...

It's been a long week. And quite a boring one too. Luckily, for the next few days, everything just seems to be planned out. I'm loving this holiday so much, but it might come to an abrupt end very soon. 10th August is coming really soon and if you do not know what that day is, it's when my A Level results are coming out. It's quite worrisome if you ask me. It's really the final decider between medicine and I ...

Anyway, until then, I think I'm going to enjoy as much as I can ... =)


-hwg-

Done!

I just finished my interview with University of Western Australia in IDP Subang Jaya. It's just such a relief that it's all over. The only real preparation I made was to make sure I wasn't sleepy during the interview by readjusting my sleep schedule and I failed to do that. It was weird, but I couldn't really sleep last night. That's just depressing ...

Anyway, I'm done! So I'm back to slothing about ... =)


-hwg-

My Take: Caning for Public Drinking

KUALA LUMPUR - A RELIGIOUS court in Malaysia has sentenced a tearful Muslim model to six strokes of the cane after she drank beer in a nightclub, reports said on Tuesday.

Kartika Sari Dewi Shukarno, 32, pleaded guilty to consuming alcohol at a hotel nightclub in the eastern state of Pahang last year, the New Straits Times newspaper reported.

'We feel the sentence is fair after going through the prosecution's argument and since the rotan (cane) is provided for in the law,' Pahang Sharia High Court judge Abdul Rahman Yunus said, according to the paper.

'The rotan is aimed at making the accused repent and serves as a lesson to Muslims,' he added, also fining Kartika RM5,000 (S$2,035).

The model, who cried when the judgment was delivered, said she would appeal.

State religious officials could not be reached for comment on the case.

Malaysia, which has large Indian and Chinese minorities freely enjoying alcohol, has a two-track legal system. Civil courts operate alongside state-based syariah courts, which can try Muslims for religious offences. -- AFP

Source: straitstimes.com

It's 2 a.m. and I can't sleep. Maybe it's because of the tea I had for supper or I overstuffed my tummy with food. Anyway, I'm here to bring out my opinions about this topic I've been reading on the newspapers recently, which I think really boggles my mind.

First of all, I know that consuming alcohol is against most religions, especially in Islam. I've seen banners all around mosques telling people not to indulge in intoxicating materials such as drugs and alcohol. And I know that because it is made such, followers of such religion are obliged to obey in their religious teachings. But here's something weird, I know it doesn't sound strange when I say that some, if not, most Buddhists and Hindus I know consume alcohol freely with a small bunch going to the extent where they can't even walk straight or stand up. On the other hand, I have seen Muslims drink too! And trust me, there are a lot of them doing such things out there.

So why her? Why put the world's blame on this poor little model, who as far as I know, hasn't resided in Malaysia for that long? Is it just because she is someone of status? I don't think so, I have never heard of the likes of her. Is it because she's just pretty and that the board that sentenced her is just jealous? I don't think so. The syariah court I know is very fair and just. Whatever it is, I'm sure there will be some huge media frenzy about this sentence both at home and abroad. Apparently, this is the first time that anyone has been caned under Malaysia's Islamic law. Other countries will see us at par with radical Islamic countries what still cane women and stone them for the pettiest of issues.

Why punish her? I may not be a guru when it comes to religion, but religion is an affair between man (and woman) with his (or her) God. So if she commits a sin, it's between her and her God. So why is it that she gets sentenced and punished by humans. Are we just too eager to play God? Must be manipulate our religion just so that it's followers feel so much pain and fear? Religion, as I recall, is something that one follows willingly because he/she believes in it's teachings. So why is Islam in Malaysia a 'forced' religion? I believe that although we claim to be a circular country, we are one of the few countries where children born into Muslim families must be Muslim, where when either spouse is a Muslim, the other must convert religion and where if you are a Muslim, it is pretty impossible to renounce that religion. Don't tell me the crap about people consciously choosing love over religion and stuff like that because that's not how love works. When people are compelled to take on a religion, they lack the faith in that religion and thus end up doing religious taboos such as drinking.

I always ask myself, if religions ban drinking and drug abuse, why is smoking cigarettes allowed? Cigarettes, according to local advertisements warning people against smoking, contains over 4000 chemicals including nicotine, tar and carbon monoxide, can cause emphysema and chronic bronchitis and is the leading cause of lung cancer. Of the 4000 chemicals, many of them are bound to be drugs. Nicotine, if i remember correctly is a drug and it causes addiction. And when some smokers are just not satisfied with the huge arsenal of killer chemicals they are introducing to their lungs, they add in pot or weed. Now, that's really drugs! So why allow cigarettes? If it is such a terrible curse on mankind that God created for temptation, why is it that we increase taxes for cigarettes but not ban it altogether? Smokers cause deaths of second hand smokers and since taking the life of a living creature is a sin, why is smoking still legal? This is one of the examples of religious doubt standards that is still practised today.

So tell me, what is religion other than a way to manipulate people at will? It really aches me, but that's one of the reasons why I still don't believe entirely in religion. It argumentatively has enormous loopholes, doesn't have any proof and has so many double standard malpractices.

I apologise if I have offended anyone in publishing this post. I do not wish to cause any problems or outrages. I am just stating my personal view on the matter. I know, what a way to spend my 200th post!!


-hwg-

Another boring post about the bored ...

Does the sky just look so nice today? Too bad I didn't have an SLR camera and that wires were in my way ...

For starters, my cousin, Han Wei is back in Liverpool. I just saw him off at the airport, where I met another Taylorian, who's in my year. I feel so bad that I don't remember your name eventhough I've seen you a billion times in Taylors. Sorry ...

