It's been quite a while since I was amazed by Magic , Religion and the Supernatural.
I read up quite a bit on these 3 subjects.
The 3 of them all have the same effect.
They create and instill belief.
Some believe religion is the answer to their existence.
Some believe that there are supernatural beings around us.
Some believe that there are really people whom can perform miracles.
Belief, itself, or rather the mind that believes, is the power at work.
Therefore from the 3 topics, I have dwelled into another subject matter altogether.
Hypnosis.
Its not normal to see another man being hypnotised.
Disbelief, to the fact that another spectator can stand on the hypnotised subject when he is only supported by 2 stools at his legs and head while he is in the horizontal facing up position.
However, after being shown that it is possible, Belief is upon the non-believers.
Another subject hypnotised.
Not that the new believer can now support heavy weights upon his chest or waist as like the volunteer, whom had performed an amazing feat.
But the new believer has somewhat been tuned to believe also.
A subtle form of hypnosis.
Monday, August 15, 2005
Thursday, August 11, 2005
Do they sound the same?
Signs = Science
Example: Do u know the signs/science of bad weather?
Ain't it amazing, the answer can also be quite similar?
Science of Aging or Signs of Aging?
Reminder : Material for FOC
Example: Do u know the signs/science of bad weather?
Ain't it amazing, the answer can also be quite similar?
Science of Aging or Signs of Aging?
Reminder : Material for FOC
Wednesday, August 10, 2005
National Anthem
This country I lived in just celebrated its National Day.
The TV was telecasting the event and was airing the part where everyone at the event was singing the national anthem.
While my family and some friends were watching, I asked one of them, whom was a Malaysian, if she knew what was the national language of my country?
Most people would say English, whom is the first language and the preferred language used in many places. But only known to some, the national language is actually Malay.
So my friend, SK, whom was enlightened by the fact and yet has queries of her own, asked...
"Do most locals even know the meaning of the National Anthem, since it is sung in Malay?"
Someone in our gathering actually said he knew the meaning of Mari Kita.
And I replied loudly " MARI KITA MEANS STAND UP!".
And upon saying that, I gave myself a proud grin.
My malaysian friend replied saying that Mari Kita actually means "come together"
The joke was really very subtle here. It took us some moments before we all burst into a loud laughter.
Oblivious to my friend from the friendly north, most of us always used the term Mari Kita to define "standing up". Mainly because in our school days, we stand in a parade every morning singing the National Anthem watching the flag get raised.
And because of the raising of the flag, the term "Mari Kita" is also used cheekily in describing the male organ in its most eagered stance.
So my dear friends whom do not yet know that the national language of the country they live in is "Malay", please do not embarass yourself by saying that you know the meaning of the words used in the song which you used to sing every weekday morning for at least 16 years.
Today is 10th August 2005.
The time is 11.01pm.
I am learning something new about myself everyday.
Yesterday, I just learnt that I am a complete fool.
Mari Kita.
At least I know the worm-like insect on the mahjong tiles is known as a Centipede and not a Caterpillar
The TV was telecasting the event and was airing the part where everyone at the event was singing the national anthem.
While my family and some friends were watching, I asked one of them, whom was a Malaysian, if she knew what was the national language of my country?
Most people would say English, whom is the first language and the preferred language used in many places. But only known to some, the national language is actually Malay.
So my friend, SK, whom was enlightened by the fact and yet has queries of her own, asked...
"Do most locals even know the meaning of the National Anthem, since it is sung in Malay?"
Someone in our gathering actually said he knew the meaning of Mari Kita.
And I replied loudly " MARI KITA MEANS STAND UP!".
And upon saying that, I gave myself a proud grin.
My malaysian friend replied saying that Mari Kita actually means "come together"
The joke was really very subtle here. It took us some moments before we all burst into a loud laughter.
Oblivious to my friend from the friendly north, most of us always used the term Mari Kita to define "standing up". Mainly because in our school days, we stand in a parade every morning singing the National Anthem watching the flag get raised.
And because of the raising of the flag, the term "Mari Kita" is also used cheekily in describing the male organ in its most eagered stance.
