Phil Collins - Against All Odds

The Wallflowers - One Headlight

These two songs played in this order on radio today on my drive home. A traffic jam never felt so surreal during that slice of time.

Last night I received the most interesting note to have ever dropped in my deviantART inbox. Title? Copyright Violation.

Silencers,

Your deviation, listed below, has been removed from deviantART due to a violation of our policies:

URL: [link]
Title: Ghost, Wallpaper
Submitted: 2005-02-09 10:40:09 am

Your deviation was removed because it violated one of the following policies:

1. Deviants are responsible for securing the necessary third-party arrangements which allow the submissions to deviantART that are derivative works based on that artists works. Without that arrangement made prior to submission then the deviation is not legally allowed to be submitted.

2. deviantART does not allow the submission of copywritten material without the securing of the necessary third-part arrangements. This means that if a deviant submits the work of another artist, without first obtaining permission, and displaying that permission on deviantART, then the submission is considered a rip.

deviantART enforces a zero tolerance policy in regards to violations of our submission policy and therefore will take the actions that we deem necessary on a case by case basis. There is a possibility that you will be banned from interactivity on deviantART therefore it is suggested that you visit your user page to see if this is in fact the case.

If you feel that you are receiving this in error, or have questions regarding it, then visit the deviantART Help Desk in order to submit an inquiry. It should be noted that replies to this note will go unanswered and your only course of action is the deviantART Help Desk!

–
deviantART Staff

Needless to say I was shocked beyond belief. I mean, come on! That wallpaper was made from my own sketch! So I sent a request to the Help Desk and about 15 minutes later I got another message that says:

That deviation was undeleted 6 seconds after the first deletion. No policy was violated.

Bwahhahahaha, there goes the excitement.

Though I have to admit I felt quite cool for a while to receive an official message saying I commited cyber-crime, especially when it regards intellectual property, lol.

I have a few things to clarify. If you are a personal friend of mine, then I’m sure we have rubbed each other the wrong way every once in a while. Whether or not the fault is mine, I’m sorry it happened and hopefully we can ‘discard the murky and take the clean’* :p

Just in case, I’d like to let you know that I’m only human, and I can’t afford to please everyone. Which also means I don’t expect everyone to be able to satisfy me. I’ll accept, befriend and love for who you are, not who you’re supposed to or trying to be. As a friend, I’m not too fond of pretending and showing you someone that pleases you all the time. I’d like to be honest, and by doing so, perhaps I might hurt some feelings, but it’s better than for you to find out that I’ve been lying.

First things first, I’m not funny. I steal jokes, lines and other forms of humour. I use them a lot, though I never have claimed them as my own. Of course, I do come up with some corny shit once in a while, but a wacky blood doesn’t exactly flow in these veins. I want attention and it’s easy and quick to get them by being funny, so that’s why.

I am not wise. Experienced, maybe. But compared to the people I’m surrounded, with, my ‘experience’ is dwarfed and I’d ridicule it’s minimal amount myself. If I ever sound wise at all, I’m just citing whatever it is I found in a book I read, or what I heard someone said. I don’t come up with quotable quotes myself that often.

I suck at poetry or any form of exquisite literature. I’ve difficulty understanding a beautiful cryptic piece, let alone compose one as such. If you see/hear me giving a somewhat ‘insightful’ opinion know that I’m just pulling your leg, and it’s my way of saying ‘Duh…what’s that mean again?’ .

I can’t tolerate silent treatment. And I’m not inclined to give you any. Why? Because silent treatment isn’t helpful. If I have a problem with you, I’ll hint it to you. I will get you to ask me ‘what’s wrong’ and then I’ll talk. Though I don’t expect you to hint the same way I do, I expect you to come up to me and voice out your concerns. Shutting up and avoiding it isn’t going to solve anything.

I don’t even have to start about running away from problems. If I have a problem with you, I’ll take it to you. And I hope that if you have a problem with, you will come to me so we can settle it.

I’m not good at reading people. And hints that are too vague. I’m very blunt, honestly. I only act like I’m sharp once in a while so I can look and sound cool. But since you’re my friend, I do care a lot about you, and I’d like to know if you’re unhappy with me about anything. If I made a mistake, tell me. If your hints are too vague, maybe you should be a little bit more direct about it. You might not want to hurt my feelings by being vague, but it hurts me more when I can’t figure out what the fuck you’re trying to say.

If you want to talk, we can talk. Just don’t gossip with me, please. I’m not interested to find out about someone else’s love affair or botox enhancements if it doesn’t directly affect you. Sure, you can talk about your friend, what he does, so and so. But if you don’t even know the guy personally, or the people that has issues with him, I’d like to change to topics because it’s impolite to have irrelevant gossip about one’s personal life.

