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I was watching the tv in my first few hours of freedom and saw this whole commersial by Singapore Sports Council. It's surprising well done leh! just that the inspirational words don't really seem to fit in.

Can just check it out at singapore.sg

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Hehe I kinda ran out of stuff to talk about, but my random thoughts are still going on.. So the star of the post today is my random thought!

my God-mindedness

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I have a bit of inspirational problems with the story, so I'll just leave it hanging first while I get on with my life

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This entry might not appeal much, if at all, to non-Christians. But oh well, the purpose of the blog's existence sure is more than entertaining you.

I marvel at how I look to God only during exams, and not much during the rest of the sem. Sure, I got quite burn out during the sem, but I chose to continue to rely on my own devices despite the tiredness (if there's such a word).

I didn't realise my 零时抱祖脚 mentality at all until I saw my grades for a 20% assignment. C+. Oh... my.... goodness... Le Hia is actually capable of getting C+ (I'll admit. With this line, I have highlighted 1. my un-God-mindedness, 2. my arrogant complacency)

That was the first C+ I'd ever seen. Not surprisingly, it didn't elicit the same feelings as when I saw my first A+.

It just totally came back and hit me hard, right smack in the face. This is where I get when I rely only on myself. Me, myself and I. The perfect formula for failure. C+.

Why didn't I look to God during that time??

It's so easy to say things on hindsight, isn't it? Sighz. The folly of Man!

The Lord has indeed helped me with my grades everytime I asked Him to (He's a faithful God, wat). Sure, some people might say I still got a B even though I prayed and put my entire faith in Him. But hey, I got A pluses too. Notice the plurals and singular. I got 1 B each for sem 2 and 3, none in sem 1. But the A pluses have been increasing from sem 1 to 3 (from 0 to 3).

God helps. But only when you ask for it. Fortunately or unfortunately, I only seem to remember him during the final exams, and less so during the semester. Suffice to say, it's quite obvious that my A pluses come from modules with heavy weightage on the final paper, and the Bs (and B pluses for that matter) come from moduels with low weightage on the final paper.

It's such a startling revelation isn't it?

This was a verse I found after randomly opening a page

The Spirit alone gives eternal life. Human effort accomplishes nothing. And the very words I have spoken to you are spirit and life.

John 6:63

(NLT)

Chapter 6

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I seriously think Thailand did the right thing in announcing they will not cut rice exports now. Someone should give the fella who made the decision a Novel peace prize.

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The ruffian shielded his eyes from the blinding sun as he turned a corner off the back alley. Right into the priest himself.

Partially blinded and unable to see, the ruffian squinted long and hard before he could make out the vague outline of a long robe.

"Good day, Father. What a surprise to see you around town." He managed uneasily.

"Only a surprise if you don't expect me here."

"Why wouldn't I expect you here? It's not the church but it's still the town and you have every right to be here, even if it's at the corner of a back alley with very few people." The ruffian grew confident as his eyesight restored.

"You're still a case of wits aren't you, Ruffian? Tell me, have you got anything to do with the popularity contest?"

"I'd love to say I didn't just to spite you, but you'll know about it anyway when I go confess my sins at the end of the week. Of course I had something and everything to do with it! The whole town had. We voted, yeah?"

"Very clever remarks, but my question remains unanswered."

"Dear priest, you are an intelligent man yourself. Don't come looking for me alone and expect me to talk. Gather the whole group and we'll be more than happy to tell you what we think, then see for yourself if it was ever our doing in the first place." he paused. "Good afternoon, Father."

The ruffian raised an imaginary hat, spun on his heels and walked away mocking a gentleman.

The priest watched the ruffian vanish around the corner and sighed. A turmoil of anger and resignation swirled giddily inside, sending an acute shot of migraine straight up his spine. He turned and began a painful walk back to the church.

Chapter 5

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I wonder. Is Singapore the only country that didn't really wanted independence in the patriotic, protest-y way so rampant now?

