Happy New Year! I actually didn't realize that it is the year 2006 already. Time really flies.
On Saturday, I went to play at a VS Hobby League at Raffles City with Jeffrey, Himura, Orchi and Mango (who decided to drop by unexpectedly). It was a lot of fun since there was quite a crowd that day. 11 people was more than their usual capacity so the store sponsored some of us with $2 to play at the nearby Food Junction. It was a nice thing to do but very troublesome. At the end of it all, they handed out our prizes in 'hip-hop rapper caps' (I have no idea what they are really called). Everyone got one and it was real neat.
As for my VS matches, I will be posting them in my MSN space from now on since I feel that they get in the way of casual readers who just want to read the usual stuff. You can click on the yellow asterix next to my nick in your MSN but here is a direct link as well.
After the VS event was over, me & Mango went to Toa Payoh to meet the rest for dinner at Swensens. I had black pepper chicken and ice cream for dessert. It was very filling and I enjoyed it very much.
In the evening, we went over to Chaosmag's house to play video games and some of us chose to stay overnight (actually, I had no choice since I missed the last bus/train). So it was just me, Michael and Mango at Maggie's house (of M). We watched a bit of the New Year countdown on TV and after midnight, we went to 7-Eleven to buy supper. At first, we wanted to check out McDonald's, but there was a large crowd there despite it being 2 am. I bought the nasi bryani instant dinner and some chips. After that, we played some more games until it was around 5 am. I tried to get some sleep but it was too cold. Mango was still up on the computer and we browsed through Michael's hard drive. I saw a few good things that I could download to keep myself occupied when I get home, namely the Densha Otoko series. Everyone started waking up at around 7 pm and we went to McDonald's together for breakfast.
After breakfast, I could no longer endure my tiredness and decided to take a cab home. The first thing I did when I got home was to get online and start downloading Densha Otoko. I then left my computer on while I finally got to sleep on my comfy bed at last. It was so good to be home.
Sunday, January 01, 2006
Wednesday, December 28, 2005
Another Job Opportunity
I have recently been offered another job through my Mum's recommendation. I actually told myself not to take any of my relatives' job recommendations too seriously since they have all failed to hook me up. But at this point in time, I have nothing to lose; even my job recruitment agent hasn't called me in weeks which is proof that I am unwanted.
The position is that of an admin assistant to a guy who deals in r/c cars (those expensive complicated ones that run on oil). I didn't know such a hobby was popular in Singapore; he even has his own race team and they travel overseas for competitions. Anyway, he has just relocated his office and was hiring help. My Mum told me to go have a look at the place first because it is not ready yet. To my surprise, the place was at Paya Lebar's GrandLink. She said the rent there was a whole lot cheaper than other shopping centres (which is both a good thing and a bad thing).
And so, I went to GrandLink to have a look. I didn't realize that the World of JJ outlet there was gone; it just goes to show what a lousy location GrandLink is. Anyway, it was a nice & simple little office with a front desk and a room in the back. The boss knew I was just there to take a look since my Mum called him beforehand. I asked him if I would be attached to some guy to teach me and he said he didn't have any other staff; most of his work (document-typing, website development, etc) were outsourced. I don't know whether to be honored or worried that I might be his one & only staff.
The boss seemed to be a DIY kinda guy as he was setting up everything by himself. When I was there, he was setting the computer and later on, a guy came to help him put up his signboard. He told me that, if I was interested, I could start work next week when the office is ready. I checked my calender and realized that 'next week' was 2006 already; I've been jobless for waaaaaaay too long. *sigh* Before I left, I told him that I will consider and I will most probably help him out.
So long as it is a challenging job and I get to learn new things (so I can finally write stuff into my resume), I guess I shouldn't have any complaints. After all, beggars can't be choosers.
The position is that of an admin assistant to a guy who deals in r/c cars (those expensive complicated ones that run on oil). I didn't know such a hobby was popular in Singapore; he even has his own race team and they travel overseas for competitions. Anyway, he has just relocated his office and was hiring help. My Mum told me to go have a look at the place first because it is not ready yet. To my surprise, the place was at Paya Lebar's GrandLink. She said the rent there was a whole lot cheaper than other shopping centres (which is both a good thing and a bad thing).
And so, I went to GrandLink to have a look. I didn't realize that the World of JJ outlet there was gone; it just goes to show what a lousy location GrandLink is. Anyway, it was a nice & simple little office with a front desk and a room in the back. The boss knew I was just there to take a look since my Mum called him beforehand. I asked him if I would be attached to some guy to teach me and he said he didn't have any other staff; most of his work (document-typing, website development, etc) were outsourced. I don't know whether to be honored or worried that I might be his one & only staff.
The boss seemed to be a DIY kinda guy as he was setting up everything by himself. When I was there, he was setting the computer and later on, a guy came to help him put up his signboard. He told me that, if I was interested, I could start work next week when the office is ready. I checked my calender and realized that 'next week' was 2006 already; I've been jobless for waaaaaaay too long. *sigh* Before I left, I told him that I will consider and I will most probably help him out.
So long as it is a challenging job and I get to learn new things (so I can finally write stuff into my resume), I guess I shouldn't have any complaints. After all, beggars can't be choosers.
Sunday, December 25, 2005
Merry Christmas
Saturday (Christmas Eve)
On the night before, we stayed up late on MSN to discuss what to do for Saturday, but everyone had things to do. We ended up having no plans for the day.
For me, I woke up at around noon time and went straight to the post office at White Sands to send my package since they were opened for a half-day (I found it stupid that I was unable to buy toploaders for the past few days and yet I found two long-forgotten ones sitting in my messy drawer).
After that, I went to AMK since it was just another typical Saturday. Oh, I forgot they were having a YuGay tournament. JokerZ, Himura and gang were there, though. We waited over an hour until we finally had some tables to ourselves. We played some VS to pass the time and then Kyo SMS'ed me to tell me that they had plans for dinner after all. His SMS contained smiley faces which were unnatural and made me wonder if someone had hijacked Kyo's handphone. hehe. Orchi and the rest wanted to have dinner first so I joined them and had some carrot cake to tide me over until the later dinner. Darrell seemed like he wanted more and decides to join me for the later dinner, too.
