You can choose to watch some cutesy shite of my cats....


Or watch Saddam get hanged.


Some say people are happy about it.

Other say not.


How about the series of bombs going off in Bangkok just hours before the New Year's Celebrations?
It's obviously a merely a statement. If not, they could have easily caused more harm to set them off during the celebrations.

*I see a bomb just went off in Madrid as well.


A new year's ahead...
What's new?!!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!

Had a nice long dinner with Zer0 at Kushigin (again!) on Tuesday evening, while 'Good Fren' went DOTA-ing with 'approved' kakis such as my cousin. =)))



If you just look at the pics, especially what Zer0 is wearing, one can almost imagine this to have taken place in Japan?! =))

Between the 2 of us, we finished the entire bottle of citrus liqueur. There is something about Japanese food. One is unlikely to walk away feeling that one has eaten too much.

See 1st row, middle pic?
Zer0 said he was the subservient Asian man who 'peeled' prawns. HAHAHAHAHAH!!

Btw, the guy you see (2nd row, 1st from the left)?
He's not with us. He's just at the next table which was less than 40 cm away. Lack of space... Very japanese hor?!
...........................

It was then when the earthquake hit Taiwan, killed some people and suspended the East Asian cyberworld and probably some bits of the economies.

Discover yet another corner in Singapore.

I accept my circumstances,
but I do not accept defeat.

~ As heard on Against All Odds.

Blinkymummy, Blinky and Tiger appeared in the Jan 07 issue of Home & Decor Magazine.

'Good Fren's back was supposed to be in the pic, he had to work that evening.

You see the pic on the right?
It's a pic of the wardrobe.
But hor... it's posed!!
Coz 'Good Fren' doesn't store his clothes in the wardrobe. His 'wardrobe' is in the bomb shelter!!

Eh... The McDees Uncle left his insulator pack behind by accident.


We returned it to him this afternoon oredi.

McDees - 3rd day in a row.

We need to go grocery shopping!!!
..............................

Yes... You noticed that I'm not asleep.
I should...

Tis the season of reflection.
There is much to think about.

I need to make sense of certain strange phenomenon which I cannot be blogging about.

What did you do?

Here's my surprise from 'Good Fren'!!

'Good Fren' and I spent a good part of our Saturday afternoon in Orchard Road yesterday.

First we had lunch at Crossroads Cafe.
(Dunno why uploading the pics to Blogger rendered the pics horizontal.)


Crossroads Cafe never fails to satisfy me. =)))
I was so happy with the dessert that I only remembered to take pic after it had been totally consumed.
So 'Good Fren' suggested that I should take a pic of the menu instead.

Then we went to Tangs and bought him some shoes and myself, a skirt. Then he had to go for a wedding dinner at Marriott while I was left wondering along Orchard Road, thinking of ways to use my new Sup Card coz apparently I had to use it within 1 month of delivery.

I thought it would be easy to start using the card.
I mean... this is Orchard Road we are talking about. And there were sales going on everywhere.
But I think that is the problem.
Because of the festive season and many many sales going on, it was a terrible shopping experience.
There were just too many people everywhere!
I felt bad hanging out in the changing room for too long, coz there were like 4-5 people just outside the flimsy changing cube curtains.

So apart from the skirt, I didn't manage to buy any clothes.
Instead, I bought organiser refills for 'Good Fren' and myself, plus a map of Singapore to be put up in my office.
And my Sup Card is been swiped for that! =)))

I was in the Ngee Ann City loo when I thought to myself...
I think 'Good Fren' is right about me being a 'Han1 Mui1'. It can be translated to Mandarin as 省妹, i.e. a female scrooge.
He got this term from Vivian Chow's character in 大时代.
Coz somehow... I hesitate to spend on things like clothes.
And I would exclaim rather loudly at the ridiculous prices of merchandise on display. 杀人放火啊!
The average price of a top/bottom for me is usually around SGD40-50. I suspect he likes this characteristic of mine very much.

But hor... I think he's mistaken leh!!
I don't spend on clothes because I view clothes functionally, and there is currently no need to buy really fancy/expensive clothes for any occasion.
Most of my time is spent working, i.e. in a government establishment. I do not have to entertain people who assess me based on the quality of my jacket.
Erm... I don't even wear jackets for work.
As for non-work hours, I'd rather put on my t-shirt and jeans.
So hor... There is no need to buy really nice clothes.

Nonetheless, one should not overlook that fact that should the need to dress up arise, I think the Sup Card also not enough. HO HO HO!! =)))

By then, dunno whether he will remember that I haven't been spending much on clothes in general.
=))))

Back to the Orchard Road adventures...
When I decided to make my way home, the freaking cab queue was so damn long and to make my way to Orchard MRT station was simply suicidal.
So I decided to call 'Good Fren', and he left the wedding at around 10pm plus. =)))
................

Today, 'Good Fren' says he has something installed for me as a Xmas surprise.
FWAH!!!

