Sunday 27 September 2015

England v Wales!!

A good comeback from an injury-ridden Wales.

In the backyard of their old Enemy.

It's supposed to be England's World Cup.


Saturday 26 September 2015

A tale of patience and courtesy

I suspect that many of you will be able to relate to this tale (some of which is based on true events).
***

Washington White-Rabbit and his long-time best friend Betilda Blue-Bird were travelling to the city of Depping by car.

Betilda was at the wheel this time (they always elected to go in turns -- and Washington had driven on the last occasion).

Although the city of Depping was fairly small and suburban in nature, its central hub was notorious for its traffic and congestion.

In particular, Depping's main carpark, the Doles carpark, was regularly flooded with anxious and desperate people who would do almost anything to secure a parking space.

The pair had been waiting in the Doles carpark for over half an hour and by this time, Betilda and Washington were well and truly fed-up.

"We've been here so long Washington. It's just SO infuriating. People keep cutting in."
yelled Betilda in frustration.

"Yes it is Betilda, yes it is. But it's not your fault though. 
Everyone seems to be in a hurry to find a spot."
sighed Washington.


(The following diagram is a depiction of the situation - the blue dot being Betilda's car)



At that very instant, a Green car was reversing out of its spot.

"Washington, look! Someone's coming out."

"That's great Betty! You'll signal right won't you?"

"Yep, Yep."


"Yes, that's good Betilda, you're almost there."
encouraged Washington.

"Thanks. I'll have to slow down and wait for this car to pass us though."

"Yeah, good idea."


"Good job Betilda. Are you okay for the reverse parking?"

"Yeah I'm OK, I'll be fine this time - thanks Washington."

(Betilda would often ask Washington to reverse the car for her in high-pressure situations, but on this occasion she was confident - she had been secretly practising. Reverse parking was previously her weak point, and with it now mastered she was no longer afraid of driving.)


With a full calmness of mind, Betilda began to turn her steering wheel to the right.


...

...

...











Then, out of nowhere, the unspeakable happened.





"WHAT?!?!?!"
screamed Betilda Blue-Bird and Washington White-Rabbit in exact unison.


A random car, out of nowhere, had just decided to help itself to the space Betilda Blue-Bird was reversing into. 

"But I signalled! Why?"
asked a shattered Betilda.

As always, Betilda looked to her best friend for answers. She felt that this incident could make her lose her confidence in driving again.

Washington White-Rabbit just stared at her blankly, his face was a pale white.


"I... I honestly don't know. I feel like we've been robbed."

"Did I do something wrong?!"
asked an anxious Betilda.

Betilda's confidence was dented.

Washington paused for a few breaths.

"No, it wasn't your fault at all. You were doing a good job. 
That red car cut in line. 
He wasn't here before, and he knew we were here before him."
explained White-Rabbit.


Betilda breathed a sigh of relief, thankful that she hadn't done anything wrong. 

But there was obviously something else that was bothering her.

"But that's so unfair, why would anyone do something like that?"

"I don't know... I don't know but...

...I suppose that's life for you isn't it?"



Now, unbeknownst to the pair (who were so caught up with the injustice of what they had just witnessed), an orange car had pulled up alongside Betilda's car and the driver was winding down his window while the two were talking.



"Hey, how long have you folks been here for?"
inquired the stranger from the orange car.

"We've been here about close to 40 minutes. Someone cut into our spot.
moaned Washington.

"And I signalled too, the guy over there was so rude."
said Betilda, pointing in the direction of the offender.

"Sorry to hear that. 
I've been driving around for nearly an hour myself. No one has let me in either."
moped the stranger.


At that moment, a pink car made its way out from its lot, not far away from where the two cars sat.

"Finally. THIS IS OURS!!'
shouted Betilda Blue-Bird

"Yes, let's go!"
exclaimed Washington White-Rabbit


Just as Betilda was about to ram onto the accelerator, she stopped the car hard in its tracks - pressing onto the brakes instead. 

She had a strange frown on her face.

She didn't need to explain. 

Washington understood.


"Hey, my friend, you've been here longer than us. You go on and take that spot."
said Washington to the stranger, gesturing to the vacant parking spot.

The stranger hesitated.

"Go on, I mean it!!"
nodded Washington.

"I thought you were going to take it. A-Are you sure? I'm fine if you do."
said the stranger, who was slightly confused by what he had just seen and heard.

"Yes, it's all good. Please, after you."
said Betilda cheerfully, who, being in the driver's seat, had made a special effort to tilt her head and raise her voice so that the stranger could hear her.

"Thank you - thank you so much."


And with that, the Orange car happily drove into the vacant lot.


"Let's just get out of this place Betilda. 
Why don't we try Westwood instead?"

"Alright."
smiled Betilda.



Andre Lim
26 September 2015

Sunday 20 September 2015

Japan v South Africa

Amazing.

Better highlights here.

Look no further than the front page of the online Japan Times to see what it means.


