and Misato, since their voice actors still sound exactly like the characters, even though it has been ten years.

My brother bugged me into buying Counter Strike: Source, which is starting to get addictive. Blasting terrorists and defusing bombs. My gaming time is currently divided between DoTA, CS and FFX. However, my brother has been hogging the PS2 to play Bully (or Canis Canem Edit) and I'm not playing FFX for as long as I want. I'm thinking of buying a new video card soon. Maybe within the next few weeks?

Haven't seen many movies, but I managed to watched Snakes on a Plane and DOA: Dead or Alive. Snakes on a Plane was hella cool. I really liked it while DOA matched my expectations and maybe exceeded it a little tiny bit. I was expecting the movie to mash all or most of the fighters in the Dead or Alive series, with a tiny bit of plot and a whole lot of action. Which is what the director did, except he twisted it a little bit to focus on the five main females fighters and turned out a mediocre yet enjoyable movie. You won't find deep meaningful themes or extensive profound character development, but it's nice quick ride.

And how about the weather? Whew! It's definitely kicked up a notch. December was still Springy, sometimes Autumny in weather, but now in early January, the temps have rocketed. You take a shower to cool off and within ten minutes, its effects have completely worn off. So I spend as much time as possible in the living room with the aircon on, with dashes to my comp to play a few games.

And here's a quick trailer of the 2007 series of Doctor Who, showing how cool it's becoming.

Tired Out

My body clock has kicked me awake now, and I'm still tired after the massive trip now, mainly because we took the longer New England Highway, instead of the Pacific Highway. So give me a few days to recover.

Serena, don't worry about it. If you can't go, then I won't go. It won't be much fun going alone. However, it was one of the days I have free. The other gig on Friday is iffy. It depends on whether some family friends decide stay or leave. So I might not be able to come on Friday. Sorry about that.

That of course, leaves Phuong without her Doctor Who Christmas Special for 2006. I don't know when I can give it to you, but if you're really desperate, I think someone has uploaded it to Youtube in several parts. Load up a part, have a coffee, whatever, and wait for it to load. Seeing how your dial-up, it may be your last desparate resort. I'm attempting my driving test on the 17th and if I pass I could deliver it to you if you really want, if you can wait that long.

Now sleep...

Lost Conditions

Tomorrow, I'm abandoning the dreary and cloudy Sydney in favour of the constant warmth and sunshine of Brisbane. If I manage to find a net cafe, then I'll hop on and post an update or two. Ideally, I'll be back on the 8th of January. But a few things to clear up.

Phuong, the Doctor Who Christmas Special came out on Boxing Day Australia time and, yes, I have a copy of it. It's around 700megs so I might be able to fit it on a CD. The problem is getting it from me to you. I'm attempting to clear our the 13th as I want to go to the Annandale Hotel to see a music show. So that's a possibility if you come along. And assuming I get my first choice offer, on enrolment days for USyd Cumberland campus, I'll be there as well. If worse comes to worse, I'll see if I can go to your house and deliver it.

And Serena, about the travel arrangements for the 13th. Are you driving? Maybe you can drop me off? I still want to go and I don't think anything will keep me from going.

Leave a comment here and I'll get back to you and we'll figure something out.

It's 2007, a new year and a new start.

Battlecry

Tired, tired and tired. Having a BBQ is a lot of fun, but it takes a lot of effort. You have to do the initial set up, maintain the pace and then pack and clean it all up. Everytime we have a BBQ, it seems to become slightly more troublesome each time.

But then again, it's more likely my teenage rebelliousness surfacing more strongly. It's amazing how parents can drive you to the border of insanity and you start to wonder whether it's just you or if they're somehow doing it deliberately or both.

Now that I'm older, my dad delgates most of the setting up to me. Which wouldn't be that bad, if he doesn't overrule me on every single decision I make and completely ignores what I'm saying. At first, I was thinking "it's probably me, just calm down..." then it becomes obvious that it's not just only me, but it's my dad as well.

So I have the BBQ out, and then my dad asks 'do you think that's enough?' and I'm like 'yeah, totally'. Then he goes 'nah, take out the other bigger BBQ as well', so I go along thinking 'so we're cooking more meat..'. Then my dad explains his decision, reasoning that 'we should only cook as we eat', that is we cook the meat at a pace that can supply the demand, no oversupply or undersupply. Now this is the same reasoning at all our BBQs, it doesn't matter the size of the BBQ, but that rate of cooking. Now I'm pissed because the other BBQ is enough and I know it is enough because I do the cooking and the reason he gives doesn't change anything. When I point this out, he tells me to 'be quiet and stop being a smartarse'. What? I'm a smartarse because I point something out? I was right in the end. We didn't even use the second BBQ.

It doesn't end there. He calls me over and starts going on about how I didn't arrange the tablecloth properly. You know what was wrong? A smallish wrinkle that I didn't smooth out properly. Fair enough, but it's nothing that you should start making a big deal about it and go all out on the person who did it. Sheesh.

Finally, he tells me to setup the BBQ to suit me, since I'm doing the cooking. So I do. Then my dad comes and starts to rearrange everything to 'better suit me'. What the hell? I know what suits me. That's period. But I didn't want to fuss too much. So I just rearrange it again to suit me. Then my dad chucks a fit, and starts fixing and yelling, saying stuff like 'not like that, like this!'.

I probably sound a bit bitter. I'm not. Just incredibly fustrated and annoyed. I'm extremely pissed off though at the smartarse counter. Just because someone younger than yourself, pointing out something in a calm, logical manner doesn't mean that they are a smartarse. Parents know that they've been outmanoeuvred, so they hit with the smartarse counter.

Still, plenty of good people are coming over, so it won't be that bad. Plus I just registered my savings account to Netbank, so I can transfers funds and buy stuff off the net that accepts bank deposits. There are some anime stuff that I would like to get. Evanglion Platinum boxset tops the list. And now I can search and maybe buy something of eBay. Probably have to do after my return from holidays on the 8th of January.

Happy New Year people!

...and Appear on the Dark Side of the Moon

The bus was late as usual, so the planned relaxed browse for PS2 games became a more frantic treasure hunt. We ended up with two games, with one that we regret, NBA Ballers and King of Fighters NeoWave. My brother loves basketball, so guess the one that we regret.

City Hunter was fun. Only Paul Tran showed up, probably only because he had some free time, rather than my leet *cough* organising skills. My brother eagerly jumped on the many games on offer, but his friends never showed up. Apparently, they woke up at 2pm, and thus considered 11am way too early for some reason. Now look here, 11am is anything but early. It's almost noon, for heaven's sake! But then again, I'm not out partying or gaming until 3am...

