When asked what we do during Chinese New Year, I often begin the lengthy recount of our culture and tradition with a reunion dinner that happens during our Chinese New Year Eve period. Family members get together in a dinning table (or a dinning hall depending how big one’s family is) to celebrate and to catch up, especially with the elders of the family. How often do we get to meet our relatives?
A lot more often when we have a baby in the family.
Ever since my little niece Bethany landed on Earth, I see her mother – my sister – almost daily. And her daddy – my good buddy – too. Not only that, my mother has also decided to travel from Hong Kong and stay with Cynthia and I because of little Bethany. She is a little magnet that pull this small family together. I cannot remember when was the last time we have a reunion dinner together. It would be nice if my dad could travel to Singapore too. Perhaps when Bethany is old enough, we shall travel Hong Kong and celebrate our reunion in our birth town.
I often think that babies are sound polluting machines. Little Bethany seems calm and well-mannered when she is in my home, or in my car. Most of the time, she sleeps like a baby. She is a baby! This is her second long visit to where I live. And I have to admit, the more often I see her, the deeper bonding I am developing with her. Imagine parents who see and handle their babies every minute of their waking hours. That bonding must be strong. It is something that is hard to explain, best to experience.
Observing things that we do with Bethany, I ponder upon the necessity of daily routine act of affection with your loved ones. Something that we may have overlooked, something that may have been overwritten by other daily routines. As I was holding little Bethany in my arms, the first time after she was born, I could not help but to think …
… I reckon if she was to camp to my home for a few days, I could still play computer games while she is sleeping in my embrace. Her daddy Benny doesn’t seem to be convinced. I should do a live demo the next time they visit us.
After spending more than 50 hours to explore every aspect of the game, I would say that Mass Effect 2 is indeed a masterpiece. No spoilers here of course. In my over two decades of computing gaming, there aren’t many games that keep me engrossed, playing over a sustained duration. The Mass Effect franchise could well be one.
But change, can be hard to swallow. That applies to the world of gaming too. Mass Effect 2 (ME 2) has fundamentally revamped some of the gaming elements of Mass Effect 1 (ME 1) and you can tell from the fan base that some of these new elements may not go well with some. And I initially too. Having said that, now that I have played through the game once, overall speaking, the combat system is more engaging (more complex too!), some dialogs have more depth (you can interrupt them too), the story is a lot darker, and ME 2 is more visually pleasing.
Mass Effect can be classified as action role-playing game. I am not a shooter type of gamer. ME 2 is certainly more demanding than ME 1 when it comes to the lengthy combat scenes. But I live. I also enjoy the real time interruption to conversation that may change the outcome of the scene. As far as decision making is concerned, there are plenty in ME 2. From the very technical aspect of the game to the political influence that one can play, some decisions got me thinking hard on what I should do next. Judging on how some of the little decisions I have made in ME 1 affect ME 2, I won’t be surprised to see how these decisions I have made in totality will affect the upcoming ME 3 – the end of the trilogy.
It is frequently asked if one should start with ME 1 now that ME 2 is out. The answer is an absolute yes. The gaming experience of the two is different. And you get to experience the best of both world (there are still things I miss dearly in ME 1). Ideally, you should complete ME 1 fully – that includes all the side missions and planet exploration. Not only the decisions you have made get imported into ME 1, you will get a little boost in resources, character level, and paragon-renegade inclination (the equivalent of hero and badass).
The Mass Effect franchise as a whole has a great replay value. After a game completion (“playthrough” as we called it), you may start a new career with a different class and or gender choice. You may create a new career from one of your existing characters and continue advancing from where you left off. There is a big boost to all your subsequent characters after you have completed the game in terms of experience gained as well as initial resources. I enjoy playing the character in either gender, preferably in either alignment. The voice over is different. The outcome of the story can be different (romance sub-plot as well as the “good” and “aggressive” decisions you make). Hence, the overall experience can be different.
Now that we have established that if you are an avid gamer, you have got to check out the Mass Effect franchise, the next question would be: Is the Collectors’ Edition worth it? For an extra S$20?
It has a mini comic booklet that is nice to have, but I can live without. A mini hardcover art book that is very nice to have, and I love to own. A making-of DVD, that makes me appreciate the game better. Access to Cerberus Network (a.k.a. a portal for the digital download of new contents) that at present has: 2 in-game collectors’ items that I use one but not another (I don’t like the look of the other), a mini-mission called Normandy’s Crash Site that fans would like, and a new squad member that comes with a new loyalty mission – very good to have. Free to be downloaded if you have the access. All in all, no regret in spending the extra cash for all of the above.
