Joseph Li

.

2008-12-18T00:23:00.011+08:00

This blog is final, it's no longer active.

I've SWITCHED!

Do re-link me there. Thanks.

Exit

2008-12-10T00:35:00.005+08:00

I've been preparing this post for quite some time already. This blog was initially started with a rather meaningful reason, and although conditions have changed many many months back, I still held on and kept on typing. However, it seems that I've been "trying" in a wrong direction, and things backfired. Therefore...

this blog will no be active until...
I don't know when.

I'll also be taking a step back in life. Let's just say, I'll be hibernating for quite a while. The reasons are complex, so by far, try not to ask me why. I've always told myself that if I ever fail in holding on something, I'll leave, and since that's the case now that I've lost, I'll keep my words. I've lied enough to myself and to others.

Lastly, I know my words have been extra sarcastic lately, which at time can be rather offending. That's me in the past, but that's also somethings I've tried controlling a lot for the past few years because it was the right thing to do. However, lately, the urge to be sarcastic is back. I do it because it's something that releases my deeper frustration on anything (related or unrelated) and I'm not very proud of it either but I just can't help it, there are just too many stuff on my mind, it overloads.

I'm sorry if my words have offended any of you. I am.

Alright I'm off to dig my burrow. Till then. Bye.

everything I do has a deeper reason within
it's up to you to understand it

Guy singing like a...

2008-12-09T20:50:00.005+08:00

Alright this video really freaked me out. Not only does this dude have a nice voice, he can also sing really well with a... WOMEN's voice! Most ladies can't even match his standards, and he does it so naturally.

Amazing... or scary? HAHA.
Well, I'm going for scary!

Anyway, this guy's name is Nick Pitera and he uploaded a whole library of his performance on Youtube. I'm still rather sceptical about his talent, I'm not saying the singing is fake, it's just the identity part, for all you may know he might be a tranny a.k.a tranversite. But well, guy or not, it doesn't actually matter, the bottom line is that he is indeed a good singer.

5 4 3 2 1... Blast Off!

2008-12-08T11:50:00.000+08:00

Since it's now the month of December, how can I not blog about the last 8sista celebration of the year? Our beloved Miss Iphilla Kwek's birthday! The last among the eight to finally reach the BIG 2. Haha.

We met up on Sunday, and this year we brought her to a place on top Mt. Emily Hill, called Wild Rocket @ Hangout Hotel. I've been wanting to dine at this place for years but since it's a little inaccessible, it never rise to the top of the list. Anyway this celebration was rather unique too. For the first time in 8sista history, we had Lunch! We never did a celebration during lunch and thank goodness the place we ate was air-conditioned. LOL.

Look at how happy she was with her new fragrance. Thanks to the very resourceful "intelligence department", we managed to pull some strings to find out her wish-list. Sorry to make you lie Amanda, but we all know it's worth it. Haha.

And what's a celebration without a surprise? Before lunch, we all worked under the grueling sun and pieced out a big Happy Birthday out of small pieces of paper. Oh! The Jester hat was last minute, we just happen to see it in Carrefour and thought won't it be great to have something we can laugh at her for the years to come.

Did you know the plan was actually to make her believe we were going to Malaysia for the celebration? Haha. We actually made her bring along her passport without telling her where we were headed that day. Well, she did not really fall for it, but that was because we didn't have enough time to excute the initial and much much better plan. LOL.

Season of... SHOPPING!

2008-12-07T09:25:00.004+08:00

Yes! December is here yet again. 18 more days to Christmas, 50 days to Chinese New Year and 66 days to ORD!!! Haha. The Happy Days are all coming really really soon, so exciting so exciting. =D

Anyway, I've been spending quite a lot of my time at home lately and since there's nothing much for me to do other than surfing the web, I started doing online shopping. Haha. Weird? Nope, nothing is weird when you're bored-out at home. Well, I scrolled through a few male blogshops (actually I believe I went most of them, the numbers are just too small compared to the ladies) but their stuffs really don't interest me. In fact, I wonder who even buys them? The clothes are really... pasar malam?

Since nothing interest me locally, I decided to go GLOBAL.

And Damn! It's something I should've done long time ago. The clothes are really damn interesting and the best part... cheap! I'm a "plain coloured t-shirt with centre print" kind of guy and the States are filled with it. One of them is Threadless (some of you might have heard of it, quite famous), their T-shirts are only S$20+ (excluding postage of course) and those are the expensive range by the way.

Price vs. Design? Worth it!

If I ain't so broke now, no thanks to my spectacles, I would clicked "Checkout" long ago. Haha. I'm still considering, DEEPLY, if I should buy them. But if anyone of you are also interested in those Threadless T-shirts (which I doubt so), do tell me, we can share the postage cost. LOL.

Bad Habit

2008-12-02T09:29:00.004+08:00

I just realize I've got a new habit, and IT SUCKS! Let me emphasis it again...

IT SERIOUSLY SUCKS!

These days, no matter what time I go to bed the night before, and if I've got no work the next day, I'll be waking up at 7-8am in the morning. 7-8am! I use to be able to sleep soundly till the early afternoon. You know, like a pig?

Not only do I wake up really really early now, I also can't seem to have a full night sleep. I'll be waking up every few hours after every meaningless dream. On top of that, I'll be so damn awake that I won't be able to get back in to my dreams again. Like last weekend, when I slept at 6am, I was bright awake by 8am, and since it was so early, I rolled on my bed for the next 3 hours hoping to get more sleep but I've already missed the Sandman.

I seriously miss my piggy days!

New Toys

2008-11-29T17:54:00.004+08:00

Two weeks ago I made my decision to give up Starhub's "Fat Green Tube" a.k.a their MaxOnline Broadband. It's too slow, everything take ages to load and let's not talk about how long I need to "get" a new movie onto my Mac.

So I've decided to jump over to Singtel's broadband and I instantly saw a significant difference after I plugged it in. Although most websites, like Youtube, only load a little faster but now it only takes me less than 10sec to "get" a new song, less than an hour for a movie. Amazing!

Anyway, to make the deal sweeter, I opt to sign up a contract for a 9" EeePc. Although I don't really need a laptop at the moment - even if I do i'll get a Macbook Pro - there's no harm having one either. And it's so small, so irrestitible to use and touch. Just look at the picture below...

It's as big as my Mac Mini!

Performance wise it's not too bad, haven't really try much things on it yet but what more can you expect for something so small right? Haha. With this new netbook, I can finally send my Mac Mini for repairs, the stupid DVD drive is faulty. Yipee!

I also bought myself a new 640GB Harddisk and a new pair of earphones yesterday at Sitex. I know I'm damn broke now and shouldn't be spending money on stuffs like that, especially with Christmas round the corner but I couldn't resist, the prices were too cheap and with new movies everyday, I seriously need a larger storage space. Haha.

Geek-lemma

2008-11-25T20:45:00.006+08:00

I seriously need to get off the computer, I damn glued to it and no matter how hard I try to do other activity that does not concern a computer, I just find myself mindlessly going back it. It's as though everything I do will lead me back to the computer in one way or another, something like a time spiral. It's Evil!

Ever since I've gotten a computer at home (which I obviously don't remember how many donkey years ago it was), the first thing I reach home is to switch on the computer and the last thing I do, before going off to bed, is to, well, switch it off. And 90% of the time in between will be spent on it. It's really hard not to use it when nothing on earth can substitute it, come on, you can basically do anything and everything with it.

But the constant staring on the screen is starting to make my eyes feel heavier and I guess part of the reason for my constant headaches should be because of this too. I won't be surprise to hear from my optician that my eyesight has worsen by two to three times.

Haiz. It's really hard to be a geek these days...

Or maybe it's time to give jogging another shot. It's time to do something else that does not directly require using my eyes. I hope my leg has recovered though, it has been quite a bitch lately.

What's what?

2008-11-21T23:55:00.002+08:00

The Lie

I'm not very sure why I'm typing this post right now. I have nothing in my mind to blog about yet I'm here moving my fingers around the keyboard. I can't stand my blog being so empty. The last post I written was on Monday, how often do I have a few days gap between each post in the past. Almost never. Life is boring now, how I wish I can end it fast...

The Truth

I hate the way I blogged in the past. Months back, I was asking myself why I bother to read other people blogs and that's when I realize how lame I was, I was just typing for the sake of typing. In fact, I actually have to spend hours on the computer everyday in the past, reading around just so that I can have something to blog about, so not worth my time. Well, guess I was too blinded by the monetary gain.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Anyway, I went to look at the post I typed a year ago and I realized a year ago today, was the last day of my OJE. And it was also the night (or morning) my good-old OETI friends hung out at my house and got high on alcohol. Haha. Memories.

Half-Deaf

2008-11-17T21:07:00.000+08:00

I wonder if it's me, my earphones or that my ear really has something wrong. Whenever I listen to my iPod these days, I keep having the feeling that the left side is softer.

At first I thought it was the earphones or my iPod (like the last time) but my friends listened and said the earphones are totally balanced. I haven't got to try another set of earphones since I only have one set with me now, the others are either all damaged or lost. However, I find my hearing perfectly balanced when I don't have my earphones on. Weird eh.

I really hope it's just me. I don't want to find out any more physical problems, the current ones are already quite hard to handle. And being deaf in one ear is seriously no joke!

It's best I turn the volume down when I'm traveling.

I got murdered!! Help~

2008-11-15T12:27:00.000+08:00

I seldom have nightmares but these days I've been having quite a lot of them. I don't know why, lately I keep having dreams of crazy people or monster (I can't really remember) chasing after me and kill me in the end. The amazing thing is I can kind of feel those pain when like, for example, I'm being stab, I can feel the knife entering. However, once I'm "dead" in the dream, I'll wake up.

Now who said you can't feel any pain in your dreams huh huh!

I seriously hope these dreams will go away soon, maybe it's because I'm not praying to God regularly and he's punishing me, hmm... Nah. The big guy ain't so mean. Haha. But it does make me think twice whenever I sleep now, I mean like what if I really die in my dreams and never wakes up? Man. That's scary. LOL.

Haiz. What happened to all the sexy dreams I used to have???

Legen..wait for it..DARY!

2008-11-13T23:02:00.000+08:00

I've been really addicted to How I Met Your Mother lately - Thanks to Melvin's hard disk. Anyway it's a comedy series like Friends, showing the day to day jokes about a bunch of really close friends. Although it ain't as funny as Friends (nothing can beat Friends) it's still very entertaining and addictive (alright maybe because I don't have any other shows to watch), it'll just keep you laughing and laughing.

Somehow watching that also taught me some rather valuable lessons about friendship. Something you can't really get from Friends. LOL.

I ate at House @Dempsey today. Like what Melvin said the other time, that place is really great! I seriously fell in love with the design and all. Food wise so-so, nothing special but do note that for the portion size, it's quite steep. 2 main course and a side cost me close to a 3 digit sum. Haha.

But money won't stop me from going back again. Alright maybe not to eat, just chill will do.

Tick tock...tick......tock

2008-11-11T20:00:00.001+08:00

Today is the 11th of November 2008.
I'm officially left with 3 months to ORD!

YES! It's finally nearing...!!

The only part that sucks is that as the time draws nearer, time seem to progress slower. Each day move pass like as though it'll take forever. Well, maybe because you are so excited, you think about it all the time. Why is Time such a bitch? LOL.

Waste time, waste money

2008-11-07T18:25:00.000+08:00

I'm currently typing this post with my Touch at Starbucks. Ain't it cool?

Anyway, I felt so stupid and cheated today. I was suppose to have a cardio medical appointment at CGH today and since I don't really know how to get there, I took an $18 cab! But when I got there the lady told me this...

