Journey to the land of the khmer Part 1

Back from Cambodia! With kinda sucks really since things were really fun over there with Brad, Joe and Max.
But now my splendid vacation is over, its time to brace myself for my LAST semester in INTI which hopefully will be very very memorable.....(and then i'll have to leave which always sucks.... leaving places and people sucks... it sucks sucks sucks....now i'm bummed)

Anyways, basically first day, stepped my first step in Cambodia and had quite a favourable impression since they did have an impressive arrival hall that was designed in Cambodian architecture. We gt stuck with the taxi driver we were with who wouldn't go away after persisting that we needed him (he tried to ditch him 3 times). however, we did get to see Ankor Thom and the Bayon and then it back to our 18usd hotel.
Next day was a visit to the outskirts of the Ankorian temples and we finished the grand temple tour with a magnificent tour of Ankor Wat. now this baby is HUGE... photos do not do it justice and i was totally not what I'd expected (damn Tomb Raider movies ruined that). Breathtaking is the word for it. The same night, we hit the Ankor What? bar for many many drinks. Also i had a slice of happy pizza (ask me.....;) )
Then it was a 5hour bus ride to Phnom Penh which was quite a sight. This time we settled for a 10usd hotel which was conveniently located next to a bar owned by a French lady who smoked pot and drank all night. (Crazy French people!)
Of course, this meant spending at least ONE wild night of drinking... which happened....(explained in the previous post). Someone got drunk and started doing wild things..(hahha)
Course we did get to visit all the other Phnom Penh sites such as the killing fields, Wat phnom, the river front, the Central and Russian market. Kinda cool. We all got a massage....hey hey.... i'm not going to post details here....
And today... went fo a bit of shopping and got myself the Hard Rock Cafe Phnom Penh shirt. Then my last meal (Cambodian food is the shit!) at the river front then its off to the airport
Now i'm back in Malaysia... kinda bummed since the trip was really fun...

Anyways, the history of Cambodia is bleak, filled with political and social turmoil when Pol Pot and his Khmer Rouge forces tore up the entire country in a highly controversial social experiment where the Cambodians were marched into the rural fields and forced to undergo hours and hours of manual labour with little or no food. Mass executions were carried out and intellects and government officials were rounded up and shot. It was a social reform of significant proportions that turned the land of Cambodia into a dangerous, inhospitable land to be in.
However, after the downfall of the Khmer Rouge, the people nowadays are still smiling. Despite suffering from destitution and living in conditions with poor sanitary and educational facilities, the people are still friendly and helpful; surely an arduous task given their terrible history. However, victims of the unstable economy can be seen from the concrete streets of Phnom Penh to the rural villages of Siem Reap. This is understandable since tourism is such a big source of national income and presents innumerable opportunities for the people. I sincerely hope that conditions improve and education takes center stage among the government's priorities, and the eyes of the Cambodians will smile in sync with the mouths on their faces.

Labels: Events, Updates

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Exclamation_popcorn reflected on life at 9:51 PM

Greetings from Cambodia again!

What constitutes too much drinking???
well lets see... within 3 days this is what i've had
-4 cans of beer
-3 whisky and coke
-1 vodka and sprite
-1 vodka and redbull
-1 vodka and orange
-1 bracardi and something
-2 vodka shots
-3 tequila shots

that's approx 19 shots of liqour.....oops.... but hey my otlerance has been able to match them though i probably was really ridiculous....

Oh and Ankor Wat was magnificant. =D

Labels: Updates

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Exclamation_popcorn reflected on life at 11:28 AM

Greetings from Siem Reap, Cambodia

Yes yes there's internet (thats what i would expect for a usd18 hotel!) and yes yes i am in cambodia (for those who didn't know)
So far its been a really interesting trip and i'm having a blast (no parents! a first!)
but little bits and pieces that have been annoying but overall its quite a sight and adventure.

so basically before i left for cambodia my laptop got fried by the lightning and now i have to worry about that (no profanity can sum up my feelings for this tragic, but teoh-expected event)
I did realise that i have a horrible track record with electronics and modern technology:
-3 broken phones, half-broken mp3 player, broken laptop twice, broken radio, broken computers a couple of times, 6/7 broken earphones, 3 broken mouses, 3 broken buses, 1 broken boat, 2 broken cars.
So this is nothing new for me.

