2010 Retrospective

With a sigh of relief and a wisp of breath slipping through my lips, it is now winter again. The snowflakes brush off the pines and needles with the ease of a gentle breeze. And though the chill is unrelenting, this feeling of mellow at the year's end is what drives my current state of recollection and retrospection.

2010 is like any other year, perhaps more, maybe less, but so far it has been memorable to say the least. This year, probably, has been the year that I've thought on so many things and made drastic changes to my plans and the way I've been thinking about issues. Metaphorically speaking, 2010 has brought me a fresh set of eyes and opened another side of my brain, idled for too long for a lack of attention or necessity.

And here I sit, in front of my computer writing my piece for my blog with a Nikon mug in hand filled with a creamed Folgers coffee, not too sweet, not too bitter, perfect the way it is while also thinking of the irony that goes with how it symbolizes the end of this wonderful year. Relaxing, serene and bringing a slight smile to my heart.

Not much can be said about the start of 2010, except for the experiences I had spending my holiday in Miami and my West Coast trip. Miami was an extension of my winter plan the previous year, and though it was a glitz and glamorous place, I see it as a relaxing vista to enjoy the weather and to escape from the thoughts of anything save for the sand, sun and waters. The highlight of my west coast trip was of course Seattle though I am not sure why. The atmosphere of that city was sort of for hippies, yet it has that certain vibe of freshness that is hard to find in a US city. One that I found before in Milwaukee perhaps, a vibe of comeliness I can't define. Or maybe it's just because Microsoft was there and I think Microsoft is cool. Heck, it might just be because I drove an RV (Recreational Vehicle) most of the way from San Francisco to Seattle, which feels like driving a yacht on land and was awesome!

Spring 2010 rekindled and reaffirmed my interests in EE (electrical engineering ALSO environmental engineering) after having taken a class in signal processing (includes digital signals, speech, and image processing), a class in power electronics (about converters: dc-dc, ac-dc, dc-ac), and a class in environmental sustainability. Though signal processing was cool, I feel more strongly toward the energy industry, seeing as the future demand for it will be massive and that story is to continue through the year with me taking another plunge into that side of EE.

Coming to the season of summer, I was treated with the warmth of the sun as well as an offer for an internship in Purdue and nanoHUB.org. Working with Prof. Klimeck was a real wonder and it definitely opened my way forward into academia. Yes, looking at graduate students working hard every second was discouraging, but then again, it's passion like that which drives humans forward. That and also knowing that there are colleagues who we can refer and relate to, to share and combine knowledge, to further the purpose of discovery and enlightenment. That, by itself brought me to acknowledge that, there is a sense of satisfaction in knowing the unknown.

Lest I forget, I also had fun doing a side project right before the summer, one that involved my imagination. It had been so long ago that I've played around with creating videos that I've nearly forgotten the joy of being fresh. Though it was not my own work that I wrote, it was great having to read a script, a story, and seeing it in my mind's eye as if it was a camera capturing the atmosphere of the moment. Many times have I read a book and have "lived" it but never to have the initiative to try it for myself. Many times have I thought of a certain scene in the back of my mind, which can capture a feeling, an emotion, though never having the canvas to display it on. Perhaps that is why I have taken into photography (and to some extent videography), to capture that fleeting moment, and perhaps that is what I have been seeking thus far. My thanks goes to Hanif Kamis for that, and I enjoyed our chat in the car while rushing from Ustaz's house back to Purdue. That was fun and interesting.

As the days blazes off during summer, and even though the hot and humid climate seems to persist on end, the SURF internship served to be a great experience in my life. Meeting with new friends from other universities, from diverse backgrounds, helped with the FIFA 2010 World Cup, was very fun. Even though my team lost (and I did not put too much into it) in the soccer tournament amongst ourselves, I still think it was fun with myself proving that I suck at soccer/football and probably any other sport due to my stamina. Touring Chicago, watching the World Cup at Giordano's as if it was a mamak stall back home, kayaking and having fun in the river, celebrating the 4th of July at the Professor's house, eating a new delicacy (somewhat new) from a Tanzanian and cooking roti telur in return, doing the fountain run and sliding off the engineering fountain; summer has been an eventful season, one that is the most memorable summer in the states thus far (well..it has only been 2 times).

Fall is the season of leaves, in a way symbolizing the beginning of the year's end. Departing leaves, somber skies, and washed out weather. It was a bad start for Fall, since me and my friends were involved in an accident during our trip to the American Southwest, but Alhamdulillah, we were okay and well in the end. Having taken the minimum amount of credit hour for the semester, I was happy enough to also finally gotten a side income from the Windsor dining court being a student associate. Also, I was thrilled to take an Android application programming project class and another E&PS (energy & power systems) class with a Malaysian-born professor. The Android class taught me to be motivated throughout the semester to co-develop an app for the Android OS mobile platform, while the E&PS class motivated me further on to entrust my future on research and discovery.

