Time Flies: Pending Months

Well, time really does fly - tempus fugit - which in Latin means time flees but we all just say time flies with respect to the norm. Anyway, it seemed like yesterday that people around the world was just celebrating the new year and the fact that the world didn't end which disproved the Mayan calender mythos and pissed off alot of people who were looking forward to it.

Coming to the point of this post, my 3-month holiday is a quarter short. It won't be long till I start my semester again. Half of me can't wait to start class again because I actually like learning (I'm a geek and I'm proud!) but the other half of me also know that it will be my last year in the program and I have to face this terrible predicament called - thesis. To most university students, this word is a horrible omen that determines their future as either a success or a complete failure. In order to pass my degree, every one of my classmates must pass this final challenge in order to move on to the next level of lives. To my knowledge, many strive but to no avail (it's probably not that scary but still, I'm worried).

As of now, I have to commence on my thesis already. In the preliminary stages, I have to come up with a topic and a direction to approach it. However, my lecturer allowed me to use her study data as an archival research (remember the link that I presented a week ago?). So, that advantage just saves me months long of data collection. Unfortunately, everything comes with a price. I have little to none knowledge about sexual health (my supervisor's topic), let alone coming up with a hypothesis for research. In my absence here, I was busy finding journals and forcing myself to read the buggers which I must say is a Herculean tasks especially when one is supposed to be on a holiday.

Sleuthing for journals and ideas

Once I completed the thesis in a year's time (long long time away from now), I foresee two outcomes.

One: I prevail and graduate victoriously as I pass my thesis with flying colours. I go on to become a well-known psychologist and treat the mentally-ill such a depressed suicidal mime.

Two: I fail terribly and I am unable to graduate. I plunge into a spiral of despair, hopelessness as the entity of the thesis taunts me and eventually it drains my life force so much that I become a living zombie. Arrrrrr~

Photos of Travel

So a week ago, I was travelling around Sarawak with my partner, Cyren and I think it's about time I upload some photos here to show you all my adventure. Most of these photos are courtesy of Cyren as he proclaimed he is a better photographer which I have to say I admit it but I just don't like to talk about it...

Moving on, here's the first photo:

Here you have me and him enjoying our evening flight to our first destination - Kuching. To those of you who are unfamiliar, Kuching is also called the cat city because cat, when translated to Bahasa Melayu is known as kucing. Sounds similar

On the second day, we stumbled this coffee shop named Bing. After a long day of walking around city, we need to pamper ourselves with beverages in an atmosphere of serentiy

The next day (still in Kuching), we ventured into the deep dark forest of Kubah National Park. As a forest preserve, do expect tons of creepy crawlies, dense foliage and occasional monkey howling. Anyway, one of the eye catcher of Kubah is its waterfall. Here we chill-lax for a 15min before heading back. We couldn't stay long as it takes about an hour and a half just to travel back and the forest road isn't exactly travel friendly.

Then we had my birthday dinner! Again, we stumbled upon a hotel restaurant in Batik Boutique Hotel a block away from Bing which ain't too shabby. Price was worth it

No photos in Sibu though. So, I'm just gonna skip to Bintulu.

Here, we visited the Similajau National Park. The beach aren't exactly the best place to hang around but the breeze is cooling and for beach people like myself, I just like the beach in general. However, if you don't like the beach, there's a forest (again) nearby for you to venture but only do so if there's no ominous clouds in the sky.

The last photo that I took with my minifigure self in it is this one. A hotel breakfast in Miri Hotel. It's our last destination and after that we say bye bye to Sarawak.

And there you have it. My photos of Sarawak. There were more interesting places where I could have taken with my minifigures in it but due to the precarious position they might be in, I did not want to lose my figures so I didn't include them. Anyhow, Sarawak is the perfect spot for nature lovers. If you have a thrill to traverse the forest and be nearer to Mother Nature, Sarawak is the best place for you if you happen to be in Malaysia. Come to think of it, Sarawak doesn't have much other than forest~~

Research Survey: Help Wanted

Sorry about the font size. Will do better on my next comic strip. Anyway, the whole point of the comic strip above is that I was hired as a research assistant a few months ago and I was tasked distributing an online survey regarding sexual health knowledge. My supervisor intends to know how much young Malaysian adults nowadays know about sexual health or safe sex.

And for those who manage to read the small font, you will know that I need to find a huge number of participants so I have resorted to my blog for help. In short, the survey can be accessed via a link (which I will provide below) and all you have to do is just answer the questions as truthfully as possible. There are, however, conditions to follow.

1) Participants must be Malaysians
2) Participants must be between 18 to 25 years old
3) Participants must be a student currently studying in a local (as in, in Malaysia) university or college

Furthermore, the survey takes about 20 to 30min to finish, depending on personal pace. So, one may ask why go through the trouble of doing the survey? Well, first, those who complete the survey will earn RM5; second, you may learn what are the necessities to create a survey in the event that you need to do so; third, I will be very grateful if you do so.

