"There's the truth, and then there's the truth you wouldn't tell in front of your drinking buddies."
-- Taken off some website
Oh, by the way, check out Neorest, the Rolls Royce of toilets.
27.1.04
20.1.04
Major case of disconnect
I've been having problems with my DSL connection. It's been disconnecting extremely regularly every 2 hours, which is annoying to say the least.
Tech support isn't much help, and I've tried everything I can think of to fix it, but no such luck.
So if you're having the same problem and/or know of a solution, drop us a line or leave a comment eh?
Tech support isn't much help, and I've tried everything I can think of to fix it, but no such luck.
So if you're having the same problem and/or know of a solution, drop us a line or leave a comment eh?
19.1.04
Vegas Weddings
"You're not drunk if you can lie on the floor without holding on."
-- Dean Martin
Here's an interesting article about Vegas Weddings. It's bloody hilarious, and a great way to start (or end, or take a break from) your day.
Enjoy! :P
-- Dean Martin
Here's an interesting article about Vegas Weddings. It's bloody hilarious, and a great way to start (or end, or take a break from) your day.
Enjoy! :P
A Thousand Marbles
Here's something that someone sent to me. One of the better e-mail forward thingies.
The older I get, the more I enjoy Saturday mornings. Perhaps it's the quiet solitude that comes with being the first to rise, or maybe it's the unbounded joy of not having to be at work. Either way, the first few hours of a Saturday morning are most enjoyable.
A few weeks ago, I was shuffling toward the basement ham-shack with a steaming cup of coffee in one hand and the morning paper in the other. What began as a typical Saturday morning turned into one of those lessons that life seems to hand you from time to time. Let me tell you about it. I turned the dial up into the phone portion of the band on my ham radio in order to listen to a Saturday morning swap net.
Along the way, I came across an older sounding chap, with a tremendous signal and a golden voice. You know the kind; he sounded like he should be in the broadcasting business. He was telling whomever he was talking with something about "a thousand marbles." I was intrigued and stopped to listen to what he had to say.
"Well, Tom, it sure sounds like you're busy with your job. I'm sure they pay you well but it's a shame you have to be away from home and your family so much. Hard to believe a young fellow should have to work sixty or seventy hours a week to make ends meet. Too bad you missed your daughter's dance recital" he continued. "Let me tell you something that has helped me keep a good perspective on my own priorities."
And that's when he began to explain his theory of a "thousand marbles."
"You see, I sat down one day and did a little arithmetic. The average person lives about seventy-five years. I know, some live more and some live less, but on average, folks live about seventy-five years. "Now then, I multiplied 75 times 52 and I came up with 3900, which is the number of Saturdays that the average person has in their entire lifetime. Now, stick with me, Tom, I'm getting to the important part. It took me until I was fifty-five years old to think about all this in any detail", he went on, "and by that time I had lived through over twenty-eight hundred Saturdays."
"I got to thinking that if I lived to be seventy-five, I only had about a thousand of them left to enjoy. So I went to a toy store and bought every single marble they had. I ended up having to visit three toy stores to round up 1000 marbles. I took them home and put them inside a large, clear plastic container right here in the shack next to my gear."
"Every Saturday since then, I have taken one marble out and thrown it away. I found that by watching the marbles diminish, I focused more on the really important things in life. There is nothing like watching your time here on this earth run out to help get your priorities straight.
"Now let me tell you one last thing before I sign-off with you and take my lovely wife out for breakfast. This morning, I took the very last marble out of the container. I figure that if I make it until next Saturday then I have been given a little extra time. And the one thing we can all use is a little more time."
"It was nice to meet you Tom, I hope you spend more time with your family, and I hope to meet you again here on the band. This is a 75 Year old Man, K9NZQ, clear and going QRT, good morning!"
The older I get, the more I enjoy Saturday mornings. Perhaps it's the quiet solitude that comes with being the first to rise, or maybe it's the unbounded joy of not having to be at work. Either way, the first few hours of a Saturday morning are most enjoyable.
A few weeks ago, I was shuffling toward the basement ham-shack with a steaming cup of coffee in one hand and the morning paper in the other. What began as a typical Saturday morning turned into one of those lessons that life seems to hand you from time to time. Let me tell you about it. I turned the dial up into the phone portion of the band on my ham radio in order to listen to a Saturday morning swap net.
