its funny. in the darkest recesses of my mind i can pull out an image of one of my first impressions of cats. a white fella with pinkish eyes. it was at cuppage food centre back in the eighties. back then it wasnt the shithole it pretty much is now- it had decent food (i guess, judging from the crowds), and was a hot hawker centre with little ventilation and strays runnin around it.
so i stuck my hand out and the bugger clawed me, leaving a mark on my right hand.
of course it may not have been a pounce but a friendly gesticulation, but it scared the shits out of me.
so much for childhood trauma.
perhaps it was seeing them so much at hawker centres and around the neighbourhoods, or just looking at their furry coats, or the expression in their eyes as they looked up at you pleadingly, mewing for food. some might associate them with dirtiness, but somehow these struck a chord in my soul. reaching out and stroking those animals made me feel warm and fuzzy inside.
i still love them today. dirty strays may they be, but to me all cats are beautiful. they are the greatest, cutest, most adorable living things i have ever seen.
Wednesday, 26 September 2007
olive branches
a conversation with a friend made me think back and reflect on myself.
but no that changes nothing. its still the same.
but yes. for all intents and purposes i should moderate myself i guess. what makes me any different from them in any case?
thank you my friend.
but no that changes nothing. its still the same.
but yes. for all intents and purposes i should moderate myself i guess. what makes me any different from them in any case?
thank you my friend.
Monday, 24 September 2007
Organisation
decided to organise the posts.
my religious rants can be found on a whole new blog.
a link to my serious stuff can also be found there.
thank you for ur continued patronage
my religious rants can be found on a whole new blog.
a link to my serious stuff can also be found there.
thank you for ur continued patronage
On proselytising
If you are a Christian, and you are reading this post, i challenge you:
1- Can you read these words without a shred of bias towards your own religion?
2- Are you willing to accept the logic of the argument?
3- Or do you just see this as a rant of an unhappy unbeliever?
proselytise
1. To induce someone to convert to one's own religious faith.
2. To induce someone to join one's own political party or to espouse one's doctrine.
Perhaps to understand the act itself, what about breaking the barrier down even more.
Here are definitions for two other words that are of relevance:
faith
- a system of religious belief (one of many definitions)
belief
-something believed; an opinion or conviction
But then by these 2 definitions we see that the very act of definition makes things circular!
Taking a step further: how about the definition of "opinion"?
opinion
-1. A belief or judgment that rests on grounds insufficient to produce complete certainty.
The argument based on definition
1- An opinion does not have complete certainty (from definition above)
2- A belief is an opinion (from definition above)
3- A belief does not have complete certainty (1 and 2, combined)
4- Proselytising involves inducing one to certain beliefs (from definition above)
5- A belief is uncertain (3, reverse double negation)
5- Proselytising involves inducing one to uncertainty (4,5, combined)
This is why proselytising has resulted in conflict and strife. This degree of uncertainty is too great to ascertain the validity of. As such the vast majority is unable to come to a general consensus about how relevant such a belief is, or vice versa. Because of this uncertainty, and resulting failure to come to a general agreement, proselytising becomes nothing more than an act that puts itself in direct opposition with existing beliefs and opinions.
Well, of course the argument is that beliefs are more than just a smear of definitions you put up.
There should be a more human element to beliefs, right? How about the countless lost souls who have found grace through church? Have come to a reconciliation with God thru His voice which spoke to you?
Consider this then. The logic of comfort. I use the analogy of a baby crying. Why does he cry? There are a few possibilities:
1- The baby is hurt
2- The baby is hungry
3- The baby needs to take a shit. BADLY.
4-The baby's diapers are so full of shit it feels downright UNCOMFORTABLE
(Babies are simple. They dont have complex cognitive proceses running thru their heads and they have not yet decided on their best invisible friend, so that's why i chose it as an example)
How can the baby's problems be solved? Simple.
1- Bring him to a hospital- get that cut straightened out
2- Feed him milk!
3- BRING HIM TO THE TOILET (oh you unattentive parent, you...)
