The Barometer Problem
The following concerns a question in a physics degree exam at the
University of Copenhagen:
"Describe how to determine the height of a skyscraper with a barometer."
One student replied:
"You tie a long piece of string to the neck of the barometer, then lower the barometer from the roof of the skyscraper to the ground. The length of the string plus the length of the barometer will equal the height of the building."
This highly original answer so incensed the examiner that the student was failed immediately. The student appealed on the grounds that his answer was indisputably correct, and the university appointed an independent arbiter to decide the case.
The arbiter judged that the answer was indeed correct, but did not display any noticeable knowledge of physics. To resolve the problem it was decided to call the student in and allow him six minutes in which to provide a verbal answer that showed at least a minimal familiarity with the basic principles of physics.
For five minutes the student sat in silence, forehead creased in thought. The arbiter reminded him that time was running out, to which the student replied that he had several extremely relevant answers, but couldn't make up his mind which to use. On being advised to hurry up the student replied as follows:
"Firstly, you could take the barometer up to the roof of the skyscraper, drop it over the edge, and measure the time it takes to reach the ground. The height of the building can then be worked out from the formula H = 0.5g x t squared. But bad luck on the barometer."
"Or if the sun is shining you could measure the height of the barometer, then set it on end and measure the length of its shadow. Then you measure the length of the skyscraper's shadow, and thereafter it is a simple matter of proportional arithmetic to work out the height of the skyscraper."
"But if you wanted to be highly scientific about it, you could tie a short piece of string to the barometer and swing it like a pendulum, first at ground level and then on the roof of the skyscraper. The height is worked out by the difference in the gravitational restoring force T =2 pi sqr root (l /g)."
"Or if the skyscraper has an outside emergency staircase, it would be easier to walk up it and mark off the height of the skyscraper in barometer lengths, then add them up."
"If you merely wanted to be boring and orthodox about it, of course, you could use the barometer to measure the air pressure on the roof of the skyscraper and on the ground, and convert the difference in millibars into feet to give the height of the building."
"But since we are constantly being exhorted to exercise independence of mind and apply scientific methods, undoubtedly the best way would be to knock on the janitor's door and say to him 'If you would like a nice new barometer, I will give you this one if you tell me the height of this skyscraper'."
Source: Snopes
Doesn't this tell you something about the nature of exams? Of why answers given must be the ones that the marking scheme wants, although other answers could be correct? And even then, any scientific reasoning we could give would be void by the most practical answer. So what are we still doing exams for?
If you can tell me, I'll give you a brand new barometer.
The Edna Man
Monday, September 17, 2007
Monday, September 10, 2007
How many last straws can we take?
Name: Uncle Edna
Class: 4.09
Date: 10th September
Year: 2007
Organization: Blogger.com
Areas: Creativity, Action, Service, Leadership
Shoe Size: 9
Favourite Colour: Orange, maybe blue.
What do you feel about the whole optimist/pessimist thing?: What?!
Teacher Supervisor: None
Proposal for: Blogging about CASL
On the 10th of September 2007, I intend to write a blog post about the idiocy of the Creativity, Action, Service, and Leadership Programme (CASL) in long, satirical prose.
The aims and objectives of the aforementioned activity are to allow me to express my views about the above topic, in the hopes that others may see my point of view, allowing them to garner a fuller representation of the above topic. Formalities aside, this activity is also an opportunity to antagonize and vent my frustrations about the failures of the education system which is a very serious matter indeed.
Signed: The Edna Man
Teacher Supervisor
Was that stupid enough for you? If not, let's go on to talk about my day, and you'll see stupid concepts worse than Being Hit on the Head Lessons.
After a bone-chilling hour of IHS lecture, some guy from some university (dunno which university lah, but you can guess) comes in and starts talking about that university and everything the school offers, blah blah blah. I was barely interested, and while it would have been tolerable if he had ended at the appropriate time (because he said he would take only FORTY MINTUES), he ended up overshooting by half an hour. Very slick. Would his whole faculty be like that? If so, then I might not be interested, thanks.
And that's with me freezing in my seat and dying of hunger.
I don't get it. Everyone keeps lecturing us on how to keep within the time when you're presenting, and don't hold people up and all that. Didn't these people receive the same education? Why is it when kids do it it's wrong, but when adults do it, it's alright?
And then, to top it all off, the Year 4 Level Director comes and gives us another 15 minute lecture on How our CASL Book is Not Up to Standard and If He were to Judge Now We Would All Fail and Stay Back A Year. That's about all I got from those fifteen minutes, partly because the cold and lack of lunch was numbing my brain, and also partly because that's all he seemed to say; he repeated it about ten times. At least.
Hello...? Hungry? Cold? Irritable driver waiting? Don't care? Alright. Nothing I can do about it anyway.
And then there's the whole idea CASL which irks me. That you have to do a proposal for every little stinking thing we do. Oops, I sneezed; guess I have to write a proposal for that. Then comes the meticulous records of the number of hours we put in. Then the reflections.
Can you imagine? A hundred and fifty hours worth of proposal, C-A-S-L, reflections. I mean WHAT THE HELL-o what have we here? A blasted ESSAY about the whole thing or YOU DON'T PASS YOUR IB.
C'mon. There has got to be a better way than this. Doing good or participating in activities isn't supposed to be about meticulous proposal writing, or the frantic calculation about how many hours you've got. Once you implement the quota, the whohle meaning is lost. A wise Core Math Teacher once said, "When you start taking photos for money, you're not going to enjoy photography anymore."
Or maybe that's what it's about. Screw the meaning and purpose, what's important is Vitamin M.
Sometimes it just makes me think about quitting formal education and opt for home-schooling. Might as well learn everything from the Internet. Just imagine, if you go apply for a job interview, and you say, "Well, I almost reached the IB Diploma. It's just that I disagreed with the system and quit in protest, and continued my education on the Internet." And they hired you. You must have had some really good pants.
At least there are some other examples of the human species at its prime. Lang Arts Teacher in stunning move launches into speech about language and words, and how important they are to building character. Extra, extra, read all about it!
Hours done:30 Writing: 1 Creativity Posting: 1 Service
The Edna Man
Class: 4.09
Date: 10th September
Year: 2007
Organization: Blogger.com
Areas: Creativity, Action, Service, Leadership
Shoe Size: 9
Favourite Colour: Orange, maybe blue.
What do you feel about the whole optimist/pessimist thing?: What?!
Teacher Supervisor: None
Proposal for: Blogging about CASL
On the 10th of September 2007, I intend to write a blog post about the idiocy of the Creativity, Action, Service, and Leadership Programme (CASL) in long, satirical prose.
The aims and objectives of the aforementioned activity are to allow me to express my views about the above topic, in the hopes that others may see my point of view, allowing them to garner a fuller representation of the above topic. Formalities aside, this activity is also an opportunity to antagonize and vent my frustrations about the failures of the education system which is a very serious matter indeed.
Signed: The Edna Man
Was that stupid enough for you? If not, let's go on to talk about my day, and you'll see stupid concepts worse than Being Hit on the Head Lessons.
