Memoir (Childhood)

Just seen someone talking about his childhood, reminding me a lot here, so here I am. Before I forget more of them.

I have not had much memory about my pre-kindergarten life. I remember living in the second floor of a pretty old house facing the street, when mum cooks in the kitchen I would usually be put on a cane chair surrounded by a table tennis net. I remember I often fall off that chair and got my head hit on the floor, then no doubt started crying. I remember I play often in a neighbour's house and sometimes have dinner with them. Mum told me it was because they are worried that I often fall and took me there while she's cooking.

I have no memory of my first kindergarten but mum told me it was pretty sad memory to her, that when she picks me up after work she often found me tied on a urinal because there are too many children that the workers are too busy to take care of everyone.

When I grow up a bit to like 4 or 5, I was transferred to another kindergarten, and lived there. I remembered crying every Monday morning and finally found that it is actually more like a ritual than real mourn. I was special in that kindergarten. Everyone takes a nap in the afternoon according to the timetable but I could seldom sleep in the light. The teachers/nurses in the kindergarten would then tells tales to me or make me help them a little bit sometimes when other children are sleeping.

And I was even special in terms that I was like a star at the moment. I was acting in various commercials at the time, and once attended a fashion show last for months. And there was a time that I went to Jiangxi for a film shooting and stayed there for like one month, but the film is eventually abandoned because the scenario didn't pass the censoring. I remembered the weather was extremely hot that we have to pour water outside our doors to ease it, whereas the watermelons there are fabulous and incredibly cheap.

Yes, they are all memories now. Memories fade, don't want it that quickly though.

Funny Stuff I'm Using Online

Well, just don't think I'm advertising something, I don't get a cent for this... And I'm actually wondering why do I not ask for a pay spending that time...

Midomi
Ever get into a condition that you can only remember to hum a fragment of a song and real wish to know what song is that? How about just humming it on the search engine of Midomi and it will find out what song it is for you? Sound amazing? Give it a try!
It is a problem though, it cannot have every single song on it as it is only a beta version, it is improving anyway. PLUS, you can actually sing it your way, sing your favourite songs and save it on there and hopefully they would help someone else to find what they had forgotten!
I hope one day I could use visions to search though, I know I am asking for a lot.

Google Docs
Google didn't seem to be advertising hard on this feature. It is simple, works well though. The idea is to get rid of stuff like Office and Acrobat in your hard disk taking up spaces counting in G's and expensive licenses while you don't actually need those fancy but useless and puzzling help pages, eyed paper clips jumping there on custody of every single letter you type and having some rubbish to tell you every now or the sluggish processing speed, while work on the same document on any computer with internet connection without saving them onto those easily lost (both themselves and the data inside) thumb drives. There is one function that I really like which is change any documents into PDF format, protecting them from being changed after publishing, shame that they cannot be changed back though...
I regarded myself really wise for payed merely A$75 (It is still a pretty generous offer till now although it is for students only) for a Microsoft Office 2007 Ultimate license forever while that offer comes, and I think I'm even bit of regret now. All I need is Word, Excel and Powerpoint, which is only one third of the main components of the package, and Google Docs is providing all I need!

VerveEarth
A pretty new blog category website, while blogs are marked on a world map where the owner is and fed onto the user profile page.
It is a new idea but the icons seem too clustered in the city area which means it is less possible for a blog whose owner lives in the city to be viewed than the ones by suburban or country owners. This game is not very fair, luckily mine is not too affected :P I don't think it drove lots of people here though because it is not yet that popular itself.

Don't Ever Say That

NOOO! Please don't say that, I can never imagine a world without you.
I know I was alive for some many years before I met you, I cannot go back to that. You changed me, permanently. You must understand that, I can't.
You are the one that I know I would never stop thinking of. I think of you in those sleepless nights, I cry to your small picture in my wallet when I have grievance that I could tell no one, I wish I could share with you when there is suddenly some light in the dullness of my life.
I'll be there whatever you become and whatever tough situation you are in, willing to hold you in my arms and do whatever it takes, just to see you smile again.

