Xiao Xiao Stick Man Fighter

Hey to everyone...

Because the link I put for Xiao Xiao (left column) seems to have died, thought will just make things a bit easier for everyone since I have the files in my computer already...

those interested can download the Xiao Xiao Flash Movies from the following links. Just right click and "Save Target As"

Enjoy!!

Xiao Xiao 1 - One Vs One (Avi File)

Xiao Xiao 2 - Game

Xiao Xiao 3 - One VS Many (My favourite!)

Xiao Xiao 4 - Shooting Game

Xiao Xiao 5 - One VS One

Xiao Xiao 6 - Game (bit of error in this cos it gets stuck at one of the stages)

Xiao Xiao 7 - Mutilator

Xiao Xiao 8 - Mutilator II

Are you stupid?

I got bored and found this link on a friend's site...




The site says:

You are 14% stupid. This means...
You are far from stupid. Congrats on a great accomplishment!

Thoughtful them even provided a table...

Stupidity Score Requirements

Status Needed Score
??? -------------------- 0 - 9
Pretty Smart ----------- 10 - 24
Fairly Smart ---------- 25 - 39
Smart, but Stupid ------ 40 - 59
A Little Stupid --------- 60 - 79
Stupid ------------------ 80 - 89
??? ---------------------- 90 - 94
??? ---------------------- 95 - 100

but seriously.. if i weren't stupid... why am i doing a stupidity test instead of studying for exams?? hmmm....

*ponder ponder*

Oh bother...

hmmm... my 1st exam paper is on the 2nd of Nov.. which isn't too far away... so what the hell am I doing blogging at this time?

I dunno... so much to do so little time... even when there is time like now, so hard to keep immersing oneself in work... need to take a break from the books or the whatever other stuff I need to do...

yet, so few forms of entertainment... TV shows nowadays are just crappy if you don't have cable... I haven't gotten hold of any new books yet... only entertainment is radio... sad state of life when one doesn't want to leave the house or to spend some money.. haha..

ah well.. this is just a blog entry with no real meaning in it... maybe there is some meaning la.. just to waste a few minutes of your time to read this till the end.. haha...

Wise Words...

"Life has no other discipline to impose, if we would but realize it, than to accept life unquestioningly.

Everything we shut our eyes to, everything we run away from, everything we deny, denigrate, or despise, serves to defeat us in the end.

What seems nasty, painful, evil, can become a source of beauty, joy, and strength, if faced with an open mind.

Every moment is a golden one for him who has the vision to recognize it as such."

Dear friend

I know how you are feeling now...

I can tell you feel so lost... so misunderstood... so unappreciated... so at a loss... I look and see you with so much to do... and so much popping up out of the blue...I see you try to deal with things today but they never seem to really get dealt with.. and when tomorrow comes, it brings new things to for you to face...

I've been your friend long enough to know that you will keep going, you will keep standing... because you know that there will be consequences for people aside from you if you don't... and I applaude you silently, because I know that these people may not always be aware of what you are doing... they don't see everything that you are doing, everything that you are dealing with...

You tell me that sometimes you feel like you are nothing but a small insignificant part of this vast universe... and you wonder if you really do make a difference... I think you need assurance... you need someone to listen and to comfort you... and I wish I can be that person... but I'm not the best... I can only hope that you find someone or some people who can do that...

I know you feel like crying... like breaking down... but your pride holds it back... but the barrier will break one day... you know that... and as your friend, I can only say that you need to let it all out... to cry and break down... to acknowledge and show that you are not as strong as you, or others, think you are...

Dear friend... you know who you are... and in these hard and stressful times, I wish you strength... I wish you clarity of mind and thought... I wish you humility to accept that you do make mistakes... Take care... and may you soon find that freedom which you seek and which you treasure...

Love,
Your Friend...

Changing perspectives...

Singapore skyline taken from Hill Street 

A Shot of Singapore by a Singaporean

Singapore from a different perspective... 

I want to be a tourist in my own country...

