Meow...

Just made a trip to Kuching on Wednesday. Not much of sightseeing, since we don't have muuh time and Kuching isn't an ideal place for sightseeing. Did some last-minute shopping before going to UK, but unfortunately there's not much to buy... although it's relatively cheap. So, I guess that makes 3 trips to Malaysia within 8 days... Miri (24/8), Kuching (27/8) and KL (31/8). Then BYE BYE ASIA, I'M OFF TO EUROPE!!!

Ok, my family did organise me a "2nd farewell party" or a last-gasp advanced birthday party. Lots of food... BBQ. I think my cousins enjoy it more that I do. It will be my last family gathering for at least 9 months, where I'm off at the bleak weather of Scotland and endure the endless solitude and stress piling on my shoulders... Anyway, just like I have said, if I miss them, just punch a few button and give them a call.... of course I won't cry... if I can resist it of course.

An old woman has 3 sons. All of them grew up as successful businessmen. Their business are expanding and they have earned a lot of money. As the birthday tof he old woman approaches, all of them wanted to give her a present. The eldest son, John, owns a construction company and decided to give his mother a big house. "Mom, I give you this house so that you can live comfortably for the rest of your life..." The second son, Jack, owns a automobile factory and decided to give the old woman a nice Mercedez Benz. "Mom, I give you this car so you don't have to worry about your transportation so much." The youngest son, James, who owns a pet shop is not as rich as his 2 older brother, but he wants his present to be meaningful to his beloved mother as well. He knew since young that his mother loves to read, but as she becomes older, her eyesight deteriorates. So, he gave a highly-trained parrot which can read almost everything - magazine, novel, comics... to his mother.

After 3 months, the old woman starts to complain. She asked her 3 sons to come home for a gathering. She then told John, "You gave me this big house, but I am staying alone, and all that I could occupy is only one room. Now I have to clean this big house every day." Then, she said to Jack, "Jack, you gave that black car, but I am old, my eyesight is poor and I could no longer drive. I seldom use the car and now I have to maintain it."... "Ah, James, only you understand me the best, the chicken you gave me taste REALLY good...!!!"

My last weekend... in Brunei

OK... took a break from blogging for a few days. But now I'm back... and I still have no idea what to write. So, there goes my final weekend in Brunei. Last Saturday started with a visit to CHMS and went to meet all the teachers... Teacher Mili (physics), Stella (maths), Anne(a/c), Wong(chinese), Tan (BM), Alicia (english), Concepcion (chemistry). Didn't meet Teacher Shanthi (bio) and Mr. Lim (maths) have left for Indonesia. Then, went for a jab (injection)... ah... 2 jabs actually. My papers only require me to have a Hepatitis B vaccination, but the nurse gave me a "bonus" flu vaccination, one on each arm... OUCH!!

Sunday... Miri!!! Went to make a spare pair of glasses, as well as some grocery shopping. Lucky me that there are not much traffic.

Organised a farewell party yesterday. I kept the guest list short... invited only about 9 people. All boys! The steamboat at Portview Restaurant was not bad. Too much food... but that's good. Then, drafting!!! Didn't manage to put even a single rare card into my deck. It's single elimination, but I made it to the top 4, although there are only 8 players =p. So,
Round 1: Me 2 - 1 Dev
Semi: Me 1 - 2 Yongbo... K.O.
Some of the rares I've got last night:

Twilight Mire has been traded with Figure of Destiny:

Will be in Kuala Lumpur for a night on 31 Aug. In time for the National Day. Heard most of the shops are closed for half day. Would love my last sip of teh tarik and last plate of nasi briyani before heading for UK. Andrew....!!!

What Kuohong Means...

What Kuohong Means

You are a seeker of knowledge, and you have learned many things in your life. You are also a keeper of knowledge - meaning you don't spill secrets or spread gossip. People sometimes think you're snobby or aloof, but you're just too deep in thought to pay attention to them. You are a very lucky person. Things just always seem to go your way. And because you're so lucky, you don't really have a lot of worries. You just hope for the best in life. You're sometimes a little guilty of being greedy. Spread your luck around a little to people who need it. You are well rounded, with a complete perspective on life. You are solid and dependable. You are loyal, and people can count on you. At times, you can be a bit too serious. You tend to put too much pressure on yourself. You are truly an original person. You have amazing ideas, and the power to carry them out. Success comes rather easily for you... especially in business and academia. Some people find you to be selfish and a bit overbearing. You're a strong person. You are very intuitive and wise. You understand the world better than most people. You also have a very active imagination. You often get carried away with your thoughts. You are prone to a little paranoia and jealousy. You sometimes go overboard in interpreting signals. You are deeply philosophical and thoughtful. You tend to analyze every aspect of your life. You are intuitive, brilliant, and quite introverted. You value your time alone. Often times, you are grumpy with other people. You don't appreciate them trying to interfere in your affairs.

