Pics of the week

Liks concert on Thursday night

Melo: Best player on team USA? Most consistent offensive threat? Who woulda thought.

Sometimes you meet a bunch of people and you don't realise how well you get along. How well you will work together. And how successful you will all be one day.
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In December 2002, I had this crazy idea of doing this uni competition called HEWSO (Higher Education Workplace Olympiad). It occurred to me that I didn't have a lot of stuff to fill out my resume. Me, being one of those prepared people, I was already looking out for summer clerkships and internships in 2004. I needed some ammo to sell myself.

So I decided to put my name down and convinced Dawen, Tim and Carol to join in. Suffice to say, I was only prepared to put in minimal effort over the course of the summer. It turns out that we also had extra group members join us - Malik, Rosa, and Olivia.

Contray to my original plans, we worked our butts off that summer. We met up every couple of days during our uni holidays, put in long hours, and even did an all-nighter. I was up til 3am in the morning preparing our report. Sat on the uni couches in the lobby with Carol who's car was locked in til 7am. Got home, slept like 2 hours, and went back to uni to add the final touches. This is what happens when you put a bunch of high achievers and motivated people together who don't want to let each other down.

The thing was, this competition didn't even count for anything! There was no credit points for this. It wasn't even a subject! A few weeks later we gave a presentation to Kimberly Clark (the makers of Kleenex tissues) and they loved us. I still remember the call from Carol, I think I was in a bit of shock when I learnt that we had beaten out all comers from UTS!

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Fast forward 3.5 years: Where y'all at now?

- Tim's on a working holiday in Canada, New York, UK after managing the family business.
- Dawen's a senior accountant at a top insolvency accounting firm
- Carol's an accountant at a boutique investment bank
- Olivia is a lawyer at a big law firm
- Cameron's doing his MBA
-Rosa's a business analyst at Big 4 accounting firm.
- Malik's working and studying an education degree at Newcastle Uni.

Me? I'm still blogging! Still the same old me.

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We had a great time at Baia, an Italian restaurant on Cocklebay Wharf reminiscing about that all-nighter, our team name ("NeoStrategy" - represent!). And then we topped it off with our favourtie team activity - Karaoke!

I don't know why, I have this urge tonite to do something I've been pondering for a while. It's been my dream to have my own business. And I also want to start making some investments as well - such as trading on the stock exchange. Not large amounts. Money that I can afford to risk/play around with (hopefully not lose!). Maybe its a result of meeting all those HEWSO folks again.

My eyes are on the bigger prize. I can see it now. DJ Ho Inc! I like the sound of that. Successful business people show traits from a young age. I dont know what I want to do. Import/Export/E-Business/Services. No idea yet. Where can I see an opportunity now or in the future that isn't being serviced by the market. An area that I can build up a competitive advantage.

Who knows. Maybe its all talk. Rome wasn't built in a day and neither was DJ Ho Inc.

I'm out like 3.5 years,

DJ Ho.

Hobbies I tell you

It's a saturday night, and i'm at home! arrghhhh! Not really in the mood to go to sky gardens nightclub for a party. Given that I've deferred studying for 6 months (well really indefinently) I've got free time on my hands. Every night I come home and I'm just heaps tired and just sit in front of the tv. Friday & Saturday nights, I'm usually clubbing and drinking. I'm thinking I should get back into some of my old hobbies and maybe learn something new.

I've been checking out my old martial arts school for starters. I really want to get back into that and learn how to snap a man in half again lol. Just itching to do those combinations again and get some of that bone on bone action to toughen me up - what i mean is that we didn't really punch bags a lot but rather practiced on each other. Walking through Bankstown station on Friday night and through the Viet areas wasn't a very comfortable experience. The fact that I took a quick shortcut through two semi lit alleys to get to a restaurant was actually quite a dumb idea even though i always take that shortcut in the day time. DJ, you got to be street smart about these things.

