the will to do, the soul to dare.

the famous quote from the law society of UM.

i'm not thinking about UM today. buhbye car policies and law society disappointments. just for today.

i'm thinking about the things i've recently found the need to pray for. something someone said some time ago (i think it was years ago) dropped by to say hi to me brain a few days ago.

"when young people nowadays say they'll pray about a relationship,
they still SMS and talk to each other on MSN.
how is that seeking God's will?"

interesting.

random thought: did anyone ever tell them, when they were younger,

"when young people nowadays say they'll pray about a relationship,
they still snail-mail each other.
how is that seeking God's will?"

maybe a few years from now, i'd be saying,

"when young people nowadays say they'll pray about a relationship,
they still hologram each other.
how is that seeking God's will?"

uncle rod spoke very well today, i think. not so much his first two points, but more of his third point. that itself is an entire blog post, but for now, i shall comply with the overall theme of this post (because shaun is waiting to check some MU thing online).

uncle rod said that jacob was a strange man. he prayed to God like mad. but once he was done with meeting God, he planned and schemed like mad, to achieve what he prayed for.

some say that that is the right thing to do:

work like everything depends on you,
pray like everything depends on God.

but i would prefer to follow joseph's principle:

work because you can,
pray because He can.

i feel like i sudah terpesong sedikit.

but yeah. why should prayer and our effort be two different things?

waiting is one of the most difficult things to do. especially when you don't know what you're waiting for. or if you're not sure if what you're waiting for has actually passed you by. like when i used to wait for dad to come pick me up in school. ah.

let alone waiting on the invisible God that we do not see, whose presence is often only felt by those who profess to believe in Him.

but.

praying still.

i should stop.

"and i know that, even when i'm gone, they'll always be able to look back and say, 'remember when we...'"

- dying man in oprah's Big Give

and then i had to go and let myself be seduced into watching America's Got Talent.

middle guy handsome. hee.

one particular act struck me hard, and that was the Voices of Glory, a singing group of three siblings. the judges asked: "what inspired you to sing?"

the oldest (16) answered:

"three years ago, my mum got into a car accident with a drunk driver. the three of us stayed by her bedside just to comfort her and to try to see if she would respond, because at the time, she was in a coma. She was in a coma for eight months, and we just started singing to her and singing to all the other people in the hospital, and it just went on from there."

the air in the hall was so still i could feel it through the VLC player.

and then there were so many other people with so many stories, hopes and dreams. one illusionist and his wife barely made it through, and i could see that he was in pieces behind the brave smile he tried to put on, as he waited for the panel's decision. i daresay they made it out of sympathy. as they went backstage to their little kids, one of the little ones said, "mummy! you made it!" and mummy smiled and replied, "never give up."

it's a recurring theme (even back then) in my brain cells, even when i'm in section 17 picking three lauk for lunch.

i believe this was what The Prince and the Pauper was trying to tell us - that it's just so amazing that two of the same kind can lead such different lives.

some of us plan for our future, some of us even wait for it. people like us have a future we dream and hope for that we believe we can shape. we have that capacity. because we have the means. because we have tomorrow, the day after tomorrow, and many tomorrows.

we don't realize that the bulk of our kind are just hoping to make it past today.

we sing, "if tomorrow never comes" and conclude that we must appreciate today.

what if...

today never comes?

we don't have such a song because those who sing it don't have the means to make it known. and those who do, don't notice it.

Therefore do not worry about tomorrow,
for tomorrow will worry about itself.
Each day has enough trouble of its own.

matthew 6:34

perhaps the verse was never merely about appreciating today.

yet another care group.

"hee, uncle, can i take a picture of the baby?"

-er, no, i dunno this uncle or his baby-

care groups - or CGs, as they're more fondly known - come in all shapes and sizes.

there're those serious types, where Bible study is central to the meetings; the casual types, where members get together to do casual things like talk and go out; the close-knit types, where personal sharing is the core of the group; and well, the combo types, where you have more than one of the above.

my CG in the PJ church is an EW type. no, not ewww.

i received an email from my CG leader today (purple words mine):

Keith, CG Leader

Hi Kawan kawan,

Salam sejahtera dan selamat pagi. Semalam kami bercadang untuk menonton filem animasi Disney Pixar, "Ke atas" ["Up"] yang sedang di tayangkan sekarang di semua pawagam di lembah Klang. Kalau saudara semua sudi mengambil kesempatan untuk menonton filem ini sila 'RSVP' secepat mungkin melalui SMS atau emel supaya saya boleh membeli ticket ataupun Adrian sudi menempah ticket di laman web (Boleh tak Adrian? Kalau tak boleh saya boleh pergi beli).

