The Clique

I have to concede, its a good thing our school doesn't have superstars. Here, everybody is well-known, one way or the other, but even though we stick to our own groups, we kinda know everybody else - thats about 500 guys or more, just in our own year.

In other places, there are some guys and girls in a clique so powerful and popular, others cannot afford NOT to voice their open dislike for any of those "pop kids". That's 'cause if they retaliate, the less popular ones will be in serious trouble - isolated by the rest of the school population. Here are a couple of rules that exists for joining such a terrible group.

#1 - Be daring, outstanding, mean, aloof, anything that allows you to defy the norm and regime yet runs along the lines of The Group's so-called "style".
#2 - Stand your ground and lift your chin, no matter how others challenged you. Stare down the challengers. Winners gain in reputation, losers diminish in stature.
#3 - Be ruthless. Somebody brings up your ire, make sure they go down in flames. Make sure other people fear you, admire you, respect you. And in that order.

That said, I don't think I wanted to be in such a group. If I'm crazy enough, I'll probably find other equally insane guys to bring them down. If I can find such people, that is.

Green Rooftops

Man really know how to make hell. Try checking out your rooftop to see how many animals or plants that are there. Your answer: most probable NONE. Even a desert would be teeming with cactuses, arachnids, and jerboas. But no, not on a rooftop.

That's why the "green rooftop" movement spreads throughout the world, particularly accross Europe. The idea is plain - you make buildings with flat roofs, heap a couple layers of some materials, including insulators and composite soil on it, and then you start planting. In essence you take a plot of land to buuild for your needs, then you return it to nature.

This, along with the curbing of high-rise buildings (only developing countries favor really tall buildings to show off their cities nowadays) are among the initiatives developed cities have taken. Imagine, your rooftop turned into a garden which supports buttterflies, bees, and a myriad of other animals, or transformed into an orchard where you can pick tomatoes and limes for the day's meal.

I apologise for the lack of photos, but search "Green Rooftops" on any search engine, and I'm sure the pictures that came out on the Internet will guarantee to make you smile. For these rooftop gardens aren't just environmentally friendly or economic, they're also beautiful.

Something I've Learned from Reading A Random Book This Week

You want to make people die a horrible death? Try this: give him/her the ultimate antibiotic that destroys absolutely every microorganism in the human body. AIDS, common cold, pneumonia, influenza viruses, cancer cells, you name it, the drug destroys it. Side effect - massive diarrhoea because of total lost of good miicroorganism in his/her intestines.

Why? Because the human body's immunity system is already capable of warding off most attacks of disesase. Apply this super-antibiotic, and the immunity system collapse completely within days, because the human body thought there's no longer a need for it. Now if you take of the antibiotic, the human body will not be able to fend off any attacks of disease from microorganisms.

Give people this drug for a couple of months, and they'll say their sickness was cured. Completely. Then you take of the drug. Within hours, they will succumb to diseases totally unobserved-of in medical history and die most horribly.

Call me a psychopath, if you want to.

Source: Andromeda Strain

Double C in School Means Co-curricularly Cool: The End

Finally, I get to post this up. Been meaning to do this for ages but was held back by too many flaming rules...

Its time. To take the responsibilities off my shoulders, to hand it to someone else, to step down, to let others take the mantle. Five years I've served (okay, participated) in the organizations of my school, and four out of those five, I have been given the responsibility of leading others and teaching them. But its time for us elders to get our pensions, as my friend Troy said, so we hand over our stuffs, sat back and reap the benefits of Double C for nigh on five years.

All this time, many friends were made, promises made, broken, or re-fulfilled. I cherish the time we spent together as comrades, working for the same goal. Thanks to them, I've learn far more than I ever would in a lifetime on my own.

This is now. The end.

Gonna miss u people when we go our separate ways. But that's the way it is. We met, we stayed, we left.

Am I Racist?

