ever thought about not thinking

my mom and i went to visit my granddad at a day-care centre for the aged today. when we arrived, the old dudes and dudettes were seated in a circle (on chairs, coz if they sat cross legged, i dont think any one of them would be able to stand up. ever. again.)

they started their exercises, which was to manipulate a hula-hoop (the fancy kind that's colorful and filled with beads). as i stood there looking at my grand-pops, a wave of sadness came over me. ahh i remember the times, of years gone, where he would bring me for a car ride in his dark green toyota starlet, playing richard clayderman on the casette deck (my favorite artists during that time would include tina turner, specifically, what's love gotta do with it, and richard clayderman.) anyway, my grandpa would always drive me to Yaohan (back then they were still in business) Thompson, and bring me to a Kinderland branch there.

i wasn't a kinderland kid but i've always made a point to walk there with my grandpa coz that particular branch always had a row of old IBM 286's at the reception area. and i would always make a beeline for it and start tapping on the keys. that was the start of my computer geekiness - it introduced me to computers, followed by simple programming, then reading up more advanced stuff, and all the way to my very own suit of software (from a text processor, to an encryption scheme) way back in my primary school days. i've since left all those stuff, dusty and rusted, at the back of my brain but for all those invaluable knowledge that i've garnered, i only have my grandpa to thank.

so thank you ah-kong. i know you'll probably never get to read this, but the internet never forgets.

and as a testament to my grandpop's influence,

posted by stark @ 4:30 PM