A A R O N. Androgynous. Astounding. Robust. Original. Nude.

milestone.

2011-11-23T10:06:00.007+08:00

this is my 350th post.

i've always believed that what matters is not where you're at, but who you're with. that's why i feel so blessed to be surrounded by beautiful souls wherever i go. that just makes things that much more bearable, you know?

anyway a bunch of us took a trip to edinburgh not too long ago, and it was bliss. we all needed a change of scenery (before we associate newcastle with huge workloads and the stress of uni life - not that we're particularly hardworking to begin with.)

edinburgh was beautiful :) the architecture, in my opinion, is simply exquisite and the city had a sense of old romanticism about it. i daresay i fell in love and i'm planning a return trip in the very near future. this was not my first time in edinburgh though, i went with my family when i was younger and again in the summer when mum & dad came to visit but this time it was incredible. like i said, it was the company.

we had a laid-back day strolling around the city, soaking up the sights and sounds.. it was just wonderful! anyway here are some photos :) it's been a while since i've uploaded photos into this blog - i've not had time to properly edit them so.. yeah. enjoy!

yay!

Hit Me Baby, One More Time!

2011-11-14T00:10:00.005+08:00

Should physical force be allowed to make a suspect divulge information?

In 1975 the General Assembly of the United Nations passed a declaration condemning torture as ‘an offence to human dignity’. The Rome Statute classified torture as a crime against humanity. Thus torture is understood to be not merely an offence against its direct victim, but an offence against all humankind.

Almost all fundamental rights can be affected, especially habeas corpus, fair trial (due process of law), protection of privacy, freedom of religion, equality, freedom of movement, right to life, right to human dignity. Due to lack of time and space, we have to limit our inquiry to one concrete issue, and this will be the question of torture (as a violation of the human rights of the tortured person).

In the case study we analysed in last week's workshop however, there is a bomb that is due to explode in four hours. Is physical force so justified then? This is called a ticking time bomb scenario – a highly controversial argument that seems to justify physical force against a suspected terrorist. Basically it refers to the scenario where a suspected terrorist is physically forced to give information, particularly in the circumstances where a bomb is about to detonate in the near futute (in this case, four hours). The physical force, however, is to be proportionate to the imminent danger. How is this determined?

Based on the law, domestic and international, and supported by legal journals, there should be no exception to a person’s right not to be subjected to torture on the very basis of basic human rights. Morally, I cannot seem to find within myself any justification for allowing a suspect to be tortured. It is degrading, and inhuman. As a matter of fact, I find it highly hypocritical and totally against the 'Do unto others as others do unto you' adage that I hold close to myself.

I do have some reservations, though. If the suspect does not disclose the whereabouts of the bomb that is about to go off, may lives will be in danger. Perhaps some form of bargain may be struck - this is obviously to be done on a case-by-case basis.

This is obviously a debate that is not going to end anytime soon!

I Will Follow You

2011-11-06T01:22:00.001+08:00

As some of you may be aware of, Malaysia was once a colony of the British. Malaya gained its independence on 31st August 1957, and Malaysia was formed when Sabah and Sarawak joined on 16th September 1963. What many are not aware of is how the law of England and Wales has influenced the law in Malaysia and this article attempts to shed some light on the matter.

The gradual development of Constitution and Law in Malaysia is seen from the history of the Straits Settlements (Penang, Malacca, and Singapore). The Straits Settlements progressed from being originally an appendage of the British East India Company to becoming the leading Crown colony. The Straits Settlements were transferred to the care of the Secretary of State for the Colonies by an Order by the Council in 1st April 1867.

The island of Penang was the first territory to be acquisitioned by the British in Malaysia. Captain Francis Light, for the East India Company, obtained a cession of the island from the Sultan of Kedah in 1786. Thus began the era of British colonialism in Malaysia.

The introduction of the Royal Charter of Justice of 1807 is the most significant event in the Malaysian legal history, marking the beginning of the statutory introduction of English law into the country. The Charter established ‘The Court of Judicature of Prince of Wales Island’ (as Penang was then known) to exercise jurisdiction in all jurisdiction in all civil, criminal and ecclesiastical matters. It was interpreted by the courts as introducing to Penang the law of England as it stood in 1807 in so far as it was suitable to local conditions and circumstances. That interpretation was made in Kamoo v Bassett (1808) and was subsequently affirmed by the Privy Council in Ong Cheng Neo v Yeap Cheah Neo & Ors (1872) 1 Ky, where it was held that English law could be taken to the governing law so far as it was applicable to the circumstances of the place and modified in its application by these circumstances.

In 1826, the three settlements of Malacca, Penang and Singapore were incorporated into the Straits Settlement. The Charter of 1826, known as the Second Charter, extended the jurisdiction of the Court of Judicature of Prince of Wales Island (Penang) to Singapore and Malacca. The Second Charter contained the same provisions as the First Charter, and was considered to have introduced the law of England as it stood in 1826 into the Straits Settlements. When the Second Charter was granted and applied in Singapore and Malacca, it was equally applied to Penang. A new court called ‘The Court of Judicature of Prince of Wales Island, Singapore and Malacca’ was created by the Second Charter and English law was applied subject to local conditions. The application of English law in the Straits Settlements was subject to such modifications of the various races as were necessary to prevent it from operating unjustly or oppressively. Where civil law is concerned, Penang and Malacca are now with the rest of the Federation, governed by section 3 of the Civil Law Act 1956 which introduced the Common Law of England and Rules of Equity as administered in England on 9 April 1956.

Through a series of treaties and by 1888, the British control of the Malay states of Perak, Selangor, Pahang and Negeri Sembilan was firmly established whereby the rulers of these states agreed to accept the advice of the British via the British Residents.

The Penal Code of the Straits Settlements based on the Indian Penal Code was first adopted by Perak by Order in council of 28th June 1884 and later by other states. The Evidence Ordinance of the Straits Settlements based on the Indian Evidence Act was first adopted by Selangor by the Courts Regulation of 1893 and then by other states. The Criminal Procedure Code of India was adopted and enacted in the various Malay States constituting the Federated Malay States in 1900 and eventually incorporated in the Revised Edition of 1936 as Chapter 6. The Civil Law Enactment 1937 gave statutory authority for the introduction of English Common Law and Rules of Equity to the Federated Malay States. In 1951 the Enactment was extended to the other Malay States and in 1956, the Civil Law Act introduced English law to the entire Federation of Malaya.

Sabah and Sarawak are referred to as the Borneo States. In 1841, James Brooke became the ruler of Sarawak. In 1843, eight laws were prepared, printed and published in Malay as a first step by James Brooke. Sabah and Sarawak were protectorates from 1888 to 1946, and therefore there could have been no common law reception of English law before 1946 and in both territories there was no statutory reception until relatively late.

Sarawak was the first, with the Order L-4 (Laws of Sarawak) 1928, section 2 of which provides:
‘The Law of England, in so far as it is modified by Ordinance enacted by the Governor with the advice and consent of the Council Negeri, and in so far as it is applicable to Sarawak having regard to native customs and local conditions, shall be the law of Sarawak.’

Sabah followed the Civil Law Ordinance of 1938, which made the following rather more complicated provision:
‘Save in so far as other provision has been mad or may hereafter be made by any enactment in force in the State, the common law of England and the rules of equity, other than any modification of such law or any such rule enacted by statute, as administered in England at the date of the commencement of this Ordinance, shall, subject to the provisions of this Ordinance, be in force in the state. The common law of England and the rules of equity administered in England at the date of the commencement of this Ordinance be in force in the State so far as only the circumstances render necessary; and in the exercise of jurisdiction, all courts shall have special regard to the laws and customs of the inhabitants of the State so far as they are not inhuman, unconscionable or contrary to public policy.’

The written law of the Borneo States derived largely from legislation in force in Singapore and the Federation and therefore indirectly from the written laws in India and the United Kingdom. The Indian Penal code was applied in Sarawak by the Courts Order 1922, and continued in force by Order No. 1-1 (Interpretation) 1933, before the Penal Code was enacted in 1934. The North Borneo Penal Code dates from 1959 while Sarawak adopted the Civil Procedure Code in the same year. The reception of English law in the Borneo States was then formalised by the Sarawak Application of Law Ordinance 1949 and the North Borneo Application of Law Ordinance 1951.

The emergence and development of common law and the rules of equity in the English context have impacted countries that employ the common law system, including India, Singapore and Malaysia. The transplantation of the common law in England and the rules of Equity into Malaysia was not completed overnight, but was rather a process that spanned the length of many years.

Source:

Rau & Kumar, General Principles of the Malaysian Legal System, International Law Book Services.

Nosirp is Prison Backwards.

2011-11-04T23:37:00.006+08:00

We recently had a workshop and we covered the controversial topic of whether or not a prisoner should be afforded the right to vote. The current position in the UK now is that they may not. Of course, there are many differing views on the matter. Personally (and this is my blog so everything I say, goes) I believe that they should be given the right to vote. Being given a custodial sentence is not merely punishment for punishment's sake but rather a process of rehabilitation prior to being reintroduced to society. As idealistic it may sound, compassion and empathy goes a long way!

The UK government has tried to prevent or at least postpone the introduction of amending legislation to allow prisoners the right to vote, possibly on political grounds. It is threatening to repeal the Human Rights Act 1998 and replacing it with a British Bill of Rights. Should this be the case, then there would be a massive change in the status and future of the European Court of Human Rights’ judgments, the European Convention, and the Council of Europe.
However, until that actually happens, we still can rely on the wordings of the 1998 Act. The UK is bound by its very own law which is to make sure that any domestic law is to be read in line with the rights meted out in the Convention. This means that it must comply with the directions from Strasbourg to introduce amending legislation to the effect that prisoners’ right to vote are not limited. As it stands, the UK government is in breach of its strict obligations under the Convention.

To conclude, the government would benefit from changing its restrictive approach to the reform of prisoner enfranchisement as it otherwise shows that they are willing to ignore not just human rights but also the basic principles of equality, fairness, proportionality and legality. There is scope for the development of law in this particular field to promote certainty in the law as well as to preserve basic human rights and hopefully, finality in litigation.

The Aboriginal Truth.

2011-11-02T01:04:00.003+08:00

I was watching a documentary the other day on the Aborigines in Australia. I find it very fascinating that they have somewhat captured the world's attention despite being considered a minority somewhat. I myself come from a small tribe of about 6000, hailing from the Kelabit Highlands deep in the heart of Borneo so I decided to do some research on the Aborigines and my previous article on self determination (in other words, I could not think of another research topic.)

Recent years have witnessed an evolution of the right of self-determination. In the post Second World War context, it was principally thought of as a way in which the decolonisation process could be legitimised and facilitated. The right is now beginning to be discussed in terms of the development of democratic structures and minority and indigenous rights within existing states. Self-determination has thus been defined by the International Court of Justice (in the West-Saharan case) as: The need to pay regard to the freely expressed will of peoples. It is important to stress that for indigenous peoples the term self-determination does most often not imply secession from the state.

Australia, as a member of the United Nations (UN) has treaty obligations. A treaty is an agreement under international law entered into by actors in international law, namely sovereign states and international organizations. A treaty may also be known as (international) agreement, protocol, covenant, convention, exchange of letters, et cetera. Regardless of the terminology, all of these international agreements under international law are equally treaties and the rules are the same.

