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Welcome to Paanjang's website , where a typical SMK Seafield student brings his school to the world through his own means for honor , glory and driven by the urge to be ahead. Currently studying in Adelaide Australia, where catching up with the demands of university life and letting lose through Mechwarrior is a daily affair. Also looking forward to the day he meet the girl he loves. Saturday, 1st May 2004
Mayday Mayday!! It is May already! Two more months till my first semester is over and I get to go home!! From what I heard back home, there are 4 public holidays back to back. Labor day, Sunday, Wesak day and one more day I am notsure about (checks his Malaysian calendar to find out) oh yeah, it is Hari Keputeraan Nabi Muhammad. Too bad I am here is Australia when such a holiday happened :p
Yesterday my parents phone me as usual at around 8-10 o'clock at night local time. It was is usually a parent-child conversation but this time I was told something completely to my surprise. The 1 million C-bill lottery I bought has stuck gold!! .. Just kidding :) I don't think I am lucky enough to suddenly receive a million C-bills unless I take out an entire trinary like Kai Allard Liao or take out 2 dropships full of Davion Heavy Guards (a scene from MW4Mercs) .
What was the surprise? My parents told me that they receive a parcel from Cincinnati Ohio and it is for me! I have won in Wizkids player rewards program draw for the month of April! I never knew that by taking part in a Wizkids tourney I could be eligible to receive a prize as long as I don't win any prize (except Fellowship). The parcel went to my home in Malaysia because I stated my address there. The mech I received? It is Kurt Larsen, the HL DFA Valiant. This mech is rare as hell and last night I checked on e-bay the only Kurt Larsen on sale was going for US 30 plus! Sure the stats are not as good as the other LEs and uniques, but I can't complain about getting a free mech right? Last month I read about people complaining about getting Melva Golan, the HL DFA Black Knight, because they got it for free... go figure.
After I uploaded the post for the 25th of April, I realized that I missed out some some points when it comes to choosing a girl. The additional points are:
6)Honest 7)Good hearted 8)Caring 9)Neat and tidy (so that she cleans up after you , not vise versa :P ) 10)Rich (I can use the money to buy whatever I want hahaha!!) 11)Easily excited (for someone as boring as me) 12)Blonde like (no need for me to explain) 13)Sexy (again ,no need for me to explain) 14)Her parents have large assets and inheritance (nothing like inheriting a Daishi!!)
Ok, I know what you are thinking, my demands are a little over the top there and front the looks of it I am asking waayyy more than a girl can give me (like some people say, a rich dumb blonde) . I added in the last 5 points for fun just to pull the leg of you readers out there. I definitely would not want to a a rich girlfriend as she might be spoilt to the max and there is no way I can earn enough to keep up with her lifestyle. In other words, she will need high maintenance and costs to keep her happy. Also, rich girls tend to rely too heavily on other people to do the work for them and don't be surprise that she is only interested in your credit card instead of you. I know that there are some rich gals out there reading this that might disagree with me (I know who you are, I know you are not like that) , but from what I have seen so far most a like that. There is a saying ; For the price of a Continental car you can buy 4 Malaysian cars! In other words, having a kwai loh or overseas girlfriend needs four times more maintenance than a locally made girlfriend. Added the fact that local cars are more reliable than continental cars....
So, the tenth point is totally out because of the reason above, the 11th point is very far fetch, the 12 , 13 and 14 is simply being greedy and asking too much.
There is a girl on the same floor as me which I noticed to have the qualities and points above which I like. From what I have been observing , back ground check as I called it, she seem quite suitable for me and has an eerie resemblance to the girl I wanted back in Form 5. I have been noticing her since I came here and patiently waiting for the right moment (and needed more background check) to tell her I like her very much. After the incident where I nuked the previous girl I like here (turns out the nuke attack was useful in the end, read post wayy below) , I don't want to be too hasty as I am afraid that she will start avoiding me like the plague (like the previous one, thankfully) . So I kept a "passive" approach when it comes to trying court her.