Below is the cinematic trailer, which I am sure some of you may enjoy watching.
I guess in life, if things are not hard earned, they are not as rewarding. Spiritually speaking. That applies to your recent promotion, you love life, those pineapple tarts that you have spent hours and hours of cooking to find that perfect balance, those regular practice sessions for climbing that one mountain, and etc. Not to over-dramatize, like I often do, the Spanish examination at Las Lilas is not that tough. Objectively speaking. But as always, I hardly see Cynthia doing revision and she gets a score of 96 for the level lower intermediate 2. I have studied days and nights, in any location you can imagine (except my bathroom !por favor!), even spent much time revising Spanish in our recent trip to Bandung, I am still behind Cynthia’s supreme linguistic ability. The good news is that the gap is closing! I have hit a score of 90, the highest I have attained to date. To be fair, I think our teacher Natalia has been generously lenient when marking my examination paper. And she is very encouraging too, recognizing the effort I have poured into this new language.
Some ask how many levels are there in my Spanish language course. I have no clue. Unlike Cynthia and some of my classmates who are eying at the end level, I am more focus on how far I can go. And we shall see.
In this new level – intermediate 1 – one lady has left us, three ladies have joined. Male species remain as the minority in our class. More so than before. I am not surprised.
Update: On the next day after this blog entry was published, on the same highway, similar location, similar timing, another motorcyclist was down, apparently hit by a car. Two lanes were closed. Tow truck, ambulance, police car were present. I saw bloodstained on a piece of white cloth.
I am much saddened today, or at least for a larger part of the day. As though I am lost in my own world, unable to articulate what borders me in exactitude. Nor do I have the means to pull myself out of this strange emotional distress. Like every other morning, here in Singapore, on a highway that is often jammed, one would wonder: what causes the jam? At times we see accident vehicles on the road shoulder. Or the yellow tow trucks in blinking yellow light; sometimes the police cars in blinking blue light; more often these days, ambulances in blinking red light. Or more likely so, we see no sign of incident by the time we get through the jam. It is just another day, on a busy highway, here in Singapore.
This morning, there was another jam on the highway. As I drove slowly on the fast lane, I saw a stationary vehicle on the middle lane. In front of that vehicle was a motorcyclist, lying on the ground beside his bike twitching in pain, under a bright hot sun. His helmet had landed on the far side of the fast lane. If my window was down, I would have heard him bellowing in pain. Such pain and my heart ached for him. Cynthia turned to me and asked, “Shall we call an ambulance?” The driver of the vehicle got out of his car, walking slowly towards the fallen motorcyclist. It must be a lot for him to take in. It must be a lot for all those who witnessed the aftermath to take in.
* * * * *
Many friends ask why I do not cycle in Singapore, especially those who know that I was once an avid cyclist in UK. The heat and humidity in Singapore is one. But that can be overcome. What deters me from cycling here is the fact that the roads in Singapore are not built with the cyclists in mind, the motorists in Singapore are not trained to take care of the cyclists on the road, and most cyclists in Singapore do not follow the basic safety code. I think some of my friends don’t buy my answer. And I wonder why. Being a living example does not mean that the circumstance is safe. It means that one is lucky.
But it is true. In UK, inside the main towns, it is not uncommon to see a narrow cyclist lane drawn between the pavement and the road for the motorists. Motorists often give a good margin when overtaking the cyclists. And the cyclists in UK signal by hands when changing lane, follow the traffic rule, do not cycle on the pavement meant for the pedestrians, do not cycle on the wrong side of the road, and they use a head light and a rear light when cycling at night.
Some ask, will I pick up cycling again when the construction of the round-the-country cycling lane is completed? If the cyclists are to cycle like how the motorists here drive (they are often the same people, are they not?), no thanks. I’d rather have other forms of exercise.
I am sad today perhaps because I cannot make this country a better place to drive, and to cycle.
“Pinnacle Station” is the 2nd downloadable content of the game Mass Effect. Unlike “Bring Down The Sky” – the 1st free content – “Pinnacle Station” costs S$9.99 to play. I have paid, played, and have completed the mission in the same day. Is it worth it? Read on and find out.
