oh, messy life.

changing my name

2009-09-28T04:36:12Z

Well, at least the one in my LJ.

When I chose inertiality from whatever the heck it was I used to have, there was still a lot of angst oozing out from my pores. I suppose some of that will always remain, seeing how it is rather rampant in my family (my sister, relatives, etc etc).

That said, much has happened in the past couple of years. Things that make me realise a lot of what I angst about was and is really transient. More importantly I realised how I need to be more appreciative of the things I have around me before relationships and priorities start evolving and suddenly you realise things are very different 6 mths, a year from now even if nothing seems to happen very much on a day to day basis. I think it is also because we live in a very different world today, where things are literally instant or at your fingertips - microwave ovens, instant noodles, the internet - and that affects the rate of change too. It happens exponentially, whether you like it or not, and I've found that life is much easier when you accept and adapt to that change instead of raging against the machines.

Anyways, enough of melancholic musing. I re-Christianed this blog Semper Teneo - latin for 'to always persevere'. Something about having the courage to persevere and finding the strength to endure in spite of obstacles in life. It's just a cosmetic name change though, you shouldn't need to update your friends' list or anything. I figured talking about it would make more sense than finding out abruptly on your own and wondering who the heck this semperteneo person is :P

feeling blessed

2008-12-02T05:37:50Z

As I sieve through the flood of local media reports surrounding the Singaporean casualty from the terrorist attack in Mumbai, I am sullenly reminded of how blessed I am to move away from a job that requires me to travel 2-3 weeks out of a month to various places of high security alerts (Bangladesh, Thailand, Indonesia, pretty much every other Asian country that counts as a high risk location). I shudder because whenever I go to a place with a higher risk history like Indonesia or Bangladesh or Thailand, at the back of my head I worry about something like that happening to me, but I pray about it and go on the trip anyway. I remember feeling especially worried about going to Bangladesh, and I remember hearing apu literally heave a sigh of relief over the phone when I called him to tell him I had landed back in Singapore safe and sound.

Everytime I read a different news report about the lawyer who was my age, I keep thinking 'wow, that could have been me'. I keep the duration of each work trip short (2-4 or 5 days, depending on what needs to be done). Most of the time I travel alone, so I stay in the hotel all the time and hardly venture out of my hotel unless it's for seminars or meetings and such. I send apu my itinerary via email and stick a hard copy on the fridge door for my sister and parents everytime I travel. She did everything I would have done if I were on a work trip, yet she died execution style anyway, because they targetted a 5-star hotel, which is exactly where I would have stayed and where I would have had dinner too.

It is very likely I will lose my Krisflyer Elite Gold status come 1st Sept 2009 because I chose to switch my job, but I can't imagine how that's worth losing your life for.

when 6 girls try to organise dinner

2007-11-02T09:37:41Z

gErI: has joined the chat
tress :: disengagement: has joined the chat
Cheryl: has joined the chat
julia (R) gimme a solution!!!!: has joined the chat
reliving my childhood... rainbow, button moon & morph: has joined the chat

(background: we've been trying to organise dinner since 2 weeks back, relentless flow of emails have ensued, tomorrow's the day of the dinner and no one knows where/what/etc)

gErI: hi gals......

gErI: so dinner plans how?

julia: i saw your latest mail

gErI: coz i leaving work liaoz......

gErI: haa...yeah

julia: i suggested rioccotti but cheryl said she got craving for crabs

julia: then i dun know how it went on n on on

julia: HAHA

Cheryl: sorry was in a discussion

tress: HAHA

gErI: anyway..i have made reservations for ricciotti for 10pax at 7-7.30pm tml

Cheryl: okies.. lets go back to riciotti lor..

gErI: so if we cant get another placve then we go there lor

tress: yeah we can meet there and nua the whole time la

tress: im fine with that too

gErI: coz at least we got a fixed reservation

gErI: so we can still deviate if we want to

tress: the problem is there is no ONE fussy person who says NO I WANT THIS PLACE *bitchy face*

tress: we are all 'fine with anything' wahahah

gErI: hahaha...yar lor

gErI: we are all simple ppl....heheh

julia: yeah la, haha just v amused a t the no of mails

tress: rofl

Cheryl: so we go riciotti ok??

