2010.

I've loads to blog about and... 2010 is coming to an end.

In 2 hours time, 2010 dies, and 2011 is born.

2010 has been a rather eventful and meaningful year for me. I've met new people. I've had my ups and downs. I've made mistakes and learnt from them.

2010. I've been to a number of camps this year, National Service, hang out with friends, studies, etc. I think 2010 is one of the busier years, or maybe the busiest year in my 18 years of my life.

What has God laid in store for me in 2011?

STPM! STPM is going to be a nightmare. Upper Form 6 is going to start as of 3rd of January.

In The Name Of SCIENCE?!?

In the name of Science, how many bugs have to suffer in formalin?
In the name of Science, how many white rats have to be killed alive?In the name of Science, how many plants have to lose their source of energy?
In the name of Science, how many factors than maintain the ecosystem in equilibrium are disturbed?

The answer, A LOT!!!

I went to school today to "cut open" a rhinoceros beetle that I caught yesterday. I have this school project or rather known as PEKA, asking us to catch 25 different species of insects, and preserve them. I was thinking to myself, "The Biology syllabus also teaches us how to take care of the environment, and ways to prevent the animals from going extinct. And by doing this project, isn't this also harming the environment?". Funny, they teach us this and yet do the opposite.

I wasn't feeling too good when I killed the rhinoceros beetle that I caught. It was so cruel. Who are we to kill such animals? Imagine being pierced through your stomach. What would you feel? The pain one would have to bear. AH! Science oh science! Why art thou so cruel?

Day 2 of Sports Camp!

I woke up at 2.30 a.m.! It was so COLD! I did not bring my own sleeping bag, I was told that I needed to, but I suppose that is a basic camping rule.... HOW COULD I FORGET??? Anyways, I woke up later at 6.30 a.m. to prepare for the officers meeting.

We had a "mini" pembarisan like those in NS, where we will sing the national anthem, except that it isn't so strict here. Next, devotion time followed by breakfast.

Normally, in other camps organized by SU, it would be another session time, but in this case, it was time for SPORTS! Oh well, I guess this is why this is called a Sports Camp after all...

We had an introduction to this sport called "Floorball", heard it before? No, right? It seems that it is only popular in Penang, KL, and Sabah. It's something like hockey, the only difference is that the ball is made of hollow plastic instead of a solid hockey ball. Pastor Edward, from Penang explained briefly about the game, about the rules and techniques in handling the ball. A short practical session was held to get a feel of the game.

After lunch, a mini competition were held among the 6 teams. And guess which team won? My team! LOL! An officers against campers match were also held, and obviously, the officers won (Who can beat the officers with Pastor Edward, the coach; playing against them?).

The competition ended rather early, earlier than planned. So, the campers had free time to play any sport they desire. Wesley Methodist Church Penang... I'd say is a rather well-equipped with sports facilities church. They have badminton, ping-pong and a basketball or volleyball court! They also have a field opposite the road!

Dinner followed by night session, Man. A youth worker all the way from Ipoh came all the way to come give a talk and coach basketball for those who signed up for the following day. The SU team started off with a little time of worship and then a short stimulation game before the message. The stimulation game was rather interesting, it was about making a puppet out of the materials given. We should try it in MYF some time. My group did a quite a good job designing it although they didn't have the time to hook up the puppet with the puppet controller. We still managed to get 3rd! :D

The message was simple and complete. He was quite engaging with the youth... he would ask questions, and if you do not pay attention, you might just find yourself with a mike pushed to you without knowing what to say.

After sharing, sports.... AGAIN! Tonight was something different... OLD SCHOOL SPORTS! Meaning spinning tops, Kali-Kandak, and another game whose name I can't remember.

Well, here goes another long day! Tomorrow I shall be rejoining my family! :)

Day 1 of Sports Camp...

This is going to be one interesting but also quite boring (there are no pictures) post. I didn't bring any cameras along... my mother said she wanted to use it. So, i came home empty-handed from the camp.

Pushed off at 12, Aunt Peh Lan had some errands to do. She had to post a letter to SU. Speaking of SU, 2 people are going for SUSOM 2011 this year, and only one going for JS.

Well, we arrived rather late at Wesley Methodist Church, the registration and getting to know one another sessions were already over. We just joined in as observers, obervering the respective groups doign their victory flag and chants. They even had an oath-making and raising of flag event to declare the official opening of this camp.

Frankly, I really felt out of place. It isn't in my nature, as an introvert, to first start the ball rolling. I tried to, but it felt real awkward to me, but I think it's a start.

We had "Ultimate Frisbee" game session at 4. This is my first camp having so many game sessions in one day! They even have a game session at night at 9:30 p.m.! No wonder there are more boys attending this camp than girls.