4- CLEAR HIS DIAPERS (because he's making a ruckus and its just stinking the house)
As we grow older, and we develop slowly, our needs and wants change. WE can very much fend for ourselves, and procure our own food, take care of ourselves, yada yada.....
As it is with a parent bringin food to a baby. Similarly, religion acts as food to our little minds. It is, as is so often quoted, opiate for the masses. Opiate for the masses that operates on an individual level.
But i dont eat sauce with my burger. And YOU dont like to eat red meat! And YOU are a vegetarian. Can we come to a general consensus? That there is a source of food that EVERYONE can eat? (ok maybe chicken, but what about vegetarians? vegans? monks?)
the answer ish, NO.
You cant force me to eat prairie oysters!
Singaporeans should know best- we know our food well enough to know that that neverending queue for doughnuts is just, well, hype. Or that chicken rice that took half an hour to buy? Perhaps its not as good as your friend vehemently insists it is!
Just like food, there is no universal consensus as to who likes what best. Why should religion be any different?
So dont proselytise.
Of course, unless i want to know more about it myself.
1- Can you read these words without a shred of bias towards your own religion?
2- Are you willing to accept the logic of the argument?
3- Or do you just see this as a rant of an unhappy unbeliever?
proselytise
1. To induce someone to convert to one's own religious faith.
2. To induce someone to join one's own political party or to espouse one's doctrine.
Perhaps to understand the act itself, what about breaking the barrier down even more.
Here are definitions for two other words that are of relevance:
faith
- a system of religious belief (one of many definitions)
belief
-something believed; an opinion or conviction
But then by these 2 definitions we see that the very act of definition makes things circular!
Taking a step further: how about the definition of "opinion"?
opinion
-1. A belief or judgment that rests on grounds insufficient to produce complete certainty.
The argument based on definition
1- An opinion does not have complete certainty (from definition above)
2- A belief is an opinion (from definition above)
3- A belief does not have complete certainty (1 and 2, combined)
4- Proselytising involves inducing one to certain beliefs (from definition above)
5- A belief is uncertain (3, reverse double negation)
5- Proselytising involves inducing one to uncertainty (4,5, combined)
This is why proselytising has resulted in conflict and strife. This degree of uncertainty is too great to ascertain the validity of. As such the vast majority is unable to come to a general consensus about how relevant such a belief is, or vice versa. Because of this uncertainty, and resulting failure to come to a general agreement, proselytising becomes nothing more than an act that puts itself in direct opposition with existing beliefs and opinions.
Well, of course the argument is that beliefs are more than just a smear of definitions you put up.
There should be a more human element to beliefs, right? How about the countless lost souls who have found grace through church? Have come to a reconciliation with God thru His voice which spoke to you?
Consider this then. The logic of comfort. I use the analogy of a baby crying. Why does he cry? There are a few possibilities:
1- The baby is hurt
2- The baby is hungry
3- The baby needs to take a shit. BADLY.
4-The baby's diapers are so full of shit it feels downright UNCOMFORTABLE
(Babies are simple. They dont have complex cognitive proceses running thru their heads and they have not yet decided on their best invisible friend, so that's why i chose it as an example)
How can the baby's problems be solved? Simple.
1- Bring him to a hospital- get that cut straightened out
2- Feed him milk!
3- BRING HIM TO THE TOILET (oh you unattentive parent, you...)
4- CLEAR HIS DIAPERS (because he's making a ruckus and its just stinking the house)
As we grow older, and we develop slowly, our needs and wants change. WE can very much fend for ourselves, and procure our own food, take care of ourselves, yada yada.....
As it is with a parent bringin food to a baby. Similarly, religion acts as food to our little minds. It is, as is so often quoted, opiate for the masses. Opiate for the masses that operates on an individual level.
But i dont eat sauce with my burger. And YOU dont like to eat red meat! And YOU are a vegetarian. Can we come to a general consensus? That there is a source of food that EVERYONE can eat? (ok maybe chicken, but what about vegetarians? vegans? monks?)
the answer ish, NO.