Wii Fit

Yep I got it right at the release day (again). Walking on the the street with it makes myself feel like a large mobile commercial banner that everyone looks at you... What's worse, I was in whole black that day while the box is white... It was pretty embarrassing I have to say...

It was exciting yet depressing as I was rated overweight... Not too bad though...

The exercises exhausting, especially the jogging one... And the yoga poses are pretty hard... I couldn't keep stable while standing on one feet, especially that tree position... My legs suffer quite a lot after two days workout and I decided to skip it for today...

The fun side, hula hoop is hilarious, especially when you lean forward to catch another one, and got it hit right at your forehead... The best I could do is with four hoops currently... And the step game is pretty fun, especially the plus one.

I don't think I'm ever gonna play that push up game as you know the balance board is for stepping on, I don't wanna kiss it anyway...

Well last but not least, I found myself suck at those balance games... especially that football one and the tilt table... I was always overreacting... So weird...

Tiësto!

Went to the show last night, it was BIG! And I still have a physical sore throat now and my ears are still humming!

The first hour was not actually him but a bald DJ who know who he is... I can't be sure of that by then as I actually can't recall Tiësto's face, just his music, and no Tiësto's tracks were preformed during that. I found that guy pretty crap and starts to get bit of disappointed, until fireworks are blooming and Tiësto shows up and I realize that one's a real crap and should begin to get high from now.

Elements of Life, Just Be, In the Dark and then Traffic! Blockbuster tracks are on in the first hour that heats up everyone in there. When 'Hello Melbourne' is shown on screen everybody is hands up and screaming like crazy! But it was programmed that the next screen must be 'I can't hear you!', and they are no doubt even crazier.

Dance for Life is up and the screen play is about fighting AIDS something, and called for dance for life to fight AIDS... Well, dance is cool but I feel hilarious about the idea that this would be any help to people suffering from the disease... Or maybe it was talking about some of the money would go for the fund? Anyway people got heated up again.

The next few hours are a bit bored, although the music is still loud and people still high, that seems to be remaining of the first pulse. I turned out playing with the laser beams...

It was just past 11:00 that we were talking about leaving, and we are glad that we finally didn't! Flight 643 and Lethal Industry, both vintage wonders of Tiësto are on! And then there's a vocal track that everyone knows and follows loud but I don't and I feel real weird...

My favourite track on his new album was He's A Pirate, but this doesn't show up until the encore session and the dry ice up the front is jetting all the way to exhaustion. People is so high and so loud and all the lights are on and crazy.

After that there was some tracks never hear, maybe unreleased ones performed, when it all goes down to loops but still not to the very end we left and found ourselves too tired for the after party, just home and sleep then~

A pretty memorable event though.

Down

Don't want to see you like that... I know this world is not always fair, when it turns its back to you, what you should do is not turn your back to it but turn it back, or , if not possible, go around and face it.

You might lose everything, but you will never lose me at your side, and always there for you.

Explosion

Time to look back what I've done this week...

Monday, stats homework after 4 hours of prac and 2 hours of lectures on campus.
Tuesday, spent almost whole day on revising for the Food Chemistry mid-term.
Wednesday, well kind of relaxed after the exam, but found my bike stolen... Watched the end of skins and grieved for the change in staff for the next season.
Thursday, went shopping then whole day on assignments, resulted one finished and handed in, one from a third to halfway and one had not started.
Friday, which was today, changed the air ticket back to China in July and kind of wish to continue on the halfway assignment and maybe try to start the next one... Nothing done until now though...

Everything just seems coming out from nowhere, and I was real exhausted in handling with them...

Help.

This boy

Well, no matter whether a ten-year-old boy would understand what he's singing, he did touched me with his powerful voice and the call in the lyrics for conscience of the world.
Problem is, this seemed kind of commercialized as the singer seems to be too 'professional' in performing rather than to expressing what he really cares through this song.