Everyone else arrived at around 9-something; Akira, Brainy, Kyo, Fengo and Maggie. At first, we went to Breeks but their regular menu was replaced by some fancy Christmas menu with a super narrow selection of obscenely expensive set meals. We left the place and went to Pizza Hut instead. As usual, everyone shared pizza whereas I tried the 'Make-Your-Own Pasta'. Surprisingly, I liked it very much; it is not as soggy as the one from Pastamania. I also had dessert which consisted of brownie & ice-cream.
After that, we all went home. At night was more "what to do on Christmas"-type discussion and as usual, we couldn't think of anything fun to do.
Oh, and I received a Christmas card from Japan. It was from the Yahoo deputy agent who had helped me before with Japanese auctions. How nice of her to remember. The card had some sort of cotton imprint on it. I have no idea how it was made. At first I couldn't figure out what it was until I recalled that it was one of her store's mascot.
Sunday (Christmas)
I woke up at around noontime. Once again, the "what to do on Christmas" discussion continued till around 4 pm. Then finally, someone suggested eating at Han's at Parkmall. It was a last-minute thing and we agreed to meet at 6 pm.
Everyone was late. I got lost in the maze that is Dhoby Ghaut MRT station because it had so many staircases. Darrell managed to find me even though we were at different exits (the NE line and NS line). Then Mango came along and showed us where the Zone-X arcade is (*gasp* an arcade in the MRT station). We played a bit till the rest arrived then we went to Parkmall.
I didn't really know what Han's was like then I realized that it was a quaint little cafe. I had the chicken chop meal with soup and cake for dessert. It was a very simple & filling dinner, and the price was right (no GST or hidden costs).
After dinner, we were really stuck. We had no other plans for the day. We went to the arcade to play some more then decided to go walk-walk at Orchard. We took the MRT from Dhoby Ghaut to Orchard. We went to Borders for a while then began our aimless wandering from Orchard back to Dhoby Ghaut again. We didn't have any other better plan. Orchard Road was very mobbed and they had a lot of officers to help in crowd control. After that, it was time to go home.
Well, that's it for Christmas. Six days from now, I will be like "what to do for New Year" all over again.
On the night before, we stayed up late on MSN to discuss what to do for Saturday, but everyone had things to do. We ended up having no plans for the day.
For me, I woke up at around noon time and went straight to the post office at White Sands to send my package since they were opened for a half-day (I found it stupid that I was unable to buy toploaders for the past few days and yet I found two long-forgotten ones sitting in my messy drawer).
After that, I went to AMK since it was just another typical Saturday. Oh, I forgot they were having a YuGay tournament. JokerZ, Himura and gang were there, though. We waited over an hour until we finally had some tables to ourselves. We played some VS to pass the time and then Kyo SMS'ed me to tell me that they had plans for dinner after all. His SMS contained smiley faces which were unnatural and made me wonder if someone had hijacked Kyo's handphone. hehe. Orchi and the rest wanted to have dinner first so I joined them and had some carrot cake to tide me over until the later dinner. Darrell seemed like he wanted more and decides to join me for the later dinner, too.
Everyone else arrived at around 9-something; Akira, Brainy, Kyo, Fengo and Maggie. At first, we went to Breeks but their regular menu was replaced by some fancy Christmas menu with a super narrow selection of obscenely expensive set meals. We left the place and went to Pizza Hut instead. As usual, everyone shared pizza whereas I tried the 'Make-Your-Own Pasta'. Surprisingly, I liked it very much; it is not as soggy as the one from Pastamania. I also had dessert which consisted of brownie & ice-cream.
After that, we all went home. At night was more "what to do on Christmas"-type discussion and as usual, we couldn't think of anything fun to do.
Oh, and I received a Christmas card from Japan. It was from the Yahoo deputy agent who had helped me before with Japanese auctions. How nice of her to remember. The card had some sort of cotton imprint on it. I have no idea how it was made. At first I couldn't figure out what it was until I recalled that it was one of her store's mascot.
Sunday (Christmas)
I woke up at around noontime. Once again, the "what to do on Christmas" discussion continued till around 4 pm. Then finally, someone suggested eating at Han's at Parkmall. It was a last-minute thing and we agreed to meet at 6 pm.
Everyone was late. I got lost in the maze that is Dhoby Ghaut MRT station because it had so many staircases. Darrell managed to find me even though we were at different exits (the NE line and NS line). Then Mango came along and showed us where the Zone-X arcade is (*gasp* an arcade in the MRT station). We played a bit till the rest arrived then we went to Parkmall.
I didn't really know what Han's was like then I realized that it was a quaint little cafe. I had the chicken chop meal with soup and cake for dessert. It was a very simple & filling dinner, and the price was right (no GST or hidden costs).
After dinner, we were really stuck. We had no other plans for the day. We went to the arcade to play some more then decided to go walk-walk at Orchard. We took the MRT from Dhoby Ghaut to Orchard. We went to Borders for a while then began our aimless wandering from Orchard back to Dhoby Ghaut again. We didn't have any other better plan. Orchard Road was very mobbed and they had a lot of officers to help in crowd control. After that, it was time to go home.
Well, that's it for Christmas. Six days from now, I will be like "what to do for New Year" all over again.
Thursday, December 22, 2005
Still Feeling Bored
On Wednesday, I stayed home all day and then left for Orchard to meet Darrell at around 6 pm. I was planning to go join the VS Hobby League at ComicsMart (Orchard Cineleisure). I had this strange feeling coming over me; this was the third time I was going to the town area to play cards (the other times were at Raffles City). It seemed funny going to such places for non-luxurious, non-classy activities. Oh, well. I guess I am a queer. But hey, better than staying home.
The two of us arrived at the place on time. I tried to call Akira since registration was closing soon but he didn't pick up. He came right before the first round of pairings began and the organizer, Leck Koon, was kind enough to let him sign up. I was surprised to see Brainy and Chaosmag tagging along. There were 8 people, so we played 4-round Swiss and I had a 2-2 score. I'd usually write about my matches but I played against mostly friends this time so it wouldn't be fun to write about since everyone was there.
The event ended at 9 am and we decided to go have supper at SubWay. I was quite interested since I've always seen advertisements of it while riding in the MRT. Brainy told me it was mostly healthy stuff and veggies, though. I had a Meatball Marinara and chose to have minimal veggies in my sandwich. There were two fairly large cookies included with the meal, too. I couldn't finish and brought one home but it became soggy at night.