You cant force me to eat prairie oysters!
Singaporeans should know best- we know our food well enough to know that that neverending queue for doughnuts is just, well, hype. Or that chicken rice that took half an hour to buy? Perhaps its not as good as your friend vehemently insists it is!
Just like food, there is no universal consensus as to who likes what best. Why should religion be any different?
So dont proselytise.
Of course, unless i want to know more about it myself.
Sunday, 23 September 2007
Friends, nakama, friendship
yew ish my goot brudder.
even ur bak chew O BA KA
or ur bin KANNA SAI
yew still my brudder.
-unknown forwarded sms greeting
So the issue comes up again. After a few months, the people in hall have all drifted into cliques. Typical of singaporeans. Like it was a while back, i looked at the people around me and thought to myself- how many of these people will i actually be in contact with in ten years time? Whats the point of being peachy keen and maintaining the friendlies when i know nobody genuinely gives a shit?
But its true. The guys are desperate losers, the girls lack any semblance of EQ and everybody here just cares about themselves really. Which is kind of sad because you wonder really what the word friend entails. I prefer the word 'person' or 'acquaintance'. It makes the line between people more defined.
Then again i have never hoped for anything, have never expected anything from anyone. If i ever felt unhappy, ive come to reflect that it has all been because of me putting too much trust and emphasis on the way people would look at me as a friend, and that has been grossly overestimated. Those who i genuinely gave a shit about dont even care or are just simply oblivious to everything. But as it is with life its worth taking a pinch of salt with and moving on.
Thus i offer a solution to emotional problems. To relationship problems. And let me provide an analogy.
In Mahjong, technically speaking, the dealer has the first advantage over the other players, by virtue of the fact that he draws one extra tile. But then what if he keeps getting shitty draws? He might have to depend on someone else to provide him with the tiles needed to win- IE a chi or a pon. What is nobody's that charitable?
So at the end of the day, the most powerful driving factor behind winning a mahjong hand is not the cards that come out. Sure, you are able to stall opponents winning hands by use of observation and pure skill, but these mean nothing if......
you get draws that are powerful. In short, people would say that ur 'luck is good'. The phrase i use for this is that one should always 靠自己. Depend on urself to win. Dont expect that the 5 pairs in your hand will become that 对对+混一色+ 1台 = 满台 that you are so wishing to get. What if nobody feeds you the pairs. Now, if you change that hand to a hand that is composed of kongs/kans, how much more ideal!
At the end of the day, one should always depend on his own draws. Do not expect the player in front of you to give you the tile needed to complete that 1-3 wait or 9-8 single wait.
Likewise, in life, as it is in relationships, do not depend on others and bank on their reactions and their actions. Its not a worthy investment. There are no guaranteed returns and each deposit carries with it a high risk of failure. Depending on yourself is the surest way you can ensure that your investment caries with it the maximum risk protection.
Cos if you dont give a shit about urself who will?
(Nah, actually i know of others who WILL give a shit. But theyre not here in perth. So ill have to depend on myself to draw that last card needed to complete my 十三么。 )
even ur bak chew O BA KA
or ur bin KANNA SAI
yew still my brudder.
-unknown forwarded sms greeting
So the issue comes up again. After a few months, the people in hall have all drifted into cliques. Typical of singaporeans. Like it was a while back, i looked at the people around me and thought to myself- how many of these people will i actually be in contact with in ten years time? Whats the point of being peachy keen and maintaining the friendlies when i know nobody genuinely gives a shit?
But its true. The guys are desperate losers, the girls lack any semblance of EQ and everybody here just cares about themselves really. Which is kind of sad because you wonder really what the word friend entails. I prefer the word 'person' or 'acquaintance'. It makes the line between people more defined.
Then again i have never hoped for anything, have never expected anything from anyone. If i ever felt unhappy, ive come to reflect that it has all been because of me putting too much trust and emphasis on the way people would look at me as a friend, and that has been grossly overestimated. Those who i genuinely gave a shit about dont even care or are just simply oblivious to everything. But as it is with life its worth taking a pinch of salt with and moving on.