What's Your Name's Hidden Meaning?

Farewell-ed

I've never seen something more emotional than this - a farewell dinner for me. Yea, as you have expected, some people cried, especially my grandma. She cried for several times that night. There were some speeches and I was the last to talk. I didn't cry... not that I won't miss them, but really with technologies nowadays, UK doesn't seem that far anymore, and I will be back after 10 months - not a long time. But yea, no ang pows for CNY, no moon-cake for Mid-Autumn Festival, no more home-style cooking for at least 10 months...blah blah blah.

“今天我很高兴可以站在这里向你们告别，应为这也表示我这几年的努力换来了让我出国深造的机会。当然，少了你们大家的支持及鼓励，我也不可能有今天的这一番成就。我希望，所有的表弟妹们可以拿我做榜样，不懈努力，上课要专心听讲，在家要听父母的话，在未来的大考得到卓越的成绩，以作为争取奖学金的有利条件，然后出国深造。我对你们有很高的期望。还有，特别是我的父母、祖父、祖母，你们要把身体顾好，要常常运动，饮食方面要特别注意，这样我才能放心地去努力，去获取更好的成绩。谢谢！”

That was my speech that night...haha... not bad eh?? Actually, I didn't really prepare for it. More like an impromptu speech. I just simply jot down a few points in my head and go up and talk. I guess I did quite well.

Ok... 2 more classes of guitar and I'm off... Damn, guitar is hard, and now I'm experiencing occasional finger cramps nowadays. Strumming is fine... but when it comes to those complicated hand techniques coupled with many different chords (especially F and B)... ouch! Anyway, I'm not bringing my guitar to UK. No way! Guitar = extra weight. Guitar = fragile. Guitar = bulky My parents offered to bring it when they come to visit me. I said, "screw it lah... I'm not gonna join the music club anyway..."

I still haven't decided what sports to take up in Scotland... That school of mine is rather sport-oriented. Half day of school and half day of sports. Haiz... You know I hate those kind of school. I'm no good at sports. I only do sucky things like running, jogging, hiking and Tai-chi to keep myself fit. I haven't palyed basketball for like 5 years and I'm not into soccer. Rugby? No way!!! Maybe I will join the ski club and the golf club... but the equipments seem really expensive. Btw, my school have its own golf course (cool... isn't it??), rugby field, soccer field, indoor gymnasium... apart from its teaching blocks, boarding houses and dining hall. Very big compound. The only downside - it's in the middle of nowhere. 45 mins by car to Edinburgh and 1 hr to Glasgow, the 2 nearest cities.

The school doesn't offer accounting, and stopped chinese courses last year. (sob...sob...sob...) I don't really want biology, but there isn't much for me to take already. Ecomonics? I don't really have the basics. French, Spanish, German, Latin?? WTH!! No way I'm taking History as well...
But if I have no choice, Bio will still do.

I hitch-hiked...

Ok... It's not common to hitch a hike in Brunei. But I did...today. Well... actually I was walking to the usual coffeeshop near MinDef to wait for my father to pick me up. Then, I think I might be able to catch a bus home coz there's a bus stop around 10 minutes walk from the coffeeshop. So yea, I walked. I guessed I was sweaty and a car just stopped beside me and the driver asked me, "ke mana ko pergi?". I don't know what he wants, since he is a complete stranger to me. So I said, "oh! ke bus stop di depan..." Before I could finish, he asked me to hop in. In the car, there's an old couple, around 60-70 years of age. He told me, "bah aku hantar ko ke sana sajalah... kasian ko berpeluh." At first, he wanted to drop me at the bus stop saja, but there's no shade at the bus stop and the weather is very hot. So he asked where do I stay. I said, "di Berakas, Lambak area.". Then, he said, "aku hantar ko balik la". I don't know what to say, since I have never encountered such kindness before, and all that I could manage was, "baik tah!" I showed him the way. And yea, here I am, at the comfort of my home, telling this story...

Amidst all the hustle and bustle of life nowadays, people seldom find the time to care for other people, not to mention stranger. But this old couple stood out amongst all of them. There are more to life than to be yourself. You live in this world, not because of you yourself, but because of other people around you - your family, your friends, your colleagues and even strangers that you meet every day. I have no idea whether the old couple would ever see this, but I would like to express my sincere gratitude for making that extra effort of sending me home today. Thank You!!!

