Excuses..

Consider the following senario.

You have an interview tomorrow morning. And you haven't informed your HR or your boss about taking a day leave for that important day tomorrow. How will you come up with an excuse to get the day off when the day comes?

You can either use the following excuses:

1. Sick/Not feeling well (I think this is the most popular one as you can go get yourself an MC)
2. Car broken down / Tyre pancit / Battery dead (Pretty strong reason)
3. Have to go back hometown (All of a sudden going back hometown during weekday? Not very convincing eh?)
4. Parent/Siblings is sick so have to fetch them to see doctor (Also a good reason)
5. Have to settle some errand (Renewing passport, going to bank, etc) (Does it have to take whole day?)
6. Relatives getting married (Not a very strong excuse too as normally people will not have their wedding ceremony on weekdays)
7. Girlfriend/boyfriend/spousee/kid fall sick
8. Have to send dog/cat to the vet?

Well, I chose to do the following.

Skipped work and took the half day off without informing boss/colleagues/HR and went for the interview in KL. *Pretty daring eh?*

Then went to work after lunch hour and clocked in my timesheet. Punchcard showed "1.15pm" in BOLD RED COLOUR. Bet I woudl have lots of explanation to do at the end of the month.

Colleagues asked where was I the whole morning. And of all the reasons, I said I overslept. Damn malunye~~~

I should learn to tell lies. Sheesh.

Muse - Starlight MTV Europe 2006

Muse performing at MTV Europe Music Awards 2006. Very nice laser show. Makes u feel uplifted with the rhythm of song. Definitely one of my all time favourite music video.

"Starlight"

Far away
This ship is taking me far away
Far away from the memories
Of the people who care if I live or die

Starlight
I will be chasing the starlight
Until the end of my life
I don't know if it's worth it anymore

Hold you in my arms
I just wanted to hold
You in my arms

My life
You electrify my life
Let's conspire to re-ignite
All the souls that would die just to feel alive

But I'll never let you go
If you promised not to fade away
Never fade away

Our hopes and expectations
Black holes and revelations
Our hopes and expectations
Black holes and revelations

Hold you in my arms
I just wanted to hold
You in my arms

Far away
This ship is taking me far away
Far away from the memories
Of the people who care if I live or die

And I'll never let you go
If you promise not to fade away
Never fade away

Our hopes and expectations
Black holes and revelations
Our hopes and expectations
Black holes and revelations

Hold you in my arms
I just wanted to hold
You in my arms
I just wanted to hold


ps: I didn't notice that Jason boy blogged about this song too, and I was planning to linked this song in my blog. Is this a coincidence or wat. :)

Bird-day Celebration

Oi Cheng, my form six schoolmate, and also my coursemate back in uni days. Known her since 1998 when we were in form six in SPI. Almost 9 years knowing her. How time flies. She is a very nice friend, and a very helpful one. She can be a bit garang most of the time, but overall, she is a very helpful and a very nice lady.

Well, it was her bday few days ago, so Wee Han came up with the idea of going out for a dinner jsut to celebrate the special day. How nice of him. Very caring indeed. Btw, Wee Han was also my coursemate last time in uni and he was one of the closer friends in uni, so i knew him quite well. He is still single so if there is any girl out there who wants to know him more, u can text me here. Small commission charge is applicable though. :)

Back to the dinner.. Ai Ling (also my coursemate) also joined us for the dinner. Is this a bird-day celebration or a coursemates-gathering session, I wonder. Oi Cheng couldn't make it on Sunday, so we postponed it to the next day. Venue - TGIF One Utama.

This was my 2nd time at TGIF ,and a first time for WH and OC. Ordered some ala-carté food and also 2 sets of meal. We didn't know the portion was so freaking huge until the food arrived. Those meals are are gigantic in size and it is super huge! Couldnt finish most of the food though.

Chit chatted and catched up with wat went on with our life, gossips, works, etc throughout the dinner. Though it was a brief dinner (we went back after the dinner), but it was nice catching up with one another after quite some time. Looking forward to another outing with them again.


Left to right : WH, Me, AL and OC


Two Hunks and Two Babes!!