If you're anyone close to me (read "friends") you'd probably answered that question with a "Like, duhh..." But recently, I find myself not that sure anymore.

Yep, I woulda leap at the chance to get outta here, to see the world, to leave this percieved unjust and corruption. Yet, for all of its pollution, this place is still my home, a place where my family belongs. I may go to the ends of the earth, but in the last days of my life, I'll spend it here, with the people I cared for the most.

That's why when I see unity for all its simple beauty, I was moved. Perhaps the wrongs can be made right, after all. I sincerely hope that is the case, for no one would hope to live in a place that did not deserved to be called home.

So maybe I'm not racist after all. I'm...... just concerned and frustrated.

(Perhaps you see this as a lie, instead of whatever I intended it to be. No matter. I have no quarrels with you. But, if by chance we can no longer access this blog in the future, it means that some higher authority has agreed with you.)

Opposites, Versuses, Againsts

Come to think about it, just about everything in this world has an equal and opposite element to it. Science has art, life has death, earth has sky, and even our brains have left and right hemispheres (which control the opposite side of the body).

Taoism perfectly describes the phenomenon with the "yin-yang" concept - with every manifestation of active (yang) power, there's a passive (yin) power to control it. Its a cycle with neither beginning nor end. Sometimes, some factors may went over the edge, while others were suppressed until they were not able to cope, but Mother Nature has a way to restore balance. Given enough time, Her agents and mechanics can return things to how it should be.

But humans have a differnet view on how "balanced" their surroundings should be. They tipped the scale, not just in their favour, but way into their desires. They created imbalance so that their lusts could be satiated, then they requested for evermore. In the process, actions that could destroy our own beloved Home, were committed to the extent that natural regen will be too late for mankind. One can only hope to attribute a little at a time, the best they can, to help heal the world so that the next generation will not inherit the consequences of their fathers' wrongs.

Are we too late?

Decipher - Break the code.

IMHO, deciphering coded messages and breaking passwords that are not meant for you is a serious violation of privacy. If people keep things hidden, they do it because its in their best interest. So if we were to do this, we must ensure that it IS for good, that our conscience would not be stained by guilt for it.

"Blue Wolf"

Remember the story? Well, if you haven't, click the link later. Because the two words are not just the title of the stories, they are also a pseudonym I used during my time online. Can you figure out another meaning within? How would you do it?

Codes were invented when people needed to interact with each other, but faced inconvenience in direct communication. Maybe a lad wanted to express his feelings to his lover with a billet-doux, but was afraid of the parents discovering his intentions. Or maybe an undercover agent needed to pass messages on terrorist activities without being blown. Thus, cipher systems were invented. The corresponding de-code system would then be used to reveal meaning in what seemed to be gibberish. An example is the Morse code (which the uninitiated might think to be plain dots). But such systems have a common flaw - given enough time and resources, the system can be cracked. With the speed of today's supercomputers, many entities can break such codes in a matter of minutes.

But I guess that ain't helping you here. After all, this is a personal code, without a system to refer to, and its not even a random computer-generated-phrase. So, in order to comprehend it, you need to know its composer's psyche well. Here are a couple of hints to get you along:

~ I'm emo (or used to be).
~ I left some words about me in the blog. Look around.
~ I am proficient enough in both Chinese and English languages for competent application in daily life (Forgive my seeming lack of modesty).

Post a comment, or leave a note on my Cbox, on what have you deciphered from the two words above. If you get my "name within name" correct, I'll have to hand it to you, you're either a brilliant psychologist, or you already were my closest friend the moment you knew of my existence.

Then again, who said you couldn't be both?

Doomsday+4 : Reincarnation

Dismantle my being.
Decimate my name.
Efface my memories.
Destroy my spirit.
Obliterate my soul.

Break me into pieces, then fling them far and wide. Scatter the fragments that once formed who I was. Annihilate me, so that I may become more than me.

