All hail the Springboks

The ability to concentrate and to use your time well is everything if you want to succeed in business--or almost anywhere else for that matter.Lee Iacocca
A wise man will make more opportunities than he finds.Francis Bacon
Winning isn't everything, but wanting to win is.Vince Lombardi

Rugby World Cup came to a close last Sunday morning.
Congrats to the Springbok on their triumph over the English team.
Bryan Habana has been named IRB’s player of the year and his team the team of the year.
Congrats to the men in yellow and green.
The southern hemisphere cheers for your victory.
I was very close to watching the match, if not for the birthday party and the morning service, I would have stayed up to catch the finals… guess I will have to find other ways to get my eyes to watching the men with that oval ball.
One thing that kinda made my decision not to watch easier was the fact that the men in black were not in the finals. Yes, to quote my brother “lost interest in the quarter finals.”
Andre and I both agree that without the Blacks, there ain’t any ‘kick’ in watching a match. Unless there is a Brian Lima on the field, I think there will not be much action to look forward to. He’s from Samoa and he packs a blardy mean bulldozing effect. Mah chum he is a professional construction worker who does not need the machinery to get the job done.
*evil laughter*
Fret not; I will do my best to get to New Zealand for the new RWC.
Confirm will be a memorable one!

Run though:
Out with YKM and TKM
To hospital with TKM
Shopping sessions.
Classes
Stakeholders Project
WWS administration matters
Library visit

Had a gathering with Yang Mui and Diana last Wednesday. Shi min could not make it at the last minute coz of lectures in school.
We had dinner at Thai Express – made use of my orangey new privilege card.
Then took a walk to White Tangerine to have desert.
Good to meet up with friends, and the next one’s in 2 weeks~!
-dances all around the room-

Headed down to Pasir Ris on Saturday evening right after work to celebrate Dexter’s birthday.
Been a few months since the last time I saw him. It was nice to catch up with the others he invited to the party. Food and company makes for good memories.

Sunday - congratulatory dinner for Victor.
My very first student whom I have trained from white to poom.
Hehe… we had a good time laughing and talking about school. I din realize I was the oldest in the group… harhar~
Welcome to the ‘black parade’ Victor!
Being red-black is something not everyone gets to experience, enjoy it while it lasts~ :D

This week’s the final week.
PAH HEIIII~~!!!!!!!!

Lack of rest does things to me.
I’m so freaking tired that I stepped on my aunt’s foot.
Gwad… it’s that bad…

As much as I’d like to think that I have stayed true to who I am, I have changed, but it’s a change for the better. I am not exactly who I used to be. As I once heard: Who we are changes constantly, its what we are that is the constant factor.

I’ve gotten hooked to songs from different genres of late.
Christian, hard rock and emo rock.
O.olll.
-psychotic laughter-

Went to work today then for once, nothing to bring home to work on!
Headed out to WWS after that to do project.
Destinations of the day - Timbre, Fullerton, 6 restaurants, Siam Reap II.
Eye opener and good learning experience ;)

Gotta run now, will blog more later.
Blessings~
^-^

Timatanga

A good word is an easy obligation; but not to speak ill requires only our silence; which costs us nothing.John Tillotson
It requires less character to discover the faults of others than is does to tolerate them.J. Petit Senn
The ability to convert ideas to things is the secret to outward success.Henry Ward Beecher

Happy Hari Raya to all my Muslim friends!

Completed quite a few items on my list over the past 3 days.
Markings, classes and even 2 movies.

Wednesday’s training session was very fruitful.
Been ages since I’ve felt this way about class.
Perspiring is a good gauge to see how much effort I put into the session.
Its nice to go home all exhausted from the kicking and what not coz I know I have worked out. The only sickening thing was that I could not walk due to the blue black and its strategic position on my leg.