Also, after going to a couple of salsa clubs with Rob and PJ, I realised that I'd like to actually know the steps. So I'm looking to take a salsa class on a week night like Salsa Vibes. I know a lot of people doing it and looks like fun. And as Terry put it accurately, girls actually want to dance with you unlike at RNB clubs! haha.

On the creative front, I've also been looking at some classes at Sydney Community College. There's some interesting photography classes, journalism, and film clubs going on. I'd love to do the photography one except after the basic class you need a manual camera, and those things are quite expensive. In fact, I suspect photography is quite an expensive hobby. The film club looks alright, except I dont want to watch a lot of boring films! Though I'd love to expand my film knowledge (hey it might be a great conversation starter?).

On the weird front, I came across a criminal psychology course. At one stage in my first year at uni, I was really into my criminal law class and spoke to my lecturer about changing to do law and criminolgy degree. Then I spoke to my current law firm employer who advised me against any sort of career with criminals. Bring that stuff home with you she said. Well I wanted to be Criminal Minded. Maybe its my chance now.

PJ's also mentioned to me about taking a capoeria class - that brazilian sommersault cartwheel to the sound of beating drums dance. Except that it is a lot more complicated that it looks. Plus I know I'm going to look stupid doing that and has no practical use. Imagine getting robbed at Bankstown in some dark alley and breaking out into one of those brazillian cartwheels. Well maybe I shouldn't be walking down dark alleys in the first place!

On the hip hop front, The Alchaholiks tour is coming to sydney. Rocking at Gaelic Theatre August 31st. Probably going so hip hop heads holla back. Also copped The Game "Documentary" and Missy Elliot's "CookBook" LP. Yes I bought them - feel like giving back to artists instead of downloading. Currently in heavy rotation: Ne-yo's "So Sick"

And I'm so sick of love songs/
So tired of tears/
So done with wishing you were still here/
Said I'm so sick of love songs so sad and slow/
So why can't I turn off the radio?

I'm out,

DJ Ho.

And that's one small step for DJ HO....

Suprisingly I'm not doing too bad after running/walking 14kms in Sunday's City 2 Surf. Apparently its 30,000 steps. I walked up the hilly bits and ran the downhill and flat parts. I didn't really push myself too hard given that last year I ended up in the physio a few days later.

Official Time = 130mins, but apparently you get a 8 min discount for being in HSBC start. So I actually did worse this year (122 mins) even though I started much further ahead. FYI last year's time was 120mins.

I'll train for next year, I promise.

Let's get Blown

Not sure how but I've managed to blow $150 each Friday in the last couple of weeks. For example, let's look at last Friday:

- Lunch @ Kingsley Steak House: Steak, side dishes, bottle of wine with 2 friends. $55. Each !!!!! This place is weird. it's like some kind of power lunch joint where only middle aged white males go. It's either a gay hangout or expensive busines lunch place. Imagine the looks I got, when I rolled into that place with 2 girls. And they were the only two females in the whole restaurant. You know how DJ Ho rolls.

- Dinner @ Capitan Torres: Tapas between 5 random people. $36 each! In fact, I don't even know these people. I know the sister of one of these guys. But it was some of the best food I've had in a while.

- Drinks @ Brooklyn Hotel & Cruise Bar: $50! Drinking and shouting people to Scotch & Dry's, Bourbon & Cokes, Beers can become expensive.

So that's $140 in one day. Man.

This friday night, I'm gonna head straight home.

I'm out like $150 Fridays,

DJ Ho.

Lets Talk About Sex

Raunchy music influences teens' sexual habits

The Age
August 8, 2006

TEENAGERS whose music players are full of music with raunchy, sexual lyrics start having sex sooner than those who prefer other songs, a study has found.
Whether it's hip-hop, rap, pop or rock, much of popular music aimed at teens contains sexual overtones. Its influence on their behaviour appears to depend on how the sex is portrayed, researchers found.

Songs depicting men as "sex-driven studs," women as sex objects and with explicit references to sex acts are more likely to trigger early sexual behaviour than those where sexual references are more veiled and relationships appear more committed, the US-based Rand Corporation study found. Teens who said they listened to lots of music with degrading sexual messages were almost twice as likely to start having intercourse or other sexual activities within the following two years as other teens who listened to little or no sexually degrading music.

