Wednesday, January 31, 2007
There I arrived, 630pm at Kallang MRT.
I wasn't alone. The whole of Singapore arrived in full force, donning red shirts, flags and scarfs around them.
It was a pleasant sight. All Singaporeans coming together, heading towards the Grand Lady of Kallang before it would be removed to make way for the new Sports Hub in the later years..
so after 1 hour of waiting for my friends, i frantically called my other friend at the stadium, waiting for us. Hardcore he was. 'WHERE ARE YOU ALL?! IM GONNA MISS THE NATIONAL ANTHEM WALAU EHHH!!!!' he blasted through the earpiece in my phone. ' RELAC ONE CORNER LA YOU, WE COMING CAN?!'
'NO CANNOT!! I DIDNT COME AT 630PM FOR NOTHING!!'
wow, 630pm. the guy was really hardcore.
so after navigating through a mad sea of supporters, we got to the meeting place where my friend donned a blue Spore jersey, jumping up and down. He handed us the tics and went through a separate gate and lead us to our 'booked' seats.
However, the inner gates started closing. My hardcore friend started arguing with officials to let him (and us) in but to no avail. So after walking around in circles in a packed Kallang stadium for a whole 2o mins, we finally got to our seats. And good seats they were. Right smack in the centre, middle section. Perfect view.
in a way it was good. 10 mins after our seats, Singapore scored.
and we erupted like mad people who havent eaten in a 10 years.
another friend called and I had to go back to the gate to hand him his ticket. It involved asking an official to remember my face and my Man Utd jersey to get through a blocked route.
anyway, back to the match.
The Thais were wimps, going down at every other challenge.
We, the fans, shouted with frustration.
'BUTOOOOOOOOOO!'
'REF, YOU F***IN CB! OPEN YOUR F***IN EYES!!'
'REFEREE KAYUUUUUU!'
and booing of every thai player coming to take a corner kick.
but then, thailand equalised.
Spore fans screamed at a foul committed beforehand, the Thai fans didnt give a shit.
But in reality, we all knew Singapore was getting trashed at the counterattack.
Our bloody slow centre back was causing our team problems and our long ball tactics werent working.
until the 82nd minute, things turned.
Whether it was a fall or a trip, the ref pointed to the spot in the Thai box.
PENALTY!
55,000 (excluding thais) jumped up and hi-5ed each other, joy all around.
And then, the Thai players all one by one walked out.
WTF?! was the expression on everyone's faces.
intrigued, I rung up my friend who was watching the game at home.
Apparently, the childish Thais were fed up with the ref's unfair decision (and decisions throughout the game) and walked out.
Heck, even their coach was asking them to do so!
In all my years of watching, I never once witnessed such unprofessional, unsportsmanlike behaviour.
The fans were clearly incense.
'SAWADICARP CHEESEBUN!'
'BELIT KAMPUNG!'
'F*** OFF THAILAND!'
Those chants continued for 15 long minutes until things settled down and the Thai players got on the field.
We boo'ed them and then quickly hushed for the penalty...
...GOAL! 2-1!!
We were leading em' Thais again!!
and for 9 mins, every Thai player that touched the ball got boo'ed to no end.
At the final whistle, we made our voices heard.
The last match at kallang ended in a victory, no matter how contraversial, over the dominating leaders in the region.
we still have the 2nd leg, but damn it feels bloody good to beat a strong team on home turf.
as we walked out, brothers alike hi-5ed each other.
people stood on bikes and waved the flag.
man, 2 bucks for a tic for a worthwhile match.
i'll have this stuck in my head for a longass time.
if u didnt watch the match, shame on you.
that's the only time one can truely be Singaporean.
well, u can make up for it. the 2nd leg's this wkend or next week.
we're on Thai turf, but to the fans travelling, let your voices be heard.
SINGAPORE 2 THAILAND 1
WOOT!
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Sidney Sheldon, best selling author, has passed away at the age of 89.
I've read his books and its a pity.
rest in peace dude.
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woot!
my mail, for the 3rd time, has gotten in the mailbox of F365.com!
http://www.football365.com/mailbox/story/0,17033,8744_1884458,00.html <-copy and paste
The 2nd post
Tuesday, January 30, 2007
Singapore V Thailand tonight!
All you Sporeans! Get off your bums and support our Country!!
(and yes to all to the ignorant people, we have a soccer team.)
this teh onli time, other than national parade, to be truely Sporean!
cmon man! Turn on Ch5 tonight at 8pm and scream ref kayu ok?
promise ah?
Saturday, January 27, 2007
chalet's over. t'was quite fun, but from this,
i know, i no longer belong.
sorry to say, but you've already lost me.
i wont be coming back.
the reason for me going, u see, to whether there would be an effort made.
nope.