Lady: Where are your parents?
Me: Parents?
Lady: Yes, your parents need to be present for the test. If they're not here we can't proceed and you'll have to postpone the appointment.
Me: Well, I was not informed. Alright when's the earliest date?
Lady: Erm... 2nd Jan 2009.
Me: WTH?!!!

So they did not only waste my money on the stupid cab ride because they didn't inform me about the parents part. They wasted my time because I had two over hours to spare before the Battalion Anniversary at Gotham Penthouse in the evening. Argh!

That's also the reason why I'm at Starbucks now.

Wake up call

2008-11-05T22:55:00.000+08:00

I had spent almost an hour typing an essay-long emo-fied post and just when I was about to type in the last sentence, I decided to delete it.

I'm not trying to hide anything. It's just that I finally realize how stupid I'd been for the past few months, drowning my time at home with back-to-back comedies and dramas all the way to bedtime, laughing like a lunatic in conversations even though it's not funny, trying to brainwash my head that I should stay happy blah blah blah...

...all these are stopping HERE!

It's as though I've been suddenly thrown into the sea unaware and have been floating aimlessly, sulking and blaming all day long, hoping that the ship would save me. Why didn't I think of swimming to shore? Saving myself, myself instead.

The thought just suddenly struck me and realized how naive I'd been. I've been so dependent (and depended) by the other party that I forgot how to spend a normal life, how to truly enjoy myself, my way. The whole thing was never my fault (alright not 100%) so why am I ill-treating myself? It's time to seriously GET A LIFE! and start pursuing the 'purpose' I've set long time ago. =)

And if you've been wondering why I don't post as often as before, it because all the post I wished to type were filled with so much sadness and spikes, I don't wish for it to hurt anybody. When men get bitchy, it can get really nasty and painful. LOL.

Well, anyway that's all classified as 'the past' now, so let's just see how far I can swim now.

Sleeping King

2008-10-16T03:30:00.001+08:00

It's 3:30am now and I just woke up from a 13 hours afternoon nap. LOL. For those who texted or tried calling me during that period, you now know the reason, I'm not ignoring you. Haha. I slept so sound that I did not even realise my sister and my dad were shifting furnitures getting ready for Sunday's celebration.

I'm not really a big fan of afternoon naps (I find it a waste of precious time) but I guess the dreams I had were too beautiful to be missed. In fact I doubt I'll ever want to wake up if I get to continue dreaming about it later. Haha. Anyway, I doubt the nap benefited at all, my fever is gone but the sneezing and coughing kind of gotten worst. My stomach is also growling, I kind of missed dinner time and have to make do with biscuits and milk now. How pathetic right? LOL.

Since we're on the topic on sleeping, few days ago I read an article about oversleeping which reminded me that I ought to re-plan my sleeping patterns. There are quite a few medical problems linked to oversleeping, diabetes, headaches, heart diseases are some of them.

Diabetes: People who slept more than nine hours each night had a 50% greater risk of diabetes than people who slept seven hours per night. This increased risk was also seen in people who slept less than five hours per night. The researchers did not draw conclusions about the physiological link between long sleep and diabetes. But they did suggest that oversleeping could be indicative of underlying medical problems that increase the likelihood of diabetes.

Headaches: For some people prone to headaches, sleeping longer than usual on a weekend or vacation can cause head pain. Researchers believe this is due to the effect oversleeping has on certain neurotransmitters in the brain, including serotonin. People who sleep too much during the day and disrupt their nighttime sleep may also find themselves suffering from headaches in the morning.

Back pain: There was a time when doctors told people suffering from back pain to head straight to bed. But those days are long gone. You do need to curtail your regular exercise program when you are experiencing back pain. But doctors now realize the health benefits of maintaining a certain level of activity. And they recommend against sleeping more than usual, when possible.

Heart disease: A careful analysis of the data from that study showed that women who slept nine to 11 hours per night were 38% more likely to have coronary heart disease than women who slept eight hours.
(source)

Well, hope this article kind of "wake" you sleepy heads up too.

I kind of had a minor squabble with 2 person yesterday and I do hope they get my side of the story. I believe we're both a fault. It has been a really hard time for me these days and I do hope you guys understand that. I'm no longer the clown I use to be back then.

Sniff Sniff...

2008-10-15T09:28:00.005+08:00

It's been a while since I've updated this blog, had been rather lazy to type anything lately, and also a little lack of inspiration. Anyhow, most of my days were spent in camp working (as usual), back at home I've been trying to solve the Rubik's cube, that James passed to me, in a shorter time. I'm also trying to finish reading the new book, The Host, that I just started on, it's just too thick. After reading 4-5 chapters, my eyes will start blurring out. I don't really have much patience for reading.

Well, if you're wondering why I ain't working on a Wednesday morning, I'm currently down with a very bad flu. My nose is currently like a faulty tap, I must hold on to a piece of tissue wherever I go. The weather had been as crazy as ever, especially in camp, it'll be really freaking hot all day and all of a sudden a really heavy downpour, then minutes later, the heat is back up again. And it seems like rain always comes when I'm working in the open, well, just my luck these days.

It's time for me to go to doctors for MC. I hate falling sick, but I definitely LOVE the MCs! Haha. It'll be great if he give me a 2 days MC, because combined with my leave on Friday, I'll be having another ultra long weekend. LOL.

Ohh! New Macbook Pros are out. I really love the new design, the black rims around the display makes it look so slick. How I wish I can start my University course 8 months in advance, then I can get my hands on one now. :x

Ear blocked

2008-10-11T05:15:00.006+08:00

Just go back from Zouk, it's the first time I went there after their previous renovation donkey years back. Well, nothing much changed anyway, still as squeezy as every but thank goodness we didn't have to queue. LOL. I do like the music though, it was somewhat like a karaok session singing all my favourite hits and no one will be able to hear my awful voice (the music was DAMN loud) Haha.

Anyway, it was a rather weird and awkward night out, I actually went with Jason and his friends, and we all joined up with his friend's friend, so basically I went out with a bunch of strangers. Haha. But at least they were a VERY friendly bunch.

Overall it was not too bad, quite fun but... erm let's just say it did not serve it's purpose - NO! Don't get me wrong, "purpose" has nothing to do with girls.

Trapped!

2008-10-10T02:10:00.007+08:00

I can't get out. I've walked for ages but it seems like I've never left the starting point at all. None of the solutions are working. I'm still stucked and it's seriously driving me nuts, more than ever.

I don't want to be a hindrance and I'm not going to give up trying...

One day I'll be out!
and I hope it'll be soon...

Stolen

2008-10-07T23:59:00.001+08:00

My bicycle in camp got STOLEN! Just when I'm left with 4 months more for my ORD, this had to happen to me. I seriously regret using a number lock to lock up the bicycle and park it outside overnight, I bet the thief must have been trying to crack the code for weeks, testing out each permutation at a time. What an ass!

Now I have to be like everyone else and ~~run~~ walk into camp everyday - logically it's because the distance I have to cover is FREAKING far that's why I bought a bike in the beginning. This also mean I can't afford to miss any bus when I go to work in the morning, which thus, means I'll have to ensure I wake up on time, if not, earlier... which (again) is NOT a very easy task. LOL.

Well, since the bicycle's rear wheel was already dented (I had a "small" accident long ago) and also a little loose, I hope that idiot who stole it crash will riding it. KARMA!

Argh! I hate to walk.

He better don't let me see him..!!!

*Off-topic*
Just so you guys know, Ministry of Sound at Clark Quay has closed down (here) and same goes to the DHL hot-air balloon at Bugis (here).

They both contained lovely and very sentimental memories. =(

Thoughts

2008-10-06T23:19:00.001+08:00

Won't it be great?

The 'O' Sensation

2008-10-05T22:35:00.007+08:00

I'm no fan of cheesecakes but no one can ever resist a slice of Big O Cheesecake from N.Y.D.C, it's simply Delicious! It's has been such a long long time since I've had one and I seriously miss it - I use to have like once a month years back.

Thick chocolate cream onto a thin slice of cheesecake and Oreo's cookie base.
Did I hear you say sinful?

Skinny people like me don't give a shit about sinful!
We just indulge with zero regrets =)

Oh! It was free by the way. In fact, I did not even spent a single cent eating there. Not even service charge! LOL.

Bulimic Saving Pattern

2008-10-04T22:36:00.005+08:00

It seems like the more I try to save, the more I'm spending.

I seriously wonder when I'll have enough money to buy myself a new bicycle and afford a decent holiday overseas, because at the rate I'm "saving", I believe it'll take me more than decade to do so.

Coincidenence?

2008-10-02T13:35:00.013+08:00

Today started rather weird and sorrowful for me.

I received a message from Iphillia after lunch saying that her ex-secondary school classmate passed away. Coincidentally that guy is the recent NSF that died during training. It was saddening news. However, just right after receiving that message, I got another SMS by my tutee that her schoolmate passed away yesterday too.

They are two different person, one a 20-year-old guy and the other a 15-year-old school girl. The similarity is that both deaths are unexplained. I feel more sad for the school girl though, it was really a pity. Haiz.

Well, at least we know they're heading to a better place up above. =)

"Life is a thin line.
Treasure every second of it and leave no regrets behind."

I realized I really have no idea how to comfort people at these kind of situations, there is always a sudden lost of words. I ended up giving both a one sentence reply. I guess I'm just afraid to accidentally offend someone for the wrong usage of words like what I always do...

*ADD-ON*
I was out with Anna just now and she showed me a message saying that one of her friend/relative (I couldn't remember) passed away yesterday. What's really shocking is that the guy's name is JOSEPH LEE! No, it's not a joke, that's not me but knowing three of such bad news in one day is bad enough!!! Bad Omen??

9 in One

2008-10-01T21:22:00.006+08:00

How did you spend your Hari Raya holiday?

I spend it with my computer. In fact, I've been on it since 1pm and only left for toilet breaks! The actual plan was actually "Packing my very very messy room" today. Haha. I'm just so glued to Gossip Girl, for the past 8 hours, I've watched 9 episodes back-to-back on my computer. All the scandals, the back-stabbing, the secrets, the hot babes, it's just TOO addictive.

The only reason I stopped at episode 16, it's so that I would still have things to do tomorrow (I'm on off for the next two days) LOL

I'm off to ~~download~~ Season 2.

Did I mention I'm down with fever and flu? Haha. XOXO

Moving On...

2008-09-28T22:49:00.007+08:00

It was nice talking things out, I really hoped it wasn't that awkward. I will always keep my promises and you better keep yours too. Haha. Well, it's finally time to pack things up into the "Red Box" (the box you wanted to see but I never showed), seal it and move on.

I'm just glad you're happy! =)
.do call often.

PS. I could hear a devil and an angel whispering into my ears when we talk. It's weird, but I can't seem to do anything about it.

One week late

2008-09-27T11:26:00.009+08:00

Didn't really plan to blog about this since it's soooo overdued, but Kelvin just emailed me the photos, so I said why not? Don't let his hard work go to waste. Haha.

James. Me. Xiao Yan. Valencia. Kelvin. Melvin

It was Valencia's birthday last last Thursday so we had a little get together last Saturday for a very simple celebration. Why simple? Because no cakes where blown and no presents where given. Ops. Haha. There was some communication break down on that part. Sorry Val.

We've all known each other for like almost 3 years plus? Yeah some where there. I guess, and it seems that none of us changed at all. Alright, I mean MAJOR changes, like personalities, weight and build doesn't count (sorry James). Lol.