There are many other encounters and experiences that happened to me while I was walking. I believe the best way to see this world is to walk. Last time, while I was walking in front of a primary school gate, there were a bunch of kids playing and talking to each other. One of them shouted "Oi, ke mana?", apparently directing to me. But I ignored it, thinking it might be for someone behind me and that it would be awkward if I were to wave and say hi. Then, i heard someone saying, "Assalamualaikum.". I ignored it again. Then came another "Eh, u!" I turned back this time and saw all of them staring at me. I waved and said "Hi!" Then all of them burst out in laughter. I laughed too...

I often walked in Bandar as well, and that day there was this young (around 20-ish) cute British tourist in front of Coffee Bean. She was holding a map and looked puzzled. I guessed she was lost. And then she approached me and asked me the way to Sheraton Hotel. I pointed her the direction and she took off. The next day, I met her again in an Indian coffee shop at Jalan Sultan. She waved and smiled at me. I smiled in return...

If you think walking is just a way to cut cost or to be eco-friendly. Think again. Walking leaves me many fond memories that I would not have got if I had a car... Think again.

今天不知道是怎么搞的...那个曾经向我告白的女生又传了封简讯给我。她问，我到底喜不喜欢她。她还说她好想我，要我诚实地回答，也说为我哭了一顿。无论多久她都会等我...我一时不知道如何回答她，所以就敷衍地说，我们还很年轻，未来的事很难猜测，先别太早下定论，看看以后如何再说，希望她能明白...我不知道我这样做到底是对还是错，我心里好乱。我不想再伤害她，毕竟她也哭过了。也许我也心动了，所以才心乱如麻。俗语说，男追女隔重山，女追男隔层纱也许说的很对...好烦！恐怕今晚又要失眠了...叹...

其实我也想了很久才决定把这件事情放上博客的。放在心上不如与大家分享。有意见的话不妨告诉我，特别是那一些比较有经验的人。

今天本来就想与大家分享一些冷笑话，但是被distracted了：
A：猪的英文应该是P-U-G吧。
B：不，是I。
A：是U！
B：是I！
接着他们两人都笑了。你们懂为什么吗？
“U”是指"你"而"I"是指"我"。

一只青蛙，一只鸡和一只羊。请问你一共有几只脚？答案是什么？十只？错！把题目再看仔细一点。请问“你”一共有几只脚？所以答案是两只。好冷！

一个船只可以载50个人。即使多出一个人，它也是会沉。但是当第50个乘客上船时，它却沉了。为什么？
其实我觉得有两个答案：一、其中一名乘客怀孕了。二、那个船是个潜水艇。哈哈。

Went to the clinic for my medical today. Damn, waited for 2.5 hours before the doctor called me in. How inefficient can a clinic get?? Not sure if the doctors are working, sleeping or drinking tea in their rooms... Sometimes it takes 0.5 hour after the last patient have left before the doctor called the next one in. WTH??!! The morale: If you are in serious need of medical attention... like feeling extremely uncomfortable, avoid government clinics. It's not worth the time you spend waiting... although it's free.

I bought the movie: Red Cliff just now. Watched it. Not bad. It's easy for me to understand the movie because I've read about it many times on books, but I wonder how those people without a single clue on Chinese history would understand it. And the movie is "to be continued"... haha... some movie, huh?

The EPL returns to action tonight, with Chelsea and Arsenal trying to wrestle the title from Man United. The first game starts 1245 BST or 1945 Brunei Local Time.

Btw, there's a preview of the new set, Shards of Alara: Naya, Bant, Esper, Grixis and Jund. Not sure what they are, surely don't seem like the new planewalkers. I think there will be 10 planewalkers, all multi-coloured (non-hybrid...). Shards look like an interesting set...

Yeah!!! Finally, my flight itenarary is out... Leaving 31 August. School starts 3 September.
31 Aug RBA Brunei-Kuala Lumpur Dep 1135 Arr 1355
1 Sep MAS Kuala Lumpur-London Heathrow Dep 1005 Arr 1620.

Staying overnight at KL before going to London. Haha... can do some shopping. I think I will be staying in London for one day... not sure yet.... we will have a briefing on Monday morning at Mindef. That's all I know... for now.

Listen to this wonderful song: Jason Mraz - I'm Yours.

Actually, I've heard the mp3 of this song.... but this video is like completely different... the feel and parts of the lyrics...

