Well, my august 31st turned out to be just as monotonous as yesterday, the day before..etc. A missed opportunity, I'd say.
But anyway, it's time for another start - for you guys at least. For me, there's a few more days of relaxation before my intensive senior first term commences.
So, on your mark..get set..go! May you all have a dynamic and spirited start of form 6 life.
Strenuous (adj) - arduous, vigorous.
Weekly Recap VI
(Highlight the corresponding spaces for answers)
Pulchritude (n) - external beauty. Elysium (n) - paradise (極樂世界). Slovenly (adj) - negligent, untidy (不修邊幅). Concatenation (n) - series of connected items or events (連鎖xx). Shimmer (v) - emit a soft flickering light; glimmer. Obviate (v) - remove an obstacle in advance. Ominous (adj) - delivering bad news, foreboding. Efflorescence (n) - flowering, blossoming.
August 30, 2005 I'm tired of ingratiating you. Stayed at home, again. Well, let's hope that the last day of summer would not be spent as monotonously. Pulchritude (n) - external beauty.
August 29, 2005 Day & Night
The sky was so clear today. As I worked and stayed at home, I also observed the beautiful city - from the lofty buildings under the blistering sun, to the shimmering edifices under the dark, gray sky. I love HK.
Btw, I returned the kettle this afternoon.. It's not worth it - to get a voltage alternator that costs as much as the kettle itself.
You are now listening to Stefanie's We Will Get There. Doesn't it sound like a goodbye song?
"And in the end, hand in hand, we will get there." Elysium (n) - paradise (極樂世界).
August 28, 2005
On this ordinary day, I did some ordinary things. I stayed in my ordinary house, and worked on my ordinary stuff. Quite extraordinarily, my normally ordinary lunch turned out to be quite extraordinary. I tried the 喇沙出前一丁, and found out, after so many trials, that the original 出前一丁 tastes best. So as the ordinary afternoon passed, it extraordinarily rained, and I had to forfeit another chance of playing tennis with dad.
Well, no matter how extraordinarily ordinary a day like this would be, I'd still miss it. Slovenly (adj) - negligent, untidy (不修邊幅).
August 27, 2005
Today - the last saturday before 9/1 - is really a finale of summer fun. Went out around 2, met Kevin, Thomas and Martin in MK Neway, and was there for the rest of the afternoon. Well, it was quite fun; though it would have been more enjoyable if we found out the uv lights sooner.
So afterwards, we phoned Michael and he was to be late as usual.. We wandered in LP for a while before heading to FW. And in FW, I got myself a small water boiler at Fortress, but later found out that the current voltage is not variable. I brook it and decided to safe the staffs a hassle. Dinner @ EXP was quite good. Walked around for another half-an-hr before settling at PCC for pictures.. We left at around 10:30.
"I figure life's a gift, and I don't intend on wasting it." Concatenation (n) - series of connected items or events (連鎖xx).
August 26, 2005 'Life is sad and solemn'
Prompt
'Everything sounds so sad and solemn when you talk like that.'
'Life is both sad and solemn. We are let into a wonderful world, we meet one another here, greet each other - and wander together for a brief moment. Then we lose each other and disappear as suddenly and unreasonably as we arrived.'
- Excerpt of Sophie's World
Response
Welcome to another philosophical daily. Well, since today's been a so-so day, sullen feelings of departure emerged in my mind again. Isn't it true though, that we arrive in the world and leave it quite unreasonably and meaninglessly? I'm not saying that life is meaningless though..it's different. But considering life's inevitable sequence of arriving and leaving, it's really quite sad and solemn.
So, I would like to conclude that life, in a large scope, is both sad and solemn.
More..
But of course, it is even more unreasonble to live life in despair. The best way then is to live life fully, at the moment, and make each day count.
Shimmer (v) - emit a soft flickering light; glimmer.
August 25, 2005
Stayed at home and did some work (again) today. Well, if I were not to step out of my house, I guess I could only work..
To make this daily less boring, let's bring some new music in. Another song from Stephy's new album. It really fits my mood quite well.. Obviated (v) - remove an obstacle in advance.
August 24, 2005 Descartes
Prompt
'When we dream, we feel we are experiencing reality. What seperates our waking feelings from our dream feelings?
