sparkslife

Oh yeah, in case you are wondering those are your common typical high school clique (maybe a bit different in Malaysia setting but still the commonality is there). These figures are prominently featured in the classic 1985 movie, The Breakfast Club. And yeah.. i smell a movie review coming in! hahaha..

My expectation of the movie is very very high considering the amount of praises and rave reviews about it. Not to mention the cult status the film has achieved (honored 20 years later in MTV Movie Awards). But I’m proud to report that the movie does not disappoint me a bit! It is just what I expected of a coming of age movie should be.

During the whole course of the movie I can’t help but wonder how is it possible for one detention scene to made up the whole complete movie? The answer lies in the characters itself. The vibrant and vivid characters portrayed by the five then-unknown actors really reflects the personality and personification of each and every clique. I myself especially love Ally Sheedy (The Basketcase) character. I think she plays the character flawlessly and beautifully. Haha and I especially love it when she is transformed at the end of the movie (So Cinderella-like… but with an 80’s twist!).

Halfway throughout the movie, I find myself really engrossed and living each moment in each different scene. I started to think “Oh crap this movie gonna end soon! Why can’t John Hughes make it like 3 hours longer!”. When the movie finally ends, I find myself wondering how many other teenagers are inspired the same way I do after seeing this movie. Its simple but important message will continues to rings throughout your whole high school years!

Well that’s the magic of The Breakfast Club. After 23 years later, it still touch the heart and lives of individual. I guess we see them as we want to see them… in the simplest terms and most convenient definitions. A great movie that stand the test of time and will not stop continue to vow and inspire the audience for the coming generations.

Don’t you just hate it when someone just pop out from nowhere and do something to ruin your day?? If we have a position for them I guess it will be "Disturbance Initiator Executive (D.I.E.)". They will be working in this big company where their objective is to ruin other people’s day (i.e. by stepping on people’s shoes without apologizing [the aunties are born for this task], walking slow [tak makan ke??] or deliberately forget your 20 cent change and pretend as if it was the normal thing to do).

Anyway the human being i met the other day should be able to get a high post in the aforementioned company. Her skills are well above the others and her annoyance far outstrip all the small little idiots outside there. Do not mess with her!

She operate a normal kedai runcit (if you ask her she will probably said it is like a Wal-Mart giant mega tycoon store). Well after a thorough analysis of her store, the only stuff that can save it from instant distruction is the product variety she have. As much as I hate to accept it, her store does have almost all the neccesary consumer goods. And oh yeah, she does own a photostating machine (wow!).

So unfortunately by a twist of fate I ended up in her store. I wasn’t appropriately dressed that day as I was wearing the clothes I sleep in. But seriously who cares, it’s just a kedai runcit. So when i saw her I handle over my paper and mutter the word "FOTOSTAT".

She seem to understand my language and proceed gingerly to the photostating machine (wow!). At first she seem to be having some dificulties in handling the cold big machine (duh). But after a few test and trial she seem to grap hold of the concept of photostating (Bravo). At this moment, her Indonesian maid emerged with a pail of water and mop. She quickly instruct her to take over her photostating job. I wasn’t surprised she didn’t do it herself (ahem..).

Anyway, to clear up some confusion, I do know this auntie personally. Well, she operate a kedai runcit in front of my home (Located at a walking distance within my house). So I bet my last penny she know me as well. And of course, I will usually smile and greet her when I see her (Don’t cha wish I will do it to you now?).

So after the maid finished photostating my notes, she proceed to the counter and counting the total amount it in some foreign way. I do not know how she count but she tell me the total amount.

Maid: Dik semua RM 4.80 ya.

Me: (Shocked and show my disbelief face) Har? Berapa satu ar?

Maid: 15 sen satu ya dik. Dia tak cakap ar?