I reckon there is a renewed interest within the gaming community to complete the game Mass Effect now that the second installment Mass Effect 2 is due to be released later this month. Why? For one, you can continue the character progression in the upcoming installment of a trilogy. For those of you who are new to Mass Effect, it is a game with a high replay value. You can have multiple play through’s on the same character with higher difficulty level if hitting the level cap is your cup of tea. You can revisit all the side missions that you have missed during your initial play through. You can also try out the 6 different classes if you wish to experience a different play style. The beauty of the game is the achievement system. Each play through may enable you to unlock unique achievements that benefit the next time you start from the beginning again. Making your life a lot easier so as to speak.
The game play of “Pinnacle Station” is different from the rest of the game in terms of mission objectives as well as pace. Pinnacle Station is a training center equipped with combat simulators and it is opened only for the Spectres (i.e. you have to complete the first chapter of the game before heading to Pinnacle Station). There isn’t much story development inside the station. So, I suppose this downloadable content may appeal more to the shooters than the role players. There are 4 types of simulations: capture, hunt, time, and survival. And there are two different maps initially for each trials. Only upon topping the rank for all 8 trials will the third set of map be unlocked. My thoughts on the different types of trials are as follows.
In capture trial, your team has to defend a set of strategic locations against the virtual enemies. I enjoy this the most. You have to move fast, from one strategic location to another in order to beat the time.
In hunt trial, you have to hunt down enemies, with a twist. The clock is constantly on a countdown. Each enemy you take down, additional time is added to the clock for you to stay longer in the game. When the clock strikes zero, your game is over. Like capture trial, you have to run fast. On top of that, you have to kill fast too. I too enjoy this one.
Time trial, is hard. There is a sequence in the spawning of the groups of enemies. Your job is to secure the entire location by taking down all the enemies. That part is easy. The hard part is to beat the time. I often fail in time trial. Not only do I need to move fast and kill fast, I have to memorize where the enemies spawn. Not quite my cup of tea, to be honest. Also, time trial seems buggy. If an enemy is thrown into a wall, he may be stuck inside the wall and cannot be attacked any more. Fortunately there is a reset button in the simulation ground should this unfortunate event happens.
Survival trial is interesting. Maybe because it is my second play through and my team is near to the level cap (57 of 60) with superb gears and abilities, survival seems easy. In fact, in my first try, my team survived for more than 15 minutes and the game crashed thereafter (time to beat is under 2 minutes I think). In the second map, I found a location that I could literally stay there for a very long time. Worried that the game might crash again, I let the virtual enemies took us down. In the third map, survival seems more challenging due to the open space. Hectic, yes. I wish the game gives us extra achievement points for surviving way beyond expectation.
After completing the 12 trials, the last test is a scenario setup similar to the First Contact War when you are vastly outnumbered, with an objective to complete and a countdown before evacuation. Now, that is excitingly fun. Perhaps because I am already familiar with the game mechanic and working with my team, I made it in my first try (normal mode though). The gear reward of “Pinnacle Station” is not something worth mentioning. Certainly a disappointment in a sense. But to be able to earn myself a retirement apartment in a planet owns by me? That is priceless. That is as close to player’s housing as Mass Effect can get. I hope that my apartment stays in the next installment and beyond.
Given the fact that the full version costs US$50 (now US$20 and once US$5 on Steam’s specials), I personally think that this downloadable content is a bit too expensive. Fun though, no doubt.
I have finally realized what the phrase “sleep like a baby” means after spending much time watching my niece who does nothing but sleeps during my frequent visits. Or I think I have realized. She does nothing but sleep! And I want to be just like her. In fact, when I look at her not looking at me, that look of oh-happy-sleep, I too want to fall asleep. She could well be my lullaby. Benny – my sister’s husband a.k.a. the happy dad – shook his head and said, “You should see her cry at night, bro.” Such is the beauty of playing with other people’s babies. You don’t have to deal with the daily chores and yet, you get to adore the babies in their supreme cuteness.
* * I * *
Cynthia’s yoga teacher said that if we keep doing the same thing for 21 days, that will become a habit. I can’t say that visiting my niece often has become a habit, for she is less than 21 days old. But that concept is growing in me. Every time when my mother and I stepped into Benny and my sister Lora’s home, I would head straight to the living room, where my niece sleeps. And I would give her a little hug showering her with the words of adoration for a few good minutes.
Oops. I have forgotten to greet the other permanent residents of the house. How rude of me!
* * II * *
From an outsider point of view – which I once was – it is certainly strange for a group of grownups to gather together and comment on a newborn baby who is barely a few days’ old. What is there to talk about?
It turns out that there are a lot of things we can talk about. Below is a random list of topics.
Which baby’s feature or characteristic comes from which parent? And this could drag into a lengthy discussion. More often, grandparents have the final say.
