mál

blog

Totally forgot about this blog...
I am blogging at www.jarnmadur.blogspot.com
mainly a training blog, but at least a sign of being alive :)

posted by Tomas @ Thursday, January 03, 2008 253 comments

Sunscreen

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZRRKqhdotVI

This is a link to a video of an amazing song called "everybody's free to wear sunscreen" by Baz Lurhman, old song, still nice. here are the lyrics:

Ladies and Gentlemen of the class of 99...Wear sunscreen


If I could offer you only one tip for the future, sunscreen would be it. The long term benefits of sunscreen have been proved by scientists, whereas the rest of my advice has no basis more reliable than my own meandering experience. I will dispense this advice now.

Enjoy the power and beauty of your youth; oh nevermind; you will not understand the power and beauty of your youth until they have faded. But trust me, in 20 years youll look back at photos of yourself and recall in a way you cant grasp now how much possibility lay before you and how fabulous you really looked...Youre not as fat as you imagine.

Dont worry about the future; or worry, but know that worrying is as effective as trying to solve an algebra equation by chewing bubblegum. The real troubles in your life are apt to be things that never crossed your worried mind; the kind that blindside you at 4pm on some idle Tuesday.

Do one thing everyday that scares you

Sing

Dont be reckless with other peoples hearts, dont put up with people who are reckless with yours.

Floss

Dont waste your time on jealousy; sometimes youre ahead, sometimes youre behind...the race is long, and in the end its only with yourself.

Remember the compliments you receive, forget the insults; if you succeed in doing this, tell me how.

Keep your old love letters, throw away your old bank statements.

Stretch

Dont feel guilty if you dont know what to do with your life...the most interesting people I know didnt know at 22 what they wanted to do with their lives, some of the most interesting 40 year olds I know still dont.

Get plenty of calcium

Be kind to your knees, youll miss them when theyre gone.

Maybe youll marry, maybe you wont, maybe youll have children, maybe you wont, maybe youll divorce at 40, maybe youll dance the funky chicken on your 75th wedding anniversary...what ever you do, dont congratulate yourself too much or berate yourself either - your choices are half chance, so are everybody elses.

Enjoy your body, use it every way you can...dont be afraid of it, or what other people think of it, its the greatest instrument youll ever own.

Dance...even if you have nowhere to do it but in your own living room.

Read the directions, even if you dont follow them.

Do NOT read beauty magazines, they will only make you feel ugly.


Get to know your parents, youll never know when theyll be gone for good. Be nice to your siblings; they are the best link to your past and the people most likely to stick with you in the future.

Understand that friends come and go, but for the precious few you should hold on. Work hard to bridge the gaps in geography in lifestyle because the older you get, the more you need the people you knew when you were young.

Live in New York City once, but leave before it makes you hard; live in Northern California once, but leave before it makes you soft.

Travel.

Accept certain inalienable truths, price will rise, politicians will philander, you too will get old, and when you do youll fantasize that when you were young prices were reasonable, politicians were noble and children respected their elders.

Respect your elders.

Dont expect anyone else to support you. Maybe you have a trust fund, maybe you have a wealthy spouse; but you never know when either one might run out.

Dont mess too much with your hair, or by the time its 40, it will look 85.

Be careful who advice you buy, but be patient with those who supply it. Advice is a form of nostalgia, dispensing it is a way of fishing the past from the disposal, wiping it off, painting over the ugly parts and recycling it for more than its worth.

