Note:I added a new poll
Note2:If you can, post more Qs for the Ask The Nerd section so I could contuinue writing(You could email, comment or post them in the tagboard. Your call).
So, anyway, I took a 12 hourflight to Detroit. Man, this is getting ridiculous. Call me spoiled, but is it that much to want an entertainment system instead of 12-hours of doing nothing???Huh? To be fair to Northsouthern Airlines, they had a Projector TV. Which shouldn't have been that lousy, but there's a catch. They really don't have interesting shows. Who want to spend all their time watching a show called Starstruck?? A really bored teenager blogger who calls himself Leonardo with nothing better to do, that's who.
Anyway, when I finally got off the plane, I felt like I was in heaven. Then, we had to go through the checkpoint, which was kinda*censor*, erm...unexpected. Imagine a clean, tech, effecient, friendly checkpoint that barely have any lines. Yeah, that's what I did, imagine it, because the reality isn't like that. Quite the opposite in effect.
When I saw the size of the line(quenue), I was ready to give the country up to radicals like Obama and Yuanmashita). After 20 minutes in the line with no visible progress, I was ready to join them. By the time I got through a third of the line, I was screaming at them to @#$%^ hurry up. Anyway, it was ---- tiring standing in the line. That and I have the world's worst case of jet lag. So I must have drifted off(don't ask me how I managed to do so standing up), because the next thing I know, I was near the front of the line. In the big electronic billboard on top of the checkpoint, I saw the following words:"radicals led by the disgrunted general, Yuanmashita, has launched a major strike against the checkpoint. Flee!
I smiled to myself. No more standing in line! Of course, I had to pay Yuanmashita an arm and leg for the service, but it was worth it. I smiled in anticipation
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The only catch is that I looked slightly ungainly without an arm or leg. Arrggghhh. Wait, an arm or leg??What happened to my other arm?For that matter, what happened to my other leg? For that matter, why can't I see my torso? While we're at it, why can't I see amnything????? And why do I feel as ifg my shoulder's shaking while I can't see anything?
------------------------------
"Wake Up!"somebody shook me awake. I opened my eyes. I was in front of the border official. I checked my watch. It was four hours after we landed. I was going to say something witty before the border checkpoint official interrupted.
"give me one reason why you would not be involved in a school shooting."he said
Uh-oh. Here we go again....
Saturday, January 26, 2008
Tuesday, January 22, 2008
Re-entering the US-Part 2
Note:Please read previous post.
After a really short flight and a really long wait(ironically, security's not too thick here), we got off the plane at Tokyo. We had some time before our next flight, so my dad and I went to catch up on our(delayed) lunch(as well as breakfast).
I was real thirsty so I asked the shopkeeper at one of the stalls for some water to drink. He brought a cup of water and said(in a hollibre accent):
Her' yo goe, wotel convenently form Toyo's taditeonalest' taps.
Me:Could I get a bottle of spring water?
Him: can no. Sprong watel chalge exta.
Me:okay, fine. How much does it cost?
He held up 5 fingers.I dug in my pockets for a five-yen coin.I paid him. He shook his head. I looked at the coin closely. It wasn't counterfeit. I'm sure of it!
Me:what's wrong?
Him:500 yen
Me:oh. Isn't that expensive?
Another tourist came by. he told me to relax, the exchange rate between Yen and USD^ is real low. i still wasn't convinced. Sure, i was in China, where every thing's cheap so it might be a psychological factor, still.... The shopkeeper(seeing my hesitation) offered me a whole !100! buck discount. I snapped up the deal immediately.
2 minutes later, after I mulled it over...
Me:Wait a minute. Did I just burn $4 on a cup of tap water?
We then proceeded to eat lunch. The noodles was cheaper, albeit only a little.
We ate lunch together. Him: Too little food, eh? I looked at the bowl. it looked like it's wide enough to feed a whole platoon of, well, mice*.
Me:Relax. it can't feed a platoon of soldiers, but it's more than ample for me.
I then proceeded to try to use my spoon to waddle a bit of soup. and then again. and again. After a lot, of effort, I finally manage to get a half-full spoon. Man, are these bowls shallow. Despite the length of a bucket on the outside, it's shallower than Quiswart's insults**!
Here concludes this post. Next post will feature the extreme effeciency(or lack thereof) of American customs and securities.
^one USD equals 100 yen.
*Technically, mice don't form themselves into platoons, but it's a figure of speech.
