Did You Switch Off Your Lights?

28th March 2009, 8.30pm, local time.

Earth Hour.

Some people say that Earth Hour is merely a publicity stint, and does not save much energy.

Well in my humble opinion, being a publicity stint is exactly the aim of Earth Hour. Many people don't put high priority in energy conservation, and a world-wide activity like this reminds everybody that Earth needs our help.

Even preschoolers now are energy conscious, thanks to Earth Hour.

Did you participate? If your answer is no, you ought to be ashamed of yourself.

Yet don't be sad. You can prove your loyalty to mother Earth by saving energy every day, not just one hour a year.

Ways of saving electricity:
1. Use the Standby function of your computer. It turns off all components, except the RAM. Turning it back on from Standby is fast compared to a fresh startup. Laptops running on battery can last for days on Standby mode.
2. If you're using CRT monitors (or televisions, ONLY the display), turn them off when you're not using them. They are easily rated at over 100 Watts of power. In comparison, an average laptop (not just the monitor) consumes only 60 watts of power.
3. Thomas Edison is smart, yet not energy conscious. Dump traditional light bulbs and get energy efficient ones. A 13W energy efficient light bulb is just as bright as a 150W traditional bulb. Lasts much longer too!
4. Turn off the lights during day time. Don't just turn on the toilet light at noon just because you're used to tapping the switch before entering the door. If you can see properly without the lights on, you don't need them.
5. Instead of using the air-conditioner, why not take a nice cool shower? If you even care to switch off the water heater, you really save a lot of energy.
6. Don't be spoiled - don't drive everywhere. If your destination is within 15 minutes' walk away, just walk! Don't complain that's far, I walk much more than that. We're young people, and we should appreciate our ability to move before it's too late. If you insist on driving, get your friends to ride along to share your carbon footprint.
7. Don't just throw aluminium cans away - make sure they are recycled. Place them next to trash cans, and there'll be people who treasure them. It takes a lot of energy to refine aluminium.

Be a friend of mine and do what I do (yes I practise all 7 points). If you have more ways of conserving energy, share with me!

If you're the type of people who think "aiya, never mind lah, electricity bill is not paid by me", then I'm sorry mother Earth gave birth to someone like you.

April Fool's Coming

I can't believe it's the end of March already.

Christmas 2008 is still clearly imprinted in my memory. I was at home, trying desperately to cram as much contents into my brain as possible.

I still remember celebrating New Year's Day. I was stuck in school until over 2am at night because of the stupid rain.

I also remember the election day of America last year. Was quite impressed by Obama's performance.

And then there's Chinese New Year. I spent a few days in Singapore trying to improve my skills with the Rubik's cube.

And then a quarter of the year's gone. Time to check out the quarterly performances of companies you have share on.

What have you done this year so far?

Oh, and then there's April Fool's day coming. Maybe I'll tell others that I'm not straight that day.

Free Gifts

Up to this point of my life, I've never found free gifts to be especially attractive.

Just not long ago, I went to MidValley to buy my friend his birthday present. After much consideration (and discussion with friends sharing this present), I picked a DVD off the shelf and went to the counter to pay for it.

The DVD itself was rather good. I can't deny that I myself would like something like that for my birthday.

I paid for the DVD, and was surprised (pleasantly) when the two kind cashiers threw in a box of freebie into the cute Doraemon bag, saying that they were having 'promotion'. I was stunned, and could say nothing else except "thank you, thank you!"

Apparently the Doraemon bag was part of the promotion - it was listed as "Reusable bag RM0.00" in the receipt.

One common sense is not to check out the free gift in front of them, so I grabbed the bag and walked out of the shop. Once out of their sight, I ripped the bag open and took out this.

Oh. Ah haha. A toy.

An Ultraman toy. Which makes sounds. Made in China. To play with it, you press a button located right in between Ultraman's buttocks.

And then his eyes and his 'life indicator' will blink, accompanied by low-frequency sounds of explosions and shootings and such.

Oooooohhh damn.

What am I supposed to do with it? I should have turned down the 'gift'! What's more, the stuff I bought was smaller than the Ultraman, and they were put inside a Doraemon bag. It's like the DVD was the free gift instead!

Something hilarious about it is, of course, the usual top-notch English instructions printed on the back of the box.

Upon reaching home, I discovered yet another surprise. A small clockwork Doraemon was bundled with the bag.

Well, at least this one is cuter.

My friend Yin Jen came over some days later. I wished him happy birthday and gave him the Doraemon bag, along with everything that was inside.

Hope you like the Ultraman! If you're wondering how old this Yin Jen is, he's just turned 20.

PS: Happy birthday to the March trio - Jen, Sean, and Stan!