Anyway, most of today was spent sleeping. My dreams are getting more and more weird and vivid, literally! It's either my mind loves dreamland more than it loves the real world or that I'm just going crazy. Either way, it's a bad thing. I've been sitting at home for days now. I need to go out! I'm feeling so stuck here ...


-hwg-

Back to short hair ...

It's true, I cut my hair. And as usual, I kind of regret it because it always turns out too short. It didn't seem that short when she was cutting it. I guess it must've shrunk a little after the cut. Somehow, that doesn't add up in chemistry =S

Anyway, here are some pictures ...



And yes, I shaved as well. I don't shave that often, as most of you might have noticed, but interviews are a must. Just some age-old tradition before I go for interviews. So how do I look? Prepared enough for an interview? Future UWA medical student-esque? Comment please, but don't criticise =)



Until next time ...


-hwg-

Anyone Interested?

Anyone wanna watch today's Manchester United versus Malaysia XI on television? I hope they have live telecast though ...


-hwg-

Manchester United beat Malaysia XI 3-2!

I got back from the Manchester United versus Malaysia XII match a few hours ago and it was a thrilling experience! Manchester United won 3-2 and although I wasn't that satisfied with the way they played which eventually led to the 2 goals that Malaysia XII scored, I was satisfied that Owen scored the final goal, just as I would have liked it. Apparently, I still wonder why they called the Malaysian selection Malaysia XI. It was more like Malaysia XX! Seriously, they were substituting every 5 minutes after half time so that everyone could get a chance to play and that kind of spoiled the game.

The crowd around Bukit Jalil was crazy, seriously. I was with Hiu Jian and there were tens of thousands of others in the stadium, not to mention all the lousy touts outside. The cheers and jeers were really something to behold. I'm not sure if this is the first of many to come or just something I'd do once in my lifetime, but I surely hope the next time this happens, it will be in Old Trafford, where the real action is!

Anyway, after the match, I went to Endah Parade to rehydrate. Yes, it was another few cups of Coke at the McDonalds and then I was ready to go again. Went to Melissa's to pick up to capo and wait for Weiyang to fetch me and that was it.

Apparently, there's going to be a second match between Manchester United and Malaysia XI because their tour to Indonesia was cancelled thanks to the Marriott Hotel bombings.


-hwg-

Time to get busy again ...

Time to get busy again ...

-hwg-

Is it just me, or ...

... is my life getting more and more boring?

... am I running out of things to do?

... are there very few good movies this summer?

... is the world conspiring against me?

... do I miss college?

... do I miss my friends?

... do I miss having to wake up at 6 a.m. and pretend that I'm not sleeping?

... are my blog posts getting shorter and shorter and way less interesting?


-hwg-

Vanilla Milk

I wanted to post this a few days back, but the internet connection failed me, so behold =) ...

Of all the things I know and fully or partially understand, there's just one puny little thing in this ironically bizarre world that I certain do not understand at all! Why is there vanilla flavoured milk? It cannot possibly come from the cows in our dairy farm unless they have been genetically modified to produce vanilla oils, so some high ambitious, yet unknowingly idiotic mad scientist must have added the vanilla extract into the milk in the first place! So tell me, you sad bane of the human society, does it actually taste better? Does it make the milk a thousand times more nutritious? Does it gives us human super powers or less susceptible to sexually transmitted diseases or some incurable malignant infection? Or simplest of all, does it make it lower the lactose content and make it safer for the lactose intolerant?

It happened again, today! My dad went shopping and bought me milk because I do love milk! And when I untwisted the cap, ripped off the foil cover and poured myself half a cup, I felt something bad was going to happen. Much to my expectations, as soon as I tilted the cup so that the seemingly lovely liquid mixture of milk will flow into my mouth, I tasted the most hatred taste when associated to milk: vanilla! I swear I tried my best not to swear at that moment ...

Don't get me wrong. I love milk more than I love most other types of food. And I don't mind vanilla in pastries and confectionaries, but vanilla and milk is just plain disgusting! I remember there was once a few months back when I took a gulp vanilla flavoured milk and the taste was so strong that I got a headache that didn't recover until the next day. I knew I wasn't allergic to vanilla so from that day on, I took a personal decision to boycott all vanilla flavoured milk! So evil scientist, why would you want to harm this innocent little boy who loves milk so much? If I hated that flavour so much, imagine how many million other people in this world you might teach to hate milk throught your wondrous formula ...

I don't know anyone who likes the vanilla taste in milk. I believe it's an abomination and anyone who loves it should be annihilated so as to not ensure it's survival, Darwin's style! Come on, if you just cannot learn to enjoy the original fragrant smell and taste of milk, just stop drinking it and seek your nutritions from some other less-harmful-to-people-like-me source! I know eggs are a good source of nutrition, but please don't come up with some fanciful flavour for eggs because I, too love eggs!

So to all vanilla milk lovers out there, curse you! I hope you all die in the deepest depth of hell for science is your excuse of masking the lovely smell of milk with some odd combination that's worse than baby puke ...

P.S. Sorry if I have offended anyone =)


-hwg-

2009 Wimbledon Championships: Roger Federer!

History has been rewritten! Roger Federer has just won the 2009 Wimbledon Championships after what seemed to me like the longest game of tennis ever! It was much much longer than last year's Federer-versus-Nadal stint, which already brought a lot of attention. The score, if I remember it correctly was 5-7, 7-6, 7-6, 3-6, 16-14. I can't remember accurately the tiebreak score though ...

Federer's win is his 15th Grand Slam title, which puts him in front of Pete Sampras, who has 14. So he currently has the most career Grand Slams. I don't have to be a tennis fan to say that that is great ...

Roddick did play his best, but it just wasn't good enough

-hwg-