lundi, janvier 30, 2006   Did I miss anyone out? (Weilong can use this as an attendance sheet the next time we all go out...) [House Party] |
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Have you ever wondered what religion Wolverine subscribes to? How about Spider-man? Or Clark Kent/Superman? Now you can find out.
[Comic Religion] |
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CNY @ Singapore Chinatown 2006 Sinuses choked with gunpowder, skin flecked with fallout, eyes stinging with the smoke and red paper, it was, all in all, the perfect recipe for a terrorist attack - but what isn't these days?People were crowding around the firecrackers to hear/see them, but an ill-timed gust of wind blew everything onto us and into our eyes. Bodies already sticky with the heat, it didn't help matters when it started raining bits of used dynamite. And that was all before the (probably) NSmen started tossing bits of silver paper onto the streets using two blowers. 'That's more waste of tax dollars,' I remember thinking (and remarking) to someone. I was disappointed that the offerings at Smith Street were less than exuberant this year. There were some slim pickings for pussywillows (I counted a maximum of four stalls selling this seasonal plant), and prices didn't drop as drastically as I remembered from three years ago, where red-topped containers were going for $1 apiece. And we stayed till 0330hrs! I always feel more like one of those ang mohs who come to soak in the atmosphere than a Chinese whenever I am in Chinatown around CNY. [CNY @ Singapore Chinatown 2006] |
dimanche, janvier 29, 2006 PostSecret - A Link You Must Visit  PostSecret is a community (?)/project where you send in your secrets on a postcard to someone in America. Abovementioned someone then picks the best secrets and then publishes them for his own profit.I think it's a brilliant money-maker. They're secrets, so you can't, or don't want to claim anything from this guy. He takes all the credit for putting the book together (i.e. receiving postcards, which requires a PhD, of course), and then reaps the profit. It's dastardly devious. [PostSecret - A Link You Must Visit] |
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I just don't know anymore. Would you laugh or cry to find out that you needed a joke toolbar? [Joke Toolbar] |
samedi, janvier 28, 2006 The West Wing still rocks without Leo McGarry, who is still strangely present within the credits. Not that I want to be nitpicky about things, but they seem to be very happy pulling people like Kristin Chenoweth and Dule Hill in and out of those things for every episode that they're not in, so John Spencer's inclusion is just a little exceptional.We're all definitely missing Aaron Sorkin's writing desperately. The nice talk between CJ/D was sweet, but the cliche was a little overdone, and somehow... Sorkin would have made it better. Danny - I don't even know whether I want to be a reporter anymore. Doug Westin's libido broke the camel's back. CJ - Then what do you want to do? Danny - I don't know. Can I ask you something? CJ - Yeah. Danny - Why'd you come here tonight? CJ - 'Cause you... made me promise to. Danny - Why'd you come. CJ - I wanted to see you. Danny - (smiles, clears the plates on the table for the server to remove) CJ - You're gonna do a magic trick? DJ - Uh... no... uh... I... uh... I'm ... flying a little blind here. I'm halfway through my life, and I'm never sure if I'm doing anything right, till I'm completely done doing it wrong... CJ - Work with it... Danny - ... so this... so this may not come out right? CJ - I forgive you. Danny - Incrementalism is not an option. Forced into a heroic posture. CJ - Heroic can be good. Danny - That's funny. CJ - You can do it. Danny - Ah... We're both about to fall off a cliff. And I don't know what I'm gonna do with the rest of my life, except... I know what I don't wanna do. And on Inauguration Day, you're going to be released from that glorious prison on Pennsylvania Avenue with... CJ - No human skills? Danny - Seems to me? CJ - I should punch you in the face. Danny - (laughs) See, that's what I'm talking about! CJ - Yeah, well, keep going. (smiles) Danny - So, if I'm going to jump off a cliff, and you're going to be pushed off the cliff... why don't we hold hands on the way down? [The West Wing: CJ and Danny] |
