Say what?

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CB, created a post and it didn’t show up. Well done!

Anyways, f.u.c.k.i.n.g company paid me fro the month by cheque. Well done. NBCB. Now must go bank again, fark.

My pay is not in yet. It can be pretty irritating, month in month out, not knowing whether your pay will be by cheque or by account transfer, or whether it’s in on payday, or after that. For your information, it’s 3 days overdue. BUGGER!!!!!! I hope I don’t end up suing my employer’s arse for unpaid wages. A friend’s husband had that scenario, for 6 whole months. I can barely survive 1/2 a month, let alone 6 months. *prays for a miracle*

The past 2 weeks have been solid, on a sporty front. Regular gym sessions, basketball sessions, and a new job scope has seen a sharp drop in weight for me, as well as some muscle mass creeping in. The fact is, I don’t mind being overweight… but ONLY if it’s muscle mass, and not fattttttttttt.

Had a really weird encounter with oen fella when I hit the gym on Tuesday. The bugger kept smiling at himself while flexing like as though he was in a competition.. but that wasn’t the weirdest bit. That would be when he was beside me, while I was about to lift weights, and he suddenly groped his balls and shook his body like he was M. Jackson, and yes, smiling at himself through the mirror. Totally destroyed my mood for gym. Disgusting.

Alright… gotta head back to bed. Time to sleep… basketball tomorrow. =)

Passed my Business Statistics and Organisational Behaviour papers, getting a C and B respectively.

What a relief!

Not joking.

Newcastle completed their convoluted journey into the UEFA Cup proper despite being shut out by Latvian minnows Ventspils.

On another night, the Magpies might have run up a cricket score against Roman Grigorchuk’s men, but a combination of the woodwork, poor finishing and keeper Andris Vanins kept them at bay as they had to make do with the single goal they scored in Riga a fortnight ago.

After starting their season in the Intertoto Cup on July 15, Newcastle – who paraded new £10million signing Obafemi Martins on the pitch before kick-off – have achieved their first aim for the season.

• Duff looks forward to next round

They will be in the hat when the draw for the first round of the competition is made in Monaco tomorrow, and by the closure of the transfer window next week, hope to have further new faces in the squad.

James Milner came closest to breaking the deadlock with an 81st-minute free-kick which hit the bar, but with Ventspils not mustering a single credible effort on goal, the game – the Magpies’ 12th without defeat – was a virtual procession.

The home fans even had time to voice several choruses of ‘There’s only one Bobby Robson” a day after the club’s former manager underwent surgery to remove a brain tumour.

Martins was welcomed by, by St James’ Park standards, a relatively sparse crowd of 30,498, and then settled into his seat to watch his new club book him a season of European football.

What he saw will have both shown him why the Magpies were prepared to pay so much for his services and that, if his team-mates get it right, they could provide him with some decent service.

Newcastle, as befits a side with high hopes of making it to the latter stages of the competition, were utterly dominant before the break, but left the pitch at half-time having failed to add to their 1-0 first leg advantage.

Goalkeeper Steve Harper, starting his first game in more than a year, could have brought a deck chair, so uncomplicated was his first 45 minutes.

With Emre running the show from the centre of the field and Milner, playing in a makeshift strike-force alongside Albert Luque, giving central defender Kaspars Gorkss a torrid time, it seemed only a matter of time before the tie was effectively over.

But in truth, for all the pressure they exerted on the visitors, it took the Magpies 38 minutes to force Vanins to make a genuine save.

Skipper Scott Parker might have opened the scoring on 13 minutes had he made better contact with Milner’s right-wing cross, and Parker again, Charles N’Zogbia, Emre and Damien Duff all went close without hitting the target.

However, with seven minutes of the half remaining, Emre fired in a long-range effort which Vanins fumbled around the post, and that sparked something of a flurry.

N’Zogbia and Milner both had shots saved in quick succession and Duff, playing wide on the right, perhaps should have opened the scoring on the night after being set up by Parker on 44 minutes, but drilled his effort high over.

The home side returned knowing the preservation of their clean sheet would be enough to see them through, but aware that a single mistake could prove costly, and that their fans were expecting much, much more.

