Ending of Holidays

      Time really flies, in just 1 week's time, i will have to go back to school, so I'm currently enjoying the few days of my holiday. So what did i do during my holidays for these two months? Well i went to a lot of places and events. Though i spent a lot of time rotting at home, i actually think that this holiday wasn't really a waste.

      Is my homework done yet? Hmm... nope :P  Well i actually did some of them, my maths and English worksheet was done but not for Chinese. My teacher actually gave me a list of Chinese phrases to memorise, it's tedious and for some reason i just don't feel like memorising....YET. If you ask me to do worksheets it's fine... But memorise shits? NO NO.. Well that's all I'm going to write so... Hope all of you had a great school holiday! :D

Sparring

   Almost all martial arts or combat sports have some form of sparring. Sparring is basically using the techniques that you have learnt to fight off a sparring partner in a controlled situation.
    Basically, there are two types of sparring. Semi contact sparring which uses the point system whereby the winner will be determined by the number of points they scored. Examples are Judo, Karate, Taekwondo and Silat.  Each combat sport has their own scoring system and ways to score. 

 

      The winners of full contact sparring however, are determined by the fighters' performances throughout the matches, usually a few rounds with breaks after each. Or it can also be determined by who knock the other guy out first. Examples are Kickboxing, MMA/ Mixed Martial Arts, Sanda, a form of modern Chinese kickboxing and Kyokushin Karate.

              
     
            

     

       In my opinion, sparring is necessary in order to build up instincts, reaction and speed, because no matter how many techniques or combos you know, you will not be able to know how to use them if you have never sparred.The picture on the right says it all. " It doesn't matter how many resources you have, if you don't know how to use them, it will never be enough. "           Sparring however, is not fighting, its working with a partner in a controlled situation. Both of you are exchanging techniques with one another and you both are training each other up. Sparring is like a video game, after each match or competition, you gain experience, much like the experience points in games.

     

Holidays

  I'm sure many of you who are reading this are in your year end holiday period. Some of you are enjoying it and filled with busy schedules while some are just rotting at home, having no freaking idea of what you want to do with your life, just like me. 

  

    I've been thinking of a lot of things to do for the holidays, i've been trying to find a job but as you know, most jobs in Singapore require you to be 16 and above. UGH such a pain. I actually thought of working in Mcdonald's but they said that you have to work for at least six months, which means that i still have to work for another four months after school reopens, which i do not want. And being in a pure science class, i don't think i have time to work for 4 hours a day on the weekends. My concentration when school reopens would be on my studies. 

  

    I attended the Garena Festival at Bugis+ yesterday with some friends so i thought that our holidays can actually be used to participate in events that we do not have time to attend during normal school days. Use this 1 and a half or two months of holiday wisely and fully. 

    

      Instead of rotting at home, i would advice teenagers out there to go and look up in the internet for some events of your interest. It can be a gaming event which i attended yesterday or concerts by your favourite Singer or band such as the SM TOWN world tour concert that was held on Friday ( i didn't go, ticket sold out T.T ). Another good idea would be to take part in activities in the Community Club to pass time. It can be anything, chess, badminton, martial arts, etc. And to those who are old enough to get a job, GET ONE! You will learn new skills for sure and get some extra pocket money for the holidays :) 

      Well, that being said, i wish all of you a happy holiday! 

         

     

     

   

Addiction

   I believe that any addiction is unhealthy. It can be addiction to the internet, video games, gambling, pornography, etc. 

   Sometimes, you may think that the things that you do are just for fun and normal, not knowing that it has become an addiction. What do i mean by an addiction? if you feel that the activity has made you lost interest in any other activities, especially important ones, then you have got an addiction. 

   After doing some research, i found out that people mistaken habits with addictions. Habits are the things that you do frequently and you are in control  of it. The key word is " In control ". For example, i have a habit of going to Twitter every time i on my computer but i can choose not to. An addiction is something that you cannot control and always have the uncontrollable feeling to satisfy it. Now that that's out of the way, let's move on. 

    When someone is addicted to something, they lost control of how they use it and will be dependent on them. An addiction to me, is like a jail. You are trapped and forbidden to do anything else. In later stages, the addiction may not just be a jail, it will control over your entire life or it will turn evil. Drug addicts will be dependent on them and if they do not take it on a daily basis, they will turn ill or even become insane. Gambling addicts feel the need to gamble continuously and this will lead to shortage of money in their pockets. In turn it will lead to them borrowing from loan sharks and anyone should know what trouble they will get into if they are unable to return the money. Gaming addicts may forget about their schoolwork or neglect their friends because all they want to do is play their games. 