Dashboard Confessional - Stolen

First listened to this song in Fly.fm and instantly hooked to it. The song played in the radio was a much slower version, but this MTV is a more up-tempo one. But both are equally great! Nice MTV showing the band jamming, and of coz there is pretty chick and hot hunk! Definitely going into my list of all-time favourite songs.

Brain Test

Sitting down feeling bored with nothing else to do? Well, you can try out the brain test here. See if you have a brain of Albert Einstein, or a brain of an ostrich. :)

I got this score.


*** 118 points. Not bad. ***

And how is my result compared to the rest of the population in the world?



Okey i guess, as long as it is not in the lower range of the scale.

And the IQ range classification found in the net-

140 and over Genius or near genius
120-140 Very superior intelligence
110-120 Superior intelligence <-- I am in this range
90-110 Normal or average intelligence
80-90 Dullness
70-80 Borderline deficiency
Below 70 Definite feeble-mindedness

Some famous people's I.Q i googled through internet.

Leonardo da Vinci Universal Genius Italy 220
Sir Isaac Newton Scientist England 190
Garry Kasparov Chess player Russia 190
Bobby Fischer Chess player USA 187
Galileo Galilei Physicist & astronomer & philosopher Italy 185
Johann Strauss Composer Germany 170
Albert Einstein Physicist USA 160
Bill Gates CEO, Microsoft USA 160
Shakira Singer Colombia 140
Madonna Singer USA 140
Nicole Kidman Actress USA 132
Big Bad Wolf Msia 118 <-- Me

This test uses 4 scales to determine the IQ number and the scales are:-

1) Mathematical Intelligence (represents the ability to reason and calculate, or simply how good u are in mathematics)
2) Visual-Spatial Intelligence (measures the ability to think in pictures, geometry, etc)
3) Linguistic Intelligence (represents ur linguistic skills. Reading, writing, and oral skill. Communication with words)
4) Logical Intelligence (represents ability to think logically)

How do i fare in the 4 scales mentioned above?









And from the results that i got, the test showed the following -

"You are equipped with a verbal arsenal that enables you to understand complex issues and communicate on a particularly high level. These talents make you a Word Warrior.

Whether or not you recognize it, your vocabulary is your strongest suit—use it whenever you can. Since your command of words is so great, you are also a terrific communicator — able to articulate big ideas to just about anyone. Your
wordsmithing prowess will also help in artistic and creative pursuits. The power of words translates to fresh ideas off paper too. Since you have so many words at your disposal, you are in a unique position to describe things in an original way, as well as see the future in your mind's eye."

And these are the jobs which suit my ability and some of my greatest strength.



A poet? Writer? Me? What a good joke.

And after a mentally stimulating test, Ta-dah!!


***My cert - PhD certified (PhD = Permanent Head Damage)***

Waiting For The World To Change

War, destruction, killing, terrorism, racism, discrimination, corruption, greed, pollution, ozone depletion, global warming, climate changes, massive deforestation, overfishing, and the list goes on..

All these are bringing our civilization and mother nature closer to the brim of destruction. Do we ever have a chance of turning back and not killing ourselves and the earth? Do we really care for the future earth and its population?

Listening to this song makes me feel that there is still some hope left for humankind and the world. But only if we change our way of thinking and start making changes right now. The choices we make today will determine the future of life on Earth.

Until then, we can just sit around, talk, hope and wait for the world to change.

"Waiting On The World To Change"

Me and all my friends
We're all misunderstood
They say we stand for nothing and
There's no way we ever could

Now we see everything that's going wrong
With the world and those who lead it
We just feel like we don't have the means
To rise above and beat it

So we keep waiting
Waiting on the world to change
We keep on waiting
Waiting on the world to change

It's hard to beat the system
When we're standing at a distance
So we keep waiting
Waiting on the world to change

Now if we had the power
To bring our neighbors home from war
They would have never missed a Christmas
No more ribbons on their door
And when you trust your television
What you get is what you got
Cause when they own the information, oh
They can bend it all they want

That's why we're waiting
Waiting on the world to change
We keep on waiting
Waiting on the world to change

It's not that we don't care,
We just know that the fight ain't fair
So we keep on waiting
Waiting on the world to change

And we're still waiting
Waiting on the world to change
We keep on waiting waiting on the world to change
One day our generation
Is gonna rule the population
So we keep on waiting
Waiting on the world to change

We keep on waiting
Waiting on the world to change

Booze and Party

For the past two weeks, booze and partying were pretty much part of my life. Started off with Zouk singles night event, then the one week later had a liquor-drinking-cum-puking-session at Little Bali. Then came the grandest clubbing event of the year, Velocity KL!