Buat pada masa ini, Tropicana City Mall akan menayangkan "ke atas" pada pukul 1025malam. Saya tahu masa in agak lewat tetapi filem ini hanya mengambil masa 1 jam 46 minit, walaubagaimanapun saya ingin mencadangkan pawagam yang lain ia itu Cineleisure di pusat membeli-belah The Curve, filem tersebut akan ditayangkan pada pukul 915malam.

Tolong beritahu secepat mungkin. Sekian.

Keith Chin.

being the loyal rakyat that we are, and taking after our fearless leader's example, today's correspondence was *proudly =D* done in the national language.

Benny

Ini untuk Jumaat kan?

Maaf, tapi LO dan I besar kemungkinan tak boleh. Angela dengan tiga monyetnya akan berlepas balik ke Tokyo hari Sabtu dan kita mesti menziarahi mereka hari Jumaat.

Sekian,

bk

Keith

Bukan untuk hari Jumaat. Hari Jumaat kami akan makan malam dan berdoa.

Filem "Ke atas" untuk hari ini.

Adrian

Jikalau aktiviti hari ini menjadi, kita akan berbuka puasa pada hari Jumaat ini dan sembahyang dalam nama Yesus Kristus kerana terdapat banyak orang yang mengambil kesempatan pada hujung minggu ini (sempena hari perayaan merdeka) untuk menyinggah ke tempat asal mereka untuk menjenguk keluarga masing masing.

Jadi pada hari yang mulia ini, kita akan cuba menyonton wayang untuk hajat melegakan rasa kesengsaraan yang terkumpul dalam minggu kerja ini.

Janganlah tersipu-sipu dan tolong mengesahkan kedatangan kamu.

Sekian terima kasih.

Benny

Maaf – hari ini, kita ada Grup Kasih-Kongsi. [Care Group]

Sila berseronok tanpa kami...

bk

Adrian

Pengkhianat!

Benjamin & Janice

Saudara dan saudari sekalian,

Bagi pihak saya dan isteri saya, kami merasa amat besar hati and berterima kasih atas jemputan untuk menonton wayang bersama saudara dan saudari sekalian, lebih-lebih lagi wayang kartun yang berunsur moral yang memang sesuai pada bulan yang mulia ini.

Akan tetapi, kami, dengan penuh rasa kesal, tidak akan dapat menyertai rombongan wayang tersebut. Kami berharap anda semua akan terus berseronok menonton wayang malam ini tanpa kehadiran kami.

Namun begitu, sukacita kami memaklum bahawa kami akan dapat bersama berbuka puasa dan menjamu selera bersama saudara-saudari sekalian pada malam Jumaat ini.

Kepada saudara Keith dan Adrian, sila maklumlah kami mengenai waktu dan tempat jamuan tersebut setelah ia ditetapkan (bergantung kepada anak bulan?).

Sekian terima kasih.

Lareina

Fuiyo. Juara muktamad berbahas bahasa melayu (golongan pisang cina) adalah Benjamin Low. Tangan ke bawah. [Hands down] Tiada kontes.

Desmond

Kepada rakan-rakan sekumpulan Kasih Kongsi,

Anda mungkin akan memarahi saya dan ching sze, tetapi kami akan menonton tayangan gambar "Atas" di Mall Bandar Tropicana malam ini juga pada pukul 8.20 mlm.

Kalau Adrian dan Keith juga berada di sana, kita boleh berjumpa and pergi ke OUG untuk tau fu jauh [tau fu fah] lepas itu...

Saya juga tidak dapat menghadiri perjumpaan di hujung minggu ini. Sekian.

Yang benar,

desmond dan cs

Adrian

Teramat kesal atas perbuatan mejijikkan ini.

Gabriel

Wah, saya berasa amat gembira setelah balik ke tanahair yang tercinta ini dan juga bangga sebagai warganegara Malaysia dan yang terpenting ada saudara-saudari macam kamu semua yang begitu happening..

Desmond

Selamat sejathera saudara Gabe,

happening=menjadi.

i wanna watch UP. =) *hint hint hint hint hint*

p/s: EW = Electronic + Weird

tuesday the new blue monday.

Monday

9 am - 10 am | Constitutional Law (Lecture) Dr Johan

11 am-12 pm | Administrative Law (Tutorial) Pn Sri Devi

12 pm - 1 pm | Land Law (Lecture) Prof Grace

2 pm - 3 pm | Family Law (Tutorial) Cik Su

Admin Law tutorial is the fun-nest tutorial ever, because there is much freedom to speak in class and stuff like Louis having his name changed to Aristortle happen. and Family Law... well, tutorial's not as exciting, but it's interesting and un-pressurizing. unlike the other class we all know about with the insane tutor. *shudder*

gone are the blue monday days! i feel happy and lively every monday. ^_^

Tuesday

9 am - 10 am | Criminal Law (Lecture) Dr Jal

10 am-11 am | Administrative Law (Lecture) Dr Gan

11 am-12 pm | Conflicts of Law (Lecture) Dr Azmi

12 pm - 2 pm | Family Law (Lecture) Datin *shudder*

3 pm - 4 pm | Constitutional Law (Tutorial) Dr Johan

4 pm - 6 pm | Oral Skills for Law (English) Ms Gill

boleh mati. i was already quite worn out by 11.30am, actually. it was only dr azmi's french jokes that kept me alive. in english class, by the time i'd written my critical submission of that newspaper article and re-copied it for my reading pleasure, i was half-dead.

oh ya.