You must be wondering what I mean by that...

one school of thought: after all, Singapore is such a small country, I should have learnt my Singapore history better, I should read more newspapers and then I should know enough about Singapore... besides, Singapore is not like China or USA which is really big and you need to take domestic flights to see another part. Singapore isn't that different in the east and the west and for goodness sake you don't even have a domestic airport! so yeah... why would I want to be a tourist..."

But that's just wrong... Singapore is small for sure... you can travel from one end to the other in 2 hours by MRT... but who says that everything is the same?

Have we ever realised that each housing estate and constituency is different? Why don't you compare Toa Payoh culture and Seng Kang culture? The former is one of the oldest estates in Singapore and the latter is one of the youngest. Are they really that similar?

Have you walked along the Padang and observed the monuments there? Everytime I go there I realise that the last time I went, I had left out one or two monuments... yeah u can say I'm blind but that's not the point.. the point is how many Singaporeans make an effort to strolll along that area and learn about the monuments?

Does being an expert at Singapore history mean you have seen these monuments? Have you admired their design and wondered how their styles can be so different? Have you noticed the contrast of having a modern stylish building standing just behind a history-rich building like the Parliament House?

Have you strolled along the whole stretch of the Singapore River, wondering how kids could swim in the days when the water was black? Have you taken the River Boat tour in that little boat that chugs along and driven by a very tanned ah-pek? Have you posed for shots along the river with the Singapore skyline of skyscrappers in the backgroud?

No? Why? Is it because it is something we only associate with tourists? with foreigners? Is it because we think that we've been here all our lives and don't need a photograph as a keepsake? In the first place, is taking photos only just about having a keepsake, to show that "I was there?"

But if you think about it, you don't go to the Singapore River all the time... even if you do, the landscape changes... 5 years ago, there was no Esplanade and the Merlion was standing at a different location...

Every place in Singapore has a story to tell... I want to know more of these stories, even if they do change here and there... and I think... the only way I can do that.. is to become a tourist in my own country...

Armed with my map and trusty camera, I will not be ashamed to be seen taking photos of the various stories in my own country...

What's in a name?

Sharon Tan Xin Ni

You are an individual with high standards. You have a strong and stable character with a keenly analytical and logical mind. Preferring a practical and constructive approach to life you put your energies into activities which build material abundance. Your worldly success is an example to everyone of what careful organisation and determination can achieve.


try it out at this site

Random thoughts

Here I am.. stoning in front of my laptop at 1.30am on a Wednesday morning... it's quiet outside... and the radio is croning some really nice songs...

so much on my mind these days.. so much on my to-do lists... so much to settle, so much to think about... yet... don't feel like doing anything... why? irresponsible? tired? maybe... I dunno...

but tonight... seems the perfect night to do nothing.. to just sit back... enjoy the breeze (from my room fan), enjoy the song on radio ("tonight I need your sweet caress, hold me in the darkness. Tonight you calm my restlessness, you relieve my sadness...") and stone... to just blank out all the deadlines, the tasks... to just enjoy... to relish in whatever random thoughts running through my head... to relive certain memories trapped at the back of my head... to just indulge in the night air... to feel alive... to feel like me...

Good food and Good company = Satisfaction

What an evening... I don't think I have eaten so much good food in such a short period of time...

As a kind of send off thingy for Hwan Cui, Aileen organised a Food Night (after the on-the-spur idea after MAF that day)... basically, we meet up and travel around seeking out the good food of Singapore...

Randal, Jie An, Hwan Cui, Aileen and myself were the food hunters this time round...

1st Round
1st Round took place at Tiong Bahru Food Market... it might be a make-shift food centre but this is THE place to go for lots of good food.. a lot of the stalls there have already been talent spotted by various eating programmes as you can tell from the posters and newspaper clippings hanging at the stalls..

anyway, I was late so when I got there, this was all that was left...