Me: (Mouth open)

At that point, Her Majesty emerged and enquire on the going-ons there. I simply point out to her that I brought 3 bucks but the whole amount is 4.80. In Cantonese I said to her:

"Auntie, I stay behind de. Later i bring the money back to you la"

I guess talking to a customer (a one without money) will be a complete waste of her saliva and preeeeeecious time. Without looking at me she turn to her maid and utter the words I will still remember till today.

"Simpan kertas tu. Nanti dia bawa duit baru bagi"

WTF. She think she work for CIA or what? Some negotiator expert perhaps? The worst part is she didn’t even bother to look at my face. I don’t expect this kind of service even in her old torn down store. Crap.

Sulking and disbelieve, I make my way back to my home (empty handed) to take RM1.80 to donate back to her. I wish she will get filthy rich with the RM 1.80. I know is my fault for not bringing enough money but her attitude and her customer service (what customer service??) totally belong to the drain.

If she allow me to get the money back to her later, I will guarantee (I swear!) that I will bring it back to her. And for an extra points, I will tell everyone how good she is for extanding an credit term for me.

But she did the other way.

To quote my Retail and Distribution lecturer, "At the end of the day, I hope she remember that RM 1.80. That 1.80 is the monetary value for losing a customer. That 1.80 is amount that she offer to me to spread negative word of mouth about her precious shop. And no doubt, that 1.80 is also the amount of money she offer to not see me in her shop anymore".

Sounds like a fair deal to me. Anyway she can earn SO much more working as a professional fulltime D.I.E.

I wonder how many of you feels this way? Beneath the happy facade, lies a complete different individual.

Loneliness never accompany me this way before.

News flash!!

I screwed up again.

Well, not literally “screw up” of course (but although an actual screw up will be better than a metaphor-related screw up). Yeah once again our hero, Teck Fui finds himself stuck outside his residential area without… guess what? …a key!! Well if you did not follow my little adventure last time, you can kindly refer to that blog in somewhere in last year blog. (Look for the archive section.. haha..)

Seriously if I go through another one of this screw up situation, I would have enough experience to write a handbook on how to survive your first lock out. (Suggested title: Idiot’s Guide on How to Survive Diligently In Key-less Situation, No Keys? No Worries or even better Memoir of A Key-sha).If I’m lucky,  my book might just top the New York Times Bestseller List. People will find me as an inspiration to them and I will have a major tour around the world and if I’m really (and I say really lucky) I might be a regular on Oprah, Jimmy Kimmel or David Letterman. Ahhh… the glamour and the dough. (OK I seriously think too much when I’m stuck outside there)

Anyway, the day started off just like any other day. I woke up at around 12 (Ahem.. 1 pm) and get breakfast and stuff. The only major difference is that that day is New Year’s Eve. Oh yeah, you can’t forget the celebration, the kids with outrageous hairstyle, the bubble spray and of course the cost wasting fireworks. This year celebration is more well-planned compared to previous years (Don’t get me to started on that). We got our transport to come and go back and we have basically plan all that we need on the schedule. So no trouble right?

FREAKIN’ WRONG!!

Well, first of all, since my sister is fetching me back, I intelligently figure out that the key to my home will be completely unnecessary and a total waste of space in my pants pocket. So I cleverly dump the key at home. (Smile Teck Fui, you make history there). If my keys can talk it will be saying “I-told-you-this-gonna-happen-to-you” ker-zillion times already.

So anyway, to make it all perfect and wrap it up. My cell phone (ahhh… I just LOVE my cell phone) battery die at just the right moment. That would be the moment when I took out my cell to call my Bro to open up the door. Bravo 3230! You really collaborate well with my keys! (I love you guys so much I should just marry you guys).

As you can clearly see, I was stuck outside my home with nothing but a pocket full of RM 25.30, two pieces of 2008 calendars, a dead cell phones and my identity card (Yeah my iPod is not with me. Surprise surprise.). I look around my neighborhood for any signs of human being (Oh yeah, for your information, the mamak store in my area close as early as 12 am. So go figure).