Among heavy listeners, 51 per cent started having sex within two years, versus 29 per cent of those who said they listened to little or no sexually degrading music.

The Recording Industry Association of America declined to comment on the findings but Benjamin Chavis, chief executive of the Hip-Hip Summit Action Network, a coalition of musicians and industry executives, said explicit lyrics are a cultural expression reflecting "social and economic realities."

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What do I think? Of course sexually explicit lyrics would influence teenagers to having sex. But its one of many factors. Everything influences. It doesn't take a genuis to recognise the link. The people around you, your friends, your parents, and the people that interact with, the tv shows you watch, what you read, and what you music you listen to are just as likely to influence you. We are a product of our surroundings.

But its not logical to pinpoint one single factor like music and say "hey's that's the trigger". The article says something along the lines that "teenagers that listen to sexually explicit lyrics are twice as more likely to have more sex". C'mon, those teenagers are probably the same ones that are outgoing, that actually hang out with the opposite sex, that watch MA rated movies (shock, horror!), that are in relationships. That study proves nothing.

I will say one thing though. I believe that there is a link between people that are violent and violent movies. But you can't argue that everyone that watches violent movies is violent. However, I do think that a large proportion of violent people do watch violent movies. Is this an exception? Does this same analogy apply to listeners of sexually explicit lyrics and their sexual activities? I doubt it.

Let's look at some songs that pop up in my mind. Exhibit A, is Kelis on "Milkshake":

"My milkshake brings all the boys to the yard/
And their like/
It's better than yours/
Damn right it's better than yours/
I can teach you, But I have to charge/"

There's no doubt these are sexually explicit lyrics, but do you see some teenage girl acting like this? Of course not.

What about Fatman Scoop on Love Like This? Check the lyrics:

"To all my niggaz that hit it from the back/
Who wanna have sex with no strings attached"

That's not so bad is it? He's just saying I like the view from behind and I don't want commitment. Maybe the next couple of lines reveals his true intention:

"Lets Go! Who f*ckin' tonite Who f*ckin' tonite Who f*ckin' tonite?"

Hmmmmm.....maybe not the best example. Notorious B.I.G on the song "Big Booty Hoes" (I can hear the alarm bells ringing immediately) said the following opening lines:

"I got a bitch that suck my d*ck til I nut/
Spit it on my gut and slurp that sh*t back up/
Ain't that a slut (HELL YEA) she even take it in the butt
F*ck for bout a hour, now she want a golden shower"

Graphic, yes. Notorious was always ones to paint vivid pictures with his words whether they be violent, sexual, or deathly. Mr 50 cent on one of the biggest radio songs in the last 5 years came up with "In Da Club":

"I'm into having sex, I ain't into making love/
So come give me a hug if you into getting rubbed"

Sexually explicit lyrics are everywhere in popular songs. But does that mean people are more likely to have sex because they listen to these songs? I don't think so. Most people with a shred of reasoning and logic are not going to act on a impulse because they saw something in a movie or heard a line in a song. Yeah it might influence them, but then so do a million other things.

Perhaps Salt N Pepper said it best:

Let's talk about sex for now to the people at home or in the crowd/
It keeps coming up anyhow/
Don't decoy, avoid, or make void the topic/
Cuz that ain't gonna stop it/
Now we talk about sex on the radio and video shows..........
Those who think it's dirty have a choice/
Pick up the needle, press pause, or turn the radio off/
Will that stop us, Pep? I doubt it/
All right then, come on, Spin

Hate It or Love It

When you learn stepped in this game
After "What's The 411?", things ain't been the same
And I can't complain,
But with all this fame comes a whole lot of pain
But I'm so glad to be here
And my music's still sincere
Lets get back to the story
All of this pain and glory
And 94 was "My Life" and my life wasn't right
So I reached out to you and told you what I've been through

Hate it or love it the underdogs' on top
and I'm gon' shine homey until my heart stop
Go head and envy me, I'm a soul hip-hop queen
and I ain't goin' nowhere but you already know me

- Mary J Blige on "Hate it or Love it (remix)"

The Weekend Comes

Not feeling so great after a semi-big night out. Though feel good in the sense that I hadn't seen a lot of the guys in a while and was cool to just chill out, drink, boogie on the dance floor. Given that we are all working now and me being busy with working & studying, and also being lazy, I actually hadn't gone out with them in a while.

