Saying No
It's not easy to say No. Among others, it requires
Wisdom
Knowing why is crucial
Diplomacy
Doing it right is critical
Tact
Knowing what not to say is important
Guts
Especially when it is to be uttered at the wrong time
And then I got interrupted and I forgot what I wanted to say. That's why it's important to know HOW TO SAY NO and WHEN to say it.
Sigh...
Tuesday, June 27, 2006
Monday, June 26, 2006
Moving House
Moving House
After agreeing to extend the lease of my current place for another 2 years, the new landlord (he acquired the shophouse from the former landlord, who, for personal reasons, had to sell the place) reneged on his part of the verbal agreement.
The landlord told me that his wife wanted to sell stuff at the shop space below and use the flat above as her "office". Initially, he said he would give us three months to look for a new place (i.e. move out by Aug 06), then when we called him again regarding paying HIM for utilities, he said that he wanted us out by the end of contract (i.e. mid Jul 06). This left me with no choice but to look for another place to stay. And fast!
So, the viewing began. After viewing enough houses and getting enough of uninhabitable places at exorbitant rental rates, my housemate and I decided to bite the bullet and go for a slightly more expensive place. The environment is a vast improvement over the current place, the place is about twice as big, the air is fresh and crisp, and the house is bright and airy. The rent is higher, of course, but it is just a tad more than what I would have to pay if I were to rent a place that is of the same floor area now. Go figure. I did and I reckoned this is a good deal. I guess I'll just spend less, travel less, eat less lavish stuff to top up the rent. (Fortunately, it is not really *that* bad.)
Just an aside: I only recently figured out that there are houseowners who actually rent their flats out to foreign workers. A three-room flat (68 square metres) on top of a shophouse (where I am putting up now) can command a price of $1200, accommodating 12 foreign workers. Don't ask me how but according to a four-room flat (91 square metres) owner, she used to rent her flat to 8 foreign workers (in name, but in reality, it's more like 16). What they did was: Morning shift sleep in house, evening shift work outfield; evening shift sleep in house, morning shift work outfield. Basically, the house is used by workers from 2 shifts. And she used to collect about $1300 for the place.
I've visited the place and it really looked like a refugee camp. How could almost everything be in shambles? Even the sides of a porcelain squatting toilet pan were shattered. The wall tiles cracked and hung precariously off the ceiling. And she tried to rent the place to my housemate and I for $1100. We both freaked out.
For posterity's sake, I'll briefly mention another case of a flat co-owner who backed out after the other co-owner, a 80-plus year old woman, said she wanted to go back to her place (to die?). And to make up for this unexpected twist of events, the housing agent sent us to view a house whose occupants left an oil-slick in the kitchen, and they left their house stinking so badly I could smell it 3 units away. I ticked the agent off and told her that I won't even rent the place for $300. I'd rather die homeless in the streets!
We've even checked out flats from commercial property management companies. The properties were not bad at all and better still, their rents are very reasonable. But our desired place (the rent is what we are paying now) did not have vacancies. So, we dragged ass till we simply had no time to leave bum prints on the ground any more.
Anyway, this flat that came along was a god-send. It just came on the papers for the first time, we were the first caller and we nailed it. Although it could do with a fresh coat of paint, some of the switches and handles are in need of replacement, and new SCV points needed to be installed, the landlord agreed to foot the bill for most of these (painting labour is on us, the tenants, but what the heck!).
In all, we're pleased with our new place and it gave us a new "lease of life". The landlord is a pleasant lady and who knows, one of us might end up owning this place in the end.
Sometimes, it is really true that "when god closes a door, he opens a window". In this case, I think he closed a shutter but made available a whole new world outside.
Afternote: Just last Saturday, I saw that the shophouse landlord had posted notices to invite rental for the entire shophouse. What a failure. Or is it henpecked, spineless amoeba? If he feels our rent had been very low, then discuss rental adjustments. Why evict us? But thankfully to him, we've found ourselves some place that is really great for living. And may I wish him no success in getting anyone to rent that place. May he pay finance instalments in vain for the next 100 months before he finds a willing taker! (I wonder if this AT LEAST matches the Arabic curse "May the fleas of a thousand camels infest your armpit" in terms of viciousness!)
After agreeing to extend the lease of my current place for another 2 years, the new landlord (he acquired the shophouse from the former landlord, who, for personal reasons, had to sell the place) reneged on his part of the verbal agreement.
The landlord told me that his wife wanted to sell stuff at the shop space below and use the flat above as her "office". Initially, he said he would give us three months to look for a new place (i.e. move out by Aug 06), then when we called him again regarding paying HIM for utilities, he said that he wanted us out by the end of contract (i.e. mid Jul 06). This left me with no choice but to look for another place to stay. And fast!
So, the viewing began. After viewing enough houses and getting enough of uninhabitable places at exorbitant rental rates, my housemate and I decided to bite the bullet and go for a slightly more expensive place. The environment is a vast improvement over the current place, the place is about twice as big, the air is fresh and crisp, and the house is bright and airy. The rent is higher, of course, but it is just a tad more than what I would have to pay if I were to rent a place that is of the same floor area now. Go figure. I did and I reckoned this is a good deal. I guess I'll just spend less, travel less, eat less lavish stuff to top up the rent. (Fortunately, it is not really *that* bad.)
Just an aside: I only recently figured out that there are houseowners who actually rent their flats out to foreign workers. A three-room flat (68 square metres) on top of a shophouse (where I am putting up now) can command a price of $1200, accommodating 12 foreign workers. Don't ask me how but according to a four-room flat (91 square metres) owner, she used to rent her flat to 8 foreign workers (in name, but in reality, it's more like 16). What they did was: Morning shift sleep in house, evening shift work outfield; evening shift sleep in house, morning shift work outfield. Basically, the house is used by workers from 2 shifts. And she used to collect about $1300 for the place.
I've visited the place and it really looked like a refugee camp. How could almost everything be in shambles? Even the sides of a porcelain squatting toilet pan were shattered. The wall tiles cracked and hung precariously off the ceiling. And she tried to rent the place to my housemate and I for $1100. We both freaked out.
For posterity's sake, I'll briefly mention another case of a flat co-owner who backed out after the other co-owner, a 80-plus year old woman, said she wanted to go back to her place (to die?). And to make up for this unexpected twist of events, the housing agent sent us to view a house whose occupants left an oil-slick in the kitchen, and they left their house stinking so badly I could smell it 3 units away. I ticked the agent off and told her that I won't even rent the place for $300. I'd rather die homeless in the streets!
We've even checked out flats from commercial property management companies. The properties were not bad at all and better still, their rents are very reasonable. But our desired place (the rent is what we are paying now) did not have vacancies. So, we dragged ass till we simply had no time to leave bum prints on the ground any more.
Anyway, this flat that came along was a god-send. It just came on the papers for the first time, we were the first caller and we nailed it. Although it could do with a fresh coat of paint, some of the switches and handles are in need of replacement, and new SCV points needed to be installed, the landlord agreed to foot the bill for most of these (painting labour is on us, the tenants, but what the heck!).
In all, we're pleased with our new place and it gave us a new "lease of life". The landlord is a pleasant lady and who knows, one of us might end up owning this place in the end.
Sometimes, it is really true that "when god closes a door, he opens a window". In this case, I think he closed a shutter but made available a whole new world outside.
Afternote: Just last Saturday, I saw that the shophouse landlord had posted notices to invite rental for the entire shophouse. What a failure. Or is it henpecked, spineless amoeba? If he feels our rent had been very low, then discuss rental adjustments. Why evict us? But thankfully to him, we've found ourselves some place that is really great for living. And may I wish him no success in getting anyone to rent that place. May he pay finance instalments in vain for the next 100 months before he finds a willing taker! (I wonder if this AT LEAST matches the Arabic curse "May the fleas of a thousand camels infest your armpit" in terms of viciousness!)
Thursday, June 22, 2006
Hardship Tour
Hardship Tour
1. After a 5 hour flight and another 5 hour bumpy bus ride, I knew I had bought the wrong tour.
2. I was nearly thrown off my bus seat on the second day when the bus when negotiating a particularly treacherous bend.
3. The views and sights were extraordinary. So was the difficulty in getting to see them.
4. Blogspot is banned in China - Go figure.
5. I am tanned.
6. Average day = 8 hours of bumping in the bus.
7. Food glorious WAIT! GORY food. Not good. Except the fiery Sichuan steamboat meal where they served pigs' large intestines, duck intestines, and duck blood "tofu". Yum! Fear factor? Bah!