So my dear friends whom do not yet know that the national language of the country they live in is "Malay", please do not embarass yourself by saying that you know the meaning of the words used in the song which you used to sing every weekday morning for at least 16 years.
Today is 10th August 2005.
The time is 11.01pm.
I am learning something new about myself everyday.
Yesterday, I just learnt that I am a complete fool.
Mari Kita.
At least I know the worm-like insect on the mahjong tiles is known as a Centipede and not a Caterpillar
Monday, August 08, 2005
When In Rome, Don't Try To Speak Like A Roman
Over the weekend, my wife and I were inHong Kong.
And so we armed ourselves with the common cantonese words and went shopping!
It's amazing, Hong Kong natives...
No matter how good you are, or how hard you try to blend in, they will still know that you are not local.
Despite the fact that we have the same colour skin and of course, we hid the tourist map well before we started to converse, we were still identified as tourists.
And they continued to speak to us in Mandarin instead.
So there we were stranded, at the Peak, a famous place in HK for tourists.
We went up to the Peak in a tram up a slope so steep that the adjacent buildings almost looked slanted when viewing from the tram.
We queued for about 40mins to get into the upriding tram.
The queue for the downriding tram looked like it'd take us another 40mins before we can enter the tram, so we took the taxi instead.
And so, we make the same mistake again, trying to speak the native language.
The moment the second cantonese word came out from my mouth......"Chung Hwan"
The driver asked again," You want to go Chung Hwan?" in Mandarin.
It took only the second word for the driver to see that we aren't locals.
Either that or I do not have the HongKong look.
Taxi drivers in HongKong, always thought to be uncouth and inarticulate.
Wrong! The driver whom drove me from the Peak down to Central station was able to strike up a conversation about the economy of Hong Kong and able to give me examples of standard of living between the East Asia cities!
And the best thing was, all along the first half of the ride, he spoke in very fluent and perfect Mandarin! An unaccented Mandarin that could put us to shame!.
And there were some moments which my wife and I were talking in English.
It wasn't before long that the driver was also speaking to us in English.
So me and my wife thought, the only way we could speak to each other without the locals understanding were through our dialect, Hokkien.
It wasn't until we reached Shenzhen, a border town in China just besides Hong Kong, that we realised that they speak the same language also.
How interesting...
Today is 8th August 2005.
Time is 10.45pm.
PS:
Being able to speak the same lingua doesn't always mean you can get a better price off your purchase.
Sometimes, walking away does more that what can be asked with words.
And so we armed ourselves with the common cantonese words and went shopping!
It's amazing, Hong Kong natives...
No matter how good you are, or how hard you try to blend in, they will still know that you are not local.
Despite the fact that we have the same colour skin and of course, we hid the tourist map well before we started to converse, we were still identified as tourists.
And they continued to speak to us in Mandarin instead.
So there we were stranded, at the Peak, a famous place in HK for tourists.
We went up to the Peak in a tram up a slope so steep that the adjacent buildings almost looked slanted when viewing from the tram.
We queued for about 40mins to get into the upriding tram.
The queue for the downriding tram looked like it'd take us another 40mins before we can enter the tram, so we took the taxi instead.
And so, we make the same mistake again, trying to speak the native language.
The moment the second cantonese word came out from my mouth......"Chung Hwan"
The driver asked again," You want to go Chung Hwan?" in Mandarin.
It took only the second word for the driver to see that we aren't locals.
Either that or I do not have the HongKong look.
Taxi drivers in HongKong, always thought to be uncouth and inarticulate.
Wrong! The driver whom drove me from the Peak down to Central station was able to strike up a conversation about the economy of Hong Kong and able to give me examples of standard of living between the East Asia cities!
And the best thing was, all along the first half of the ride, he spoke in very fluent and perfect Mandarin! An unaccented Mandarin that could put us to shame!.
And there were some moments which my wife and I were talking in English.
It wasn't before long that the driver was also speaking to us in English.
So me and my wife thought, the only way we could speak to each other without the locals understanding were through our dialect, Hokkien.
It wasn't until we reached Shenzhen, a border town in China just besides Hong Kong, that we realised that they speak the same language also.
How interesting...
Today is 8th August 2005.
Time is 10.45pm.