And on new year eve, me and Serembanian (Ho Sang, Sangeeta and her cousin and sister, Melissa, Fyee Sookting and Kah Wee, Sudharan, Kelly, Pei squared and her hubby) and half Serembanian/Singaporean (Abel and Sheryl) went to Trilogy at Era Square, Seremban. It was reputed to be the most happening place in Seremban town at the moment. The cover charge was RM45 for one drink. Superbly fuckin' expensive for a clubbing area here in Seremban. Almost surpassed KL's rate. Crazy. We ordered liquor instead. 1 whisky (RM 258) and 1 vodka (RM 228).

Dewars

The place was fully packed with people. The girls to guys ratio was almost same as Velocity KL; but this place was far more better -1 girl to 50 guys. How pathetic! I am beginning to wonder if we are facing an issue of gender imbalance in the world. Think its about time to promote polygamy, but this time, only women are allowed to marry 4 husbands. Wondering if the mufti in Pas controlled states will consider this in their upcoming general election? Tat will garner votes from the female citizens.

Wood carving at Trilogy

You may think that the drinking will stop right after this. But heck no. The alcohol in me was yearning for more. And hell to it. Found a few bottles of liquors while I was cleaning my room the other day. My sis bought these when she went travelling to Europe/US last few years ago. So, the devil in me talked me into trying them out. Hehehe.

Left to right:

1) Absolut Vodka 2) Absolut Mandrin 3) Absolut Citron

4) Jim Beam whisky 5) Smirnoff vodka 6) Baileys original irish cream

"Neat" liquor will definitely kill me, so went out to buy Coke as mixer at the nearest 7-11 right away.

First tasted Jim Beam whisky. This whisky was made all the way from Kentucky, US. Poured the whole pack (50ml) and mixed with some Coke. Sipped a little and it tasted like kerosene mix with cough syrup and Dettol. Frankly, this was the worst drink I ever had in my life. You cant even swallowed it down as the burning sensation in ur throat was like fire burning in hell. Didnt want to waste it, so sipped another few drops before pouring it away.

Next, tried out Smirnoff vodka. A pure breed Russian vodka. 40% alcohol. 50ml. Small but effective killer. Should be good i think. Mixed with Coke (btw, can vodka mix with coke??) and toasted to myself. Hahaha. One sip down and ptuii!!!
The taste was aweful. Almost similar taste as Jim Beam, but with a stronger burning sensation.
Braved myself to drink the whole of the cup, but after a few more sips, down goes the whole cup into the sink.

There were 4 more bottles left. Shall try them out when I am back to Seremban next few weeks. Muahahaha.. Let's just hope I don kill myself with these over-expired liquors. Btw, does liquor has expiry date?

Velocity KL

Here are some of the photos I took at Velocity KL, Sunway Lagoon. Enjoy....

Photo 1 : Dance Floor with Sunway Hotel at the background.

One girl captured in this photo.

Photo 2 : Superb lighting effect

Photo 3 : People people everywhere!

Photo 4 : Centre stage in the background and 15,000 people on the dance floor

Photo 5: Heard of dancing machine before? Well, you gotta see it to believe it.

It is right at the centre. Two girls captured in this photo.

Photo 6 : Dancing robot taking a break at one of the stalls. One red bull please!!

Photo 7 : Dancing robot shy away from the camera

Photo 8 : Judge Jules on stage and people screaming for more

Photo 9 : One more girl captured in the photo.

Total girls attended this event = 4. How pathetic!!