8. Temperatures toggled between 7 and 40 degrees. Experienced my first heat wave in Yichang, one of the cauldrons of China. I am truly and wetly humbled.
9. Peaches, apricots, plums, cherries, and watermelons are in abundance, but not sweet enough yet.
10. Same old dishes meal after meal after meal...
1. After a 5 hour flight and another 5 hour bumpy bus ride, I knew I had bought the wrong tour.
2. I was nearly thrown off my bus seat on the second day when the bus when negotiating a particularly treacherous bend.
3. The views and sights were extraordinary. So was the difficulty in getting to see them.
4. Blogspot is banned in China - Go figure.
5. I am tanned.
6. Average day = 8 hours of bumping in the bus.
7. Food glorious WAIT! GORY food. Not good. Except the fiery Sichuan steamboat meal where they served pigs' large intestines, duck intestines, and duck blood "tofu". Yum! Fear factor? Bah!
8. Temperatures toggled between 7 and 40 degrees. Experienced my first heat wave in Yichang, one of the cauldrons of China. I am truly and wetly humbled.
9. Peaches, apricots, plums, cherries, and watermelons are in abundance, but not sweet enough yet.
10. Same old dishes meal after meal after meal...
Thursday, June 08, 2006
Period of Absence
Period of Absence
I'll be travelling in China from 10 - 21 Jun.
In the course of my travel, I'll be blogging wherever I can. However, I am not too hopeful that this would be at all possible.
I'll be in Jiuzhaigou and cruising down the 3 Gorges Dam.
More when I return.
I'll be travelling in China from 10 - 21 Jun.
In the course of my travel, I'll be blogging wherever I can. However, I am not too hopeful that this would be at all possible.
I'll be in Jiuzhaigou and cruising down the 3 Gorges Dam.
More when I return.
Friday, June 02, 2006
Top 10 Questions
Top 10 Questions
(In no order of merit)
1. Can a person smell his/her own BO?
2. Does a drunk know s/he is drunk?
3. How do you make a Down syndrome's sufferer feel "up" (i.e. happy, high-spirited)?
4. If the brain feels no pain, then why do people suffer HEADaches?
5. Are dogs plain forgiving or absolutely amnesiac?
6. Why don't oppressed characters in shows or movies speak up?
7. How do we know we don't know what we don't know?
8. If there is a fleeting moment when the intercourse is enjoyed, is it still rape?
9. Who discovered milk?
10. When a human being stop being, is s/he still human?
Answers: Option A By Al
1. Sadly, too often, no.
2. Yes, but we/they don't care.
3. I'm sure there are porn sites for that.
4. You'd know better than I would.
5. I'd bet on amnesiac, but I'm a cat-person.
6. That question has caused me no end of frustration.
7. We don't. We're just screwed.
8. It's always rape. Haven't you heard of Katherine McKinnon?
9. See answer #3.
10. I vote no.
Old Whig | Homepage | 06.03.06 - 3:05 am | #
Answers: Option B By Quinsy
1. Yes they can!
2. Yes, they do know.
3. Pop Prozac?
4. Cuz it's HEADache. NOT BRAIN ACHE.
5. They are Amnesiac. Or just too lazy to remember. Unless they get rewarded with doggy treats and a back rub.
6. They do speak up... only during the last few episodes when the produces are tired of dragging the stories.
7. We know we don't know what we don't know when others talk about it and we realise we're CLUELESS.
8. It is still rape cuz the person did not consent BEFORE the intercourse.
9. Humans. They discovered milk and called it milk.
10. Yes. Still human.
Quinsy | Homepage | 06.05.06 - 9:03 am | #
Answers: Option C By Probligo
1. I can smell my feet after being in boots for 12 hours - without taking the boots off. Does that count?
2. Yes, when I pass out I can't drink any more.
3. Try asking - I am sure they could tell you. Seriously!
4. Didn't you know that they are contagious?
5. Have dogs got enough brain that they have anything to forget?
6. Ditto to Al.
7. Anyone with more brain than a dog could work that out.
8. Intercourse is not rape. Rape is not intercourse. Oxymoron.
9. Cats.
10. Say what? Ain't nothin after bein'.
probligo | Homepage | 06.09.06 - 11:38 pm | #
(In no order of merit)
1. Can a person smell his/her own BO?
2. Does a drunk know s/he is drunk?
3. How do you make a Down syndrome's sufferer feel "up" (i.e. happy, high-spirited)?
4. If the brain feels no pain, then why do people suffer HEADaches?
5. Are dogs plain forgiving or absolutely amnesiac?
6. Why don't oppressed characters in shows or movies speak up?
7. How do we know we don't know what we don't know?
8. If there is a fleeting moment when the intercourse is enjoyed, is it still rape?
9. Who discovered milk?
10. When a human being stop being, is s/he still human?
Answers: Option A By Al
1. Sadly, too often, no.
2. Yes, but we/they don't care.
3. I'm sure there are porn sites for that.
4. You'd know better than I would.
5. I'd bet on amnesiac, but I'm a cat-person.
6. That question has caused me no end of frustration.
7. We don't. We're just screwed.
8. It's always rape. Haven't you heard of Katherine McKinnon?
9. See answer #3.
10. I vote no.
Old Whig | Homepage | 06.03.06 - 3:05 am | #
Answers: Option B By Quinsy
1. Yes they can!
2. Yes, they do know.
3. Pop Prozac?
4. Cuz it's HEADache. NOT BRAIN ACHE.
5. They are Amnesiac. Or just too lazy to remember. Unless they get rewarded with doggy treats and a back rub.
6. They do speak up... only during the last few episodes when the produces are tired of dragging the stories.
7. We know we don't know what we don't know when others talk about it and we realise we're CLUELESS.
8. It is still rape cuz the person did not consent BEFORE the intercourse.
9. Humans. They discovered milk and called it milk.
10. Yes. Still human.
Quinsy | Homepage | 06.05.06 - 9:03 am | #
Answers: Option C By Probligo
1. I can smell my feet after being in boots for 12 hours - without taking the boots off. Does that count?
2. Yes, when I pass out I can't drink any more.
3. Try asking - I am sure they could tell you. Seriously!
4. Didn't you know that they are contagious?
5. Have dogs got enough brain that they have anything to forget?
6. Ditto to Al.
7. Anyone with more brain than a dog could work that out.
8. Intercourse is not rape. Rape is not intercourse. Oxymoron.
9. Cats.
10. Say what? Ain't nothin after bein'.
probligo | Homepage | 06.09.06 - 11:38 pm | #
Thursday, June 01, 2006
Wednesday, May 31, 2006
Duan Wu Festival
Duan Wu Festival
It's Duan Wu Festival today. Just thought I'll share a short entry from Wikipedia explaining the history behind the festival.
Qu Yuan was a minister in the government of the state of Chu, descended of nobility and a champion of political loyalty and truth eager to maintain the Chu state's sovereignty. Qu Yuan advocated a policy of alliance with the other kingdoms of the period against the hegemonic state of Qin, which threatened to dominate them all. The Chu king, however, fell under the influence of other corrupt, jealous ministers who slandered Qu Yuan, and banished his most loyal counselor. It is said that Qu Yuan returned first to his family's home town. In his exile, he spent much of this time collecting legends and rearranging folk odes while travelling the countryside, producing some of the greatest poetry in Chinese literature while expressing his fervent love for his state and his deepest concern for its future.
According to legend, his anxiety brought him to an increasingly troubled state of health; during his depression, he would often take walks near a certain well, during which he would look upon his reflection in the water and be his own person, thin and gaunt. In the legend, this well became known as the "Face Reflection Well." Today on a hillside in Xiangluping in Hubei province's Zigui, there is a well which is considered to be the original well from the time of Qu Yuan.
In 278 BC, learning of the capture of his country's capital, Ying, by General Bai Qi of the state of Qin, Qu Yuan is said to have written the lengthy poem of lamentation called "Lament for Ying" and later to have waded into the Miluo river in today's Hunan Province holding a great rock in order to commit ritual suicide as a form of protest against the corruption of the era.
The origin of the Duanwu Festival
Local people, learning of his suicide, rushed out in their fishing boats to the middle of the river and desperately tried to save him, but were unsuccessful. In order to keep fish and evil spirits away from his body, they beat drums and splashed the water with their paddles. They threw rice into the water as a food offering to Qu Yuan and to distract the fish away from his body. However, late one night, the spirit of Qu Yuan appeared before his friends and told them that the rice meant for him was being intercepted by a huge river dragon. He asked his friends to wrap their rice into three-cornered silk packages to ward off the dragon. These packages became a traditional food known as zongzi, although the lumps of rice are now wrapped in bamboo leaves instead of silk. The act of racing to search for his body in boats gradually became the cultural tradition of dragon boat racing, which is held on the anniversary of his death every year.