It all came down to an incident last last Wednesday (or was it Thursday? I can't remember), during the holidays that things started to be very confusing. During the mid-semester break , a guy moved in from a nearby student hostel to my hostel. He moved here after he disliked the previous hostel very much. I took a look at the hostel he was staying and to my surprise its rent costs more , further away and the rooms are smaller. Good thing I came to my hostel I am currently staying (thank goodness for that) .
I didn't know that he was looking for the girl I "targeted" on until that Wednesday. She just came back from her home planet aboard a jumpship and came down to "tau pau" her dinner up. At that time me and that guy was eating dinner downstairs. We were friendly to each other since both of us usually met up at the cafe downstairs (both of us can't cook unless we have too). She was waiting for her dinner to be ready and decided to sit near us.
That guy introduced himself and to his great surprise it was the girl he was looking for. To cut it really short, as I suddenly felt that I should not "hentam" people as long as they did not "hentam" me in the first place , he swipe the girl I want off the floor the very first time he met her (not literally of course). He scored a DIRECT ER PPC HEAD SHOT on the mech I wanted. It was love at first sight from what I have observed. First time I saw such a thing happen (another first!) .
I was pretty disappointed by the fact that he "salvaged" even before I even fired a shot , but he seems like a pretty good guy unlike some I have seen so far. Both of them seems like "a match made in heaven" , with me as the side observer. They still treat me like a friend like anyone else, but I can't stand watching him continue to salvage my girl I originally wanted to express my liking. I know that you readers out there are screaming "You are JEALOUS as HECK! GET OVER IT!" . Yes, I am considering letting her go and look for another girl that might come by. However I am not so sure if the recent events gives a sign that I should get on with my life or should I continue to be with her because even though both of them are like meant to be together, maybe it opens the door for me to court her. How you might ask? Well, before this guy came , I knew next to nothing about her (very little background data). It is only after he came around (and met her on that fateful day) that I acquired the background data to decided that she is the one for me. Added to the fact that they still treat me like close friends maybe I should just hang around with them long enough to really find out the real picture.
I think the best course of action I should do is to act passive and like normal and hitch along for the ride. No point trying to isolate myself just because I am jealous as heck. Just be myself and be friendly to them.
What a week it has been. It has some good points and some bad points. The good points : I managed to finish the Structural Design Assignment (thank goodness) Keyed in the answers for E&E without a hitch (and full marks) Handed in the lab reports (finally it's over) Pulled a decent mech, vehicle and infantry (DF ATV!!) Received my Kurt Larsen!
Bad Points: The girl I admire is hijacked my someone (always happens right? You want something and a stravag comes in and takes it away)
Looks like my karma for this week is in equilibrium :P
Thursday, 29th April 2004
My structural design group has finally handed in the assignment (or like our lecturer says, a mini project) today. I thought it would take a forever for our group to get it done but fortunately it has been done in time. You see, this assignment was a huge group assignment that was given to us a month ago. It consists of 10 assignment like question and a final, project like assignment. The first 10 questions are like warm-up to the final one.
With a whole month to do it is quite simple actually, since there is a lot of time. The first ten was done during the semester break . The final one was a bit more complicated, with about 10 % complete by the time the holidays ended. With only 3 more days to finish a project like assignment, it was a mad rush to the finish yesterday. Fortunately one member of my group has already done the important calculations like the amount of stress applied on the structure and a solution which is used as a guideline for the rest of the report.
Yesterday was the day I spent the longest ever time at uni. From 8.30 am to 9.00 pm for a full 12 and a half hours. I got from class from 9-12 , then followed by 2-3 pm. My group started work on it from 3 onwards. I thought it was going to take a very long while, maybe doing until 10 or 11pm to finish it up and prayed that it would end sooner and be gone with it quickly. Thankfully, everyone in the group was present (there were 7 of us) and after studied the diagram the day before, it was smooth sailing all the way with each and everyone of us doing their bit to finish it up. It is easy to do my part since from what I have read and studied, that is what the question wants and that's the way to do it. By 9.00 pm, all of our group members have done their bit and the remaining group member at the CATS suite will sort out our calculations and answers to be handed it. I was the third one to leave uni. Finally one chore down.