Duff and Milner were playing noticeably wider as the half unfolded and both were prospering as Ventspils were looking increasingly vulnerable.

Defender Titus Bramble almost broke the deadlock on 54 minutes when he curled a shot just over from 20 yards, and Duff provided an inviting cross two minutes later, but Luque misread his intentions with the goal yawning and the ball sailed unhindered across the six-yard box.

Emre tested Vanins once again on 59 minutes with a well-struck 30-yard effort, but the keeper was equal to the task, and as the half wore on, the Latvians started to adopt a more adventurous approach in the search for a goal.

Stephen Carr let fly from 30 yards on 64 minutes to call Vanins into action and Steven Taylor saw his shot blocked at point-blank range by Jean-Paul Ndeki as the visitors stood firm.

Luque, who had seen little of the ball where it mattered, had a chance to claim his second European goal of the season on 70 minutes when Milner picked him out unmarked at the far post, but he could not keep his header down.

Vanins tipped an N’Zogbia drive over 16 minutes from time as the Magpies queued up to take pot-shots at his goal, but he was helpless as Milner’s free-kick bounced down off the crossbar and ran safe seven minutes later.

Damien Duff is looking forward to a successful UEFA Cup campaign after Newcastle secured their place in the first round.

A goalless draw against Latvian side Ventspils did not reflect Newcastle’s dominance, however their first-leg victory allowed them to go through 1-0 on aggregate.

‘The most important thing is we’re through,” said Duff on five.

‘It’s where you want to be, hopefully this year will be a long run in the UEFA Cup.”

With a little luck, Newcastle would have won by several goals, a fact not lost on former Chelsea winger Duff.

‘It was pretty laughable by the end but we are happy with that and we are through to the next round.”

Newcastle paraded new signing Obafemi Martins before kick-off tonight, and Duff was delighted to see the former Inter Milan striker arrived for £10million.

‘It’s brilliant,” he said. ‘Obviously I know him from watching him over the last few years in the Champions League. He’s got electric pace and can finish as well so he can be a legend up here.

‘I’m loving every minute. I’ve been here three or four weeks and I’m happy as Larry.”

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Now, I understand that Newcastle are happy to parade their new signing, and I know that they made it to the cash cow of the UEFA Cup…. but just wtf is Larry?

Newcastle defender Jean-Alain Boumsong has joined Italian side Juventus on a four-year contract.

The 26 year old, who was signed last year from Rangers, is set to play in Serie B rather than the top flight of Italian football after Juventus’ relegation in the aftermath of the match-fixing scandal.

The deal is initially worth around £3.3million, which means the club have made a loss on the player bought by Graeme Souness from Rangers for £8million.

A statement to the Stock Exchange read: ‘The directors of Newcastle United plc wish to announce that the transfer of Jean-Alain Boumsong from Newcastle United to Juventus has been finalised this afternoon.’

The initial fee could increase depending on how Juventus fare in domestic and European competition, although the Italian side have also been docked 17 points for the coming season.

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Boy oh BOY am I relieved! Good riddance!! About time!!!

The fella was utter rubbish, and I really cath no balls as to why he’s playing for the French National squad. if you had read on from my former blog, you will see that since that pre-season friendly when he was introduced alongside Celestine Babayaro, I have been trying hard to find the qualities that prompted Souey to splurge out 8m pounds for him. Good piece of salesmanship from Rangers, I say.

Clement changed my job scope with Thiruch, making him one unhappy bird, and me, happier. Gone is my stay.in.your.area work and HellOooooOoOoooo outside World! I can’t understand how Thiruch managed to stay so free each day with hsi former work. The stuff that he is doing, it’s pretty tough. Some of the work that he did actaully required the help of another person, so how he managed to do it all in such a short space of time, I don’t know.

As you may have already known, I was promoted to Supervisor, even though my track record in attendance is not the best in the World. but, with a better role, comes the bumming news. OT is paid at 1.0 per hour, but 2.0 for holidays and Sundays. That means, staying back (which I may have to do so tomorrow) is sorta like lugi. Bo hua. Shortchanged. Sigh… oh well, as long as I smell the bacon at the end of the month. =)

Already, the extra money that I will be earning will be gone by the 5th day of me getting my salary, and everything will be back to square one. As they say, MONEY NO ENOUGH! How true.