So I is waiting for 3.10pm.
He says we must leave by then.

Meanwhile, I made a porn video.

My Otaku Beng made a pact with me to go to the Cosafe at CHIJmes, coz (i) I wanna see the Maids in Costume, and (ii) he wanna see the Maids in Costume.
HO HO HO!!!

So we did.

And with shiteloads of other people. It's really quite cute.
He brought his cousin + 2 friends (1 from work and 1 from the cyber life).
I brought 'Good Fren' + 2 cousins + 1 cousin-in-law + my cousin brought his friend whom I knew too.

We met up at Cosafe. All 10 of us.
By blood, by blogs, by bailiwick.


I had the lamb.


The food was good (apart from the fried rice which my cousin ordered), but rather pricey.
I guess we were paying for the Maids' costumes.



Out of about 8 maids, she is my favourite.
She's so Moe that I wanna squeeze her, put her in my pocket, bring home, and put on my bed, together with my monkeys.

She's a cosplayer and her online name is Roseatte.
Her real name is Geraldine and she is 17 years old.
She said she would be going to Japan to study soon.

I got Otaku Beng to make a request with the boss for her to serve us specifically. I finally know what it sort of feels like to be a nightclub patron.
That my male ego is stroked by the boss acceding to my request of getting Roseatte to serve us, PLUS, Roseatte calls us 'Master'!!!

"Enjoy your meal, Master!" Roseatte says after she serves every dish.

Here you see Cousin's Friend being served by Roseatte.
If you think this is sick/wrong/makes you uncomfortable, you should have seen the table of 10 middle-age Japanese men.


In any case, what is 'sick'?

I think it is more sickening to condone and play up self-centred behaviour/individuals in the mass media, than to indulge in such harmless transactions.
..............................................

Because the Cosafe is in CHIJmes, I still think any adult who turns up in the IJ pinafore shall be given a 50% discount of the menu, especially for alcohol.

What say you?! =)))

'Good Fren' and I went to watch Flags of Our Fathers this evening.


A perfect film to demonstrate the power of the media, and the concept of cropping.

Cropping the picture. Cropping reality.

We thought it's rather sickening to make money out of one's father's lifestory. Oh well... Who are we to judge?

The film was beautifully-shot and we enjoyed it very much, except for these 2 what-looked-like-NS-boys beside us.
They were talking about the soldiers and the ranks/roles/weapons etc throughout the film.

KNN... Yeah... I'm sure you have more army experience than me, but I seriously don't give a shite about it when I'm watching a film!!
If I'd wanted to know more about the rifles they were using, or the type of planes/tanks which were constantly being blown up in the film, I'd call up some regulars, or even better... I'd check out Wikipedia!!

Thank you very much! =_=
.................................................

Halfway through the film, I started thinking about the concept of 'hope' and how it was similar to that of 'credit' or consumption based on loans.

'Hope' is like borrowing from tomorrow's reality.
That one believes there actually is a tomorrow to look forward to. That no matter how shitty today has been, tomorrow will come and it will get better.
Or at least, today will be over.

Life becomes not what one sees and feels today, but what one thinks can be tomorrow.

When one pays that final credit card bill for this lifetime, does it mean that life itself has ended because the borrowing from tomorrow's reality has stopped?

What if someone lets you know about tomorrow?
That it is no different from today, and never will be.
Then will you want to hang around and wait for tomorrow to come?

Suicide Bomber BARBIE!!!
Zer0 has strange thoughts and a super entertaining blog.
However, sometimes it takes quite a bit of patience to savour his blog coz he can be rather lor sor!!
=)))

Eh... I met up with Zer0 at the Cosplay Cafe!!! (Will upload pics later.)

It's in my former school compound, i.e. CHIJmes lor!!
If I go there in my school uniform the next time, do you think I'll get a discount?!
=)))

志明真正不知要按怎　為什麼　愛人不願閣再相偎
春嬌已經早就無在聽　講這多　其實攏總攏無卡抓

走到淡水的海岸　兩個人的愛情
已經無人看　已經無人聽　啊

我跟你最好就到這　你對我已經沒感覺　
到這凍止　你也免愛我
我跟你最好就到這　你對我已經沒感覺　麥閣傷心
麥閣我這愛你　你不愛我

志明心情真正有影寒　風這大　你也真正攏沒心肝
春嬌你哪無要和我播　這齣電影　咱就走到這位準嘟煞
...................................


决定 永远不在让爱 折磨自己
决定 就和某个人 厮守终生

这样 是不是一种逃避？
算不算 屈服？

Continued from My Singapore IIII.

In the most secured zone of the Bubble, many Singaporeans were engaged in virtuous promiscuity.

Rigorous trainings were conducted in the Factory day after day.
They knew their sole function was to do Singapore proud. They knew they were units of specialised labour to be sold in bulk to another state, another part of the Earth. Sometimes permanently.

They looked forward to the transaction. Not because the monetary rewards were satisfying, but because it brought honour onto themselves, and most importantly, to Singapore.