As predicted, all the lights are off. Great, this just what I need. Why can’t any of my neighbors figure out that they have a trapped teenager here waiting outside of his dwellings at 2 am on New Year Day wondering why can’t he go through his life like any normal human being. (I guess the possibilities to that is 0.000001)

Just when I thought that God had given up hope on me, I heard a sound. It was so beautiful and soothing. It was the sound of my neighbor’s gate creaking!! (I’m saved!!). I gingerly ran over to my neighbor (by the way I never spoken to him before) and explain the shits I’m into and enquire on whether it will be convenient for him to lend his cell phone to me to save my pity life. (As predicted, he agreed. Told cha the pitiful face will work! hahaha)

Minutes later I punch my sister’s number and started dialing. Well, it works this way: First I can’t dial my Bro’s number (I can’t remember his number) and so I have to resolve to dial my sister’s number to call her to call up Bro to wake him up and finally to open up the gate for me. Nice plan huh? That’s what I thought also. Anyway, after talking to my sister, I feel a surge of HOPE running through every major vein in my body. (Ahhh… summer is coming!)

I listen for any signs of lock slamming or door creaking sound as I stand outside my gate. But all I hear is the occasional purring of THE stray cat and of course the beating of my own heart (Oh what a clichés!). Don’t worry Teck Fui, your Bro might be a bit hard to wake up. That’s all. When he shakes away his blurriness, he will come and open the gate for you.

10 minutes. (Oh he will be down any minutes. C’mon you can’t wait for 10 minutes?? Hahaha)

20 minutes… (Ok … now that’s a bit too long for a person to wake up. I must make a mental note to tell him that later. Very dangerous when there’s fire *knock wood* [Can’t find any woods so I knock on my Dad’s Proton Saga instead])

30 minutes…. (What happened? Did he trip and fell down the stairs? *Gasp*)

45 minutes…. (OK he is not coming down. Get over it!!!)

Disappointed and beaten, I can do nothing but squat down and wait for my sister instead. Deep inside I feel like pounding on my gate and shout my chant of “Open the door. Open the door!! OPEN THE DOOR!!!!!.

But I digress.

At this point my mind went delirious. I swear I saw a cat jump up my neighbor’s candy car and make a giant leap to his balcony. The cat then straightens himself and settles for a sitting position.  When his gaze lands on me, I can almost hear him says “At least I can jump. What you can do? Squat your way to safety? Hahhahaha ooohhh cough cough” And later the cat puke out a major fur ball and dies with his belly facing up.

When I feel that my mind whirl into his own little craziness and frantic, a pair of bright light shone from a corner of my eyes. I turned and expecting another crazy mirage (Chef Wan in cheung-sam sitting on a modern trishaw singing Auld Lang Syne). But what I saw is more bizarre than that (What??!). A sight I will remember forever. It was my sister’s car, rolling into oblivion and stopping just right in front of my home, to save my ass on the first day of 2008.

Well, you can’t say I didn’t learn anything from it (C’mon you kena twice already). I learn to always bring keys when you are going outta your house. I learn that 3 bars of battery life is not (I say NOT) sufficient for a night outside. But most importantly, I learned that you can’t depend on anybody forever. Ain’t nobody can save you from a situation like this. You gotta think for yourselves before you make a judgment. (Ok I get it Keys and Cell phone! I learned my lesson)

But seriously, Memoirs of a Key-sha anyone?

It’s a wonder how much my shoes had been through. Like a National Geographic documentary, my shoes had climb the mountain, conquer the cave, been to the most luxuriuos hotel in Malaysia, kick the most idiotic person I’ve ever met and of course follow me through all my ups and downs (literally).

Converse. It came from the word conversation. It is a verb that means to communicate with another form of being. An exchange of ideas and opinions with another person. But most importantly it is also the ever reliable brand of shoes I’ve ever wore.