Tiësto's Show, My Trance Story

7:00pm May 1st, Festival Hall, West Melbourne.

He's touring in Melbourne! And I managed to get tickets for it!

I should've got the May 2nd one and I was so regretful of I didn't... And neddless to say it's already sold out...

I've known him from "Lethal Industry" and "Magik" in the velfarre Cyber Trance series back in my high school days. Although that one is real impressive, I didn't recognize him as good among a bunch of world-honored artists like Ferry Corsten, Darren Tate, Barthezz, Above and Beyond, Svenson and Gilelen, Balloon, Yoji Biomehanika etc etc. Well you may think none of the above is comparable with Tiësto except Ferry Corsten nowadays, those are the first recognized trance artists by me anyway as their works are just too fantastic to forget. And yes these ones that I regard are almost all from Belgium and Netherlands, as you might have noticed.

After some extended and in-depth listening I started to recognize artists from other European countries, along with a long list of Mauro Picotto, Paul van Dyk, Mike Koglin, Ramon Zenker (Fragma), Groove Coverage, Lab 4, Future Breeze etc, and of course some more artists from Belgium and Netherlands like PUSH, Minimalistix and, Tiësto.

"Traffic" is the piece that made Tiësto the first-order DJ's that I regard. Groove, energetic and impulsive, all the factors you will ever need to perfect a trance and make it an unforgettable one. I'd been humming the theme for several days after the first time I hear that. And, it is until now, one of the best ever trance I've heard, along with "Sunlight" by DJ Sammy, "The Beauty of Silence" by Svenson and Gielen, "Ligaya" by Gouryella and "Look @ the Heaven" by Yoji Biomehanika etc. I desperately wish this one will appear on the show!

"Elements of Life" is his latest album, and I think I am yet to hear enough to give a comment, but for my first impression, this one is calmer and not as passionate except the last track "He's a Pirate". I have to admit that I'm bit of disappointed... But anyway I hope I will have fun on the show. No matter how I feel of the new release, the tickets' more than worth it as long as I hear "Traffic" live.

Dream

I dreamed of you again...

It was like in some kind of school, where you and me walked together in the corridor. It was pretty crowded at that moment. You saw a man waking towards you and you suddenly become confounded, dragged me out of the way and to a quiet place. You look extremely collapsed.

I tried to ask what happened, but you don't seem willing to tell. At last you murmured, that was my ex.

I was yelling "How could you?" in my dream but "I knew it" after I was awake. Although I don't recognize that man at all.

Well, I wouldn't be surprised, but I would surely be pretty pissed if it really happens.

Even if I knew it.

skins

I can't believe I watched the whole first season of skins last night... It doesn't seem that interesting but it kept me going anyway. And I started downloading the second season although it's not finished yet. What pissed me off is that the Episode 5 is finished while Episode 1 is far from it...

Tony plays tricks and cheats on everyone but he's still the undeniable, well, only among the characters inside I mean, and at last he's got almost no friends. He deserves that embarrassment as a return of what he did though. By the way I like his quilt~:P

Sid lives in the shadow of Tony. Well I didn't realized he's red-haired until it comes to the episode named after himself and see how he looks without that characteristic cap... Well he's like Alex in Roswell, one goes to him when they are in trouble and he takes it no matter whether he's able to and usually end up with himself in trouble. The only virgin there I guess?

The episode about Chris is probably the best in this season, I regard Chris as just an acidhead who likes flirting with his psycho teacher... And he's actually lot more than that...

Maxxie is of course my favourite character in this show although the episode named Maxxie is the crappiest(Russia? Saving that girl? They are completely nothing to do with Maxxie!)... Well who knows why I fancy all characters named Max(of course that one in Roswell)... And he's so caring to take Tony's fault onto himself just to reuniting Tony and Michelle, failed though.

Cassie, well pretty good looking girl though kind of suffering from some lunacy symptom, I like her way of saying "Wow that's cool" or "totally" though~

Michelle, pretty pleased she's finally able to deny Tony. A pretty nasty girl actually, although she was not able fight that "grand swear" from Abby.