PS:
Being able to speak the same lingua doesn't always mean you can get a better price off your purchase.
Sometimes, walking away does more that what can be asked with words.
Tuesday, August 02, 2005
My Book To Be Published Soon
A year back,
A good friend, named William, (his surname is suppressed to protect his identity), told me that with all the nonsensical facts that I have, I should actually write a book and publish it.
Facts such as
1) If we envision a line to be made up of an infinite amount of dots, and drawing a line means joining all the dots together, how come we don't take infinite amount of time drawing the line?
More to mention when I do publish the book.
The title of the book, as suggested by William shall be
"F****rd's Full Of Crap"
In short, FOC.
This blog will track my daily input of crap so one day, when it gets thick enough, I might just publish it.
And I will ask Mr William to write the Foreword page.
Today is 2nd August 2005
Time is 10.13pm
We are all destined to Eternity on this rock.
Why not make it a happier rock?
A good friend, named William, (his surname is suppressed to protect his identity), told me that with all the nonsensical facts that I have, I should actually write a book and publish it.
Facts such as
1) If we envision a line to be made up of an infinite amount of dots, and drawing a line means joining all the dots together, how come we don't take infinite amount of time drawing the line?
More to mention when I do publish the book.
The title of the book, as suggested by William shall be
"F****rd's Full Of Crap"
In short, FOC.
This blog will track my daily input of crap so one day, when it gets thick enough, I might just publish it.
And I will ask Mr William to write the Foreword page.
Today is 2nd August 2005
Time is 10.13pm
We are all destined to Eternity on this rock.
Why not make it a happier rock?
Monday, August 01, 2005
Any difference between the two?
Most people find all other cuisines, except their native one, to be more tasty and interesting.
Such is the case also for Japanese cuisines.
"AUTHENTIC JAPANESE CUISINES", the huge painted signboard hangs over the entrance of a Japanese restaurant in town. The fonts on the signboard attempts to mimick the kanji language, having the english characters done in thick strokes twisting weirdly at certain ends.
So one will enter these restaurants, expecting Japanese food, or rather the common Japanese food, which most think is the everyday's native Japanese staple food.
Sushi, Bento, Ramen, Unagi, Ebi, etc.
But who gives it the authenticity?
Is it because the chef is a native Japanese person?
Or is the food prepared from ingredients imported from Japan?
Could it be because the chef has learnt it from a Japanese chef?
Funny how us locals refuse to eat our local food when we are in a foreign land.
No matter how authentic the "local" food in the foreign land might come close to the same standards and/or taste as the ones back home, we'd rather taste something else which is foreign to our taste palette.
So if that's the case, whom is the authenticity for?
Since the ones whom would know the difference would rather eat "local" food that needs no authentication.
Today is 1st August 2005
Time is 11.19am.
Everytime I enter a Japanese Restaurant, I'd ask for Japanese Tea and specifically inform the service staff not to give me green tea. And do you think they know any differences?
Such is the case also for Japanese cuisines.
"AUTHENTIC JAPANESE CUISINES", the huge painted signboard hangs over the entrance of a Japanese restaurant in town. The fonts on the signboard attempts to mimick the kanji language, having the english characters done in thick strokes twisting weirdly at certain ends.
So one will enter these restaurants, expecting Japanese food, or rather the common Japanese food, which most think is the everyday's native Japanese staple food.
Sushi, Bento, Ramen, Unagi, Ebi, etc.
But who gives it the authenticity?
Is it because the chef is a native Japanese person?
Or is the food prepared from ingredients imported from Japan?
Could it be because the chef has learnt it from a Japanese chef?
Funny how us locals refuse to eat our local food when we are in a foreign land.
No matter how authentic the "local" food in the foreign land might come close to the same standards and/or taste as the ones back home, we'd rather taste something else which is foreign to our taste palette.
So if that's the case, whom is the authenticity for?
Since the ones whom would know the difference would rather eat "local" food that needs no authentication.
Today is 1st August 2005
Time is 11.19am.
Everytime I enter a Japanese Restaurant, I'd ask for Japanese Tea and specifically inform the service staff not to give me green tea. And do you think they know any differences?
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