After a bone-chilling hour of IHS lecture, some guy from some university (dunno which university lah, but you can guess) comes in and starts talking about that university and everything the school offers, blah blah blah. I was barely interested, and while it would have been tolerable if he had ended at the appropriate time (because he said he would take only FORTY MINTUES), he ended up overshooting by half an hour. Very slick. Would his whole faculty be like that? If so, then I might not be interested, thanks.
And that's with me freezing in my seat and dying of hunger.
I don't get it. Everyone keeps lecturing us on how to keep within the time when you're presenting, and don't hold people up and all that. Didn't these people receive the same education? Why is it when kids do it it's wrong, but when adults do it, it's alright?
And then, to top it all off, the Year 4 Level Director comes and gives us another 15 minute lecture on How our CASL Book is Not Up to Standard and If He were to Judge Now We Would All Fail and Stay Back A Year. That's about all I got from those fifteen minutes, partly because the cold and lack of lunch was numbing my brain, and also partly because that's all he seemed to say; he repeated it about ten times. At least.
Hello...? Hungry? Cold? Irritable driver waiting? Don't care? Alright. Nothing I can do about it anyway.
And then there's the whole idea CASL which irks me. That you have to do a proposal for every little stinking thing we do. Oops, I sneezed; guess I have to write a proposal for that. Then comes the meticulous records of the number of hours we put in. Then the reflections.
Can you imagine? A hundred and fifty hours worth of proposal, C-A-S-L, reflections. I mean WHAT THE HELL-o what have we here? A blasted ESSAY about the whole thing or YOU DON'T PASS YOUR IB.
C'mon. There has got to be a better way than this. Doing good or participating in activities isn't supposed to be about meticulous proposal writing, or the frantic calculation about how many hours you've got. Once you implement the quota, the whohle meaning is lost. A wise Core Math Teacher once said, "When you start taking photos for money, you're not going to enjoy photography anymore."
Or maybe that's what it's about. Screw the meaning and purpose, what's important is Vitamin M.
Sometimes it just makes me think about quitting formal education and opt for home-schooling. Might as well learn everything from the Internet. Just imagine, if you go apply for a job interview, and you say, "Well, I almost reached the IB Diploma. It's just that I disagreed with the system and quit in protest, and continued my education on the Internet." And they hired you. You must have had some really good pants.
At least there are some other examples of the human species at its prime. Lang Arts Teacher in stunning move launches into speech about language and words, and how important they are to building character. Extra, extra, read all about it!
Hours done:
The Edna Man
Monday, September 03, 2007
WARRRGHHH
Remember that Dexter episode where he was watching some Action Hank movie when it got interrupted by a Emergency Broadcast Blue-Screen-of-Death so he went around solving crises and emergencies trying to prematurely end the Emergency Broadcast but when he got back to his TV they said it was just a test of the system and when his show continued the movie was at the end?
Yeah, well, I was watching Danny Phantom today, a new episode, and a double-part storyline to boot. I didn't know that there were two episodes back to back but since I was so excited by the first part I stuck around to se if there was a second part and to my great surprise and excitement there was! So there I am wacthing it eagerly and it gets to the exciting climax where Danny beats the villian and then - the broadcast broke. WARRRGHHH So I kept the TV on in the hopes that they'd get it fixed soon, and it did - after Danny beat the villian and the climax was over.
WARRRGHHH
The Edna Man
Yeah, well, I was watching Danny Phantom today, a new episode, and a double-part storyline to boot. I didn't know that there were two episodes back to back but since I was so excited by the first part I stuck around to se if there was a second part and to my great surprise and excitement there was! So there I am wacthing it eagerly and it gets to the exciting climax where Danny beats the villian and then - the broadcast broke. WARRRGHHH So I kept the TV on in the hopes that they'd get it fixed soon, and it did - after Danny beat the villian and the climax was over.
WARRRGHHH
The Edna Man
Thursday, August 30, 2007
Eureka!
Today during Core Math Jarrel was explaining to me how the Monty Hall dilemna works. He patiently attempted a couple of times, while my brain simply refused to click, when all of a sudden everything sudenly fell into place! And for a brief vague moment, I understood it! I don't think I can explain it to anyone else now, but oh well.
Don't you just love those moments?
Aha!
The Edna Man
Don't you just love those moments?
Aha!
The Edna Man
Wednesday, August 29, 2007
ALL HAIL POWERPOINT
I just completed a Teachers' Day event using nothing animations in Powerpoint 2003. YEAH!
It's so ownage, I can't believe it myself.
But then. Jonas knows how to use MACROS. O_O Since he was in PRIMARY SCHOOL. O____O
Anyway, 3 days of hard work, completed. I hope it works out okay!
Oh yeah, I showed it to The Jarrel Seah, Programming Lord and Master.
(10:39 PM) Jarrel - Names i: u made this?
(10:40 PM) Life, Love, and: Yeah >_>
(10:40 PM) Life, Love, and: Why?
(10:40 PM) Jarrel - Names i: quite cool
(10:40 PM) Jarrel - Names i: i like
(10:40 PM) Life, Love, and: WOAH
(10:40 PM) Jarrel - Names i: it works
(10:40 PM) Jarrel - Names i: btw
(10:40 PM) Life, Love, and: I HAVE BEEN BLESSED BY THE GREAT JARREL SEAH ! O_O
Hahahahaha,
The Edna Man
It's so ownage, I can't believe it myself.
But then. Jonas knows how to use MACROS. O_O Since he was in PRIMARY SCHOOL. O____O
Anyway, 3 days of hard work, completed. I hope it works out okay!
Oh yeah, I showed it to The Jarrel Seah, Programming Lord and Master.
(10:39 PM) Jarrel - Names i: u made this?
(10:40 PM) Life, Love, and: Yeah >_>
(10:40 PM) Life, Love, and: Why?
(10:40 PM) Jarrel - Names i: quite cool
(10:40 PM) Jarrel - Names i: i like
(10:40 PM) Life, Love, and: WOAH
(10:40 PM) Jarrel - Names i: it works
(10:40 PM) Jarrel - Names i: btw
(10:40 PM) Life, Love, and: I HAVE BEEN BLESSED BY THE GREAT JARREL SEAH ! O_O
Hahahahaha,
The Edna Man
Thursday, August 23, 2007
Orchestrated
On a happy note, I managed to pull off my IHS presentation. Jarrel's question was okay to answer, even though I didn't know the answer.
On a sad note, my IOP wasn't as great as all the effort I put into it. Well, cest la vie. I think.
On a happy note, most of my graded homework is over, and all I have to do now is backlog.
On a sad note, I'm quite disgusted at how my class stripped a box of curry puffs to the bones, when Mr Jason Chan brought them into class today. He never mentioned why he had them, why he was giving them to us, or even IF he was giving them to us. They were on them like a flock of vultures. The puffs never stood a chance.
On a happy note, Confucius say: "Tired students, always late." Go Mr Bernard Taylor!
On a sad note, Juzzie is pissed at me because of my negative MSN nicks.
On a happy note, I like Jason Mraz's Wordplay.
On a sad note, CAS sucks.
Put the notes together and you get the melody of my life.
Requiemly,
The Edna Man
On a sad note, my IOP wasn't as great as all the effort I put into it. Well, cest la vie. I think.
On a happy note, most of my graded homework is over, and all I have to do now is backlog.