Haven't updated my blog for the past 2 days. Don't really have much idea what to write. I am still not informed of my departure date yet. Well... maybe it's around 10 days to 2 weeks from now. Pehin mentioned that he wants us to stay in London for a few days before going up to Scotland. I'm not sure if that's gonna happen...

Some of the things I am seriously going to miss after I leave:
1. Food... my murtabak, kolomee, satay and...
2. Friends... definitely
3. Home...
4. Magic... not sure how much am I going to miss dat
5. the SUN... the heat...
6. gf?? sori but I don't have 1...hehe...
I think the list's complete. Can't think of anything else.

Planning to watch Star Wars: The Clone War today but unfortunately due to unfavourable timing... decided to call it off. Instead I am going to watch Meet Dave. Hope it's nice. What's more?? Today I am alone =(

Received a message just now. Gotta join Pehin for a walkathon tomorrow at 7am at Bolkiah Garrison, Berakas. Not sure if it's an obligation, but it sure sounds like one. So I think I'll go. O'well... another day to wake up early.

Today is day 4 of the Beijing Olympics 2008. After day 3, China tops the medal count with 14 medals and is the only nation to have won as many as 9 gold medals.
1. China 9G 3S 2B
2. South Korea 4G 4S 0B
3. USA 3G 4S 5B.

South Korea has stayed on the 2nd spot for 3 days continuously, but I think USA will catch up due to its strength in track and field events.

OK... now for some of my personal stuff. Damn, it's already mid August and I still have no idea when I am leaving... got the vague idea of around end of this month, while the MOE scholars have already known when they are flying (not sure if all of them have been informed..). Anyway, I'm kind of frustrated lah. Played on clubxiangqi, but OMG... W2 D0 L8!!! Now my rating sucks... 1430+. Wouldn't have played if I weren't so bored at home. Always the same... off to a good start... then opps wrong move... and next thing you know I am seriously disadvantaged.

Going to watch Meet Dave this afternoon. And planning to watch Star Wars: The Clone War next week (Andrew!!!). Then, go home...mandi...makan...guitar...maybe c.chess...sleep. Boring life, huh??!! Wish I can get to Scotland as soon as possible. And should I take Bio?? I don't really feel like taking it lah... since I am pursuing engineering. My subjects taken:
1. Chemistry
2. Physics
3. Maths/Further Maths (yes! they are considered as one sub...)
4. BIO???!!

Actually I chose Chem, Phy, Maths and F.Maths as my 4 subjects, but they consider Maths and F.Maths as one subject, so I will have to choose another one, but WTH they register me in the Biology class without consulting my opinion. I don't really want to take Bio lah... not interested. I would rather take Chinese or Accounting.

Any nice Chinese, Malay, English, Thai, Indian or Japanese songs??

下午2点，RTB的Dewan Raya举办星秀汶莱大决赛。经过4个月，前8强终于在今天一决雌雄。节目还算不错，至少不会感到烦或闷。有独唱（60%）、情歌对唱（20%）、节奏考验（20%）等三个项目。我觉得情歌对唱这单元比较有兴趣 =p 4对歌手都好有默契哟！Keep it up!!! You are da best!!!输了也不用气馁，应为能晋级前8强就已经非常了不起的了。

China remains on the top of the medal table after day 2:

1. China 6G 2S 0B

2. South Korea 3G 2S 0B

3. USA 2G 2S 4B

Both China and the USA top the medal count, at 8.

The Olympics medals for Beijing 2008:

This year's design includes jade at the back of the medal...

Here's the top 3 countries on the medal table as of 11.00pm on 09/08/2008:
1. China 2G 0S 0B
2. USA 1G 1S 1B
3. South Korea 1G 1S 0B...

China is the only country to have won 2 gold medals today. USA grabbed the most medal today, total of 3...

There are a total of 7 gold medals up for grabs today:
China - weightlifting and shooting
USA - fencing
South Korea - Judo
Romania - Judo
Spain - cycling
Czech Republic - shooting.

That's all for today... More action tomorrow.
中国!!!中国!!!中国!!!赢!!!赢!!!赢!!!

08-08-08

Watched the Beijing Summer Olympics 2008 opening ceremony just now. Whoa!!! Spectacular...!!! Massive fireworks display... like the whole city is ON FIRE!!! (i mean on firework...). Great demonstration of the 4 great inventions of ancient China - paper-making, compass, gunpowder and mass publishing. There are 205 members in the International Olympic Council, only 204 turned up for the march-past. Guess who's missing??? BRUNEI!!! and it's the only absentee...

