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This is so much better than Blogger.

Same Story, Different Setting

But it was still pretty awesome.

I really love Zach Galifianakis (woot I can spell his full name now). He's such a great comedian. I watched "Due Date" as well and it was hilarious. There's just something about him that makes the film appealing. Haha. Anyway, the sequel was a little bit more raunchy (if you have watched it you'll still remember the grossed-out parts) but the plot was pretty much predictable. You kinda know what's gonna happen next. Hopefully the third film in this franchise ends somewhat differently with a more unique plot. Looking forward!

Rating: 4/5

A Fresh Clean Slate

I'm so thankful that I managed to pass all my modules.

And I might have realised what has caused my so-called "downfall".

Complacency.

Yes, I was probably getting a little complacent and thought that things would turn out the way I thought they would. But of course they didn't, and I was steered off-course.

For HP101, I thought the MCQs were gonna be a little more straightforward. I thought the short-answer questions were really short-answer questions. I thought the lecturer wouldn't test something that isn't that much psychology-based. I was wrong.

For CBC214 (especially), I thought the standard of the paper would be similar to the previous year's. I thought that I would be able to figure out the solutions by referring to the notes like I did during the mid-term. I thought that enzyme kinetics would not appear in the paper because it was only a small section and the lecturer only completed it in the nick of time before semester ended. I was wrong.

For CBC216, I thought that those graphs we plotted would not be tested. I was wrong.

For the HW102A critique assignment, I thought I'd do fine based on my own standards and didn't bother asking my peers to look through and edit it for me like others did. I was wrong.

So you see, complacency has led me to the worst results of my entire university life.

But I'm determined to make it right from now on. As I always tell myself, "Everything happens for a reason", hence I feel that THIS whole debacle is a wake-up call for me. A loud one at that too.

I guess I'm starting on a fresh clean slate, and I really hope that this lesson sinks in my head real deep.

Time to get that GPA up where it should belong.

Ok so timetable planning has started and I must say that the choices for this semester are pathetic. I need to find another module and one for back-up. It's not easy! Plus I thought that Entrepreneurship will be available next semester but it isn't! Gosh.

Time Of My Life

It's like I haven't been to a cinema for half a year and now I'm watching movies like there's no tomorrow. Caught "Kung Fu Panda 2" yesterday!

I thought it was AWESOME. Albeit slightly short in duration (84 minutes). But it was action-packed and funny as hell. Jack Black is a genius!

Rating: 4.5/5

Been wanting to post the next 2 movies I've caught since last week but was too damn lazy to do so.

"Paul" was really, really hilarious. It had a common storyline, but it was still nicely executed. There was a twist near the end of the film too!

Rating: 4/5

Another comic book superhero! Well, I thought it lacked a little punch. A proper badass villian. Loki was...meh. And I still stand that the first 30 minutes of the film was the best part.

Rating: 3.5/5

Went to Tampines yesterday with my Sis to eat Popeyes. Don't ask me why the hell I went all the way there to eat Popeyes because I kinda regret it now. The chicken was disappointing! KFC beats it hands down. The fries wasn't anything spectacular either, they taste exactly the same as McDonald's twister fries. Sad.

Regrets

They say, "Live your life with no regrets".

But many of us just can't. Somehow.

I have a few regrets in my life -- big, small, or somewhere in the middle.

My biggest regret so far, is not spending more time with my late Dad, getting to know him better, having more father-and-son bonding activities. I regret hating my Dad in the past when I was still a young kid. I don't know why I dislike him, maybe it was due to me not understanding him better. I wasn't as sensible back then.

We always regret not cherishing our loved ones when they're still alive. It's always the case, sadly.

Another regret in my life was not continuing to sit for piano grade certifications. I sort of quit when I failed my Grade 6 practical exam. It was horrendous. I didn't really practise very hard for it! If I had, I would have had a Grade 8 certification 6 years ago. Probably even a Diploma should I carry on. I could have given private piano lessons and earning some part-time keep. And a good keep at that, too!

The next regret, is one that we always have in our education lives -- not studying hard enough for the exams. I really really have deep regrets for not mugging as hard as I should have been for this past semester. And as a result, dragging my GPA down, possibly my dream of going for overseas exchange even. I think I did quite well for my mid-terms, to be frank, but somehow I got distracted by the GE and other nonsensical stuff during the lead-up to the exams. Oh well, I can only blame myself right?

I need to reflect on what has gone wrong and formulate some concrete solutions to pull up my GPA to where it should be.

On a sidenote, the holidays are here and there are lots of things I wanna do but I just don't know where to start from. I wanna write some new songs too but I keep getting writer's block. Hooks and melodies constantly form in my head but there are no lyrics to fill them in! :(

I also wanna try whipping up some of my favourite dishes like seafood zuppa but I'm just too lazy to start. Wish I could be like Pravin who just bakes when he wants to!

Who Run The World?

Hello blog, it's been a while!

Exams are coming and I'm so guilty for not mugging as hard as I should be.

Must be the distractions.

GE is coming and I haven't been more excited to cast my vote and make a difference.

Anyway, following the GE is one of my distractions.