Kelvin's old habit of "striking" his nose left and right with a side of his fist when he feels like sneezing is still present. I can never forgot how red one side of his nose will become when his does it extensively. Haha. (No Kelvin, I'm not trying to pick on you, it's just an example. LOL)

Well, it's sad Yeong Sheng couldn't join us that day. We wanted to celebrate his birthday together as well. Too bad he couldn't make it. Anyway, he "poped" out one day earlier than Val 20 years ago! Haha.

One week Old

2008-09-26T15:52:00.007+08:00

This fella' really can sleep! Just like his Uncle!

He was sleeping and refused to wake up when I first met him, and he was still refusing to wake up when I met him yesterday! This guy is seriously carrying the Lee's legacy of sleeping. Haha.

He getting more adorable day after day. Seeing him just makes the atmosphere so happy every time! Sorry people, I just can't help blogging about him after every meet.

Oh! And I tried carrying him yesterday, my first time carrying a baby, but it kind of failed. He kept shifting and frowning. Saded. Must be because he found my arms too bony. Lol.

Explore

2008-09-25T11:09:00.007+08:00

I'm thinking of buying a bicycle. It's has been on my mind for quite some time. I want to have the same feeling I have in camp, where I'll hop on my bike during lunch and cycle around aimlessly, I guess the word is "Exploring". The feeling I bring back from every cycling session is great, and I want to feel it when I'm out.

Well, the bike in camp is too far away so I'll just buy another one.

However, getting that baby home ain't an easy task. I need to look for a suitable bike, I need the money to bring it home and I need find a space for it at home (my house has a lot of space constraints). I doubt it's safe locking it below my block, I'll never know when the seats might go missing or the brakes being cut. But but but the obstacle I'll have to pass first is my family's consent and that's the HARDEST of all!

So wish me luck! Haha

Off topic a little...
These few days had been a really bad time for me and I believe I got very cranky because of it. Too many things happened too fast for my heart to get use to and I guess that might be the cause of Monday's accident. Well, there's nothing much I can do about it other than adept. So let's just see how things go and I'll try to stay in control.

Your smiles are precious to me.
Je vais être en attente... en silence

The man who can't be moved

2008-09-24T19:29:00.003+08:00

The Script - The Man Who Can't Be Moved (New)
Uploaded by wonderful-life1989

The words are so familiar.

Discharged

2008-09-24T17:40:00.007+08:00

I had this thought while visiting my sister in the hospital on Sunday,
How is it like to be warded in a hospital?
Well, I got my answer on Monday.

While having my breakfast in the canteen on Monday, I felt nauseous and wanted to vomit. However, as I began walking to the toilet, my mind blacked out and the next moment I was lying on the floor hearing lots of people crowding around me. I was then send to Changi General Hospital and that was where I got my answer. Haha.

Other than some bumps and bruises I'm totally alright but I still had to stay over for two night so that they could observe me closely to find out why I fainted. Anyway, it was due to a sudden drop in blood pressure causing my brain to receive lesser oxygen, thus, I fainted. It's nothing serious at all, a common problem among youths.

Back to the question, the feeling of staying in the hospital really SUCKS! If your illness won't kill you, boredom will. Thank goodness they had Wifi there, allowing me to surf the net on my iPod to kill time. The bed is terrible too, it's so hard and warm, not that I'm fussy but it seriously gives you back ache and all. And it's really hard to get continous rest there, the nurses keeps waking you up every other hour to check your BP, temperature and all. I even had to wake up at 1am to do an X-ray! LOL.

I should really be less curious and
not ask such questions anymore

By the way, a BIG thank you to all those who sent their well wishes for the past few days, not forgetting those who visited too, your warmth and pressence was greatly appreciated. =)

Oh! A BIGGER thank you to Anthony and Melvin. Anthony thanks for staying by me from the time I was brought to the hospital till the time I was warded, I knew the standing was painful. Haha. And to Mel, Thanks for the 2 days of visit despite you having to rush back to camp after your nights out. Your iPod charger and the two boxes of Pocky were life-savers!

I'm given MC all the way to Friday but surprisingly, unlike the past, this time I'm not that excited/happy at all.

Mr. Forgetful

2008-09-21T22:16:00.003+08:00

I was locked out of my house today. I was grounded to go back. =(

Haha. I'm just joking. I forgot to bring my door key out that's all. Thank goodness my parents were already on their way home when I called. Although they did take more than 30min or so to "rush" home.

Well, so much for taking a cab home.

I'm getting more and more forgetful lately... Haiz...

Bundle of Joy

2008-09-21T04:09:00.004+08:00

He is Issac, my 3 days old little nephew. Ain't he just adorable?

Hello World...!

2008-09-20T09:34:00.003+08:00

Haven't been blogging for quite a few days, 5 to be exact. Haha. I'm just lazy... Nono... I'm just TOO TOO lazy blog. Haha. I do have lots of things to share, too much in fact, that I just find it such a chore to type them down. Now and then, how I wish I can just use my voice to type instead or maybe one day I should just change to podcasting. Lol. That'll be so much easier.

Anyway, I've been having trouble going "lala-land" for the past few days. I think I'm only get 2-3hours of effective sleeping daily, for a Pig like me, that's really shortchanged.

What's worst, is how unforgiving the weather have been these days too. The scorching Sun is killing me. All I have to do now is to stand under it for less than 5 minutes and I'll be all covered in prespiration, even my clothes will heat up! Guess it's a matter of time before I fall sick once again.

Ohh! Something happy I wish to share with you guys. I'm an UNCLE now! Wahaha. I'll be off to see my new baby nephew later, so excited. =)

Wait. That means I won't get to sleep. Argh!

Dear diary...

2008-09-15T23:46:00.003+08:00

Today was really fun, although there was some unknown confusion within me, both feelings and thoughts. However don't bother questioning me about it, I don't have an answer. Or maybe, I just don't wish to hear any comments or feedback, I just want things to flow as it is meant to be.

Well, I'm still really glad the day ended great. The 20min phone call was kind of like a booster. Anyway, like I said, the day was fun, I'll say more on my next post. =)

No, I'm not emo-ing. Just confused...

Mooncakes? Lantern? No, zero.

2008-09-14T12:16:00.004+08:00

I only happened to know that today's Mid Autumn Festival just few days ago. Haha. I don't really keep track of such stuff these days unless it's a public holiday. Hmm... another reason might be because this is one of the few Chinese festivals I seldom celebrate. In fact, if my memory don't fail me I've one celebrated it thrice in my life, twice during kindergarten, once on 2006.

All three ended with the paper lanterns being burned. Lol. I just like setting them on fire once it's purpose is over.

Anyway, the variety of mooncakes are increasing exponentially every year but the number I eat each year are surprisingly decreasing exponentially too. Haha. This year my house only had one box of mooncake, and it was finished almost a week ago. I only ate half a mooncake by the way, and it was not even my favourite Pandan BingPi.

I've been tempted to try those ice cream ones for a long time, maybe I'll pay Swensens a visit today. =)

Searching...

2008-09-14T03:22:00.007+08:00

Don't ask why. I'm not sure either. It has nothing to do you any of you. There are no human factors involved - I never include myself.

I need ice cream desperately.

Just one glimpse please?

2008-09-13T18:00:00.003+08:00

I managed to catch a 30sec glimpse of something what I believe most NSF will never get a chance to see until their 2 years are up. Their little yet super-treasured Pink IC. Haha. Yes guys, the little pink card with your handsome picture that you reluctantly gave up to exchange for that detested green 11B once you stepped into Tekong. Haha.

Well, such privilege does come with a cost of course. You'll have to be as unlucky as me to have your home address changed without your knowledge. Don't get it? I've been living in Telok Blangah all my life but few months ago when I was checking the intranet, my address was instead in New Upper Changi Road, a totally alien place where I've never stayed or even stepped foot on. That explains why I've never recieved any government letters, like my Mob Manning and Chervrons card, ever since I've enlisted. This also means this change was made more that a year ago! Lol.

Knowing how much trouble such a problem might get me, I started calling everywhere hoping that someone can enlighten me on how it happened and how can I change it. Unlike normal change of address where can be done at your nearest police post, I had to make a trip down ICA then to CMPB (that's where I saw the pink card! HAHA) and although no one knows how all that happened, all they can do is make me reapply my so-called "new" address at Telok Blangah again and paste a new green address sticker over the Changi one. What an eye-sore it will be when I finally get to keep it 5 months later!

Maybe one day I should pay the guy living in that address a visit and see if he'd kept all the letters that was send over there. And find out which ass did such a major mistake!

PS. I nearly got to hold on to it actually, not because of that stupid call the admin lady had to pick up, I would've held it tight and ran out of the complex with it. Haha.

Departure Dream

2008-09-12T23:52:00.008+08:00

For months I've been going through stacks of brochures, tons of websites, noting things down and clicking the calculator, hoping to find some cheap deal for a short weekend getaway (It's been years since I've left the island) However, whenever I thought I've found a steal, I think through the reds in my bank account, I scratch my head, and bookmark it for future reference. Ha. How pathetic right?

How I wish to get a stamp for my little red book by year end... it kind of suck hearing others do it.

It's personal time.
Please try not to contact me for the next 16 hours.

One Step at a Time

2008-09-10T16:45:00.007+08:00

The song I seriously can't get out of my head for the past few days, I just love the tune but ignore the lyrics, it's kind of meaningless. Haha. I'm actually so stuck to this song that it will be the first and last I play on my iPod when I'm traveling. That's rare.

Actually wanted to add the MV but they disabled the embed function due to legal issues,
so if you're interested you can watch it here.

Anyway, I finally decided to swipe the card and upgrade my iPod Touch firmware to 2.1. And I'm not regretting yet, in fact I doubt I ever will. Lol. The app store is truly AMAZING! I just kept clicking "download" on the free apps, from games to IM messengers and even Facebook (I'm actually giving it another shot) they're all really useful and fun. I'm damn addicted to the Tap Tap Revenge game right now, it's like guitar hero on your iPod.

The new Genius software is a great plus too. What it does is that it'll automatically create a playlist for you judging from the song's genre, beat, rating and the most amazing part, what the rest of the world is listening the song with. It's really useful when you have a huge song library and choosing songs to listen becomes a big big headache. I'm seriously lovin' the extra help.

One more thing. For those looking to buy new iPods, do go check out the new Nano. The design is stunningly great, not forgetting the features they just added in. I would love to own a red one. Lol.

Alright gotta go back tapping... Haha

Wacko

2008-09-09T21:30:00.006+08:00

Spend my whole off day lazing around at home. Boring~~

I just sat on my bed and computer chair rotting away. There was nothing on TV, nothing on cable and I forgot to bring my book back from camp. The only entertainment I had was diner dash and internet. Well, I completed diner dash long ago, so I was just replaying it to get all the expert scores. Then the internet... erm let's just say I'm too lazy to read up things that I've missed out for the past 8 days.

And things will get worse after my parents fly off to China for their holiday tomorrow. Coming back to a empty house everyday, settling my own meals blah blah blah... it really sucks. Why can't they go for their holidays one week earlier? Argh~

Part of me is actually happy that I have work tomorrow. I guess I'm seriously going cranky.

Er... help??

*edit*
Just when I clicked "Publish Post" this song came up on my iTunes.

Lonely
I'm Mr lonely,
I have nobody,
for my owwwn

Lol. What a coincidence.

My best outfield companion

2008-09-09T16:41:00.007+08:00

98.0 FM

A reservist once told me during my last outfield that the most important item to bring outfield is an FM radio. I gave a puzzled look and asked why.

