Thursday, January 27, 2011

hibernating post

maybe i dont have any commitment or i'm just plain lazy. i havent wrote in awhile. i'm too busy with stuff and more stuff, also more interesting services like tumblr are just too appealing.

Friday, April 30, 2010

Memory

I don't have the best memory around, I don't remember what I've read after the test, don't remember what I ate last week, don't remember what i've jotted down on my homework list last Friday.

Sadly it doesn't help when it comes to tests, Other people can remember what does the ribosome do in chapter 2, I need to check again. Then that's normally the time when they say "what?!?! You don't remember?! You haven't read that?!"

I wanted to say "Of course I've read it, it just slips off my mind sometimes." But then they'll never believe it, brushing me aside while they study chapter 6.

Then I'll be left checking chapter 2, while everyone else is zooming in on chapter 86. But I think I can catch up to them, studying while they go to tuition, but then they also learn things and new chapters in tuition, so....yea......it sucks.

I need extra time to study subjects, which isnt helping now that exams are only two weeks away(insert suspense sound effect here), and I only started on bio chapter 4.

So I was abit flustered and frustrated while going to school, and then I saw Lemon reading what appears to be a thick book(gasp!!). Upon closer inspection, it's the physics book(more gasp!!). We exchange our usual hi's and byes, then he starts speaking to me in Greek. Resultant forces and equilibrim calculations, me and Thw stare in awe at his multilingual flair.

I dread exams now, upper form stinks sometimes, no more guessing or eenie meenie minie moeing, you either write or you blank it and no marks, though it increase the chances of plausibility and some lessons can be spent arguing with the teacher, always ending with the poor woman holding a white flag. Hey you can't blame us for being opportunistic. 50 to one, what a noisy crowd we were.

But it doesn't help when you didn't even study for it and you're kissing the teachers slippers for one more mark to pass, oh wait, nobody does that now, phew...

Argh, too bad we have so many tests. Why not just two tests? One in may and one at the end of the year, that way we can actually enjoy life, or get more prizes and awards and certificates to uphold the school's already upholding fragrant name. My my, how exciting.

Ok....i think I veered off course again...

Thursday, April 8, 2010

Paying attention

I dunno how you people do it, try as hard as I might, I can't pay attention 100%. Maybe it might work if I taped my eyes or used toothpicks to lock them open and let the wind and heat hit my corneas till they look like dried preserved fruits.

I always get bored or feel like doing something else when the teacher's in front talking. It's worse when the mic system doesn't really work and the echo makes the teacher sound like someone talking in your sleep. Sometimes the teachers are tired and their voices sound like monotonous droning(no offense) and I feel my head involuntarily dropping. Then I wake up from my subconcious and try to listen again, but then I will be far off and teacher has already moved on to the next page.

The worse part comes when the teacher calls you for your opinion or to answer a question, worst still the answer's not in the text and it's those "is it true? Explain why." questions. It's embarrasing to not know the answer, and having friends whispering the answer doesn't help, it's perfectly soft enough for you not to hear it but just loud enough for everyone to follow and whisper answers to you. That's the time where the teacher just stares at you in a menacing way.

Teacher: "Well? (still having that look)"
Me: "(I get nervous)"
Friends: "(whispers) monosacharides!! (but in my ear
it sounds like momosegalais)"
Me: "Huh? I can't hear you!"
Friends: "momo-sack-a-rice!!"
Me: "????!!!(looks nervously at teacher then says I dunno)
Teacher: "Hmph....you weren't listening, see that's why I don't like teaching the 4 kenanga class blah blah blah"

Then after that I sit down and asked everyone what was going on, maybe it's me but whenever I ask them my mind says "ugh, what are you doing, that was so embarrasing!!"

Argh, off topic now. Sometimes when I try to listen, THW sometimes talks to me or I talk to him and Lemon then we talk a little too long then we end up asking everyone what's going on. I can't help it, I was too bored.

