Directions.

How many people can say they know exactly where they'll be maybe 5 years from now, or know exactly what is to happen, when and where? I highly doubt anyone can. Well, unless he or she claims to have supernatural, psychic insights or something of the sort. But even then, we don't and will never know exactly where we're headed until it happens and *BAM!* realization throws cold water in your face.

Life is like a maze of some sort. You make a turn and see a corridor in front of you, but when you reach the wall at the end of it, there's another decision to make - to turn right or left. Once you're in the maze, you have a whole series of decisions to make to finally reach your destination. And when you do, another destination commences and you get thrown into yet another maze.

In this loony world of possibilities, anything can happen at anytime. But I do believe one thing strongly, that things happen for a reason. Spiritually speaking, God knows what's best for one. Knowing that works wonders when one has no clue as to why certain things transpire in their life. But at other times, the pile of questions one has overshadows all logical thoughts or thinking processes and leaves one in a daze and completely muddled up.

And in spite of all this, I'd rather not consult a crystal ball for what's to happen in the future (if there ever were such a ball). Maybe we're not meant to have a map of our life with the directions scribbled on them. We're meant to figure these out for ourselves as we tread along the path of life. We're all born with a blank sheet. When we leave this world, we have a map of the directions of our life.

Phelps-piration.

First of all, congratulations to Phelps on having won 8 gold medals. (like he'd ever chance upon this humble blog of mine. But well, you never know.) It was sort of expected though, given his performance in the 2004 olympics (his first shot at the medals). One can really grow and develop himself or herself within a span of a few years if he or she sets her mind, heart and soul to it. Anything is possible. Success comes to those who think they can succeed.

In any case, I subjected myself to the sport of swimming for the first time in maybe 6 years today. I still prefer jogging, but swimming truly works out every inch of your anatomy. Truly and surely. Well, that's if you actually bother to swim laps and not float in the water and look pretty. I'm going to have to endure the aches for some time. I feel fulfilled though. Speaking of swimming, attached below is a video that'll crack you up for sure. A classic, might I add.



Cheers!

The Season of Sunglasses and Umbrellas.

The heat from the 1pm sunshine is enough to fry an egg or a patty on the sidewalk these days. Even if one is indoors enjoying the bliss of a personal air-conditioning system in one's abode, one stare outside the window in the afternoon is enough to make one shudder. Hence the remarkable rise in numbers of umbrellas, classy sunglasses and well, people clad in sun-proof clothing (less clothing). Sunglasses do work for multiple reasons. Eye protection from UV rays is one thing. It also causes the brain to interpret the external heat as more tolerable (due to the shaded effect or the feel of one being in a shade) and hence they perspire less. My personal theory. Logic or not, that's for you to decide.

It feels as though human beings have this innate need to create problems and then fuss over them. Global warming wouldn't exist without the involvement of thousands of millions of people burning fuels excessively and unnecessarily or refusing to do something as simple as recycling a piece of paper. And then we complain about the heat and the suffering we have to endure. More people should give the song 'Man in The Mirror' by Michael Jackson a thorough listen. The chorus, especially. I've pasted it below.

I'm Starting With The Man In
The Mirror
(Ooh!)
I'm Asking Him To Change
His Ways
(Ooh!)
And No Message Could Have
Been Any Clearer
If You Wanna Make The World
A Better Place
(If You Wanna Make The
World A Better Place)
Take A Look At Yourself And
Then Make A Change
(Take A Look At Yourself And
Then Make A Change)

Anyway, that's about it for today's random rambling. Cheers! And God Bless.

The Mummy - Flop.

This entry is my critique of the movie 'The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor' so if you've yet to catch the movie or are contemplating watching it, continuing to read on is strongly unadvised.

0.5 stars out of 5 is what I would give the movie. This is me being completely honest. The lines used in the movie sounded like they were being read out by amateur actors from a horribly assembled manuscript. They sounded over-rehearsed to the point that they lost their fresh, crisp feel and it didn't help that the dialogues were cliche and predictable. I could predict what the actors were going to utter more often than not. It was that bad. Ok, I'll give some credit to the special effects and what not. But the delivery was just thumbs down. I enjoyed munching on my popcorn more than watching what was being shown on the screen. I very much prefer the older two versions of The Mummy.

Anyway, that's about it for now. Cheers!

Pleasurable Kneading.

I just realized my post title can be interpreted in several ways. I could be referring to kneading dough to make, say, pizza, which I, for some absurd reason, found immense pleasure in. Or it could be another sort of pleasure from kneading. Up to your interpretation. By pleasurable kneading in this case, I'm referring to the lovely massage I went for today. My very first massage. At a discounted rate thanks to Sharifah's voucher.

My masseur happened to be a woman from China who obviously conversed in Chinese and only Chinese. Now how do I convey the message that she's applying pressure to my muscles (or flabs) to the extent that my nerve cells signal to my brain the presence of immense pain? - my very first thought when I entered the private room. My second thought was how many articles of clothing am I supposed to remove exactly. It was my first massage. How was I supposed to be knowledgeable about something of this sort?! They should have a poster with the specifics. Yes they should. However the ambience of the room was lovely, with the soothing music playing in the background and the scent from the aromatherapy candles.

On the whole, it was an enlightening and tension-relieving experience. I'm itching to go for a second massage. Now all I do is wait for a stable job in the future or hope that I get a discount voucher some time soon. OR some kind soul could sponsor it. Massages are rather expensive. Cheers!