The memories of my shoes can be track through my high school era (The time where punk is IN, global warming is NOT that big of an issue and the year Avril makes her debut in her black mascara and oversized raincoat jacket *YAY*). Yea i know high school sucks. Bimbos try to outshine one another, jocks sweating all over the place, crazy disciplin teachers with razor sharp scisors and grades plummenting , so yea things could get ugly in high school.

Anyway it started with a Green Day video (Woa they look so cool that time.. I mean they look cool now too but still, they are WAY cooler last time). Billy Joel Armstrong was screaming and belting out a really neat tune when the camera focuses on his feet. All of a sudden, I was captivated and taken aback. With it’s black canvas look and white contrasting shoe laces the shoes looks like…. erm.. a real ugly shoes. Serious. That’s what I was thinking the first time I saw it.

-.-"

But anyway, since that day, the ugly shoes make a deep imprint in my heart (pardon the pun). An ugly shoes in my heart. But soon after that, the ugly shoes started to make an appearance in many celebrities feet. From Avril Lavigne to Wenworth Miller. From Ashlee Simpson to Beyonce. You name it we got it (Well of course you don’t expect Oprah Winfrey to wear a Converse!!).

All of a sudden, I was captured inside this whirlwind crazyness. I started to spot my classmates shoes. (Like a leg pervert) and I even did a bit of research on the damn shoes. Like a real students that gonna study Consumer Behavior later in his life, I decided to do all the preparation before stepping into the shop and buy the shoes.

But do I get the shock of my life when I enter the shop. (Converse shop in Mid Valley. Not that hard to miss to all of u kaki lepak in Mid Valley). The price on the tag. It was a number i will remember forever.

RM 79.50

For the love of Christ, the ugly shoes is less than 100 bucks. (I knew I shouldn’t done all the rubbish research!). That is like so cheap. (Since it is heavily endorsed by many celebrities.. HAHA). I was practically smilling when I ask the salesperson for a size 7. The Malay lady must be contemplating my next crazy action (Kissing the shoes, pray and worship it and lastly laminating the shoes).

Do you remember Cinderella story? When the bitc… oops.. When the soon-to-be-princess was trying on the glass heels, she was pretty sure she gonna fit in but still she have to try it on. Yes i was having that exact emotion! I was pretty sure I gonna fit in but still I try it on.

Anyway, when i wear the shoes, I knew this is the shoes I gonna wear for a long long time.

< Fast Forward to Present>

Now looking at the old worn out shoes, I really feel that I’m losing a buddy to a disease. It’s sad and yes, it is a slow death. But when the time comes, when it is time for me to say my farewell, I will not be missing a shoes.

I will be missing a piece of memories instead.

Woa.

It’s been awhile wasn’t it? Haha… I can hardly find any time to blog. Hectic schedule. Damn. This totally bump me out since blogging used to be my number 1 priority (Like so long ago). Now blogging doesn’t reside anymore in the "Do IT Now or Never" department of my puny brain. (I think the only thing still inside that department is "Kick-Shoes-Off-Go-To-Bed"). Still i wouldn’t deny the joy of blogging once bring me. That’s why I’m here sitting in my school (rather cacat) computer lab in the middle of my class (oops… did i just say i ponteng?) just to blog my heart out for the world to see! Ahh… the magic of blogging!!

Bad things been happening to me lately. First of all my results for last semester is so terribly bad. And i think the main reason behind it is my consistent and habitual ponteng-ing sessions. (8 am class - ponteng. MIS class - ponteng. Eng - definitely ponteng!) SO last semester my inner ponteng demon unleash its full power (Been collecting its experince points since Year 1). As a results, my results is so terribly bad. CGPA dropped like saham of Enron at the time when their evil syndicate is uncovered.

SO when school reopen, everyone come to school with the same goal in their mind.  We vow to boost our CGPA and get ourselves a great results so that our parents can be damn proud of us.

<Rewind to last semester>

SO when school reopen, everyone come to school with the same goal in their mind.  We vow to boost our CGPA and get ourselves a great results so that our parents can be incredibly proud of us.