gErI: but dunno if ann will be okie wif wat we decided leh

tress: dont care la

Cheryl: majority is here liaos right??

tress: majority wins right

tress: she said in her earlier email

tress: so we da majority now

gErI: so at the moment we confirm meet there at 7?

tress: the guys dont count cos they go wherever we go

Cheryl: Im not getting any of your emails.. sob sob..

gErI: so from now til tml....if there are any other suggestions or places we can go...jus sms....

tress: NO MORE

tress: we lock it down now

Cheryl: NOOOOO

tress: riccotti 7pm

tress: THATS IT

tress: no more other suggestions

Cheryl: yeah.. no more changes

tress: whoever has other suggestions we say SORRY CANNOT *bitchy face*

Cheryl: wanna come come.. not happy with the place.. then too bad..

Cheryl: hahaha

tress: ur suggestion came in too late liao

I might get flamed..

2007-10-23T07:13:40Z

..but here goes nothing.

So I joined a group in Facebook called 'I judge you when you use poor grammer'. Submitted my lying nut photo from one of February's entries, and I get a comment on the photo - quote unquote:

Sarah Young (American) wrote
at 12:09pm
... singapore isn't in china. it is its own country. and you can't really judge a translation. It's not fair. It's not their native language. Save the judgement for the native English speakers... geez

While I wasn't keen on starting a flame post, I have to admit I am highly amused:

- I AM Singaporean, which gives me the right to laugh at my own countrymen. Sod off.

- Our native language may be Chinese, but my first language - surprise surprise - is English. In fact, my English is far better than some Americans I've met from my guild (bless their souls). In fact apu can't even spell the word coming properly (wtf is comming?)

- How the heck is cheatnut a translation from chestnut? Even the Mandarin/Malay/Tamil translation done backwards would not have equated to a cheatnut.

I'm half contemplating if I should shoot a reply in Facebook..hrm. What do you think? Should I reply?

random quote that actually makes sense

2007-07-06T06:45:48Z

Here's to the crazy ones. The misfits, rebels, troublemakers, round heads in the square holes. The ones who see things differently & not fond of rules. You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify or vilify them. The only thing you can't do is ignore them. Because they change things. They push the human race forward. And while some may see them as the crazy ones, we see genius. Because the people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world, are the ones who do.

from xenoflare.

2005-12-12T07:43:09Z

A lot has been said about how to prevent rape. Women should learn self-defense. Women should lock themselves in their houses after dark. Women shouldn't have long hair and women shouldn't wear short skirts. Women shouldn't leave drinks unattended. Fuck, they shouldn't dare to get drunk at all.

Instead of that bullshit, how about:

If a woman is drunk, don't rape her. If a woman is walking alone at night, don't rape her. If a women is drugged and unconscious, don't rape her. If a woman is wearing a short skirt, don't rape her. If a woman is jogging in a park at 5AM, don't rape her. If a woman looks like your ex-girlfriend you're still hung up on, don't rape her. If a woman is asleep in her bed, don't rape her. If a woman is asleep in your bed, don't rape her. If a woman is doing her laundry, don't rape her. If a woman is in a coma, don't rape her. If a woman changes her mind in the middle of or about a particular activity, don't rape her. If a woman has repeatedly refused a certain activity, don't rape her. If a woman is not yet a woman, but a child, don't rape her. If your girlfriend or wife is not in the mood, don't rape her. If your step-daughter is watching TV, don't rape her.

If you break into a house and find a woman there, don't rape her. If your friend thinks it's okay to rape someone, tell him it's not, and that he's not your friend. If your "friend" tells you he raped someone, report him to the police. If your frat-brother or another guy at the party tells you there's an unconscious woman upstairs and it's your turn, don't rape her, call the police and report him as a rapist.

Tell your sons, god-sons, nephews, grandsons, and sons of friends that it's not okay to rape someone.

