For the final time

It's so sad hearing Ronan break down in tears :"(

RIP Stephen.

PS: Hate those stupid girls who were holding roses in their hands and SMILING! Why did they bother going in the first place?!

RIP Stephen Gately

About an issue I have long felt strongly about

Everyone who do not understand why I am tempted to spit at a shop whenever I see fur coats on sale, watch this. The footage is gruesome, but I'd rather be informed than stay blinded and worship fur coats like they're the most fashionable things. It's really sad that so many remain oblivious to how fur coats are made. Educate yourself. When the demand stops, so will the killing.

PS: Trust me when I say I have seen videos much worst than this when it comes to the making of fur coats, videos that will disturb you so badly emotionally and give you nightmares for days.

Thank you, Ben Jones.

I was reading through the MIT list of '50 things' again. No matter how many times I go through the list, I find that I still learn something from it every time. Reading this list makes me think. About how my 'hate' for some people in college is just unnecessary. So, some people can be absolute idiots and just plain ignore you when you say hi and offer a friendly smile. Really, it's these people that made me learn how to hate. However, considering the amount of time I've spent here and the pitiful amount of people I've grown close to and actually want to talk to, I cannot help but think that maybe I haven't been as sociable as I could have been, maybe I did not try hard enough to talk to the 160 other people who live in this great big castle. Most of the people who are in George's are stellar students and great all rounders and maybe it's time I put myself out there and start learning from them. Even though, on the surface it may seem like there's not much to learn from them, given their constant partying and drinking..

Embrace the differences between you and your classmates. Always be asking yourself, "what can I learn from this person?" More of your education will come from this than from any classroom.

It makes me think about the way I've been living my life in uni. Truth be told, Perth is starting to feel old for me. It's only been one and a half years and it's not that I hate the place, but nothing excites me anymore. Maybe it's cause the novelty of coming to a new, different country is wearing off, maybe it's because nothing I'm doing this semester excites me as much as French 1101 did last semester, it may also be cause staying here while time passes mean that I need to try to get over people leaving every semester. Lately, I've found myself constantly wondering about what changed in the past year, why our group seem to feel less close than we used to be, whatever happened to our constant Friday game nights, whatever happened to us? And I remember how hard headed I was last semester about a new person joining the group. Back then, I wanted so badly for time to just stay in first semester, where everything was new and exciting and perfect. And sometimes, I think that I still do.

But I guess mum has said this to me multiple times before, that people change. I guess I just need to accept the change that's slowly but surely happening. I'm sure we are all still as close as we used to be and as long as I learn to adjust to the change has to happen due to the change in circumstances for everyone (like how we are all getting busier as we get further into our degrees), I'll realize that things are actually okay and life is really, pretty damn good.

Your friends will change a lot over the next four years. Let them.

It's really amazing how much this article hits home. Not only for me, but for the people around me. Every time I reread this list, I'll be able to relate to at least one or two more points compared to the last time I read it.

I still relate to this, as I always have.

In college more than ever before, songs will attach themselves to memories. Every month or two, make a mix cd, mp3 folder, whatever - just make sure you keep copies of these songs. Ten years out, they'll be as effective as a journal in taking you back to your favorite moments.

I am starting to consider doing this.

Much of the time you once had for pleasure reading is going to disappear. Keep a list of the books you would have read had you had the time, so that you can start reading them when you graduate.

And as of late, I've noticed how these following points relate so well to a few very close friends of mine.

Things that seem like the end of the world really do become funny with a little time and distance. Knowing this, forget the embarrassment and skip to the good part.

No matter what your political or religious beliefs, be open-minded. You're going to be challenged over the next four years in ways you can't imagine, across all fronts. You can't learn if you're closed off.

Half of you will be in the bottom half of your class at any given moment. Way more than half of you will be in the bottom half of your class at some point in the next four years. Get used to it.

In the long run, where you go to college doesn't matter as much as what you do with the opportunities you're given there.

Wash your sheets more than once a year. Trust me on this one. (hehehe)

Life is too short to stick with a course of study that you're no longer excited about. Switch, even if it complicates things.

Also, I think I might start thinking of this list the next time I feel like...

(Sleeping my day away)
Take naps in the middle of the afternoon with reckless abandon.

(Having a chocolate oreo bubble tea or a tim tam in the middle of the night)
Eat badly sometimes. It's the last time in your life when you can do this without feeling guilty about it.

Also, I am going to try to start doing this!