*an exageration, but not by much
After a really short flight and a really long wait(ironically, security's not too thick here), we got off the plane at Tokyo. We had some time before our next flight, so my dad and I went to catch up on our(delayed) lunch(as well as breakfast).
I was real thirsty so I asked the shopkeeper at one of the stalls for some water to drink. He brought a cup of water and said(in a hollibre accent):
Her' yo goe, wotel convenently form Toyo's taditeonalest' taps.
Me:Could I get a bottle of spring water?
Him: can no. Sprong watel chalge exta.
Me:okay, fine. How much does it cost?
He held up 5 fingers.I dug in my pockets for a five-yen coin.I paid him. He shook his head. I looked at the coin closely. It wasn't counterfeit. I'm sure of it!
Me:what's wrong?
Him:500 yen
Me:oh. Isn't that expensive?
Another tourist came by. he told me to relax, the exchange rate between Yen and USD^ is real low. i still wasn't convinced. Sure, i was in China, where every thing's cheap so it might be a psychological factor, still.... The shopkeeper(seeing my hesitation) offered me a whole !100! buck discount. I snapped up the deal immediately.
2 minutes later, after I mulled it over...
Me:Wait a minute. Did I just burn $4 on a cup of tap water?
We then proceeded to eat lunch. The noodles was cheaper, albeit only a little.
We ate lunch together. Him: Too little food, eh? I looked at the bowl. it looked like it's wide enough to feed a whole platoon of, well, mice*.
Me:Relax. it can't feed a platoon of soldiers, but it's more than ample for me.
I then proceeded to try to use my spoon to waddle a bit of soup. and then again. and again. After a lot, of effort, I finally manage to get a half-full spoon. Man, are these bowls shallow. Despite the length of a bucket on the outside, it's shallower than Quiswart's insults**!
Here concludes this post. Next post will feature the extreme effeciency(or lack thereof) of American customs and securities.
^one USD equals 100 yen.
*Technically, mice don't form themselves into platoons, but it's a figure of speech.
*an exageration, but not by much
Monday, January 21, 2008
Re-entering the US
Okay, so after an extremely extended visit in China, I'm flying back to the U.S. Which should have been pretty cool, but it isn't. Really. For starters, my plane ticket isn't a straight flight. It's from Beijing to Tokyo to Detroit to Washington D.C. For enders, our trip coincided with an international terrorist alert. In other words, not the most efficient flight(s) I've been in. Really.
In Beijing, we were called for a random security check. Four men in full-black suits searched our suitcases for an exhausting 11 minutes and 17 seconds(Yes. I timed it.) One of them seems particularly interested in my DVDs (conveniently bought at some place called "Li's Black Market"). I could just guess what he was thinking. I mentally steeled myself for the questionnaire by going through what he may say in advance.
Guy(holding up a DVD):What's that?
Me:It's a DVD
Guy:Our policy does not allow this type of C-
Just then, another black suited guy came up and had a whispered conference with the first one. From what I could hear, it seems a heated debate.
Guy:Like I said, Our policy does not allow this type of C-*discreet coughing from the other guy*, I mean DVDs.
Me:What type?
Him:Harmful, dangerous material.
Me:How is that dangerous?It's Tom&Jerry, for god's sake.
Him:Religion Alert!!!
Me:Oops. So what?
Him:Your passport says that you're a freethinker. Never mention God's name if you are not a believer. It shows disrespect to him.
Me:I object! God doesn't exist! Besides, you're supposed to be impartial
Him:Oh, re-
(A lightning bolt hit a tree only two feet away from the nearest window)
Me:O....k. I hereby withdraw my objection.
Him:Good. Now, back to the main point: Your CD clearly contains dangerous materials.
Me:How so?
Him:Let's see...intense violence, disrespect for figures of authority, events going against the order of nature, the small triumphing over the strong, possibility of bird flu through un-licensed, stray, illegal dogs, a made-in-china sign over a defective mouse trap ...the list just goes on and on.
Me:It's just a cartoon
Him: So what? Anyway, your CD-
Other Guy:whispers something angrily in chinese.
They had a heated discussion in private. I decided to use the time to make myself scarce.
(Hear concludes Part 1. The highlights of Part 2 includes overpriced water in Tokyo and Customs+Security check in Detroit. Keep tuned!)
In Beijing, we were called for a random security check. Four men in full-black suits searched our suitcases for an exhausting 11 minutes and 17 seconds(Yes. I timed it.) One of them seems particularly interested in my DVDs (conveniently bought at some place called "Li's Black Market"). I could just guess what he was thinking. I mentally steeled myself for the questionnaire by going through what he may say in advance.