The Malaysian professor is also known to me as the Ipoh professor. He, for a lack of description, has this certain way of teaching, one that I have not seen for a long time, who delivers his lectures as if passing his knowledge to his own children. One that I have seen so familiarly from my parents, especially my father. It might have been his tone, it might have been his delivery, it might as well be his body language. It might have been the three combinations that has caused me to like his class, even though at times I can't really understand his teachings until the very end, just like how a father teaches his own son but the son could not yet comprehend until it is naturally in him. Somehow, in him, I can see myself eventually in the distant future maybe and that is my source of inspiration and aspiration. Somehow, in him, I see why educators are the way they are, how they should be and what they truly mean for those who find meaning in life. I am not sure why, but in him I see why my parents are educators and why, as far as I know, my grandfathers are educators, for there is that sense of personal satisfaction upon seeing a student smile and benefit from the knowledge that we have passed on to them. And for that sense, it is also the reason why I should never forget my past transgressions while also redeeming myself to help the future generation to not repeat my mistakes. Professor Ong, thank you.

Not to forget, is a little surprise, even for me. Unbeknown to most, at the end of 2004, I guess my reputation as an Alam Shah student was up and thus I got to know of my then-girlfriend, who I was happy with until we finally ended it prior to me reaching Purdue. We had a lot of good times together but that was, well, that. But also, at the end of 2004, there was also another girl who got to know me even though for only a short while, online. And that same girl, found me yet again after about a 5 year hiatus. And that same girl, we chatted online and got closer in the meanwhile, eventually becoming friends. And that same girl, who eventually confessed me of her feelings that I have sensed for sometime but kept secretive about it. And that same girl is now someone I feel strongly I am able to share my life with. Yeah, and that same girl, she was somehow tied to my family via her mother who once worked with my mother in the so distant past in a school in Gombak. Ironic how the world is big yet small.

...and that is the story thus far. As for the future, for 2011, plenty is not certain. My application for Shell has not been replied yet. Also in waiting is my application for graduate admission in Purdue for Fall 2011. Though it was not in my initial five year plan upon entering INTEC in 2006, a lot has changed since then. Humans plan, but it is Allah's will that makes or breaks it. Now, I am looking forward for my grand Alaskan trip and also for my PhD application reply. Because if I am able to get admitted for doing the PhD program in Purdue, I am able to go forward with my future plans, one that hopefully can enable me to get married soon, sooner than you think, in July insyaAllah. :)

Recent thoughts on things...and things

This has been a long time coming actually. I've read once before in a Tom Clancy novel that we should take note of our thoughts so that we will at least remember it and take notice of it, and thus it has been a long time since I wanted to write this down. However, as a disclaimer, this is my personal thoughts on events that have transpired thus far and I know that I am responsible for it. Do not quote me out of context and if you do want to quote me, do ask me so that I can further clarify my stand on certain things. I am not responsible for a misinterpretation as my state of reference might be different than someone else.

• Education, the value of knowledge.

I have been an international student in the US for 2 years now, and this will probably be my 3rd year and last year of study in the US, or then again probably not. I am thinking of applying to graduate school here in Purdue after having had the chance to see their system, and I really like it here. Why?

Liking a place is akin to feeling right at home, and even though my home is with my parents in Malaysia, I can't help but like the fact on how people value education and knowledge in this so-called university town. The community here highly regards intellectual people - the students, the professors, all manners of people whether it being clerical staff or construction workers, all of them are treated with a high degree of respect, and even though in these economic times, people are struggling to get money, they don't show that aspect of capitalism so much. It might be because of their economic value being higher than ours, but nevertheless they don't succumb to it as so much as we are.

In Malaysia, the education field is hardly treated with the same degree as it is right here. For one, the education system back home feels like a cover up of a political system, one that is corrupted by greed. People talk about being taking a PhD just in order to get more salary, and to get paid sabbatical and traveling around the globe, being head of departments and a pioneer in the country, but none of that rings to me just like the winds on an open prairie field. No, I want none of that. I do not want fame nor fortune, only enough for me and my family to get by, and enough for me to contribute back to the community. People forget the satisfaction that comes with such an endeavor. People forget that what we are doing is not only for ourself, but also for the next generation and the generation after that. And most of all, people forget, that without education, man is naught but a savage beast in the playground we call Earth.

• Politics, the promises and the art of a con.

Personally, I hate politics. It gets in the way of everything, and the nonsense that entails is purely stupid. I guess most of everybody knows of what I feel, and it couldn't be help with. As humans, there are certain limitations to what we can and cannot do, to what we are able and not able to achieve. And in order to call upon order the people beside us, we make promises of grandeur and glory, which can only be achieved upon total cooperation. But no, total cooperation is an idealism, one that we could and can not afford in the multiple branching backgrounds of each individual. Thus, we see upon politics as an idealism to impose structure that we can not afford, impose order that we can not achieve, and impose direction that we have only for a short term.