But trust me on the sunscreen.

posted by Tomas @ Monday, March 19, 2007 3 comments

At last

Yes yes, rarely do you see a white raven but here I am...
Not quite dead yet if that was anyones wish :) quite to the contrary I have actually never had so much energy in my life.
This is going to shock my die hard sarcasm friends but I started using Herbalife. At first I had so much against these products, thought this was just another money ripping crap, but I was very low on energy and reading about the products it made perfect sense, I mean, you can´t find a healthier breakfast, so I decided to try. I didn´t tell anyone, it was a secret operation. I was half hoping to get the energy but at the same time half hopping this not to work so that I could crap all over it. But the weird thing happened that not only did I tripple my energy, I also lost 8 kilos, right away, built some muscles (there were non before), I started to sleep much better, both falling asleep and waking up, all in all it really made a huge difference.
Then I started to sell it and now I am making extra money by pointing people to a better life, how cool is that!
Anyways, don't take my word, go to www.heilsufrettir.is/tomask and read the success stories (If you understand Icelandic) it is amazing...
I am in love, but now it is finally not with a girl that will break my heart but a product... if anyone wants more information about it, either about the different products or the business opportunity this brings then just send me an e-mail or call me, you will not regrett it.
Hereby I declare this blatant commercial finished.
Live with passion!

posted by Tomas @ Tuesday, March 06, 2007 5 comments

Exams anyone?

I stole this from my friends blog, it is just so good I had to share it with the world.

50 Things to do During Finals
1. Bring a pillow. Fall asleep (or pretend to) until the last 15 minutes. Wake up, say ``oh geez, better get cracking'' and do some gibberish work.

2. Get a copy of the exam, run out screaming ``Andre, Andre, I've got the secret documents!!''

3. If it is a math/science exam, answer in essay form. If it is long answer/essay form, answer with numbers and symbols. Be creative. Use the surface integral symbol.

4. Make paper airplanes out of the exam. Aim them at the instructor's left nostril.

5. Talk the entire way through the exam. Read questions aloud, debate your answers with yourself out loud. If asked to stop, yell out, ``I'm SOOO sure you can hear me thinking.'' Then start talking about what a jerk the instructor is.

6. Bring cheerleaders.

7. Walk in, get the exam, sit down. About five minutes into it, loudly say to the instructor, ``I don't understand ANY of this. I've been to every lecture all semester long! What's the deal? And who the hell are you? Where's the regular guy?''

8. Bring a Game Boy. Play with the volume at max level.

9. On the answer sheet find a new, interesting way to refuse to answer every question. For example: I refuse to answer this question on the grounds that it conflicts with my religious beliefs. Be creative.

10. Bring pets.

11. Run into the exam room looking about frantically. Breathe a sigh of relief. Go to the instructor, say ``They've found me, I have to leave the country'' and run off.

12. Fifteen minutes into the exam, stand up, rip up all the papers into very small pieces, throw them into the air and yell out ``Merry Christmas.'' If you're really daring, ask for another copy of the exam. Say you lost the first one. Repeat the process every fifteen minutes.

13. Do the exam with crayons, paint, or fluorescent markers.

14. Come into the exam wearing slippers, a bathrobe, a towel on your head, and nothing else.

15. Come down with a BAD case of Turet's Syndrome during the exam. Be as vulgar as possible.

16. Do the entire exam in another language. If you don't know one, make one up. For math/science exams, try using Roman numerals.

17. Bring things to throw at the instructor when he's not looking. Blame it on the person nearest you.

18. As soon as the instructor hands you the exam, eat it.

19. Walk into the exam with an entourage. Claim you are going to be taping your next video during the exam. Try to get the instructor to let them stay, be persuasive. Tell the instructor to expect a percentage of the profits if they are allowed to stay.

20. Every five minutes, stand up, collect all your things, move to another seat, continue with the exam.

21. Turn in the exam approximately 30 minutes into it. As you walk out, start commenting on how easy it was.

22. Do the entire exam as if it was multiple choice and true/false. If it is a multiple choice exam, spell out interesting things (DCCAB, BABE, etc.)

23. Bring a black marker. Return the exam with all questions and answers completely blacked out.

24. Get the exam. Twenty minutes into it, throw your papers down violently, scream out ``Fuck this!'' and walk out triumphantly.

25. Arrange a protest before the exam starts (e.g. Threaten the instructor that whether or not everyone's done, they are all leaving after one hour to get drunk.)

