Gold

We all know the value of gold. I mean, who doesn't know that gold is valuable?

Why is gold valuable? Well, gold is easy to work with, it is shiny, and is thus good (maybe even perfect) for making accessories. The value of gold was recognised in the ancient world, and besides being used to make jewellery, gold was used as a form of money, to facilitate the exchange of goods without having to conduct barter trade. Currency facilitated trade, and gold was a natural choice as it had its own value as both a good and a form of currency.

With the move to paper money, does gold lose its value? The obvious answer is no. Gold still continues to hold its value, although its use as a form of currency for exchange is now non-existent. However, gold has found other uses. Science has found other uses for gold, other than for making jewellery. Its physical and chemical properties allows it to be put to various uses. For example, the canopy (the piece that covers the cockpit) of the F-16 fighter aircraft is tinted with gold. So are the visors of spacesuits worn by astronauts, and visors of the helmets of fighter pilots. And the IT revolution has seen a new use for gold as well. Being a good conductor of electricity, gold is used in some parts of electronic circuits in place of copper.

Trivia: In the Dungeons and Dragons Dragonlance campaign setting, after the Cataclysm, gold lost its value to steel. Steel overtook gold in value because steel could be used to make weapons and armour, which was the commodity in demand in a chaotic world, compared to the jewellery that is made from gold.

eBay

Can anyone share any experiences with selling things on eBay?

My wife likes to sew things, and used to make teddy bears. Her friends have been encouraging her to sell her teddy bears online, but we are quite unsure about how to go about doing it. Being in Singapore, is it better to sell on eBay Singapore? How do you go about setting up an account, arranging for payment, and arranging for shipping? I would really appreciate it if anyone can give us some advice on this.

Test Drive

Ever wanted to drive a sports car? At 200 mph? Test Drive allows you to do just that. There are a few sports cars to choose from, each with different acceleration rates and handling characteristics. You choose the one that suits your style of driving. You get to test your driving skills as you race through the mountains, going up and down, down straight roads, through winding roads.

And best of all, you get to race with the police! You have to outrun the police, otherwise dear Mr Policeman will give you a ticket. All the while avoiding other cars (and the occasional truck) on the road (including oncoming traffic) and making your way pass some dangerous curves on the road.

So before you try this out on the roads for real, you may just want to see if you can survive the challenge of going at way above 100 mph through winding roads, while overtaking other cars and avoiding oncoming traffic, and not getting a speeding ticket.

Letters from Iwojima

Watched this movie today. It is the companion to a previous movie, Flag of Our Fathers. And it is by the same director, Clint Eastwood. This time, the movie explores the Battle on Iwojima from the view of the Japanese. It does this through the letters written by the Japanese soldiers stationed on Iwojima. These letters were addressed to their wives, parents, children, etc. It shows the humane side of the Japanese soldiers, that they were like the Americans that they were fighting. All of them (all of us too) have parents, and they had loved ones at home that were waiting for their return. This was expressed quite explicitly in one scene, in which a captured American soldier died holding a letter from his mother.

The movie focused a lot on Lieutenant General Kuribayashi Tadamichi, the overall commander in charge of the island's defence. He was an Army commander put in charge of both Army and Navy forces stationed on the island. Having been stationed in the US before (similar to Admiral Yamamoto Isoroku), he knew the futility of opposing US military and economic power, yet was determined to carry out his order to hold the island of Iwojima. He used his knowledge of the US military to develop a strategy of guerilla warfare designed to deny US forces full use of their technological edge. This proved to be so effective that a battle predicted by the US to take 5 days ended up taking 36 days before the island was captured.

In the movie, it showed that General Kuribayashi brought in Rear Admiral Ichimaru Rinosuke to aid him as the top commander for naval forces stationed on Iwojima. Interestingly, Fuji Television made a documentary drama on him and his involvement in the Battle of Iwojima, titled "硫黄島・戦場の郵便配達” (which translates into "Iwojima - Letters From the Battlefield"). Compared to the movie, this documentary drama was more touching, including the contents of actual letters from Japanese soldiers written when they were stationed on Iwojima. While Clint Eastwood made a great movie, to truly appreciate the human side of the Japanese soldiers stationed on Iwojima, you have to watch the documentary drama by Fuji Television.