Food covered:
- BBQ Sting ray
- 15 Sticks chicken satay with 3 ketupats
- Fish ball mee pok
- ICe Kachang
- 1 packet of Chee Kueh
- 1 oyster omelette

2nd Round
After the 1st round, we decided to head for the famous Milo Godzilla... where you may ask? to.. Spize - The Makan Place at River Valley Road... it's a muslim stall so get ready for a whole menu of prata varieties, bbq hot plate stuff, and interesting drinks...



Food covered:
- 1 Bee Hoon Goreng Ikan Bilis
- 1 Mutton Murtabak
- 1 basket of french fries
- 2 plain prata
- 1 apple cinammon prata
- 1 mushroom cheese prata
- 1 banana plus ice cream tissue prata: tissue prata with filling of ice cream and banana slices
- 1 bandung
- 1 Milo Godzilla: Milo with milo powder and ice cream
- 2 iced teh-oh


This is our spread of food for the 2nd round...


don't forget the tissue prata delight...

Till now I can't believe the 5 of us finished ALL that food... we were sooo bloated after the night... but man it was fun... =)

we should do it again guys... but not too often ok? I don't want to put on too much weight...

MAF 2005

For those who don't have the faintest idea what MAF is, it actually stands for Mid Autumn Festival.. yup.. my junior college holds an annual huge celebration for MAF and in typical Singapore fashion, the many generations of HCJC graduates have successfully made the acronym sound so cool and funky that it's now officially part of our JC tradition... *beams happily*

so what's so big about MAF? well nothing much, just that the council puts up decoration in the central plaza (think lights display), put up a fountain (for aesthetic purposes i guess.. traditions kind of make u forget the reason they do such stuff), there's a stage in central plaza, performances by performing groups, and about at least 8 generations of HC students.. no big deal... =)

ok well, the big deal about MAF is that wushu gets a performance slot every year, and every batch holds special memories of THEIR MAF... it's also kind of the 1st performance after the seniors step down so you know, you get those 1st-Big-Performance-on-our-own jitters and excitement... the main thing i remember about my MAF? playing with fire and gunpowder... man that was fun...

but reminscing aside, this year's MAF was kind of disappointing in terms of performances.. too many individual singers kind of performances.. i tell you this whole project superstar and singapore idol is NOT good for our society...

but the great part was seeing my batch mates again... crapping about our good ol days and breathing the air at the hui suo(albeit a bit stinky especially after the wushu performance) and in HCJC in general...

hanging out with them always rocks... and it helps that aileen DRIVES!! and Jie An eats a lot.. which justified a trip to Adam Road Food Centre for supper... after 2 weeks of India, it's no surprise how happy ice kachang, rojak and satay can make me...

Makes it feel soooo good to be back in Singapore...=)

oh yah.. photos are up as well on my site... i'm too lazy to put the link here once again, though I just noticed that with all these words I'm typing, I should have saved the effort and typed the link instead.. oh well.. forgetful and lazy me...

The Taj Mahal

a sight to behold... 

The MC in Agra, India... at the site of the Taj Mahal....

Incredible India... all in awe... 

I'm still alive

Yes after a very long absence from the blogging scene, this post is to indicate that I am still very much alive... and honestly I don't care if you greet that comment with groans or cheers...

well much has happened.. for one, today is the last day of the first half of semester 1... which means effectively, I have gone through 6 weeks of classes and should be chocked full of engineering knowledge... unfortunately, a close scrutiny of my brain last night proved otherwise... instead of technical concepts and mini blueprints, I find, to not much surprise, the following things in my head:

- steps for 2 new dances from IC
- lots of acronyms, some of which include PD, @XP, SLP, IC, R&R... the list goes on
- playback images of cool parties and cool people and cool sessions...
- vague images of how a typical Singaporean driver will (or not) survive in the streets of India

and that's just a small part of my head.. the other parts are trying to unclog themselves from the cold/flu/fever streak that occured in IC as well...

and in case you're lost, yeah I just got back from a near 2 weeks trip to India for AIESEC International Congress...