Anwar, Muslim boy, but parties hard and lost his virginity to that unknown Russian woman... He managed to grab her heart at last though.

Jal, genius musician. I still don't get what that instrument is called though LOL~ I am not that pro referring those orchestra stuff...

Declare Independence!

Heard Björk's been in trouble for claiming for Tibet independence in her Shanghai Concert, crying "Tibet Tibet!" instead of "Higher higher!" after "Raise your flag" in her new song "Declare Independence". This had been a great offense to the Party and she might be probably banned from China. Reuters reported that Chinese Ministry of Culture will make sure the upcoming shows of foreign artists be "pilitically correct", which I really cannot help bursting into laughter. That was like so alien! Why can't a person even say something? Is this what the Constitution of China declares "Liberty of speech"?

I found that song on the internet and listened anyway. Well it is not a song that I would appreciate aesthetically, for it has almost no melody, almost pure speech with some bass and electronic effects. But it is a really powerful and unforgettable one that makes me hum unconsciously after claiming it was awful.

OK time to look at Tibet itself. Well it's been pretty unrest recently with the city of Lhasa tightly controlled by PLA since 10th Mar, when a parade of monks for real autonomy (not independence!) of Tibet had been interrupted and become a violent incidence killing tens of people. Temples burnt, shops robbed, tourists evacuated...

I didn't realize it was that bad although read some news about it in the recent few days until this morning when I worked I heard the radio next stall talking about it for the whole morning. And protests had been raised around the world by local Tibetan communities, in New York, New Delhi, Zürich, Sydney the protests had become uncontrollable that local police have to either arrest people or use tear gases or capsicum spray something like that. In Melbourne the protest today was confused but stayed in control.

Now the concerned would be whether and how much the incidence in Tibet together with the upcoming referendum for entering the UN of Taiwan will affect the Beijing Olympic Games in August. If there finally be a war or something the Chinese would have to wait for like another century to be able to host an Olympic Games.

Amps

Been vowing to get an amp recently.

Won an 1970s Australian brand Playmaster Tuesday night on eBay, for only A$55 freight inclusive. Hope it's on the way by now.

Got a reply from that vintage audio dealer that the NAD Model 120, also from the 70s, are suitable for the system I've owned. Should be around A$330 altogether. Payment details are still in discussion though.

So suddenly I am to have two amps... I think I'll see how the first one works to decide whether to get that NAD...

Uni Uni Uni...

Uni commences again... Not quite awake during the day though... Cycling to uni seems a bit of harder than it was due to the lack of practice for almost all these three whole months, I managed to get there though (LOL).

First week, no tute, so my first class was on 1pm, been there bit of early and saw the degree coordinator giving a lecture to those final yr students. Luckily our classes this term is not taught by him, sick of his Saudi Arabian English... The lecturer was new to the uni, not too bad though, after comparing to the prac coordinator afterwards...

Yes a prac on first week, not quite though, just to inform you about the safety stuff. Such stuff should finish within 15 mins but our dear coordinator looks barely awake and stretched it to one hour... orz

More about this guy, speaking very slow with pauses and quite a few of "oh yeah"s to himself for nothing... Looks barely awake and nervous and really pushed hard to give a reasonable talk, not seem successful though...

And nobody knows what had gone wrong, the attendance list, which was separated by two streams, was completely a mess while half of the students like me had our own timetables on first stream but become second stream in his list...

Cycled home finally, not quite tired but I would suggest my poor printer is now collapsed after printing the 83-page manual for the pracs... Get some good sleep buddy~ I will still need you afterwards anyway.

Ads on This Blog?

I had never imagined that an advertising institute (company? agent? or just scum?) would ever be interested in putting an ad here and having people clicking it then pay me... That's why I am so surprised when I saw an email sent to me and offered that like few days ago. And I think I should take this serious now.

