Right, it’s really weird, but lately this WP has been taking ages to publish an entry. Or half the time it has already published it, but the screen shows it as still loading. As in, it’s perpetually stuck on the “Write” page even after I clicked on the “Publish” button.

It’s acting like how GM used to be when I hit 500+ entries (I have no idea how I struggled up to 1000 entries on that one). I was half expecting WP to give me a server timeout error. I can’t help being paranoid - you would be too if you’ve encountered too many of the timeout errors and lost numerous posts due to it.

It’s really strange though, because I’ve only reached 130 posts. #131 being this one. And I’m hardly abusing it like I used to post like mad in my ex-blogs… and I believe the post count for jrnl (running on the last version of b2, WP’s great-grandfather) is a lot more than the one here, but posting at jrnl is very smooth.

Ugh.

Tabulas launched a referral program thingamajig. If you referred six or more people to Tabulas (and they’re actually using their account), you get upgraded to a paid account for one year free (retail price at $3/mth). This means more features, like the availability of older archives and more gallery space and more onsite music streaming space (in reference to the new Tabulas radioblog thing, which is pretty nifty although I’ve gotten used to scouring the original radioblog).

I loaded the referrals page expecting it to be empty because I’ve never been actively recruiting members in the past (let’s face it, I suck in recruiting people for anything), and to my utter shock I actually had gotten six in 2003. Five that are valid as one had had their journal deleted.

*faints*

I can attempt to recruit one more active Tabulite to get a paid account, of course, but I’m thinking… do I really need a paid Tabulas? I haven’t been using it for other purposes than tracking my friends’ Tabulas and for commenting purposes. Honestly, I meant to use it, it’s just that… I guess it’s sort of too public and I tend to feel really bad flooding people’s “friends” pages with my ultra-long ramblings. Same reason why I left LiveJournal. I’m just not made for these community bloggerism thingys.

Think I’ll let the ones who are dying for a paid account to have more chances at getting it. :P

Project Gutenberg fans, here’s another site for e-books - FullBooks.com. I’m not sure if they basically just have the same content (ie, mirror sites), but it doesn’t look like it. *crosses fingers*

Both are totally copyright-safe though, because most of them are old texts and classics, save for some public-domain stuff and historical texts and opinions. Probably nothing that interests anyone of this century unless they’re hardcore readers or history junkies. :)

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Taking a break from other books, I read Madame Butterfly by John Luther Long - why, it’s disputable. It was written more than a century ago, and the subject content is hardly what I like reading about. But it had always been a curiousity to me since a friend mentioned it when we were much younger. She told me what a memorable movie it was. And everyone said what a beautiful opera it made, how hauntingly sad.

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Brother #3: in an embarrased state, it would be good if you say “Koroshite Kudasai”
Brother #3: guess what it means
Brother #3: kudasai is please
Me: excuse me?
Brother #3: nope, it means Please KILL ME!!!

Brother #3: japanese language is dangerous

Oh, and I think I distinctly remember that “sumimasen” is excuse me. Doh, Pei.

I was bored so I took this international eating etiquette quiz thingamajig (link from Serra). Got 5 out of 12 correct. But that’s not what that bothers me.

The first question is about Chinese dining etiquette. It asks, “Do Chinese mothers make their kids eat everything on their plates?”

If you’re Chinese, the answer (from the flash quiz) may surprise you. At least, it surprised me, and I’m supposed to be Chinese. (more…)

Asean nationals will be able to travel to all 10 Asean countries without the need to get a visa by the end of this year.

But at the moment - before the implementation of this plan - Malaysians can travel to all of the above countries without a visa, save for Myanmar and Laos (I think… I can’t really find any information on it). And I think the same applies for other ASEAN countries, and Malaysia itself doesn’t really have a long list of countries requiring visas for entry. So… well, it’s really strange, that’s all. How exactly is this “news", or is it more like a “reminder"? :/ Unless they tell us that we don’t need a passport for travel within South East Asia - that would definitely be news.

So I had nothing better to do other than look up random things. I searched up June 27 on Wikipedia and found the list of things that happened on that date - events, births of famous people, deaths of famous people, celebrations, and surprisingly, songs recorded on that date.

Idea came up that I’m going to find those songs and make a CD out of it. :P If I can find them and if they’re any good, that is. Can’t honestly say I’ve ever in my life heard of any of those songs… they are so old. Well, I’ve only heard of one, and that’s Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer. XD

Oh my god.

What a blast from the past. I didn’t realise this is still up! *gets all teary-eyed* How I missed that layout. It was so simple and clean and cute. :D I still have a soft spot for it. I need to put up a design like that again. Something simple and clean and cute.

And man, I was such a judgemental, immature, egotistical, self-absorbed bi-yatch, from reading my 16-year-old autobiography. And I sound almost like someone I really don’t want to be compared with… I think that was my style of writing back then, opinionated and full of angst. I can’t believe that got me into The Star feature article back then. *shakes head in amazement* Will wonders never cease. I can’t believe that kind of writing got me hosted either. But much thanks to Lauren!<3

I suppose four years from now I will look back to my writings today and wonder what got into me to say things like that! :P Always changing. No longer as sarcastic or as thoughtless of other people as I once was (at least I hope so, it’s something I’m always working on), and while the content is still the same, the daily grind, I’m now with a more… softer outlook. I used to be so edgy and everything used to get to me and rile me up and I’d lose my temper and stomp around at the injustice of it all. *sigh* Memories. At least I mellowed down, I guess.

By the way, those were pre-Protagonite years. :P Can hardly believe it too - I’ve been a Protagonist for so long!

Haha, dude, I just got upgraded to 250MB on Hotmail. Not that I know what the heck I’m going to do with it since I already have 1GB of email space at Gmail (I still have 6 invites for anyone who is coveting 1GB email space as well), and another at Spymac that I don’t use. And 1GB from GMX, and I didn’t even request for that one.

Hotmail does not practice a loyalty scheme… it seems like the longer you’ve been there, the likelier you are to be stuck on 2MB forevermore, whereas new signups automatically get 25MB. Unfair, no? But if anyone is still stuck on 2MB on Hotmail and want to get it upgraded - ask and ye shall receive. ;)

Most people are surprisingly bad at spotting fake smiles. One possible explanation for this is that it may be easier for people to get along if they don’t always know what others are really feeling.

Sookie has got a new domain! :D

Meet iPod shuffle, another one of those exorbitantly overpriced MP3 players by Apple (that looks so gorgeous, dammit), this time in the shape of a USB stick. While reading through the promotion page, I caught sight of the footnote and it made me laugh out loud.

2. Do not eat iPod shuffle.

Can’t resist but to snitch this link off someone and post it. :D It’s too cute not to share!

Me: pei in japanese happens to be hai
Brother #3: hahaha
Me: or something
Brother #3: vern is aya
Brother #3: and aya is a friend I met in Japan
Me: GUESS WHAT
Me: wen is BUN/MON
Me: So if I’m a HAIMON
Me: It sounds like a POKEMON
Me: good god!
Brother #3: HAHAHAHAHHAHAHA
Me: RIHAIMON
Me: *dies laughing*
Brother #3: does that make you like a sea peach monster?
Me: lol
Me: plum, isn’t it?
Brother #3: plum sounds old
Brother #3: Sea plum monster
Brother #3: WAHAHAHHAHAHA

A plug for Brother #3 (who is still getting me them Pocky from Japan). :P