Saturday 19 September 2015

Chelsea v Arsenal - the game that made me stop watching EPL

Alright, perhaps this is an extreme reaction - and I agree it is - but if this is the standard of refereeing that the English Premier League will provide, then I simply refuse to watch any future English Premier League matches as a matter of principle.

Of course, referees make mistakes.

What is critical for me, however, in any sport is integrity, fairness and justice.

I didn't see any of that today so I refuse to watch anymore of this.

The person at fault got away with it and the relatively innocent (perhaps not completely innocent? - doesn't matter though) party was harshly punished. It puts a bad taste in my mouth and I refuse to watch any more.

Yes I admit it does come across as a bit self-righteous in many respects but that is just the way I feel...........I just don't like seeing the "bad guy" getting away with foul play.

Andre Lim

About me and this site

I have updated this part of the website :)

You can find it here.

Andre Lim

Sunday 13 September 2015

A tale of two indecisive friends

(The following story is very very loosely based on true events)

***

Washington White-Rabbit met up with his his long-time friend Betilda Blue-Bird.

The two were tossing up places to have dinner.

As usual, they couldn't make a decision.

"Where do you want to go? I'm easy.
said White-Rabbit.

"Well I'm easy as well, anywhere you want to go.
replied Blue-Bird.



(There is a brief silence as each digests the effect of what has just been said)



Finally Washington White-Rabbit, who was a bit more familiar with the area, said:

"So there's a good takeaway over there; 
some restaurants on that side; and 
if we really want to we can take a bit of a walk - a 15 minute walk in that direction - to find some other places. 
Which one do you want?"


"All of them sound good, I don't mind."



(There is another pause)



"Well I'm really bad at making decisions so you choose!
insisted White-Rabbit.

"So am I, how about you choose? I'm really easy you know, it doesn't matter where. 
I don't mind anything."


"OK, how about the takeaway?

"Yeah that's okay."

"Only okay? Do you like Chinese food? That restaurant looks decent -"

"Sure."

"-Or do you want to take a walk, maybe we should walk and look for something else."

"Yeah maybe we should."



(There is another pause)


"Well?"

"I don't know...You've known me for this long, you know I'm not good at making decisions.
moped Betilda.


White-Rabbbit sighed.

"I can't make decisions either. I honestly don't know what we should do."

Betilda also sighed.

"Yeah, I knew that too."


(The two stand there for about 5 minutes in complete silence. They both saw the elephant in the room.)


"So... 

...how did we actually choose a place last time we met up?
Betilda asked

"I can't remember. Maybe we flipped a coin?
speculated Washington.

"Really? I thought we just started walking in a random direction until we reached a place."

"Oh? Then why don't we do that?"



(Betilda pauses)


"Because it means we have to ACTUALLY choose a direction to walk in."

"Yeah and how did we choose last time?!
exclaimed a frustrated White-Rabbit

"We just randomly chose a direction.
said Betilda, matter-of-factly.

"That makes no sense. 
How did we "randomly" choose a direction - 
if we start walking towards the takeaway doesn't that mean we are choosing the takeaway? 
If we walk towards the shops, we're going there. 
If we walk away towards the other shops it means we want something else. 
That's NOT random.
cried out Washington in desperation.


Washington was exasperated.

(Betilda pauses, sighs and then says to White-Rabbit:)



"You're right, last time we didn't randomly walk in a certain direction. 
I think we just walked somewhere that we unconsciously decided to go, without us actually being aware that we chose that direction.



(Washington White-Rabbit paused to think about what Betilda Blue-Bird said)



"You know what's funny Betty?"


"What?"


"I feel like I've been doing that my whole life. 
Just subconsciously going with my instinct or going with the flow. 
I don't know exactly whether I'll regret the direction I've taken.. 
..but at least in my subconscious mind I've decided to go somewhere."

"Tell me about it. That is how I feel everyday."

"Yeah I know, you're an old friend. We're the same, you and I."


(There is another long pause)


"I give up. I'm going home."
said a defeated Washington.


"Do you have food at home?"

"No, you know I don't keep food at home Betilda."

"What?! Won't you be hungry? And you're just going to leave me here?"

"Well it's not like I want to, I'm just so confused."

"Just pick something."
insisted Betilda Blue-Bird

"YOU pick something Betilda."

"WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU WASHINGTON?!"
screamed Betilda Blue-Bird.

"STOP YELLING AT ME"



Washington White-Rabbit calms down and takes a minute to breathe.

"...I honestly don't know Betty. I'm sorry."



Betilda Blue-Bird sighs. 
There is another long pause.


"I'm sorry for yelling at you. You're my good friend Washington."

"That's okay. I'm sorry for being so indecisive."

"Me too, it's also my fault for not choosing."


(There is another long period of silence)


"How about we pick something together?"
asked Betilda.

"How do we do that?"

"We'll just both start walking in the same direction."

"That's ridiculous. What if we both walk in different directions?"

"True."
sighed Betilda.

"This is getting crazy."

"I know."
admitted Betilda.

