Life As It Goes By

I remembered that I have been asked more than once, after stating proudly the football club  that I support, the reason why I supported the club. Is it purely the passion or because this is the team that brings me the most wins from all my bets. What’s the connection? I didn’t really get the first few times. I simply gave my answer though I still give my answer (which is passion, of course) now. But I began to understand, from the other thread of thought.

If I were a gambler, came across soccer bets as one of available options in the betting shop and won a few rounds, then I would naturally grow to like a particular team: my lucky team, which may become my favourite team. To do some homework, I would want to watch them play. And that’s maybe how I learn the rules of the game. This is also how I would get more confident of my choice. It will be okay for the team to lose once in a while because I know them well that they be back on winning the next time.

I have friends who were genuine fans of football clubs of great history. They have now turned to gambling as they join the fight with their clubs to gain glory. The passion for the game has remained but the approach might have shifted.

It’s a sad story I am painting here. Of course, there are still a number of die-hard fans who would not trade their faith with luck. I can’t help wondering whether should I honour them or laugh at their (or our) stupidity. We watch the same game, cheer for the same players and gets moody over the same results but those who place bets will win more than us (though the same applies to the opposite). There’s the difference.

Is there really no way to split the two apart? Betting has gotten so bad that match rigging is becoming a norm today, particularly in Europe. Popularity must have a hand in this. The world follows closely the soccer games in Europe (except for South America maybe), just like they did for basketball in US. In some countries, companies (media or telcos) fight fiercely over the exclusive rights over such contents.

However, the main factor is still gambling. It might be the least harmful of vices such as smoking, drinking and womanizing, considering the health costs over the long run. It’s a habit as hard to kick as drugs-taking. It plays down on 1 major element: hope. In a game of almost equal stakes, there is always a chance of you winning.

With legal betting stations and more casinos opening up worldwide, the choices for those who wish to try their luck shall be more and varied. It doesn’t really matter how much you place on each bet. Your share will be easily totaled up to an enormous amount with many more smaller shares like yours. Just think about it. For $2, you might stand the chance to get $200 in return. Where in the world can you find such a deal? Stock market? Okay, maybe… What about a $2 lottery for $1 million prize? Beat this!

Perhaps it’s time to mark down the problems we face today around the world. Someone or me can pick these up later and analyze what has happened from now to then.

I would like to group them in 3 categories. I call them: the problem of global warming, the problem of mutation of bacteria, or healthcare simply, and the problem of greed.

Global warming is caused by the harmful CO2 gases that we the human created to damage the ozone layer. It is also caused by the widespread deforestation that we have done. The replacement rate for the trees that convert the CO2 to oxygen is much slower than the rate that we take them off the surface of the Earth. Effects of the global warming are huge. Melting of icebergs at the poles (North and South) rises the sea level and reduces the arable land area for not just humans, but the innocent animals. Weather has become more unpredictable as the nature adapts to the change in ozone layer. Tectonic movements are as usual until a relationship between them and the sea level or weather is found. Another effect is the rising temperature. This in turn results in fewer species among the animal and plant. As for the humans, more energy is required to keep us cool and a vicious cycle has been created.

My dentist friend once told me that the rate at which bacteria or the micro organism mutates would one day exceed the rate at which human can create anti-bodies or vaccines. I saw similar articles on the papers and believed this to be the fact. In recent years, we humans are troubled by pandemics, related to influenza. It is still unclear the actual causes of these. I feel that we, humans, play a big part in this. The way we feed the animals, pass the sickness to them or do tests on them have an impact. We have created mad cow diseases, bird flu, swine flu (not this time though) and etc. The real victims are the animals themselves. They themselves have not the ability to build immunity to such diseases. Every time I see a bird or monkey picking the food we leave behind, I wonder if how their body “system” will react to such food, especially artificial or chemically produced ones. It’s not their fault really. In their world, the basic rule is:  the fittest survives. They have to feed on anything they can find. They have adapted well so far, as I can see. There are no more trees where they can build nests (not to say communities) with. Instead, they find holes or make use of exterior design of buildings. These are just 2 (still many others there) types of animals we are talking about here. Anyway, the point is we must be reminded of the fact that it’s a matter of time when a pandemic will hit us really hard. So, think hard on how we can stop this…

Lastly, I would like to continue to rub salt on the recent Financial Crisis wounds. This is pretty much attributed by the thing we called greed. I think it might have begun many years ago when the Forbes’s published the World’s Richest list. I remembered myself following the list every year. At the start, it was a mixed feeling of amazement and admiration. As the top list didn’t change much for a while, more details had to be covered in the publication and this helped me (in fact, everyone of us) to understand better how these guys got there. It did change part of  me then. Suddenly, it struck me that I can follow the same steps and be like them. So, I embarked on a long journey to realize the dream of being rich. Yes, I tried and tried, but I only become older and further away from that dream. I know of friends who are in better position but they are still like me, a great, great distance away from those guys in the list. I realize I am sharing a common dream with a lot of people out there. I am not sure if I have a problem, thinking in this way. I am only know that I always wanted more and more the next time. Perhaps it’s just the nature of human race. I have no idea how I can cure this problem of mine (or anyone) or whether such problem can ever be solved.

