Sungha Jung

I love Youtube and I don't think I can ever get enough of it. An IT project got me to sign up as a user and since then, I've been subscribing to channels after channels after channels (you should get what I mean by now).


And one of the most recent channel that I've subscribed to, is by a 13 year old Korean teenagers, who uploads videos of himself while performing songs using 'Fingerstyle'.


Sungha Jung never seems to utter a single word in his videos yet with his acoustic guitar, he is able to make the songs come to life with the quick yet smooth rhythm of his fingers that simple shows how effortless he does it.


I bet you have no idea as to what I just said, so just take a look at these videos and you'll see why I'm amazed at his talents.


Two of my favourites:

Hotel California - Eagles

More Than Words - Extreme

What's so special about 'Fingerstyle' (to me) is that it allows the person to play the entire song, including the part that is usually sung. It also makes it seem as though 2 or 3 persons are strumming the guitar when in fact, it is only him alone. It is no easy task in learning the 'Fingerstyle' technique but you can Click Here to enter Ulli Boegershausen's channel as he had a tab of uploaded videos that teach the basics of 'Fingerstyle'. I've seen some of his videos as well, and he's just as awesome as Sungha Jung.

Two of my favourites:

Besame Mucho

One of Us

Or you can Click Here to get to Sungha Jung's channel to watch more of his videos!

Now I wanna' learn to play the guitar too!



Till then

I wish I had their talents

Ever since I was a baby, I was exposed to music and arts. My mum was a fan of the Oldies and so, the kitchen's radio was always playing Oldies that ranged from Elvis Presley to Rod Stewart, from Johnny Cash to Pat Boone.

Despite the early exposure to music, I never really tried singing (not even karaoke). I don't know if it's the fear, or simply disliking my voice.

However, my brothers and I did pick up a few instruments here and there. The love for music has and will always be in us. And singers, till this very day, never fail to amaze me. The beautiful voice that changes words into harmonious melody.


And today, I will be sharing a few new videos that simply takes my breath away.


The first one is done by PS 22 Chorus. I know I've shown this before, but it's just so awesome.







The next one is a must see, especially if you think that Acapella is awesome. This group of boys perform at graduation ceremonies. Click Here to see one of their performances where they add their own unique styles to the song.

You can click on "Green Day - Basket Case" to see how they transform from one song to the other.




Other than singers, beat boxers are on my top charts in the music industry. Check this guy out as he beat boxes like a pro! My lips go numb even by simply watching him go like that!









All the sound effects (above video) are from him.





I just feel like adding this one because I like his facial expressions as he beat box.








Listen to the speed of his beat boxing!









Yuri Lane is the first to introduce beat boxing while playing the Harmonica.








This guy's pretty cool too. He uses the recording machine to aid him in his song, just like how KT Tunstall does it. The tune is pretty similar to that of Yuri Lane.








See how this guy brings beat boxing to a whole new level when he does it while playing the flute! Though not as great as Yuri Lane, but still talented!






I actually have a Didgeridoo at home (one of my dad's impulse shopping). After watching this video, I think I shall try to learn it soon!








And lastly, my favourite video of the lot. My brother thinks they're creepy but I really like how they do it. Acapella is simply mind blowing. And I am in love with the first song that they did. It gives you the 'creepy old church with creaky doors and parquet floors, and an organ placed in the center of the church ' type of feeling.

But all the other songs are good too! Hilarious as well!





Want to know more about them?

Then Click Here!
Then Click Here!
Then Click Here!
Then Click Here!
Then Click Here!



Till then!

Day Off

Well, as the title pretty much suggests, today is my very first off day from working at the zoo for 7 days straight. Despite having the ups and downs, as I walked past the gates of the Zoo for the last time (maybe?) yesterday, many thoughts popped into my head. I was in a dilemma; relieved that after 7 days of work, I finally had a break. But at the same time, I was sad, because I may never be working here again. 7 days was just enough to make me want more and be part of the family in the zoo.



I was thankful that this job made it an eye-opener for me. Because it not only exposed me to the working world, but I also got a chance to see the many types of people around. I even made fantastic friends, not only with the staffs there, but also with the OJTs: Nicolas and Joanna who were property agents, Nicholas who is 20 plus, and has a passion for his percussion and church.

I also had a great time in husbandry, despite being the slowest. But I think I did manage to improve my speed over the couple of days. I realized that all it took was to set my mind to it.