      So how do we get rid of an addiction? I know that its hard to do, but to get your freedom back, you must perservere. First of all, you must vow to yourself to quit the addiction. Addiction starts from the mind and ending it from the mind is a good choice. If you cannot handle it on your own, seek a family member or someone whom you trust to help you get rid of it. 

        Internet addicts may ask their family member to cut off the internet connection for some time, few weeks or months or go out for more outings with their friends and loved ones. Pornography addicts may want to block the sites from their computer. Drug addicts may ask a family member to keep a look out on them lest they get tempted to take the drugs or throw them all away. They may be suffering at first but due to the lack of drugs but after some time their bodies will be back to normal. Remember, if an addiction has taken over your life and make you not want to do anything else, it must be stopped. 

      

      

Decide For Our Own Future

   I do not like how some parents forces their sons/daughters to study a certain course without considering whether its the child's interest or potential. They just think that a particular course is a course that will lead them to success.

   I think that everyone has their own potential, everyone has the chance to succeed in the particular field that they are good at. Their parents may succeed in cooking for example, but its their parents' potential, not theirs. If someone do not have the potential to do certain things, what's the use of forcing them? And so what if the starting pay will be high? The person will not like what he/she is doing and he/she may not be able to achieve a lot from it. Whereas another person who love what he/she is doing may have more achievements from it, or maybe the boss will see through his/her passion and hardwork for the job and promote him/her to higher positions. I once heard someone said this, " If you love what you do, you'll more likely to do well. " I totally agree with it. 

   

     It is okay to give them advices, but it should be leading towards helping the child to discover their potential and their interest, rather than leading towards a particular course, because that is like pretending to give advice, but you are actually leading them somewhere rather than helping the person find something. 

    In my opinion, every course/field of study is good. It is not generally that a person who does marketing will make more money than someone who writes. Or someone who study law will make more money than someone who study medical sciences, it all boils down to your capabilities. Every course has the potential of making a fortune, in one way or another.  Hence it is important to pick something that you are passionate about. 

     

    

Reasons Why i Prefer Twitter To Facebook

   

      Facebook and Twitter are two social networking websites that i go into every single day. These two websites will be open as long as my computer is on, every minute, every second. 

      Some people may prefer Twitter while some does not see a point of creating a Twitter account and stick with Facebook. For me, i prefer Twitter but Facebook is still okay, i still go into it every single day. 

      Here are the reasons why i prefer Twitter to Facebook: 

1. The main reason is that due to the increasing number of Facebook users moving on to Twitter, my Facebook seems so lifeless. There are not much updates to my news feeds as compared to my Twitter timeline. 
2. On Twitter, nobody will give a shit if you keep posting random stuffs because you know what? Everyone's doing it! I really like just tweeting about what comes to my mind at the moment or what has just happened continuously but you cannot do it on Facebook. Recently i saw a friend of mine ranting about some stuffs on Facebook and his friend commented " Go and get a Twitter account ".
3. Another reason is because my family's on Facebook, i'm sure many of you can relate to it. I added my Dad and my sister on Facebook so i have to post private things on Twitter instead. 
4. The last reason cannot be explained. I do not know why but i just seems to like Twitter more, its just seems.... Better .__. 

        

         

Is Caning A Solution?

   I'm aware that many Asian parents use caning as a form of punishment. I have been caned by my parents when i was young because i was a naughty kid. They think that caning is a solution to their children's mischievous act. So, they use the cane anytime possible. Well, in my opinion, caning does not work. 

   Caning, no matter what the reason, is still considered child abuse. It is causing pain and harm to a child, which i think is a very inhumane thing to do. Many people think that by caning, the child actually becomes a good boy/girl or will become more hardworking in their studies as they fear the cane. But NO! It actually has the opposite effect on the child physically and mentally. The child actually turns from mischievous to rebellious. I'm not referring to all of them, because i do have a friend whose parents use the cane and he scores well in his studies. But still, his caning will not stop until he score STRAIGHT As which is sad :( I mean, come on his results are already outstanding. 

    

 

      I'm sure many of you had seen this picture above several times before. Mainly through Facebook or other websites. Anyway, it shows how an abused child will grow up. As you can see, if a child is abused, he will be abusive when he grows up too. Because he's living in a world of fear, a world whereby he is beaten and abused and this will haunt him for the rest of his life. 

      Here's another picture of the cycle of child abuse

       

      In conclusion, caning and beatings should be avoided AT ALL COST. Seeing the harm it could bring to a child just because of a small mistake, it is a very scary thing. What i would advice is to shower a child more with love and care. Don't use caning as a first resort to everything. When he/she does something wrong, tell him/her what he/she has done wrong and give him a chance to realise his mistake.