I'm busy applying for a Canadian visa now so I'm kinda active on and off. Am on the computer a lot but don't get to stay around too long except staying online and doing nothing here. Ran around places as well. I'll give you guys a brief update about my current situation.

I just had my TOEFL test yesterday, and I guess I didn't do it too badly. If you don't know what TOEFL is (I did say what it was in the chatbox but you might not have read), it's an English language evaluation test for those who are from a non-English education background in the past 4 years. There are 4 sections to the test: Reading, Listening, Speaking, and Writing.

Now I'm checking on how should I get my funds prepared and arranged to show on my visa application. It's quite a problem cause it's kinda all around the place, and my parents can't help me much when the procedure is all online and in English. I have to convey the message to them which was fine, but they'd have a million questions that I can't answer and there are no places for me to ask. The visa application website has only general answers, and the contact team isn't very helpful either. I'm only thinking of what I can do while my parents keep pressuring me to quickly get the application done. So yeah...

And darn you Prancey, appearing whenever you please... And I kinda see more friend fiction coming up...

Ah good old Canada! They do not ever bother anyone, better off there then here in the usa where every terrorist from Africa  down wants to plot an attack on us O.o. I will tell you, you will do fine on that test, you speak almost perfect english. Actually proboably better then we do, we're lazy and talk in txt tlk instead Lol. I am kidding, I try to avoid that at all  costs, but most people do.

Hum, I want to listen how japo talks in english, he posted a record on your forum or it was a broadcast radio session? I sure do need to practice more my pronunciation XP, and I still need some times the auto correct to notice some mistakes, but I'm perfecting my english little by little. Yep Canada is gonna be a hell of a "relaxing" and freezing ride, I hope he enjoys it and that he achieve what he wants there, I know one person that came from there and one knowledgeable that went and lives there, it's quite good they told me and at the same time it's reeeally quiet compared to some things in my country XD, really different cultures I should say.

I don't think he posted any record, he only posted in the photoshop topic we have open so far.

By sheer coinedence my Super Moderator and Moderator 1mtvfan and TigerTankFan (they are actually twins so that was fun at one point with their bicker XD) happen to live in Canada :D.

I believe no one here has heard me speaking in English yet. I won't say I'm very good at it but I can speak ok I guess. I might stammer a bit sometimes when I speak too fast and I can't find the right word to accurately describe what I wish to say. It still happens even though I've been speaking in English on a daily basis for two years straight already, but it might also be cause I'm trying too hard to be precise with my words. And since it's not my first language, I tend to mix up between British and American pronunciations cause it's quite hard to know which is from where.

And Vic, I love quiet places. Can't handle noises well, even if it's my own family.

And thanks Bran. I'll drop em a PM if I have questions. For now, I've gotten almost all of my documents ready, only short of 2 to 3 which I'm simply awaiting time to pass by as they get ready. Still, thanks! :D

Maybe I can find a record of my voice if you guys are so eager. I think I might have one......

Try guessing which one's my voice. It was an assignment that I had to do so it's online and I've never taken it down.

Well you can certainly write in English perfectly, better then most of us. Speaking will take time but as you can already speak some your already ahead of the game. Once you get to Canada you will no doubt catch onto speaking fluent and perfect english.

I have my teachers to thank. For now, I can speak everyday English no problem, but not academically. I may be able to write formally but not speak as so as fluently, somehow.

Oh, and Prancey just messaged me that he won't be coming online for a while cause his Internet quota's up.

Oh, well I will say that the fact that you know something, can speak it will let you when you come over catch on quite quickly. Trust me when you start hanging around english folk you will learn quite quick.

I hope I will soon. :D

Hmm... Vic's missing now as well. I hope he's okay.
How are you doing now?

I hope so too .

Hey, I was gone for a little while XD, My laptop couldn't charge anymore with my father's adapter, so I had a day or so that I couldn't use my laptop, we bought a new one at last!, so I'm here =D, and yesterday I had a cousin's birthday at my grandparent's house so I stayed there and I was really tired to reply in here and I went straight to the college this morning without touching a computer. So I'm here live and kicking XP.