Sometimes it history class, sometimes it's chinese, sometimes malay, or moral. Ugh, it's not that I don't like the subject(ok sometimes I do), it's just that my attention span is very very low, and the textbooks and tired teachers are not helping. But oh well, classes are like that, in the end we always catch up.

I think. XD

Sunday, April 4, 2010

The 10 species of dining

Just like the animal kingdom, there are established variants and kinds in the ecosystem called the restaurant. In a restaurant, the animals socialize and meet in different regions called tables, often with number tags on them so that the animals won't get lost after they go elsewhere to feed, or socialize at other tables. Here are the 10 species of dining.

If you're wondering why I'm doing this...it's cuz I'm bored.

The Lion

Often the bossy and dominating one at the table, you can easily spot it if you observe carefully while it eyes it's favourite slice of salad chicken. Then it'll grab it with a stealthy motion of chopsticks or fork and spoon. It will also grab the best pieces for it's young, while it is normal for all animals to act this way, the lion grabs all he can, leaving the others grabbing the lesser bits.

The peacock

The talkative one at the table, the peacock is the star of the table, trying to make known to all animals about stories of it's kind. Often left with the lesser bits or food gone cold by helpful peacocks in its flock, the peacock eats up it's share happily partly because its too busy talking and it only cares about talking. The peacock's special ability is that it can talk about anything, often outtalking others and leaving all the animals breathless. Whether it knows the subject or not, it keeps churning out words from it's bird brain, leaving alot of animals laughing after dining.

The chicken

The silent one in the table, it's scared of talking like the peacock and often is left out of the conversation, quietly eating food and analyzing sentences said by the peacock. It's the total opposite and the wiser version of the peacock, often thinking before what it wants to say, thinking what it wants to say will insult other animals, though sadly when it is ready to say it, the other animals have changed the topic long ago. The chicken is talkative when it meets other chickens and chatters happily within themselves.

The critic

A specialized variant of the peacock, the critic is only happy when eating food made by trusted restaurants or only when it prepares the food itself. It is never satisfied with food prepared by restaurants and it says so unaware of other animals that are enjoying it. Often the one that is most likely to ruin appetite in the table.

The honeybee

The most organized and hardworking one, the honeybee is most probably the one that has invited others to the restaurant and is the one ordering or doing the tea pouring. Often called by others to do their bidding such as ordering their food, it is left busy searching for the waiter and is rarely focused on the food.

The hyena

The one making jokes all the time. It is the one sometimes shutting the peacock up, much to everyone's relief. Also has the tendency to play with utensils alot.

The migratory bird

Often an artic bird, the migratory bird is the one telling the most stories, provided it isn't out spoken by the peacock, it is the one many animals listen to when it tells stories about it's travels. Common topics are the food in far away lands, the best way to get there and the best places to stay and go.

The panda

The one loathed by other animals, especially the honeybee because of it's special organic vegetarian diet, the panda never eats anything it finds weird or inedible, mostly everything. The honeybee has to order special food that is more expensive because it is custom ordered, not like the affordable food made in bulk shared by all the other animals. Thankfully, the panda is more than happy to share the cost, and will not complain after getting it.

The pig

The total opposite of the panda, the pig is the more open minded one of the group, curiously trying the weird meat first and the "special" order. It is the first one to say it's good, and never says anything if it's bad, because it doesn't want to spoil the other's appetite. Often the most liked by the honeybee. It is probably a seasoned eater, and it knows the best food in the land, sometimes providing tips on how to improve the food after the critic finished criticizing it.

The bloodhound

The sad and bullied diner. The last one to leave because it's a slow eater, it has to pay for all the food if the honeybee didn't or the animals aren't kind enough. Other than that, it is the friendliest of the the group, asking how is everybody and how are they doing. Also the one with great memory, with the ability to remember everyone's names and how they looked like 20 years ago, or before plastic surgery.

Thursday, April 1, 2010

A boring week

Well u might say that I'm outdated or something, but i'm bored, what to do. I wrote this, a parody of What a wonderful world... Yup, I'm outdated.

