Old age is inevitable and death is real

Why did Buddha gave up everything 2,500 years ago and went on a path to seek enlightenment? I am sure whatever he had seen when he slipped out from his palace had tremendously shook him. Old age, sickness and death were what he witnessed.

Old age is inevitable and death is real. And what comes after death no one knows. I mean, why do people actually hope for anything after passing on? I have a friend who told me that he seriously hope that death will not be the end of his existence, and he would like to continue to live on in some other forms, perhaps like a spirit, after death. And if death is really the end of him, he finds no purpose of living purposefully during the span of his life. But how would we know?

I, on the contrary, would hope differently. Oh come on, life is already full of sufferings, and when death comes, I would really wish that everything is over. No more decisions that need to be made, no more worries, no more heartaches, no more tears, and no more many other unpleasant things. End is End, period.

最近我迷上了陶笛。。。

Since I came back from Taiwan earlier this year, I have been very into Ocarina. To the point that I think I can say that I am obsessed with it. A notion came to me this morning that I should create another blog that solely caters for all entries that are related to Ocarina.

Well, I clearly know that maintaining a blog isn't easy. The part that I have to keep thinking of topics and subjects to write is already tough, and it is not as though I could have the time to sit behind my monitor and type away whenever I feel like writing. But, I just feel that I need to find more channels to talk about Ocarina in order to embrace it:)

Authority

There was this psychologist who had done an experiment to prove that authority can make a person to carry out task that you want him to do, even to the extend of causing hurt or death of someone else.

This psychologist name is Stanley Migram. He'd got few volunteers to partake in his experiment and paid them some money. He then paired them up explained to them that one of them from every pair would take up the role of a teacher, and to teach the other one (who would be known as the student) of some new things. And whenever the student make a mistake, the teacher would electrocute the student with voltage beginning from 5volts, and increased by 5volts per every mistake make.

When the voltage reached close to 200volts, the students were already screaming and begging for out, and upon hearing this, the teachers would look at Migram. But Migram said to them: "Please carry on". Everybody knows that being electrocuted with high voltage like 200volts can kill a person. The teachers knew that but they still followed Migram's order, relunctantly though.

In that environment, Migram had the authority. He paid the volunteers, he was in a doctor's suit and the experiment was carried out in his lab. Hence the teachers felt obligated to carry out his orders.

Hobbiezzz

A recap of what I have done so far... Not in chronological order.

• Photography
• Feng Shui (and other chinese metaphysical studies)
• Judo
• Tae kwondo
• Skipping
• Running, and taking part in marathons
• Reading novels
• Drawing
• Table tennis
• Watch hong kong series, and Ang Mo series too
• Web designing
• Guitar
• Harmonica
• Ocarina
• Recorder
• Fife
• Japanese
• Clay modeling
• British counsel English course
• Balloon sculpting
• Song writing
• Wine appreciation

Updating the above list more than a year after having created this post (28 July'11).

• Didgeridoo
• Ukulele
• Dizi
• Xiao
• Tin Whistle
• Shakuhachi

Be 20 again

Went for my weekly Japanese class this morning and found out that it has been cancelled and the school's receptionist had failed to inform me. Well, I wasn't the only one waiting outside the classroom. Jaslyn, one of my classmate who is only 16 was there too.

When I was 16, what was I doing? Nothing of value to the future then. If only I was like Jaslyn, took up Japanese or any other courses, I would have been an expert in that field by now.

Sigh... if only I can be 20 again:(

I don't really like to hear people telling me that aging is an inevitable process and we should all learn to age gracefully. Don't like. Don't know why. Just don't like.

New hobby

Dear Blog,

I am so sorry that I have neglected you all this while, and have been spending a lot of time with Facebook:) Do you know that Facebook is such an interesting site. Not only that it allows me to update my everyday "happenings" and upload photos to share with my friends, I can also view my friends photos and play tons of games in Facebook:) I think, what is very appealing about Facebook is the trend that people don't write too many words there. So, adapting to the trend, I have become very lazy in writing.

My last entry here was in Sept'09, and so it has been 7 months I have not returned. By the way, Blog, I have changed my hobby again. I am not into drawing anymore, but I am sure one day I will pick that up again. I am now into windwood instrument:)

My interest in windwood instrument began 3 months ago. Together with Daniel, Daven and Chan, we travelled to Taiwan for a 6 days trip. On one of the days there, we went to a beautiful place called Jiufen. There are a lot of shops there selling things that I have not seen in Sg, and I was (not sure about the rest of them) overwhelmed by the joy of having discovered this place. And while walking from shop to shop, I suddenly hear a melodious tune being played on an instrument, and it came from one of the shops nearby. Out of curiousity, I went in together with Danile and company.

I later found out that the instrument that was played by the shop owner is called Tao Di (ocarina), and his shop is selling nothing, but Tao Di. So fancinated I was with this instrument, I spent quite a while of time in this place looking at the Tao Di and talking to the sales person to get more info on this instrument. And before we left the shop, I bought one tao di which costed about $15 Sg dollars. It is a 6-hole ocarina.

My interest in ocarina didn't bloom from there, but it was only after one week when I have returned to Sg. I was feeling rather bored at home and I suddenly remembered about the ocarina I have bought in Taiwan, and I took it out and played some notes. And the rest is like magic! I fell in love with it immediately!

About a month later, after searching everywhere in Sg for a better ocarina and couldn't find one, I finally made up my mind to order a better ocarina from overseas. That has actually costed me about S$200++ (including shipping fee)... Very heart pain, but when it arrived, the quality and the appearance of the ocarina dissipated all the pain over the cost. The name of this ocarina is Focalink Alto C double Chamber:)

I have been practicing with my double chamber for 2 months plus already, and though I am still not very good at it, I am better than when I first learnt it. Recently I have just received a bonus, and with a little extra cash in hand, I started thinking of buying myself a present (but it turned out that I bought myself more than one present...)

As of now, I have placed an order for 2 mountain ocarinas (with songbooks), one irish whistle (with songbooks too), and have asked my sis to buy 3 ocarinas from China. So altogether, I have spent close to S$500... Now, my heart really ached, I think I have overspent this time...sigh...

Anyway, all the items have not yet arrived. Hopefully they will be here soon...

Ok, Bloggy, that's all for now, will try and visit you more often:)

Umbrella issue

I remember not so long ago, I was with 2 colleagues and it was drizzling. One of them was carrying a CPU and we were about to walked to another site from my office. Hence, I took 2 umbrellas. Handed one over to them (to ensure that the CPU don't get wet) and one for myself.

When our job was done and were returning to my office (this time without the CPU), it was still drizzling. I opened my umbrella and immediately the duo laughed at me, saying that big men like us using umbrellas in such a weather will make us look sissy. Feeling quite pissed with such a remark, I asked them whether do we look stupid when we have the umbrellas and not using it, even though it was only drizzling. Anyway, one of them agreed with my reasoning and opened his umbrella. Well, the other was adamant and chose to walk in the rain beside us.

Reasons I use the umbrella when it rains (no matter how heavy it is):

Don't want to get wet.

Don't like to wear wet clothes.

Don't want to get sick (not that I am that weak, but why expose myself to the risk?)

Urban area's rain is dirty and toxidic (I strongly believe)

Reasons I can think of why some guys refuse to use umbrellas:

Want to look macho.

Scare people mock at them.

Lazy to carry and use one.

To use or not to use an umbrella; no right or wrong answer to this question. To me, I just think that if I don't take care of myself, no one else will.