The following fern close-ups reflect my primary interest in digital photography - macro work. However I'm reminded that it's been a long time since I've actually set out on a planned macro shoot.
These shots are actually cropped from larger pics after I realized their potential as macro 'art'. I would love to go back to re-shoot them with the proper lens, but the ferns were located in Malacca, so I guess that's that then. 
The following isn't technically macro, but I thought it turned out rather interesting after I experimented with some 'artistic' ideas on the comp.
It was a sunny morning, but the news that greeted me was dark and cheerless. Adrian Hooi, the convicted cat-killer who was jailed earlier this year, has struck again. The latest victim, a 5 month old kitten discovered outside his home, was found bleeding from the nostrils and eyes as a result of extensive head trauma.
The only option the doctors had was to put it to sleep out of mercy.
Why are we capable of such atrocities? Is the human nature so inherently shattered beyond recognition and repair?
It boggles my mind to imagine what goes on inside his head when the tiny and helpless kitten was in his hands. In fact, the ability to wantonly and intentionally end a life, whether human or animal, is nearly inconcievable to me, except we read and hear about it happening way too frequently.
To what depths of fear or rage do we have to sink to before murder becomes a viable option? Is it intrinsic to our human nature? Will I do the same if pushed far enough?
And yet, this same human nature is also capable of great feats of emotional connection and unhesitating sacrifice. The capacity to love and embrace life in its intangible beauty is a gift that's uniquely endowed upon Mankind. But this gift is a double-edged sword for where the greatest all-encompassing love is, violent hatred is, sadly, never too far away.
So what can we do? I think in recognizing our human condition, it should propel us to find healing and respite in that which our spirit cannot taint.
In thoughtful but turbulent moments like these, I experience a deeply acute and desperate longing for God and His peace. Maybe it's just a cowardly form of escapism to avoid slamming head on into reality in all its stark brutality; or it could be, I would like to think, for the comforting reminder that hope is present for us even when I can't see or sense it.
During the week prior to the camp earlier this month, I realized that I was running on less than 700mb of space on my laptop's harddrive. That was definitely not enough to store the award-winning pictures that I was intending to take for the camp. As it turned out, I took over 3gb worth of blurry and closed-eyed pictures.
So I had acquired a slim 40gb portable harddrive to move all my pictures into. That way I could free up space on the laptop. After which, I was able to download the camp pics onto the laptop and all my pictures from the past 6 months were safe and snug in the new portable harddrive. So all is well, right?
Wrong.
The spanking new harddrive has decided to cease working after approximately a week of usage. I guess it was too disgusting to have to house my hideous and ghastly pictures so it simply gave up the ghost. Even portable harddrives have feelings, I've learnt. So other than the camp pictures, all my other pictures, all 15gb worth, are basically in oblivion.
That's a fancy way of saying, *sob*, they're gone.
I suppose I should be glad that the slate has been wiped almost clean and I can start my photography 'collection' all over again with greater understanding of what I'm doing. Don't you wish life could be like that at times? Or maybe, most of the time? Don't you wish that all of your disasterous decisions, hateful words and stupid mistakes could be eradicated when they occured, and you could live that moment again with a choice to do the right thing?
It's nice to dream. But of course, that wouldn't be life as we know it. Instead, real life occurs sans the rewind button. So be very aware of the choices you make in order to minimize baggage in your Room of Regret. I know mine is pretty much filled.
And it's of no use to be found moping about what cannot be undone; especially when the future beckons.
A road lies ahead; so I'll stop looking back now.
I haven't the faintest idea what just transpired but my blog layout mysteriously decided to act up. I logged in today to update the recent events column and after I thought I was done some codes somewhere got seriously messed up. The end result wasn't pretty.
I could have sworn I didn't touch anything I shouldn't have; maybe it's a cyber tantrum after my 2 weeks of absence?
Anyway, that just means I have to get off my butt and do some poking around the codes, which is a horribly frustrating affair akin to flagging down a cab 10 mins before midnight. So rather than try to fix it, I've decided to just go skin-hunting instead; here's a temporary solution till I find one I simply have to have.
The firefox users should be happy since my previous skin couldn't work in their hallowed browser (I'm assuming, of course, that this one will).
So. The blog facade is now officially in transition. Stay tuned.