Don't just tell your women friends how to be safe and avoid rape. Don't imply that she could have avoided it if she'd only done/not done x, y, or z. Don't imply that it's in any way her fault. Don't let silence imply agreement when someone tells you he "got some" with the drunk girl. Don't perpetuate a culture that tells you that you have no control over or responsibility for your actions. You can too help yourself. Rape is not about sex, it's about control and power, and what kind of power comes from taking advantage of others? No power anyone should ever desire.

If you agree, repost it. It's important.

semperteneo @ 2005-12-01T14:57:00

2005-12-01T06:58:27Z

The boy sent flowers to the office =P

going for a cnet party later, all prepped in mascara and eyeliner and feeling very, well, happy. heh.

oh happy day!

from qinz

2005-11-16T10:27:52Z

Elmo
You scored 60% Organization, 71% abstract, and 44% extroverted!

This test measured 3 variables.

First, this test measured how organized you are. Some muppets like Cookie Monster make big messes, while others like Bert are quite anal about things being clean.

Second, this test measured if you prefer a concrete or an abstract viewpoint. For the purposes of this test, concrete people are considered to gravitate more to mathematical and logical approaches, whereas abstract people are more the dreamers and artistic type.

Third, this test measured if you are more of an introvert or an extrovert. By definition, an introvert concentrates more on herself and an extrovert focuses more on others. In this test an introvert was somebody that either tends to spend more time alone or thinks more about herself.

You are mostly organized, more abstract, and both introverted and extroverted.

Most people either love or hate Elmo. I hope you love Elmo, because that's who you are.

You are both somewhat organized. You have a good idea where you put things and you probably keep your place reasonably clean. You aren't totally obsessed with neatness though. Elmo has the same basic approach. His place is pretty tidy, but he doesn't spend all of his time cleaning it up.

You both are abstract thinkers. You definitely are not afraid to take chances in life. You only live once. You may notice others around you playing it safe, but you are more concerned with not compromising your desires, and getting everything you can out of life. This is a very romantic approach to life, but hopefully you are also grounded enough to get by. Elmo's whole life is based on fantasy and his imagination. In the beginning he was a regular character, but now he spends most of his time in this fantasy world.

You are both somewhat extroverts. Like Elmo, you probably like to have some time to yourself, but you do appreciate spending time with your friends, and you aren't scared of social situations. Elmo spends some of his time with real friends, but he also needs some time just to chat it up with his goldfish.

The other possible characters are
Oscar the Grouch
Big Bird
Cookie Monster
Ernie
Snuffleupagus
Kermit the Frog
Grover
The Count
Guy Smiley
Bert

If you enjoyed this test, I would love the feedback! Also if you want to tell me your favorite Sesame Street character, I can total them up and post them here. Perhaps your choice will win!

My test tracked 3 variables How you compared to other people your age and gender:

You scored higher than 55% on Organization

You scored higher than 93% on concrete-abstra

You scored higher than 16% on intro-extrovert

</table

Link: The Your SESAME STREET Persona Test written by greencowsgomoo on OkCupid Free Online Dating, home of the 32-Type Dating Test

semperteneo @ 2005-10-27T18:00:00

2005-10-27T10:02:09Z

From qinz..quite accurate for the top 3, but the rest a bit salah..religious?!

Your dating personality profile:

Funny - You laugh often. People never accuse you of lacking a sense of humor. You don't take yourself too seriously.
Shy - You are often timid around others, though you will open up when the right person comes along.
Liberal - Politics matters to you, and you aren't afraid to share your left-leaning views. You would never be caught voting for a conservative candidate.

Your date match profile:

Funny - You consider a good sense of humor a major necessity in a date. If his jokes make you laugh, he has won your heart.
Big-Hearted - You want someone compassionate, someone gentle and kind. A loving, nurturing person will fill that hole in your life.
Practical - You are drawn to people who are sensible and smart. Flashy, materialistic people turn you off. You appreciate the simpler side of living.

