A hexagon is a 6-sided triangle. It was believed that everyone in this world is somehow personally linked (not more than 6 layers)- through friend-of-friend connection. Of course, the easier way of putting this notion across is through this common term "A Small World". For me, I prefer to use a sexier term "The Hexagon Link".

 

To identity this link is not easy. The easiest way is to attend a big business networking event or a friend’s wedding. You will find common speeches like "Oh yes, I know him! He used to be my supplier!" Amazingly, in my own wedding dinner, I managed to identify more than 20 links in just 1 night of 500 guests. What can I say, Singapore is indeed a small place.

 

Now in Shanghai – a place where I would least expected to uncover any link – I found 2. One who knew my wife (in 1997, Lasalle) and the other who knew my cousin (in 1990, London). Isn’t that scary? I am working with people who knows my family.

 

I have then done a list of my own "Hexagon Link"… I am pretty amazed.

 

1) Scott (my colleague) met Leon (my cousin) in army

2) Scott (my colleague) met Michelle (my cousin-in-law) in Canada

3) Polly (my wife’s poly pal) and Randy (my friend’s ex-beau) are cousins

4) John (my army friend) and Shin (my wife’s uni pal) are ex-lovers

5) Jimmy (my sec. pal) and Shin (my wife’s uni pal) were colleagues

6) Zhibin (my cousin) and Raymond (my friend’s ex-beau) were schoolmates

7) Sean (my colleague) and Chester (my cousin) are friends

8) Franklin (my shanghai colleague) met Qianqian (my cousin) in London back in 1990

9) Darren (my shanghai colleague) met Felicia (my wife) in Lasalle back in 1997

10) Chris (my friend’s bestman) and Joanne (my friend) were classmates

11) Francis (my uni pal) is working for Bettina’s uncle (my colleague’s uncle) in Shanghai

12) Gareth’s mum (my sec. pal’s mum) and my Godmother are sworn-sisters

13) Mrs Ng (my sec. teacher) is my wife’s uni friend’s aunt 

14) Leon Lai (the famous singer) was my cousin’s HK classmates back in the 70s

15) Alicia (my shanghai colleague) was my aunt’s student back in Lasalle in 1996

16) Felicia’s cousin (my wife’s cousin) taught Kalinda (my poly pal) in her secondary school.

17) Elaine (my freelance) and Felicia (my wife) were colleagues back in 2001.

18) Sean (my colleague) and John Yap (my army friend) met while doing volunteer work!

  

 

I was chatting with a friend about naming my son and how the name Elkan came about. Then, I remember those days when we were young, it was cool to have an English name. To be honest, at that age, you dun really understand what’s the difference between an English name or a "Christian" name. As long as you have a pet name, you sounded "cooler" than your usual dialect name.

 

No one really cares the origin of their names.. be it Chinese or English. Perhaps, only your parents would know why they gave you this name. But again, how many parents out there would explain the rationale of the name to their child?

 

Guess most of you dun know about this. My aunt gave me this name "Joe" when I was in primary 2. (Haaa..people in my Secondary School would call me "Joey").. Somehow, I am that "man in the street"…. I have grown and let this name "Joe" embraced and shaped my character. I guess I am that street man..that common Joe. Guess I look like a "Joe" too.

 

Every name has its own character and personality. Some names gave you that negative feelings while some names can be your favourite. Name is an important brand identity. It got to match your family name and that face of yours..It is very diifficult to judge what’s a good name and what’s not. But it is easy to judge how well the person carry his/her name. Some names just dun work well with the face or the personality.

 

Well, let’s see what’s the meaning behind these familiar names:

 

Joanne – (Hebrew) God is Gracious

Felicia - (Latin) Happy

Tracy – (French) Road, Path

Lionel - (Old French) Young Lion

Joe – (Hebrew) From the name "Joseph", God will Increase

Sam – (Hebrew) To hear

Gareth – (Old French) Gentle, Enclosure, Watchful

Ivy - (Greek) Plant, Wine

Juliana – (Spanish) Soft Hair

Jimmy – (American) From the name "James"

Serene – (Latin) From the name "Serena", peaceful calm

Francis – (Latin) Free

Echo – (Greek) A greek goddess with beautiful voice

Elkan – (Hebrew) Belongs to God

Xavier – (Arabic) Bright, new house

Jacob – (Hebrew) Held by the heel

Kalinda – (Sanskrit) Sun, Name of Mountain

Randy – (English) From the name "Randolph", Horny

Martin - (Latin) From Mars

 

 

 

 

Mention this 3-digit number to anyone on the street and picture his/her emotions. 911 is a brand of fear, wars and bloodshed. 911 is a brand that gave a superpower the rights to invade any foreign soils (which pose its national security). 911 is the brand that most government would like to associate itself with – using this opportunity to align itself with the greed-driven superpowers. 911 is the brand blur the lines of freedom fighters and terrorists. 911 gives authority the best excuse to implement anti-human rights act.

 

911 isn’t just a date for remembrance. It is a concept of branding. Making the man-in-the-street to believe that their lives are no longer safe and the world clearly needs a division between the good and the bad.