(There is another long pause)


"Alright I've had enough of this rubbish. This is going to be random. 
You'll follow wherever I'll go?"
asked Washington White-Rabbit.

"Yeah, I'll follow you."
confirmed Betilda Blue-Bird.

"No questions?"

"None, I'll follow."

"Alright."

And with those words Washington White-Rabbit did an about-turn and started walking home. 

Loyal Betilda kept her promise and followed him.

Even though they were too scared to say it out loud, both were thinking the same thing.

We'll starve, but at least we chose.




Andre Lim

Saturday 12 September 2015

Helping others

"If we can't even look after our poor, broken, homeless, widowed, disabled and sick - what chance do the refugees have?
- CT (paraphrased)

My friend said this to me the other day and I thought it was very profound.

If we really care about the livelihood of others, should we not extend the same kindness to all who are suffering, and not just people from a particular category of suffering?

Something to think about.

But eventually we need to stop thinking and actually do something.

Andre Lim

Sunday 6 September 2015

Happy _________ Day!!

Today is Father's Day.

As with Mother's Day, Children's Day (?), Valentine's Day, a Birthday, a Wedding Anniversary or some other occasion I have carelessly forgotten, I think Father's Day is a fantastic reason to celebrate and appreciate our fathers. And so should it be too with the other Days I have mentioned for the respective people we are appreciating  =)

In particular I think the group of people, or the person, responsible for bringing about these celebratory days have done a great job =)




However



what I must say is that these Days should NOT be the ONLY days in which we stop to appreciate someone we love.

I mean seriously, how bad is it if your mum, dad or sweetheart has to wait for that 1, or perhaps 2, days in the whole calendar year for you to spend a bit of time to appreciate them?! 

(Specifically, I am thinking of the scenario where a mother or father only gets to see their now adult and independent children on Father's Day or Mother's Day)

In my view we should show our love, respect, appreciation and admiration for those we care about as much as we can and as often as we can!!!!

Of course, it is great that we allocate special days to demonstrate this even more and I'm not suggesting for a moment that we shouldn't do this - but the critical point is that we shouldn't pigeon hole our loved ones into a particular day of the year.

On a similar note, why do so many artists (or people in general) only get properly recognised after they die? Should we not respect and admire those who are still alive -- ie. while they still walk amongst us?!

Easier said than done of course!!

I myself have been a hypocrite on many an occasion in the above respects.

Andre Lim

Saturday 5 September 2015

A good question to ask ourselves every day

We all know that life itself is extremely fragile and short. Worded differently, our time on this earth is precious and we should certainly make the most of it.

What 'making the most of it' exactly means will probably be a point of debate depending on who you talk to.


"YOLO"

For example, a common expression amongst young people is YOLO - You Only Live Once.

YOLO is sometimes a term paraded around as a reason or justification for doing things like heavy partying, drinking, or perhaps engaging in living-on-the-edge type of activities (eg. skydiving or some other adrenalin-rich activity).

In many ways I think this attitude is actually correct and it's understandable why someone who hasn't thought it through might take that approach - however I think the application is wrong.

Perhaps instead of looking for thrill-seeking or self-satisfying activities, we should help to make the lives of others better.


Our purpose in life?

As Dr Vale Imbrosciano so clearly elucidated, we should seek to tread lightly on this earth - by causing as little offence to others as is humanly possible. That means forgiving and making amends with people. We should also engage in meaningful relationships.

We should also realise that every day is literally a gift - a gift, in my view, from none other than God Himself.

So, I think a good question to ask ourselves each day is this:

If I died today, would I have any regrets?

Now, this question is not to be interpreted as seeking the YOLO-type response mentioned above (ie. "I regret not partying hard today so I shall do so now!!").

What it seeks to elicit is a positive response from us - is there something we should have done today to make someone else's life better?

Easier said than done obviously, but the question is a useful starting point.


But if I knew my date of death...

Of course, if I 100% KNEW that I was going to die today, then obviously my response would be quite different to that which would result from leisurely answering the hypothetical question  "IF I died today...".

Being asked a hypothetical question on death is clearly not the same as being faced with the certainty as to the time and date of our death.

If I knew I was going to die, I might for example give away all my money and possessions to someone who needs it...or someone I trust. Of course, no one knows exactly what they would do until they are in that position. Sitting down to think about it might help, but I would imagine that being on one's deathbed would make one think very differently about life.

On a somewhat related note, as an ex-colleague once said to me, the fact of the matter is that the average person is very unlikely to consider preparing a will in contemplation of their death until they experience a life-changing event. That life-changing event will probably wake us up and make us realise that, in the event of death, we have to plan for what happens to those we leave behind.

Life changing events can include: marriage, the birth of your child, having a health problem etc.


What's my point?

I admit that these are some deep thoughts that are often taboo topics to raise in casual conversation, but it's something we all eventually have to think about.

For now, I think I should just stick to the hypothetical question discussed above - If I died today, would I have any regrets? - and see if this actually changes the way I live my life.

(In theory it should. But we all know about the human condition.)


Andre Lim