Thursday class was not bad.
Have lined up an extra class for my P1s next Thursday, so spent some time calling the parents up to let them know about the class and the other details.
Finished my marking :)
Had lunch with Adelyn and Andre at Heartland Mall.
Went to Adelyn’s place to watch DVDs.
The first movie was Déjà vu.
Staring Denzel Washington, the movie was a real brain smoker. We spent so much time speculating about what was going to happen and why things were happening the way they did and what out comes were resultant from various actions that we kinda went into overdrive and had out brains zonked out by the time the movie was done. This is an action movie that gives your brain a lot of exercise.
We resorted to playing Harry Potter on Adelyn’s PS3 after the movie before Andre was supposed to head off for his tuition session. I sat on the floor and had my eyes driven in circles by the graphics. Kinda reminded me of the time I played GTA for 45 minutes and got a 3-hour headache.
Andre’s class got cancelled so we ended up watching the other movie he had brought along. I.e. Swordfish. Hack of a movie. The action sequences and that hunk of a man, people call him Hugh Jackman. *swoon*
Not as painful on the brain as the previous movie was. Thank God.
We watched that one and headed back to Heartland Mall for the two A’s to have their dinners. I went home to munch.

Friday morning went out to WWS and tried to get ready to go out for the Stakeholder project. Word used here is ‘tried’ coz why? The office got rearranged and the printers could not be used. The computers also had a lot of ironing out to be done, so we had to make do with the stuff we had. Went from Robertson Quay to Esplanade and then to Clarke Quay. By cabs and foot. Taking into consideration that we had initially decided to use bicycles as a medium of transportation, I think we did a rather good job of getting around and maximizing the time we spent in each area.
I tip my hat off to PS, she da woman~
We had lunch at Robertson Quay that day, at the Thai restaurant. Along the way, I was reminded about how small Singapore is. She knows 2 of my JC mates from her work place. Hahaha… small world…

Due in part to the RWC this year, I have become mildly obsessed with the Timatanga. It’s the haka performed by the NZ Maori team before their matches.
This particular haka PWNS the 2 hakas which the All Blacks do.
Personal ranking:
Timatanga
Kapa O Pango
Kama Te

Here are the words to Timatanga (Translation: In the beginning)

MaoriI te timatanga
Ko te Kore
Ko te po nui
Ko te po roa
Wehenga Matua
Herenga Tangata
He toa Rangatahi
He toa Rangatira
Whakaki te Maunga
Tae ki te Whenua
Hoki ki te Rangi
Tae ki te Pukerunga
Piki ake piki ake
Ki te ara Poutama
Ki nga Taumatatanga e
Wairua Hinengaro Tinana
Pakeha

English
In the beginning
there was nothing
the big darkness
the long darkness
the separation of Rangi and Papa
formed man/people
formation of young warriors
formation of young chiefs
if you aim for the mountains
you will hit the plains
if you aim for the sky
you will hit the mountain peaks
climb up, thriveto the pathway of knowledge
to achieve excellence
spiritually, mentally, physically

Cool aye?
Now, to feel the real intensity of the Timatanga, google it and watch the YouTube video. Total awesomeness… especially the one with Carlos Spence + Rico Gear and the other one which is lead by Hosea Gear.

Helped Jared out with his poomsae this morning.
He will be going for the NCAP course next month.
I am still in the midst of wondering if I should go or not. The biggest problem I have with it is the dates it is supposed to be taking place on. All Sundays. *bleah*
Dinner with Sheena, Adeline and Siya got cancelled in the afternoon due to last minute changes… hope we get to meet up soon~
Had a nap, marked 4 stacks of papers, did housekeeping for the computer and now… have to go prepare for tomorrow… hahaa…

Sunday marks the beginning of a new week.
With God’s help, I will do my best to serve Him and my fellow Man.

Blessings~
^-^

Gazing out into the sky

The soul of conversation is sympathy.Thomas Campbell
If evil be said of thee, and if it be true, correct thyself; if it be a lie, laugh at it.Epictetus
The less people speak of their greatness,the more we think of it.Lord Bacon

Random poem:
I find myself missing the things I used to do.
The times I spent with people I knew.
Gazing out into the sky
Watching the clouds pass us by.
We used to wonder if life could get better
Then the World Cup came and threw mud in our faces.

Tuesday and the boat.
We went out for a weekday patrol and did some giving out of letters at the same to the business.
Banged my knee against the boat chain.
Did some admin in the office before running/jogging/brisk walking home in time to run/brisk walk/jog myself to work with 4 minutes to spare.
Say orh cheh?