While watching them play, I began to think why I was called to help in the first place. There were enough hands to help around (to me, for now), and I think with or without me, it would make no difference, unless being there for moral support is considered as a valid reason. I felt left out. I guess this is what happens when there is no specific duty assigned to me.

Night time. Dinner + Session. And after session, Game + Supper. I was dead tired during the session. It was about a topic I've heard most of in different camps, and was yawning throughout the session.

But since I'm here, I may as well take it as a challenge and have some fun. Oh well, we'll see what tomorrow lies in store for me.

P.S. There is one mini "Daniel Tong" here. :D

A Trip To Butterfly Farm Penang! :)

Went to Penang last Saturday. It was supposed to be a shopping trip for my sis, but it later turned out to be an educational trip. :D

Well, frankly, it was me who wanted to come to Penang Butterfly Farm. I wanted to find out whether they sold specimens of butterflies, so that I can use it for my Biology school project. Whether they sold it or not, I'll come to that part later. :P
Penang Butterfly Farm. It's privately owned I guess. Do you know how much it costs per person??? For a MALAYSIAN adult, it's RM 10 per person, and for a MALAYSIAN kid, it's RM 5. For tourist, they are charged at a different rate. They have to pay double the price, RM 20 per adult, and per kid... RM10.

Going in...

I think it's worth the money though. Where in Malaysia can you find a place where there are so many different butterflies so close to you? Even those rare ones can be seen roaming around in there!

These two butterlies don't wanna talk to each other. :D

One of the butterfies landed on my hand, and refused to take off, leaving my sister itching her hands also have one butterfly on her hand.
There are other things to see too... and not just butterflies. There is a turtle to see, loads of SCORPIONS and a museum of some artifacts that are unknown to me.
More pictures of butterflies.




There is gallery of already baked and preserved butterflies. I tell you, the collections are amazing! You can see different types of butterflies according to color, environment, place of origin, the name it. It's the prefect place for butterfly lovers!
Before saying goodbye.
And oh, they do sell butterfly specimens. But it all costs a bomb! Are you willing to spend between a range of RM 80 to RM 500 for a well-preserved butterfly? T

hey have a store especially for STUDENTS only, you can buy those specimens at a cheap rate of RM 5 to RM 30, but they are not well preserved, their wings are closed (the wings of the insects must be open for the Biology project). You can buy them, but you will have a tough time trying to open their wings as they are all hard and brittle already.

Anyways... going to Penang again later. :D

Just For Laughs...

The Golden Rules When You Want To Go To The Toilet During A Class In School.

During Malay Period,
Cikgu, boleh tak saya pergi ke tandas?
Cikgu, tandas.

During English Period,
Teacher, may I go to the toilet?
Teacher, may I go and answer the call of nature?

During Mathematics Period,
Teacher, may I substitute my urine into the toilet bowl?

During Moral Period,
Cikgu, saya mahu menggunakan hak saya sebagau pelajar untuk pergi ke tandas.

During History Period,
Cikgu, boleh tak saya pergi buat perjanjian di/dengan tandas?

During Biology Period,
Teacher, may I go and empty my bladder?
Teacher, may I relax the tension of my muscles of my bladder?
Teacher, may I excrete my waste products in the toilet?

During Chemistry Period,
Teacher, can I produce carboxyl diamine [(NH2)2CO] in the toilet?
Teacher, can I undergo the process of dehydration in the toilet?

During Physics Period,
Teacher, may I go to the toilet to achieve equilibrium of my bladder?

Made by Cham Hong Leong. :)

Hard Times Are Definitely Coming...

I can't deny that I can predict hard times are looming up soon. Look at the current state of Malaysia today... corruption, more severe natural disasters, increasing crime rates, price hike of certain items... and this is just one country. There are about 196 countries in the world today.

Every country has a government to govern the country. Malaysia, is no different, is a democratically-run country. I believe that everyone is hoping for a change so for the better good of the country, and are starting to vote for change in the general elections. But sometimes, the government that you have voted for will not whole your hand during hard times, instead... short-changing you. The reason is simple. To avoid bankruptcy.

Look at the current Federal Government, has decided that it's time to cut the subsidies of sugar, petrol, etc... and there has been a lot of complaints about it. The reason is simple of why the government is doing so. Corruption. Is it possible to save Malaysia from corruption by cutting the subsidies? I don't think so. If corruption persists, one day, there will be no subsidies to cut, no where else to source the money, and, Malaysia shall be declared bankrupt. It isn't fair to those who depend on these subsidies to make ends meet.

It doesn't take an idiot to notice that RM 100 can buy less things compared to 5 years ago. My fav. curry-puff store that I always go to near Sentosa sold it's famous curry puff at RM 0.20 per piece 5 years ago, but now, the price has risen to RM 0.50. Why, in 5 years time, my fav. curry puff might be sold at RM 1.00 per piece. 5 years ago, electricity tariffs weren't that high either, or petrol prices. But now, look at how everything is sky-rocketing! Why the government spending the money on building a 100-story Mega Tower: Warisan Merdeka, and not combating corruption and inflation?