Article 1 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) states that self-determination is the right of all peoples to 'freely determine their political status and freely pursue their economic, social and cultural development'. In accordance with this right, 'All peoples may, for their own ends, freely dispose of their natural wealth and resources' and there is an obligation on the State that under no circumstances will they deprive a people 'of its own means of subsistence'. The State is obliged 'to promote the realisation of the right to self-determination, and shall respect that right, in conformity with the Charter of the United Nations'.

The requirement that self-determination be realised 'in conformity with the Charter of the United Nations' effectively guarantees that the recognition of self-determination will not form the basis of secession of Indigenous peoples in colonial countries such as Australia. It is notable that this provision is also incorporated into the Draft Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples as Article 45 states that actions contrary to the Charter of the United Nations are not permitted.

In Australia's view, self-determination is not a static concept, but rather an evolving right which includes equal rights, the continuing right of peoples to decide how they should be governed, the right of people as individuals to participate fully in the political process (particularly by way of periodic free and fair elections) and the right of distinct peoples within a state to make decisions on and administer their own affairs (relevant both to indigenous peoples and to national minorities). This proposition finds support in the words of the Article 1 of the Covenants, together with Article 21 of the Universal Declaration on Human Rights and Article 25 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. Australia has also repeatedly stressed the point made above that the right of self-determination does not, except in the most exceptional circumstances, equate to a right of secession.

Aboriginal Law has not been recognised historically in Australia. This can be traced back to the ‘settlement’ of Australia, and the assumption that it was terra nullius, legally defined as a land uninhabited by a recognised sovereign, or by a people with recognisable institutions and laws.

Self-determination for Australia's indigenous peoples has been Government policy since 1972. This encompassed basic local government functions, ranging from land dealings and management of community centers to road maintenance and garbage collection, as well as setting education programmes and standards in their local schools. In 1990 the House of Representatives Standing Committee on Aboriginal Affairs defined self-determination as:
“... Aboriginal control over the decision-making process as well as control over the ultimate decision about a wide range of matters including political status, and economic, social and cultural development. It means Aboriginal people having the resources and capacity to control the future of their own communities within the legal structure common to all Australians”.

As for legal recognition within Australia itself, legislation was proposed to recognise the pre-existing rights of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to self-government, along with their choice to progressively assume responsibility for a range of government powers. The paper recommended Aboriginal and Islander communities take on the power of existing local authorities and many of the State and Commonwealth government powers.

The Federal Government assented (with certain conditions) and a central Aboriginal administrator called Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission (ATSIC) was appointed and constituted to allocate and distribute funds to the various Aboriginal communities and to liaise with the Federal Government regarding the welfare of Aboriginal areas that required improvement and funding. Some argued that this was a form of self-determination or were, at the very least, initial step towards self-determination because Aboriginal people were becoming a 'self-contained' people within Australia. In addition, Aboriginal people had recently acquired native-title land rights following the Mabo decision of the High Court of Australia in the late 1980s.

In 2006, however, after a swirl of controversy and scandal, the Federal Government terminated ATSIC's commission and reassumed full control of Aboriginal welfare and allocating/distributing funding.

I am of the opinion that until a treaty or legislation is passed to give legal effect to the Aborigines right to self-determination, there will always be a gap in the operation of self-determination as a right, especially in the Australian context. Currently, as there is no specific statute governing the Aborigines right to self-determination, one may not be too sure as to how well one’s rights are protected, for example in matters involving land. There needs to a be a reform in this area of law, to provide for certainty in the long run and to aim for further development in the scope of law, especially where Australia is concerned.

Sources:
1. www.iwgia.org (Heading 1.5)
2. The Australian Human Rights Commission (http://www.hreoc.gov.au) (Heading 2.1 and 2.2)
3. Creative Spirits (http://www.creativespirits.info) (Heading 2.4)

Mama, I'm Moving Out

2011-10-24T09:21:00.003+08:00

Self determination, as defined by the Britannica Concise Encyclopedia, is a process by which a group of people, usually possessing a degree of political consciousness, form their own state and government. The idea evolved as a byproduct of nationalism. According to the UN charter, a people has the right to form itself into a state or to otherwise determine the form of its association with another state, and every state has the right to choose its own political, economic, social, and cultural systems. Moreover, the administering authorities of dependent territories are enjoined to ensure political advancement and the development of self-government in those territories.

The right of self-determination is well embedded in the philosophy of the United Nations. Although it is not mentioned in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the term self-determination was used in the UN Charter and has been defined in various declarations and covenants. The first (common) article of The United Nations International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (1966) reads: “All peoples have the right of self-determination. By virtue of that right they freely determine their political status and freely pursue their economic, social and cultural development.” It is imperative to note that this is a universal right: it belongs to “all peoples”.

However, in UN thinking and in international law, the idea of self-determination is balanced by the principle of integrity of existing states. According to the Vienna Declaration, UN World Conference on Human Rights, 1993, the right of self-determination:
• “shall not be construed as authorizing or encouraging any action which would dismember or impair, totally or in part, the territorial integrity or political unity of sovereign and independent States
• conducting themselves in compliance with the principle of equal rights and self-determination of peoples; and
• thus possessed of a Government representing the whole people belonging to the territory without distinction of any kind”.

Self-determination was one of the more controversial political doctrines at the turn of the 20th century. Its main proponent was US President Woodrow Wilson, whose idealistic views of foreign policy failed to coincide with the political climate at the time.

Although Wilson's ideas met with frosty reception, many of them later became cornerstones of liberal political thought. The League of Nations was Wilson's idea, and although it failed, its successor, the United Nations, has lasted much longer.

Likewise, the self-determination philosophy espoused by Wilson, though once rejected by the colonial powers that dominated geopolitics at the turn of the 20th century, is now apparently the dominant force in modern geopolitics. New states are being born on a rather frequent basis; Montenegro separated from Serbia not too long ago, and it seems that other states in the Balkans are on a similar path.

In the wake of the First World War, Wilson's ideas were tried in Europe. Many states with separate national identities became sovereign polities in their own right. However, several of them were swallowed up in the last throes of imperialism by Nazi Germany just before or at the beginning of World War II.

As decades passed by and as separatist minority groups throughout the world, operating outside of the decolonization paradigm, began challenging the concept of state territorial integrity, it became clear that the notion of self-determination had to be somehow confined. Thus, courts and academicians came up with two different forms of self-determination: internal versus external. The former potentially applies to all peoples, and signifies that all peoples should have a set of respected rights within their central state. Thus, minority groups should have cultural, social, political, linguistic and religious rights and those rights should be respected by the mother state. As long as those rights are respected by the mother state, the peoples are not oppressed and thus there is no immediate need to challenge the territorial integrity of its mother state. The latter applies to oppressed peoples, the ones whose basic rights are not being respected by the mother state and the ones who are often subject to heinous human rights abuses. Such oppressed peoples, in theory, have a right to external self-determination, and external self-determination signifies that such peoples have a right to remedial secession and independence.

Theoretically, the distinction between internal and external self-determination is easy to draw, and an academician or a judge should have not difficulty deciding which minority groups should accrue the more drastic right to external self-determination. After all, we could simply look to the human rights record of the mother state, and if the record showed violations, we could determine that the minority group should be allowed to separate. In reality, the distinction is very difficult to draw. Numerous minority groups around the globe have been mistreated and have asserted their rights to external self-determination, only to find themselves rebuffed by the world community. On the other hand, some minority groups have found strong support in the eyes of the external actors, and have garnered sufficient international recognition to be allowed to separate.

It seems patently obvious to us all nowadays that self-determination is a fundamentally sound idea. It conforms to our ideals of democracy and liberty. But when we come down to the actual concrete reality of things, people are frequently reluctant to let go of territories with their own separatist identity.

Take the People’s Republic of China, for example. After all these years, it refuses to let go of Taiwan and Tibet, despite the glaringly obvious fact that owning these territories would probably be a net loss. There are few resources to be gained in Tibet, and it is doubtful that much could be gained from controlling a resentful population in Taiwan.

From a rational point of view, there is not much point in holding on to a people who refuse to be joined to you. They only create problems, and the country is unable to exploit the resources of the separatist territory. Instead, it is forced to devote resources from other territories to quelling the separatists, and as a result cannot focus on development.

Yet, there remain huge psychological barriers to letting go. There are for example, some Russian academicians who still refuse to accept that self-determination is a reasonable philosophy. This is mostly due to the fact that their sense of national pride is far too strong for them to accept that Russia would be better off if it let go of Chechnya than if it wastes its time and resources attempting to subjugate it.

There does seem to be a good point in their argument, though, in that the people of all territories would be far better off if they could put aside their separatist ways and work together to reinforce each others strengths. But the question is, is it practical for this to happen?

To be simply put: it’s not. One cannot disabuse people of a separate national identity without making compromises that people are often unwilling to make. And as a result, this isn't a relevant justification for opposing self-determination, unless you believe it is practical to make a whole group of people change their minds about a fundamental part of their identity.

It can sometimes be hard to understand the motivations people have for oppressing and suppressing others. But if you place yourself in their shoes, it is often a very easy task.

The right of self-determination has also been recognized in other international and regional human rights instruments such as Part VII of the Helsinki Final Act 1975 and Article 20 of the African Charter of Human and Peoples' Rights as well as the Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Territories and Peoples. It has been endorsed by the International Court of Justice. Furthermore, the scope and content of the right of self- determination has been elaborated upon by the United Nations Human Rights Committee and Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination as well as international jurists and human rights experts.

Nevertheless, self-determination is the right way to go. When you put an end to the destructive strife that cripples the economy of both territories, and bring about peaceful trade and cooperation between the two separated jurisdictions, you find that a more prosperous and just outcome is reached — albeit at the loss of some pride.

Sources:
1. Charter of the United Nations (http://www.un.org/)
2. Australasian Legal Information Institute (http://www.austlii.edu.au)
3. Self-Determination, International Society and World Order by Martin Griffiths at the Macquarie Law Journal (Heading 1.1)
4. Self-Determination and the Right to Establish A Government by John Kilcullen (Heading 1.1)

I Want To Teach The World To Sing

2011-10-16T23:56:00.002+08:00

Music transcends all barriers between humankind. A good song will stay in your mind for hours, sometimes days on end. A great song takes you back right to the moment that you very first heard it. To most people, music is the medium in which emotion is expressed - hurt, sorrow, pain, joy, elation, and of course, love. Music, if you like, makes the world go round.

Many are still blissfully unaware of the amount of work that it takes just to make a song. A massive team is involved in the writing, composing, recording, and the post-production. It would be natural that this team would want at least some form of protection to prevent their music from being exploited.

Copyright protects creative works and enables composers, literary authors and other creators to be paid for their work. Copyright is the means by which those who create and own works (for example, music and lyrics) can control who makes use of each work and the circumstances in which it is used, to ensure that the integrity and value of the work is respected. Copyright protects original literary, dramatic, musical and artistic works, sound recordings, films, broadcasts and the typographical arrangement of a published edition. The legal framework for copyright is the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 (CDPA) as amended. (source) Every song comprises two copyright works: the music itself, a musical work; and the lyrics or words, a literary work. The work of musical arrangers and editors also benefits from copyright protection. If the work is subsequently recorded, the sound recording itself will have separate copyright protection. The producer of the recording will own the copyright in the sound recording. If the work is published in a printed edition, the typographical arrangement of that printed edition will be separately protected and the publisher of that edition will own the copyright. Under current EU laws, recorded musical performances are protected for a maximum of 50 years. This means that over a period of 50 years, performers receive remuneration for each time their work is played on the air. After 50 years, artists lose control over the use of their works and no longer receive this income. Composers already enjoy copyright protection for 70 years after their death.