A visit to Iwojima will make you appreciate the hardship that the Japanese soldiers had to endure. The weather is hot, there is a lack of water, and the tunnels are dark and some of them quite hot and humid. Having had the opportunity to go into some of these tunnels myself, I must say that I really salute those who spent days, even weeks, in those tunnels. Some of them were so hot and humid that it was difficult to even stay in them for more than 10 minutes. You can see some pictures taken by my friend, Kato Tomoaki, in one of my previous posts here. The whole island is sacred ground, being the final resting place of more than 20,000 Japanese soldiers and over 6000 US soldiers, with the bodies of more than 13,000 Japanese soldiers still not found. The two movies by Clint Eastwood, as well as the documentary drama by Fuji Television, finally gives these soldiers who sacrificed their lives for their countries the remembrance and recognition that is due them. May they rest in eternal peace, and may their spirit be remembered, their memories honoured.

The official site for the movie "Letters From Iwojima"
Another site about the movie "Letters From Iwojima"
"Letters From Iwojima" on Wikipedia

Trivia: Iwojima 硫黄島 is actually read as "Iwotou". However, the US called it Iwojima (proably due to a bad translation, since the Japanese word for "island" 島 can be read as shima/jima or tou), and the name has gained popularity since then. The name Iwotou is still remembered by those from older generations who served in the military, and this knowledge is passed down to the present generations in the Japanese military too. Wikipedia Japan's page on Iwojima also notes the use of the name Iwotou and its transition to being called Iwojima.

JAG

JAG is a TV drama series that started showing in Singapore some time back in the mid-1990s, should be 1995 if I recall correctly. It is about LT Harmon Rabb, who is a naval aviator in the USN, but got a desk job at JAG (Judge Advocate General). He was called upon to investigate various cases, some of which required him to use his skills as a naval aviator.

Although the series was to run for 10 seasons, I only managed to catch the first one. Through the 10 seasons, LT Rabb climbed up the navy ladder, adding bars to his shoulders (getting promoted), while changing professional partners. The first two seasons are now available on DVD, and the third season will be released on DVD on 20 March 2007. I guess over the next two years, we can expect the rest of the series to be released on DVD. You can be sure I will be saving up to get the complete series, to catch up on what I had missed.

The official JAG page at CBS
JAG in Wikipedia

Forgotten Kingdoms MUD

I have been playing this MUD since 2000 (or was it 1999?) As with MUDs in the past, it is text-based, though users with a VT100-capable terminal can use a more advanced set of display (ASCII graphics, rather than all text). This MUD tries to follow AD&D (and now, D&D 3.5) as closely as it can, and is continually implementing rules from D&D as it can be coded. The maps are based on the continent of Faerun of the Forgotten Realms campaign setting. The MUD is run by a core team of administrators (the "Greater Gods") and aided by a team of volunteers (lesser gods). There are also some players who help these "gods" (called "imms") too, forming councils to help newbies, looking into building new areas, or helping out with developing new code.

The code used to be very closely guarded by the core team, but recently, they have started to accept help from other players in developing the code, forming the Code Council. As for areas within the MUD, many areas are made by players and put into the world by the admins. There are quite stringent guidelines on how to make areas so as to conform to the general concept of the MUD. I myself have made a few areas for the MUD.

This MUD is a roleplay-biased MUD. What this means is that power-gaming is frowned upon (actually, discouraged). People are encouraged to interact with each other (rather than with mobs) and roleplay their characters. The imms actively monitor roleplay, and occasionally participate in roleplay to help make it fun and meaningful.

If you are looking for simple fun interacting with people, if you enjoy roleplaying (with lots of typing) and conversation, if you are looking for authentic (or close to authentic) D&D rules, this is the MUD for you.