Carve out an hour every single day to be alone. (Sleeping doesn't count)

One of my favorite of the list of 50!

In ten years very few of you will look as good as you do right now, so secretly revel in how hot you are before it's too late :D

This is the only time in your lives when your only real responsibility is to learn. Try to remember how lucky you are every day.

Ben Jones is amazing. He's inspired me so much today. Thank you for reminding me of things that I should never have forgotten in the first place.

Reading your blog posts make me want to be a part of MIT. I never knew that admission officers immerse themselves so fully into a student's story, into what a student's been through and his or her experiences. But then again, I guess not many admission officers are like you, are they? Knowing this is how applications are judged in a place as renowned as MIT is really comforting and make things seem a lot less daunting, doesn't it? Want to know what I'm talking about? Do read the article below. It's one of my favorite Ben posts :)

"It's More Than A Job"

In response to an earlier entry of mine, this post appeared on College Confidential:

You know, I get sick of college admissions officers saying how they couldn't accept so many wonderful people. While it's supposed to be comforting, obviously, I just find it really insincere. I mean, either you're accepted or you're not. There is no grey area... so they shouldn't try to sugarcoat the harsh reality.

I'm thankful to whomever posted this, because it really made me think. It's certainly a fair post, and I imagine a lot of our applicants share these sentiments. A million years ago when I was applying to college, perhaps I would have felt the same way.

I've written before about how the class is selected, but I'm too tired to dig up the post so I'll give a quick recap. First you apply. Your application is read by a senior staff member who will look for deal-breakers (like a bunch of D's, for example). Assuming you're competitive, your application is then read by a primary reader who will summarize it at length for the committee. Then a second reader (and sometimes a third) will read and write their own summaries. Then it will go to selection committee, where multiple groups of different admissions staff and faculty members will weigh in on it. Assuming you've made it that far, the senior staff will then review it again. Approximately 12 people (give or take) will significantly discuss and debate your application before you're admitted. This is all very intentional; committee decisions ensure that every decision is correct in the context of the overall applicant pool, and that no one individual's bias or preferences or familiarity with a given case has any chance of swaying a decision unfairly.

With that in mind, let me tell you a little bit about what my job is like from November through March. Three days a week, I take a random bunch of applications to the public library, find a quiet corner, and immerse myself in your lives.

I read about your triumphs, I read about your dreams, I read about the tragedies that define you. I read about your passions, your inventions, your obsession with video games, dance, Mozart, Monet. I read about the person close to you who died. I read about your small towns, your big cities, the week you spent abroad that changed your life. I read about your parents getting divorced, your house burning down, your girlfriend cheating on you. I read about the car you rebuilt with your dad, the championship debate you lost, the team you led to failure, the performance you aced. I read about the people you've helped and the people you've hurt. I read about how you've stood tall in the face of racism, homophobia, poverty, injustice.

Then I read about the lives you've changed - a math or science teacher, a humanities teacher, a counselor. I read the things that they probably don't say to your face for fear of inflating your ego: that you're the best in their careers, that kids like you are the reason they chose to be a teacher in the first place, that they're better people for having known you.

If you've had an interview, I get to read about how you come across in person to someone you've just met - how your face lights up at the mention of cell biology, how you were five minutes late because you had an audition, how your smile can fill a room, how you simply shine.

(Your grades and scores are clearly competitive or your application wouldn't be on my pile in the first place.)

By now I'm fully invested in you so I write a gazillion nice things about you in your summary and I'm smiling the whole time. I talk about your depth, all the ways you're a great match to MIT, all the things I know you'll contribute to campus. I conclude with phrases like "clear admit" and "perfect choice." In my head I imagine bumping into you on the Infinite Corridor, asking you how your UROP is going, seeing your a cappella group perform.

I come home each night and tell my wife over dinner how lucky I am, because I never seem to pick boring applications out of the pile. In fact, I tell her, I'm inspired enough by the stories I read to think that the world might actually turn out to be okay after all.

In March I go into committee with my colleagues, having narrowed down my top picks to a few hundred people. My colleagues have all done the same. Then the numbers come in: this year's admit rate will be 13%. For every student you admit, you need to let go of seven others.

What? But I have so many who... But...

And then the committee does its work, however brutal. It's not pretty, but at least it's fair. (And by fair I mean fair in the context of the applicant pool; of course it's not fair that there are so few spots for so many qualified applicants.)

