Tips on how to swear at someone, and get away with it!

Moral of the Story: Be truthful!

A Conversation

I had a conversation with one of my friends. Let's call him A

A: You know what?

Me: Your blog lacks visuals

A: I think you're right

Raise your hands if you agree.

8 Things I learnt today

1. It's fun to make sodium ethanoate

2. Sodium ethanoate stinks

3. Never make sodium ethanoate in your mother's kitchen, she'll smell a rat (more like sodium ethanoate)

4. Never tell your mother you decide to cook something and accidentally poured the ethanoic acid all over the sodium hydogencarbonate -- she'll never fall for it. Seriously.

5. Your mother WILL wonder where all her vinegar (source of ethanoic acid) and bicarbonate of soda (source of sodium hydrogencarbonate) went.

6. She'll wonder why is the a funny white powdery substance in her favourite pot.

7. Your mother will make you wash the pans, but:-

8. You are just in time to rush off for your music lesson and if you don't leave then, you'll be late

Blog Action Day

Today is Blog Action Day, a day where bloggers write about a single topic at the same time each year.

This year's topic is poverty.

In this rapidly developing world, globalisation has become the buzzword for the 21st century. Nations who adopted the policy of globalisation has prospered well into this era, whereas other nations are struggling to keep up with the rapid pace of development.

In its wake, it has left problems, and one of them is poverty. Poverty is defined as deprivation of basic necessities such as food, shelter, clothing, and so on. In 2005, the World Bank has announced that 1.4 billion people were living under $1.25 a day. Although this has decreased from 1.9 billion in 1981, it is still 1.4 billion too many.

There has been action against poverty, but unfortunately it has shown uneven progress. According to the World Bank, poverty rates decreased in East Asia from 80% to 18% of the population. However, in Sub-Saharan nations (West African countries) the figures remain at 50% who live in poverty.

Poverty has several problems, some examples are:-

• Hunger: Hunger is when there is not enough food to go around. However, it is a well known fact that there is actually more than enough food to go around for every body. Yet one person dies of hunger somewhere in the world every 3.5 seconds. Action taken to solve this problem is "Food for work" and "Food for Education" programmes where people are paid with food at their work or education where food is provided rather than bought. This measure has been successful.



• AIDS: This is a increasingly treatable and preventable disease, yet one person dies from it every 15 seconds. AIDS have known to ravage entire communities, often attacking adults and children alike. There has been cases where medical facilities are deserted because doctors themselves have died of AIDS. To resolve this matter lies in education, but in impoverished communities education is costly, and needs lots of time resource. In short, it is a hefty investment.



• Darrhoea: Surprisingly common, yet fatal for communities with lack of medical facilities. Usually cholera and dysentary is caught by consumption of unclean water. However, it is proven that a cure for diarrhoea is cheap, simple and best of all, can be home made. Called Oral Rehydration Therapy, it is an alternative to rehydration tablets. The Therapy is carried out by mixing water with salt and sugar. This is extremely obtainable even in poorer communities. However, lack of awareness has claimed many lives to date, and 1.6 million people die of diarrhoea each year.

To alleviate the problems in poverty, some developed nations have adopted schemes such as donating 0.81% of the country's income to aid (carried out in the Netherlands).

What you can do is support organisations that aim to reduce poverty namely by volunteering, collecting funds, and so on. Another option is voluntourism, a recent idea. This is where you volunteer in a certain country and still get a chance to visit attractions, with lower cost of accommodation and food. Some even volunteer to teach ensure that education is received by everyone.

Whatever the case is, remember that you can make all the difference in the world. To the world, you may be just one person, but to to a person, you may just be the world.

Targets

Here are targets for O Levels that I would like to achieve.

For my o level Subjects, I have split them in 2 categories, Non-Cushion and Cushion Subjects.

NON-CUSHION SUBJECTS (i.e. the ones I concentrate on)

English => A2
Music => A1
Mathematics => A2
Physics => A2
Malay => A2 --that's in the bag
Geography => A2

CUSHION SUBJECTS

Combined Humanities => B3
Higher Malay => B3
Chemistry => B3

(Note how I put Chem last...)

So this would be my aggregates: (after deductions...notify me if i calculated wrongly)

L1R2B2: 7 pts

L1R5 : 7 pts (see how good planning adds up?)

And thus, Ramadan is here...

Wishing all 1.5 billion Muslims in the world a blessed Ramadan! Some Middle Eastern Countries actually have holiday for 2 days, I think, topped with teacher's day! (Jealous)

Anyways, here are tips for travellers who are travelling into Muslim -prevalent countries during Ramadan

1. Bear in mind --- DON'T eat or drink out in the streets. If you are really famished, go to a hotel restaurant instead, they will cater for tourists (and their money)

2. Saudi Arabia is especially strict on the no-eating-or-drinking-rule. I'm sure you don't want trouble with the religious police.

3. If you're taking a taxi, BE ESPECIALLY PATIENT. Hey, a hungry worker isn't a happy worker. You will see men with mood swings for the first time (I haven't had one yet...I guess I'm used to it). truthfully, during Ramadan, muslims also cannot get angry, not just abstain from food and drink

4. Opening and closing times are really hard to tell because it changes everyday. Staff usually go home about an hour or two before sundown. To be sure, check an imsakiah obtainable at your hotel front desk.

5. Visiting a Muslim-prevalent country during this time is best experienced in the last 3 days. Be sure to stay another 3 days for the Eid festivities. You will see a huge change in general attitude.

6. Roam the streets on Ramadan night. There are bazaars galore with cheap eats and goods. Best visited one hour after sundown when all the Muslims have gone for tarawih prayers. Tarawih takes about 2 hours, so try to beat the crowds beforehand.

To quote Esso, how do we know the best tips? We're Muslims too...

(Ramadan fact: On this day, 2 Ramadan/2 September, the Torah was bestowed to Moses)

What do you look for when seeking a companion of the opposite sex? (Version for Guys)

Enough with exams stuff already. I was faced with this question by a friend of mine, and here are the answers.

1. Wants you to do everything for her/Independant-minded

VERDICT: Definitely independant minded. So as such you won't see me carrying my partner's handbag/shopping/polishing her shoes/helping her deciding what to wear, etc. Hey, we are endowed with brains, you know.

2. Brains / Beauty

VERDICT: This is really difficult. But brains first, beauty a bonus.

3. Family-oriented / Career-oriented

VERDICT: I find that at some point in life, a woman's biological clock will make her want to have kids. As for me, 1 or 2 is enough. So, I don't mind either.

4. Inter-religious / Same religion

VERDICT: Same religion definitely a plus. There is better understanding, and raising children in future won't be so difficult as it's easier to agree on the child's upbringing

5. Inter-racial / Same race

VERDICT: I sit on the fence for this. I just happen to open to fate here.

6. Same interests / Don't mind differing interests

VERDICT: I would like to befriend a person of similar interest, of course. That way, there will be no boring monologues, etc. etc.

7. Wealthy / Not so well off

VERDICT: Imagine having a wealthy companion. Sharing the load will be so much easier. Of course I will have to be independant on my part

8. University Graduate / Not a university graduate

VERDICT: In my opinion, knowledge is not justified on a piece of paper (or what some call a 'degree'). I look for sensibility, so I really don't mind if she isn't a graduate.

9. Superior / Inferior

VERDICT: I sit on the fence for this. As always, all I want is someone sensible with a principle (not principal, like a Sophie i know) in life.