今天我们都是四川人

Why am I not there? Like I was when the WTC collapsed back in 2001, to do what little bit I could for the victims, or the rescue dogs, and to witness the outpouring of compassion as well as a show of unity and kindred spirit in a country so massive and so diverse in ethnicity like China.

An SMS that pledges "今天我们都是四川人" (today, we're all Sichuanese) has been circulating among the Chinese, calling for donations in cash, in kind or in manpower. Indeed, I think most Chinese at home and abroad must feel like this, wanting to do something for the quake victims, myself included.

What is even more touching - it made me tear - was the 100,000 won donation from a pair of South Korean sisters, which was equivalent to USD100, which was equivalent to an entire year's allowance money that they had saved.

In a message to the Chinese Consulate General in Busan, they said:

"Please deliver the money to the children in Sichuan's earthquake-hit areas and express our blessings. I saw the damage by the massive earthquakes in Sichuan on the TV news. So many people died and so many houses collapsed. I am so worried about you. Cheer up, my young friends in China."

And Peru, so far away, declares 19 May a national mourning day for the quake victims.

Not forgetting that in spite of their own suffering, quake survivors are taking care of the foreign media on-location, as described by NZ journalist, Jon Johnson:

"A few boys came up to us and offered us boiled eggs. They didn't want us to go hungry."

There really is hope in this world.

Rebirth

One of the most poignant images on the 10 o'clock news tonight: a girl pulled out from underneath the rubble after 40 hours celebrates her 20th birthday today. The rescue team broke out in a birthday song to wish her well.

Like the old Chinese saying goes 大难不死必有后福. She's a lucky one. I guess even God couldn't bear to put an end to her earthly existence on the very day when she was thrust into it only a mere two decades ago; instead, He grants her a new lease of life.

A true rebirth indeed.

茂县 萝卜寨

Exactly 11 months ago on 13 Jun 2007, we were at 萝卜寨 (Luobo Village) in 茂县 (Maoxian), which is the oldest village of the Qiang minority tribe, characterised by yellow mud houses (the walls of which are mixed with cow dung for warmth in winter).

It was one of the most enjoyable of my trips, ever. I mean it ... the remoteness of the place (that translates to tranquility ... and after two days of fighting aggressive Chinese tourists at 九寨沟 I could really use some peace and quiet), the uniqueness of the culture, the friendly people, the fun we had fooling around and the ever-smiling girl in the picture here ... sigh ...

Yesterday, 茂县 was devastated by the Sichuan Great Earthquake. I'm pretty sure 萝卜寨 wasn't spared. I wonder how these great people we met 11 months ago are doing ... how my friend is doing in 成都. Gosh, there were still aftershocks measuring up to 6.1 this afternoon! People are still afraid to go home.

Hope the rescue efforts will not suffer any further setback. Hope things will return to normal soon. The Chinese Red Cross is appealing for donations.

Everyone pictured here (except for us and the kids in the centre picture) are from 萝卜寨 in 茂县. The fact that I've visited this region and Chengdu before puts this particular earthquake incident much closer to my heart. I'm following the developments very closely and I must say Twitter is a pretty neat tool for bits and pieces of news from Chengdu, and kudos to the Shanghaiist for their prompt updates.

At least I know now the pandas at Wolong are safe.

900 students buried ...

It must be around the time I left Novena Square this afternoon after a hearty meal of Japanese food that the earthquake happened at 2.28 pm.

It was in Wenchuan, some 100km northwest of Chengdu. It is also home to, and the natural habitat of, the giant pandas at the Wolong Nature Reserve. No news from the reserve because communication lines were down.

Major tremors were felt in Chengdu, people were hurt, electricity were cut, phone lines were down. I wonder how my friend is ...

But the 900 hundred students still buried under the rubble of a collapsed school in Dujiangyan ... my prayers are with them.

243 days ago, a major quake hit a spot just off Sumatera, the tremors of which I felt. I was afraid. Imagine the horror and trauma the affected residents must be suffering from now.

Love Knows No Distance

Isn't it amazing that the very person on your mind 2,000 miles away signs in at the very moment your mouse pointer hovers over his name on the MSN Messenger window.

And Love Knows No Distance plays on TV.
Reflect.

Red Dusk :: 红昏

O pray! the eaves burn

amber, dusk beckons

...

我抓不住

我抓不住
因此
我快失去
放弃
he's slipping from my fingertips
back into the pool
of 1.3B

Pull The Pin Tour, Singapore

Finally my few pix of the Stereophonics gig at Fort Canning Park :)

Stereophonics: My first 08 concert!