Today happens to be 9/9/09 which sounds like 999 or the universal emergency telephone number. Maybe it’s about time for the world to call for help.

Last week, I saw the last moments of 2 ladies who had seen 8 decades of the world in their own parts. One of them, I have only known for about a year or two while the other, since my birth. It’s definitely not the first funeral of a relative that I have to “go” through (my mum passed away about 9 years ago). Due to my family’s religion, I had to “perform” my last respects to my elder, one of which was to stay up whole night to watch over the coffin. I don’t mind all that actually. I had done more tedious ones before. It gave me a time off, to reflect my life so far.

Sad to say, it kinda looks like a family gathering which could be quite stressful at times. Seeing how well your peers do can sometimes put you under great pressure. There are so many things to ask for in life:marriage, child/children, career and health. When you are at certain level of these things, those who have been there, done that would be the next level of things. It seems like they expect me to catch up with them in no time. Anyway, it’s a good opportunity to keep check with what I do have and what I don’t.

It also acts as a motivator as well. It reminds me what I still have to fight for in life. Goals are clearer now. I know I am behind for some of these stuff but luckily I am ahead in some others. I begin to think life is pretty much like the computer games I played to kill time (or those online games in Facebook which my wife uses to compete with her friends). In some games I got to make the high scores and in some others I was beaten up badly. Of course, I enjoyed those that I can play well with and dreaded those that I can’t. But in life, sometimes, you don’t have the choice to play only the games you do well in. You are forced to play the losing games as well. Those who win all deserve to be there. For others like me, we try to keep afloat by winning more than we lose. Finally, there remain those who don’t take the games seriously. They just take the thrills of the game play and ignore the results. In the end, they would the bite of the results but they would keep better,detailed memories (all-time winners tend to forget their victories fast).

I can’t judge if the grandmas of mine and my wife’s had played theirs well. Results are however great. They had 4 generations in the family tree. I doubt I can achieve this myself. Probably I can live up to see my grandchildren but not their children.

They did not go alone. Typhoon Morakot, earthquakes in India and Japan and the virulent H1N1 flu had taken many others along. We might have misread the warning of the eclipse that had occurred not long ago. Old wisdom spoke of incoming catastrophes upon the sights of eclipse.

And now, I would like to pay my very last respects to them.

Yes, we have all heard… The fall of another great American icon. Michael Joseph Jackson, aged 50, passed on the 25th June 2009, as we are moving on to first decade of the millennium and in the thick of the financial “shit” (forgive me on this choice of word). King of Pop is the more formally used words. Yes, he is right there beside the King of Rock despite the other affiliation he might have. The entitlement might have been given for the amazing movements of the legs but I believe there is more to that.

I spent the whole day of the 26th June, listening through the songs of the King from the radio and there is just none that I have not heard of or known of. I cared less on the details of his death. In fact, I am not really bothered by what he had done outside his work life. I just enjoyed the music that he had brought to this world. Always something completely out of my imagination. I am not sure who wrote or compose the songs. I just love the way Michael presents and delivers them.

Thanks, Michael, for dropping a comment to see if I am going to blog about Mr. Jackson. I was thinking about it since yesterday. I felt it was actually senseless to demean or brag. Who am I to judge? I can only say his life is a more colorful than mine. I am not the only one, I believe. I guess his regrets won’t be greater than mine if I were to pass away anytime now. So, I want to be happy for his passing. Whatever wrongs he had done, he had paid for them. I can’t speak for the victims but only for myself.

The only trivial stuff I want to mention would be the rise in sales/downloads from Apple Store or any other online stores, uploads to YouTube and documentaries or “specials” in any media. The usual phenomenon or revenue generating activities from the death of a great artist.

If I may, I would like to ask for a minute of silence. For whenever I hear Michael’s songs, I remember the joy and thrill that he had given to us. In MJ, we remember.

Finally, today I have found the direct link to this great movement:
http://www.laptopgiving.org/en/index.php
The more visionary website can also be found:
http://www.laptop.org/en/vision/index.shtml
So, don’t hesitate now. Make it a wonderful Christmas this year!

(dated: 04/12/2007)