It's well done the video, and you speak 2 times in the video, 1 being the first time you appear, hum a chain of kindness, good Idea but it has to be something really strong and huge made by masses to stay like a tradition and take continuous action and effect XD, to make it natural and a day to day feat would be something good, but it's difficult to introduce it into the culture if it's not already related to another naturalized cultural feat or value (it can be done nonetheless).


hum, then it would be a while until he comes like in the next month then.

Yep Bran I agree with you, the best way to learn a language or anything is through experience, it's really useful to be forced from the day to the night to adapt and learn a language XD, or you adapt or you will have difficulties living and fitting in there. Also I think too that he will have little problem polishing his english skills that are already good, and also the english in canada is like a mix between the american and the english accent? I don't know, but, he will be fine XP.

My time here must've messed up my impression of how long you're gone.

This Pay It Forward project is quite intuitive, but kinda treated as "just another assignment" nonetheless. It's not easy to have it done IRL cause times may be bad and you won't just simply treat someone you don't know to something. And with con artists loose in the wild, it's kinda hard to trust other people as well. One's kindness may be assumed to come with bad intentions.

Prancey did say that he'd be inactive for around 15 days or so.

Vic you just raised an extremely good question that I didn't think of!! I heard they have their own accent, but I don't know if they're following the British or the American English. Or could it even be a mix of both, which I think is unlikely?

I will guess the MALE narrator was you?

I think they have their own accent, and still believe it has a little of the mix, but well, what you can do is watch in you tube a canadian hockey game XD to see how it really is. And it's the same in here (about the kindness thing), quite insecure the thing, unlikely but not impossible if it transforms and fit in the culture like a norm or tradition, well whatever.

He is the one that talks most from the mid to the end I think, and the first male's voice in the beginning of the video, but he doesn't talk any time in front of the camera, I believe he appears two times in the video.

Yes indeed, then the female narrator takes over for a bit. :D
So how is everyone doing?

There were two male narrators and two female ones. And yeah, my voice is the first one, if I remember correctly (my connection is so bad I can't view the video at all x'D And I don't remember much of what I've said now, not to mention, when ). But my voice is the weaker one, you can say, as compared to my friend, a brighter one.

I think it's a very difficult feat to pull, the Pay It Forward culture that is. With the society as it is, it's getting tougher to build rapports between people, much less trust. A very fundamental part of society needs to be changed, or it might even need to be the entire foundation of the paradigm of "society". Maybe going back to our roots may lead us back but that's kinda hard as well.

I've submitted my visa application! Like finally! Now all I have to do is wait. Meanwhile, it's nearly time till when my new and final semester in my current university starts.

Awesome!

I am currently having not so happy issues with the wifi at my house and my tablet. I hope it will allow me to connect again to it soon.

Any how I hope you all have a good day and I hope to speak with you all very very soon.

Regards,
-Brandon

thanks brandon, have a good day too =P, it will eventually connect I suppose, with a little tampering as you should be trying right now XP.

And good luck with the visa application japo, and I didn't think you had a weak voice, I rather thought that the other one was kinda high pitched, yours is more serious, like a documentary or a report XP, it fits just fine.

yep, to change a thing in society it needs a chain of effects that covers from the economics, to the architecture and arrangement of the cities, influencing the use we give to the technology, media resources, an effective government, work from the people (unconsciously mostly), and strengthening of the core values of the culture (or slowly change them with all the things above) and transcribe them into the thing that we want to create.

That is just my guesses, but it needs more than that and at the same time it's automatically happening as we speak, still I haven't read enough to support this theoretically. If I have the time in a future, I think I will end reading sociological stuff and who knows, even going back to my roots and study it (indirectly like only the theoretical side like in social psychology, I kinda dislike the investigative part of sociology).

Sorry that I was missing for more than 36 hours. I'm back in my cubical now, and should be for until July, though I might be off from being here quite rarely. But I should be able to tell you guys about it beforehand. Yays for quick Internet though.

Thanks for the good luck Vic. Let's hope everything goes smoothly from here for the visa. I wanna have a peace of mind from that while I focus on my studies and other things at hand.
And yeah, I sounded kinda like a robot or computer making a mathematical speculation.

