MOVED TO http://www.visaisahero.blogspot.com

1. We are brought into this world by our families, so it seems appropriate to start with mine. I am the youngest child in my family. My father married twice and had 6 children altogether, 4 from the first marriage and 2 from the second. I had an elder sister who died in a road accident long before I was born. So I have 3 elder brothers and an elder sister. We grew up together as brothers and sister, not half-siblings or step-siblings or anything like that. I’m close to my father’s first wife, and I call her Mum too. We’re just one big happy family, really. While I might sometimes complain that my family can be rather traditional, harsh, unforgiving and illogical, I am very thankful that they’ve always been a solid rock for me to fall back on. I never really do, but I know that they’re there for me if I need them.

2. Personality next. Myers-Briggs personality analysis (which is used by the US Military, and is both the most interesting and useful thing I’ve ever learned) describes me as an ENTP. As an ENTP, my primary mode of living is focused externally, where I take things in primarily through my intuition. My secondary mode is internal, where I deal with things rationally and logically. I love to understand things. I’m a flexible and resourceful problem-solver. I am more interested with generating ideas than with implementing them- there are always other people around who can do that, which leaves me free to come up with newer ideas. I’m a fluent conversationalist. I love to argue in the logical sense, in the pursuit of intellectual growth and understanding. I am ultimately an optimist, and I love life. My personality ultimately mirrors George Carlin, Weird Al Yankovic, Thomas Edison, Bugs Bunny and Chandler from Friends.

3. Academia. I’ve always had a thirst for learning. I did spectacularly well in lower Primary school. I never studied at all, and I remember getting 100/100 for several different papers on multiple occasions. I honestly never thought it was something to brag or be very proud about, but my parents certainly did. I’ve NEVER enjoyed mugging. I’ve never been able to do it. Never in my life have I sat down to grind for an exam- not even for my O Levels. I have absolutely no examination-specific study skills. I can never focus throughout the entire duration of an examination, too. I always end up daydreaming in the middle of my papers. This has resulted in mediocre, average results. I got 245 for my PSLE and 14 points for O Levels. Those results would please some parents and appease others, but my parents were absolutely disappointed with me because I didn’t meet their expectations. I remember my Dad slapping me in front of my friends when I went to collect my PSLE results.

4. I qualified for the Gifted Education Programme at the end of Primary 3, and transferred from Opera Estate Primary School to St. Hilda’s Primary School. Looking back, I’m pretty impressed with myself for being able to say goodbye to all my friends to dive in headfirst into a new environment. I always love that big adventure. I enjoyed meeting new people and making new friends. It was my friends in P4 who started calling me Visa, which has stuck with me ever since. I got to meet some very intelligent people during my 4 years in the Gifted Education Programme, and some of these people are going to do great things in the future. One of the most interesting things about being in the GEP was the discrimination. Quite a lot of people assume that you’re elitist, even if you’re not. I think people really just have a fear or dislike of what they do not fully understand. That said, I made loads of friends outside the GEP who didn’t think any different of me just because I was there.

5. Going to Victoria School was one of the best decisions of my life. My seniors were the most inspiring group of people I ever met- fit, intelligent, honourable, passionate and successful. It was there that I learnt the true meaning of camaraderie, brotherhood, passion and a host of other things.Above all, I learnt what it means to be a part of something that is greater than yourself. It’s been three years since I graduated from there, but I still bump into my fellow Victorians (teachers, seniors, peers, juniors) everywhere I go and we always reminisce about old times. I could do a 25 things list about VS life alone. We never return to you mother, because we never really left. Nil Sine Labore.

6. It was my teachers at VS GEP that really kick-started my thirst for learning. I have to thank Mr. James Koh above all for being the most awesome teacher I ever met. I managed to piss him off countless times by being the worst possible student imaginable, but I always had a lot of respect for him nevertheless. He got me into Radiohead, theatre in general, and all sorts of things. I always thought he was really, really cool. Like a rock star. Teaching is a beautiful profession, and I think I’d love to teach at some point in my life. I wouldn’t want to teach full time as a career, but I might want to teach for a couple of years to try to make a difference to some youngsters’ lives.

7. I love people. I have friends from all sorts of different racial, religious, financial and educational backgrounds. I’ve learned some of the most important lessons from the people that I least expected to learn anything from. I do have a strong preference for intellectual company, but I do my absolute best to avoid passing judgement before I’ve gotten to know somebody. You never know what treasures you may find in a person that you overlook because of an unhealthy, elitist mindset.

8. Being a manual labourer is probably one of the most enriching experiences I’ve had. Meeting people who work in the the industry, and witnessing firsthand how all sorts of different people treat you. Working as banquet staff at Shangri-La was a similar experience. You learn a lot about yourself, the people you work with, and the people you work for. I was brought up thinking that hard work is tiresome, troublesome and undesirable- but I learnt that it can be enriching. rewarding and even enjoyable if you work with the right people and the right mindset.
I probably learnt more about life from working a month at Shangri-La than from an extra year at school.

