59 things you want to know about me.

All about me.

This blog entry is about my past, my present and my goals. At the same time, I also would like to share some of my views on certain things. I was inspired  by the 25 things about me NOTES from Facebook. Read only when you have time! Very long and naggy… Woot

Childhood

I have a very vivid episodic memory- where I can remember episodes in my life. Till I was five, i stayed in a big house in a kampong with my grandmother, my first and second uncles and their families and my sixth aunt. We used to rear chickens, pigs and grow rubber trees.

1. One of my earliest childhood memory was that of waking up early one morning, and everyone was running helter skelter to the chicken coop outside the house. I joined them, and saw a huge python in the cage, with a bulge in the mid section. There were two chickens left (I am not sure how many there were in the first place) and one of them was ‘plastered’ against the cage, flapping its wings feebly. The python bit the other one in its right wing. I thought I made this up, but I confirmed this incident with many of my relatives and my dad. I was three years old then.

2. At that time, my parents ran a canteen in a glass bottle making factory in Tuas. They could only come home on Fridays. I remember asking my grandmother, everyday, whether it was Friday today. I had no concept of time and when she said it was Friday, I literally jumped around with joy.

3. I can still remember the uncontrollable happiness and love I felt then. To this day, I haven’t felt this way for a long time.

4. At the age of five, we moved from Old Tampines to Tampines New Town. My grandmother stayed with me, and my first uncle and his family just across the corridor. My second uncle and 6th aunt stayed in the next block and way before the government encouraged children to stay near their parents, we were already doing that.

5. During the weekends, many of my uncles and aunties ( my grandmother had 9 children. My dad is 5th in the family, and the youngest of 3 sons) would come to our house. It was fun to say the least.

6. When I started attending primary 1, I had to stay with my first aunt, in Bedok Reservoir, cos Tampines still had no schools. My P1 days were disastrous! I had no idea what was going on in class, and it was really a blur in school. I got into trouble- BIG trouble, for a total of, uh- hm, 3 times.

7. The first was during the mid year exam, and I altered the class position from 39 to 30. I was second last in class! Found out, and was given a thrashing. Woot. Nevertheless, I did not learn from my lesson. For my final year, I improved to position 38, and forged my mum’s signature. Got found out, and was given another thrashing.

8. But the one trouble that I felt most regretful, now that I am older, was that I actually hurt my classmate’s left eye cos he refused to lend me his colour pencil. So we were tussling with the pencil and I accidentally let go, and I hurt his eye. There was plenty of blood but luckily, he healed after that.

9. Now that I look back, I think it was a lack of attention from my parents. My first aunt and family loved me like their own, but somehow, I think I was angry that my parents were not there for me.

10. Having said that, I think I must have ‘spent’ away all my badness in that one year. I became very meek from then on. Almost, anyways.

11. Having spent my formative years with my first aunt and family, I always stayed with them during my school holidays. They have 4 daughters, so I guess I am like their son. I remember playing many things from UNO to mahjong, where the loser had to wash the dishes, to dancing a Hawaiian dance.

12. I still think very fondly of those times and I treat my first aunt with much love and respect.

13. I was a total bookworm in primary school. I started reading only when I was in primary 3. My first introduction to reading was Enid Blyton’s Far Away Tree.

14. My cousin (my first aunt’s eldest) bought the book for her youngest sister. But she didn’t want the book, so I was given it. Which totally opened my mind to a brand new world.

15. At that time, my school had this Reading Period for half an hour. And I would bring the Far Away Tree, and just looked at the characters and words, having no idea what they meant. But day by day, I began to understand the words, and that was my accidental introduction to reading. From 30th in class in primary 2, I became 15th in primary 3. I never looked back.

16. To me, reading is perhaps the most important and influential thing that ever happened to me.

17. I had no idea what PSLE was. I just knew that I had to pass it to go to a secondary school. My class was perhaps, the best in the school, and probably, the best in Tampines New Town.

18. Amongst its top students, I had a friend who scored 285 out of a possible 300. The year’s top scorer had 287. Many of my other classmates scored between 260- 275, going to schools such as Dunman High, TK Tech. And I went to Loyang Sec, very happy too, scoring 216.

19. My secondary school life was pretty exciting, and like my dad always says, better a king in the slum, then a servant in the palace. I was literally, top, or amongst the top in my class in Loyang. It really boosted my confidence and I am grateful for the many opportunities that I was given.