As I took the MRT home, I actually found my missing EZVideo card tucked deep inside my wallet. I thought of going to rent a movie from White Sands on my way home but I forgot it was already 10+ pm and all the shops were closed.
I couldn't get to sleep as usual and ended up sleeping at 5 am. I only woke up at 4 pm on Thursday. I have recently begun trading at VSRealms and I logged on to check my private messages. I have managed to close the deal on a foreign trade but I remembered that I had to send it before the Christmas weekend or else I'll have to wait till next Tuesday. I went to the Post Office at White Sands to purchase bubble envelopes at around 5:30 pm which was just half an hour before it closed.
After that, I went to EZVideo since I remembered I wanted to rent something the night before. I looked through the shelves, trying to find Scary Movie but they didn't have it. It took me a while to spot American Pie (1 & 2) and Deuce Bigalow. Just as I was deciding, I accidentally knocked over a VCD and it dropped on the floor. The case fell apart and the CD dropped out. I was like "Oops" cos' the store assistant was watching it happen and the stuff dropped at his feet. He just stood there and watched. I thought he would help me pick up the stuff. In the end, it was another shopper who helped me. Gee, that shop assistant was a moron. Does he get paid to just stand around? In the end, I didn't rent anything.
I then decided to go to AMK to buy card sleeves and toploaders for my trade. It was also Thursday which meant a lot of new Japanese PS2 game releases. Auntie was out of top loaders, so I had to return on Friday again. I'll probably send off the mail at the Post Office at AMK (if there is one). I picked up Neo Geo Battle Coliseum for PS2. Since no one was at AMK (it was raining and all), I decided to go straight home. Although I like NGBC, I know it wouldn't last long. Arcade fighters don't have much singleplayer replay value. A few hours of playing and I was through with all the game modes; I was kinda disappointed that they didn't add any extras. Argh, sadness.
Oh, well. That was it for my day. The next few days should be quite busy and I know I am supposed to look forward to Christmas but I don't seem to be in the holiday mood. Something is missing and I feel very bored no matter what. Maybe I am still coming out of my angst-filled phase.
The two of us arrived at the place on time. I tried to call Akira since registration was closing soon but he didn't pick up. He came right before the first round of pairings began and the organizer, Leck Koon, was kind enough to let him sign up. I was surprised to see Brainy and Chaosmag tagging along. There were 8 people, so we played 4-round Swiss and I had a 2-2 score. I'd usually write about my matches but I played against mostly friends this time so it wouldn't be fun to write about since everyone was there.
The event ended at 9 am and we decided to go have supper at SubWay. I was quite interested since I've always seen advertisements of it while riding in the MRT. Brainy told me it was mostly healthy stuff and veggies, though. I had a Meatball Marinara and chose to have minimal veggies in my sandwich. There were two fairly large cookies included with the meal, too. I couldn't finish and brought one home but it became soggy at night.
As I took the MRT home, I actually found my missing EZVideo card tucked deep inside my wallet. I thought of going to rent a movie from White Sands on my way home but I forgot it was already 10+ pm and all the shops were closed.
I couldn't get to sleep as usual and ended up sleeping at 5 am. I only woke up at 4 pm on Thursday. I have recently begun trading at VSRealms and I logged on to check my private messages. I have managed to close the deal on a foreign trade but I remembered that I had to send it before the Christmas weekend or else I'll have to wait till next Tuesday. I went to the Post Office at White Sands to purchase bubble envelopes at around 5:30 pm which was just half an hour before it closed.
After that, I went to EZVideo since I remembered I wanted to rent something the night before. I looked through the shelves, trying to find Scary Movie but they didn't have it. It took me a while to spot American Pie (1 & 2) and Deuce Bigalow. Just as I was deciding, I accidentally knocked over a VCD and it dropped on the floor. The case fell apart and the CD dropped out. I was like "Oops" cos' the store assistant was watching it happen and the stuff dropped at his feet. He just stood there and watched. I thought he would help me pick up the stuff. In the end, it was another shopper who helped me. Gee, that shop assistant was a moron. Does he get paid to just stand around? In the end, I didn't rent anything.
I then decided to go to AMK to buy card sleeves and toploaders for my trade. It was also Thursday which meant a lot of new Japanese PS2 game releases. Auntie was out of top loaders, so I had to return on Friday again. I'll probably send off the mail at the Post Office at AMK (if there is one). I picked up Neo Geo Battle Coliseum for PS2. Since no one was at AMK (it was raining and all), I decided to go straight home. Although I like NGBC, I know it wouldn't last long. Arcade fighters don't have much singleplayer replay value. A few hours of playing and I was through with all the game modes; I was kinda disappointed that they didn't add any extras. Argh, sadness.
Oh, well. That was it for my day. The next few days should be quite busy and I know I am supposed to look forward to Christmas but I don't seem to be in the holiday mood. Something is missing and I feel very bored no matter what. Maybe I am still coming out of my angst-filled phase.
Wednesday, December 21, 2005
Hate~Hate~Hate: A Story of Angst & Hate
During the last few days, there had been a lot of angst building up in me. One particular day was all about hate-hate-hate. For one afternoon, I hated the world and I hated everyone and everything around me. I sat down and tried to find fault in every single thing; everything from the meaning of life, the way the world was run, the way in which the Singaporean society functioned and even the ways in which human beings behave. There was a lot of nitpicking for me to indulge in and I started developing hate-hate-hate for every single bloody thing that came off as 'flawed' in my mind. All things living or non-living, tangible or intangible would not be spared. In my dillusional state, everything else was screwed up and deserve to be erased from existence; on the other hand, my thoughts and will embodied ultimate perfection.Sounds crazy? Looking back at that afternoon, I did sound like a mad god. What could've sparked off such an emotion in me? Well, there are a billion reasons that I could think of. Life for me hasn't been great. Maybe I am indeed unhappy with the world. But I have to admit, I was somewhat influenced by Vincent/Lucifer's blog where he regularly vented his hatred of the people around him. I think they all deserved to be hanged. Oops, there I go again, thinking about hate and violence.