Today, people still eat rice dumplings and participate in dragon boat races to commemorate Qu Yuan's sacrifice on the Duan Wu festival, the fifth day of the fifth month of the Chinese lunar calendar. This year (2006) it is 31/5 in the solar calendar.
Reputation
Qu Yuan is generally recognized as the first great Chinese poet with record. He initiated the style of Sao, which is named after his work Li Sao, in which he abandoned the classic four-character verses used in poems of Shi Jing and adopted verses with varying lengths, which gives the poem more rhythm and latitude in expression. Qu Yuan is also regarded as one of the most prominent figures of Romanticism in Chinese literature, and his masterpieces influenced some of the greatest Romanticist poets in Tang Dynasty such as Li Bai and Du Fu.
Other than his literary influence, Qu Yuan is also held as the earliest patriotic poet in China history. His political idealism and unbendable patriotism have served as the model for Chinese intellectuals until today.
It's Duan Wu Festival today. Just thought I'll share a short entry from Wikipedia explaining the history behind the festival.
Qu Yuan was a minister in the government of the state of Chu, descended of nobility and a champion of political loyalty and truth eager to maintain the Chu state's sovereignty. Qu Yuan advocated a policy of alliance with the other kingdoms of the period against the hegemonic state of Qin, which threatened to dominate them all. The Chu king, however, fell under the influence of other corrupt, jealous ministers who slandered Qu Yuan, and banished his most loyal counselor. It is said that Qu Yuan returned first to his family's home town. In his exile, he spent much of this time collecting legends and rearranging folk odes while travelling the countryside, producing some of the greatest poetry in Chinese literature while expressing his fervent love for his state and his deepest concern for its future.
According to legend, his anxiety brought him to an increasingly troubled state of health; during his depression, he would often take walks near a certain well, during which he would look upon his reflection in the water and be his own person, thin and gaunt. In the legend, this well became known as the "Face Reflection Well." Today on a hillside in Xiangluping in Hubei province's Zigui, there is a well which is considered to be the original well from the time of Qu Yuan.
In 278 BC, learning of the capture of his country's capital, Ying, by General Bai Qi of the state of Qin, Qu Yuan is said to have written the lengthy poem of lamentation called "Lament for Ying" and later to have waded into the Miluo river in today's Hunan Province holding a great rock in order to commit ritual suicide as a form of protest against the corruption of the era.
The origin of the Duanwu Festival
Local people, learning of his suicide, rushed out in their fishing boats to the middle of the river and desperately tried to save him, but were unsuccessful. In order to keep fish and evil spirits away from his body, they beat drums and splashed the water with their paddles. They threw rice into the water as a food offering to Qu Yuan and to distract the fish away from his body. However, late one night, the spirit of Qu Yuan appeared before his friends and told them that the rice meant for him was being intercepted by a huge river dragon. He asked his friends to wrap their rice into three-cornered silk packages to ward off the dragon. These packages became a traditional food known as zongzi, although the lumps of rice are now wrapped in bamboo leaves instead of silk. The act of racing to search for his body in boats gradually became the cultural tradition of dragon boat racing, which is held on the anniversary of his death every year.
Today, people still eat rice dumplings and participate in dragon boat races to commemorate Qu Yuan's sacrifice on the Duan Wu festival, the fifth day of the fifth month of the Chinese lunar calendar. This year (2006) it is 31/5 in the solar calendar.
Reputation
Qu Yuan is generally recognized as the first great Chinese poet with record. He initiated the style of Sao, which is named after his work Li Sao, in which he abandoned the classic four-character verses used in poems of Shi Jing and adopted verses with varying lengths, which gives the poem more rhythm and latitude in expression. Qu Yuan is also regarded as one of the most prominent figures of Romanticism in Chinese literature, and his masterpieces influenced some of the greatest Romanticist poets in Tang Dynasty such as Li Bai and Du Fu.
Other than his literary influence, Qu Yuan is also held as the earliest patriotic poet in China history. His political idealism and unbendable patriotism have served as the model for Chinese intellectuals until today.
My Top Ten Wishes
My Top Ten Wishes
You are free to suggest what I should consider changing. :-) However, I must add that all these have the POTENTIAL to become reality.
Number 10
Real life Happy Tree Friends events
Number 9
Cigarettes that are filterless and do not give out second-hand smoke (i.e. smokers inhale the smoke and this gets entirely absorbed into the body)
Number 8
Parents who really discipline their kids and not just present empty threats
Number 7
Considerate drivers
Number 6
Faster commercial transportation means at cheaper travelling costs
Number 5
Sky high taxes for owners of multiple houses and cars OR
Cheap rent for owners of no houses and no cars (Not quite achievable)
Number 4
-Still Thinking-
Alcohol that does not make people drunk or puke or even suffer hangovers? I'd prefer to have the ability to achieve orgasm an infinite number of, ok 20, times a night without fatigue or rawness. Hahaha.... But it's not quite achievable.
You are free to suggest what I should consider changing. :-) However, I must add that all these have the POTENTIAL to become reality.
Number 10
Real life Happy Tree Friends events
Number 9
Cigarettes that are filterless and do not give out second-hand smoke (i.e. smokers inhale the smoke and this gets entirely absorbed into the body)
Number 8
Parents who really discipline their kids and not just present empty threats
Number 7
Considerate drivers
Number 6
Faster commercial transportation means at cheaper travelling costs
Number 5
Sky high taxes for owners of multiple houses and cars OR
Cheap rent for owners of no houses and no cars (Not quite achievable)
Number 4
-Still Thinking-
Alcohol that does not make people drunk or puke or even suffer hangovers? I'd prefer to have the ability to achieve orgasm an infinite number of, ok 20, times a night without fatigue or rawness. Hahaha.... But it's not quite achievable.
Tuesday, May 30, 2006
Few Articles
Few Articles
A few reasons why I've not been writing a lot these days.
Ear Surgery
I detected a mass in my right ear recently. It was causing pain and pressing against my jaw nerves. Saw my family doctor 25 May. He won't touch the mass and referred me to the Polyclinic for referral to the Specialist. So, spent an entire afternoon at the Polyclinic to see a doctor who won't touch the mass and he finally referred me to the Ear Nose Throat Centre at the Singapore General Hospital. Finally yesterday, I saw the specialist who, after less than 5 minutes of asking me what's wrong, plonked me on the operating chair and snipped out the mass WITHOUT anaesthesia. I was so badly in pain.
Neither he nor I know what the mass was. He returned it to me, I gave it to the dustbin. Now waiting to see if it recurs.
Eviction
Househunting has taken up most of my waking hours. I've not found a place within budget.
China Trip
I'm leaving for the Three Gorges Cruise and Jiuzhaigou from 10 to 20 Jun. I should be happily looking forward to the trip, but hell no! Not until the house is settled will I really feel the relief to enjoy a trip. But since I've already paid for it, I'm leaving regardless.
Work
One word: Madness.
Upcoming work trip in Jul
I'm coordinating this trip from SIN - LAX - DEN - SAF - DEN - LAX - SFO - DAC - EWR - SIN beginning 10 Jul. The number of places to visit, flights to take, and meetings to attend and write notes for are KILLING. The organisation of the trip and the attempting to meet with the identified people has been enervating. See work.
Work I could have otherwise been exempted
Self-explanatory. There are simply too many things where my attendance could be spared. But hell, no! I'm required to turn up any way. So where and how and when the hell will work get done?
Sleep
I've cut that down by a lot already. But I'm still not getting enough and to get as close to enough as possible, many things need to be left aside. For instance, no blogging. I've even cut down on watching television - hey! I found out Taylor Hicks won from a friend, after my consultation with my family doctor on 25 May. I was on his car. Duh-ness!
Food
I've been eating so terribly ordinarily these days because I don't have no time for mah fancy restaurants servin' good food. It's come to a point that even dumplings (which give me GREAT discomfort as I can't digest glutinous rice) have become normal meals. I simply have no time to eat anything else. And I've been having more stomachaches and bowel problems than normal.
Coffee
Well, excessive coffee makes me shake uncontrollably and I am mentally hyperactive when I shake. So, what happens is that I can't write because I can't concentrate on writing. My mind wanders and catch interesting glimpses of many things that I promise I will blog about but never getting to do so. I think I need to keep a journal to jot these down soon.
Cell phone
The curse of roaming cell phones. The darned thing never stops ringing and it's been causing great trauma to my ears and mental well-being, especially when each call means more work is added on the plate.