So we hit up Belgium Bier Cafe for some mussels and Hoegardens (and no, they don't come from my garden). The Tintin Au Congo mussels were awesome with a nice coconuty flavour. For me, cause I hadn't seen anyone in a while, just being in the presence of friends and chilling out was the place to be. Catching up on Rahul's unorthodox crosstraining, Bosco's aspirations to be a scholar, and hassling Fat Chris's denial of a girlfriend (we know, playa!).

Then it was off to the Retro @ Bristol Arms! This club is dodgy. It's reputation easily preceeds itself. Plays 80's music and is populated by 40-60 year olds. I was actually quite suprised by the number of young people in da club downstairs. Getting there around 8pm, it was actually starting to fill up.

I reckon that most of the young people go there just to take the piss out of it. By this time we were doing tequila shots, bourbon & cokes, coronas, tooheys new, cowboys, anything we could get out hands on. Let's just say that some of us were a bit tipsy and just started tackling each other on the street. At one stage I had Jerm in a bearhug while Ed gave him the infamous nipple gripple, and then I think I gave Ed a few swift kicks to the mid section.

It was around 10pm when we went to an Asian dance party @ Skygardens. We got in as Ed had the hookup, and bumped into a heaps of ex-uni, highschool, and church people. The place was dead though it slowly picked up whilst we had more tooheys extra dry and a couple of bourbon & cokes. Caught up with a friend of mine and I dont know, I can't put my finger on it but she's changed. Maybe it was the smoking, the swearing, the tone, who knows. We caught up for a minute & promised that we'd meetup again.

Whole night was fun even though some us didn't make it through the night :P

Last weekend
Last weekend was alright too. It was a farewell for a colleague of mine, and yeah same story. Drinking and clubbing. It was funny in the sense that the girls we were with, kept getting picked up on the dancefloor. Bumped into Caz and met some of her friends. Got home at 3am, seems like a regular thing on the weekend these days. The next day I went to Cruise bar for a 21st birthday, man I feel so old these days.

That's all I have to say for today.

I'm out like the weekend,

DJ Ho.

Will there ever be peace in the Middle East?

Just finished my exam today so I'm feeling very relieved but also very tired. It's weird in the sense that I'm 24 and just finished half of a Masters degree. I guess there's a lot of young people out there doing extra study so I shouldn't be that suprised.

In the last couple of days when I shoulda been studying but was doing everything but that, I started reading up on the Middle East conflict. It is a shocking and frightening situation. It is just very sad that the human race has come to this - fighting with each other. It is a complex situation - this political, reglious, racial turmoil. More than two soldiers being captured by the Hezbellah. Seems that both sides have a lot of pent up rage. As soon as I started reading about it, it was just ludicrous how Israel was just bombing Lebanon's highways, airports, infrastruture. A disproportionate response.

It's obviously got a deeper storyline behind it but at the end of the day, can't we all simply get along? I guess that's a very idealistic notion because as long as I have been alive, there has never been peace in the Middle East. What's my definition of peace? Not waking up in the morning and reading about another bombing, another attack, people dying in those countries. This tit for tat reaction by both sides can only produce additional response.

I wish that in my lifetime that one day these people will know what it is to live in a time of peace. A day without worrying about suicide bombers. A day without worrying about tanks coming through the front door. A day without running for cover as soon as the bullets start firing. Maybe that is wishful thinking, but hey we gotta hope for a better day.

Will there ever be peace in the Middle East?

To all the killers and a hundred dollar billas......

