Rain

I got un-creative for the title (it's raining now).

As though I didn't learn better from past experience, I bought XCOM 2 and the DLC bundle through Humble Bundle to try out the Long War 2 mod, which overhauls most of the game mechanics, to a more realistic approach.  So here's to recreating the entire squad roster with added customization options through the Steam Workshop.  My Steam program had a minor blip earlier so it has erased my recent saved files, with the last one taking place last Saturday (which is why I'm reluctant to dive back into it right now).

Besides that, I've finished all four seasons of Samurai Jack (to prepare for Season Five's release in early March) and have just started BrainDead, part political satire, part comedy show with Mary Elizabeth Winstead (God, she's beautiful).

Finally, I (finally) begun my training for hiking KK by hiking Bukit Gasing earlier today with Pauline, her colleague, Chee Hao, Sunshine.  We're aiming to try again next week, and I'll aim to add more load to carry for this practice hike, and more importantly, be less of an idiot and not try to scale a wall and get gashes on the way back down.

I haven't seen Sunshine in some 5 years so it was a good opportunity to make up on lost time.  One of the more "serious" topics was on checking our privilege, having both been able to pursue our studies abroad, and how that realization keeps us somewhat grounded to issues that matter.  At least, that's what I'd like to think.  You can check out something similar like this.  

Oh, and work is a sack of shit so I'm not going to talk about it.  I'm taking on more and more duties and yet, we're having to deal with avoidable errors and equally dumb breakdown in communication.

Law - Yo Gotti ft. E-40

Ball

My body opens up to receive the pass, having found a small pocket in the middle of the opposition defense.  Elliot spots my run, and slots one in between the center backs.  The ball was a little behind my right foot, as I tried to readjust to control it.  And as the sole of my shoe makes contact with the ball, the ankle buckles and the ball turns into a pincushion, sending a familiar pain up the leg.

I'm out of the futsal session for the day.  And it's only been two minutes.  I suspect that it's just a minor twist, so ignorantly I continued playing for the remainder of the two-hour session.

"Last goal!" shouted TJ as the lights went out, signalling the end of our day.  At this point the pain is becoming more apparent, as the adrenaline begins to wane off.  Having used my weaker left foot since the injury, I felt that it was time for a proper sending off.  Up to this point, I've seen two shots hit the post and a swerving shot from range tipped over by an alert keeper.

I wanted a goal.

Play resumed as Yin Xun starts at the left flank.  The other two teammates had occupied the box as they looked to saturate the left side.  Starting from the middle of the pitch, I ran down the right side, hoping to add some width to the attack.  Yin Xun spots the run, and lays the ball wide right.

As the ball travels straight towards me, I take a quick look around.  No player  within reaching distance.  Plenty of time for the strike.  I contemplated curling the shot with my left foot, but the ball was moving across my body.

Screw it.  My right foot's a goner anyway.  

I side-foot the ball, driving my foot through the ball as the opposition looks by.  The shot was driven low, and bobbles towards the keeper's right side, and nestles into the back of the net.  

I'd be celebrating with a fist pump by then, if I wasn't on the ground wincing in pain.  If my foot wasn't messed up then, it certainly is now.

Afterwards, it was revealed that I might have a sprain instead.  The swollen ankle is a dead giveaway.

Do I regret this?  Kind of.

But I would rather give my all for the sport I love to being restrained.

Chinese New Year is gonna be a little bit more tricky, though.

Hit It and Quit It - Funkadelic

500

Happy 500th post/10-year blog anniversary/24th birthday to me!

You could say that I had elaborately planned this all out, but then I'd be lying.

Shout out to Genevieve for having me wrack my brain to do something noteworthy for this milestone post.

Last week, I had watched Donald Glover aka Childish Gambino's new Netflix series Atlanta, and it is a fun mix of eclectic counter-culture criticism, humour, and rap culture.

So a few days ago my hostel room doorknob turned jammy and I couldn't open the door.  Fortunately, I had my now-obsolete credit card with me, and proceeded to pick open the door.  After 20 minutes of grunting and cussing, I finally got it open (much to the relief to me not having to breach that sucker).  This is a further justification that I should take up lock-picking as a skill.

Moreover, I just signed up to hike Mount Kinabalu with Pauline.  It's in early June, so I still have time to train and prep for the hike.  It will be amazing, either way.

As for the Micro Malaysian gig, the list of selected publishers had recently been released, so congratulations to Surya and Yan Chee!  I'll try better next time (to curb my propensity of forgetting deadlines).

Or... I could spend money to get some portable WiFi (my phone can't turn on its mobile hotspot feature, for some reason).  Then again, it's about time to consider changing my phone.  That thing is constantly testing my patience.

So... here are my Micro Malaysian posts.  As a quick reminder, the requirements for these submissions are that they have to relate to Malaysian culture, and only be 150 words long.