Let me be reborned

- ZT

My Doomsday-like Prophecy of Myself

- "I have known people who would ask why I had a crew cut just so they could gossip it about, but whom would also stand in front of me if I sever my wrist and do nothing but sneer with contempt and disgust as they watched me bleed to death"

- "When people need my help, there I am, materializing out of thin air. Otherwise, for all purposes, I might as well have been invisible."

- "So here's a challenge for you - prove to me that life is still worth living to me, and I'll do it, I'll live on, if only for you, and you alone."

- ZT

Clash, Crash, Brash.

If you told me, five months ago, that my parents would have a major clash with me, I'd laugh it off with a shrug to match. But now, seriously, a row with dad and mum is in order. And its because of co-curriculum.

Okay, its not just that, but also because I made a stupid mistake. I'd claimed last year that the activities should be over by April, but now I'm continuing past May. My parents, concerned as they are about my graduation exams, naturally pushed me quite hard. Of course, this escalates into a conflict, with me looking like the losing side, if your views count.

I know I made a stupid mistake in promising before knowing full well of the future, so I'm sorry. But still, I hope they can be in my shoes, see my point of view. I think I've been striven to aim for the academic pinnacle since tender age, and this makes me feel really stressed-out, around these times, when teen hormones would tempt you do outrageous things. But, I still care for my books too, still know that that yellow scroll is a key to a better future. I promise (for real this time) that I will do whatever in my power to ensure that my SPM results are nothing but airborne colours.

Then again, a request - please don't ground me for too long - that's why I'm not blogging for 3 months straight.

P.S. Another night jaunt at school during 7th and 8th of June. Guess what I saw this time? A 7-inch-long, black monocled cobra. My friend Troy nearly got bitten as he swung his left foot over its head when I tried to shove him out of the way. Guess the fella's not yet awake. When we alerted the school guard, though, its in threat mode - neck flattened, fangs out, body coiled and ready to lash out, eyeing the most threatening guy in vicinity - my buddy whom had an appendage near its head before it was completely alert.

Double C in School means Co-curricularly Cool: Night Jaunt

2009 marks the last year of my 'Double C' life, so I decide to continue my annual practice of staying at school for the nights during consecutive days of co-curricular activities. Not even the recent rule that forbids us students to sleep at school without permission could deny me. So, I found a couple of friends with the same interests, and we spent a total of 3 nights out at school. Here's a day-by-day recap of the three things happened during our jaunt:

Day 1:
The Good - "No pain, no gain". I learned what its like to sleep just two hours in the night. We spent the rest of it playing basketball in semi-darkness, walking for miles until our slipper-clad feet had blisters, and listened to music from MP3 players and handphones until I doze off at 5 and woke up 7 in the morning .
The Bad - Even after I fell asleep, I still woke up every 15 minutes or so by the sting of mosquitoes. Those buggers won't leave my bare shins alone!
The Ugly - We were spotted by an assistant headmaster on our way out of school at 10pm - he made the guards note down our names when we came back. What effect this may have, I do not know until school reopens.

Day 2:
The Good - Caught up on some sleep. Man, I really went off to dreamland the milisecond lights are off and my head touches my makeshift pillow. We also had the best meal amongst the nights, which is counted a feast when you considered the limited choices we have in camp mealfare.
The Bad - Half of my friends I counted on to bunker at school went home instead. They're too tired to survive another "wild night out", and I was too tired to argue.

Day 3:
The Good - Participated in the School Youth Camp campfire. Our unit added the Best Performance Award as the first outside trophy in many years to our cabinet, thanks to our live band performers (who'd only practice for about 5 hours).
The Bad - Really lousy weather. It rained so hard we didn't get to recieve the award in a formal prize-giving ceremony. The campfire had been called off at about 10.30 pm due to the torrent.
The Cute - Found a real live bat hanging on a section of the ceilling as I walked under that section of a corridor. Apparently the little thing got stranded in the rain and seeked shelter under a nook to wait until the storm went away.