His reason...
"it's the only portable thing you can bring that connects you to the
outside world while you're stuck with nature."

I remembered his words this outfield and brought along my handphone's earpiece. Since it was not something I normally pack into my bag, I forgot all about it for the first night until the second day, when me and Liu Yun were trying to catch a nap in the cramped up vehicle and he said, "Won't it be great to have a radio now."

And indeed, it was a life-saver. The radio brought us a great sense of happiness, something we've been seraching for the past few days since the moral for everyone there were really low thanks to the commanders and the stupid training schedule they came up with. It felt really great humming our favourite songs and for a moment the outfield didn't feel that bad after all. Well, for a moment only... Haha.

Anyway, it also got me to realize how outdated my songs in my iPod was getting. Well, that 's no longer an issue now, a whole afternoon of clicking and my jukebox increase by 50 over songs. =)

Ohh. By the way, I just found out that it will take me about 9.15 days to finish listening all the songs in my music library.

Guess who's back!

2008-09-08T22:36:00.003+08:00

I'm back I'm back! Yes, the feeling of home is always the best, thank God I went to a stay-out unit. Lol. Alright, I guess that sentence will spark some outrage around my circle. Anyway, it really feels good to be at home, fiddling with my computer now. It's the feeling of civilization man.

The past 8 days was really quite a physiological torture, we weren't put into much shit but the programme on the whole was a total waste of time. It's something that shouldn't be conducted in the first place, well at least I got to know more friends who are in the same shit together. I also, sadly, got to know more brainless and square-headed commanders, why are all regulars like that?

Useless things aside, I'm seriously craving badly for a Mcdonald's BIG MAC. Haha. But the $3 dollars delivery charge is quite a turn off.

8 days

2008-08-31T18:00:00.000+08:00

Notice:

Don't bother coming my blog for the next 8 days
There will be no updates

I'll be off enjoying an 8 days 7 night stay at an exotic seaside resort.

Ohh goodness. The last time I stayed in (excluding guard duties) in camp was during my BMT last year.

Art not suitable for human eyes

2008-08-30T20:07:00.003+08:00

His name is Nikolai Aldunin and he is a man even a world renowned neruo surgeon has to bow down to. Using his 1985 microscope, superglue, syringes and toothpicks, he creates work of art so tiny, you'll need a microscope to admire them.

The gold AK-47 above actually consist of 47 individual parts, and it took the Russian 6 months to craft. Once, he lost the weapon's butt after working on it for two week and yes, you can imagine how frustrated he was.

Just think about how stiff his hand are, a slightest 0.1mm movement of his fingers might just be over a yard on nano-scale, I seriously wonder are his finger moving at all. Well, too bad, there isn't any documentation on how he does this truly astonishing feat.

Ohh by the way, he's not the only one that does such microminiature artworks. I can't seem to recall the names of the others though, so let me get back to you guys after I've consulted Google.

I miss my workshop

2008-08-29T20:43:00.002+08:00

I just booked out from the first 3 days of PPT, and how is it so far? It SUCKS. Period. If you're wondering what PPT stands for, don't bother, it's just something meaningless and miserable I've to go through before my ORD (and if you're also wondering what this means, it's not important either)

Still have 8 more days of staying in and 3 days of field camp to go next week. Argh! Now I truly understand how great it is to be in the workshop...

$25 for 15min? Worth it

2008-08-23T13:37:00.007+08:00

The French team's fireworks showcase was seriously exhilarating, especially when you're seated at the Marina Bay Floating Platform, the loud bangs and huge close-ups made the $25 ticket really worth it. Although we should've bought earlier to enjoy it at $18 instead, nevermind, next year I'll buy it really early.

The experience is totally different if you're one of those viewing the fireworks from afar, like what I've been doing for the past 4 years. The music and lightning complement gave the show more sense, it was all well synchronized, an added excitement. Plus, you need not squeeze with anyone, smell bad body odor, have people's head blocking your view or inconsiderate people pushing and stepping on your toes. You just seat comfortably at your seat, raising your head really up (the view was too close that it gave me neck aches. Haha.) and enjoy.

However, what's ironic is the atmosphere you get at the floating platform. The crowd isn't as hyper as what I've experienced standing along Esplanade Bridge the pass few years. Everyone was quiet, there were some occasional "wow" but it not like those on the ground, where people will be seriously shouting out "WOW" when they see spamming fireworks. Guess everyone was seating too comfortably, keeping quiet to enjoy the beautiful music or maybe because those on the ground made BIG efforts to get their seats after many hours of waiting, so they get extra excited after the long boredom.

It's really sad that we were unable to take much photos, we were too close to the fireworks, most pictures didn't turn out well. The only pictures we could take were ourselves. Haha.

By the way, Cats in the Cradle had a side performance after the show, they were as great as ever and Sherman was their drummer! No wonder so long never see him in church.

Anyway after the hanging around the floating platform, some of us went to meet James and his friends (Val included. Lol) at some Irish bar at Marina Square. Haha. It surprising there was no awkwardness when we all tried to mingle around, everyone mixed quite well, lots of laughter, we made the bar rather noisy. Haha.

PS. photos of fireworks were taken from ClubSnap professionals.

Scary nights

2008-08-20T22:46:00.006+08:00

I've been having nightmare rather frequent for the past few days and they all rather similar, it's either I'm be chased by some FBI agent or chased by some random monster out to rip my guts out. It gets so tense in there that I have to force myself to wake up every time, losing my already very very low beauty sleep.

Does anyone know what it means to have such recurring dreams?

I'm getting rather paranoid over it actually, the number of nightmares I had in my life can be actually counted with just my 5 fingers before this but know it just comes back every other night, it's really quite irritating. In fact, these days I think twice before going to bed, hoping hard that I would not need to run in my sleep.

Maybe that why my leg injury haven't recover even though I haven't been jogging for almost 2 week plus. It must be the dreams. On the other hand, how I wish I can run as fast in real life as how I ran in my dreams. Haha.

My Firsts at Mcd: Take 2

2008-08-17T12:38:00.006+08:00

Finally tried my first Big Breakfast meal today. Hmm... let's just say most probably there won't be a second time. Haha. I seriously wonder why so many people like it, it's so dry and plain. Well, I'll just stick to my childish Hotcakes with Sausage =)

I was kinda forced to take that picture and I felt really weird. People must be thinking, "This guy damn su-ku..."

After over 100+ smses send out...

2008-08-16T15:41:00.005+08:00

and 2 months plus of dragging, the 8sistas are back again for a BIG combined birthday celebration on Saturday night, this time 3 at one go! And all of their birthdays have passed long ago, so it's more specifically a belated party.

Big apologies to Kai Yuan and Yee Eng, we actually celebrated their birthday over a month late. No, it's not that we've forgotten, it's just the busy July didn't allowed a day for all to be present, so we decided to have a 3-in-1 in August, while celebrating Veron's birthday. I know you didn't mind right Veron? Lol.

8sista + 1

We all met up at Quaruba'r on Dempsey Hill, it's a really great place to chill, the cosy furnishing and soothing Jazz musics made it a perfect place for such gatherings. I just simply love the laid-back feeling you get on Dempsey.

As usual the celebration was super fun, we just kept talking and talking, I guess we made the quiet and relaxing bar real noisy with all our laughter. Thank goodness the vodka wasn't really strong, if not they might have threw us out. Haha.

Hopefully we'll all see each other again for squash next Sunday. =)

Or-lum-pig

2008-08-16T15:00:00.002+08:00

Haha. I can't believe I forced myself to wake up at 9plus in the morning just to watch Phelps get his 7th gold. It the weekends, I should be sleeping for 10+ hours to recover all the sleep I lost during the weekdays, yet I chose to just sleep for 5 hours to watch someone, who does not even concern me, get gold. But at least the exhilarating race was totally worth it, just 0.01 sec and his gold rush will be crashed. How close...

Anyway, the Olympics is really spoiling my usual patterns, when I was at home on MC days back the first thing I do when I'm awake is to switch on the television, instead of my usual computer routine. If you're wondering why I never write any post for the past few days, it's the Olympics.

I'm totally glued onto the TV, 6 live channels covering the Olympics on cable, why won't I be glued. Haha. But having so many channels isn't that great either, you've to set your priorities to choose which is more worth your eyes. The "up down" keys on my remote is likely to go by the end of the 16th day, I just keep switching channels ever 10mins.

Since the buzz now is all on Phelps, ever wonder what he eats during the games?

2 pounds of pasta, an entire pizza, energy drinks, two cups of coffee, a five-egg omelet, a bowl of grits, three slices of French toast with powdered sugar, three fried-egg sandwiches with cheese and chocolate chip pancakes.

By the way, these are actually light meals for him, on an intense training day, Phelps takes in 12,000 calories! I seriously can't image what 12,000 calories looks like on the table.

The question I'm dying to ask Phelps now is what he actually tunes to on his iPod? Rock? Rap? or Jazz? Well, I believe Apple is indeed grateful to Phelps for the free publicity stun the iPod is getting. They might even start a new advertising campaign, "The iPods, you can break a World record without it..."

PS. India, Indonesia, Pakistan, Nigeria, Egypt, Mexico and Bangladesh (appx. combined population = 2.1 billion) have earned a total of four Olympic medals in Beijing. Phelps (appx. population = 1) has five.

PS.s. Excluding the United States and Australia, the rest of the world has earned a total of five golds in the men's and women's swimming competition. Phelps -- well, you get the picture. (source)

Woe

2008-08-12T21:29:00.003+08:00

I hate falling sick.

Thanks to the unpredictable weather, I'm now down with a very bad flu. It's crazy, one moment it'll be scorching sunshine and the next, dark clouds start forming and the rain pouring down heavily from the heavens.

After making some calls to the new found friends I made from NDP, it's no surprise to hear that they too are suffering the same fate as me. This is what you get sweating under the hot sun for an hour of rehearsal and suffering under the rain as people watch you happily from their televisions at home, few hours later, on the actual show.

Even my mother who stays at home the whole day can't escape, or maybe I was the one who spread the virus to her? Ops.

Welcome back my Saturdays

2008-08-10T00:00:00.003+08:00

YES! NDP is finally over, the last four months of training really paid off well, the parade went off really well. Although there were some minor minor mistakes we made but thankfully they were not really noticeable. There was a slight drizzle but that goodness it was left that way throughout the parade, I can't imagine taking the bus back in a drenched uniform.

The crowd was indeed more happening on the actual day show, lots of screaming and clapping, guess the rain did not dampen their spirits at all. However, to most of us down at the floating platform, it was just another show, we did not feel exceptionally nervous or excited, it's our 5th performance in front of a crowd, so you can imagine how mundane it was. Haha. The only excitement I had was that I can have my Saturdays back, enjoying my weekend fully till dawn with zero worries.

So for those who caught the show, how was it? I've been hearing lots of people say that this year's performance isn't as nice as previous years but I bet they loved the parade! LOL. Anyway it's really sad that I couldn't catch the full performance live, I really wanted to see the aero acrobats by the Black Knights and of course the spamming of fireworks, too bad for me, I just have to wait for Channel 5's encore telecast.

Now that I have my weekends back, I think I should take the time to pack up my room, especially my desk, lots of ants roaming around. Argh! I just realise my monday offs are gone, back to my 5 days work week. =( how torturous...

All in all, it was a wonderful and really memorable experience, I've gained a lot from it, all the Saturdays were well sacrificed. Haha.

My first Big Mac

2008-08-08T22:59:00.005+08:00

I eat McDonald's at least once a month and I believe it has been a trend since I first ate it at three. But do you know that even though I eat it so often, I've never had their very famous Big Mac before. Haha. No joke. All my life I've never tried it as I always thought it's very big and I won't be able to finish it.