Along the way, I came across an older sounding chap, with a tremendous signal and a golden voice. You know the kind; he sounded like he should be in the broadcasting business. He was telling whomever he was talking with something about "a thousand marbles." I was intrigued and stopped to listen to what he had to say.
"Well, Tom, it sure sounds like you're busy with your job. I'm sure they pay you well but it's a shame you have to be away from home and your family so much. Hard to believe a young fellow should have to work sixty or seventy hours a week to make ends meet. Too bad you missed your daughter's dance recital" he continued. "Let me tell you something that has helped me keep a good perspective on my own priorities."
And that's when he began to explain his theory of a "thousand marbles."
"You see, I sat down one day and did a little arithmetic. The average person lives about seventy-five years. I know, some live more and some live less, but on average, folks live about seventy-five years. "Now then, I multiplied 75 times 52 and I came up with 3900, which is the number of Saturdays that the average person has in their entire lifetime. Now, stick with me, Tom, I'm getting to the important part. It took me until I was fifty-five years old to think about all this in any detail", he went on, "and by that time I had lived through over twenty-eight hundred Saturdays."
"I got to thinking that if I lived to be seventy-five, I only had about a thousand of them left to enjoy. So I went to a toy store and bought every single marble they had. I ended up having to visit three toy stores to round up 1000 marbles. I took them home and put them inside a large, clear plastic container right here in the shack next to my gear."
"Every Saturday since then, I have taken one marble out and thrown it away. I found that by watching the marbles diminish, I focused more on the really important things in life. There is nothing like watching your time here on this earth run out to help get your priorities straight.
"Now let me tell you one last thing before I sign-off with you and take my lovely wife out for breakfast. This morning, I took the very last marble out of the container. I figure that if I make it until next Saturday then I have been given a little extra time. And the one thing we can all use is a little more time."
"It was nice to meet you Tom, I hope you spend more time with your family, and I hope to meet you again here on the band. This is a 75 Year old Man, K9NZQ, clear and going QRT, good morning!"
The Microsoft Saga
[Act I: The News]
Friend calls me saying that he may have a job for me. "I've recommended you for the position and I told them that you're my first choice for the job."
[Act II: The First Waiting]
Waited for more than one month before they finally called me.
[Act III: The Call]
+ "Can you come down for an interview on the 5th?"
- "The 5th sounds good."
+ "The 5th it is then. Morning or afternoon?"
- "Afternoon."
+ "OK then. We'll see you on 2.00 p.m. on the 5th."
- "Thanks."
[Act IV: The Pre-Interview Jitters]
"Oh my God.... What if I screw it up?!"
[Act V: The Interview]
To self: "I thought there was supposed to be only one interviewer? And why are they teaming up on me like this? Ohgodiamsonervousiamsonervousiamsonervous."
"OK. If you pass this round, the next round will be sometime next week." (With very strong emphasis on "if").
[Act VI: The Second (And Worse) Waiting]
"Dammit! Why was I so fecking nervous? I'm never gonna get past the friggin' first round!"
[Act VII: The Rejection]
+ "Hey, have you heard anything about the job? I haven't heard from them yet and it's Thursday. Is that bad? I'm not sure if i should start worrying yet or if I should wait another week."
- "Hey, I'm afraid it's bad news. They're having the final round of interviews today and you didn't get in. They said you were too nervous during the interview."
+ ("Yeah, tell me something I don't know.") "Oh well.... Dammit!"
- "Sorry, bro. Don't worry, just because they don't think you're qualified for this job doesn't mean you're not qualified for other jobs. I'll keep you posted."
+ "Thanks, man. Lemme know if you hear anything. Sorry for letting you down."
- "Hey, man, don't worry about it."
+ "OK. Well, thanks."
- "Yeah, thanks."
*click*
Friend calls me saying that he may have a job for me. "I've recommended you for the position and I told them that you're my first choice for the job."
[Act II: The First Waiting]
Waited for more than one month before they finally called me.
[Act III: The Call]
+ "Can you come down for an interview on the 5th?"
- "The 5th sounds good."
+ "The 5th it is then. Morning or afternoon?"
- "Afternoon."
+ "OK then. We'll see you on 2.00 p.m. on the 5th."
- "Thanks."
[Act IV: The Pre-Interview Jitters]
"Oh my God.... What if I screw it up?!"
[Act V: The Interview]
To self: "I thought there was supposed to be only one interviewer? And why are they teaming up on me like this? Ohgodiamsonervousiamsonervousiamsonervous."