Anyway, on that quick trip to Westfield, I saw a box collection of Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex for $119.95. I didn't buy it and when I got home I kinda wished that I did buy it. Hell, I'm not to impulsive. But my mother needed to go to Westfield to refill on makeup or something, so I tagged along and bought the box set for only $70. Apparently, it was reduced.

Shopping isn't something that men do often. We rarely shop, we usually go buy a specific thing. Like I need a new shirt or two, or I really need a fan for the office. But when Westfield, or at least the stores, have thought ahead some. They know that guys rarely shop and when they get dragged along by their mother/wife/girlfriend/female friends, they don't fit in very well sometimes. That's not to say that all guys hat shopping with women. But a sizeable majority do. Thankfully, in major "female" shopping areas of clothes or cosmetics, there are these nice soft, comfy seats, that men can sit and wait, rather than being pulled in a comestics area, the mysterious hostile zone that defies many a man's mind.

Arrgh, that box set is just taunting and tempting me to watch it. Well, the only way to get rid of a temptation is to yield to it.

Set the Controls for the Heart of the Sun...

The book-cd-dvd sale thing at Homebush was again huge but overall not that spectacular. The books were cheap and the large selection was pretty much trash. There were definitely treasures though. I picked up three great books. There was this fantasy book that was really good, but it was part of a trilogy and it was the second volume. I mean, I don't need the entire trilogy to start reading, if that was true I would have never read Harry Potter, but I definitely need the first book to start off. Anyway, the books that I bought are as follows:

• How to be a megalomaniac (or, advice to a young politician) by Mungo MacCallum
• The Miocene Arrow by Sean McMullen
• The Electronic Whorehouse by Paul Sheehan (the same dude that wrote Among the Barbarians.)

So anyway, City Hunter Burwood tomorrow. I hate organising shit, having to make sure that there are so-so people coming along. So I'll keep this brief. I'm going, so is my brother, other people may be coming, if you want to play some games and have some fun, you should come along to. Be there tomorrow at 11am or so.

Besides the books I snatched up at the sale, I managed to snag a copy of Eldest, the sequel to Eragon, of a friend. It's not a bad sequel and I like it immensely. But I've been hearing rumbles about the movie adaptation. Still, it is my firm belief that the book is always better than the movie, with the sole exception of the Lord of the Rings trilogy. That trilogy of movies broke all the rules (and probably a few bladders, 9+ hours altogether, whew!) and is the lofty ideal that I think no other book-to-film conversion will ever achieve within my lifetime.

Well, I hope you guys and girls out there have some fun. Until the offers come out at least.

Keep on Lifting

The person that posted a comment about my spelling, see the the comments page of the previous post for my reply.

It's been dead boring these couple of days. Parents are at home on these public holidays and that means I can't play the PS2, since they don't know it exists. I'm falling behind on FFX, man! Come on! Give us a break.

Went to a Christmas Eve party on Sunday, and it was pretty cool. The food was quite decent and I managed to have a little chat with a university student on what the campus of USyd at Cumberland is like. According to him, it's very small and you get to know everyone pretty well. Sounds like my kind of place. Entertainment was sparse, until we found the owners big tv and sound system. We ended up watching Samurai Champloo, which was pretty good anime. But the size or zoom or whatever was kinda screwed and we couldn't get the video to size up exactly with the screen. And the subtitles were out of sync. It got kinda tiring, and soon, it was only my brother, my cousin and I watching. Then we discovered Harold and Kumar go to White Castle.

I heard about this movie from Jack, but never really got around to seeing it. Sounds like the time Jack gave me Infernal Affairs. I still haven't watched that. But White Castle was really cool. A basic road trip type of story, it's about Harold, this Asian guy, and Kumar, this Indian, trying to get to White Castle, a fast food joint, but are put through a series of misadventures along the way. It touches lightly on racial discrimination, not enough to get you riled up and throwing boulders, but enough for you to take notice. Unfortunately, we had to leave before we finished the movie. That's it, I gotta find the DVD.

So boring week, what's a guy to do? Well take a leaf out the girls' book and go shopping. There's this ad on TV going on about the really cheap books, cd, and dvds sale going on at Sydney Showground tomorrow, so that's where I'll be. Don't know what time I'll be there, most likely around 10am - 11am. So if you come and long and happen to meet, I'll say hi to ya.

And on the 28th of December, a Thursday, my brother wants to check out City Hunter Burwood, grab his friends and play some DoTA and CS:S. If anyone wants to tag along, you're welcome to. We'd probably get there at 11ish am, grab lunch at the Hungry Jack's nearby and stay until 2-3ism pm.

And I'm going to Queensland on the 2nd of January to the 8th, so I'll be out of communication until I return. And I think there's a band thing event at the Annandale Hotel on the 13th of January. I'm 70% certain to go, so tag along as well!

Have a Happy New Year everyone!

Touch of Jazz

3 sleeps to Christmas. 12 sleeps to holiday to Queensland. I've been to Queensland so many times. All those trips to Surfer's Paradise, Brisbane and so on, well, it must be my 6th trip to the Sunshine Coast. Not that I'm complaining. Once you get there and settle in, it's a very relaxed place. You sit on the balcony and just watch the wind and the waves, and forget the spectres of the past, the stress of the present, and the terror of the future. Plenty of friends on this trip, so it'll be fun.

But until then it is going to be a bit boring. I mean, the euphoria of the UAI has faded away and now I sit, listening to music or playing FFX. I've been trying to expand my musical taste. Usually, when I hear a song that I like, I listen to it obsessively then stop since it has become so familar. So I'm trying to find some new tracks and albums that I can sink my teeth into. A new band that has popped onto my radar is The Temper Trap, courtesy of Serena. Check out the song My Sun either on their mySpace or Youtube.

Getting 92.45 is pretty good, considering that just months ago I was scared as heck with the possibility of getting a UAI in the 80s. But some last minute focusing poked it above 90. Thinking back, I definately could have done better, by studying harder and whatnot. In hindsight, the HSC wasn't that bad. It wasn't the 'end-of-the-world' thing that most people seemed to be predicting.

So now the relatives are going to reward me. Granted, it's not that much compared to if I got 99 or something, but since I have no job, I've been trying to maximise gain, not just for me, but for other close friends as well. I know my aunt is guaranteed to give me some cash. I'd probably shove some into the bank, but I have no idea what to spend it on. I have some vague ideas on upgrading or replacing my computer, but now is not the best of times with Vista, the new Windows, being released next year. I have plans though.