Sleeping was good today.
Managed to clock in my time with the pillows.
Heehee… deposits for the bank before having to owe them.
Later is training.
Targets at the ready and feet set to fly at them.
New students for me to prepare for grading.
Next grading is in January.
My one year black anniversary.

No chance to catch the semi-finals this weekend.
Broadcast is at 3am.
Wanna think of a solution for me?
Two more weeks and the RWC closing ceremony will be upon us.

Oh!
I just remembered.
Remember the quote I posted last time.
It’s from Grey’s Anatomy.
George was talking to Izzy about Callie while inflating balloons for the prom.
Heh…

Goong S is going to be aired on Ch U soon.
The fact that a different company produces it makes alarm bells go off. Not very interested in watching too coz I’ve got the original one to occupy my time. I haven gotten the chance to watch it wholesale anyway.

Randoms:
Any movies to recommend?
Need a chocolate fix.
Facebook is getting a tad boring.
Anyone wanna go swimming/gym?
It almost rained today. Why did it do the ‘almost’ thing?
Have to start moving my stuff. Should I start with clothes or books?
Got one stack of marking to go.

Silver lining?

"Always look on the bright side
Mourning Kiwis are being offered grains of solace in the wake of their heartbreaking world cup exit.
Taking the Monty Python mantra "always look on the bright side of life" as its theme, A New Zealand paper, under the headline 'It ain't all that bad', has offered some morsels of nourishment to ailing rugby fans.
These include: the All Blacks only lost by two points; they could have lost to Georgia; France could still lose in the semi-finals; and France have never won an Oscar for best picture." - From the official RWC site.

Chao!
^-^

Rug-messy-by

"One day you will ask me which is more important? my life or yours? I will say mine and you will walk away not knowing that you are my life." - -- Khalil Gibran
"You learn to like someone when you find out what makes them laugh, but you can never truly love someone until you find out what makes them cry." - -- Unknown

Found the above quotes on a whim inspiration from Jet’s MSN nick.
Haha…
Nice aye?

Sunday’s haul for the World Cup just goes to show how anything can happen.
South Africa won Figi 37:20.
Argentina won Scotland 14:13.
Therefore the next two matches will be England vs France and South Africa vs Argentina.
North vs South for finals anyone?
Gwad… the semi-finals are all going to be shown at 3am lor.
First I would have to find a place that shows the freaking matches at 3am in the morning and then I would have to deal with the panda eyes that would come from watching at such a maddening hour.
Believe me, I would have bothered a lot more if New Zealand had gotten into the semi-finals.
Feel like chanting:
I say “New Zealand”; you say “pui!”
-psychotic laughter-

Watched part of the match of RSA vs Fiji with Adelyn and Andre at White Tangerine before the channel got switched over to the Liverpool match.
Final score for that one was 2:2, if you are wondering.
Liverpool are seriously not doing well this season, donno what the hack is going on with all the sports teams… must be something in the air or in the water they are drinking.
See?!
That’s why we need to conserve and protect the environment!
If not all the pollution will harm the sports teams we love~!
On another note, I would like to watch a Manchester City match some time. Then maybe can get to see Thaksin.
-laughs out loud-

As a result of the switch in television networks, we all went home rather early.
Adelyn got herself hooked onto Pinky and the Brain.
Sending me the link to the ‘Brainstem’ song opened the floodgates and now I too and hooked onto the two mice.
Read a rather lengthy article about how some people view Pinky as being the real brains of the cartoon. I kinda agree with that idea. NARF!! :D
Which cable channel shows all the Warner Brothers cartoons ah?
Want to watch some Animaniacs!
-bounces around the room-

The weather’s real nice today…

Looking for an opportunity to play mahjong… it’s been ages since I last played.
Every time want to play always kanna san que yi… pui!
So how?
Anyone want to play mahjong?

Yang Mui!
One more week to meeting up!
HUUU!!!! :D

Adelyn~
All the best for your interview on Wednesday!
Rest as much as possible and drink plenty of water… Thursday is the day for chionging!
Haha~

Chaoz for nowz
^-^

W.T.H.