Rarely do we understand the other side of the shoe. The politician.

Here is an individual, who beyond his own personal duty to himself and probably his closest, stands up above the crowd to bring forth an idea, a direction and a dream, to manage the crowd from being savage to orderly. That same individual looks as if he governs the crowd, yet at the same time, the mechanism if properly understood, is also true the other way around. The crowd governs the politician. Thus it is this conundrum that governs the group called a nation, where the politician becomes the leader who governs the government body overlooking the populace, while at the same time the populace keeping the leaders in check with their votes of confidence upon the leaders. A system of check and balances. Or so what is told by words, an idealism representation of what can be, more akin to what should be since it is not represented wholly in reality.

The crowd governs the politician.

We mock the politicians who leads us astray to what we want rather than what we need, and to the leaders who is wholly bent on his idea of progress without properly representing what the nation had been as constituted by the nation's own constitution and constituency. What had been good for us has been misdirected in order to "follow" the advancement of time, regardless of anything else. We have been brainwashed by promises of grandeur from other nations' own way of progress, thus beginning the decline of our own identity in order to imitate what others are, comparing and assimilating each of us to them at every arm's length of time. Yet, throughout the ordeal, some started to voice out their worries only to be diminished due to the lack of courage to become one's own leader. That is who we are. The backstage crowd, the average citizen who only thinks of finger-pointing others just in case should a mistake, an error in calculation occurs.

Back to my side, I hate politics. When a colossal amount of money goes toward developing something that is wanted but not needed, I can't help but feel betrayed. Here I am, once told to value patriotism and the nation's identity, once told to remember to serve my own nation, once told to be responsible not only to myself, but also to every common citizen, the taxpayers who helped fund my studies abroad; here I am, reading the absurd news happening back home, hearing stories that are not supposed to be happening in the professional level, and frankly, I feel betrayed and pissed.

Why? Because it does not make sense. How can a man, who clearly feeds off of other peoples' money and other peoples' issues, neglect them and pursues nothing more than a personal glory and gets away with it? Clearly the gamut of people back home has only greed stamped on their eyes. In my opinion, even though we originally set the goal of Vision 2020, we should only refer it as a guideline, not an absolute necessity. If we are to pursue that goal, we should pursue it with caution and trepidation. If we are to really want 2020 so badly, is it necessary to neglect our human capital growth? Yes, 2020 is just 10 years away and to reach our original goal, business and commerce is the fastest shortcut, but what then? After 2020, what then? Will there be a generation gap of economic inequality within the population, where the rich is richer and the poor is poorer? Where then will the middle-class be? What then will the nation become? Will we be so business focused that we forget to develop ourself, knowledge-wise, culture-wise and social-wise?

I hate politics. But here is my advice, the crowd DO govern the leaders. Without the many, the few is just....well....few.

Recently, I have thought over my plans for the future. And pretty much went over the numerous things that I could do, sort of doing multiple scenarios of simulations inside my not-so-powerful brain.

As a background to why, it is because I am the tipping point of my career in life, my senior year in Purdue, choosing whether or not to follow my interest in renewable energy and learning, or to follow the industry route. Choosing a life of another 5 years of learning alone or finding a suitable partner with me to bring stateside, or just settling down and working to eventually getting married.

Problem is, I DO LIKE learning. I like them as challenges in my life, learning something new, putting value on knowledge earned and being satisfied overcoming the challenges that come with it. But then, learning would not benefit me if I were already given a position in the industry, in this desperate economic times. Then there is also the problem of choosing how far do I want to learn, masters or PhD? Dr. Muhammad Aizuddin Zulkifli does sound kinda weird but I can get used to it though.

And so...the conundrum of dilemma begins. Right now, my mind is set to pursue PhD (probably) while also taking on internships when available in between semesters so I can get the best of both worlds. And if possible, probably finding a life partner to help me along emotionally during my tenure in learning.

There are other things I will post, most likely later..of the problems I've been thinking of regarding the learning system, comparing why Purdue and not Malaysia, regarding my feelings towards certain recent directions Malaysia has taken, among others.

But now....now, is the time to sleep.

Things that have transpired

It can be said that half of the semester have passed by.

Taking the minimum amount of credit hours this semester has probably done me good. Felt great during the midterm exams, and was rewarded with good scores for them. Took an Android programming project class and it is going fine by my standard so far, with myself learning and discovering new things each and everyday. My application to graduate school is starting with the Graduate Review Exam (GRE) being a couple of days from now.

Overall, I feel fulfillment in my everyday throughout this semester...

Yet, I can't really say I am content. Yes, I am not content on what knowledge I have now and I am not content on my personal state being normal. That, I think, is normal for a person like me.

However, I am not talking regarding those. I am feeling not content on myself being not able to let go of certain things in the past.