6.30 pm - 9.30 pm | Law CG

tired much actually.

we compartmentalize people and devise formulas to deal with them.

we think we can spend less time with Christians
than with those we're sharing the Gospel with;
we think a person is hopeless - "just let God work in him"
- anything that doesn't require more time.
i used to spend two days a week for two years with this Christian guy.
and every time we met, if it was anything less than three hours,
it was too short.
when i first became a Christian, this guy told me:
"call me any time of the day, any time of the night"
and every time i called him with my questions, no matter how late it was,
he was there.
and that helped.

- uncle carl wilson, canadian missionary.

how often we forget - sometimes, time is the best gift we can give people. it's easy to give material things, because we give what we can afford, and each gives according to his capacity.

but everybody has the same number of hours a day - 24. just 24. if we could give some of that to another, then that means something.

and time is something you carry with you everywhere you go. think about it - every time you spend time with someone, or send your friend to his tutorial class, or talk to someone new although you don't feel like it at all, you're actually saying:

"here. i give you my time."

i still feel like a pew-warmer in church sometimes. here in pj, i mean. i wish i could do more, and i wish i knew how.

and here i am as a 'senior' in the law cg, although i don't feel like one at all. what's first-year and second-year la. i've just been in the faculty a little longer. the syllabus changes all the time. so do the activities and events. what i knew is no longer what i should know. we're all starting out on the same foot.

my piano fingers and Bible knowledge don't look like they're leaving my pouch. as hard as i look, i can't seem to place them anywhere. so i've just got to do what i can do, and give what i can give.

at this point, all i have is my time.

so yeah. wiped-out today at cg, but God gave me the strength to smile and say today,

here, have some time.

you're mine.

er ya. "you belong with me" is essentially the same thing as "you're mine". ahaha.

hwei swoons not once, not twice, not thrice... (don't know how you say it the fourth time)

i wish i had a guy like that living next door. ah.

unfortunately, i only have the doctor from university hospital in tiara and the noisy mechanics in malacca.

life isn't fair. T_T

august 23. finally.

i finally, finally gave shaun the MU shirt i bought in january. plus the david beckham book. which he says he'll give daniel after he reads it. -_-!

anyway.

i can finally, finally blog about this conversation i had with desmond in church one fine sunday:
(note: we were whispering throughout, because it was during the worship session)

i think i ruined his mood to worship. =P

yup, i still exist.

how long have i gone without the internet?

i proudly declare that it's been a week! ^_^

see, see, i'm not addicted to the internet anymore. lalala.

and i was recently showered with many line-less journals, so my journals make up for not being able to blog. and ya, i have more than one journal. there's the personal journal for personal stuff, the blog journal for when i think of something bloggable, the spiritual diary for when i do my Quiet Time, and the random journal for when i just need to write something.

if you think that is so lebih (public: we think it's a great waste of paper), take a look at the folders in my laptop and you won't think so anymore. aha.

anyways.

i don't like blogging on this computer. so i'll trust dad when he says the wireless network has recovered, and scoot over to my room to blog on my laptop. if you don't see any updates, that means... the network isn't recovered la.

buhbye.

i wonder how dead my workers are in restaurant city. hmm.

Some say love -
It is a river that drowns the tender reed
Some say love -
It is a razer that leaves your soul to blead

Some say love -
It is a hunger, an endless aching need
I say love -
It is a flower, and you it's only seed.

It's the heart afraid of breaking that never learns to dance,
It's the dream afraid of waking that never takes the chance,
It's the one who won't be taken who cannot seem to give,
And the soul afraid of dying that never learns to live.

When the night has been too lonely,
And the road has been too long,
And you think that love is only
For the lucky and the strong
Just remember in the winter,
Far beneath the bitter snows,
Lies the seed
That with the sun's love,
In the spring
...Becomes the rose.

- Bette Midler, "The Rose"


mediocre melody. her words save the song.

in a nutshell.

1. feeling utterly patriotic, i watched Setem. (english = stamp)

2. i like malaysian movies that don't overplay humour or downplay the malaysian culture.

3. indians are funny. ^_^

4. there was a dude named piranha lim. why lim. ish. (public: er. what about the piranha?)