----------------------

The event was great and was well co-ordinated. But one thing which was a setback was the number of girls attending the event. I swear it is easier to find a guy wearing a bikini than to find a girl here!

ps: I forgotten to include 2 of my female frens who attended the event as well. So altogether there were 6 girls! 50% more of what i calculated earlier. Tats a lot!! Gosh. I am so happy that i could die! :/

Hangout at Little Bali

Ex-colleague from AGK invited to a drinking session in Little Bali at Sri Hartamas. Had dinner with Yeoh, Liew, Lim and Lee at Old Town Kopitiam (btw, their food sucks) before proceeding to Little Bali. Had to fill the stomach before drinking mah, or else what to vomit when drank over limit, right? Iit's been one month plus since i last seen them (FYI, I left the company end of October). As the boss wasn't there for dinner, the four of them updated me on what happened after I left the company. Blah blah blah, complain complain complain, this and that.. The conversation was mostly more on complain of heavy workload, getting fucked and screwed by idiotic boss, you know, all those employee-complain-about-my-stupid-boss-type-of-thing. So, i just listened as they revealed to me some of their fucked-by-the-boss moment.

After dinner, we proceed to our destination. This was actually my first time here, although I have heard of this place a few times before. Thank god to our friendly "vendor" who treated us for some booze session. As we reached the place, Michael the vendor and Mr Wong my ex-boss were already there with some of their frens, Mr Chu and also some other which I can't recall their names. Damn. I gotta start memorizing ppl's name! Who knows i might get treated for some free booze session next time. There were 3 ladies who served us that night - Bobo, Lum Lum, and Ms XXX. Hey, don get kinky ideas ok? That third girl is not some porno AV star ok? It's just that i couldn't recall her name. And of coz, there were Chivas bottles on the tables, waiting for us. Woo hoo~~~ Michael and Mr Wong were already a bit tipsy and it was only 8.30pm. And we have a long night to go.

Lum Lum was one pretty girl, and I must confessed that she caught my attention right at the moment i reached the pub. I could swear that she had the look of some hong kong TVB actress. Got to know that she stayed in Ampang and she was only 21 years old. Pretty young to be working as a waitress in a pub, i say. I could guess that she just worked for relatively short period of time as her actions and talks were not so 'smooth' compared to the other veterans. Ei, when i said "actions", i don mean those kinky touch-me-here-u-make-me-high-type-of-things ok? What i meant was her action of pouring liquors, bringing the bills, etc. Definitely not kinky stuff, duh~~~ Later i got to know that she also had another name - Yvonne. She didn't use that as there were a few other girls by the same name workign there in the pub. Well, Lum Lum sounds just nice to me. Anyway, we couldn't get to chat much that night due to interruptions plus she had work to do. Planned to get her number and a photo of her later before we leave the place. Woo hoo~~~

We chit-chated every now and then while some of us played some games. "Dai wa sik" and also one other dunno wats the name. Michael, Mr Wong and the rest of the senior citizens went to social around (and also to get some business) while the young ones stayed around. Lim started to get high and he kept on pestering me to drink. Seems like he has some hidden agenda and of coz i knew right away what it is. This bugger wanted to get me drunk. Well, i responded and got him a few rounds of bottoms-up. And i got Bobo to help me out as well. Lee, Yeoh and Liew stayed behind the line. Cowards. Thing went on for quite some time. Some people came and go. Most of them are suppliers/vendors or contractors. Yeah, it was fun working in a building industry. There were lots of the vendors who were willing to bring a consultant/contractor out for a drink and with the hope of securing one or two projects from them (I was previously a consultant in the building industry).

I was beginning to feel a lil's tipsy so I went out to have some fresh air. I knew that those bloody alcohols were beginning to make attacks on my brain. Damn. Went in again after refreshed myself. And they were still there drinking. Mr Wong was nowhere to be seen. Could have guessed that he must have left the place discreetly, just like what he always do. Another bloody coward. Just wondering why my ex company is full of cowards. Bottoms-up again with Lim since he loved drinking so much. God knows why I continued to drink instead of stopping right away. Hmm. Maybe it's becoz of Lum Lum. Hehehe. Power of attraction mah. Only god knows why. Anyway, the alcohol was overwhelming my brain and the next thing I did was to go out for fresh air again. Couldn't walk properly but I persisted to walk to the opposite of the road. Thank god there was a chair and a table there. Sat there while slumped my head against the table.