I’m thinking of getting myself a new keyboard/mouse set this end of the month. What’s the sale? COMEX? Or was it SITEX? or PC Show? Too many, oh wells… overspent this month by $800 already. Bummer…. there goes the savings.

Toot!

Shola Ameobi rose to the challenge of replacing Alan Shearer as Newcastle launched the new Barclays Premiership campaign with a hard-fought 2-1 victory over Wigan. The 24-year-old fired home the winning goal on 64 minutes to hand Glenn Roeder’s men three points just as it looked as though they had surrendered at least two of them.

Skipper Scott Parker had headed the Magpies into a 38th-minute lead, but Newcastle’s defensive frailty struck once again 14 minutes after the break as Lee McCulloch levelled.

But with his side struggling, Ameobi converted after Chris Kirkland could only block Charles N’Zogbia’s stinging drive to claim victory in front of a crowd of 51,569. The visitors, who had earlier hit the post through Henri Camara and seen Shay Given keep out a McCulloch header and Nolberto Solano hack an Arjan de Zeeuw effort off the line, will feel they should have left with at least a point. But Ameobi’s intervention justified Roeder’s belief in his team with three new signings in the pipeline. The big talking point on Tyneside all summer has been the task of replacing retired skipper Shearer and the injured Michael Owen, and while Roeder remains optimistic for a successful campaign, there was a sense of trepidation at St James’ Park as torrential rain heralded the start of a new era. But by the time the half-time whistle sounded, some, if not all, of the fans’ fears had been quelled. A half played on a treacherous surface saw Ameobi lead the line well, new signing Damien Duff cause problems and Given once again at his excellent best. There was also closure for midfielder Nicky Butt, starting his first Barclays Premiership game for the club in 16 months. The former England international’s days at St James’ seemed to have drawn to a close when he was sent out on loan to Birmingham after apparently failing to acknowledge supporters at the end of the FA Cup semi-final defeat by former club Manchester United two seasons ago. However, he was applauded warmly from the pitch when he was forced to make a premature exit after a clash of heads. But perhaps most significantly, Parker, the man handed the armband in the wake of Shearer’s swansong, took over the Geordie legend’s mantle in more ways than one. Not only did he lead by example, but he also made the decisive contribution after seven minutes to put his side ahead. • Roeder praises Ameobi Ameobi did well to control Stephen Carr’s long ball on his chest and then twist and turn before delivering an inviting cross from his captain to plant an emphatic header past Kirkland. The on-loan Liverpool keeper had earlier tipped away a long-range Parker drive and a Nolberto Solano header, but the Magpies did not have it all their own way. Wigan, with six new arrivals in their starting line-up, held their own for much of the half with record signing Heskey and Camara causing problems. Camara was unfortunate not to level two minutes before the break when his header came back of the foot of the post, and Given had earlier had to claw away a McCulloch effort. Newcastle re-emerged determined to kill the game off and they might have done so within two minutes when Solano met Emre’s quickly-taken free-kick with a lob which sailed just over Kirkland’s crossbar. But Dutchman Denny Landzaat might have dragged his side back into it on 53 minutes after substitute Steven Taylor fouled Heskey 20 yards out, only to drill his free-kick high over. Solano had to come to the home side’s rescue two minutes later when de Zeeuw climbed high to head a Landzaat corner towards goal and he hacked the ball off his own line. The reprieve proved to be only temporary and when Carr made a mess of clearing a long ball, Heskey headed down for McCulloch to curl an equaliser through a crowded penalty area and past Given. But just as Wigan sensed an opportunity with Newcastle in disarray, Ameobi chose his moment to strike. Substitute N’Zogbia surged forward before unleashing a long-range effort which Kirkland could only parry, and the striker supplied a Shearer-like finish to raise the roof. However, the game was far from over and Landzaat might have spoiled the party had he kept his shot down from Camara’s 80th-minute cross. The pressure was intense as time ran down and Camara saw an 84th-minute shot deflected just wide and a penalty appeal against Titus Bramble waved away, but the Magpies managed to hold out to claim the points.