Confidence and Quick Wit

20. In secondary 3, I read Sidney Sheldon’s If Tomorrow Never Comes. It was my first introduction to such ‘thrashy’ literature, as one teacher put it, but the book totally blew my mind off.

I realised that if one is confident, then one can literally get away with murder.

21. In one of the Buddha’s lecture, confidence is cited as the best present one can have. I believe so too, and have tried to be confident in most things that I do.

22. In my army days, I was caught once for not going for breakfast. As I was cleaning the bunk, I thought what excuse I could give, in order not to be charged. And as I looked out of the window, I saw the full moon! So my excuse was, full moon. Therefore must be vegetarian. Woot! Everyone else got punished except me. Love my quick wit!

Intelligence or the lack of it

23. I have not been very intelligent in the academic sense. I nearly failed my uni final year exams! I spent 2 days studying for my political science exams cos I thought it was mindless regurgitating. And I got a D! Yes! Which means conditional pass. Not distinction.

24.I enjoy studying. I just hate to study for exams. I need to apply what I learn and hate to memorise things that do not make sense. When I was in the army, I had to memorise the size of the wheels of the tanks and other weird mechanical stuff. That totally put me off. Needless to say, I had to be confined many times cos I always failed my tests! Haha…

25. I think I can survive with wits but not intellect. I can be a wise man, but not a brilliant man. I learn best from experiences and mistakes, mine and others.

26. My I.Q. is between 148- 152, and that means I am the top 2% of any nation’s population! If the online I.Q. tests are to be believed, that is.

Love

27. I watched a documentary once, and this man said that in one’s life time, a person falls in love only twice. When he realises this truth, the first true love has already past.

28. I am not the type who falls in love easily. So when I do, I can become rather intense. The only time when I did fall into the webs of love, I fell in so hard, that it was like  two life times’ worth. But precisely things moved so fast, so much, it didn’t work out. I was all of 25. Haven’t met anyone who interests me that much since then.

29. I am not actively waiting, nor searching for that special someone. It is ironical, that the more I am not looking, the more (admirers) that I seem to have. Two girlfriends whom I casually dated, are now happily married with a son each. Happy for them. Woot.

30. To me, love does not last forever. What is love today, will transcend into gratitude and appreciation tomorrow. And I believe sometimes, I can catch a glimpse of this, past this notion of love.

31. A friend once told me, to do well in life, one needs love. I agree. Just that my love for life is more than just the romantic kind. World peace!

Regrets

32. I always tell people, if I were to die now, I think I would have been 90% a happy man. I have done most things that I wanted to do.

33. But one regret that I will always have, is that when I was in my final year in university, I had wanted to buy a vcd (no dvd yet) player for my grandmother. Having a fat allowance from my father and I was also giving tuition, my monthly income was in the low of four figures. I could have easily bought the vcd player but I thought, if perhaps I used the money from my first salary, it would have been more meaningful. Sad to say, my grandmother had a stroke, and fell into a coma. She never woke up and finally passed away seven years later.

34. Since then, if I wanted to do something. I just do it. I don’t think so much any more. Because, I may not have the chance in the future and I hate to think of ‘what if’.

Money

35. Anything that is materialistic, can be earned. Hence, many people find my attitude towards money to be astounding, to say the least, cos my favourite words are, ‘It’s just money’. What’s most important, is your surprised look. Seriously, it is not a limb, not a leg. If I can afford it, then I will buy you lunch, or a present that you like. I can always earn the money back. But I may not have the opportunity to buy you a present or a meal again. Who knows, right?

Beliefs

36. I do not believe in boundaries. Perhaps, that is why I seem to always be trying to break them. Not the conventional boundaries such as those seen in the athletics field, not that I can anyways, but I like to push myself and see whether I can take the challenges and overcome them. That is why I always say yes when I am given new tasks at work. Not because I am a nice person, as most people would think. But because I like to have as many tasks pile on me, and still do a very decent job in all of them.

37. Many people expressed surprised that I am a Buddhist. They always assumed that I was a Christian. I am surprised myself, by their surprise. It is because I seem very ‘English.’

38. I do not believe in a religion that is exclusive nor a supreme being/ creator. However, I do believe that are beings that are unseen in this world, and they can choose to help or  create problems for a person. I also believe in the natural law, that everything follows a law. Perhaps, this law is God in some religions.