Email
More and more and more emails are flooding my inbox and that means attention is channelled there to resolve the outstanding issues. What the heck.
Conclusion
Why is it I simply have no time for myself any more?
A few reasons why I've not been writing a lot these days.
Ear Surgery
I detected a mass in my right ear recently. It was causing pain and pressing against my jaw nerves. Saw my family doctor 25 May. He won't touch the mass and referred me to the Polyclinic for referral to the Specialist. So, spent an entire afternoon at the Polyclinic to see a doctor who won't touch the mass and he finally referred me to the Ear Nose Throat Centre at the Singapore General Hospital. Finally yesterday, I saw the specialist who, after less than 5 minutes of asking me what's wrong, plonked me on the operating chair and snipped out the mass WITHOUT anaesthesia. I was so badly in pain.
Neither he nor I know what the mass was. He returned it to me, I gave it to the dustbin. Now waiting to see if it recurs.
Eviction
Househunting has taken up most of my waking hours. I've not found a place within budget.
China Trip
I'm leaving for the Three Gorges Cruise and Jiuzhaigou from 10 to 20 Jun. I should be happily looking forward to the trip, but hell no! Not until the house is settled will I really feel the relief to enjoy a trip. But since I've already paid for it, I'm leaving regardless.
Work
One word: Madness.
Upcoming work trip in Jul
I'm coordinating this trip from SIN - LAX - DEN - SAF - DEN - LAX - SFO - DAC - EWR - SIN beginning 10 Jul. The number of places to visit, flights to take, and meetings to attend and write notes for are KILLING. The organisation of the trip and the attempting to meet with the identified people has been enervating. See work.
Work I could have otherwise been exempted
Self-explanatory. There are simply too many things where my attendance could be spared. But hell, no! I'm required to turn up any way. So where and how and when the hell will work get done?
Sleep
I've cut that down by a lot already. But I'm still not getting enough and to get as close to enough as possible, many things need to be left aside. For instance, no blogging. I've even cut down on watching television - hey! I found out Taylor Hicks won from a friend, after my consultation with my family doctor on 25 May. I was on his car. Duh-ness!
Food
I've been eating so terribly ordinarily these days because I don't have no time for mah fancy restaurants servin' good food. It's come to a point that even dumplings (which give me GREAT discomfort as I can't digest glutinous rice) have become normal meals. I simply have no time to eat anything else. And I've been having more stomachaches and bowel problems than normal.
Coffee
Well, excessive coffee makes me shake uncontrollably and I am mentally hyperactive when I shake. So, what happens is that I can't write because I can't concentrate on writing. My mind wanders and catch interesting glimpses of many things that I promise I will blog about but never getting to do so. I think I need to keep a journal to jot these down soon.
Cell phone
The curse of roaming cell phones. The darned thing never stops ringing and it's been causing great trauma to my ears and mental well-being, especially when each call means more work is added on the plate.
More and more and more emails are flooding my inbox and that means attention is channelled there to resolve the outstanding issues. What the heck.
Conclusion
Why is it I simply have no time for myself any more?
Friday, May 26, 2006
Da Vinci Code
Da Vinci Code
Heard somewhere that the Da Vinci Code recouped its capital in 4 days.
I guess the Vatican can eat their hearts out.
Heard somewhere that the Da Vinci Code recouped its capital in 4 days.
I guess the Vatican can eat their hearts out.
Monday, May 22, 2006
Men & Women
Men & Women
You have two choices in life: You can stay single and be miserable, or get married and wish you were dead.
-------------------------------------------
At a cocktail party, one woman said to another, "Aren't you wearing your wedding ring on the wrong finger?"
"Yes, I am. I married the wrong man."
-------------------------------------------
A lady inserted an ad in the classifieds: "Husband Wanted"
Next day she received a hundred letters. They all said the same thing:
"You can have mine!"
-------------------------------------------
When a woman steals your husband, there is no better revenge than to let her keep him.
-------------------------------------------
A man is incomplete until he is married. Then he is finished.
-------------------------------------------
A little boy asked his father,
"Daddy, how much does it cost to get married?"
Father replied, "I don't know, son, I'm still paying."
------------------------------------------
A young son asked, "Is it true, Dad, that in some parts of Africa a man doesn't know his wife until he marries her?" Dad replied, "That happens in every country, son."
-------------------------------------------
Then there was a woman who said, "I never knew what real happiness was until I got married, and by then, it was too late."
-------------------------------------------
Marriage is the triumph of imagination over intelligence.
-------------------------------------------
If you want your spouse to listen and pay strict attention to every word you say -- talk in your sleep.
-------------------------------------------
Just think, if it wasn't for marriage, men would go through life thinking they had no faults at all.
-------------------------------------------
First guy says, "My wife's an angel!"
Second guy remarks, "You're lucky. Mine's still alive."
-------------------------------------------
A Woman's Prayer
Dear Lord,
I pray for Wisdom, to understand a man, to love and to forgive him, and for Patience, for his moods.
Because, Lord, if I pray for Strength, I'll just beat him to death.
-------------------------------------------
AND NOW FOR THE FAVORITE!!!
Husband and wife are waiting at the bus stop with their nine children. A blind man joins them after a few minutes. When the bus arrives, they find it overloaded and only the wife and the nine kids are able to fit onto the bus.
So the husband and the blind man decide to walk. After a while, the husband gets irritated by the ticking of the stick of the blind man as he taps it on the sidewalk, and says to him, "Why don't you put a piece of rubber at the end of your stick? That ticking sound is driving me crazy."
The blind man replies, "If you would've put a rubber at the end of YOUR stick, we'd be riding the bus. So shut the hell up."
You have two choices in life: You can stay single and be miserable, or get married and wish you were dead.
-------------------------------------------
At a cocktail party, one woman said to another, "Aren't you wearing your wedding ring on the wrong finger?"
"Yes, I am. I married the wrong man."
-------------------------------------------
A lady inserted an ad in the classifieds: "Husband Wanted"
Next day she received a hundred letters. They all said the same thing:
"You can have mine!"
-------------------------------------------
When a woman steals your husband, there is no better revenge than to let her keep him.
-------------------------------------------
A man is incomplete until he is married. Then he is finished.
-------------------------------------------
A little boy asked his father,
"Daddy, how much does it cost to get married?"
Father replied, "I don't know, son, I'm still paying."
------------------------------------------
A young son asked, "Is it true, Dad, that in some parts of Africa a man doesn't know his wife until he marries her?" Dad replied, "That happens in every country, son."
-------------------------------------------
Then there was a woman who said, "I never knew what real happiness was until I got married, and by then, it was too late."
-------------------------------------------
Marriage is the triumph of imagination over intelligence.
-------------------------------------------
If you want your spouse to listen and pay strict attention to every word you say -- talk in your sleep.
-------------------------------------------
Just think, if it wasn't for marriage, men would go through life thinking they had no faults at all.
-------------------------------------------
First guy says, "My wife's an angel!"
Second guy remarks, "You're lucky. Mine's still alive."
-------------------------------------------
A Woman's Prayer
Dear Lord,
I pray for Wisdom, to understand a man, to love and to forgive him, and for Patience, for his moods.
Because, Lord, if I pray for Strength, I'll just beat him to death.
-------------------------------------------
AND NOW FOR THE FAVORITE!!!
Husband and wife are waiting at the bus stop with their nine children. A blind man joins them after a few minutes. When the bus arrives, they find it overloaded and only the wife and the nine kids are able to fit onto the bus.
So the husband and the blind man decide to walk. After a while, the husband gets irritated by the ticking of the stick of the blind man as he taps it on the sidewalk, and says to him, "Why don't you put a piece of rubber at the end of your stick? That ticking sound is driving me crazy."
The blind man replies, "If you would've put a rubber at the end of YOUR stick, we'd be riding the bus. So shut the hell up."
House Hunting
House Hunting
Just 3 factors:
Location
Price
Furnishing (I need it unfurnished)
And the shortlist of houses/apartments/flats all failed to make the cut.
It's like the basic laws of economics.
If it is convenient and cheap, it is furnished. (Haven't found one.)
If it is convenient and unfurnished, it is not cheap. (many many places)
If it is cheap and unfurnished, it is not convenient. (several places)
If it is cheap and convenient and unfurnished, it is beside a live seafood dealer whose produce makes the entire house stink. (one place)
I'm devoting my after-work waking hours searching. It's like seeking the perfect woman (doesn't exist - don't protest! See the PS.) or the perfect job (doesn't exist) or the...
PS.
Shortest fairy tale: A man asked a woman to marry him. She said no. He lived happily ever after.