Once they had been assigned, they would not look back.
Till the turn of the millennium, Singapore used to be held together by the concept of the family unit. In retrospect, this was a highly flawed thousand year old arrangement, because inter-generational transfers of values and assets were imperfect, i.e. not every household was doing it right.
Some parents gave up halfway, some children did not give back, some couples never fulfilled their roles as parents. It was not a happy story.

The key problem was the failure to mandate the quality and roles of Parent and Child. It was a market failure which no one had the will to fix for the longest time.

Thankfully, Singapore would now progress based on fierce unwavering loyalty of its citizens. For Singapore was the only parent for all its citizens. Not did this arrangement relieve its citizens of the burden of learning to become a qualified Parent or Child (the national records demonstrated that this process used to be take at least 3 decades on the average. With increasingly high margins of errors after the turn of the millennium.)

By taking over the role from its citizens, the State removed the inefficiencies of decentralised child-rearing. In return, the State had been guaranteed of lifelong commitment from its 'Citizen Child'.

These carefully selected Singaporeans beamed with pride in their uniforms, especially when the Foreigners toured the Factory. "Such technology cannot be replicated anywhere else in the world," said the Guide. The Foreigners nodded in unison. They knew they couldn't help but to pay for the Singaporean.

And while they could buy Singaporean labour, they couldn't buy Singaporean loyalty. For the Singaporean works not for money.
He only works for approbation from Singapore.

Went to the Esplanade last afternoon.



Seriously, who are they trying to kid?!!
CLOAK ROOM?!!

Btw, Mr Baldy is Lim Yu Beng.
He got into my pic by accident.

The main objective was to go for the YAH Anniversary at DXO.
Made a video. But it just wouldn't load properly!!
ROOOOOOAAAAAARRRRRRRR!!!!*



Then we had tapas for dinner at Via Mar.



I didn't think the food was that great at all.
Only the eggplant, prawns and oxtail were ok.
The rest, even the standard off-the-shelf goat's cheese, was crap!!
The crayfish bisque tasted like Jack's Place Lobster Bisque with water.

And for such standards, it's seriously overpriced!! =_=

I read about this case a few months ago, but this is the first time I'm seeing the footages of the incident.



I do not agree with the Today article on this video, i.e. whether putting this video online = distributing uncensored material, and some other 'new media-type discourse'. I think such violent atrocities should be made known and visible to the public. It's high time we start to teach ourselves to recognise everyday life violence.
The shade of red that blood comes in, is brighter than you think or have seen on CSI.

Apart from being surprised by the bystander in white who did nothing about the incident, I watched the video and had an epiphany, i.e. I realised why some people would complained about the police not responding fast enough to 999 calls.

The video was merely a short 2+ minutes.
Even my Earl Grey takes at least 3 minutes to be ready.

Despite the fact that I knew it's not a 'live' telecast, during that short span of time, I was screaming uncontrollably on the inside: WTF IS THE POLICE?!!

That's when I realised that it had nothing to do with the police not responding fast enough, it's all about our expectations that:

(A) This shouldn't be happening in Singapore, and
(B) Mr Policeman will always be round the corner to put a stop to all sorts of absurdities.

It's an unrealistic expectation.
Yet, in the face of such incidents, we lose the ability to rationalise.

Violence happens all the time.
Boyfriend stabbing girlfriend, parents beating up children, robbery, road rage whatever.

Unless we want a Big Brother State, it's not possible to put out all such incidents instantaneously.

And sometimes, I get so put-off by people that I think a Big Brother State is the only way to go. =_=

So should we start panicking?
No. Of course not.

We have to manage it, and hopefully, not contribute to it in any way.

The week has whizzed past in a flash!!
It's Friday and 10 days to Christmas!!
Whatever happened to November 2006?!!

We wanted to go to Secret Garden at Sculpture Square for dinner, but were turned away because of some private function. =_=

So, without a clue where else to go, we ended up at Summer Pavilion again.



Menu's changed a little from the last time.

Good food. Good Ambience.
Just one lousy table full of rowdy people. =_=
Sounded like a gaggle of geese feeding by the river.

I had lunch with a Civil Defence officer today.
This is actually the first time I'm talking to one on a personal basis. The usual work interaction is too formal.

So I asked him what he did for a living, i.e. what a typical day was like. He's actually quite high-ranking hor...

Like any good uniform officer, he explained incident management, staff management, exercises etc.
At some point, he described the gruesome details of messy suicides/accidents he had to tackle. And sometimes, these are of children. Other times they may be of people he knows/is close to.
I asked him flatly:


He was stunned for a while.
Of course, he doesn't cry.
But the more important question is: Why doesn't he cry?

I don't think it's merely because of the macho-shite explanation.
I think it's an auto-defensive response from one's mind, i.e. to block out the emotions and switch to operation-mode.