Physical comparison against other babies in the family. So-and-so’s baby is born with more / less hair than yours (?!). So-and-so’s baby is born “taller” / “shorter” / lighter / heavier than yours (?!). I wonder if there is a strong correlation between the day you were born and how you would grow up to be – physically speaking.
My favorite observation is that my niece seems to have long fingers. So I reckon she could be a great pianist. I fancy this idea. My dream could come true to have someone in the family to play piano! A grand piano for her 18th birthday has crossed my mind. Benny and Lora, if you are reading this, you may need a bigger apartment to put that piano in the middle of your living room.
And of course if I could hear how she cries instead of seeing her sleeping all the time, perhaps I can assess if she has a potential to be a great singer too.
* * III * *
Little Bethany, if you are reading this in the future, I think I get to see your mother a lot more often than before. And that is a very good thing, of course.
Dad, if you are reading this, here is a picture of little Bethany in the cradle of her grandmother.
One reader wrote in and asked my opinion on learning Spanish as a language and learning Spanish at Las Lilas, the school where we learn Spanish. Since I do come across questions like these from time to time (like from my friends via Facebook and Messenger), perhaps it is a good idea to share my thoughts here. And if I write something nice about Las Lilas, they may pass my examination tomorrow, the next one, and the rest after?
I am kidding.
And I will also throw in a few tips that help me a great deal in learning Spanish.
* * I – Spanish as a Language * *
Spanish is a Romance language with 329 million native speakers (as of 2009), the second most spoken language in the world in terms of native speakers, after Mandarin Chinese. As for the most commonly used language on the Internet, Spanish comes after English and Chinese (as of 2007). But hey, these are just statistics. You may pick up a new language for your personal reasons. In my case, the language picked me. Or rather Cynthia got me into learning a language of her choice. In return, we have an agreement that she will learn a language of my choice. That did not happen. 18 months of learning Spanish has sucked all my linguistic juice away.
If you are reading this, I presume, you are an English speaker. So here are a list of similarities and differences from my observation of the two languages, at a high level, based on what I have learned so far.
English and Spanish share a similar set of alphabets. Spanish has an extended set of characters.
You can read a passage in Spanish by observing the alphabets. And hence, theoretically you could spell out the words based on what you have listened to. Those who are trained to convert phonetic sound into alphabets (like Cynthia whose mother tongue is Bahasa Indonesia) would have an unfair advantage to those who are not (like me who is brought up with Chinese). Such is life.
Some argue that English grammar is harder. I think Spanish grammar is not easy either. Perhaps grammar in general is hard because of the exceptions. I often ponder: Why these exceptions? Maybe there is beauty lies within exceptions, or exceptions are what make a language beautiful.
In Spanish, you have to remember words in masculine and feminine forms. That extends to the adjective and more. For example, a rose is feminine in Spanish, and hence you have to use the red color in feminine form to describe it (roja versus rojo). And since a sunflower is masculine, the yellow color in masculine form is used instead (amarillo versus amarilla).
Spanish verb conjugation, in my opinion, remains as the hardest thing I have seen. In English, when we talk about exceptions, we probably refer to do-does-did-done versus jump-jumps-jumped-jumped. In Spanish, each tense has six flavors to cater for I-you-he/she-we-you (plural)-they. The good news is, there are probably only about 100 variations in total (of all the tenses in six flavors) and once you have learned it, it is yours to keep. The bad news is: How do you know which verb belongs to which variation (common Spanish verb runs in the order of 10,000)? And when you listen to a verb in a particular form, how do you reconcile that with its infinitive form? Lots of practice I suppose.
Another good news is, there is quite a fair bit in common between Spanish and English in terms of vocabulary. Recently, I have browsed a book called The Big Red Book of Spanish Vocabulary. I can recognize quite a number of them. All of a sudden, Spanish is not that foreign to me.
* * II – Las Lilas * *
If you are residing in Singapore, Las Lilas is a school worth considering. We are told that parents send their children to Las Lilas to study Spanish. Classes are formed once there are five on board, though for beginner courses, they tend to admit a lot more students to perhaps anticipate for the higher drop out rate. We have met with three different teachers at least and they are all great teachers who speak Spanish as a native language, well qualified for the job. How fun learning can be, I reckon, depends on you and your classmates. We have a lively group and we have known each other for months. Las Lilas has designed a series of lessons in different levels. Examination happens in alternate levels. Personally, I hope to see a clearer written curriculum. But I guess they have a casual learning philosophy in mind and for working individuals like us, it is just what we need. Having said that, they host official examination too that is recognized in Spain (and other countries I reckon).
