Just-for-laughs.

My friend from India is getting married. She invited us to attend her wedding. 5-10 August.

Checked air tickets. $511/-. May I?

I went into the salon, flipped open the female mag as usual. Saw the latest louis vuitton ad.

New bag. Sistine Damier Ebene. Checked. $2.3k. May I?

Then I came back home. I looked at the pile of papers and envelops on my desk. Found my latest cc & other bills.

Looked @ the amount. WOW! I should hit lala land soon. The above will happen in my dreams. :))

Commencement

Hands filled with marking, vetting drafts, a level oral examination, so much so that I didn't have the time to sit down to blog about commencement, needless to say Egypt! Oh whatever happened to my one post a day?

I am really glad that I've finally come to the end of my academic career (at least temporary). It was extremely overwhelming as I sat inside the auditorium, lining up at the side of the stage waiting for my turn to go on stage, having shook the presenter's hand and be handed my degree scroll. Never in my dreams have I expected this day to leave me lingering in the times when I was in NUS, needless to say be in the elite group of FCH graduates.

People, you have completely no idea how precious that title is, or rather how many people covet for that honour. In the sea of people, there are only 43 FCH graduates in the entire Social Sciences cohort, which includes those from Psychology, Sociology, Political Science, CNM, etc. and including those from the double degree programmes. If we narrow down to the Economics Honours Class, then there is an elite group of 23 students (including those Law, Engineering, and Business students) who will eventually land the prize of the FCH title. Initially, I didn't think much of it. It was only until Monday, 12 July 2010 that I realise how fortunate I am to have been presented that honour and I start to have serious thoughts about what I am doing right now and in the foreseeable future.

So the 10 of us sitting in the FCH section started chatting over our employment, job prospects, salary scale, job scope. That was when I started to feel really lousy. All of us are employed by the Ministries and I've to say mine is definitely the lousiest of them all. After chatting to them, I realise that the Ministry that I work in is a place where the top-tier graduates shun and see it as a drop in the bucket in the realm of Public Service.

To cut to the chase, I feel that whatever I am doing now is seemingly meaningless in comparison to my pals who graduated with FCH. People are reading papers, doing analytical work, making presentations to perm secs, deputy directors of various depts whereas for me, I am reading work full of grammar mistakes, spelling errors, lacking in depth and general knowledge e.g. "Wheat is used to make corn".! The days when I read research papers, simulate regressions, analyse data and results are all gone with the wind. :(

To add bitter icing to the rotten cake, I think I do face quite a lot of people who do not put their money where their mouth is and of course the it's a small world people! It is not as though I can't find my feet in the environment unlike the freshies days in NUS, I just need bigger and better things to fill my mental capacity.

But anyway, I guess there's no point in my having a chip on my shoulder since I have penned it years ago. Or maybe LK is completely ON THE MARK. They can't make a 18 year old make decisions. :) It's unfair!

Best Pals since the Poly days..... :))

The Economist gang - times of playing monopoly deal, Wii, argghh! How I miss them!

So happy after we finally threw the mortar board...

There are many more pictures... Just too lazy to upload from my camera..... we shall await..

World CUp Updates V

WooLaLa~~~

Spain is the WORLD CUP 2010 CHAMPIONS!

The 8th nation to win the WC, succeeding Italy, Brazil, France, Germany, Argentina, England, & Uruguay.

Honestly, the first 90-minutes of the game was a tad of a bore.

You witness a team of thugs don in orange, known as the ORANJE running after a bunch of sleek street performers of football a.k.a.(also known as) La Furia Roja.

After a long-drawn 120 minutes, 14 yellow cards and a resulting red card were flashed.

It makes you ponder if the Oranje are really homosapiens or our origin as Ardipithecus Ramidus had once again penetrated their souls.

Honestly, La Roja was a bit off the mark in the beginning whereas the Oranje were taking their gloves off!

La Roja's possession was a dime a dozen! :))

I guess "Total Football" is causing much destruction to the Oranje despite the latter being the true masters of it.

But anyway, they should feel proud that today's Spanish football is to a certain extent of Dutch lineage.

After a month's long of football and tennis action, I am feeling empty now that everything has come to an end.

