Quite a pleasant surprise, considering I forgot all about it.

Yesterday was a tiring but fulfilling day. I didnt get to watch The Oddfellows' reunion performance at Baybeats, but I experienced God's presence among His people, inspiring them to worship and praise with one heart. Thx Jojo and Sherene for coming down, pity you 2 couldnt stay for the post-event. So encouraging to see everyone singing, clapping and dancing (nvm that most of us can't dance) for the glory of our King. Nvm the technical and logistic hiccups, God once again showed that it's the heart of worship that matters. To God alone be the glory!

"You have turned for me my mourning into dancing; You have loosed my sackcloth and girded me with gladness, that my soul may sing praise to You and not be silent. O Lord my God, I will give thanks to You forever."

"..I will celebrate before the Lord. I will become even more undignified than this, and I will be humiliated in my own eyes.."

To Ryan and the rest of Heartdrive, thx so much for inviting me to be a part of this wonderful experience. It's been a blessing to me musically, socially, and of cos spiritually as well. You're all a great bunch, continue to rock on for Jesus :) I'd love to jam with you guys again, hopefully our schedules will all be a little lighter next time. Send me pics so I can post!



Edited/Deleted - Ok I might have to change template soon cos somehow using the "<" symbol screws up my posts big time. No big loss here, I dont think anyone bothered to read this post anyway haha.

Random weekend facts:
Ants refuse to die despite being microwaved for 41secs.
I'm allergic to Ajisen Ramen.
Shard of Azzinoth proc rate is ~0.5ppm, no icd. The ember itself is ~45dps when it spawns. Its not tested enough to be statistically viable unless you consider 27% S.D. acceptable.
TV on the Radio's next album has a ****ty cover once again. With bad punctuation. Well there's always of Montreal to look forward to. (Yes the leaks are out already. No i dont have them)
For a bad time, drive into one of the small lanes in Little India on a rainy sunday night.

So, Baybeats 08 starts this friday. Hopefully the weather improves by then. Seems that i'll be giving most of it a miss anyhow. For some reason while the rest of SG has grown to be more interested in our mini-Glastonbury, in recent years it seems I keep finding other (better?) things to occupy my august weekends with instead. I do wanna see The Oddfellows, since they play so rarely these days..hopefully I can make it down in time after Genesis Proj. Might try to catch The Otherside Orchestra and Joy Electric as well. Anyone interested? Haha I know most of you wanna go for Vertical Rush and Caracal (yeah and of cos Electrico and Force Vomit lol have fun moshing) no offense but they dont really excite me all that much anymore. Ok time for bed, been up and about almost the whole day and I dont wanna be too late for school. Ciao.

Congrats Vodoshock, T6 shoulders and bear mount at last. Now you no longer look like a noob troll! Just need to get Shadow a warglaive or 2 now.... Still, speccing mutilate has made raiding alot more tolerable for me. It requires a little more attention, if nothing else, but the big crits make it sooo worth it. I may output a little less dps than as cswords, but im having way more fun. Looking forward to running some numbers with the shard of azzinoth and its proc. Im glad no1 in Daimyô makes an issue of it, although i'd still respec for Brutallus in all likelihood. Speaking of the guild, I'm glad it hasnt fallen apart or anything in the wake of so many core raider departures...would hate for it to be LtCH all over again. And its great to see LtCH doing so well now. Push harder guys, Illidan's ezmode so long as your tanks get enough practice =p