It has been a couple of years and I am still thinking of my past regrets. It has been a couple of months and I am still thinking of it. It has been a couple of days yet it sticks in my mind.

I guess I don't know what to make of myself. sigh~

A letter to time

Dear time,

Why do you seem to creep when we least want you to, and why do you run when we chase you so? You are like a person, giving me a sense of hope and security with your leniency, however also being cruel in the harshness of reality.

This past summer felt like a breeze, not a midsummer's breeze that cools the air, nor the breeze that sweeps the grass free of pollen and dust. Nay, for that is not the breeze meant. At an instance, the 3 months are now past and gone, the memories will seem to fade away to only a recollection of words and pictures for only few to know.

Though it has been only a few hours past, I feel that I want this summer to go on. Not the temperature though, only the experience. It is interesting to think in retrospect, to get to know what we missed as an experience, to learn and discover knowledge and more.

Working. Learning. Coding. Making mistakes. Feeling down. Frustrated. Slacking. Enthusiastic. Motivating. Discovering. Experiencing.

As humans, we err and we err more. From that we learn, but also forget and is reminded, and forget again. As humans we want when we are not given, and when it is given, it is not wanted. For that is what we are.

Oh, time. Let us enjoy this moment, precious as it is, let us have this reverie.

Summer oh Bummer

I've been meaning to do something in this blog for so long...like write...eventually.

Summer. Hot. Sometimes humid. When it's humid in summer, it's hell. It's like an oven outside, slowly deep-cooking into your skin, your very pink meat from raw to ripe. Urgh. As hot as it was back in Malaysia, it was better because clouds were everywhere. Sigh~ oh well.

Nothing of note happened so far this summer. Probably I've mentioned this somewhere before, but here goes again. This summer I was given the opportunity to be in a research fellowship program - SURF, or in non-acronym talk, Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship. The main focus of the program is to give the fellows an opportunity to participate in graduate topic research while being paid as well as pique their interests in graduate school studies. Fortunately, I have been given a great chance to be working under Prof. Klimeck, the director of nanoHUB.org, a hub that centers on nanotechnology and the sharing of information of that field via online tools to the global community.

So far, the project I am working on right now seems to be on track and on schedule. It has been a great experience so far, one that I am glad to be in, considering I was kinda scared early on because of the pure intimidation of such a task. I learn stuff, I had fun..and it's all in a days work. And yeah, the money helps too.

Not to forget, SURF also helped a lot in enhancing the experience. We were given tours in Purdue's numerous research facility, like the Envision Center, the PRIME lab, the nanotech center etc.

Oh, how I wish I have another summer to be in SURF again...but then again...it's hot... ;p

One of these days

One of these days ...

... I feel empty inside, as if I have lost myself somewhere at sometime. I feel lacking in my own self, the one weakness that I cannot cure from past years. It might be a case of inferiority, but I believe I know myself better than that.

I am very, what I think is as, normal as compared to others, yet I am happy the way it is as is. My family is of middle-class people, and my siblings are local Malaysian graduates. And when I look at other students here studying abroad, most of their siblings are oversea students, unlike myself. I know my purpose being sent here in Purdue, to study and do my best after being sponsored by the people's money. And that is what I do best.

One of these days ...

... I look back upon the past 2 years as being void and empty as having to little to no meaning at all. Of course I can brag about my academics and life experiences here, though it kinda feels shallow because sometimes it just does not matter at all.

The years that have past felt as if they strolled by like a midsummer's breeze on an open grass plain. Another year has just swept by, providing its temporary coolness in the blazing heat, soon to die down as the clouds roll above the sky. Probably it's just because of the heat. The heat give thoughts of despair and anxiety, nulling my plans as to only think on how to escape the heat and skip the summer.

One of these days ...

... I want to hope for a long-lasting happiness.

One of these days, I just wish that I can look back and laugh it all off, or just shrug it off as a chuckle.

Umquhile

It started as a side-project to capture a video like a short film or short clip in order to be shown to the Malaysian students attending the Malaysian Midwest Games Night 2010, and now I feel so tied to it just because. Most of the scenes were shot with my new Nikon D300s with the few lenses that I have and thanks to the screenplay written by a graduating senior along with other crews and casts, I would say that I am proud of it even though it is far from perfect.

What am I talking about? I am talking about the video that I have now uploaded to my Facebook account, my Facebook page and also on Youtube for anybody who wants to view it.

Umquhile

... and in it there is an implicit message, a lesson if you please, one that kinda strikes true to me and also, I think, most of the students studying far from home, whether it be overseas, regional or just local. Umquhile, or as defined in some websites as 'some time ago', in my personal perspective seems like a story about a teenager who undergoes the rebellious transformation from childhood to adulthood and after being rebellious for years, finally goes back to his roots where he left it some time ago. That is only my thinking of it, so don't take my word for it.