Oh and before I forget, I understand that the survey may delve into a really personal place which some may become greatly uncomfortable as they answer the questions. This is completely understandable and if you are reluctant to continue, you may stop any time you feel like it. For those who do want to complete the survey but fear of identity exposure, I can assure you that your anonymity will be our highest priority.

With that said, for those of you who are interested, you may click the link below which will direct you to the site:
https://www.research.net/s/sexual_health_knowledge_survey

Don't worry about viruses because the site is totally legitimate. The name may not be convincing but I can assure you that it's safe. Moreover, you can find out more about the survey in the disclaimer (the first page) of the survey and you can still decide whether you want to do it after that. I do warn you all that failure to complete the survey or follow the requirement will discredit you from the reimbursement and your data will not be included.

Alas, I thanked you all in advance for your time in reading this post and considering participating in the survey.

:D

Lego Minifigures Series 9

Since its debut about 2 years old, the Lego Minifigures series has just released its latest ninth package. Before I continue, a little intro is required for those who are unfamiliar with this series. The Lego Minifigures is a sub-brand of Lego that produces Minifigures which Lego fans usually cannot find anywhere else. As such, the style in which these little people here are drawn quite distinctively. For example, the cheerleader from series 1 and her pom-pom cannot be found in other sets (to my knowledge anyway). I adored this sub-brand because some Minifigures are really unique and they are good addition to my little Lego world.

Moving on, the latest series 9 offers, as always, a variety of Minifigures and some are really eye-catching. So far, the figures that I will do whatever it is to get it are the fortune teller and the mermaid. Nonetheless, if I have extra cash, the Hollywood Starlet, forest maiden and the chicken suit guy are on my to-buy list. Why the chicken suit guy? He's adorable and the arms are unique.

Below is a list of all the characters that will appear in this series:
1) Alien Avenger
2) Mr. Good and Evil (Jekyll and Hyde)
3) Chicken Suit Guy
4) Heroic Knight
5) Waiter
6) Roman Emperor
7) Fortune Teller
8) Cyclops
9) Mermaid
10) Policeman
11) Plumber
12) Battle Mech
13) Hollywood Starlet (it's obviously Marilyn Monroe)
14) Roller Derby Girl
15) Judge
16) Forest Maiden (Maid Marion?)

So, what's your favourite or are you going to buy them all? (Wish I had the money). And if there are no desirable figures you seek in this series, don't worry, Series 10 is around the corner.

For a pictorial view of the current series, here it is (adapted from Lego.wikia.com):

Been to Bintulu

Hi everyone! I'm currently in bintulu, which is a 2-hour drive northeast of sibu (unless you take the bus which will be more since it stops every freaking moment). Anyhow, today is my last day here I this town and my next and last stop is Miri where I will be heading to tomorrow.

Places I travelled while I am here were Taman Tumbina Bintulu and Similajau National Park. The former place can be translated as plant/animal park as locals will realise it's actually a wordplay of the Malay words: tumbuhan (plants) and binatang (animals). It used to be a zoo but they turned it into a conservation centre a few years back, which is something even i do not know of until recently. The latter is a typical national park infested with mosquitoes (my limbs are evident of this). Nearby the park is my old national service camp. Too bad I'm not the patriotic type to begin with which kinda wasted the camp's effort to convert me into one.

Alas, as I ate my last dinner here in bintulu, I leave you with this picture I took at the beach of the national park.

Last stop in Miri

Alrite, so, my partner and I are now in Miri which is our last stop as well for this trip. We couldn't stay in a more aptly named hotel - Miri Hotel. Not sure what today's plans are but we did plan to be spontaneously. It's been a long journey and we don't mind tuning down the adventure for the last day.

As of now, we are having our breakfast as illustrated below :)

In Kuching, I chill

Hello,I touched down in Kuching two days ago but due tothe lack if wi-fi, I wasn't able to online until now. I'm still in Kuching but I'm currently enjoying my chocolate banana smoothie in palace called the Bing. It's like Kuching version of Starbucks. Anyway, imma visit the more natural places of Kuching tomorrow such as the national park. So until I get to sibu, I probably won't post anything for the time being. Til then, ciaoz :)

Packing Up

From the look of this image, it's obvious that I'm packing up. The binocular and the mini telescope probably give away that I'm not moving to another house or what not but I'm travelling.

Yes, you guess it, I'm travelling tomorrow to my home-state, Sarawak.  For those of you who do not know where this majestic natural land is, it's part of the Borneo which consists of Indonesia, Brunei and Sabah. Borneo is known as the world's third largest island (a fact that even I do not know of until after a research on Wikipedia).