I finally tried it today (what a achievement eh? LOL), my mother didn't cook my dinner tonight so I had to waste over 10 bucks on a McDonald's delivery. I had a hard time choosing between my usuals (McChiken or Double Cheeseburger) but decided to spend a little more money for a new experience - I'm very sick of McDonald's. Well, it was not that hard to swallow like how I'd imagined, in fact it's quite tasty, however, the size did cause lots of mess on the table, the vegetables and sauce kept falling.

Argh... more ants...

Looking through the menu again, I realize there are two other items I've never tried in McDonald's, first is the McSpicy burger, another is Big Breakfast. I know they are nice but I do have my doubt about their taste. I wonder when I'll take the plunge, especially for the McSpicy. Lol.

Is there an Ants Infestation in your scanner?

2008-08-06T21:00:00.002+08:00

Ants Invade Home Scanner - Watch more free videos

When I saw this video, my first reaction was to open my own scanner and check if there are any ants or creepy crawlies nesting there. Thank goodness there weren't. Phew~ I've always been wondering where all the ants crawling around my desk came from and this video really freaked me for a moment.

They are so bloody irritating creatures, they can be seen crawling among the papers on the table and sometimes even on my mac. If I leave my cup on the table, the next moment I get back to clear it, you can see ants in there. And it seems that the more I kill with my very powerful and deadly fingers, the more there are! Argh...

In fact I did have an urge to follow an ant back to its nest one day, hoping I can destroy the root of the problem. But that clever creature just roamed around the table for almost half an hour and I got so bored of following I killed it! Lol.

I guess I need to ban myself from eating on the desk...

PS. There's on crawling on top of my monitor right now. KILL IT!!!

Using SMS for breakups are old fashion

2008-08-04T22:00:00.001+08:00

What's the similarity between a written letter and an SMS?

You don't get an instant reply.

This is just why some people use letters and SMS for their breakup speeches, without being able to hear the other party's emotion the guilt is somehow lessen, anxiety free. However, that also means the other party would not be able to truly hear and understand your feelings of the breakup, which most of the time makes situtions rough.

MobilSphere, the company behind Slydial, knew just that, not everyone wants to talk to each other, they just want to be heard and that's it, period. Their new technology, called Slydial, lets callers dial a mobile phone but avoids an unwanted conversation. The incoming call goes undetected by the recipient, it goes straight to voicemail.

Due to a pending patent, the company is not leaking any tips on how this service does it. All we know is that it's free and it's ingenious, something that should've been thought up long time ago, preventing many unwanted suicides. The catch: You have to listen to a few seconds of ads before you leave the message.

Other uses for this technology:

Confessing your love
Telling your army dad, you're not coming home for a night
Calling in sick
Confession with a priest

Immunity is ending...

2008-08-01T23:10:00.003+08:00

1 more week to 9th of August. I'm kind of looking forward to it and, at the same time, sad that it's ending so soon. Time really flies, I can still remember clearly my first NDP rehearsal at Nee Soon Camp 3 months ago, the scorching sun, never ending shouting, sweaty uniform and grueling drills I had to go through. It's something I've never done before and never thought I would last this long but guess the constant monday offs was the driver.

In fact, I guess the main reason that kept me going back was the offs and the immunity I get. I really dread going to the workshop, so the offs allowed me to have cleaner hands and nails for one more extra day, though the cost of it is I had to sacrifice my weekend, which I got use to it after a while. I get immunity from lots of shit too, I get to skip exercises, stupid overtimes and meaningless guard duties. It's really wasted that all these benefits will be gone soon.

Well, look on the bright side... 6 more months more to suffer and life will be back to normal! Haha.

Frankly, I'm very delighted with myself after every training, I never thought my endurance level can be that high. I use to think standing in attention for more than 30min is totally impossible and crazy but now, I can stand, without movement more than an hour easily.

Gummy Yum Yum

2008-07-31T22:50:00.006+08:00

I suddenly have a craving for some gummy bears...
"Bring the red ones to Master as a sacrifice!"

Anyway while searching for the picture for this post, I found lots of really cool gummy bear pictures on Flickr, and they're really adorable too! A guy even started a whole year, 365 days, project titled "The World of Gummy Bears" (here) where he will write a simple short story on the daily gummy bear pictures he took, which I believe it's written in a way like a blog to recount his own daily life.

Here are more gummy bear photos...

My parents... an odd couple

2008-07-30T22:30:00.000+08:00

I often think that my parents are quite an odd couple, even after nearing 30 years of marriage they still can't seem to really get along. Always having clash and going against each others comments. Sometimes I wonder if money never existed would their relationship been stronger?

Recently my family got a little lucky, my parents and sisters struck 4D last Sunday (the winning is really really low though), they all bought the same number and it came out for consolation. Whoo~!

At first it was a happy news until my mother and father came to me separately, firstly, telling me they struck 4D and secondly, telling me not to tell the other party about it. I seriously wonder what's the problem for my dad to know that my mum struck 4D and vice versa, but being obedient I just kept my mouth shut. Even my two sisters, who both won too, were really puzzled about it and after hearing more from them, I realize this is not the first time it's happening. Apparently they keep the other party in the dark whenever lady luck came upon either of them (unless if the figure is really high, making hiding impossible)

Aren't they really weird? Sometimes they can be really loving, always seen smiling to each other, the next moment, my house will be turned into a war zone were total silence looms. When I was younger I actually thought my parents were match-maked but soon my sister laughed and said my dad and mum found each other. Seriously wonder what happened at the beginning, are they like that from the start or really loving like any other new couple...

Anyway, their relationship are always the main topics in my prayers and my sibling will push them to go for holidays on their own frequently, hoping that it might strengthen their bond. Sadly, it never did turned out as planned.

Well, at least I find myself lucky that I still have a complete, caring and funny family even with all the squabbles. Or maybe those things are just solutions they came up with to reduce friction after years of being together, their way of loving each other more...

Unwanted visitor

2008-07-29T21:27:00.004+08:00

As we were walking back from lunch, we saw a guy constantly poking a broomstick on the ground and, hopping back and forth in our workshop. It was an interesting sight but things got even more interesting (and scary) as we approached him and found out what he was doing.

No, it was not a crazy man dancing the rain dance. Thou I really wished he was, and that it'll work, the scorching weather is giving me headaches! Anyway, what he was trying to do was to catch a snake. YES! The long worm-like animal that comes in wondrous colours and sometimes even poison.

We all got a shock too and immediately joined in the fun (it's for our safety right?), with broomsticks and a trash bag. We kept poking at it lightly so that it'll fall into our trap (the trash bag) Thankfully, the snake wasn't a big one, in fact the little green guy was only as big as a whiteboard maker but meters in length. We managed to catch it in a trash bag after 10 minutes of poking. Phew~

The worst new was actually where the snake crawled out from. The guy told that he saw it crawl out from a Landrover as he was cutting through our workshop. That really freaked us out! I'll never feel save repairing under the vehicle anymore, what if it was a bigger snake? OMG!! I think I'll take a torch and scan the vehicle thoroughly before going under. My life is at stake man.

Anyway this is not the first time we've seen dangerous animals in Seletar, once a large monitor lizard crawlled pass the workshop too, but it was more of a entertainment then threat the other time. Haha.

Are you gay?

2008-07-29T00:26:00.005+08:00

This funny story reminds me of my two old friends (they're brothers) in church whom I've not seen for years and yes there are people with "Gay" as their surnames, these two friends of mine are one of the many with a surname "Gay".

Damien Gay and his younger brother Dexter Gay.

I never dared to ask why though...

Am I wasting my life away?

2008-07-26T17:00:00.002+08:00

I did some simple Maths today, I added up the time I spend on the computer in a week and it averaged out to around 3 hours daily. 3 hours?! And it's all spend surfing the worldwide web, I've never noticed I'm spending so much time on it.

Although 3 hours is not a really great figure, knowing that there are some days I would come home really late and just go straight to bed after a bath, hitting an average of 3 would mean that there are days which I spend more than that. Which is true after some reflection, I just spend 4 hours on the computer from the moment I wake up till now and I'll be here all the way for maybe another 2 hours before I go out later. That's 6 hours in one weekend, and it'll most likely be the same tomorrow.

Are there really that much things to do on the internet you may ask, and my answer is a big YES, there are, as a matter of fact, it's endless. I can just go on reading and reading, page after page, site after site and never get bored, even if I do, I'll just play some games. Knowing that you can do almost everything on the computer these days, it's hard to keep away as it's hard to get bored.

I can still remember one of the darkest week of my life where my PC gave up on me, I felt so lost the first few days when I got home, not knowing what to do, with so many hours to spare before bedtime. But it was just a matter of time before I start a new routine of TV and books. I find my life wasted doing all that, don't ask me why.

However, as I start reflecting about my life these days, I'm starting to feel that I'm wasting my life away with this habit. Just think about it, with that amount of time, I can be doing so much more, like exercising, chilling with friends, finishing a book, reading the bible and maybe also doing some volunteering work.

And I believe this now so-called bad habit of mine, has impede my socializing skills. I actually find it harder having a conversation with friends lately. My mind is so used to just sitting down quietly and absorbing that I've lost the touch of talking. I'm still as talkative as before, but all that I'm saying is all that I've been absorbing on the web which, trust me, it's not really very entertaining to the majority. I feel that I can't seem to relate to peoples' feelings anymore, slowly constructing a wall around my mind.

In fact the first thing I wake up daily it to switch on my computer and the last thing is to off the computer. The only thing I do which does not involve the computer, other than daily stuff like eating and washing up, is reading the newspaper. Haha. How's that for a life.

I don't really know why I just can't get off the computer other that the fact that I like to widen my knowledge. Or maybe the reason is more psychological that I thought, the fears in my life. Anyhow, guess it's time for some changes in my personal life before things do get out of hand. Time to think of some distraction from the computer...

I think the daily stare on the screen is killing my eye sight exponentially too.

Now anyone can be a Billionaire

2008-07-24T23:30:00.000+08:00

in Zimbabwe. In fact, everyone there will be carrying billions of dollars out in their wallets everyday. Wait, wallets? No I don't think it's advisable for them to own a wallet as this is how a commoner in Zimbabwe will be carrying to buy his dinner...

I doubt that amount of cash on hand can be fitted into any wallet.

It actually cost you 100 billion Zimbabwe dollars to buy just 4 oranges in the market. Not because oranges are a novelty or rare in this south African country, it's just that 100 billion ZWD will only get you US$1 in the foreign exchange market (that figure will get worse in matter of days), get the picture?

The once-prosperous Zimbabwe has seen an unexampled economic meltdown since it gained independence in 1980, with the official inflation rate now at 2.2 million percent. New notes are issued almost every other year as the ZWD deters further and further away from US dollar. Notes in millions of dollars are now worthless and are now used as toilet papers since the people can no longer afford it due to the ever increasing prices.

The situation is so bad now that the government is forced to release a 100 billion dollar bill so that it's citizens will not need to carry truck loads of notes just to buy their daily grocceries. It's also driving many people out of jobs as more and more companies close down due to supply shortages, which will eventually worsen the economy to a greater extent.

It's just a matter of time before companies have to start googling the names of numerical figues that comes after trillion (12 zeros). And soon, the word "dollar" might be replaced by "sex" if the currency ever cross the sextrillion (21 zeros) mark.

Customer: How much are your melons?
Owner: 4 sex, sir.

Pokemon exist in real life!