If you talk to me, I’ll shut up, pay attention and listen, because you’re my friend. If I don’t like you, I’ll just hear you out and think about whatever that’s more important to me at the moment. When I talk, I’m not too fond of being cut-off and have the topic changed. I’d like someone to listen whenever I talk. If there’s no one to listen, then I’ll just keep quiet and move along.

My friend, what you mean to me, is beyond what my vocabulary can describe. This is who I am, this is just how this one friend of yours is. I hope you will be able to accept, befriend and love me the same way as I have you.

====

note:
*A direct translation of the Malay proverb Buang yang keruh, ambil yang jernih, which the equal to ‘Let’s forgive and forget’.

It’s not easy to convince people to like a any kind of anime before they watch it. Unless of course, they are popular sequels, such as Gundam SEED Destiny or Ghost in the Shell S.A.C. The 2nd Gig. Such titles have earned a decent amount of fanbase from their debut season and it’s not surprising that they are easily liked.

But for anime that are new to the promotee [yes, I came up with that myself :p], it’s not that easy to get their attention from 22-minute video unless it’s amusing right from the start like Full Metal Alchemist and Samurai Champloo. For dragging but powerful anime like Witch Hunter Robin or Serial Experiments Lain, it’s hard to be entertained just by watching the first episode.

It’s these kind of anime that are the true jewels in my search for a good show. And I would want so much to promote and increase the fan base of such shows. Lately, I’ve been watching movie reviews and previews on TV where the show short but amusing clips from each show. And these, more often than not, leave the audience curious to watch the show.

A bulb lit up in my mind. I know! Why not I take the best parts and make short clips for easy promotion!. So I did just that, making 3-5 minute clips of various anime. So far I made clips from the first Gundam SEED and the first Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex.

I’ll be making some for other anime as well. Hmm, suddenly I got myself a new hobby, lol.

Woke up around 9, only to get an sms from Faraa asking when I’ll reach the office. Only then I realized that today is Astro Fest day. A quick shower and then I was off. Got myself to the Technology Park Malaysia [TPM] carpark, and whoa….parking expensive! RM3 for an open air [read:fucking hot] car park? Yuuuuuck.

But for RM3, I guess it’s quite a good deal, seeing as to what waits beyond the Astro gates.

Took my food vouchers, and I went ahead to start looking for familiar faces. Along the way I was greeted by peacock dancers, fire jugglers, Spiderman [his suit wasn't tight, though] and a clown on stilts. Sky dancers were everywhere, too, soraing high up to the sky flailing their limbs and heads madly in the air. Not to mention the rapidly growing crowd of quests ranging from all age groups.

Went over to a Nescafe truck get myself a cuppa and continued along. Then I came across Jenifer and Chery, who showed me where the Xfresh booth was. Reached the booth, and there was Darren manning it. Apparently they were sick of playing games to give away the Xfresh t-shirts so this time they’re putting those up for sale.

I left the booth to scout around for anything that catches my eye. And something sure did catch my eye. A big burly figure with a vest that says ‘MEDIA’ on the back. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, I spotted Shaz. And with him a face that looks awfully familiar. I was later introduced to Kirksman aka Udangstar. We then walked together to the Paintball stall for some fun, and we decided to team up for a 3v3 game.

This being my first experience holding a paintball marker [the gun], I was surprised to find out was light and easy it was to handle. Aiming was easy as well, but to move and hit moving target is very difficult.

I left the booth since our turn is about half an hour away, and I joined Fin who was handling the Streetsurfing on her own. There was a small crowd, but we managed to keep them entertained with freebies and stuff. Adi [yes, from AF and Xfresh FM] then joined us to attract more people. I left them to try my hands on a bow at the Archery stall. It’s been a while, too. Unfortunately, the bows had no eyepiece, and aiming was a bitch. All my shots went upwards. Nyeh.

And then it was our turn for paintball. We were put against a group of some middle-aged dudes. Put on our jerseys, gasmask ,grabbed our markers and we went insdie the arena.

The marshalls gave us the briefing, and it felt so cool. It was a ‘capture the flag’ match with Instagib [lol]. I planned to move ahead and make short-range shots to cover udangstar who would grab the flag for us.

I found myself going one-on-one with this dude who had a really good aim. He hit me once on the chest, but the pellet didn’t break since it was quite far. I felt like I was playing Time Crisis, ducking and shooting and ducking and shooting. And there were plenty of times he missed my head slightly. Obviously, my shots strayed far away as I was constantly moving, and that I simply suck with a gun in hand. Unfortunately, one time I poked my head up, a pellet hit me dead in the left eye, lucky for the gas mask.

The marshall sent me to the dead zone, and I was told that my team was disqualified cause someone took his gasmask off, lol. Shaz, ironically, being as big as he is, didn’t get a single hit, but he didn’t hit anyone either :p It was a good game while it lasted, and I look forward to another round of paintball.