The staffs in the zoo were an excellent bunch of people, who were always there for you, and willing to share information with you. They were very serious in their job, but they also joked around every once in a while. Because of them, I have a whole lot of greater respect for all the staffs in the zoo. I learned a lot about the animals through them, and also saw how they had so much respect for the animals, and vice versa.



But one thing I regret the most was, to set the impression that I was the quiet one. Back in school, I was titled the "Laughing Machine" in class. People had to shut me up, and stay clear of me whenever they had sweets. But as usual, I have the nasty habit of observing people more , and thus seldom open up to people unless I feel comfortable around them.


I did not have much confidence when I was an OJT in the zoo, so I seldom opened up to the people around me. Except for Nicolas, who was partnered with me then. Yesterday was the last day, and Joanna, Nicolas and I sat around to talk. Surprising enough, they brought up points that I did not know of. They had the impression that I was very quiet and dainty. But Nicolas actually said that after the few days that he was with me, he realized that I COULD REALLY TALK. Hahah.


But it was only him. The rest, especially the staffs, still think that I am quiet and stuff like that. So we'll see.



Yesterday's evaluation was a so called "Judgement Day" for us. It did not go really well for me. I had the entire scripts down, but when I presented, it was mere regurgitation, which was bad, because they'd rather put a tape recorder there. I was so engrossed in memorising the scripts that I seemed emotionless, which was again bad, because no one would want to listen to some boring person. Not only was I emotionless, but I was rattling away like a speeding train, which was again bad. Hahah. And last, I was loud and clear, which may also be bad, for they would hear every single thing I said, thus I had to be very careful in the choice of words.



Well, I am still waiting for them to call me. If I don't get the job, I would never be disheartened, because this job actually gave me an opportunity to realized how much of a passion these people had for the animals. And passion and experience was all that I was looking for in a job. Not money.


Oh, and while I was an OJT there, I actually got a chance to see a manatee give birth! The baby manatee is really cute. And if you happen to head to the zoo, go to the SPLASH! amphitheater to catch a glimpse of the baby manatee.


For that 7 days there, I got to see most of the animals there. I can't really remember some of them, but I'll try my best. Let me educate (Cheh.. hahah) you on some of the animals that I learned about. And so, here are some of the animals:

Aprilla the elephant. How to spot her? Well, she has pink pigmentation around her neck and ankles. And she's the youngest elephant there. She's really adorable.


Gambir the elephant. How to spot her? Her trunk has a whole stretch of pink pigmentation. She's the most playful elephant there, and her art work is seen as Chinese Calligraphy.


Janti the Elephant. How to spot her? She's the biggest and the oldest elephant there. Now what's unique about her is that she is seen as a future matriarch because she was seen running in to settle the disputes amongst the other elephants.

Smoky the dog. He can be found in the Animal Friendly Show. I think he is a Collie mix. He appears unique because one of his eyes is Grey, while the other in brown. But this dog was actually sold to the zoo because he had anxiety problems. He was afraid of thunder, and practically everything else. I got a chance to touch him, but he was pretty afraid. I did not know him well, but it was like love at first sight. Thankfully for him, he had a best friend there, who is a German Shepard. The reason why the German Shepard is here, is because he was born with genes of flaws.


There are definitely more animals that I am in love with, like the 6 months old White Rhino Baboo.

Did you know :

• That all 5 species (Sumatrans, Javans, Black, Indian and White) Rhinos are on the brink of extinction because their horns are used to treat illnesses? Their horns are actually made of Keratine, just like our fingernails and hair? Thus they contain no healing properties. So stop buying Rhino Horns to treat your illnesses!
• A group of Rhino is also known as a Crash of Rhinos
• Rhinos have poor eyesight but excellent sense of hearing and smell.
• Ears of Rhinos are able to rotate 180 degrees in the direction to where the sound is coming from
• Rhinos seem indestructible, but they actually have very sensitive skin, which is prone to sunburns and insect bites.
  

The orang utans who actually share 97% of our human DNA (the baby Ah Seng is really cute).


The adorable cotton top Tamarins who looked like they had mohawks. They are actually really small, like the size of two of your fists placed atop each other.

Click Here to View Cotton Top Tamarins


Then there are the adorable Asian Small-Clawed Otters. They can be found near the Treetop Trail. They make the cutest sounds ever!

Click Here to View Asian Small-clawed Otters





Heard the squeaking noises? Yeap, those are the sounds that these otters make. Unless you smell it for yourself, you would not believe me when I say that these adorable animals actually give off a pungent smell. Now this is because they are territorial, and they mark the areas from the secretion secreted from their anal glands.