When it's all over, about 13% of my top picks are offered admission. I beg, I plead, I make ridiculous promises (just ask the senior staff) but at the end of the day, a committee decision is a committee decision.

Of my many favorites this year, there were a few who really got to me, and when they didn't get in, the tears came. Some would call me foolish for getting this wrapped up in the job, but honestly, I couldn't do this job if I disconnected myself from the human component of it. It's my job to present you to the committee; if your dream of being at MIT didn't become my dream on some small level, then really, why am I doing this at all? Others would disagree, but then, others aren't me.

To the 87% of you who have shared your lives with us and trusted us with your stories over the last four months, please know that they meant something to me, and I won't forget you. When I say that I share the pain of these decisions with you, I'm not lying. I'm really not lying.

To the person up there who said "while it's supposed to be comforting, obviously, I just find it really insincere" - you have it backwards. I don't expect it (or anything else) to be comforting at this moment. But insincere? No. Not that.

Just got confirmation that the USPS picked up the mail (for real), so it's on the way. I'll be thinking about all of you.

Help save the dolphins.

In Japan, fishermen round up and slaughter hundreds and even thousands of dolphins and other small whales each year.

In the small fishing village of Taiji, entire schools of dolphins are driven into a hidden cove after a prolonged chase. Once trapped inside the cove, the fishermen kill the dolphins, slashing their throats with knives or stabbing them with spears. The water turns red with their blood, and the air fills with their screams.

This brutal massacre — the largest scale dolphin kill in the world — goes on for six months of every year. Even more scandalous, members of the international dolphin display industry take advantage of the dolphin slaughter to obtain some few, show-quality dolphins for use in captive dolphin shows and dolphin swim programs.

It is commonly assumed that Japanese fishermen hunt dolphins to supply a small minority of Japanese people with dolphin meat. But unlike the expensive whale meat, dolphin meat is not considered a delicacy in Japan, and the real reason the Japanese government issues permits to kill dolphins by the thousands every year has nothing to do with food culture. It has to do with pest control. As shocking as it sounds, some Japanese government officials view dolphins as pests to be eradicated in huge numbers. During a meeting at Taiji City Hall, the fishermen of Taiji admitted this to us. "We don’t kill the dolphins primarily for their meat. We kill them as a form of pest control," they told us. In other words, killing the competition is their way of preserving the ocean’s fish for themselves.

Most likely in order to push the food culture issue even further, the Japanese government recently introduced pilot whale meat to children's school lunch programs, despite the fact that the meat is tainted with mercury and not fit for human consumption. The Japanese government and the dolphin hunters do not warn the Japanese people of this danger, although the dolphin meat should be labeled as toxic. Much of the tainted dolphin meat ends up as counterfeit whale meat in Tokyo and other large cities.

Science has established that dolphins are highly intelligent and complex marine mammals. How can "pest control" on dolphins continue with so little opposition from the Japanese people and the outside world? The answer is secrecy. Since we first traveled to Japan in 2003 to document the dolphin hunt and expose it to the world, the fishermen have become increasingly paranoid about being photographed and filmed. Today, they hide the dolphin slaughter behind barbed wire, ropes and tarpaulin. Killing the dolphins before daylight breaks, they station guards at the mouth of the killing cove to ensure that no one witnesses the blood bath.

The fishermen say they kill the dolphins "quickly and humanely." That's an outright lie. The methods used to kill the dolphins are so savage, it's hard to believe it unless you witness it for yourself. And once you've seen it, the images and sounds of the screaming dolphins never go away. The fishermen know that the world will be outraged when the truth gets out. And so, guided by their government, they hide behind phrases such as "food culture" and "tradition." They even once told us they are proud of what they do. If they had told us they were having fun while killing dolphins, we would have believed them. We have heard them laugh out loud as they were throwing spears at the dolphins and hauling them ashore with ropes, or dragging still live dolphins by their tail flukes to be slaughtered. If they were really proud of this, then why do they go to such extreme measures hiding it? Why won’t they even let their own people know about the hunt? We asked them this once, and the answer was: "It is none of their business." But it is their business. The Japanese people have every right to know about the dolphin slaughter. And they have a right to know about the mercury-poisoned dolphin meat that is being fed to their children.

Please help the cause. Do your part and sign this petition targeted at President Obama, Vice President Biden and Japanese ambassador to the United States Ichiro Fujisaki.

http://www.thepetitionsite.com/takeaction/724210624

This inhumane slaughter of these magnificent creatures who have done nothing to deserve the way they are being treated must stop. Also, check out The Cove a movie documenting the annual dolphin blood bath in Taiji, Japan.