Roeder said: ‘I had known Shola Ameobi for quite a long time before I was involved with the first team, and I always saw something in him. ‘What I did see was a striker who needs to play through the middle, and I haven’t played him anywhere else. ‘I said to him before the game, `I am not buying a striker to replace you, I am buying a striker to play with you`. If that doesn’t give you confidence, I do not know what would’. ‘But that’s the truth, I am looking at strikers to play with Shola Ameobi. ‘He’s got the shirt at the moment, and they are going to have to fight hard to get it off him. He is learning slowly but surely to be a lot meaner player on the pitch, to stand up to the physical side and not let central defenders dominate him, let them know they have been in a game. ‘He’s a big, strong man, and he has technical ability as well.’ Roeder, who hopes to make three signings before the transfer window closes, was delighted with result. He said: ‘Am I pleased to get three points? On the opening day of the season, anyone would be. ‘Overall, it was a deserved three points even though Wigan made it difficult. ‘They have two banks of four working very hard and making it difficult for the opposition, and two strikers who will be hard to play against this year.” Opposite number Paul Jewell confronted referee Martin Atkinson on the pitch on the final whistle, and was less than complimentary on his performance. Asked about the penalty incident, he said: ‘We were not going to get anything today from the referee, were we? ‘We got to these meetings and we are told there is going to be more added time and they are going to be more stringent on that. ‘I made two substitutions and there were two goals scored, and then they put three minutes up. ‘For me Shay Given was taking ages with every goal-kick and free-kick and kicking the ball away. ‘We got two bookings, but our keeper has got ice on his leg from a nasty challenge. ‘I thought there was a rule against booking Newcastle players today, but obviously that changed with the booking of (Albert) Luque at the end.” However, Jewell was more than happy with the performance of his side, which included six new faces in the starting line-up. He said: ‘I am very disappointed in the result, but quite happy with the performance. I thought we deserved more than that. ‘In the first 20 minutes, we were average and a bit disjointed, we looked a little bit edgy, but after that, I thought we were the better side.” Keeper Chris Kirkland picked up a painful leg injury in his clash with Ameobi, but Jewell is hopeful it will not prove too serious.

Ref: http://soccernet.espn.go.com/report?id=199086&cc=4716

that 3 years ago to this date, while reading my old old blog, I realised that I used to play loads of basketball.

At least 2 times a week, with gym in the middle, wow, it was any wonder at all that I can’t do more than 5 pullups now as compared to 20+ 3 years ago? Time doesn’t help now, does it? Sigh…

I hope that this year quickly passes on. I just can’t believe that my life this year has been full of ups and downs, with more downs than ups.

So many downs, that sometimes, you can’t help but feel depressed if you were in my shoes. Just like today. Slipped in the bathroom, hurting my left knee and spine in the process, and now the pain from the back shifted to the side. How fucking sway is that? Fucking sway year, this 2006.

And the numerous almost-accidents that I’ve had with traffic, including 2 days ago, when a car door swung open right in front of me, which could actually be normal, ‘cept that the car was stationary waiting for the traffic light, and it was on the extreme right lane. Thank my lucky stars that I was going slow, if not, ‘Alex on the ground… again.’ Fucking hazardous year, this 2006.

Add on that, the numerous days of MC that I’ve had for being sick, genuinely but with a bit of a ‘Are you sure?’ from my colleagues until I promptly purged in the office in front of them. Fucking sick year, this 2006.

Fuck lah, I feel so depressed right now, family feels that I am sway, gf a little sceptical on whether or not it’s due to me being sick of work, colleagues think that I fall sick a little too often, friends barely there (in fact, what friends? Do I have any?)

I wonder, if I were to just suddenly die just like that, would anyone know? Who will be informed? How will my friends know whether to come to my wake or not? Would it be a sombre affair, or would it be like ‘Let’s get it done and over with. Alex was not worth the trouble’? Would anyone bother to come to my wake? Yes, you might say that Ol’ Alex here is thinking too much, but these are the type of thoughts that I think of. Delusional, way-out-of-line thinking, far-stretched thoughts…

I would like to blog about how colourful my life had been these past 25 years, but the shades of colours would all be dark, so no point lah.

In fact, right now, I don’t feel like blogging anymore. So, till next time, fuck that shit.