So, Bloc Party's new album Intimacy is gonna be released digitally today, less than a week after its existence was announced. Considering similar stunts have been pulled by The Raconteurs, Gnarls Barkley, NIN, et al, early internet releases seem almost typical these days - less than a year after In Rainbows had everyone debating alternative music distribution models. No doubt, record labels pay market analysts well to make such informed decisions; and not everyone wields the same clout as Radiohead after all......
Silent Alarm remains one of my fave albums and possibly the best straightforward modern rock record this turn of the decade, which was why its follow-up, Weekend in the City, was rather disappointing in contrast. It's great that Bloc Party are all sincere and serious in their approach: dedicated and earnest, with the musical chops to back them up - but the drama quickly drags itself out, and the attempts at pop-chart appeal become increasingly insipid and almost insubstantial. They're still better than most of their cool, apethetic indie compatroits, and immensely more likeable.. but as the industry knows full well, great debuts come with the baggage of immense expectations, especially if you're shooting from the indie scene. But I digress...From what I've heard, Im simply not quite looking forward to Intimacy. Mercury was pretty damn annoying, and new single Trojan Horse seems similarly plagued by indulgent, tasteless "experimentation" and overprocessed vocals dulling whatever classic Bloc Party magic there might have been. Of course, Im being too harsh; and the album must of course be appraised as a whole, but for now I'd very much rather get my hands on The Walkmen's new album You & Me instead.
Anyway, I told some friends about a funny email my academic mentor sent a few days ago; specifically, about this line: Most of you have managed to maintain an above 4.0 GPA, congratulations to you and keep up with the good work. For those of you, whom did not perform as well, please see me ASAP. Wow so a 2LHons GPA is like an emergency :S makes me wonder just how high our course average is. Probably like 4.6 or something. Those mech engine students must hate taking the same mods as us. Alright, time to stop wasting the rest of my day off on the computer. tata.


My final timetable for the semester. Pretty happy with it, as well as my general workload - 20AUs seems just about right, not quite slack but not too hectic either. 830am lab is depressing but at least I'll be home by 5pm most days, and I have a lunch break every day - big relief compared to what I had originally planned. Im probably not even going school most thursdays seeing how engine lectures aren't cutting it for me. Sure I could have squeezed in another mod or two but that'd be pretty taxing considering Im no longer staying in hall. I no longer have an incentive to complete the ABP, and I'm actually still 4 modules ahead of the suggested course progression anyway...so yep, thank God for a very manageable timetable, hopefully it'll translate to a better GPA as well =D



K this is for all you healers with half a brain who think my gear choice is noob. Because you guys (and some girls) are pretty terribad with math let's keep this simple:

The complete formula for gheal HPS = {[(a) + (b)*(c+0.04*d)*e] * (1+0.02*f)}/[2.5*(1-g/1567)]
where
a = gheal base (average of 1219 for gheal 2 which is my "spam" rank
b = +heal
c = casting time penalty (0.8571)
d = number of talent points in empowered healing (assumed 5)
e =downranking penalty (0.8143 for gheal 2)
f = number of talent points in spiritual healing (assumed 5)
g = haste

1 haste rating = 2 +heal
So let's determine the +healing point of inflexion; between
[840476 + 593.5(b+2x)]/(1567) and
[840476 + 593.5(b)]/(1567-x)
Equating the 2 gives you b = 1698

Let's calculate using max rank gheal and CoH
gheal max rank (a=2590, e=1) b = 1961
CoH (a=430, c=0.214, d=0, e=1, over a 1.5 sec cast time) b = 1105

GG. Haste outscales +heal as early as +1700 heal for gheal, and its universally better for CoH. Of course, just looking at HPS is far too simplistic, because damage and healing come in bursts. In fact, it is far more likely tank death occurs because your heal was just 200 short of topping him up enough to take the next blow rather than inadequate HPS. On the other hand, far and away the more common scenario - especially in raid situations - is that your big 9k heal was just 0.1 secs short of landing. I rarely feel like I need to land bigger heals, but I very often wish I could land the heal faster - whether for reactive raid healing, or "oh shit" moments. Haste also helps for cast-cancelling; not just to combat lag, but also to cancel earlier, as you are more confident your next heal will land on time. The natural side effects of lower overhealing and higher OO5SR uptime are nice bonuses.
The singular and very significant drawback to haste is that is almost always comes at the cost of regen. The fact that you're landing more heals in a shorter time only exacerbates mana problems. There's no way around it, you'll be burning more mana, and getting it back slower. This is why I value spirit and regen-oriented trinkets such as the blue dragon card and bangle/earring over +heal. I find, even over 700 spirit raid buffed and Eye of Gruul equipped, I cannot sustain constant CoH and PoM spam on top of multiple renews without some phase change allowing regen time and/or a spriest in my party. One technique some healers use is to further downrank, because you know you can sustain the un-hasted HPS of a higher ranked spell using a hasted, lower rank spell. Its pretty counter-intuitive though: downranking is always lower HPM; and the reason why healers downrank is to minimise overheal on cast-cancels.
So, Im not saying priests should ditch +heal totally for haste..You still need an appropriate baseline +heal to make sure your heals land for any non-trivial amount. Renew and PoM (which can be anything from 30-60% of my total healing depending on instance and heal assignment) still benefit tremendously from +heal, as does PW:S and even our trusty shadowfiend (from the 1/3rd dmg bonus). Once again healing isnt simply HPS vs DPS, but I sincerely feel that haste is a powerful stat that improves my overall healing and enhances cast-cancel playstyle. And yes, its pro for sniping heals as well=p Given the associated mana problems, I need to stack regen. Oom = 0 healing done. Sure I could go for +2300 heals and 10% haste, but I'd run oom within about 3mins of the encounter. So for now, I'll gladly stick to just under +2100 heals and maintain 550spirit unbuffed together with my haste, and continue outhealing you scrubs <3