I was looking out of the car window at the people along the streets, and thinking to myself: This is a crazy organism. This society of ours.
On one hand, you have people flinging themselves onto MRT tracks, and on the other, you have people scrapping bits of the former off the tracks to allow order to be restored.
Let's not discuss about people who capitalise on such incidents.

It's just absurd.

I know it sounds like it's gonna be boring with neither alcohol nor smoking, PLUS it's organised by the Health Promotion Board and one of the Hip Hop MPs is going to there as Guest of Honour!!
*YAWN* =)))

BUT!!!!

'Good Fren' and I are going nonetheless!!
Not happening, then check out other places lor...

Faster register!! We'll see you there!!!

Earlier someone asked to see a close-up of the cat flap we made in our door.


It's a simple plastic flap which can swing either way for the cats to move in and out of the kitchen area to the utility area , i.e. where the cat litter is.

In this way, we can close/lock the door while the cats can still do their stuff. =))

This hole-in-the-door + flap cost us a few hundred bucks.

Erm... Somehow... We now own a XBox 360. =_=

Here you see 'Good Fren' installing and getting ready.

Here you see me concentrating and killing everyone on Dead or Alive!! WOO HOO!!!


'Good Fren' and I have been beating each other up quite abit in Dead or Alive. I seriously think quite good at such sparring games.
It must be the training I had via StreetFighter and Samurai Showdown, back in my JC days.
*Looks out of window wistfully*

We also team up as Spiderman and Captain America in Marvel Ultimate Alliance.
I keep laughing at Captain America because I always make him look rather himbotic. Running around aimlessly and without much control.
I'm not used to such games. It's rather boring.
I prefer to bash people up. =))))
.........................................

My JC year mate just had a baby boy, and it was his 1-month celebrations yesterday. We made our way to Tangs to get the kid some clothes.

While we were there, we finally got some plates and wine glasses. I think the Tangs Sale is great now.
Better go.

Had a quick bite at Island Cafe on the top floor of Tangs.
Love the ambience.
Food is average. Mix of Asian and Western.
Just check out the confusing soup spoons!!!



By the time we got to my friend's place, most of the guests had left. So, we had a close encounter with the kid.

Ok, I didn't want to carry the baby initially, because I was afraid I might drop it him.
But because my friend was super encouraging, I took the kid and put him on my lap so that I didn't have to carry him.
HAHA!!!

I'm better with cats lah!!!
The kid felt so limp that I was afraid I might hurt him!!!
Nuah Nuah one!!!

While the kid was sleeping, we spent almost an hour going through the gory details of childbirth.
After the visit and on our way to the car, 'Good Fren' and I decided that while it was quite a nice idea to see what our kid might look like, it was not worth it for us to have a kid coz it comes with too much trouble.
At least... Not yet.

Back in our super single mode, we went to Bugis Junction for a quick dinner, and decided to catch a movie.
Somehow we ended up watching "After This Our Exile" starring Aaron Kwok and Charlie Yeung, and shot in Malaysia.
A movie about a pair of beautiful but irresponsible parents fucking up their kid's life. =_=

I thought it was a rather refreshing movie.
What I liked about it, was the pace of the movie.
It's a realistic pace. Of sorrow, of pain, and of whatever little happiness there is in the real life.
Unlike deliberately arty films and super glossy mtv blockbusters.

I thought the bit where Charlie Yeung left Aaron Kwok, the down and out Gambler, for this other guy who looked exactly like Aaron Kwok, but in a suit, was super poignant.
It's almost as if the story teller was saying:


We got home, and got ready to bash each other up again in Dead or Alive. But not before I made him some supper. =)))

PPPK
PP -> PP

Hee Hee Hee!!!

Eh... You know how weddings these days usually come with the video?

It started off some years ago with a simple powerpoint presentation of a photo archival piece on the couple, i.e. washed out baby pics, to nerdy school pics, to university pics, to lovey-dovey overseas trips pics, to the ROM pics, to the wedding morning pics, and of course, the best shots from the wedding album.

[I don't get the overseas pics bit, and was asking 'Good Fren' why so. He said it was because people seldom carried a camera all over Singapore, unless they were going to the Singaporean Zoo. That's true. Which explains the couple-at-Zoo pic.

I guess I am unable to comprehend this intuitively, because I carry a camera in my bag every single day. And we take pics all the time. =)))]

If you see act-cute cartoony or flowery/fairy ones, it must be the bride's idea.

These days, they use video as the medium.
Some even burn it on a DVD/VCD and give it away as a door gift.

Of course, when something is easily achieved, new players will feel the need to better it. So, to give the wedding and its video an 'unforgettable' edge, what can beat having a 'THEME'!!!
Themes could range from colour to fruits to animals to professions to objects to songs to hobbies etc.

If I had a choice, my theme would be about Anger and Hate, with lots of blood, raw flesh and pain, then finally resolved by ethereal blinding Love which would suffocate the hell out of everyone in the room.
So much that they would re-evaluate their definition of 'Love'.
Freaking Brilliant. =)

Whatever it is, I cannot help wondering about the chronology of the video/pics.