Fauzie messaged me on Sunday evening. "So are you free tomorrow?"

"Yeah, sure. Unless there's a last minute meeting." I was thinking more in the line of if I had a 4 pm meeting with Big Boss, then it's likely to go on beyond 6, 7 PM. But he's on leave this week so I'm pretty safe.

"So you're free for Sterephonics concert then?"

Woo hoo! "You mean you have tickets?" I had to make sure that she didn't mean for us to buy the more expensive last minute tickets.

Indeed, Fauzie's sis managed to wrestle some free tix from her employer AXN, which is one of the event's sponsors. So we rocked Monday night away at Fort Canning Park!

I'm not too familiar with Stereophonics' newer stuff, though I was constantly spinning their older albums on my older iPod. But once the music started, it didn't matter anymore if I knew any of their songs. They simply rocked!

The audience went wild. There were a lot of ang mohs who made a very happening albeit rowdy crowd. Everyone was dancing and hopping right from the opening act (Singapore's The Great Spy Experiment) and pushing against each other with our sweat-drenched bodies. Hmm ... I can't say that I didn't enjoy TGSE but their songs all sounded almost the same. Just continuous guitar drifts and sorta mangled noise ... in fact, most Singapore's homegrown alternative/rock bands are like this. With the exception of perhaps Electrico and one or two of the more established ones - they at least have melody to their music. Well, but that's just my opinion.

Yeah! The weather was terrible. I think even if we had stood still, we would still perspire till we dehydrate. I even felt faint at certain points but once Stereophonics got it going, the adrenalin rush kicked in and it was nothing but just ... RAAAAWWWWKKKKK!!!!!

We hung around for a bit after the concert to see if we could salvage anything from the stage as they dismantled it. Lucky Pauline and Aisyah got guitar picks (dunno if it's Kelly Jones'??) Some of the other girls got the setlist printouts which had been glued to the floor ... unrelenting, Fauzie and Aisyah stuck around near the caravan where the band was chilling after the show.

Pauline and I left the girls at about 11 PM and by midnight, we received a text from Fauzie, "I took a picture with him!" Damn, lucky girl! Kelly Jones was damn hot last night. Nothing to do with the leather jacket that he insisted on donning even in the heat of the night (for whatever reason) ... but his perspiration-drenched chiseled countenance was ... ahhhh ... hehe ... Fauzie, I'm jealous!!!! (^__^)

Okie, I've got some pix of the concert (I stopped snapping somewhere in the middle of the first song though) but they're still stuck in the camera. Will have them up when I have the mood to extract them, okie?

Library Addiction?

Think I'm addicted to the National Library at Bras Basah (one of a million changes I notice are taking place in me. I never used to like libraries. Especially not spending long hours in them. But then, I'm changing as a person ... for better or for worse, we'll see ...)

So here I am again ... continuing the research I was doing last week, although it's not entirely necessary this week and I could have stayed home, perspiring in the intense afternoon heat (don't like the thought of contributing to global warming so refrain from air-con until I cannot tahan ... hehe ...)

So I've chosen to escape to the cool tranquility of the National Library (see, it's okay if others are contributing to global warming cuz with or without me, it's happening anyway right?)

Besides, where I am, it's the spot with a view. So why not?

世界上最遥远的距离

今天在朋友的博客上看到了这首情诗。觉得很感人，因为知己偶尔也有感受到这首诗所形容的心情。好难受啊！

还记得曾经在《凡间新仙人》电视剧里听过这首诗的一小段。当时就觉得它把牛郎织女的爱情形容的非常好--好惨哦！当然，我希望知己的爱情故事不会那么悲哀。但未来有谁知道呢 ...

世界上最遥远的距离
不是 生与死的距离
而是 我站在你面前 你不知道我爱你

世界上最遥远的距离
不是 我站在你面前 你不知道我爱你
而是 爱到痴迷 却不能说我爱你

世界上最遥远的距离
不是 我不能说我爱你
而是 想你痛彻心脾 却只能深埋心底

世界上最遥远的距离
不是 我不能说我想你
而是 彼此相爱 却不能够在一起

世界上最遥远的距离
不是 彼此相爱 却不能够在一起
而是 明知道真爱无敌 却装作毫不在意

世界上最遥远的距离
不是 树与树的距离
而是 同根生长的树枝 却无法在风中相依

世界上最遥远的距离
不是 树枝无法相依
而是 相互了望的星星 却没有交汇的轨迹

世界上最遥远的距离
不是 星星之间的轨迹
而是 纵然轨迹交汇 却在转瞬间无处寻觅

世界上最遥远的距离
不是 瞬间便无处寻觅
而是 尚未相遇 便注定无法相聚

世界上最遥远的距离
是鱼与飞鸟的距离
一个在天 一个却深潜海底

手机

The mobile phone has become a formidable "secret" weapon for teenagers. I find this quote from the book I'm reading (about China's Gen Y) amusing.