<Rewind of the last semester… again>

SO when school reopen, everyone come to school with the same goal in their mind.  We vow to boost our CGPA and get ourselves a great results so that our parents can be outrageously proud of us.

<Rewind STOP!!>

U got my point right. Hahaha… and yet I’m doing it over and over again. (Damn consistent, Wish I instil the spirit of making fake wishes in my studies). Anyway something tell me that i might actually got what I want (not what u r thinking!) in this semester.

This semester also mark the revival of my Malay language usage (Like so long i didn’t use Malay already except of course u wanna order teh tarik at ur nearby mamak franchise). So when we told we suppose to present in front for our Pengajian Malaysia assignment, we don’t know what they have in store for us.

• First, we suppose to present in BM (like DUH!), and coincidentally my BM just happened to be inferior to my other language of communication. In other word my BM is so berkarat that it makes a besi buruk looks like a nice piece of furniture from Ikea.
• Second. We are to present in front of the whole lecture class. That makes what, a few hundred of students? No biggie. Especially when ur language proficiency is only limited to ordering food in mamak. And oh yea, the lecturer is a funny one too. I SO can’t wait.
• Third. The topic we got is totally is totally bump-out one. The question is so long and windy, it makes me wonder whether the examiner is a permanent member of a Dead Poet Society.

  So there goes my chances of scoring in this semester. Once again next semester I will find myself saying… I vow to boost our CGPA and get ourselves a great results so that our parents can be outrageously proud of us.

I guess our parents will be proud of our consistency’.

For the past few weeks life had been crazy. Staying over at my friend’s place almost every night just to complete some long overdue assigments ( Ok… going to due assignments… very soon… like tomorrow). I swear if I stay there for a night longer i would have to stay paying rent at their place. Haha…

But as they say, what is life without all these experience? When I’m old and graying I will tell my grandchild how I used to stay over at my friend’s place every night just to complete an assignment about consumer’s preference of their prefer brand of shower gel. I will tell them how we used to crack our brain just to figure out a word to replace "alumni". And let not forget the most interesting part: APA referencing. (C’mon seriously who give a DAMN when we forget to actually itallize the title of the book. We give a DAMN when you can’t freaking pronounce words like lingerie, diarrhea, and altruism! There I ITALLIZE them for you! For an added bonus, I underlined them as well! Happy now?!)

OK chill.

So for this week, life take a turn for better. Haha… There’s no more assignments and presentations (seriously thank God). So life switch back to Gear 1 where I can chill and lepak around effortlessly. This also provide me the opportunity to reflect and think about my life (or rather… the lack of it). In other words, I actually dream a lot this week (OMG emo alert!!).

OK chill again.

Let us recall back on what Martin Luther King Jr. told us in his history making speech…. " I have a DREAM… to see all the …. and … living…. " (Anyway part of my brain cell is seriously dead, that’s why some words are missing. And no… For Christ’s sake I’m NOT bleeping them out! ) With Martin Luther King Jr. backing me up, I now dare to stand up proud on some UTAR plastic chairs and proclaim loudly " I have a dream!! I have a dream!! " (The JAGA at north lobby will definitely drag me down as if I’m some pathetic escaped convict from Azkaban.)

OK to dream is to build a castle in mid air. But without a dream you will not go anywhere. So people often tell me to dream bold and dream big. Dream of the places you wanted to be. Dream about your most sought after possessions. Dream about an experience you will carry with you for a lifetime. Dream and keep on dreaming. When I close my eyes and dream, I see a land that I can’t wait to step my feet on. The urge and longing to actually feel and be apart of something so great and magical is sometime so overwhelming it will take over you. I dream of going to America. And I mean it.

Alright for some of the lucky ones out there, please stop rolling your eyes already! I know some of you have been to the States like ker-zillion times and for some the States is their second home (can I trade place with you??). But I did not intend to visit US, I (dreaming BIG kononnya) wanted to study there and learn about their culture and country.

