I have moved. At last.
It's still under development; ongoing thing actually.
And now, Blogger, having given me over 2 years of writing and thinking, will be archived. You will be missed.
Here's the new link!
http://thebaroquelover.wordpress.com/
Everything I write thereafter will be there.
Farewell, Blogger. You've grown too old.
~Me.
P.S. Thanks Graeme and Moses. Difficult decision, but yeah. Fresh start!
163
Ok, not really. I just wanted to make it sound dramatic.
Anyways, I thought Blogger is getting old and outmoded, so I'm thinking of change. Yes, Barack Obama. REAL change.
People have been jumping onto the Tumblr and Wordpress bandwagon recently, and I can't help but feel that I need to do the same.
It's a tough decision to make, but I think I can finalise tonight.
Watch this space.~
162
The mood was muted. Ambers of red-hot timber and debris lay littered across the scarred, cratered earth. Feet shuffled, people mumbled; some weep, some stand, astonished that they are even alive, albeit covered in gaping orifices and scabs of burnt flesh, let alone in one piece. Bodies lined the bloodied, messy road so high that one could not look over them. The whirr and drone of aircraft engines slowly faded from the cacophony of a dying city.
Had a visitor to the scene arrive three days earlier, he would have seen something different altogether.
Chances are, that visitor would have become part of the gruesome statistic as well.
Then, it was peaceful, something that is completely normal. That is, if it was peacetime. A maniacal Hitler was still clinging to power, or whatever has remained of it. Stalin's troops are charging towards Berlin faster than anybody could have imagined. Nazi Germany was being swallowed whole by the Allies, bar none. And still the Fuhrer grips the red-hot pole of hope, long after it had become hopeless.
1945. That is the year destined to be known as the year Peace finally reigned, but not very many people know the terrible way it got to be so. And an innocuous city was part of that way. It's a beautiful city, no doubt, home to many Baroque structures quite striking to the eye. At first glance it looks nothing like the industrial and military war machine the Allies tout it to be. Unlike Berlin, it had not suffered terribly. In fact, it had hardly been touched since the war began.
One fine evening in February though, Lady Luck made a U-turn. The silence of night was broken by the sound of sirens and later, the characteristic whistle of bombs. Darkness was replaced by a haunting red glow, followed by flaming fireballs from exploded ordnances, as hundreds more fell from the sky like rain. A flood took the city over in its frightening red and yellow hues, frying anyone in its way to a crisp. Those who jumped the flames had the life literally sucked out of them: a firestorm has started. Rescuers attempt to put out the carnage; as they do a hail of explosives blanket the heart of town, dealing damage and death twice over.
Daylight fails to bring any hope of solace. Now that the British bombers have left, the American ones take over, repeating the sorry, sorry state of affairs. As much as survivors want to survive, by the next nightfall such hopes were quelled. More die; more still begin to be disillusioned. Round-the-clock bombing has reduced the city to a shambles.
Now, multiply that over 3 days. It isn't hard to see what has happened.
Dresden has, today, been largely restored to its prewar glory. Little evidence exists of such a terrible event. Still, if you can find it, there are scars the city can never hide. Time heals all? Guess not.
Till then~
161
I am late.
But who gives a flip. HAPPY NEW YEAR!
School has begun, and I am pretty happy with things so far. Had so much to do, like (in order):
Life's good; lovely way to start 2011. Let's hope this spirit keeps up for the rest of the year. I want 2011 to be the best year I've had so far.
'Nuff said. Enjoy the festivities, if there are any left, hohoho.
Cheers; till then!~
160
I'm completely shagged out as I type this, no thanks to gym this morning, but hey, it's the holidays!!
MSTs were a piece of cake, I believe. Now I just need my results to reflect that opinion...As for all! =D
Normally by now I would have typed something philosophical or somesuch just because it's dwelling in my head, but now nothing's dwelling in my head but lethargy. I'm not typing right: I make spelling errors en route (thanks spellcheck for saving me), and I'm seriously starting to zone out. I doubt I'd last past midnight...oh the soreness is hitting me hard D:
Still, on the bright side, there's lots to do during the festive season, and I can say there are plenty of places I will be going this month, albeit not being overseas...then again, the house is in a right awful mess. Oh, joy.
