ESL Blogs

This blog is in response to Barbare's (the Way to the Moon) blog on the same topic. She said she would love to read my answers to these questions. So, here are my answers. Some of the answers may sound like cliche.

1. What do you like most in this club?  Why?

There are many things I like about this club. But what I like the most is the freedom it gives its members to be anonymous and yet at the same time being able true to oneself.

2. If you have the chance to speak to Josef Essberger about the state of English environment in this club, what would you tell him?

This is very hard to answer, because first of all, I think I will be tongue tied if I have the chance to speak to Josef Essberger. After I manage to find my tongue, and form some sort of tangible English, first I think I will thank him for maintaining this club as a free club. Most website for English learners are paid sites, so to maintain it as a free site is something that I'm really grateful.

After all said and done, I would like to request an autograph from him, but no selfie. I don't like selfie. :D

3. If there is one thing you can do to change a section in this club, what will it be? Why?

I think my priority would be to add some features in the chat room. The first feature is a block button so that I can block some unsavoury characters from being able to private message me. I believed this feature was available in the previous 1997 Chat Room.

The second feature that I want to add is the voice message facility in private message box. The voice message facility should not be available in the main room because otherwise the room will become more chaotic than a wet/fresh market. Therefore, only in the private room that members are able to talk to each other orally.

4. What do you think is the best section in EC that has made your English learning improved? Why?

I had answered this question in my previous blog, but I would summarised my answer in here. Personally, I think the best section in EC is the blog section. This is because it helps me being more diligent in crossing my "ts" and dotting my "is" in term of grammar. It also helps in improving my vocabulary usage. And the best part is that more members are more willing to point out and correct my mistakes, which I'm very grateful.

5. Who is the most influential person in your life? Why?

This is another hard question to answer. I think I had various person that directly or indirectly influenced me in various stages of my life. During the early stages of my life, teachers became the most influential person. I thank God that at that stage, there was no internet, and the television was just a far fetched luxury. 

Later, it were not person that left their marks in my life, but rather books. I love reading since the day I knew my alphabets. I would read anything and everything. Sometimes, even materials that were deemed not suitable for me. These books left distinct marks in my life. It shaped my thinking, my outlook of life as well as enriched it. So, I would say the most influential thing in my life is books.

6. What is the relevance of learning English in your life, in your society and in your environment?

At first I never like English. I only had to read English books when I found out that there was no more Malay novels in the school library, and then I fell in love with the beauty of English words. After that learning English was more fun. Nowadays, learning English is for my own enjoyment. Of course it's a bonus since I have to use English in my daily official communication. I believe people will take me more seriously if my English is not too 'complicated' (read that as 'too bad') to be understood.

7. If you would be isolated in an island with 3 EC members, who would these 3 members be? Why them?

This is another hard question to answer but at the same time so obvious to me. Though I love to meet some of MyEC members like Lady Anne, Inna, WMW, Sima, Evangelina, just to name a few, I don't think I will take anyone with me because I like my solitude. Chattering people drives me nuts. So in order to avoid some murdering rampage from me, I think I just bring along a truckload of books rather than some companions. And of course not forgetting I have to bring a lot of cheese cakes too.

8. To whose famous personality do you find yourself parallel with?

I guess no one because all those people I only 'know' them through media, and you know how media like to gloss things over on certain things, thus you never know whether you're reading the truth about those people or just some glorified features.

But I guess I don't mind meeting Roger Federer and Steven Gerrard.

9. What do you think is the greatest problem that EC is facing today? Explain.

EC is too famous for its own good. Why do I think it's a problem for EC? This is because it becomes the hunting ground for spammers, cheaters and other unsavoury characters.

10. What is the biggest risk you’ve taken in your life? Why? 

Hmmm ... I would say it would be posting my first blog in EC. It was like plunging into the deepest ocean, and since I can't swim very well, I know either I will survive by pure will or I will drown. It was similar when I posted my first blog. Since I never wrote a blog, either in my own language, let alone English, it was a life changing decision. I don't know what kind of reaction and reception that I'm going to receive from EC members, thus it was really a leap of faith, and I am glad that I took it.

So, there you are. My short answers to those questions.