Your Top Ten Traits

1. Funny
2. Shy
3. Liberal
4. Big-Hearted
5. Adventurous
6. Practical
7. Religious
8. Romantic
9. Intellectual
10. Wealthy/Ambitious

Your Top Ten Match Traits

1. Funny
2. Big-Hearted
3. Practical
4. Shy
5. Religious
6. Adventurous
7. Conservative
8. Intellectual
9. Wealthy/Ambitious
10. Romantic

Take the Online Dating Profile Quiz at Dating Diversions

semperteneo @ 2005-09-12T22:53:00

2005-09-12T15:11:22Z

The fact that I am actually setting aside some time to sort out my photos and create them blog-worthy means I am quite sick of WoW. Geez, never thought a day would come when I'd say this. Heh.

Anyways.

[::]

Part of Helsinki City Centre. There is a story about this Tzar statue which one of my journos who came on the trip talked about in his blog. He is also an award-winning photojournalist, so swing by if you can for photos which are much better than mine. Heh.

Medievial church in the old town of Poorvoo, founded in 1347, where winters reach -25deg C, and where houses made of timber from the 1800s can still be found (and standing pretty sturdy at that too). Was a Catholic church before the King of that time decided to unite everyone by choosing one religion - Lutherian - and converted it into a Lutherian church.

Houses in Poorvoo. Check out the red one, the door is so tiny it's cute!

More houses. Check out the one by the river bank - hey wanna swim? *jumps out of back window*

Now this is what I call bringing Ikea to your home. Look at that swing and ladder! I've never seen stuff like that made out of pure wood. Wouldn't be surprised if the owners of the home had built it with their hands.

These are wood carvings from the same house. Nifty, eh?

The fattest, furriest, silkiest, cutest kitty I've ever seen!!! *squeal*

Bits of nature from Finland. The round stuff on the ground are apples - if youa re lucky enough to find one not already rotten, you can eat them, as some of my journos did when they walked by. Have you seen paths like these? Cobbled stone paths and wooden postboxes like these remind me of Hansel and Gretel, and most of the entire town is like that - wooden houses, cobbled stone paths - all very European and Hans Christen Anderson-like.

[::]

semperteneo @ 2005-08-17T10:52:00

2005-08-17T02:54:40Z

Working in Nokia means I am getting the Nokia 6680 for free! Bwahhahaha *hao lian face* :P

Im not that crude..am I?

2005-07-15T09:13:49Z

Via Mark and Mr Brown , I bring to you...

Rockson Takumi Tan!

He is very much cruder than your usual read, so if you are 18 and below and wanna continue reading don't get me involved with your ma or something :) The expletives aside, he actually does bring out quite a few good points in his latest blog entry about NKF, and he is really funny!

[snip]

KNNBCCB!!! I just read the newspaper that the boss of the National Kidneys Foundation earn $25,000 one month, and last 3 year got 10 to 12 months bonus!!!

Yao jiu ling ling your chao chee bye lah!

This mean that one year, his salary is 500k to 600k, ok?

I do not hate charity organisation, I think people must help other poor and sick people. But fuck lah, you mean when on the tv the people who earn $1000 a month donate and the number on the NKF tv show jump $100,000 to $200,000 to $300,000..... when reach $600,000 of donation, is only cover this CEO salary?

No wonder Zoe Tay have to do so many cheebye stunt!!!

[end snip]

Project Management

2005-07-14T15:24:13Z

For all my friends in client management :)

semperteneo @ 2005-07-12T13:48:00

2005-07-12T05:57:46Z

Just found out that a good in-game friend of mine passed away on July 1 (July 2 our time). He was only 20. Some old man crashed into the side of his car and his brother survived but he didn't. He was a good in-game friend, partied on quite a number of occassions, and we spoke all the time whenever we saw each other online.

I was wondering why he wasn't online for the longest time when I bumped into a guildie of his online yesterday and got the shock of my life. Lots of sad thoughts about regret came to mind...stuff like grabbing the chance to talk to him more on vent..I can't even remember his real name now! Stephen? *sigh*

Moral of the story is, don't take for granted that someone will always be there..he was supposed to help me with my epic quests and I was thinking where the hell is this Jantz, I wanna surprise him and show him my epic mount!

Would do anything to turn time back to May/mid-June. :(

News Flash!