' "When I consider this carefully, I find not a single property with certainty seperates the waking state from the dream," writes Descartes. And he goes on: "How can you be certain that your whole life is not a dream?" '
- Excerpt of Sophie's World
Response
I find myself deeply fascinated by philosophy lately. So today, I decide to introduce the famous French mathematician and philosopher to you - Descartes. Indeed, because of his interest in mathematics, he brought a revolution in post-Renaissance philosophy by attempting to use mathematical methods for philosophizing. And likewise, he believed that only reason, not our senses, can give us certainty.
I'm most intrigued by his thought of life being a dream. In our dreams we feel like we're experiencing reality. So how do we know if life isn't just another dream?
Descartes did not end there. Since he did not trust his senses of reality, he doubted everything - except one thing; one thing had to be true. When he doubted, he had to be thinking, and because he was thinking, he must be a thinking being. This leads to his well-known 'I think, therefore I am' quote.
There is, of course, a lot more about Descartes, Descartes' philosophy, and philosophy itself..
More..
It's no longer 'To be or not to be' (Shakespeare) after Descartes' emergence. The latter's 'I think therefore I am', relegated the former's since...since it was simply grander.
Ominous (adj) - delivering bad news, foreboding.
August 23, 2005
Received a call from Kevin around 5 and was summoned to another dinner with him and Martin + a mission of getting a printer. So, we met in LP and first had dinner at Basil. We daringly ordered a couple of spicy/oily dishes - it seems like we actually want to have a sorethroat or something.. Yearning for a taste of cake we missed last night, we immediately went to Buddyz for cake and coffee after dinner.
We then walked to MK computer center for our ultimate goal - Kevin's printer. In the mall, we were madly glad that the infamous poor-attitude shop closed down, only to realize that it was a different store.. Well, Kevin couldn't end his day better with his purchase. He has a long streak of record buying gadgets when we meet. The best adjective for that would be 揮霍.. Efflorescence (n) - flowering, blossoming.
Weekly Recap V
(Highlight the corresponding spaces for answers)
Funambulist (n) - acrobat who performs on tightrope. Affluence (n) - abundance; wealth. Subliminal (adj) - subconcious. Acclimate (v) - adapt, become accustomed. Forswear (v) - swear to give up, renounce. Captious (adj) - fastidious (吹毛求疵). Liquidate (v) - put an end to; pay off a debt Litigate (v) - legally dispute (in court).
August 22, 2005 Expurgating the world's cynicism
Today's probably the day I woke up earliest (at 6:45 to be precise) this whole summer. I coud have actually slept for another half-hour, since the trip to San Po Kong only took 45 minutes. So anyway, this is the third time I've taken toefl - twice before high school, now third. And because of that, it was really quite easy. Though tentatively my predicted scores show that I've got two wrong in the reading section..
After that, I wandered around in Hollywood Plaza until lunch at mcdonald's. For the next three hours, I sat and rested in FW's PCC. I also watched some interesting documentaries on National Geographic, since it was on now tv. At four, met Kevin and Martin and our night life began.
We first had some 'tea' at Hunghom's mcdonald's. We then tried to bowl, but was unsuccessful in the end - time, price, our indifference.. So they decided to race. Race what? Game arcade cars. Okay, fine, we had a hazy 15-min fun of games. Then, off to tst we went. Had dinner at Jade, loved that fried noodle, and walked again. In the end we settled down in starbucks and talked for a while, before finally departing. Well, this meeting is not quite meaningful, but still better than the last..
P.S. Don't get the subtle title? Well, this time I have to make it only comprehensible to myself. Funambulist (n) - acrobat who performs on tightrope.
August 21, 2005
Had brunch in Maxim's; studied in MK library for 3 hrs; got my tennis racket; went home; watched Casper.
Why am I being so laconic? Coz I need to spare time for sleep.. Toefl tmr. Good nite. Affluence (n) - abundance; wealth.
August 20, 2005 Colors
Before noon, I decided to take a bit of adventure today. So I went out, under the harsh rain, and headed for the study room in MK's library.
"I see green, I see red, I see blue, I see black.."
Looking and searching for lost memories - and afterwards I brought my tennis racket to be strung, and headed to Starhouse to get my unrepairable notebook back.
"I see coffee on the table,
and our black and white photo,
and over the green mountain,
I can see all these rainbow.
Lets sing a song in red,
lets sing a song in blue,
lets sing a song with colors in you;
lets sing a song in black,
lets sing a song in blue...
without the rainbow,
i'd still sing a song with you."