It's something to think about.

Here's a site I found about Malaysia's standing in social, development, consumption and environment statistics in the world, click here.

Outing With Friends. :)

I went for a movie @ Alor Setar Mall just now with a few friends of mine. We watched this movie "Skyline". The cinema was surprisingly empty.

Watch the trailer.

Anyway, the trailer may show that it's a movie with high graphics and all, the story-line is rather slow moving. And I think they'll be Skyline 2 coming out soon, as the ending was left hanging.

Movie Frenzy...

I think the last time I watched a movie was before my finals, Step Up 3, with some of my friends at AS mall.

After watching Step Up 3, being impressed by the dance moves, I asked around, whether they had the previous movies'; Step Up 2 and Step Up. Joey promised to borrow me hers, but she deleted it before I had the chance to borrow it from her. In the end, I borrowed it from Edward.
Well, the movie was okay, I guess? I prefer Step Up 3 though. The beginning of this movie was rather boring. I was very tempted to hit the fast forward button (which I did :D) at many a time. The dance moves weren't as spectacular as Step Up 3, and the final dance was a little dark and boring? I don't know... They are just my opinions.

Movie Rating:

Next movie, my sister's keeper. My first impression of the movie was, is this going to be another girly sort of movie? Little did I know that this movie was made based on one of New York Times' best sellers books.

This movie moved me to tears. It's about a girl, Kate at the age of 13 suffering from acute leukemia (cancer of the bone marrow), and Anna who was conceived to keep her sister Kate alive by donating her bone marrow cells and all. It's a really touching story, to see a mother not wanting to give up trying and searching of ways to keep her daughter alive... but the sad truth is, sometimes, you just have to let go.
Movie Rating:

But if you read the book, it seems that the story line is entirely different. I have not read the book yet, so I can't say for sure. I plan to get hold of the book and start reading it. It should be a good and inspiring book to read, since I was already so touched just by watching the movie.
And oh, anyone got the book? :D Borrow me!

Outing to Kuala Kedah!

After Chem tuition, Tim called me, asking me whether I wanted to join them for a mini outing to "burn some time" (according to him) at Kuala Kedah to see whether the castle (palace) there is still open to visitors. According to him, the castle was still open when he last visited the castle when he was in primary school. But as I recall, the last time I visited that place (when I was Form 2 I think), is was closed, due to repairs.And it turned out, I was right, it is still not open to public. I wonder what they are doing with the building. Anyway, the sunset was worthwhile. But the condition of the Kuala Kedah beach is terrible! It's filthy! It's smelly. Rubbish is seen streaking everywhere!.. old shoes, paper cups, even bags! The sand is also black-ish in color, I suspect is due to the dirty sea water that is contaminated with oil.
Just look at the amount of rubbish! And this is just one part of the whole area. I wonder, if they clean the place up, treat the water, and make the place into a resort, with proper maintenance, I am sure it'll be a success!

Where in Alor Setar can you find places with such beautiful sunset scenery? Almost no where in Alor Setar, unless you are at City Plaza's top-most floor's car parking area.Anyway, the outing was overall fun! Joseph's car mati"ed" engine once when going up the steep bridge. He complained so much because he had to use his bukit skills four times! LOL. He also failed going up without sliding back on another bridge. Maybe he should retake his license! =P

One for the album!

Form 6 School Woes...

For the past 6 months of my life as a Lower 6 student in Keat Hwa, I've been made to stay back in school on Sundays and Mondays for extra-curriculum activities and so called "R&D (Research & Development)" sessions. And we have no choice, it's compulsory, as school authorities say they are orders from the Education Ministry.

At the start of this "programmes" after school, we were called to do "kerja amal" a.k.a. free labour to the school. We were asked to scrape the school walls, so that they could be repainted, and paint some of the walls we scraped. And this is said to give us marks in our curriculum activities. I bet the school saves tons of money not needing calling outside painters to paint the school.

I mean, why make us stay back to do such work? We have already had a long day at school, now, more work to tire us further? I tell you, we're dead tired after such heavy activities. The whole day will end up wasted.

After a few weeks, the R&D sessions officially started. It is said to help us in our studies. Let me tell you what happens there. R&D sessions, first of all, are divided into the 4 sessions for different subjects, except for Biology and Physics. We have R&D sessions for Math, MUET, PA, and Chemistry. And we don't do much in those sessions.