1. Amber meets Emerald

Amber.

That colour was created for you. 

Even if I were to forget your short dirty blond hair, the pinched ends to your eyes, your cheeks as they reenacted a chipmunk caching nuts, my Mind Palace continues to cling onto that hue.

I had overlooked your preference of tofu over Nasi Lemak, of baseball over football (soccer… ugh), your fear of needles to my fear of expression… and Trekkie appreciation over whatever it is Star Wars fans call themselves.

But it was all borrowed time.  Reluctantly I had left those fields of opportunity, away from your Minnesotan warmth.

The cabin’s low hum startled me, and I am reminded of my final sight of you: of emerald, engulfing those beautiful eyes as beads trickle down those cheeks, as murmurs creep from your quivering lips.

For the final time, I was left an emerald tint: the shade of an accidental lover.

2. Millennial(s)

“Now, listen”.

His eyes sharpen with purpose. 

Reluctant courage surges through vertebras as his chest expands, fist clenched.

“I’m 23 years old, and can decide for myself.” 

Eyes stare back, muted.  His primal instincts threaten to flood his bloodstream with adrenaline.

Is this fight… or flight?

His mind blanks out.  He goes for it.

“Can’t you see that I’m bloody miserable at work?  I’m overqualified, under-payed, and overworked.  This is absurdity!”

Farewell, composure.

“This archaic Asian belief imposes the flawed notion that I can be happy and succeed if I work hard enough, for long enough.  I won’t be fooled.”

Silence reciprocates.

“From now on, I’m taking charge.  My resignation has been tendered and I’ll move out come the weekend.”

---

“So how was work this week?” wrinkled hands clasp his.

Clouded irises catch his gaze.

“It was a good week, grandma”.  A crooked smile flashes as his torso tightens.

3. Homecoming

Crunching leaves, strewed across the bricked pavement, emulating the Sun’s colours.  Somehow, death looked beautiful, even for the slightest moment.

Powdered flurries prickling, as his breath forms smokes in the air.  Beneath layers of fabric his heart races, as howling friends glide overhead, lifting reinforced wood onto the hilltops.

The waft of flora, an envoy to ending freeze-thaw cycles.  Opaque facades replaced by plethora of vibrancy, as the synesthesia beckons avian songs.  Her visual palette oftentimes compliment the scent of beautiful women, and anti-histamines.

The blazing Sun, beating down waves of heat and nothing else.  A combination of being microwaved in the day, to barbecue dinners at dusk, of vacant summer classes and intimate relationships.

Finally, a blast of cool air-conditioning races across our/the protagonist.  The loudspeaker dings a familiar prompt:

“To all Malaysians, welcome home”.

But for the past few years, his heart was set on the Western front.

Flippin All Night - ILoveMakonnen

Content

Umm... Happy New Year?

So... I kinda need some content for this blog.  Cue cries of "Oh, what have I become? Having to churn out content like I'm a YouTube platform!".  

Oh...  Was that just me?  Mmmkay, then.

This is was ripped off Yan Chee, who ripped it off Tumblr.  So, yeah... 

If I was...

A month: January.

Partially because it's my birth month, as much as it signifies the transition of snow to slush but never quite blooming into springtime.

A day of the week: Wednesday.

When lots of interesting things happen, but it's (annoyingly) hump day and I have to work so I can't do said interesting things.

A planet: Pluto.

Because I liked it before it was disowned, and partially because I can be distant to Earthlings.

A sea animal: Hammerhead shark.

"Just keep swimming" - Dory For no matter what happens, a shark has to continue to swim to avoid dying.

A piece of furniture: Beanbag. 

Out of place, but very accommodating. 

A gemstone: Sandstone. 

Ordinary-looking, but does shimmer under some light.

A flower: (This was pretty hard)... White bougainvillea (I dunno...)

Aptly named "Bunga Kertas" for "Paper Flower", I like to think of it as my ostensible gravitation towards writing.

A kind of weather: Sunny showers. 

Uncommon, but not unheard of.

A color: Oxford Green.  

A little bit of brains, but only a little.

An emotion: Vexed. 

I always have this helpless optimism for humanity and taking steps towards being a more progressive and inclusive society, but humanity decides to fling poop in my face at every turn. 

A fruit: Durian. 

Guarded on the outside, polarizing in the middle. 

A sound: A finger snap. 

To call something or someone out, to remind, to sass. 

An element: Deuterium. 

Somewhat around. 

A place: Bear Lake, Rocky Mountain National Park. 

Some (arguably other "me's") say I'm still there. 

A taste: Roasted chopped garlic, in olive oil and light soy sauce. 

Inherently Chinese, even when I try to forget that I am. 

A scent: Sulphur and dried dirt. 

A minimalist/survivalist who still can't quite appreciate finer things. 