In the age of Justin Bieber, where one becomes a worldwide sensation at the age of 16, 50 years of protection is clearly not sufficient. Justin for example, will lose the rights over his first song when he turns 66! Personally, I doubt anyone would want to use a Bieber song in 50 years but nowadays we can never be too sure. On the surface, this seems unfair as a composer is protected for life plus 70 years. Unless the said artist has written the song himself (let's face it, how many do?) then there will be a lot for him to worry about come 50 years when his copyright expires. For this reason, there is going to be quite a substantial reform in this area of the law.

The EU is expected to make changes to the copyright law which will find the copyright term extended from 50 years to 70 years – enabling veteran singers to receive royalties for their songs well into their retirement. It will be the culmination of a long-running campaign by record companies and artists, who have been campaigning for a change in copyright protection, with European musicians calling for parity with American performers, who enjoy cover for 95 years. The new ruling will benefit hundreds of artists including performers such as Cliff Richard, Tom Jones, Paul McCartney, Rodger Daltrey and Shirley Bassey and will come as a welcome reprieve for the music industry, which is struggling to cope with the growing popularity of free online music. (source)

Jools Holland OBE, the host of the BBC's Later show and famous jazz pianist, said: "It is fantastic news to hear that copyright term has been extended to 70 years. Artists put their hearts and souls into creating music and it is only fair that they are recompensed in line with the rest of Europe."

The way I see it, this move is going to make the record companies richer at the expense of consumers. It seems that this crusade to lengthen the period of protection is inspired, albeit in a small part, by the advent of illegal file sharers that distribute music files illegally over the internet. However, lengthening the period of protection means the cost of CDs or even digital tracks will rise, leaving the consumer to handle the harshness of the situation. This may lead to one thing: even more illegal file sharers.

Another argument that was brought up, was that paying musicians more money (as if they were not overpaid as it is) would be an incentive for creativity. I very highly doubt that! Let me give you an example: Mariah Carey. When she was just starting out as a singer, she had wonderful tracks that showcased her amazing vocal range but if you have had the misfortune of listening to her recent work, you can tell that the quality of her work has gone down and she is quite reliant on synthesisers and voice-tuning software. Being a big fan of indie music, I find that most of the times I can relate more to the songs they write. They are more real, the emotion is on my level and I know what they are singing about. There are only so many songs about 'riding in my Rolls (Royce)' or 'sipping on Moet' that I can relate to.

There is another thing that bothers me too. It was 'unfair' that performing musicians and record companies should receive fees for only fifty years whereas composers were entitled for their lives plus seventy years. Nobody however suggested that it was 'unfair' that they should receive fees for longer than the twenty years appropriate for the inventors of patented inventions or, probably a better analogy, designs, where the period is fifteen or twenty-five years. What makes an performing musician more deserving of copyright protection than say, a designer? Perhaps a topic for another time, then.

For further reading, check this out.

LLM International Commercial Law

2011-10-11T19:26:00.003+08:00

Having completed my LLB with 2nd-Class Honours earlier this year, I decided that the next step for me would be to enrol in the LLM course in Northumbria University.

LLM, which is abrreviated from the Latin term Legum Magister, is an advanced academic degree usually pursued by those holding a professional law degree. Initially I was planning to enrol into LLM International Trade Law as I took a module of the same name whilst I was in my final year. I decided however, to enrol into LLM International Commercial Law as I believe the taught modules bear more relevance to what I am planning to do in the future. As a student reading law, I find myself drawn to the corporate side of the law, as opposed to litigation in the criminal law for instance. I personally find it challenging but the very rewarding (in more ways than one, I can assure you!)

I completed my Bachelor's degree in Newcastle, so why did I pick Newcastle to do my postgraduate degree? Simple: I love it here. Newcastle has always exuded a certain warmth and a sense of home to me. It is a quaint city that has a lot to offer. From the vibrant nightlife to the calm countryside, the bustling city to the majestic seaside, there is something for everyone. I'm looking forward to this year as it will be filled with a lot of firsts - to begin with, I've had this blog for five years and I have NEVER written and posted a legal article up here.

Anyway allow me to share a little tidbit of my background. I come from a little seaside town of Miri on the island of Borneo in South-East Asia. My parents work hard to provide my siblings and I with what we need (and the occasional want, of course!). My parents come from the Kelabit tribe, and they were brought up the the beautiful highlands of Bario deep in the heart of Borneo but moved to the city to work. So, yes I'm a Kelabit boy through and through. I even speak the language fluently, so there! Growing up, family was the most important thing to me and even today, nothing has changed. I miss my family every single day!

I love cooking, travelling and shopping (okay, some of you saw that last one coming) and when I grow up, I want to be able to stand on my own two feet and be a success on my own right. I am really thoroughly enjoying every single moment of living in the UK, and I certainly do not want it to end anytime soon :)

wishes from afar

2011-08-15T01:25:00.000+08:00

"You can kiss your family goodbye and put miles between you, but at the same time you carry them with you in your heart, your mind, your stomach, because you do not just live in a world but a world lives within you." - Frederick Buechner

finally!

2011-07-19T09:49:00.003+08:00

i am so happy that i made my mummy & daddy proud :) it's all been worth it - it was not easy, in fact, far from it. more than a few times, i have felt like dropping everything and leave. i'm glad i didn't! life's not fair, but it gives you what you deserve.

thank You, Lord for all of your never ceasing blessings on me. Your mercy & grace have surrounded me all the way and not once have You forsaken me. to Your name be all the glory!

Aaron Paran Gugkang, LLB (Honours)

faith.

2011-05-20T06:35:00.002+08:00

When I say... "I am a Christian"
I'm not shouting, "I'm clean living."
I'm whispering, "I was lost,
Now I'm found and forgiven."

When I say... "I am a Christian"
I don't speak of this with pride.
I'm confessing that I stumble
and need Christ to be my guide.

When I say... "I am a Christian"
I'm not trying to be strong.
I'm professing that I'm weak
And need His strength to carry on.

When I say... "I am a Christian"
I'm not bragging of success.
I'm admitting I have failed
And need God to clean my mess.

When I say... "I am a Christian"
I'm not claiming to be perfect,
My flaws are far too visible but,
God believes I am worth it.

When I say... "I am a Christian"
I still feel the sting of pain.
I have my share of downs
I call upon His name.

When I say... "I am a Christian"
I'm not holier than thou,
I'm just a simple sinner
Who received God's good grace, somehow.

(c)gina

leng2 merur neh keliq kuh. mulaq tu'en narih masaq, na'am teh patur rudap lem tudaq alem nuk pengeh nih. tuseh teh lem linuh kudih beruh. laq uih ngen tauh sebayang lem pasal ulun kudih..

ngeperu'an ulun kuh, oh Tuhan. perlu tu'uh2 tuwih ngen adtang mudih lem masa sinih. Tuhan uih mutuh ileh let ngemuh, ngarak uih mayaq lawe suk do'oq dih. kadiq na'am uih kereb naruq anun-anun tanpa iko, tetameh kudih suk inan kuh buluh.

lem ngadan tetameh kudih lem surga, nih uih ngasut abi-abi sitan mae iblis luk naruq uih da'at iyat idih da'at layaq. buro muyuh let lem ulun kudih!

lun ruyung kuh nuk mado, nih uih muwit abi-abi tusah muyuh lem sebayang :) lem ngadan kudus mudih Yesus Kristus, kamih sebayang.. AMEN!

*reblogged from here and here.

pause.

2011-05-03T06:12:00.003+08:00

my facebook account will be deactivated until further notice.

there's a new chapter in my life coming up and i'd like to focus & give it my all while i still can.

i surrender everything i have unto Thee, Lord. for Thine is the kingdom and the glory, forever and ever.

Amen.

leazes park.

2011-04-18T08:12:00.004+08:00

today was finally warm enough to go the park! with the sun shining down, it's was simply stunning and the weather was glorious too :) photos of the park (if i can find them in the millions of random photos i snapped) shall be uploaded in a future post. heheh!

daffodils have sprung up (pun intended) seemingly overnight and are everywhere! i couldn't care less about flowers but i know my family back home are crazy about them so here's a photo of the endless field of daffodils in Leazes Park. gorgeous innit?

and for my mum & sisters who have been requesting for photos of me tudo lem rang bungaq, here's one for you although i couldn't actually tudo because i'm too kemuq. hahaha :))

ba-da-boom!

2011-04-14T22:02:00.001+08:00

wow. no updates for a month! yeah that shows how *ahem* busy i was. coursework questions came out on 11/3 and i (being the super genius they claim me to be =.=) had to submit a grand-total of 10,500 words by 8/4 (!!!) hence the disappearing act. in all fairness though, i procrastinated like a pro and spent the final 6 days before submission furiously typing away without so much of an inkling of what the hell i was trying to say. by the way, the marks we get for coursework represents 100% of our final marks for Law of International Trade, Intellectual Property Law and Commercial Contracts. sooo.. yeah. i put it all in the Lord's hands now :)

the 2011 northumbria malaysian society's ball was on the same day as our submission so it was loads of work leading up to the day of the my submission and the ball but i have to say.. the Lord, he provides. everything was about to go wrong but working with a team brimming with positive energies was a complete honour & pleasure. i was an emcee, i did a duet, i sang 2 songs aaaaand performed in the committee dance :) needless to say i became somewhat a minor celebrity on that night. heh! how's that for biting off more than i can chew? LOL here's the best part: I SWALLOWED.

***photo with the amazing committee for the 2011 M'sian Ball***

***cast members & friends***

after recovering from the week's chaos, we all decided to get together and practise what we malaysians do best: eat! we gathered on a sunny afternoon for a barbeque (and let me tell you this - I MISS BARBEQUES WITH MY FAMILY~!) and laughed till tears streamed down our faces. it was amazing.

***it's been a long time, but i still got what it takes!***

now with that all done, and after about 5 days of doing nothing but eating and sleeping - a fact i'm not so proud of, the time has come to buckle up for final exams :) i want to graduate!

yummy!

2011-03-12T09:42:00.000+08:00

words just cannot describe how much i love japanese food :) happy, happy, happy!!

clear.

2011-03-10T09:31:00.002+08:00

excuse me if i have trust issues.

how would you feel if the moment you turn around, she shoves the butter knife into your back, narrowly missing your spine?

yeah, i thought so.

belfast - winter wonderland

2011-02-22T06:38:00.003+08:00

belfast is enchanting. there's no other way to put it. it was incredibly beautiful & to this day, i still cannot believe that i was actually there. despite the subzero temperatures (and the temperature actually went to a record -27 Celcius when we were there) it was still breathtaking - in more ways than one, obviously!

the first day was spent at giant's causeway and in the winter, it just looks gorgeous. with the pure white snow glistening in the sunlight, it was enough to make a grown man cry.

being the camera happy person that i am, i was happily snapping away and i kid you not, i had about 300 photos from giant's causeway alone. it was cold. painfully cold, blisteringly cold, freezing cold. to put things into perspective, i was wearing 6 layers. my thermal shirt, a tee, a cardigan, a cashmere jumper, a leather jacket and a windbreaker and i was STILL shivering. i have never felt that cold in my entire life and i do not intend to feel that kind of cold in a long, long time.

but it was so so pretty too! check out that tree :P

the hungry travellers - the bunch that conquered Ireland in the middle of one of the worst winters in recorded history & lived to tell about it.