I have no way of describing the whole experience... just two words: Eye Opening

oh and some photos are up already.. mainly those of India sights... yeah I forgot to mention I went to the Taj Mahal!!! another Eye Opener.. check them out at http://sharontan.myphotoalbum.com/

p.s. this is a very random posting... complain all you like... more updates next time =)

1st day of school

today was the first day of NTU Semester 1 of 2005/2006... it's back to the life of a student...

oversleeping before lectures... rushing for lectures... dozing off during lectures... stuck in the crowd in the crowded Canteen A (which looks nicer after the renovation but unfortunately the food quality didn't change much)... stuck in the crowd on bus 179 in and out of NTU... stuck in the crowd in the crowded Printing shop in LWN library (40 odd documents printing per printer and some guy before me printed 12.5MB worth of Word Documents!!! Can you believe it??? Man did he cause a jam... just like the rest of the people hanging around the other printers)... stuck without a computer in LWN libray just like the other 15 odd people lurking around waiting to pounce on any computer the moment it gets freed of use... stuck clueless in the lecture because the lecture notes are either not printed yet, or not uploaded onto our portal... oh and I'm also clueless as to whether that cockroach living in LT 1 has either died or moved out because of the cold (or lack of food during the holidays)... it better not make an appearance at our NTU AIESEC Welcome Tea...

Something interesting though... today, I actually saw a few guys from my batch in JC! yes they are out (finally) of National Service and are here to start a fresh life as a 1st year uni student...

congrats guys... you have officially entered the wonderful world of university... While there aren't any commando-sized mosquitoes on campus, do watch out for the lecturers that drone on like the equivalent of a Incredible-Hulk type mosquito...

While there aren't any vast forests (not in the vicinity of our lecture theatres and tutorials rooms anyway) through which you have to trudge for days and nights on end without bathing or sleeping, do take note that the same may occur near the month of November and that the "trees" you will be trudging through will come in the form of pressed, white sheets covered with words and numbers... at times, the road ahead may seem even more ardous than that night you spent digging trenches...

While you no longer need to stand in the rain in your flimsy poncho trying to bear with the cold without any extra layers of clothing, note that here in the harsh environment of the university, even with extra layers of clothing, the cold may be even harder to bear.. the only comfort you may get out of the cold in university is that at least you do not need to wear the ugly flimsy poncho, and that you're not wet... Also be warned that temperatures you will be subjected to are highly extreme, with conditions similar to the desert in Australia or Africa (or whichever desert you went to if you did for some Army Operation thing)... once you step out of the cold of the lecture theatres and tutorial rooms, you may very well experience a blast of air so warm and humid you would think you were standing behind an F16 when it starts to take off...

And if you thought you could kiss those mountain hikes goodbye, think again... NTU is built on a hill and the treacherous slopes are everywhere... be prepared to have classes in MLT (South Spine) followed by classes in LT 1A (North Spine)... when that happens, all you can do is tighten the straps of your backpack, take a deep breath, and make your way up the slope or the stairs...

And you thought university life was a good break... =)

Saturday was a Good Day...

Saturday was a good day because of the 6th National Wushu Display in the evening... Not just because there were some really cool performances at the display, but also because I got to hang out with my wushu batch mates again. Like I pointed out to them, it feels different hanging out with them and with uni friends... Somehow, only they seem to understand and appreciate corny humour... and I can freely say and do crazy stuff with them without worrying that they will freak out... =)

anyway, for more information on the 6th National Wushu Display and what went on, check out http://hcwushu.blogspot.com/... This blog was started up by me and a couple of my batch mates to keep everyone updated on the latest happenings in wushu (and HC wushu)

For those more into visuals, photos are available at My Photo Album... Videos might be coming soon as well... =)

Nostalgia...

Dunno why but everytime I hear this songs, it sounds so nice... and feels so nostalgic.. of what I have no idea... (karaoke perhaps?)


Sometimes Love Just Ain't Enough
Patti Smyth | Don Henley
______

Now, I don't want to lose you
but I don't want to use you
just to have somebody by my side.
I don't want to take you,
I don't wanna take you
but I don't want to be the one to cry.