My tutor was happy with my mark, though disappointed since he expected me to do really well. But I was a lazy student, so I didn't study that much, yeah. I told him of my plans to study diagnostic radiography, and he said it was alright. Except it didn't pay a lot of cash compared to other jobs and kept recommending pharmacy. I'll think about it, but pharmacy seems beyond reach right now. I'd have to do very well in my first year of Uni before thinking of switching courses. But for now, I'm sticking to my path. Plenty of time.

Oh, and I found this techno cd that Kevin Tran gave to me way back in 2002. The 27th of May, 2002 if the date is correct. Right now, I'm blasting this at max bass on my computer. It's a hella different to the ultimate acoustic guitar collection I was listening to before.

Ninety Two Point Forty Five

So lets get this said straight out.

Wait for it....

Now, it is finally over.

The HSC is done. I know we jumped the gun a little bit when we finished testing in November, but now that we finally have our course marks and UAI, I think it is safe to say that it is finally over. All you guys, congratuations on your marks, and I hope you can now get into the course of your choice. And thanks to Phuong, for telling me that the UAC line was open at around 8:30am.

Today will definately be a celebration. Forget about the enormous bad luck with the aborted driving test, I'm happy with my UAI and that, as they say, is that.

My last words on this?

"Maths makes it easy to shoot yourself in the foot. Maths Extension 1 makes it harder, but when you do, it blows away your whole leg. And don't even talk about Maths Extension 2..."

So now onwards to Christmas.

It's Only Natural

Do you believe in bad luck? Or karma or whatever? I'd like to think that when something happens, it happens for a reason. The laws of cause and effect coldly apply. Not today. Today, I think some bad luck decided to strike.

I was supposed to take my driving test today, and when the examiner was checking out the car, she noticed that the rear right brake light wasn't working. So the test had to be cancelled. Which sucked because I had checked the lights yesterday and everything was working fine.

*sigh*

Well, as the saying goes, 'shit happens' or as some others say 'excreta occurs'. So the test is rebooked to the 17th of January next year. I know there may be some comments going 'oh snap! sucks to be you' and lots of repetitive uses of 'noob', but well, I'm past caring at this point.

Anyway, moving on from the bad news, the side mirror was fixed quite easily and cheaply. The mirror was taken to this shop that cuts glass and the guys there measured and cut out a piece of glass and stuck onto the mirror. And it cost a mere $25 compared to $260 for replacing the entire mirror.

Well, hopefully some good news later, eh?

Melodic Melodies Merge Merrily

1.) Put your music player on shuffle
2.) Press forward for each question.
3.) Use the song title as the answer to the question.
4.) NO CHEATING!!!
Translate them if necessary.

1.) How am I feeling today?
Within Temptation - Jillian

2.) Where will I get married?
Nickleback - Hero

3.) What is my best friend's theme song?
Harry Gregson-Williams - Metal Gear Solid 3 Main Theme

4.) What is/was highschool like?
U2 - All Because of You

5.) What is the best thing about me?
Utadu Hikaru - Simple and Clean (really? I'm not so sure...)

6.) How is today going to be?
Peter Frampton - Do You Feel Like I Do?

7.) What is in store for this weekend?
Mary Elizabeth McGlynn - Waiting For You

8.) What song describes my parents?
Hoobastank - The Reason (wtf?)

9.) How is my life going?
The Game feat 50Cent - Hate or Love It

10.) What song will they play at my funeral?
Franz Ferdinand - The Fallen (oh yeah..)

11.) How does the world see me?
U2 - Beautiful Day

12.) What do my friends really think of me?
Rogue Traders - We're Coming Home

13) Do people secretly lust after me?
Fatboy Slim - Weapon of Choice

14.) How can I make myself happy?
Evangelion OST - Both of You, Dance Like You Want to Win

15.) What should I do with my life?
Remy Zero - Save Me (how utterly appropriate...i'm ignoring that)

16.) Will I ever have children?
John Legend - Save Room

17.) What is some good advice?
Meja - How Crazy Are You?

18.) What do I think my current theme song is?
Wolfmother - The White Unicorn

19.) What does everyone else think my current theme song is?
Chris Cornell - You Know My Name (wtf?...the new James Bond intro song?)

20.) What type of men/women do you like?:
Kanye West feat Jamie Foxx - Golddigger (Now this is a bad sign of things to come)

21.) Will you get married?:
Franz Ferdinand - You're the Reason I'm Leaving (maybe not....)

22.) What should I do with my love life?
AC/DC - Big Balls (now this is funny...)

23.) The original poster forgot this one so I'll just make one up. What's up?
Bambee - Bumble Bee

24.) Where will you live?
lostprophets - Rooftops

25.) What will your dying words be?
The Killers - When You Were Young

Triangular Situations

Has anyone Viet seen the latest Paris By Night 84? No, not the Paris Hilton sex tape. To explain to our non-Viet readers, Paris By Night is a Viet concert thingy, where a bunch of songs are sung, a few skits are acted out and some information is throw in to enlighten the audience. It has its competitors though, like Asia. In recent memory, Asia been trying to court the old crowd, playing old, classic Viet songs, harking back to the good old days before the Communist takeover. The problem is that the old crowd is dying off, so Paris By Night is trying to lure the young crowd by transforming itself as the "passport to music and fashion", with mixed results.

Basically, all contemporary Viet music can be classed into two group: 'sad/romantic/missing a lover/emo/about love/etc' and the 'others'. Watching these concerts gets kinda boring, when 90% of the music is of the former group. Very occassionally, an artist will spice it up and do something different, but very rarely. You also get some young Viet performers who sing in English, but for some inexplicable reason still sing about lost love/romance/whatever. Where is the Viet version of The Killers, Eminem or AC/DC? Where are the bands or artists that sing about Viet parents, the pressure of being an Asian and why rice has to be white? Damn it all to hell.

And the fashion? Well, it's slightly better, but the women either end up anorexic, slutty or so-so (to me anyway). Actually this Paris By Night was not that bad. With the greater emphasis on fashion, most women looked pretty good, except for the few that looked so damn thin. I mean, there's a fine line between slender and too thin. It could be worse. There were no Nicole Ritchie types who only weigh 30 kilos or so.

It never rains, but it pours, eh? My brother was driving home from tutor and as he turned into our street there was another car. So he moved furthur to the left, a bit too close to a parked truck. The other car signalled him to move forward and my brother accelerated and now the left side mirror is completely screwed. All the glass has shattered off. And my driving exam is on next Monday. So that has to get replaced. Also, the laser printer has finally run out of ink, just when my brother needed to photocopy some stuff. Bad luck seems to follow him around like the plague.