Lord, You have blessed me so much. thank You!

dublin, ireland!

2011-02-20T05:47:00.001+08:00

whoa. it has been quite some time hasn't it? i've just been so overwhelmed with work (and laziness) and i didn't have time to update this blog. but i'm gonna put up some updates because i'm self-centred and vain :P

i celebrated christmas for the first time away from my family - and well, first time without my family. it is awful being away from home during the holidays, to be honest. but i'm so blessed to be surrounded by my wonderful friends. we're all going through the same thing so the support is amazing, to say the least.

i took a trip to ireland with a bunch of friends during the winter break. it was the most awesome experience ever! the irish are ever so nice, and so hospitable :D 3 days in dublin, followed by 3 days in belfast. the company was second to none, too! this post will be dedicated to dublin:

i tried the guinness beef stew while i was in dublin. it was out of this world! hahaha not surprisingly, our little group was dubbed 'the hungry travellers' because everywhere we went, it was ALL about the food - and let me tell you, dublin is not cheap. at all. like, seriously i don't even want to think about the amount of money we spent on food. it was so bad that i did not shop - at all. hahaha sorry dad.

a trip to dublin would not be complete without visiting the guinness storehouse & pouring your own pint. so we did that.

it was quite an experience and i've now got a certificate to show that i, indeed, have poured the perfect pint - in dublin, no less. it should come in handy when i need to apply for a job as a bartender :D heheh.

sightseeing in dublin incredible, and we did it all on foot (obviously getting lost a few times) and if you have the time & money, do go! you will not regret it!

Britney Spears - Hold It Against Me

2011-02-19T06:55:00.000+08:00

yup, she's definitely back.

it's britney, bitches!

ClaRica

2011-02-10T07:05:00.001+08:00

Congratulations Clarence and Erica on your weddingggggg!

wishing you all the happiness in the world :) may you be surrounded by joy, good health & prosperity in all your days too!

with love, the cast & crew of ClaRica: The Musical!

seasons greetings!

2010-12-15T23:22:00.001+08:00

HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

xx

s-s-s-snow!

2010-11-25T06:41:00.002+08:00

this past couple of months have been a whirlwind of firsts for me. and today marked yet another milestone in my not-so-significant life. for the first time, i saw snow!

"I sing for joy at the works of Your hands. Forever I'll love You, forever I'll stand."

WOO!

2010-11-21T08:55:00.002+08:00

christmas is almost upon us!

*taken at the lighting of the newcastle christmas lights*

nottingham - where's robin hood?

2010-11-18T05:01:00.004+08:00

last weekend, we went with the northumbria malaysian society on a trip to nottingham for the 2010 Nottingham Games. to be honest though, i did not manage to watch one single game. and yes it was on purpose. hahaha this is basically a photo post so i'll let the photos do the talking.

*the glorious colours of autumn surrounded us (and so did the cold!)*

*with miss farah athirah, owner of the primary camera used that day*

*taken at the steps of Nottingham Castle with fellow malaysians*

*none of us would ever, EVER attempt this back home :D haha!*

*i couldn't resist. yes, you may say i lost weight heheh!*

*the location of many a run-around-the-trees-singing-gleefully scene*

*don't let the sun fool you, it was FREEZING!!*

*and the day ended with a hearty malaysian meal. thumbs (or forks) up!*

the society rented 2 buses and the journey took about 3 hours each way. i realise i've been travelling a lot lately. the UK is the perfect place to be if you love travelling, like me. and i feel so thankful & blessed to have been given the opportunity to be where i am right now.

by the way, in case you were wondering.. we never did find Robin Hood, that cheeky rogue!

"and i don't want to go home right now.."

2010-11-12T06:47:00.003+08:00

went out to see the goo goo dolls live in O2 academy on monday :)) it was like a dream come true! originally did not really plan to go - cos i had no one to go with. but about a week before the gig a couple of friends decided they wanted to go and so we bought our tickets.. and the rest, they say, is history!

".. and i don't want the world to see me, cos i don't think that they'll understand."

".. what's the point in all this screaming, no one's listening anyway."

".. you're the only one i've ever believed in, the answer that could never be found."

the gig was amazing. AMAZING. the crowd was unbelievable too! we managed to get places right in front of the stage (yay!) and we sang along to the songs with the rest of the crowd all night. the band (thankfully) played a lot of their old stuff (iris, slide, name, broadway, here is gone, let love in etc.) and the new stuff from their latest album were pretty good too.

i'm having so much fun here. so much fun. heheh.

tynemouth!

2010-11-08T07:07:00.004+08:00

tynemouth is a small town just 20 mins away on the metro from newcastle city centre. and it is insanely beautiful. it's situated on the coast and since i love the beach, i just had to come and see. i was not disappointed in the least! despite the crazy winds, i fell in love :)

heheheh i just had to put in the last pic. you can get (in my opinion lah) the best fish & chips EVER in tynemouth. i'm telling you, that fish is really good. it's awesome. and did you know that chips taste amazing in curry sauce? yum.

but yeah anyway tynemouth is really beautiful. i feel really blessed to have been able to see the wondrous creation of our Lord's hands. thank You again, Lord.. you have never failed me.

grown up but firmly rooted.

2010-10-26T03:40:00.004+08:00

i could never be who i am or where i am right now had it not been for your unconditional love, never-ending support & unwavering faith in me.

thank you for everything :-) i love you all so much! i pray that the Lord will shower each of you with His amazing love & abundant blessings.

with love,
Aaron Paran Gugkang

photo update :)

2010-10-22T23:49:00.003+08:00

it's been more than a month since i got on that plane and left home behind. i may not be in the greatest place in the world (hell yeah i am) but i'm blessed with the best bunch of people one could ever ask for. and for that, Lord i'm thankful for all that you've provided me. all glory be unto You :)

i've had the privilege of travelling a little bit and so far i've visited leeds and york on separate weekends, generally having a awesome time meeting new people and living new experiences. it's something new everyday!

classes have been good too.. some are abit slow but definitely pick up in seminars. i feel like i'm in my element. on a roll, i am.. so i just can't be bothered about insecure people who demand my attention with their petty insults. NEXT!

put up some photos of my friends (whom you do not want to mess with by the way LOL especially the girls!).

obviously i miss my family and friends from back home a lot but with skype and relatively reasonable costs to call, i'm finding ways to deal with that. i wish they were here, experiencing all this though.

"You can kiss your family goodbye and put miles between you, but at the same time you carry them with you in your heart, your mind, your stomach, because you do not just live in a world but a world lives within you." - Frederick Buechner

20.10.2010

2010-10-20T00:01:00.001+08:00

to the most awesome girlfriend/future wife any man could ask for, miss christina supang akal :)

have a fabulous birthday, love *hugggggs* wishing you only the best that life has to offer! may our Lord continue to shower you with bountiful blessings, not just today but in every single day of your life.

me love you long time bebeh!

huggies & kissies,
suamimu yang di perantauan

location update :)

2010-09-24T00:02:00.001+08:00

i'm here!

tick-tock.

2010-08-30T14:29:00.004+08:00

this past few weeks have been a whirlwind of sorts.

i've barely had enough time to myself lately, hence the lack of updates despite my promises to keep y'all (yeah i bet i have like, two readers) posted with things happening.

2 months ago, i started working at this cafe that an aunt opened & let's just say it's taken ALL my time and dedication. and as of now i've yet to be paid. but yeah that's over cause i quit.

i also went to KL for a few days in the beginning of august to submit the application for my student visa. i bunked over at my babe's house and we had the best 4 days EVER. we shopped, shopped & shopped some more LOL and basically just spent time being in each other's presence.

in other news, my visa was approved 3 days after i submitted the application so YEAY!! ahahaha that means i got my booking finalised and i will be departing miri at 6.40pm on 16 Sept 2010.

a new life awaits me. a new school, new friends, and new clothes (wee!) too. but as much as i am excited to leave, i can't exactly bear the thought of leaving the country that i've been for the past 19 years. (yes, 19. shut up.)

Viva La Espana!

2010-07-12T05:56:00.002+08:00

Spain wins this World Cup, inevitably changing World Cup history in 2 ways. One, they have won their first World Cup (wOohOo~) and two, they are the first team who lost their opening match and gone on to win the cup.

Bless that octopus!

brilliance.

2010-07-11T18:07:00.003+08:00

In her radio show, Dr Laura Schlesinger said that, as an observant Orthodox Jew, homosexuality is an abomination according to Leviticus 18:22, and cannot be condoned under any circumstance. The following response is an open letter to Dr. Laura, penned by a US resident, which was posted on the Internet. It's funny, as well as informative:

Dear Dr. Laura:

Thank you for doing so much to educate people regarding God's Law. I have learned a great deal from your show, and try to share that knowledge with as many people as I can. When someone tries to defend the homosexual lifestyle, for example, I simply remind them that Leviticus 18:22 clearly states it to be an abomination ... End of debate.

I do need some advice from you, however, regarding some other elements of God's Laws and how to follow them.

1. Leviticus 25:44 states that I may possess slaves, both male and female, provided they are purchased from neighboring nations. A friend of mine claims that this applies to Mexicans, but not Canadians. Can you clarify? Why can't I own Canadians?

2. I would like to sell my daughter into slavery, as sanctioned in Exodus 21:7. In this day and age, what do you think would be a fair price for her?

3. I know that I am allowed no contact with a woman while she is in her period of Menstrual uncleanliness - Lev.15: 19-24. The problem is how do I tell? I have tried asking, but most women take offense.

4. When I burn a bull on the altar as a sacrifice, I know it creates a pleasing odor for the Lord - Lev.1:9. The problem is my neighbors. They claim the odor is not pleasing to them. Should I smite them?

5. I have a neighbor who insists on working on the Sabbath. Exodus 35:2 clearly states he should be put to death. Am I morally obligated to kill him myself, or should I ask the police to do it?

6. A friend of mine feels that even though eating shellfish is an abomination, Lev. 11:10, it is a lesser abomination than homosexuality. I don't agree. Can you settle this? Are there 'degrees' of abomination?

7. Lev. 21:20 states that I may not approach the altar of God if I have a defect in my sight. I have to admit that I wear reading glasses. Does my vision have to be 20/20, or is there some wiggle-room here?

8. Most of my male friends get their hair trimmed, including the hair around their temples, even though this is expressly forbidden by Lev. 19:27. How should they die?

9. I know from Lev. 11:6-8 that touching the skin of a dead pig makes me unclean, but may I still play football if I wear gloves?

10. My uncle has a farm. He violates Lev.19:19 by planting two different crops in the same field, as does his wife by wearing garments made of two different kinds of thread (cotton/polyester blend). He also tends to curse and blaspheme a lot. Is it really necessary that we go to all the trouble of getting the whole town together to stone them? Lev.24:10-16. Couldn't we just burn them to death at a private family affair, like we do with people who sleep with their in-laws? (Lev. 20:14)

I know you have studied these things extensively and thus enjoy considerable expertise in such matters, so I'm confident you can help.

Thank you again for reminding us that God's word is eternal and unchanging.

Your adoring fan,

James M. Kauffman, Ed.D. Professor Emeritus, Dept. Of Curriculum, Instruction, and Special Education University of Virginia

(It would be a damn shame if we couldn't own a Canadian :)

Anyway before any of you jump to any conclusions (because I know that's your favourite thing to do before going around to tell the whole world that aaronparan is this and aaronparan is that) this is not meant to mock the bible or the Lord but it is directed rather, to the holier-than-thou individuals who think that just because they never miss a Sunday service, they are better than those of us who don't. I believe that we humans are all sinners and none of us are perfect. Well, some of us are closer to perfection than most but the point still stands.