5. featured malacca's Heeren Street and asam pedas! malacca rocks. *bangga*

6. there were like four almost-endings in the movie. while it was amusing, it made me want to smack my forehead. ahaha.

7. did i mention that indians are funny?

8. watch the trailer.

9. thanks. =)

the scattered brain of the scatterbrain.

"Hwei, do you know that there is Vox meeting today, now? Are you able to come?"

-ruth tan, via shocking sms

read two hours after i missed

my. first. vox. magazine. meeting.-

"So you're going for Gadoh tomorrow right?"

"Ga... doh...?"

"Ya, tomorrow is Tuesday wat."

-zhen qi @ liverpool-

"Tse Hwei, you're going for the Saturday thing right?"

"???"

"Tu, the Malaysian Student Leaders Summit. It's this Saturday. You know right?"

-lim bee san-

"Tse Hwei, so you're staying back today right?"

"Har. For what."

"Your PKV thing!"

"What PKV thing?"

"CG laaaaa."

"Oh? Oh. OH."

-chelsea-

And the absolute worst:

"Tse Hwei, when are you going back to Malacca?"

"For what?"

"SEM BREAK LA!!!"

-i can't remember the exact number of people

i had this conversation with d-

Terrible.

I'm not a respecter of dates / deadlines. >.< (amreeta: "aiyaks! die! i'm in your mooting group!")

And that's why I usually choose to be a non-committal background worker. ^_^"

But I can get extremely domineering when I'm in a leadership position, and that's about the only time I give due regard to deadlines. Don't like the dual personality.

So again:

That's why I usually choose to be a non-committal background worker. ^_^"

your choice is not the end.

you wonder if the person holding your hand will ever let go someday. thus you expect too much. or perhaps the blind eye you turn becomes one too many.

you wonder how and when death will claim you. thus you fear death.

you wonder what it is like to know that second is your last second on earth. thus you hold on to all that you have. sometimes you hold on to more. you refuse others what you could have gladly offered.

you wonder if your efforts will pay off - if your revolution will indeed be, a revolution. thus you shrink into your little world of fairies and happy endings. no, you say you don't believe in fairies and happy endings, but when you decide not to venture into uncharted seas, you are afraid that you will be robbed of your happy ending.

we wonder, wonder and wonder. sometimes we call ourselves great thinkers, deliberaters - rational, logical, careful people. when in reality we are but cowards. people afraid of making a choice that becomes The Great End.

if we could only ponder why youth - the strongest bunch - are also the most reckless bunch.

no other branch of our kind - the humans - possesses both the mental and physical strength to accomplish great things without fear or favour.

my cousin chor yeow once said that with age, he becomes increasingly fearful of the things he once relished. in this case, bungee-jumping.

but this empowerment within the young self is often used for the young self and none other.

sigh.

if we could only move.

bus adventure #3.

i sent this to mpmum@um.edu.my. went to Legend Hotel to meet family cuz sis' convocation was today, so i couldn't update the blog for three days. now that i can, kinda lazy. =P so some copy-pasting here. still an original piece ok.

7 AUGUST 2009 (FRIDAY)
Report #1:
• Location: Faculty of Law
• Bus Registration Numbers: WJM 5199, WAD 5954, WKG 8444
• Started waiting at: 11.45 AM
• Time(s): 11.55 AM, 11.55 AM, 11.58 AM, respectively

• Comments:
1. I waited 15 minutes under the hot sun because the bus stop at the Faculty of Law has no shade to stand under except the big tree which won’t do very much to help on a rainy day (I can’t emphasize this enough).

2. The buses did not stop for me. In my three days’ worth of surveying, I noticed the buses only stop at the Faculty when there are passengers getting off the bus. Again, clarification needed as to whether the bus stop at the Faculty is for unboarding, or for boarding also. If it is only to drop passengers, then where are we supposed to wait? The Bus Terminal? Again, it is impractical!

3. Suggestion: May I please suggest that the buses stop at the Faculty’s bus stop when there are people waiting? The buses do that for every other stop and I do not understand why they cannot do so for this Faculty.

4. Query: How eye-catching must I be to get the bus to stop? I’m beginning to think I should do the chicken dance. (Sarcasm is due to frustration. Please excuse me.)

5. I gave up waiting and asked my friend to get me so I could get to the Damansara Gate.


Report #2
• Location: 10th RC
• Bus Registration Number: WKG 8428, Jalan 1
• Started waiting at: 12.10 PM
• Time of Bus’ Arrival: 12.15 PM

• Comments:
1. Good. Nothing much to complain about.