Alleluyah~~ Head was spinning like a gasing. Whole body motionless and weak. I was beginning to imagine, if there was someone who wanted to rob me, I would be at the robber's mercy as I can't even fight back. Reached for my phone and called for S.O.S. Liew came to my rescue. He was talking non stop when he saw my condition. Didn't bother to pay attention to what he said as those words were noises and contribute to killing my brain cells. Told him that I need someone to drive me back to Kepong. A few minutes later, Lim and the rest came out from the pub. Lim was leaning on Yeoh. Guess he was also down. My stomach started to send signals that they wanted to get rid of the Chivas inside. Oh damn. Here it goes!! Puke by the side of the road. Luckily i vomited at quite a secluded area where we were not quite easily seen. Malunya~~

The moment Lim saw me puke, he was rejoicing. Said something about victory. Then I realised that his bugger actually wanted to take revenge as I made him puke the last drinking session long long long time ago. Stupid bugger. I will know what to do next time. Bewarn! So, Lee and Liew drove me back to Kepong. Once reached home, I reached for my keys and the drowsy me almost dropped the key to the drain. Eric, my housemate helped me to my room. Inside my heart, I was cursing Lim for putting me in such a situation. And my plan of getting Lum Lum's number and photo didn't work out. How pathetic. But the night was fun though, no doubt about it. Once on bed, i passed out right away.

Btw, i heard Lim vomited 3 times that night.

The first time was at the lounge area. Can u imagine the whole place got messed up with those puke? Yeah, its pretty shameful.

The second time was when Yeoh accompanied him to the toilet. The toilet bowl and the whole toilet floor was full of vomit and choked the floor drain and the toilet bowl as well. I heard the owner had to call plumber to rectify the situation and the male toilet was closed for one whole week becoz of that. The situation was pretty serious i say. And i also heard that the owner is planning to bar Lim from entering the pub anymore.

The third time was when he was following Yeoh's car to my house. He vomitted in front of my neighbour's house and messed up the whole front entrance. Anyway, i gave Lim's number to the neighbour the next thing in the morning. Semangat kejiranan mah (Neighbourhood spirit). Tat's what i learned in Morale lesson back in school days. :) Yup, Lim is one pretty lousy drinker. No doubt about it. But i wonder how on earth he can puke so much? Something which biology can't explain.

New Beginning...

A few more days left before we embrace a brand new year. It's time to reflect on what has happened to us throughout the past one year. And it is also a good time to analyse what have we achieved in the past one year period. Some of us have new year resolutions, but as for me, making new year resolution is not what I do each year. But looking back for the past one year, there has been ups and downs. Guess it's a natural life cycle. As for me, I cant say that I have achieved much in this year. Life is pretty like roller coaster, except that the end of the ride is a downward fall with no end in sight. If I were to put my emotions into chart form, it would be like something like below.

Yeah, i am pretty down at the moment. All the positive aura has been sucked dry and left only the negative aura. Energy all gone. Shessh.. Getting more and more negative. Could it be the bad fengshui is blocking my fortune and health life?

Damn it. It's time to stop blaming on the world and anything that goes against me. I need to pick myself up and kick asses!! Need to be strong. Fuck it. I am going to fight this war. I am gonna kill all the negative forces within me. And I will win this one.

A brand new year, a brand new beginning.

Are you stupid?

If you wondering whether you are stupid or not, go try this test. (courtesy of Ah Fee)

I scored 72 points. A lil' stupid. That's what the test says. How insulting. Maybe i have to start accepting the fact that I am a little stupid. Cheh..So, what is your score?

Zouk - Ghetto Heaven

Clubbing ain't really my cup of tea. After all, being a 26-years-old-and-still-single doesn't help as the feeling of getting old starts to creep in and sucking all the energy out of me. The last time I went clubbing was last year, attended Phillip Wu's birthday bash at Rush.

Anyway, i got myself 5 free passes to a party down at Zouk, courtesy of Fly.fm. Not much effort was needed to win the passes, just be the first sms thru when the cue to call was being played on air. The event of the night was called ""Nelly Furtado's Loose Party" cum single-party. Woo hoo~~ A party only for singles!! Ho ho ho.. An opportunity for me to unleash my wolfie and make the girls screaming for more!! Need to spread out my genes and breed like a horny bunny.
Attire of the night - Guys must wear black top and girls must wear red top. How I wish that there will be girls with red hood, then it wil be a perfect scene to make the pose like how wolf and lil' red riding hood did in my earlier post. But like any horny wolf, fantasizing about such thing is not a very difficult thing to do, right?