The events which lead up to that Wednesday can be avoided if we have better communications system and protocols. Before the holidays, we planned to meet up on the Wednesday on the first week of holidays (read about the day I woke up the earliest). That day we finish up the first 10 questions. Only a slight effort was done on the last one. We then planned to meet up next week , same day, same time. On the following Wednesday, not many of us came, so the Structural Design assignment stalled until we met up again on the following Monday. Still no contact with the rest of the members, no one knew how much each other has done for the final question, but the first 10 is done. Oh well, still got until the 29th.
That is how we all ended up finishing it up on Wednesday after the holidays. It could ended up disastrous , but one of our members have done the important calculations we need to get to work. Anyway, since it is over, I might as well end my rant about this assignment.
One thing I noticed when working with my kwai loh group members is that they call each other by their first names. It is OK for their names since their first names are what distinguish themselves from each other and their full names are usually a word. When they call my name however, they only say my generation name and omit my middle name since my generation and middle name are 2 separate words. I find it very odd that they call "Ji" when I am so used to being called "Long" or "Ji Ming". Same goes for my uni web account. The address is ji.long@iamnotgoingtotellyou . When I enter Myuni website, it greets me with "Ji Long". When my ESL lecturer checks attendance , she read my name as Ji Long.... Oh well, I am only going to be here for a while and I can tolerate it for the time being (no harm being done anyway).
I went and checked if my venue has receive its shipment of new CS boosters today. Couldn't go yesterday because of WORK :( It did arrive , and from the looks of the booster on sale it seems inflated and might have a dossier inside. The store assistant wasn't there however, but the looks of that booster looks inviting. So I decided to buy one anyway (I told myself to hold up until maybe next week but nooooo...) and lo and behold! A fake dossier :( Oh well, The chances of getting a REAL dossier is high considering if I keep getting boosters with dossiers (both fake and real) I might end up with a real one.
The contents of the booster was OK. Everything in it will suit me nicely. It has a Liao Phoenix Hawk (imagine a HL mech with better attack, better mobility, prefer the SH one though) , a HL AA Aesir (0/16 inch ballistic of death , AA and HL) , Elite BR combat engineers (a combat engineer which can infiltrate for 12, pulse for 4 , 7 attack ) and the best piece is ironically something which is killing MWDA at the moment, the DF Scout ATV. Looks like that this is the first CHEESE unit I acquired here so far. This unit can infiltrate right up to my opponents dropzone, flame anything that it bases to death with Improved Targeting, and has 4 clicks of life. Imagine 5-10 of this guys flaming your entire army in YOUR DZ while your opponent lobs shell after shell after shell.... good thing this thing doesn't have grapple. No wonder this thing goes for more than US 15 a piece! (I rather pay that amount for a decent mech than a stupid little infantry unit) . One things for sure, everyone will try to make me let go off it!
Monday, 26th April 2004
Today marks the end of my 2 week mid-semester break. It was a public holiday today because of ANZAC , a day to respect the Aussie and New Zealand soldiers who served in the army. I forgot which day our country celebrate our soldiers as it is usually low-key and not much fan-fare... oh ya, it is Hari Pahlawan I think, forgive me if I am wrong.
Even though it is a public holiday, I went to uni to print out my lab reports and to meet up with my structural design group to finish up the structural design assignment. Still need more work on it, but the dateline is this Thursday which I hope is long enough to finish it off. I also went to uni to key in the answer for my Engineering and Environment assignment online. Prefer to key in the answer at the CATs suite because the connection is online 24/7 (and we pay through the nose for the facility. so better use it to its max) .
Since today is a public holiday, there was very little to no car at all on the streets at 10 am in the morning. All the shops are close except MacDonald's and another fast food restaurant. I ate at the other fast food restaurant and from the looks of the staff there they seem like they have to work on a public holiday. But the thing which really put me off is the price of the food. I rarely eat fast-food, but today no choice since every shop is closed. For AUD 6.90-something I think, you get the same fries, burger and drink for the same amount in RM back home. The size of the food is similar here, but the price is in AUD. I don't mind if the meal is kwai loh price, unless it is kwai loh size. If I want to eat fast food, I prefer eating it back home.
Even though it is a public holiday, there are still some students doing work in the CATs suite. Looks like when it comes to work, we must sacrifice all of our time to do it.