How come they do not include their ex-boy/girlfriends?
I mean...
Unless this couple only had each other and no one else, there has got to be a few years of their lives devoted to other people mah, right?!
How can dun include?
Must include mah!!

Imagine... if I were ashamed of a specific episode of my life, e.g. my school or something, I'll have to exclude 11 years of my life from the video?!!

"Oh... From 1981 to 1992? Nothing happened during this period." or "Cameras weren't invented then." or "Erm... I cannot remember. Those were forgettable days."

Perhaps I just don't fancy the deliberate portrayal of 'happiness' and exclusion of 'unhappiness' in such productions.
Because, unhappiness is equally, if not MORE important than happiness in shaping one's character.

And if a wedding is a celebration of the union of 2 lives, then all must be embraced at this symbolic start of a lifelong journey.

No? =_=

Damn... It's yet another show.
Like the D&D which took place in the exact same ballroom the night before the wedding.

SWEET.

Had a good evening yesterday. =))

I finally managed to get a haircut.
The last time I cut my hair was in late August, just before I changed my job!

As usual, on my way there, the scaredy cat BM was wrestling with the 'I'm sick of status quo' BM on the issue of whether the long locks should go.
I was thinking about getting a chin-length bob.

When I got to Next, I asked Jonathan:

BM: 如果...我是说如果,万一,假设... 剪 bob 会怎样 har? 你说可以吗?

And then, out of the blue, Jerry was behind us and going:
CAN CAN!! Jonathan, You can do it!
=_=

I got rather overwhelmed and kept finding problems with the bob, i.e. not suitable because of the way my hair grows out etc.
Jonathan was, on the contrary, rather hesitant about it.

How like that?!!
EEEEEeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!!!
The shampoo was a good 20 minutes for me to decide.

And then...
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.


And the rest of the locks were reduced by like 2 inches.
HAAHAHHAAHAHAHAHHA!!!

I chickened out lah, can?!!
I've had my long locks for more than a decade... It's not an easy decision to chop them off to chin-length just like that, ok!!
I think I need to put up a paper to seek concurrence with the higher beings. =_=

I told Jonathan that I would reduce the hair length 2 inches at a time. He looked at my hair and said it was gonna take too long!
Yeah lor...
By that time, Bobs are no longer in vogue, and we'll have to wait for the next cycle?!

Then like that no need to cut oredi lor!!

And because L'ArtiChaut was having a Pre-Christmas Sale, I had to go check it out. Since Future-Cousin-in-Law (FCIL) was more interested in the stuff than 'Good Fren', we decided to dump our partners with whoever, and met up at Novena after my haircut.

We must have spent 2 hours there, looking at the display, trying on stuff, asking about prices etc!!!
Ended up blowing more than SGD300 on 2 items. =)))


I bought the necklace on the left, and she bought the funky one on the right!

I is evil...
I so totally coaxed her into buying hers, coz I liked it very much and would love to borrow it in the near future!!
It will look great over a plain collar and under a dark suit!!
Heh Heh Heh!! =P

You can catch the sale online as well.

After getting into the car, we both picked up the phone and reported the damage to our respective partners.
It was quite a funny scene.
Like 2 small kids feeling guilty after hanging out too much at the playground after school.
HO HO HO!!

We then went to Kushigin at Cuppage Centre to meet up with Cousin, and 2 of their friends.
And to return his wife-to-be to him mah!!




After some rounds of sake and umeshu, we didn't that we shouldn't be driving to St James Power Station.
So we left our cars at my place, and walked out to get a cab.
But somehow, at 1am, there weren't enough cabs on the street!
The cab queue was so long that we decided to just go for karaoke at Paradiz Centre instead.

And we did that till 4am!!!
Towards the end, I was almost falling asleep!!!
It's damn siong to chiong lor!!
.............................

Today, I woke up at almost noon.
Went to have chicken rice and soya beancurd for lunch. Yum Yum!!

Found something strange during our weekly grocery shopping attempt.

You see these?
Both are Enoki mushrooms.
I'm sure those on the left look familiar. But the super short ones on the right?!!

Apparently the difference is caused by nationality leh!
Left = Japanese, Right = Korean.

O_0

powered by ODEO

Guess What I Did This Evening?!!

A colleague passed me a pair of free seating tix to see MayDay at the ABC Stout Concert earlier.
Then last night, this girl (who reads my blog and happens to work for Foreword Communications, i.e. the PR company for ABC Stout) emailed to ask if I was interested in a pair of media/VIP tickets for the concert.

Umm.... This means good allocation seats, ok!!!
=))))

A total of 3 performances: Chen Sheng, Pin Guan and MayDay.


Chen Sheng is a Lau Beng!!!
He's really funny and I like him very much.
Though he's such a joker, his voice is rather sad to listen to.
Almost as if 他在呐喊.


I realised hor... That I forgot to take pics of them.
Took vids instead.
Will upload the rest later.
Gotta work tomorrow, ok!!