On a sad note, I'm quite disgusted at how my class stripped a box of curry puffs to the bones, when Mr Jason Chan brought them into class today. He never mentioned why he had them, why he was giving them to us, or even IF he was giving them to us. They were on them like a flock of vultures. The puffs never stood a chance.
On a happy note, Confucius say: "Tired students, always late." Go Mr Bernard Taylor!
On a sad note, Juzzie is pissed at me because of my negative MSN nicks.
On a happy note, I like Jason Mraz's Wordplay.
On a sad note, CAS sucks.
Put the notes together and you get the melody of my life.
Requiemly,
The Edna Man
Monday, August 20, 2007
Perchance to dream
Damn Hamlet. Why did Shakespeare have to be so long-winded. Why did our generation acclaim him as a literary genius.
It's my IOC tomorrow. My head is pounding with the Elizabithean language while I struggle to pick out literary devices.
Once again, we are bereft of pupils whose main interest is that of securing high marks and beating the rest of the competition. While here I am, just trying to do my best, to do my commentary properly, learning as I go along.
Nobility truly is dead.
The Edna Man
It's my IOC tomorrow. My head is pounding with the Elizabithean language while I struggle to pick out literary devices.
Once again, we are bereft of pupils whose main interest is that of securing high marks and beating the rest of the competition. While here I am, just trying to do my best, to do my commentary properly, learning as I go along.
Nobility truly is dead.
The Edna Man
Thursday, August 09, 2007
Of twentyfour and ninetysix
Well, twentyfour is over and that means a whole load of stress and work off my shoulders. It (the prize ceremony) went excellently, and I think some of my stupid jokes made it through, which is good =) In other related news, Also Sprach Zarathustra is great for announcing awards.
By the way, go see this. It's based on the Nokia N93 Ad with Gary Oldman, and I think it's amazingly done. Conflict!
I watched this year's NDP parade, and I think it's just totally weird. I mean, the starfish and Sing the roller-skating lionfish were strange enough, but... garden faries? That takes the cake.
Anyhow, today's been the start of ninetysix, the four-day coursworking marathon, to finish all the graded projects which I missed while I was sick.
ninety-six hours. three projects. one dead guy.
All the world's a stage, and all the men and women in it are merely players.
The Edna Man
By the way, go see this. It's based on the Nokia N93 Ad with Gary Oldman, and I think it's amazingly done. Conflict!
I watched this year's NDP parade, and I think it's just totally weird. I mean, the starfish and Sing the roller-skating lionfish were strange enough, but... garden faries? That takes the cake.
Anyhow, today's been the start of ninetysix, the four-day coursworking marathon, to finish all the graded projects which I missed while I was sick.
ninety-six hours. three projects. one dead guy.
All the world's a stage, and all the men and women in it are merely players.
The Edna Man
Thursday, August 02, 2007
Now this.
Well, it's my first day back in school for one and a half weeks, and the first thing I hear is about the jacket design competition for the new school jackets. I've done a design, yeah - should I enter?
Yeah, definitely.Tuesday, July 31, 2007
The Story Ends
Hey. I haven’t blogged in a long time. Been sick, mostly. Hospitalised, haven’t been to school for more than a week. I’m really supposed to be doing homework now, but I’m completely not in the mood to do so. I’ll probably have to start something after this, though.
I just thought I’d note some of my feelings down here, the only place where my memories don’t get lost. I’ve just spent most of my bedridden days reading - sleeping, mostly, but reading as well - the entire Harry Potter series. Mr. Wong lent me the seventh book when he came to visit with the other Mr. Wong, the one who doesn’t like reading. *cough*
Anyway, I finished reading Deathly Hallows just yesterday, and since then I’ve felt - I don’t know - empty, lost? Like a hollow feeling, like there’s something that should be there but isn’t, like something left me. I’ve no idea how to explain it, describe it, put it in words.
I understand if Harry Potter isn’t your type of book. I think it’s one of the best pieces of literature around today, although I don’t read that widely. It’s best to me though; is that worth anything? Much better than Hamlet or all the other weird Elizabethan stuff anyway.
J.K. Rowling is a genius. Can you imagine what type of creativity and imagination this author must have? Nineteen years, seven novels, a whole new universe of magic. ‘Cos that’s what it is, really: magic. The captivation of a spellbinding plot; the charm of a number of enchanting characters; the hidden, silent call of the profound exponential lessons of life that emanates from the literature… it can’t be anything else.
I don’t think I can achieve my purpose of writing this; I cannot hope to convey the feeling of absolute dread and anticipation as I thumbed through the pages, drinking in each and every word, the images forming in my mind; excitement from the fact that I was getting to the end of the mystery, but dreading to reach the end and finding out that it… ends. It was such a wonderful experience, flipping page by page, living chapter by chapter, ignoring the harsh world around me, just sunk into this amazing work of fiction and living, breathing imagination. It stunned me, when I the back cover closed, and the entire legend finished, ended.
It seems a world apart from me now, something faraway; distant, like a long-lost friend. I now realise the power of (good) literature (for the second time I think, since the Da Vinci talk), its ability to take the reader and his imagination on an emotional roller-coaster ride, living with the characters as though they were real, laughing, crying, everything. Something Hamlet has never been able to do for me, I might add.
And the writing style! I find myself trying to copy it, to imitate the technique of one a hundred, thousand, million times my superior. It makes me want to write, yet when I look at TNN, it seem to pale in comparison. The vocabulary, the organisation! The placement of information where and when it is needed! In short, the absolute essence of the work, a masterpiece. It seems foolish to try and reproduce such perfection.
I feel lonely now. Like I can never pick up a book and be immersed in it as such. I must sound really stupid, feeling lonely because I finished a book. But that’s how I feel; or at least, as close to how I feel as I can describe it.
I should go now. I have homework to finish, and it has to be completed, somehow, even when my mind is clearly elsewhere.
All is well. No, not really.
The Edna Man
I just thought I’d note some of my feelings down here, the only place where my memories don’t get lost. I’ve just spent most of my bedridden days reading - sleeping, mostly, but reading as well - the entire Harry Potter series. Mr. Wong lent me the seventh book when he came to visit with the other Mr. Wong, the one who doesn’t like reading. *cough*
Anyway, I finished reading Deathly Hallows just yesterday, and since then I’ve felt - I don’t know - empty, lost? Like a hollow feeling, like there’s something that should be there but isn’t, like something left me. I’ve no idea how to explain it, describe it, put it in words.
I understand if Harry Potter isn’t your type of book. I think it’s one of the best pieces of literature around today, although I don’t read that widely. It’s best to me though; is that worth anything? Much better than Hamlet or all the other weird Elizabethan stuff anyway.
J.K. Rowling is a genius. Can you imagine what type of creativity and imagination this author must have? Nineteen years, seven novels, a whole new universe of magic. ‘Cos that’s what it is, really: magic. The captivation of a spellbinding plot; the charm of a number of enchanting characters; the hidden, silent call of the profound exponential lessons of life that emanates from the literature… it can’t be anything else.
