Wednesday, May 31, 2006
the J grants you an audience
Ninja or Pirate and why? This would have been easy to answer once... long ago. It will have to be ninjas, because they're just cooler. Stealth, precision and strategy beats brutishness.
You are running the world for a day, what are the first 5 things you do and why? Legalize all narcotics. Ban the use of all narcotics in public (or being under the influence in public). Ban all religions. Institute a universal language (and maybe ban all others). Institute a universal currency. And number 6: Institute an elite corps of morality police ^_^.
Describe one of the most beautiful things you have ever...
The Donald is Wrong
Personally, I do not like the Apprentice. Why? Because it is wrong.Sunday, May 28, 2006
J is for good, faithful film reproductions of childhood memories
I watched X-Men 3: The Last Stand. Pre-booked tickets for the opening and everything. Geek I am. I really loved the X-Men universe, characters and storylines as a young geekling and I found the first 2 movies really cool.X-Men 3: The Verdict: Bleh! Sad face. :-(
Lesson about movie watching re-learnt: If you don't expect much, you won't be disappointed. Should've remembered this from the Matrix fiasco.
Wednesday, May 24, 2006
I succumbed to chain mail
1. What time is it? 14:38
2. What is your Full name: Jerall Toi
3 What are you most afraid of? In no particular order: Losing an eye, prostate cancer and becoming my father.
4. What is the most recent movie that you've seen in a theatre? X-Men 3 tomorrow! I still have to get my costume ready!
5. Have you ever seen a ghost? No.
6. Where were you born? Port Elizabeth, ZA
7. Favorite New food? Some sort of sweet Thai chili sauce. Forgot its name.
8. Ever been to
9. Ever been rolling: If I knew what was exactly meant by rolling, I'd probably still have to say no.
10. Loved someone so much it made you cry? Yes
11. Been in a car accident: Took out a mirror once. It involved me, a car and a low fence.
12. Croutons or bacon bits: Bacon bits
13. Favorite day of the week: Ones that begin an 11.
14. Favorite Restaurant : Can't really say. I'd be better able to talk about the ones most hated.
15. Favorite Flower: I think that if blue roses exist, they'd be really cool.
16. Favorite sport to watch: Cricket, Pro-Wrestling (for the story)
17. Favorite Drink: Flavoured water - apple and mint or strawberry
18. Favorite ice cream? Vanilla
19. Disney or Warner Brothers: Disney
20. How many times you failed your driver's test? Never
21. Favorite fast food restaurant: Mochachos
22. Before this one, from who did you get your last email: My blog's comment notification.
23. What do you do most often when you are bored: Surf the net, play games (rp, board, card, ps, pc and/or mind), read books, visit pet stores and yawn at the puppies so that they yawn back.
24. Bedtime? Anytime between 2300 and 0200.
25. Who will respond to this e-mail the quickest: This probably does not apply.
26. Who is the person you sent this to that is least likely to respond? This is also probably not applicable.
27. Who is the person that you are most curious to see their responses?: Nietzche
28. Favorite TV - best programme?: I don't have time for TV, not when I have to win the Iron Fist Tournament and destroy the cursed Soul Edge. Does Namco count?
30. Ford or Chevy: Ford. I like the KA!
31. What are you listening to right now: Teenage angst rock from 2001.
32. What are your favorite colours? Blue and black.
34. How many pets do you have? 0
35. Which came first the chicken or the egg? Quantum says both.
36. What would you like to accomplish before you die? World renown, travel through space, learn more languages, get fit, finish ADOM.
37. How many people are you sending this e-mail to? My blog's audience.
One week after the Green Line
Firstly: apologies, this story wasn't exciting enough to take a week to divulge, but I don't like writing long posts. I think overly long posts are scary and wasteful and time consuming. So I split up the story, but took too long to blog it fully. So, if things are a bit anti-climatic, stale or boring; I apologize.
Second:Lexi wrote her own account of the story.
And now, we continue our story:
Things went bad when he got on. The rain was pouring in through the windows to our left. At first, I thought it was cool that he had his scarf pulled up over his nose. I too was playing ninja as recently as January. He sat down, facing us, 3 throws ahead of us. The carriage's doors were also between us, marking a slick and slippery no-man's land. The first thing he did was to pull down his scarf and ask for 2ZAR, because the trains were dangerous and he wanted to get off so that he could take a taxi. I said no. He continued to ask for several minutes and included some choice words and the infamous English longbowman salute. My girlfriend had the window seat and didn't have my added height to see over the seats before us, and so didn't see the 2 rand man. It's the first time I could remember actually wanting to tell her to keep quiet. I knew this guy was trouble and I needed to think, not be distracted. I never ever wanted to be the type of man who'd ever demand that another shut up. I still feel a little bad about thinking it.