I like the way they light of the Olympic torch... very creative. Wish I was there =P Let's see what the 2012 London Olympics can offer... and which do you think can host the 2016 Olympics?? Tokyo?? Madrid?? or Rio de Janeiro?? But after Beijing and London, Tokyo and Madrid don't really have much chance, I think...

Go China!!! 中国赢!!!!!!!!!!

Happy Valentine's Day!!!

Happy birthday to the birthday boy: Nazha 三太子哪咤.

You definitely won't see him walking around in Bandar simply coz' he is a legend... and he lives somewhere up there. Maybe once in a while you will see him playing chinese chess with another guy when you are flying in the aeroplane but that's really really rare, considering there isn't any reported sighting yet. But nevertheless, I met him today... well... not in person... but in another person. For those of you who are still lost, let me enlighten you. Nazha is a god, a Buddhist deity, and today happens to be his birthday - the 7th of the 7th month on the lunar calendar. And he came all the way down to our austere little temple at BSB to greet us... or more precisely to show up in the body of another person. By the way, he doesn't eat cake...

Here's what he does after he came all the way down:
i) dance around in the temple.
ii) honour the other deities in the temple (involves cutting his lips with a sword until it bleeds).
iii) offer free consultation service for frustrated individuals.
iv) go home.

The Birthday boy in action.

There's another reason to be joyous about today. It's VALENTINE'S DAY!!! for the chinese. It falls on 7th of the 7th month on the lunar calendar. Well, it doesn't really concern me... coz I don't have a girlfriend, which is also good since I don't have to worry too much...

Done most of my MC today. Blood test, urine test, faeces test, x-ray, cardio test, mantoux skin test (for TB), vision test, hearing test, dental test... blah blah blah... and all goes on well. Currently waiting for my x-ray result (out next tuesday.) then make an appointment with a doctor (or what they call GP - General Practitioner). Anyway, really tired after all the check-ups. Looking forward to a rest, maybe watch movie.... again. This time maybe I watch Meet Dave or Shaolin Girl. But not tomorrow, because I will be going to the temple to watch some chinese guy being possessed by a god so we can worship. Christians and Muslims... you won't understand what I am saying and you don't need to know.

Another great Indonesian song I am listening to: ST 12 - Puspa. I am so obssessed with Indonesian songs...

By the way, any recommendations on some good movies???

Konnichiwa, watashi wa KH Wong desu. Brunei kara kimashita. Dozo yoroshiku.

Who has the software for writing Japanese?? I want one... Shiok jua tu menaip bahasa jepun di komputer. Kitani orang Asia, jangan senantiasa menggunakan bahasa angmo ya?? Boleh mix la... but at least show you are being patriotic. Majal ku eh... Use Asian language!!!

Aku ke drafting lagi tadi... boring... 6 orang saja.... boring berabis!!! so aku pulang halfway. Seriously, nada mood tuk main harini. Sori wa, bahasaku rojak sikit.. but should be fine, I think most of us paham, kan? kadangkala pun boleh campur sikit 华语ataupun 日本语, barutah shiok!

About 3 more weeks lagi hingga we take off. Excited benar but a bit worried la.. don't really know why? Belum buat my medical yet, maybe 2ml or tuesday la. Visa aku buat on Friday. Then, I think that's about all for my pre-takeoff preparation. And I am so... gonna see salju (or salji??)...again. It's going to be a white white world...haha... but why do I feel like an Eskimo..??

PS 抱歉东亮，但白雪不是我的型的...哈哈!!

真的好无聊哦！一天到晚呆在家里，好像白痴一样。昨天突然被叫去国防部见部长，发现可能早至8月25日就出发往英国，好早...这么一来就得在伦敦呆上4、5天。虽然国防部会负责所有饭店的支出，但总还是需要钱嘛。伦敦好贵呀。

就透露一点我私人的消息好了：其实最近有人向我告白，不知道是得高兴还是伤心，搞得我的心忐忑不安，一时不知所措。她，其实还长得不错，蛮可爱的，但是个马来人。最终我没接受她，不是因为我不喜欢马来人，而是因为我觉得有女朋友“好恐怖!”。试想一下，女朋友打电话来，不能不接，传简讯来，无论再忙也得回复，然后还要找时间去拍拖，拍拖时还要支付所有费用，加上还要冒着被父母发现的危险。想了想，实在划不来！我觉得东亮对这方面好像比较有兴趣。

不要误会，我并不是打算一辈子都不交女朋友。只是想等到20余岁后，思想比较成熟后再说。好无聊哦，今天竟然突然想写华语。不过，就这样拒绝她令我觉得过意不去...我到底该怎样？