2. Except it’s quite inconvenient to have to wobble down the aisle to tell the bus driver to stop at the Faculty. I understand that it would be a stupid idea to ask to install bells in the bus, but can clarification please be made to students from the Faculty so that they know what to do. The Faculty’s students are usually made to get down at the Faculty of Engineering or 2nd RC and walk to the Faculty because they do not know of this. Sometimes they inform the bus driver when they board the bus and he forgets.


Report #3
• Location: Bus stop behind main library
• Bus Registration Number: WJL 5199
• Started waiting at: Er, forgot to record. =P Wasn’t that far from time of arrival.
• Time of Bus’ Arrival: 3.40 PM

• Comments:
1. Good. Nothing much to complain about.

2. Same thing with the absence of bus bells. Had to wobble down the aisle.

promises.

Why do we make promises? If you have the reputation of keeping your word, you don't have to make a promise.

- a friend

msn.

El Sen

u wanna appear on malay mail anot?

public opinion short survey kinda thing.

Me

ahahahah.

sure.

anything for fame.

LOL.

El Sen

do u have a clear photo of ur face?

Me

got.

El Sen

want really really clear n good quality wan wo.

Me

got.

El Sen

wat the...

*gets over it eventually*

El Sen

ok.

the question:

do you think that Malaysia's standard of hygiene, when it comes to food preparation and the like, is adequate to curb the outbreak of H1N1?

Me

nope.

...

El Sen (1:21am)

wei.

elaborate la.

*2 minutes pass*

*handphone rings*

El Sen: wei. elaborate laaaaaaa.

Me: k, k, k, wait ar. gonna elaborate.

.

.

.

Me (1:23am)

because we're not good cooks.

=P

*handphone rings*

*laughter on the other end*

GADOH.

LEAD CHARACTER = HANDSOME --> HWEI = *SWOON*

oh. did i say that already?

nevermind. good stuff can say twice wan. ^_^

(i mention only zahiril adzim as the lead character because nicholas davis wasn't there.)

yeah, anyway, the cast and crew were there as well, so we had a Q & A session. i wanted to ask something, but everyone else was talking about racial issues, 1Malaysia etc. plus the lead character was just too handsome la. shy. =P

public: sheesh. just get on with it and write what we're supposed to read.

anyway.

the movie was definitely funny. in a malaysian sort of way. i don't think the foreigners who were there really understood the many little jokes embedded in the movie. overall, it was okay. i couldn't really relate to the school fights, because i grew up in a mostly harmonious all-girls school. also, i thought that the friendship between the gang leaders came round a bit quicker than usual. plus the adorable indian boy was a bit too nice. as chee kean said, there're indian gangs in school too.

but there were two scenes that made me wonder and ponder. and. i can't think of any other word that rhymes. hah.

the first scene was the one i wanted to ask about.

if you don't want spoilers, just slowly raise your left hand, place it gently across your eyes, and begin scrolling down the page with your right hand on your mouse's scroller. =)

it was about one of the malay boys, who'd dropped out of school and joined his kampung gang. they went to taunt the rest who'd stayed on, and then went off to rompak a poor girl beside her little kancil. (i have feelings for people with peroduas) then they went somewhere else to present their ill-gained stuff to the big boss. unsurprisingly, the big boss was. ladida. cannot say. please return to this page and reread this post after you watch the movie. i have the dvd, come get it from me. ^_^

anyway. i wondered about the significance of that entire concept. what message were they trying to get across? with racism, each race only seeks to destroy and consume the other, and suddenly we find that we're caught in a vicious cycle. we don't know why, and we don't know how to stop it. it's a chicken or egg first kind of thing. unless you have Genesis of the Bible which tells you that the chicken came first, you really can't answer the question.

that each of us, proud and majestic in our ketuanan bangsa sendiri, have put ourselves on false pedestals - i was very fascinated by this exposition.

tim nicely ruined the suspense for me by telling me about a lot of the scenes (lala), but the last scene still managed to capture my heart. maybe cuz the main character was central to the scene. =P

no la.

words get to me very easily. kind words. nasty words. sweet. bitter. understanding. judgmental. profound. emotional. unfeeling.

flavours. words have flavours. ^_^

the last scene was just that. i caught the emotion behind the spoken words, and i understood the truth in them. i used to think that i'm okay with people of other races. but then chee kean said, "see who you sit with tomorrow" when he saw the 1Malaysia badge i had.

ouch.

my eyes were opened a little when the medical students talked about how there is polarization among the races in their faculty. i always thought our faculty was doing okay. maybe it's because a firm grasp of the English language is a very strong requirement for survival here. almost everyone speaks English most of the time. Mandarin is for when we whisper non-legal stuff during lectures or go out for lunch/dinner. BM is for short, crisp phrases reserved for the corridors.

aliaa and munirah

i thought the Malays in secondary school spoke good English until i got here. the Malays here speak better English than most Chinese. and so i began my university life speaking English almost all the time. because i look like a banana and people talk to me in English all the time.