"Son, they shook...'cause ain't no such things as halfway crooks/
scared to death, scared to look they shook/
'cause ain't no such things as halfway crooks/
scared to death, scared to look...."

- Mobb Deep on "Shook Ones 2"

I must admit I'm not a huge fan of Mobb Deep, but they are coming to Sydney, Australia next month and I'll probably go. It's $60 @ The Metro Theatre, August 3rd. If you want to come, holla back player.

I love their big hits like Shook Ones, Shook Ones 2, and Quiet Storm. Those songs are just mad, not sure about their other stuff. But then again, most concerts that I go to I'm not always familiar with their whole catalogue of music.

GZA Concert Photos
Here are some photos from the GZA concert that I promised y'all a while ago.

A blue smoky haze: Pre concert entertainment at 11pm or so

The man of the hour arrives: GZA aka The Genius. All the Wu members have their own style, but arguably GZA is one of their best lyricists.

GZA signing autographs. If you look to the left of the screen, there is someone holding a baggie of weed. Dude, are you sure you want that signed?

GZA doing the power handshake

Killah Priest, an affiliated member of the Wu Tang Clan wearing an ODB dedication t-shirt.

Killah Priest telling everyone to raise their hands in the air. Just in front of him, is the Australian rapper Figg Kidd - one with the shaved brown head. I see that guy at nearly every concert i go to, with his backup singers/Bankstown Basketball team.

Thanks for Nathan for the photos and the heads up on Mobb Deep.

I got you stuck off the realness/

we be the infamous you heard of us/

official Queensbridge murderers/

the Mobb comes equipped with warfare beware/

of my crime family who got nuff shots to share/

I'm out like the shook ones,

DJ Ho

For the love of the game part II

I really should be studying for my exam on Wednesday, but procrastination has truly set in. Here is the All-Future Team (chosen by yours truly). Maybe I just like them because they can throw down spectacular dunks!!

Gerald Green has ups: The Next T-Mac?


Dwight Howard has only played 3 seasons but is easily the best young big man in the game. This guy can also get up.

Speaking of vertical, Josh Smith is the New Dunk King. I really think his future is bright - a true gazelle. Can run like the wind, jump outta the building and reach for the sky.

Man wasn't supposed to fly but Vince Carter could briefly.

For the Love of the Game

Admist all the worldcup fever, one thing remained constant: my love for the game of basketball. You can take the ball from the baller but you can never take the ball from a baller's heart.

Evidence #1:
I recieved a pay rise a few weeks ago. So I went and bought this all white lebron james jersey:

Evidence #2

I couldn't really resist this Carmelo jersey either. It does look exactly the same, but hey it says "Anthony"!

Evidence #3

Since I was on a roll, I figured I might as well get this one since it was on sale too. At this point you kinda give up resisting, and just buy it.

It's actually a little tight, but the worst part is I don't even like the Spurs though I like Manu (expecting to cop a lotta flack from Tim on this one)

Evidence #4:

You know when your shopping and you think, hey I need another basketball? Do you ever get that urge?

Evidence #5:

And then you think, hey I need a "backup basketball" because the other one I bought is too expensive to use outdoor.

Resistance is useless!

So I'm walking around the shopping centre, holding 3 basketball jerseys and 2 basketballs. I'm a self confessed basketball junkie. I'm very easy to please when it comes to Birthdays/Christmas.

Please explain

I can't explain why I love basketball so much. Part of is the athleticism of the NBA players. The characters and larger than life personalities. The excitement of a slam dunk, a crossover or an awesome pass. The thing is its such an easy game to follow. No complexities like American Football or baseball. It's an adrenalin rush every time you watch and play the game. And its so easy to play.

For me, the peak of basketball was during the early to mid 90's. When were in high school and trading basketball cards. Looking up the prices in Beckett, going to Artbox on wednesday after school sport to buy a packet of cards. The trades during recess and lunchtime. Playing basketball as school sport for almost 6 straight years (winter and summer!).