Koodos. I'll Keep yáll updated

Labels: Updates

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Exclamation_popcorn reflected on life at 9:20 AM

“Yet I think nostalgia of any kind is a double-edged sword."

“Yet I think nostalgia of any kind is a double-edged sword. When people see a TV show title from their youth, they're looking for a piece of that old experience to come back, and the truth is, they'll never recapture it.” -Frank Spotnitz

The unfamilairity of scenarios starts to creep in and that deep, oh so deep nostalgia has started to kick in again.
So this is where i kick ass and make the best of my remainder of my life in Asia. Whats left of it is going to be a great few months with friends and family. And since i seriously believe my college years are going to be the best years of my life and once i've past the old (very old!) age of 30, those feelings are never going to kick in again.
So to the times to come, i say Live it!, Make life Riskier! Pee Into the Wind! |

Exclamation_popcorn reflected on life at 6:49 AM

Updates: Joyous Occasions, High Hopes and Overburdened Bellies

1- Finals are OVER! Now 3 more months till the next ones.

2- News that INTI is finally considering tennis courts on campus. Good news - no more tedious bus rides to a rundown sport facility that overcharges. Bad news - When the courts are completed, i'll probably be in a different continent.

3-I've gained considerable weight during the finals peiod (as usual). Now to start to lose all of it....... (gym-ing next semester!)

Labels: Updates

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Exclamation_popcorn reflected on life at 11:52 PM

The Origins of my Surname

You all knew zheyi meant philosophical one. But how many knew i was destined to be a master bowsmen?

Netiher did i....

The character (張) per se is comprised of 弓 (gōng -- a bow used in warfare) and 长 (cháng or zhǎng -- "length" "long" or "to grow," though it is probably the latter that contributes to the notion of an expanding bow)
The origin of the surname Zhang is legendary. The fifth son of Huāng Dì (Emperor), the legendary supreme ancestor of all Han Chinese, was Qīng Yáng Shì (青阳氏). Qīng Yáng Shì's son Huī (挥) was inspired by the Chinese Arc Constellation -- Tiān Gōng Xīng (天弓星) in the sky and invented the bow. Later Hui was assigned as Gōng Zhèng (弓正), the minister in charge of observing the Arc Constellation and making bows. Then Hui and his descendants were bestowed the surname Zhang, which, if broken into its constituent radicals, would mean "the master of bows" in Chinese. It is believed that the ancestors of Zhang's were archers and the bow as a totem of their tribe.
                                                                                                ---Wikipedia---

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Exclamation_popcorn reflected on life at 9:45 PM

Music Meme

[Choose a band/or artist and answer only in song TITLES by that band] [i chose two band/artist just so my answers wud be more reflective and funny]

The Shins /John Mayer

[Are you female or male] "Saint Simon"
[Describe yourself] "My Stupid Mouth"
[How do some people feel about you] "Only Heart"
[How do you feel about yourself] "Not Myself"
[Describe your ex girlfriend/boyfriend] "Sucker"
[Describe your current girlfriend/boyfriend] "No Such Thing"
[Describe where you want to be] "A Perfect Day"
[Describe what you want to be] "Australia"
[Describe how you live] "Split Screen Sadness"
[Describe how you love] "Love Song for No One"
[Share a few words of wisdom] "Why Did you Mess With Forever"

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Exclamation_popcorn reflected on life at 1:12 AM

All i can say is...

I Hate/Love Finals Week. |

Exclamation_popcorn reflected on life at 1:07 AM

FUCK! Michelle just got voted off Survivor. Dreamz is a total nimcumpoop-head-who-doesn't-know-how-to-play-survivor-and-says-alot-of-crap-but-never-ever-does-any-of-the-things-he-says-he-wants-to-do.
GEEZ.
IDIOT!

Labels: Media

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Exclamation_popcorn reflected on life at 10:56 AM

Jobless Moments with Granvision Camera

The Book that i've been looking at for days and is now dreading

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Exclamation_popcorn reflected on life at 10:11 PM

“It does not require a majority to prevail, but rather an irate, tireless minority keen to set brush fires in people's minds” -Samuel Adams

Have you ever known a person who everybody likes except you. Well heck i do.
And i'm not talking about the person here cuz I've now realized how much more tolerable she is to this other person that I had to deal with this semester.