There you have it. Call me an uneccessary risk-taker if you will, but I'm enjoying every illegal moment of my night jaunt at school.

Compassion in Basketball - Read it, Then Pass it Around

Got this on Yahoo! some time ago, but was busy so I dropped it. Now being a permanent post on my blog, hope this will give you some thought after reading.

The coach never considered any other option.

It didn't matter that his DeKalb, Ill., High School basketball team had ridden a bus two and a half hours to get to Milwaukee, then waited another hour past game time to play. Didn't matter that the game was close, or that this was a chance to beat a big city team.

Johntel Franklin scored 10 points in the game following the loss of his mother.Something else was on Dave Rohlman's mind when he asked for a volunteer to shoot two free throws awarded his team on a technical foul in the second quarter. His senior captain raised his hand, ready to go to the line as he had many times before.

Only this time it was different.

"You realize you're going to miss them, don't you?" Rohlman said.

Darius McNeal nodded his head. He understood what had to be done.

It was a Saturday night in February, and the Barbs were playing a non-conference game on the road against Milwaukee Madison. It was the third meeting between the two schools, who were developing a friendly rivalry that spanned two states.

The teams planned to get together after the game and share some pizzas and soda. But the game itself almost never took place.

Hours earlier, the mother of Milwaukee Madison senior captain Johntel Franklin died at a local hospital. Carlitha Franklin had been in remission after a five-year fight with cervical cancer, but she began to hemorrhage that morning while Johntel was taking his college ACT exam.

Her son and several of his teammates were at the hospital late that afternoon when the decision was made to turn off the life-support system. Carlitha Franklin was just 39.

"She was young and they were real close," said Milwaukee coach Aaron Womack Jr., who was at the hospital. "He was very distraught and it happened so suddenly he didn't have time to grieve."

Womack was going to cancel the game, but Franklin told him he wanted the team to play. And play they did, even though the game started late and Milwaukee Madison dressed only eight players.

Early in the second quarter, Womack saw someone out of the corner of his eye. It was Franklin, who came there directly from the hospital to root his teammates on.

The Knights had possession, so Womack called a time out. His players went over and hugged their grieving teammate. Fans came out of the stands to do the same.

"We got back to playing the game and I asked if he wanted to come and sit on the bench," Womack said during a telephone interview.

"No," Franklin replied. "I want to play."

There was just one problem. Since Franklin wasn't on the pre-game roster, putting him in meant drawing a technical foul that would give DeKalb two free throws.

Though it was a tight game, Womack was willing to give up the two points. It was more important to help his senior guard and co-captain deal with his grief by playing.

Over on the other bench, though, Rohlman wasn't so willing to take them. He told the referees to forget the technical and just let Franklin play.

"I could hear them arguing for five to seven minutes, saying, `We're not taking it, we're not taking it," Womack said. "The refs told them, no, that's the rule. You have to take them."

That's when Rohlman asked for volunteers, and McNeal's hand went up.

He went alone to the free throw line, dribbled the ball a couple of times, and looked at the rim.

His first attempt went about two feet, bouncing a couple of times as it rolled toward the end line. The second barely left his hand.

It didn't take long for the Milwaukee players to figure out what was going on.

They stood and turned toward the DeKalb bench and started applauding the gesture of sportsmanship. Soon, so did everybody in the stands.

"I did it for the guy who lost his mom," McNeal told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. "It was the right thing to do."

"They may not remember our record 20 years from now, but they'll remember what happened in that gym that night," said Dave Rohlman, head coach of the opposing DeKalb team on what his players will take away from this experience.

Franklin would go on to score 10 points, and Milwaukee Madison broke open the game in the second half to win 62-47. Afterward, the teams went out for pizza, two players from each team sharing each pie.

Franklin stopped by briefly, thankful that his team was there for him.

"I got kind of emotional but it helped a lot just to play," he said. "I felt like I had a lot of support out there."