I see answer sheets, bad test marks too
I see them scrawled, in bright red too
And I think to myself, please give me a good mark

I see friends all scared, when teachers come
The paper's here, the marking's done
And I think to myself, I hope I don't get C

The teacher calls out our names,
marks slowly getting high,
When someone's mark gets 80,
We will all let a sigh,
Faces smile instantly,
Saying we will get A,
They're really saying,
It's not me

And the B's and the C's,
I watch them frown,
They sigh all day,
Feeling so down,
And i think to myself,
It's just the march exam

And I think, to myself, what a shocker it was.


Friday, March 26, 2010

Exam

To say that we took it away wasn't actually a good thing. It isn't the "took it by storm" thing that we all expect. No, it's take away, as in da bao. If you still didn't get it then it means we did really bad and now we take bad results home.

(listening for any signs of sneering)

Ok, so the drama didn't work out. We didn't get any prize or anything, we just went for fun. It could've been much better if there wasn't someone "regulating" us, but it's already the past and it's redundant to say it. Conclusion is we were beaten by a mean circus ringmaster and a poor tortured dancer from kgv.

So I neglected it a bit and now I did add maths rely bad. No regular practice + drama doesn't = good add math. Mind was going fine in the functions and relations, then suddenly the hard compostie functions rendered my mind blank, then the rest I struggle along, leaving alot of questions blank, I couldn't even write a single formula or equation to get a few marks. My mind was like an empty vacuole.

So I was breathing harder than usual, the clock keeps ticking annoyingly and other stdents are weirdly calm and collected. Only after that I realize they were prepared to fail. So we're all in this right? Hello? Guys? Guuuuys....

Argh never mind, Meanwhile everyone was enjoying, we were doing tests to make do for the drama competition. It was weirdly harder to concentrate than usual when the class atmosphere is loud, everyone is talking and laughing. The shh didn't work. The oi just made them louder.

Though we weren't alone, sqy's bro and his frens zs and aylvin were also in it. They had it worse, they had to stayback to make up for all the subjects. When u see them doing the moral exam, ahh... What a touching moment.

Suddenly my mind travels back in time to the time of that time in that particular section of time. The time when everyone did moral by circling answers in the Objective paper. Now, we have to write and memorize and answer all those " list the values that are contained in this passage" questions and we have to memorize the values and puke it back out in the test like penguins feeding their chicks.

Argh, form 4 is so subjective.

Anyway, I'm just thankful that it doesn't really count in the official exam reports blah, so it's ok to flunk it this time, just practice harder for the may test.

So my conclusion for this? Umm.... Your chances of getting good results in the exams are slim if you didn't prepare and it's held after the march holidays. Hypothesis accepted.

Friday, March 19, 2010

Studying

Exam is here again, and i shouldn't even be turning on my computer now, but whats a bored student to do....
Ok, fine i know i should study, but sometimes studying alot kinda takes the life out of...well....life.

So for me, i sit down on a couch, ready to study, then get up reluctantly after realizing my book is upstairs, then i get down, then remember that i forgot to bring down the pencil case to do questions, so up i go again. The responding variable, x=number of up and down trips in the house,  depends on the number of remembered items, and effectiveness of memory=manipulated variable thus making me tired before even flipping a page=another responding variable. Constant variable, u ask? Hmm...type of subject(theres only me anyway).

So after taking the book, opening the page (which is a monumental task since the journey of studying begins with the willpower to actually open a book) will need immense energy,  because after i open a page, i'm already tired because just the thought that i'm expected to memorize the whole thing to the full stop will discourage me.

Alot.

So after that(lol this is sounding like a tutorial), i begin the first of many chapters. Some chapters are deceptive, on the contents page i see 7 chapters, but after examining the page number its actually 30 pages each. Then thats the time i close the book then scream in my mind and say why over and over again. After a while the exam deadline and the need to get good grades pull me back together again and i'll open it again, and start reading the first chapter....