Yeah sure, she has that charming charisma that everyone seems to be drawn to (Much like the alluring spells of the wicked witch of the west). Espaically her devious smile that seems to lower everyone's guard in a swift grin. God what a caniving *****.
(i might be exaggerating alittle here... but then again maybe not)
She also makes the most childish remarks and quips that i haven't heard since 6th grade.

But seriously, she's older than me so ACT YOUR OWN AGE!
God...and it seems like everyone can't see through that false exterior that she sets up (so called perfect-overachieving veneer).
What can i do to pry everyone's eyes wider? Like 'Homer Simpson's ass' WIDER...



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Exclamation_popcorn reflected on life at 11:33 PM

Awesome Conversations with April. In April

-23-theo-:i did drink 1 litre of strawberry milk today
April-is it any wonder :i dont want you to be a hermit
April-is it any wonder :kkkkk?
April-is it any wonder :OMG
 -23-theo- :and wonder how strawberry milk is actually made
April-is it any wonder :i hate strawberry milk
April-is it any wonder :LOL
-23-theo- : YUM
-23-theo- :dtuch lady
April-is it any wonder :they feed cows strawberriesd
-23-theo- :i wonder wat breast milk tastes like too
-23-theo- :they feed dutch ladies dtrawberries
-23-theo- :and milk them
-23-theo- :*fantasize
April-is it any wonder :EWWWW
-23-theo- :*-)
-23-theo- :hahha
April-is it any wonder : NOOO
April-is it any wonder :GROSS hahahaha
April-is it any wonder :you bum
-23-theo- :well at least its not dutch men milk
-23-theo- :hhaha
April-is it any wonder :|
April-is it any wonder :STOPPP
April-is it any wonder :TEOH
-23-theo- :cuz then u wud get condensed milk instead


By the Way, A shoutout to April who today is LEGAL!!!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

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Exclamation_popcorn reflected on life at 11:09 PM

"Battle not with monsters lest you become one.” -Nietzsche

The swords have been thrusted. The arrows have been shot. I've just lost the pivotal battle in the struggle to save an innocent. It was a great mock trail for philosophy we just had,

"the best i've had in Malaysia"

according to Dr. Borges (what an honor =P)
But, yea, through all the heated battles it wasn't exactly the result we were looking for. Bummer.

In the end, Ronnie Reynolds was found guilty but at least the death penalty wasn't awarded. Instead, he was sentenced to 15 years of jail time. Which i guess is a battle with no losers (yea i know thats what a loser might say, but hey at least i aint no sore loser)
But just to make it clear, it wasn't a steamrolled case. Noone got routed. It was close. It was closer than wimbledon 2005 final where venus williams narrowly beat Lindsay Davenport in 3 tight sets.
It's was like Monica Seles Vs Steffi Graf matches where every point seemed like a pivotal moment. The jury were intially 10-9 in their decision and could have gone either way (but cuz of one simple minded idealist, he pushed over a few people thus condemming my client to a life of despair and injustice. Geez thanks)
So apparently this was the main reason why the jury said guilty since the idealist said that

"Well someone should be responsible for the death so lets just make him guilty then make him not serve the death penalty"

I'm not even going to start on the moral ramnifications of that.
I guess i should have appealed more to the simple mindedness of, dare i say it, M*****ians.(ohoh the g'vrnmnts going to start accusing me of sodomy)

Good moments of the trail: I got called an intellectual. And most people thought i was a good lawyer (all in fact. Gwaff Gwaff) and it appears i was right about how i was intimidating. Or aggressive at least...
cuz the prosecution side said i slaughtered them like helpless baby sheep with a blunt nailing file. What I did was I smothered them done with multiple carebear death hugs.
Rawr i'm a monster. It was also suggested later that I pursue a career in law. 
Thanks but no thanks, its just not my thing (sorry Gin Jhen) but you know it did feel mighty good defendind the innocent (he was innocent i tell you!)