Took a CareerLeader assessment as part of my work sociology mod. Unfortunately it's oriented towards business courses/industries, but these sort of tests are always fun. 27 pages of MCQs! Some amusing results:

You have a notable interest in three core elements of business work:

Haven't been able to get the module slots i want...Despite pro use of autoclicking. But thank God, even if my timetable stays the way it is I'll have 20AUs which is a decent load; and my lessons are fairly nicely packed so I don't go home too late. Commuting has been pretty bad, the 100min journeys just drain away whatever early morning enthusiasm I might have for lessons. Although occasionally the right playlist helps. I've been dozing off during lectures, which is nothing new, but I find it difficult to settle down to do tutorials when Im home. Maybe its the 1st week syndrome, or cos I keep getting stuck at asinine vector questions.
Also, rsaf finally got back to me today..2 days late but I suppose i'll pin the blame on cmpb admin instead. Ive to be at paya lebar air base by 8am next wednesday for 2nd interview >.< Good thing there's direct bus from eunos. Gonna miss lab though which will prove troublesome. Funny, it still doesnt feel like I might be on the verge of signing away 4years of my life. I pray I won't lose sight of why I applied for this scholarship, this job, and aerospace course for that matter.
Im feeling quite sleepy now despite napping an hour after school, so this post is really disorganized. Anyway great news, Camera Obscura are coming to SG! 29th October 8pm Esplanade according to their myspace. Gd thing it's not during exam period. Hopefully there'll be sub-$50 tix. Rejoice!

What an eventful 1st day of school! Without even stepping into school too. Woke up at 6am for the 1st time in several months. Thx everyone for your well wishes regarding the interview, it went quite well. Short and sweet, probably cos I was the last person and everyone wanted to go for lunch. Really simple questions and I didnt even have to make up any stories on the spot. I dunno why but I get the impression they're more concerned abt why we want them rather than why they might want us. Well apparently I have "a very good chance" of being approved for the scholarship, based on A lvls and very misleading uni results. Or maybe that's what they told everyone. So shall keep my fingers crossed for 2nd interview next wed. Which clashes with lab, GG. I cant even be bothered thinking abt tt now. Anw, thank God for a smooth interview, and providing friendly ppl to chat with while waiting.
Had quick lunch at botak jones and cabbed down to Marina Mandarin to perform at some SG Scholarship cert presentation. The performance was terrible but nobody seemed to notice. Quite a gd deal, for 2days of practice I get a free organizer, framed photo with some minister of foreign affairs, and pretty delectable refreshments (esp the cheesecake mmmm). Having young vietnamese girls come up n make small talk is sth ill nvr get used to though. Also chatted with this archtypical nice old lady from MFA who used to be an ambassador and can speak like all the asean country languages, so cool! Oh, and our "liaison officer" was super hot, too bad no pics =x


Possibly my last time performing with NTU GE! Sorry for leaving my new post after like 2weeks, but I just dont have the time to commit anymore, esp w/o a hostel. Thx for all the fun times, esp Nocturne '08; and hopefully I can help out more on an ad hoc basis like this one. I also relinquish my year-long gf (v uninterestingly named Alto3)...although you were fickle after the 9th fret, had terrible complexion, and numerous dead spots, you were ultimately faithful. Whoever inherits her, pls treat her well and give her a nickname.
Anw, seems 3rd round results for hostel vacancies are spsd to be out around now...but have yet to recieve any news in my mail. Oh well, nth's changed, shall trust the Lord to provide, His grace is sufficient in every circumstance. Im kinda excited abt going back sch tmr, although its such a long day and I know I'll whine abt the huge stacks of notes and tutorials im gonna have to buy. /shrug, can post abt school another time. Ok, back to camping STARS for better tutorial slots!