Just 3 factors:
Location
Price
Furnishing (I need it unfurnished)
And the shortlist of houses/apartments/flats all failed to make the cut.
It's like the basic laws of economics.
If it is convenient and cheap, it is furnished. (Haven't found one.)
If it is convenient and unfurnished, it is not cheap. (many many places)
If it is cheap and unfurnished, it is not convenient. (several places)
If it is cheap and convenient and unfurnished, it is beside a live seafood dealer whose produce makes the entire house stink. (one place)
I'm devoting my after-work waking hours searching. It's like seeking the perfect woman (doesn't exist - don't protest! See the PS.) or the perfect job (doesn't exist) or the...
PS.
Shortest fairy tale: A man asked a woman to marry him. She said no. He lived happily ever after.
Saturday, May 20, 2006
The Da Vinci Code
The Da Vinci Code
[See associated entry, The Da Vinci Cod, in Teflon Rants.]
Watched DVC on 19 May. 9.15pm show. Watched it at Jurong East.
NEVER EVER WATCH ANYTHING AT JURONG EAST. It is about the most backwater cinema I've ever visited. It's even worse than surviving those lascivious Chee Koh Peks (wah, I even make it sound like a proper name!) at Yang-tze.
I remember I watched the Kamasutra at Yang-tze and the old men were all complaining about the time it took for the lead actress to turn around after stripping. And also for the male lead to show it all. They were loudly cursing about paying to watch nudity but not seeing any. Then, as a 21 year old undergraduate, I thought it baseless and crass. Looking back, hey! These folks probably slogged their lives away building Singapore. For all I know, many of them hadn't have the money to see anything stark naked, except in the cinemas (thank you for the R(A) rating!). So I told myself I'm not watching no f*ck-fest at Yang-tze again. Never am I going to be caught there. Not at least till I'm taking Viagra to keep it up. Oh, never mind.
Jurong East is bad. Bad bad bad. The toilet had a lingering stale stench of piss and sweat. It's like having a bunch of super-sweaty men inside there peeing millions of gallons into the urinals and letting their stinky sweat permeate, no, make that replace, the entire atmosphere of odourless air to sweat infused air. The cinema was old and the aircon was probably turned on most minimally.
I wonder why I had to be sweating in a 40% (or maybe less) filled cinema, wondering when my next waft of cool air will come (it never did!). The partially reclining seat was old and the cushion was worn out. Again, I have a painful butt one hour into a 150 minute agony fest. The show was slow.
DVC stayed true to the book. The book was great. But not all great books make great movies. Just like not many great movies make great reading stuff. The screenplay adapter probably needs to relearn his craft. Dan Brown writes rivetingly. But the long-haired Tom Hanks needed to realise that DVC is not Forrest Gump in France. His facial expression moved from looking mildly scared and mildly bewildered, if you could tell the difference at all.
Tatou, the female lead, was an intelligent bimbo. Or bimbotic genius. You choose. I can't which was which. When I read a report on the choice of Tatou to shut the French Press (not for making coffee) up, I had a hunch that it's going to be a yawn (without the coffee). I mean, I have yet to figure how a person could be so methodical in acting that she knew what to do at certain times and entirely clueless at others.
Only thing that made me sit up? When her car's side mirror was knocked off by a rubbish truck. That's the only time I felt any anguish - the car acted well.
The supposed albino who applied torture devices on himself forgot his red contact lenses (albinos have red eyes owing to lack of pigments) and the torture was not harsh enough. I mean, the Chinese do better when interrogating suspects. Place him through a round of interrogation and he'll probably wish he was whipping himself in his own balls (for it would have been less painful).
The plot was great on paper. Somehow, it was great on paper. But on screen, the combination of people simply didn't seem to work.
The on-screen chemistry was absent. Terribly absent.
Fache was a pathetic excuse for a French bulldog. My toy dog can be more ruthless than that.
By the time they reached the safe deposit box place at 24 Whatever Road, my butt was so painful and I was already so irritated by the prostitute in front of me that I was contemplating if I should say what each actor was going to do next.
Then I remembered that most of the audience would have read the book.
[See associated entry, The Da Vinci Cod, in Teflon Rants.]
Watched DVC on 19 May. 9.15pm show. Watched it at Jurong East.
NEVER EVER WATCH ANYTHING AT JURONG EAST. It is about the most backwater cinema I've ever visited. It's even worse than surviving those lascivious Chee Koh Peks (wah, I even make it sound like a proper name!) at Yang-tze.
I remember I watched the Kamasutra at Yang-tze and the old men were all complaining about the time it took for the lead actress to turn around after stripping. And also for the male lead to show it all. They were loudly cursing about paying to watch nudity but not seeing any. Then, as a 21 year old undergraduate, I thought it baseless and crass. Looking back, hey! These folks probably slogged their lives away building Singapore. For all I know, many of them hadn't have the money to see anything stark naked, except in the cinemas (thank you for the R(A) rating!). So I told myself I'm not watching no f*ck-fest at Yang-tze again. Never am I going to be caught there. Not at least till I'm taking Viagra to keep it up. Oh, never mind.
Jurong East is bad. Bad bad bad. The toilet had a lingering stale stench of piss and sweat. It's like having a bunch of super-sweaty men inside there peeing millions of gallons into the urinals and letting their stinky sweat permeate, no, make that replace, the entire atmosphere of odourless air to sweat infused air. The cinema was old and the aircon was probably turned on most minimally.
I wonder why I had to be sweating in a 40% (or maybe less) filled cinema, wondering when my next waft of cool air will come (it never did!). The partially reclining seat was old and the cushion was worn out. Again, I have a painful butt one hour into a 150 minute agony fest. The show was slow.
DVC stayed true to the book. The book was great. But not all great books make great movies. Just like not many great movies make great reading stuff. The screenplay adapter probably needs to relearn his craft. Dan Brown writes rivetingly. But the long-haired Tom Hanks needed to realise that DVC is not Forrest Gump in France. His facial expression moved from looking mildly scared and mildly bewildered, if you could tell the difference at all.
Tatou, the female lead, was an intelligent bimbo. Or bimbotic genius. You choose. I can't which was which. When I read a report on the choice of Tatou to shut the French Press (not for making coffee) up, I had a hunch that it's going to be a yawn (without the coffee). I mean, I have yet to figure how a person could be so methodical in acting that she knew what to do at certain times and entirely clueless at others.
Only thing that made me sit up? When her car's side mirror was knocked off by a rubbish truck. That's the only time I felt any anguish - the car acted well.
The supposed albino who applied torture devices on himself forgot his red contact lenses (albinos have red eyes owing to lack of pigments) and the torture was not harsh enough. I mean, the Chinese do better when interrogating suspects. Place him through a round of interrogation and he'll probably wish he was whipping himself in his own balls (for it would have been less painful).
The plot was great on paper. Somehow, it was great on paper. But on screen, the combination of people simply didn't seem to work.
The on-screen chemistry was absent. Terribly absent.
Fache was a pathetic excuse for a French bulldog. My toy dog can be more ruthless than that.
By the time they reached the safe deposit box place at 24 Whatever Road, my butt was so painful and I was already so irritated by the prostitute in front of me that I was contemplating if I should say what each actor was going to do next.
Then I remembered that most of the audience would have read the book.
Friday, May 19, 2006
Entry from 22 Sep 05
Entry from 22 Sep 05
Someone alerted me to Mr Brown's podcast recently in a similar vein. I don't doubt that it could be original work, even if the resemblence is uncanny. Still, I feel that the Brown show has become crassier. A little sad, because I believe he could and should maintain the high standards, even if it means fewer podcasts.
I go for quality any time.
Pretty Woman's Husband's Revenge
Act 1 Scene 1
Little girl sees dove flies across the sky. She remembers that her brother is going away.
Act 1 Scene 2
Little girl runs like mad to release some birds. On the way, she knocked over a hawker who's oranges fell all over.
Hawker: Aiyoyoh! Vai you knock my oranges all over, deh?
Little girl glances back and pretends not to understand.
Act 1 Scene 3
Little girl knocks over bamboos. Luckily this time, the bamboo hawker was not around or the credit card company will have to pay an additional few million dollars in advertising time.
Act 2 Scene 1
Little girl knocks into Pretty Woman's Husband, who's travelling with his guide. Little girl pretends that she's innocent and stopped by the bird hawker.
Pretty Woman's Husband (in his heart): -Beep! Beep! Beep! Beep!- Blind ah!?
Of course, being so famous, must keep that smile on the face and act cool.
Girl: Five birds. My brother is going away today and I want to bring him good luck.