During its initial stages, when I read the screenplay for it, it has this sense of striking true to what I myself experienced, if not fully but partly. More than that, it has been quite a while that I have been thinking of doing some short clips, experimenting with the play of words, song and visual styles to strike a balance in delivering the message, as what I aim to do also in my photography. After the project was done a couple of days ago, I definitely feel that I can do it one day, if not for going big, then just for an experiment in curiosity.

Thanks to my graduating senior, Hanif, who entrusted me with task of being the cinematographer for the video and hopefully one day, he'll be someone who can be in the likes of the late Yasmin Ahmad.

Contradictions

We, humans, usually contradict ourselves.

It's not that we intentionally lie to ourselves, but more to it being a subconscious event going on at the back of our temple without us realizing it. We want to act one way, but we do the other. And when we do the other, we tell ourselves that it was better to do the way of the first after all. It does not make sense, but we ask ourselves this question: does it have to make sense at all?

I don't know where this thought comes from as of late, but it has been bugging me quite so often. I tell to myself, why am I learning to become an engineer, when sometimes it would have been more interesting if I were something else, say like an artist, a poet or a musician? Other than that, I also feel that I am having a conflict of identity where one wants no more than to be docile, and the other to be let free and crazy. Sometimes I feel like just staying away from everything and everyone for the fear of being tied down to the fabrics of society's judgmental law. But at the same time too, I want to be the one who can control the flow of the society in order to benefit all.

I guess, the world is full of contradictions. Best of all, I know I am not alone. Somewhere and sometime, there are also people like me. We are the contradictions in the society, but also a conformer since it might also have been this way from the start and our purpose is as such.

I don't know..it kinda makes sense then, but now it doesn't.

The Traveling Photographer

Today (technically yesterday...but what the heck...days are counted after gaps of sleep, not by numerical standards, in my opinion) has been one of those hooray days.

The exam I just had was fine, finishing ahead of time is always a good indication of that with all questions answered and time to spare. Life is becoming steady with known factors in place for the upcoming about 3-4 months. Also, I just finished making, ordering and is now waiting for my photobook shipment to my doorstep.

Since Fall of 2008, ever since I came here, I decided to take on a new hobby, trying to seek the perfect balance between light, shadow, colors and substance. I was introduced to my Nikon D90 on a Friday and has ever since that day tried numerously to find my own expression of identity. Fast forward 2 years from then, with my regular kit lens the 18-105mm VR and a normal prime lens 50mm f/1.8D, and a Kata DR-467 Digital Rucksack with my newly acquired Manfrotto 190CX Pro3 and SB-900, I currently have thousands of pictures and more than 50GBs of raw NEF pictures of my travel whilst learning experience here in the States.

And so I set forth trying to print the noteworthy pictures of my endeavor, but with inappropriate funds, I could never print all of the nice photos as poster prints. How do I go about this problem? Simple really.

I've heard once, that photographers of old would go about bringing their career to others with their photo portfolio, and not by digital copies or just showing their camera gears. They had to prove their worth by placing their results on the line. It was different back then, and still is different for the pros and the upstarts. More than not, many photographers here in the States still does thing the old way, with every single photographer who is out to make it for themselves building themselves a portfolio for a professional career ahead. That is very different as to how people perceive as being photographers back in Malaysia, where the biggest camera more often is associated with skill, which is actually uncorrelated in any sense. It is kinda like the purpose of photography is lost with everyone trying to catch on the bandwagon by showing off the larger portion of their body part (censored here, but you kinda get the notion). Malaysians care less about the art of light, of how it dances with each reflections and how it illuminates and glows with each diffraction, but care more only to the sense of who has the bigger gear. If I were to go on about this, I'm afraid that I'll go off topic, and so I'll reserve that for another rant space.

So, I am currently waiting for my photobook to be delivered at my doorstep, and yes, the book is aptly named The Traveling Photographer by dein|photography. It is my first photobook and it accounts to the sights that I caught my sight in Manhattan, New York along with a few captions describing my personal views on the play of light.

Here's hoping all that's well ends well.

Ex-Patriot

Irony.

Most of my past "future" plans seems to take a new form in and by itself. Circumstances change, options unravel, opinions differ. I changed.

Back in school, my utmost priority was get done with university so that I could have an income of my own and start living by my own will. A steady income, a secure job, a person to rely on, a contempt lifestyle...kinda like the American dream. I thought then and there that my path has been laid for the 5 years it needed me to get to that end point.

Funny how things have become. Lots of things have changed since then and I am setting my goals anew constantly. Where previously I never even wanted to go to graduate school, now I see it as an opportunity and a goal since I have none other as my utmost concern. Where previously I'd gladly come back to Malaysia to reside in, now I feel hesitant to go back knowing how liberal minded people are held back and change is negligible in the mentalities of the many. As pessimistic as it sounds, I feel that it is not worth it to even come to the States knowing that these issues will come up in my future.