A day of thoughts-organizing, add oil tmr. Subliminal (adj) - subconcious (潛意識的)
August 19, 2005
After a full day at Disneyland yesterday, I stayed at home today to get some work done. Home is really my personal sanctuary away from rain, storm, suffering and more..a place where I can unbind and be myself.
Just a tad more than two weeks before I depart. Well, well, well.. Acclimate (v) - adapt, become accustomed..
World's smallest Disneyland proved to be a slight disappointment to many
Hong Kong - August 18, 2005
Hong Kong's much-anticipated Disneyland is currently having its final rehearsal. Fellow relatives and friends of Disneyland's consultants and contractors were invited to experience the first-hand fun and joy before the crowd.
Unfortunately, the Hong Kong model of the world's happiest place proved to be a slight disappointment to many. "It's incredibly small," said Eugene Young, an attendee of today's final rehearsal, "and the rides are quite disappointing too." Eugene pointed out that a few rides are awaiting to be built, such as the 'Formula 1 Race', where one would be able to drive around a tracked path, similar to the one in Toyko's Disneyland. And perhaps because of such constructions, the Disney train that tours around the park is seated sidelong to hide them. "I only get to see half of what I should be able to see, and I feel like a display item circulating the park for others' ridicule," replied Adrian, Eugene's little brother, when asked to comment on the train.
Similar disappointments were expressed by Eugene's friends. "The acclaimed most-intensive ride of the park - Space Mountain - cannot even be described as intense," grunted Wilson Yu, who brought along his little brother Victor and his friend Piso, "It's like traveling on Mtr." His brother, Victor, gave a self-satisfied grin after hearing Wilson's comment. Wilson said that his brother "enjoyed the show and performances - such as Mickey's Fantasia, Golden Mickeys, and the Lion King show - most; although there were some brief technical problems in the Lion King show, which halted the performance for 3 minutes."
Another friend of Eugene's, Jeffrey Au (whose mother supplied the beautiful plants in the park), expressed that he is most perturbed by today's rainy weather. "I have changed twice already, and I am still wet!" he exclaimed. His other witty half, Derek Chan, seemed to have enjoyed talking to the female staffs most.
Eugene noted in conclusion that this visit is a positive one, but he reserved his praise for the park. "It's a good strategy really (to expand the park instead of constructing everything at once). It will attract a second round of guests in the long run, plus, it can open sooner," said his perspicacious friends and he.
It seems that things are running relatively well in Hong Kong's Disneyland; it just lacks surprises. Perhaps the early visitors will find the theme park much more enjoyable years later, when the expansion program finishes.
Eugene and his friends - Photo courtesy of Eugene
August 17, 2005 Tracing back
Yesterday's visit to Mei Foo inspired me to trace back my routine walks there when I was younger. So this afternoon I went back to block 66, and walked along the 'cycling path' where I used to bike on. It was really sensational, coz most of the things remained the same, and they brought back some bizarre memories to me..like how I fell from my bike and how my bro and I would play hide n seek in the miniature hall. Anyway..
I'm 'invitied' to Disney's soft opening tour tmr. We'll see how the 'world's smallest Disneyland' compares. Forswear (v) - swear to give up, renounce.
August 16, 2005
Met Egg and Ayu + Kevin today for badminton at Kln park. After that we vaguely decided to bowl in Mei Foo, which is quite surprising actually, since it almost accomodates my location best. Unfortunately, we never bowled..since there were no lanes. So we just had an ordinary dinner at Cafe de Corol, and some dessert/drinks at McCafe before we departed.
Meanwhile, I've decided to take toefl again. When? Before I leave, of course.. Captious (adj) - fastidious (or better yet: 吹毛求疵).
August 15, 2005 LP
It seems that when I step foot at MK everytime, I pay a visit to LP. And tonight the six of us had quite a cacophonous dinner at Steak Expert. The pair of Egg + Ayu fills our otherwise boring dinner with witty questions and repartee.. Well, it was a really fine dinner. Another thing worth mentioning is that we're all from different schools..
The pix is taken from the spot where I took the july 30's one. So..compare and contrast them if you want. Liquidate (v) - put an end to; pay off a debt.
August 14, 2005
Managed to play tennis with dad between the scattered rain and storm. Anyway, enjoy this week's word list. Litigate (v) - legally dispute (in court).