Although I still love the game, its kinda lost its lacklustre after the really big name players fizzled out. I grew up in an era that featured Jordan, Hakeem "The Dream" Olajuwon, Sir Charles Barkley, David "Admiral" Robinson, Karl "Mailman" Malone, Reggie Miller at the peak of their careers.

In the Mid-90's came the guys that were the superstars of early 2000. Guys that have either peaked or became fading superstars. Players like Allen Iverson, Chris Webber, Penny Hardaway, Grant Hill, Kevin Garnett, Shaquille O'Neal. Those the guys were fresh outta the box like new sneakers and represented the new school. These guys redefined the game from Iverson's speed, Shaq's raw power moves to Garnett's decision to jump from high school to the NBA. Then you had C-Webb, Penny, Grant, and Garnett - guys with skills that were just outta this world. The ability to do it all: rebound, pass, shoot, dribble and play multiple positions. The shiznit.

Now? The biggest stars in the game are Lebron, Carmelo, D-Wade, Kobe, Yao Ming, Dirk Nowitzki. Admittedly Kobe and Dirk were from the late 90's draft class. My point is something happened with the NBA. I just can't connect with these new cats because I didn't grow up with them. It's like music - you love music from the era that you grew up with, but this new stuff just doesn't sound the same.

I'm out like all your payrise on basketball jerseys,

DJ Ho

Now that is why you don't touch another man's nipple...

"Dont push Zinedan cause he's close to the edge/ He's about to use his head - aha aha"

I'm out like Zinedan's career,

DJ Ho

Everyday Struggle

I don't wanna live no mo'
Sometimes I hear death knocking in my front do'
I'm living like a hustle
Another drug in trouble, another day another sorrow

- The Everyday Struggle by Notorious Big

Seeing all these new interns join my company and working with them reminds me of a time not so long ago, when i used to be one of them. Energetic, young, full of enthuasism, ready to prove myself. Now that I'm slightly older, with some work experience under my belt, I wonder if anything has really changed?

Am I still that young, inexperienced youngster? In them I see myself. Naieve, scared, nervous in speaking to new people but hidden by a confident exterior demeanour. To be honest, I don't think that much has changed.

I've come to the realisation that nothing in life is given, it is earned. In the work environment, that is more true than anything. I've had my struggles and dilemnas, my ups and downs, grown stronger with the praises, fallen down with the criticisms. We all have. To me the difference in life is how we deal with the times we struggled, how fast we picked ourselves up and whether we got up again to fight another day. If it doesn't kill you, it only makes you stronger right?

The work environment is a unique environment, very different to any other environment I've experienced. Everyone is a lot more serious, there are time constraints, there's politics to deal with, and its real.

I reckon that 90% of the stuff I learnt at uni is irrelevant to my job. For me, the biggest learning curve has been work itself. Dealing with people, doing things I've never done before, learning the technical side, remembering the processes. Then there's the expectations and deadlines and simply doing things right (!).

Ah, the everyday struggle. Just trying to survive and excel. More than anything I just want to be successful and respected at what I do. I know I'm dedicated and have that inner drive, the question is if I will ever show it and reach my potential. If I can just improve my weaknesses and take advantage of my strengths. I've got to show and prove.

I'm out like the everyday struggle,

DJ Ho.

Bulls steal Big Ben!

I not sure whether to celebrate or think twice about the Bulls decision to sign Ben Wallace. He's a great defensive player, one dimensional (in that he only plays defence), has virtually no offense and isn't as consistent as he used to be. He's 32 years old and we offered him a 4 year contract for $60million? Ben's game is totally based on his energy, athleticism, hustle, and I'm pretty sure he wont be able to keep it up til he's 36.

Still I think its a very good move for the Bulls and we had to overpay for him, otherwise he wouldn't even think about leaving Detroit. The Bulls are now a pretty deep team at every position with excellent young talent and now a veteran centre. Though there is a huge log jam in the "defensive beast with no scoring ability" position with Chandler (who may be traded) and new draft pick Tyrus Thomas as well. We (the Bulls) still have no low post scorer, but we easily have the best defensive team considering that we led in field goal % defense last year. Adding Ben gives us someone that actually can play center.

