Don't Kill Adjectives With Nouns___Tuesday, March 02, 2010
The sweltering heat these days reminds me of my old, favourite introduction: "The monstrous red ball of supreme heat hung on the light-blue sky, threatening to melt all the helpless pedestrians on the busy street with its radiating warmth". I loved this introduction so much that I would use it for almost every primary school composition assignment irregardless of the question; after some time, my teacher became so accustomed to my writing that he could identify my composition from its first sentence. Since my teacher did not complain much, I had the false belief that my descriptive introduction reflected good writing style. Eventually, the use of adjectives became a desire to show off my rich vocabulary and that resulted in an immature writing style.
I did not realise my mistake until much later, when I entered high school. My heavily adjectival prose caught my teacher's attention and when she could not take it any longer, she summoned me to her office. That day in her office changed my writing drastically because it was there that I understood the shortcomings of my style; instead of displaying my proficiency in the English language, the constant use of adjectives only made my writing embarrassingly ornate. In addition, my writing also suggests a lack of confidence, as if I am trying to make up for my inability by overdecorating my sentences. If every crisis is a critical crisis, every emergency an urgent emergency, and every problem a grave problem, then the whole idea of a crisis, an emergency, or a problem becomes devalued. In these situations, the adjective becomes the enemy of the noun.
That does not mean that we can do away with adjectives. Adjectives have their uses when they define and refine rather than simply emphasise. In the sentence "We are in legal trouble", the adjective, legal, has a truly informative function. For a vigorous style, you can try replacing adjectives with colourful nouns. "The penniless man that lives in a small, filthy hut" can be replaced by "the pauper that lives in a hovel." A "large and impressive house" can be replaced by a "mansion" and so on. You get the idea. Now, before you give in to the temptation of using flamboyant language, do remember the guiding principle of using adjectives and you will surely produce a good piece of writing!
Something about martin___Saturday, February 27, 2010
"If you broke your leg, you wouldn't mind using a crutch to move around. If your car had a flat tyre, you wouldn't think twice before using the spare. If your air conditioner broke down on a warm night, you wouldn't hesitate to call the repair person. However, as an Aquarian, you would likely have trouble accepting personal help for yourself.
That is because you are a very insular person and you don't like relying on anyone but yourself. Do you realise that this is at odds with your philanthropic nature? If you expect others to rely on you, you have to be able to accept help in return."
I saw this on the DailyHoroscope site and it struck a chord with me. I like to help my close friends in their matters. It gives me satisfaction when they involve me in their struggles and difficulties because it makes me feel dependable and reliable. But I wouldn't ask the same help from them. Because I dislike the feeling of being a liability, a burden. What irony.
Wise Words___Friday, February 19, 2010
“People have to be responsible for their thoughts, so they have to learn to control them. It may not be easy, but it can be done. First of all, if we don’t want to think certain things we don’t say them. We don’t have to eat everything we see, and we don’t have to say everything we think. So we begin by watching our words and speaking with good purpose only. There are times when we must have clear and pure minds with no unwanted thoughts and we have to train and prepare steadily for those times until we are ready. We don’t have to say or think what we don’t wish to. We have a choice in those things, and we have to realize that and practice using that choice. There is no use condemning yourself for the thoughts and ideas that come into your mind; so there’s no use arguing with yourself or fighting your thoughts. Just realize that you can think what you choose. You don’t have to pay attention to those unwanted thoughts. If they keep coming into your head, just let them alone and say, ‘I don’t choose to have such thoughts’, and they will soon go away. If you keep a steady determination and stick with that purpose you will know how to use that choice and control your consciousness so unwanted thoughts don’t come to you anymore. Then you can experience purification completely and in the right way and no impurities can exist in your mind or body at anytime.” - Doug Boyd
The truth about procrastination___Wednesday, February 03, 2010
To all my friends at EPRZ, I am back!
I have been intending to write this article for months, ever since I published my first in June 09. But why didn’t I write it? Because I have to practise what I preach. I have to do the things that I advise my readers to do. Today’s article discusses the benefits of good procrastination and there is no better way to validate its credibility than to use myself as the test subject. Here are the facts of my research.
As children, we were told by our parents to stop procrastinating and start working on our household chores. As students, we were told by our teachers to stop procrastinating and start working on our school assignments. And they would always use this popular saying, “the early bird catches the worm”, to support their argument. Fair enough. But what happens to the early worm? Doesn’t it get eaten? The truth of the matter is that procrastination can be good or bad depending on how you use it. So the important issue is not how you should avoid procrastination but how you should use procrastination to your advantage.
There are many activities that you could be doing now. All these activities are competing for your time and attention. How do you decide which activity to begin and which to postpone? Through objective evaluation, you will have to rate each activity in importance. After that, you will have to practice the principles of good procrastination- to learn when to do the right things and to postpone the wrong things. It means choosing to avoid lesser activities in favour of greater goals. If you have just been struck by a brilliant inspiration, for example, then you should work on that new idea and postpone the thought of running an errand for your parents. Learning to prioritise is, thus, the key to good procrastination.