So have a nice week trying to be nice.

superhero!

2010-06-24T14:54:00.004+08:00

i feel like a superhero inside! i made it thru all 8 papers. managed to scrape thru with 3 Bs and 5 Cs. but WHATEVER the most important thing is that i passed and so i'll be heading on to the UK in september *fingers crossed* only my visa left to do now.

i am super happy, y'all!

thanks for all your prayer and support. the Lord is good, all the time.

to all the haters (especially those that pretend to support me): IN YOUR FACE, BITCH. haha.

ninger sebayang kudih oh Tuhan.

2010-04-26T21:41:00.006+08:00

sunset

2010-04-24T17:14:00.002+08:00

the view of sunset from the apartment window two days ago. breathtaking. i love sunsets :) they tell you that the day has ended and although night will soon befall, you had a beautiful ending to the day to last you until the sun rises again.

but there was no such sunset yesterday, nor today. makes me worry. i worry a lot nowadays. i guess i'm having an excess of 'me' time. perhaps i've been too brutally honest with myself these past few days. no lepak sessions to cover my anguish & worry. perhaps i took a challenge too big for me to handle. either way, i've already bitten off waaay more than i can chew and there's no frigging way i'm spitting it out - i'm too much of a gentleman. the only thing left to do is try my best to chew and swallow slowly. looks like my breathing through the nose skills are gonna be coming into play now.

i still wonder, will there be a beautiful sunset tomorrow?

deactivate.

2010-04-22T21:19:00.005+08:00

my facebook account has been deactivated.

this maybe just temporary so if you need to contact me, use my mobile. if you don't have my mobile number, then you don't need to contact me.

and if i do not answer your calls and/or reply your texts.. please take a hint.

welcome!

2010-04-22T13:01:00.005+08:00

to baby Iris Lywie Hii Wei Ning..

welcome to the world and welcome to the family!

congrats mr & mr Alex Agan Hii :) heheh!

.. on behalf of the Raja's.

(omg i'm an uncle all over again! a 19 year old uncle - how cool is that?)

photo from the wedding last year courtesy of nic

what doesnt kill you, tries it again.

2010-04-20T20:09:00.003+08:00

yes, i can feel the pressure.

yes, i know the stakes.

but i think this time, only the grace of God can pull me through.

besides, only he knows why i took Law in the first place :( will be back soon.

because i believe.

2010-04-16T23:11:00.002+08:00

(c)gina

today, i am karma.

2010-03-26T18:59:00.006+08:00

once, okay fine. my bad.

twice, maybe. annoying but.. acceptable. somewhat.

three times? fuck no.

you won't know what hit you, you power-crazy bitch.

you do not get respect by default. thinking you are somebody doesn't actually make you a somebody. you earn others' respect and you work to keep it. you went about it the wrong way & it's about time you knew.

thanks for always demotivating us, putting us down, patronising & degrading us (not to mention, failing us) for it has made us stronger than you will ever know. now, it's our turn.

you deserve what you're about to get.

edit (30/3) : congratulations on being jobless, woman :D enjoy being useless and pathetic.

mummy!

2010-03-21T00:17:00.000+08:00

happy birthday mum!

xx aaronparan

quickie

2010-03-10T16:03:00.006+08:00

so i got vice-president *cheers* and the results came out after almost a month. personally i'm doubting the transparency of the system but let's not go there. i refuse to sound like a sore loser.

anyway in other news, i hope i can juggle my duties because due to the delay, i've not much time left until my final exams at the end of april. then i'm done :D heh heh.

OOOH my application to northumbria was also accepted and i was also offered a £500 scholarship to top it off. of course, depending on my final semester results lah. so fingers crossed, if all goes as planned, i should be leaving to complete my final year by the end of august :D yay!

sorry for the lack of updates, i've been pretty busy. but i will try to update more often. no promises, though hahahahaha *ahem* i love you all!

wedding of the year!

2010-02-22T16:32:00.001+08:00

on behalf of my family, i would like to wish nora hii & chen foo yowi a long, happy & fulfilling life together. looking forward to seeing your kids running around at our future family gatherings heh :D

nora's like a big sister to all of us :) she's there whenever we need her, protecting us & taking care of us. so chen, take care of her. otherwise you'll prolly have to deal with a very hungry bunch of Rajas. heheh.

i love you both!

My Presidential Campaign Speech

2010-01-28T17:42:00.000+08:00

A person with experience, a person you can depend on, a person that will voice the concerns of and represent each and every one of you, a person that will put in 110% is the type of person we need in serving as our Student Council President. My name is Aaron Paran from Diploma in Law, and I believe that I am that type of person and I am ready to step into that position, to serve as our Student Council President. As students, we are ready for change in our college. I am the person who can help. As president of student council, I promise to work with the students and for the students. Fellow SEGi-ans, this is not something I can do alone. I need all your support. Each & every single one of you count in this. Together we will make 2010 an awesome year.

Commitment is what I will give to every component of the SEGi community, especially to all of you, my fellow students, to be the best representative of SEGi’s student council. It is your ideas and concerns that help in moving SEGi forward and since I already know what has been going on especially in the past years, I feel I can continue to help students in voicing their opinions and by being heard. Last year’s president, Ms. Shellyn did a wonderful job in making sure that all the feedback and ideas from you were well taken care of and I strongly believe that we are making headway in resolving some of these concerns but I believe that there is still more to accomplish and I intend to see it will be.

I’m not going to state empty promises, but rather issues I believe need to be addressed. Parking has always been a critical issue and I do realise that it isn’t something that can be resolved over night. But this is an issue of great concern and I intend to work to get it resolved.

I believe in students empowering students, where we can put together new ideas in which the student body could discuss in order to benefit the campus as a whole. Talk to me, I will listen and ensure the big guns in the management have a hear of what we have to say. I will be your voice. The voice of SEGi College should be from its student council and if you would give me the honour of being your elected representative, together we will help to make the campus a better place for students and will do all that I can to make the college experience here a more wholesome & enjoyable one, and that's a promise.

Last year, I worked closely with the Shellyn & the Prom Committee and together we all organized an amazing Prom Night. I was in charge of the fashion show. I had a lot of fun putting it together with the help of you, fellow friends. This year will be no different. I will make it my personal mission that we will have fun at this year’s prom. I also plan to organise more events that involve you, my friends, because this is our college, and therefore it should be all about us.

I feel that each of the other candidates, along with myself, believe that we have the desire, motivation and drive to serve the students at this campus. We are willing to put our all into our positions and each task that is put in front of us. Friends, I still need you to give your validation and support by voting so that together we can continue to accomplish what we have already started.

My friends, this election is of dire importance to the short-term and long-term future of SEGi-ans. We need strong leadership and I encourage all of you to exercise your right to vote next Wednesday, from 10.30am to 6.30pm, right in this room. Thank you and happy voting!

vote! vote!

2010-01-19T01:36:00.002+08:00

yep, that's right. i'm running for president. and i'm rallying for your vote!

fellow SEGians, i need all your support. each & every single one of you count in this. together we will make 2010 an awesome year, and that's a promise.

i believe in students empowering students :) talk to me, i will listen and i will make sure the big guns in the management have a hear of what we have to say. i will be your voice. the voice of SEGi college should be from its student council and if you would give me the honour of being your elected representative, i will do all that i can to make the college experience a more wholesome & enjoyable one, and that's a promise.

i will also give fashion tips.. anytime, anywhere! and THAT, is a promise.

cheers :) xx

waitttt.

2010-01-03T19:32:00.005+08:00

disclaimer: all the real names of people, places and events have been altered or abbreviated to protect the innocent. namely, me.

X: excuse me!!
Y: wait.
X: excuse me.
Y: waaait.
X: *whispers* excuse me..
Y: omg. what part of 'wait' don't you get??

wish wish

2010-01-01T18:40:00.002+08:00

merry christmas & an awesome new year from my family to yours!

full-stop

2009-12-19T01:26:00.000+08:00

there is probably nothing that you can say to make it better. and there is nothing i'm going to say to change anything. whatever happened, happened for a reason. a damned good one at that.

fuck this 'be the bigger person' shit. just go.

good luck with finding yourself, by the way.

boldened.

2009-12-16T11:16:00.005+08:00

this is post #300, y'all! that's like, i have 300 pieces of my heart laid down in words on this blog for people to see. and it's people like yourself who have supported me (this applies to both the positive & negative sense) through the years. i have grown as a person, and into myself (as well as into my clothes HAHA!). so thank you for loving - and yes, even hating - me. because your attention has got me where i am.

christmas is just around the corner and i am soo excited. i've been blaring christmas songs since mid-october, much to the chagrin of the niece and everyone else who has entered the apartment. christmas usually means double happiness to me since it also means that my birthday is a mere 10 days away. now while getting older doesn't appeal to me in the least - i'm gonna turn 19 this next birthday, have been 19 for the past few years ;) - it's celebration time! heheh.

now i have never got what i wanted for christmas & my birthday. my parents never really believed in buying presents for us. like ever. so this year, unlike the past couple of years, i won't be putting a wishlist up, because so far i've received literally NONE of the items on them. i've even gotten some things i don't want.

with how my luck is going, instead i'm gonna tell you what i don't want (but need oh-so-bad) for my christmas/birthday combo this year - see it's 2 gifts in 1, i really am not asking for much! but no i'm not asking *wink wink nudge nudge*

anyway what i don't want is..

a BlackBerry Bold 9700. just so you know, it's available in Maxis & Celcom Call Centers throughout the nation. but no, it's not what i want for a gift.

really.

delirious

2009-12-03T02:57:00.004+08:00

i am seriously on top of the world right now :D but how can i not be?

i'm the only boy chosen from SEGi College Sarawak to go for the Dialogue with Sarawak Youth on Continuing the Legacy of Freedom & Harmony under the 1Malaysia Concept along with other student leaders from other public & private institutions of higher learning. This dialogue will be featuring Prof Dr Chandra Muzaffar, Dato' Sri Idris Jala and (y)our Chief Minister on Jan 12th @ the DUN. with me will be 4 girls from SEGi College as well - but that's beside the point lah kan? this is also the first time SEGi College Sarawak is actually recognised as an institution of higher learning - but that's also beside the point. heheh.

ME bah. a student leader. who would have thought?

i'm so excited. i have a few choice questions for the last guy ;) heheh.

most importantly, what to wear? hmm..

work.

2009-11-30T23:18:00.001+08:00

this is just a little something i'm working on. let me know if you like it :) x

‘Spare me the effing lies. You don’t love me. You love the idea of me, but the idea of being with me revolts you.’

‘Please, no. Just because I can’t be with you doesn’t mean that I don’t love you. I need you. Come on, please. I need you.’

‘But of course you do. I’m some sort of an ego booster for you, aren’t I? It has always been that way.’

‘At first, yeah. But..’

‘That’s all I needed to hear. Goodbye.’ I said as turned away.

There was a sharp jabbing in the area where my heart used to be and tears welled painfully in my already swollen eyes. I averted my gaze and steered myself from him, silently willing him to come after me and pull me back into his chest, enveloping me in the warmth I so desperately craved.

That’s when I felt his hands take mine.

whoa.