As for me, I hailed from a small town named, Sibu, right in the middle of Sarawak. Although I have been living them for 18 years, I have never truly travel all parts of Sarawak (well, I can never do that since more than half of it is covered by rainforest which is as dense as the Amazon, [Wikipedia]). Nevertheless, this time, me and my partner (whom shall be named after a few post), have planned a vacation on the major cities of Sarawak (i.e., Kuching, Sibu, Bintulu and Miri). That's quite a geography lesson now, ain't it?

Anyhow, my flight is scheduled tomorrow in the evening, so I probably won't be able to update my blog for the time being. I know, I suck 'cuz I just started writing this blog and now, I'm leaving. Hopefully, I can still update pictures of my trip while I'm there.

Well then, ciaoz to those who read my blog :)

Intro: An Image of Me

As the title says, this is an image of me...or the minifigure representation of me. Yes, I look like a callow naughty boy which is kinda who I really am. Nevertheless, I can be mature too and I know my limits of when to be immature of when to be obnoxious.

The purpose of this post is to further introduce myself. I have just described my personality but other features of myself should be undisclosed. Let's see...what else... Well, I'm over 20 years old when doesn't help much given the fact that I'm still immature at times. While I have constantly been chastened for not being serious, this part of me will always be who I am and I am proud of it. However, given that life isn't always jolly and sweet and I do have obligations to make in life, there are times when I realize this sort of personality will do me no good, especially in context of working on a project or dating.

In such occasions, I need to tear down this part of me and construct them again like a Lego building. Fear not, I do not forget my old self but as I'm growing older, there is a need for change if I want to move on in life. As such, constructing a new personality is necessary. Then again, maybe there is no need for constant deconstructing and reconstructing. Perhaps, I can just add new features to an already stable building, just to increase more foundation for all those weights I have to bear in the future.

Basically, I take new experiences as an improvement. Uprooting a foundation to build a better building is not necessary when one can just build more support for it while maintaining the old foundation. With that, I conclude this post and again, Happy New Year.

Change may or may not be needed for the coming months =D

The Start of the Year!

Hello everyone!

Just a brief intro, the name's Raymond from Malaysia. I'm currently studying in Sunway University as a psychology student. Some of you may know that prior to this blog, I have another one called 'Sequential Life of a Geek'. Yes, I am a geek and I'm proud of it. Anyhow, this point of this new blog is to start anew and this time 'round, I have decided to focus on Lego bricks as my theme.

Now since young, I simply adore Lego. Nothing puts a big smile on my face than the mere sight of Lego. Hence, a few days ago, I thought to myself, "why not restart my blog with a Lego theme". What I meant here is that I will still write about my life and et cetera but I will use Lego minifigures or bricks to represent them. Of course, there will be times when I will post non-Lego related pictures or events (it's still my personal blog). Moreover, I will also introduce new Lego sets to avid fans just to keep them in the loop (not that they won't know about it before I do).

Well, as it's first day of 2013, what better way to start off the blog than building a Lego-themed new year.

It begins with a 2. It looks like an amalgamation of mechanical-look-a-like bricks put together. Indeed, it is. Personally, this symbol reflects on all the constructs, both figuratively and physically, I'm going to build in the future. Of course, no tasks are effortless. Constructs that we build are products of our desires and wants and what we want to bring to life.

Now the second Lego pieces that I put together is this. From the looks, it's a no-brainer that it symbolizes growth. Again, it's the new year. Everything should start anew. Even with old problems that we might have encountered in 2012, we should look forward to 2013 and restart our life. By beginning anew, who knows, your future may be more fruitful and prosperous than before.

Now, this may seem simplistic in design but it has huge meaning behind it. As you can see, these two minifigures are striving to reach to the top - their finish line.With the new year at our doorsteps, it is inevitable that we have new goals to set or we might even have old goals that we haven't yet achieved. However, the goals that we set are, of course, not achieved without effort. The journey ahead will always be arduous and just like these minifigures, we need to push on if we truly want to reach the top. Otherwise, it's long fall.

Lastly...to be honest, before I built this, I seriously couldn't think of anything else to build. After fidgeting with my superheroes minifigures, I came to a conclusion that, "what the heck, let's build something about superheroes". And this is the product. In life, there are supervillains and superheroes and I can't say that those two titles are independent. They do indeed overlaps most of the times. In other words, sometimes a superhero will behave similar to that of a supervillain and vice versa. With regards to the new year, I guess our choices influences our paths as well. We often make the wrong choices even though we may start out as a superhero at first but that doesn't mean that there is no turning back. There is still a chance for you to make the right choices again. As such, our inner selves are a constant battle between good and bad but your choices in life influences who you will become later on (of course, this will keep changing so it's a perpetual battle).

Wow, such a wordy post for a first post. Nevertheless, these 4 aspects of my symbols above represent what myself and the targets that I should focus this year or the years after this. Anyhow, that's all for now. Without further ado, HAPPY NEW YEAR!