RIFLE RANGE BOY

Lately, many have asked, 'What was he/she/they thinking? ' I do not believe they are expecting an answer from me. Perhaps they expect me to nod, quietly agree or squeak out some filler words like hmm..., not to react, disagree or object. "What was he thinking? He had such a nice family, wife and beautiful kids. And gave up all that for a young chick?" "He had everything going here. But that was not good enough. He had to sell off everything and root himself in a foreign land. Look at him now. What was he thinking?" "In school, my best friend gave me a bar of soap. A bar of soap! Can you imagine? What was she even thinking of? ...that I stink?"  It is not our business to judge others. We are only in a position to tell if we walk a mile in their shoes. Everything they do must have been debated internally with some soul-searching and introspection before making decisions. All the dos and don'ts must have been viewed from all angles, especially whe...

There Mohammad was all up cheery in the morning. One more week, and he will be off back to his hometown. His sister was to get married, and he needed to earn extra cash to spend with his childhood friends back home. Off he went answering the requests as the e-hailing app requested. The Klang Valley sun was getting hotter as the day went on. By 2 p.m., he thought he had enough. He would do one last delivery and call it a day. For his latest job, he had to ride to Shah Alam to deliver some foodstuff. “Waze sends me through Elmina to reach, okay!” He told himself. “After that, I can call a day! After all, it’s his childhood friend Amin’s birthday.” He was just reminiscing all his times from kindie to adulthood. After losing Amin to the many gruelling challenges in life, they rekindled their friendship through a mutual friend. They just did not have enough of each other. Stories of so many years cannot be completed in a single session. Tonight they plan to continue where they had stopped. ...

Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021) Director: Jon Watts I was under the impression that the Universe moves along and things happen along its path. Whether events occur by pre-determined means or just by chance, for example, by a mere flutter of the butterfly wings, is anybody's guess. Everything goes on with a pre-set sequence despite all the randomness and the chaotic soup it portrays.  The question is whether everything is pre-determined or it can be changed willfully. If events were pre-determined, nothing we can do changes Nature's course. So why bother to pray and hope that God will change things. A minor change in the complex order would just cause everything to crumble like dominos. If something can be altered at will, then the next course of events should be intelligence, not prayers. One is reminded of the battleship dilemma here. A sea battle needs battleships. Tomorrow, there will not be a battle if the Admiral does not send a battleship. So, the question of whether a sea...

The birthplace of Jane and Benjamin Franklin. Jane would live here for most of her life while Benjamin would leave to pursue his apprenticeship. (brainpickings.org) Heard a podcast recently on one of the American founding fathers, Benjamin Franklin. As is well known, he emerged from a humble beginning, of a son of a poor candle and soap maker, to propel himself away from the clutches of poverty, to pull himself up with his boots strap even though he could not afford boots. Benjamin, a polymath, later became a printer, a master inventor, a diplomat, established the mail service and had a hand in drafting the Declaration of Independence. He was self-taught. Together with his favourite sister, Jenny (out of 16 other siblings), they used to teach each other. Then, Benjamin left his home to work in a printing press run by his brother by a twist of fate. One thing led to another, and he left the job. He later managed to establish himself as a printer. In his printing compa...

They say the signature can turn your life line. In the Tamil proverb, it reads ( உண் கையெழுத்து தலை எழுத்தையும் மாற்றும்; or  உங்கள் கையொப்பம் உங்கள் விதியை மாற்ற முடியும் ); literal translation: your hand line [signature] can change your headline [fate]. The Indians believe that on the inner aspect of our skull, our lifeline or our destiny is written. Just like how a game of dice became the change maker of the propriety of a kingdom, with a literal stroke of the pen, a prince can be a pauper. I vividly remember this mantra frequently being uttered by my elders during my childhood. Early in my working life, I met a colleague who dragged life wearing a perpetual remorseful look and carrying on his shoulders a mountain and guilt and regrets. In his days of naivety when a good friend is one whom one could enjoy a good drink, he had stood guarantor, or rather, inked his signature above the dotted lines certifying what may that he would stand in front of his friend (guarantee) ...

I have been in the company of many grown men. That does not sound right, does it? The main agenda of union may vary from group to group. Some try to relive their loss of youth, other of the same testosterone driven deprived males may instead pursue their dream to compensate their losing prowess either in the athletic and conjugal fields. An interesting discussion took place in the running group recently - Lifeless Footwear! One party was vehemently arguing that his success in his field of indulgence was not primarily due to his outstanding academic achievements but rather his aesthetically pleasing personality, charming demeanor and his utmost care that he takes on his physical appearance. With his alluring and assertive manner of handling situations, he, in his lifetime had superseded many other more qualified individuals with much more impressive CV. The other party reiterated that even though he looked impressive and would fit the bill of every mother's prospective son in la...