I'm fairly confident about my driving test (or DART - Driving Ability Road Test), and I've gone through the guide and stuff and I think that as long as I stay cool and keep below the speed limit, I'll be alright. So fingers crossed.

Also, I've been discovering that Final Fantasy X is proving way bigger than expected. I mean, there's a lot of stuff you can do, all these secrets and treasures. Damn, looks like it'll take a bit longer than expected.

And how is this for comedy gold? I found it in bash.org :
|TrivBot| Question 3. A man's beard grows fastest when he ______?
|_Cozmo_| shaves it
|emul8or__| shaves
|RatAway| jacks off
|TrivBot| Here's a hint: antici
|Rjx| anticipates sex
|TrivBot| Rjx got the answer: anticipates sex. In: 5.7secs.
|Rjx| wtf?
Yeah, I'm like "WTF?" too. Hey! They should test this on Mythbusters!

And some parting words or wisdom:
Love is blind,
Lust is deaf,
But psychosis is obvious.

Diversion Inversion VI

"I am ready to meet my Maker. Whether my Maker is prepared for the great ordeal of meeting me is another matter."
- Sir Winston Churchill (1874-1965)
"But what...is it good for?"
- Engineer at the Advanced Computing Systems Division of IBM, 1968, commenting on the microchip
"Bigamy is having one wife too many. Monogamy is the same."
- Oscar Wilde (1854-1900)

Solitary Desperation

I only have one thing to say. Ahem.

PAINTBALL IS FRICKEN AMAZING!

We went to Advanture Quest Paintball Skirmish, with a massive group of 34 with a mix of Viets and Lebos. Started the actual game close to 10am. It was intense. You hiding behind a tree, paintballs are flinging themselves towards you and you desperately try to find the shooter. Getting hit by a paintball at a distance didn't hurt that much. But when you start to get to the 5-10m range, then it stings. It leaves a mark like you wouldn't believe. Apparently, some marks can take a couple of months to disappear fully.

The basic gear were camo overalls, throat protectors and a mask. Since the group was all guys (and one girl), most people invested in a groin protector or brought along their own. Getting hit in the balls with a paintball is not fun at all.

Lunch was basically snags and salad, but it was unlimited so you could go for thirds and fourths. Our package was different from the standard ones. It was $31 for clothing, lunch and 100 shots. To but more shots, you had to use your own money. The ammo is expensive, $22 for 100; $40 for 200 and $90 for 500. My recommendation is to go big early. Some people bought an extra 700 shots and didn't have to worry about the cost of refilling. I went for 200 extra shots and that runs out hella quick. Altogether I used 800 shots, but some guys were reaching the thousands mark.

Games were variations of team deathmatch, two teams eliminating each other. Viets were on side with the Lebos and some Viets on the other, at 17 people in a team. There was a capture the flag games, and my favourite was to kill the enemy general. The arena was smaller and you didn't worry about being outmaneuvered. However, the best game in my opinion was the free-for-all. Well, technically is was pure team deathmatch. It was supposed to be free-for-all, but sticking in teams was better and safer. You don't have to worry about being backstabbed or ganked. The Lebs split into two groups with one up the hill and one down the hill in a corner. Using covering fire, we surrounded their group. Imagine 10 Asians surrounding 4 Lebs, with no escape and at around 6 metres. We just stood there and rained paintball hell onto them. It was a slaughter.

Anyway, here's a little 10 tips for when you decide to go paintballing.

1. Bring lots of money
   Paintballing can be quick expensive, since you use ammo so quickly. Check the prices and bring some cash or better yet, a credit card. I used $130 worth of ammo and would have probably used more if I had more cash.
2. Conserve your ammo
   A standard paintball gun will hold 200 shots. If you're not careful, it can easily run out in less than 10 minutes. Try to shoot when you have a clear shot and don't let rip a massive burst, 3 shots is a fine enough burst.
3. Accuracy by volume
   This may seem a bit contradictory to the above, but paintball guns are not accurate. A wind, a cough or even a butterfly flying past can divert your paintball. When you are close to your opponent, let it rip. They can't fire back under the withering amount of fire and chances are you hit them too.
4. There is no 'I' in 'team'
   Teamwork is key. Stay in a unit of 3-4 friends. Yell out when you see an enemy. Concentrate your fire. Teamwork is essential. No Ramboing. It'll get you killed in 10 seconds.
5. Covering fire!
   Winning a match is easier if you advance relentlessly towards the other team. Use cover fire to ensure 1-2 friends can safely reach the next rock or tree. Fire on the move. Just make sure that while your moving, the enemy can't fire back.
6. Stay low and go
   Standing up makes you a sitting duck. Find some cover and stay low. The barricades has slots to fire out, and with enough patience, you can put shots between those gaps and hit someone. Try to keep moving.
7. The better part of valour
   Don't be afraid to hide or even retreat. Too many deaths were brought about by reckless advancing. Wait when the enemy runs out of ammo, or use covering fire.
8. Be like the wind
   Outmaneuvered the opposition is more important than any other tactic or advantage. They may be stronger, more ammo or whatever, but attack from the left and right usually means victory.

Paintball was awesome fun. And not only for guys. The only girl in our group nabbed some decent kills, and sent most of guys running with accurate shooting and cover. The only crap thing was that I only knew about 2-3 people there. But it was fun. You guys should do this. Try to arrange a large team, it's more fun that way.

Exit Strategy

Plenty of time for regular blogging, that's good. While everyone else is off working or minding younger siblings, I'm at home with almost nothing to do. Actually, scratch that, I have plenty of stuff to do. I'm taking regular driving sessions to strengthen my reverse parking and three-point turning for my upcoming driving test. Hopefully, I should do okay. And I'm digging through Jung Chang's Mao: The Unknown Story as well. But I'm not sure about it. I mean, she spends most of her time laying out the scene, then dissing Mao. It's like, "look, he's a bastard when he was young, so he became a bigger bastard later on..." Damn Eng Adv, now I'm analysing this book and reading and all that. What book after that? No idea, but my dad has this autobiography of Che Guevara, so I'm covered.

Cricket/soccer/sports tomorrow with the boys. And a whole bunch of ex-Sefton uni students as well. These sessions are always fun. Last time I went, we played cricket in the morning and ended up playing golf in the afternoon, using cricket bats as clubs. So fun all around. If anyone wants to come it's at Guildford Park, corner Oxford and Marian Street, at around 10am. Bring money for KFC and $1 for the cricket ball. Everyone welcome.