chelsea and kock sin

eh excuse me. i can read and write sufficiently in Mandarin ok. bweh.

sane jira and insane amreeta.
(not to say that the adjectives are always attached to the same names =P)

plus the only Tamil i can speak is "na rombe alaga irukane" which is typically self-praise and completely useless for productive conversation.

anyway.

i made a conscious effort to talk to my coursemates in their mother tongues the next day. except my Indian coursemates. that would be going a little beyond. =.=

i realized that i can still speak good Malay, and my Mandarin has improved. *bangga* i thank Mum for her kampung background which rubbed off on us *thanks* and Dad for making me attend six years of Chinese night classes. *reluctant thanks*

i refrained from speaking languages other than English because i felt inferior when i spoke them, not because i worship the English language. spending the past two days speaking the three languages Malacca is supposed to be famous for, i realize that i shouldn't feel that way at all. i don't sound like a total idiot in conversations, or stick out like a sore thumb.

i liked the concept we had for the merdeka parade last year.
we had three mixed groups. difficult to explain. but pokoknya,
i got to dance an Indian dance in a semi-cheongsam. ^_^


simplified version of the merdeka parade concept:
everyone picks their noses, regardless of race and religion.

so yes, GADOH did leave some impact on me.

out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.
- matthew 12:34 -

an apt moment for a literal construction of this verse. =)

Bus Adventure #2

Guess what? The printer in the computer lab downstairs doesn't work. No, it probably works. It just can't work. I may be a techie noob, but I know when a cable doesn't fit into any of the ports in the CPU.

So I went to the lab upstairs. And oh, I forgot to pay for the piece of paper I printed. Yikes. Come to think of it, I also forgot to pay for Monday's Hailam mee goreng in the Cafe. Double yikes. will pay tomorrow! Scatterbrain. Aih.

hainanese food = THE best. ladida~

Passed some coursemates on the way out of the Faculty.

deViolets: "Ada kelas ke?"

me: "tak. nak naik bas."

"pergi mane?"

"saje."

"o_O"

2.45 pm. waited as usual.

I think we should have a PROPER bus stop. This is not a bus stop. This is a piece of wood, on a stake, with a drawing of a bus on it + two words. It's very well-drawn, but I don't think I'll feel the same way on a rainy day.

Anyway.

2.50pm

Rapid KL bus exited KL Gate.

2.55pm

First-year named Izmin walked out. Nothing much happened. I asked him if he sat the bus regularly, he said no, I showed him Stanley Yeo's book on Criminal Law in Malaysia and Singapore...

3.00pm

...And then we watched a UM bus zoom past. No, I didn't get the registration number. I caught "Jalan 2", but that was all. Before I had time to be properly appalled, a "Jalan 1" bus came along: WMG5199.

I boarded the bus and it was crammed like a can of sardine. In that respect, I salute the bus driver for stopping for the two of us, and later, about four more students at the next stop.

Thank God for air-conditioning.

3.20pm

I got down at 11th College. And then muttered, "I may have gotten off at the wrong college" as I trudged to the college next door.

Anyway.

My getting off the bus at that point of time was purely intentional. truly. I wanted to see what it was like - waiting for the bus at 12th.

As it turned out, waiting at 12th wasn't very nice, because I waited 20 minutes before the next bus (WKG8428, Jalan 2) came along. Oh ya, before that:

3.25pm

WJM5809 zoomed by on the other side of the road.

3.44pm

For some strange reason - or maybe I really liked the air-conditioning - I stayed aboard when the bus stopped at the Faculty.

3.47pm

WKG8428 stopped at the bus stop behind the main library. Everyone got off except me and four other students who were holding big sketch pads and some weird-looking rulers. The bus driver told us to get off. The four sheepishly walked past, and when I came to the driver, I naturally said "what up?" His reply was as such:

"Dah berhenti kerja. Tukar orang lain."

Hmm. Don't understand how the shifts work. Does one driver drive around for 45 minutes, then rest the remaining 15 minutes? The bus schedule says that "every bus will do 3 trips / 1 hour".

Anyway.

I was marooned on the lonely island behind the main library.

3.58pm

Amreeta sms-ed and asked if I was still experimenting with the bus because she was already at the foyer and waiting for me to go to Paandi's. I said I'd be back soon.

4.00pm

WQV8769, Jalan 2. A student from China declared that the bus was late. Listening to the two students speak in their musical Mandarin, I felt like I was back on the tour bus in China, listening to the guide and watching the tourists 'nod in silent agreement'.

4.14pm

Someone who smelled like goreng pisang boarded the bus. Sudden craving for goreng pisang.