Jason won5 passes too (Both of us won the contest. No need to be jealous) but on the night, only 7 of us went - Jason, Big Bad Me, 4-eye-guy, Philip, Brenda, Lee Kien and Mr Chen. Couldn't get anyone to fill up the other 3 passes, so wasted la the tickets.

Party started about 9pm plus. 2 of Fly's deejay kicked off the event with some games. Some of the Dj present were Flyguy, Shel and Hansen. Btw, I knew Hansen earlier during my school days. Seremban is not a very big place, so he was introduced to me by a fren's fren. He was also in the same college as 4-eye-guy. I was told that he went deejaying a few years back, but I didnt know that he was among the deejay in Flyfm. And I have never paid attention to him before in airwaves. Think I should start paying attention to his program now. Hehehe.

There were a few games event. I didnt pay much attention to the games though as my uncanny eyes were scouting around for prey, i mean pretty chicks (for supper). The crowd wasnt attactive enuff as the black-to-red ratio was roughly 3:1. Competition! Dang. There was also some dance performance. Apart from that, there was a grand prize offered in the night- a trip to Phuket for 2. Thailand! I love thailand!! But all of us didnt put any effort to participate in the game, therefore we can only be full of jealousy when a pair were announced as the winner. Double Dang!!

The event ended around 11.30pm. Suprisingly, streams of people came out from nowhere. And by the time it reached midnight, the whole dance floor was packed with people. And of coz we didnt waste the opportunity and hit on to the dance floor rightaway. Jason was showing off his dance moves and danced all around the place while the rest of us kept ourselves to the middle of the floor.

After tiring ourselves, we cabut about 1.20am. And I was thinking whether to take MC or not for tomorrow.

Time and Tide Waits for No One

In this era, things are moving extraordinary fast. The digital world has bridge the gap between human. Businesses are conducted at such fast pace and throwing globalisation right to our face. Everything is happening at such breakneck speed and we can't afford to slack or we will be left faraway behind. Speed is the key to success in anyting and everything.

We have fast food, drive-in McD outlets, . Photos can now be developed within a few minutes time at any photoshop. We have Milo 3-in-1. No more hassle of making Milo the old way anymore. Internet banking is taking over the conventional banking method. No more waiting for hours to do transactions the old way. Even the government has cut down the waiting time to just one or two hours for IC registration.

Now, there is a new business which is also conducted in a pretty fast way, and it is right here in our country. Malaysia Boleh!! Boleh or not, it seems that marriage is done in a fast way, in a coffeeshop. Just walk up to coffeeshop and you will get to choose any girl as wife. As long as you have cash, business is sealed right away.

http://www.thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2006/12/19/nation/16359959&sec=nation&focus=1

How brilliant the person who tot of this idea. Waht a genius he is. And Malaysia is definitely proud of u!

But wondering if they offer any 7-days-return-guarantee-if-not-satisfied scheme. That would be more attractive i say. Or if they can throw in a buy-one-free-one, that would even be better. Imagine there is a promotion during the annual Malaysia Mega Sale Carnival. I bet that lots of men would be rushing for it. And who dare say that men don't like shopping?

At the current situation, they only offer "products" from Vietnam. Let's see whethere this business can sustain itself and incorporate more nationality in the business.

Grawl.. Scared or not??

A lovely pose with a beautiful lady. Wat a classic!!

- Big Bad Wolf and Lil' Red Riding Hood

Dick and Rick - An Inspiring Real Life Story

Here's a true story about how a father and his special son emerging as the greatest team proving that loves and family strength can overcome all odds and difficulties. Something which we can learn and inspire from.

------

Dick and Rick Hoyt are a father-and-son team from Massachusetts who together compete just about continuously in marathon races. And if they’re not in a marathon they are in a triathlon — that daunting, almost superhuman, combination of 26.2 miles of running, 112 miles of bicycling, and 2.4 miles of swimming. Together they have climbed mountains, and once trekked 3,735 miles across America.

It’s a remarkable record of exertion — all the more so when you consider that Rick can't walk or talk.