It is like I am moving up dangerous rapids and I am only but a few who are in the same predicament. It is inevitable. This has made me think: why do I even bother doing my best, when all is just the way it is? There is no progress whatsoever, no changes for the better, only a constant player in the dynamic world. Why do I resist from being idle? Not to say that I will be idle because of this, but I hope to understand it and fortify myself with the understanding. I aim not to be one more rock or pebble in the base of the river, sitting silent amongst the moving waters, but at least be the entity that leaves its mark on the river as a whole, helping it change direction to be better and more efficient.

The declining learning age

Lately, I've been thinking a lot about education and mostly due to the fact that one day, I'll be educating the next generation (probably) and also need others to educate my next generation. This has got me thinking, since I will only be a portion of my future children's education, so how can I maximize my children's potential to become what I am or better than what my parents did to me?

Even though I have reached a conclusion long ago that the best place for me to stabilize and have a family in is and always will be Malaysia, I am starting to have doubts now due to some notions. The fact is, from my perspective, there always seem to be a hindrance as so far as education goes to back in Malaysia. I am unsure of what that hindrance is or whether it is just a preconceived notion, but while growing up in Malaysia, not a lot can be said about the educational atmosphere there as compared to the Western worlds. By that, I mean that most Malaysians don't see education as an interest, a hobby, an endeavor to pursue in, rather than a thing or task that they would gladly be done with and get money there and then.

This thought had gotten into me after reading an article about how the average Malaysians only read about a page of two of literature per year as compared to any other countries, and here literature means books, novels, not those entertainment magazines, tabloids and such. I remembered not too long ago in 2006 that I had a similar kind of question asked to me in my JPA scholarship interview. I was asked on how to cultivate reading into the current generation, to instill an interest of which our nation has not much of. It's kinda disappointing when I think about it, since I do like the excitement of learning new things, the thrill of discovering something new, the uplifting feeling I feel every time I managed to answer a homework, quiz and an exam question. It's kinda like an adrenaline rush.

I fear that for all of its development, Malaysia is just going to be a so-so country in the near future. I used to not understand the meaning of KBKK that have been implemented in the education system, but I kinda get it now. It's not that KBKK failed us, but more to we failed it. KBKK means Kemahiran Berfikir Kreatis dan Kreatif, which in another way means, the skill and ability to think outside the box. But as so far as the implementation goes, all I see in the SPM in the year 2005 was a direct question of the textbook or course material, and not something that is out of the box. I would say maybe the SPM standards are declining, or maybe we have declined as a nation, that we had to lower the exam standards in order to let most of us pass, kinda like how the bell curve works in normalizing peoples' scores.

We are mostly used to having information fed to us that we forgot to digest the information and apply it in other ways. Being a student in Purdue University has really helped me in seeing that. We flock to things that is not out of our reach and we mostly never challenge ourselves to be in an uncomfortable situation. That said, I am also afflicted by this and need to work myself out to be better. Hopefully, one day Malaysia's generation, not only the future, but also the current and past will realize this and reach a consensus to fully embrace knowledge as a part of an advanced culture. No more finger pointing, no more badmouthing, no more excuses and no more lies. Be what you can be and just do it.

Games and education

"...disrupts sociotechnological balance! All scientific advancement due to intelligence overcoming, compensating for limitation. Can't carry a load, so invent wheel. Can't catch food, so invent spear. Limitations! No limitations, no advancement. No advancement, culture stagnates! ... works other way too. Advancement before culture is ready, disastrous. ... saw it with krogan. Uplifted by salarians. Disastrous. Our fault."

"Yes, like giving nuclear weapons to cave men. Krogan unprepared for spaceflight, technological advance. Krogan could have evolved alone. Worked out aggression. Been ready to use new tech responsibly. Instead salarians came. Disrupted krogan culture. Used krogan as blunt instrument against rachni. Shortsighted. Foolish."

- Dr. Mordin Solus, Mass Effect 2, Bioware 2009.

This is a quote from my collection of favorite games that I have, Mass Effect 2 from Bioware. The quote was extracted from a conversation between the player, who is controlling Commander Shepard with a Salarian crewmate of his, Dr. Mordin Solus. Being a Salarian, Mordin is a highly metabolized individual who lives short of a human lifetime but think and act faster than most humans do. Once in the Mass Effect universe, there was a war between the intergalactic species with a threat known as the Rachni, a bug-like species who reproduced in a very fast manner that made it a galactic threat when it became hostile. The salarians discovered the Krogans, a breed of highly adaptable species with high fortitude and constitution and also a high regenerative and reproductive rate. The Salarians then uplifted the Krogans by offering them technology in order to fight the Rachni and they succeeded in that. However, Krogans being highly aggressive and not aware of the dangers and consequences involved with such a high destructive armaments that were supplied to them, made war with the whole galaxy and was then subdued by the Salarians who created the Genophage, a substance that was delivered via rivers, waterways etc. to target the reproductive ability of the Krogans to only be able to birth a young with one out of a thousand chance.