2005-04-11T09:13:08Z

If you are looking for an alternative place to get tees and shiz from, try out this store: http://www.divinewardrobe.com Set up by an ex colleague of mine, who had the idea 3 weeks ago, sat down and actually went and did the damn project without dwiddling and procrastinating like the rest of us.

Support him! Quick! Click! Buy!

A day in WOW

2005-04-05T17:19:41Z

Seeing how I'm officially addicted to this game, I'd just like to share some interesting screenshots from the game, just to show you how much fun we've been having :P

Special thanks to hengboy and tman/jo for most of the screenshots!

[::]

[enter deep Hollywood trailer voice]

Most of the time we are whacking monsters or other players in wow, like in Uldaman, where we whack ugly mobs like this:

But being on a player vs player server, we gain the most satisfaction from killing other players who are horde. Simply because when we are (or at least I am) minding our own business these itchy backsides like to come and disturb and kill us. So in the process of leveling a common sense of hatred and anguish is nurtured among all good and sensible alliance. Here you can see a perfect picture of that vengence played out in a horde raid. Go alliance!

Of course it is not all about killing, we like to chill out as well. Take our vertically challenged friend Smallzilla, who after much difficulty with his stumpy legs gets up on a chair to rest in an inn:

His face may look a bit yaya but you must understand getting up on that chair alone with his legs and all is a quest on its own. So zhang sheng gu li gu li!

In other scandalous news, fatty and skinny were lying in bed, in the midst of what Ironforge's trusty gossip column writer thinks is a rauchy rendevous, when they realised they were being spied on and hastily regained some form of composure:

I think fatty rolled over, cos skinny looks dead. Oh wait. She's sleeping.

And that's it for today's commentary!

Fine I'm addicted..

2005-03-22T15:51:26Z

..this is a pix of me and jo (aveliana) flying through horde land on our way to Desolace :P

In all my lvl 40 glory

2005-03-12T20:19:15Z

With the tremendous help of Heng and Terence/Jo, I present to you..

..my lvl 40 char with her horse!!

worked damn hard and had so much help from these 2 peeps to get to lvl 40..which is when you can get your mount..finally i can focus on other stuff muahaha..maybe my toon shld learn to cook..heh..

hengboy il show u the screen capture for the sword tmw..:P

semperteneo @ 2005-02-22T10:04:00

2005-02-22T01:56:41Z

Had challenging muay thai class, was awake from adrenaline and ended up sleeping at 3 running through warlock quest with Kang. But v shiok leh v long never game to this extent liao. Thoroughly pleased. :)

I love WOW :)

2005-02-18T08:06:30Z

Courtesy of the official World of Warcraft website:

It's a techie 2005

2005-01-05T03:26:37Z

The thing about being in tech pr is how all these gadgets seem to enthrall and surround your life. Guess what's arrived in the office today..

Mine's the pink one (not much choice of colours when it comes to a gift, but no matter).

Me likey.

Things that make me happy

2004-12-03T04:30:05Z

Before I forget, lookie what I got last week:

Love.

Locking it away.

2004-05-12T16:34:51Z

Dear reader of tinned oyster,

Due to certain circumstances, I have decided to keep my blog private. Since I have no time to set up a server like lainey's, and have no intention to move anywhere else, my entries will only be able to be read by people on my friends' list. If you are not on my LJ friends' list, you can sign up for a free account with LJ and drop me a comment with your name so that I can add you easily on my end.

I know that this action of mine will cause inconvenience to some people, especially those who are not interested to keep an LJ account. For that I must apologise. I'll probably lose more of the few people who read my blog, but this is something I have to do.

Thanks for being a reader through it all =)

semperteneo @ 2004-05-12T11:23:00

2004-05-12T03:23:35Z

Is there a way to lock your journal on LJ so that ppl who wanna read enter a password, like lainey's?

I suspect there are intruders to my blog and Im not exactly happy about that.

semperteneo @ 2004-05-10T14:50:00

2004-05-10T06:51:41Z

I suddenly have an immense urge to leave this country.

Leave this place.

Leave what is bad behind and bring along with me only the good.

I need to learn how to pray again so that I can remember to trust in the Lord.