That works, but then a lot of time and effort (and money) are involved in the process. It would be mentally straining for those who are trying to make things happen as well. And I think it also takes in a bit of coincidence, that the country may be able to get the right government that has good foresight and supportive of the community, then there needs to be strong entrepreneurs that practice some level of philanthropy, and an open-minded society. Having a good government is quite difficult, considering that they have lots to do daily, and that there are probably lots of corrupted ones all around. And then about entrepreneurs, it may be readily available in some country but not as much in Asia. Philanthropy isn't in our culture, and people like the Chinese would be laughing their heads off as you explain the idea of philanthropy to them. As for open-minded society, that really depends on how the society slowly changes.


These are my guesses of the requirements. They're not really requirements but more like the right ingredients to make the idea possible.

And hey Vic, ever considered to major in psychology and minor in sociology? :D Doesn't that make it a bit like a win-win situation for you?

VicmxD wrote:thanks brandon, have a good day too =P, it will eventually connect I suppose, with a little tampering as you should be trying right now XP.

And good luck with the visa application japo, and I didn't think you had a weak voice, I rather thought that the other one was kinda high pitched, yours is more serious, like a documentary or a report XP, it fits just fine.

yep, to change a thing in society it needs a chain of effects that covers from the economics, to the architecture and arrangement of the cities, influencing the use we give to the technology, media resources, an effective government, work from the people (unconsciously mostly), and strengthening of the core values of the culture (or slowly change them with all the things above) and transcribe them into the thing that we want to create.

That is just my guesses, but it needs more than that and at the same time it's automatically happening as we speak, still I haven't read enough to support this theoretically. If I have the time in a future, I think I will end reading sociological stuff and who knows, even going back to my roots and study it (indirectly like only the theoretical side like in social psychology, I kinda dislike the investigative part of sociology).

Ah yes Vic it did re-connect, it did so at 3pm est time on Friday afternoon, almost preciselly 24 hours after it wtopped connecting. I heard this has happened to others who live here before. It just rejects your device for like 24 hours for no apparent reason then re connects you after about 24 hours. It has made me research routers and how they work more preciselly.

yep, I think that is the best option, doing a graduate study on sociology, less spent time. And we will be here I hope when there is time to talk XP.

And Brandon, yep it can be the router or the device, but It's more probably that it's the internet service itself, maybe there is a deficient service of the company or on your zone, or a weak signal in your house because of the infrastructure (the cables) or the reasons cited above, who knows, but if it's not such a big issue then there is little to worry about, still I may lose my temper when the internet is gone XD, but I like to have b plans for kinda extreme situations like that, I prepare myself as I have movies, books and other stuff waiting for me if anything happens.

Ah, good thing that your Internet connection's fine Bran. I have bad connection at home and it gets really frustrating when you're trying to do something important.

One other thing that bothers me besides getting disconnected for no reason or only certain devices are disconnected is how the connection would be strong at certain parts of the house while weak in others. Like if you're in the living room, and say the router's at one corner of the room, and you're sitting right opposite of the living room and it's not working. Walk a bit further into another room, and somehow you get connected back. I dunno... It's like a bit of a mystery to me.

Edit: I just received my results for that English test I took. I met the requirements for my university! Now my position is solidly secured!

Good job japo XP, then a little celebration is just fine? XP, it's still vacation so cheers! . The visa is going well and there is just one semester to go =D, everything will unfold just fine, it's great the feeling when everything is just working fine, enjoy!

Great job Japorized! I knew you would.


As for the wifi issue.... sometimes I will sit in the same spot and it will go out. It had geen eorking tjere for 20 minutes. O.o

VicmxD wrote:Good job japo XP, then a little celebration is just fine? XP, it's still vacation so cheers! . The visa is going well and there is just one semester to go =D, everything will unfold just fine, it's great the feeling when everything is just working fine, enjoy!

Aww dang! I completely forgot about having a bit of a celebration for that. " longdesc="109" /> I checked my email the moment I woke up today, half-awake and the world was still spinning into clear view. Then I saw the email informing me that my results are ready. I took the dare to check on it, cause I was worried about my speaking results, and a bad one would probably ruin my day. Turns out it's the highest of all four categories.

Things are indeed working fine now, just a few other stuff to handle and wait for!

brandon_g wrote:Great job Japorized! I knew you would.

Thanks Bran

As for the wifi issue.... sometimes I will sit in the same spot and it will go out. It had geen eorking tjere for 20 minutes. O.o

20 minutes? You mean it times you out in around 20 minutes usually?