Guy(holding up a DVD):What's that?
Me:It's a DVD
Guy:Our policy does not allow this type of C-
Just then, another black suited guy came up and had a whispered conference with the first one. From what I could hear, it seems a heated debate.
Guy:Like I said, Our policy does not allow this type of C-*discreet coughing from the other guy*, I mean DVDs.
Me:What type?
Him:Harmful, dangerous material.
Me:How is that dangerous?It's Tom&Jerry, for god's sake.
Him:Religion Alert!!!
Me:Oops. So what?
Him:Your passport says that you're a freethinker. Never mention God's name if you are not a believer. It shows disrespect to him.
Me:I object! God doesn't exist! Besides, you're supposed to be impartial
Him:Oh, re-
(A lightning bolt hit a tree only two feet away from the nearest window)
Me:O....k. I hereby withdraw my objection.
Him:Good. Now, back to the main point: Your CD clearly contains dangerous materials.
Me:How so?
Him:Let's see...intense violence, disrespect for figures of authority, events going against the order of nature, the small triumphing over the strong, possibility of bird flu through un-licensed, stray, illegal dogs, a made-in-china sign over a defective mouse trap ...the list just goes on and on.
Me:It's just a cartoon
Him: So what? Anyway, your CD-
Other Guy:whispers something angrily in chinese.
They had a heated discussion in private. I decided to use the time to make myself scarce.
(Hear concludes Part 1. The highlights of Part 2 includes overpriced water in Tokyo and Customs+Security check in Detroit. Keep tuned!)
Freedom!
I always wondered at the meaning of true freedom. Now I know. It's in blogging. Now this might seem like an obvious answer from a nerd who blogs frequently. But it's not. At least, not really. I never appreciated the value of blogging until my recent stay in China, where .blogspot domains are banned for "security" reasons*. So now I'm gonna blog as much as I can and answer all of your questions and comments. Or at least I'll try. Have a great day reading!
*By some strange law, I could still access blogger. In other words, I could post, but I couldn't read my own posts or any comments or the tagboard. The logic, being, I presume, that people who gave milliatary secrets out or plan to co-ordinate terrorist attacks will lose all credibility if they didn't communicate effectively with their audience. Either that, or it's okay to post government/Party secrets but it's completely immoral and illegal to view them. makes sense
*By some strange law, I could still access blogger. In other words, I could post, but I couldn't read my own posts or any comments or the tagboard. The logic, being, I presume, that people who gave milliatary secrets out or plan to co-ordinate terrorist attacks will lose all credibility if they didn't communicate effectively with their audience. Either that, or it's okay to post government/Party secrets but it's completely immoral and illegal to view them. makes sense
I'm back!
I'm back. I had some problems on the airplane and customs that I'll post later. I also will have problems at school. I mean, I hadn't actually returned to school yet, but statistically speaking, it's bound to happen.
Thursday, January 17, 2008
Just to clear things up.
China's Virtual Strong Arm Helpful neighborhood online Police banned all .blospot domains. In other words, I can post, but I can't read my own blog. So sorry, but I can't reply to your comments/stuff in the tagboard. E-mail me(draconlord@gmail.com) if you have anything important to say.
I'll be back in the US in 3 days time, by which I'll(hopefully) post and read more.
Oh, and if there's somebody posing as me and saying obscene/stupid stuff, chances are, he's an imposter.
I'll be back in the US in 3 days time, by which I'll(hopefully) post and read more.
Oh, and if there's somebody posing as me and saying obscene/stupid stuff, chances are, he's an imposter.
Tuesday, January 8, 2008
Ask The Nerd-Part 1
Note:If you play Eternalduel(click on the right hand tab under "A Game", you might want to Imail me" http://www.eternalduel.com/view.php?id=241798")
Okay, here's the first part of "Ask The Nerd". These are real questions people asked me, although not necessarily in that order or actually under the "Ask The Nerd" Program.
Q:I'm kinda down on my luck right now. My friend's seem to be very lucky but completely unsympathetic.Care to help me?
Really Unlucky Guy in Vegas
A: Dear Ms. Unlucky,
Since you are in Vegas, a casino's only a few feet away. Persuade one of your friends that he is real lucky and to gamble and share a portion of their winnings with you. Once he gets addicted and lose everything he owns, you'll be pleased in knowing that you aren't the unluckiest guy you know.
Sincerely yours,
Leonardo
Q:I want to be a writer when I grow up but my dad wants me to be a lawyer like him. Help!