As this concert was mainly sponsored by ABC Stout, we kept seeing the performers drink ABC Stout on stage. There was even an entire segment at the end, totally devoted to drinking + smashing of heads into 1 small cake.
=)))

I wonder if Lock Lock had sponsored this event, what would have happened on stage?

Pin Guan... I couldn't wait for him to get off the stage.
He cannot make it lah...
Kept singing old songs which few people knew. Just because it's a Wednesday, doesn't mean it's RETRO night!!
Plus he looks too much like Guan You, i.e. the drummer of MayDay. One is enough. =_=


MayDay wasn't too wonderful either.
Ashin went off-key on the 2nd/3rd song... AGAIN... =_=

Somehow the energy level wasn't as high as before.
Maybe I have aged. Maybe they have aged.
Someone turned 31 years old today (6 Dec 06) leh! =P

You must watch this video...
Ashin kept shouting..." 'L'... 'O'... 'Vee'... 'Gee' "!!!
WTF is L.O.Vee.Gee?!!

Masa had to help correct his mistake!!

While I was swaying bouncing to the music, I suddenly realised that the songs sounded familiar but they couldn't sweep me away anymore.
I didn't feel the hope which the songs used to bring anymore.

Do you think it's time to panic?

My director knows I have a blog, and asks me whether I will be blogging about the recently announced Public Service pay review.
I tell him it's unlikely.
What's the point? Who's looking?

In any case, I do not think that the pay review would/should apply to all Public Servants, only those they would like to retain.
Hence, in any case, there will be more resignations. This time, hopefully, the 'right' people will be leaving.

So, if it's not happening for BM, she may need a new job soon.
Any recommendations?
So far, most people I have met refuse to believe that I am a public servant, and insist that I can do well in the private sector.

Really ah?
How come I don't see it?
...........................

The above aside, I noticed a crazy trend of 'too many talents' in the system. Or at least people who think they are talents.

When I first started work, I thought only people who had crossed mid-life, i.e. roughly more than 40 years old, would be demoralised and jaded about work, coz by the age of 40, they would know that they would not be able to switch careers easily, so they had to suck it in.

But after 6 years in at least 3 organisations, I realised that there were demoralised people everywhere, and at all ages, i.e. they started as young as 30 years old.

I scratch my head and wonder why this is so, then I realise that it may be a problem with expectations (probably the understatement of the year).
Somehow most people think they are better than others.
That they deserved to be rewarded... real fast... faster than others.

I got so sick of people whining about their 'low' pay that I asked them in the face whether they had attempted to find another job which could pay them more.
Because if there is no other higher paying job, then what they are getting is, in fact, their highest pay.
Of course, these people would probably just think I was their common enemy.

Gone are the days where people are grateful to have a job.
These days, people demand for the orgs to 'value-add' to them, sometimes without thinking whether they, in fact, value-add to the orgs. =_=
If not, they threaten to leave. They become negative and revolt in their own small ways.

I was thinking how this is totally a unsustainable model, i.e. work cannot carry on with such people around.
But it's unlikely that anything will be done to address these issues because the hardest thing to change/influence is attitude.

Hence, what's likely to happen is that a new batch of people will come along, realise that the earlier batch has been doing nothing but shite, and capitalise on the situation by doing just a fraction of what the earlier batch has failed to deliver.

Meanwhile, let's all sit around and wait for shite to happen.

Can see Tiger digging his claws into 'Good Fren'?

Hee Hee Hee...

Btw, Tiger looks pregnant. =_=

They are more progressive than us!

How come we do not have this?!!
Maybe because it doesn't work well here.

Because even without anonymity, some just cannot tell when they are being 'harmful to the public'.

They (1) either don't care and are deliberately trying to get attention for themselves by being different, or (2) they really believe they are speaking up for some real cause by blogging.

HAAHAHAHAHAHAHHA!!!

Erm... I have something rather silly to ask.
Does anyone know where I can go for a good facial?

In any case, what is a good facial?
What's supposed to happen?

I know I is suaku but you cannot blame me coz the only time I went for facial was when I was 15.
My mother brought me to her 'beautician' at Parkway Parade.
Some pregnant Malaysian woman who spoke rather loudly to her colleagues. The setup looked so dodgy that I thought the steamer was surely gonna explode in my face!!!
After that, I refused to go back.

So I haven't had my face facial-ed for the past 15 years.
Does that sound gross?

Aiyah... As a student, where got money for such shite?
Dun ask me about my modeling stint. Facials were definitely not part of the renumeration package lor!
Somehow, I began to think that facials weren't necessary.
Until recently... Coz because I shifted from my home, and the lighting in the loo had changed, i.e. can see more clearly!
AHAHAHAHAH!!!

Then I realised that many girls actually go for facials leh!!
Like spend money on packages and stuff.