2008-07-23T22:02:00.006+08:00

What comes to your mind when you're asked what's the cutest marine animal on Earth?

Dumbo Octopus (Grimpoteuthis)

Piglet Squid (Helicocranchia)

Don't they just look like Pokemons?

If you still don't know, they're REAL! And are found deep in the ocean, click on their names to know more...

Nike+ human race or human torture?

2008-07-21T23:45:00.003+08:00

I just spend the last two freaking hours registering online for the Nike+ Human Race for me and James. Their servers are so bloody slow!! It takes me over 5 minutes just to load and proceed to the next page, and there are over 10 pages. It was a torture waiting and staring at my computer screen for each page to load or refresh. Guess the response is seriously overwhelming, with everyone trying to register at the same time.

And that's not the only problem...

They are only left with S size for the official T-shirt. How the hell are we going to fit in those? LOL!

Seriously regretted registering so late, we actually made up our minds to join the race months ago but we kept dragging the registration, hoping that more people will join us but sadly only two of us could make it. I also kept delaying my comfirmation, due to some monetary and physical issues last month, and I didn't expect so many people would sign up so early. Sorry James.

Anyhow, after much discussion we decided to just take the risk and hope we can fit into the S size (it's in US sizing, so maybe can fit). Haha. Tight fitting is the trend now anyway, as long as we can breath in those I believe it's fine.

Now is for my left leg to recover asap...

"Incredible" Stories from the ER

2008-07-20T10:39:00.002+08:00

Taken from a doctor's blog, she shares with us her incredible experiences when she worked at the ER...

A morbidly obese man with a large abdominal pannus (image) came in exhibiting red, irritated skin around the abdomen. It looked like a routine skin infection. But what was the cause? During the exam, I lifted the pannus and a turkey sandwich fell from between his folds. The man said it was about a month old, which the smell confirmed.
A man came in complaining of pain and bleeding from down below. He was trying to quit smoking and had replaced cigarettes with sunflower seeds, eating them shell and all whenever he got the urge. During the rectal exam, we discovered a giant sunflower seed mass crowning like a baby's head. Despite castor oil and trying to “deliver” it, we ended up picking out the pieces with tweezers until it was small enough to pass.
A woman living alone with multiple medical problems came in complaining of odor and itching of her feet. In what was left of both of her feet wet gangrene had taken over, along with hundreds of maggots. In the folded skin in the groin were more maggots. As you may have heard, maggots do keep skin lesions clean. But they aren’t easy to get rid of, as they scamper deeper into the wound when they see you coming.
An unconscious man and his girlfriend arrived with a large lump on his head and several deep scratches on his scrotum. When he awoke, he explained that he had been kneeling naked over the side of his bathtub while cleaning. The cat must have become transfixed with his swaying testes, and it pounced. The patient struck his head as he jumped in pain, and his girlfriend found him unconscious.
Two parents in the ER were yelling and screaming, thinking that their teenage son was going blind because he was seeing spots. In private, the son revealed that his parents had caught him masturbating earlier that week and told him he would go blind if he continued.

Of course he continued, and the next time he hyperventilated and saw spots. In a panic, he told his parents about the spots, but not about his private activity. When the parents found out the whole story, they loudly complained that their son could, in fact, have gone blind from masturbation, and that we were negligent in not taking them seriously.
An elderly woman came into the ER complaining she had green vines in her "virginny". A pelvic exam verified that she did have a six-inch vine growing out of her vagina, and x-rays revealed it was growing from a potato in her vaginal vault. She explained that her uterus was falling out, so she put a potato in there to hold it up and had forgotten.

How to back up your blog?

2008-07-16T20:55:00.004+08:00

If you're someone who loves to change your blog, regardless platform or url, but still wish that you could keep your old blog posts for future reference, BlogBackupr is your friend. I stumbled around this while looking for new blogger templates and thought it'll be nice to share.

This service is currently free for all but I believe your blog must have RSS-feed support for the back up to work. Enjoy!

Living in a garbage truck...

2008-07-15T23:50:00.001+08:00

If you've watched the recent Hellboy 2, you would've seen the "cool" ride the team vrooms around town. Yes, I'm talking about the garbage truck which house their mobile control centre. Clever disguised but with the number of secret service escorting them when they travel around, it isn't really that clever after all.

Anyway, that's not my point, have you guys ever wonder how is it like to live in a garbage truck? I don't mean the ones that really contain your smelly rubbish (not even those riding it daily to clear your rubbish I guess), I mean a fully modified one, some sort like the one in Hellboy, just less techy and better furnished...

This is what I mean, garbage truck house. It even looks nicer than my own house, in fact, compared to this my house looks like that garbage truck instead. Haha. I don't have much information other than these few photos taken from here. So if you're really interested (thou I don't know why you'll be into garbage trucks) you can google around.

By the way, don't be surprised seeing bags of rubbish left outside your "mobile home" in the morning but if you do ever experience such neighbours, invite them for tea to your new house. =)

Singapore, the place to find sexy girls?

2008-07-14T23:00:00.003+08:00

Read something rather compelling as I was following my daily Digg routine - Where to find the sexiest girls in the world (outside US). The title caught me after I read about Venezuela's fifth win in the Miss Universe pageant this year and was wondering how high they are on the list. By the way if you have not heard the news, Miss Venezuela, Dayana Mendoza, took the crown this year and she is indeed, very hot!

To my surprise, the writer did not include Venezuela on the list at all. 5 wins (one of the highest attained) and it does not deserve a spot? I started doubting the taste of the writer and the credibility of the list. As I read on, another country took my attention and kind of gave me a little shock. Singapore was on the list too!

"What?!" was my first reaction, I couldn't believe it. This was what he said...

"It’s all about the accent. Singaporean English (Singlish) is at once sophisticated, endearing, cute, and sexy. Somewhere between public school Londoner, New Delhi socialite, and urban Chinese, this is English as it should be spoken.

Singapore’s year round humidity and relative affluence means that the summer range of fashion is constantly updated and the ladies of this micro-state are always a step ahead of it. Fashion-conscious, self aware, and demure, Singapore is smoldering!"

Haha. Smoldering, what a word to describe the female population of Singapore. Don't get me wrong, I'm not implying that there aren't any hot girls on this island at all, there are some, I've seen, it's just not really "hot" enough to be compared to the other countries marked on the list like Tokyo and Prague. I mean I've heard people who travel abroad to places like Amsterdam because of their beauties but I've never heard of anyone recommending Singapore as a destination.

And his reason, "it's all about the accent". I never knew words like "la leh loh", which can be heard on almost every Singaporean extra appealing at all, well, not to me. Interestingly, we didn't even make it to any finals in Miss Universe if I'm not wrong.

Well, that came from a website dedicated to on exploring the world's night life and clubbing scene, maybe there are really a lot here, just that I've never had much chance to admire it, I'm not the clubbing sort. By the way, you can view the list here if you're interested to read more.

Singapore.. really?

Photoshop for real

2008-07-13T17:03:00.006+08:00

Was googling for photoshop tutorials and I came upon this series of creative photoshop pictures done by a couple of graphic students. And they have a good cause for doing it.

(source)

Impolite bus drivers get on my nerves!

2008-07-09T23:06:00.004+08:00

For the last three days, I've witnessed a similar event happening while I was traveling on the bus...

The bus driver (or bus captains - though I don't think it makes them sound any cooler) would stop the bus at a bus stop and walk to the back of the bus with a very stern look. He stops in front of a passenger, and in a very impolite and angry tone, ask where the passenger was going, and when the passenger says he's dropping off few bus stops down, the driver would raise his tone even more and demand the passenger to pay the right fare or get down the bus.

The passenger may be in the wrong for paying an incorrect fare, whatever his/her real reason is, but I just wonder why can't the bus driver just say in a more polite manner? It's not as though the passenger paid 10 over dollars short or that few cents which the passenger paid short would affect his pay slip in folds.

He may be the one driving the bus, nevertheless, he should keep in mind that he is working in a service industry and we are his customers, paying him for a safe journey home. He could have just asked the passenger nicely rather then throwing a scene that is wasting other passengers precious time. I mean if the passenger replied in an ill-manner, then it's alright for the bus driver to loose his temper.

These bus drivers should really learn to smile, it feels so much better to board a bus greeted courteously by a driver carrying a big smile compared to one that has his eyes looked on to your hands to ensure that you tap your EZ-link card as you board. The sad thing is that I'm seeing more and more drivers behaving the later, as though they dread driving the bus.

Thank goodness I use bus concession and do not have to deal with such situations. Though there was once that I complained to SBS about this irritating bus driver I encountered.

I was on my way to Translink to replace my spoiled student EZ-link card, apparently my card just suddenly lost it's ability to be sensed by the EZ-link unit, and paid my bus fare with coins. Being a student, I obviously inserted the student fare, however, the irrational driver wanted me to tap my student EZ-link card to prove that I'm a student. Since the unit didn't response to my card, the driver immediately took that I was a fraud and confiscated my card even after countless explanations.

Well, I was really mad but did not want to hold the bus, so I just took down the bus drivers particulars and paid the adult fare. All heated up, I immediately lodged a complain to SBS and Translink once I had the contacts, my card was replaced (after a few delays) and they actually asked if I mind the driver to call me for an apology. I didn't find a point with such things and said no, although I really did have the urge to look for that guy and throw him my school records with an universally known hand sign. Haha.

Anyway these bus drivers should really wake up their freaking attitudes! How do you have a "pleasant journey" when standards are not met?

What happens when you line up 40 road sign in rows?

2008-07-09T20:54:00.006+08:00

Click to enlarge

You'll get a tragic story that warns people from unprotected sex!
By the way, I got it from Digg.

My favourite toy

2008-07-07T22:22:00.007+08:00

Most of us play with toys during our childhood days (for those who don't get the chance to due to strict parenting, I'm sorry) and I believe almost everyone of us at least have a favourite toy they love the most.

Lego was mine.

My passion of becoming an engineer actually started ever since I was a kid. I like to look at how things are made, I have a strong interest to create, which slowly developed into a passion to build, and Lego allowed me to do so. From the very small bricks I can build into anything I like and desire. As a boy, you dream of robots, space ships, aeroplanes, giant structures and Lego allows these farfetched dreams to come "alive" (in miniature size of course)

My childhood was rather lonely, I don't have much friends and my sisters are too old to play with me. Thus, most of the time I play alone and Lego are the best toy for loners. Haha. You think of what you want and you just build it, no outside opinions needed, I can build a ship any way I like. It allowed my imagination to run wild and my creativity won't be limited by comments of others, no one can really say I'm wrong. Help is also no needed, I do not need a second player just to finish the "game".

This feeling of freedom is what I understand and also desire now. As you grow older, the feeling and thoughts of others must now be considered in your decisions which sometime do get rather troublesome as you have to accept the possibility of your decisions being wrong or not feasible. Image and reputation would also get in the way at this age affecting the element of "fun" in life. Kids are always the most fortunate ones as such worries will never haunt them, all they worry is play or no play.

Frankly, once in a while, I still have the urge to bring out my Lego set to play, wanting my imagination to run wild like a child again. But it's not really possible as you grow, outsider comments affects your decisions, thus I would change my mind instantly, thinking that it'll be so embarrassing if someone finds out, especially my sisters.

Guess the only way out of this is to patiently wait for my baby nephew's arrival and take him as an excuse to play with it. =)

Presto

2008-07-06T16:22:00.007+08:00

*Edit* Looks like Youtube took down the video. But you still can view it here.

Ain't the bunny adorable?

Presto, an animated short clip by Pixar is released in front of WALL-E in the theaters.