Each level has 10 lessons. It works out to be about S$40 per lesson before discount (the longer you stay with the school, the more discount you get I think). Course-ware is largely based on a textbook and an exercise book. Handouts are given during the class. And one or two lessons may involve learning through visual materials.
I wish Las Lilas can do more in terms of bringing the student community together. It is, I believe, the vibrancy of the learning community that keep the Spanish spirit alive in a country whereby hardly anyone speaks Spanish.
To access the school’s website, please click here.
* * III – Tips on Learning Spanish * *
As a small disclaimer, I am not sure if I at all am qualified to write a section on tips. Nevertheless, the followings help me in this Spanish learning journey.
Bond well with your classmates and your teachers. It makes the learning journey more rewarding, common sense as it may seem.
I use Collins Concise Spanish Dictionary. I have done some research before investing close to S$60. And at Kinokuniya, I browsed dictionaries of different publishers and have finally decided on this. It comes with an online edition too, free. The downside of the online edition is its clumsiness that requires repeated log in. Therefore I hardly use.
I also use the mobile edition of the Collins Dictionary (about S$15). As and when I need to look up a word, all I need to do is to pick up my wireless phone. I use the mobile edition so much more than the paper edition.
I find Langenscheidt’s Pocket Bescherelle Spanish Verbs very useful, as a reference tool. The conjugation tables contain entries in red that denotes exceptions. It helps for me to focus on those exceptions and memorize.
For online translation, I love SpanishDict.com. For serious verb conjugation, it is Verbix.com hands down.
To read everyday Spanish and to watch Spanish video clips, our teacher has recommended Radio Televisión Española.
If you listen to Internet Radio like I do, don’t miss Europa FM.
I have bought a few Spanish books too. But I have yet to read them. Some enjoy reading the Bible in both Spanish and English side-by-side with one another. I intend to get Spanish-English Bilingual Catholic Bible. Well, if I am going to read some literature again and again in Spanish, I may as well clock in some points to Heaven, no?
This list will grow, for sure. But for now, that is all I have got to share. Thanks for reading and feel free to drop in comments if you have more queries, or have something, anything to share.
It was just yesterday, over our dining table, in the context of who has helped out during my sister’s pregnancy in what ways, we joked that Cynthia is now assigned to be our Chief Praying Officer. Yesterday I have also spent some time, with the happy expecting couple – Benny and Lora – and our mom arrived from Hong Kong, doing some last minute shopping. Perhaps, experiencing the miracle of life makes people radiate in the light of youth. That excitement, that power vested by the Giver of Life, as we took a slow walk from the AMK wet market to my car, I could not help but to admire this aura radiating from Benny and Lora, from a distance that is never too far away, only a footsteps behind.
The next time I see my sister, I may not be seeing her adorably round tummy, for she is now inside the delivery ward.
* * I * *
I reckon, for some of us, the first decision we have ever made was: When shall I get out of this womb? Unlike shipment and delivery of goods that we can call someone and ask and track and inquire when that something we have been expecting is due to arrive, babies come out as and when they have decided so. I have been trying to calm myself down because thinking of the uncertainty drives me crazy. Maybe today, maybe tomorrow. Maybe this hour, maybe the next. Mothers do not will the babies to come out; our biological mechanism only does so much in facilitating the child birth process; after exhausting all possibilities – given my limited brain capacity – I hence conclude that if indeed someone gets to decide when to come out of the womb and play, that has to be the little fellow inside the tummy.
The next time I celebrate my birthday, I will also make it a celebration of this very first decision I have made.
* * II * *
Tradition is perhaps one of the most valuable aspects of where we come from. Generations after generations, wisdom of lesson learned is passed onto, practiced upon. Like that tonic drink well known for the women to consume after the delivery of babies. For the longest history in time, I could not pinpoint why whenever I smell the fragrance of that tonic drink, I think of nothing but happiness. The missing key, it appears, is the duration of the preparation of this tonic drink.
Accordingly to my mom, which later on I realize that it is more of a Hong Kong tradition than a Singaporean one in terms of how this tonic drink is made, it takes days and months to prepare the soup base of that tonic drink. Large amount of fried ginger is soaked inside black sweet Chinese vinegar and this soup base is cooked intermittently for a long period of time. After the baby is delivered, this soup base is used to cook with pork trotters and boiled eggs in making that one tonic drink. And hence, I deduced that even when I was four years of age, given the long duration of the preparation, that scent of vinegar must have immortalized the happy moment of my little sister’s birth. That probably is why whenever I am in the proximity of such a tonic drink, inevitably, I feel happy.