26. Show up completely drunk. (Completely drunk means that at some point during the exam, you should start crying for mommy.)

27. Every now and then, clap twice rapidly. If the instructor asks why, tell him in a very derogatory tone, ``The light bulb that goes on above my head when I get an idea is hooked up to a clapper. DUH!''

28. Comment on how sexy the instructor is looking that day.

29. Come to the exam wearing a black cloak. After about 30 minutes, put on a white mask and start yelling ``I'm here, the phantom of the opera'' until they drag you away.

30. Go to an exam for a class you have no clue about, where you know the class is very small, and the instructor would recognize you if you belonged. Claim that you have been to every lecture. Fight for you right to take the exam.

31. Bring a water pistol with you. 'Nuff said.

32. Try to get people in the room to do the wave.

33. From the moment the exam begins, hum the theme to Jeopardy. Ignore the instructor's requests for you to stop. When they finally get you to leave one way or another, begin whistling the theme to the Bridge on the River Kwai.

34. Start a brawl in the middle of the exam.

35. If the exam is math/science related, make up the longest proofs you could possibly think of. Get pi and imaginary numbers into most equations. If it is a written exam, relate everything to your own life story.

36. Come in wearing a full knight's outfit, complete with sword and shield.

37. Bring a friend to give you a back massage the entire way through the exam. Insist this person is needed, because you have bad circulation.

38. Bring cheat sheets FOR ANOTHER CLASS (make sure this is obvious. . . like history notes for a calculus exam. . . otherwise your're not just failing, you're getting kicked out too) and staple them to the exam, with the comment ``Please use the attached notes for references as you see fit.''

39. When you walk in, complain about the heat. Strip.

40. After you get the exam, call the instructor over, point to any question, ask for the answer. Try to work it out of him.

41. One word: Wrestlemania.

42. Bring balloons, blow them up, start throwing them around like they do before concerts start.

43. Do the exam on your laptop. Make sure the simulated keyboard noises are on.

44. Play frisbee with a friend on the other side of the room.

45. Bring some large, cumbersome, ugly idol. Put it right next to you. Pray to it often. Consider a small sacrifice.

46. Get deliveries of candy, flowers, balloons, telegrams, etc. sent to you every few minutes throughout the exam.

47. During the exam, take apart everything around you. Start with your calculator, move on to your desk, your chair, anything you can reach.

48. Complete the exam with everything you write being backwards at a 90 degree angle.

49. Bring a musical instrument with you, play various tunes. If you are asked to stop, say ``it helps me think.'' Bring a copy of the Student Handbook with you, challenging the instructor to find the section on musical instruments during finals. Don't forget to use the phrase ``Told you so.''

