The Jay Chou Poem

The magical counter-clockwise clock transports me back to the past

I gaze with wonderment at the King of Mandopop being born with a grand piano, his nimble fingers dancing on its black and white keys

The coruscant golden armor

The circumambient enchanting melody

The eight dimensions are so enthralling that I find it hard to speak

Every moment is always the era

No matter how split I am

You are always the train's destination

The incomparable virtuosity and feat

I ride all the way north to rejoice in the sheer music-cum-magic spectacle

Your fantasy is olamic

How could one resist the canorous beauty of Opus 12?

All you create are undoubtedly the greatest works of art

From old Shanghai to modern Istanbul, from the Coral Sea to the 'Pink Ocean'

Any biont is obliged to step aside in your territory

The bucolic view of rice and terrace fields on a sunny day

Hearkens back to class 3-2, where I excitedly savor Grandpa's tea and Turkish ice cream

Then I am reminded of how sweet your smile is

Of how I do not care whether or not it is the end of the world

Making a love confession has never been this easy

The hair-raising atmosphere of William Castle

Does not deter the fearless dragon rider

Dashing through the formidable tornado as fast as the four seasons train

With a pair of steel nunchucks on his back and a razor-sharp double blade at his side

Hero Chou proves not to be a coward in the slightest, slaying half-beast humans without a step back

Silence

The time machine has obviously come to a halt

Soon afterwards I can hear the rhythm of the rain and the occasional drop of maple leaves

Is it time for a lulling bedtime story?

I flip my romantic handphone open and read the ataraxic handwritten past in my diary of love

In Chapter Seven, I fall abysmally into a dream

Thereupon, I find myself under a fun fair rainbow, thanking Yeh Hui Mei profusely in one breath

No sooner has it concluded than Jay utters from far away, "Long time no see!"

I say I won't cry but tears of scattered emotion instantly stream down my face

Please do not say goodbye, but give me the time of one song, and I will turn it into the longest movie

---

This poem contains 62 references to Jay Chou's songs and 10 references to his albums. Below is the version with links to the corresponding songs and albums on Jay Chou's official YouTube channel. In the cases where a song reference coincides with an album reference, the link to the song, instead of to the album, is used.

The magical counter-clockwise clock transports me back to the past

I gaze with wonderment at the King of Mandopop being born with a grand piano, his nimble fingers dancing on its black and white keys

The coruscant golden armor

The circumambient enchanting melody

The eight dimensions are so enthralling that I find it hard to speak

Every moment is always the era

No matter how split I am

You are always the train's destination

The incomparable virtuosity and feat

I ride all the way north to rejoice in the sheer music-cum-magic spectacle

Your fantasy is olamic

How could one resist the canorous beauty of Opus 12?

All you create are undoubtedly the greatest works of art

From old Shanghai to modern Istanbul, from the Coral Sea to the 'Pink Ocean'

Any biont is obliged to step aside in your territory

The bucolic view of rice and terrace fields on a sunny day

Hearkens back to class 3-2, where I excitedly savor Grandpa's tea and Turkish ice cream

Then I am reminded of how sweet your smile is

Of how I do not care whether or not it is the end of the world

Making a love confession has never been this easy

The hair-raising atmosphere of William Castle

Does not deter the fearless dragon rider

Dashing through the formidable tornado as fast as the four seasons train

With a pair of steel nunchucks on his back and a razor-sharp double blade at his side

Hero Chou proves not to be a coward in the slightest, slaying half-beast humans without a step back

Silence

The time machine has obviously come to a halt

Soon afterwards I can hear the rhythm of the rain and the occasional drop of maple leaves

Is it time for a lulling bedtime story?

I flip my romantic handphone open and read the ataraxic handwritten past in my diary of love

In Chapter Seven, I fall abysmally into a dream

Thereupon, I find myself under a fun fair rainbow, thanking Yeh Hui Mei profusely in one breath

No sooner has it concluded than Jay utters from far away, "Long time no see!"