"OK. If you pass this round, the next round will be sometime next week." (With very strong emphasis on "if").
[Act VI: The Second (And Worse) Waiting]
"Dammit! Why was I so fecking nervous? I'm never gonna get past the friggin' first round!"
[Act VII: The Rejection]
+ "Hey, have you heard anything about the job? I haven't heard from them yet and it's Thursday. Is that bad? I'm not sure if i should start worrying yet or if I should wait another week."
- "Hey, I'm afraid it's bad news. They're having the final round of interviews today and you didn't get in. They said you were too nervous during the interview."
+ ("Yeah, tell me something I don't know.") "Oh well.... Dammit!"
- "Sorry, bro. Don't worry, just because they don't think you're qualified for this job doesn't mean you're not qualified for other jobs. I'll keep you posted."
+ "Thanks, man. Lemme know if you hear anything. Sorry for letting you down."
- "Hey, man, don't worry about it."
+ "OK. Well, thanks."
- "Yeah, thanks."
*click*
Farewell
On 27 Dec '03, my family comitted the ashes of four relatives to the sea: my grandparents on my mother's side; my aunt, who's my mom's youngest sister; and my cousin, the youngest daughter of the aforementioned aunt. The day started with an early morning mass in Bandung (Here, here, and a hand-drawn map here). After which we retrieved their ashes from a colombarium maintained by the church, and drove up to Jakarta. Thankfully, the roads weren't too crowded with traffic and we arrived in Jakarta in relatively short time.
We did it off the coast of one of the islands in Pulau Seribu (literally, Thousand Islands) (More info here and here). My uncle, the widow of said aunt, chartered a boat for us. He's a marine engineer, and I think the boat belongs to his company. The coordinates, if you're interested, is: South 05� 57.135, East 106� 51.129.
Incidentally, Pulau Seribu is a relatively well-known diving and deep-sea fishing spot.
Later on in the evening, we had mass at another aunt's house, after which there was a reminiscence session friends and relatives who were there related their memories and anecdotes about them, and the letters from those who couldn't be there were read. Most of them was about my grandad, who died when I was 9, just when I was old enough to begin to realize what a wonderful person he was. And listening to the others speak of him, I realized that he was a greater man than I could have possibly known.
And for the first time in years, I cried.
Regretting that I never had the chance to really know him.
Regretting that he died before I was old enough to understand him.
But that's the thing about regrets, isn't it? It doesn't solve anything. And I guess the best I can do is to try to live up to his ideals so that when I'm gone, people will remember me just as they remember him.
So long, you guys. I'll miss you, and I'll always remember you.
We did it off the coast of one of the islands in Pulau Seribu (literally, Thousand Islands) (More info here and here). My uncle, the widow of said aunt, chartered a boat for us. He's a marine engineer, and I think the boat belongs to his company. The coordinates, if you're interested, is: South 05� 57.135, East 106� 51.129.
Incidentally, Pulau Seribu is a relatively well-known diving and deep-sea fishing spot.
Later on in the evening, we had mass at another aunt's house, after which there was a reminiscence session friends and relatives who were there related their memories and anecdotes about them, and the letters from those who couldn't be there were read. Most of them was about my grandad, who died when I was 9, just when I was old enough to begin to realize what a wonderful person he was. And listening to the others speak of him, I realized that he was a greater man than I could have possibly known.
And for the first time in years, I cried.
Regretting that I never had the chance to really know him.
Regretting that he died before I was old enough to understand him.
But that's the thing about regrets, isn't it? It doesn't solve anything. And I guess the best I can do is to try to live up to his ideals so that when I'm gone, people will remember me just as they remember him.
So long, you guys. I'll miss you, and I'll always remember you.
Travel(Horror)ogue
Date: 14.12.2003
[Time: 08.30 AM SGT]
Woke up late. Dammit.
[Time: 09.30 AM SGT]
Reached WTC just in time to check in. Couldn't find passengers I was supposed to help check in as a favour for parent's friend.
[Time: 09.50 AM SGT]
Turns out they've already gone inside.
[Time: 10.10 AM SGT]
Ferry pulls out of harbor, a little late as usual.
[Time: 11.00 AM SGT (10.00 AM Local)]
Reached Batam. Got into waiting van for ride to airport. Chatted with aforementioned fellow passengers, Americans from Florida, father and 13-year-old youngest daughter.