[note: if you know where I can find a paintball center, I'd like to join. Hell, that thing can prove to be a lot more addictive than CS I tell you. And it's a whole lot healthier than just warming up chairs.]

Grabbed a drink and walked around to see what else can entertain me. Ohh, a rock climbing stall. Put on the safety harness, and up I went. Unlike the last one I climbed at Melaka, this one was 90? all the way, and a whole lot easier. I reached the top without breaking a sweat. The one in Melaka last time was an official one, i think, since it leans over as it goes higher, making it a lot more difficult to climb.

Walked around again, and then I came across another attraction. A Rodeo Machine. I’ve always wanted to try one. When I got there, there was one guy being bucked around and got thrown off. That simply got me thrilled. Since there wasn’t anyone else, I went ahead for a ride. It started off with mild spins, followed by some jerks. And then it jerked hard. I had to tuck my elbows close to my chest to keep myself from being thrown back too hard.

And then it got insane. The bloody thing was spinning, and it was bucking up and down back and forth! That first round was hard enough and my fingers started to hurt. The second round was faster and rougher, but I still managed to hold on. The attendant was somewhat impressed and called out ‘Last one!’ and I knew it wasn’t going to be easy. I mustered what strength left into my fingers and held tight.

From a gentle rocking chair, that thing turned into a bloody monster. My head was flinging back and forth, sideways and spinning, you name it. The force exerted was intense, as though I was being flipped around like a flyswatter held by a giant robot! Really, it was, and eventually I lost my balance and fell off the ‘bull’. I walked off the stall with fingers that wouldn’t stop trembling for about 10 minutes, it hurts to even hold a cup!

Batman and Spiderman came over to see what’s going on, and Batman haughtily requested that the Rodeo be activated without a rider, so he can see what it’s like. The attendant then fired it up and sent it into the wildest bucking frenzy. Batman, who was just now observing in a macho pose, turned away sheepishly and walked away while Spiderman looked at him, puzzled.

Walked along, and I stumbled upon Darren and his girlfriend. I then convinced Darren to put on a fat suit and sumo with me, mwahahaha. It was funny while it lasted, though I enjoyed sumo more with Trent last time at the AXN Anime Fest. I also got Darren to try the Rodeo Machine. Unfortunately, he got thrown off on the first ‘real’ round.

Walked over to the dining area to grab lunch, which was really nice. Had some vegetarian nuggets, some weird cubes that seems to be made of the same thing as kwey teow [it tasted wonderful!] and some lamb chops. Filling but it wasn’t quite satisfying.

Went back to the Xfresh booth to chill, and I was handed an Xfresh t-shirt to put on so I could help Nadiah who was busy selling Xfresh t-shirts and notebooks with Shaz at the time. It seems like the crowd came in waves, and we frequently find ourselves out of breath handling them. Naz and Faraa then joined us. Faraa mentioned someone who predicted we’d only sell about 20 bags, but it turns out we sold off about 200 of them, collecting over RM 2.4K.

After cleaning up the booth, an ice-cream dude came over to give away leftover Tropicana ice-creams! Everyone was licking and biting away for a while before Shaz got up and said ‘Hey let’s go grab the leftover Nescafe!’. We then dashed to a drinks stall and I got myself 6-pack of Nescafe Latte Ice Rush. Also took the last XXL Xfresh t-shirt.

I then joined Shaz, Kirksman and Nadiah into a Haunted House. Well, it was of course, dark and eerie and all, but when there’s a crowd, it ain’t scary. It’s funny as hell [no pun intended]. Just for kicks, I shrieked whenever I see a ‘ghost’ even when it’s not bothering me. But at one point, a ghost appeared from one of the dark corners, scared a few girls ahead of us. As it tried to slip away, it stumbled and tripped, because someone stepped on his long flowing robe! I tried to shriek in horror, but instead I was banging the wall laughing my head off.

There was also a guy wearing a Yoda mask [what the fuck is Yoda doing in a haunted house, anyway?]. After a short break, we gathered up the stuff and headed back to the Fishtank. I called Albert up so he could tell me where his DVD cake is, and picked it up. Most of the Crew were there chilling out and chatting away while they wait to gather up and lepak somewhere else. Most of the time we were pestering Shaz, though.

Shaz: I’d rather go have lunch at Melaka than anywhere in KL
Nadiah: What for?
Shaz: Well, travelling long-distance is more petrol friendly than driving into KL…

[cue blur look from everyone]

Me: Who taught you that?
Naz: You see, he studied in France you know, so…

And everyone burst out laughing.

Only then I realized that I hurt my hip joints, due to that wall-climbing and rodeo, I think. But it wasn’t so bad so I ignored it. After the guys left for mamak, I too decided to call it a day and head home. As I got into Boy, my hips started to hurt like hell. And driving home was a pain in the… well it was painful.

Got home, freshened up a bit and blogged away. It’s a nice relief from a dull and tensous week. Exhausted, but satisfied :)