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The Human Spirit

(Futher, more casual reading can be found on Palin Kaize, the informal blog)

The human body is a remarkable thing. What we are isn't all there is. There are many ways we can describe this feeling of "life". Some think its predetermined, you're fated to go through what you go through and die in a certain way. Some think its destiny, you're free to do what you want, but a force will set you straight, your fate later in life. Some say we're fallen angels, cast out of heaven but destined for eternal glory at the right time, when we die. Some of us think we're nothing more than a combined energy charge of many organisms working in harmony.

No one can agree what we are. Others can say we have religion to believe in. A calling from higher power to guide us while we live our lives. Perhaps God has something to do with it? No idea. I'm neutral on that point. Though Alex clearly has a strong belief in God and His work. I'll take him up on a few discussions some day. The thing you've got to admire about Alex is he's got a very easy personality and is always open to argue with you about religion and just why Christianity can and always will continue on. Now if anyone can convince me that God still cares, its Alex.

That isn't the topic of the day. The real topic is how fast your mind can keep up. And keep in sync. There's no true explanation for it but your head can usually calculate how you will live your life. How you will make decisions have actually been programmed in long ago. Say you've got a Math test on Monday, you would have already decided the result before the end of Sunday. How this works is, its neither psychological or physical. Deep in your mind you should already know what will happen. Think of it as an internal internet of sorts. Coming into contact with other people will update your database. With that comes a new update, something like a timetable but it will be strictly followed.

Psychic power, precognition or deja vu, it gives you the sense like you know what is going to happen. This is because you've already synced with another person. When you've synced with enough people all that leaves is accessing this knowledge. Does this mean I believe in psychic powers? No. Does it mean that everyone has it? Yes. Everyone has this sync capability but rarely do we access it because, logicially, it should not exist. But it does. Some people claim to be fortune tellers and are accurate. They don't know what really is happening. Its all just reading out of this sync line. This whole sync idea is neither religion nor belief. It just is a style of thinking.

So what happens if you are aware of this sync power? Does it mean you can win 4D or the lottery just by finding out when you should buy and what? No. Theoratically you'd have to be in sync with everyone related to the process and that includes the little plastic balls with numbers on them and the machine drawing the numbers. Since they aren't going to talk, don't expect much.

How can you test if this idea works? Are you aware you have picked up certain traits from your parents and friends and mixed both up? This is the first part of sync. The second, which some describe to be precognition, comes from you just knowing an event would happen even though you're not supposed to. This comes from linking up small things and signs here and there and piecing up the puzzle. A small world effect would be being able to "predict" movie plots, like how you know the ending will be even if you haven't been told. A large scale would be the ability to sense if something wrong has happened. Like a sudden fear and anxiety within you but you can't explain it. A more subtle one would be being able to fall in love and just know that the other person is the one you'll end up with, or knowing that he or she just isn't meant to be.

This ability is more pronounced in sighted people. Blindness tends to impair this. You can tell because if you compare playing a game versus reading a book, you would be more easily surprised while reading a book that has a good unexpected twist than a game with monsters jumping out at you. This is because you can indeed sync up through sight, speech and hearing just to sense what will happen. But you cannot do so with a book since it is just words.

So where's the benefit in knowing what I've just told you? If you're really in tune with yourself, you'll start to be able to see beyond the visual. How that works is, an even more powerful version of precognition. I can only tell you and describe it as the "biblioteca gris" or the "gray library". Image a room, blacker than black, whiter than white and yet it is gray. Don't take my word for it. Next time you have strange dreams or you talk to people claiming to be able to tell the future and they really are accurate, ask them if they believe in a "gray library" and they'll give you a more descriptive idea.

(Futher, more casual reading can be found on Palin Kaize, the informal blog)

The Nothing of Today

What a Girl tells her Boy :
"Please do something about your room. I mean, come on!
Its filthy! You and me need a talk. Now.
Your stuff is all over the place. Even on the floor!
And if you absolutely refuse to tidy up right now,
You'll have no clothes to wear for the next week!"

What the Boy hears from his Girl:
"yak yak yak yak yak Come on!
blah blah blah You and me blah blah
nag nag nag nag nag On the floor!
blah blah blah blah Right now,
nag nag nag nag No clothes blah blah!