The father works for CalTex Indonesia and is in charge of all their labs in Duri (Map) and has three degrees in Chemistry. Explained how I nearly failed Chemistry in my final year of High School.
[Time: 11.30 AM SGT (10.30 AM Local)]
Reached Hang Nadim International Airport, Batam. 2nd van carrying luggage (fellow passengers has 36 pieces(!) of luggage) is late. Turns out that van is prone to overheating and cannot go beyond a fairly sedate 40-60 km/h. Driver asked me to explain this to the Americans, which I did.
[Time: 12.00 PM SGT (11.00 PM Local)]
All checked in and ready to go. Turns out that my name was somehow removed from the list, which explains heated argument between travel agent and counter staff. Which also explains why I'm Mr. R. Duane on my boarding pass.
[Time: 12.30 AM SGT (11.30 AM Local)]
Flight was supposed to leave Batam at 12.00 PM Local, but still hasn't landed yet. Fellow passenger starting to worry.
[Time: 1.00 PM SGT (12.00 PM Local)]
Time to take off and still no plane. Fellow passenger starting to complain.
[Time: 1.15 PM SGT (12.15 PM Local)]
Official-looking man came into boarding lounge to make an announcement. Turns out the plane was delayed out of Jakarta and just took off minutes ago. Flight will be delayed to 3.00 PM Local. Also that all passengers on that flight has a free lunch at the airport restaurant. Fellow passenger starting to really bitch now.
[Time: 1.30 PM SGT (12.30 PM Local)]
Had a fairly decent lunch of rice with beef rendang and cassava leaves in coconut gravy. I really missed Indonesian food.
[Time: 2.00 PM SGT (1.00 PM Local)]
Back in boarding lounge.
[Time: 2.30 PM SGT (1.30 PM Local)]
Official-looking man is back with another announcement. All passengers for Lion Air flight to Pekanbaru to move to boarding lounge at other end of airport, because the plane's gonna be parked at that gate instead of where we are now. Fellow passenger's bitching becomes more vehement.
[Time: 2.45 PM SGT (1.45 PM Local)]
Settled into new boarding lounge.
[Time: 3.00 PM SGT (2.00 PM Local)]
Plane's finally landed. Hooray!
Just looked up from my book and looked left. Saw a Buddhist monk with mobile phone in hand and hands-free earpiece in ear chatting with another person. I thought they were supposed to have a vow of poverty or something?
[Time: 3.15 PM SGT (2.15 PM Local)]
Plane is unloading cargo.
Looked up from my book again and looked up. Opposite me is mother and intelectually-challenged daughter, probably mid-20s and about 200 kilos. Said daughter glowered at me with what I can only call a malicious fatness. Imagine being stared down by Jabba the Hutt after you've referred to his mother's mating habits and you'll have an idea of what I mean.
[Time: 3.30 PM SGT (2.30 PM Local)]
Plane is still unloading cargo. Jaysus! If you're going to take in so much cargo on a passenger flight, why don't you just open a freight airline instead of a passenger airline, dickheads?
Jabba the Hutt still staring at me with unmitigated hate. What the fuck did I do?
[Time: 3.45 PM SGT (2.54 PM Local)]
Boarding call. Fina-fuckin'-ly!
[Time: 4.00 PM SGT (3.00 PM Local)]
Plane finally took off.
[Time: 4.30 PM SGT (3.30 PM Local)]
Landed in Sultan Syarif Qasim II Airport, Pekanbaru. Proceeded to arrival lounge where Mom and Cousin are waiting. Turns out that fellow passenger knows Mom's cousin who works at same installation.
I never check in any luggage, so we go straight to our car and went home. Drew oath from Mom to never ever book me on a Lion Air flight again.
[Time: 5.00 PM SGT (4.00 PM Local)]
Settled into my room and unpacking. When I should've been doing that 3 hours ago. Anyhoo, back home now, nothing much left to do except check email every day to see if any prospective employers have dropped me an email. Oh, and also enjoy time at home.
[Time: 08.30 AM SGT]
Woke up late. Dammit.
[Time: 09.30 AM SGT]
Reached WTC just in time to check in. Couldn't find passengers I was supposed to help check in as a favour for parent's friend.
[Time: 09.50 AM SGT]
Turns out they've already gone inside.
[Time: 10.10 AM SGT]
Ferry pulls out of harbor, a little late as usual.