Weekly Recap IV
(Highlight the corresponding spaces for answers)
Preemptive (adj) - designed to make a first strike against someone who is planning to attack. Repartee (n) - clever reply. Rigmarole (n) - incoherent speech. Acolyte (n) - assitant. Precocious (adj) - mature for one's age. Glower (v) - stare sullenly, frown. Suave (adj) - sophisticated, smooth. Velleity (n) - mere wish. Precipice (n) - cliff, peril.
August 13, 2005 Stormy day
This year's first typhoon that necessitated a signal swept pass HK today, well, in a moderate manner. And because of that, I stayed at home the entire day and worked abit.
I'll post another weekly vocab list tmr. Stay tuned. And yes, a new song today - Natasha Thomas' Let me show you the way. I surmise that it won't be up for long.. Preemptive (adj) - designed to make a first strike against someone who is planning to attack.
August 12, 2005 Moving On "Well, nothing goes better with cabbage than cabbage."
The past two days have gladdened some and saddened most of the others. And unfortunately, some were struck by the sheer reality of departure. Departure.. Well, would it be assuming if I say that I've experienced such emotional breakdowns?
As I've mentioned to Wilson on wed, if these two years at Taft has taught me anything, it would be to take things less seriously and be optimistic. Yes, departing is, if not always, usually sad. But if we don't leave, when do we get our chance to reunite? The word 'reunion' would not be listed in the dictionary then. And actually, not seeing my friends all the time is a great reason or motivation that makes me want to see them all the time. If anything, departing makes us cherish the people we love, and enjoy being with. After all, people always cry over spilled milk. So, the conclusion is, if it's time to move on, move on.
Back to my life today. Watched Charlie and the Chocolate Factory with my brother in IFC this afternoon. It was amazingly hilarious and entertaining. An element that elevates my interest is that I've read the original book as a child. Oh, it's a great book, by the way. Repartee (n) - clever reply.
August 11, 2005
Can't we all just live happily in one small place and, be together? Rigmarole (n) - incoherent speech.
August 10, 2005
I really don't know what to say today. And you think I shouldn't feel burdened? Now I think I should.
Perhaps there's not enough time for every purpose now. Perhaps it's time to lock myself up and.. Acolyte (n) - assistant.
August 9, 2005 Best of luck
Okay everyone, good luck tmr. Precocious (adj) - mature for one's age.
August 8, 2005 Come Fly with Me + Embraceable You
After lesson, I had late lunch in Aberdeen Fishballs with Kevin. It was in fact, quite good. We then walked for a while in LP, before heading to Esprit, where we sort of got ourselves into a "stamps trap". Oh well, I'm glad that I got the t-shirt though.
Do the alterations look weird? I hope not. Anyway, this time I decided to put two songs in the bg - first one is Come Fly with Me by Frank Sinatra, second is Embraceable You by Billie Holiday. Both are songs from the 30s, and from the soundtrack of a movie. Which one? Well, it's really quite obvious..
P.S. Erm..yeah, I do like jazz. Glower (v) - stare sullenly, frown.
Come Fly with Me Frank Sinatra
Come fly with me, let’s fly let’s fly away
If you can use, some exotic booze
There’s a bar in far bombay
Come fly with me, let's fly let's fly away
Come fly with me, let’s float down to Peru
In lama land, there’s a one man band
And he’ll toot his flute for you
Come fly with me, we’ll float down in the blue
Once I get you up there, where the air is rarefied
We’ll just glide, starry eyed
Once I get you up there, I’ll be holding you so near
You may hear, angels cheer - because we're together
Weather-wise it’s such a lovely day
You just say the words, and we’ll beat the birds
Down to acapulco bay
It’s perfect, for a flying honeymoon - they say
Come fly with me, let's fly let's fly away
Embraceable You Billie Holiday
Embrace me
My sweet embraceable you
Embrace me
My irreplaceable you
Just to look at you
My heart grows tipsy in me
You and you alone
Bring out the gypsy in me
I love all
The many charms about you
Above all
I want my arms about you
Don’t be naughty baby
Come to me
Come to me do
My sweet embraceable you
I love all
The many charms about you
Above all
I want my arms about you
Don’t be naughty baby
Come to me
Come to me do
My sweet embraceable you
August 7, 2005
Yeah, I was so exhausted last night that I stayed up till 3. Well.