For the past twenty five years or more Dick, who is 65, has pushed and pulled his son across the country and over hundreds of finish lines. When Dick runs, Rick is in a wheelchair that Dick is pushing. When Dick cycles, Rick is in the seat-pod from his wheelchair, attached to the front of the bike. When Dick swims, Rick is in a small but heavy, firmly stabilized boat being pulled by Dick.

At Rick’s birth in 1962 the umbilical cord coiled around his neck and cut off oxygen to his brain. Dick and his wife, Judy, were told that there would be no hope for their child’s development.
"It’s been a story of exclusion ever since he was born," Dick told me. "When he was eight months old the doctors told us we should just put him away — he’d be a vegetable all his life, that sort of thing. Well those doctors are not alive any more, but I would like them to be able to see Rick now."

The couple brought their son home determined to raise him as "normally" as possible. Within five years, Rick had two younger brothers, and the Hoyts were convinced Rick was just as intelligent as his siblings. Dick remembers the struggle to get the local school authorities to agree: "Because he couldn’t talk they thought he wouldn’t be able to understand, but that wasn’t true." The dedicated parents taught Rick the alphabet. "We always wanted Rick included in everything," Dick said. "That’s why we wanted to get him into public school."

A group of Tufts University engineers came to the rescue, once they had seen some clear, empirical evidence of Rick’s comprehension skills. "They told him a joke," said Dick. "Rick just cracked up. They knew then that he could communicate!" The engineers went on to build — using $5,000 the family managed to raise in 1972 - an interactive computer that would allow Rick to write out his thoughts using the slight head-movements that he could manage. Rick came to call it "my communicator." A cursor would move across a screen filled with rows of letters, and when the cursor highlighted a letter that Rick wanted, he would click a switch with the side of his head.

When the computer was originally brought home, Rick surprised his family with his first "spoken" words. They had expected perhaps "Hi, Mom" or "Hi, Dad." But on the screen Rick wrote "Go Bruins." The Boston Bruins were in the Stanley Cup finals that season, and his family realized he had been following the hockey games along with everyone else. "So we learned then that Rick loved sports," said Dick.

In 1975, Rick was finally admitted into a public school. Two years later, he told his father he wanted to participate in a five-mile benefit run for a local lacrosse player who had been paralyzed in an accident. Dick, far from being a long-distance runner, agreed to push Rick in his wheelchair. They finished next to last, but they felt they had achieved a triumph. That night, Dick remembers, "Rick told us he just didn’t feel handicapped when we were competing."
Rick’s realization turned into a whole new set of horizons that opened up for him and his family, as "Team Hoyt" began to compete in more and more events. Rick reflected on the transformation process for me, using his now-familiar but ever-painstaking technique of picking out letters of the alphabet:

" What I mean when I say I feel like I am not handicapped when competing is that I am just like the other athletes, and I think most of the athletes feel the same way. In the beginning nobody would come up to me. However, after a few races some athletes came around and they began to talk to me. During the early days one runner, Pete Wisnewski had a bet with me at every race on who would beat who. The loser had to hang the winner’s number in his bedroom until the next race. Now many athletes will come up to me before the race or triathlon to wish me luck."
It is hard to imagine now the resistance which the Hoyts encountered early on, but attitudes did begin to change when they entered the Boston Marathon in 1981, and finished in the top quarter of the field. Dick recalls the earlier, less tolerant days with more sadness than anger:
"Nobody wanted Rick in a road race. Everybody looked at us, nobody talked to us, nobody wanted to have anything to do with us. But you can’t really blame them - people often are not educated, and they’d never seen anyone like us. As time went on, though, they could see he was a person — he has a great sense of humor, for instance. That made a big difference."
After 4 years of marathons, Team Hoyt attempted their first triathlon — and for this Dick had to learn to swim. "I sank like a stone at first" Dick recalled with a laugh "and I hadn’t been on a bike since I was six years old."

With a newly-built bike (adapted to carry Rick in front) and a boat tied to Dick’s waist as he swam, the Hoyts came in second-to-last in the competition held on Father’s Day 1985.
"We chuckle to think about that as my Father’s Day present from Rick, " said Dick.
They have been competing ever since, at home and increasingly abroad. Generally they manage to improve their finishing times. "Rick is the one who inspires and motivates me, the way he just loves sports and competing," Dick said.