Can i just say, that the prosecution lawyer (okie she isn't that bad; she is mean at times but she's alright...sometimes XP) took all our words and twisted them into her own means. Damn it! I guess i should have expected that but what sucks is that the jury bought that shit. Told you.
Well i could have fought dirty as well but i'm not going to stoop to that level just to win(maybe i should). But i guess I'm all about faireness and justice (in other words i'm a pansy)

I guess i'm off to tend to the wounds. In the meantime, i'll be plotting the demise of my next trail victim.

Labels: Events

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Exclamation_popcorn reflected on life at 10:59 PM

Network Socializing- The improbable scenarios

How, might i dare ask, do two people come about becoming friends purely through a social network (say Friendster, Facebook, Myspace, Livejournal, etc. etc.)
How do conversations start?
"Oh i see you have added a testimonial on my page, thanks for doing that you are the best person in the world. BTW i Love you"
Or maybe
"Wow we're such good poke buddies (its the only thing we do right?) why don't we take it a step further and be ass poking buddies?"

Fine fine so not all of them go that way but i'm just curious... how exactly do you make friends on a social network? How do you make the first contact and what the heck do you say to that person? How on earth do you discover things in common to talk about? (other than spying on each other's profiles). I'm interested cuz i've heard about all sorts of Facebook and Friendster buddies and maybe these crazed-socialites could enlighten me (its sort of sad that i know no one at OSU eventhough i'm in that network but hey, its going to be 4 months before go there) on how to be a monster network-online socializer.

However, one must be warned about the large numbers of posers, narcisissts, camera-hoggers, pedophiles, serial rapists, perverts, hairy sugar daddies, mistresses-for-hire, ovary merchants, pimps, floozies, prostitutes, amateur porn stars, webcam strippers, psychopaths, cannibals, receational stalkers, obsessive stalkers, sociopaths, identity theives, cat-loving hippies, excessive abortionists, mormons, ninjas, yippies, satanic worshippers, cult leaders, preachers, crazy evolutionists and sexmaniacs with an assortment of fetishes. Not to say they can't be fun or interesting people (try putting the preacher and the evolutionists in the same room).

But anyway, yea, somebody, tales of how you met the love of your life through the internet?

Note: I promise i'll fix the comment link so that it actually works. =D

Labels: Random Rants

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Exclamation_popcorn reflected on life at 11:23 AM

"Sorry to bother you"

...isn't exactly what one might expect from a skype or msn conversation. In fact, it formality was so surprising, it sort of made me reconsider how i might come across some people who do not know me well.

Yes I try to be as straightforward as possible and if I hate you, i'd pretty darn well make sure you know that. That makes me intimidating i guess...(or a bastard)
Because when classmates starts to message "Sorry to bother you but can i ask a question" followed by sentences that neither lacked proper punctuation and conjungtions (a big no-no in Malaysian English) nor did it contain any traces of the in+3rn3+ l4ngu4g3 that we so dearly love, you know your feared/respected by them, though i do suspect it to be a mixture of fear and envy (for my philosophical prowess of course). I'm not usually this full of myself.

I do dearly hope that the Brunei Folks don't start their conversations with "Excuse me my dear friend, would you be so kind as to allow me the priviledge to bestow apon you a question?"
Though honestly, that would be pretty funny. |

Exclamation_popcorn reflected on life at 12:16 AM

180 degrees inversion.

I can't help but feel that my blog has turned largely into a philosophical and literary wasteland. Its a pile of scrambled ideas and opinions with no consistent framework or a cohesive theme. It a never-ending flux of verbal garbage and ... well you get the point.

I guess my blog was much more interesting when I was emotionally unstable and needy.
(in other words it was more interesting when i bitched about myself and other people)

Well things are going to change around here i say!
Either i'll go commit social suicide so that i can have things that are remotely appealing to post and whine about,
or... i can just try to be more interesting in general.

Hey...i think this is getting better already. |

Exclamation_popcorn reflected on life at 6:16 PM

By Definition

Sometimes i can't help but feel that every approach is done so cynically.
Sometimes it's better to not let all the problems of the world weigh down on you.
Sometimes its better to be an optimist, eventhough optimism is hardly ever realistic.
Sometimes, I believe faith and religion is more believable than the science we know
Sometimes we have to dispose all knowledge we know of and expect that we know nothing
Sometimes, I don't really know what turth it and how it works
Sometimes, we just don't really understand how things work

What am i?
A mix of existentialist/realist/pragmatist/humanist/rationalist
As my lecturer would say, i have a rojak of philosophy.