An object: Adidas X 16+ Stellar Futsal shoes (seriously, look that shit up; they're gorgeous).

Infatuated with football, and that will never change.

A body part: Right wrist.

The fulcrum which has helped me save at least two lives in the past.

A song: Talking 'Bout A Revolution - Tracy Chapman. 

About trying times, past, present and future. 

A pair of shoes: Adidas Supernova Glide 3 (was initially under "an object" category)

Those suckers took me all over the place for almost three years.

So there we go.  My first post of 2017.  

Sidenote, my submissions for Micro Malaysian didn't go through (for some unknown reason it was emailed after the deadline had passed).  So I'll eventually release them in this space.  Freebies.

Ode - Karencitta ft. R-Jay Ty

Year(n)

"She will never know how much she means to me. For her sake, she never will."

Remember, future readers:

What you feel isn't necessarily what others feel. Thus, how you cope with things are simply reserved for you alone. Additionally, no one will know your feelings until you've expressed them.

You deserve your own happiness. How you decide to come to that is entirely up to you. I trust that you will decide wisely.

posted from Bloggeroid

45

So this might be a little late, so I apologize for the tardiness.  Somehow, the blogger app in my phone couldn't post things over a 4G network so I'm posting this from the comforts of my parent's place instead.

Last Tuesday had revealed the results of the 2016 Presidential Elections, pitting Donald Trump against Hillary Clinton.  I'll go on record to say that I've backed the Democrats, even before Clinton became the party's nominee (for reasons/views mentioned later).

However disappointingly, we have to look forward to a Trump presidency instead.  I was/still am livid, just fuming with anger and sadness in a swirl of negativity to try and comprehend the next four years under his reign.  America, you have let me down.  

This is the now President-elect who was uniquely unqualified in every regard (besides showmanship), who has run his entire campaign on shunning and discriminating people of colour and of disability, was not even backed by his own party, and was endorsed by the KKK (yes, that Ku Klux Klan).  A man who will unfortunately and undeserving of, will have to be in the history books for future generations to know of.

I looked up to you. Heck, the world looked up to you, even if you lamented the mantle of being a global superpower.  But you spat in our faces. You showed us that deep-seated white supremacy triumphs the progressive, tolerant, inclusive society which has grown over the past decades. Racism is alive. Misogyny is alive. Bigotry is alive.  And this backwards mentality shall swallow you whole, even if the world is a mere passer-by.

It hurts, to see Trump's baseless facts and anti-immigration narrative (to name a few) sway the American people to side with him.  Granted Hillary wasn't the most appealing of candidates as well, with her baggage of corruption and scandals (emails, DNC dealings and whatnot) hamstringing her campaign as it neared election day.

To those who argue that I shouldn't care so much about foreign affairs, fuck you. Yeah, fuck you and fuck your ignorance. If you'd rather be sitting lofty in your own bubble without a care about the things happening outside of your community or country, then you've proven my point. Caring too much might make it hurt a lot more, but not caring at all is a crime and disservice to the other people inhabiting this Earth.

They're terrified, that this level of abuse and injustice has been justified in the form of Donald J Trump. And like it or not, his name will be written in the history books, for good (or more realistically) bad reasons.  I believe the aftermaths of this election can be summarized by what Van Jones had to say.

So bring on the hurt, because if that's what it takes to make the whole world a better place, you can be sure as Hell to see me fighting for equal rights and equal opportunities.  Just overnight, I've woken to posts and messages of friends getting harassed, abused, and it hurts.  It's only been two days, and this shit is flooding my social circle.

I am terrified.  I am furious.  And there's nothing positive coming out of this so far.  I pray that I'm wrong.  But frankly, I don't think so.

I'll end this post with multiple songs to help with the mulling.

Bright Lights - Matchbox 20

Minority - Green Day

Power - Kanye West

*edit

I was in a rush to post this and totally forgot to add one last point: we need to have these conversations about politics and have them more often.  It is important for us to normalize these kinds of discussion so that we do not fall into the trap of being stuck in our social and news bubble.  

Also, a (not so) fun fact - 62% of Americans receive their sole news from Facebook.  That is a startling number and given how Facebook can be a platform to disseminate false news and have them just circulate your news feed, it is a very big and bad problem.

Spent

So it's been seven months working and I was hoping to reach my RM10,000 mark in savings so I can start investing in other fronts.  Sadly, money was in savings for a reason.  In no particular order, here were my "big" expenses in the past three weeks.

Serviced my car

Replaced faulty car radio

Started health insurance payment

FIFA 17 (went splitsies with Roger)

New futsal shoes (my old ones of five years had finally broke)

New Ascension set (Ascension X: War of Shadows) from the US (Kevin is back from Texas for a bit so he brought it back).

I guess that I'll have to wait to year end to start investment funding.  At least I can take pride in knowing I'm the first Malaysian to own Ascension X.

Good Together - HONNE