Then there are the Black and White Colobus Monkeys. They have a black coat of fur, but have a white tail. Right in the Singapore zoo, we actually have a baby colobus Monkey, and it is all white! hahah, only a few months later will it then start growing its fur.

Click Here to View Black & White Colubus Monkey

Click Here to View Black & White Colubus Monkey and baby

And the Saki Monkeys!


Click Here to View Saki Money


The one that you are viewing is the Male, while the female has a greyish brown coat of fur.

Last but not least, the polar Bears!


We have Sheba who is 31 years old. She joined the Singapore Zoo in 1978 when she was only 2 years old. Her birthday is on Valentine's Day. She is always sun tanning on the boulders in the enclosure.

We also have Inuka, her son. Inuka in Eskimo Language actually means "Silent Stalker". He is a very special bear not only to the Singapore Zoo, but to Singapore itself. Why? Because he is the very first polar bear to be born in the Tropics, right in the Singapore Zoo. His birthday is on 26th December and was born in 1990.

Inuka is 1.8m tall, and weighs 550kg. However, a full grown polar bear can grow up to 3m tall, and weigh over a 1000kg!

But did you know that when Inuka was born, he actually weighed 450g? How he actually grew so big and strong is because of his mummy's milk. Human's milk contains 4% fats. But Polar Bear's milk contains 48% of fat!


Polar Bears have black skin. And their fur coat is NOT white. It is actually transparent. The reason why we see it as white on TV is because of the snow that reflects on the fur.

Polar Bears are from the North Pole, and you might be thinking : the water confirm very cold one. But, the water in the enclosure is actually at room temperature. However there is a den which the polar bears have excess to, which is at a comfortable 16 degrees Celsius.

In the wild, polar bears feed on Seals. But in the Singapore Zoo, they are given a wide variety of fruits, vegetables and meat. In fact, Inuka's favourite food is Frozen Watermelon.



These are just some of the animals that I learned about. There are obviously more animals to learn. But I must say, the animal, or rather fish that I like the most, is the token feeding session of the Giant Arapaimas.

The first time the fish "jumps" up to take the small fish from the stick, never fails to crack me up. Because everyone will get the shock of their lives, going "woah". Small kids will cry, girls will scream and others will put their hands near the heart at the chest, because they were shocked.





Arapaimas are the largest scaled freshwater fish in the world. They can grow up to 4.5m long, and weigh a hefty 200kg. Another feature that distinguises this fish is the presence of a bony tongue.


Click Here to View Giant Arapaima


In the Singapore Zoo, we have 3 giant Arapaimas, with the largest coming in at 2m long, and weighing almost 120kg.

They can be found in the Amazon Basin and only during high tide, can also be found in flooded forests, swamps and upstream in the creeks.

Only during low tide do they lay their eggs in nests in the hollows of the mud, of the floodplains.

They feed mainly on other species of fish. And are the top freshwater predators. However, if there are any low flying birds or animals, they would of course, consume them!

But despite all these, Arapaimas are on the brink of extinction because they are sought after for their meat, scales and bones. They are also kept as illegal pets.




End of tour!



Loves.

Is my BLog Good Enough

This is definitely not a post to add more traffic to my blog, but rather a post to gather feedback from the people behind the screens (hahah).


I've been pondering over it for quite a long time. And I've yet to come up with a final decision. And so, I'd like to ask the people in the cyberworld.


See, I've been thinking of shutting this blog down.


I started this blog with one of the cheesiest URLs in the whole wide world; Lifeisjustlikeadreamtome.blogspot.com.

Yup, that long and stupid. And the posts were mainly about my daily routines where I rant annoyingly and idiotically about the little bums in Life (the twits in my school, back then). Obviously it was boring and soon blogging became more like a chore to me, where I realised that the only people reading my blog was myself, my reflection and close friends.

But I hung on.

I deleted that blog.The Reason


And started a new one, the present one; sitandwhine.blogspot.com

The URL was created mainly due to the fact that I used to think that bloggers were people who sat infront of their computer screens to rant about their horrible day. And so, SitAndWhine stuck with me till now.

Apparently I did not learn my lesson and continued blogging like the same old way, but this time, it was even more boring as there weren't any hot juicy anti-twit gossips to blog about.



Soon after, (after I was exposed to the blogosphere), my blogging style started changing. I still choose to believe that blogging isn't really my cup of tea, but over the years, I've actually grown out of the "ranting" shell and decided to turn the chore of blogging into something more edifying, and that was, to blog with a passion.