This blog is not quite used for community purpose I should say, that I seldom tell people I had such a blog. There is a link on my Facebook profile but it seems to be the only one and I would say few people had ever tried to click on it.

I have completely no idea how many clicks I can get on this blog daily, I would suppose less than 5 myself because there had no one ever been commenting here... but I think it's time I get a counter here before I go for an ad. I had no interest on attracting people to gather here anyway, this blog is pretty private. And I liked it this way myself.

The first-of-all thing of cooking

Well Been cooking for myself and housemate for quite a while. This is what I've just realized about learning to cook, start from the most basic and simple stuff. For me, it was cooking chopped onion.

Slowly-cooked onion is the base of many sauces and soups. It is so simple and variable, heat up a saucepan with some olive oil, turn down the heat immediately after adding chopped onion, then cover the pan and watch the cover throbbing. You can now prepare other stuff for the sauce, because it takes quite a while to get to that golden, soft and opaque point.

I just learn after several times of cooking that I know what to add in and what not to (well this should partially count for the inspiration from Ratatouille). Ground pepper, cream, mushrooms, permesan, blue cheese...

That's how it works, though I don't really know how...

Drought is Over

AT LAST!! After continuously affected by a significant La Nina phenomenum, there are quite a few of preticipation since my coming back to Melbourne. I see the fountain in Lincoln Square working again today, which was wonderful. Shutting down those fountains used to be the measure that the government had been taken for saving water. And I am so glad that they are working again, really. Melbourne had finally stepped out of drought, somehow, after seven years of dehydration, after driven hundreds of farmers out of their farms to make a living in some way else.

But this La Nina didn't do all good. China has just recovered from the worst snow disaster for at least 50 years nationwide.

Podspeakers by Scandyna

Well been spending lots of money on this cutie lately, just so irresistible.

Podspeakers are namely for iPods, unfortunately I don't own one and not keen to one, at least at the moment. I was just getting this for my laptop. This is actually the first version of Micropod, not the more well-known Micropod SE, which the cone is painted yellow and don't get that bar on the treble. Anyway buying an older version is a matter of budget. a pair of SE costs 279AUD, and you have to get an amplifier for it as well(The Amp from Scandyna costs 849AUD), the SE Active which has built-in amplifier is not found in Australia... This older version is 299AUD a pair plus a Microsub(calling itself "Micro"sub, it weighs over 8kg), where the amplifier builds in. I don't need a V-Dock or something like that anyway because I don't have an iPod, though a V-Dock with Micropod SE is only 399AUD.

These cuties are less than 20cm high spikes inclusive, but when it comes to sounds, they are incredible. Sounds from it is full and filling, no one would believe the speaker is that tiny without actually meeting these cuties. It was immediately after I hear the sound that I feel guilty establishing it with those stock cables. i ran to the stores the next day, got a Belkin transmission cable(17.95AUD in JB HiFi) and 4 metres of Monster speaker cable(10AUD per metre in Harvey-Norman), they work well on those cuties, which was great.

And I've decided what to get for upgrading them even before I get bored of them... But anyway, The Drop is not that affordable to me, at least not at the moment. So this would remain a target lol~

A Book That Mainland Chinese Should See

Despite not agreeing some extreme parlance, I should still recommend this book to all Mainland Chinese, especially those who had gone through elementary to high school in China.

This book is originally written to fight back those so-called "Young Cynics" who yells every single second on the internet calling for Chinese military invasion of other countries, especially Japan, and boasts their ultra-nationalism, in order to remind them who Chinese people and Chinese culture really are.

The book emphasizes that Chinese education and media system are simply misleading everyone in China, by exaggerating the ancient achievements - technology, military and philosophy - that merely exist as the top of the world in that era, with comparisons to the western world at the same time, clearly telling you that China has nothing to be proud of on all these areas. And actually, this pride is exactly where those "Young Cynics" derives from.

Well, to be proud of our country, we should, but please do not be proud of all those stupid lies that the Party tells you just to make you proud, they are actually fooling you. Unfortunately not many people in China know that through their whole life, apparently, or there won't be that many "Young Cynics"hanging around the internet.

