What is the "PhD"?

Just like what Trinity told Neo in the dark and loud bar in The Matrix - "It's the question that drives us. It's the question that brought you here. You know the question? Just as I did..."

What is the "PhD"?

Unfortunately, like the Matrix, no one can be told what the PhD is. You have to see it for yourself. Are you ready for the red pill? Are you ready for the truth?

Here is a collection of opinions on the web from the predecessors of what PhD might be...

Usually PhD comes after BS (Bull Shxt) and MS (More of the Same)...

Permanent Head Damage (after the degree)
Player Hater Degree (try it yourself)
Post Hole Digger (try to hide?)
Post Homicidal Depression (serial killers)
Pothole Dodger (driver on poorly maintained roads)
Professional Help Desk (Job?)
Push Here Dummy
Patiently Hoping for Degree (during the degree)
Piled Higher and Deeper (papers?)
Please Hire. Desperate! (if finished)
Pour Him (or Her) a Drink (and more)
Potential Heavy Drinker (afterwards)
Physiologically Deficient (most likely)
Probably Headed for Divorce (very possible)
Pathetically Hopeless Dweeb
Pathetically Homeless Dreamer (worse)
Probably Heavily in Debt (high probability)
Parents Have Doubts (they just don't say)
Professors Had Doubts (they couldn't be bothered to say)
Pheromone Deprived (sad)
Professional Hamburger Dispenser (sadder)
Pizza Hut Driver (sad, too)
Pretty Heavily Depressed (symptom)
Prozac Handouts Desired (might help)
Probably Half Dead
Progressive Heart Disorder (during)
Permanent Heart Damage (after)
Philosophically Disturbed
Probably Hard to Describe
Patiently Headed Downhill
Please Hold! Dangerous! (warning!)
Promised Hell Down-the-road (more warning!)
Probably Heavely Death (very likely outcome!)

The list goes on, but as you can see, one needs to pay some serious price to see what PhD really is. And how deep does the rabbit hole go? Nobody really knows.

Are you taking the red pill?

"Where does it go?" was taken during our Warrnambool trip in June 2006.

A Good Weekend

It was a good weekend, eventful but not stressful, productive but not tiring. Exercised after being slack for such a long time, caught up with friends whom I haven't met up with for a while, cleaned the house after having it messy for too long, and recharged myself after being sick for more than a week. It was what I would describe as an ideal weekend, well maybe not ideal, but definitely in the upper quartile!

The weekend started with a morning badminton session with a bunch of friends in Albert Park. I just realised how a 2 month break from exercising can make one so unfit! Regular gym sessions should be put back into my daily schedule again. Man, didn't my arms and legs feel like stones after badminton! I could hardly move my right arm, and I must have walked funny on that day, too. But it was not only fun, but also a good cardio workout.

After the game, we all went for lunch at the Blue Room Cafe. Pizza was the lunch that day. Food and exercise don't go together? Says who? I exercise so I can eat! For food lovers like J and me, we can never give up eating delicious food. For me, doing some exercise is the only way to go without gaining too much weight from eating! As for the Blue Room, I'd give it a 6/10 rating considering the food quality and price. Minus another point because the wait was exceptionally long that day... so 5/10!

A wonderful gathering should never end without a nice cup of coffee! So we ended up at the KoKo Black on Lygon St. after. I have to say that I felt a bit guilty while drinking that rich creamy dark chocolate mocha. But that feeling just whooped away after the first sip. Well, there goes my badminton session... The drink was good, the quality time spent with good friends was even better!

With my cousin W having moved in with us, everything suddenly doubled. Double fridges, double microwaves, double washing machines, and even double rice cookers! So it's not hard to imagine the significantly reduced walkable space in the lounge and dining area. We must have had enough of dodging the sofa and the bed while entering the kitchen after a week. I cannot remember whether it was me or J who started moving things around… After an hour or so of work(out!), we finally got a new relaxing area. Next to the big window are a nice comfy sofa, a designer chair, plus a side coffee table! Voila! There’s the new tranquility sanctuary in the house. Overlooking the dining and kitchen area with natural sun light coming from both the ceiling-high balcony window and the oversized window behind, the place is pefect for a lazy afternoon. Whether you fancy a new novel, newspaper, or do some serious reading on the soft sofa, a cup of Earl Grey or Café Latte on hand, this is what I call “lifestyle”!

Life is finally back to normal again. After a long break in Manila and HK, away from this Melbourne winter, I am not quite used to the cold anymore. The story of the trip is not for today's discussion, but it was a good trip overall. Now, it is time to get my act together and seriously use my brain again!

The photo was taken at the Melbourne Museum during Emily's visit.

L@BC@T's New Home

After owning The journey of getting my Permanent Head Damage on MSNspace without updating it much, I decided to have a new home here and hoping that I will actually blog a bit more often.

So this is it! A new place for recording my life adventures, little ones or big ones. So this is more like a place for me to write down my own life experiences, my interactions with the rest of the world, and my feelings. As I don't trust my own memory that much, I figured that it would be better for me to at least have some record of what I have done in my life.

Someone once said that "Life is the accumulation of every seond spent". I wish I will be able to look back at this place in the furture, and say that I have lived my life fully...

The photo was taken at Melbourne Central during Emily's visit in June 2006.