A man's own good breeding is the best security against other people's ill manners.Lord Chesterfield
Let us believe neither half of the good people tell us of ourselves, nor half of the evil they say of others.J. Petit Senn
The more you say, the less people remember.François Fénelon

Watched the match between England and Australia last night at White Tangerine with Adelyn and Andre.
It was a tough battle but the forwards of the England pack beat the Wallabies into the dust. Literally.
They won 12:10 and from the way they were partying, one would have though they had already won the World Cup.
Sweet victory of that game led Andre and I to start singing the British National Anthem. Yes, God Save the Queen was ringing loud last night. Coupled with good food and blessed company, we were rather high in spirits last night. It was really nice of Andre to drive us both home. Thanks Andre! :)
We all thought the match at 3am was going to be in the bag…
BUT … the worse case scenario has come to life.
We now say goodbye to the All Blacks from this year’s Rugby World Cup.
Courtesy of the French team… gah~
That match is not without its controversies, forward pass that leads to a try and what not.
*SIGH*
I guess they will be swimming back to New Zealand. If they time themselves just right, they will reach right before the first match of the next World Cup that is going to be held on their home ground.
Considering how ‘well’ the team did, I might invest in an All Black jersey now, the price is sure to drop, and if I am crazy enough, I might save up and go to New Zealand during the World Cup in 2011.
THE ALL BLACKS HAD BLARDY HELL BETTER WIN THE WORLD CUP IF I GO ALL THE WAY THERE TO WATCH THEM!!!!!!

Since my team is out of the running, I have to find another nation to support. Looking at the way weird things are happening from left and right, I think it would be a good idea to bet on Fiji to win…

Ok, time to go out and watch more rugby with Adelyn and Andre!
^-^

zoom~

Our minds are as different as our faces: we are all traveling to one destination; --happiness; but few are going by the same road.Charles Caleb Colton
You must look into other people as well as at them. Lord Chesterfield
A good deed is never lost: he who sows courtesy reaps friendship; and he who plants kindness gathers love.Basil

Finally got my two All Blacks matches. The next one will be Saturday and a crazy owl hour. Wonder if I should or can stay up to watch the match.
There are some nagging thoughts at the back of my mind about how well the men in black will do. In this Saturday’s case, they will be wearing the silver and black jerseys again.
All in favor of the All Blacks wearing BLACK please raise your hands.
I don’t think I wanna voice my thoughts about the negative stuff… better to stick to being positive. Hahaha~
Ki te ara Poutama Ki nga Taumatatanga e!

The grading on Sunday was a blur to me.
Done it so many times that things have become more like clockwork.
The response from one of the parents kinda put a kink in the works but everything else was good.
Praise God!
Thanks to all who helped out.
Now we just bite nails and wait to see what the results are like.

Went out with Adelyn and Andre for lunch on Monday – our very own Children’s Day celebration.
Watched 4 Brothers at Adelyn’s place after lunch.
Wonder when was the last time I watched a flick like that.
Went to the library in the evening… the haul was ‘comic’ to the max!
Tuesday was spent mostly with my Mum.
Wednesday was spent with my Mum, TKM and YKM. We went to the new place. I would consider that an eye-opener. Will be moving the stuff soon… but not all at once… can do it in stages. Hehe~

Thursday, yes Thursday, work and then WWS project.
Spoke to a rather disgruntled owner, but I think I managed to win him over with my passion. Keyword in this situation would be ‘think’.

Now comes to today.
Feeling a bit uneasy on the physical front. Body not doing very well… but other than that, outlook is fine.
Had a rather interesting dream last night.
It had wine, soya bean milk and chewing gum as well as a toothbrush.
Hmmm…

Yang Mui~~
Your muscles doing ok?
Got rub deep heat?
I also kanna the stretch sensation on Thursday morning after training night.
Training with the guys is the sure fire fastest way to improving your skills. I learnt the hard way from the guys last time. Haha… all em’ bruises… medals of honour… Haha~

I wonder why, every time I have a whole lot of things I wanna write down… I end up forgetting more than half… and then churn out less than what I expected… hmmm… ‘nuff of my rambling… time for lunch!

^-^