2009-11-19T20:43:00.002+08:00

whoa. okay.

my entire family is going on a family vacation. without me. AGAIN. this time it's to KK. did i mention without me?

bring on the tequila shots. what? i need to depend on something, don't i?

i tort it was easy.

2009-11-18T06:22:00.003+08:00

seriously, i think our torts tutor has officially lost it.

we have 4 assignments this semester and each assignment question was growing progressively absurd, question after question.

the first question was fine, requiring discussion on the scope of the neighbour principle laid down by Donoghue v. Stephenson after the decision in Caparo. but apparently, most of the class didn't answer the question as 'none of you did well on this one, mostly copy & paste.' DUH. it's facts ba.

FINE.

here's the second question: 'There is no statute on the law of tort in Malaysia & as a matter of fact the English common law is entirely applicable in Malaysia. Nonetheless, judging by the inclination of our executive branch of having statutory laws in dispensing its administerial duty, it begs the question as to the possibility of codifying the English common law in tort.

Discuss the extent of the codification assuming that there is such a proposal. Give reasons for your discussion.'

WTF right? i got a 4 out of 15 for that, because i 'went to deep into the topic' and while she told us to 'take it as a challenge, think outside the box, approach the question from your own angle and write in your own style', apparently what i wrote was not what she wanted. next time, i'm gonna be expecting a read my fcking mind clause in the question. even if it's not there, i'mma assume it is.

next question: 'It is always the perception among the legal fraternity that tort deals with matters pertaining to personal injury like accidents. But as the world becomes hooked to the internet, is tort still relevant today?

Discuss the relevance of tort in a world of high tech and wireless and the difficulty it might encounter.'

i haven't got the marks for this yet but while we had the luxury of asking her, she will not 'tell us the answer', or even basically what she wants GAAAH fine lah.

the last question: 'Whenever there is a road accident in Malaysia, the injured party always lodges a complaint with the police and leaves the matter for the authority to deal with. The incident may or may not end with the transgressor being brought to justice for traffic offence.

The above illustration is an example of how our society prefers to resort to criminal law rather than opting for tort in solving a problem on personal injury.

Discuss the rationales for such tendency. You may also suggest ways to encourage individuals to choose tort over criminal law in coping with personal injury.'

am i seriously the only one who thinks this question is absurd? as in, to compare a civil action against a criminal conduct? geez woman, power trip much?

I HATE THE LAW OF TORT! thanks sylvia.

do it.

2009-11-06T01:47:00.001+08:00

hurt me.

hurt me so i can get over you.

hurt me so bad that my heart breaks.

hurt me now till i scream in agony.

hurt me please, so i can finally cry these silent tears.

hurt me so i cant look at you anymore.

hurt me so i can finally have a life.

come on midin, you know you can do it.

to the greatest daddy in the world.

2009-11-04T16:55:00.000+08:00

happy 51st birthday, daddy!

xoxo your son,
aaronparan

tricked?

2009-10-31T00:48:00.000+08:00

have an awesome Halloween, guys!

if you're drinking, don't drive; and if you're driving, don't drink.. but this one's most important - BE NAUGHTY ;-) oh yeah.

xx.

breakkk.

2009-10-30T10:35:00.003+08:00

time-out.

this has been a super duper busy week. i'm submitting 3 assignments by noon today, all of which i completed in 12 hours. i'm amazing, i know. haha.

then at about 2pm today, i'll be the emcee at Dyslexia Association of Sarawak's Resource & Learning Centre launch. i went there a couple of days ago and was thoroughly humbled by that experience (and slightly embarrassed that i never knew such a place existed). so i'm quite looking forward to doing this later. which reminds me, baju belum iron gik. heh.

then it's the weekend! a well-deserved break from it all :D yeay.

ooh, random but i think i know what i want for x'mas.

please daddy, please? ;)

like, whoa.

2009-10-19T11:47:00.003+08:00

i didn't see that one coming.

no wait. i did. it's you anyway.

i trusted you, and this is what i get in return eh? well, i'm backing out. you can have what you want.

i sincerely hope you enjoy it while it lasts.

the prom.

2009-10-17T11:43:00.001+08:00

prom night was sooo awesome. like totally. thank you to everyone who worked their asses off in making it a reality and also to those who believed in us & bought the tickets.

till next year, maybe?

SEGi College Sarawak Masquerade Prom Night 2009

2009-10-13T11:08:00.007+08:00

This event, titled the SEGi College Sarawak Masquerade Prom Night 2009, is planned, organised and will be executed by the College's students for the students. It would take place on the 16th of October 2009, at the 9th Floor of Crown Towers, and would run in conjunction with the SEGi College Graduation Ceremony, which will be held at Riverside Majestic on the 17th.

Activities for this event will include three Lucky Draws, a Fashion Show, Club and individual performances during the event itself, as well as pre-launch events such as students' make-up sessions, short dance courses and other relevant activities which have taken place throughout the entire month of September.

***spring***

***summer***

***fall***

***winter***

Tickets are still available for a very reasonable rate of RM45 each but you can get a table for 10 at RM400 per table. Each ticket also comes with an RM5 discount voucher from Maison Monica Hair & Beauty Academy.

For tickets and/or info please call:
Shellyn Felicia - +6012 855 8583
Fabian Goh - +6016 886 5335
Aaron Paran - +6016 852 2547

SEGi College Sarawak Masquerade Prom Night 2009: A Night Where No One Needs To Know Who You Are - Unless You Want Them To.

blackout.

2009-10-06T03:31:00.000+08:00

disclaimer: all the real names of people, places and events have been altered or abbreviated to protect the innocent. namely, me.

(via text message)
X: aaah blackout!
Y: luckily not at night. if not you can't see anything.
X: yeah but it's so hot i want to die.
Y: kan your room got aircon?
X: blackout -_________-"

update, update!

2009-10-04T15:43:00.004+08:00

it's high time i made a proper post. enough with the emo stuff, i say. haha. okay, lets see. where do i start?

so many things have happened to me lately. one thing that stood out the most, was the results of my research paper. last semester, for the subject Law & Global Perspectives, i did a research paper on the concept of self-determination and whether it amounts to the right of secession to the aborigines in aussie. and i did this while i was in my 8-week attachment programme in a reputable law firm here in kuching. the results came out a couple of weeks ago and i scored a distinction! :D so yay for my very first A!!

back in august, during my holidays back home, i took a trip back to bario to see my grandparents and also in conjunction with the national day celebrations that was held there. i had such an awesome amazing time, despite gaining so much weight and going 20 shades darker. it was worth it, truly worth it :D heh. there was good food, and good company everywhere.

*** the beautiful school kids ***

*** the RELA team, consisting of the villagers themselves ***

*** the women folk also wanna tumpang glam ***

and now it's back in kuching for 3rd year, which will hopefully be done by next may. hooo yeah. so far so good, i'd say but then again maybe not. i don't want to jinx anything lah. i have 5 assignments left to do - and i'm telling you, i am the procrastinator extraordinaire, so yeah. teehee~

lesson.

2009-09-16T09:49:00.003+08:00

one thing's for sure, we could sure learn a lot from them.

photos from my recent holiday back to Pa Dallih, Bario.

denied.

2009-09-07T19:06:00.003+08:00

looks like i'm not attending my sister sigang's convocation in october.

it seems that my mother doesn't think it's important enough for me & my other sister to attend. and sigang is getting the vice-chancellor's award.

i have a feeling that despite all (false) assurances otherwise, i will be all alone at my own convocation.

truth hurts.

2009-08-24T17:29:00.002+08:00

whoever said that money isn't important must have had a moment of insanity.

it's not everything, fine i'll give you that.

but it is the ONLY thing that makes the world go round & makes life worth living. not love, not family, hell.. not even God.

deal with it.

gucci, gucci, goo!

2009-08-21T21:46:00.003+08:00

i got my customised gucci slip-ons by arthur @ http://damndirtyangel.blogspot.com yesterday and i'm absolutely and hopelessly in love with them. they're meticulously handpainted and although at a glance they may look ordinary (wtf la some of you -__-"), they're literally a work of art to me. heh.

i'm so thrilled by the fact that they have my name on it :D so they're mine, mine, mine in all sense of the word. awesome, right? it's like, nobody else in the world will have the exact same shoes as i do. oh yeahhh.

like i said, i'm totally in love with me new kicks. i mean, hello. how can i not be? :D

don't trust me.

2009-08-03T10:50:00.003+08:00

taxi fares hiked up already *sigh* it's depressing to see RM15 coming out of my wallet to pay someone for a 5-10 minute trip. that's like RM3 a minute, man. and then there's still the trip back. granted, it's not my money but still. i could think of a million other better uses for it.

sometimes i wish my parents would just trust me and just let me have the car. i'm 23 (and i swear to God this is the ONLY time you will see me admit my real age) and i only have until next may to go but my parents still have trust issues with me, despite my proving that i'm good at what i do i.e. pass 10 papers in one sitting while juggling a life and being in a band.

i was talking to my cousin about it the other day and she said that, it's not so much as they can't trust me. it's that they don't want to. the realization hit me. and terribly saddened me. so why do i feel it's my fault?

mum wants me to move out to a new place, closer to school. but i'm thinking if they are the ones who refuse to trust me with a car, why am i the one dealing with it?

but no. i'm just taking it one day at a time. it can't be that bad :D

if this goes on the next semester though, i'll seriously be considering postponing my studies, maybe take some time to reflect on my choice of future profession. with obstacles like this (from my parents some more), maybe it's God tryna tell me that this isn't the right path for me?

metaphorically speaking..?

2009-08-01T10:29:00.001+08:00

disclaimer: all the real names of people, places and events have been altered or abbreviated to protect the innocent. namely, me.

X: you know kah, the other day Z and i went to KFC. we ordered so much!
Y: wah. like how much?
X: i think.. we paid about RM80 for the two of us.
Y: o.O wow. that much?
X: yeah, but then after that we couldn't finish everything. so a lot ba.
Y: .. erm, normally i'd say your eyes are bigger than your stomach but in this case, we both know they're not *grins*
X: -_____-" oi.

Green International Festival Kuching 2009

2009-07-25T14:57:00.007+08:00

hello guys! passive.fire is back and this time we were given the honour of being a part of an awesome event, and a very worthy cause.

on the 8th and 9th of august, there will be an event called the Green International Festival Kuching 2009 which is going to take place at the brand new yet-to-be-officially-launched Borneo Convention Centre Kuching.

from 10am to 7pm on both days, you will be able to gain free entrance to the exhibitions, which - as the event is so aptly called - will be on the environment, organic produce, the popular enzymes, health, 3R, art, technology, and energy. also there are going to be competitions not only for adults i.e. the Green Poster Competition, but also for children aged 6 to 12 years old i.e. the Card Design Competition.

the highlight of the event (but of course) is the Charity Concert on the 8th of august from 7.00pm till 11.00pm.

*click to see the image in its full hi-res glory*

the charity concert will feature local acts and talents such as passive fire (heh!), mayze, united kids of oi, orion burn, dyerbreed, venus and mars, dream machine, visualies and many more. so make sure to be there to show us some love and support the local music industry. because if you don't, who will? :D

tickets are priced at RM15, but if you want the VIP experience there are also tickets sold for RM20. and since this is a charity concert, all proceeds will go to Green Ribbon Association. so don't procrastinate and cepat-cepat grab your tickets now from Edwin Then @ 014-6866272 (p/s: i know this guy enough to know that he won't appreciate prank calls or texts - so consider yourself warned)

LimKokWing University will also be taking part in this event and the stage will also be graced by the models from the Breeze Model Search wearing hawt haute couture (ooh i like, i like!!) by LKW's own aspiring designers.

it's a worthy cause :D and in the word's of the late great MJ: make a better place for you and for me.

i'm hoping to see you all out there on saturday, august the 8th. it's a family-friendly event so bring your entire household along as well.

passive fire : in support of making the world a better place.

pas-t.