I had a talk with Brainy and Darrell on MSN to share my hateful views and they know about my crazy hating spree. I am still trying to recover from it. Kyo suggests a full twenty-four hours of sleep. Meh, I remember how nice it was during the days which I fell sick and could actually lie on the bed for an entire day. Anyway, don't feel afraid to approach me on MSN during my period of angst and hate. I feel better talking to people and getting my mind off hate-hate-hate. Heck, ask me out if you even feel like it. Just don't mind me when I start spreading hate propaganda.
Sunday, December 18, 2005
My Sunday: VS PCQ - December 2005
Today was supposed to be the first Golden Age VS PCQ in like six months and I actually missed it! Argh! I thought it started at 2 pm, so I left home at 1 pm. But then Kyo SMS'ed to tell me that it had already begun. I wasted my cab fare which I felt was a rip-off (S$12 from my home to Suntec? It's only S$10 from my home to AMK). Anyway, this reminded me of the dream that I had recently; I dreamt that I woke up late for an exam, so I guess it was hinting that I would be late for the PCQ.
I arrived and started doing a bit of trading. I passed Orchi the flyers that I printed out for the VS System trade forum that I had made (http://s14.invisionfree.com/sgvs). The idea came to me when I realized that there was no local trade forum like the other mainstream card games and felt that perhaps it was time someone made one. I gave out the flyers to quite a few people under the pretext that I was 'helping a friend' since I wished to remain anonymous. I passed some to Edwin (our judge friend) and the other Edwin (the head judge) saw me and added that there was already a Southeast-Asian VS forum (VSdojo.com). That made me feel like an 'extra', but oh, well, I'll just give it a shot. It doesn't really matter to me if my trade forum is a success as I just wish to be the facilitator and nothing else. Orchi was real helpful and helped me to pin the flyer to the pairings board. I left a stack of flyers there and was quite pleased when I came back ten minutes later to see that they were gone (I hope they were not chucked away).
I spent most of the day looking around. At one point in time, one of the judges got on the microphone and announced, "Please refrain from using vulgarities and making rude gestures at your opponent." It made everyone laugh. Around ten minutes later, Leck Koon scream out loud, "AAAH!!! @#$%^&! At this time and age, where got people still put Flame Trap in their decks one!" (He was using his trademark Wild Sentinels deck). Then moments later, the judge got on the microphone again. "This is a reminder. Please refrain from using vulgarities or rude gestures," He paused for effect. "Even if your opponent did use Flame Trap on you." And the whole room was filled with laughter again. It was real funny.
Soon, it was evening and the top 8 rankings were put up. There were a lot of regulars in the top 8 and it included Wai Leong playing his original Xavier's Dream variant. The top 8 were:
- Anti-Green Lantern (Bertram)
- Wild Sentinels (Leck Koon)
- Squadron Supreme (Yap Jing Yang)
- Kang's Dream (Wai Leong)
- Team Superman (Michael Chew, possibly one of the biggest Superman fan)
- Common Enemy (Don't know, but he flicks his cards loudly and point with his middle finger)
- New School (Don't know, but he always play New School)
- New School (Don't know)
Yup, it's pretty much an all-star cast. Seems difficult to play in, too. Didn't stick around to watch much, but I do know Wai Leong's match against the New School player was an auto-win for him (New School wants to go to turn 9 and win by doing nothing, but Kang's Dream wants to win on turn 6 by doing nothing. Go figure). I was like, "That'd teach those New School players for bringing such a god-awful boring deck to a PCQ." Props to Wai Leong. I was also actually kinda rooting for Michael Chew since he dared to be different by playing the deck that has always enjoyed.
All in all, it was a fun day. I didn't play but I learnt that my Common Enemy was tech'ed for the wrong match-ups. I was expecting some Curve Sentinels and Brotherhood but they were nonexistent. I would've died horribly to New School, Squadron, DIG and all the funny decks I've never playtested against before. Time to do more homework and I'd better not be late for my next 'exam' again.
For dinner, I wanted to have an extravagantly expensive dinner (Sizzler's Kenny Rogers, Cafe Cartel were all within reach!!!), but we settled for Pastamania which was still fine by me. Wee. It was a nice day. And even better, WWE Survivor Series screens tonight, so I'll have more things to do later on.
I arrived and started doing a bit of trading. I passed Orchi the flyers that I printed out for the VS System trade forum that I had made (http://s14.invisionfree.com/sgvs). The idea came to me when I realized that there was no local trade forum like the other mainstream card games and felt that perhaps it was time someone made one. I gave out the flyers to quite a few people under the pretext that I was 'helping a friend' since I wished to remain anonymous. I passed some to Edwin (our judge friend) and the other Edwin (the head judge) saw me and added that there was already a Southeast-Asian VS forum (VSdojo.com). That made me feel like an 'extra', but oh, well, I'll just give it a shot. It doesn't really matter to me if my trade forum is a success as I just wish to be the facilitator and nothing else. Orchi was real helpful and helped me to pin the flyer to the pairings board. I left a stack of flyers there and was quite pleased when I came back ten minutes later to see that they were gone (I hope they were not chucked away).
I spent most of the day looking around. At one point in time, one of the judges got on the microphone and announced, "Please refrain from using vulgarities and making rude gestures at your opponent." It made everyone laugh. Around ten minutes later, Leck Koon scream out loud, "AAAH!!! @#$%^&! At this time and age, where got people still put Flame Trap in their decks one!" (He was using his trademark Wild Sentinels deck). Then moments later, the judge got on the microphone again. "This is a reminder. Please refrain from using vulgarities or rude gestures," He paused for effect. "Even if your opponent did use Flame Trap on you." And the whole room was filled with laughter again. It was real funny.
Soon, it was evening and the top 8 rankings were put up. There were a lot of regulars in the top 8 and it included Wai Leong playing his original Xavier's Dream variant. The top 8 were:
- Anti-Green Lantern (Bertram)
- Wild Sentinels (Leck Koon)
- Squadron Supreme (Yap Jing Yang)
- Kang's Dream (Wai Leong)
- Team Superman (Michael Chew, possibly one of the biggest Superman fan)
- Common Enemy (Don't know, but he flicks his cards loudly and point with his middle finger)
- New School (Don't know, but he always play New School)
- New School (Don't know)
Yup, it's pretty much an all-star cast. Seems difficult to play in, too. Didn't stick around to watch much, but I do know Wai Leong's match against the New School player was an auto-win for him (New School wants to go to turn 9 and win by doing nothing, but Kang's Dream wants to win on turn 6 by doing nothing. Go figure). I was like, "That'd teach those New School players for bringing such a god-awful boring deck to a PCQ." Props to Wai Leong. I was also actually kinda rooting for Michael Chew since he dared to be different by playing the deck that has always enjoyed.
