Debbie has a musical based on her music... I'm pleasantly surprised.

The amount of water certain military organisations make their unwillingly recruited recruits drink... well, let's just say there's a tragedy waiting to happen.

Whence cometh another? – A tribute to Martina Hingis

FIVE long years ago, in the sweltering heat of the Australian summer, the reigning world champion Martina Hingis swept past a stunned Amelie Mauresmo to clinch the fifth Grand Slam title of her short career. Alas, it was to be her last.

Indeed, one of the mysteries surrounding modern tennis revolves around the demise of the Swiss Miss, who had for a moment appeared to be poised for tennis immortality. To the casual fan, it could not have been more obvious. “Power. Power did her in.”

Perhaps. Yet when one pictures the inimitable Hingis hitting shots to every nook and cranny of the court and turning her opponent’s pace on them, this argument fails to be totally convincing. For years, she had stood her ground against players who relied more on power than her trademark court craft, and came out on top more often than not. A more plausible reason was her injured ankles, weakened by years of scrambling on the unforgiving hard courts. Yet barely months after her surgery in the fall of 2001, Hingis returned to the scene of her triumph in 1999 and managed to secure a set and 2 breaks lead over Jennifer Capriati before squandering it away.

“I can’t always be the Ferrari.” Hingis said in self-defence when pressed about her growing inability to win Slams. To another reporter who questioned her ability to challenge the elite power players, Hingis replied indignantly “How can you say that?” – and laughed it off.

Yet the seeds of doubt had been sown. As Hingis matured, her youthful arrogance and smirk gave way to grace and a more genial smile. For a player whose brash confidence provided a mask for her insecurity, this erosion of self-belief proved detrimental. In a rare admittance to vulnerability, Hingis admitted that even in 1997, where she took the women’s tour by storm, she was never sure a match was hers until it was well under way. She insisted, “As a woman, you are never too sure.”

In actual fact, what eventually did Hingis in was not a sudden absence of skill or confidence. Instead, it was the many distractions she faced outside of tennis, and lack of motivation she exhibited towards the sport.

Truth be told, Hingis was never one for practicing, nor did she show the drive that many of her contemporaries had. While she put in her hours at a young age, the self-proclaimed “tough nut to crack” never enjoyed the hard work. In fact, tennis was not even her first love. Observers of the game duly noted that Martina appeared to be playing for her authoritarian mother, who embraced tennis, but had neither the opportunity nor talent to ascend to the upper echelons of the game she loved.

Many critics view Hingis; hiatus from the sport as a brief respite, an escape from the expectations weighing upon her slight shoulders, from the hard hitters who now saturate the top Ten. Many fans are still waiting for a comeback. Yet a comeback now seems highly improbable, for Hingis is pursuing her interest in horse-riding by participating in numerous equestrian events. This is the retirement she had been planning far even before she took to the courts as a professional.

For now, Hingis’ absence seems permanent. And her retirement from tennis has shut the door on the classic era of tennis, where women glided gracefully about the court, threading forehands instead of thumping them. Everywhere around the globe, tennis fans will undoubtedly shed a tear, for as the legendary Navratilova acutely observed, “If you’re a fan of tennis, you’re a fan of Hingis.” ~

This article was written in early 2004, when the writer was missing Hingis very very very much. He is elated that she has made a trimphant return to the tour, and wishes her success (and the French Open) in 2007. He also wishes to give credit to the relevant parties for the quotes, but is unsure how to do so.

I owe someone an article, but I've yet to type it out. Coming soon.

Was speaking to S this weekend and she, as always, concocted some very vivid turns of phrase to fit the topic of discussion. This one, I particularly like. I attempt to reproduce it, and accurate to my memory.

The problem with the WSM-group (read: uncaring elites) is that they reduce everything to numbers. The wanton mee costs $2 to everyone. But I think there's fundamentally a difference between the man who has $30 in his pocket and chooses the wanton mee and the one who has to walk an extra bus stop or two (to afford it).

I really should be writing more substantial stuff, and not this.
But I'm lazy and I look for a cheap fix to show that yes, I'm still alive and laughing.

You scored as Existentialism. Your life is guided by the concept of Existentialism: You choose the meaning and purpose of your life.


Man is condemned to be free; because once thrown into the world, he is responsible for everything he does.

It is up to you to give life a meaning.
--Jean-Paul Sartre

It is man's natural sickness to believe that he possesses the Truth.
--Blaise Pascal

More info at Arocoun's Wikipedia User Page...

Existentialism		80%
Kantianism		75%
Hedonism		65%
Justice (Fairness)		65%
Strong Egoism		55%
Utilitarianism		50%
Nihilism		30%
Apathy		25%
Divine Command		5%

What philosophy do you follow? (v1.03)
created with QuizFarm.com

This is funny.
So is anything found on Uncyclopedia.

Anyone who thinks The Departed is great needs to watch Infernal Affairs. The remake doesn't have a finger on the original. And that is even though I watched the original on a VCD with terrible audio and video quality.

The opinion isn't based solely on style. Departed is grittier, IA is prettier (and I do favour the beautiful, fleshed-out shots of the latter). It isn't based on my being a fiercely partisan fanboy of IA, because I'm not, and because it's not my genre. In fact Departed was on it's way to being a credible remake until the lame lame lame finale, which was more comic than tragic, and which succumbed to the famous Hollywood-style ending. It overloaded on the "twists" and suffered from lacklustre and often confusing editing. And I think IA was far more emotionally complex - you could connect with both Leung and Lau. Here, I didn't feel anything when the DiCaprio character died and wanted the smack the Damon character.