Now I had a quick whip-around the blogs, and Phuong's recent post is a horror story. Not only is she stuck with a younger sibling but an entire family of relatives are coming to stay and no one except her mother knows them. Now that is so Asian, cramming people in one house. I kinda know the feeling. A few years ago, my mother's brother's family came over and stay at my place and it was kinda crowded. Still, it wasn't that bad because we could all talk Viet and I learned a lot of their stay. Still, find a reason to get out of the house, even if it's for one day.

Now Casino Royale is coming out tomorrow. So the cinemas are going to be packed. I want to see it. So do a lot of other people. We should organise a day to go watch. Not this Saturday, I'm off at paintball and I think Sabrina is having some party. Maybe Sunday or Monday? Well, lets see how the next few days pan out, okay?

There was a recent Doctor Who concert, where they played live music from the two series from the Children in Need charity. And I snagged a copy of the music. Damn, does it sound good! Especially when they start hammering out the theme song. The original soundtrack studio version will be released within the next few days, and I plan on getting that.

Finally, check out this 60 sec ad on Halo 3. It rocks. Gotta start saving some cash....

The Face of Boredom

Well, Anonymous had a go at guessing the books, but can you believe the cheek of this person?

1. Ernie and the Alien(s)
2. Under Siege
3. Physics Jacaranda (or Excel, and the like)
4. The Pied Piper of Hamlin
5. The Heart of Darkness

I bet whatever the titles are, mine are better. :) .

I'd like to dispute that. But come on, Physics Jacaranda/Excel? Who the hell still has that on their bookshelves. Yes, I still have the books but their on my brother's bookshelf now. Still, I guess I'll reveal the titles, so all the millions (cough cough) of readers don't have to live in constant suspense.

1. Hegemony or Survival by Noam Chomsky
2. Eon by Greg Bear
3. A Brief History of Time by Stephen Hawking
4. Men At Arms by Terry Pratchett
5. Only the Heart by Brain Caswell and David Phu An Chiem

Granted Only the Heart and Heart of Darkness share a one word similarity, so half a mark.

I'll be away on Saturday December 9th so participate in some paintball action. I used to do martial arts and the entire group is basically Viet. Some guy there booked a session for some time now and he now needed more people because it's 15 people a team and he wants to have a Viet vs Viet match. Something about the Aussies being sore losers and starting fights. Still, I'm sure it's an overreaction. Aussies aren't that bad, they're just a bit more spirited.

In other news, our Daihatsu Terios was fitted with a new CD player. My brother received it as a gift and since I'll be eventually driving the Terios (it's a manual so I have to wait to my P2 license). But then my mother started to really like the player because it can play MP3/WMA and she has a bunch of Viet stories narrated by Nguyen Ngoc Ngan that she can listen to. Viet readers will now who NNN is. If not, ask your parents. And watch some Paris by Night 80-something or latest one. And I'm not referring to the Paris Hilton sex tape. So now my mother convinced my dad that the Toyota Prado needs a new CD players as well, so if we go on long trips, they can listen to Viet stories. And he reluctantly agreed. My dad, he's just, to borrow a term, 'financially prudent'.

Oh yeah, and I finally managed to snag a copy of Eragon. It's not a bad book, so if you like fantasy, this would be pretty good. Lots of Lord of the Rings type stuff and a bit of Star Warsy stuff thrown in. *minor spoilers* But Arya is such a Mary Sue. I mean, do we really need another know-it-all, hot elf chick so is the possible romantic interest of the protangonist and whom the author spends more time describes her looks than her character? That's probably the only flaw the book suffers from. But read it. It's good. *end spoilers*

And far out, House Season 3 is shaping up to be a killer. Best line so far?

"I'm going to need 30 pieces of silver..."

Something to Pass the Downtime

So, how's everybody? From the general feeling I'm picking up, some people are getting bored. I mean, we've finished the HSC and now...we have nothing to do. Except the people with jobs and they're getting money. So what's a person to do? Well I am playing Final Fantasy X but this is a quick break for me. Sitting in one place for a few hours staring at a TV and having radiation bombard your eyes isn't healthy. So to pass the time, here's something I picked up from Land's blog:

1. Take five books off your bookshelf.
2. Book #1 -- first sentence
3. Book #2 -- last sentence on page fifty
4. Book #3 -- second sentence on page one hundred
5. Book #4 -- next to the last sentence on page one hundred fifty
6. Book #5 -- final sentence of the book
7. Make the five sentences into a paragraph:

A few years ago, one of the great figures of contemporary biology, Ernst Mayer, publsihed some reflections on the likelihood of success in the search for extraterrestrial intelligence. Electronic sensors had been placed around the building. We also now have evidence for several other black holes in systems like Cygnus X-1 in our galaxy and in two neighbouring galaxies called the Magellanic Clouds. "Eater of rats!". I know it by heart.

Go ahead and knock yourselves our to guess the five books.

The Door to the Beginning and the End

So last night was the formal. It was a great night and after that I didn't regret going to it. I was a bit skeptical as to if it was actually worth it, but it was. Right now, I'm guessing most people are sleeping in after that party.

I took the train to Wynard and happened to run into Charles in the carriage. At Wynard, we had a quick toilet stop and I met Yang, dressed...very informally. He had his formal clothes in his bag and was going to change, because he didn't want his formal clothes to get dirty. Fair enough. When he did change, his shirt was extremely wrinkled. Apparently, he didn't iron it. We met up with other friends and all of them wondered if Yang was going to be let in at all, since his clothes was kind of sloppy.

A group of us took the lift to the second floor, when we were supposed to take the stairs. Not our fault. No one told us to take the stairs. For a while it was talking, drinking and photos. When they let us in, and all the talking was done, the food was delivered and it wasn't bad. It was actually pretty good. With the main course, Alex didn't like the pickles or whatever and passed it on to Jack, who in turn passed it on Charles. So the guys at our table number 13:

• Me
• Alex
• Jack
• Charles
• Paul T
• Gough
• Ru Yang
• Lesley
• Tan
• Albert

Then the night followed its predictable pattern of dancing, talking, drinking, repeat. The dancefloor was a tad small though. Everytime you tried to dance, you ended up elbowing someone in the back or someone does that to you.

Eventually, like all good things, the night came to an end. It was fun while it lasted. Kathy's dad was nice enough to give me a lift home. A shower later and near 1am, I went to sleep but it was difficult. The caffeine from the Coke and coffee kept me awake and the fun times kept my mind awake. It was fun Sefton High. It was definately fun.