Little girl passes the money to Bird Hawker. Bird Hawker looks at the money he received.
Bird Hawker: You only have enough for one bird. (Ok, don't think dirty here!)
Girl (shaking her head): Ok.
Little girl grabs a cage with a dove inside and ran.
Act 3
Pretty Woman's Husband looks at Little girl running off and a brilliant idea comes to his mind. Taking out his wonderful credit card, he passes it to the bird hawker and winks. The bird hawker nods knowingly.
Act 4
Pretty Woman's Husband and bird hawkers brought cages and cages of birds and arrive by the sea side. They release the birds.
Pretty Woman's Husband (in his heart): -Beep!- You knock into me and still so yah yah papaya. -Beep! Beep! Beep!- What the -Beep! Beep!- Watch out ah! I bet all my birds on your bird that your wish will not come true.
[A friend provided an alternative, which is a pun on some credit cards which are meant only for the fairer sex.
Pretty Woman's Husband: The bitch do(es)n't get it.]
As though there is telepathy, Little girl looks accusingly at Pretty Woman's Husband, although she tries to look innocent at the same time.
Pretty Woman's Husband immediately shrugs his sholder and the hawkers shake their heads.
THE END
Someone alerted me to Mr Brown's podcast recently in a similar vein. I don't doubt that it could be original work, even if the resemblence is uncanny. Still, I feel that the Brown show has become crassier. A little sad, because I believe he could and should maintain the high standards, even if it means fewer podcasts.
I go for quality any time.
Pretty Woman's Husband's Revenge
Act 1 Scene 1
Little girl sees dove flies across the sky. She remembers that her brother is going away.
Act 1 Scene 2
Little girl runs like mad to release some birds. On the way, she knocked over a hawker who's oranges fell all over.
Hawker: Aiyoyoh! Vai you knock my oranges all over, deh?
Little girl glances back and pretends not to understand.
Act 1 Scene 3
Little girl knocks over bamboos. Luckily this time, the bamboo hawker was not around or the credit card company will have to pay an additional few million dollars in advertising time.
Act 2 Scene 1
Little girl knocks into Pretty Woman's Husband, who's travelling with his guide. Little girl pretends that she's innocent and stopped by the bird hawker.
Pretty Woman's Husband (in his heart): -Beep! Beep! Beep! Beep!- Blind ah!?
Of course, being so famous, must keep that smile on the face and act cool.
Girl: Five birds. My brother is going away today and I want to bring him good luck.
Little girl passes the money to Bird Hawker. Bird Hawker looks at the money he received.
Bird Hawker: You only have enough for one bird. (Ok, don't think dirty here!)
Girl (shaking her head): Ok.
Little girl grabs a cage with a dove inside and ran.
Act 3
Pretty Woman's Husband looks at Little girl running off and a brilliant idea comes to his mind. Taking out his wonderful credit card, he passes it to the bird hawker and winks. The bird hawker nods knowingly.
Act 4
Pretty Woman's Husband and bird hawkers brought cages and cages of birds and arrive by the sea side. They release the birds.
Pretty Woman's Husband (in his heart): -Beep!- You knock into me and still so yah yah papaya. -Beep! Beep! Beep!- What the -Beep! Beep!- Watch out ah! I bet all my birds on your bird that your wish will not come true.
[A friend provided an alternative, which is a pun on some credit cards which are meant only for the fairer sex.
Pretty Woman's Husband: The bitch do(es)n't get it.]
As though there is telepathy, Little girl looks accusingly at Pretty Woman's Husband, although she tries to look innocent at the same time.
Pretty Woman's Husband immediately shrugs his sholder and the hawkers shake their heads.
THE END
Thursday, May 18, 2006
What is the link between alcohol and cancer risk?
What is the link between alcohol and cancer risk?
According to the expert report from the American Institute for Cancer Research, Food, Nutrition and the Prevention of Cancer: a Global Perspective, there is convincing evidence that alcohol increase the risk of cancer of the mouth, pharynx, larynx and esophagus. The risk of upper respiratory tract cancer is greatly increased if drinkers also smoke. Alcohol also increase the risk of liver cancer and probably increases the risk for colon, rectal and breast cancer.
How does drinking alcohol increase cancer risk?
When you drink alcohol, the sensitive tissues of your upper-respiratory tract are directly exposed to alcohol in beverages, causing damage to cells and possibly initiating cancer. Cancer of the liver is probably preceded by alcoholic liver cirrhosis which develops after years of drinking. There is less known about how drinking alcohol affects the development of other cancers.
What can I do to lower my cancer risk?
One thing you can do is choose not to drink alcohol, or choose to drink them only in moderation. That's no more than 2 drinks per day for men and 1 for women.
1 drink = 1 bottle or can of beer (12 oz)
1 small glass of wine (5 oz)
1 shot of 80 proof liquor (1.5 oz)
Why is the recommended limit different for women and men?
Alcohol affects women and men differently. A woman's body has more fat and less muscle than a man's. Alcohol can be diluted into water-holding muscle tissue, but not into fat tissue. Therefore alcohol cannot be diluted as quickly in her body as in his. Also, a woman cannot metabolize alcohol as quickly as a man. Therefore, alcohol stays in her bloodstream longer.
Does drinking present special risks for women?
The risk for developing breast cancer, the second most common cancer in women in the States, rises with increased alcohol consumption. Women at a high risk for breast cancer should consider not drinking. Women develop alcohol-related health problems, such as cirrhosis of the liver, faster then men who drink the same amount. Finally, alcohol can severely injure a pregnant woman's unborn child.
Is it true that drinking alcohol can lower my risk for heart disease?
There is evidence that drinking modest amounts of alcohol is associated with a lower risk for coronary heart disease in men, and perhaps women. For more details, read Red Wine - Health Benefits? However, drinking higher amounts of alcohol raises the risk of cancer along with risks for high blood pressure, stroke, heart disease, birth defects, inflammation of the pancreas, damage to the brain and heart, malnutrition, osteoporosis, accidents, violence and suicide. There are better ways to decrease your heart disease risk, including exercising, reaching and maintaining a healthy weight, lowering saturated fats and trans fats in your diet, controlling blood pressure and not smoking.
Taken from http://www.healthcastle.com/alcoholandcancer.shtml
According to the expert report from the American Institute for Cancer Research, Food, Nutrition and the Prevention of Cancer: a Global Perspective, there is convincing evidence that alcohol increase the risk of cancer of the mouth, pharynx, larynx and esophagus. The risk of upper respiratory tract cancer is greatly increased if drinkers also smoke. Alcohol also increase the risk of liver cancer and probably increases the risk for colon, rectal and breast cancer.
How does drinking alcohol increase cancer risk?
When you drink alcohol, the sensitive tissues of your upper-respiratory tract are directly exposed to alcohol in beverages, causing damage to cells and possibly initiating cancer. Cancer of the liver is probably preceded by alcoholic liver cirrhosis which develops after years of drinking. There is less known about how drinking alcohol affects the development of other cancers.
What can I do to lower my cancer risk?
One thing you can do is choose not to drink alcohol, or choose to drink them only in moderation. That's no more than 2 drinks per day for men and 1 for women.
1 drink = 1 bottle or can of beer (12 oz)
1 small glass of wine (5 oz)
1 shot of 80 proof liquor (1.5 oz)
Why is the recommended limit different for women and men?
Alcohol affects women and men differently. A woman's body has more fat and less muscle than a man's. Alcohol can be diluted into water-holding muscle tissue, but not into fat tissue. Therefore alcohol cannot be diluted as quickly in her body as in his. Also, a woman cannot metabolize alcohol as quickly as a man. Therefore, alcohol stays in her bloodstream longer.
Does drinking present special risks for women?
The risk for developing breast cancer, the second most common cancer in women in the States, rises with increased alcohol consumption. Women at a high risk for breast cancer should consider not drinking. Women develop alcohol-related health problems, such as cirrhosis of the liver, faster then men who drink the same amount. Finally, alcohol can severely injure a pregnant woman's unborn child.
Is it true that drinking alcohol can lower my risk for heart disease?
There is evidence that drinking modest amounts of alcohol is associated with a lower risk for coronary heart disease in men, and perhaps women. For more details, read Red Wine - Health Benefits? However, drinking higher amounts of alcohol raises the risk of cancer along with risks for high blood pressure, stroke, heart disease, birth defects, inflammation of the pancreas, damage to the brain and heart, malnutrition, osteoporosis, accidents, violence and suicide. There are better ways to decrease your heart disease risk, including exercising, reaching and maintaining a healthy weight, lowering saturated fats and trans fats in your diet, controlling blood pressure and not smoking.