<Realities bite>

I am a UTAR student stuck here in Sg. Long (Famous for nothing so don’t ask). I am afraid of presenting myself in front of others (still working on it… Oh c’mon! Stage fright is unavoidable lar!!). I practically live my life day to day wondering what GREAT and EXCITING stuff gonna befall me. (Wow… my favorite band The Fray is coming over to perform in my birthday bash or; Wow….. somebody actually found what I say over in dinner worth memorizing and be put into some scrapbook of "50 Greatest Dinner Time Quotes" ). Well it not so bad but the sad thing is I’m nowhere near my dream.

I have a dream. My dream is to make my dreams come alive. If anyone of you wonder whether I can actually make my dream a reality (THAT guy ar?? No la cannot la… he cannot even survive in Malaysia!), someday I will prove, and I swear I will, to show you all how persistent and determined I am in achieving my dream.

So if in the future you found me beaming and humming along to The Eurythmic’s Sweet Dreams Are Made Of This, you will know I finally crossed the oceans and arrived at the land of my dream. 

I still remember some points in my life where my friends will ask me whether if it’s possible for me to survive without my iPod. What a statement to make. Me. And iPod. Separated.

I did not dare to answer them immediately. Inside, my mind try to contemplate a life without my iPod. But in just a few nanosecond, my mind shifted into a shut down mode due to some horrifying and unbearable traumatizing effects. It will be a life without a life, I thought to myself. Well, since iPod is MY life after all.

But to avoid sounding like someone who thinks that iPod is one of his lifetime partner, I lied. And to top it all up, I’m a good liar. So there goes.

"Well, why not? It’s just an Mp3 player. (heart aching cuz I just insulted my iPod. iPod is never, I say never, just an Mp3 player!!) I could live without it any day"

Oops….

Did I just hear my late iPod shuffle turn in his grave?? If this is an old black and white movie, I would usually get cursed and turn into an iPod myself so that I could suffer the consequences of becoming the coolest Mp3 ever! Woo.. hit me with that any day. I would love to become one. Well, but just make sure I could turn back into human form again (well iPod couldn’t listen to another iPod, you see).

Anyway, I knew one day I gonna kena from saying something so obscene and inhuman to iPod. But the thing I don’t know is that day would come so fast….

>>FLASHBACK<<

It is 11.30 am on a Saturday morning. I’m sitting on a Rapid KL bus with my BIG yellow luggage bag in front of me and my equally BIG Johhny Walker bag on my lap. So I kinda looks like the person obssesed with BIG bags (or anything else that are BIG in that matter). So that’s why the old man was staring at me! (Know he is up to no good).

Well, anyway besides the creppy old fella, the rest of the bus is fine. (Oh.. i mean beside the crazy school kids crowd, the weird auntie with funny hairstyle, another freaky uncle, a VERY talkative couple, the girl who sleep all the way in the bus, a boy who sit next to me who have a problem with excessive body odour (ugh)…. yea… the rest of the bus STILL fine).

*OK I gotta stop doin that. Being observant is good… but this is way toooo much.*

Anyway, like usual, I would casually fish out my iPod from my pocket and plug in it my ears. And like they say, it just drowns out the whole shits in the bus. (Especially the talkative couple… for the last time I don’t care if your daughter Bahasa Melayu dropped from 95 to 89. And by the way please give it break OK).

When the bus reaches the Jusco bus stop, most of the crazy school kid crowd went down and so is the noise pollution index in the bus. I lower down the volume in the bus and switch the song. Better Than Ezra’s come into play. I look behind and saw that weird Uncle No.1 still looking at my direction. GULP. Pretending I did not see him, I grab my iPod and started to fiddle with it. Next song. Next song. Next song.

That’s when it happens.

The 4th time I press NEXT, my iPod just went into paralysis mode. My mouth just open wide for a couple of minutes before my brain started to shout "Do somethin!! Do somethin!!". The screen just locked in that way and it won’t respond to anything I’m pressing. Damn. What I did?? And like a saviour from the heavenly kingdom above, my hands started to sweat. A LOT. PERFECT. Just the thing I need.

