Recent events have led to a wake up call. A good blow to the head.

If you asked me 5 days ago where I saw myself in 5 years from now, I wouldn’t know. Heck, I hated those ambition-type questions to the core, me being a laidback hippie, a voluntary honorary red ant. Is everybody supposed to be a managing director at the age of 25? I like hands-on programming. I don’t want to be giving orders to subordinates, who I feel would not do the job the way I want it. John Carmack has always been a hardcore programmer for id Software, despite co-owning it! His dedication and passion is what kept their game engines top-notch.

Move Out
I plan to move out of my parents’ house sometime.

I’ve never given it thought. I’ve never thought that I should, or that I would. Until recently.

Just like in Failure To Launch, there really isn’t a reason to move out. I do not hate my parents. I’m not inseparable from them either. I come home just to sleep, use the computer, fix the computer, provide free ASTRO for my family (it’s a company perk) and eat dinner. Sometimes. My Nokia N70‘s alarm clock is more annoying than previous Nokias I’ve had, but I am still coming back after gigs at 2am and sleeping right through the alarm. That’s where family comes in. The human alarm clock.

I don’t need to move out. I don’t get cigarette withdrawal symptoms at home. I don’t get the munchies. (I don’t smoke or do weed.) I don’t have a curfew. They’ve never said that I can’t bring girls into my room but I don’t, because I am shyyy. 😮

I was never forced to live independently before, since I went to college at Informatics KL, which was very near the Ampang Park LRT station. Perhaps, if I was studying Game Design in Multimedia University, Melacca (and then Cyberjaya) I’d be forced to experience it. Perhaps, if I came to the Klang Valley to study, from say Ipoh, I’d be forced to.

At this point, being forced to go for National Service would be good for me. It teaches kids to be independent! It really isn’t about learning how to fire guns. It’s about getting some muscles, a bit of a tan, and watching your back as you pick up the soap.

Where To?

Preferably somewhere in the middle of everything, like KL Sentral or Bangsar. Of course, both areas are prime property, so Seputeh, Brickfields and Kerinchi are cheaper options.

Oh, and it would have to be next to an LRT station, so even schoolgirls can come to my place… and play with my Transformers and watch me play guitar. I’m a private person and only do private performances, unless under inhibition-inhibiting substances.

Getting Around

I love the LRT and fully support it. It’s too bad people aren’t patient enough to live with it. A banged up car, and the cost of banging it back into shape, could be half a Kancil. Plus I could park anywhere without worrying. I wouldn’t put my junk in the backseat.

But really, do I need a car?

NO.

I am one of those people who can live with long bus rides. I’ve got my phone and loads of Symbian games. I’ve got my pen and paper and a Rubik’s Cube. I’ve always got something to mentally occupy myself with.

I just want a car so I can pick up chicks.

…and maybe come home late after clubbing in some place where taxis exorbitantly charge RM50 just to exit Subang/Sunway. But then, I shouldn’t be drinking and driving, so… do you see the irony here?

If I got married, I’d rather she drive while I take the bus. I might have a car, but it’s a matter of having a choice. (Like KL Commuter, a blog about public transportation in Malaysia, says.)

I’d hate myself the moment I find myself unable to ride the LRT.

Saving Up?

Since I’m so good at starting things and not finishing them, I shall exercise the policy of buying a functional item and then not upgrading it. For example, I was getting restless with my (sister’s) acoustic guitar, and wanted a lickable butterscotch Ibanez GSA 370-QM AM electric guitar badly. Just as I had the money for it, I failed for the first time in college. Plans were delayed, and the itch subsided.

Similiarly, I have a Canon Powershot A520, a functional geek camera with manual features. The itch is currently high to get a digital SLR… but I’ve a feeling that that too, will pass. I already have one item of camera. That cash could go to the car.

“Dad, I’m gonna move out. Can you buy me a Kancil?”

That’s not the point. Complete, true independence is the point.

…of course, provisions will be made for a gradual transition, but I will do as much as I am able to.

Food

I can’t don’t know how to haven’t tried to cook, but I have a whole lot of hair that I can afford to lose, by eating a carton of instant cup noodle. I’m used to my family’s kitchen mishaps, so if my cooking sucked I’d be pretty used to it. 😀

Drinks

I’m still at the age where I enjoy just having a sober conversation at a mamak compared to having a sober conversation in the smoky nethers of a pub or bistro. Alcohol is great, yeah, but just like food it goes in and goes out. Starbucks, too. Yeah, so I’m not big on coffee or alcohol. You could say that I haven’t cultivated such cultured tastes… but I should be thankful I don’t have such costly preferences. Ramli Burger anytime!

Changes, Plans

Self-preparation is the plan.

But first, I need to start practising as if I was independent at home, while I save up.

Cut Off Alarming Dependence

Tune myself to the alarm. It will be unavoidable that I will lack sleep. If I sleep at 2am, I’d only wake up automatically 8 hours later. However, there have been occurences where I remind myself before I sleep that the batteries are charging downstairs… and when I wake up, I actually remember to look for them. I set three alarms 15 minutes apart, and the jackpot’s on the third.

When I move, my room will be a mark of minimalism. Wardrobe in a box, the rest of my junk in a box, sofabed, computer table, office chair, fan (air-cond gives me the sniffles) and a toilet.

I felt that this blog entry would’ve been better written last night, since all the points were running in my head all day, but I decided to get off my lazy ass and clean up my room. How would I live the minimalist concept if I had heaps of boxes and papers around?

Thanks Ms. B. and best friend for helping me come to this realization. I’ve been such a dependent person for so long. (And shameless and stupid too.) I just don’t know where to hide my face in shame.