Wanna-Be Writer in Texas
A:Dear Mr. Wanna-Be,
Study your dad intensely. Analyze his every move to your best. A lawyer who wants to force other into his profession would be a great character for your first book.
Sincerely Yours,
Leonardo
Q:I wish I know what's the meaning of life.
Philosopher chatting in a forum
A:Dear Mrs.Chatting,
Find out how to use a dictionary
Sincerely Yours,
Leonardo
Q:People make fun of my name all the time. WHat should I do?
Andrew Dorkweed
A:Dear Madam Android,
Tell them that your name comes from having 17 generations of dorky ancestors. Trust me, no one will make fun of your name again.
Sincerely,
Leonardo
Q:What's the best way to refuse to answer stupid questions?
Really Annoyed Dude in Tuscumbia
A:Dear Sir Annoyed,
I'll tell you later.
Sincerely Yours,
Leonardo
Okay, here's the first part of "Ask The Nerd". These are real questions people asked me, although not necessarily in that order or actually under the "Ask The Nerd" Program.
Q:I'm kinda down on my luck right now. My friend's seem to be very lucky but completely unsympathetic.Care to help me?
Really Unlucky Guy in Vegas
A: Dear Ms. Unlucky,
Since you are in Vegas, a casino's only a few feet away. Persuade one of your friends that he is real lucky and to gamble and share a portion of their winnings with you. Once he gets addicted and lose everything he owns, you'll be pleased in knowing that you aren't the unluckiest guy you know.
Sincerely yours,
Leonardo
Q:I want to be a writer when I grow up but my dad wants me to be a lawyer like him. Help!
Wanna-Be Writer in Texas
A:Dear Mr. Wanna-Be,
Study your dad intensely. Analyze his every move to your best. A lawyer who wants to force other into his profession would be a great character for your first book.
Sincerely Yours,
Leonardo
Q:I wish I know what's the meaning of life.
Philosopher chatting in a forum
A:Dear Mrs.Chatting,
Find out how to use a dictionary
Sincerely Yours,
Leonardo
Q:People make fun of my name all the time. WHat should I do?
Andrew Dorkweed
A:Dear Madam Android,
Tell them that your name comes from having 17 generations of dorky ancestors. Trust me, no one will make fun of your name again.
Sincerely,
Leonardo
Q:What's the best way to refuse to answer stupid questions?
Really Annoyed Dude in Tuscumbia
A:Dear Sir Annoyed,
I'll tell you later.
Sincerely Yours,
Leonardo
Introduction to Ask The Nerd
Yesterday, I received a phone call from my blog manager(available conveniently at getafreeonlineunmotivatedemployeewhostatestheobviousinreturnfordownloadingspam.net). It went like this.
"Leo, I ....think....you...ought...to...change...your...style" she said.
I was obviously quite surprised, and to tell you the truth, upset.
"Why", I asked
"The amount of people who check your blog is slipping. Last week there was 12. Now it's down to 6"
Me:Is it 6 hundred or six thousand?
Her:Six. Just six.
I was kind of flustered 'cause I was one of the hits on the statCounter, my second computer was another, and 5 different friends and family members promised me that they read my blog recently. In short, I don't really have a public audience. So I'm out of ideas. Really. I thinked and thinked and thinked about this problem(I know it's grammatically incorrect. So sue me) and decided my blog need to be more interactive. So if you have a problem, just e-mail me at draconlord@gmail.com(There's a glitch that prevents me from reading comments or uploading my tagboard) and I'll answer you on my blog. Don't worry. I'll change your name so that you can remain anonymous if you want to.
"Leo, I ....think....you...ought...to...change...your...style" she said.
I was obviously quite surprised, and to tell you the truth, upset.
"Why", I asked
"The amount of people who check your blog is slipping. Last week there was 12. Now it's down to 6"
Me:Is it 6 hundred or six thousand?
Her:Six. Just six.
I was kind of flustered 'cause I was one of the hits on the statCounter, my second computer was another, and 5 different friends and family members promised me that they read my blog recently. In short, I don't really have a public audience. So I'm out of ideas. Really. I thinked and thinked and thinked about this problem(I know it's grammatically incorrect. So sue me) and decided my blog need to be more interactive. So if you have a problem, just e-mail me at draconlord@gmail.com(There's a glitch that prevents me from reading comments or uploading my tagboard) and I'll answer you on my blog. Don't worry. I'll change your name so that you can remain anonymous if you want to.
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