You chose your death

2008-07-06T11:50:00.005+08:00

Got this picture through an email, not only does the ceiling art looks realistic, it portrays a very strong message, "Smoking Kills." By the way, it's drawn on the ceiling in a company's smoking room to discourage their workers to smoke.

How I wish it can be drawn everywhere to wake these ignorant people up.

I don't really understand why people still smokes when they themselves are educated that smoking does more harm than gain to your health. I'm really glad the government banned smoking in certain public areas. Thou it's not strictly enforced, you still see some people smoking at bus stops, but at least the air in that area is more "breathable" than in the past. I now have a more pleasant experience when filling up my stomach at coffee shops/hawker centres and chilling in pubs/clubs.

And it not only does non-smokers a favour, in fact such bans have helped more smokers to quit their undesirable habit. A similar ban was enforced in England and thanks to the ban, studies have showed that more than 400 000 have kicked that habit since the law was passed a year ago (read). Isn't that remarkable?

Those around smokers should also provide more support, continuously encouraging them to quit, proving to them that there are better ways to release stress than that 10min puff of tobacco.

Everyone dies someday. A person who dies when crossing the road is called unlucky, however, a smoker who died of smoking related health problems, dies by choice, his own choice.

No one can stop you from smoking other than yourself.

I wanna walk again..

2008-07-05T23:30:00.004+08:00

I woke up with a terrible cramp on my left leg this morning, thou it's not the first time but the cramp was so painful this time round, I was screaming in silence while squeezing my left calf with tears in my eyes. Luckily the pain slowly subsided and I could still attend my NDP rehearsal without much difficulties.

The pain started after I pulled my left calf muscle two weeks ago, during the AHM training, I guess I didn't warm up properly or something. Every since that day I've been walking with a slight limp and take ages to climb up and down the stairs, it's really irritating and cumbersome. I look like an old man from a far.

Anyway, we're really fed like pigs in NDP. A "not so tasty" lunch at 12pm, free flow of milo and soya milk, ice cream and ice kachang at 3pm and KFC for dinner. This is what I call welfare! Haha.

The pain is back again. =(

He can sing. He can dance.

2008-07-04T20:56:00.003+08:00

I chanced upon two separated videos of two boys today.I believe some of you might know them.

Last year, Britain's Got Talent brought us two VERY talented singers, Connie Talbot and Paul Potts. This year, Britain brought us these two boys, Andrew Johntson and George Sampson. When I first saw their audition, I could not lift up my jaw, I was so amazed! Amazed by their indescribable talent. You have to watch them yourself...

Andrew Johntson

George Sampson

And I'm not only amazed by their voice or dance moves but also their personal life story...

Andrew's reason for joining the competition was to use the fame to shut the two bullies who victimized him ever since he was six because of his singing. Well, he beat them alright, the two bullies ended up wishing him luck in front of national TV. A great boost of confidence for this young boy.

As for George, it's actually his second go for the competition. Coming from a poor family, he had to busk just to pay for his trip to London for the auditions. His whole aim of the competition is to strike it big and pay off his mother's debt and provide her a better life, how mature. However, he suffers from a rare illness, Scheuermann's disease, which would affect his bone development and eye sight, and ultimately his passion for dancing. Despite the scare, Sampson went ahead to compete and win the talent show, and has said nothing will prevent him from performing. "There's no way I'd ever give up dancing. Nothing would stop me."

They are truly phenomenal...!

Nauseous

2008-07-02T23:48:00.006+08:00

That's how I'm feeling now after gushing down half a cup of Starbucks venti caffe mocha down in a few seconds. What can I do? I overlooked time (again...) and was late for our movie. By the way, I did not expect a Venti (large) size to be so HUGE, I believe the portion is lesser when you take away (which is what I normally do), I didn't recall having such a hard time drinking a venti size mocha the other day.

A piece of advice, Iphillia was right, never drink coffee when you're tired and having a headache! Headache needs rest but the coffee takes that away, so you'll have to suffer with the headache even longer.

I wonder what happens if I pop down a Panadol now..

Personalized M&Ms

2008-07-01T23:59:00.003+08:00

It's always nice to give/receive a present which has a little personal touch in them, like a homemade card or a self-designed mug/cake for your love ones birthday. Now you can add one more item to your list of gift ideas, personalized M&Ms.

I happened to read it on a blog and though it's nothing fantastic or revolutionary about the idea, it's something unique and special, especially if your friend loves eating chocolates *hint hint*. Not only can you write very very... very short messages on it, you can even add a photo, now that's quite cool. They even have very nice designed gift wrapping for you to choose, I like the one with the metal casing.

I wonder if they deliver to the red dot...

More info here.

Mooooo....

2008-06-30T15:00:00.004+08:00

Went to Mariner's Corner with JIM after our usual pool sessions at Monster on Sunday. The initial plan was La Mian at Holland V but since James has to book in and Holland is kind of far from Seletar, we scraped that idea and went for tender juicy steak instead (I've been craving for that for over a week)

I love to head there for steak once in a while, the price and portion is reasonable, the salad bar is delicious and the restaurant's layout and design gives a very homely feeling.

There were also escargot (snail) on our table but too bad the pictures didn't turn out right. It didn't taste that great anyway.

We caught the movie "10 Promises to my Dog" after dinner (Sadly, without James) and all I can say is to standby some tissue, some girls might need it.

Make your shoes stand out. Pimp up your laces.

2008-06-28T08:00:00.004+08:00

Did you know that there are a lot of ways you can thread the laces on your sneakers? Here are some unique ones which looks rather funky. [more here]

(source)

Talking about shoelaces, I actually dislike the fact when you have to thread the laces of your new shoes yourself. Why can't that be done during production? They have robots which can perform sophisticated surgeries, why can't one be programmed for this simple task. Alright it might just be the fact that it's simple. But it's so cumbersome when you're rushing out of house only to realize the brand new sneakers you wish to wear hasn't got it's laces threaded up.

Yeah, I know I'm lazy. Haha.

Our date with SAM

2008-06-27T20:10:00.008+08:00

Like I said in my previous post, I did something rather unusual on Wednesday. I went to the museum with Iphy. See what I mean by unusual? Haha.

I've always wanted to go to a museum thinking that it'll be a great eye opener (I have a thing for comtemporary art) but had never got the chance to. Since I was on "holiday" and also saw an interview of a rather unique photographer on CNA the day before, which is showcasing his works at the Singapore Arts Museum, I asked Iphy to join me and of course, she was very excited.

It's actually an exhibition on one of the many Alain Fleischer's famous works, titled Time Exposure. He has a really cool and unique way of photography, basically what he does is that he'll project an image on a natural landscape and takes a photograph of the result. Sounds really simple and boring yea? But the result is truly amazing! Too bad photo taking weren't allowed in the exhibition hall, you guys will be taken away too. Anyway you can check up SAM for more details, it's free entry on weekdays noon-2pm by the way.

Here's one of it I managed to find on Google.

Other than that, the other art pieces at SAM weren't that great, maybe because I don't really know how to appreciate clay art pieces by ASEAN artisits.

I'll keep my scope open for more of such exhibitions. I need to find more fun things to do in Singapore, movies and pool won't last forever.

Here's our take on photography...

Weekday Getaway

2008-06-27T03:00:00.000+08:00

I seriously shouldn't be here at this hour, I'm suppose to wake up for work in 3 hours time but I just had the sudden urge to type. I'm so going to regret this tomorrow. Haha.

Anyway, I did not go to work for the past 3 days. No, I did not take a fake MC to slack at home (maybe next month I will. Lol) I took 3 days leave from work. There was no specific reason, I just felt like it. Robots need a break too you know.

It was a rather unusual holiday, did a few activities out of the norm, especially on Wednesday which I'll update you guys once I get the pictures. There were also quite a few emotional struggle I faced which I still do not know if it was the right thing to do. Nights were spent tossing around the bed and constantly waking up from dreams partially because of the painful ulcer in my mouth, my mouth keeps drying up easily. And the back of my left knee still hurts from last weeks 10km run (I wonder if I should see a doctor)

After seeing what I just typed it seems that the 3 days passed quite badly but thinking back as a whole, I still felt more fun and happiness rather than sadness. Maybe because the activities and conversations I had were really fun. In fact I feel so much better now compared to past few week, they were quite mundane.

I don't know when I'll enjoy such days again, need to find more "out of the norm" stuff to do. Guess the coming Sunday will be a good start. =)

Oh yea. I'm really falling deeply in love with my new Mac. Now I understand why people say once you touch a Mac, Windows seems so boring and obsolete, Leopard is so much more efficient. The simplicity and beauty of the machine will just overpower you and it's not just because I'm a fan of Apple products nor the cool looks factor, it's the OS.

Well, I better catch some sleep now (I hope I can) if not I'll really suffer for tomorrow's AHM practice. Argh! another 10km.

"All I wanna see are your smiles...I'm sorry"

I'm BACK! With a new lover..

2008-06-25T10:30:00.004+08:00

Yes he's back... back back... back again...
Shady's back, tell a friend...

Hello peeps! It's been almost a week plus since I've last blogged, thanks to my five years old PC that gave up on me two Sundays ago. Well, I've gotten a new computer yesterday (Thanks to my family's sponsorship, I'll promise to be a good boy. Haha) and I just love using it more and more. Why? Simple. Because I finally have a Mac, no more windows for me. =)

That's Her!

Anyway, a Mac is not hard to use at all. Yes, there's a little getting use to, especially the maximize part for me but the switch is pretty simple, it's just so bloody easy to use. I just love things with simplicity!

Alright, I've to go back to my Mac now, a lot of exploring to do. =)

I can't live without you...

2008-06-16T12:17:00.002+08:00

I'm currently sitting on my couch blogging with my phone. In fact I've been sitting here watching MTV since 930. What a way to spend my monday off. My 5 year old computer finally gave up on me last night and what great timing it decided to leave me, on the final day of PC show. Anyway, I'm feeling really really really really bored right now. I realize I depend on my computer too much, so much so I can't think of anything else to do other then being a couch potato.

Maybe it's a good chance for me to reflect on my lifestyle...

Can we be like last time [Music Video]

2008-06-15T17:14:00.004+08:00

That's my friend James and the song he composed. It didn't sound as great when I last heard it live, might be the microphone he use, but it's still nice. Enjoy. =)

Do you have problems waking up?

2008-06-15T16:42:00.007+08:00

I'm a pig! I have serious problems waking up on time everyday. I don't know if it's some medical condition that keeps me glued to the bed or am I just plain lazy to get up every morning. Alarm clocks serves no purpose to me at all, most of the time I can't even hear it and even if I do, I'll just raise out my hands out for "snooze". How I wake up most of the time is thanks to my mum, who will be there shouting for 20 over minutes before I jump out of bed realizing I'm late, yet again.

I stumbled upon this while surfing the web...

Carpet Alarm Clock

What an ingenious concept isn't it? The only way to turn off the alarm is to simply step on it and by then I'll most probably be awake. If standing up won't wake you up, a little walking will definitely help, just shift it further from your bed. I can't wait for this concept to come true, and I hope it's really really soon. Haha.

An Idol in the making...

2008-06-14T23:20:00.001+08:00

Finally got to hear James play the guitar last night. He played really well, especially for someone who only picked up the instrument few months ago. His voice... his voice is even better! Though it's not the first time I hear James sing (the last time was in J2 I guess) but he has improved a lot, in fact his voice is lovely and very soothing. I believe Mel and Iphy will definitely agree with me on that.

I seriously love the song you wrote James, especially the lyrics! I can't wait to see the perfect youtube video.