Ok, lets start....Photoshop is the leading graphics(oops wrong book)....Biology is the study of life, deriving from the word Bio "life" and Logos "the study of".

Ok, skip the intro, i'm studying not reciting. Lets see, scientific method? Hmm....Identifying the problem....Controlling Variables...

(2 hours later)

Lysosome....eliminates worn out organelles from the cell to enable it to renew itself.

(1 hour later)

Ok, finally done with bio. Now, SLEEP!!

(4 hours later)

Yawn, morning...oops i mean afternoon...

Ok, since i studied already, i need to make sure that i remember the stuff.

So i'll do questions at this point.

1. What is the process done by Paramecium Sp to prevent itself from rupturing?

Lets see, lets see....remove water. Osmosis. Contractile Vacuole. Oh! Osmoregulation!

2. Which of the following shows epithileal tissue?

Uhh, which of the what? Where are the diagrams? Darn printing press....

3. True or Flase? The cell depends on other cells for food.

Uhh...typo...and no cells make their own i think. Argh...book editors, always profit before quality!!!

4. Which of the organelles contain

Contain what?! How can i do the question?! Doh!!!

5. How many atoms are they in 2.5 mols of oxygen gas, O2?

THATS CHEMISTRY!!! WHAT IS IT DOING IN A BIOLOGY BOOK!! STUPID PUBLISHING COMPANY!!

Ok, revision questions are so out of the question now. (hey look, pun!)

So i tried testing it myself, you know, closing the book then testing on what i read. Maybe because what i read was immediately stored in short term memory, i can remember it well. Like, when you read that a cell wall is totally permeable, u can remember that sentence when someone asks you right after. So, i can remember that after closing the book. Then after i finish memorizing, i get up to drink something then i forget it. Short term memory, gone. Noooooooo....

Too bad we dont have a biological system to directly transfer short term to long term memory,  a little bit like ram to hard disk(i think). So not only u can memorize a novel just after reading, but you can finally remember what you ate last tuesday when the thought comes up. Oh wait, being able to remember everything is kinda creepy, we need to forget things too i forgot that.

Oops i went too far, oh great....how am i going to make the topic go back on track? oh...

Finalism.... studying isnt everything, but when the time comes(cough, SPM, cough), treat it like everything. Then treat it like nothing after you're done and be happy that you did great, so who cares if u dun get full A+? Hard work is what matters.

Ok i know thats easier said than done.

Saturday, March 6, 2010

School projects


school sign
Originally uploaded by GAX907
You know, those folios, presentations, and assignments teachers tell you to do.

I always do it in the last minute, because i forget them. I always remember them, mostly at night, when the brain is ready to rest after a day of being air traffic controller for your body. The bad side, your brain is overtaxed and you have those panda eyes and "use shampoo as facial cleanser" mishaps in the morning. Good side? The sudden remembrance of forgotten homework jerks your brain into turbo, and you'll be very active and refreshed for a limited period of time, its effective, free and works faster than coffee.

Though, the worry, stress and the feeling that it's already 12am totally cancels out the benefits of forgetting things.

Worse things(to me anyway) are the folios, especially those that need ALOT of materials : colour paper, glue, text from books, binding service, plastic sheets, dog food and the like. The shops are never open after like 10pm. So you have to minus the colour paper, glue, binding service, plastic sheets and dog food. You are left with text from books but then it gets worse if you dont have the text to actually copy from. So you have two choices :

1: Do it tomorrow and get scolding from teacher because it's already a month and it's still not done.

2: Go to parliament and hold a meeting then declare that tomorrow shall be a holiday celebrating the birthday of some royal person.

Then you get desperate, and you call your friends, but suddenly realize they're asleep, and the only one awake now didnt even do the folio, doesnt care and is gonna game till 4am.

So now you have no choice but to go to bed with a very worried face and sleep. You wake up more tense than usual, and you hurriedly go to school.

In school, there will be a problem, if you go too early, no one will be there, too late, no time. In class, you try to ask everyone and see who's with you in death row, and you feel relieved theres one guy in it with you.

