Narrowband.org

I feel bad whenever I go on an unannounced hiatus. But the thing is, I used to mention that I’d take a break from blogging in my entries before but then less than three days later, I updated my blog again. So a hiatus rarely worked for me. This time though, it does seem real. I still open my feedreader once in a while but I’ve no time to read everything.

I’ve not updated in about a week, and I foresee that that will continue until at least next week. You won’t believe how much there is to be done. I’m gonna get through this, surely - it’s just a little rough, that’s all. Meanwhile, check out my blogrolls - they are Narrowband-endorsed links, so you won’t go wrong clicking them! :)

I hope you don’t mind the slower updates. Been very busy! My final year project is hitting its climax (as in, dear partner and I are on a roll now), and I’ve been scouting for jobs. People tell me not to mind the first job, because as fresh graduates we’re not supposed to be fussy. Well, I’m just being careful, that’s all. Speaking of jobs, I tend avoid - wherever possible - positions that entail routine and repetitive tasks. I like tasks that are challenging, not-ordinary, and exciting. I’ve told my friends that I like to be ‘on-the-move’, and meet new challenges. I know that Geminis have a short attention span. But I’ve never related that to jobs, until after I’ve read this (email forwarded by Yian, titled ‘What Kind of Employee Are You?’):-

Gemini Employee Profile (May 21 - June 21)

Gemini employees can have difficulty concentrating on one thing for long periods of time. They have quick-moving minds and love to talk and communicate their ideas with others. They thrive on social interaction — even if their jobs don’t particularly support it. You’ll be able to find them wandering from desk to desk gossiping about all the sordid news in the office. They can be powerful persuaders in their speech and make ideal salespeople and mediators. They love to negotiate and can work out the best Deal for everyone involved. When properly stimulated, they can manage to keep their wandering mind focused and actually be quite productive. When they are bored, bogged down with mundane detail-work, or forced to work with people who they consider droll, they can become mean-spirited and gossipy. Their moods can fluctuate vastly day to day, as well as their productivity. It is really against t heir nature to be forced into an average workday schedule and environment. They are happier traveling. If they are in an office they will need constant new stimulation. Most will be wanting advancement if they see this as a way to escape the limitations of their jobs. This can motivate them to put extra effort into their job. If you work with a Gemini, try to avoid getting into any debates with them - they will surely win and it could end in some hard feelings on your part. They will need an accepting environment-one that supports their need for multi-tasking.

***

Now, just how much do I believe in horoscopes? Not much. But it’s freaky how sometimes you find them to be quite true. Coincidence? Maybe. The notion that “Gemini’s have short attention span”, however, sheds a bad light on us (Geminis) when it comes to relationships. Does that mean Geminis tend to wander more easily? I certainly hope not. In fact, I don’t see myself as such a person. I pride myself as being very loyal when I want to :p. Anyway, if you’re interested to read about your zodiac’s employee profile, here goes:-
Continue Reading »

I got tagged by My Longkang some time ago, but I was too busy to do it. Thank God it’s Friday! I’m not really sure of the rules; but I noticed that most people change here and there so I’m gonna do the same. Here it is, my version of the A to Z tag:-

A is for Acrophobia
Acrophobia is a game I used to play online. It was very addictive. Sadly, the original game is no longer around.

B is for blogging
I first started a blog in 2004, and had always wanted to have my own domain and hosting. Narrowband.org finally went live in December 2006.

C is for camera
There’s a new toy at home - a silver Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ7. I’m still learning how to get the best out of it.

D is for dogs
I would really love to have a pet dog. However, I can only get one maybe after at least about 2 years from now.

E is for eyes
I have good eyes, don’t need to wear glasses and I’m grateful for that.

F is for future
I always believe that the future will be exactly what we make of it. Nothing is fated; it’s all in our hands.

G is for games
I’m not really into games. The (limited) few that I play include Counter-Strike and StarCraft (now that’s old-school).

H is for hometown
I am from the Klang Valley. More specifically, Selangor.

I is for idiots
Idiots are drivers who do not make use of their turn indicators.

J is for jungle trekking
I enjoy activities of this kind, although I don’t do it all the time.

