My niece

I became an uncle today!

My sister-in-law gave birth to a baby girl today. Weighing almost 3.5kg, she is a big baby, a few days overdue (originally due on 17 Apr).

Earth Day baby... looking forward to seeing her in Japan when I next go there.

My wife's blog entry on our niece

World of Warcraft

I tried out World of Warcraft yesterday, just to see what the hype is all about. It is a good thing that Blizzard is offering 10-day free trial for this game, just for people like me to see if they like the game, before they commit to paying a monthly subscription to play.

Now I know what is so addictive about this game, and why it is the success that it is. Compared to CRPGs like Neverwinter Nights, the learning curve for WoW is much easier, and survivability at the lower levels is not as challenging. And when players can survive, they find the game more interesting (yes, it is had to find a game interesting if you keep dying and have to role up new characters). Couple that with the various quests available in the game to keep new players occupied as they explore the world and learn along the way. Plus, having the option to talk to people and group up makes it a more social game, compared to those that log on to servers capable of handling only up to a certain number of concurrent players.

In a way, those who play MUDs (like Forgotten Kingdoms) will enjoy this, since it brings the elements of MUDs (combat and social aspects) and add in fancy graphics. You get to learn skills, level up and improve in stats, talk to people, kill monsters, loot and sell, make items, etc. The only downside of this game is the subscription. It is based on monthly subscription, rather than time spent online. Which is advantageous to the addict (who may be playing hours each day) but puts the casual gamer (who plays an hour or two every few days) at a disadvantage. Maybe Blizzard should look into offering two types of subscription plans, the monthly plan now, as well as a pay-as-you-play type of plan for the casual gamer.

WoWWiki, an excellent source of information

她以为她很美丽 by 黄舒骏

I was introduced to 黄舒骏 (Huang Shujun) by a friend of mine that I have known since secondary school. I got to know her through a micromouse competition, and she introduced me to 男女之间 by 黄舒骏, and I thought the song was witty but true. I got interested in 黄舒骏 and came upon some of his other songs, and this one is one of those witty ones.

她以为她很美丽 by 黄舒骏

禁不起一片寂寞飘落心底　
我实在没出息　
不可以，我一定要专心
为什么春天加上青春期　
我就克制不了自己　
不可以，真是罪大恶极
爸爸说考上大学后　
春天才会真的来临
到时候要交什么样的女孩子不可以
她以为她很美丽　
其实只有背影还可以　
我一点都不在意
她以为她很美丽　
其实只有头发还可以　
我理都不想理
人家说我们考上医学系的学生最得意　
蹲在家里　自然会有人来相亲
为什么我已念到六年级　
却没有一点动静　
看上我的只有病人和细菌
他们说将来开业赚大钱　
春天才会真的来临
到时候要娶什么样的女孩子不可以
自古都是英雄爱美女　
不是英雄也爱美女
但这年头的英雄和美女如何定义
是谁曾经这么告诉我　
内在美获得最后胜利
谁知道你在说的时候　
心里想的什么东西
路上车子价值越名贵　
里面女人就越美丽　
什么道理，我就没这个福气
今年过年我就参拾柒　
拥有事业和学历　
为什么，就是没有爱的讯息
究竟我还需要多少努力　
春天才会真的来临
到时候难道只要是女孩子就可以
她以为她很美丽　
其实只有眼睛还可以　
我理都不想理
她以为她很美丽　
其实只有衣服还可以　
我理都不想理

男女之间 by 黄舒骏 Huang Shujun

Another of those songs from the 90s that I used to listen to. This one is funny, it describes the love-hate relation between man and woman.

男女之间 by 黄舒骏

女人最怕男人是一堆沙猪
男人最怕女人脑袋像浆糊
女人通常都是感情的动物
男人大半都是生活的侏儒
女人可以爱到义无反顾 男人只能爱到相当程度
女人失恋容易另寻出路 男人失恋可就万劫不复

男女之间永远说不清楚 互相厌恶又互相追逐
彼此可以找出千万个错误 却是五十步笑百步

女人对爱要求需索无度 男人总是显得马马虎虎
女人好不容易决定开始 男人却好像刚要结束
女人的泪可以融化冰雪
男人的哭却是山崩地裂
女人的坚强是金石不如
男人的温柔是沧海一粟
女人的胸前是男人的家
男人的肩膀是女人的床
女人希望男人像一棵大树
男人渴望的是精神支柱

男女之间永远说不清楚 互相厌恶又互相追逐
彼此可以找出千万个错误 却是五十步笑百步

女人说谎保证是天衣无缝
男人说谎终究是百密一疏
女人懂得演戏是一种天赋
男人永远败在经验不足
WOO......
女人认为爱情是一种付出
男人总是把它当作一种征服
女人好不容易决定开始
男人却好像刚要结束

问 (Wen) by 陈淑桦 Chen Shuhua

Back in the 90s, I used to listen to the radio a lot. Mostly Chinese songs, though. Here is one of those songs that I liked.

问 by 陈淑桦

谁让你心动　谁让你心痛
谁会让你偶尔想要拥他在怀中
谁又在乎你的梦　谁说你的心事他会懂
谁为你感动

如果女人　总是等到夜深
无悔付出青春　他就会对你真
是否女人　永远不要多问
她最好永远天真　为她所爱的人

谁让你心动　谁让你心痛
谁会让你偶尔想要拥他在怀中
谁又在乎你的梦　谁说你的心事他会懂
谁为你感动

只是女人　容易一往情深
总是为情所困　终于越陷越深
可是女人　爱是她的灵魂
她可以奉献一生　为她所爱的人
只是女人　容易一往情深
总是为情所困　终于越陷越深
可是女人　爱是她的灵魂
她可以奉献一生　为她所爱的人
可是女人　爱是她的灵魂
她可以奉献一生　为她所爱的人

Pampered Singaporeans

I happened to come across this article when scanning through Today. It reminds me of how pampered we Singaporeans really are.

We complain when the MRT is crowded. But like what some will say, you haven't seen crowded until you take a train during Tokyo's peak hour. And if trains aren't frequent enough in Singapore, the Japanese town I stayed in had four trains per hour. The Japanese island I stayed on had one bus per hour. If you didn't want to wait for the bus, you walk to the ferry terminal.

We complain when traffic on the roads are bad. So what does the government do? They slap on some more ERP gantries, in response to our demands to improve traffic flow. And what do we do next? We complain about ERP. We obviously don't know about traffic conditions in Bangkok, or Los Angeles. And the world is full of roads that charge tolls for usage (eg. turnpikes in the US, major highways in Japan).

Maybe it is time to just wake up, to get out of our little well, and see the world for what it is, and realise for ourselves how fortunate we really are. We may not be the best place to live in (the world is large enough, and we all have our own different preferences) but we certainly is one of the more convenient places to live in. And sometimes, we just have to grow up and live with the fact that not everything in life can be what we want it to be.