Over the years, I have received mix comments about my blog. Some said it was just a waste of space in the blogosphere while some others encouraged me to keep blogging because they were entertained by my posts. I was delighted as I became aware that there are people out there who do appreciate my passion for blogging. But with more exposure to the blogosphere (Thanks to Nuffnang and omy.sg), I was nervous, and was more or so careful in terms I use in my posts. I gained motivation to blog, from the encouragements, and tried to tweak according to the criticisms I received. But, obviously I can't please anyone. And to add salt to the wound, there have been more and more criticisms lately.


It's the traffic of people visiting my blog, but rather the feedback from friends after they had read my blog, that bothers me. Their feedback have definitely discouraged me and although I am hesitant to give up my passion for it, I also do not want to be a mere "space" in the blogosphere.


So is my blog good enough to stay or should I close it down?

School support us, Youth Bloggers?

A few days back, a reporter from Shin Min daily called me for a phone interview. It was an interview about this post.

Where I talked about the incident that "Sidelinedstudent" had with his school, taken from Omy.sg



The reporter was really nice and jovial, and she asked question pertaining to the incident, like how I felt about sidelinedstudent not being supported by his school, how I felt about my school, why my school did not support youth bloggers, and basically every curious question any one would have asked to dig out more information.

The reporter was shocked when I told her that teachers were on Facebook and Friendsters, and would accept our friend requests,without being anonymous.

I told her many reasons to why my school did not support blogging, and I even recalled incidents where teachers approached me about my posts. I also revealed about how some students were asked to delete their blogs, because it contained mentionings of the school.


I wouldn't be surprised if this hoo-haa about schools supporting bloggers,comes out in the newspaper. And in a way, I guess it's good, such that schools who are reading this, would be aware of how we students feel, and how we actually regard them as important parts of our lives, that is why we inform them of our happenings.

Every single student are ambassadors of the school, and we should have responsibility to blog, be it about the school or any other things. But I feel that if a student blogs about a "bad thing" (let's say, a teacher made a rude remark about him because he was always late for school. Calling him a rebellion and slacker, without finding the actual truth behing things) that happened in school, I don't think it should be counted as irresponsible because the student is merely expressing how injustice was shown by the school, to him.


Even if my school were to approach me and ask me to stop blogging, and lecture me about the importance of studying, being that it is the O'level year, I would not stop blogging. Because as I had told the reporter, blogging is not only a hobby but a talent and passion. Not everyone can blog interestingly, and I do believe that blogging can bring people far.


Although there are plenty of plus-points of the interview, such as the school being more aware of how we feel of blogging, and that they should lighten up, I personally feel that the schools would keep a closer eye on those who are bloggers.

And though I have said alot about my school, I somehow fear that they would turn nasty towards me. It's my O'level year and I don't want anything bad to happen that might debar me from taking the National Exams.


But if the school debars me, then wouldn't there be an issue where "School bans student from exam because of blogging"? hahha, I love the press.

Voting sessions end tomorrow!

As I went through the blogs of the 70 finalists of omy.sg, I was struck with the fact that the voting for the favourite finalists, was going to end tomorrow.

I'm sure every finalist, would have the "kan chiong" period, where they're encouraging people to vote for them.

It's really hilarious seeing it, and I can't deny the shame of having the "kiasu Singapore" fever, as I am also one of them, seeking for voters. hahah. But no one can blame us right?

I'm not in the TOP 3 most voted title, and so I can say goodbye to the LG phones. But it's okay(throws knives and glares at winners,haha), because afterall, I believe that all the finalists are here to befriend one another, and to be exposed to more unique styles of blogging.

I for one, have seen many interesting sites, and have actually bookmarked some of them, to keep as personal favourites.


Speaking of votes, I read here...




That a Youth finalist, approached his teacher, seeking her help to ask the school to vote, hoping that the school would support him and another finalist. However, what came back was a shock, because instead of appreciating the efforts of the finalists in aiding in making the school more popular, the finalist's request was turned down.

I guess it's disheartening to know that despite your efforts to make a school a better place, the school in return, "repays" the kindness by ever so gratefully rejecting it.

Unfortunately, my school happens to fall in somewhat the same category, where teachers discourage the students to own a blog. They even brought up the ongoing issue "Dawn Yang Vs. XiaXue", saying that it poses a so-called threat to those irresponsible bloggers, who are waiting for trouble to come knocking on their door. A friend of mine was even asked to delete her blog, because it contained unsightly or I feel, THE TRUTH about the school.


I know that there are some teachers who read our blogs, and I personally feel happy that teachers are making an effort to get to know their students better by being a step ahead of others, and connecting to us through the net.