I guess I will end here before thinking saps the remainder of my brain juice so, before I commit this post's coup de grace, and in case I do post for the rest of December, I'd like to say:
Happy Holidays! =)
And now for something completely different....zzzzzz.
Cheerios; till the-zzzzzzz!!
159
It's been almost a month since I blogged. Meh.
So quickly, 2010 is drawing to a close. Is it just me or is each successive year passing by me faster and faster? Before I know it I may just be a senile, frail 80-year-old who has forgotten why he has existed. Sad.
Anyways, apart from this forethought, there are several happy things (and a sad thing) I wish to announce:
First up: Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit.
Just got it this past Monday, and I can tell you, it's great fun, though after a while it gets quite difficult. But it's the challenge which is the real enticement.
The user interface. Awesome huh? =D
Next: Holidays!
December is here, and I just can't wait for fun and more fun! Apart from NOT studying (heh), there is lots of catching-up to do, especially with my sec-sch mates, most of whom I have not seen in over a year. Imagine that. Also there are other things in store, but I'm too lazy to list them out at the moment. Whoopsie-daisy.
To wrap it all up in time for Christmas: my Xbox360 has been found!
Just when all hope was lost...it got found. Yay. Can't wait to play my beloved Forza Motorsport 3 come time to relax! I haven't seen it in 11 months! =O
All things though have to be tempered by bad news...I hate.
The winner: MSTs.
Nevermind that it's next week, it's the punishing fact that the lecturers for CF and FMRP had to include 6 & 5 chapters respectively for the upcoming tests. Hell hath no fury like a teacher's scorn. I am thoroughly worried. Really.
So that's it, my update of the month. Don't expect much back here, I may just be too lazy to check back and type more. Maybe till sometime in my hols.
Signing out then; cheers!
Till then~
158
That is all that needs to be written.
No one deserves to die the way he has. Dying like that is...unspeakable.
Oh and stop hating. He deserves no such bad publicity.
Peace out.~
157
I have been fascinated with the Universe for as long as I can remember. At the age of 7 I could rattle off the 9 planets (Pluto was still classed as one at the time) – in order - as fluidly as water would cascade over a waterfall. Memory boasts my greatest pride when, back in Primary 6, my form teacher told a few of us in class to scribble down on the whiteboard the planets in our Solar System. I handed the marker back to her not a minute later, beaming, before the rest had even come halfway through.
As I grew older, so did my fascination and knowledge of space: marvelling at how even our Sun, that globe of gaseous flames, being a Type G star, is dwarfed by thousands of stars in our galaxy, in terms of size and luminosity. In the universal context, our local star is but a grain of sand. There are also thousands more tinier stars out there – Type Ks and Ms – which can burn up to 10 times as long as the Sun (which by the way would last 10 billion years), whereas massive Type As and Os would burn out in mere millions of years. To a young mind these were astounding facts.
From there I spread out, going to types of galaxies, black holes, nebulae, neutron stars, white and black dwarfs, super and hypernovae, dark matter, things like that. Of course I didn't touch things like quantum physics; to me these were simply too much. Not only that, I had tremendous interest in prehistory (particularly dinosaurs), and basically general knowledge. To Dunman Secondary's old slogan, "Knowledge, the Torch of Life".
These are all and good, but in today's rat race, they are irrelevant. In business and finance nobody is going to ask you how many parsecs away Alpha Centauri is away from us (which is 1.34), or whether a Diplodocus and a Seismosaurus were one and the same (and they were). In class today I was told that people can be worked like a dog for some good money where knowledge can be a make-or-break factor. Not the aforementioned knowledge though – it's knowledge of the markets, of the economy, of the human state of mind. Lecturers somehow can't stress these enough.
Technical Analysis teaches us how to evaluate trends such that you would be in the know. Whether to buy or sell, hold a long, short, or square position, it's down to how much one understands from what he sees on the screen. Brokers are entrusted with clientele money and are expected to use their judgement and knowledge to grow their portfolios. It's a man-eat-man world, and without the right stuff people will bite the dust sooner than later. It's a scary proposition to even think of considering, but that is life, at least it's the one I am training for. Sometimes I question my decisions, but once they are made, there is no reneging, no backtracking.