Tuesday, January 23, 2007
sick sick sick. right at the tail end of it. gahh..
and i have a chalet on friday. darn it, i hope i recover by then.
Sunday, January 21, 2007
gutted, stunned, aghast, shocked, shell-shocked, flabbergasted, bamboozled.
gahh. i hate monday blues.
the only thing disappointing about the entire weekend thus far..
was timing out.. and thus, probably broken the trust.
im very sorry.
Thursday, January 18, 2007
woot the weekend is here.
for footie fans, the big 4 play this weekend. so scream your lungs out, drink and be merry and support your team wholeheartedly.
but dont go sprawling to work on Monday with a hangover haha.
anyway... 18 weeks have officially past. cant believe it once again.
just like that, im about to graduate from poly. its unbelievable.
Yeah, unbelievable. I'm going to be bald soon..........
WELL PRIOR TO THAT, there are some things I wish to do.
1) Do some part time work. I dont wanna end up like that 17 year old kid who went around with a laptop and tap into unsecured wireless networks in his neighbourhoods to play online games. (read the ST... Home section. errr... Wednesday issue. 17 Jan)
2) Travel alone for a week and a half. The original plan was for a month, but being realistic, I'll be wishing for food after a week has passed. SINGAPORE FOOD!
3) Drive. nuff' said.
hang in there guys.
Saturday, January 13, 2007
-upload complete-
-logging off-
The mission was done. Now all that was left was for Otacon to properly send them through the proper channels..
Just 2 crates away, the marine commandant was about to wrap up his speech. Snake knew he had to act quickly. As soon as the speech was over, the marines would report back to their previous posts..
posts that had been taken over by Gurlukovich's men.
Hell would break loose.
Snake hid behind a wall and formulised an escape route...
sneaking from deep within in the tanker holds to the surface wasnt going to be easy..
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'We the Marines will lead the charge into a new world order with Metal Gear RAY.
That is all. Dismissed.'
Scott Dolph Jackson breathed out a sigh of relief. It had been a long day. The Marines below him had to be briefed upon on what the higher ups had discussed for the coming future. Not that he detested it, but it took him away from the shores of his family life. It had been weeks since he laid eyes on his daughter..
The Marines stood to attention and saluted with conviction. Dolph returned the gesture.
Home....
at long last.
Then he heard the sound of clapping.
sarcastic clapping.
He looked at his Marines, expecting one of them to be mocking him.
However, still in their saluting position, they all appeared as confused as him.
'Excellent speech, my friend.' a voice in heavy russian spoke out.
Dolph turned to his left to see a figure walking from behind RAY.
'Who the?!'
He strained his eyes and was amazed by what he saw.
An old man, probably in his late sixities, walking briskly towards him. His hair was tied back and he donned a brown trenchcoat. He continued clapping...
'Gift of the silver tongue. They say its a mark of a good officer...'
and he stopped.
'... and of a liar. Americans are too in love with their own voice to speak the truth.'
Dolph didnt know who the mad russian was, but he clearly saw him as threat.
'Identify yourself.'
Several Marines quickly rushed to his side and covered him from the front. They trained their m16s on the intruder...
The old russian smirked.
'I am Shalashaska! Also known as Revolver --'
Snake didnt need to know the rest.
' -- Ocelot,' he mumbled, just as his former adversary declared his names to the Marines.
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Flashbacks of Shadow Moses came flooding into Snake's mind. It had been 2 long years since he traded fire with the revolver specialist in the secret base on the island. After he had escaped, Snake had no news of what happened to Ocelot. Whether he was dead...
... or alive.
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'What do you want?
Dolph demanded.
'This machine will be quite useful,'
Ocelot confidently spreaded his arms wide and looked at RAY.
'What are you planning to do? Steal this thing?!'
Dolph questioned with authority.
Ocelot shook his head.
'Steal? No, no, I'm taking it back'.
Out of his sight, Snake stole a quick glance at Ocelot. His last few words puzzled him.
Taking it back?
This was getting interesting. Snake hastily hid behind another crate so that he could have a better view of the events unfolding before his eyes...
...and right on time.
He saw a hand reaching out for the commandant. And then it grabbed him and the next thing he saw was a gun pressing against his head.
It was Colonel Sergei Gurlukovich.
'The colonel!..' Snake thought.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sergei held his gun and moved a few protective steps backwards with his hostage. The Marines guarding their commandant cursed that they had not anticipated such a backhand tactic.
'Nobody move! Understood?'
Ocelot spoke in a threatening manner.
He stepped onto the platform the commandant was on and took out a device from his pocket. The cameras that were broadcasting the earlier speech zoomed on it.
Meanwhile, the other Marines in other parts of the holds began to panick.