The Bulls now look extremely talented though not sure in a couple of year's time with an aging Ben Wallace. After the signing, the Bulls are in the upper echelon of the Eastern Conference (after Miami) and possibly at the same level as the Cavaliers.

Possible Starting Lineup:

Ben Wallace - C
Andre Nocioni - PF
Luol Deng - SF
Ben Gordon - SG
Kirk Hinrich - PG

Bench: Tyrus Thomas (F), Chris Duhon (PG), Tyson Chandler (C), Michael Sweetney (PF/C), Malik Allen (F).

That is a really strong and deep team. The Heat better watch out!!!!!!!

Attack of the Random Asian Female and more.......

It's Saturday night 11pm, and I've been home all night watching a combination of Grease Lightning and CSI. Yes folks, that is sad. That is what my Saturday nights have come down to.

It's all good though, since I just came back from playing basketball @ Central. I had to go into work to get something, and thought I'd wander by the basketball courts near Central Station. I came across Basketball Mecca. It was totally packed out, halfcourt games going on over two courts. I bumped into Calvin and we played about 5 straight games of 4 on 4. After running around like mad for two hours, I was too tired to go to a girl's b'day drinks because........

I had enough to drink on Friday night. Starting off at Cargo bar for some chick's b'day drinks. I actually haven't been to Cargo bar on a Friday night but it's a happening place and has an awesome view of the harbour. Pretty packed on level 2 as well, and one of the bar tenders was quite hot (i was tipped off by another colleague).

Cargo's also has a balcony area and I was sitting outside on the couches minding my own business talking to a female colleague about relationships, our weekend plans, etc.... when random Asian female walks through a crowd and in a husky voice says "Can I sit here?". So my colleague and I eyeball each other and I'm like "Sure, take it". (NB: husky voice could be attributable to the cancer stick she was smoking).

I'm in a dilemna (albiet a nice one). What's a single male blogger to do? I continue talking to my colleague because well I don't want to ignore her and give said female the cold shoulder. After a couple of minutes and two more puffs of her cancer stick she goes away. Great move DJ! You ignored her! Brilliant! We both laugh, childish behaviour really. I'm thinking maybe I should have said "So how you doin'?. However, I figure that only works if your Joey from Friends.

Later on, I'm talking to my two friends and another random Asian chick walks over and says "DJ HO ! How's it going?". She actually said my real name in full so I'm racking my brain like crazy. I'm thinking "Who is this chick?". She continues "Don't you remember me, I'm from your primary school?". The CPU in my head computes her identification recognition at an alarming rate. Asian? Female? Friend? Primary School? Cute? Long hair? "Oh, your W* from my primary school, that's right!". Internal thought: I probably shouldn't have teased you back at primary school and you definently looked a lot different back then!

After that, we all went to 3 Weeds, which is a pub in Rozelle. It's a local pub, tucked away from the main roads and the hustle and bustle of the city. Still, the locals were out in full force. It's quite a big establishment with a proper dining area. At about 10.50pm we left the place and went to Town Hall. My friend and I literally ran from KFC on Bathurst street to Town Hall station, and then at Central station we ran up several flights of stairs to get one of the last trains home. The things people do.

What a Friday night!

I'm out like randoms at Cargo Bar ,

DJ Ho.

* Real name not used to protect indentity.

Daylight Robbery In Kaiserslautern

Against an Italian team of 10 men, the hopes of a nation were dashed in the dying seconds of injury time. An Italian player decided to dive over Australian defender Lucas Neill as he lay on the ground after a mistimed tackle. To the amazement of everyone except the Italian team, the referee called a foul resulting in a penalty kick which Franseco Totti calmly sent to the back of the net.

To me, first came the shock, frustration and then reality hit home: The Soccerros were being sent home. I can calmly say, we was robbed. The Australians controlled the match and dominated the ball. Their only crime? Failing to score in the 92 minutes and 50 seconds before the penalty kick was awarded. It was BS. I don't think it was fair. A match this crucial should not have been decided by such a bad decision.