I'm a strategist by nature. The bulk of my hobbies all allow for tactical and strategic thought. My opponent looked like somebody used to fighting, but lacked the refined training of a formal martial art. This could make him less dangerous, but only to a true master. To an out-of-shape, out-of-practice individual, like myself, his unpredictability made him far more dangerous. I couldn't help but notice what an ineffectual weapon my umbrella was. It wasn't heavy enough or sharp enough to stop a charging foe. My only advantage lay in the terrain. He had to cross a wet and slippery patch, passing the train's doors, with no easy handholds to aid balance. On the other hand, I had firm handrails to hold on to aid in maintaining balance while kicking, giving me a reach and terrain advantage. He was obviously trying to intimidate us, with murder threats and songs of murder. In the end, the train ride ended with nothing more than a tension filled staring match. He didn't make a move against us.
That's it. The end.
Sunday, May 21, 2006
Read more webcomics again
Great Adventure on the Green Line: Prequel
I was out for an evening stroll, with my girlfriend at my side, along the starlit, oak lined streets of Stellenbosch. I can't quite remember if it was a big party night or not, but there's always a surplus of the drunk, the poor and the drunk poor on the streets. We were trying to avoid the club crowds and the biggest concentrations of the inebriated stupid, but, at the same time, did not wander down any desolate alleyway or too far away from busy areas and cop/security guard patrol routes. We were about 4oom away from the infamous Springbok, with a quaint townhouse complex on our right and the weird domain of the slumbering bergie sub-culture was to our left. It was then that I spotted two guys heading towards us. Both white, the taller one had a lean build and short dark hair, and the shorter had a stockier pitt bull build and his blonde hair was shaved short. I have pretty good vision, and so saw them from quite a distance away. The manner in which they were walking towards us screamed trouble, but showing no fear, I kept walking forward. I don't know when my girlfriend saw them, as I don't think she had got her glasses at that stage yet, but I do remember when the two soon-to-be muggers split up, the blonde moving to our right and the skinny one to our left. This was no kind and polite gesture to make way for the loving couple, but an obvious manoeuvre to outflank us. I immediately halted, getting half in front of my girlfriend. I remember hoping they would just pass us and we could all laugh about it.
Now, I have seen cop shows, watched the Practice, viewed safety tips demonstrations and TV info-fillers and so forth, and know that the common belief is that you should just surrender your belongings to your attacker as 'they're just scared as you are' and they don't 'actually want to hurt you'. Surrender and you'll escape with your life; this is what most believe. I don't believe that. That burglar/mugger/rapist/serial killer/car-jacker may have been planning on harming you or your loved ones from the start. Who can say that they would really leave you alone? I will not take that risk. I am not going to die without a fight. I'm sure it would be easier for the cops to track down somebody with a broken nose, missing ear and crushed pinky-toe. I'm a dirty fighter; eye-gouging, ear-biting, shin-kicking, head-butting and stabbing with a toothbrush shank are not beneath me. I will not go down easy. If only more people fought back; I'm sure vigilantism can be more of a crime deterrent than our legal system at times. It worked for Batman.
And so, the skinny one was to our left; my girlfriend was on that side, and the Thing was to our right, my side. The blonde brute charged at us, shouting a garbled threat which included the words: "Gee" en "Fokk'n" en "Wallet". With my left arm around my girlfriend, I defensively raised my right arm, elbow thrust outwards and caught our attacker in the chest. I didn't feel a heavy impact. I remember thinking, knowing, that such a blow would not be enough to stop a man with his build, but then the strangest thing happened. The brute backed off, hands raised as if in surrender, and the two of them ran off, leaving us quite rattled, but safe.
Thursday, May 18, 2006
Great Adventure on the Green Line
No, this isn't some One Piece fan fiction; this story is based on fact. Before we get into things, you'll need some information before we can get into the story:
1. I have no departmental duties on Wednesdays; no classes etc. I normally use my Wednesdays for my own research or for the running of errands. So, yesterday, I was free to go an adventure.
2. There has been some recent trouble on the Western Cape train lines, including petrol bombings and striking security guards. Very exciting.
My girlfriend needed to get to Cape Town yesterday for an interview for a bursary. Neither of us have our own car and so we ended up having to take the train. I've taken the train several times before, despite rumours and warnings from the upper middle class, whom have, naturally, never taken the train themselves, about the dangers involved. Pfft. It's only as dangerous as you allow it to be.