I have finished downloading the MekPack for Mechwarrior 4 Mercenaries. It took a while to download the whole thing , the mekpack itself is 45 megs, on my amazing 31.2 kbs dial-up internet connection. It also took a while for it to install itself, sometimes appearing as though it crashed but actually it is running in the background. But the wait was worth it, since the new mechs ROCK! The new mechs which are included in the pack are the Classic Marauder, Classic Warhammer, Stalker, Blood Asp, Ares , Urban mech II C , Urban Mech , Avatar, Strider and many more. It also includes new powerful weapons to customize the mechs like Thumper artillery, Hyper ACs, ATMs, Inferno SRMs (no inferno LRMs though, guess it must be cheating as hell) , heavy lasers and many more.
The Urban mech is by far the weirdest of the bunch. Its "trash can" design makes it very cute and funny when it is walking at a very slow speed. I was surprised it can jump well above the jump capacity of the other mechs. This allows me to jump from building to building , sniping from atop. However, a bug in Mechwarrior 4 does not allow me to aim more than I think 45 degress down, making it impossible to shoot at the enemies below a tall building (unless I pull a DFA on them).
After installing the MekPack (and other patches that have to go in before the patch does), the AI of the new mechs seem to be very accurate and as deadly as Elite or level 9 difficulty when my difficulty setting is only regular. Maybe it is why those mechs are dangerous as heck as portrayed in the Battletech universe, but having urban mechs more accurate than a templar at the same difficulty is weird.
The only problem now is that I cannot launch a server to play those mechs in an all-out free for all where I can watch them fight each other. Too bad I cannot play online too, since it would be fun piloting a Classic Marauder into battle against other more advance Clan designs.
Since the whether now is getting colder, my reverse cycle air-con now blows hot air to heat up the room instead of cooling it. All I do is to set the air-con to "heat" and the air-con heats up the room. This is something not found in Malaysia, yet alone a tropical country.
Sunday, 25th April 2004
Today is the last day of my 2 week semester holidays! Oh yeah 2 weeks just passed by me just like that and it was like only yesterday that the holidays started. I woke up very late today , slept for 10 hours since 3 am in the morning. Didn't bother to do any work since the work that has to be done has already been done (yippee!). Should have woken up earlier but then again....
Had my breakfast AND lunch after I woke up. I cooked the remaining turkey steak I have left the same way I cook the lamb and kangaroo meat. This time I cooked it nice and juicy. After lunch I went downstairs to watch TV and play chess (I rarely play chess) at the same time .Why is that when my favorite program is on something is always bothering me (like when I was watching something, some people play the piano) ?
Right now it is just 4.20 pm, just over 3 hours since I woke up, so I can say that my day has just begun. I would want to continue my rant from last night but seem to have a bit of writers block. (looks at the previous post to see where I stopped).
Oh yeah , I was talking about how much I wanted a girlfriend. I think the main reason I want one is that I'm lonely here, now is the best time to get one, have friends who already have one (call me jealous all you want) and the fact I noticed several girls which seem to fit my criteria of liking in my hostel. Really need to do more "background check" to see if she is really compatible and see any signs that shows that she is "the one".
So far most of the girls I like in the first place always seem to be the one which is suitable for me but I later after I talk to them and noticed how they interact with their friends (you can say I did a bit of background check) that I noticed that there are some things I don't like or not keen to adopt to be with her. Example? Looks for my previous post about a month back about the girl I dropped the bomb on. I found a perfect match only to found out that I have to switch my Chinese diet (turns out she was both Clan and IS tech).
From my experience so far, all the signs which showed themselves after I dig deeper about the girl I like are negative signs which says she is not suitable for me. I know it is a blessing in disguise (it is sad to know that your girl is not compatible) but then again I might meet the girl which is 100% compatible with me in the near future. The question I was always thinking (like always) is when will that time come? How on earth will I know she is the right one for me after most of the signs are negative (in other words, when I want girl A, this event happens or I noticed something that shows she is not for me, then when I want girl B, another event happens. When I finally meet the right girl, how will I know that she is the one?).