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A deliberate chain of knocks sounded through the cellar and a long line of light briefly illuminated the dark insides. The door silently swung shut and a bolt latched into place. Deft footsteps fluttered down the stairs and a small kerosene light came on.

"Did you hear what happened to the paper boy?"

"His only mistake is working for the papers."

"But that's not even his fault"

"The fault should probably be ours."

"But we didn't do anything! Much, at least."


The rush of hushed voices increased as the participants got more excited. Deep in the cellar of the diplomat's house, the diplomat's wife, the clockmaker, the wine seller and the local ruffian had gathered in the midst of the afternoon siesta.

"Who else has the priest talked to?"

"The milkmaid, so far all I've heard."

"What did he ask her about?"

"Oh. The popularity contest I guess."

"Ha ha! The milkmaid thinks everyone is nice. How could he ask her? "

"Oh well. I guess every bit helps?"

"Who do you think he'll find next? "

"Me. I'm the most undiplomatic diplomat's wife around. "

"Oh please. It'll definitely be me. I happen to be the hooligan around here ya? "

"Agreed." The wine seller and clockmaker answered in unison.

Silence fell on the quartet as they contemplated their situations.

"If he comes to look for me, then so be it. I'm not afraid." The ruffian proclaims.

"Me neither." Wine Seller replies. Clockmaker and Diplomat's Wife nod in agreement.

The kerosene light snuffed out as silent footsteps ascended the stairs.

Chapter 4

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I just realised an ex-boyfriend of mine is a very useful object of fantasy. No wonder I thought I couldn't get over him. Hm...

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The crow of the rooster signalled the rise of dawn. The priest opened his eyes and stared at the peeling ceiling above him. Hm. We need a new paint job soon.

With a long creak of the mattress, the priest arose from his bed and dressed up. He had not forgotten his promise.

After a quick meal of plain broth and bread, he headed out into the morning sun. Walking along the main street, he saw the villagers go about their routine, opening up their stores and displaying their wares.

He saw a milkmaid and stopped her in her tracks.

"Morning, Father. Surprised to see you here so early in the morning."

"Good morning, milkmaid. Indeed, I would like to hear your views on a matter."

"Sure thing, Father. What is it regarding?"

"I came to know of this popularity contest ran by the newspaper. Have you heard about it?"

"Oh yes, I have. It was quite a big affair, running for a couple of weeks in the papers, I think."

"Excellent. Do you know about the Top Ten Unpopular People then? The list was just published two days ago."

"The Top Ten Unpopular People list? No, I haven't heard about it. Maybe I missed it."

"Well then, let me just ask you what do you think about our dear bell boy?"

"The boy who rings the church bell? Oh, he's a pleasant boy. Met him a couple of times, quite like him, I feel."

"Alright. Thank you for your time, Milkmaid, it's been a good time talking to you. God bless."

And they parted ways.

What a pleasant little girl. The priest thought to himself, and walked on.

Chapter 3

The priest left the paper boy's house feeling proud of his successful rectification.

"At least that'll stop the boy from spreading nonsense through his papers." He thought.

As he walked back through the town square, he noticed the sky turning dark and decided to head back to the church instead. Back in the church, he made a quick beeline to the bell boy's room; he was eager to let the bell boy know what he accomplished for the day.

But when he stepped into the tiny room, he saw the bell boy in tears.

"Why are you crying, my dear boy? Who did what to you now?"

Still sobbing uncontrollably, the boy pulled a crumpled sheet of newspaper out from his drawer and showed it to the priest.

"Not only do the people not need me anymore, they don't like me either!" And he crescendoed into amazing howls.

The priest took the newspaper from the boy's hands and saw the mentioned article in a tiny corner.

Top 10 Unpopular People in our town
1. The Tax Collector
2. The Squire
3. The Bell Boy
4. ...

The priest sighed and looked at the wailing boy.

