Language Destruction or Evolution

It began with the ubiquitous SMS. Now it has spread to any forms of writing, formal or not, online or offline. I'm not talking about the communications technology itself but the language used as the result of this technology. It has become so fashionable to use abbreviations in our wireless text messages that even in formal writing, we may inadvertently write in the same way we send SMSes.

"I need to see you A.S.A.P". Looks/sounds familiar?

Then, we also have other common ones like:

• OMG
• BRB
• BTW
• WTF

There are other not-too-common ones, at least to me they're uncommon like:

• TTYL
• BFF
• ROTFLWLITA

...and, just a minute ago, I received a message that read:

"GBU and ur family" - It took me a few seconds to guess what GBU is.

Is technology destroying the language we use, or is this what we call the evolution of language?

By the way, who owns a car with a registration plate bearing the number "WTF 69"?

Innocent Kids

Why do we love children? ... I received this via e-mail this morning, so I thought it's good to share with all of you. Gosh, that makes me wanna have a kid, too - any kid.

Enjoy!
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NUDITY
I was driving with my three young children one warm summer evening when a woman in the convertible ahead of us stood up and waved. She was stark naked! As I was reeling from the shock, I heard my 5-year-old shout from the back seat, 'Mom, that lady isn't wearing a seat belt!'

OPINIONS
On the first day of school, a first-grader handed his teacher a note from his mother. The note read, 'The opinions expressed by this child are not necessarily those of his parents.'

KETCHUP
A woman was trying hard to get the ketchup out of the jar. During her struggle the phone rang so she asked her 4-year-old daughter to answer the phone. 'Mommy can't come to the phone to talk to you right now. She's hitting the bottle.'

MORE NUDITY
A little boy got lost at the YMCA and found himself in the women's locker room. When he was spotted, the room burst into shrieks, with ladies grabbing towels and running for cover. The little boy watched in amazement and then asked, 'What's the matter, haven't you ever seen a little boy before?'

POLICE # 1
While taking a routine vandalism report at an elementary school, I was interrupted by a little girl about 6 years old. Looking up and down at my uniform, she asked, 'Are you a cop? Yes,' I answered and continued writing the report. My mother said if I ever needed help I should ask the police. Is that right?' 'Yes, that's right,' I told her. 'Well, then,' she said as she extended her foot toward me, 'would you please tie my shoe?'

POLICE # 2
It was the end of the day when I parked my police van in front of the station.. As I gathered my equipment, my K-9 partner, Jake, was barking, and I saw a little boy staring in at me. 'Is that a dog you got back there?' he asked.
'It sure is,' I replied.
Puzzled, the boy looked at me and then towards the back of the van. Finally he said, 'What'd he do?'

DEATH
While walking along the sidewalk in front of his church, our minister heard the intoning of a prayer that nearly made his collar wilt. Apparently, his 5-year-old son and his playmates had found a dead robin. Feeling that proper burial should be performed, they had secured a small box and cotton batting, then dug a hole and made ready for the disposal of the deceased. The minister's son was chosen to say the appropriate prayers and with sonorous dignity intoned his version of what he thought his father always said: 'Glory be unto the Faaather, and unto the Sonnn, and into the hole he goooes.' (I want this line used at my funeral!)

SCHOOL
A little girl had just finished her first week of school. 'I'm just wasting my time,' she said to her mother. 'I can't read, I can't write, and they won't let me talk!'

BIBLE
A little boy opened the big family Bible. He was fascinated as he fingered through the old pages. Suddenly, something fell out of the Bible. He picked up the object and looked at it. What he saw was an old leaf that had been pressed in between the pages.
'Mama, look what I found,' the boy called out.
'What have you got there, dear?'
With astonishment in the young boy's voice, he answered, 'I think it's Adam 's underwear!'

What do You Want?

Do you know what you want in life?