I don’t think I can achieve my purpose of writing this; I cannot hope to convey the feeling of absolute dread and anticipation as I thumbed through the pages, drinking in each and every word, the images forming in my mind; excitement from the fact that I was getting to the end of the mystery, but dreading to reach the end and finding out that it… ends. It was such a wonderful experience, flipping page by page, living chapter by chapter, ignoring the harsh world around me, just sunk into this amazing work of fiction and living, breathing imagination. It stunned me, when I the back cover closed, and the entire legend finished, ended.
It seems a world apart from me now, something faraway; distant, like a long-lost friend. I now realise the power of (good) literature (for the second time I think, since the Da Vinci talk), its ability to take the reader and his imagination on an emotional roller-coaster ride, living with the characters as though they were real, laughing, crying, everything. Something Hamlet has never been able to do for me, I might add.
And the writing style! I find myself trying to copy it, to imitate the technique of one a hundred, thousand, million times my superior. It makes me want to write, yet when I look at TNN, it seem to pale in comparison. The vocabulary, the organisation! The placement of information where and when it is needed! In short, the absolute essence of the work, a masterpiece. It seems foolish to try and reproduce such perfection.
I feel lonely now. Like I can never pick up a book and be immersed in it as such. I must sound really stupid, feeling lonely because I finished a book. But that’s how I feel; or at least, as close to how I feel as I can describe it.
I should go now. I have homework to finish, and it has to be completed, somehow, even when my mind is clearly elsewhere.
All is well. No, not really.
The Edna Man
Thursday, July 19, 2007
All the Time in the World
Since FPS isn't given official status teachers can't excuses us from lessons/CCAs so we have to stay up to 10pm everyday not including BoB and I'm sleeping at 2pm which is only four hours of sleep. I fell asleep today during my Chinese test and didn't even do the summary. Maybe I'm just the one who's weak because there isn't anyone else breaking down.
Goodnight
The Edna Man
Goodnight
The Edna Man
Thursday, July 12, 2007
FINALLY
At last! Someone from the Student Council has finally got back to me about the socks letter I wrote way back when the stupid idea was even implemented. Here's a copy of the letter the Student Council sent to Higher Authorities™ about it, with a little running commentary.
Report on Socks Purchase
Implementation of the socks purchasing, as expected, was met with some amount of resentment from the student body.
Surprise! I mean, oh really? They did? That's quite surprising.
However, due to the nature of the implementation, students who complied with the socks rules were still required to purchase socks. This antagonised the students who felt that they were still being punished, by being made to purchase the socks, even though they complied with the school rules.
"Punished" is an understatement here. I'd go for "oppressed" or "coerced".
The Student Council appreciates the fact that socks purchases cannot be retroactively refunded, it would like to voice the concern held by some regarding this issue.
Why no refund? All part of the plan, dears.
We sincerely hope that such situations can be avoided in the future, by ensuring that disipline initiatives be targeted at offenders rather than the school population in general.
It better be avoided in the future. Hear hear I say!
As a note we have attached a letter from a year 4 student, expressing similar sentiments to the Student Council.
WHAT?!
Although as a year 4 student, he is not technically within the Student's Council's jurisdiction, his feedback is still applicable to the predicament facing IB students.
Great. Now they know who I am. I am so dead x_x
Well, there you have it. Something has been done, at least. Hooray for Student Council! Just that now, if you have a problem with the school, you're on your own unless you can be bothered to wait until Year 5.
On a side note, Shuan had this very interesting idea about a giant school Mech thing, like Transformers but of entire buildings. He's drawing it now or something. It sounds like a pretty cool idea.
Homework's overloading right now, especially since FPS is coming along. My mom's not very happy that I have to stay back at night. Oh well.
Advocate of socky justice,
The Edna Man
Report on Socks Purchase
Implementation of the socks purchasing, as expected, was met with some amount of resentment from the student body.
Surprise! I mean, oh really? They did? That's quite surprising.
However, due to the nature of the implementation, students who complied with the socks rules were still required to purchase socks. This antagonised the students who felt that they were still being punished, by being made to purchase the socks, even though they complied with the school rules.
"Punished" is an understatement here. I'd go for "oppressed" or "coerced".
The Student Council appreciates the fact that socks purchases cannot be retroactively refunded, it would like to voice the concern held by some regarding this issue.
Why no refund? All part of the plan, dears.
We sincerely hope that such situations can be avoided in the future, by ensuring that disipline initiatives be targeted at offenders rather than the school population in general.
It better be avoided in the future. Hear hear I say!
As a note we have attached a letter from a year 4 student, expressing similar sentiments to the Student Council.
WHAT?!
Although as a year 4 student, he is not technically within the Student's Council's jurisdiction, his feedback is still applicable to the predicament facing IB students.
Great. Now they know who I am. I am so dead x_x
Well, there you have it. Something has been done, at least. Hooray for Student Council! Just that now, if you have a problem with the school, you're on your own unless you can be bothered to wait until Year 5.
On a side note, Shuan had this very interesting idea about a giant school Mech thing, like Transformers but of entire buildings. He's drawing it now or something. It sounds like a pretty cool idea.
Homework's overloading right now, especially since FPS is coming along. My mom's not very happy that I have to stay back at night. Oh well.
Advocate of socky justice,
The Edna Man
Wednesday, June 27, 2007
Can you say BLACKMAIL?
This is the last straw. Well, it wouldn't be if they just stopped at the socks thing, but they didn't. So this better be the last straw, or else.
It sounded like a very normal thing. School drama night, selling tickets, mantinee show, yada yada yada. Then: "I've got word from high that we have to set an assignment for this."
Can you say BLACKMAIL?
I mean, tickets are $15 each. If the school is so desperate to sell out their seatings, why not WORK A BIT and ADVERTISE, instead of blackmailing students with F grades if they don't go. This is what Mr Wong was talking about when he said that people can't learn in a fearful environment, and, well, apparently the education system has propagated young minds with the idea of GRADES IS POWER to the extent that now we're being blackmailed with them.
Correct me if I'm wrong, please. I'd be very glad to know I'm wrong.
Prefect duty today was also very. I don't know how to describe it. They called down 11 people, and half an hour before duty starts, only half the amount were needed. And for what? Clearing up after the event. And I got home at like, 10.15 and missed Heroes because of that.
Today in the MPac room Gideon was intellectually sparring with Alwyn. It was so darn funny XD
Kk, sleep now. Really tired.
Not doing the assignment even it exists,
The Edna Man
It sounded like a very normal thing. School drama night, selling tickets, mantinee show, yada yada yada. Then: "I've got word from high that we have to set an assignment for this."
Can you say BLACKMAIL?
I mean, tickets are $15 each. If the school is so desperate to sell out their seatings, why not WORK A BIT and ADVERTISE, instead of blackmailing students with F grades if they don't go. This is what Mr Wong was talking about when he said that people can't learn in a fearful environment, and, well, apparently the education system has propagated young minds with the idea of GRADES IS POWER to the extent that now we're being blackmailed with them.
Correct me if I'm wrong, please. I'd be very glad to know I'm wrong.
Prefect duty today was also very. I don't know how to describe it. They called down 11 people, and half an hour before duty starts, only half the amount were needed. And for what? Clearing up after the event. And I got home at like, 10.15 and missed Heroes because of that.