vendredi, janvier 27, 2006 I know liking his work is a bit of an embarassing secret (I find it akin to the fact that I secretly do enjoy Britney Spears and Mariah Carey, though I do draw the line at Celine Dion), but he was one of the first poets whom I read in secondary school that I actually liked, and whom I actually voluntarily read more of.I do think that he took the non-capitalising bit a little too far, but you have to admit that the odd punctuation does set him apart from the rest of the modern poets. You don't really have to know his name, although e. e. cummings is a little too risqué to forget easily - especially when you read a couple of his - shall we say - more frisky work? This is the poem which always comes to mind when I'm preparing for some drama workshop or other - it's a great poem to work with if you need pre-pubescent children to work with dramatisation. may i feel said he may i feel said he (i'll squeal said she just once said he) it's fun said she (may i touch said he how much said she a lot said he) why not said she (let's go said he not too far said she what's too far said he where you are said she) may i stay said he (which way said she like this said he if you kiss said she may i move said he is it love said she) if you're willing said he (but you're killing said she but it's life said he but your wife said she now said he) ow said she (tiptop said he don't stop said she oh no said he) go slow said she (cccome? said he ummm said she) you're divine! said he (you are Mine said she) oo88oo And another, sort of brings to mind all sorts of match-making endeavours that are occasionally jokingly tossed my way at CNY. I rather like it because it's wickedly brilliant - I think doing a PC on this would be incredibly fun (all sorts of psychological analysis about human behaviour and wanting would come into play!) lily has a rose lily has a rose (i have none) "don't cry dear violet you may take mine" "o how how how could i ever wear it now when the boy who gave it to you is the tallest of the boys" "he'll give me another if i let him kiss me twice but my lover has a brother who is good and kind to all" "o no no no let the roses come and go for kindness and goodness do not make a fellow tall" lily has a rose no rose i've and losing's less than winning (but love is more than love) [may i feel] |
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For those of you in the know, is this little rhyme true? "Beer before liquor, never sicker; Liquor before beer, never fear." [Liquor] |
jeudi, janvier 26, 2006 Finally, a product which allows a laptop to function as, well, a LAPtop.  I sure hope this will fit non-Apple laptops too. Oh hush, you. [The iLap] |
mercredi, janvier 25, 2006  Still agonising. Update: Probably either the Big Baby (+E) or the 110-E.  110-E  Big Baby If you're giving me an ang pow, make it a huge one. :) [Which Taylor?] |
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For everyone who enjoyed the Schroedinger's Cat Comic  If you get it, congrats! You're a nerd! If you don't, click on the image and read the Wikipedia article. [For everyone who enjoyed the Schroedinger's Cat Comic] |
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(...there needs to be some way of showing "hello" that is between a "." and a "!". For example, I'm glad to see you online and glad to say hi, but really, there's no need to misrepresent my feelings with a "Hi!", which is way too exuberant for what I intend to convey. Where's the middle-of-the-road gradation? All I want is to say "Hi!" without the exclamation mark. There is no way to properly represent this. "Hi" looks like you've forgotten your punctuation, "Hi!" is too excited, "Hi." sounds too curt. There seems to be no way of winning this.) [The Space Between] |
mardi, janvier 24, 2006 I think this is funny and lame.Or lame and funny. I can't decide.  (On a drawing kick right now.) [Lamed] |
jeudi, janvier 19, 2006  I remember memorising five books of 唐诗 when I was in Primary Four. I've since lost the books (thin, but complete with poem illustrations), but in a fit of I-cannot-explain-what, I bought a book <<唐诗三百首>>. I suspect it has a lot to do with the fact that the very first poem is a poem I remember spending a week trying memorise, to no avail (barring the first line):鹅, 鹅, 鹅, 曲 项 向 天 歌， 白 毛 浮绿 水 ， 红 掌 拨 清 波 。 ~ <<咏鹅>> 骆宾王 I recall a number of people in my class also being scolded for not being able to remember this poem beyond the first line, but seriously, who can remember the rest of the poem beyond the funky first line? (Another thing which rather frightened me: a lot of the books beside the book which I eventually purchased were all 学前XX, like 学前成语， 学前唐诗，学前拼音 etc. I may not be the world's best authority on this subject, but really, honestly, the books were difficult! If this is what kids have to learn now, just for "学前", I really wonder what they're doing in class! This reminds me a lot of Minister Tharman's announcement to give aid students in "catch(ing) up with their (Primary One) peers faster". Er, shouldn't Primary One be where the story begins? If kids start to play "catch up" even before school starts, there's obviously some kind of lapse in the system somewhere... catch-up classes are really only a stopgap measure, a placebo in lieu of a proper solution.) [Shades of Primary Four] |
mercredi, janvier 18, 2006 Applications for Boys and Girls Night Out   [Applications for Boys and Girls Night Out] |
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A little snapshot of my life right now This is me, circa now.  [A little snapshot of my life right now] |