9. One of the most life-changing things that happened to me was going to a local music show. It was called Sound Relief and it was held at Zouk. Some of the awesome bands that played that night included Ugly In The Morning, Fatskunks, B-Quartet and A Vacant Affair (who were just starting out then), but it was a band called Ronin seized me by the heart and balls and I’ve never been the same since. Following Ronin, their antics and their shows would become a big part of my life after that. I’d never before met people who had so much guts and balls to be true to themselves and what they stood for. Musically they were probably just average (although Sean Cheng remains one of the most awesome lead guitarists I’ve ever witnessed), but they managed to create an epic following unlike any other local band I’ve ever seen (Except maybe say Plainsunset, but those guys have been at it for over a decade now!). I learnt alot from those guys, and though they’ve disbanded they’ll always be my heroes.

10. I live for intense moments. Good music can get me ridiculously emotional. I don’t know how to explain it, but it’s that beautiful moment where everything comes together and it just makes you want to cry. It’s not genre-specific, those powerful climaxes that pull at your heart. I’ve felt it while watching movies, plays, live bands (both rock bands and massive concert bands) and all sorts of other things. It’s just amazing, how human beings can come together and express themselves in a way that affects others on such an intimate level. I think it’s absolutely beautiful. Search YouTube for Paul Potts’s audition for Britain’s Got Talent. Gets me every time. Explosions In The Sky is another.

Joshua Benjamin Jeyaratnam
1926 – 2008

You fought the good fight, sir. Thank you for always speaking your mind and standing up for what you believed in, even in the face of extreme adversity. You will always be remembered, as a hero and a groundbreaker.

For those of you who don’t know or don’t remember, Britney’s little sister Jamie-Lynn, who was that kid in Nickelodeon’s Zoey 101 or something like that, has a baby girl named Maddie. Apparently the dad of the baby, Casey Aldridge,  thought it wouldn’t be such a bad idea to take pictures of his girlfriend breastfeeding- exposed titties and all. He then did an Edison Chen and went to get them printed at Wal-Mart, upon which unauthorized copies were almost certainly made.

http://www.news.com.au/entertainment/story/0,26278,24388891-5013560,00.html

This sparked a FEDERAL MANHUNT- for CHILD PORNOGRAPHY. Jamie-Lynn is still a minor at 17 years old, so her exposed breast counts as child pornography!

Please, Casey Aldridge, stop procreating.

I’ve been itching, itching badly to be a part of something. To contribute, to make a difference, to start something, and then to follow through. There are many many things I want to do, and yet already these past three days I’ve been sitting around stoning and accomplishing nothing.

It starts here, and it starts today.

It’s alright if some of us are indifferent to others amongst us- if it’s not your cup of tea, that’s okay. What’s disgusting is that some of us go out of our way to put others down. There’s only one reason that I can think of to do this, and that is JEALOUSY. Why would I care if other people support and like a band that I don’t, except for my own personal insecurities?

Does anybody notice that the biggest insults and hatred for local music comes from within the scene itself? Because people who don’t give a damn can’t be bothered to waste their time on us. Gossip and small talk are to be expected and I’d even go so far as to say that it can be somewhat healthy for the scene- assuming we are all considerate, understanding and rational (quite a big assumption there.) But to go out on a smear campaign against another band?

If I thought a band, (Astroninja, let’s say) could be better in some way, I would let them know. If their music is not to my taste, then I wouldn’t listen to it. But why would I go and insult them on a YouTube page? If I think they don’t deserve to be popular, well, that’s just my opinion- hundreds of fans across the world think differently.

PS: There is no such thing as “doesn’t deserve to be popular.” Everybody has to work hard at building relationships with an audience and sustaining their interest. If XYZ band can be popular without playing good music, why can’t YOUR band be popular despite playing supposedly better music? It’s because they’re doing something right and you’re not, and complaining about it isn’t going to do you any favours.

Paul McCartney mentioned in an interview that he found it quite funny when Oasis said they’d be bigger than The Beatles, and his words to any band in the world that claims that is “Good luck, son.” Yet we don’t see him posting insulting comments on Oasis videos now, do we?

That’s because he’s got better things to do, has nothing to prove, and has his own music and career to worry about. As do the rest of us. Insulting other people in your field, whether you are a musician, athlete, artist, whatever- is a sign of incompetency, insecurity or inadequacy on your part. If you honestly don’t feel they deserve the glory that they’re getting from their own hard work, then go out and achieve greater success yourself. Because nobody thinks highly of armchair critics.

I haven’t blogged at all in absolutely ages, probably a month already. I can’t stand how the wordpress editor looks in my Mozilla, so I might shift to Internet Explorer. It bugs me that I can’t quite churn out post after post like i used to early in secondary school- I think it’s simply just how well formed the habit is. I sense that my writing abilities aren’t what they used to be. And it does still bug me.

What the fuck is this crap editor? I can’t see more than one line of text.

I’m recovering from a very bad fever and sore throat. Not the worst I’ve ever had, but pretty inconvenient. Ugh.

My computer is pissing me off! stupid bitch!

it’s so slow, i’m spending more than half my time here waiting for stuff to load and stop lagging.