Today in the MPac room Gideon was intellectually sparring with Alwyn. It was so darn funny XD
Kk, sleep now. Really tired.
Not doing the assignment even it exists,
The Edna Man
Monday, June 25, 2007
Dawn of a New Era
It's back to school again. Shame how the holidays just fly by in a fla- wait. We had a holiday?
Anyway, Mr Andrew Wong, Lang Arts Teacher extraordinaire, just revealed his new plans for the semester today. It was most unbelievable. After all these years, we finally get a teacher who wants to focus on the learning and not the grades. FINALLY. I can't wait to see whether he pulls it off. If he does, it would me like, a milestone in our education system.
Doubt it will work though. End of the day, some big guy with more power is going to expound his values of good grades = lots of money/no con-camp into everyone and Mr Wong's great values will be lost on the ears of those who live in fear. Sigh.
Anyway, I haven't posted for a long time; there's Canada photos which I have yet to upload and a Chinese compo workshop which I went for and I haven't blogged about yet. Probably never will, but that's procrastination for ya.
I-don't-care-if-I-get-an-F9-ingly,
The Edna Man
Anyway, Mr Andrew Wong, Lang Arts Teacher extraordinaire, just revealed his new plans for the semester today. It was most unbelievable. After all these years, we finally get a teacher who wants to focus on the learning and not the grades. FINALLY. I can't wait to see whether he pulls it off. If he does, it would me like, a milestone in our education system.
Doubt it will work though. End of the day, some big guy with more power is going to expound his values of good grades = lots of money/no con-camp into everyone and Mr Wong's great values will be lost on the ears of those who live in fear. Sigh.
Anyway, I haven't posted for a long time; there's Canada photos which I have yet to upload and a Chinese compo workshop which I went for and I haven't blogged about yet. Probably never will, but that's procrastination for ya.
I-don't-care-if-I-get-an-F9-ingly,
The Edna Man
Monday, May 21, 2007
Aaaaand ACTION!
The first scene of filming was done today! THANK YOU TO EVERYONE WHO WENT DOWN! I'm going to treat you all after the whole thing is over =) Sucks to you Sam Teo
It was really great that everyone was so cooperative and everything, and I'm really really sorry for making a lot of people wait around while I was shooting x_x I guess I'm not really a good director... but thanks anyway!
I guess it was really fun working with all these actors and acting the actors parts to demonstrate and stuff. My throat hurts now though x_x
Whee only three more shoots x_x
Aaaaand CUT!
The Edna Man, Director
It was really great that everyone was so cooperative and everything, and I'm really really sorry for making a lot of people wait around while I was shooting x_x I guess I'm not really a good director... but thanks anyway!
I guess it was really fun working with all these actors and acting the actors parts to demonstrate and stuff. My throat hurts now though x_x
Whee only three more shoots x_x
Aaaaand CUT!
The Edna Man, Director
Wednesday, May 02, 2007
SCOLD SCOLD
[Quote of the post] You're weird. o_O
[Song of the post] It's My Life - Bon Jovi
Juzzie's evil.
And also weird.
He just got half the people I know to scold me on the account that I called him weird.
Evil weird person.
Oh well.
And I found Jonny's blog! Jonnyfreak XD
I need to blog more. And tag more.
Have you noticed that this post has been random statements so far?
Nope, neither have I.
Another stupid arrangement of tables today for exams. Why can't people think for themselves instead of sticking too rigidly to the rules?
Well, the Pirate Code... to be precise, they're more like guidelines...
AH well.
Back to mugging Geog.
I am so going to hate Geog on Friday.
This time I mean it.
MUG MUG
The Edna Man
[Song of the post] It's My Life - Bon Jovi
Juzzie's evil.
And also weird.
He just got half the people I know to scold me on the account that I called him weird.
Evil weird person.
Oh well.
And I found Jonny's blog! Jonnyfreak XD
I need to blog more. And tag more.
Have you noticed that this post has been random statements so far?
Nope, neither have I.
Another stupid arrangement of tables today for exams. Why can't people think for themselves instead of sticking too rigidly to the rules?
Well, the Pirate Code... to be precise, they're more like guidelines...
AH well.
Back to mugging Geog.
I am so going to hate Geog on Friday.
This time I mean it.
MUG MUG
The Edna Man
Thursday, April 12, 2007
Shutting up now
[Quote of the post] "Just keep it to yourself."
[Song of the post] -
So let's all shut up now. Even if it's wrong, or we don't believe or agree with it, keep it to yourself. Let the unjust go unspoken; let the problem go unsaid. Children should be seen and not heard. Everything that is disagreeable, or contrary, or different, just keep quiet. Silence for survival; survival above all.
...
The Edna Man
[Song of the post] -
So let's all shut up now. Even if it's wrong, or we don't believe or agree with it, keep it to yourself. Let the unjust go unspoken; let the problem go unsaid. Children should be seen and not heard. Everything that is disagreeable, or contrary, or different, just keep quiet. Silence for survival; survival above all.
...
The Edna Man
Tuesday, April 10, 2007
Vive la Revolution
[Quote of the post] Voilà ! In view, a humble vaudevillian veteran, cast vicariously as both victim and villain by the vicissitudes of fate. This visage, no mere veneer of vanity, is a vestige of the vox populi, now vacant, vanished. However, this valorous visitation of a bygone vexation stands vivified, and has vowed to vanquish these venal and virulent vermin vanguarding vice and vouchsafing the violently vicious and voracious violation of volition. The only verdict is vengeance; a vendetta held as a votive, not in vain, for the value and veracity of such shall one day vindicate the vigilant and the virtuous. Verily, this vichyssoise of verbiage veers most verbose, so let me simply add that it's my very good honor to meet you and you may call me V.
[Song of the post] Anything, really
Remember, remember, the 5th of November
The gunpowder treason and plot
I know of no reason
Why the gunpowder treason
Should ever be forgot.
This is the last straw.
School socks.
As if we weren't already branded enough with our school crest. There's school ties, school badges, school jackets, school everything, and now school socks. Soon, school shoes, school spectavles, school underwear. So that the crest can be emblazoned on every piece of living fabric and marketed to the entire world.
I'm not even going to start about the irony of them dissuading us from buying branded goods.
Am I a crazy person? I believe they will say so. They already have said so. I half-jokingly shouted, "Support the revolution! Don't buy school socks!" when I entered class today, and as luck would have it, my teacher heard. Of course, being the nice person she is, she just gave me a small talk about how a person of my position (pointing to my tie) shouldn't be saying things like that, and that even if I didn't like it, I should keep it to myself.
Not that I am against her viewpoint. But I am not that sort of person. Very much soon, we're going to have to keep everything to ourselves, like it or not, because that's what we're supposed to do these days.
Right.
I'd rather die behind the chemical sheds.
Maybe it's just the Asian, Eastern upbringing that many people here have. I have been influenced to a lot of Western culture over the past few years which could explain this outburst. But if you look at it logically, there is absolutely no reason at all why someone like me should conform to the enforcements of the higher power, because I have nothing to do with it. And on the Internet, I have no position to care about.