K is for karma
I believe that what goes around, comes around.

L is for love
Cars. Fast cars, big cars, exotic cars… I’m quite a petrol junkie.

M is for marriage
Preferably Hopefully by 32! Haha. (There’s a big difference between preferring and hoping. Hint: I’m single)

N is for Narrowband
It has been my nickname since around 2002, when I used it in games and my email addresses. These days it’s become a part of me, both online and off.

O is for operation
I underwent a surgery to improve my sinus drainage. I was having bad sinus headaches a few years ago.

P is for patient
I consider myself a very patient person.

Q is for quote
“Madam, you have between your legs an instrument capable of giving pleasure to thousands, and all you can do is scratch it!” - Sir Thomas Beecham to a female cellist.

R is for biggest regret
Being Chinese illiterate. I now can read a little, but I have missed out on a lot of things. There wasn’t a single Chinese school near where I lived many years ago, and I didn’t take tuitions seriously.

S is for sports
Basketball, futsal and badminton.

T is for time
I wish I were like Hiro Nakamura.

U is for university
I will be completing my 4-year B.Eng. course this year, and I’m really looking forward to that.

V is for vegetables
I always take vegetables (greens) whenever I can. My standard meal would consist of at least a type of meat, and vege.

W is for weekends
I love weekends!

X is for X-rays
I broke my wrist twice in 6 years when I was a kid. One of them was when I tried to overtake a friend during a bicycle race. Ah, those were the days.

Y is for yesterday
My friend informed me that my letter was published in The Star and I was excited (cheap thrill, I know). It was the second time I made it into The Star since this one.

Z is for zodiac
Gemini.

There you go, I hope you enjoyed reading my version. I took… a long time to complete this tag. Seriously, two days! Well, I won’t be tagging anyone, but feel free to do it on your blog if you’d like.

I read with much amazement the story in The Star today, “Nadiah gets only 18 As instead”. You know, with news reports such as this, I’m afraid we may be sending out a wrong signal to future SPM candidates: “Get as many A’s as possible”. It seems like it doesn’t matter for which subjects you ace, as long as you have enough of them. The pressure piled on these students is immense. For instance, Nadiah was expected to score 19 A’s (holy smokes that’s almost twice the number of subjects I took) even before the results were released. Luckily, her results didn’t turn out that bad. In fact, they’re mind-blowing.

But the quest for strings of A’s is understandable. How often do you hear people asking “Which subjects did you get an A for?”?. Save for future employers, very few are interested in knowing which subjects you aced. Even fewer are interested in knowing what extra curricular activities you joined. There is little doubt that great emphasis is placed on scoring A’s. So much so that some tuition centers even provide ‘tips’, and claim to be able to ’spot’ or predict SPM questions accurately. I used to have friends who’d travel all the way to KL to attend a very popular tuition center. These days, ‘good’ tuition centers train students on how to tackle exam questions.

A lot of focus is put on answering the questions correctly, what keywords to use, familiarizing oneself with the question patterns, and how they are asked. Stacks of past-year papers, sample papers and worksheets are used in drilling these students. Is this what our education system was set out to be? Studying for the sake of getting as many A’s as possible in exams? How much of knowledge really went into a student’s head is questionable. To make matters worse, I’ve even heard of some ‘privileged’ schools giving students sample papers that are very much similar to the real paper, a few weeks earlier. I wonder if such practices are effective in educating the teenagers, although I don’t know how far this is true.

The ministry’s proposal to limit the number of SPM subjects a student can register is timely (Sorry, I just read that this won’t realize). Perhaps, more weightage should be given to developing a student’s leadership, thinking, interpersonal, analytical and problem-solving skills - practical skills that could be useful throughout his life, and not just during the examinations. A student’s excellent SPM achievement does not reflect any of these qualities. I’d like to mention one example (oh I love it when I talk about this; no prizes for guessing why), the Moral Education. Scoring an A1 for this subject does not make a student any ‘less immoral’ compared to students who scored otherwise. It only means that he can memorize things better. And yes, they will be quickly forgotten after the exam is over.