4.15pm

Faculty of Science. Almost everyone gets off. Driver tells the remnants to get off as well. This one was very polite. He even told the international student where to board another bus, and called, "Terima kasih, adik" when he saw that the clueless me was still glued to my seat. Again, I asked. He replied,

"Nak pergi bengkel."

Bengkel? Kemahiran Hidup bengkel kind of bengkel? *brain was not fit to not think nonsensically* Maybe it was his face that looked so kesian, or maybe it was the shock of being left at the same bus stop yet again, essentially meaning that I was back to square 1 - but I left him alone and got off the bus. Walking over to the bus stop behind the main library, I remembered thinking, "Eh. The bengkel is the one near the Faculty and 1st College izit! -_-"

And so, at 4.15pm, I finally gave up and asked Chelsea to come get me. Good thing I'd had the sense to pass her my carkeys.

And here I apologize to Amreeta, Rubini and Thulsi for making you wait a little. Uh...

Someone asked me why I looked so tired. I said, "I took three buses."

Someone asked why I took three buses. Ah well.

A bit too tired to start explaining all over again. Anyway. You. Readers. You know why, right?

Plus, Kean Kang, you promised to go on the bus tour on Friday with me d. JKOs said in July 2008: "A lawyer's promise is a promise". Ta! =P

tired.

i took three buses today.

tired.

going for dinner.

tired.

need chlorinated water.

tired.

criminal law tutorial. gah.

tired.

oh ya, did i mention that there's a pool in tiara which i can just jump into anytime i want?

not so tired nemore. =P

oh ya! there's a sauna too.

definitely not tired nemore. lalala.

dinner time!

and so i went for the GADOH screening.

i'm going off to print the bus schedule, then go have my almost-daily bus adventure.

so all i'm gonna say about GADOH for now is:

LEAD CHARACTER = HANDSOME --> HWEI = *SWOON*

maybe i just woke up, and am cranky and stuff.

but i'm very irritated.

very, very irritated.

WMT 4902, 3 August 2009, UM Bus Route 1

Family Law tutorial ended at 3.05pm. Made my way to the bus stop, then realized I didn't know what the bus' schedule was like. Ah, bummer.

Went to the computer lab on the ground floor. Closed. Sign said it's open 2.00pm - 5.30pm or something. So, er, what's the problem? Ah, bummer.

Went up to the first floor. Stopped outside the computer lab and remembered the chip in my matric card doesn't work. Couldn't teet my way in. Ah, bummer.

Went downstairs and walked to the library. Pushed past the doors and saw Thulsi. Oh, thank You for loving me, God.

Anyway. Long conversation which I shall cut short, because people are complaining that my blog posts are a bit too long. Tsk.

Me: "*hushed whisper* what. it's the library. i have some respect for conventions ok. What time does the bus come ar?"

Thulsi: "I don't know... there's supposed to be a bus every 15 minutes though."

"So, er, when does the 15 minutes start?"

I decided that since it was 3.15 pm anyway, I'd assume it was a quarterly thing. My little bus adventure is as follows:

3.15 pm

Waited at the faculty's stop.

3.17 pm

Wondered if the bus had already come and gone.

3.20 pm

Watched a shuttle bus and Rapid KL bus exit the KL gate.

3.21 pm

Woohoo, bus finally came. Bus started moving three seconds after I boarded. If I was my usual careless self today, I'd have fallen on my knees in worship of the bus deck.

3.22 pm

Faculty of Engineering.

3.26 pm

Behind the main library.

3.30pm

3rd College.

3.31pm

Akademi Pengajian Melayu.

3.32pm

Faculty of Computer Science and Information Technology.

3.34pm

8th & 10th College.

3.38pm

Akademi Pengajian Islam.

3.40pm

11th & 5th College.

3.43pm

12th College. Talked to the girl who just boarded the bus. She said the bus wasn't punctual today.

3.45pm

Faculty of Law. *teet, turun*

This is what Route 1 looks like, I think. please remember that i am road-blind and extremely blur.

The entire journey took exactly 25 minutes.

The bell was working fine. Well-positioned for short people like me.

The bus schedule should be put up at the bus stops.

Next up is the bus that supposedly goes all the way to the Shell Station in Section 17. I think I'll drive through the Damansara Gate tomorrow and try the bus.

9 am class.

Aargh.

And how to get the two boxes from my buddy?

Aargh.

And a lot of books tomorrow.

Aargh.

Maybe I'll try the bus on Friday instead.

Somebody take the bus with me please? ^_^

the something fun i did to cheer up.

sher-how: "why sad?"