50. Answer the exam with the ``Top Ten Reasons Why Professor Sussman Sucks.''

posted by Tomas @ Friday, January 12, 2007 3 comments

Life in Singapore-Smoke gets in your eyes

From the city of Singapore, and the country of Singapore for that matter, I write this epic blog. Singapore is a very nice country, I just wish I could see it through the damn haze that covers the city... This haze comes from my beloved Indonesia, where farmers burn down forests to be able to increase their income a bit. Then the smoke blows over too Singapore and Malasia, who cares about them anyway.
As I am writing these first two paragraphs the song Wish you were here by Pink Floyd sounds in my ear and I can´t help missing all my friends from all around the world and specially my Icelandic friends, those who see me almost every day, even without my make-up!
As well as Pink Floyd (although it is now Stevie Ray that graces my awsome ears) there are two other voices that pierce my golden thoughts. It is the words of the girls living here, they are talking on Skype to some people, one in Cantonese or Kantonese or whatever, the other one in Chinese Mandarin... quite an international athmosphere, although these languages obviously don´t measure up to the magnificent Icelandic language which only the superior people in the world are blessed to learn.
Life here in Singapore is redicilusly (wow... that is spelled incorrectly, as many others probably, i am too lazy to run this through word or any other spelling check) expensive, but very nice, all the streets are so clean, no trash anywhere, the traffic moves smoothly, not the eternal traffic jams that charecterises Jakarta. Everywhere you can see signs threatening redicilusly high fines for smoking, throwing gum or any other behaviour. The best sign so far was in a back alley (don´t ask me what I was doing in a back alley in Singapore, too long story), there was a sign, red triangle which had an interesting picture with the text "no humping"!! brilliant!!
We have a new secretary general in the United Nation... a S-Korean guy no one has ever heard of, the same applied to Kofi Annan when he was chosen. I think the UN should re-think their selection a bit, it is under criticism by the public, so to become popular again they should elect a popular figure... lets say Justin Timberlake or someone like that, would also lighten up the mood a bit, instead of arguing over a little bit of nuclear power in Iran and N-korea they would dance to Seniorita and other classic songs... then they can sit down, the tension out of their body and they can throw away the nuclear plan... Also the pulic would connect more with UN and its leader like that. Imagine turning on the evening news and see George Bush and Kim "something" shake their asses together... great way to generate votes and build world peace...
Somehow Iam totally empty now, can´t think of anything to write about.. if you have some favorite topics that I should write about in my next blog, please comment... It can be anything from dwarf porn over to the foreign policy of Mali...
Untill then...

posted by Tomas @ Wednesday, October 18, 2006 5 comments

Singapore, country of... well, any ideas?

Wow... been like two weeks or something, yes, it is me and my writing skills. First of all my writing skills are not that good to start with, then you add a random periods of time when I can not write anything, not even an e-mail and the conclusion must be that my dream of ever publishing a book must be remote.
What have I been up to, well, I promised my self never to become a "today I ate cornflakes" kind of blog. But I will give a brief summary of things now... football league has started, I am playing for a team called Jakarta Vikings, pre season went up and down, and we didn't really know where we stood at the beginning of the season. Our first game was against Do it (yeah, that's what I thought as well when I heard it, uncreative Nike rip of!) for you not so much of a footbal fans you will burn in the eternal flames for not liking the divine sport, but as I am chritian and don't judge people (right...) I will allow you to skip this part of the blog, just scroll down untill you see something else.

Do it-Vikings
The game started of well, we put the pressure on them, we had 3 corners and 2 shots in the first 10 minutes, my contribution was crucial at those beginning minutes as I warmed the bench with passion and committment.
Their team consists of middle aged beer drinkers with mood disorders, they kept yelling at each other (and not the "Honey bunny, shake your lovely ass" kind of shouts). But then because they knew they would lose every game of the season the hired 2 super Indonesians... ohhh... well... they aren't professional footballers (in a way yes, since they are paid) but they are just so damn fast that it doesn't matter what they can do with the ball, they just out ran us every time.
Our team on the other hand is a strong team led by a group of Danish guys from the age of 40 to 59 (or 69... I am serious... I remember he has a big birthday next year). They were once brilliant footballers, now they are very good (well, at least better than I am), but the years, Indonesian beer and the lack of excercise due to the privelage of having a prvate driver makes most of them stretch their uniforms a bit.
After 10 minutes we were finished, and 9 of the other guys were finished, the problem was those 2 indonesians, they didn't accept slowing down and playing the wonderfull game of banging
forward some long balls and see if one might get in... (kind of like playing a slots machine), no, they had to continue running like some rabbits in a mating season, it occured to me to go out there and aim a well selected Icelandic tackle to the knee of the faster guy, but decided against it as it would not be in the spirit of our team (and there is a lot of spirit there, whiskey, beer and all kinds of spirit). I came on in the second part of the first half and my performance I would rate as 9, on the scale of 9-20. I was shit! although my official excuse is that when I came on it was already 2-0 for the Nike rip off team. The game ended 2-0 for the two Indonesian guys... they scored both the goals, but we didn't care since we had beers with us, not them, so we could get directly to the more serious matters while they had to drive home first... loosers!