I say I won't cry but tears of scattered emotion instantly stream down my face

Please do not say goodbye, but give me the time of one song, and I will turn it into the longest movie

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Me: Then and Now

Perhaps to most people the phrase "time flies" feels more and more true with age. Here I am in 2025, a quarter of the 21st century having flown by unthinkably powerful AI tools such as ChatGPT being household names all across the world such that "digital gods" might be an apt name for them. I was born on the pale blue dot in 1990, which means 35 years has passed since my accouchement and I have, more or less, another 35 years of having the privilege of residing on this Brobdingnagian life-supporting rock. (Or is it? We'll see.) Everything evolves, and so do I. Looking back to my much younger self, I can see quite a significant difference between him and my present self.

Photo by Nick Fewings on Unsplash

The most striking change I have experienced has to do with my holistic view on life. I grew up becoming a religious bigot who harbored bitter hatred for those not adhering to my deeply held belief. That period of my life was indeed grueling years, filled with continual unsatisfaction and intense stress which rendered me alamort. I could not become my real self and had to suppress the naturality inside me, which would otherwise have entered its anthesis in that timeframe. As odious as this psychological and behavioral phenomenon may seem, I am confident that I have figured out how it managed to grip my being, and others' for that matter, so firmly. The infectious ideological bigotry in human mind could be easily explained by our desire to extinguish fear in the simplest way possible. The problem is what is simple is not necessarily good, and what is simplest is not necessarily best. Science has enabled me to unmask this false thinking. It goes without saying that, as a dinosaur maniac, paleontology is the science that has played a vital role in decimating the pernicious mental illness.

I could almost laugh when thinking about the naivety exhibited by my past self. In my mind, life was destined to be a bed of roses. Justice would eventually prevail, everyone would inevitably reach happiness if they really wanted to, and so on and so forth. As dreamy as this thinking may appear, so far as I can tell, it is not in line with reality. If you are born in a war-torn country, the odds are your well-being will not be as good as those who aren't. Where your parturition takes place is aleatory – it is not something you can choose. You could win the lottery today and go into a coma the next day because some inebriated guy's car ploughs into your unfortunate body. There is just an unending list of things that are outside our control. This is where Stoicism comes into play. This ancient school of philosophy seems to have been gaining traction in recent years, and its popularity is a testament to its efficacy and practicality. While terrible things do happen, we can still (and have to) make the most of it. Focusing only on things within your control and loving the fate handed to you (amor fati) are two examples of Stoic practices and I find them incredibly potent and fulfilling.

"Purpose inherently exists in every human being." This is another thing in my mindset that has become obsolete. From a cosmic point of view, we have no purpose in this world. This may sound overly depressing and can leave us disoriented, but it can be liberating and uplifting instead. Although the universe did not impart purpose to us, we can create our own. Meaning is something that we ourselves determine and not something automatically dealt to us. Here is a profound quote from the extraordinary thinker Osho Rajneesh:

"People wonder why there seems to be no meaning in life. Meaning does not exist a priori. There is no meaning existing in life; one has to create it. Only if you create it will you discover it. It has to be invented first. It is not lying there like a rock, it has to be created like a song. It is not a thing, it is a significance that you bring through your consciousness." - The Book of Understanding: Creating Your Own Path to Freedom

Related to this is my realization of the vague distinction between good and bad. Dwelling in absolutism will not bear real fruit and only result in desperation. Which is better, being an employee or an entrepreneur? Is working as a doctor better than as an accountant? Should you get married or stay single? No one can say that one is absolutely good and the other is absolutely bad. I completely agree with Osho on this matter and I'd like to end this article with another eye-opening quote from the Indian guru:

"People have remained concerned about their acts: Which act is right and which act is wrong? What is good and what is evil? My own understanding is that it is not a question of any particular act. The question is about your psychology.

"When you are total, it is good; and when you are divided, it is evil. Divided you suffer; united, you dance, you sing, you celebrate." - The Book of Understanding: Creating Your Own Path to Freedom

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The Lexicologist's Handbook – Book Review

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The Lexicologist's Handbook: A Dictionary of Unusual Words

by Dane Cobain

I have been fascinated by English for eons. The joy of learning and exploring this language is immense, so much so that I ended up becoming an EFL teacher in my country, Indonesia. Although grammar is the aspect that got me hooked in the first place and played a primary role in setting my life trajectory, the beauty and richness of the English vocabulary is unlimited food for my insatiable linguistic appetite. The Lexicologist's Handbook by Dane Cobain is such a terrific resource for this never-ending adventure.