After the previous week of emotional harassment by the church camp preparations, it was almost a guilty pleasure to see the actual event wafting through the days like a balmy Hawaiian sea breeze.
From the time the program kicked off on Monday evening till the reluctant departure on Thursday, every element fell into its rightful place. It was all God's grace, of course, and I ended up feeling a little silly, though majorly relieved, when it finally became evident there wasn't going to be a violent mutiny or bubonic plague outbreak.
The only blip in an otherwise smooth-sailing camp was my Tuesday morning session with the children. The lesson began well enough, but halfway through I made a catastrophic request, to put it mildly, for them to form discussion groups. What was I thinking? Needless to say, any semblence of order could not be restored and I could only soak helplessly in the maniacal madness that ensued. I felt rather lousy after the ordeal because of my ineffectiveness but I guess it was a learning experience I would do well to remember forever.
Our camp speaker, the gregarious Dr Robert Nienhuis, delivered thought-provoking messages which appealed to both the young and old. He and his lovely wife, Bette Jo, were also very game in participating throughout the various activities and being a warm and friendly presence to the campers. 
The various games held in the evenings provoked much mirth and laughter; it was a wonderful to have everyone letting their hair down in a vastly different and relaxing environment. The spouse id via their feet and hands deserves special mention for the trauma that was inflicted on those who failed to pick the right spouse!
Not everyone was keen on the ostrich farm visit, but upon arrival, it turned out to be a real blast. Riding and racing ostriches were the major highlights with some of our brave members falling unglamorously on their behinds. Haha. Also there was ostrich meat prepared into satay and burgers for us at the end of the visit. 
Thank God for the leaders in our church who dedicate themselves to the well-being of Shalom. It's tough to be a leader whom everyone watches and forms opinions of; it's especially difficult to do the right thing when it isn't always the most popular choice. Our leaders have proven to be resilient and consistent so that's a good thing we should all be grateful for.
Here is the whole gang posing by the hotel's grand marble stairway. I believe everyone enjoyed themselves and it sure made my frenzied prep all worthwhile. Responsibility can be a stick in the proverbial mud, but this privilege makes perfect sense at the end of it when people are edified and able to learn and grow.* * * * *
After the camp officially ended and the campers were safely on their way home, the church leaders and their families headed down to Malacca for a 2 day retreat. Although there were many outstanding issues to be discussed, we ended up spending the bulk of our time on team building exercises and understanding each other's working styles with the aid of the DiSC profiling exercise. Despite our tired bodies and minds working against us, we were able to have a few good sessions of sharing and prayer. Do continue to uphold us in your prayers as well for we need all the help that we can get!
'A' for Awesome! God is good and His watchful eye over the camp proceedings surely made it a real pleasure for the camp comm. How quickly the week has gone by! Having forged new friendships and found new memories, I know I am looking eagerly ahead to next year's camp experience.
I usually review and delete unusable pics on the spot, but when taking multiple shots in succession for certain events, it becomes impossible to stop and check every shot taken. Here are some of the less glamorous shots of some wonderful people that collectively made the camp experience so memorable and fun! Here's to more unglam shots and unwitting subjects! Cheers.It was hard to drum up excitement for this year's church camp in the earlier weeks. The additional work and organization seemed more of an untimely road block in my own schedule of events. With many elements of the anniversary musical still finding ground, I really didn't look forward to spending practically a full week away.
The mound of clothes lies flippantly in jagged streaks beside the half-filled backpack that I just rescued from its musty storage. I remind myself to bring the phone and camera chargers. Extra plastic bags? As I survey the mess I just created, I keep running the camp program through my mind to see if I've failed to take some detail into consideration.
Ok. Stop. Take a deep breath. Exhale slowly.
In the light of my imminent departure in the morning, the old sense of adventure has begun to stir. After all, I like visiting new places, soaking up a new culture and atmosphere. It usually makes me appreciate home a tad more and helps me see the good (and sometimes the ugly) in my practical day to day sojourn.
A golden positive light drastically alters one's paradigm. Surely this is an opportune time to recharge, rebuild and return to the grind with greater fervor and with motivation ablaze?
Hey, I'm trying to aim high.
So it's back to packing. I pray for a good week ahead. For everyone.
This is fascinating; mere mathematical probability, or snazzy hocus pocus?
*maniacal cackle*
ps. you want the volume on for this.