Saturday, September 30, 2006

Ahhh...why is my computer so crappy...

Now keep hanging, and all the new games I can barely run it above 20fps...

Haiz...my payment FINALLY arrives...(yeah, nearly 2 months after finishing the work they finally "processed" it) but now I cannot spend it. So many temptations... Saw what Fuwell opening sales, insane prices. X800 going at $99 for first 30 pieces... --__--

But now I think about it, from the next one onwards I'll be booking out on Sat and booking in on Sunday...where got time to play game. (I was damn lucky to be able to book out on thursday for 2 consecutive weeks)

I guess this isn't a time for me to splurge on gaming hardwares. Now, I'll go back to playing RPGs on my PS2 first, since there isnt really much games at this moment on the PC. (Luckily, else I will be damn 痛苦

Coming up are Stronghold Legends in Fall (Played the demo, not bad...), Heroes V expansion in October, and a new patch for Civ 4 is planned as well (Man I want my 18 civilizations game). I think I'll do a complete upgrade during my Block Leave... ..leave the darn AGP system behind...then really play to my heart's content. I'll set aside the 1 grand payment for this...this will be the ultimate gift for myself to celebrate my BMT period and my 20th birthday...The games I only really care about is though the Civ patch and its unavoidable second expansion. I might support Stronghold Legends, provided Firefly don't repeat the mistakes of Stronghold 2. Best is delay more to fine-tune the game instead of releasing a half completed product. Other than that, there really aren't a lot of games I'm looking forward to.

And my computer keeps hanging for unknown reason. 2 out of the 4 USB slots are broken, and I think the motherboard is going bonkers. ZZZ. Well, I can let my brother go complain since he's using it 5 out of the 7 days...haha. Hopefully I can make him fork out the money to share for the upgrade...

Friday, September 29, 2006

Role Playing Games (RPG) history...

Towards the end of second week in camp, a conversation led to me discovering that Jason and Wayne from my bunk are hardcore RPG gamers that has played countless games! Wah, I have the 相逢恨晚 feeling when having that talk...

I've been playing games from a VERY VERY young age. Younger than I can remember. The earliest memory I have is watching just sitting there, watching my second brother playing games, particularly RPGs. I've been playing RPGs for as long as I can remember. I don't know the exact age, but when i'm in Kindergarten (6 years old like that, I already have memory of playing Final Fantasy II, Final Fantasy Mystic Quest...

From then on, from primary school to secondary to poly, I've never stopped playing RPGs. The last time I had a group of friends that play RPG was in the secondary days, but they weren't that "dedicated" as well. They're like "complete this ASAP" kind of play-style.

For me, I like to slowly "savour" the RPG. I want to get immensed into the RPG world, I want to feel for the characters, I want to know what the characters are thinking. When I play, I attempt every side quests possible, I try to collect all the items, I talk to every single townpersons until they have nothing left to speak, I revisit previous locations to talk with them again. Basically I just want to experience the game to its fullest. I'm not those to just "go straight for the mainplot and finish it". But I am not a "level-spammer". I believe it's a waste of time. In fact to me, a very big part of enjoyment from playing RPG comes from the storyline, much more than all the other aspects. Of course good gameplay and presentation are great plusses, but without an engaging storyline, then the RPG simply sucks.

Anyway, I was super surprised that Jason played almost all the RPGs I've played before, even those super "old schools" one, like "Wild Arms" which was released in 1997. Really cool talking about all those things...bring back a lot of memories when I was younger. One thing I'm peeved about is he doesn't like Lunar (and the worst thing is he dislike it because of the graphics), which is my 2nd favourite series. To me, graphics is one of the least important aspect of an RPG (but seriously, I find Lunar 2D graphics to be extremely beautiful...don't know why people doesn't like it. It's MUCH better than some half-*** 3D) In terms of character development, the Lunar series is unequalled, and it's one of the very few RPGs where I can name all the main characters even after half a decade not touching it. The storyline left that amount of impact in me. In fact, I was so touched by the ending of Lunar 2 that I nearly cried when I saw it the first time. (I was like 16) Yeah...I was (and still am) quite emotional, but that scene was just damn sad... It's the first and probably last RPG that will ever affect me on such a deep level.

Final Fantasy is the most overrated series of all time. Popularity != Quality. Just because it's the most well known RPG series doesn't make it the best.

Bleh...don't know why suddenly feel like ranting about games. (Probably cause I just started WA4 today) One thing I regret is that I've forgotten a lot of storyline of past games I played...felt like going through them again someday...

Thursday, September 28, 2006

Tough times don't last, but tough men do...

3 weeks in the Army, but it feel like I've been inside for a long time already. I must say I've grown tremendously, physically and mentally, and...my appetite. Haha...My appetite is getting bigger with each passing day I feel. I've decided to keep my first 2 weeks feelings to myself and not post it up here, thanks to Zhi Wei for the kind reminder.