Yesterday, mom has started the cooking process, of that tonic drink. Oh my. The strength of the scent of the vinegar, it hurts my eyes, it hurts my nose, and it hurts my brain. And yesterday was only day one.
* * III * *
Recent events prompt me to ponder upon how many people were involved to bring me to this world. As I was watching “Planet Earth”, the birth and the upbringing of the baby animals seem to be a lot more straightforward (OK, may not be the case of the penguins, come to think of it). Perhaps I shall also dedicate my birthday to those who made it happen, from now on.
Meanwhile, a little prayer for my little sister for a smooth and safe delivery. Healthy baby and healthy mom, I reckon, will make a lot of people very happy. Thank you God. I owe you one.
When I dreamed up my “do it now” theme for this new year, never has it crossed my mind that I would turn into a shopaholic on steroid. Though, come to think of it, these are merely a cascaded list of delayed decisions over the years that sooner or later, someone – by that I mean either Cynthia or I, or realistically, by that I mean I need to make some decisions. Get it over and done with so as to speak.
I had lunch with my rather well-to-do friend. And I was lamenting on things at home that have broken down, or are at the verge of breaking down, badly in need of a replacement. Like my two air conditioning units. His response was: Things that we want to replace don’t break down (like his 3 years old panel TV, he said) while things that we don’t, they do.
Very true. Like my 12 years old bulky color television.
Last week, Cynthia still asked why there was a need to replace our television in working condition. Yesterday, the reasons were all written on her face as she was glued in front of our new “investment”. My new investment.
* * I * *
I am happy that my oven is now working. Even though it feels a tad expensive to get it repaired, replaced with new parts. I am moderately happy with my computer’s new graphic card and a slight increase in screen size by two inches. Because the setup that I have replaced is not that bad, even in today’s standard. Of course, Cynthia is ecstatic with my old setup, for her computer.
My shopping spree like the storm and the wind does not stop there. Finally, I have replaced the temperamental decade old rice cooker with a modern one. My mother has warned me before she left Singapore last year: You better buy a new rice cooker before the next time I arrive. And she is due to touch down at the airport this evening. What happens to the old rice cooker? Well, at times we get an electric shock in contact, at times the rice cooker refuses to get turned off and we don’t even notice until we realize that the kitchen is getting too warm. Nothing serious really. I put up with that for years.
And finally, I have replaced my old television with a flat panel one, replaced my hard disk recorder and the digital set-up box with the Hubstation HD, and I have replaced my Pioneer DVD with a Pioneer Blu-Ray player.
Oh happy day.
* * II * *
I must be amongst the last batch of viewers in Singapore who write about high definition (HD) contents delivered via the cable. The picture quality is stunning. I am not a TV kind of guy and I find myself unable to my eyes off the animals on the Discovery channel. I don’t even know what I was watching, captivated by the images mainly. I have predicted that Cynthia would be glued in front of the TV once I proudly unveiled our – or rather my – new investment.
And I was right.
Within minutes, Cynthia has figured out how to record the channels, set up her favorite list, and etc. I knew I wouldn’t need to read the manual. I have a TV addict living under the same roof.
Except, one friend of ours refuses to classify Cynthia as one. An hour a day in front of a TV is far from being qualified as a TV addict.
Cynthia was furious.
Not!
* * III * *
Now that I am happily settled down with my new setup, I have become more furious with SingTel spoiling the party by tearing the sport channels away from Starhub. How nice if I could watch F1 later this March with my current setup, and World Cup for Cynthia. I am uncertain how are we going to fit another setup box into our living room. This morning, switching on my computer triggered a power failure. And I have to reroute the power cable of my plasma TV to another mains.
Although, if I was SingTel, I would have probably done the same. Starhub’s Hubstation HD setup box comes with free phone line and free Internet. And that is the bread and butter of SingTel. Offering television broadcast is merely a counter tactical move by SingTel that happens to upset a lot of people, unfortunately. From a long term perspective, I reckon SingTel will excel and more channels will be switched from the green camp (Starhub) to the red camp (SingTel). From a short term perspective, I don’t think people on the ground like you and I are able to see any significant benefit.
Duh!
* * IV * *
I am planning to get the Gossip Girl’s complete season 1 and 2 on DVD today, something I have been wanting to do for months. And I am also planning to get a Blu-Ray disc today, to satisfy my curious mind.