During my absence from ERPZ, I have completed my National Service, organised several grassroots events, and earned my driving license among many other completed tasks. I have been using procrastination to my advantage by avoiding the less important activities to do the real work. And even though I have sacrificed the cleanliness of my room, the well-being of my stomach, and of course the welfare of the readers at ERPZ, I have accomplished much by practising good procrastination.
Most people will tell you that procrastination is bad and that you should avoid it or cure it. Their ill advice is predicated on the false belief that procrastination means doing absolutely nothing. Author Paul Graham writes that “there are three types of procrastination, depending on what you do instead of working on something: you could work on a) nothing, b) something less important, c) something more important.” The last type, good procrastination, is what you should strive for.
Tale of the Valiant Knight___Monday, February 01, 2010
Your eyes are fixated on the digital clock located at the front section of the school hall. The time inches towards judgement day. You are five minutes away from taking the most important examination in your life; the obstacle that separates you from your goals. Your stomach churns and groans in trepidation. Your hand shakes to its own rhythm. Fear chokes you as you struggle to recall the labyrinth of theories that you desperately studied the night before the examination.
You are afraid of the questions that lie ahead. How will I respond if I encounter unfamiliar questions? What happens if I run out of time to complete the paper? What will I do if I can't achieve my desired grade? These insecurities and uncertainties gradually worm its way into your mind, poisoning it with a cloak of pessimism. Any self-belief that you had prior to the examination would be drained away in a fashion similar to the Dementor's kiss.
For those of you who have accounts of such harrowing experience, I have a lot of sympathy for you because I know exactly how it feels to be that student. During my early schooling days, I was allergic to examination! The allergy manifest itself in many unpleasant ways. It was such a horrible experience! After being immeasurably frustrated by the same problem time and again, I decided it was time to control my mind and protect it from doubts and fears.
I had a taste for fairytale so I imagined myself as a valiant knight who was clothed in sturdy armour and equipped with the most menacing-looking lance. I was to ride to the land of Mathematica and to slay its heinous King using my newly acquired knowledge. In another scenario, I was an intrepid knight confronting the infamous nine-headed beast in the notorious wasteland of Scientia. I know it sounds like an absurd story to you but it did the trick! Through the power of imagination, I was no longer the kid sitting for the most important examination but I was the valiant knight, a noble man full of confidence and self-belief.
My new mindset yielded very positive results. The surge in confidence and my belief in my abilities influenced the way I studied subjects and how I answered questions. As Henry Ford, the automobile industrialist, once said, "If you think you can do a thing or think you can't do a thing, you're right." Many students cannot achieve their full potential because they are weighed down by their doubts and fears. They don't believe they have what it takes to score distinctions. Are you one of them? If you fit the bill, it is time for you to change your mindset and protect yourself from the adverse influence of pessimism. You can start doing so by transforming into the valiant knight!
A volley of bullets pierced through the air. Three of the deadly shells lodged in the skull of a burly soldier, who fell to the ground instantaneously. One second later, a charged explosion shook the scorched earth, claiming the life of another hapless victim.
Horror tightly gripped the heart of the World War I soldier as he saw his lifelong friend, Brian, fall under the hail of bullets. Caught in a trench with continuous gunfire whizzing over his head, the soldier anxiously asked his lieutenant if he may venture out to save his dying friend.
"You can go!" The lieutenant yelled with his broken voice in his struggle to make himself heard. The soldier was about to leap out and make the dash when he was suddenly yanked back.
"But I don't think it will be worth your effort. Your friend is probably dead and you may throw away your life needlessly," continued the lieutenant.
The soldier hesitated for a moment. His lieutenant's advice struck a chord but the soldier cared too much about his friend. With greater resolve, he made a dash for Brian. Miraculously, the soldier survived and managed to bring Brian back to the trench.
As the two of them tumbled in together to the bottom of the trench, the lieutenant checked the wounded soldier and then looked kindly at his friend.
"I told you it wouldn't be worth your effort," he said. "Your friend is dead and you are injured beyond duties."
"IT WAS WORTH IT SIR!"
"What do you mean? Your friend is dead."
"YES SIR," replied the soldier. "BUT IT WAS WORTH IT BECAUSE WHEN I GOT TO HIM, HE WAS STILL ALIVE."
"What did he say? His death wishes?"
"NO." The soldier shook his head. I had the satisfaction of hearing him say, "JIM...I KNEW YOU WILL COME."
........................................................ ........................................................ ........................................................ ........................................................ ........................................................ A true friend is one who walks in when the rest of the world walks out.
The sweltering heat these days reminds me of my old, favourite introduction: "The monstrous red ball of supreme heat hung on the light-blue sky, threatening to melt all the helpless pedestrians on the busy street with its radiating warmth". I loved this introduction so much that I would use it for almost every primary school composition assignment irregardless of the question; after some time, my teacher became so accustomed to my writing that he could identify my composition from its first sentence. Since my teacher did not complain much, I had the false belief that my descriptive introduction reflected good writing style. Eventually, the use of adjectives became a desire to show off my rich vocabulary and that resulted in an immature writing style.