Second Chance

No, this is not about the clothing brand once seen in Singapore. It is not about life as well. It is about a Japanese TV drama series that ran in 1995 in Japan, and was shown in Singapore as well on Channel 12.

The story is about a mother of three boys (Tanaka Misako), who lost her husband to a car accident. After staying in the company accommodations for quite some time, she decided it was time to move out and stop relying on the goodwill of the company. They moved into a rented apartment, where their neighbour (Akai Hidekazu) happens to be a widower with a daughter. He has problems bringing up his teenage daughter (what do fathers know about daughters?) and she has her own problems bringing up three boys. While the children got to know each other better, love blossomed between the parents.

Being shown quite some time back, it is now hard to find much information about this show. I have been searching the Internet and failed to find anything useful. Anyway, this is its page on jdorama.com. And here is what can be found on the Japanese Wikipedia.

I am a sucker for romantic, heartwarming scenes. This show, if I remember correctly, has quite a few of these. The fact that Tanaka Misako (12 years ago) really suited the role of a pretty young mother helped draw me to the show too.

Theme song, "Tomorrow"
The theme song from the drama
A short clip of the drama on Youtube

Runescape

This is actually quite an old game, it has been online for quite some time now. The original Runescape, also called Runescape Classic now to distinguish it from the present Runescape, is giving way to the new Runescape, which can be accessed here.

Runescape runs on Java, so any Java-capable browser will be able to run it. Like most online games nowadays, you can play Runescape for free, though certain features (such as skills and areas) are only available to paying members.

In Runescape, you can hone your fighting skills by killing mobs (such as goblins, chickens, or other humans) or you can improve at magic by casting spells. Burying bones increases your prayer skill, while making things improves the relevant craft skills. You can make weapons and armour, jewelry, pottery, and even runes (which are needed for casting spells). There are places to explore, ingredients to fine, resources to gather (mining, fishing, cutting wood). Some mobs even send you on quests to help them. And there is also the Wilderness, where PK (player killing) is allowed. It is here where you can pit your combat skills against other players. It is also here where newbies are advised to stay away.

Runescape may not have the great graphics of games like World of Warcraft. It is, however, a relatively simple game, easy to learn, and provides simple fun when you just want to kill some time. Do feel free to check it out, it is free, after all.

Chinese New Year Part 2

Chinese New Year is always a special period. After all, it is a time to get together, meet up with relatives, and catch up with what's going on in the extended family. And of course, the giving of ang baos to the unmarried relatives.

It is a time when I have to work hard so as to make sure my wife does not feel left out during the family gatherings, especially when her understanding of Mandarin is limited, and Teochew is totally out of her league. And of course, it doesn't help when my extended family (grandmothers, aunties and uncles) simply love to speak in Teochew.

Couple this with the fact that we aren't really that close to the extended family, and we don't play cards or mahjong really well (something that the rest seems to enjoy during this festive period), and you can understand why Chinese New Year can be a trying period. Not to mention that we have to keep watching out for relatives asking about when we are going to have kids. It doesn't help when one of my younger uncles just had a daughter (new cousin!) and my cousin is now pregnant.

Yes, Chinese New Year is always a special period.

Japanese dramas

Below is a list of Japanese drama that I used to watch, back in the late 80s and early to mid 90s. They were either shown on Channel 8 or Channel 12. The earlier ones were dubbed in Chinese. Those shown on Channel 12 usually were in Japanese with English subtitles.

教師びんびん物語
(This is about a teacher and his class of elementary school students.)
101回目のプロポーズ
(This is about a 42 year old man, and his 101st matchmaking session.)
男嫌い
(This is about 3 sisters, and their successes/failures in love.)
セカンド・チャンス
(This is about a young widow bringing up her three sons.)
ひらり
(This is about a young girl who hangs out at a sumo school.)
愛していると言ってくれ
(This is about the love story of a blind and deaf girl, if I remember correctly.)
おかみ三代女の戦い
(This is about a young girl being trained to take over as the future lady boss of a traditional inn.)