Ok so I shall follow Jojo and make a drama post about getting a haircut! (Minus some fabricated details =p) I went snips ave because its opposite my house..except the queue was so long it would probably last till closing time. Dunno abt 2hrs, but even 20mins is too long to wait for a simple hair cut. So I walked past a few shops to the barber.
Now Im not sure what some ppl define "trim" as, but my trusty Collins has a definition pertaining directly to hairstyle: haircut that neatens the existing style. To my considerable surprise, abang chopped off my fringe. GG. Im pretty sure I actually widened my eyes in shock, which must be what elicited that ostensibly friendly squeeze of my shoulders at the end.
So..I resigned myself to going to Guardian to get some Gatsby, which cost more than the haircut. Like, the reason I keep such a vapid hairstyle which makes me look 2years junior and possibly Indonesian (no offense to Indos, I just get this alot) is to escape the time and effort of styling in the morning. To round off the remarkable experience, I saw a new-ish Baracuda hair studio just beside Guardian. They must be pro cos they have 2 dozen price points, use Shiseido, and keep the saloon white and minimalist.
Anyway, all this hassle is for the RSAF interview tmr. Well, most ppl I've told have expressed varying degrees of shock, disappointment and disgust at my choice of employment, but I think it's pretty neat. And why do ppl say "Dont u wanna reconsider? Are you sure abt this? Better think long and hard!" :S Do I look like I'm 16 or sth? In any case, I'll leave the final outcome to God's knowing hands. Do pray for my interview..though I say it looks like ive got a gd chance, im still pretty nervous actually. Hopefully they wont ask me anymore questions about blowing hospitals up.

Goodbye Singapore Arts Cafe. Our favourite chillax cafe for aspiring musicians had the last of its weekly friday open mics yday. Though I only had the cheek to perform once, Ive spent more than a few lazy afternoons there. Im sure I speak for everyone who has had the privilege of being there, that it's been an exciting journey of discovery. Thanks for the memories Jonathan, and God bless whatever path you take from here on.

I just checked my ntu mail...grats me, got the socio mod i wanted - Why We Work? - Hope it's as slack as it seems, my timetable is really too packed alr. And Calvin Lin Shenghuai sent me a lovely email saying "YAP!!! We in same ELECTIVE!!!...sian 1/2...lol", quoted ad verbatim. I'm thrilled to be working with you for projects for another sem too, asshat. lol =p
I also managed to get GV11..so if anyone wants to study sth fun for a change, or is just desperate to slot in a UE, yea drop me a msg.
Among other emails, it seems the [insert lengthy title with numerous sesquipedalian words] of Airbus is giving a seminar next wednesday. All good and well, but it bothers me that the always-affable Prof Schluter decides to add a closing line: We would like to make a good impression, so please attend the seminar numerously, and please ask some smart questions.
Like, get off your arm chair and do some work yourself for a change.



Played soccer and had dinner with the 4A guys today..always refreshing to have guys' outing, free of annoying girls =p anyway to the pang seh kings like Benjy, Yi Jie and Josh, you guys suck like big time, but we still love you, so join us next time ok.
Sigh how I miss those halcyon carefree sec sch days, when you could hang out or play soccer every day after school. Didn't have to worry over so much stuff..mainly just study for major exams (which in retrospect barely mattered, and only came round onve every few months anw).




Imeem sucks. But I dont know how to fix it. So I enlarged the player box; you can pause it if you want it to shut up. And I promise to tidy up the playlist soon, some of the tracks just sound too random. If you don't like what you hear, too bad.

talk.

silence from you is like the death of a tune

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so goes the backing track of all the sighs we ever sighed