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Why do some people insist on making it hard to acquire knowledge? There is a time and place for one to discover the learning process, but is not the mere humility of asking for another's help a sufficient 'learning journey' in and of of itself? When someone comes up to you and asks you something, is it not counterbeneficial to send him off on a suggested trail to locate that information when you have it on hand? Will that not occasionally frustrate the learner, when he realises that all questions do are to lead him to more questions, which may always lead to the right answer (given that there is one)? Will he then not shun you, or worse, stop asking questions? (Caveat emptor: I do not advocate spoonfeeding.) [Getting the Point] |
  Anyone notice the similarities? I like the pictures. [Not Even A Hint of Thirst] |
lundi, janvier 16, 2006 The Chronicles of Narnia: Soundtrack  Get the soundtrack!I loved the movie, despite Michelle insisting that it was a cheap knock-off of Lord of the Rings - but what do kids today know? LotR is a full thousand-over page epic, while "The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe" is approximately 200 pages long, and written for children. I got my money's worth in the first 10 minutes of the film. The scenery, the perfect cast (finding Georgie Henley as Lucy Pevensie was pure, brilliant genius), the score - oh, the score. The score was beautifully conceived and written for the movie. My favourite part? The scene from where the train pulls out of the London station and moves into the countryside - set to Evacuating London. Harry Gregson-Williams does not evoke the same sense of grandeur as compared to the indomitable John Williams or James Horner, but after imdb-ing him, I'm realising that he's poised to clamber up onto that hard-won pedestal himself. With some amazing credits under his belt, which include: Kingdom of Heaven, Miss Congeniality II, Bridget Jones II, both Shrek movies, Sinbad, Phone Booth, Spy Game, Spy Kids, Chicken Run, The Prince of Egypt, Armageddon, The Replacement Killers, The Borrowers, and Broken Arrow, Gregson-Williams has obviously been slowly but steadily working his way up the Hollywood ladder. The soundtrack is good - it's not superlative-worthy, but it's good enough for my endorsement (right). Unfortunately, the transitions between orchestral segments are sometimes a little too abrupt to be graceful - something which I didn't notice much in the movie (which suggests that the soundtrack should not be listened to without first watching the movie). Thankfully, this doesn't happen for many tracks, and I continue being amazed by Evacuating London and From Western Woods to Beaversdam, two of my favourite tracks, despite Jon (my supplier) saying that "those aren't the best". I'm also intrigued by the way that he handled Mr Tumnus' lullaby in A Narnian Lullaby, the shortest track in the whole soundtrack, which contains strains of middle-eastern influence. The soundtrack also boasts four vocal tracks, Can't take it in (Imogen Heap), Wunderkind (Alanis Morisette), Winter Light (Tim Finn), and Where (Lisbeth Scott, who does most of the vocal solos for the soundtrack). [The Chronicles of Narnia: Soundtrack] |
dimanche, janvier 15, 2006 Airong and Michelle are the most efficient interrogators I've met. Granted, I was two hours late into the dinner date (which I wasn't supposed to attend anyway), but I had just greeted them, given Airong a hug, congratulated Michelle on her recent change in marital status before the questions came, fast and furious: are you married? Are you attached? Why not? Plus other similarly-themed inquiries, as well as offers to introduce men (or boys, depending on my fancy) to me.I suppose I should be thankful that the Singaporean in the group is working in the arts sector, and not the SDU (or MCYS), or she'll solve the marriage and birth-rate situation in approximately two days through sheer tenacity of will. [Meeting SL] |
samedi, janvier 14, 2006 Today, I answered a question regarding my future plans to someone whom I rather respect a lot. In response, he said: Oh, so you'll be part of the One Government... the one which will be in power when the anti-Christ comes.No, I don't really know how to take that statement well either. [One Government] |
vendredi, janvier 13, 2006 While musing on childhood games today, I came to the sad realisation that nowhere else in the world would the cry of "or-ee-yor-ee-yor! Tarzan boh cheng khor!" ring out. My brother used to swing from the curtains with that battle cry.
[Childhood Tarzan] |
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jeudi, janvier 12, 2006  As if I don't already have enough things and people in my life to make me feel stupid, I've just started learning how to play chess. (left: my chess board, with some characters from Narnia paying a short visit. You see Aslan, the Witch, the Gryphon, the Centaur and the Satyr. I'm only missing Mr. Tumnus from my Nestlé collection.)Nobody can make you feel inferior without your permission.