There's probably some more, but it is hard to remember things from more than 10 years ago, especially when I don't speak Japanese then, the shows were given English or Chinese names, and trying to figure out their Japanese names now can be challenging.

For those who remember any more Japanese drama shown in Singapore during this time, do feel free to share.

Just Follow Law

This is the latest movie by Jack Neo, a local (Singaporean) director (the link is here). It stars Gurmit Singh and Fann Wong, both well-known celebrities in Singapore. This movie is about the civil service here, where everything must be in "black-and-white", where email is the main form of communication (even if you sit in the next cubicle), where you need to fill in forms and wait X number of working days before anything happens, where people avoid making decisions in case it lands them in trouble, where things are pushed from department (or agency) to department in a merry-go-round fashion.

People are forced to cut costs and work within tight budgets, scholars (elites) think they know everything, there is a constant craze to upgrade to avoid becoming obsolete, and rules govern everything. People are told to think out of the box, but no one is willing to bend or break rules for fear of getting themselves into trouble or having to take the blame should something fail.

There are many digs at the civil service in this movie, but none of it is harmful. It is especially close to heart to those who work in or with the civil service, and that includes all those who serve national service (in which two full fears, or more in the past, are spent serving the country). It brings fun to the public by making fun out of the monster called the civil service which we all love to hate but cannot do without.

Fann Wong is especially good in this movie, showing her potential at acting various roles. This time, she acts as the aloft, all-knowing scholar in the first part of the movie. Later, she acted as a man trapped inside a woman's body. Gurmit Singh had a harder time trying to play the woman trapped in a man's body, though.

So if you have time during this festive season, do catch this movie for a good laugh.

Chinese New Year

A happy Chinese New Year to everyone!

This is the new year, according to the Chinese, or lunar, calendar. It is celebrated by Chinese all over the world. This is the year of the pig, the last year in the Chinese zodiac, in which each year is represented by an animal.

Wishing everyone a prosperous year ahead!

14-Year Old Mother

This is actually about a Japanese mini-series. It recently aired in Japan, the title in Japanese is "14才の母" and the official page is here. It is about a 14-year old girl, who got pregnant, and the challenges she had to face from society, as well as how her family members suffered too because of her. Her mother was made fun of by her colleagues. Her father was transferred away from his high post at work. Other children at school were unwilling to play with her younger brother. The matter was made worse because a reporter for a magazine ran a scoop on this.

I can't really talk about this whole series yet, because I have yet to watch all of it. It has already finished airing in Japan, so the only way to watch this would be to either wait for VCDs, or to ask around with Japanese friends if they have taken video recordings of it. If you have watched it, feel free to share your views on the issues brought up by this show.

Valentine's Day

A happy Valentine to everyone out there. If you didn't have a date tonight, not to worry, there is next year, and the next year, so keep on trying! Never give up! Even if there is only a 1% chance, don't give up. If you give up, you have 0%.

GIMP aka GNU Image Manipulation Program

Of all the image manipulation programs, nothing beats GIMP (which is short for GNU Image Manipulation Program). Why? It is FREE! Open source! You don't have to pay a HUGE amount of money just to use it, unlike commercially available programs like Photoshop and Paintshop. And unlike the free MS Paint (that comes with Windows), GIMP offers functions comparable to commercially available products. It has a whole set of filters which are just as able as those provided by Photoshop. The standard image manipulation tools such as select, adjusting colour levels, smudging, burning, and so on are all there. All for the price of one download.

To learn more about GIMP, and download it for a try, click on Wilber below.

Last Episode of "Phua Chu Kang Pte Ltd"

Yesterday was the last episode of the TV series "Phua Chu Kang Pte Ltd". This show, with Gurmit Singh as the main star, has been running in Singapore since 1997, totalling 10 series. It started in 1995, as part of the TV show "Gurmit's World". Ever since, it has won various awards in Singapore, and it seems even gained a bit of fame in the region.