Here's the background information. As I understand it, the implementation of this rigid new rule is so that the problem of ankle-socks will be properly contained. By and large, I don't get what this problem is per se, but if the school says it looks unsightly and ungentlemanly, then fine, alright by me. But when you start to generalize everyone as wearing these ankle-socks and forcing the entire school population to buy four pairs each, even those who have never flouted the rules and continue to wear socks well above the ankle line, how is it fair for them?
The problem I have with people who shrug it off and say, "Life's unfair. Deal with it.", is that these people are unwilling to break out of their boundaries, just because it is too difficult to do so. Sure, life's unfair, but does that mean you HAVE THE RIGHT to perpetuate it in an educational facility? Since life is so unfair, can't you, just for once, make it LESS unfair? People in power are always in the position to do so, just that they don't want to. Because of time. And money.
A sock is a symbol, as is the act of not buying it. Symbols are given power by people. A symbol, in and of itself is powerless, but with enough people behind it, not buying a pair of socks can change the world.
You know how simple the solution could be? Maybe, once a month, you can have a sock-check. Everyone pulls up their trouser-legs and the teacher stands the sight of hairy legs long enough to see who's not wearing ankle-socks. Then, whosoever has naked ankles would be required to purchase aforementioned school socks. Punishment for crime. Isn't that what we are taught all the way from kindergarden? You are responsible for your actions. Not punishment for all, just because a few people think they are above the rules. Justice. If I'm not wrong, that was the original plan for the socks. To be a punishment, a disincentive. Not a moneymaking machine.
Of course, everyone could say that it's just socks, it's just ten dollars worth of cotton, why make all the fuss? The fact is, that it is not the sock I care so much about. It is the meaning behind them, the motive behind the act. The potential of what they will do next. Already I am being criticized for my not wearing of school jackets. I know one teacher supports me; the same one who asked me to keep my ideas to myself. A friend tried arguing that it was for school pride. We've got enough shield-shaped objects all over our body to not know about school pride.
I caught a snippet of Recess: Taking the Fifth Grade a week ago, where T.J. refuses to go to school because they took away their playground, proper canteen food, and lockers. He brought it up with the principal, but the principal says that "Up against the Board of Education, I'm just a little guy. And as a little guy, I can't do anything." T.J. then refuses to go to school the following day, resulting in a revolutionary movement which reveals that the Board of Education didn't want to go through with the school changes at all, but instead all kept quiet because they thought everyone else like the new ideas.
Sometimes, the little guy can do something. And I'm going to do something.
What do I think will happen? What happens when people without power stands up to people *with* power.
Because behind this mask is an idea, and ideas a bulletproof,
E
[Song of the post] Anything, really
Remember, remember, the 5th of November
The gunpowder treason and plot
I know of no reason
Why the gunpowder treason
Should ever be forgot.
This is the last straw.
School socks.
As if we weren't already branded enough with our school crest. There's school ties, school badges, school jackets, school everything, and now school socks. Soon, school shoes, school spectavles, school underwear. So that the crest can be emblazoned on every piece of living fabric and marketed to the entire world.
I'm not even going to start about the irony of them dissuading us from buying branded goods.
Am I a crazy person? I believe they will say so. They already have said so. I half-jokingly shouted, "Support the revolution! Don't buy school socks!" when I entered class today, and as luck would have it, my teacher heard. Of course, being the nice person she is, she just gave me a small talk about how a person of my position (pointing to my tie) shouldn't be saying things like that, and that even if I didn't like it, I should keep it to myself.
Not that I am against her viewpoint. But I am not that sort of person. Very much soon, we're going to have to keep everything to ourselves, like it or not, because that's what we're supposed to do these days.
Right.
I'd rather die behind the chemical sheds.
Maybe it's just the Asian, Eastern upbringing that many people here have. I have been influenced to a lot of Western culture over the past few years which could explain this outburst. But if you look at it logically, there is absolutely no reason at all why someone like me should conform to the enforcements of the higher power, because I have nothing to do with it. And on the Internet, I have no position to care about.
Here's the background information. As I understand it, the implementation of this rigid new rule is so that the problem of ankle-socks will be properly contained. By and large, I don't get what this problem is per se, but if the school says it looks unsightly and ungentlemanly, then fine, alright by me. But when you start to generalize everyone as wearing these ankle-socks and forcing the entire school population to buy four pairs each, even those who have never flouted the rules and continue to wear socks well above the ankle line, how is it fair for them?
The problem I have with people who shrug it off and say, "Life's unfair. Deal with it.", is that these people are unwilling to break out of their boundaries, just because it is too difficult to do so. Sure, life's unfair, but does that mean you HAVE THE RIGHT to perpetuate it in an educational facility? Since life is so unfair, can't you, just for once, make it LESS unfair? People in power are always in the position to do so, just that they don't want to. Because of time. And money.
A sock is a symbol, as is the act of not buying it. Symbols are given power by people. A symbol, in and of itself is powerless, but with enough people behind it, not buying a pair of socks can change the world.
You know how simple the solution could be? Maybe, once a month, you can have a sock-check. Everyone pulls up their trouser-legs and the teacher stands the sight of hairy legs long enough to see who's not wearing ankle-socks. Then, whosoever has naked ankles would be required to purchase aforementioned school socks. Punishment for crime. Isn't that what we are taught all the way from kindergarden? You are responsible for your actions. Not punishment for all, just because a few people think they are above the rules. Justice. If I'm not wrong, that was the original plan for the socks. To be a punishment, a disincentive. Not a moneymaking machine.
Of course, everyone could say that it's just socks, it's just ten dollars worth of cotton, why make all the fuss? The fact is, that it is not the sock I care so much about. It is the meaning behind them, the motive behind the act. The potential of what they will do next. Already I am being criticized for my not wearing of school jackets. I know one teacher supports me; the same one who asked me to keep my ideas to myself. A friend tried arguing that it was for school pride. We've got enough shield-shaped objects all over our body to not know about school pride.
I caught a snippet of Recess: Taking the Fifth Grade a week ago, where T.J. refuses to go to school because they took away their playground, proper canteen food, and lockers. He brought it up with the principal, but the principal says that "Up against the Board of Education, I'm just a little guy. And as a little guy, I can't do anything." T.J. then refuses to go to school the following day, resulting in a revolutionary movement which reveals that the Board of Education didn't want to go through with the school changes at all, but instead all kept quiet because they thought everyone else like the new ideas.
Sometimes, the little guy can do something. And I'm going to do something.
What do I think will happen? What happens when people without power stands up to people *with* power.
Because behind this mask is an idea, and ideas a bulletproof,
E
Friday, April 06, 2007
But I didn't have the time.
[Quote of the post] GEP is dead, and they have killed it. --Xi Min
[Song of the post] Music is just >_>
It's almost midnight and I have to get up early tomorrow.
Sorry I haven't been blogging in a while. I haven't had the time.
GEP camp has been over for a week. I was supposed to blog about it last week but I didn't have the time.