Enough about the game. Why did I quote the dialog? Mainly because I agree with it in a sense, especially the part where if we give weapons to men, they will use it in the most aggressive sense without first understanding it. The proof can be seen in history, where people fought over supremacy, warring with each other without having the sense of reason to actually think it through and resolve the conflict diplomatically in a sensible manner. We see men fight and kill, and repeat the cycle over again numerously.

And we are lucky, as we are, that today there is a global consensus to put wars behind and learn from it. We can work past our past transgressions and cooperate to work out our aggression. What would happen if we didn't then?

It's interesting that this kind of situation being brought up by a game with a sci-fi theme that has no literal relevance with the modern world. In a way, the game is metaphorically addressing the issues today inside its story, implementing education and incorporating gamers with enough common sense to start thinking of these issues and relate to it. While most games are about having nonsensical fun, some of the games nowadays are and can be very good base-education materials, to stimulate the minds where general education syllabus fails to.

All that said and done, I'd say thanks to the people at Bioware.

(Also to the people who made the Age of Empires long ago since they helped me much in picturing Medieval history, and also to many other developers and gamers that I can't remember)

Today

Today, I feel sort of sad. Not sad as in crying, but just...sad. A depressing feeling, one that I am accustomed to and living through one step at a time. Probably the age is getting back at me, probably past karma has caught up to me, probably it is just one of those days where everything I aimed to get done by the end of the day did not actually happened per se.

Today, I looked at the future, reminiscing of the starlight that I always loved to gaze at for so long in the serene night sky, pondering onwards from the heels of my bed, alone and small in the grand scale of events. With the winds sweeping by through the windows, foretelling of an uncertain cloud movement from the south, bearing with it loads of water molecules, unknown to most of its weight and intention.

Today, I smelt the air and it told me nothing save a news of delight, of the fine weather that it is surrounding my extremities. A chirp up on the trees and a whistle from beyond the greeneries, tingling sensations that greets me for today, is a wonderful day indeed!

Today, I was covered of red, and a hint of black. A fury reignited deep within, an angst for something unpredictable. Yet, not this day, never will I succumb in order to sustain this harmony that has presented itself. No, not in the present, but maybe at the past where my naivete lies.

Today I take this life of mine and shape it with my will, God permitting.

Today I am alive.

And today I am, therefore, thankful.

A hint of foresight

January 2010.

At this moment, I only have 3 semesters left in beloved(?) West Lafayette till graduation. 3 semesters means about 2 Spring Breaks, 1 Fall Break, 1 Summer Holiday and 1 Winter Holiday left, which does mean I have to allocate money either for travel photography purposes or just keeping them in a safe somewhere to be used at a further date for my future post-graduate purposes.

Before leaving the states, I still have Grand Canyon to visit, some camera gear yet to obtain, pictures to print for display purposes, and souvenirs like probably Corelle or something to bring back later. Beyond that, I might need to start saving for the perfect someone that will complete my life and/or post-graduate studies if I were to choose/be granted for it.

I'm at the tipping point of my life where interests, responsibilities, sacrifices and the likes intersect, in the cross junction and in need of some push to one way or the other in order to start things off. Though I am hoping to achieve them all, I'd like nothing better than to hope at least one or more of them gets to be achieved, placing not much expectation than it deserves for not wanting to be disappointed in the future of such expectation.

I'm just hoping that once this all settles, I can achieve one of my dreams that I thought of whilst in Miami, of being a travelling photographer, living off of my photography to earn and travel.

It's a weird feeling. Graduation feels just around the corner, yet somehow, I feel that what I've learned so far feels so irrelevant to what I will be doing if I work in the industry. It kinda feels like what I'm learning is actually insufficient of the requirements in the real working environment. And in actuality, I am still unsure whether what I learned will be used in my future career at all, since electrical engineering itself is a big, BIG field of work.

To Go or Not To Go?

My head has been messed up the last couple of days with the same constant question lingering in my temple. To either go back to Malaysia in the summer or not to.

Here's a summary of some of the basic reasons of why this is very conflicting to me and my interests:

• To go back

By definition, going back to Malaysia is spending time in Malaysia over the summer for about oh 3 months or so from mid-May to mid-August back in Shah Alam. I actually do have lots of things to look forward to, going back in that time period, observing my niece and nephew's growth, meeting with fellow family members and seeing that my sister-in-law will have a big tummy by then. Also, there is the consideration of having some reunions here and there, probably one with my Shah Alam old schoolmates and my classmates from Alam Shah (one that we are planning to have in Pulau Redang hopefully). Overall, it should be a relaxing vacation back home after the two years of learning here in the states, and about one more year to go before graduation.