Basketball is a second sport for the 18-year-old Franklin, who says he has had some scholarship nibbles and plans to play football in college. He just has a few games left for the Knights, who are 6-11 and got beat 71-36 Tuesday night by Milwaukee Hamilton.

It hasn't been the greatest season for the team, but they have stuck together through a lot of adversity.

"We maybe don't have the best basketball players in the world but they go to class and take care of business," Womack said. "We have a losing record but there's life lessons going on, good ones."
None so good, though, as the moment a team and a player decided there were more important things than winning and having good stats.

Yes, DeKalb would go home with a loss. But it was a trip they'll never forget.

"This is something our kids will hold for a lifetime," Rohlman said. "They may not remember our record 20 years from now, but they'll remember what happened in that gym that night."

Son: A True CNY Story

I had bore witness to this touching experience on two days before Chinese New Year, and decided to tell it to you. Please bear with me if I cannot portray the story well, and please, reflect on it for just a few moments when you finished.

There was an elderly lady, who had worked hard all her life to raise her children. Now, she desires to live in a Buddhist temple with the nun and the other old tenants, rather than staying at home all day with nothing to do, having boredom gnawing at her. Her son, wanting only happiness for his mother, obliged. He would spend every weekend afternoon taking his family to visit her. In a way, the lady was content.

This went on for some months, until the eve of Chinese New Year was around the corner. Wanting to spend the New Year with his mother, he had arranged and convinced the lady to stay with his wife's family and celebrate the New Year together. The lady agreed, much to his family's delight.

However, when the day came, the old lady had a change of mind. She declined the offer to go, saying, "I'm old now, too frail for traveling. Let me spend the New Year in here instead, where it'll be more peaceful and quiet. Go, go without me. I am content here." Dismayed, her son tried to talk her to go, but the lady persisted. Her grandson, the eldest of the man, aided his father in the attempt, but to no avail. When the leading nun of the temple joined in to the lady's side, both father and son knew that they are losing the battle.

The lady's son finally conceded. Wishing his mother a happy Chinese New Year, he turned to prepare his family for the journey to his in-laws place. The eldest grandson thought he glimpsed tears in his father's eyes, and his heart was filled with sorrow. During the moment when both father and son were alone, the shy teen stepped up and wanted to hug his father, for nothing more than silent comfort, but he hesitated, and the moment passed.

Silently, the boy vowed never to have the same dilemma to ever happen to his own parents, for their sake, and his own. He glanced back one more time to his grandmother as they departed, eyes stinging because of the tears he held back.

Here was a son who cannot fulfilled his wish of having his own mother spending Chinese New Year with him. Would you spend more time with your own parents if you had the choice?

Never been Better

Again, its the time of the year when I'd get to ignore my main occupation and focus instead on my secondary work with all impunity. Te fact that this year marks the final test of the second study stage of my life makes no significance to me at all. To me, the impact will only hit after April, when the dust of battles have settled down. So, lets get our hands dirty, guys.

Twice a week, we stayed back after school and drilled while the rays of the sun rained down on us non-stop. Every evening, we went back home feeling exhausted, yet adrenaline would pushed us on to continue our studies with vigour. Basically, we're living on steroids produced by our own bodies, fueled by exhilaration and the determination to succeed in the upcoming battle.

Does it matter when our feet got roasted in our shoes while we stand motionless? Does it matter when our hands burn on the tarmac road? Does it matter when we cheer ourselves hoarse in a fit of narcissism? Well, maybe it tugs at our conscience for a few minutes, but in the end, we'd knew it'll be worth it all, just to be part of it, when the time comes.

This is where we belonged, as we are finding and proving ourselves in this gruelling preparation. We knew for certain that when the dust settles, we'll have to wage another kind of battle on our own. But we will look back to this moment in the forseeable future, as we remember the victory - even if we should fail in the end - brought by the sweat on our brow, and the strength of our backs, with pride.