The Public Enemy

Trust me, 3 years back, I wouldn't be bothered about private-ing my Instagram and Twitter account. Don't forget Facebook.

I can't be bothered, I can't give a flying flamingo what anyone thought of my life. Everyone knows how everyone should live their lives except for their's anyway.

Then came the career of one's life, and boy was that convenient.

If people could even take a peep into my thoughts, well, that'd be a bad idea anyway. And I'd trust that it'd be the same case for most individuals. So really, judge people for the choices they make, admire them if they're good and forgive them if those were mistakes. Be as harsh as you would to oneself.

Some individuals are just great at sharing half their thoughts, the half that's politically correct, commercially safe or at least career-proof to a big extent. I don't have the time for that, and you'd know, however politically correct your statements are, you might have to answer for them some day, and I don't really think I would have the time for that.

And then you have the pesky rascals who dive into your life, trying to scrutinise each and every milestone you thought you'd share with those who bothered. When you thought that was all, the chapter continues, they would share their less-than-penny worth thoughts with those who flock together, when really, you really have no interest on their lives and hardly think their fleeting realisations would justify the carbon dioxide they produced.

So there you have it.

If you've yet to get it, it's trust and honesty.

Your invaluable honesty and trust, it's worth too much to be shared with people who've not earned it.

Keep it and save it up for those who're worth it. It might just save you some trouble as well.

Because I don't own photoshop, currently

Engrish, do you speak it?!
No, I speak Singlish.

Yes, no moolah to buy photoshop and windows office, thus the super gigantic uber header.
Finally had the time to browse through the videos I took during my trip to Europe.
Didn't exactly get to stitch everything together, but managed to delete away unwanted scenes.

Hope I'll be able to get everything up before we slip into December.

Felt like I was taken back in time, to the days of carefree-ness (that resulted in my current poverty, hahaha). Where everything was just about them sights and sounds. Although I was constantly poor in the pocket, I was definitely rich in experience.

Been a long time since I picked up a craft. Remember the days of Origami and maybe paper star folding? I'm thinking of taking up Amigurumi! Waiting for the pay to come in, pfft, poverty.

The Quarter Life Crisis

At the age of 24, it might just be the pre-quarter life syndrome. And I fully qualify because I'm at the junction before my next profession, in the valley of resounding thoughts and reflection.

Another person themed it the mid-life crisis, but wait, isn't that supposed to be at the age of 30? "I don't wanna die ugly and wrinkly" - ermm, okay.

Seriously, what's the blogpost of a 24 year-old supposed to look like? Classy, tasteful and more of a grown man? But the international age of a youth is till 35 isn't it? Then I guess it's still legal by international standards for my thoughts to be immature? :D

But anyway, the purpose of 'penning' these thoughts is to serve as reminder for the person moving ahead to be better behaved. There're tonnes and tonnes of check-lists out there being shared, citing things to do, things not to do and they're well-worth a read, having been churned by those who've been further and done more.

I preach the concept of being a try-sexual (why be a buy-sexual anyway, haha!), but having tried 'that' many things, meaning not many, I've decided that the following are probably not worth trying again or at all:

1. Substance Abuse - Alcohol & Drugs
The sober truths - a little is fine, but honestly, nothing good has ever come of drinking, so don't bother
There's a reason why no one out there advocates substance abuse, it messes with your head, and honestly, there's nothing more beautiful than a clear, untinkered mind

2. Being Untrue
The truth always comes back to haunt you, so always be honest to yourself and those who put faith in you. The satisfaction of going to bed knowing you've not swept any dirt under the rug is certainly assuring.

Having inked the above two on my brain cells, there's so much left to be done, and I'm starting with the below two first:

1. Travel!
Europe will no longer be a pipe-dream. I'm heading westwards to London and Europe to see the world! Hopefully I'll make it back to tell the tale.

2. Start something on my own
I've had enough listening to people talk about how there is so little to lose at this age. So I'll give it a go. As they say, nothing ventured, nothing gained!

Ending this abrupt as always, for the audiophiles, check out the beats from Clean Bandit! And no, don't be cheated like I was, the singer is not the Asian lady, Clean Bandit is British Electronic Group. Till then!

The "Social Media" Truman Show

Social Media is what it is. In my own words, content that gets shared. Good content sometimes go viral, and bad content, should just never see light.

In the not-so-new age of marketing, where there is much emphasis on "Social Media", most companies sometimes forget that content is king. Good content or a good product, whether digital or not, is easier to market, if not, sometimes do not require any marketing at all. Most of the people in sales would probably agree. Although some might say that a really good sales person will probably be able to sell anything. Then again, possibly yes, but probably with more packaging, fancy commodities and time.

Question to ask: Do we have a good product to sell in the first place? What is it? How are we going to market it online? How do we measure it's effectiveness? Is it really indeed below-the-line? What have we achieved thus far?

While hiring the 'experts' to take this 'untrodden' path seems like a good solution; be it the fact that it is genuinely more cost-savvy or easier to lay the blame if it eventually doesn't work out, it is important to know that numbers and figures should not be the baseline of Social Media.