Taken from http://www.healthcastle.com/alcoholandcancer.shtml
How I Buy Alcohol
How I Buy Alcohol
Ans: Take bottle of alcohol, go to cashier, take out money and pay, leave the shop.
I am not a drinker (of alcohol). I never figured how people would actually find it palatable.
I buy duty free spirits using the following guidelines:
1. Will I be visiting someone who has given birth or been hospitalised soon?
a. Yes - Buy DOM
b. No - Go question 2.
2. Is there any liquor on sale?
a. Yes - If less than $50, buy that.
b. No - Go to question 3.
3. Is travelling partner in need of quota for liquor?
a. Yes - Buy what s/he needs and collect cash.
b. No - No need to buy liquor. Go to question 4.
4. Is there any wine on sale?
a. Yes - If less than $40, buy that.
b. No - Go to question 5.
5. Is travelling partner in need of quota for wine?
a. Yes - Buy what s/he needs and collect cash.
b. No - No need to buy wine. Go to question 6.
6. Is there any beer on sale?
a. Yes - Buy.
b. No - Go to question 7.
7. Is travelling partner in need of quota for beer?
a. Yes - Buy what s/he needs and collect cash.
b. No - No need to buy beer.
End.
Ans: Take bottle of alcohol, go to cashier, take out money and pay, leave the shop.
I am not a drinker (of alcohol). I never figured how people would actually find it palatable.
I buy duty free spirits using the following guidelines:
1. Will I be visiting someone who has given birth or been hospitalised soon?
a. Yes - Buy DOM
b. No - Go question 2.
2. Is there any liquor on sale?
a. Yes - If less than $50, buy that.
b. No - Go to question 3.
3. Is travelling partner in need of quota for liquor?
a. Yes - Buy what s/he needs and collect cash.
b. No - No need to buy liquor. Go to question 4.
4. Is there any wine on sale?
a. Yes - If less than $40, buy that.
b. No - Go to question 5.
5. Is travelling partner in need of quota for wine?
a. Yes - Buy what s/he needs and collect cash.
b. No - No need to buy wine. Go to question 6.
6. Is there any beer on sale?
a. Yes - Buy.
b. No - Go to question 7.
7. Is travelling partner in need of quota for beer?
a. Yes - Buy what s/he needs and collect cash.
b. No - No need to buy beer.
End.
Blue Liquor
Blue Liquor
Have a bottle of blue liquor at home.
Bought it on impulse because the blue looks nice. I mean, if there were a bath tub filled with water that colour, I'd gladly jump in for a soak.
Stuck with it since.
No one drinks.
Don't ask me - I don't know what it is, what brand it is, and how much it cost. I'm a R-OH dummy.
Have a bottle of blue liquor at home.
Bought it on impulse because the blue looks nice. I mean, if there were a bath tub filled with water that colour, I'd gladly jump in for a soak.
Stuck with it since.
No one drinks.
Don't ask me - I don't know what it is, what brand it is, and how much it cost. I'm a R-OH dummy.
Wednesday, May 17, 2006
Lactic Acid Is Not Muscles' Foe, It's Fuel
Lactic Acid Is Not Muscles' Foe, It's Fuel
By GINA KOLATA
The New York Times
Published: May 16, 2006
Everyone who has even thought about exercising has heard the warnings about lactic acid. It builds up in your muscles. It is what makes your muscles burn. Its buildup is what makes your muscles tire and give out.
Coaches and personal trainers tell athletes and exercisers that they have to learn to work out at just below their "lactic threshold," that point of diminishing returns when lactic acid starts to accumulate. Some athletes even have blood tests to find their personal lactic thresholds.
But that, it turns out, is all wrong. Lactic acid is actually a fuel, not a caustic waste product. Muscles make it deliberately, producing it from glucose, and they burn it to obtain energy. The reason trained athletes can perform so hard and so long is because their intense training causes their muscles to adapt so they more readily and efficiently absorb lactic acid.
The notion that lactic acid was bad took hold more than a century ago, said George A. Brooks, a professor in the department of integrative biology at the University of California, Berkeley. It stuck because it seemed to make so much sense.
"It's one of the classic mistakes in the history of science," Dr. Brooks said.
Its origins lie in a study by a Nobel laureate, Otto Meyerhof, who in the early years of the 20th century cut a frog in half and put its bottom half in a jar. The frog's muscles had no circulation — no source of oxygen or energy.
Dr. Myerhoff gave the frog's leg electric shocks to make the muscles contract, but after a few twitches, the muscles stopped moving. Then, when Dr. Myerhoff examined the muscles, he discovered that they were bathed in lactic acid.
A theory was born. Lack of oxygen to muscles leads to lactic acid, leads to fatigue.
Athletes were told that they should spend most of their effort exercising aerobically, using glucose as a fuel. If they tried to spend too much time exercising harder, in the anaerobic zone, they were told, they would pay a price, that lactic acid would accumulate in the muscles, forcing them to stop.
Few scientists questioned this view, Dr. Brooks said. But, he said, he became interested in it in the 1960's, when he was running track at Queens College and his coach told him that his performance was limited by a buildup of lactic acid.
When he graduated and began working on a Ph.D. in exercise physiology, he decided to study the lactic acid hypothesis for his dissertation.
"I gave rats radioactive lactic acid, and I found that they burned it faster than anything else I could give them," Dr. Brooks said.
It looked as if lactic acid was there for a reason. It was a source of energy.
Dr. Brooks said he published the finding in the late 70's. Other researchers challenged him at meetings and in print.
"I had huge fights, I had terrible trouble getting my grants funded, I had my papers rejected," Dr. Brooks recalled. But he soldiered on, conducting more elaborate studies with rats and, years later, moving on to humans. Every time, with every study, his results were consistent with his radical idea.
Eventually, other researchers confirmed the work. And gradually, the thinking among exercise physiologists began to change.
"The evidence has continued to mount," said L. Bruce Gladden, a professor of health and human performance at Auburn University. "It became clear that it is not so simple as to say, Lactic acid is a bad thing and it causes fatigue."
As for the idea that lactic acid causes muscle soreness, Dr. Gladden said, that never made sense.
"Lactic acid will be gone from your muscles within an hour of exercise," he said. "You get sore one to three days later. The time frame is not consistent, and the mechanisms have not been found."
The understanding now is that muscle cells convert glucose or glycogen to lactic acid. The lactic acid is taken up and used as a fuel by mitochondria, the energy factories in muscle cells.
Mitochondria even have a special transporter protein to move the substance into them, Dr. Brooks found. Intense training makes a difference, he said, because it can make double the mitochondrial mass.
It is clear that the old lactic acid theory cannot explain what is happening to muscles, Dr. Brooks and others said.
Yet, Dr. Brooks said, even though coaches often believed in the myth of the lactic acid threshold, they ended up training athletes in the best way possible to increase their mitochondria. "Coaches have understood things the scientists didn't," he said.
Through trial and error, coaches learned that athletic performance improved when athletes worked on endurance, running longer and longer distances, for example.
That, it turns out, increased the mass of their muscle mitochondria, letting them burn more lactic acid and allowing the muscles to work harder and longer.
Just before a race, coaches often tell athletes to train very hard in brief spurts.
That extra stress increases the mitochondria mass even more, Dr. Brooks said, and is the reason for improved performance.
And the scientists?
They took much longer to figure it out.
"They said, 'You're anaerobic, you need more oxygen,' " Dr. Brooks said. "The scientists were stuck in 1920."
By GINA KOLATA
The New York Times
Published: May 16, 2006
Everyone who has even thought about exercising has heard the warnings about lactic acid. It builds up in your muscles. It is what makes your muscles burn. Its buildup is what makes your muscles tire and give out.
Coaches and personal trainers tell athletes and exercisers that they have to learn to work out at just below their "lactic threshold," that point of diminishing returns when lactic acid starts to accumulate. Some athletes even have blood tests to find their personal lactic thresholds.
But that, it turns out, is all wrong. Lactic acid is actually a fuel, not a caustic waste product. Muscles make it deliberately, producing it from glucose, and they burn it to obtain energy. The reason trained athletes can perform so hard and so long is because their intense training causes their muscles to adapt so they more readily and efficiently absorb lactic acid.
The notion that lactic acid was bad took hold more than a century ago, said George A. Brooks, a professor in the department of integrative biology at the University of California, Berkeley. It stuck because it seemed to make so much sense.
"It's one of the classic mistakes in the history of science," Dr. Brooks said.