2009-07-24T11:41:00.007+08:00

Dear Mr. PAS the Ignoramus,

Wearing a jubah that does not flatter ones figure is NOT the definition of 'pakai molek' and neither does it make you more cultured or civilised than the rest of us (cos you're not). You obviously need to be schooled and hit very very hard with my Louie manbag. Yeah, we wear loincloths..

.. Because we're proud of what God gave us underneath them i.e BALLS :D and you're just jealous. Haha. Cos when the wind blows and if YOU were wearing our loincloths.. Well, it'll just be sad and pathetic.

sour grapes!!

I don't know why i even bother typing this out. It's not like you'd be able to understand English anyway *sigh* so sad.

organic.

2009-07-21T00:43:00.001+08:00

disclaimer: all the real names of people, places and events have been altered or abbreviated to protect the innocent. namely, me.

F: where do they get sago ah?
A: from the tree lah.
F: ohh. u mean when they pluck from the tree, straightaway like that one is it?
*cricket sounds*
F: no ah?
A: .. *bursts out into laughter*

edit:
*one day later*
F: eee why you people laugh at me? it doesn't come straight from the tree meh? neh the red red seed thing one ba right?
R: huh? that is not sago lah. that is biji saga!!

booked.

2009-07-19T00:17:00.001+08:00

i'm finally free enough to do some leisure reading. haha. in other words, i want to read anything (and if possible, everything) that is as far away from law as practically possible. so now i'm reading this:

and i can't stop laughing! i mean, people can condemn chick-lits as shallow and not intellectually-challenging but to hell with that. i read to relax, not to challenge my mind! so this book is, to me at least, an awesome read. it's great value too, i bought it in hard cover (oh yeah!) for less than RM30. and i would happily read it again and again.

sunny day?

2009-07-16T12:27:00.005+08:00

another long overdue update. i mean, it's not like i'm super busy or anything, i just can't seem to find the time to update the blog. i do update my twitter quite regularly though, so if you have an account, follow me :D

yeah so as you know, i'm doing my student attachment with a well-known law firm here in kuching. last week was my very very first time in court. i was so super excited. until i was told that the dress code was strict black and white. my eyes widened in dismay. i do not wear white i.e. i do not have a white shirt hanging in my walk-in. so i dragged my adik sayang with me as we (i) drove around bandaraya kuching to look for a decent white shirt (preferably of cotton-silk blend) and found none. yeah found a few linen ones but no way in hell am i gonna wear a linen white shirt into court. but i digress. i FINALLY found one - it was the last one in the store, praise the Lord it was in my size *phew* so i bought it immediately. so last week, i made my first appearance in court looking like:

and i promise you, in the near future, there will not be many more chances you'll get to see me in white. hahaha.

then on saturday, i attended the Rainforest World Music Festival! w0oh0o~ i had so much fun there. there were like 245674748343209 people (i swear i'm not even exaggerating). i was mask-free, but took like, a super huge vitamin C tablet beforehand so i'm not infected with H1N1 *coughsniffsneeze* here's a photo of the awesome crowd on saturday night. haha incidentally also known as, 'the night aaronparan had too many tequila shots.' ermm, but that's another story for another time :D heh.

i need new sunnies. i mean, yeah. i think i do. not really sure lah, but i just *think* that i *might* need them.

i'm thinking of getting wayfarers. awesome retro with a slightly macho edge, a tribute to the first metrosexuals - though they prolly didn't know it back then. i mean, at least that's what i'd like to think. heh. also preferably something cheap lah. kan daddy, kan mummy? heheh.

so random this post. i like, i like.

the best of bolehland

2009-07-08T11:15:00.003+08:00

yesyes i've gotta say..

.. that malaysia definitely boleh.

growl

2009-07-03T00:30:00.000+08:00

oh godddddd. i miss home.

milan, come to me.

2009-07-01T10:23:00.005+08:00

i'm into the third week of my internship now :D hehe. so far, so good (i think). i kinda like wearing the long sleeved dress shirts and ties etc, though i gotta say: i miss the freedom of movement that tees and jeans give me. yesterday during lunch i went for a game (or five) of pool and my aim was all out of whack. haha. but i digress.

in my free time last week i was browsing thru some websites. as you all should know (should, should, should) the milan fashion week was just concluded and this season, men's clothes were more or less at the forefront of many designers' shows.

here are a few that caught my attention:

Emanuel Ungaro

Moschino

Emporio Armani

D & G (by Dolce & Gabbana)

Dsquared2

incredibly awesome. so for my birthday next year paham-paham la yea? teehee~ *sigh* what i wouldn't give to walk around looking that fabulous.

i'm on fb as i'm typing this out and the topic over there seems to be nasi lemak -__-" it's barely even 11am and i can already hear my tummy growling. gaah.

this is a very very random but nonetheless well-thought out post, no? LOL.

only in miri.

2009-06-19T13:58:00.002+08:00

i'm not homesick.. but i have to admit, i do miss certain aspects of life in miri. being away from home is never easy, but i guess it takes some getting used to. as time goes on, routine takes over and thoughts of home are no longer in the mind. which is not the point la kan?

hahaha. anyway my main point is - and you'll see how it has almost nothing to do with the opening paragraph - there are some things in miri that are not replaceable. only in miri can i have this:

good old mee goreng basah. super gila nyaman, i'm telling you *sigh* sinfully irresistable.

mum, dad, since i got thru my exams in flying colours, can i come home for a weekend, please? pretty, pretty please? :D

blessed.

2009-06-17T16:37:00.003+08:00

i know it's physically impossible but i feel so blessed, i'm practically floating on air now.

about a month ago, i took a major gamble and took 10 papers.

today, i found out that it wasn't such a daft move after all. after tensely waiting and twiddling my thumbs, the results were (finally) released today.

i passed each paper. each and every single one of them. words cannot express how thankful and grateful i am for your thoughts and prayers. your support means the world to me :D i'm on top of the world and it feels awesome.

yay! <-- no, seriously. yay!

that phone.

2009-06-09T17:17:00.002+08:00

this phone..

.. is mine =)

this black nokia E71 is totally my new BFF. we're still learning about each other but here's hoping that this is going to be a long, meaningful relationship. w0oh0o~

english is not important.

2009-06-03T13:40:00.004+08:00

so basically, is english important? many many kononnya purist malaysians think it's not. i used to think that it is a matter of utmost importance. used to.

judging from the photo above, i find myself inclined to agree with them. seriously. this totally made my day :D the fact that he was allowed to actually enter a place of worship wearing such a 'blasphemous' shirt just proved their point that that learning english is just not of any importance whatsoever.

this photo just put a smile on my face. so damn proud of being an english-speaking malaysian right now.

minta maaf jikalau anda tidak memahami apa yang telah saya luahkan di sini. namun tidak mengapa, yang saya taip itu, ianya tidak penting. cuma menghargai komposisi warna yang indah dalam gambar yang telah dipaparkan.

hahaha since they don't understand kan? oh gosh i can't stop smiling!

edit: the shirt says, 'BORN TO ROCK, DRINK AND FUCK.' quite apt, if you ask me.

phone-less.

2009-06-02T17:12:00.000+08:00

okay so here's the thing. i don't have a phone now, so if any of you are wondering why i'm suddenly very very quiet, well.. now you know.

on my last day at Dave's, the staff decided to pull a practical joke on me. only i didn't find it funny. at all.

in fact, it got me super pissed. but more on that later.

anyway they ambushed me with flour, coffee powder, batter mix.. and prolly just to make sure they all stick to me, they literally poured iced water on me. i'm telling you, i was not only soaking wet, i was also covered head to toe. hell, you could probably have deep-fried me directly. the idiots.

some smart-ass decided it would be a matter of utmost hilarity to pour water on my shoulders. which meant the water flowed straight into the pockets of my jeans. where both my phones were.

they both died immediately.

my barely one-month old prada wallet was soaked. even the money inside was wet!

even by beloved louie was not left unharmed. my topman felt cap and my vintage chucks were also casualties of the crime.

i even had coffee powder and flour in my eyes - which stayed red like, forever, as i had my contacts on.

i'm usually very very patient and it would take a lot to royally piss me off but that was too much for me. i stormed out and went home. fuck those people. all my pay from working there would not be enough to replace all the stuff that was damaged.

gaaah. but i'm gonna take a deeeeeeeep breath, treat it as a bad incident and move on. heh and the next time my mum asks me to get a part-time job, i'm gonna ignore her. i'm emotionally scarred and i now have trust issues.

thanks, staff of Dave's Deli. thanks a lot.

update..?

2009-05-31T16:35:00.000+08:00

i'm still alive, y'all.

haha been supremely exhausted lately so i barely even have time to update my FB and twitter, much less to say blogger.

and the 3G connection at the new house sucks too so i'm quite malas to get pissed while trying to connect. hehe.

xx.

hmmf hmmf hmmf.

2009-05-17T14:56:00.003+08:00

i think i may be experiencing the symptoms of depression.

then again, maybe it's just my appetite. or me being me. i think it's the latter. which is totally beside the point. since i've been back, i'm been religiously stuffing my face non-stop at all hours. i wouldn't say i was deprived of food while i was in kuching (hell, very very far from it -- *someone* gave me TWO nicknames before i came back i.e 5-tonne lorry and 46!) but the availability of awesome awesome miri food is just too much for me to resist.

let it be known that i am a weak, weak man.

so just now, my sister (whom i think i'm beginning to love) passed me something that put a huge smile on my face. the photos will do the rest of the talking *burp*

100% pure cocoa butter. seriously, better than sex. haha. there, i said it. i literally ate the entire thing alone, out of boredom. plus, i'm pretty much the only one in my family who eats dark chocolate. then again, is there any other? :D

my kawan, alau is flying back to KL today, leaving me all alone in miri. she's pretty much the only friend in miri i can depend on, with most of the rest being quite sik boleh harap (unless they harap something from you) and miri is not going to be the same without her. girl, i miss you already. heh.

home. ain't no place like it.

2009-05-11T00:00:00.002+08:00

i know, right? finally. update :D haha.

i've been awfully busy, hence the silence. but i malas to justify my lack of updates. heh. 10 papers, RKS kelabit academic excellence awards in between, thereafter updating my night/social life upon the completion of the 10th paper, PACKING, then back to miri. i just got back on saturday, then headed straight to jazz festival -- which was truly awesome, btw.

the parents bought a new house and moved in a few months back. since i've not been in it, i've spent most of my time back tryna adapt to a whole new surrounding (like, finding it out the room next to mine isn't the toilet, but my sister's bedroom for example) and familiarising myself with my new room, and new bed. everything's totally foreign to me, especially having lived in the old house for as long as i can remember.

but everything will be okay, i hope. just a matter of making a house feel like a home. it's great to be back in miri after sooo long =) i miss all my friends in kuching, though. but i'll be back soon enough, in the meantime i'mma get myself miri-fied.

gaah.