What have I been up to? I really don't know. My daily life seems to be getting more and more cluttered. Because of that, it's probably good to list a few important things that have happened since yesterday:
1. Air conditioner is finally fixed.
2. Failed to contact new boy
3. Discovered that all is vanity..vanity Suave (adj) - sophisticated, smooth.
August 6, 2005
The webmaster has gone for a short trip to the stars, and shall be back soon.
In other words, I'm exhausted. Look for my return tmr.. Velleity (n) - mere wish.
August 5, 2005
Didn't do much today. But I did go out, for some all so trivial reasons. And..
..And this week's recap is a bit packed. Precipice (n) - cliff, peril.
Weekly Recap III
(Highlight the corresponding spaces for answers)
Remuneration (n) - reward, payment. Upend (v) - turn on end. Jugular (adj) - pertaining to neck, throat. Treacle (n) - excessive sentimentality. Regurgiate (v) - throw up, vomit. Vicarious (adj) - indirect (relates to vicar - the Pope is a vicar of God in christian's eyes). Baleful (adj) - sinister, spiteful. Labefaction (n) - downfall. Entice (v) - seduce, lure. Preposterous (adj) - irrational (before and after). Ostentatious (adj) - garish, pompous. Propinquity (n) - resemblance. Churlish (adj) - brutish, rude. Impervious (adj) - impenetrable.
August 4, 2005 Bumping into people
If I were asked to characterize today, I would call it a day of bumping into people. Not physically bumping of course.. So at first when I headed out to get my salary, I bumped into Martin Chung at laichikwok. He seemed to be awfully friendly and modest when we were chatting. I'm glad that he still remembers me, though it's quite impossible that he doesn't given the time we spent at summer school in England four years ago. Okay, then as I was walking towards FW, I bumped into Timothy Kwong. Well, I just saw him and thought "Is this him?!" and walked away..
Perhaps, as the book The Alchemist brings up, "When something happens once, it will not happen again. When something happens twice, it will for sure happen for the third time". And so it did. As I waited for the girls in front of PCC, I saw a form 7 lasallian (surname Cheung) inside PCC 'tutoring' his gf to surf the net.. And as I looked down towards the FW-authentically-fast-escalators, I saw Cliff Kueh in a pink shirt, carring his badminton bag...
Well, anyway, I got my project's remuneration, and had lunch at EXP with Veron, Stephy and Tiff. We then walked around in FW till 5, and I found Kevin in pageOne. And so we had dinner together with Martin at tst's Singapore Restaurant. It's not really a good choice I guess. But then after dinner, I made an even worse choice by inviting them to visit Update Mall.. Yeah, it's not that updated anymore. So..
Haven't written such long daily for a while. Just one more thing to show you - my desktop-organization-progress pictures.
"Desktop Replacement Program"
Before
After
Tower and router
Remuneration (n) - payment, compensation.
August 3, 2005
I guess it's time to unveil my new desktop's specifications today. I decided to call it Swiftlet.
Speicifications for Swiftlet
AMD Athlon 64 3000+
1Gb Dual Channel Ram
160Gb SATA Hd
Ati X550 w/256mb
etc..
It's said that amd's 3000+ is faster than intel's 531 3.0. But since I've never used 531, I can only tell you that 3000+ flashes the blue bar three times when loading into windows. Anyway, it's far better than what I expected and need. Upend (v) - turn on end.
August 2, 2005
Having nothing to do in the afternoon, I decided to get a haircut. And..
And when I was talking with Kevin and Thomas on the phone before the haircut, they asked me if I ever played Lego. How interesting? I was reading something about Lego at that precise moment.. What was it? It was about how Lego resembles the function as atoms' - atoms are indestructible and immutable, they combine and merge into different objects - in some ways just like Lego. Yet, atoms cannot be all the same, otherwise objects would be confined to some particular shape. I guess it's a good analogy to explain how things are made up from atoms? Jugular (adj) - pertaining to the neck, throat.
August 1, 2005 Kissing You - Sade
Well, it's august again. To me, it's often characterized by departures and farewells.. I don't want to return to my pessimistic self two months ago. I want time to slow down, to freeze. I want to live life at this moment..
On a different note, I decided to renew the bg song today. Yes, the one before was widely received, so I have high expectations for this one as well. Introducing Kissing You by Sade, a theme song in "Romeo + Juilet". It's been stuck on my head for awhile already.. Depending on your mood, you may find it a treacle or a quiet, sweet song, although it's meant to be a sad one. Anyway, enjoy. Treacle (n) - excessive sentimentality.
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