39. The older I get, the more I find myself a Mandophile, as to an Anglophile. I find myself appreciating everything Chinese, from the culture, to the music- traditional and operatic, to the language and poetry and of course food. Which surprises many people, including myself, cos I ‘speak English so well.’ Well, they haven’t heard me speak Mandarin yet!

40. When I was 26, a colleague whom I thought very well of, told me that she would pray for me when I die. ‘Cos I would go to hell’ for being a non- believer of her religion. That was my first introduction to religious tolerance. Not harmony.

41. I try not to place a bias on anybody, be they students, new friends, colleagues or someone I meet on the streets.

Health

241 Since 2004, I had been hospitalized almost every year, except 2007, which incidentally was the worst in terms of mental well being.

2004- removed a sebaceous lump behind my left shoulder blade and dislocated my left shoulder during swimming in Bali

2005- broke my right hand gave an entire new meaning to broken wrist, because I literally broke it!

2006- sprained my back so bad I couldn’t walk properly for almost 2 months. It was very scary cos I thought I could never walk again.

2007- was mildly depressed for a few months. I still remember, I changed and got ready for work. Instead, I took the bus to the airport, and just sat there, watching the aeroplanes take off and land.

2008- removed another sebaceous lump, this time at the back of my neck. I am really, too oily!

2009- nothing please!

42. I used to sleep for only 4 hours a day. I didn’t want to waste time. After work at 7pm, I would hit the gym till about 10pm. Then go cycling till 1am. By the time I showered and got ready for bed, it was 2am.

43. Slowly, I realized that in order to save time, I need to waste time. Nowadays, I just take things very easy.

Me

44. I don’t like to rush through- 1. Gym and exercise sessions
2. Eating 3. Sleeping 4. Toilet time. 5. Mediation. Anything else, I am fine. These are my ‘me time’. No one comes in between me and my ‘me time’.

45. I not particular in what I eat, although I try to be a vegetarian.

46. I like people who are unpretentious and down to earth. I also like people who are aware of their surroundings. I am very aware of my surroundings and I do not like to have to remind people to be mindful. Just pay attention.

47. I am very blessed in my life, to have many, many good friends, in the various stages of my life. And by good friends, I mean people whom I can rely on, if I ever need help. Amongst them, I count Tan Chung, Mui Noi, Ming Hwee, Alvan, Christopher as my bestest friends ever, and who have influenced me in many ways, vice versa, I think. Thanks for being there for me!

48. I try not to take any life. Not religious in basis, just that I respect all life, be it a cockroach, an ant or a mosquito. To me, they are just doing what they are supposed to do. And if they appear in your house, then something is wrong with your house! Do something about it, and they will disappear. Interestingly, I have seldom been bitten by a mozzie or other insects. Woot.

49. I share birthdays with my father and Sai Baba, a religious leader.

50. I love prime numbers since I was young, although I do not understand why. Perhaps influenced by my birthdate, cos the month and day are both prime numbers, and very powerful ones to that.

51. According to a palm reading book I once read, I have the phoenix tail palm. i.e. I will either amount to nothing, or be extremely successful in life. Nothing in between. Hmm…

52. I have very small hands- my grandma used to say they look like a girl’s hands.

53. Sometimes, i feel that there is a monster waiting to burst out of me and right all the wrongs in this world.

Future

54. I want to swim the English Channel, and I hope to do that in 2011 (not that young anymore).

55. I am planning to study my MBA in Tsinghua University in Beijing in 2012. Hope to able to get a scholarship.

56. I want to travel around the world. I have been Taiwan, parts of China, UK, and all of south east asia, minus Brunei. Although, some countries such as Indonesia and the Philipines, I only touched and go. For some strange reason I cannot identify, I am not keen in Australia. At all.

57. I hope to set up a cafe, an orphanage and a school to offer people a chance in life, that will lead to a life of dignity and choices. And not having to sell drugs nor one’s body, just so to survive.

58. I also hope to be able to set up a micro finance scheme to give assistance to people whom otherwise, will not have a chance at all.

59. It is my dream to share and impart, Wisdom and Compassion, Courage, Strength and Confidence. I believe that if everyone acts with such values, there will be less strifes in this world.