I have yet to find any girl which doesn't put me off even though it is a minor one (blame me for being to choosey, but that is how I am). For me, the girl I would really like are those with the following criteria:
1)Beautiful (not to the extend of supermodel type, since all the points will enter here and the rest of the criteria will basically suck) 2)Smart and intelligent 3)Loyal (you don't want a girl who is disloyal right?) 4)Friendly and charming 5)Hardworking
and that pretty much tells what I want in a girl. I know the requirements are quite steep (especially the first point, since the girls I met are either beautiful and suck the other 4 or suck the first criteria but excel in the other 4). I did however found a girl which has ALL the 5 criteria, but that was way back in form 5 and the first girl I had my first crush on. Being a newbie (like all newbies) I basically fumbled even before the relationship started. Now I don't know if she likes me or not, but my instincts tells me that we might be a prefect couple if I hadn't blunder too much. Still wish to see her again after seeing her after SPM. From what I have read and heard from my friends so far, she is actually doing very well in a university which some of my friends are studying (I posted about how she kicked serious butt some time ago). Oh well, like everything I ever dreamed off, the time will come for me to see her again (hopefully by that time both of us are single and have a careers that are in a bull run).
I think that the possibility of seeing her again is very high. So far everything I wished for has come true (except for the girlfriend thing, still waiting for it). Most of the pieces in my Mechwarrior collection here so far are pieces I was looking for. I managed to get the Dasher II, DF Jupiter, HL Donar, Nikol Brahe, Bounty Hunter, Joel Brane, riflemans, MHI AA tanks, and many more pieces which are hard to get as hell and I have been gunning for a long time. Still waiting for the kodiak, but like my girlfriend, it will come sooner or later (why do we have to wait like hell for the things we desire most). I just have to keep my inner self from being impatient and not do things in haste (still remember the Dasher II , paying AUD 40 and 2 weeks later the price dropped). There are some figures I really want on sale , but the price is steep as hell. Hmm , could that be the sign those pieces are not meant for me? Not really, since some of the pieces I have been gunning for are available last time, but I just can't seem to find anyone willing to trade it. So same goes for those pieces at the store, the price will drop somehow.
Then I was thinking about when will I meet the girl I will most likely like, when suddenly I taught, I am getting the mechs I want because it is a short term gain. Getting a girlfriend might take a longer time because it is a long term gain. Hmm, the above statement is a bit true in the sense that Mechwarrior figures are a short term gain (like the battletech cards) and having a girlfriend is a long term gain (both in pain and joy, you know what I mean). Still wondering if the kodiak (both the card and the figure) is a long term or short term gain though. I know computers are short term gain, I have changed 4 computers in 8 years (starting with P100 , P3 500, P4 1800 and now P4 2.2).
Wow, I have type the above post in an hour!! It is now 5.23 pm.
Saturday, 24th April 2004
What a day today. I wanted to wake up early to do my work , but every time I woke up I went back to sleep again because I still have the holiday mood! I finally woke up at 12 noon. Could have woke up earlier (by right I should have woken up earlier) but I was too sleepy. Oh well, still got Sunday and Monday (Monday is a public holiday, looks like everyone hate Mondays!!) left to "mop-up" any remaining work that needs to be done.
Today is first time the fire alarm of my hostel went off. I was having my lunch in my room when the fire alarm rang. I had the feeling it was a false alarm, as most of the time in Inti the fire alarm goes off because it was a false alarm or a thunderstorm. This time it wasn't a false alarm since from what I heard that someone left cooking oil to heat up and the cooking oil combusted. A small kitchen accident that could turn potentially nasty if it was left to continue burning.
But what really caught my attention was how fast the fireman respond. It took only 5 minutes for not 1,not 2 but 4 fire trucks to arrive from all around Adelaide to my hostel. Since I'm a Mechanical Engineering student I talk a bit about the fire fighting equipment in my hostel. Each room has a smoke detector , a fire alarm and a glass bubble spray thingy (not really sure what it is called) that will create a shower when there is a heat source nearby. All the detectors in room are connected to a central control console on the ground floor where the information of the status of each and every one of the fire detectors are located.
