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It's finally here.
The last day for the year 2004.
The spirit of celebration is not as
high as it should be. Everywhere, all around the world,
countries are canceling or cutting down on the
celebrations in remembrance of the victims of the tragedy.
It's hard to be happy when people are grieving. It's
harder to comfort those who have suffered losses. It's
hardest to say good bye.
As I look back at the past months,
a plethora of mixed emotions coursed through my veins into
the depths of my soul. There had been good times and bad
times. Times when I felt like I'm on top of the world, and
times when I felt like I'm in the pits of hell. Yes, it
has been one hell of a rollercoaster ride. I remember this
line from Ally McBeal: If you look back into the year, and
recall all those times you had, happy or sad, and you
don't shed a tear... then that year would have been a
wasted year. Fortunately for me, this has not been a
wasted year.
Today, it has been raining since
morning. Actually it has been raining consistently for the
past few days. To put it into perspective, one can say
that Heaven is shedding tears. Now, as midnight nears, the
rain has stopped. Perhaps tomorrow, we'll see sunshine, to
welcome the New Year? I'm hoping for that. ;)
In meantime, I will like to say
that I have not been good all the time. There have been
occasions when my actions or words have caused much hurt.
Thus, knowing this, I'm taking this opportunity to seek
forgiveness. Forgive me for those times when I've offended
you. Forgive me for the harm, hurt and pain that I have
caused you. Forgive me for the times that I had taken you
for granted. Forgive me for the times that I made you feel
low in worth.
Let's, for this day, cast our
differences aside. And together, welcome the New Year.
Goodbye 2004. Hello 2005.
- signed, sealed and delivered by
deAn on 31st December, 2003hrs >
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Son: Father, can I ask you
something?
Father: Sure thing son. What's on
your mind?
Son: Well, it's about this friend
of mine, a girl actually.
Father: What about her?
Son: I kind of started to like her,
you know, more than just a friend? Actually I grew fond of
her for quite some time now, but only told her about it
recently.
Father: Oh... so what's her name?
Son: No!!!!! I'm not going to tell
you that!
Father: Ok, fine. Now that you told
her, what did she say?
Son: Father, she told me she's
scared. She's scared that I like her.
Father: Scared?
Son: Yes, scared. Why is she
scared? Is liking someone that frightening?
Father: No son, it's not
frightening. I'm afraid I don't really know why she's
scared. There can be plenty of reasons why she said that
she's scared.
Son: Like what father?
Father: Maybe she's scared that
she'll lose the friendship between the both of you. Maybe
she's scared that she can't like you the way you like her.
Maybe she's scared of opening her heart to another person.
Maybe she's scared that you will break her heart some day.
Maybe she's scared of you because she don't know you that
well. See, like I said, there's plenty of reasons why
she's scared.
Son: Hmmm... if she's scared of me,
does that mean we can't be friends?
Father: No son, it doesn't mean
that. It means that for now, it's better for the both of
you to take things easy. Get to know each other better,
spend a bit more time together. Don't rush or force things
into happening. Be a friend. I know you can.
Son: Thank you father. I feel much
better now.
- signed, sealed and delivered by
deAn on 31st December, 1923hrs >
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In the aftermath of the natural
disaster that has struck the world, people from all over
the world are putting in efforts to help those affected.
The death toll continues to rise, and the grief of the
tragedy spreads to all, even those not directly affected.
Many are still trying to come to terms with the extent of
the disaster. For others, the pain of their loss was
almost impossible to come to terms with.
In the bigger and gloomier picture,
more deaths are being anticipated arising from infectious
diseases. These diseases can spread easily due to a lack
of clean drinking water; the presence of dirty water
everywhere and eating spoiled food. With medical
facilities being overwhelmed in tending to the injured,
the ability to prevent an epidemic is grossly handicapped.
Meanwhile, here at home, many have
come forward with donations of food, medical supplies,
clothing and so on. Humanitarian help has not ceased to
pour in from people from all walks of life. Even those who
are ‘special’ have contributed something to help strangers
far, far away. It is very touching to know that human
compassion is strong and shows no limits.