All in all, it was a fun day. I didn't play but I learnt that my Common Enemy was tech'ed for the wrong match-ups. I was expecting some Curve Sentinels and Brotherhood but they were nonexistent. I would've died horribly to New School, Squadron, DIG and all the funny decks I've never playtested against before. Time to do more homework and I'd better not be late for my next 'exam' again.
For dinner, I wanted to have an extravagantly expensive dinner (Sizzler's Kenny Rogers, Cafe Cartel were all within reach!!!), but we settled for Pastamania which was still fine by me. Wee. It was a nice day. And even better, WWE Survivor Series screens tonight, so I'll have more things to do later on.
Friday, December 16, 2005
Dentist, Waiter, Steamboat
On Thursday, I planned to go to AMK to hang out with the guys. But before that, I had to go for my monthly dental appointment. It was supposed to be last week, but he was away on vacation. I could tell that he was probably trying to make up for lost time judging by the number of people queueing. I arrived at 3 pm and spent an hour in the waiting room SMS'ing random people until I was called in at 4 pm. The nurse began to work on me, cleaning my teeth for like 20 minutes. Then she left the room and I waited for the doctor, who only came in at 4:40 pm. Then he worked on me till 5 pm and I was so glad to leave the place.
I arrived at AMK real late. We were playing deck when Andy came out and asked for two volunteers for a one-day waiter job on a cruise. The pay was very good ($8 an hour) and I felt like going for it. But then I considered the many reasons why it wasn't a good idea (for one, my skin condition will worsen when I touch greasy/oily/dirty plates) and I dropped the plan. Oh, well, Akira and Mango are going together, so I hope they have a fun time double-dating aboard the ship. Wee. *Recalls what Max said about American Pie 4*
At night, Chris asked me along for supper. I decided to tag along since I was still hungry; I had skipped breakfast & lunch because it wasn't advisable to eat before going to the dentist. Andy came along, too, so it was the four of us. We went to a Chinese steamboat restaurant somewhere near Paya Lebar. Along the way, we passed by some hookers (?) who called out to us, "Shuai Ge, lai An Mo ba~" ("Hey, handsome, want a massage?" for those who can't figure out). Oh, well. The steamboat wasn't too bad, but it is a well-known fact that I am a 'banana', so I didn't know how to appreciate chicken that didn't taste like KFC or chicken chop. Nor did I know how to mix my own sause/seasoning. Heck, I haven't even been able to understand the logic of paying to cook my own food since the times I have spent at Seoul Garden. hehe.
When it was time to settle the bill, I was wondering how much I'd have to pay. Then Chris gave three blue notes to the waiter and I felt somewhat bad that he was treating and the steamboat was so darn expensive. *gasp* I'll go have chicken mozzie pattie next time (anyone wants Breeks? I miss Breeeeks). Oh, well. It was already 1 am, and along the way out, the hookers tried the same 'shuai ge' line again.
I arrived at AMK real late. We were playing deck when Andy came out and asked for two volunteers for a one-day waiter job on a cruise. The pay was very good ($8 an hour) and I felt like going for it. But then I considered the many reasons why it wasn't a good idea (for one, my skin condition will worsen when I touch greasy/oily/dirty plates) and I dropped the plan. Oh, well, Akira and Mango are going together, so I hope they have a fun time double-dating aboard the ship. Wee. *Recalls what Max said about American Pie 4*
At night, Chris asked me along for supper. I decided to tag along since I was still hungry; I had skipped breakfast & lunch because it wasn't advisable to eat before going to the dentist. Andy came along, too, so it was the four of us. We went to a Chinese steamboat restaurant somewhere near Paya Lebar. Along the way, we passed by some hookers (?) who called out to us, "Shuai Ge, lai An Mo ba~" ("Hey, handsome, want a massage?" for those who can't figure out). Oh, well. The steamboat wasn't too bad, but it is a well-known fact that I am a 'banana', so I didn't know how to appreciate chicken that didn't taste like KFC or chicken chop. Nor did I know how to mix my own sause/seasoning. Heck, I haven't even been able to understand the logic of paying to cook my own food since the times I have spent at Seoul Garden. hehe.
When it was time to settle the bill, I was wondering how much I'd have to pay. Then Chris gave three blue notes to the waiter and I felt somewhat bad that he was treating and the steamboat was so darn expensive. *gasp* I'll go have chicken mozzie pattie next time (anyone wants Breeks? I miss Breeeeks). Oh, well. It was already 1 am, and along the way out, the hookers tried the same 'shuai ge' line again.
Monday, December 12, 2005
A Little Bump in the Road
I woke up today and anxiously checked my handphone to see if I had any missed calls. Nope, all was quiet; my job agent had not called, so it looks like I can continue to be free for the moment. I had nothing to do for the day. I have finished watching all the Justice League cartoons I got from Darrell. It feels sad to have nothing to do.
I was still very unhappy & frustrated about Saturday's incident during our VS Hobby League. It vexed me greatly to learn that I had zero control over the organization of VS tournaments and that I was not doing a satisfactory job even by my own standards. And everyone knows that I take great pride in the tournaments that I organize and I try to be a perfectionist at it.
After Himura remarked that they had "not much reason to come to AMK" anymore, it made me feel very bitter. I do understand his reasons, though. After all, on that day itself, Himura & gang were so nice to drop from the 14-man VS tourney at CCK to come all the way to AMK for mine, which turned out to be an atrocity. When people complain, I listen. And I listen good.
With less motivation, I think I will organize less Constructed VS tournaments at AMK. In fact, I encourage everyone to join tournaments at other places once in a while. It is really good exposure and we get to befriend other players outside of our community. I really wished to promote awareness of the game at AMK, but without the proper support, I am forever fighting an uphill battle.