Here are some extra quick facts for those who are interested:-

ps: I don't mean for this to be a wordy post, but I thought these are things that everyone should read about. It really shows how inhumane people are and can be. Everything I've read tonight disgusted me. Barbarians like these can all go to hell (in my books) and I would not even blink an eye. And don't anyone tell me that it's their job and maybe the only way they can earn a living. WARNING: You will piss me off.

• About 23,000 dolphins, porpoises and other small whales are killed in Japan every year, making it the largest scale slaughter of cetaceans in the world.

• About 2,500 dolphins and other small whales are killed in the so-called dolphin drive hunt that takes place six months out of the year.The rest are killed with handheld harpoons out at sea.

• In the small fishing village of Taiji, Wakayama prefecture, the dolphin drive hunt is carried out by about 26 fishermen from September 1st though March.

• Operating with 13 motorized boats, the fishermen go out to sea at early sunrise and look for migrating dolphins. Banging on metal pipes submerged into the water, they terrorize the dolphins with a "wall of sound," causing the dolphins to panic.

• Terrorizing the dolphins with underwater sound, the fishermen herd the dolphins into a secret killing cove close to Taiji Town.

• Often times, dolphins die during the chase that can last eight hours or more.

• The Taiji fishermen claim that dolphins eat too much fish and therefore must be exterminated.

• Operating with a permit from their government, the Taiji fishermen have referred to the dolphin hunt as "pest control."

• The majority of people in Japan have no knowledge about the annual dolphin blood bath.

• The fishermen kill the dolphins with spears, fishermen's hooks and knives. Trashing about in their own blood, the dolphins emit high-pitched screams during the massacre.

• The slaughtered dolphins are processed into meat and distributed to supermarkets throughout Japan for human consumption.

• Dolphin meat from drive hunts in Taiji proved to be highly contaminated with toxic chemicals such as mercury, methyl mercury and PCBs.

• Repeated chemical analyses have shown that the level of mercury in dolphin meat is much higher than the maximum allowable level set by the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare of Japan.

• Some of the dolphin meat is given to children as part of their school lunch program.

• The Japanese government and the supermarkets issue no warning that dolphin meat is mercury-contaminated.

• The fishermen of Taiji have told us that the Japanese people have no right to know about the dolphin hunt or the high levels of mercury found in the meat.

• Concealing this information from the public is a violation of Article 21 of the Japanese Constitution.

• Some members of the international aquarium and zoo industry are strongly connected to the Japanese dolphin slaughter, in that they pay top dollar for dolphins deemed suitable for commercial exploitation in dolphin shows and captive dolphin swim programs.

• Dolphinariums throughout the world, including Japan, repeatedly make the claim that captivity of dolphins promotes dolphin conservation and protection.

• Several of the hundreds of captive dolphins in Japan's 50 dolphinariums were obtained through the dolphin drive hunts; yet the dolphinariums do nothing to educate the public to the hunt.

• The World Association for Zoos and Aquariums (WAZA) is the world's largest network of zoos and aquariums around the world.

• Dolphinariums that have conducted business with the dolphin killers of Japan have been welcomed into WAZA's network, although the trade in these dolphins clearly violates WAZA's Code of Ethics.

• The dolphins that are purchased by members of the dolphin captivity industry represent a much higher commercial value to the Japanese dolphin hunters than the ones that are slaughtered for meat.

• Live dolphins captured in a Taiji dolphin drive hunt recently sold for $154,000 per dolphin.

• The Japanese dolphin hunt will continue for as long as members of the international dolphinarium industry continue to reward the hunters for show quality dolphins, thereby making the hunt tremendously profitable.

• The most sought after dolphin species for public display are bottlenose dolphins, orcas, white sided dolphins, Risso's dolphins, pilot whales and Pseudo orcas, all of which have been targeted in the Japanese dolphin drive hunt.

SAVE THE DOLPHINS.

Interesting Fact

Did you know that Eric Dill (formerly from the Click 5) and Chad Kroeger from Nickleback both co-wrote Chris Daughtry's new song, 'No Surprise'? Good to know Eric's gone on to great things ;D No Surprise is SUCH a good song, it's been on replay on my computer for a while.