The GEP really is dead. We've got less GEP teachers, more "GEP" students, and they're thinking of scrapping the programme in a couple of years time. I guess that I really felt kinda special, being the the programme. Not because I was supposed to be smarter than the rest, no. It was because the people were better, not in studies or exams, but in morals, friendships, abstract concepts and I guess... better people. I guess the mainstream has these sort of people as well, but the majority of them, when I look at their classes, I laugh everytime I hear the school boast about their awards in "character development". I guess being in the same classes year after year, you get to know everyone very well, and the ostracized tend to stick together, y'know? I guess I really felt special, and when I see some people who are in the GEP but have totally rotten attitudes, like and and and, it's like a taint, I guess. I don't know. GEP is dead, and they have killed it.
The new blogger is... I guess I'll get used to it eventually. It was so irritating for me just to get a Google account. Google is taking over the world, I tell you. Get ready before they start buying your lives. Anyway I guess there are a lot of cool features, but I'm not used to them yet, so. Will take some time.
Homework is. Guh. (In both senses of the word. That's for 'Homework', not the 'Guh'. Obviously.) There's so much of it piling up, and everywhere I turn it seems to be there. And I just can't get rid of it, because everyday, more of it arrives. And there's so much of my own stuff that I want to do, but can't. It's so irritating.
Then there was CMPS today. And Mr Azmi treated us. Again. Again again. I tried to pay him back, I really did. But he wouldn't accept it. Of course he wouldn't. And it was very hard to dissuade him with his sort of argument. That's what you get for trying to be nice, I guess.
This is blacked out because I'm not really sure whether I should be saying it. After the whole fiasco with the trying-to-pay-for-my-meal thing, I was a bit... upset? confused? at the uneagerness of the rest of the team to return Mr Azmi his money. I mean, we agreed on it beforehand, that we should try not to let Mr Azmi spend on us. I was the only one who actually took out my money to try and pay him back. I was upset/confused because I thought that maybe if everyone else did the same it might help persuade him (to a certain extent). I mean it's the right thing to do, isn't it? Nobody seemed very enthusiastic to pay him back. I thought, yeah, maybe some of you are less financially able, but I mean you're not totally incapable o paying for your own dinner are you? Then I thought, maybe I just didn't understand them enough, and don't get the necessity of saving, or of getting the best bargain for set meals or whatever. I just hate money. It's a stupid value system. Or maybe I'm just naive or something. I don't know. Yeah.
Well, gotta be in school at six tomorrow. What fun, eh?
Kinda like this cool idea of signing off every post,
The Edna Man
[Song of the post] Music is just >_>
It's almost midnight and I have to get up early tomorrow.
Sorry I haven't been blogging in a while. I haven't had the time.
GEP camp has been over for a week. I was supposed to blog about it last week but I didn't have the time.
The GEP really is dead. We've got less GEP teachers, more "GEP" students, and they're thinking of scrapping the programme in a couple of years time. I guess that I really felt kinda special, being the the programme. Not because I was supposed to be smarter than the rest, no. It was because the people were better, not in studies or exams, but in morals, friendships, abstract concepts and I guess... better people. I guess the mainstream has these sort of people as well, but the majority of them, when I look at their classes, I laugh everytime I hear the school boast about their awards in "character development". I guess being in the same classes year after year, you get to know everyone very well, and the ostracized tend to stick together, y'know? I guess I really felt special, and when I see some people who are in the GEP but have totally rotten attitudes, like and and and, it's like a taint, I guess. I don't know. GEP is dead, and they have killed it.
The new blogger is... I guess I'll get used to it eventually. It was so irritating for me just to get a Google account. Google is taking over the world, I tell you. Get ready before they start buying your lives. Anyway I guess there are a lot of cool features, but I'm not used to them yet, so. Will take some time.
Homework is. Guh. (In both senses of the word. That's for 'Homework', not the 'Guh'. Obviously.) There's so much of it piling up, and everywhere I turn it seems to be there. And I just can't get rid of it, because everyday, more of it arrives. And there's so much of my own stuff that I want to do, but can't. It's so irritating.
Then there was CMPS today. And Mr Azmi treated us. Again. Again again. I tried to pay him back, I really did. But he wouldn't accept it. Of course he wouldn't. And it was very hard to dissuade him with his sort of argument. That's what you get for trying to be nice, I guess.
This is blacked out because I'm not really sure whether I should be saying it. After the whole fiasco with the trying-to-pay-for-my-meal thing, I was a bit... upset? confused? at the uneagerness of the rest of the team to return Mr Azmi his money. I mean, we agreed on it beforehand, that we should try not to let Mr Azmi spend on us. I was the only one who actually took out my money to try and pay him back. I was upset/confused because I thought that maybe if everyone else did the same it might help persuade him (to a certain extent). I mean it's the right thing to do, isn't it? Nobody seemed very enthusiastic to pay him back. I thought, yeah, maybe some of you are less financially able, but I mean you're not totally incapable o paying for your own dinner are you? Then I thought, maybe I just didn't understand them enough, and don't get the necessity of saving, or of getting the best bargain for set meals or whatever. I just hate money. It's a stupid value system. Or maybe I'm just naive or something. I don't know. Yeah.
Well, gotta be in school at six tomorrow. What fun, eh?
Kinda like this cool idea of signing off every post,
The Edna Man
Thursday, March 08, 2007
At last
[Quote of the post] "I don't expect any help. Come on, this is Singapore." -Ms Audrey Yeo, pregnant lady caught in Wednesday tremors
[Song of the post] What you Own - Rent
I haven't posted in a long time. I guess I didn't feel like writing anything.
I had something to write on Monday. I didn't get down to writing it. It's now Thursday night. I've been sick for three days. It kinda says something, that when you're out of things for three days, and you're behind by a week. Just goes to show, I guess.
These are the things I wanted to say on Monday.
Chapel was some video about making choices. Mostly talking about pre-marital sex, and the horrors of abortion. In the movie, someone said something about "abortion being like murder". Then Jarrel said something; he said, "Sure it is, but war is too." So on the one hand, we have people arguing about the crimes of abortion, how it takes another human life etc. While they still go to war, taking countless of other human lives. Isn't war a choice too? Maybe we should start aborting war instead of just warring about abortion.
The second is that of marks. I think I'm repeaeting this over and over again; the fact that our world system of living is based on marks has detrimental effects on the individual. I read in The New Paper today, forums page, about an previous article, titled "Embarassed by getting only 4 A1s". There was this person who wrote in, and again brought up the examples of the Happiness Rating and how Singapore was at the bottom, and how we should reevaluate our value system if it is only marks that make us happy, etc.
I parodized What you Own last week, in an attempt to alleviate my thoughts on this matter. I tried keeping to the spirit of the song as much as possible; in as such it's not a very good parody.
Don't think too deep
Can't take all day
File more homework
Gotta get that 'A'
Those distinctions, all look the same
Letters to extend your name
You're living here in Singapore
Where you gotta get that perfect score
You're living here in Singapore
Leave your conscience at the tone
And when you're living here in Singapore
Where you gotta get that perfect score
You're who you pwn
You study from eight to three
For the test at the end of year
They say if you get all correct
It'll help in your career
Just sharpen those pencils
Just spam everything in detail
Just don't have fun or you will fail
You're living here in Singapore
Where you gotta get that perfect score
You're living here in Singapore
Derive x from the unknown
And when you're living here in Singapore
Where you gotta get that perfect score
You're who you pwn
I've no time for emotion
Hesitate, debate, or doubt
What's all the commotion
About
Why do we all have to fight
Let money be what makes the world go round
For once, can you just live with 'not right'
For once, can you just look around
Numbers, percentage, they're all just some fractions
A pass mark, a fail mark; you've got it all wrong
Everyone- just He's just crazy
Calls me a hypocrite Money
I'm trying to change the world Ka-ching!