I decided to take my mind off the matter by checking out other places that hold VS tournaments. Today, I Google'd around, found the ComicsMart website (just as Dave had told me the day before) and learnt that there was a VS tournament at 7 pm. And so, I took the MRT to City Hall and went to Raffles Place. On my way up to ComicsMart, I got quite a big surprise when I met Jess at the escalator. He also told me that he heard about the shop from a friend and this was his first time there, too. Wow, it seems like fate. What were the chances of meeting like that.
We arrived at the shop and stuck around. I admired the cool comics in the shelves, feeling somewhat guilty that I was downloading them instead of paying for them. The two people tending to the store were actually people whom I have seen before; Leck Koon (a regular PCQ participant) and Hairul (a PCQ judge). Leck Koon was demonstrating a new miniatures game that used plastic chips to a guy in office clothes. It was a weird game and he joked, "Even if you buy the chips and don't use them, they are good for other things, too. Like for throwing at Noel Neo." It was so funny. After the demonstration, they checked and saw that only the few of us were there for VS. Oh, well, it was still enough to have a small VS Hobby League. It was me, Jess, Hairul and the 4th guy in the suit (match report can be found in the next blog entry).
It was quite fun. Everyone was real nice and they even invited me to come back again on Saturday for another VS Hobby League. I'd probably try to attend some more VS tournaments this week if I can. Wee.
I was still very unhappy & frustrated about Saturday's incident during our VS Hobby League. It vexed me greatly to learn that I had zero control over the organization of VS tournaments and that I was not doing a satisfactory job even by my own standards. And everyone knows that I take great pride in the tournaments that I organize and I try to be a perfectionist at it.
After Himura remarked that they had "not much reason to come to AMK" anymore, it made me feel very bitter. I do understand his reasons, though. After all, on that day itself, Himura & gang were so nice to drop from the 14-man VS tourney at CCK to come all the way to AMK for mine, which turned out to be an atrocity. When people complain, I listen. And I listen good.
With less motivation, I think I will organize less Constructed VS tournaments at AMK. In fact, I encourage everyone to join tournaments at other places once in a while. It is really good exposure and we get to befriend other players outside of our community. I really wished to promote awareness of the game at AMK, but without the proper support, I am forever fighting an uphill battle.
I decided to take my mind off the matter by checking out other places that hold VS tournaments. Today, I Google'd around, found the ComicsMart website (just as Dave had told me the day before) and learnt that there was a VS tournament at 7 pm. And so, I took the MRT to City Hall and went to Raffles Place. On my way up to ComicsMart, I got quite a big surprise when I met Jess at the escalator. He also told me that he heard about the shop from a friend and this was his first time there, too. Wow, it seems like fate. What were the chances of meeting like that.
We arrived at the shop and stuck around. I admired the cool comics in the shelves, feeling somewhat guilty that I was downloading them instead of paying for them. The two people tending to the store were actually people whom I have seen before; Leck Koon (a regular PCQ participant) and Hairul (a PCQ judge). Leck Koon was demonstrating a new miniatures game that used plastic chips to a guy in office clothes. It was a weird game and he joked, "Even if you buy the chips and don't use them, they are good for other things, too. Like for throwing at Noel Neo." It was so funny. After the demonstration, they checked and saw that only the few of us were there for VS. Oh, well, it was still enough to have a small VS Hobby League. It was me, Jess, Hairul and the 4th guy in the suit (match report can be found in the next blog entry).
It was quite fun. Everyone was real nice and they even invited me to come back again on Saturday for another VS Hobby League. I'd probably try to attend some more VS tournaments this week if I can. Wee.
VS @ Raffles City ComicsMart (12/12)
It was a simple affair; just 4 guys hoping to play some VS. I actually hope that their VS tournies are as quiet as this since I welcome a more casual setting for a change.
Match 1: Vs. Brotherhood of Arkham (Hairul)
At first I thought I was playing against a mono-Brotherhood deck cos', before the tourney began, Hairul borrowed 4 Straight to the Graves from Leck Koon. Then the match began. I took a real thrashing cos' I kept a hand with all my early drops. For the whole game, I drew all-Fan4 characters and all-Doom plot twists. I couldn't make any meaningful plays and lost without putting up much of a fight. I recruited absolutely nothing on turns 5 and 6, which costed me the game. At first, I thought the deck was similar to the one at Metagame.com (Breaking Ground: Harley Quinn), but what I saw seemed to be slightly different. Basically, it gets out the Lost City Combo and utilizes Harley Quinn as the omni-powerup card in addition to Nth Metal. I am not even sure if it is viable, but oh, well, it seems like a neat idea.
Record: 0-1
Match 2: Vs. Curve Sentinels (Guy in Suit)
I saw Boliver on the first turn and thought to myself, "It's the age-old CE vs. CS match." I thought I would lose this one since I did not pack Betrayal. Meh. I got out Boris on turn 1, too, but he got eaten by the Hounds of Ahab on turn 2 when I failed to recruit anything.
On turn 3, he got out Mark II while I Signal-Flare'd for Medusa, feeling quite pleased for having anti-HoundsLock tech. The guy thought for a while, then played Search & Destroy (to my horror~), stunning both our 3-drops and proceeded to let his Hounds nibble on Medusa's carcass. By now, I thought I had no chance of winning. I recruited a lonely Dr. Doom on turn 4. Fortunately for me, he missed his 4th drop and recruited a 2nd Hounds of Ahab. Dr. Doom attacked Boliver and I passed. Mark II came at my Dr. Doom with a Beatdown, but fortunately, I bounced it away with Reign of Terror (and it was his turn to be horrified) to put an end to the Hounds lock.
My opponent continued with his unlucky streak by having Boliver + Mark V on turn 5, hitting Bastion on 6, and then having Tri-Sentinel on turn 7. I matched him with Hulk on 6 and Mr. Fantastic with a Kevlar on 7. On turn 6, I managed to get my attacks in with the help of Beatdown to overcome Bastion's pumps. A Mysical Paralysis on turn 7 pushed the game into turn 8. I got out Silver Surfer and he had Apocalypse. Surfer went for Bastion and he used everything he got to pump Bastion to 20/20, but I played Beatdown to seal the deal. I then proceeded to attack safely to get rid of the remaining Apocalypse and Tri-Sentinel.
