1 April 2012:
Things in my life recently.
There was a book sale in school recently. I really, really love books. Especially ones on crime fiction, or popular classics. My bookshelf at home is full, and I haven't finished reading all the books there, but I recently bought three of them again.
(From left: 1Q84 by Haruki Murakami; What the Dog Saw and Other Adventures by Malcolm Gladwell; The Sense of an Ending by Julian Barnes.)
Guess how much I bought them for. According to rough estimates done by me (through searching Amazon.com for prices): USD 46.46 for 1Q84, USD 27.99 for What the Dog Saw, USD 9.14 for The Sense. That's a total of USD 83.59. Converting it to Singapore dollars, that's around $105.06. I know, the price wouldn't be too accurate, since there's lots of other charges here and there.
My point is, it's still rather expensive, isn't it? I wouldn't be allowed to spend so much on three books. This is especially when my family believes that such books can simply be borrowed and returned, and that fiction is never as useful to me.
Thankfully, I got these books at $28. That's a whooping 73% "discount"! I was certainly elated to see that these books were being sold so cheap! And of course, some cynical ones must be out there thinking "it's too good to be true". Certainly not. The guy explained that he got his books directly from some source, so he doesn't need to add in additional costs here and there, which jacks up book prices.
I'm looking forward to reading all three books. It won't be easy since I'm having O Levels this year and time is really a constraint. But I'll try to squeeze in some time. If not, I'll at least keep it on my bookshelf. I believe that even if I may not be able to read it now, I'll read it someday, no matter how long that may be.
The guy at the book sale gave me his number, and told me I could call him if I wanted any books. He promised I would get it at 50% off compared to bookstore price. I hope there are new books coming out soon that I find attractive. :)
I'm currently hooked on this game called Triple Town. It's a puzzle game that requires lots of thinking and planning in advance.
The rules are really simple. All you have to do is match three of a kind, and they become a "higher-level" element. The starting element would be grass, and three of those form bushes. The order goes:
Grass > bush > tree > house > mansion > castle > floating mansion.
Then there's also a pivotal character (actually the only one) in the game, and that's the bear. His aim is to stop you from building the above mentioned structures, and he hopes around the squares so that you can't lay down elements. Fortunately, you can kill him off and he becomes a tombstone. Similarly,
Tombstone > church > cathedral > small treasure chest > large treasure chest.
The game is really, really addictive, and I really hate it when it tells me I have no moves left. I'm given 150 moves to use, unless I buy the unlimited version for $2.99. What I really like about the developer is that they do not anally make the game unplayable if I don't buy. I can still play, but I have to wait.
Skins is really a show I never regretted watching. I'm almost complete with the first season now, and there are 6 seasons in total. I heard that the network is axing the show after a final season in 2013, which is of course very saddening.
There's a lot of expletives, sex scenes, and "mature content", but I think the show really addresses problems and troubles of teenagers. I can easily identify certain parts of the show; it seems like such problems are not only UK-ish. It applies even in Singapore.
Throughout the show, you also see how various characters interact and their complicated relationship gets ... more complicated. I sympathise with Sid for constantly being used (and perhaps feel like him sometimes), get rather cross at Tony for making use of so many people, and applaud Maxxie for being openly gay (even though Anwar gets icky at that).
The show has tremendous popularity in UK when it was first shown, and it even prompted an American version. Too bad, the American version didn't work. (Suck on that. Some UK stuff is still better.)
This show is very successful, I feel. It lets you think about issues that probably anyone would face, instead of other shows which you would watch and forget. Of course, some parts depicted in the show make me suspicious, like how teachers would openly curse in front of their students. Or perhaps, teachers in UK really do so?
(This afternoon I watched an American movie. I think because of watching too much of Skins, I can no longer understand American accent. Not a pity though.)
(This guy is completely unrelated to me.)
I just placed him here to talk about the upcoming competition.
It's my last year in CCHMS, and it would be my last year competing. Frankly speaking, it's not a given that I can compete. In B Boys, I know it for myself that I am one of the lousiest. Hence, I would understand if coach does not register me for competition, since she too wants people with better skill.
Thanks to her for eventually choosing me. This time, I only participate in one event: 42 Taiji Quan. Last year, I also did 42 Taiji Jian. Because of some arrangements, I am doing one. I can't say I'm sad or anything, since I do know that the arrangements were made cos someone else had better skills than me. I don't deny that too, and am grateful that I have at least one event to participate in.
The competition's this Wednesday. This year, Taiji Quan is surprisingly early; previously Taiji events would be around the middle of the season. This year it's on the second day. It made me slightly nervous, since I would have less preparation. But then again, I feel that I am more or less ready.
That's not to say I'm guaranteed of any medal, though. I have seen the competitors list; there are a few strong exponents. While I would certainly want to beat them all, I do know it's not possible.
On the last training before competition yesterday, our coach told us to go and enjoy the process. She says that every year, but I still think it's useful. After all, there's no point thinking too much about it. So long as I don't slacken and perform the routine as how I'm supposed to, I would have no regrets.
Okay, maybe just a little. The day of my competition is Sports Day, and it would be the last Sports Day in CCHMS. Sadly, I won't be able to attend it, since I would be in school for the competition. Oh well.
As mentioned previously, I've quit Twitter. It's been almost a week now. The cold turkey's fading, and that's a good sign. It seems that I've also become happier.
I don't know if this is simply confirmation bias, or if there's really truth to it. Nevertheless, I feel less moody since quitting Twitter. Hopefully, this would stay on.
TTFN.
All images were taken from Google Image Search results.