Game two came along...
Vikings-Lions
Those are two old teams in the league, normally warming the lower half of it, historically Vikings have the habit of beating the Lions and we came there full of spirit (no, this time not the one measured in %) only problem was that we had so much spirit that 25 guys showed up for us... ohhh... well... random substitutions and flowing schoolground formation became reality.
The Lions had lost against Do it in a friendly 6-0 and then they had betrayed the spirit of the league and hired 5 african guys. Again, unfair in my opinion to hire people to play in an amateur league... again these guys were so athletic that it didn't matter if they were good or not. I had a good game though, after the horrible performance the week before I stopped trying playing skillful football and turned on the Icelandic fighting spirit, ran like a devil, tackled everything that moved and pushed anyone in close range (yah... advise to you guys, don't push the referee, they don't like it). The game was played at night and even though the floodlights illuminated the pitch it was rather dark and with 5 african guys it was sometimes hard to see them, specially since they kept playing sheeps the whole game, we came close to them and the jumped in the air, started screaming like some C-class porn stars (yes, it did turn me on) and fell to the gras, there they lay, biting grass like some lazy sheeps... I told one of them to stop acting like a C-grade porn star and when he tried to be cool and turned to me, pressing his chest out I cowered out and admitted that ok, he could make it as a B-grade porn star. His poetic abilities were awsome because he replied, "you are going down" oofff... I was so afraid, next time he touched the ball Iwent for his ankle, and ignored the ball, fortunatly the referee didn't see that and awarded us a throw in. He was then substituted and I never got the chance to go down... too bad... but well, the game it self ended 1-4 so, another defeat....

Well, that's football so far, I'll keep you posted on the progress of our dazzling football team as time goes along. The squash league has started as well and I have won all my matches there, unfortunatly there are no african porn stars or Nike rip offs there so not much to report on that.