I was quite surprised that I managed to turn the game. It was due to my opponent's unlucky missed drops and the fact that I drew 3 Beatdowns during the course of the game to force my attacks through Bastion's ability.
Record: 1-1
Match 3: Vs. Avengers Reservist (Jess)
I took odds after considering the serious damage that Wonderman and Hercules could do if we got that far. Jess missed his first 2 drops, allowing my Boris and Luke Cage to deal direct damage. On turn 3, he got Black Widow + Rick Jones. I added Medusa to my cast and attacked for damage. I got off with an early lead and had a 10+ life advantage.
On turn 4, he recruited Hawkeye and immediately activated to stun my Boris. It was clear that my Boris couldn't run away since all 3 of my resources were face-up Common Enemies (hehe). I recruited Dr. Doom. He team-attacked with Black Widow + Rick Jones, stunning all my characters except Dr. Doom. On turn 5, I recruited Thing whereas he got She-Hulk out. Thing swung into She-Hulk and she powered-up for a double stun. Dr. Doom (with Doomstadt) swung into Hawkeye and this time, it was Avengers Mansion for another double-stun. Rick Jones was able to direct-attack me with Earth's Mightiest Heroes and the huge gap between our endurance was no more.
Turn 6 would be our final turn. Both of us missed our optimal drops. Jess got out Warbird, but I was able to maximise my resource points with a replacement Dr. Doom and a Kevlar on Thing. She-Hulk first knocked the armor off Thing. He then flipped up Legendary Battle in preparation for a team attack, but I Reigned away Rick Jones. He only had Warbird left against my unscathed Thing and Dr. Doom. Warbird took down Dr. Doom with a Flying Kick, leaving him with an all-stunned board and putting him at 17 endurance. I considered for a while and proposed Thing to attack with a Beatdown and a power-up for the win.
Record: 2-1
=========================
Oh, well. That was the end of it. Short and sweet. Jess, Hairul and I each got 2-1 and the winner was determined by tie-breakers. (Poor Sentinels got 0-3.) Jess came in 1st and I came in 3rd. Wee. It was one of the most fun casual VS Hobby Leagues I have had outside in quite a while.
Match 1: Vs. Brotherhood of Arkham (Hairul)
At first I thought I was playing against a mono-Brotherhood deck cos', before the tourney began, Hairul borrowed 4 Straight to the Graves from Leck Koon. Then the match began. I took a real thrashing cos' I kept a hand with all my early drops. For the whole game, I drew all-Fan4 characters and all-Doom plot twists. I couldn't make any meaningful plays and lost without putting up much of a fight. I recruited absolutely nothing on turns 5 and 6, which costed me the game. At first, I thought the deck was similar to the one at Metagame.com (Breaking Ground: Harley Quinn), but what I saw seemed to be slightly different. Basically, it gets out the Lost City Combo and utilizes Harley Quinn as the omni-powerup card in addition to Nth Metal. I am not even sure if it is viable, but oh, well, it seems like a neat idea.
Record: 0-1
Match 2: Vs. Curve Sentinels (Guy in Suit)
I saw Boliver on the first turn and thought to myself, "It's the age-old CE vs. CS match." I thought I would lose this one since I did not pack Betrayal. Meh. I got out Boris on turn 1, too, but he got eaten by the Hounds of Ahab on turn 2 when I failed to recruit anything.
On turn 3, he got out Mark II while I Signal-Flare'd for Medusa, feeling quite pleased for having anti-HoundsLock tech. The guy thought for a while, then played Search & Destroy (to my horror~), stunning both our 3-drops and proceeded to let his Hounds nibble on Medusa's carcass. By now, I thought I had no chance of winning. I recruited a lonely Dr. Doom on turn 4. Fortunately for me, he missed his 4th drop and recruited a 2nd Hounds of Ahab. Dr. Doom attacked Boliver and I passed. Mark II came at my Dr. Doom with a Beatdown, but fortunately, I bounced it away with Reign of Terror (and it was his turn to be horrified) to put an end to the Hounds lock.
My opponent continued with his unlucky streak by having Boliver + Mark V on turn 5, hitting Bastion on 6, and then having Tri-Sentinel on turn 7. I matched him with Hulk on 6 and Mr. Fantastic with a Kevlar on 7. On turn 6, I managed to get my attacks in with the help of Beatdown to overcome Bastion's pumps. A Mysical Paralysis on turn 7 pushed the game into turn 8. I got out Silver Surfer and he had Apocalypse. Surfer went for Bastion and he used everything he got to pump Bastion to 20/20, but I played Beatdown to seal the deal. I then proceeded to attack safely to get rid of the remaining Apocalypse and Tri-Sentinel.
I was quite surprised that I managed to turn the game. It was due to my opponent's unlucky missed drops and the fact that I drew 3 Beatdowns during the course of the game to force my attacks through Bastion's ability.
Record: 1-1
Match 3: Vs. Avengers Reservist (Jess)
I took odds after considering the serious damage that Wonderman and Hercules could do if we got that far. Jess missed his first 2 drops, allowing my Boris and Luke Cage to deal direct damage. On turn 3, he got Black Widow + Rick Jones. I added Medusa to my cast and attacked for damage. I got off with an early lead and had a 10+ life advantage.
On turn 4, he recruited Hawkeye and immediately activated to stun my Boris. It was clear that my Boris couldn't run away since all 3 of my resources were face-up Common Enemies (hehe). I recruited Dr. Doom. He team-attacked with Black Widow + Rick Jones, stunning all my characters except Dr. Doom. On turn 5, I recruited Thing whereas he got She-Hulk out. Thing swung into She-Hulk and she powered-up for a double stun. Dr. Doom (with Doomstadt) swung into Hawkeye and this time, it was Avengers Mansion for another double-stun. Rick Jones was able to direct-attack me with Earth's Mightiest Heroes and the huge gap between our endurance was no more.
Turn 6 would be our final turn. Both of us missed our optimal drops. Jess got out Warbird, but I was able to maximise my resource points with a replacement Dr. Doom and a Kevlar on Thing. She-Hulk first knocked the armor off Thing. He then flipped up Legendary Battle in preparation for a team attack, but I Reigned away Rick Jones. He only had Warbird left against my unscathed Thing and Dr. Doom. Warbird took down Dr. Doom with a Flying Kick, leaving him with an all-stunned board and putting him at 17 endurance. I considered for a while and proposed Thing to attack with a Beatdown and a power-up for the win.