The next distraction -- Buddy Rush. Though I think I'm not playing it as frequently these few days... But I managed to somehow get 2 of my friends addicted to the game. *Planning who'll be my next victim*

By the way, have you heard Beyoncé's new single? Apparently it's on its way to become a flop. Even though it's kinda hot, the whole song is just Bey's vocals layering over Major Lazer's "Pon De Floor". What a shame.

So Glee is back and the episode this week was kinda disappointing for me. It was boring and draggy. Hopefully next week's 90-minute episode will redeem the show.

Eargasm

Britney's new album electrifies and more.

The seventh studio effort from the Pop Princess herself is her best effort yet. It's as good as "In The Zone" and "Blackout".

If there's any artist who can pull off and introduce dub-step into the mainstream, it's Britney.

Britney loves to experiment with new sounds, and this can be clearly heard in tracks like the first single "Hold It Against Me", "Inside Out", "How I Roll" and the flute-heavy guitar-driven mid-tempo "Criminal".

Yet, there are also radio-ready songs such as the second single "Till The World Ends" written by Ke$ha and "I Wanna Go".

"Drop Dead (Beautiful)" reminded me of the "Blackout" album due to it containing some urban influences. But the heavily auto-tuned rap verse from upcoming rapper Sabi spoilt it all.

"The Big Fat Bass", produced by none other than the Black Eyed Peas' front-man Will.I.Am, seemed like a BEP leftover, and Britney ended up sounding like Fergie. However, the use of heavy bass, drums and piano did kinda make up for it.

The closing track, "Criminal", is one of the most outstanding tracks in the album. It doesn't sound like anything else out there. I bet even Lady GaGa would be pawing over the track, wishing it was her song.

There's just one mistake. "Till The World Ends" shouldn't be the second single. "I Wanna Go" has more potential in the charts as it's far more catchy with the happy whistles. But I'm guessing it will be the third single judging from how popular it is among the fans.

From the standard tracklisting, I would say the mid-tempo ballad "Inside Out" is my favourite track. Billboard did a great job producing it.

Although Britney's voice was auto-tuned throughout, it made the tracks signature "Britney". But if you would like to hear more raw vocals of her, do check out the bonus tracks.

Overall, "Femme Fatale" is a real, solid effort.

Aftermath

ваканция свърши.

That translates to "recess is over". It's Bulgarian by the way. And the end of recess signals the arrival of the examinations.

I'm so screwed for the mid-terms. So, so, screwed.

Let's check what I have accomplished for the past week:

1. Study for 214 mid-term.

2. Study for 211 mid-term (topics 2 and 3 done only).

3. Completed experiment for HW project.

4. Finished my critique (which I thought was kinda crappy).

5. Did my lab report.

6. Slacked.

There you go. It's not a lot of work done.

 Anyway, American Idol Season 10 has kicked off into its Top 12 and I am not at all impressed by it. The judges are useless. I think I can be a judge if it's just praising everyone even if they're horrible. Where's the reality check?? In my honest opinion, NONE of the finalists should be in the Top 12. It's THAT dreadful.

The other source of entertainment for me, Glee, will be on hiatus for an entire month. Bummer. But this week's episode was awesome. I gotta give it props.

So before I end this ranting post, I just wanna wish Japan a speedy recovery, and hope that its numerous victims can get access to food and water as soon as possible.

#prayforjapan

Till The World Ends

The spam messages on my Cbox can be quite amusing sometimes.

As you can see on the image above, I NEED TO THINK AND DO MORE.

I've been slacking weekend after weekend even though the mid-terms for my cores are looming in the near distance. Allow me to cite an example -- All I did this weekend was complete my lab proforma and the risk assessment for next week's lab session, went through a little bit of Electrochemistry notes, and read Chapter 3 of 214 (without understanding a single thing).

There you have it. Pathetic huh?

At this rate I'm going, I'll probably fail both mid-terms.

DO MORE GARY!!!

Anyway, results for my Psychology mid-term were out and I got 82. Then I saw that the average score was 81.79 and the median was 84. So should I be happy or upset? Confused.

Avril's new album comes out tomorrow!! I'll definitely be getting it but I'm gonna do a review now because I've already heard most of the album.

So Avril said this record is more acoustic-sounding, and her first single "What the Hell" was not reflective of the album. Which, in fact, is true. "WTH" sounds out-of-place as compared to the other moody, slightly stripped down tracks like "Push" and "Goodbye".

Can't blame her though, she has been putting her record label on blast over delaying her new album for over a year, and forcing her to include more radio-friendly tracks in the album. As a result, it doesn't sound as cohesive as it can be.

It was told that Avril was pushing for "Push" as the follow-up single to "WTH", but it turned out that the more upbeat and catchy "Smile" was confirmed to be the single.

Label politics.

I bet more and more artists will soon break away from their labels and release music independently. They'll have more control over their creative direction. And that's what true artists want, isn't it?

Well, I have been an avid supporter of Avril since her debut album wayyyyy back in 2001. And I really like most of the songs in this new record. My favourites would be "Push", "Wish You Were Here", "I Love You", "Stop Standing There" and actually "Smile" as well. Haha.

"Goodbye Lullaby" will be the first CD I'm purchasing in 2011. Next up, BRITNEY. Just another 3 more weeks to go......

Big Upset.

2nd selection is totally bullshit.

You have 5 spots and CBC students can't apply???

Damn you.

Now there's not even a sliver of hope left for me for the rest of this year.

I'm done.