Memory and interest are my saving graces. I know I can store an elephant of knowledge in a case no bigger than a football. And oh, there surely must be a reason for me choosing the course I have chosen, and then sticking to it for nearly 2 years. Come on, it's not that hard to sum it all up! I know of persons who bicker about how the school, the course, and the modules suck, but I can never get to grips with why they never dropped out. They retain neither the interest nor the knowledge, yet they stubbornly stick on like superglue. My father has done lots of finance stuff during the span of my life, and I have every intention of following in his footsteps. I want to be in the know, and that's why I am where I am.
If a certain five-year-old with a book and gusto for learning about what lies light-years out in space and what transpired many millions of years ago can remember so much, why can't I? Why not now? Definitely food for thought.
Now my brain has hollowed out. Phew.
Till then!~
156
My results are out. I’m pretty impressed by the astounding turnaround, but there is still much left to be desired.
If there is a reason for me to be a perfectionist, it’s because I have to be. Even if I were to provide a miracle and get a GPA of 4 for the remainder of my poly education (which I’m sure I can accomplish), I’d not even scratch 3.6. I could throw my arms up in defeat and cry out “Bugger all”. I’m not like that.
I shall make a fresh start from sem 2 onwards, and I’ll give my all. If anything, it’s because I can. I’ve got friends who did 3.8 and better, so why can’t I?
This also applies to me as a whole. After all, I have not been the most filial son, the most devoted friend, or the one with the most virtuous character. Come semester 2, I will fight for change. A change in me.
Clichéd? Maybe. But this is change that I need. I cannot be stuck as I am now. If I can’t be a new me, at least I will be one who is improving, always.
Till then~
The Tsar Bomba being detonated in the Soviet Union in 1961. At 50 megatons, it is the largest nuclear device ever tested in human history.
That is the way peace was brokered half a century ago, however unconventional. However, in the 21st century, is this still a solution?
“I do not know with what weapons World War 3 will be fought, but World War 4 will be fought with sticks and stones.”
-Albert Einstein
We don’t want a future when nuclear power is the driving force for politics, especially for certain countries...
Till then; treasure every day you have.~
154
Free. Free. Free...
...from the clutches of the mid-year exams;
...from the restraints of study and mugging;
...from having to worry that I'll be late for a paper or for class;
...from being worried about what hurdle lies in the next corner.
Free...for now, at least.
But that means a host of other liberty-killers will take its place. My role in prepping my sis for her PSLE, for one, is undeniable. The other is my solemn duty to do my household chores. I heave a huge sigh. Life, however, goes on.
That can be said for my dear JC friends; their prelims are underway, and As are only 2 months away. To them I wish the best of luck; the torture is near over. =)
This month-long holiday is gonna be hectic, but I'll ride it through. Gym is going to be more frequent now!
To my poly pals, HAPPY HOLIDAYS =)
Till then!~
153
It's part holiday (which by the way stretches well into October), part exam (ending on the 16th this month); part respite, part irritant.
It's the holiexams, a magical hybrid of endless hours on the computer and sprawling on bed with nearly as many hours (I tend to use the term nearly quite liberally, with just a hint of sarcasm) of studying and banging heads on the work-desk over a vexing trial paper. And it may sound like a paradox, being what it is; alas it isn't. Why so I can't say – it's just not paradoxical, 'nuff said.
Two papers have passed (Cust Relationship Mgmt & Macroecons Analysis I [which was an e-paper]), and now remains 3 others and a presentation (which can be damned if I don't score). Come the 16th, it will be nearly pure holiday for a full month. Excited, you may ask? Splendidly so.
It's been a while since I last blogged, so this is a break of some sort, one of which I require. Otherwise I feel and fear that I will just go blind and dumb. Lots of things coming up, but my brain's recollection department has retired for the day, so no details. Just...........lots of things.
Oh and another thing – I'm turning 18 shortly. That means, amongst other things, alcohol and cars become legal. The former I can promise you will be strictly regulated (such 'luxuries' are few and far between). As for the latter: only time can tell....
There's little left to type for tonight, so I shall retire for now.
Till then!~
P.S. A random thought: I may be a commoner on the outside, but inside I feel as though I am like some sort of dandy, one with refined styles and tastes...could it be that I was once...?
Well, just saying. Night!