- Eleanor Roosevelt [Let's play a game] |
mardi, janvier 10, 2006  Due to the unrelenting nature of monsoon season, poor Tat was forced to change his plans for a romantic Esplanade proposal (I heard he initially wanted to do the duck tour), and had to settle for Starbucks@Suntec - which was good because there was a huge space just waiting to be eaten up by at least 30 of his and her cell group-mates, with enough room for us to make lots and lots of noise.WOOT! :) I'm really happy for both of them, but more for ZB, of course. Congrats on a dream come true, babe. Video (approx. 6MB) available here in lieu of pictures, as I could only either video or take pictures. Won't be available for long! And if you're reading Mer, this is my 'submission' for wedding videographer. You might want to reconsider your demand of me, and just make me a carpark official. Heh. [Wai Tat and Zibing: Proposal] |
lundi, janvier 09, 2006 Oei, political scientists: an exercise in self-censorship What's that chunk of literature available for governments/regimes and fear creation? That particular sub-genre which got a boost writing about Bush's 'Terror Code' levels after the September 11 attacks? Singapore history, though not far off in the past, is sufficiently removed from the younger generation to be alien and alienating. I wouldn't put it above our *some text missing* to utilise the excuse of mock terror drills to *some text missing* to us.[Oei, political scientists: an exercise in self-censorship] |
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From the list of 36 signs that show you've been in Singapore too long, number 4: You wait for instructions from people in authority before doing anything. Always. And then, from today's Today: Set for drill, commuters waited for instructions(1) The go-vermin! started announcing mock drills last year to spoil the "surprise". (2) The auto-righties spoil the surprise even more on the day itself. (3) The please-man spoils the surprise somemore and then tells people what is going to happen, and what to do. (4) To increase fear, more warnings. (5) Final proof that you really can't take anything that the go-vermin! says for truth. First, they say "there WILL be a loud explosion." Then they change the party line, suggesting "it might be loud". The final explosion: a wet squib. (6) Does this need to be explained? I am so ashamed. No, I'm sorry, I have to ask permission to see if I can be that first. Excuse me. [Excuse me, am I dead?] |
dimanche, janvier 08, 2006  Well, the crazy kids FINALLY did it - a beach wedding in Thailand, with lots of orchids and love.Here's wishing them all the best. More photos here. [Dimin & Wayne's Wedding] |
 Another resident of Shunfu marries and moves out! My St Nicks class list is in shambles... :)Photos here. [Chelle and Yeow Beng] |
samedi, janvier 07, 2006 Today, Julie-Ann called me up on the phone, pretending to be someone from the "XXX Arts Centre", calling regarding a "clock in the toilet". Already ticked off with XXX institution for not taking my name off their staff lists, I started being mean to him, asking him "What was your question? You didn't ask a question, you just said 'clock in the toilet', but you don't have a question. Formulate a question (you utter moron who obviously have no command of the english language)."In all the time I was wracking my brain for a clock in the toilet ('Did they stupidly install one on every level ever since I left? What spazzes!' I was thinking), the boy was SNIGGERING away behind his stupid CARDBOARD CUBICLE along Upper Thomson Road. Julie-Ann is the ONLY one I know who dares to prank me. Thank you - I really do appreciate it. But you owe me a drink the next time our class meets. And TELL ME EARLIER, NOT HOURS BEFORE DINNER (you morons.) Oh, he also asked "Why your blog recently so cryptic one hah?" This what- I- had- for- lunch- today (wihflt) post is for him. [A Mundane Post For Julie-Ann] |
mercredi, janvier 04, 2006 
[post deleted] |
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Far beyond a star, near beyond the moon Somewhere beyond the seaSomewhere waiting for me My lover stands on golden sands And watches the ships that go sailing Somewhere beyond the sea He’s watching for me If I could fly like birds on high Then straight to his arms I’d go sailing It’s far beyond a star, it’s near beyond the moon I know beyond a doubt My heart will lead me there soon We’ll meet beyond the shore We’ll kiss just as before Happy we’ll be beyond the sea And never again I’ll go sailing Some sailing Beyond The Sea Bobby Darin Not much in a mood for anything these days. [Far beyond a star, near beyond the moon] |
dimanche, janvier 01, 2006 The Darkest Evening Of The Year Whose woods these are I think I know.His house is in the village though; He will not see me stopping here To watch his woods fill up with snow. My little horse must think it queer To stop without a farmhouse near Between the woods and frozen lake The darkest evening of the year. He gives his harness bells a shake To ask if there is some mistake. The only other sound's the sweep Of easy wind and downy flake. The woods are lovely, dark and deep. But I have promises to keep, And miles to go before I sleep, And miles to go before I sleep. Stopping By Woods On A Snowy Evening Robert Frost [The Darkest Evening Of The Year] |
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