The magnitude of the earthquake and
the tsunami that came with it shows the unpredictable
power of Mother Nature and how vulnerable we are to the
forces of nature. This tragedy serves to remind us, again,
how unpredictable life is and how we should treasure every
moment of our lives. Day in, day out, we tend to take
things for granted. We argue extensively over petty
issues, we act to protect our own self interest, we forget
about the people around us and many more. Many, if not
most, of us fail to see that we can do better for each
other. That we can all live in harmony, under one planet.
Sadly, as always, it will take a
disaster to jolt us into reality. Hopefully, it’s not too
late to change this world into a better place. For us and
for our children.
- signed, sealed and delivered by
deAn on 31st December, 1855hrs >
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Bad habits are inherent in all of
us. No matter how much we grow through the years, no
matter how much we change, there will always be a bad
habit.
It’s pretty easy for bad habits to
form. Mainly it’s because we become comfortable doing it
that makes it hard to go away. At times, we may even come
to accept it as part of our lives and find it hard to see
it as a bad habit. So what can we do if we know what we’re
doing is a bad habit? Or when we’re told of our own bad
habits?
Surprisingly, the solution is both
simple and complex. The solution is to change our bad
habits to good ones. Yet most of us find it hard to change
or do away with that bad habit. Why? Perhaps it’s because
inside, we don’t want to change that bad habit. After all,
we have become comfortable to it. Being creatures of
habit, it’s easier to be doing something repeatedly than
to start on something new. That’s how it is for many of
us.
Therefore, to really kick the bad
habit, the change has to come from within. Firstly, you
have to want to change your bad habit. I’m not talking
about making promises or a pledge to want to change. I’m
talking about having that real desire to kick that bad
habit. Having to really want something good for you. Once
you can really accept this, finding ways and doing the
necessary actions to change your bad habit will become
easier. It may even come about naturally.
I have a bad habit now. I
procrastinate my updates. I want to change now. I want to
kick my bad habit. Start the New Year by kicking your own
bad habit. ;)
- signed, sealed and delivered by
deAn on 31st December, 1842hrs >
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Not feeling good these days. All
updates suspended pending recovery.
- signed and delivered by deAn on
28th December, 0246hrs
News of the tragedy spread like
wildfire across the nation and around the world.
Everywhere, family and friends tried frantically to
contact their family members and friends who were known to
be in the affected areas. I was amongst such people.
A couple of my friends were in
Thailand, Penang and India. Hence I felt worried for them.
I managed to contact some and was relieved to know that
they are safe and sound. The last person that I hadn't
been able to contact had me worried quite a bit. That
person is Nicole. She was due to return tomorrow. Prior to
her departure to India, I remembered her telling me that
she'll be spending part of her time there by the beach.
Hence that got my worrying into overdrive. After a whole
night and afternoon of worrying, I was able to put my mind
at ease when I learnt that she and her friends were safe
and sound at Sri Lanka airport. They were heading back and
were delayed at the airport.
Whilst I was able to find relief in
knowing that my friends are safe, I feel sad. Feeling sad
for the victims of the disaster. May their souls rest in
peace.
- signed, sealed and delivered by
deAn on 31st December, 1830hrs >
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Boxing Day. Honestly I've no idea
why it's called that. So, someone care to share with me
the nature behind Boxing Day?
In meantime I'll be boxed up at
home. Just reached home at 10am this morning. Now going to
go get some well-earned rest. Thankfully the weather is
great for sleeping!
- signed and delivered by deAn on
27th December, 0019hrs
Thanks to 'Teacher', I can share
with you the story behind Boxing Day. You can find the
details
here.
- signed, sealed and delivered by
deAn on 31st December, 1810hrs >
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Dean wishes you and your family a
merry, jolly, wonderful Christmas! May the times of good
fortune come to you! May joy and love and happiness be
with you always!
Interestingly, I was working today,
in Suntec City Courts. Was supposed to be working with
another guy but that guy must have celebrated too much
till he forgot to turn up for work! In the end, I had to
work alone. Which was pretty boring, to say the least.
After work, met up with Zonghao,
Chun Seng and his wife, Nelly. We went around Orchard a
bit taking photos, with Zonghao as the photographer (Many
thanks Zonghao!). Once that was done, Zonghao and I headed
to Ang Mo Kio to meet up with Ronghui and Forrest for
supper.