With 4 classes combined together, do you expect 2 teachers to cope with so many students? In PA R&D sessions, we would sit there and chit-chat, in that small chair-cum-table (the ones commonly found at tuition centres). We can't revise either. We're tired, the room is stuffy, the chair-cum-table isn't big enough, and it's noisy. And this happens for MUET too. In Chemistry R&D sessions, each group is given a task to speak about something. But, when groups go out to speak, with mic isn't functioning well, we end up hearing blurred sentences, which we can't make out what he or she is trying to say. For Math, yes, he will be teaching, and this is the only subject, that truly helps us in our STPM.

Why can't we be like Kolej Sultan Abdul Hamid? They incorporate this R&D sessions into the schooling time. And they end at 2:10p.m. everyday. But, if I'm not mistaken, starting for next year, Form 6 students will end school at 3:00p.m.++, if i'm not mistaken. Sigh. It's a waste of time. We don't get much out of it. Don't you school authorities get it?

MUET (Malaysian Univeristy English Test)...

I sat for my final 3 papers of MUET today. It was, urm... okay? I made a few careless mistakes here and there. But I guess that happens, nobody is prefect right? :)

I sat for Reading (Paper 3), Writing (Paper 4), and Listening (Paper 1) today. As for Speaking (Paper 2), I sat for it about a month ago.

Paper 3 was, tougher than all the exercises that I've done in school or in school-based exams. I've a bad habit when tackling a paper, that is always starting from the back to the front. I guess I was already blur when I reached the first text, and made a really CARELESS mistake! What was I doing? I can kick myself for that! I think I became rather panicky after I've read the last text!...because it was so hard to understand what the writer was writing about. Oh well, it has passed. Maybe I shall take it again next year.

As for Paper 4, I guess it was rather okay? Question 2 (the factual essay) was:

"In an arranged marriage, the choice of husband or wife is made by parents and elders. What do you think of this practice in today's society? Discuss. You should write at least 350 words."

I wrote more than required, I think, about 500 words on approximate count. I only had two main points, and the rest were examples and effects of the points that I've stated. Hopefully, the examiner understands what I wrote. :)

Listening (Paper 1), I was rather blur I think, or in the state of panic. I couldn't catch question number 3's answer, about when conservation on turtles started. It was hard to hear when you can hear 5 radios playing the same text but at different places. The listening test were held in 5 different classrooms, and the text being played above or beside the classroom I was in were so loud, it was distracting!

According to Wikipedia, did you know that MUET is only accepted by two countries? Malaysia and Singapore ONLY? How about other countries? Why isn't it recognized? All the hard work for nothing. I'm considering IELTS, another English test that is accepted worldwide. Anyone interested?

Going into a flooded taman in a LORRY!

Before I continue on, The Star paper has published a few warnings about a second-wave hitting Kedah again, as well as Kelantan, and Perlis. If you want to read the articles with your own eyes, click here, and here.

"Home Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Tun Hussein gave the order as the Meteorological Department predicted the second wave could hit the three states if heavy rain persisted."

Quoted from The Star.

Let's hope for the best, and pray hard that a second wave doesn't hit Alor Setar again. We all want to enjoy our holidays in peace, right?

Back to the story.

My taman was so FLOODED that we had to get a lorry to get in, to check on the house. My neighbour, managed to borrow a lorry from a friend. He called my mum, and it was decided that my dad and I would tag along.

We arrived at Wisma, but they hadn't arrived. Apparently, jams were bad in town. I managed to take a few pictures while waiting.

Ever seen a tow truck letting down the towed car? It uses a hydraulic pump to lift the lorry's head up and allow the car to reverse down.Fascinating eh?

Here's another picture.I think no VIP or VVIP in the right frame of mind would want to use this road. Haha...

The lorry arrived, and let me tell you, it was no small lorry, it was HUGE! You know those lorries that carry sand? Yeah! That lorry.Some parts were knee deep and more, and lorry still had plenty of room before the water hit the engines of the lorry. A normal car would have "KO"ed before it even moved 100 metres!

On the way in, All water. And this was just the beginning of the journey.The waters were getting deeper and deeper as we ventured deeper into the taman. Look at this picture:The water has covered more than half the sign board!The poor Taman Golf Mini Market. After the flood receded, I heard the owner say that flood waters entered the shop about 4 inches. The cleaning they had to do was terrible.

Anyway, I got to my house. MY HOUSE WAS SPARED! Almost all of my neighbours' house were already submerged at least an inch of water, but mine was just lapping outside the house. Phew!

On the way back, my neighbour said a friend of his wanted him to rescue his dogs. And the golden retriever (as seen in the picture below) was overly excited. The dogs were hungry, and one of the people on board fed them bread and biscuits (BUTTER COOKIES!!!). The golden retriever started wagging its tail like crazy, splashing spots of mud on everyone.I thought I would go home clean and dry, but thanks to the dog, I was covered with MUD. Ah, it has been an experience! Hopefully, there won't be a next wave of floods!