Diversion Inversion V

Tomorrow is Another Day

So it was thanks to other people's blogs that I realised that the formal was next Monday. And now I'm looking towards that day (or should I say night?) with a mixture of anticipation, dread and sorrow. Anticipation because I have a chance to meet my friends one last time, in case I never see them again. Dread because it means I have to actually dress up and get there and back. Sorrow, because after that night, some people I will probably never see again.

Seriously though, guys have it easier at the formal. I mean, we were a suit, maybe gel our hair, spray a little deo and that's it. But the girls have it tougher with the makeup, dresses and whatnot. I don't envy them. Transportation is a minor obstacle. I'll probably take a train to Wynard, that's easy. It's the going home part that's more difficult. Some girls solved it by staying the night in a hotel, others are going to drive and some will stay at friend's place. Seeing that the formal ends at midnight and I don't have any intention of leaving early (I mean, come on, it is the formal here!) I'll probably take a taxi, share the bill with a few others. Get back at like 1am? Damn. I bet the guys playing World of Warcraft will probably decided to jump on and play until the next morning.

A couple of movies caught my eye today. The Prestige looks really cool. Well, most things involving magic is pretty cool. But a tale of magician friends outdoing each other in tricks, with plenty of betrayl and hate? Now that's cool. Also saw the trailer for the new James Bond movie Casino Royale. While the last Bond film, Die Another Day, was meh, this one looks cool. Apparently, it's a reboot of the francise, similar to Batman Begins. But there's no Q and M is still played by Judi Dench. Hmmm. My theory is that James Bond is just an alias given to all 007s. So this guy is a new 007 and it's his first time as "James Bond".

And have so seen the opening? No naked ladies and it still looks fucking amazing!

Under A Sky So Blue...

Just got back from hiking. It was only a one-nighter, but it showed that everyone, except maybe Jack, was a little bit out of shape. It was hella fun though.

We meet at Lidcombe Station at 8am, only to find that a whole bunch of people had decided not to go at the last minute. So our group consists of:

• Me
• Alex H
• Jack
• Charles
• Raymond L
• Harry
• Lesley

We hop on the train to Central, then change lines and head to Heathcote. Once there, Jack tells us that there are no fires allowed and Ray starts getting anxious about lighting, since he didn't bring his torch. So before Charles and Jack walk into town to buy food, he tells Charles to buy a torch. Charles bought a $22 torch using most of his money and Raymond's. Complaining ensures, and so by the time we actually head to the campsite, it's 10:30am.

It was 4.5km to camp over rough hilly terrain. And this is where pretty much everyone struggles. Walking 5kms is nothing. Walking 5kms over rough terrain and a 15kg pack is a whole different story. We take breaks every 15 mins, and by the time we reach the campsite, it's 1pm. It took us 2.5hrs to get there which is pretty crap by Duke of Ed standards. But the fun starts at the campsite.

After taking a quick break, we start setting up our tents. I'm on my own, Charles and Lesley are a tent, Raymond and Harry are in another and Jack and Alex make up the final group. But when Alex pulls out the tent, he only find the outer layer, it's missing the inner layer, the pole and the pegs. Apparently, Alex had lent the tent to Helen and when she returned it, she probably forgot to check that all the stuff was there. So there was this "Oh, shit" moment with Jack and Alex. It was settled that Jack would bunk with Charles and Lesley, and Alex would bunk with Harry and Raymond, because they have 3-man tents.

Mobile phone reception was bad, but Alex managed to call Helen to ask where the heck the ret of his tent was. The missing tent was fustrating, but Alex and Jack were pretty cool with it, so there was no real yelling involved, just a "I'm missing half my tent, yeah". The rest of the day was spent milling around, resting and eating dinner. By nightfall we had retreat to our tents to talk. Harry and Alex were playing Uno, and other stuff, while the rest of us crammed into Charles/Lesley/Jack's tent to talk. We talked about a diverse range of topics, qith some honesty. The policy is similar to drama room policy. What is said in the tent, stays in the tent. So it was nice to be somewhat frank and not worry about what your said being spread around the world.

The final day, today, was much better, because we were travelling on a fire trail, where fire trucks would use in a bushfire. So the road was wide and flat with a sprinkling of gentle uphill sections. It was 6kms to Waterfall and we did it in under two hours. We ducked in a shop for fish and chips before heading home.

The walking part of the hike was difficult as always, and the lack of the usual luxuries made life a little more harder than usual. Right now, my legs have just stopped aching, but my shoulders are burning with a dull pain. However, it is after these hikes, that I really appreciate the luxuries that civilisation provides. Clean running water, a soft, warm bed and electricity. All of them are more appreciated. I don't know if there will ever be another hike, but if there is, everyone is warmly invited.

Jack took several photos on this trip. Once he has rested up, he'll probably post them on his blog.

To sleep! And perchance to dream.

Death's the final word

I managed to get all the clearance things done on Thursday. I did forget my BOS Stimulus Booklet, but instead of returning later, I just paid 5 bucks. It wasn't worth the hassle of going back and then returning tomorrow.

I had planned to spend the next few months taking it easy, and grab my P's before Christmas. Besides the planned hike, I don't have anything else to do. Or so I thought. Now that I have had a couple of days to relax, I realise that something to keep me busy would be nice. That was when, after the HSC, I bought a PS2 and a few games. But you can only play for so long, and the fact that my parents don't know about it, ruins the playing experience. But that endeavour has pulled me flat broke, and like many other post-HSCer, I'm thinking of finding a temp job. Something for a month or two, so I can have some cash to use.

And the fact that eventually we'll all be going to Uni and paying the fees means I'll have to get a tax file number. And I now regret not getting one earlier. My dad said don't worry about so early, but now seeing that it requires original documents and takes up to 28 days to clear, I regret my earlier decision. Hmmm...this is going to take some thought.

As for the job, I have a couple in mind. The best one seems to be a 3 day temp doing stocktakes. They didn't list the pay, but I'm thinking it's not going to be that high. At best, I'll probably get a couple of hundred. The other is a more long term temp, going into Christmas and may even offer permanent casual jobs. More money in the long term, but more work. Decisions, decisions.

Yearbook is cool. I mean, I knew it was going to be cool, but this was way cool. I had a lot of fun reading articles and other people's thoughts. Someone put the poem Jack and I wrote for English. It's nice, although I didn't expect that. I didn't think it was that good or anything.

I have finally finished watching all of Trigun. Usually I'd take the Japanese audio with English subs, but it had the English dub which was fair enough. Its mix of comedy and seriousness was perfect. The ending is a little open-ended, but I hear the manga is still going. That's like definately at least 10 years.