Dear Darling

Terms of endearment. Sweet nothings. The repeated words you hear in romance chic flicks about guys loving their girls. Honey. Baby. Darling. Angel. Those are the above mentioned terms of endearment. Topic of the day, are they necessary or do they make it all the more special. Now, I know the more common ones in Singapore are “Lao Po”, “Lao Gong” and “Dar”. One point or another, you might have used one yourself. Overseas, we have the more rather unique nicknames. Personal favourite of mine comes from a former reader in New Zealand. She preferred to be called “Shorty”. Now, “Shorty” is common elsewhere, other than the South East Asian region. It is used to refer to a girl who usually is very attractive.

Shorty. You won’t hear me using that at the moment, or within the next year or so. If you aren’t aware and have been living under a rock, the general female population in our region is vertically challenged with the average height being round about 1.6m. Guys are no different of course. But at least we’re just slightly short off the average height of a common Caucasian person by 5-10cm. Yes, they are not as “tall” as we usually put them out to be.

Most terms of endearment are usually short and easy to remember. Like sweetie, honey and/or darling. All of which are gender neutral. Forgiving ignorance, doesn’t it seem like we almost don’t care about personalisation when it comes to these terms? Would it kill to think of something more unique? As I see it, elsewhere, people are picking foodstuffs for nicknames. Such as “Sugar” or “Cupcake”. Why not “Curry Puff”? Can you really picture someone referring to his girl as “my dearest Lontong”?

Taking a list off the internet, we can see that there are many kinds unique names we would otherwise never hear. Such as “Poppit” or “Pookie”. Or other more creative ones. Such as “Snuggle Bunny”. Wait, isn’t that the rabbit that sings the song from Jamster? “You are my sweetest love. This love I always wanna hug”?

Aside from the obvious lack of unique food names to bestow upon our partners, the next time I decide to use “Shorty” to express my love for my significant other, I would expect her to take great offence to the term, seeing as how she’d be physically short, rip out my spine and beat me to death with it.

Rubbish Occupations

When you were round about eight, your parents would sooner or later use the “if you don’t study hard, you’re going to be a garbage man”. Heck, you might have believed it and studied till your eyes watered and your brain burst out of its skull. Now, as you read this, you should already know that this situation is not possible. You can’t possibly be a garbage man. You can’t expect to have that job by not studying. To start with, to be a garbage man, you’d have to be round about 5’6” and of South Asian blood. Be honest, when have you seen a China man cleaning your trash?

Next to never! Yes, I do hint a certain racial requirement to be a garbage man in Singapore. But that’s also because the Chinese are mostly doing retail and F&B jobs. And your Thais are all doing construction. But that’s not the point. Have you seen a Singaporean actually clearing his own damn trash? Not me. All the garbage collectors I know are all foreign. Why’s that?

Curious isn’t it? Due to job outsourcing, you can’t even get a job as a garbage collector! Nope, that goes to foreigners. Irony is that many of us area already garbage collectors. I’ve got five caps I don’t wear and multiple sets of stationery lying around my desk, never to be held or used, effectively collecting dust and bugs. Face it, I’ve been typing everything. If you’re reading this, chances are you type everything too. (Tablet PCs don’t count as writing)

Back to being part of garbage disposal, you’ve got better chances working in NTUC than being a garbage man. Maybe Daddy should have said “study hard or else you’ll be working for NTUC!” Then again it’s not as intimidating and rather mild for a threat. Makes no sense and it will never work out.

Another stupid threat was the “if you’re naughty, the karang guni/Indian man will come and take you away.” Two things wrong with this. One, where does this karang guni or Indian man come from? Out of nowhere, appearing out of the ground like spawn from hell and suddenly decides, “Hmm, he/she looks bad enough, I’ll take him/her!”? Another issue I have with this threat is the grounds of which this man would want you for himself. For starters, unless you’re female, slim built, nice ass, thin waist, busty and able to cook well, there is no reason for some demon pop out of nowhere to take you away.

Next time Mommy tells you to study hard or you’ll be a garbage collector, tell her you’d be lucky and privileged to even get the job. Or get a job as a garden gnome.