That don't really matter to anyone, anymore.
But like a fool I keep losing my place
and I keep seeing you walk through that door.

But there's a danger in loving somebody too much,
and it's sad when you know it's your heart they can't trust.
There's a reason why people don't stay who they are.
Baby, sometimes, love just aint enough.

Now, I could never change you,
I don't want to blame you.
Baby, you just have to take the fall.
Yes, I may have hurt you,
but I did not desert you.
Maybe I just want to have it all.

It makes a sound like thunder,
it makes me feel like rain.
And like a fool who will never see the truth,
I keep thinking something's gonna change.

But there's a danger in loving somebody too much,
and it's sad when you know it's your heart you can't trust.
There's a reason why people don't stay who they are.
Baby, sometimes, love just aint enough.

And there's no way home,
when it's late at night and you're all alone.
Are there things that you wanted to say?
And do you feel me beside you in your bed,
there beside you, where I used to be?

But there's a danger in loving somebody too much,
and it's sad when you know it's your heart you can't trust.
There's a reason why people don't stay who they are.
Baby, sometimes, love just aint enough.

Baby, sometimes, love... it just ain't enough.

Friends...

My JC classmate William is leaving for USA in August for university and today, I went out for dinner with him... I guess it sounds like a very early "farewell" dinner kind-of (1 month in advance) but I don't wanna deceive myself with the thought that I will definitely be able to catch him again before he really flies... with school starting soon and recruitment and AROC just round the corner, I do foresee a very hectic August...

But that's not the point... I just feel like saying some stuff...

It definitely isn't true that you find good buddies only in Secondary School. Even though JC is for 2 short years only, it's amazing how much fun we had together back then... And what really gets to me is that even though in the time of these 2 years since graduation, we haven't been in touch as often as both of us had hoped for, it's still that easy to relate to each other, and relive those wacky moments in JC...

Perhaps this is really friendship? Perhaps friendship isn't just about always keeping in touch, always chatting on the phone, always meeting up... Perhaps friendship is about still being able to connect even after a time of absence... that even after not seeing each other for months, upon meeting, no one feels uncomfortable or feels like we're all such strangers...

I won't say I'm the kind of person who is good at keeping in contact with people... and perhaps it would seem that I would rather move on and not keep up with the past... but to all those out there who matter to me (you know who you guys are), know this that you will always remain a friend in my heart and that I won't forget those wonderful moments we shared together...

Letter from the Dean..

Dear Sharon

I congratulate you on your excellent results. You have done brilliantly well.

We hope that you will continue to find intellectual simulation in your studies. At the same time, the School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering will do its best to provide the necessary support for you to develop your talents to the fullest.

I wish you great success in your studies and your future career.

With warmest regard

Acting Dean of School


I was very surprised to receive such a letter. Why?

• Because some weirdo of a lab technician gave me a C for my lab module and I didn't think a C would warrent results as excellent
• Because I got a C also for my business module called Risk and Insurance (yes I have to admit I totally screwed up that paper) and even though its not a core module, it still doesn't look pretty on the results slip
• Because I don't remember ever getting any "necessary support" from the school. As a matter of fact, the school has been the main cause of many of my complaints
• Because it sounds like they only want to support me now because I have thus far achieved grades excellent enough to warrent their praise. (Notice they don't say "continue to provide" So if I screw up my grades next year they won't provide anymore? How practical and pragmatic!)
• Because they didn't tell me how they want to support me. (If the letter had come with an offer of $3,000 stipend to my school fees, this posting would have taken a whole new direction)

And because they did not provide suggestions of concrete actions on their side to support me, I now deem this letter and the envelope a waste of money, a way of unnecessarily depleting our Earth's precious resources and a misappropriate usage of the school's privilage of sending mails without paying for postage. Oh and also for wasting the efforts of dear Mr Postman who works so hard so that we can receive our mails.

Damn... I'm such a cynic when it comes to education... *grinz*