It is good to feel like "No.1", but what if not? There's always only one No.1 anyway. Just don't fool yourself to take those "No.1"s that are not actually yours and shamelessly showing them off to others!

Not being No.1, so what? Know where the real No.1 is and chase it, it is the No.1 who is most likely to get lost because it has no target to chase, try a shortcut to overtake it instead of standing there and blurbing your ancient prides, while lagging further.

And one word to those "Young Cynics", DO SOMETHING! Don't tell me all what you are doing is those eloquent psycholagnies on the internet. Seeing how apathetic a "Young Cynic" in real life would be to anyone except him/herself would cast a chill all over anyone who thinks that China would have a tomorrow somehow.

To find out who you really are is the main reason to read this book. It was published in Taiwan by Avanguard. I got mine here, pretty easy actually and not expensive, would be less than 15 USD freight inclusive. Just never suppose it publish legally within Mainland China anyway.

Moments

Been so missing such stuff... Throughout my life. Of course, every "you" is probably different and most of these are not love stories, though a few of them are.

Hand in your hands, stunned looking at a dilapidated wall with a big black "break down" written on, circled. This is probably my first memory ever.

The stairwell of a not-so-old apartment. Way up to your flat. We were just kids.
You said "I hate you", without giving me time to surprise, "the opposite."
"What's that opposite?" You just avoided that and giggled, then ran faster up.

Lined up marching down the stairs, I asked, "Do you still remember what you said to me that time?" You just look hazed.

Hid a message asking you out in an origami, but I was late that time and you've already gone. Looked at the busy street helpless.

Way home together, at a small roadside water bar.
"Two pearl milk tea" You said to the sales person, then turn to me, "Which flavour you like?"
I hardly remembered what did I actually order cos that happened too many times. The only thing I know is that mango was among them, and it was disgustingly sweet. You were always treating me and I still cannot find a chance to treat you back until now.

Meant no offense trying to approach while you were talking with someone else, got only one word "Gossipy". Turned away fast.

A small hot dog stand in a strange city of a strange country.
We bought hot dogs for ourselves, not knowing what "ketchup" and "custard" means, not even until the sales person gave us some each as sample, I still cannot recognize the custard so I just chose ketchup. You had both and we sneak back to the hall of our hotel, had it and tried not to be seen. Anyway I got furiously scolded for taking you out that evening.

In a small noodle house, I am on diet.
We ordered only one Noodle and started head to head, until you said "Well this is not gonna work, you first." Then I just took half of that bowl of noodle and watched you had the rest.

At home on my bed.
Crying for the whole noon when received your text, got a bit of stronger after that but still blown by another "you".

At the bus stop where we usually wait for our bus to school. School time.
I approached you and murmured "Sorry", you turned back and, after a week of no conversation at all, you began to talk to me.

Night, I asked your mobile phone number, you told me, I forced myself to remember it by heart, not using my phone to record it, I managed to remember that number for quite a long time even after we stopped going out together.
And I managed to forget it now.

I whispered something into your ear while holding you, you just sprung up and runaway. I cannot forget that last glance on me, stunned and hurt.

Walking on a bridge with you, you screamed "I love you" to the river. Well, you love the river, I know.

Midnight, woke up crying for you, cannot be myself without you. Sent you a text saying "I miss you" without describing how much, yet unfortunately got overlooked by somebody else, and luckily.

On a party, where we played the instruments, there was a time we should gong but we didn't, just winked to each other, and go on.

In front of a school building, you handed me a hand-knitted scarf for me and we embrace.

Lifted a bit of the curtain of the porthole, it was all golden outside with the rising sun, my world had never been so beautiful.

You left my room, leaving me collapsed, alone, and hopeless.

On a tram in the evening.
I will be going down this stop. You were sitting while I am standing. I bent down to almost touching your lips to find it too embarrassed to do it here, and went down the tram laughing.