I know Iphy is gonna kill me for posting this. Haha.

I got to eat my Mcdonald's ice cream yesterday. Yippe~! Lol. I'm actually quite high now, too tired already, mind not functioning properly. The sun seriously gave no mercy to me today, it was so freaking HOT! Most of us nearly fainted at the last run through for the NDP rehearsal but we pressed on till the end. HA!

I'm craving for a....

2008-06-13T20:34:00.003+08:00

McDonald's ice cream cone

Argh.. I can't wait to get my hands on one later, I missed it soo much. I just love the creamy sensation as it melts in your mouth and not forgetting the bottom part of the cone... YUMMY! I nearly got to eat that on Wednesday after dinner with JIM but that lousy Mac at PS ran out of ice cream, how unlucky.

Thinking about it, I've never craved for McDonald's ice creams last time, all I used to think about were ice creams from Venezia, Ben & Jerry's, Hagen Daaz and so on. Guess that show how broke I am these day. Haha. That's how tuned my mind is to the Art of Thriftiness now. In fact I don't even dare to think about cab nowadays, I only take them at desperate times. Alright, maybe the last phrase is rather vague. Lol.

Off to meet JIM AGAIN. My circle of friends is getting soooooo small, how boring. Haha. I'm just joking, it's really great hanging out with them, in fact, it's the best group of friends I ever had. No, I'm not trying to lick their butts... I don't do such things, it's sick. Haha.

Anyway, it's interesting how I manage to talk about Ice cream in the beginning, my change of lifestyle in the middle and friendship at the end.

Facelift 2

2008-06-12T23:59:00.003+08:00

I've changed to another template yet again. IE couldn't show the sidebar at the top (It's time to change to Firefox people) I tried editing the html to make the sidebar be at the top but I just can't solve the puzzle (it's too messy). So this time I decided I'll change to a much simpler one, one which everyone can see easily.

I edited this from the preset templates Blogger provided. It was so much easier editing this, the html were really well organized and easy to manipulated.

And if you're wondering why is the blog still blue in colour, the answer is really very simple... Blue is my favourite colour! Haha. I did try using other colours this time but I still find Blue the best, nothing beats it. Alright maybe black does sometimes. Lol.

Had been rather lazy blogging lately so don't expect much for the next few days. Haha. Will still be lazy. Ok, maybe busy is a better way to put it. Lol.

Now with 3G!

2008-06-10T06:24:00.005+08:00

As expected, the 3G iPhone was launched yesterday at Apple's annual Worldwide Developers Conference. They've even kindly added GPS for the phone, two different colours (white and black) and comes at a cheaper price of US$299 (2years AT&T), around S$400+, how sweet. Launching so called "worldwide" on July 11, will Singapore get it? Or must we wait till September from the previous rumors of Singtel. Well, the Singapore Apple store shows coming soon. =)

Argh! I can't wait..

Time to sell my iPod Touch, maybe I can get to save my phone. Haha.

Facelift!

2008-06-09T21:42:00.006+08:00

Spend part of my weekend changing to a new template. What you guys think? I'm so proud of it now. Haha. I just kept refreshing my page to admire the beauty of my creation. Alright, not my creation but my editing. Lol. However, I still can't find the code to increase the font size of the text, the font now is way too small. Hope I can find it, not I must manually change it every time, how troublesome!

Ohh yea! I created the logo above myself too... Wahaha! I'm most proud of that.

My date with JIM

2008-06-09T21:05:00.010+08:00

Went out on a date with JIM yesterday. No! I'm not gay, JIM is not a guy's name, it's the acronym I came up with to call 3 of my best friends, James, Iphilla and Melvin. Haha. Anyway, I met them for prata at Thomson Road. It has been such a long time since I've been there and I must say it's soo much better than the prata at Jln Kayu but cleanliness wise they're on par (it's not a compliment)

We ordered all the special pratas like Banana, Durian (it's not toooo bad) and mushroom cheese. I still find the original ones the best though. Ohh! There's this Indian waiter there that is really interesting yet quite creepy in a way. When I asked him if he could take our order, he just turned around look at me in the eyes and said in a deep tone, "Set". I guess he must be a big fan of Elvis Presley, imitating the hand signs and all. However, instead of looking really cool like Elvis, he reminds us of a psycho pervert. Yeah it sounds really mean but you have to see it to believe it. I'm not racist.

We played some pool after dinner then James and Iphy came over to my house (Mel was tired) for Mahjong. It was my first time bringing friends home when my parents were around, especially at such a late hour (12am) I wasn't that bad like how I've imagined, my parents didn't even say anything at all and it was quite fun. I couldn't find the large Mahjong tiles (I realise my sis took it) so we had to make do with the really small ones. The small ones did a great job in reducing noise pollution (we also laid a towel on the table to reduce the shuffling noise, creative yea?) but it made us really clumsy, constantly dropping the tiles.

The set didn't have the animal tiles, so we decided to employ our artist side.
Doesn't the first tile on the left remind you of something? Haha.
It's suppose to be worm by the way.

Anyway after 3 rounds and 6 hours of drilling sessions, the highest earner was Iphillia. She just kept winning 5tai 5tai. How irritating. Haha. Kidding.

Everybody go KungFu fighting... HA!

2008-06-07T21:59:00.005+08:00

Caught the much awaited cartoon comedy Kung Fu Panda with James and Iphy last night. There's only two words to describe the show, Freaking Hilarious! It's a must-watch I strongly recommend. The whole theater just kept laughing throughout the film, the panda was a serious joker, especially his actions and facial expressions. Jack Black was really made for the show, his voice was a perfect match for Po (the panda's name) or should I praise the animators for making Po look so much like Jack Black? Haha.

Thinking about it, it has been a while since I've last saw a cartoon with rather good and exciting fighting scenes, and Kung Fu Panda is it. Dreamworks, you guys have done it again! Bravo~

The Girl Who Silenced the UN For 5 Minutes

2008-06-06T19:39:00.003+08:00

LISTEN! to her words...

Her name is Severn Suzuki, born and raised in Vancouver, she looks like just another ordinary kid on the streets running around at the playground. However, she more than that, so much more that even adults should be embarrassed of themselves.

Severn has been working on environmental and social justice issues since kindergarten. At age 9, she and some friends started the Environmental Children's Organization (ECO), a small group of children committed to learning and teaching other kids about environmental issues.They traveled to 1992's UN Earth Summit, where 12 year-old Severn gave this powerful speech that deeply affected (and silenced) some of the most prominent world leaders. The speech had such an impact that she has become a frequent invitee to many U.N. conferences.
(source)

What have you done to save your life and those after? I personally haven't been doing much and I felt really embarrassed of myself as I listen to the wonderful and courageous speech she gave (I bet the leaders at the conference couldn't even lift up their heads)

It's time for us to step up too, out of our laziness, greed and ignorance, and stop neglecting our environment. Make a difference. What it takes might not be to give a speech like her but to ask yourself whether your actions are beneficial to the environment. All it takes might be just using less plastic bags, recycle used cans, switch off your light when not needed or drive a lesser mile each day. This small actions might not seem like a big deal, but if the 6.7billion of us do that, the effects will be 6.7billion times lesser.

Here is how you can help...

Stop thinking about yourself and start worrying for the future!

When you reach the boiling point!

2008-06-04T23:21:00.003+08:00

This is how I feel like when I go to work everyday...

Office Worker Goes Absolutely Insane - Watch more free videos

Alright, maybe this is a little bit too exaggerating to describe my feelings in work but it's somewhere there. Some superiors just like to get on your nerves and take advantage of you. Sometimes I just feel like putting down whatever I'm doing and scream, "I QUIT!". Haiz too bad you can't quit army... =(

Anyway the above video is real, I seriously wonder what went into the guy's head that day. He went totally INSANE! Is work too stress? Or maybe he's just too hungry and the boss doesn't allow them to go for their 12pm lunch break until they finish the report. As the saying goes, a hungry man is an angry man.

Too bad there isn't sound, it'll be so much better to hear the screaming and all the F words. Haha.

The cleaner must be crying as he watches the man release stress...

I'm such a Fool

2008-06-03T22:50:00.001+08:00

Few days ago I mentioned that my iPod earphones were spoiled, and I've been living without music when I'm out since then - It's really a torture!

I convinced my lazy body and went VivoCity after work to buy a cheap replacement. After almost an hour of thorough choosing, I made up mind on a $31 in-ear headphone, not my initial budget and not the type of headphones I like (I still prefer the normal ones) but it was the most decent looking among all.

Happy with my purchase and desperate for music, I started using it immediately and that's when my heart skipped...

There's still no sound coming out from one side of the earphone!

I felt really dumb. Why didn't I check the iPod earphone on another player first? Instead, I deduced it was it that's spoiled and overlooked that it might have been the iPod itself. I almost screamed.

My iPod touch was the one causing the problem all along and now I have to head down to iShop a second time to repair it AGAIN. Not only that, I wasted $31 on something I don't need at all and I'm already so broke. A third blow came when I remembered that my invisible shield will have to be taken out for the repair/replacement. That will cost me another 40+ bucks!

Argh~!! I feel like... argh!

Lucky I have another iPod to keep me company when the Touch goes for repair.

Steve Jobs Steve Jobs, you make me disappointed...

Cool or Disgusting or Sexy? Tongue that Amaze!

2008-06-02T13:31:00.002+08:00

If you're a frequent reader with good memory, 2 months ago I posted pictures of some amazing tongues I saw on Flickr, Sexy Tongues - Giving you a good lick. Today, I'm going to show you yet another amazing tongue acrobat I found on Youtube. See how her tongue groove with the music!

Looking through other related videos, it seems that only females have such flexible tongue, there was not even a single video of a guy showing off his tongue acrobats, or maybe only females are proud of the talent God gave them. Show 0ff! Haha.

The Miracle Fruit

2008-06-01T14:36:00.007+08:00

Want to know how to make your bitter medicines taste sweet?

Or make the lemon lose the sour?

Or a can of beer taste like cup of chocolate milkshake?

Try some Synsepalum Dulcificum and taste pure sweetness for everything you dump in your mouth for two hours. It's not some chemical or pill some company formulated to rewire your taste bud, instead, it's created by the greatest scientist of all, nature.

Also called the Miracle Fruit, Synsepalum dulcificum, is native to West Africa and has been known to Westerners since the 18th century. The cause of the reaction is a protein called miraculin, which binds with the taste buds and acts as a sweetness inducer when it comes in contact with acids. This effect lasts between thirty minutes and two hours. It is not a sweetner, as its effects depend on what is eaten afterwards. No known danger have been associated with this fruit yet.

My mum loves to make me drink all those bitter Chinese medicines for nourishments, time to get my hands on these fruits to please her. Haha. And to those who taste really made cooking at home everyday thanks to your wife/mum's new passion to take up cooking, here's something that might save your appetite.

Our mouths are all about NS though we find it mundane. Ironic.

2008-05-30T23:05:00.003+08:00

Val.Mel.Me.Kel
"It kinda rhymes"

It's nice catching up with old friends, we should really meet up more often, I'm sick of the usual ones already. Haha. I'm just JOKING! Alright maybe it might not have been a really wonderful time for Val since she had to listen unwillingly to our army talk and also to wait for Mel and me at Orchard MRT for over 40min. Sorry Sorry. I know we suck at being gentlemen sometimes. Sometimes only! LOL.

Argh I still don't get to use those NYDC vouchers.

Worst! My ipod earphone is spoiled again, that's my second pair. Should I invest on another original one? It's hard to part with my money for something so overpriced.