Techspolder said it accurately: "As predicted, the Azzurri resorted to method acting instead of playing football and were rewarded by a match-deciding penalty from referee Cantalejo."

The Socceroo's can hold their head high. They held their own against Japan, Croatia, Brazil and now Italy. We are world beaters and I'm sure we'll be back in 4 years to make amends.

Have your say/vent your frustration on djho.blogspot, because the world is dying to know.

I'm out like the Socceroo's,

DJ Ho.

AUSSIES RULE! Italy is going down tomorrow night!

Here is my dedication to the Aussie v Croatia soccer game, which we had to draw. It was a game of setbacks, elation, frustration and controversy. Who cares? Cause we are through to the last 16 nations!!!!! We are among the best 16 countries in the world. I've provided captions for each of the pics (which were conveniently taken from a TV website).

I rolled outta bed at 5am, only to see in the second minute Mark Viduka hack down a Croatian player. Srna scores from a amazing freekick which an outstretched Zeljko "I won't take Schwarzer's place again" Kalac cannot stop.

Craig "Give Me" Moore equalised when one of the Croatian players did a "Maradona hand of God" touch on the ball. The ball was struck well, but i think for me it was more relief than anything that we scored.

We're Wild About Harry! - Kewell finally proves his worth after a lackluster tournament. If he had missed that......well I dont want to think about it!

Viduka gets mauled by Josip "Three Yellow cards" Siminic, who is actually an Aussie. The ref had a shocking game. How could you miss the fact that a player has 3 yellow cards?

BRING ON THE ITALIANS!!!!!!!

Catching the bus?

I don't catch the bus that much these days, mostly getting the train into the city for work. The thing with public transport is that it is simply what it suggests - its public! You have to share that space with other members of the public.

So when I heard my brothers talking about the "Bus Uncle" and the mania it has spawned off in Hong Kong, I had to check it out. As it happens, a very public altercation occured on a public bus and was filmed by another passenger with a high tech mobile phone. It was put onto a Hong Kong version of Youtube and then quickly found itself on the real Youtube. Check it out here.

It involves a young man tapping an older man in front of him (who is on a mobile) to keep his voice down. The older guy explodes and uses the phrase "You have pressure, I have pressure" and "It is not settled" during the arguement. This has now become the catchcry of HK TV shows and there are been remixes made with HK pop stars like Edison and Sammi Cheung!

In fact, Park N Save, a big supermarket outlet like Woolies have incorporated it into their ads. Even crazier, is that there is a new Street Fighter 2 ad by Capcom that uses the phrase "You have pressure, i have pressure" (see below). And to top if off, it even has a Wikipedia entry with a full breakdown on the characters, incident including social-physological analysis!!!

To be honest I didn't read too much into the incident, just more suprised at the anger of the old man and the popularity of this clip (then again Honkies do have some weird trends). I really felt for the young man, cause that could have easily been me. Normally I mind my own business when I'm on public transport and I hate using my phone when I'm in public. I just feel that its so impersonal and can't talk properly. Maybe it's a deep rooted fear in disturbing other people.

Youtube, Blogs, Wikipedia

I more amazed at the popularity of Youtube in spreading this clip. I'm been fan of Youtube ever since someone sent me a video about 4 months ago. And don't get me started on Wikipedia! People call it the Web 2.0 era. Whatever you call it, there's been a internet revolution. It's all about customised entertainment, sharing and collaborating information online.

If I don't know something, I'll look up Wikipedia. If I want to listen to a song, I can download it off i-Tunes (if i feel like paying). In the mood for the latest epidsode of PrisonBreak? Download it as a torrent. Feel like watching something funny or a highlight reel? Use YouTube. If I want to read about something quirky, entertaining, or wish to tell the world something? I'll write something on my blog or read someone's blog.

Welcome to the new era.

I'm out like Croatia from the World Cup,

DJ Ho.

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