Record: 2-1
=========================
Oh, well. That was the end of it. Short and sweet. Jess, Hairul and I each got 2-1 and the winner was determined by tie-breakers. (Poor Sentinels got 0-3.) Jess came in 1st and I came in 3rd. Wee. It was one of the most fun casual VS Hobby Leagues I have had outside in quite a while.
Wednesday, December 07, 2005
My Wednesday Out of the House
I woke up at 9 am today after only around four hours of sleep. I had to go to Raffles Place for an interview with an agent from Recruit Express. It was about time I sought help from an agent. When I got there, I was surprised when I looked in and saw more than 20+ agents all squeezed in a fairly large office room with many cubicles. My agent was a lady named Gerlin; we talked over the phone on Tuesday evening. She was quite a nice person and said that she had one HR job available at Somerset and they are urgently hiring. Oh, well. I hope I fit the bill.
An embarrassing thing happened during my appointment, though. Before I saw Gerlin, I was told to fill up a job applicants form. It was attached to a clipboard and I filled up everything as detailed as I could on the front and back. Later during the interview, Gerlin removed the form off the clipboard and flipped it open down the centire; ARGH, it was actually 4 pages and not just two sides! Fortunately, the middle two pages were all about my previous work experience which would've been blank for me anyway, so it wasn't as bad. I hope I didn't leave a bad impression. So much for writing 'meticulous' as one of my strengths on the form.
I reached home at around 1 pm and lazed around. Both Miya and Max had asked me out today. I was still tired from lack of sleep so I went to take a nap. I woke up rather reluctantly near evening time and made my way to AMK. DS and Jeffrey were there in the earlier part of the day. Miya, Max, Akira and Kyo started arriving at night. I played Raw Deal and VS. It was a good way to pass the time on a boring weekday. Wee.
An embarrassing thing happened during my appointment, though. Before I saw Gerlin, I was told to fill up a job applicants form. It was attached to a clipboard and I filled up everything as detailed as I could on the front and back. Later during the interview, Gerlin removed the form off the clipboard and flipped it open down the centire; ARGH, it was actually 4 pages and not just two sides! Fortunately, the middle two pages were all about my previous work experience which would've been blank for me anyway, so it wasn't as bad. I hope I didn't leave a bad impression. So much for writing 'meticulous' as one of my strengths on the form.
I reached home at around 1 pm and lazed around. Both Miya and Max had asked me out today. I was still tired from lack of sleep so I went to take a nap. I woke up rather reluctantly near evening time and made my way to AMK. DS and Jeffrey were there in the earlier part of the day. Miya, Max, Akira and Kyo started arriving at night. I played Raw Deal and VS. It was a good way to pass the time on a boring weekday. Wee.
Monday, December 05, 2005
Unemployment - Take Two
I had so much fun over the weekends that it kinda alleviated my unemployment stress. I guess weekends do that to just about everyone. When I got home and started working on those cover letters again, I no longer felt pressured. I shouldn't be worrying so much because it won't improve my chances of landing a job. I wasn't even able to stick to sending out 20 applications over the weekend simply because there weren't that many jobs for me to apply to in the first place. Haha. I will just have to make up for lost time by routinely checking JobsStreet and JobsDB and keeping those applications flowing out. If I keep trying, I am bound to get a response sooner or later. Perhaps I should check the Straits Times now and then for a change, too.Anyway, the first thing I did before I started on my next wave of applications was to get a new e-mail address. My Hotmail one probably sounded strange to all my prospective employers, so I applied for a more formal-sounding G-Mail address. And thanks to the Gmail Notifier that I saw Akira use, I can easily access it. At the moment, I shall not disclose it for fear that some bots will come by and add it to their collection of spammed accounts. I like my Gmail the way it is for now: Clean.
Out of interest, I also studied MS Excel with the help of online tutorials. I was getting a bit intimidated by the MS Word-Powerpoint-Excel triple combo required by most Admin jobs so I thought I'd better pick it up. Wow, the first instance of self-enrichment in nearly a year already.
Oh, well. I feel a lot better now. I hope I get some responses soon. My handphone will be close by my side from now on. At this point in time, aside from fun & games, I am running out of things to concern myself with so a job might be just what I need to fill the void in my life.
Friday, December 02, 2005
Bah! Unemployment Blues
Hurray, it is December, the holiday season. But it signifies the coming of the year's end and I am quite disappointed that I haven't found a job yet. I think I got a little lazy and pinned too much hopes on that one freight job (I was so sure I'd get it). It's kinda my own fault.This 'unemployment depression' state of mine will probably last a while so better get used to it as it becomes a recurring theme in my blog. I think about it all the time when I am at home. I have reached the next phase in my life (i.e. getting a job) but I haven't even taken the first step so it tends to worry me (the next-next phase would be finding a girlfriend, get married, then finally settling down).
Now I look back to when I was in primary/secondary school and remember those typical 'What Do You Want to be When You Grow Up' essay topics. It's all lies. Being young and naive, we'd all write about the cool stuff; doctors, lawyers and entrepreneurs. It's all so fake. If everyone aspired to be so great, who'd be the Administrative Assistants? The Telesurveyors? The Customer Service people? The Data Entry clerks? (Ah, yes, I am conveniently using those jobs as examples because I am applying for them.) Doh, I am not making any sense here.
Anyway, I have quite aware of why I am doing badly in my job search. Firstly, I have a Bachelor Degree from NUS, so naturally, employers will get turned off ("He's gonna cost more than a diploma holder.") Secondly, I have no work experience to speak of; I regret not taking any part time or temp jobs during my JC and NUS days. Times are tough. And next, I probably need to act more like my age even though I am a big kid at heart.
I have put off all luxuries for the moment until I can find a job. This means no asking Mom for money to buy a PSP or vacation money to fly to the VS System 10k tournament in Kuala Lumpur. Yeah, I'm still spending money on cards but at least I am exercising a little more control now.
Time is a-wasting for me so it is time to push the panic button. I shall go all out and send 20 job applications this weekend. If this doesn't work, I don't know what will. My aim now is to be employed before 2006. Wish me luck. And if I come out of it, I'll probably have good job-hunting stories & tips to share in future.
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