Thus i offer a solution to emotional problems. To relationship problems. And let me provide an analogy.
In Mahjong, technically speaking, the dealer has the first advantage over the other players, by virtue of the fact that he draws one extra tile. But then what if he keeps getting shitty draws? He might have to depend on someone else to provide him with the tiles needed to win- IE a chi or a pon. What is nobody's that charitable?
So at the end of the day, the most powerful driving factor behind winning a mahjong hand is not the cards that come out. Sure, you are able to stall opponents winning hands by use of observation and pure skill, but these mean nothing if......
you get draws that are powerful. In short, people would say that ur 'luck is good'. The phrase i use for this is that one should always 靠自己. Depend on urself to win. Dont expect that the 5 pairs in your hand will become that 对对+混一色+ 1台 = 满台 that you are so wishing to get. What if nobody feeds you the pairs. Now, if you change that hand to a hand that is composed of kongs/kans, how much more ideal!
At the end of the day, one should always depend on his own draws. Do not expect the player in front of you to give you the tile needed to complete that 1-3 wait or 9-8 single wait.
Likewise, in life, as it is in relationships, do not depend on others and bank on their reactions and their actions. Its not a worthy investment. There are no guaranteed returns and each deposit carries with it a high risk of failure. Depending on yourself is the surest way you can ensure that your investment caries with it the maximum risk protection.
Cos if you dont give a shit about urself who will?
(Nah, actually i know of others who WILL give a shit. But theyre not here in perth. So ill have to depend on myself to draw that last card needed to complete my 十三么。 )
Supper!
supper was so good(t) i nearly wana cry.
Continental instant soup with.......
a serving of bread from the dining hall topped off with......
ROMA TOMATOES!! They are so fresh i can cry...........
Roma tomatoes are fucking good!!! I think i am infatuated with those red weenies.
The trick is to cook it with slight low heat. IE, pour boiling water over them or cook them in hot water for no more than a minute. There should be a slight tear in the skin of the tomato, like a slit.
That is goodness.
Still have some chicken stock cubes left. Perhaps i will try making some beef in chicken stock with the rest of my roma tomatoes.
ROMA TOMATOES! I LOVE THEM!
Continental instant soup with.......
a serving of bread from the dining hall topped off with......
ROMA TOMATOES!! They are so fresh i can cry...........
Roma tomatoes are fucking good!!! I think i am infatuated with those red weenies.
The trick is to cook it with slight low heat. IE, pour boiling water over them or cook them in hot water for no more than a minute. There should be a slight tear in the skin of the tomato, like a slit.
That is goodness.
Still have some chicken stock cubes left. Perhaps i will try making some beef in chicken stock with the rest of my roma tomatoes.
ROMA TOMATOES! I LOVE THEM!
Saturday, 22 September 2007
Herb!!!
It just came to my mind all of a sudden.
An irrelavancy.........
OREGANO
oregano is a form of wild majoram.
The leaves are spicily sweet, very faintly peppery and the herb needs to be used carefully or it will dominate all but the strongest of flavours. IT can, for instance, survive the joint competition of olives, anchovies, and cheese. It can be used to advantage with grilled or roasted meats or aded, with discretion, to egg and cheese dishes, salads, dressings and to leafy green vegetables
- Jill Graham, Cooking with Herbs and Spices
I WANA COOK!!!!
An irrelavancy.........
OREGANO
oregano is a form of wild majoram.
The leaves are spicily sweet, very faintly peppery and the herb needs to be used carefully or it will dominate all but the strongest of flavours. IT can, for instance, survive the joint competition of olives, anchovies, and cheese. It can be used to advantage with grilled or roasted meats or aded, with discretion, to egg and cheese dishes, salads, dressings and to leafy green vegetables
- Jill Graham, Cooking with Herbs and Spices
I WANA COOK!!!!
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