I remember what school holiday was like. Or to describe my current sentiment more correctly: these two weeks of annual leave reminds me of what school holiday was like. In UK, the school holiday is long, very long. Six weeks of break in between terms (we call them Michaelmas, Hilary, and Trinity), more than three months of break in between the years. Maybe school holiday is long, everywhere in the world. Since staying in the college added extra strain to my student loan for my university education, I often opted to visit my relatives in Paris, just across the English Channel (note: today I learn that the same arm is called differently by the French and the Dutch … of course!). Or to stay with my friends in London, which till today, I am still thankful of their hospitality whenever I think of the good-old-days.
In retrospect, I suppose I could have made my school holiday more productive. Like doing an internship, finding an opportunity to help out the faculty or the graduates who may need an assistant, or even picking a voluntary work to do. Holiday in Paris was often more productive, comparatively. I would soak in the local culture familiarizing myself with every corner of the street, every significant piece of artwork inside a museum that caught my eyes. Holiday in London was often more – for lack of a better word – laid-back.
What does laid-back mean? Depending on which camp you are in, if you think that laid-back is a negative attribute, especially in the context of a work environment, the opposite of laid-back would be driven, motivated, all the wonderful descriptions that are likely to earn you a good bonus. But if laid-back is to mean relax, the opposite would be tense, edgy, and uptight. All the negative attributes you probably would not want to see in your partner, or your pet. Having said it, it is about the context, isn’t it?
Progress and mass expectation is extrinsic. It is always good to positively contribute to the community, even if it is in the expense of your internal happiness and well being. Society does not reward you on how happy you are. It does however have a multitude of goods and services that you can purchase to make you a happier person. Feeling relax and happy is intrinsic. Something you have to generate from within. The best of it all is to find someone as laid-back as you, when you want to be. Imagine the otherwise.
* * I * *
This holiday, I have done something unconventional. I am often someone who is loyal to brands and shops and spends a great deal of time researching on products and pricing before making a purchase. Since Cynthia is not as insistence on an overseas holiday as she is used to be and since my sister’s baby may pop out any time soon, I am happy to laid-back at home, for the entire two weeks.
I know in certainty that Cynthia and I would spend much time playing an online computer game. And I know for a long time that upgrading Cynthia’s computer would vastly enhance her gaming experience, visually speaking. So I took something from my computer and planted it into hers. That works great for that one computer game that Cynthia plays. But what about me? I got myself a pretty decent video card and an even larger wide screen monitor. Decision was made on the spot. It was a cash transaction so you could say that it was a premeditated move.
Funny if I think about how laid-back I had been in making that purchase decision and now in a laid-back holiday, I tacked the situation with motivation and drive, as oppose to the laid-back philosophy. What’s going on here?
* * II * *
I look forward to a day when economists write a book on the online game World of Warcraft. Its success story is much to be learned by other corporations. It is amazing to see how Blizzard – the producer of the game – is able to constantly evolve the game and motivate the millions of subscribers to keep playing a game that is now more than five years old. Premium contents are continuously commodified, made accessible by the mass players who may not have as much time to invest as the hardcore players, as new premium contents are produced. That way, there is always a chance for the laid-back players to catch up and at the same time, a strong motivation for the hardcore players to reach new heights. On paper, that is an easy thing to say. Blizzard executes this vision flawlessly by making changes on different aspects of the game simultaneously so as to bring forth a holistic experience that does not feel patchy. Putting customers with different aspirations at the center. So easy to say, so hard to do it right.
We know that we manage what we measure. That is the foundation of the management tool called balanced scorecard: measuring performance by key indicators. Cynthia and I are fortunate to have Mark – not sure if his wife would think the same – to immerse in this online game in this laid-back holiday of ours. Last night, we have re-installed a gaming component that enables us to view our in-game performance in real time. All of a sudden, I observed that Cynthia has turned insanely competitive. Against me, in a cooperative mission, with a team of 5 against our adversities.
Huh?! What’s going on here?
With real time meter, she has turned into a committed player dishing out insane amount of damage against our common targets. I could not help but to peep onto her screen during our cooperative battle to see how I was doing in comparison. Why? Because she is tracking performance battle-by-battle while I am tracking how well we do by the sum of all battles. Her hunter beat my mage in both counters – hers and mine. And I conclude that tracking near-term targets yields a higher performance than tracking targets over a longer duration. An analogy would be if you have to clock in 40 hours of learning a year in your work, more likely so, you would defer your learning till the end of the year, which you may or may not be able to spend all that 40 hours. Setting a quarterly cumulative target would have yielded a better result.