Anyway. this week, I learnt a lot. I'm the armskote man for the platoon, and we were like so "newbish" when drawing arms for the first time. Still got a lot to learnt. Most important event for the week is the "Weapon Presentation Ceremony". I was extremely nervous...luckily it went smoothly. It's sort of like the "7 Core Values Book Presentation", but feels more "sacred". It's probably due to I'm holding a rifle this time (which I never did in my entire life), not a book... Anyway, it's a once in a lifetime experience, saying the "Weapon Pledge" and all.

Did my first ever FBO 4km route march today~ It was very tiring of course (my shoulder was gonna break apart...), but the sense of satisfaction I got at the end was...whew, how to say, just great! I need to build up my physical fitness more if I'm going to get through the longer route marches! Go go go~!

黑夜如果不黑暗 美夢又何必響往
破曉會是堅持的人最後獲得的獎賞
黑夜如果太黑暗 我們就閉上眼看
希望若不熄滅就會亮成心中的星光

Sunday, September 24, 2006

My first "Book in"....

Going to army really makes you appreciate a lot of things you used to take for granted...Even the simplest thing. My bed...my computer...homecook food...

Hmm...2 years of blank...I think it will make me forget 50% of everything I've learnt in the Poly...haiz...that's the 无奈 thing. It's not only "losing 2 years", but more about your knowledge deteoritating...

But we don't want events from the World War II to reoccur...which is why NS is a must for a small country like Singapore. Like the National Education talk says...it's the only option. Everyone must go through it. It's a chance for me to grow stronger, become more independent, and more apprecitiative of things...

Song when leaving Tekong...

其实不想走 其实我想留

留下来PT (Physical Training) 每个春夏秋冬
你要相信我 再不用多久
我就可以 PASS IPPT Lo

Friday, September 22, 2006

My first bookout!

2 weeks comes by and go quickly...Anyway first thing I reach home was to go hug my mum! LOL. I really miss her...Chit chat for a bit before I turn on the computer...

I missed my computer! It feels extremely weird holding to the mouse...it almost feels awkward, and even the monitor screen looks strange...I have to like "think for a moment" before I can successfully scroll over to an icon to click it...Geez. My computer is my 2nd life and finally...I get to use it again!

Interesting thing to note is (It's like the greatest coincidence ever) when I login to SHEA, I saw "Number of new posts since last visit: 1212"!!! Got so "zhun" or not...Basically I spending the WHOLE day catching up in the forums, from gamefaqs to SHEA to Wuxia. Luckily I didn't miss much..

P.S: Fallen sick and attend B for the last 3 days. Never ever fall sick in the army. It sucks man. I would rather train together with my platoon together if I can. It SUCKS to sit there alone, watching them...haiz...I must take care of my health man...

Something I learnt during the National Education talk...The SAF is built not to fight a war, but to make sure we will never need to go to war.

Thursday, September 21, 2006

7th Sept Enlistment Day...

Enlistment day...I'll probably never forget this day. Big bro drove me with my mum to Pasir Ris...My feeling at that time was...surprisingly calm. Just...the..."Like that lor" feeling. Long story short. We pass through the gate, took the ferry and reach Tekong. Was led to an area where we the "Red IC" was taken away...and issued the "Green IC", together with the sling bag. After that we were brief a bit, then into the auditorium we go. For some reason I was feeling extremely high after the sacred oath taking. I don't remember the exact, but I do remember the last 3, LOUD AND CLEAR - "WITH MY LIFE!!!".

The speech after that really...hmm...makes me think of a lot of stuff. I remembered stuff like "Why do you think your parents are here to see you? You think they're here to see the Tekong scenary? No. Because they're concern about you", "Make a promise that your mum will be the first person you called tonight" and "3 months later when you return, you will be so proud of your sons..." Etc...Very motivating and emotional...

Ate lunch with my mum and brother. After that sent them off to the jetty...I was sitting there...still feeling unusually calm. I can tell my mum like at that time, is like tear-jerking moment for her, even though she doesn't show it. She kept lookin back at me, waving to me. I signalled for her to go......

Immediately after I saw Alvin! What a surprise! At least someone I know...After that is the items collecting session. That time is like HELL for me. The bags were so heavy and I'm so fragile I can barely moved them. Luckily I recieved a lot of help (lot of thanks to Alvin at that time). I'll be totally hopeless tell ya...

The haircut moment. Yes. It's not as "dramatic" or "breath-taking" as everyone thinks. It's like "over in the blink of an eye"...My feelings at that moment was...again, extraordinary calm. I didn't saw myself in the mirror until much much later in the day, and I was like "WTF! Who the hell is this in the mirror. Is this really me?!"

Night time...I can't sleep. I can't sleep. I toss and turn and fall asleep like at 1am, woke up at 4:45am...

Thursday, September 07, 2006

Ahh...almost forgot something...

Haha...take one photo of myself before Army.
Before I go botak... :P

Think I will probably never look like this again...Will upload my "After" photo when I return...

See got what difference...

Wednesday, September 06, 2006

Last wishes...

Before I start...