Gurmit plays a renovation contractor named Phua Chu Kang, concerned with making money and making the most out of his money (like, exploiting his employees...) It takes simple, everyday events and turn them into jokes. Phua Chu Kang speaks Singlish, a local dialect of English that mixes English with Chinese (and its dialects) and Malay. So much so, that this character was mentioned by our then-Prime Minister in an attempt to get people to speak proper English.

After so many years, it is time for all good things to come to an end, and the series wrapped up with a reunion of the cast. The end brought about lots of tears, but I am sure that somewhere down the line, they will come up with specials every once in a while to bring this great cast and this great series back to us, even if only for a while.

First in class

I came in top for the course I am attending. It is an achievement to be proud of. But then again, I am also aware that I came in top because of my fellow coursemates. Interacting with them actually helped me to learn a lot more than I ever would learning by myself. Through interactions and discussions with them, I managed to improve myself. Thus, I owe my success not just to my own effort, but also to the help I got from all those attending the course with me. Thank you guys!

Laziness is a spiral

A superior said to me today, that laziness is like a downwards spiral. Once you get into it, it is very hard to get out.

Thinking about it, it is quite true. Once we are used to a slower tempo of life, it is very hard to get back to a fast-paced life. Once we grow complacent, it is hard to motivate ourselves to do something again. It takes a lot of willpower to continue to do something, even when tired or stressed. To me, I am thankful that I have taiji practice. No matter how tired I am, I keep telling myself that I should not miss my practices, for once I miss one, I will grow complacent, and every time I am tired, I will start to convince myself not to go for practices. Before long, I will probably be practising once a week, or even less, as I grow more and more complacent.

And when I apply this to life, it means I don't grow lazy, I don't stop doing something just because I am tired. It means that even when I have time, I find something meaningful to do. Yes, resting is meaningful too. But I know when to rest and when to do something else. That is important because if I allow myself to drop into the laziness spiral, I will have an even harder time trying to climb out.

New Car! Part 4

I think I discovered something about the Honda Airwave today. Nothing important, really, but just thought I want to share this. With the Toyota Vios, I was doing 80km/h at about 2000rpm. But with the Honda Airwave, I was doing only about 70km/h at 2000rpm. For the Vios, at 2500rpm, I was going at 100km/h. With the Airwave, similarly, 2500rpm got me to 100km/h.

This led me to conclude that, the Vios is actually designed for fuel efficiency at 80km/h, while the Airwave is more efficient at either 70km/h, or when going above 100km/h. This is interesting because Singapore's speed limit is 80-90km/h for the expressways. For Japan, which is the market that the Airwave was designed for, the speed limit on normal roads is 60km/h and 120km/h (if I recall correctly). So maybe the Vios is more suited for Singapore conditions, while the Airwave will perform better (in terms of fuel consumption) in Japan.

Does anyone have similar experiences? Or differing views?

New Car! Part 3

Okay, the car review that I promised.

The Honda Airwave is a 1.5l car, with 5 doors (a hatchback). The rear seats can be put down to increase the boot space, or they can be lifted up to fit in tall objects (such as plants) in the rear passenger space. Compared to other 1.5l hatchbacks, the boot space is way bigger, and when the rear seats are lowered, there is even enough space to fit in a bicycle!

Driving it is okay, cars nowadays have automatic transmission and power steering and that more or less makes them all the same when driving, if you are not picky. Accelerating is a bit less powerful than the Vios, though. I guess this is because it has a heavier chassis but the same size engine. The initial pickup is okay, it is the mid range acceleration that is not as good. But the engine is not as noisy (maybe because it is new?) as the Vios. Even when going beyond the 3000 rpm mark.

One thing I like is that the doors are heavier. Not filmsy like the Vios. Makes it feel safer sitting inside the car. Of course, European cars are even more solid, but then, they cost more too.

The moonroof is a great feature, while it cannot open, it gives a great view above. Passengers will enjoy the great view (the driver should be looking ahead, not up!) though the sun in Singapore will mean that it may get hot inside the car. But it does make the car feel like confined.

Fuel consumption so far is about 15km/l. I probably can do better if I take out some stuff from my boot. With a bigger boot, there are now more things in there...