*explained*

aih. i don't want to put it up here la. disappointed beyond words. people are trapped in their self-deception, thinking that we are defined by outward appearances, facades... rather than the way we carry ourselves, which in turn, stems from within. one of the few things that frustrate me and completely ruin my day is the confinement people place themselves in.

life imprisonment in the name of rigidity, tradition, self-deception, self-denial, pride, and the fear of change.

as for me? i fancy myself a lonely activist thrown into solitary confinement.

er ya.

i know this picture

ruins the whole atmostphere.

yeah, i become weirder than my already weird self when i'm frustrated.

anyway.

i sighed and said, "aih. dunno what to say d la."

buddy sher-how replied:

"say cheese."

ahahaha. seriously. i burst out laughing.

many measures of thanks to those who listened. ya, you, you, you, you and you. =)

not to say other people didn't listen. i put that display name on MSN at night, so not many people read. if they did, everyone would come flooding to listen, of course. *ahem*

Example of Irresponsible Blogging: Mahasiswakini.

It's ironic that right after I wrote about responsible blogging, an illustration conveniently dropped onto my lap the very next day.

I'm not going to waste precious time by pasting the entire report here. I'm just going to highlight several discrepancies that constitute defamation in just so many ways:

• 1. "Naib Canselor Universiti Malaya (UM), Prof. Dr. Ghauth Jasmon di 'boo' semalam oleh kira-kira 200 orang mahasiswa."
• We did not 'boo' the VC. The loudest sound we made was "whoo!". The above statement suggests an uproarish riot to the reader who was not present at the dialogue. This is an outright misrepresentation. Compare with #3.1 here.
• 
  
• 2. "Ghauth juga mempertahankan tindakan beliau tersebut dengan membandingkan universiti berkenaan dengan universiti antarabangsa."
• "UM is already quite lenient, because in the University of Berkeley (California) they're not allowed to bring in their cars at all." It was not a defence of the policy. It was an additional comment. This statement makes the VC looks outright dumb because if it were truly a defence, it would be the lousiest defence of anything on the face of the planet.
• 
  
• 3. "Beliau juga menolak untuk membandingkan universiti berkenaan dengan prestasi dan kemudahan universiti tempatan dengan alasan tidak mencapai standard."
• Compare with #4.1, No. 2, here.
• 
  
• 4. "Beberapa mahasiswa luar negara juga kelihatan tidak puas hati dengan penerangan yang diberikan oleh beliau."
• Compare with #11, here. Only ONE international student stood up to speak. Everyone ELSE was frowning that night. There is no need to mention international students. The intention to infer deep resentment of every undergraduate towards the administration is all too clear.
• 
  
• 5. "Sebelum sempat pelbagai soalan dijawab, beliau meminta soalan ditutup dengan alasan 'mahasiswa emosional'."
• Compare with #11.1, here. I never heard the word 'emotional', nor was that ever a basis for ending the dialogue. In fact, the white-haired dude said anyone could come continue the debate in his office at any time.
• 
  
• 6. "Sekumpulan mahasiswa dipercayai dari Fakulti Undang-Undang bertindak keluar dari dewan tanda protes kepada arahan menutup peluang bertanyakan soalan berkenaan."
• Somewhere in the middle of the dialogue, an officer asked law students to raise their hands. The entire hall was witness to the fact that the bulk of us was seated at the LEFT wing of the hall. The students who left prematurely were at the RIGHT wing of the hall, towards the back. Plus in the picture below, you see law students, don't you? We hung around long enough to finish the refreshments provided!

• 
  
• 7. "'Dialog begini tak akan membawa apa-apa penyelesaian kalau NC perangai sombong begitu," ujar seorang mahasiswa fakulti Undang-Undang."

• This phrase was placed beside this photo of Korina. In fact, most of the photos in the report were the angriest-looking side of the students, whereas a number of the students who spoke, especially Korina, were smiling when speaking. And Korina did not make that statement.
• 
  
• 8. "Naib Canselor tersebut cuba dihubungi tetapi dimaklumkan tidak datang bertugas. Di dakwa beliau tertekan akibat protes mahasiswa semalam."
• What kind of stupid comment is this? -_-

I said I didn't want to paste the entire report here right? But it looks long because almost the entire report was inaccurate. The latest update from Mahasiswakini reads: "Dialog isu kereta: Law Soc' sangkal laporan UMtoday, M'kini". They reported on the kerplunking of their false report by Kean Kang and Han Koon, and even added a picture of Kean Kang which they took from his Facebook profile. -_-

What - did they search for "Koh Kean Kang" on Facebook? -_-!

Nowhere in the update did they acknowledge the errors in their previous report, nor did they affirm the Faculty's rebuttal.

I tell you ah. Some people ah.

While studying Defamation, I wondered how - with all the knowledge of law available on the net, especially defamation - people could be so stupid to still commit the tort of defamation.

Now I witness a first-hand account of such a thing. And I am amazed, perplexed, and astounded.

This brings the s******y level up 3 notches. I'm not going to report on what level it is. Go count yourself.