It’s scary when one realises his/her limitations when examined in the most honest way.
It’s human nature not to admit to defeat or shortcomings, to proclaim that we are capable of anything. And it is this thinking that has gotten humanity this far in development in several areas.
Yet we tend quickly cover our shortcomings, failing to realise that it is our shortcomings that can help us become stronger and better if we learn from it.
Admitting to that takes a lot of guts, and for some, a high risk or gamble. Today’s society has little tolerance for shortcomings and displaying that before everyone is somewhat like standing in the pathway of a speeding car.
Admitting is one. Facing it squarely and working on it is another. You can run, but you can’t hide.
On a separate note from the above, a thought of a world on a more humane and considerate note is only possible if everyone is willing to give a thought to others before themselves. Some give more than they receive and some simply don’t give a hoot for others. In this world, survival of the fittest is only the truth because we made it so. If we think otherwise, this phrase would have not exist and it will not be a truth.
To stand and fight for what you believe in may equate going against the flow of the hierarchical society with its stereotypical boundaries. Who came up with these boundaries? How did they become the rules of which we’ve to observe? It’s like asking the question “Who says fuck is a foul word? Didn’t someone invent the word and tag some obscene meaning to it to make it into the foul word it is today? Can we untag that meaning and remove our perception of the word?”
Have we all stopped asking all the whys in this world in an attempt to make this place more wholesome?
Alright. Time to exercise again after it took a backseat to the recent madness. I’m also glad there’s photography to distract me, just me and the camera, trying to capture the best moments.
Sometimes I like to do what the title of the song susggests, to be oblivious to everything around me, even if the world crashes upon me.
Perhaps this is the dullness my colleague mentioned to me, the feeling you cultivate to the point of experiecing nothing in the face of the seemingly never-ending and torturous situations.
Yet I want to resist feeling that. Won’t dullness of my feelings make me less human? Then again, does anyone care what or how I feel in this context? Just get it over and done with, as preached and extolled by many.
I am working on that. If anyone has a good idea of preventing the brain from ’stoning’ after a long marathon (besides coffee, too much of it makes me unable to sit still and finish it), let me know. I’m trying, really hard. But it’s as if my mind has a mind of its own (I know it sounds somewhat corny).
The feeling of dullness has kicked in for me. I feel zombie-fied. A couple of seconds ago, I feel myself turning into stone, frozen and unmoving in that moment when it felt like everything in my body stopped working.
Grabbing a light bite at Sushi Tei, I don’t know what made me ask my colleague if she knows Gackt? Subsequently he conversation took an interesting turn following my mention of Malice Mizer, Gackt’s ex-band (during his visual kei days).
We got reminded that the J-pop wave was such a huge thing to come out from East Asia almost a decade before the recent Korean wave came about. It made me realised it’s more than 5 years since I came to know the androgynous Japanese musician named Gackt.
10 years into his solo career, he went on a long tour around Japan (about 7 months?) aptly titled Requiem et Reminiscence II (he had a series of concerts called Requiem et Reminiscence I many years back). To be able to survive and continue to be hugely popular for 10 years in any entertainment scene is a huge feat, considering society’s fast-changing appetite for the next cute/handsome/beautfiul/cool thing. And it is indeed timely to once again showcase his musicality (and looks) that bring him longevity in the scene.
YouTubing his latest concert videos, I like the edginess in “Blue Lagoon” and here’s the video.
There’s no denial that the high-end DSLRs and lens do make a difference in the quality of the photo. Yet I am also a believer that what counts the most is the content of the picture, capturing the essence of the moment.
I currently use a Canon EOS 500D with EF-S 18-55mm and EF-S55-250mm lens, coupled with Speedlite Di466.
If you like my photos and like to hire me for assignments (events, parties, celebrations, portraits), contact me at terrabox.management@gmail.com and we can discuss further.
These videos are way overdue. Rosli Mansor in action, confining himself to the purple walls of a recording studio tucked away close to the borders of Singapore.
It is not just him in action, he has rounded up his band of merry-making musicians and brought them on an epic journey.
A new album calls for some newfound interactivity on the web.
That’s what John Mayer has on his official website http://www.johnmayer.com. A Flash page that requires those who bother (like myself) to print out (or simply take a photo of it with your cell phone) the Battle Studies icon, show it to your webcam and some pretty interesting Flash interaction takes place (or as the website has it, it is an augmented reality).
(Strangely, the Flash wasn’t able to finish loading in Firefox but it works fine in IE.)
I never knew one can do such interactivity with Flash. And what I truly want to say is John Mayer’s new album is finally coming out. The single “Who Says” is available for viewing on YouTube and it does seem like Mr Mayer’s stripping down his music more and more (imo).
Lucky fans in countries where you can purchase songs off iTunes, you can now pre-order the album. Hey Apple, when are you going to include Singapore on the list of countries able to purchase songs off iTunes? *scowl*
Will just have to wait for the physical CD to hit the local stores.
I never thought I have the time to read of late, what more if it’s Neil Gaiman’s works (author of the popular Sandman series & books such as Stardust). A writing assignment had me deciding to pick up a non-fiction book to brush up a bit of my writing skill.
The first few pages of American God made me curious if it was going to be an-all out fantasy story. And I’m only half-right. With the modern times and society as the backdrop, Gaiman did a good job of very subtly balancing the power of the new and old worlds. Unconsciously, as the protagonist Shadow made his way through a journey he never understood until much later, I felt a kind of heaviness the character felt in the story.
It has been a long time since I was that enthralled by a fiction work. Reading the expanded version made me impatiently, thumbing through some of the pages quickly just so I can read on what is going to happen to Shadow.
At the end of the reading journey, I found myself applauding quietly in my mind to Mr Gaiman for writing such an interesting work, and making my mind question of the ‘gods’ of the old and new. It’s hard to disagree that the gods of the new world have taken over us all: internet, television, media, etc. And that the ‘gods’ of the old have been conveniently side-stepped by man to make way for the new gods.
I concluded at the end of the reading that both ’gods’ are relevant to the modern people. The ‘old’ gods reminds us of our culture and heritage and the ’new’ gods enables us to progress forward in the modern time. There are some black sheep among these ‘gods’ that should be forgotten, like greed, money, pollution, etc.
If anyone out there who has time to kill and enjoys reading, go pick up a copy of Neil Gaiman’s American Gods.