Its origins lie in a study by a Nobel laureate, Otto Meyerhof, who in the early years of the 20th century cut a frog in half and put its bottom half in a jar. The frog's muscles had no circulation — no source of oxygen or energy.
Dr. Myerhoff gave the frog's leg electric shocks to make the muscles contract, but after a few twitches, the muscles stopped moving. Then, when Dr. Myerhoff examined the muscles, he discovered that they were bathed in lactic acid.
A theory was born. Lack of oxygen to muscles leads to lactic acid, leads to fatigue.
Athletes were told that they should spend most of their effort exercising aerobically, using glucose as a fuel. If they tried to spend too much time exercising harder, in the anaerobic zone, they were told, they would pay a price, that lactic acid would accumulate in the muscles, forcing them to stop.
Few scientists questioned this view, Dr. Brooks said. But, he said, he became interested in it in the 1960's, when he was running track at Queens College and his coach told him that his performance was limited by a buildup of lactic acid.
When he graduated and began working on a Ph.D. in exercise physiology, he decided to study the lactic acid hypothesis for his dissertation.
"I gave rats radioactive lactic acid, and I found that they burned it faster than anything else I could give them," Dr. Brooks said.
It looked as if lactic acid was there for a reason. It was a source of energy.
Dr. Brooks said he published the finding in the late 70's. Other researchers challenged him at meetings and in print.
"I had huge fights, I had terrible trouble getting my grants funded, I had my papers rejected," Dr. Brooks recalled. But he soldiered on, conducting more elaborate studies with rats and, years later, moving on to humans. Every time, with every study, his results were consistent with his radical idea.
Eventually, other researchers confirmed the work. And gradually, the thinking among exercise physiologists began to change.
"The evidence has continued to mount," said L. Bruce Gladden, a professor of health and human performance at Auburn University. "It became clear that it is not so simple as to say, Lactic acid is a bad thing and it causes fatigue."
As for the idea that lactic acid causes muscle soreness, Dr. Gladden said, that never made sense.
"Lactic acid will be gone from your muscles within an hour of exercise," he said. "You get sore one to three days later. The time frame is not consistent, and the mechanisms have not been found."
The understanding now is that muscle cells convert glucose or glycogen to lactic acid. The lactic acid is taken up and used as a fuel by mitochondria, the energy factories in muscle cells.
Mitochondria even have a special transporter protein to move the substance into them, Dr. Brooks found. Intense training makes a difference, he said, because it can make double the mitochondrial mass.
It is clear that the old lactic acid theory cannot explain what is happening to muscles, Dr. Brooks and others said.
Yet, Dr. Brooks said, even though coaches often believed in the myth of the lactic acid threshold, they ended up training athletes in the best way possible to increase their mitochondria. "Coaches have understood things the scientists didn't," he said.
Through trial and error, coaches learned that athletic performance improved when athletes worked on endurance, running longer and longer distances, for example.
That, it turns out, increased the mass of their muscle mitochondria, letting them burn more lactic acid and allowing the muscles to work harder and longer.
Just before a race, coaches often tell athletes to train very hard in brief spurts.
That extra stress increases the mitochondria mass even more, Dr. Brooks said, and is the reason for improved performance.
And the scientists?
They took much longer to figure it out.
"They said, 'You're anaerobic, you need more oxygen,' " Dr. Brooks said. "The scientists were stuck in 1920."
Tuesday, May 16, 2006
Hippocratic Oath - Cake Baking Teacher Version
Hippocratic Oath - Cake Baking Teacher Version
I swear by cheesecake and carrot cake and all the gods and goddesses, making them my witnesses, that I will fulfil according to my ability and judgment this oath and this covenant:
To make and feed him cheesecake and carrot cake until he ingests the (name of subject) behind this art of cake eating and to drive non cakemaking (name of subject) teachers away from him, and if he is in need of formula to give him a bigger slice of cheesecake, and to regard his careless mistake as equal to a piece of mango cheesecake and to teach them (name of subject) - if they desire to learn it - without complaint and covenant; to give a share of carrot cake coated with lemon icing sugar and all the other rich goodies to them and to their sons of him who may have been equally inflicted with (subject skill) but have taken the correct path of being a student under a cakemaking (name of subject) teacher but no one else.
I will apply cup measures for the benefit of the lack of (subject skill) according to my ability and judgment; I will keep them from the kitchen and my Belling oven. I shall not use inferior ingredients beyond organic eggs and lovely lightly toasted walnuts and farm-fresh, pesticide free carrots although I am compelled by the powers that be that the cakes may not last for infinity.
I will neither give a cheesecake to anybody who asked for a carrot cake, nor will I make a suggestion to this effect. Similarly I will not give to a moron an carrot cake when he asked for cheesecake. I shall not make more ingredients that is already dictated by the recipe book or attempt to bake the cake faster by increasing the temperature of the oven. I shall resist from looking at measures of ounces and pounds so that absolutely no one mistake will slip through the metric system. In purity and holiness I will guard my life and my art.
I will not use the artificial flavourings, not even on uncarroty cakes, but will use more carrots in favor of such bakers as are engaged in this work. I will not use the blue cheese to make cheesecakes, when ordinary cream cheese will do.
Whatever classes I may visit, I will come for the benefit of the vaguely interested, remaining free of all intentional insults, of all mischief and in particular of assymetrical relations with both female and male persons, be they free or slaves. They will learn to eat cheesecake and learn. They will then learn to vary their tastes by eating carrot cakes and learn. They will finally learn to eat cheesecake and carrot cake and learn.
What I may see or hear in the course of the cake eating or even outside of the cake eating in regard to the inability to graduate from TAF club, which on no account one must spread abroad, I will keep to myself, holding such things shameful to be spoken about. I also swear not to divulge any instances of infidelity to the low fat, low sugar, low salt, and low calories rules.
If I fulfil this oath and do not violate it, may it be granted to me to enjoy classes with extremely high motivation levels, and then being honored with fame among all men for all time to come when I am being remembered and thanked for my cakes during teachers' day celebrations; if I transgress it and swear falsely, I'll make more cheese and carrot cakes.
I swear by cheesecake and carrot cake and all the gods and goddesses, making them my witnesses, that I will fulfil according to my ability and judgment this oath and this covenant:
To make and feed him cheesecake and carrot cake until he ingests the (name of subject) behind this art of cake eating and to drive non cakemaking (name of subject) teachers away from him, and if he is in need of formula to give him a bigger slice of cheesecake, and to regard his careless mistake as equal to a piece of mango cheesecake and to teach them (name of subject) - if they desire to learn it - without complaint and covenant; to give a share of carrot cake coated with lemon icing sugar and all the other rich goodies to them and to their sons of him who may have been equally inflicted with (subject skill) but have taken the correct path of being a student under a cakemaking (name of subject) teacher but no one else.
I will apply cup measures for the benefit of the lack of (subject skill) according to my ability and judgment; I will keep them from the kitchen and my Belling oven. I shall not use inferior ingredients beyond organic eggs and lovely lightly toasted walnuts and farm-fresh, pesticide free carrots although I am compelled by the powers that be that the cakes may not last for infinity.
I will neither give a cheesecake to anybody who asked for a carrot cake, nor will I make a suggestion to this effect. Similarly I will not give to a moron an carrot cake when he asked for cheesecake. I shall not make more ingredients that is already dictated by the recipe book or attempt to bake the cake faster by increasing the temperature of the oven. I shall resist from looking at measures of ounces and pounds so that absolutely no one mistake will slip through the metric system. In purity and holiness I will guard my life and my art.
I will not use the artificial flavourings, not even on uncarroty cakes, but will use more carrots in favor of such bakers as are engaged in this work. I will not use the blue cheese to make cheesecakes, when ordinary cream cheese will do.
Whatever classes I may visit, I will come for the benefit of the vaguely interested, remaining free of all intentional insults, of all mischief and in particular of assymetrical relations with both female and male persons, be they free or slaves. They will learn to eat cheesecake and learn. They will then learn to vary their tastes by eating carrot cakes and learn. They will finally learn to eat cheesecake and carrot cake and learn.
What I may see or hear in the course of the cake eating or even outside of the cake eating in regard to the inability to graduate from TAF club, which on no account one must spread abroad, I will keep to myself, holding such things shameful to be spoken about. I also swear not to divulge any instances of infidelity to the low fat, low sugar, low salt, and low calories rules.
If I fulfil this oath and do not violate it, may it be granted to me to enjoy classes with extremely high motivation levels, and then being honored with fame among all men for all time to come when I am being remembered and thanked for my cakes during teachers' day celebrations; if I transgress it and swear falsely, I'll make more cheese and carrot cakes.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)