Besides House, I'm also watching Heroes and Torchwood. They're suffering a bit, since I have Final Fantasy X to play on my PS2 and Sudeki on my PC. I'll probably just keep updating House.

Damn it, I'm going to have to vote in the upcoming state election. That's one part I hate about being 18. The responsibility that comes with the age.

The Big Schwarz

I remember having a Chemistry substitute teacher who would say that Google is crap because it is not a "meta-search engine" and that it could not find some tiny obscure Vietnamese town. Instead he recommend the use of meta-search engines such as Dogpile and Mamma and a whole bunch of other obscure engines.

However, there is a reason we should use Google and that is because it's very powerful. Very powerful. So powerful, that it can give the answer to Life, the Universe and Everything. Don't believe me? Take a look down.
On another note, I'm not selling any textbooks or notes because they are all going to my brother to use. And Final Fantasy X has too many cutscenes for my liking.

HSCompleted

That's all I have to say.

Distracted Reactions

For some reason, I don't really want to study for Chemistry anymore. Now I have this strange urge to go and do some ironing.

For the seventh time

I must confess some love for SBS. When all the other channels are showing some crap shows, you can switch to SBS and watch something interesting or mindblowing or a combination of both. But I'm not talking about those really weird foreign films that throw borderline porn when you parents enter the room. Everyone knows about those films, but your parents walking and seeing that questionable scene can be hard to explain (as someone else knows so well, P.)

I'm talking about a series that is up there with the best. I mean there's Chaser's War on Everything, Glasshouse, House, Doctor Who and Thank God You're Here. I'm talking Mythbusters. No other show on Earth makes science so fun. It answers the questions that we really need to know, like can paint your house using dynamite and how much blasting agent you need to completely demolish a cement truck or using salsa sauce to escape from jail.

In doing Physics, Chemistry and Biology, there are definately fun and interesting bits. Mythbusters takes these three sciences and puts them in a blender. A myth pops up, they test the myth, replicate the effect usually with explosions and then you learn something new. I think there was another similar kind of show called Brainaic. However, they only focused on big booms and hot chicks with a tiny bit of science sprinkled around. I mean it couldn't compete with Mythbusters and now I don't see it anymore.

In other news, Glasshouse is being axed! Shock! I really wish I discovered this series earlier because it's so funny and informative. It's days were probably numbered when the ABC decided to go unbiased in all its programs. Comedy is so hard to come by. Skithouse was funny for a while, but as the program went on, it didn't really get any funnier. It was like there was a asymptotic line in which no comedy program could break free. But. There was a program that was funny and got better with each episode. I'm talking "The Sketch Show". Now that was some British comedy that didn't really on stupid people doing stupid things, but focused more on wordplay and absurdism. Unfortunately, the internet is showing a distinct lack of files relating to this program. I just hope there is a DVD series somewhere.

Only Chemistry left to go. Then 3 months will nothing to do. Nah, I guess I'll find something to keep my mind busy. I mean, Doctor Who will be coming back and I've discovered a new series that I like. It's called Heroes. Search the net. Find it. Watch it.

Hook, Line and Sinker

Amusing Star Wars quote I found:

Wedge: "Sithspit! What's that?"

Wes: "That's the sun, Wedge. It's after dawn."

Wedge: "Well, it offends me. Turn it off."

Obviously, it's part of the novel range (or Expanded Universe) of Star Wars, but it made me smile.

I had to go shopping today with my mum. I needed a new cap, because my old one is tattered and faded due to constant and repeated exposure to extreme weather and sea water. I also needed new shorts for the beach. It would have been a quick "in-and-out" exercise, but my mum got distracted and ended up buying a whole bunch of other clothes for my dad and brother, a new bag for her, some makeup things..zzzz....zzzz....and a whole bunch more. But as we left, my mum went to buy some chicken for lunch, it was $8 for one and $14 for two. We talking about buying the BBQ chicken and some Asian guy next to us asked if we would mind buying two chickens and split the cost 50-50, because he wanted some chicken as well. End result? We saved $1 on the BBQ chicken. Must be an Asian thing.

Why is it that the really good books are in a series? I popped into Dymocks to check out the sci-fi and fantasy section, and there were plenty of books, but they were always part of a trilogy of some sort. Now I saw this book, can't remember the details, but it was massive. It made Wild Swans look small. Or better yet, it made Le Morte D'Arthur look like a brochure. It was big and it was part of a trilogy with two books that were equally as big! I mean, come on, chuck us a decent one-shot, something we can finish in a week or two.

So I have only two exams left, Bio and Chem, and what decides to pop up, but House Season 3. God, I love this show, and I'm constantly on edge waiting for the next episode to make it out onto the internet. Heroes is another great show. It's about a few people developing super powers and has the shady, mysterious, morally ambigious guy who seems to know more than everyone else. Check that out. I've been watching Avatar: The Last Airbender on Youtube, but no new episodes have appeared in a month. Dammit, release that next ep! The fact that they model the bending on real Chinese martial arts is so cool. Naruto is still on crappy filler arc, and so it Bleach, but its fillers are less crap, so I'm still watching it.

My collection of comics are slowed to a mere trickle as all the comic artists are way past their deadlines. It is supposed to be an issue a month! Not 6 months late! Just for the heck on it, here's a list:

• Alan Moore's Top Ten
• Codename Knockout
• Danger Girl
• Gen13
• Hunter-Killer
• Metal Gear Solid
• Neil Gaiman's 1602
• New Avengers (ongoing)
  
• Shanna the She-Devil
• Superman and Batman (ongoing)
  
• X-Factor v3 (ongoing)
  
• Ultimate Universe
• Ultimate Daredevil and Elektra
• Ultimate Elektra
• Ultimate Fantastic Four (ongoing)
  
• Ultimate Galactus Saga
• Ultimate Spiderman (ongoing)
  
• Ultimate Wolverine vs Hulk (ongoing)
• Ultimate X-Men (ongoing)
  
• The Ultimates v1 and v2 (ongoing)

Also, I'm trying to get all 26 episodes of Trigun. It's around 5gigs and I'll probably start getting it after the Chem exam. And John Legend's new album Once Again is mega hella awesome. Get it and listen to it, especially the first single Save Room.

JUST TWO MORE EXAMS TO GO!

Diversion Inversion IV

A computer lets you make more mistakes faster than any other human invention in history…with the possible exception of handguns and tequila.
-Mitch Ratcliffe

People are like stained-glass windows. They sparkle and shine when the sun is out, but when the darkness sets in, their true beauty is revealed only if there is a light from within.
-Elizabeth Kubler-Ross

I like the stars…it’s the illusion of permanence.
I can pretend that things last...that lives last longer than moments.
-Neil Gaiman's Sandman: Brief Lives

There is nothing to fear, except fear itself?