"So there are some things that you can talk to your parents about, and some things that you can't. So what can you talk to your parents about?"

"My cellphone fee."

And the cellphone is used to talk about things that he cannot tell his parents. The irony of things.

At the Bras Basah Library ...

Am doing some research work at the library. Interesting subject for this project we're planning for this year on Asian youth.

As I'm reading up on China's Generation Y, 3 girls to my diagonal right are in intense discussion (quite loudly) on some serious subject ... something about dissecting ... medical students? And this guy next to me had been pounding furiously on his laptop. Now he's taking a break.

I need a break too. Can feel a dull throb creeping into the usual cranny of my skull. I'm getting distracted.

00:00 11:11 22:22

... there're only three such occasions everyday. And they last only but a minute.

Isn't it amazing that on such rare occasions that your eyes choose to look at the digital clock - on your PC, your mobile, your desktop ... - at that very exact moment of 00:00 and 11:11 and 22:22.

For one minute (perhaps less), I held my gaze. 22:22. And I thought of nothing. Absolute nothing for a minute. Emptiness for a minute. It was wonderful.

And if I could only have 3 minutes of nothingness everyday, perhaps I shall regain my sanity.

Random thot

"Love is ... when I don't know why I like you."

Return of Jordan the Sexy Knight!

Haha ... I thought I'd never get the chance to see them in concert ever ...

But the New Kids On The Block are reuniting for a tour! Of course they're not gonna come to Singapore (they did in 1992) but I'd be seriously thinking about attending one in the US. After all, they are my favouritest band ... and didn't I go see NSYNC in America too and they're also my favouritest band? ^_^

(L-R) Joe McIntyre, Jonathan Knight, Donnie Wahlberg, Jordan Knight, Danny Wood

Visit the NKOTB official website: http://www.nkotb.com

Love poem from Ono no Komachi

[Original]

夢ぢには

あしもやすめず

かよへども

うつつにひとめ

見しごとはあらず

[English translation]

Though I go to you

ceaselessly along dream paths

The sum of those trysts

is less than a single glimpse

granted in the waking world.

[Meaning]

I go often to you in my dreams, but I never see you in the real world.

ハチミツとクローバー Hachimitsu to Kurōbā

I'm deeply moved by the final episode.

The sculpture of an angel that Morita makes for Hagumi before leaving for his round-the-world trip, holding a scroll with words of encouragement for her to pick up the paint brush again after a bad accident damages the nerves in her right hand.

How Takemoto uses what is closest to Hagu's heart - art - for her rehab to get those nerves working again.

The happiness that Mayama deserves for being so generously and selflessly in love with Rika, and finally being accepted by her.

How Takemoto almost misses the precious gift that Hagu, whom he has secretly been in love with for 2 years, has packed for him - a farewell gift, a good luck charm - as he boards the bus for a career with the Miedai carpenters.

As Takemoto lifts up slice after slice of white bread to find stuck onto sweet honey, a four-leaf clover, then two, then three, and more ...

"There are so many four-leaf clovers inside although I could only find one of them after searching for an entire day." -- Takemoto

... and he sobs (I did too. Who wouldn't?)

I've never thought much of the Hagumi character. She bears a fragile appearance, and her quiet disposition and pensiveness sometimes make her scenes dull and colourless (ironically, since she's a painter).

But Hagumi's strong willpower shines in this last scene. And I finally see, in reflection, how much bearing she has had on shaping Takemoto as a person, whose character is pivotal to this story, and who is aptly so, the narrator.

It's a cool show. Brings me all the way back to school.
"The day when everything turns into memories will eventually come. However, I will probably remember the precious time we spent together." -- Takemoto

Besides, Mukai Osamu (Mayama-kun) is the BEST! So 帅! Haha ... Go watch.

爱 ...

Last day in Bombay

Sianz!
Our flight leaves at midnight ... this wanderer's heart does not wish to leave but leave it must.
Sighz ...