Likes, Fans, Followers and anything else that substantiates reach or "interaction" with figures is an easy spell for the social media agencies; not saying that most are, but not saying that most don't take the easy way out either. Creating fake accounts and fake interaction is a piece of cake that can be made with a script these days. Identities will need to think deeper.

While shares can be created as well, it's important to create content good enough for oneself and the target audience to share. 

The only time I probably created something that went decently viral was during the haze period to poke-fun of the situation. It was very much targeted at the situation everyone was in, and to really have a good laugh with what seemingly was bizarre yet possible.

The way I see it, the important factors are: 1. 'Recency'/timeliness, how recent is your content to the event 2. Ease of relating to; simplicity, is it easy for the reader to understand and relate? 3. Appropriateness; a right joke at the wrong time is just wrong in anyway 4. Usefulness, will sharing this content benefit anyone? Help anyone? Is it important information? Or will it brighten up someone's day? 

Any and everyone these days is and are a Social Media Expert, we curate content that we feel we can relate to and is appropriate and best able to represent the profile of our identities. Some people go as far as to script the right content or to remove poorly received content.

It is important for big identities to note and act likewise.

Validation is important, but to validate oneself or an identity with figurative factors such as Likes, Followers or Fans is a sad phoney, self and society driven entrapment. Self-validation should take precedence, and is important for identities to find the balance between commercial value and identity integrity. The worst I've seen are individuals and identities that have embarked on a staged validation, whether self-staged or not, both are equally degrading.
Why would one choose to live in "The Truman Show" whether the director is oneself or another?

My side of the story? I've seen the light and felt the flames of social media, it is a double-edged sword, and whether you're representing a corporate identity, celebrity or just simply yourself, I'lll briefly conclude that it requires a good swordsman to wield. 

So if you're new to all of this social buzz, take every posting you make online whether publicly or privately as an official e-mail to the whole wide world. Once you hit send, you hit send.

pause for tomorrow

Ripping the title off one of the better entries for CMPA. A really relevant short-film that describes in 78 seconds, the kind of rush the current society is in. Day to day, hour to hour, minute-to-minute kind of hustle, seeking to earn the kind of money we splurge on things we don't need to impress people we don't have to.

The point of it all? I plant my question mark again.

Chilling at Punggol End with my gaming laptop, mobile hotspot and limited battery, it seems like a good day to really stop, and think about all the has gone by and the decided and yet uncertain future.

I hold firm to the fact that nothing is confirmed until it happens.

I quote one of the instructors I met recently from OCS, he's a Physical Training Instructor now and really enlightened a few of us when he said that "he was at peace with himself" and is pursuing something of interest, something you don't drag yourself out of bed and your shoes to, and that he's done with the paper-chase most Singaporeans and youths of society are stuck in. While I may agree with him, I must say that to each his own.

And like I always do, wherever you go, bring the right spirit and attitude along, love what you do and you'll be doing what you love. Like Paulo Coelho says, that when you've set your mind to it and committed to the success of it "And when you want something, the entire Universe conspires to achieve it". Unless of course you're definite that this one thing is something that you have absolute no interest in, then I would say, stay no further. You're not a tree.

Making my plans for my 24th, which I had initially no plans for since there're already so many big plans this year. Let's just say that it's the year for change, but I'll definitely be sure to live it right.

Made some bad decisions at the beginning of the year, yet, in a different light, it gives one to offer advice from experience, which is priceless and less refutable.

Sometimes we just have to go #yolo, but as I always say, #yolo responsibly

Boys and their toys

Every guy and boy out there has that one thing that doesn't grow out or away with age. Find that and you'll find that part of them that you've never seen, or perhaps, already am seeing all the time.

Gaming has always had it's magic over me, and now, I'm stuck in the realm of DOTA2, it used to be Diablo3 and I'm so glad I've never had the chance to touch WoW. Ragnarok was already bad enough! 

*just wondered off to realise that there's RO2, shall suss it out before embarking on a gameplay*

Alright, back to topic, just to conclude that I guess it'll be way better for me to dump this 'toy'; DOTA2 and move on to more realistic playthings that have better value to them. 

Ever wondered what are the toys of your friends and counterparts? I wonder if the ladies have something similar as well.

mmm

home

home is where the laptop/desktop lies.

I'm one of the many children of the 21st century, we feel at home in front of our computers and devices. Losing my trusty cellphone is sometimes akin to losing a limb, it makes you feel useless, helpless, lost, and the list goes on.

But quite honestly, nothing beats the traditional laptop/desktop where I can get everything sorted out, from my tunes to my online applications and retail therapy, this guy's got me. Not to forget when graphic work and graphic gaming is required!

Just to note that I keep physical and written notes too, because I'm really the hardcopy person however much digitally advance I might seem to be.

Finally got down to somethings and felt the emotional turmoil of going through them. Alas the time has come and this is it! :)

We live in the 21st century of YOLO and I must say, please, YOLO responsibly; YOLOR.

The train has come and gone and we've all missed it. It was good while it lasted. Thank you.

When you've not short-changed another, and yet you've been, then I guess it's just too bad, like all great men, learn to move on, from this experience, and from this place as well.

And on a more devious note, I'll sleep soundly every night, but when will karma bite this little sinner? Only the heavens will know. Good night ;)