Physics was alright. I was expecting some really hard questions, especially for astrophysics, but it wasn't that hard. For other physics devotees, what did you write for that magnet falling on copper, cooled to -50 degrees C? I don't think the copper would be a superconductor at that temp...I just threw in Meissner Effect since I have no idea.

Maths exam on Monday. It's alright, but I know that I'm more or less screwed for Maths3U. Still, I'll just do as many questions as possible and ride that one out. Bio and Chem are last. I think I'll be alright for Bio, but I can't seem to be able to get my head around Chem. All the stuff I have to remember...did the past papers pretty badly though, so I might chuck in some extra revision time for that.

Now here's an idea that the Board of Studies should consider:
Jack: hows your study going?
Me: cool
Jack: lol
Jack: your the only one who seems to be enjoying it
Jack: I say they should ban all studying
Me: yeah no study for hsc
Me: you pass on what you remember over the past 2 years
Jack: damn rite
Jack: and if you study, instand NSA
Me: yeah
Jack: you made a non serious attempt at not studying!
Me: hsc would be so much cooler with no studying allowed

HELL YEAH! NO STUDY FOR HSC, BIATCHES!!!
Seriously, if that concept ever got voted in, the HSC would be more competitive, since no study is allowed! It will be a whole new revolution in examinations. Students getting zeroes because they studied. No cramming, no stress, just walk in and do your best! Hey, that should be the slogan.

We Are the Strange

Monsters Inc meets The Nightmare before Christmas inside of a retro Japanese videogame.

Game on

I'll be posting during the HSC. Don't expect anything long. It'll probably be a few words and maybe some interesting picture/s that caught my eyes. So good luck, everyone. Although some won't need luck. They'll probably need a miracle. Or two. Or three.

Diversion Inversion III

Down the Home Stretch

HSC in close, very close now. I've got my last-minute study tables in order, though hopefully, I've successful know everything. Just practical experience, so I'll probably do past papers.

Actively avoided study today. I'm definitely feeling...something. Something like nervousness mixed with anticipation. It's not a good feeling, but not a bad one. Anyway, Youtube became my saviour today as I discovered someone had uploaded the entire series of Evangelion. It's the english dub, which is passable, but it's so cool to see giant mecha battle it out with the Angels. I've downloaded some clips, mainly of Unit-01 going beserk. Good it's just so cool when Unit-01 goes berserk. And the music for those scenes fit perfectly. I gotta find a soundtrack.

My family has plans to go to Frasier Island, off Queensland during the holidays. Most likely the beginning of January for a week or so. I don't think any important stuff happens then. Since we'll be making the journey by car (yes, we're that hardcore) I'm tempted to buy a PSP for the journey. I might have to dip into my savings, but it won't burn my pockets too deep. Anybody, know any good games to recommend? Preferbly RPG types?

Last test for my is the Chemistry HSC exam on the 10th of November. Can't wait.

Diversion Inversion II

Diversion Inversion

This is SPARTA!!!

Can you say cool? This looks like to be the best movie since Sin City. Grab the trailer of the official site or Apple trailers, fullscreen, max volume with max bass. This is definately something to watch in the cinemas.

Male Restroom Etiquette

A nice little diversion.

Leave this academic factory...

There's nothing quite like the feeling of finally being uncapped. Broadband is so cool, until you're capped and you have to agonisingly wait for days until the next month rolls over. I feel the need...the need for speed....

Besides all that, graduation was alright. I mean, we got crappy certs, but this is a public school. I really like the keyring. It's a nice little token, definitely a keeper. After the graduation, there was many a photo taken and a tear cried. The best part was when a godly part of the grade lined up on the basketball courts in a massive group. That was fun.

A thousand photos later, and a million words later (cos a picture is worth a thousand words), Jack, Lesley, Simon, Kenson and I drove off to bowling. I played a pretty crappy game, but then again, I've always been crappy at bowling. Except that one time when I got 3 strikes in a row and managed a 190ish. We dashed back early for the luncheon, with a change of clothes at the bowling centre and were shocked to find ourselves underdressed. Several of the girls definitely put a lot of effort into their dresses. Soon, my shirt and cargo pants faded softly from view. Well, at least I wasn't the only one underdressed.

Luncheon was anticlimatic. We came. We ate. We talked. The food was excellent though. A water bomb fight broke out, but the teachers weren't up to the task to telling those involved off. I mean, last day come on. After luncheon, a bunch of us travelled to Birrong Park for some sport. Jack, Kevin Tran and I went to get some drinks with Kevin driving. He's good, at least he doesn't turn the corners as quickly as Jack, although Jack keeps saying that Carolyn is a crazy driver. Anyway, he reversed parked and Kevin nudged the back of the front car, resulting in a slightly dented license plate. Nothing that could be fixed with a little elbow grease and headlight fluid.

Soccer went well, but then people left. Jack got me with a water bomb, splashing me in the back. I'm gonna get you back, Jack!

Watched the DVD of our kick-ass concert, thanks to Gough. Some of the jokes were 'meh', but the gravity one went down really well. Maybe too well. I ended up looking like a complete moron. Just so you know:
S: Well, you know how gravity is cruel and unpredictable mistress...
P: No it isn't, it's a constant all around the world, dumbo.
(crowd jeers and I look like an utter idiot)
Thanks Phuong for making me look dumb. My legacy to Sefton High.

Apparently the MCing went down better than I thought. Most students I talked to liked it and the teachers enjoyed it a lot. As I was handing in the note in the morning, Petersen said I did a good job, which was suprising. So there. The jokes weren't that lame.

Phuong has started blogging. That's a good sign. More blogs for me to read and procrastinate.

Land, I do not enthusiastically make "Land" jokes all the time. I enthisiastically make "Land" jokes with Jack some of the time. Now that is something that I'll miss. He made those first jokes and it kind of carried on from there. And we keep joking about it, because you do nothing to stop it. If you swung a textbook at Jack or me, then maybe we'll stop.

Yes, Jack, you do take the corners too fast for my liking. It's not that you're a bad driver. It's a little too fast for me. And I know for sure that you're no Schumacher.

Obviously most of the teachers were talking about the "Kylie Minogue" act which had 15+ guys in skirts. In the office, MacPhearson was saying how she never expected that Lesley...er...had that side in him. It's definately a talking point for a while.

Yay! Sefton High School is Wikipedia. Click here to read the completely honest, objective and unbiased article.