If the smoke detector detects smoke or the glass bubble spray thingy breaks because of heat, the signal will go to the control console and the control console will relay the information DIRECTLY to the fire station. You heard right, the fire station is alerted as soon as it happens. It does not only makes a lot of noise to alert everyone but it also sends the signal to a firehouse. We don't even need to call 000 (the emergency line in Adelaide) , the machine does it for you. I wonder how many buildings in Malaysia have even tried this kind of technology (ok, maybe KLCC and the Prime Ministers office). The control console will display where the source of the fire is located.
Of the four fire engines that arrive , one was a ladder truck and the other 3 are the usual fire truck that would normally be used. From what I saw , the ladder truck can reach a 10-15 stories. It was also the first to head back to base since everything was under control. The ladder was not deployed and the hoses were not attached to the hydrants; a good thing since it shows that there is nothing serious. So once again this is another "first" in Adelaide haha! (come and think about it, it could have been much worse and fire is something that shouldn't be taken lightly)
The whether now is very cool. I didn't go outside this few days, staying mostly in my room finishing up my work without the pressure of a deadline ahead but with a holiday mood. Hard to do anything for more than 2 hours and push to finish something when your mind is set that it is now during the holidays. Anyhow I finally finish up the 2 lab reports that have been dragging itself since the start of the holidays. All I need now is to print the when I come back to uni.
I left my window open to allow the natural air-conditioning to cool down my room. Even with the air-con and the fan off, I still need to wear a sweater because it is still cold! It now really feels like I'm in Australia! When I come here it is still summer and the whether is as hot as back home. Now it really feels like I'm in Australia!
Now for something offbeat.
For the past few days I was praying and wishing that I might meet someone who might be my girlfriend. My inner self keeps telling me that I should get a girlfriend ASAP because now is the right time to court someone because when I am working I might not have the time to court anyone because I'll be working no day no night (blame me for becoming an engineer, like my friend said , engineers have no life..hmmm look at the number of "because"). Also due to the fact I'm so lonely here with no friends living nearby (my course mates are not counted since I get to meet them everyday) , I felt it is necessary to have a girlfriend to keep me from getting lonely.
I think the biggest reason why need I'm inclined to have a girlfriend is because some people I know already have one! (Those I know who already have a girlfriend reading this can see how desperate I am, but I got a Long way more to go) . I don't know what I'm missing when courting girls as I always seem to lack something when compared to the other more "successful" boys I have seen. Felt like a Kit Fox (Uller battlemech , a 30 ton light mech) when I compare myself to them. Most probably it is my social skills and the fact that I am a late developer when it comes to how life is meant to be live. Like all late developers, some parts of my social skill has yet to be unlock. But my jealous part of my brain is sure fully functional because I can't keep myself from being jealous!! (As you might already have suspected from the start of this paragraph)
Adding insult to injury, my cousin who is one year older than me , on my father's side of the family, has a girlfriend and a career. After SPM, he went to work as a mechanic at a car accessory shop, becoming an apprentice and learning the robes. By the time I got my SPM results, he already have a girlfriend and from what I have heard his career was starting to have a bull run. Now he is a skilled car accessory mechanic that could fix anything from car radios to alarms (not sure about NOS though, but I think NOS is totally out of the equation). He is also the first son of the current generation after my father's generation. I'm the second son of the current generation. His father is my uncle and my father's elder brother (Getting confusing so I better stop) .So it comes to no surprise that my parents (and myself) will compare him to me.
So let's see, after SPM he went straight into the workforce, never went to study, saved his parents loads of money by not paying tuition fees and later have a successful career and a girlfriend of decent beauty. Me on the other hand, went to do the most expensive type of course after medicine, drained loads of money from my parents coffers, study really hard , going to have a no day no night career in the future, still studying in the same amount of time it took him to have a successful career and a girlfriend and now I am still studying, in a far location siphoning tons of money from Malaysia and have NO Girlfriend!
Who do you think is having a better life? Really demoralizes me to think that if I did something simpler rather than engineering it would be less hurting my brain (engineering requires some thinking) ,struggling (not until the critical stage yet, otherwise I won't be here), money draining (self-explanatory) and would have a girlfriend long ago.
Got more to say, but I got so many to say I got problem deciding which one to type . Added to the fact it is now 2.45 am in the morning of April 25, it is better I sign off for now.
Entries from the beginning of this website to 1st May 2004
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