If you do, then you're blessed with the ability to decide the path that you're going to create for the rest of your life. You know your dreams, your desires, your future plans for yourself and your family. People in this league dare to fail; they'll fall, stand up and walk with their heads held up high. These are positive-minded people who believe that negatives do not have a place in their life. While they know their life's destination is not vital, they have a firm mind, and their feet are solidly planted to the ground. These are the people who would go far in life... and would one day succeed.

If you don't know what you want in life, you'll spend most - or the entirety - of your life looking for that special something as you don't have any one to guide you. You'll be like a lost lamb not knowing if what you're doing is right or not. You're afraid that making mistakes would destroy you; therefore you comfortably stay where you are. If you don't know what you want in life, others would most likely despise you, blaming you for your inferiority and for being fickle-minded when you keep changing your mind, or you can't make that crucial decision to move on. Not knowing what you want in life is like an eternal curse. It haunts you as you can't decide and stick to that decision; and when there's hardly anyone out there whom you could reach out to, things become bad.

So, what do you really want in life? I don't know... some people spend their entire life not knowing what they want. Could they be helped, short of sending them to a shrink?

The Power of a Child

I used to blog-hop at nights, checking out other people's posts. I've stopped doing that lately due to unforeseen circumstances. During my blog visits, I noticed many posts of family-related issues, particularly those of children, with pictures of them that depict their innocence and antics being splashed across the page.

When you have a child:

• you learn to be a mommy and a daddy
• you learn to exercise patience & understanding
• you learn about yourself - they have YOUR genes
• you learn to be more hygienic to ensure your child stays healthy
• you learn new things so that you are able to bond with your child

When you have a child:

• you see joy in their faces, and you'll be joyful too
• you see tears in their eyes, and you'll be tearful
• you see them grow, and you'll be proud of your achievement

When you have a child:

• you think before you act, for they pick up things real fast
• you think before saying anything bad, for they learn words quickly
• you think before making any drastic decisions, for you know they need you

Children are indeed wonderful people; it's because of children that people change, mostly for the better. It's because of children that life that sometimes sucks becomes more bearable. I don't have one myself, but when I read those posts, I'm just glad to see how happy it is to be a parent.

I Can't See

I see people, in their darkest moments, smile.
I see people, despite not having all the luxuries in life, smile.
I see people falling down and picking up their lives again
I see people cracking the hardest rock till none remain

Here I am in tears
Wanting to wash away my fears
Here I ask "Why me?"
Is it just meant to be?

I am blind
In a tunnel of blackness
What could I find
Other than madness?
Where is the light?
It's nowhere in sight!

This satanic nightmare must cease
Let me go, please, in peace
I want to taste the limited sweetness
I want to feel the ultimate boldness
I want to ride the path to happiness

Buying Genuine

I needed Microsoft Word installed on my old notebook to faciltitate word processing. I've been using Open Office, which is free, downloaded from the Internet. However, I found that switching between Word (in the office) and Open Office (at home) with the same document causes a loss in formatting. Guess what? There was a bargain at YouBeli.com, and I bought an original version for RM279 - Word, Excel, Powerpoint. That's all I need, and I got 3 licences, too.

I had thought of getting the copied version but from past experience, it's not worth it. From now on, I'll just get originals as they guarantee functionality and security threat-free.


This is my new "toy" - the Student 2010 Edition



Weather Fury!

The front page of the local papers says: "Weather fury" in big red letters, and you see this photo. A glance at it makes you think that occurred in the U.S., but no, this one happened in our own backyard yesterday - in the northern state of Perlis.



The mini twister at Jejawi, Perlis. Photo from The Star Online

If you've often thought that Malaysia will never experience such a weather phenomena, think again. Tsunami struck us once a couple of years back. This is not the rage of God to show His anger at us. It is a sign that we all have to pray for a better tomorrow, and that those affected will be in good hands; it tells us the devastating effects development has on our planet. There is power in a prayer.

We should all pray that our generations to come will be able to sustain the savaging environment as a result of the actions of their forefathers - their greed for more money, their quest to be the best in the world, their thirst for power have hastened the Earth's premature demise. Let us pray that our future generations will help save the planet, or at least let it live a little longer. A-men!