This book is basically a dictionary – but not a usual one. It is jam-packed with unusual, rare, fancy, or otherwise cool English words that will imbue readers with lexical superpower. In each entry, there is information on the word's pronunciation, type(s), definition(s), and example sentence(s), which enables you to understand the word thoroughly and primes you to use it in real-life situations, impressing your fellow humans linguistically.

Howbeit, considering The Lexicologist's Handbook is aimed at learners of English and educational in nature, I wish the accuracy of the content were higher. I have encountered a number of mistakes, one of which is "Amphitheatre" being misspelled as "Ampitheatre". On top of that, the pronunciation feature could be enhanced by adding information on stress position.

On the whole, The Lexicologist's Handbook by Dane Cobain is a spectacular addition to English literature. If you are bored of using ordinary expressions or looking to diversify your vocabulary, I highly recommend reading this tremendous lexical booster!

Have you read The Lexicologist's Handbook? Do you agree with my opinion? Share what you think in the comment section below!

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Quote #123

"In a sea of the insane, the sensical are deemed to be the insane and vice versa." - Klinsman Hinjaya

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Dinosaurs: 10 Things You Should Know – Book Review

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Dinosaurs: 10 Things You Should Know

by Dr Dean Lomax

Wow, wow, wow! What a stupendous book! In an "eggshell", Dinosaurs: 10 Things You Should Know by Dr Dean Lomax is a superlative summary of the dinosaur world, perfect for people who are curious about the prehistoric icons but do not have much time to devote to studying them in depth.

Just like the author's last name – low but max (tongue in cheek) – this book is a paradox. It is very modest in size but contains a wealth of information on dinosaurs, which has been carefully selected such that only the most important is presented (for example, while terminology inevitably exists, it is not overwhelmingly present). Dr Dean Lomax is an exceptionally fine writer; he writes with remarkable clarity and I am really fascinated by his style, which is conversational but engaging and absorbing! It is also evident throughout the book that the British paleontologist is so deeply in love with the subject. His contagious exuberance reminds me of fellow paleontologist Steve Brusatte, the author of The Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs, another dinosaurian tour de force.

If you are in a hurry but dying to know more about the dinosaurs, I wholeheartedly recommend Dinosaurs: 10 Things You Should Know by Dr Dean Lomax, a magnificently written and enormously enjoyable piece of dinosaur literature!

Have you read Dinosaurs: 10 Things You Should Know? What is your opinion on this book? Share your thoughts in the comment section below!

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Eternality

The sloshing pristine water at the pond's edge

Nudges me to your reflection

The unmatched grace

Your pulchritudinous face

All your flawless features floating in front of my melancholic visage

The good old days

Were buried deep in the past

Yet our romantic scenes are still pellucid as ever

Numberless rainy days

Never blemish our trysts anywise

The dulcet tune of your existence

Is a spring of joy for mine

I will embosom it

Preserving this priceless piece of yours

To futurity and beyond

Sipping warm latte in the mahogany ladder-back chair

Crepuscular light streaming through the bamboo Venetian blinds

I can't help but smile

Realizing that this is just another day

For our everlasting rendezvous

The creation of this poem was requested by Melvina and inspired by Yu Xia Yi Zheng Wan (雨下一整晚) by Jay Chou.

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Homophones Visualized – Book Review

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Homophones Visualized

by Bruce Worden

Watt a grate book!

Homophones, words that sound the same but have different meanings, can be annoying (the title is a good example). Homophones Visualized by Bruce Worden is a wonderful reference which showcases simple yet informative illustrations explaining the differences between a good selection of homophones in English. If you want to learn this linguistic phenomenon in a fun, playful, and entertaining manner, this witty book is just for you! I also find it intriguing that the author's name, Bruce Worden, contains "word" in it (it is as if he is destined to write such books). I really enjoyed Homophones Visualized greatly (no mistake this time) and I hope you do two! ;-)

Note that this book is to be read from the American English standpoint. Thus, some of the content may not make sense, say, from the perspective of British English.

Have you read Homophones Visualized? What are your thoughts on this book? Share your opinion in the comment section below!

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