Also, my family came down to Perth for 10 days. They left today morning and I miss their presence already. I loved having them just a 10 minute drive away, instead of tens and thousands of kilometers away. I had an amazing time the past 10 days. Although having to miss uni and thinking of all the work I have to do stressed me out quite a bit, it was a great week. Hope you guys enjoyed the trip. I miss you all already :( January come quick so I can go homeeee!

Wednesday - 7.5% Calculus test
Thursday - 30 - 40% Finance mid semester (can't remember how heavy the percentage was.. =p)
Friday - Advanced Corporate Accounting assignment due.

And then mid semester break after that! Yay!

Wish me luck getting through this week. I'll need it.

One of those days

So I woke up today morning, had a very rushed breakfast and hurried to uni. Before I left college, I took a look at the sky and thought that I should walk to uni as it looked like it was about to rain anytime soon. However, I was late and only had 10 minutes to get to the business school so I decided to cycle.

The moment I got out of college, it started drizzling. Which was fine, as I had my UWA jumper which had a hoodie. But as I continued cycling, the rain got heavier and heavier. And before I knew it, it was pouring. I was drenched from cycling under the rain. So I got off my bike, whipped out my umbrella and pushed my bike while I walked. But after 5 mins, both of my shoes and socks were soaking wet. At this point, I contemplated turning back and just going back to my room. But, being the hardworking, do-not-miss-tutorials-unless-I'm-deadly sick person that I am, I got on my bike and continued peddling.

I eventually got to the business school. Parked my bike, ran up to the first floor where I thought my tute was. When I got into the room, instead of seeing Rick (who is my tutor) I saw the lecturer for one of the accounting units =/ I was a bit confused but walked in anyway. He then told me that this was not a tute, but an experiment. So I sat down and double checked my timetable. Only to realise that I was in the wrong room. I apologized and ran up one floor to level 2 where my tute was supposed to be. Upon stepping in the correct tute room, Rick told me that the equipment is not working today and our tute was cancelled.

It was one of those WTF moments. Sorry for the language but seriously! After all that effort and getting wet cycling under the rain, I reached the business school, only to be sent straight back to college. I swear the universe is unhappy with me today.

Let's hope my day doesn't get any worse than the way it started.

In other news, look what I saw at UWA's Open Day yesterday!


Tell me that's not the cutest piglet on earth!!! *melts* So cuteeeeeeeeeeee.

Open Day was pretty fun. I volunteered to be a Roving Ambassador and basically, my job was to walk around, hand out flyers and point people in the right direction. It was great seeing entire families come out together and check out UWA :D This is something I've kept inside for a while but I really hate it when people degrade UWA or talk about it as if it's so bad there's no reason anyone would be here unless they have no choice. Sure, it's not UCL or Cornell or anywhere near that, but it's a pretty decent uni with a Business course that I really enjoy. I came here by CHOICE and I'm proud to be a UWA student ambassador as I think everyone here should be!

Also, I've been thinking about moving out of college again. But I won't have to worry about that for another few months so it can wait.

Bye for now!

Me and Blake with balloons we got from the Physics department, which kept me very happy until Hansen accidentally let go of my balloon and sent it floating into the air ;(

♥ShanMin


also known as Shanni or Zushi =)

18 years old.

Traveller in every sense of the word!

Loves her family & cats.

Adores her friends.

Huge Simple Plan fan.

Avid concert goer.

Loves tennis & ADORES Roger Federer.

Enjoys occasional movie trips and writing.

This is my blog so Click here if it's not to your liking.



01 People around me to be happy
02 Make a difference in the world
03 Animal cruelty to END
04 Learn another language
05 Backpack around the world
06 Lonely Planet Guide Books
07 Join the Amazing Race
08 Learn how to drum
09 World Peace :D
10Venture into travel photography/journalism

The Sixerhz ♥
Words of Wisdom? NOT.♥
Adam C
ATP Tennis
Audrey Ling
Debbie
Estranged
FurIsDead
Hwee
Invasion Crew
Jason Mraz
Jie Huei
Jin
Johnson
Kean Seng
M1
Miux
Natalie
PETA2
Regina
Roger Federer Official Site
Role Model
Sam
x Simple Plan
Sue Anne
Sulingee
Siyan
Tony Fernandes
VJ Utt
Yorsh
YuJian

Travel Sites
A Year In The Life ♥
Couch Surfing
Gap Year 365
Gap Year Worldwide
Lonely Planet
Matador Travel
Overland Tales ♥
Puebloinglese - Summer in Spain
Rick Steve
Summer Camp Worldwide
Thorn Tree Travel Forum
Travel Channel
TravelPod