Then you suddenly realize he's only joking to make you feel bad.

I always hate that joke.

So when the teacher arrives....

Teacher : Good morning, class.
Students : Good morning teacher....
Teacher : So, you guys finished my folio?
Students : Yeeeeess...Nooo....
Teacher : Hmph, didnt i tell you guys to do the folio? It's been already a month! A month! thats a lot of time i gave you! when will you guys finish it? a year?
Students : ......
Teacher : Ok, i'll give you guys a chance, you will pass up tomorrow.

Thats what teachers always say. and i thank them for that. They always give you a chance. Maybe they also forgot the same things when they were kids.

But some teachers...

Teacher : Ok class, (smiles) everyone did my folio?
Students : Yeeess, Noo....
Teacher : (smile gone) I thought i told you do finish it by today?
Student : yea....
Teacher : Those who didnt do it will be sent for caning. Monitor, record their names!!

But dont worry, the things above wont happen if you are organized and jotted it down. Sometimes, if you are in a team effort, you can be the team's sitting duck, but everyone will hate you, which you dont want. Worst case scenario, everyone thinks that everyone else will do the job and become sitting ducks.

But dont worry, even if you didnt do your folio, and you have to do it by tomorrow along with lots of homework the teachers gave, AFTER important stayback activities that always end at 5pm. At least you get a second chance, so be thankful.

And even if you get caned by the disclipinary teacher, theres always that birthday party you can attend, that royal person couldnt be happier.

Friday, March 5, 2010

No teacher day

The sound of student's voices buzzing in your ears, footsteps everywhere in class, and a basketball's ping sound as it hits the floor.

Well, it's not that we can help it when there wasn't a teacher in the class, we cant just sit there and be good little students while the monitor goes out to look for the her. Heck, the monitor also sits with us and talks. As any 老师不在班(teacher's not in class) chinese essay can tell you, the class will suddenly convert into a market, but with desks instead of stalls.

Ok, to tell you the truth it was only a No Teacher Morning, after recess the teachers did came and taught. But for the ever-present and dedicated Chemistry teacher to not come to class, well.... 1 in 1,287,786 chances......ok, i did punched in a few random numbers.

So, the four periods have no teacher, two of them because of Chem teacher, and two others because the English teacher went with a few others to scout the hall to be used for the School drama thing. They said they measured the thing, WCK said it was something something feet long and 20 feet wide.

So we were just hanging out in the class, 80% talking, 1% sleeping, and 2 others running around, one trying to coat the other with chalk dust. CCS was bored so he sang, changing lyrics of old songs and insulting our monitor's uhh umm......roundness : words like "pork fat", "pig", "oil" and "eat until refrigerator empty" were used. 4% are playing basketball. The ball's trademark 'ping' sound was loud, and worse thing is they're playing in class, wonder what the class downstairs heard.

Teacher : And so students, today we will be dissecting a chicken drumstick!
Students : = = lll
(ping sound)
Teacher : Whats that sound?
Student 1: Hmm, that's the sound of a Wilson Basketball, air pressure filled to 92.37%.
Student 2 : No, thats a Spalding. And air pressure is 92.35%
Student 3 : Wow u guys can know that just by hearing it?
Teacher : Ok! Back to drumsticks!
Students : = = lll

After recess the maths teacher came, and talked to us about implications and converse implications. So like,

If dogs are cats,
and cats are horses,
then dogs are horses.

Ok, neighing dogs aside, it is like those weird philosophy things that people say, and we're studying it in Maths. I think the chapter should be called, Mathlosophy instead of Mathematical Reasoning. Besides, it's clearer, more to the point and waaay cooler.

Only good thing that came out of today, only 1 book of homework, Mathlosophy. No, the no-teacher thing wasnt good, if we knew it then we wouldnt even come to school, the first half of the day, no lessons! We can be sleeping instead of sitting there with nothing to do. Too bad desks never feel as good as a pillow.