FWAH... Girls are really spenders hor?
I realise I'm a rather low-maintenance female.
No facials, no nails, cut hair once every 2-3 months, had like less than 5 massages this lifetime etc.
No wonder they prefer super rich husbands.
By spending all that time on maintaining one's looks, there really isn't much time left for work.

Anyway, back to my facial exploration...
When you want to buy a product/service, the most convenient approach is to remember the ads you have seen.
So I was thinking about HAACH, Bella etc coz you keep seeing them on the papers, but I was rather concerned that they might be the Jean Yip of Facials, if you know what I mean.

My earlier experience with Yunnam was bad enough.
They kept pushing packages which cost thousands of dollars in my face, and hinting that my hair would not grow back without them.
KNN... I hate such tactics.
I'd rather my hair fall off lor!
(Heng... It didn't get worse after I stopped.
But I need to start another round of treatment again. This time definitely not with Yunnam.
I also didn't like to see balding ah peks chatting up the Yunnam Girls right beside me. =_=)

I think hor...
That's why Word of Mouth is the best form of advertisement.
You get real feedback about the establishment before putting down your dollar.

But secretly, I think hor...
There is no such thing as guaranteed results for these beauty products and services, unless it's performed by a medical professional.
Especially when beauty parlours are unlicensed.

If I am not wrong, the transaction is as good as buying a vacuum cleaner. If you have a problem with it, try to get a refund; if not, go to CASE.
The difference is, these are your face and body in jeopardy.
Some things cannot be reverted.

Ok, I is Paranoid, can?! =_=

'Good Fren' and I had been looking for wine glasses for the longest time. Ok, lemme be accurate about it.
I have been looking for wine glasses for the longest time.
And I refuse to buy them from IKEA.
So I asked the Wine Company where they got their glasses from, and they said Chinatown.

Yesterday became 'Search Chinatown for Glasses' Day.

And I still cannot get over with the fact that we are the only city in the world to have a Chinatown when the Chinese makes up the majority of the population.
Does Taipei have a Chinatown?
What about Beijing?

For that matter, does KL have a Chinatown?

Anyway, there are 2 of these crockery/cooking utensils shops near the Hindu Temple in Chinatown.
This is the bigger one.


You see those chef uniforms?
'Good Fren' suggested that I should wear them when cooking.
Erm... Yeah... Super Sexy.


There is just some much shite in it, that you keep going 'WAH! WAH!'
Seriously, how many pots does a home need, especially the industrial size ones!! But when you are in the shop, you wish you can buy them all!!!

You know ah... In face of too many choices, I'd usually end up buying nothing. =)))

So we went off in search of some Chinatown-like lunch, and ended up at 大东.


The chef/owner has been honoured many many times as demonstrated by the pics on the wall.


The dim sum was good.
'Good Fren' was rather overwhelmed by the huge pau.
He kept saying 'It's too big! It's too big!' as if there's a fundamental problem. HAHHAAHHAHAHAH!!



Check out the way they keep track of your bill. =))


Chinatown, the Old & New Old.
I was wondering how the Old Men Square was always filled with old people. Whether when it was my turn to be old, I would gather at Old Men Square, even though I am not male, but you get the drift, right?
Maybe my people will gather at Zouk.
HO HO HO... Zouk is, fundamentally, a 'community centre' mah!

As always, Erich dresses up for the festival, even in his small booth under the hot sun.

Then we made our way to the newly opened IKEA at Tampines, which is part of a cluster of 3 retail warehouses.
The other 2 being Courts and Giant.
So, it's this mega agglomeration of furniture, gadgets/electronic products and groceries, with shiteloads of parking lots.
Singaporeans are now even more American.

IKEA is the only establishment in operation there now.
And the jam was crazy.

I see oredi also dulan.
The silly partially single-lane loop road is not working.
Thought the traffic simulations would have taken care of this?
What would happen once Courts and Giant start to operate?!

Anyway, because of the jam, I had time to notice these 2 men in the roof!


The IKEA carpark is huge!!


With a really useful pick-up/loading area for the customers.

Actually, if you have been to IKEA, KL, you will realise that the layout is exactly the same.


So the next time, you walk around IKEA, try to imagine that this is the exact same route which someone in another part of the world is also taking.
The same route, the same table, the same chairs, the same sofa, the same bedsheets, the same towels, the same glasses, the same home, the same life.

What you have, he has it too.
What he has, you have it too.

Perhaps, IKEA is the answer to World Peace.
Probably need to throw in the bit where everyone can watch soccer together.

Check out how hundreds of people (this is not an exaggeration) were feeding at the super huge IKEA cafeteria!
To begin with, people were queuing up to get into the cafeteria, ok!
Look closely at the background of the pic in the right. You see people queuing. The pic was taken at the start of the queue, i.e. near the entrance to the cafeteria.

You queue up, take your tray, choose from the limited menu, pay and find a seat.

All of these happening on a plot of industrial land, near some factories.
If this isn't My Singapore, what is?!

The greatest improvement is the Check-Out Area.
We didn't queue for more than 5 mins because there were just so many counters!