But in the end, one must always choose the path he/she wants to lead
So should i be the nihilist/nietzche+schoepeuner cynicist who might be right about the world and has based everything on reality and rationalism.
Or be the virtous religious optimist who has hope that everything will turn out fine but might just turn out to be ignorant
Sometimes being the latter doesn't sound so bad.

Labels: Philosophical Rantings

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Exclamation_popcorn reflected on life at 9:42 PM

This sucks. The future just got changed again and it just seems i'm never going to be destined to stay with anyone. I'm probably sounding selfish but everything was working out. Now it seems all those close are all going off in seperate directions. It just seems the exit door keeps swinging one by one. Bump. |

Exclamation_popcorn reflected on life at 10:56 PM

A little bit of self discovery

I've realised that i have a strange affinity towards the twisted and wierd.Maybe it was reflective in my personality (i have been called wierd a fair
share number of times...) but ever since i was young, i've had an attraction to twisted art and literature.
As a child, i always did things out of the norm or things that wouldn't be considered another statistic.
During my University selections, i opted for ones that people i knew wouldn't pick(i'm def not going to one of those AUP Student breeding holes, no offense.) and also ones that
were crazily liberal such as Brown.
My favorite director coincidentally is Tim Burton who directs dark, victorian-sque movies such as Edward Siscorhands and The Nightmare Before Christmas. I also happen to
love his poems title Osyter Boy (which i mentioned in this post)
I love indie music.... music one of my friend described as incredibly (and then he
was lsot for words)
Maybe i am twisted in nature... but maybe its one of those things where i try to thrive to be completely different. In the words of Jean-Paul Satre... it is
my essensce.

Speaking of University choices
In case i haven't update you guys on this,i will definitely be attending Ohio State University this fall07. I got rejected from UW-M which sucked badly.
But with mre important things in perspective, it isn't the end of the world and its part of the whole experience isn't it?
Things are only going to get better after all right?
Now i am planning one of the following options
1. Major in microbiology+Minor in Exercise Science
2. Major in Exercise Science
3. Dual Major in Microbiology and Exercise Science
I'm still considering but if i do dual major i still graduate when i'm 21. Which i guess is considerably young.

College and University life has been a great impact on my life and i can just say i LOVE LOVE LOVE the US university life and system. I do plan to go to as many universities as possible and possibly work in research in one of them. I really do love it. So future plans include masters and PHDs hopefully at different universities. There's still U-wisconsin madison which i still hope to go to some day. There's Brown University, UCLA, UC-Berkeley and U-Michigan Ann Arbor. Then there's USouth Carolina and U Connecticut which are top in kinesiology which is what i'm ultimately interested in. So futures likely i'll be going to one of them. Either way i still hope to be attached to Universities.
Future doesn't seem so bad after all.

Peace out

Labels: Philosophical Rantings, University Life, Updates

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Exclamation_popcorn reflected on life at 5:14 PM

Forget about getting a dog.... i want a baby polar bear!


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Exclamation_popcorn reflected on life at 3:21 PM

The Palm Islands

In the midst of the bustling city of dubai, a grand project has begun that will shape the world of luxury housing andestate development as we know it. The palm islands, The Palm Jumeirah, The Palm Jebel Ali and The Palm Deira, are set to be the  largest artifically man-made islands in the world (one of them larger than paris, the other larger than 800 football pitches.)

The point of these islands? Luxury Housing. Pure luxury. 
Palm Jumeirah itself will have 4000 luxury villas, 40 luxury hotels, cinemas, shopping centers, health spas, sport facilties, theme parks and access to water sports such as sucba diving.
Its the pinial in the breakthrough of estate development.

However, the 700,000 pound pricetag is a mouthful to swallow. But with stars like Beckham lining up to purchase these villas, why not?

There's also developments in Bali and here in Sepang.. however, pretty much miniscule is comparison.
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Exclamation_popcorn reflected on life at 2:44 AM