"Just because we can construct planes and fly, create the computer and internet, go into space, we humans delusion ourselves into thinking we are the masters on this planet, but every once in a while, nature whips our butt badly and reminds us of our delusioned ego and that we are just 1 small species living on this planet amongst thousands of other species.. "

I just heard of The Crocodile Hunter Steve Irwin death yesterday...R.I.P. You will be missed.

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Well well...last day. I've really been looking forward to this day and anticipating it. I've done everything I wanted to do. I've not wasted the extra 3 months compared to my friends that enlisted in June as I've done a lot of stuffs. Exercise almost 5 times every week, learnt a lot of things and play a lot of games! (But they still piss me off when they come to show off they've POP...)

Basically, I'm all prepared and ready to go. The only thing that worried me is not the training, the mosquitos, the condition there and stuff. It's how my company people will be, and how my buddies will be.

Hopefully they're really nice people...and best is don't have those "small people" in the platoon...

Things I will miss most includes of course using the Computer...I don't think I've ever stop using the computer for more than 1 week ever since I got it. It's become such a integrated part of my life. And I will miss my bed...a lot. My comfortable bed with bolster... :(

Heh...that's all~Think I will have a lot to write about when I'm back.

Sunday, September 03, 2006

Some things about myself...

Hmm...just a little self discovery...

Believing in God - I don't really believe in god, as I don't really think that a "Mystical Being" that overlooks this world really exist. When I (Or other people) go to pray, I think of it as more Psychological thing. They "feel better" to have "something" looking over them but actually it's just that they've adjusted their psychology, thereby reducing/eliminating fear and anxiety. So basically , the "god" lives within yourself. That's what I believe anyway.

Believing in Ghosts - If I have to compare, I'll say there is a "higher likelyhood" of ghost existing than god existing...not that I've seen either. I think it's mainly due to watching too much horror shows...I mean, horror shows protrays ghost. How often do you see a show that talk about god?

Hmm...talk about some of my good points and some of my bad points. Basically I won't say it's good or bad. It's just some traits that's become part of me...

Easily annoyed - I am very very easily annoyed. I don't know if it equivalates to bad tempered. I don't think so, cause I dont' go around screaming and throwing things when I'm annoyed. Annoyed means I don't feel very "comfortable" inside. For example, I will become very irritated when my mum nag me to go to bed (when I'm using the com till way pass midnight). That's one of the big "ARGH!!!" moment for me. I know she's concern about me but when it happens I will automatically go into irritated mode. I will usually just keep quiet or just reply "orh". Same for when I wake up she told me to go buy breakfast...It has almost become a habitual pattern. Everytime X happen, I auto get pissed. Haiz...

Calculative? - Hmm...I also don't really understand this. I can be extremely "don't kay gao" (uncalculative) towards certain thing and certain people, but be totally opposite towards others. Like for example, If I buy this 50 cents thing for person X, I will expect him to pay me (and yes, I will open my mouth to ask for the money). On the other hand, I can pay a few dollars taxi ride but i won't expect my friends to pay me. I've recently realize that this action of mine is LARGELY related to what kind of person I'm dealing with. In short, I will treat the person how he treat me. If he's calculative towards me then I'll be the same towards him, vice versa. Think I just don't like the feeling of being taken advantage of.

Things I would never do - There's a saying that goes 君子有所为,有所不为 (There are something one can do, and one should never do). There are lot of little things (in the eyes of others) that I will never do, even though it seems very stupid of negligible. For example, I would never send someone else a S.H.E Song, no matter what. The person is probably going "come on, make it easier for me. I can get it from 10000 different sources easily anyway".

True, but it's just not the same. I can't find a very good description, but it just makes me feel bad for me, myself, a fan of theirs, to give out their song. The closest analogy would be like, say during an exam - all the class have the answers except you. Even if no one would ever know, I rather you get it from others than me (even though the answers are the same).

On the other hand, there are some things I do that may seems "stupid" in other people eyes. For example, if I see a great game that I love, I WILL buy the original game. If I know a great movie, I will go to the theatre and actually see the movie. I don't listen to the "Heck! This game has no multiplayer anyway. Just download it, don't need to waste money". I think it's just my way of showing support for something I love. Sure I can download it and get the same exact game without paying anything, but...I dont' just feel good. It's a game that I LOVE, surely I need to show some support for the creators?

Whew...tired. Another time.

Friday, September 01, 2006

Everything that needs to be done is done...

Monday went to Beach Road (First time in my life...) with Toby to look around. Wow that place is indeed the "Army Heaven" with all sort of army stuffs...Anyway we looked around and brought most of our stuff from an uncle store (Think I'll just buy all my stuff from him from now onwards, since he seems to be a really nice guy)

Hmm...Tuesday went shopping with my parents for Army Stuff and brought everything.

Wednesday, went to temple to pray and got the talisman. Heh...

Thursday...erm...stay at home and rot.

Friday, packed everything into the bag, went out with my mum.

Almost everything is done. Except maybe I'm too pissed off with Bluff Multiplayer to launch it. Haha. Hope I can find the motivation to finish it.

Meanwhile...I've found the motivation to do some "MSN avatars" so I can use it while in the Army...Hee hee. So cute!