"It's ok, my child. Rest early tonight. I'll go speak to the people first thing tomorrow morning."

The story continues

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Shit man. Was on my way to school to do stuff for 2208, and was so tired that I fell asleep on the bus. Woke up when I felt someone playing with my bra strap (I was wearing a singlet). At first I thought it was someone who knew me, and ignored it at first. Then it continued, and I turned back. WTF! Some weirdass nerd-looking fella stretched his arm along the window and was fingering my bra strap from the seat behind.


TMD. For the outrage you caused me (yesterday), you have been repaid ten fold, and you will never be able to lift up your head when you see me again.
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The priest walked by the town square when he heard the paper boy shouting the headlines at the top of his lungs.

"Come get your papers! Harvest season starts! More fashionable clocks available now! Come get your papers!"

The priest took quick strides over to the paper boy and snatched a copy from him.

"What do you mean more fashionable clocks? These machines are evil!"

The paper boy was taken aback by the snapping priest and only managed to quiver, "What do you mean, Father? These clocks are all the rage. And they help people tell the time. They are good."

"How can they be good? Do you have any idea how hurt the bell boy is now because of these atrocities? I am taking you to your father."

With that, the priest grabbed the startled boy by the ear and dragged him all the way home. The paper boy's dad had just reached home for his afternoon break, and just when he was ready to kick up his feet for a nap, the priest burst through the door dragging the poor boy with him. "Excuse me, Mr. Jones, I need to speak to you."

Now, the paper boy's father held the priest in great esteem, on hearing the gravity of the priest's tone, he solemnly led the priest outdoors, leaving the sobbing boy alone in the house.

An hour and a half passed before the father re-entered the house. He walked over to the boy, and towering above him, he said in the gravest tone the boy had ever heard, "Son, what you did was wrong. These clocks have wrongly perpetuated our lives, and you have wrongfully condoned it. The true messenger of time is the church bell, not these objects of materialism. You are to apologise to the priest for your foolish comment now."

The boy stared back at the father he had held in awe. How could my father be so blind to believe the priest? Refusing to give in, he ran out of the house feeling most miserable for his father's betrayal..

Ringing the bell

Long ago, there was a church with an extremely high bell tower. High up in the tower, was a large bell that rang loud and clear. The church had a bell boy, and his job was to ring the bell every Sunday. The boy was a pleasant boy, he loved his job, he loved the bell, he loved the church and the people.

Now, the people of the town depended on the church bell to tell them the time to head for the church. Back in those days when electricity was not a word, these primitive measures dictated the livelihood of the people. But the boy had a bad habit; he would oversleep. And he'll miss the time to ring the bell, and everyone would be late for church.

People began to not trust the bell, and devised their own methods to tell the time. Some reared several roosters, some fashioned a moon dial, others used the river and the water mill. No one listened to the bell anymore.

And so, when the boy awoke from his prolonged slumber, he was surprised to see the masses already gathered at the church hall. Then the priest would begin his sermon, and mass would begin. And this went on for serveral weeks. The boy realised people didn't need his bell anymore.

The priest noticed that the bell wasn't ringing, and he questioned the bell boy. The boy told him that people didn't need him anymore, and he felt sad. He said that people would arrive even though he hadn't ring the bell, and that mass would begin as though nothing was amiss.

The priest thought about it for a moment, and decided that he had to do something. He made a trip into the town, and saw the various contraptions that the people had made to help them tell the time. He felt angry for the boy, and went around telling the people that they were wrong in building their own clocks. They should be listening to the church bell!

Eh.. hehe. Story stops here. To be continued. Need to go do my portfolio liao.

Poster final, finally!

Ok. Might be a bit confusing.. But here's my final poster design. Er.. original poster design might be three entries down..

Longest meeting ever

Just want to keep a record here..