We left Stellenbosch during the train line's 'quiet times'. Most of the journey was pleasant... until he got in. Now he was one of those ugly people - rude, crude and aggressive. Surprising as it may sound, I used to be a fighter, before I got lazy and gained the freshman 14. Maybe I'm a little crazy, but I sometimes get a little spider sense warning, when troubles about. It's a kind of built-in early warning system developed from martial arts training and cynism. The strongest memory I have of this danger sense involved an attempted mugging several years ago. When I retell that story in its entirety, it sounds quite funny and a little unbelievable, but I can still remember how it felt having the adrenaline running through my veins and not having a sensei, sifu or ref to call off the fight if it went bad. In the end, the muggers went running off, though in hind-sight they may just have been drunk students playing a nasty practical joke, but the encounter still left me a little tense for quite awhile. It was probably one of the scariest moments of my life, because (warning: rom-com moment) it wasn't just my life on the line, but that of my girlfriend's too.
I'll continue with the story later.
Tuesday, May 16, 2006
The 4 Legs of the Table
Today I had the pleasure of attending one of his lectures. And now I can say that I have shook the hand of one of the greatest businessmen alive. I'm not one for hero-worship or fanboydom, but Raymond Ackerman is one of the people of whom I hold in the highest regard and I am proud to have worked for him.
Monday, May 15, 2006
Astute Realisation
Karma is fate.
Therefore:
Karma cannot exist if there is free will.
Free will cannot exist if there is karma.
We cannot tell which of the above is true.
Therefore:
Revenge is always better.
Humans are weak and expendable
I dislike smoking. I don't necessarily and automatically dislike any particular smoker, but I won't take the time/effort to approach a smoker at a party or any other public gathering. In fact, I would either distance myself from the smoker, or where/when appropriate (like at a gas station), get the smoker to stop smoking. I would probably not be on such friendly terms with the smokers in the group of people whom I tolerate and which I also count above acquaintance level if I had known that they smoked before getting to know them.
One such person told me that this prejudice towards smoking was causing me to miss out on a lot of interesting people, conversations and ideas. This is probably true, for the most part, but at the same time I believe that smoking shows to the world that the smoker is inherently weak. I'm not talking about lung capacity or any of the other health hazards involved with smoking, but rather the psychological/emotional weakness of the smoker.
The question is not 'why do you smoke?' or 'why don't you stop smoking?', but rather: Why did you start smoking? The first smoke represents surrender, giving up, weakness. Was it peer pressure? Ineffectual rebellion against Mom? Dad? School? Society? We all know the health risks involved with smoking, but ignoring them does not represent strength. It represents stupidity.
So what about all those interesting smokers; people with whom I'll never have a conversation? I don't care about them. I don't need to meet zillions of interesting people to make my life fulfilling. There are plenty of non-smokers out there to more than fill my social needs.
Friday, May 12, 2006
If you're happy and you're know it
"You're not cool if you're happy".
Take ej's blog as an example. I quote: "This makes me less interesting".
Tuesday, May 09, 2006
Obligatory Jacob Zuma Posting
...but he may be a corrupt acquited rape suspect.
Monday, May 08, 2006
Master J v5
Well, it’s been a month+, and it’s only proper that I let you know what I’ve been doing.If you remember, I had to try and place my research within a particular context. Initially, I was torn between a more business-orientated context and an educational context. I was a bit concerned about following the educational route for fear of sounding like a high school teacher, but went ahead and did some research in that direction.
- Reflective learning and technology - I’ve found mention of the potential of social software here and a few case studies.
- Zones of Proximal Development (groups being able to do more than the individual).
Thoughts?
Thursday, May 04, 2006
Bad Service Makes Hulk Angry
The good: I found the food good. Not many places can cater for my obscure tastes: a brinjals, peppers, onions and spinach pizza (a close second to the roast-lamb-sunday-lunch pizza I once had). Yummy!
The bad: The service. We were lucky enough to have The Incredibly Bad Waiterperson Boy!!! as our waitron. There were no smiles from him, no introduction and no name. He callously tossed down menus before us without a word. He did not know the menu and could not answer our queries, nor did he go and find out what he didn't know for us. He never checked on us. We had to call him via the other waitrons. He also added fictious orders to our bill. Bad waiter. If I knew his name I would besmirch it, but, alas, he never gave it to us. I was horrified when the rest of my dining party decided to leave him a tip (although it was small). He deserved nothing.
The ugly: The other clientele - one of the ugliest displays of old money, bad parenting and spoilts brats. I hope the babies dragging their pacifiers through the dirt, before eyes of their parents, develop a nasty case of round worm. Yum yum.
Final Rating: I'm not going there again. No matter how good the food, it can never make up for one bad waiter.
Dead Week