• To stay

The opposite of the former, to stay in Purdue means that I have to spend time here over the summer holiday, probably having to take class or find some other activities to kill time. It's not all that bad because I plan to take a Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) for about 2 and a half month, getting paid about $3600 doing it, which then I can allocate for some trip to some nice scenic locations such as the Grand Canyon, that I've been wanting to take a hike and a picture of. Other than that, the money could then be spent on printing some of my pictures to be distributed to my family members and also some select few.

The thing is, if I chose to go back, $1500 needs to be allocated now in order to find flight tickets to go from Indianapolis to Kuala Lumpur, and if I chose not to go back, I know that I will regret my decision later on as summer holiday is actually a long and boring period of time that seems to extend forever. In that period of inactivity, I'd start to miss my family and especially both of my 'ubi' as I call 'em. I'd want to be a part of their life as they were a part of mine before I flew off here in 2008. But then, there are some parts of my life that I don't want to revisit once I'm back in Malaysia, which were some of the reasons I put off going back to Malaysia until I obtain my bachelor's degree.

So yeah, I'm basically conflicted now as it is. $1500 is not easy to make, but then again the proposition of $3600 sounds oh, so sweet. I definitely want to go to the Grand Canyon, but then again, the Pulau Redang outing with my Alam Shah friends also sounds awesome. And did I mention my two little 'ubi's?

~_~"

Maturing

Comes 2010, and I'll be 22 by the end of the year. With a niece and a nephew and one more upcoming by this year, more than not, 22 feels like an old age to come by. Also two friends of mine had just gotten married, which brings into question for myself, when is my time?

Once upon a youth, I actually planned further ahead from my current age. I'd envision that I'd enter university with a plan that once I graduate, I could look forward to building a family right away without a hitch and start searching for the stability and tranquility that everybody seeks in their life. Long story short, that planned kinda failed midway leaving me feeling like made to kneel down and boot kicked in the ass to a puddle of mud and then pissed upon. Worse is the fact that I'm still not over that plan and each day I'd recall it when I have nothing else in my activity box. Hell, once I'd even said to myself I might go single for the length of my lifetime, but that was when I was in preschool, when worry is not on the top of my plate.

If I recall correctly, my dad got married at 22, and pretty much I'd figure marrying early is the best thing that could happen in one's life. Marrying early = kids early = grandkids early without so much generation gap. The past like three or four years made me think a lot about my future self, seeing my niece and nephew grow quite unexpectedly to cute little toddlers. It kinda reminds me of my own childhood, and the more I think about it, the more I incline toward seeing if when I have kids of my own, how they'd turn out with my own label of parenting.

Some people may call it midlife crisis. It's kinda like missing your childhood when you know you have other responsibilities to tend to and you have to act tough even though the fact of the matter is you are dependent on others too. I don't know how my dad did it, but he was successful in his parenting.

I just hope sooner than later that I can find my perfect someone. Listen to me, I'm talking like some old chap. LOL

2010: Miami getaway

New year, new semester, new responsibilities, and all that..

I mean like...everything is coming a new, the cycle starts, repeating itself over and over again.

Sigh~

The past few days I fled from the snow and the chill and the frostiness of West Lafayette, to Miami, a very known hotspot for relaxing (and not to forget its nightlife, which I don't really care much about). The weather was fine throughout the week-holiday, with one day of rain that seemed kinda like the light rains back home in Malaysia. The temperature was about 26 to 30ish Celsius with some winds coming from the Atlantic, prime for just laying down by the beach and taking in the sights of the diverse New Year crowd.

I stayed at a hostel with a friend of mine, Danial from Penn State for all 7 days and we pretty much went to all the major attractions in and around Miami. South Beach, Everglades, and Key West. Not to go over each and every detail of the trip, I had a pretty good time in Miami, meeting other foreigners who chose to run away from the cold. Since I stayed in a mixed dorm bedroom I had my fair share of meeting with members of the opposite sex. There were Germans, Austrians, Australians and even Americans who came and went by the hostel.

It's funny that sometimes I feel that everybody comes and go at their own leisure, each minding their own business. It shocks me that they are very friendly, up to the point that in the New Year, the 5 people that stayed with me the night before (2 Austrians, maybe a couple, and a family of 3 Germans - a father, a daughter and a son) greeted me as they went to checkout to their next destination. Call me awkward or aloof, but I never expected such grace and courtesy from a person that I came to know for only a day.

And yeah, the German girl was pretty cute..sigh~

Anyway, back to the topic of Miami, the beach was sweet, the sand was alluring and the water was crystal clear.

Miami oh Miami, if not for thy beaches, I would not regard thee as such. Miami oh Miami...

This is me

Thanks Google

For messing me up

Creating a parallel account

Bothering my old blogger account

Jeez~

Now to start anew

Fresh in the New Year

Hopefully this amends

Let the past be lessons

Let's look forward ere it comes

Peace out!