'This ship now carries enough SEMTEX on its key structural points to blow it out of the water - at the touch of this button'.
Upon hearing it, some of the Marines pointing their rifles at Ocelot began to retreat in their steps...
Ocelot smiled. His plan was almost complete.
'That's right... no one has to die needlessly.'
A few seconds later, Sergei's men rappelled from the ceiling to their positions. As a unit, they quickly moved to cover him and Ocelot.
Ocelot signalled for a few men to undo the ropes that were holding down RAY.
'We're almost at the target. Get a move on!'
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Dolph and his men stood where there were, watching haplessly as the hijackers obtained RAY. Trained military professionals, in just a split second, were hostages.
But Dolph couldn't understand why. Was RAY that important?
He had to find answers.
'What do you intend to do with RAY? Sell it on the streets?'
He asked Gurlukavich, his gun still fixed in his right temple.
'I was raised in Snezhinsk, formerly known as Chelyabinsk-70, the nuclear research about'
Gurlukovich replied.
Dolph clearly didn't see the link.
'What are you talking about?'
'After the Cold War ended, my home was bought out by the Americans'
Gurlukovich continued.
'........is there a point to this sad story?'
Dolph winced as the gun pressed harder against his temple.
'Not that YOU would understand. Land, friends, dignity... all sold to the highest bidder -- the United States of America. Even the technology that gave birth to these weapons is Russian, developed by us!'
Gurlukovich said with much anger and hatred in his voice.
'So what you intend to do?'
Dolph asked and then felt Gurlukovich breathing heavily down his neck.
'Russia WILL RISE again. And RAY is the key'
'I regret to inform you that I have no intention of selling Metal Gear. As I said, I came to take it back.'
Gurlukovich and Dolph looked on as Ocelot walked a few steps before revealing his true intention.
'Yes returned. To the Patriots!'
Dolph was stunned.
Them...
'the la-li-lu-le-lo! how's that possible?!
Dolph couldnt complete his sentence before he felt the restraint on him grew tighter.
'Ocelot! You! Have you sold us out?!!'
Gurlukovich snarled, hardly believing what his soon-to-be former ally had just said.
'I was never in your employ, Gurlukovich....'
Ocelot retorted.
'Are you still in league with Solidus??'
Sergei had begun to see the fuller picture.
'No hard feelings, Colonel. Mother Russia can ROT for all I care'
Ocelot had confirmed Sergei's question.
The old war dog's plans of restoring his country had shattered.
'Since WHEN ocelot? WHEN did you turn?'
'I'm glad you noticed comrade. I 'abandoned' her during the Cold War. Metal Gear only has room for one! Gurlukovich! You and your daughter will die here.'
Ocelot said as he turned around, a sly smile on his wily face.
Sergei's fury could not be contained any longer, having been fuelled by the sudden betrayal.
'DAMN YOU!!'
Using Dolph as his shield, Sergei released him from his grasp and shoved him forward..
..just as Ocelot removed his trench-coat into the air, between him and his 'former' comrade.
'DIE YOU DOG!!' Sergei shouted in exasperation.
Both russians readied their guns and unloaded their rounds at each other with lightning speed. Bullets ripped through Ocelot's trench-coat as everyone in the hold heard 6 shots being fired...
... and then silence...
..before Dolph collapsed, clutching his right knee. Behind him, Sergei let out a painful cry and sunk to his knees. Two wounds were clearly seen on his chest...
Ocelot dropped his empty Single Action Army to the floor as he smirked.
'Sergei! Looks like you were long overdue for retirement.'
In between a mouthful of blood, Sergei rebutted his final words..
'Traitorous dog!............'
Six of Sergei's troops immediately turned the attention to his killer. They drew their AK-74us and got ready to fire..
they never did.
Quick as a flash, Ocelot drew his second Single Action Army out of his holster. Twirling in a quick circle, he unloaded each bullet into each soldier.
As the soldiers slumped to the floor lifeless, Ocelot reached for the detonator that he had shown to the Marines earlier on..
'Show's over! If you wish to live, I suggest you run now! This ship is still in the Lower New York harbour! You may yet make it to shore if you swim for your life!'
And with that, Ocelot pressed the button.
Instantly, the blasts of the SEMTEX all around the tanker killed nearby marines and punctured the hull of the ship. As huge volumes of water began pouring in relentlessly, everyone in the hold scrambled.
Ocelot took advantage of the chaos and quickly made his way to the upper platform of the hold. The walkway to Metal Gear RAY was the only obstacle left from accomplishing his mission.
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I have to stop him.
Snake emerged from his hiding place and rushed towards Ocelot with his M9 readied.
'OCELOT!' Snake prepared himself for a showdown..