And the business of inspiring evidently works as a two-way street. Rick typed out this testimony:

"Dad is one of my role models. Once he sets out to do something, Dad sticks to it whatever it is, until it is done. For example once we decided to really get into triathlons, dad worked out, up to five hours a day, five times a week, even when he was working."

The Hoyts’ mutual inspiration for each other seems to embrace others too — many spectators and fellow-competitors have adopted Team Hoyt as a powerful example of determination. "It’s been funny," said Dick "Some people have turned out, some in good shape, some really out of shape, and they say ‘we want to thank you, because we’re here because of you’."

Rick too has taken full note of their effect on fellow-competitors while racing:

"Whenever we are passed (usually on the bike) the athlete will say "Go for it!" or "Rick, help your Dad!" When we pass people (usually on the run) they’ll say "Go Team Hoyt!" or "If not for you, we would not be out here doing this."

Most of all, perhaps, the Hoyts can see an impact from their efforts in the area of the handicapped, and on public attitudes toward the physically and mentally challenged.
"That’s the big thing," said Dick. "People just need to be educated. Rick is helping many other families coping with disabilities in their struggle to be included."

That is not to say that all obstacles are now overcome for the Hoyts. Dick is "still bothered," he says, by people who are discomforted because Rick cannot fully control his tongue while eating. "In restaurants - and it’s only older people mostly - they’ll see Rick’s food being pushed out of his mouth and they’ll leave, or change their table. But I have to say that kind of intolerance is gradually being defeated."

Rick’s own accomplishments, quite apart from the duo’s continuing athletic success, have included his moving on from high school to Boston University, where he graduated in 1993 with a degree in special education. That was followed a few weeks later by another entry in the Boston Marathon. As he fondly pictured it: "On the day of the marathon from Hopkinton to Boston people all over the course were wishing me luck, and they had signs up which read `congratulations on your graduation!’"

Rick now works at Boston College’s computer laboratory helping to develop a system codenamed "Eagle Eyes," through which mechanical aids (like for instance a powered wheelchair) could be controlled by a paralyzed person’s eye-movements, when linked-up to a computer.

Together the Hoyts don’t only compete athletically; they also go on motivational speaking tours, spreading the Hoyt brand of inspiration to all kinds of audiences, sporting and non-sporting, across the country.

Rick himself is confident that his visibility — and his father’s dedication — perform a forceful, valuable purpose in a world that is too often divisive and exclusionary. He typed a simple parting thought:

"The message of Team Hoyt is that everybody should be included in everyday life."

David Tereshchuk is a documentary television producer. He currently works for the United Nations.

http://www.teamhoyt.com/

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Clueless

Tot that changing job would be a good thing for me. But instead of green pasture greeting me, all i could see is dark horizon looming over. Never knew that life with nothing to do would be so freaking bleak! A young lad full of hope and spirit is slowly morphing into a ghoulish zombie. The emptiness is sucking the positive energy like a massive black hole and sucking me dry.

I can only hope for ray of light to rejuvenate and turning me back into a real human again.

Until then, the clock is ticking. Wolf turning into a zombie.

First time blogging in a big bad world...

Finally. A blog of my own. Took me a year plus to move my lazy ass to sign up for my own blog. Kudos to Ho Sang for recommending me to start my own blog. I must confess that I am not really literate in this IT world, but i wil try to learn how to manage this bloody blog. Already having some minor hiccups while toying with it.

Ok, since this is a first blog of mine, wonder what should i write for the opening and introduction. Hmm.. Guess Big Bad Wolf ain't got a big bad brain ehh.. Hmm.. Speaking of big bad wolf, just in case you guys didn't know, this has been my beloved nick for quite sometime. Those in msn should know that i am well known for this nasty and controversial nick. hahaha.. No particular reason why i chose this nick, except that wolf has been an interesting animal (for me). Don't get to see one here in malaysia. Hoping to see one and with my "caring" and "friendly" approach, i am sure i can get to tame one to become my beloved pet. Wolf and wolf. Wat a match..

Okie. Aint much to write now. Shall update more in the near future.

Btw, came across this song and funny lyric. Guess this wil be my theme song. Damn farnee~~~ Hav fun guys..
http://www.niehs.nih.gov/kids/lyrics/badwolf.htm