How practical is that? Yet, no one cares - as long as it’s an A and that’s all that matters. It’s time we placed less emphasis on scoring as many A’s as possible, and focused instead on producing more well-rounded individuals. We don’t want someone who can’t perform past the exam period. If a student obtained say, 14, or 15 A’s (not for every subject), does that mean he’s better than one who obtained a 10-straight (perfect) A’s? Sadly though, most scholarships offered are based on the number of A’s a student has. Sigh.

Note: An “A1″ here means “1A” formally. I prefer to suffix the “1″, just like the olden days.

You know, Heroes is evil.

I was rummaging through my old files when I stumbled upon this. I put together this video slideshow in March last year, using photos taken during Fai’s 23rd birthday celebration (those cartoons at the ending were drawn by Steph). This is the first time a video is embedded on Narrowband.org.

(Wong Kok Cafe is pretty common for birthday celebrations, don’t you think so?)

I’ve nothing much to update, except to say that next week is going to be hectic. Gone are the days when we could be so carefree, so blissful and relaxed. In less than 3 months, we’ll be leaving the university, walking separate ways and chasing our dreams. (I actually have mixed feelings because of that).

Good luck with your midterm papers, peeps.

I got tagged by Ms Moy (hey thanks!). It was much harder than I’d expected. Anyway, here are 6 weird things you (probably) didn’t know about me.

1. I am quite fussy about punctuations, spelling, indentations, spacing and other seemingly ‘minor’ details in my assignment/reports, even if the contents are not entirely accurate.
2. I re-read my old blogposts occasionally.
3. I used to not turn on my air-cond even on a hot afternoon because I didn’t like it when the temperature dropped too low.
4. I don’t really like to keep coins with me all the time. They either end up on the table, in my ‘piggy bank’ (which is a Prego glass container), or in my car.
5. I have a weird penchant for nice rims. Yes, those on cars.
6. My mind’s most fresh and productive at night - late night.

I won’t be tagging anybody, Candy. I hope you enjoyed my version. (Maybe I should add a 7th one: I love doing tags but I usually don’t pass them on to people!).

The moment I felt the building sway, I stopped typing, and looked around. I was sitting on my bed, writing some code for my project. I thought it was just me, so I shrugged it off - but remained alert. Few seconds later I felt it again. Hell, I jumped up and immediately put on my jeans, preparing to freakin’ leave the building. Then, I deliberated over what to take along. My laptop, yes. I can’t live without all the important files inside it. While I was about to lower the screen, I saw a friend’s Yahoo Messenger status asking if anybody felt the shakes. We had a little chat - he assured that an evacuation wouldn’t be necessary, and added that most parts of the peninsular could feel the tremors too.

I felt damn silly. I had yet to know about the earthquakes which struck Indonesia earlier. I looked out of the window of my 6th floor apartment - everything was calm; and then I observed the bottle of water on my table for ripples. Negative. Relieved, guess what I did next? Pointed my browser to PPS. Heck, yea. It’s the perfect source for latest news and info. After some surfing, I learnt that there indeed had been an earthquake, measuring about 6.3 on the Richter scale. My housemates said they felt the shakes too. This reminded us of the previous shakes caused by the massive quakes in Aceh (Dec ‘04), during which hundreds of people evacuated their apartment. Today though, none of them seemed even worried.

I resumed my work shortly after. My heart goes out to the people directly affected by the quakes. As of 9:45pm (Malaysian time) today, the death toll had risen to 70. More updates here.

I’ve been tagged by Pinksterz and Cincau! Sorry for delaying this long; here they are:-

Part 1: On the Outside...
Name: The name’s Band, Narrowband!
DOB: 2x-0x-1984
Status: Singly unavailable
Eye color: Black in the middle, white at the sides
Hair color: Black (and one strand of silver, I swear)
Righty/Lefty: Righty
Zodiac: Gemini
Continue Reading »

One of the biggest mistakes a blogger could ever make is forgetting to take a camera along when he goes out. Today I had to put my trusty Sony Ericsson handphone to good use. Pardon the excellent photo quality, just this time, ok?

Continue Reading »