Module: FNA 1006 Accounting Information Systems
Meeting Date: 9 April 2008, Wednesday
Meeting Time: 2 pm
Meeting end: 10 April 2008, Thursday, 9.50 am
Length of meeting: 21 hours 50 minutes
Reason for meeting end: Lesson at 10 am

Comments: Shiok!

Love card 2

Ooh! Forgot to say.. For the old couple design, the picture of two dentures is meant for the inside of the card. So you'll open the card, and you'll see the two dentures. They're not side by side like how I blogged.

Love Card

I have no idea where I read it, or how it got into my head, but originally, I thought that there was a compulsory requirement to use red as the colour code for the card.

I started out with two designs. One of hands held together, and another with two old people holding hands. But when it came to adding colour, I realised that I simply didn't know how to use red and people together.



So I came up with a third one, and one that is very common - hearts.




And this is what I presented to the class:

But my favourite design was still the old couple. It was my bright idea! So I showed the sketch that I scanned into the computer. And apparently, no one else except me knew of any compulsory colour code. And so.. I did my old couple in the end!

This is what I brought to class the second week:

The shadows were quite haphazardly done, so that explains the funny shape. Suggestions given were to make the gums redder, and to elongate the shadow so that it doesn't look like a reflection..

And so.. This is my final product!

Nice?

Poster - NOT final copy

Okz. That's my poster to STOP GLOBAL WARMING. Haha soooo many criticisms for it, I must have gone terribly wrong somewhere..

1. Too block-ish, no flow for the eye.

2. Ice cube needs to look less perfect.

3. Words are over-dramatic

4. No one noticed the green spot (signifying dry land) at the corner..

Haiz. So my (super major) improvements/ammendments are:

1. Change poster to portrait

2. Use hour glass, melted ice cubes on top, dripping water to submerged Singapore below

3. Change the words - copyright to be thought of again

4. Forget the green spot. Bleah.

Haha. Recently I've been very time/sleep deprived. So I'll work on my poster then post it up again!

Photo story

I've always wondered what it was like doing a photo essay. hahaha. Now I finally understand. No mean feat indeed.

Those are my first 9 photos. Haha. Didn't storyboard well, so ended up with one photo less without realising it. The sixth and ninth photos were edited after the tutorial though. (forgot to save as..)

And here are some of the comments given in class:

1. Could not really tell that she's leaving her place for the library. Maybe could include her wearing her shoes or pressing "1" in the lift or something

2. Cannot really tell it's the librarian (this comment one I made myself, after feedback from someone else outside class). So I gave her a books badge (in the original photo). People suggested she could bun up her hair, or look older, or change to a less cute model. But the model part is a bit more difficult, cos not many other people can act like her.

3. Could maybe put the National Library Board's logo at the entrance of the library, so people will be clearer it's the library. But after it was clarified that words can be there, as long as it's photographed by me, I think there's no need for it.

4. Also a comment made by myself: The last photograph would be where the girl leaves sadly out of the library. In my original storyboard, I had wanted the librarian to be the last photo. But looking at it again, I felt that it does not have a nice conclusion to the story..

And so, with those comments, I came up with an improved photo story! haha.

Is the story better told now?

Representation... again

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Taking a break from 2208, I would just like to rant for a minute or two here.

There are two things I utterly detest when it comes to photography.

1) Not being given credit
2) Being taken for granted for

Argh! Yo all you nice people out there. Please get this in your head. We are not a committee under you. Don't just go around having your own big plans and expect us to fill in the holes for you. If you can't plug the gaps yourself, then scrap it la. Sheesh! And what's up with not giving us credit?? Those photos belong to us ya?
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Ok. Back to 2208.

Dear Jing and fellow classmates, please ignore the above section. This is my personal blog after all, and I needed some place to rant it out la.

Okz. Back.

I was sitting on my design idea for the Representation design, and kinda decided that it still wasn't enough. And I worked on it, and worked on it. Partly inspired by Chen Guo's vending machine, and also the lack of a bright idea on my side. (That's the thing with design. It's always the bright ideas that work. But they don't come by easily.)