The next thing I know my mind went into a frenzy information search stage. C’mon think. C’mon think. FAST. Ok I got it. I put my iPod back into my sock and I literally chuck it inside my HUGE Johhny Walker bag. (Like that gonna help) Luckily my little drama did not attract much attention. (I guess the endless talk by the talkative couple about their daughter academic performance kinda steal all the limelight)

The next few minutes are spent thinking about the fate of my iPod. Then like the impact of an Auntie langgar-ing you in pasar malam, an idea hit me hard. By pressing the MENU and CENTER button simutaneously, you can actually reset your iPod!! With shaking fingers, I reached into my bag and grab my iPod out. Behind me the talkative couple is now engaging in a heated argument about their daughter tuition center. I took it outta the sock and press the two buttons with equal pressure.

1 minute. Nothin happen. 2 minutes. No changes. 3 minutes. OK I give up. Next stop: Apple Center Mid Valley.

>>End Of FLASHBACK<<

And here I am. Standing in front of Apple Center clutching my iPod as if it’s the most important thing in my life. I knew somehow, inside there, a patroit will come and save my iPod. I step inside the shop gingerly, avoiding the stare of some salesperson. I’m not interested in salesperson. I need your technician, I thought to myself.

Arriving at the counter, I put my iPod on the table and say "My iPod hang". Calm down Teck Fui. You did good. Your tone is demanding but you know… not TOO demanding. Instead of responding politely like a trained salesperson, this guy I’m talking to just grab my iPod roughly (Argh) and pass it to the guy next to it. The other guy, completely oblivious of my existence, grab my iPod nonchalantly and started fiddle with it.

Sensing his unwillingness to coorperate, I started to ask questions to the 1st guy I talk to.

"So you know why is it hanged? I mean it won’t just hang like that right??" I said, trying a bit to hard to sound funny.

The guy, who don’t get my joke and seem to think that talking to me will be a complete waste of his precious time, just shrugged it off and say, "Ask him… he’s the technician". And with that, he just move away.

Either this guy did not understand customer service or he is just plain freaking ignorant, but what the hell, I do not care. Turning my attention to the other guy, I noticed that he does not look like a technician at all. Reading a newspaper, this guy have a long soft dyed hair, a pair of big eyes, and pierced ears. This would be the guy that Sue Ling would referred to as "cute".

I looked at him and saw that he was pressing the MENU and CENTER button. My heart skipped a beat. OMG I did the right thing!! I’m so damn right with iPod. But I thought it still won’t respond that way right?

"I try that way before. But it won’t respond." I says, trying my best sounds like I know a lot about iPod myself (Who am I kiddin? This is an iPod technician I’m talking to).

The guy just stare at me without saying anything. Like for a few minutes. Okaaay. He don’t like to talk. Fine. I just be a good boy and will not disturb professional at work.

Few minutes later, the iPod screen come blazing into life and the famous and comforting APPLE logo appear in the middle of the screen. Without thinking I just ask him how he did it.

"That is so cool. How you do that. Like wow??"

He raised his head slowly and look at me straight in the eyes. This goes on for a while. Okaay. I guess he don’t understand English. Which language should I use then?? Erm… Cantonese, Mandarin, Malay or Hakka?? (why would I even consider Hakka?? why??) At this point, I think the guy saw me grimaced and decided to open his mouth and talk. Thank God. This guy can actually talk!!

After explaining in perfect English about what I should do when I iPod hang the next time, he goes on to tell me what’s the reason it hanged. (Yea the software thingy again) This guy is not bad after all (Well apart from the fact that he need warming up before opening his  mouth!).

After thanking him, I left the store with a feeling of liberation. (my iPod is saved!!). Then something else dawned upon me. I just met two completely different people today.

