Dark Days

Its hard to describe the feelings that come with a separation between individuals who are each others' lifeblood. The most noticeable feeling is pain, followed by loss, sadness and regret. I am at a loss for words as the emotions fill me up to the point that at times I can barely string a coherent sentence, let alone carry on with my daily routine. It is not something that we want but it is something necessary to prevent ourselves from becoming mere shadows walking the earth, sucking the life out of everyone around us and vanishing in and out of reality.

There is still hope, there is always hope. But I have become disillusioned. Time can never mend my wrongdoings nor can it make them fade from memory. It will always be there and that shall be our downfall.

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What I'm Reading Now

Unlike my siblings and parents, I can only read one book at a time and even then only before I go to sleep. Unfortunately for me, I also sleep faster while reading so you can guess how slow I am going through a single book. It can take me a month to finish a paperback.

At the moment Im reading Goblin Quest by Jim C. Hines. Given my habit of reading books exclusively set in the Forgotten Realms setting, this book is refreshing in a couple of ways. Firstly it is not set in the Forgotten Realms but of course long-time fantasy readers will find many familiar elements across the board when it comes to fantasy reading. Secondly and most prominently, it tells the story from the "villain's" point of view. Goblins are known as the lowest form of 'monster' in fantasy, especially in D&D. While in great numbers they can be a challenge to a group of adventurers, individually they are cowardly and hardly a challenge even for a 1st-level rusty dagger wielding peasant. In this book, Jig represents his race's cowardly nature but he also shows an exceptional cognitive and analytical ability that surpasses even some humans. That is why he is different and that is why it is such an interesting read.

More on this later.

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Supershow Fo' Sho'

Here's a video of Bot and Steve hunting baby goldfish. When I first started feeding them live food I never expected them to behave so viciously! Sigh... my babies have grown. They're so cute! Look at them enthusiastically and systematically hunt down the baby fish and then gulp them down. Amazing...

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Bathing in the Light

I rarely get to see Bot and Steve bask, so I took the opportunity and managed to get close enough without scaring them to snap this photo of them basking on the piece of wood. Turtles, especially aquatic ones like the red eared slider like to bask to regulate their body temperature. They try to get as close to the light as possible as can be seen here... Bot is stretching his neck towards the light. Im reducing their goldfish intake to once a week now - I dont want them to grow too fast. I make sure to take out Bot to feed Steve first because he's the slower of the two. If I feed both of them together, usually Bot will get the most because he's the more aggressive one. I may add aquatic plants but they may not last long as they get eaten up really quick. Plastic plants are a definite no no. In fact they even chew on the wood... so I might replace that as well.

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My Miniature Monsters

I was online last week searching for tips and articles about turtle care. I summarized that for better quality of life, the turtles should be given adequate lighting, a place to perch, adequate space and life food. So I went ahead and bought a new lamp for them and placed the log in the middle of the container for them to perch on. To this date I have never seen them bask in the light. Maybe its not hot enough. I also bought ten baby fish each about an inch long to feed the turtles - Bot and Steve. In less than half an hour, all ten were gone! Devoured by Bot and Steve. They are surprisingly vicious, lunging and snapping at the fish. They can also swim quite fast when chasing after their food. Ever since then I've been stocking up on baby fish to make sure Bot and Steve have a steady supply of food. Monsters.... I love them! Bot is the larger one. I call him Bot because he keeps coming like a Bot. For those of you who dont know, a bot is an AI controlled player that keeps respawning everytime the player kills it. So he keeps coming at you. The other one is Steve because... well because he looks like a Steve. And he's slow. I'll post up more pictures once I get the camera back from Dad - they went to UK for holidays.

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Apa sudah jadi....

FATHER OF DEAD GIRL WANTS CULPRITS CAUGHT AND PUNISHED

You wouldn't be human if you weren't even a little sad after reading this report in today's The Star. An innocent young girl of only 17 died in a tragic incident that has left the family members reeling with grief. The crime? Snatch theft. The location? Johor Bahru. The culprits? Well, they were on motorbikes so its safe to assume that they were REMPITS. This is really getting out of hand. What are the authorities doing? What can be done? 17-year old Shu Fang was a straight-As student who was just starting to shine and make something of herself in life. How many more innocent people have to die because of a few lowlife scums? Lepas berak mestilah cebok. Since these idiots are shit, let's cebok them off from our beautiful country.

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Book Review: The Fractured Sky

In The Fractured Sky, Aliisza, Kaanyr Vhok, Tauran, and Kael go on a quest to stop Cyric's evil scheme to kill another deity - Mystra. The book reveals Aliisza's deepening relationship with Tauran and her son Kael. It also reveals Vhok's true feelings for the alu-fiend Aliisza. Can a cambion have true feelings of love and compassion? Ultimately Vhok realises that his relationship for the alu go beyond that of master and servant. He cannot deny that he truly misses her when she goes missing towards the end of the book. It comes to show that just because you are evil doesn't mean that you can't love. But will that love bring Vhok into the light of compassion and mercy? I guess I won't know until I finish the next book The Crystal Mountain.

Forgotten Realms fans and D&D gamers may also realize that these three books lead up to the Spellplague -which happens when Shar tricked Cyric into killing Mystra the Goddess of Magic.

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