Because we manage what we measure.
Back to last evening, I think I was the laid-back one. 4 in the morning and I was sleepy.
* * III * *
In a normal day, racing games are the least of my favorite. Because I suck so badly in this genre. Maybe I am simply not a good gamer. Maybe I am simply a laid-back gamer. I play games to experience something quite honestly speaking, if you seldom or have not played any computer game, you are missing an unique experience in life. An analogy would be you as a regular user of the Internet (which I presume you are since you are reading this) wonders what those people who have little or no exposure to the Internet would have missed. Cynthia’s mother from Indonesia was so amazed when she was with us in Singapore as she witnessed how McDonald’s breakfast can appear at our doorstep with a click of a button. That, to her, was an experience.
The game DiRT 2 comes with the video card that I have recently purchased. The delivery of the game is via STEAM – a service provider that streams games that you own into your computer via the Internet. That alone is an experience worth mentioning. Imagine no more game boxes that take up space (did I hear Cynthia cheering in the background?). OK. The download takes long. But the good thing is that you can re-download games that you own any time in the future and all the patches can be applied via the one source. Now, that is STEAM. But what about “Games for Window”?
The Microsoft initiative “Games for Window” has been around for ages. To be frank, I had no idea what difference does it make if I am to compare games that do not have “Games for Window” stickers to those that have. DiRT 2 is the first “Games for Window” game I have that saves my game progress into Microsoft gaming server, online. Combine that with STEAM, this is what the future of PC gaming should be like. As and when I upgrade my computer, all I need to do is to install STEAM, re-download my games in their latest versions, and pick up from where I have left off. No game boxes, no need to search for latest patches online, and no need to manually back up my game progress. Life is not only good, but great.
DiRT 2 is not only good, but great. One of the few games that utilizes the latest DirectX 11 graphics standard. And I have one of the few video cards today that support this new standard. Visually, the game is stunning. The dust, the water splashes, the smoke, and the day and night scenes. I suck at playing racing game. But once in a while, I am able to put up a heroic performance that involves teeth grinding overtaking moments, beautiful drifting in spacious corners, picking up from my mistake and fight back to the top of the grid. If only DiRT 2 allows us to upload our replay – which by the way, is very visually satisfying, realistically made – to YouTube for sharing, that would have been a dream comes true. For now, below is a video clip featuring Ken Block. And yes, it is that real.
* * IV * *
Computer gaming often delivers what we fantasize. It would not be a good game if it involves reading and replying emails, organizing and attending conference calls, like my real job. Space traveling is a different kind of fantasy. Unlike dragons and trolls that we know they do not exist, cars that we know exist but highly unlikely that we would be behind those wheels any time soon, anything to do with a probable future that involves space traveling has a certain charm. And that is the main reason why I enjoy playing Mass Effect. Therefore, I have decided to start all the way from the beginning even though I have lost my previous game progress when my hard disk crashed. Now, that would not be a problem had my game progress was saved online, would it? And since its sequel is due to be released early next year, in my mode of ‘laid-back-ness’, I better finish the game fast.
When Cynthia peeped at my screen one fine day, she commented that the game is like a movie, with dialogs and story development. Indeed, Mass Effect to me is like an interactive movie. An experience that is hard to describe (imagine how difficult it is to describe what Internet is and can do to those who have little exposure to the technology). Almost like directing your very own movie in your own home.
Back to the game, I have no clue how gamers can finish a game in 20 to 40 hours. I have no clue how anyone can finish any game these days. So many hours have been sunken into this game and I have yet to see the ending. That shows how laid-back I am with my gaming career.
Want to know what I am playing for? Below is the trailer of the sequel. Mouth watering. No less.
* * V * *
I reckon I can be an ambassador for PC gaming. And if you have the patience to read thus far, I have a message for you. Have a great New Year Eve celebration. Thank you for being with my site all these while and have a productive 2010, in a laid-back style.
PS. Of course, in this 2 weeks of laid-back holiday, beside computer gaming, we have also enjoyed watching the movies and dinning out. Come to think of it, just like how I spent my school holiday in London. Woot! I made it. This post has a word count of 2009!
. I can recognize quite a number of them. All of a sudden, Spanish is not that foreign to me.
very useful, as a reference tool. The conjugation tables contain entries in red that denotes exceptions. It helps for me to focus on those exceptions and memorize.
. Well, if I am going to read some literature again and again in Spanish, I may as well clock in some points to Heaven, no?