So I sat on it (the idea), and sat on it, and slept through it. And I finally developed the design. (It's developed cos it still didn't come with a big idea).

I originally wanted to put the big windows at the bottom half of the laptop, but it looked weird. So I left it like the logo it is on my own laptop. I also feel that the big windows symbol on the screen is more representative of a windows operating system. So hey, I've chosen the last one! :)

Representation finally!

Yay! Finally can show my designs for the representation assignment.

Haha, firstly, here's my abstraction "ladder". From no. 1 to no. 5!





We were supposed to choose one out of the five, and I chose no. 4. Which is the one below. There is nothing much different, Just enlarged for your viewing pleasure.

I only posted the first picture with all 5 abstractions for the E-learning week. And my goodness. Everyone (except one) said I should remove my camera! BUT I DON'T WANT!! Because I wanted to represent my laptop which is different from any other laptop because it has a unique, big, bulky webcam there.

So very obviously, I was quite so very adamant about keeping that webcam there. But the comments kept haunting me, and in the end, I decided that...

I'll remove the webcam.

Cos I decided that the white colour would still show that it's my laptop in the end. Because my laptop is white, and I'm the designer, and I designed a white laptop. And putting two and two together, it should be clear enough that it's my darling laptop. If it doesn't, I'm telling you now that that's my laptop. phttt.

And here, is my most improved design :)

Representation assignment

Aah! I want to upload my photos for my representation assignment, but blogger is not allowing me too.. I'll upload it once I figure out what's the problem..

Final products

Wow! Two posts in a day!! Hahaha.


And here, ladies and gentlemen, are my final designs...

My computerised versions

Been wanting to post my computerised versions up but didn't really have the time for it..

So, here it is!


This time round, there weren't many comments for my "love" design. Probably cos they said all they wanted to during the last tutorial. One suggestion though, was to make the black-coloured keyboards a bit shorter to make it look more like a reflection. Okz, sounds reasonable to me.

On the contrary, there were a lot more comments for my "hate" design. Someone said that it wasn't bloody enough, and suggested that I used blood splatters for my letters. I decided against that idea, because my design is striving for a dirty feel, more than bloody. I did tell them I was going to thicken the letters, as it's obviously not very clear now.. No one thought it was a bad idea, so I'm going ahead with it.

Another suggestion was to create a shadow for the cigarrete, so that it'll look tall. Also, to prevent it from looking like another letter, I could slant it to the left. And I need to change the cheery yellow colour of my cigarette. A bit too happy..

So, now, it's time to work it out and see how it works!

The beginning of a journey

I did it. I took the plunge and took 2208. All for my dream of doing 3223...

So for our first assignment, we were asked to design a name, which would show what we love and what we hate. What we love was easy. Whatever we love, just squeeze out our names from there. What we hate was tougher.. How do we show hate when the design is all over our name??

Sweat and brains, sweat and brains. And finally..

Ta-dah! My four final designs.

Of course I loved them. All my sudden bright ideas and hard work. Haha Julian talked about beginner designers making the mistake of falling in love at first sight.. Looks like I'm headed right there.. oops!

Then came tutorial class, and the moment of truth. And I went up there and presented my ideas just like everyone else. Then the comments came.. Just like everyone else's.

The first one was "I think people would be able to read it only after they know you." Argh! That was exactly what I feared. Lehia is not exactly a common name ya noe.. So I asked if that was because my name was unusual.. Everyone shook their head. *Heartbreak.

Oh well. Live and let live. For the next two hours, and the days after that, I kept trying to visualise the suggestions thrown at my first design. (Funny there weren't comments for the rest of them..).

How do I add colour..? Cream perhaps?

How do I use photos..? That would be a challenge..

How do I make the letters appear more obvious..? Now that's a BIG challenge..

Hahaha. What can I say? Watch this space to see how I try to improve my designs. :D