Gone are the days where I will have to drink cups of teh-beng to keep myself awake, stumble upon going to work because I simply find my bed irresistible, or go out like a light the very next day after the football match! :))

Oh well well well, CONGRATS NADAL; CONGRATS LA FURIA ROJA! It's a morale booster to the Spanish because they managed to hold all their aces but hope all of these victories and success will not be a flash in the pan! GO SPAIN!

World CUp Updates IV

Oh well well, Lady Luck donned the Oranje's colour this time round, didn't she? And when that happens, there's absolutely nothing Mr. Outstanding Footballer can do. :)

First WC ever to be held in Africa, First-time WC winner emerging. Ambivalent about the emerging winner though. I am definitely going for Espana though. This is the golden age of Spanish football, with the likes of David Villa, Fernando Torres, Xavi Hernandes, Andres Iniesta, etc. There really isn't a better time than 2010 for the Spaniards to indulge in World Cup glory!

The curtains are gonna be drawn this coming Sunday and a month of sports-filled action is on the decline. I am so gonna miss Tennis & Football. If Spain were to lift the prized trophy this year, then it has indeed been a rewarding year or rather a bumper harvest for Spanish Sports.

The most bizarre occurrence. Poor Paul, he's on his way to being fried or the sushi menu!

Before the curtains fall, let's once again call to mind the Official Theme Song for this year's WC:

World Cup Updates III

can't believe that Brazil is out of the competition at such an early stage in the competition. I guess the curse that I bring upon the downfall of the team and people I support is en route to its glory days.

RFederer was sunk by Tomas Berdych, a rare phenomenon, and Murray got kicked in the ass by Nadal, which was pretty much predicted.

Netherlands is through to the semi-finals thanks to Melo's own goal, foul, and eventually the sent-off. Honestly, I was filled with respect and in awe of Robben's dazzling runs @ defenders in the competition but he went off the rails when he started playacting to earn free-kicks and get his opponents sent off. And I was extremely devastated by the fact that Brazil is out because I just blogged about how united the team is and how entertaining their football can be. I better not praise any team in particular otherwise I would be heartbroken to have to witness their exit again.

David Villa's goal against Paraguay to ensure their place in the semis was the only silver lining after the drama-mama 5 minutes of two penalties at both ends of the field. He's the bomb, pick of the tournament, and top on my chart currently! :))

Germany is thus far the most consistent team in the competition so the game between Germany & Spain is a tough one to pick, having to take into consideration the fact that both teams had just met in the 2008 Euro Finals. To maintain a neutral stance and objectivity, the better team tomorrow night should prevail and earn themselves a place in the finals. :))

Nonetheless, like ZH said, the jabulani is a perfect sphere and anything can happen. This WC has been filled with dramas and playacting esp. Slovakia, Robben, etc. Does this spell hope that Spain might eventually prevail or Uruguay might just lift the cup this coming Sunday?!

Labelling

Trying to backdate and label all my previous posts. Indeed, 350 posts is working my socks off! Shouldn't have blogged so frequently! To be continued........

Egypt IV - Abu Simbel

Built by Ramses II during his 67 years reign, it only gained its fame in the 1960s when UNESCO and the few powerhouses around the world decided to undergo major relocation of the temple.

Abu Simbel is located 40km north of Sudan, and 270km from Aswan, the city in the most Southern part of Egypt. Ramses II built Abu Simbel primarily to show off his awe to Egypt's African Southern counterparts after successfully deterring them from invading Egypt. However, the sweetest thing I like about this narcissist Pharoah was his love for his wife. He had 47 wives and 111 children in total, but he had only one love of his life, Nefetari! He is the only Pharoah in ancient Egyptian history to have built a temple for his wife.

So I suppose he wanted to be with Nefetari and only Nefetari in his after-life and eternally. :))

What exactly is the catch of Abu Simbel then?

1) It has two temples, one for the King and the other for the Queen, which is one of a kind in Egypt.

2) On 2 days of the year, 20th February and 20th October, for 2 minutes, the Sun will shine right into the temple and onto Ramses II's face and lit up Ramses II's statue. Why these 2 days?