But remember, at these new counters, you have to pack your stuff yourself.

This little boy obviously got the message and was trying to help. =))

Talking about little boys, while we were there (about 1 hour), at least 3 children lost their folks.
They kept doing the "A boy, Tan Ah Gow, 6 years old, has been found. He is wearing a blue T-shirt with brown shorts. Will the parents ...."

WAH LAU... Shopping only mah... So excited meh!!
Then lose your kid!!
Wait toe kena stuck in escalator, must kpkb and blame everyone else again!

On our way out of the craziness, we saw the queue for the shuttle bus! Are we mad or are we mad?!!


Cannot oredi... We had to go...
To yet another huge retailer called Carrefour to get our groceries.
=_=

So we went to Plaza Singapura.

You know I take my drum classes at Plaza Sing, right?
Everytime, on my way into the carpark, I would be staring at this condo development right beside the carpark.
Do you have any idea how close the apartments are to the carpark?!

It's at most 5m away from the carpark ramp.

Check it out!! It's crazy!!

Everytime a car makes its way up the carpark ramp, the headlights would be shining into the living room because of the upwards tilt of the car!!
And Plaza Sing's carpark is almost always full after office hours on weekdays and especially on weekends.

Anyway, while we did our grocery shopping, this salesgirl came up to us and tried to offer us some organic salad pack which cost an arm and leg!
Wah lau!!
What do we look like to you?! YUPPIES?!!

Gimme our cheaper pesticide/polonium-filled vegetables from the fields of some former/in-denial communist country anytime!!

At the fruits section, I noticed these packed durians on sale.
Quite affordable hor??


The only problem was that they looked more like rambutans leh!

AHHAHAHAHAHHAAHAAH!!!

I was telling 'Good Fren' about how each week was split into 5 work days and 2 rest days. The 2 rest days felt utterly meaningless because we were doing shite like buying groceries.

And he was telling me how he couldn't rest enough on the work days, and would tend to binge on sleep so much on the 2 rest days that it would hurt (literally, coz he would get a backache).

The solution?
I think we should work everyday.
But half a day only. Like for 4 hours. Very intensely.

I dunno. I dun wanna think about it.
I still haven't found my wine glasses. =_=

And last night, my cousins and the cousin-in-law-to-be came over with a bottle of sparkling shiraz, which we had using my IKEA glasses.
My cousin had to say that they looked like beer glasses.

HAHA!! So be it!!

I went for some forum on Population recently.
During the Q&A session, a panel of top civil servants took their seats in front of all, and about 3 people stood up to ask questions and/or provide their comments.
(The low number of questions was probably due to time constraint.)

Since the topic was Population, they tried to sound clever by introducing themselves by highlighting their age, place of birth, marital status, no. of kids etc, then proceeded to give their 2 cents' worth on the policies presented.

I was sitting right at the back and thinking how boring this entire episode was.

Don't get me wrong.
I was rather surprised at the format of this forum which set out to achieve certain objectives. It came across as rather open.
However, I thought those who stood up (daringly) were super boring.

I especially didn't fancy with this one who attempted to sound like the arguments you could gather in Sammyboy.
It's very clear what's going on.
It's about being DIFFERENT from the public service mainstream in order to seduce the mainstream.
That being a renegade is cool.
It has nothing to do with the issues at hand.

I'm a nobody in this system, but I think such attitudes are dangerous.

People like to conveniently think that Singapore's stance during the recent S2006 was a clear display of Singapore being risk-adverse.
I think otherwise.

Being risk-adverse means going with the flow.
It means going with what the rest of the world ostensibly wants, i.e. freedom of speech/expression - to be able to create havoc on the streets to prove their point.

But Singapore adopted the stance NOT to go with the flow.
And the 'flow' we are talking about here is the rest of the world leh.
Singapore decided to NOT care about what the rest of the world ostensibly thinks about this issue, knowing that many many members of the international media will be present, waiting for any opportunity to say: LOOK AT HOW RISK-ADVERSE SINGAPORE IS!!

I dunno about you, but that, to me, is so not risk-adverse behaviour.
It's actually rather Ah Beng, if you know what I mean. =)))

And the next message to send to the world is that:

..................................

After the forum, my colleague asked why I didn't ask any questions.
My immediate reaction was that all my views were on my blog, and that if anyone is paying any attention at all.

Some famous person once said:


Sometimes I feel that few people understand what I am trying to say. And quite a few people think I am a maverick, which can potentially put me in the same basket as the 'renegades' as mentioned above.
I don't want that. I don't need that.

If you are really concerned about how this 3rd generation Chinese immigrant, who has been educated nowhere else but in Singapore, unmarried but bought a place with her partner, and has no kids, feels and thinks about the Total Fertility Rate, the competition/job insecurity she feels which affects her decision to procreate, the myth of the marriage certificate, and most of all, how the family unit is meant to be the baseline for the average Singaporean.

Just read my blog.
=))