2009-04-20T23:41:00.004+08:00

i su-werrrr i can be so blonde sometimes.

or maybe i lack a reasonable attention span, one that's expected of every normal human being. either way, the events that transpired in constitutional law class today just went on to prove that one should never introduce a new topic when i'm talking. seriously.

the lecturer was asking the class in general to describe the facts of a certain case. a few moments passed and no one responded so i looked at my case book and saw a sentence which read 'a severely disabled lady was detained..' and i began reading it out loud but the lecturer (apparently) didn't hear me and said, '.. or do you guys want me to call you by cartoon characters again?'

... and my sentence came out, 'a severely disabled CARTOON..' o.O noooo. i kid you not, the first thought that came to my mind was, oh shiiiit.

as if that last part wasn't bad enough, i was thinking aloud.

prayers needed.

2009-04-11T14:03:00.003+08:00

one of my young cousins (fine, nephew) was admitted to the Sarawak General Hospital last night on suspicion of having contracted the HandFootMouth disease (HFM).

Dexter Tadam Desmand is now sitting in quarantine, with his mummy, my kakak Priscilla Kaya. he just celebrated his 3rd birthday a few weeks ago.

dear readers, your kind thoughts and generous prayers to the Almighty is greatly appreciated.

xo.

edit: after extracting fluid on his spinal cord, the doctors concluded that no damage was done to his brain, heart, or any other organ. F and i went to visit him today -- he was running around like any healthy 3-year old would. thank you for your prayers =)

overdue.

2009-04-08T17:25:00.003+08:00

i've FINALLY got the time to edit the photos and upload the videos from earth hour into youtube. my schedule (as if i've really got one) has been super hectic with exams starting on the 27th of this month and, as if that wasn't enough, i have 3 last minute assignments that are literally to be handed in next week. i've pretty much got tons of revision to do -- although i have to say so far i've not hated myself for taking up law. yet. i might and WILL change my mind about that just before my constitutional paper.

it's not that i hate constitutional law. i just don't get it. at all. especially since the UK does not have a written constitution to begin with. but to make myself feel abit better, i've conveniently pushed thoughts of constitutional law to the back of my mind and currently i am still procrastinating on revising the subject :D don't worry, i know it's gonna come back and hit me in the face.

back to earth hour :D we had a lot a lot a lot of fun. so i'm posting up the photos and the videos for you guys who couldn't make it.

till next time.
xxx.

after-hour.

2009-03-29T16:45:00.002+08:00

last night was awesome. there were sooo many of you out there, and despite the (relative) darkness, i could still see the faces of everyone from the stage. awesome, just awesome. anyway passive.fire played four songs last night and they were, in order:

We Are The World (OA USA For Africa)
Hallelujah (OA Leonard Cohen - covered by KD Lang, Jeff Buckley, Rufus Wainwright, Alexandra Burke)
Turn & Walk Away (OA Passive Fire)
High And Dry (OA Radiohead)

the response from the audience was amazing and there were a few times i had goosebumps when i saw people singing along =) so niiiiiiiice!

i don't have the photos and videos from last night just yet. but i will put them up when i get them yea? finals in a month so i'm going to be quite busy with revision and such.

but till then, anyway, here's a video of the 1st passive.fire song, taken during wordsworth III, in november of last year.
i wrote the song and the music was composed by mike and arthur. enjoy!

countdown.

2009-03-27T12:14:00.001+08:00

one more day to go! make sure you come tomorrow night, by 8.00pm with your candles and/or lighters yea? bring along your friends and family, too as there will be a candle lighting ceremony so you might not want to miss that. and for those of you who might not be able to make it (or are not in the kuching, as it may be) check out your local programmes, there might be something going on in your town. to my fellow mirians, i know there's something going on at miri's grand old lady (facebook is soo informative) so please do drop by and join them. please, please do support earth hour. turn off your lights for one hour. join us in the global vote to fight against climate change.

oh, and if you do make it, do say hi :) your support means a lot to us, and i wanna thank you in person. all of you (although in all probability there might be, like, two of you.) heh!

talkity-talk.

2009-03-26T00:58:00.002+08:00

disclaimer: all the real names of people, places and events have been altered or abbreviated to protect the innocent. namely, me.

C: ask me where i went to reload my phone just now.
A: okay, where did you reload your phone?
C: ask S.
A: o.O

ritch bich.

2009-03-24T19:53:00.002+08:00

you can call me rich bitch. although i can't exactly see any money on me. hehe.

i'm easily spending RM200 a week nowadays. which might not be much for most of you but should you consider i used to only get RM50 per week before that, you might appreciate what i'm talking about. hahaha.

1 taxi ride from my apartment to the campus costs RM15. so that's 2 taxi rides a day @ RM30. which, since i have classes from monday - saturday, adds up to RM180 a week. which freaking leaves me with only RM20 on food (!) for the entire week!!

owh, as if that wasn't enough. my taxi bills add up to a very nice figure of RM720 a month.

haha. i guess the solution my parents found for my transport problems turned out to be a wee bit dear. but then again they're not (really) complaining.

ahh well. like i said, you can call me rich bitch.

earth hour '09

2009-03-16T00:53:00.000+08:00

Earth Hour started in 2007 in Sydney, Australia with 2.2 million homes and businesses turning their lights off for one whole hour. Only a year later and this event had become a global sustainability movement with up to 100 million people across 35 countries participating. Global landmarks such as the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, Rome’s Colosseum and the Coca Cola billboard in Times Square, all stood in darkness, as symbols of hope for a cause that grows more urgent by the hour.

In 2009, at 8.30pm on March 28, we are asking people across the world to turn off their lights and join together in creating the vital conversation about the future of our precious planet. Earth Hour is a message of hope and a message of action. Everyone can make a difference.

Earth Hour 2009 aims to reach more than one billion people in 1000 cities around the world, inviting communities, business and governments to switch off the lights for one hour at 8:30pm on Saturday March 28 and sending a powerful global message that we care enough about climate change to take action.

As such, Green Heights Mall joins the cities and towns across the world by turning off the lights for one hour on that day as a symbolic gesture to show our concerns about global warming.

Show your support by bringing a candle and joining our candlelit activities starting with a candle lighting ceremony, fun yet informative trivia on how you can help save the environment and our special feature, an eco friendly acoustic concert by candle-light showcasing local bands Evenstarr, Mayze, Passive Fire and Venus & Mars.

Spread the word and see you there!

blown. away?

2009-03-14T00:21:00.001+08:00

disclaimer: all the real names of people, places and events have been altered or abbreviated to protect the innocent. namely, me.

(as we were driving along to town.)

A: F, why you smiling to yourself??
F: i'm not smiling la, the aircon is blowing my face.
D: omg so funny bah you two!!!

aah. it's those little random moments in life that make it so worthwhile.

crave. crave. crave.

2009-03-10T12:28:00.000+08:00

oh. my. effing. gawd.

help me.

i'm in love.

i neeeeeeeeeeeed to have the bag.

i don't know what i'm gonna need it for or why i abso-freaking-lutely haaaaave to own it. yet. but i promise, i'll come up with something.

but for now, i waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaant.

oh *ahem* that's the super talented marc jacobs btw.

PF @ BOTB.

2009-03-08T16:04:00.003+08:00

hello again. sorry for the hiatus. it has been a busy busy week.

anyway, i have some photos from the battle last saturday. heheh. i've resized them so hopefully they won't take too long to load.

we had such an awesome time up on stage. it was as if no one was there (about a million people were present) and though the sound system fail kao kao, we sure did make our presence felt -- having a blast while we were at it, no less. heh.

and to anyone of you reading this who was there that night, thank you sooo much for the cheers and the screams =) that meant the world to us.

there were 16 bands that night, and we placed 5th. which was totally unexpected, given that it was our first time (and have i mentioned the sound system? it SUCKED!!) and we had like, 2 practices. haha.

but we're like, so happy :D 5th place, not bad eh?

point.

2009-02-28T02:37:00.005+08:00

i don't understand why you think i'm putting too much pressure on myself. i can do this. and i don't need your approval. i never have. you can say what you want, do what you want, tell whomsoever you want about me -- i don't care. come to think of it, i never have :) and that's all i'm going to say to you, okay? *attempts to whistle*

on a lighter note.. passive.fire has a battle today. yippee!! our first battle. at the moment i'm an exotic concoction of nerves and excitement. and a dash of good 'ol vodka for good measure. we're gonna cover a song that i never, not in a million years, would have dreamt i'd be singing. but i like how the band arranged it. we were jamming in a studio just now and it sounds fabulous. you guys gotta come to UNIMAS tonight to find out what song it is. heheh. *grins*

i've been pretty busy with my life this couple of weeks so i'm rarely able to find the time to actually sit (*ahem* lie down) and tap out a new post for my blog. i feel like my dedication to actually write down stuff for the blog is actually wavering. which i will not let happen. so i promise, i will rant and bitch more :) cross my heart. there are 24 hours in a day, i will find the time.

more assignments are on my table now. heheh. i guess i should have seen that coming when i signed up to read law. but it's do-able. i'm writing (and speaking o.O) more and more legal jargon as the days go by. the other day i was trying to explain a concept to a friend and i caught myself using words that i (or anybody else, for that matter) would never use in a general conversation. she was looking at me with a blank but undeniably horrified expression on her face. then she said, 'i have no idea what you just said, but you sound smart.' -__-" i will not reveal who she is. you know who you are.

*sigh* i should get to sleep now. i popped 2 clarinase tablets for my cold but it doesn't seem to be taking effect.

hmm. does anyone see the direction this post is taking? i sure can't.

those blonde moments.

2009-02-17T11:30:00.000+08:00

-bi@n3o33- says:
i wanto type fast fast oso knt

aaronparan says:
hahahahah nonid wanna type fast2 thr u.

aaronparan says:
later salah spell

aaronparan says:
percuma kenak laugh again

-bi@n3o33- says:
got meh

-bi@n3o33- says:
where got

-bi@n3o33- says:
cincai say oni u

aaronparan says:
i said LATER.

-bi@n3o33- says:
no no no no

-bi@n3o33- says:
not now

-bi@n3o33- says:
nt even laer

-bi@n3o33- says:
eeeeeeeehhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

-bi@n3o33- says:
later****

aaronparan says:
i rest my case.

-bi@n3o33- says:
shudap

-bi@n3o33- says:
don wanto tok to u dy

-bi@n3o33- says:
huh

-bi@n3o33- says:
i watch movi

-bi@n3o33- says:
movie****

valentine's.. great?

2009-02-14T20:13:00.002+08:00

becoming a father at the age of 13. read all about it by clicking here.

have a happy valentine's day.

taxxxii!!

2009-02-13T22:37:00.004+08:00

i had my first taxi ride to college today :D

i felt so carrie bradshaw (minus the standing at the kerb in $500 manolos and wearing a miniskirt) although kuching isnt exactly manhattan and we don't exactly have roads with names like 5th ave. but the experience was fun. okay fine, i cheated a little bit and called ahead. heheh. but it was cool cos i was picked up right at my freaking doorstep and was dropped off right in front of the college's double doors. hell yeah.

i could so get used to this. rasa tang celebrity jak :D in fact i'm gonna have to get used to it, as this is how i'm going to be getting to classes from now on. the previous post (which was about my transport problems, fyi) is sort of redundant now. heheh. i wonder if they have an enrich card for taxies. so i can accumulate frequent taxi miles and.. i dunno, get free taxi rides or something?

see, people? aaronparan always sorts things out in the end.

oh, and who said i couldn't use public transport? *smug grin*