[Time: 11.00 AM SGT (10.00 AM Local)]
Reached Batam. Got into waiting van for ride to airport. Chatted with aforementioned fellow passengers, Americans from Florida, father and 13-year-old youngest daughter.
The father works for CalTex Indonesia and is in charge of all their labs in Duri (Map) and has three degrees in Chemistry. Explained how I nearly failed Chemistry in my final year of High School.
[Time: 11.30 AM SGT (10.30 AM Local)]
Reached Hang Nadim International Airport, Batam. 2nd van carrying luggage (fellow passengers has 36 pieces(!) of luggage) is late. Turns out that van is prone to overheating and cannot go beyond a fairly sedate 40-60 km/h. Driver asked me to explain this to the Americans, which I did.
[Time: 12.00 PM SGT (11.00 PM Local)]
All checked in and ready to go. Turns out that my name was somehow removed from the list, which explains heated argument between travel agent and counter staff. Which also explains why I'm Mr. R. Duane on my boarding pass.
[Time: 12.30 AM SGT (11.30 AM Local)]
Flight was supposed to leave Batam at 12.00 PM Local, but still hasn't landed yet. Fellow passenger starting to worry.
[Time: 1.00 PM SGT (12.00 PM Local)]
Time to take off and still no plane. Fellow passenger starting to complain.
[Time: 1.15 PM SGT (12.15 PM Local)]
Official-looking man came into boarding lounge to make an announcement. Turns out the plane was delayed out of Jakarta and just took off minutes ago. Flight will be delayed to 3.00 PM Local. Also that all passengers on that flight has a free lunch at the airport restaurant. Fellow passenger starting to really bitch now.
[Time: 1.30 PM SGT (12.30 PM Local)]
Had a fairly decent lunch of rice with beef rendang and cassava leaves in coconut gravy. I really missed Indonesian food.
[Time: 2.00 PM SGT (1.00 PM Local)]
Back in boarding lounge.
[Time: 2.30 PM SGT (1.30 PM Local)]
Official-looking man is back with another announcement. All passengers for Lion Air flight to Pekanbaru to move to boarding lounge at other end of airport, because the plane's gonna be parked at that gate instead of where we are now. Fellow passenger's bitching becomes more vehement.
[Time: 2.45 PM SGT (1.45 PM Local)]
Settled into new boarding lounge.
[Time: 3.00 PM SGT (2.00 PM Local)]
Plane's finally landed. Hooray!
Just looked up from my book and looked left. Saw a Buddhist monk with mobile phone in hand and hands-free earpiece in ear chatting with another person. I thought they were supposed to have a vow of poverty or something?
[Time: 3.15 PM SGT (2.15 PM Local)]
Plane is unloading cargo.
Looked up from my book again and looked up. Opposite me is mother and intelectually-challenged daughter, probably mid-20s and about 200 kilos. Said daughter glowered at me with what I can only call a malicious fatness. Imagine being stared down by Jabba the Hutt after you've referred to his mother's mating habits and you'll have an idea of what I mean.
[Time: 3.30 PM SGT (2.30 PM Local)]
Plane is still unloading cargo. Jaysus! If you're going to take in so much cargo on a passenger flight, why don't you just open a freight airline instead of a passenger airline, dickheads?
Jabba the Hutt still staring at me with unmitigated hate. What the fuck did I do?
[Time: 3.45 PM SGT (2.54 PM Local)]
Boarding call. Fina-fuckin'-ly!
[Time: 4.00 PM SGT (3.00 PM Local)]
Plane finally took off.
[Time: 4.30 PM SGT (3.30 PM Local)]
Landed in Sultan Syarif Qasim II Airport, Pekanbaru. Proceeded to arrival lounge where Mom and Cousin are waiting. Turns out that fellow passenger knows Mom's cousin who works at same installation.
I never check in any luggage, so we go straight to our car and went home. Drew oath from Mom to never ever book me on a Lion Air flight again.
[Time: 5.00 PM SGT (4.00 PM Local)]
Settled into my room and unpacking. When I should've been doing that 3 hours ago. Anyhoo, back home now, nothing much left to do except check email every day to see if any prospective employers have dropped me an email. Oh, and also enjoy time at home.
I know, I know
Yes... I know I haven't been updating in a long time.
Well, get ready. I'm about to write down everything that I've meant to write (and never really got around to until now).
Well, get ready. I'm about to write down everything that I've meant to write (and never really got around to until now).
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