 

Back in 2001 when 911 happened, it took me quite a while to swallow the reality of "terrorism". Why would someone like Osama would launched a personal attack against an superpower? And if Osama isn’t a head of state of a nation, what gives USA the rights to invade countries like Iraq and Afghanistan without consulting the united nations? And what took a superpower so long just to locate one person? Come on, you found Saddam, didn’t you? (Question, Saddam didn’t send those suicide plane-hijackers or has any of those WMD, right?)

 

On the contrary, if you think like a businessman, you will realise some parties stand to gain more in the long term for waging this global war against a concept call "terrorism". For oil or other blood money (like sales of weapon – inspired by movie "Lord of Wars" by Nicolas Cage), this new economy may just do more good to the superpowers. Imagine other nations started spending more good money to stock-up their defence inventory. Isn’t that how some people suspect the anti-virus business – you released more virus so that people buy your anti-virus product. Of course, this is baseless…but such a possibility..may happen in reality.

 

Let’s think of the other extreme (like a businessman). It is common for big MNC to cut manpower to improve productivity and introduce new business model. If sacrificing 2 towers and 3,000 lives can propel sales, power and presence, why not just do it? After all, you need an excuse to justify an act of horror. Isn’t that one of the tactics in the Chinese’s 36 Strategies?

 

5 years have passed and no news of the man who gave 911 a whole new meaning (it should be listed in Oxford dictionary too). The governments around the world are using this beautiful excuses to terrorize their own subjects. If Osama killed 3,000 innocent people on 911. Then, I would say the superpower nation killed more people (including their own soldiers and other civilians) by raging this war on a global scale. What’s more, this gives them an excuse to penetrate any region and regain its dimming "Global Police" status. What’s next? Iran and North Korea? Overnight, our superpower nation is a global hero again.

 

People are a bunch of forgetful lot. Once in a while, a small bomb will appeared again… like a virus… And this create a reminder for you to renew your belief that you need a "big brother" in this world to protect your safety. You started paying money for the new "anti-virus" program (airport security tax, social support to send in more troops, the acceptance of unlawful imprisonment-without-trial etc). Osama can never be found cos’ if there is no virus, there will be no business. Question is: Who funded these activities and "virus-building"?

Like a staged-drama, SARS & bird flu appeared in a timely fashion when Asia was getting global recognition for its presence as the new Economy and Superpower. While the west was undergoing their activities on "terrorism", the east was undergoing a never-seen-before bio-threat. Are there more than it meets the eye? Surely, cos’ these bio-threats somehow slow down Asia’s progress of being the new leader of the new century. More money to be made? - weapons & vaccines. OR it may just be another coincident…

 

At the end of the day… it all boils down to "branding". You do not need to hard sell the cold facts to gain presence and money. All you need is a concept and a number – 911 – Celebrating its "5th Year of Fear of Ignorant Acceptance" this week.

 

I say, cut the bush, end this senseless war, fire Osama and stop killing innocent lives. The numbers just don’t add up. Just wonder why the 2 Bush Presidents so keen to rage wars with Iraq – Perhaps there is a deeper agenda behind that we all dun know. The war against Iraq may never be about 911.

 

True evil lies in the convincing face which you recognise as friend. (For 2nd view, go watch the other news network or the DVD Fahrenheit 9/11. Watch it with an open mind..dun trust all content. )

 

The Da Vinci Code may be just a fiction. The mystery about the "Bush & Osama" may be the greatest tale ever told.

 

 

 

 

We hear it and we say it often.  Most of the time, we dun really care about these "common phase" origins. Here are some good reading for those who like to know.

 

 

The origin of the expression is almost certainly connected with a religious belief or superstition, but the exact nature of the belief or superstition is unknown. It may derive from an ancient pagan belief that knocking on a tree was a way to ward off evil spirits, or to call upon protective spirits who supposedly lived in certain trees, especially the oak. Another possible connection is the Christian ritual of touching a wooden crucifix when taking an oath or praying for good fortune. The early Christians may have thought they were touching part of the genuine cross used in the Crucifixion. Later it was thought that touching any wooden crucifix, or part of a crucifix, would confer the same benefits, as would touching any piece of wood that once was part of a sacred tree.  <Souce: (http://www.randomhouse.com/wotd/index.pperl?date=20010918)>

 

 

The expression Catch-22 is derived from the 1961 novel of the same name by Joseph Heller. In the novel, Catch-22 refers to a parodoxical Air Force rule by which a pilot is considered insane if he keeps flying combat missions without formally asking to be relieved, but if he does ask to be relieved, he is judged sane and must keep flying. It is derived from catch ‘a hidden difficulty’. <Source: http://www.randomhouse.com/wotd/index.pperl?date=19980223>

 

 

 

The name comes from the legend of Lady Godiva’s naked ride through the streets of Coventry, in order to persuade her husband to alleviate the harsh taxes on the town’s poor. The story goes that the townsfolk agreed not to observe Godiva as she passed by, but a tailor named Tom broke that trust and spied on her. <Source: http://www.askoxford.com/concise_oed/peepingtom?view=uk>

 

 

The true and original origin of "Cloud 9" is derived from Buddhism. The state of being in "Cloud 9" is the penultimate goal of the Bhodisattva.  <Source: http://www.phrases.org.uk/bulletin_board/18/messages/721.html>

 

Here is one good site for all of you to read more: http://www.phrases.org.uk

So, dun be a "laughing stock" or "bimbo" – Go find out the origin meaning, huh?