His former adversary turned around... but a strange thing followed.
Just as Ocelot fixed his eyes on Snake, he felt his right arm twitching. And then it spasmed out of control...
'AARRrgghhhhh!!'
Ocelot broke out in cold sweat as he grabbed his right arm. He felt his mind swirling and swirling...
...before he straightened up.
'It's been a while, brother.'
Snake couldn't believe it. Ocelot had just spoken in a british accent.
An all too familiar british accent.
'Who are you?' Snake questioned.
'You know who I am'
Snake dug deeper into his mind before he realised who it really was.
'Liquid..?'
but how?
Memories of his ardous battles with his twin brother, Liquid Snake, on Shadow Moses began flooding Snake once again...
'Not so young anymore eh, Snake? You're drowning in time. I know what it's like, brother. No wonder Naomi passed you over for the FOXDIE program'
Snake was too stunned to reply before Ocelot's right arm began twitching again...
'Aarr.......... GET OUT of my mind!!... Liquid!!'
Ocelot bit his arm in an attempt to force Liquid out of his mind. But it was to no avail as Liquid regained control.
'The price of physical prodigy. Few more years and you'll be another dead clone of the old man. Our raw materials are vintage, brother. Big Boss was in his late fifties when they created his copies. But I..'
Ocelot (Liquid) raised his right arm...
'... I live on, through this arm!'
'Liquid's arm?' Snake muttered, still as confused.
But he had no time to collect his thoughts as an explosion nearby knocks him into the water.
Liquid used the opportunity to cross the walkway and jump into the cockpit of RAY. Just a few seconds later, RAY became fully operational.
Meanwhile, Snake burst to the surface. Gasping for air, he began swimming towards the upper platform.
'You don't have what it takes after all! You're going down, SNAKE! WITH THIS TANKER!!'
Snake barely had time to dodge as he felt the full force of RAY's leg slamming against him. He flew a considerable distance before he hit the wall and got knocked out.
Meanwhile, the remaining Marines in the tanker hold had decided to stop RAY with their lives. They began firing relentlessly with their M-16s, both bullets and grenades. But the small firearms were absolutely useless against the colossal machine.
Liquid spun RAY around and without much effort, used its gigantic mechanical legs and crushes the Marines surrounded it. He didnt took notice of Snake in the corner, who had just regained consciousness...
Snake stood groggily to his feet and surveyed the scene. A long night it had been.. it was going to be even longer. Snake reached for his codec..
'Otacon, we have a problem...'
Sunday, January 07, 2007
can u smell it? can u?
because I can.
I can smell 4 more weeks.
Monday, January 01, 2007
here comes that reflective post. too tired to do it last night but meh, i'll do it now.
let's see.... 2006.
Well I guess 2006 signalled the start of the final year in poly. Looking back, time really really zooms past you.. when you're having 'fun'. Now this 'fun' consists of alot of things. They include the bitchiest moment, the very lows and as well as the damn high points. 2006 was full of em like I never experienced.
The modules I took in school were demanding, no matter how slack they appeared to be. Be it lugging around a vid camera or the manuel SLR, it was tiring. Scribbling notes during interviews with my interviewees and then tryin to weave a newsworthy stories - whew.
This year saw me going as an intern for Starhub, writing content for their World Cup website in which this megabig event happened in June. I had alot of fun writing the very thing I have immense passion for and enjoying every moment of it. Spending overnights in the office watching with my fellow Starhub colleagues was swell. Ordering Macs in the middle of 3am and then growing tired of it to the desperate attempts to stay awake... haha all good fun.
other than workwise, 2006 showed me the true definition of friends.
i knew of a certain guy who I was told by others, to keep my distance. And u know social psycho works, when someone tells u to stay away from someone, u automatically think that this someone's not one to interact.
i had exactly the same thoughts and it fell flat on my face. Cos I was actually glad to get to know this person. This person turned out to be a total opposite. Misunderstood by people. Never given a chance. well, your loss people. Cos this person aint what you think. And this person really taught me the lesson of not judging one too quickly. Impressions count, but it takes effort to get to the bottom of the matter.
And then... I met another friend who really fits the definition of a true friend. I'm very glad to have met this friend.. so glad that I'm gonna meet this gem.
and there are other friends that I've met this year in which im grateful for.. as well as those who I have met in poly year 1. These friendships have gratefully remained steady and i hope it will remained that way for a long time. Its things like this that make u ignore the past, cos the present's what counts.
well 2007's here, like in my previous post, its a new chapter for many of us. I'm gonna shape it into a good one.
and hope u guys will too. have faith, cos that's important. dont let go, dont lose sight, keep going.
there's a light in each and everyone of us..
it will never go out, as long as you have faith.
peace.