One who can’t stop talking and the other can’t wait to stop talking.

Now that gives you something to talk about in bus.

In the midst of waiting for the 7th Harry Potter book to come out, I find myself stuck and desperately struggling under a BIG pile of assignments. Like REALLY big pile of assignments. (No metaphor or hyperbole are needed cuz its seriously damn BIG).

Well, the problem doesn’t lays in the magnitude and the size of the sum of the separate parts of the assignments ( I mean you can hit me with dozens of itsy bitsy assign anytime, I don’t care) but it’s more like the quality of the assign. Let me classified it into few classes.

• Grade A - The best of the best. Can cause potential sleepless nights and perpetual migraine. (Some claimed to suffer from constipation from it). If left untreated, it will leads to permanent traumatized effect on the brain of the sufferer (the unfortunate group members) and an even serious damage on the coursework marks.
• Grade B - Side effects include indigestion and constant sweating. But if efforts are put into curing it (in other word, DOING the assign), the sufferer will see a better day soon. But cure is not 100% guranteed even if the sufferer take the medication accordingly. (gulp)
• Grade C - Last minutes material. Perfect to be put aside for a game of DotA without a single feeling of guilt (Heck I bet they don’t feel guilty, it’s DotA after all, I mean do they feel guilty when eating?) Example are English assign and stuff with similar nature.

Well, so what’s so great about this semester? Beside the boring subjects and the usual crap, guess what? I can classified almost all my assign at the top bunk of the chart (either Grade A or Grade B or mostly somewhere in between). If that does not giving you a reason to cheer and pop open the champange, why not throw in some incredibly boring lecturers, sulky mid terms, and perpetual society stuff. (Yipee!! My life is just soooo GREAT! Love it to every bits!)

So beside fantasizing about the ability to trade my life with someone else, I find myself preocupied with assign, assign and yea… more assign!! I no longer memorize the facts and terms in the textbooks, instead i find myself memorizing the due dates for each single assigns. (That’s like totally crazy man! But trust me… words are easier to be memorized compared to dates! So write the dates out in words.)*

Now my blog had become a station for me to churns out my hatred toward the evil assignments! (I wish Defense Against The Dark Arts could provide me with a defensive spell to burn and obliterate all the evil assignment.) And people who read my blog will get suck into frenzy and started asking me not to kill myself over assignments or am I actually having constipation because I couldn’t decide on which product to use to study on consumer behavior. (The answer is NO!! No !! nooooo!!).

So when people ask me what is the best and most memorable part of doing an assignments is, I will proudly and indignantly answer them, "When you finally complete and hand them in to the lecturers! That is the best damn thing, when you kiss their sticky ass goodbye"

Haih… but now I will be stuck with their smelly asses for a loooong time.

*Results not guranteed. Do not try this at home! 

People says when you think about a place you miss dearly, the first thing that pop into your mind will be faces of people rather than the scenery. Well, but ironically, one of the first thing that flashes through my mind when I think about my Foundation Studies’ campus is the cloudy skies above it.

For reasons more than one, the breathtaking and picture perfect scenery will always be part of my mind. Whenever the going gets rough I will reminisce the soft blows of wind, the fallen leaves and yes, the cloudy skies looming above. Somehow I knew that that place still exists there. But if only the feeling of revisiting the place will be the same as if the first time its beauty struck you.

Why do people searches for the same feeling over and over again? Is it because they can’t let go of the memories, or is it because they feel that it is too painful or reluctant to move on? But if I have a minute or two I will still go to that familiar place again once more to relive the memories once again; to feel the hands of clocks going backward and feel all the emotions flooding back; to feel that I still can ask "Will the skies be more beautiful tomorrow?".

A picture may says a thousand words, but I rather you all imagine it yourself. Imagine a place you like to be desperately. Feel yourself in it. Although deep inside you know that everything will not be the same again even if you’re there again once more, it’s always good to know that once at a point in time you were there smilling and looking like you’re having a time of your life.