I quit!
Dying here in Singapore
Where you gotta get that perfect score
I'm dying here in Singapore
So freeze your soul in stone
And when you're dying here in Singapore
Where you gotta get that perfect score
You're all alone
You're all alone
You're all alone
-----
Monday during Chinese, Laoshi gave us this article, about this Chinese performer and philanthrophist, who gave away all his money, borrowed money to donate, and died of cancer. So there we were, talking and discussing his motives and his intentions, and then I realized I spoke what I am doing. He and I are so very much alike. But the thing about not caring about yourself, means you care for your family too, because they're not yourself.
That's Monday sorted out. Today I was sick at home again. In the morning I glanced at the newspapers. There was this article in The New Paper about who we should save in a real emergency, relating to the tremors which shook the nation on Wednesday. It mentioned pregnant women walking down about a dozen floors in their office buildings for evacuation. It then goes on to say that many disabled, elderly, and all "unnormal" people (no offence implied here; the word "unnormal" is used for the lack of a better one) have resigned themselves to the fact that they will have to be left behind in an evacuation. The quote of the post is from Ms Audrey Yeo, one of the pregnant ladies caught in the tremors. If that isn't a bigger insult to the moral standards to our nation, I don't know what is. "Come on, this is Singapore." It's obvious. It's expected. That's the way even our own citizens think.
Money doesn't make the world go round. Gravity still has that job. But money is starting to be something necessary to human survival because, if you don't have money, you can't buy food, your water supply gets cut off, you get evicted; very soon you can't even afford to buy the air you breathe. And all because humans can't give something for nothing. Just think, if everybody in the world were paid in thank yous. I'm not asking you to go back in time and change the invention of money or anything. Just think, if all the money in the world, right now, would disappear forever, and the world just exchanged their work for thank yous. Just think. The greatest payoff in having someone appreciate your time and effort. Do you think we can do that? As a people, on this planet, can we do that? This is probably the most important thing I am going to say in here: if you just forget, for one moment, that we are supposed to be a "fallen" people; if you forget, for one moment, that the world is stuck as it is and cannot be changed; if you forget, for one moment, the barriers that you placed at the entrance of a path that you are too lazy or too scared to walk down, and take a look at the end of that path. And just think. Is it worth it to walk down that path, just to get there?
[Song of the post] What you Own - Rent
I haven't posted in a long time. I guess I didn't feel like writing anything.
I had something to write on Monday. I didn't get down to writing it. It's now Thursday night. I've been sick for three days. It kinda says something, that when you're out of things for three days, and you're behind by a week. Just goes to show, I guess.
These are the things I wanted to say on Monday.
Chapel was some video about making choices. Mostly talking about pre-marital sex, and the horrors of abortion. In the movie, someone said something about "abortion being like murder". Then Jarrel said something; he said, "Sure it is, but war is too." So on the one hand, we have people arguing about the crimes of abortion, how it takes another human life etc. While they still go to war, taking countless of other human lives. Isn't war a choice too? Maybe we should start aborting war instead of just warring about abortion.
The second is that of marks. I think I'm repeaeting this over and over again; the fact that our world system of living is based on marks has detrimental effects on the individual. I read in The New Paper today, forums page, about an previous article, titled "Embarassed by getting only 4 A1s". There was this person who wrote in, and again brought up the examples of the Happiness Rating and how Singapore was at the bottom, and how we should reevaluate our value system if it is only marks that make us happy, etc.
I parodized What you Own last week, in an attempt to alleviate my thoughts on this matter. I tried keeping to the spirit of the song as much as possible; in as such it's not a very good parody.
Don't think too deep
Can't take all day
File more homework
Gotta get that 'A'
Those distinctions, all look the same
Letters to extend your name
You're living here in Singapore
Where you gotta get that perfect score
You're living here in Singapore
Leave your conscience at the tone
And when you're living here in Singapore
Where you gotta get that perfect score
You're who you pwn
You study from eight to three
For the test at the end of year
They say if you get all correct
It'll help in your career
Just sharpen those pencils
Just spam everything in detail
Just don't have fun or you will fail
You're living here in Singapore
Where you gotta get that perfect score
You're living here in Singapore
Derive x from the unknown
And when you're living here in Singapore
Where you gotta get that perfect score
You're who you pwn
I've no time for emotion
Hesitate, debate, or doubt
What's all the commotion
About
Why do we all have to fight
Let money be what makes the world go round
For once, can you just live with 'not right'
For once, can you just look around
Numbers, percentage, they're all just some fractions
A pass mark, a fail mark; you've got it all wrong
Everyone- just He's just crazy
Calls me a hypocrite Money
I'm trying to change the world Ka-ching!
I quit!
Dying here in Singapore
Where you gotta get that perfect score
I'm dying here in Singapore
So freeze your soul in stone
And when you're dying here in Singapore
Where you gotta get that perfect score
You're all alone
You're all alone
You're all alone
-----
Monday during Chinese, Laoshi gave us this article, about this Chinese performer and philanthrophist, who gave away all his money, borrowed money to donate, and died of cancer. So there we were, talking and discussing his motives and his intentions, and then I realized I spoke what I am doing. He and I are so very much alike. But the thing about not caring about yourself, means you care for your family too, because they're not yourself.
That's Monday sorted out. Today I was sick at home again. In the morning I glanced at the newspapers. There was this article in The New Paper about who we should save in a real emergency, relating to the tremors which shook the nation on Wednesday. It mentioned pregnant women walking down about a dozen floors in their office buildings for evacuation. It then goes on to say that many disabled, elderly, and all "unnormal" people (no offence implied here; the word "unnormal" is used for the lack of a better one) have resigned themselves to the fact that they will have to be left behind in an evacuation. The quote of the post is from Ms Audrey Yeo, one of the pregnant ladies caught in the tremors. If that isn't a bigger insult to the moral standards to our nation, I don't know what is. "Come on, this is Singapore." It's obvious. It's expected. That's the way even our own citizens think.
Money doesn't make the world go round. Gravity still has that job. But money is starting to be something necessary to human survival because, if you don't have money, you can't buy food, your water supply gets cut off, you get evicted; very soon you can't even afford to buy the air you breathe. And all because humans can't give something for nothing. Just think, if everybody in the world were paid in thank yous. I'm not asking you to go back in time and change the invention of money or anything. Just think, if all the money in the world, right now, would disappear forever, and the world just exchanged their work for thank yous. Just think. The greatest payoff in having someone appreciate your time and effort. Do you think we can do that? As a people, on this planet, can we do that? This is probably the most important thing I am going to say in here: if you just forget, for one moment, that we are supposed to be a "fallen" people; if you forget, for one moment, that the world is stuck as it is and cannot be changed; if you forget, for one moment, the barriers that you placed at the entrance of a path that you are too lazy or too scared to walk down, and take a look at the end of that path. And just think. Is it worth it to walk down that path, just to get there?
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