Bingo, it's the birthday and coronation day of the Pharoah! :)

3) It used to be completely buried under the sand and not so soon after the archaeologists discover it, the temple faced the risk of being submerged in Lake Nassau, an artificial lake that was about to be formed by the construction of the Aswan High Dam back then. So UNESCO stepped in and with more modernized equipments and technology, they decided to cut the temples up in blocks and pieces so as to shift the temple 210m and 70m up and away. :)

4) Ramses II placed himself on the same status quo in the temple, he was worshipped as per the likes of other ancient Egyptian Gods like Amon, Goddess of Earth (think it's Hathor), God of darkness (can't rmb the name). The only Pharoah to be worshipped like a GOD. Maybe he's really GOD-LIKE (at least to himself).

That ends the "A story a day from Egypt".

Mirage on our way back! You can see the reflections of the sand dunes as though there's a lake in the desert but it is merely an optical illusion caused by atmospheric conditions.

Artificial Lake - Lake Nassau: Beware of CROCODILES! They used to reside in the Nile but the Aswan High Dam deterred their entry into River Nile due to uneven water levels and barricades I think.

Abu Simbel - Temple for Ramses II (left) & Temple for Nefetari (right)

That's Nefetari, wife of Ramses II, at the foot of his statue.

Abu Simbel

Lake Nassau again!

Egypt III - Giza & the Ancient Egyptian Civilization

Have you ever wondered why Ancient Egyptians build pyramids? Have you ever seen the pyramid that is being printed on the US$1 notes with the wordings, "In God We Trust"?

I never did, until I went to Egypt.!

Ancient Egyptians believe that their soul will rise to the sky upon their death and they will have a 2nd life i.e. after life and this after-life is eternal. However, the prerequisite of having an after-life is a well preserved body that the soul is able to visit every night. Otherwise, (maybe) your soul will vanish into thin air. :(

So, understanding their culture and beliefs is only the first step to understand the various religious practices of ancient Egyptians.

(1) Mummified Body

(2) Pyramids

Mummification keeps the body intact so that the soul will be able to recognize its own body and visit it every night. It involves 4 main processes, mainly immersing the body in some kind of liquid mixture to preserve the body, dehydrating the corpse, followed by the removal of key organs like the lungs, intestines, stomach, and brain, and finally wrapping it up in linen cloth.

Even with our current biotechnology and scientific knowledge, no one is able to figure out the composition of the liquid mixture because it is the key to mummification. Without first preserving the body, all other procedures will not fall in place accordingly. Experiments that have been done thus far suggests that ginger, herbs, some other natural plants that were found in ancient plants are necessary. The process of producing the liquid mixture is a complete mystery that awaits insight.

The removal of key organs involves 2 main steps, first a 10cm cut in the right abdominal to extract the intestines, lungs, and stomach. The second step involves squeezing the brain out through the nose, though I am clueless as to how our nose and brain are connected. Only the biology students can shed some light on this.

** Ever thought of doing something great and impossible? Research on the liquid mixture necessary for mummification and improvise it such that it can be used to preserve live human bodies. You'll make it big.**

Upon preserving the bodies, it is then necessary to bury it. Pyramids are only meant for the royalties since ordinary beings can hardly afford to build one. In addition, the deceased has to be buried together with all its personal belongings in his or her first life thus they often require gigantic tombs. The first ever pyramid that was built are not those of GIZAs but the STEP PYRAMID in Sakkara. Its architect was Imhotep and his rationale of constructing a tomb shaped like a pyramid is so that the coffin can be placed right in the centre of the pyramid since the tip of the pyramid is at the highest point of the tomb and the soul of the deceased will ascend to heaven from the tip. But it was the Pyramids of Giza who acquire fame and worship through its majestic structure and ancestry.

Belonging to the three Pharoahs of the same bloodline, Cheops (Father), Chephren (Son), Mykorinos (Grandson), the first pyramid is the biggest pyramid in the world. It decreased in size because the descendent, out of respect, felt that its tomb should not be bigger than that of his ancestor. Since only pharoahs built pyramids, and their personal belongings are exquisite, or made of gold, the prominent appearance of the pyramids started to draw tomb robbers. Thus, subsequent generations of pharoahs stopped building pyramids as tombs. Instead, they had their tombs built underground in Valleys which bring us to the 2nd most important site in Egypt, Valley of the Kings. :))

Do you want to be mummified?