Now, a travel story... Due to a fuck up in my visa situation in Indonesia I only returned from Poland on a tourist visa which only gives me one month, that month finished on sunday, so on tuesday last week I booked a ticket to go to Singapore... the plan was, come here on sunday, apply on monday morning, get back thursday or friday, but... Indonesia and Indonesians are a very special people and on thursday I was informed that my application was not ready and would not be untill late next week, so I had to cancell my return ticket and it is clear that I have to be here at least 10 days... not good!!
Anyways... Sunday morning comes, I had been watching the England-Macedonia with a group of english guys, which meant alot of beer, and yes, I got pick pocketed!!!! arg!!! I had just withdrawn 500.000 rupiahs (sounds more than it is), I paied my bill, 200.000 but then as I went to the next place and was going to pay for my beer there was no money in my pocket... bastards!!! yes, well, sunday morning came and I was really sleepy, I had to ;leave the house around 1 o'clock to arrive to the airport in time but the time flew and it was 12:45 when I got up and started packing which I had not started yet... For a change nothing remarkable happened on my way to the airport or at the airport it self. In the plane to Singapore there was though a bit weird situation, I has an isle seat and the two seats next to me were taken by a couple, they just couldn't stop touching each other and I felt kind of like a third wheel there, like the guy that nobody wants there, just crashing the party.
Singapore airport is simply amazing, the best I have ever been to (and those that know me, know I have spent a considerable time in many different airports), although Gatwick will always be my home airport Singapore airport has to be my favorite one to visit (lets define it as me living in Gatwick, visiting Singapore). There is free internet all around the airport, everything clean and spacious, so many shops and restaurants truly amazing. I had an adress of the place I was going to stay at and in the direction of how to get there there was a subway I had to take, so I found the subway and got a map and everything with explaination as to how to get there.
I went out on the station I was supposed to and lets state that the time was already 11:00 o'clock... I went to the taxi line, I was second, still I had to wait for 15 minutes for a taxi, the taxi driver didn't know the street I was asking for, so I had to exit the taxi and wait for another one, another 10 minutes passed before i got another one. He knew the street but said my address (which I had written down) was incomplete and that I would never find the house or appartment I was looking for. I told him to drive to the street anyway, so he did. I went out in the street and what I had as an address was St. Francis rd. #08-04... I started asking people on that street but they all said I needed a block number or name... they pointed to two apartment buildings and told me to try apartment 08-04 there... in the first building I went to the 8th floor and knocked on the 08-04, no answer, I put my ear on the door and heard some voice so I knocked again (it was 11:30 by this time), I heard footsteps and the door opened. In the door there was a person that didn't look like an AIESECer... naked middle aged Indian guy (he had a towel, small one), I still tried, and asked him if he was Emil, he didn't answer so I excused my self and walked away with him staring after me... interesting thing... the second apartment had no answer and I heard nothing from within so I went to the main road again where I had to wait for almost 20 minutes for a taxi (it is impossible to get a taxi in this country) I asked him to take me wherever there would be an internet access at this time of night, the driver drove off and drove me to a shopping mall, I ponted in and asked if there was internet there, he nodded and told me to go the second floor, there was internet. The shops in the mall were closed but there were 5 or 6 kareokee bars that were open, but no internet. One guy wrote down a name of a plce he said might be open. I walked out and started walking that direction, because again, it is impossible getting a taxi here. after walking for around 20 minutes I found an open internet placem I walked up and they were turnig off the computers, the allowed me to check hostel.com to find a hostel. I picked the hghest rated (by visitors) hostel and asked them if the street that it was on was close. He gave me a map and showed me where it was, only 2 streets away so I went there, but alas... they were closed, only way to get in after 22:30 is with a door code. I had written down another address and asked a guy where that was, he said far far away, very expensive in a taxi... so I continued walking around Singapore, looking for that place I had been told about in the shopping mall. As I thought I was getting close I asked a guy where it was, he laughed and told me it was closed at this time... I cursed my luck and asked where something open with internet was. He directed me to an Indian mall, but alas, the two internet stores there were both closed. I have spent many nights in airports and I have never bought a night in a hotel but this time I gave up, I walked into a fancy hotel, paid an arm and a leg for a room, went upstairs, watched ESPN untill I fell asleep...
This was my first day/night in Singapore... I'll keep you updated on my stay here,
Cheers,
Tomas

posted by Tomas @ Monday, October 09, 2006 2 comments

Tell me cuando, cuando, cuando

Yes, yes, he is alive... unfortunatly the world couldn't get rid of me so I am still lurking around waiting for the right moment to take it over. I had a very slow week the first week after I got back, the medicine made me really drowsy and my energy level was equal to my laptop (the battery lives for around 10 minutes). Although I went on the tuesday (3 days after the accident) and played in the Indonesian squash league... not a good idea I'll tell you... but hey, sometimes you have got to take one for the team. I lost 3-0 to a middle aged man which didn't look like a very mobile creature, but in the court he managed to move all his mass very elegantly... but the shame was no less of loosing to him... and I didn't want to excuse my self, so I didn't tell anyone that I could barely breath and that everything was going in and out of focus in my head. The week after (this week) I played again and now, feeling much better I won 3-0 against a really nice guy, CEO of a country club here in Indonesia, he invited me over for several of their events so it was really nice...
Now I am in Bandung doing an LC visit which, for those of you non-AIESCers is a visit to a local committee of AIESEC which I am responsible for, so I am coaching the board here and motivating the members (or at least trying).
Chelsea is ofcourse doing very well and seeing them beating the bloody Liverpool was very gratifying and proved my previous post after the community shield about the superiority of Chelsea over distinctively avarage Liverpool team.
That's it...
I'll wirte again before Rammadah (or however you spell it) finishes,
Tomas

posted by Tomas @ Friday, September 22, 2006 6 comments