It has been a while since all of us
met up with Forrest. She had changed her hairstyle and now
(according to Zonghao and Ronghui) looked similar to Ma
Xiao Ling from A Date With Vampire. I don't know who Ma
Xiao Ling is though, but she must be quite pretty. Anyway,
we chilled at Mos Burger and took quite a number of
pictures. Thereafter all of us headed to Sok Bee's place.
- signed and delivered by deAn on
27th December, 0010hrs >
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I'm feeling extremely tired today.
After finishing a climbing lesson in the morning, I
immediately feel asleep at the bench in front of the
office. Felt tired to even go home. Once I did manage to
drag myself home, I feel asleep almost immediately again.
Woke up just in time for dinner. After dinner, was
planning to meet up with Zonghao and the rest. However,
most couldn't make it. So spent this Xmas eve at home
instead. Which is fine with me. This time, I went to
sleep, earlier than usual. I am a sleeper. Sleep is what I
do. =P
- signed, sealed and delivered by
deAn on 26th December, 2230hrs >
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Knights, unite! Haha... today
almost all of the Knights gathered for a pre-xmas
celebration. We met up at City Hall (I was late) before
heading to Seah Deli, at Raffles Hotel. This restaurant is
styled like an American cafe, similar to Billy Bombers.
Almost all of the Knights were
there. Annie, Geoffrey, Darren and Adam weren't able to
join us for the dinner. Friends Of The Knights, Keith and
Desmond, weren't there for dinner as well. They would be
joining us much later, along with Adam.
Dinner was a simple affair, with
much catching up and photo-taking going around. After that
we had our gift exchange. Now here's the bad thing: I
didn't manage to get a gift for the gift exchange! My
savior came in the form of Weiyang. He was kind enough to
allow me to buy a gift from him. Thanks Weiyang!
After the gift exchanged, we headed
to chill at Pacific Coffee in Citylink. Surprisingly there
weren't many people in the coffee joint when we arrived.
Hence we were able to get the big sofa. As the night went
on, some of the Knights left. Those who remained then went
for a KTV session at K-Box in Suntec City. We sang till
the wee hours in the morning before heading home. Merry
Xmas Knights!
- signed, sealed and delivered by
deAn on 26th December, 2203hrs >
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Woke up early today and met up with
Huihui and Zhaoxiang. We were to be shopping today for
items that we plan to sell in our joint business venture.
After meeting up, we headed to the warehouse. Huihui was
driving today. She drove quite well.
Once we reached the warehouse, we
looked around for stuffs to add to our inventory. Most of
the items there were quite ok. However, due to some
miscommunication, we weren't able to secure a reseller's
deal as initially planned. That put a dent in our plans.
Still, it didn't stop us. We looked around and took
pictures of the goods that caught our interests.
After all that was done, we headed
to Huihui's place to begin on marketing the products
online. We started first by marketing at Yahoo Auctions.
You can view the auction page
here. Huihui did almost all of the pages, I helped a
bit here and there. I was feeling tired so had dozed off
while she was putting up the pages. =X After that was
done, it was time for dinner. However, Huihui didn't think
that I'll be free for dinner so made dinner plans with her
friends instead! Meaning, I got abandoned. Oh well, headed
home...
Once I got home, I immediately
headed to the toilet. Turns out I got diarrhea. Visited
the toilet a few more times before felt a bit better.
However, towards midnight, things took a turn for the
worse as I got flu and headache. I had to recover fast as
I will be going out tomorrow morning. Hence rest early and
took pills. Sick. I hate being sick.
- signed, sealed and delivered by
deAn on 24th December, 2303hrs >
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Went for dance class today. It was
pretty fun. And today's lesson came with it a few of
life's lesson, shared by the club's president, Eugene.
Eugene share with us on how he got
started on dancing, about 5 months ago. Having got started
on dancing, it then became his passion that he would
practice moves wherever and whenever. He shared with us
that it's never to late to start on something. And with
hard work, regular practice and lots of passion, you can
be good at what you do. However, it will be a waste if you
can't find the passion in doing the things you do. Hence,
do things with passion. In doing so you will find things
more meaningful.
The ideas shared were familiar to
me. I had that passion in rock climbing. Had, because
somehow I got distracted and had put my passion aside.
It's time to rediscover the passion, and put more passion
in my life as well.
- signed, sealed and delivered by
deAn on 24th December, 2241hrs >
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