But I'm glad that I did not approach my school to help me in the votings because I'll definitely have my parents being called up, and at the same time, have to face the teachers and highest in hierachy, to lecture me about the importance of studies, being that it's the O' level year.


But even so, I would like to thank all those who helped vote for me, from friends, to classmates, to schoolmates, to strangers who visit my blog. I do hope that after this voting session is done, there would still be visitors to my blog, not to vote but to continue supporting me in my passion for blogging.






Here's Rihanna's latest MV, Disturbia. The MV is kinda' freaky, it reminds me of "Thir13en Ghosts".








But I think the beats of th song, is nice.


ENJOY!

Someone whom I look up to

A question from my English Oral practice paper actually made me stop to think,real deep.
The question was: Describe someone whom you look up to.


And this post today, will be my answer to that question.


A little background info(true story) of this person that I looked up to, Vernon:

Vernon's mom was 7 months and two weeks pregnant. She was living in a horrible place and often attempted to kill herself because of family issues. But what stopped her from taking her life, was her very first baby, Vernon. She looked lived on instead because she felt that God gave her a great gift, and that was this child.

Two weeks later, Vernon's mom was in labour, and Vernon was born. His mom thought that she was blessed for having such a beautiful child, and that all her problems were gone. However, Vernon was two weeks premature and had to stay in the ICU for a month. After being stabilized, he was discharged.

From then on, Vernon's mom looked forward to life even more, because she had her precious with her.

However, things changed for the worst. Vernon's mom got into more quarrels with dad, and his & her family. She didn't have money to feed the poor kid. But, somehow, they struggled and managed to live on.

At age 10, he was transferred from Monfort primary school to WDP, which seemed alien to him. There he started from scratch and developed a passion for badminton. He represented the school and won in so many competitions that secondary schools were already knocking on his door, wanting him to join them when he graduated. But he kindly declined, and instead went to a secondary school that was a half an hour ride from home. He chose the school because it did not offer Badminton. He wanted a break from it.

But, in AES, he found his true passion, which was track and field. He was so in love with it, that he trained day and night, just to improve on his timing. Everyday, he would carry his metal starting block to the stadium, training hard under the blistering hot sun. He wanted to be the best. At first his mom thought that he was crazy, because he even skipped exams to represent the school. Soon his mom realized her son's burning passion for it and though she had no money, she hunted high and low for appropriate running shoes for him, and that meant that she had to borrow $$ to pay for the costly shoes.

Vernon wanted to be the best. And he did. Vernon made his dreams come through and even appeared in the tabloids. He was not only recognized in his school zone, but he was recognized nationwide. He even represented Singapore to run in Australia.





However, working hard for his running meant that his studies were neglected. He failed in his finals. not giving, he repeated school but unfortunately, did not make it by a mere point. Vernon and his mom approached SCDF and the MP,looking for an opportunity/chance to get into Poly. But they were in vain.

Vernon was at a lost. He didn't know what to do. He had planned to go to Poly and continue running. He did not have plan B and was disappointed that he did not make it to Poly. To add to his misery, Vernon broke his shin from over training, and adding the fact that he was bold legged, Vernon could not run anymore. Devastation slowly seeped in as he realized that his career plans were gone, just like that.

Not giving up, Vernon went for his NS. There, he trained hard for his BMT and was supposed to be the best soldier. However, during one of the training, Vernon broke his wrist and because of that, he couldn't complete his chin-ups. Such a disappointment to him.


After he attended army, he decided to join Laselle, an art school. See, Vernon was not only good at running, he was fantastic at art as well. But nothing could replace his passion for running. He worked hard, burning the midnight oil, just to complete the demanding amount of work that completely drained him.

But his family still had financial difficulties, and after completing his Diploma (only), he quit school. His father could not support the family, and his mother wasn't paid well enough. And so, he decided to work, to help support the family which was now a family of 5, including him, his mom, dad, sister and brother.

Vernon started out as an apprentice at a tattoo shop. He worked hard to master the art of tattooing. And he was good at it.












































I especially love his portraits which were really unique because they didn't require tonnes of shadings, but instead, it was just the black "shadows", making the portraits look as though they were stamped onto your skin.


But coming from the tattoo world is really tough. Because everyone is competing for the best tattoo designs. And joining the tattoo business for only a year, Vernon had no chance in rising to fame fast. So how was he going to help bring food home for the family?

The reason why I look up to him is because of his undying effort to not give up, and to find alternatives to make things better. Even though he didn't have a career, he actually took responsibility into helping his family.