For want of a better title

New site

2006-02-06T03:29:00.000-05:00

Just testing this service out... So I guess I've moved... Come on down y'all. To the my new home (unless it doesn't work out).

Superbowl XL

2006-02-05T22:54:00.000-05:00

Superbowl XL was a good game. Poor Seahawks... Oh well there's always next year. My poor Rams are no longer the team they used to be. There's still the Saint Louis Cardinals for me! I don't think I liked the commercials this year. Nothing that was really special by my book (I actually watch for the commercials). Looks like superbowl Extra large. heh... Next year will be XLI... heh... soon it will be superbowl L and then C... Maybe i will get to see superbowl C... just maybe...

In other news my sink decided to overflow after not doing so for almost 6 months now... Oh well... Get the sup to check it out tomorrow... Poor guy called me in the middle of the game to ask how bad it was, and I was like, I got it to go down and nothing else is coming out... Still I live with the fear that the sink is going to overflow and I'll be ankle deep in dishwashing water tomorrow... That would make life interesting... To say the least...

It also got cold again over here... And it nice and warm the past few days... Oh well I suppose the Groundhog decided there'll be more days of winter...

It actually happened

2006-02-04T23:54:00.000-05:00

It actually is true. Who would've thought... Go now... offer your suggestions.

In other news, go here and boycott DRM CDs.

Talk to the Hand

2006-02-03T14:31:00.000-05:00

If

2006-02-02T23:46:00.000-05:00

If you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you,
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you
But make allowance for their doubting too,
If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,
Or being lied about, don't deal in lies,
Or being hated, don't give way to hating,
And yet don't look too good, nor talk too wise:

If you can dream--and not make dreams your master,
If you can think--and not make thoughts your aim;
If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster
And treat those two impostors just the same;
If you can bear to hear the truth you've spoken
Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,
Or watch the things you gave your life to, broken,
And stoop and build 'em up with worn-out tools:

If you can make one heap of all your winnings
And risk it all on one turn of pitch-and-toss,
And lose, and start again at your beginnings
And never breath a word about your loss;
If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew
To serve your turn long after they are gone,
And so hold on when there is nothing in you
Except the Will which says to them: "Hold on!"

If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,
Or walk with kings--nor lose the common touch,
If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you;
If all men count with you, but none too much,
If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds' worth of distance run,
Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it,
And--which is more--you'll be a Man, my son!

--Rudyard Kipling

Crack Monkey

2006-02-02T03:29:00.000-05:00

So Curious George the movie is out. I have a stuffed George. We've been best buds since the day i was born. We're as thick as thieves. I love that monkey. My dad has photos of me and George on my birthday every year until I moved to the US. Heh... Then Georgie couldn't get a visa (something about Ebola) and he had to stay in Singapore.

Anyway what's the point of telling you this? None whatsoever. It's my blog... there doesn't need to be a point. I could talk about how the golden pheasant ate the bejeweled devil. You wouldn't know what I'm talking about, but you'd have to accept it. It's my blog and I can cry if I want to.

Cry wolf that is. The morale of that story is that you can only tell a lie once. Not that you can't lie. Just have to make up new ones. I kid...

Which leads me to On Bullshit by Harry Frankfurt. Bullshit is better than lying. Lying means you know the truth and try to subvert it. Bullshitting is that you don't even care about the truth. You're just bullshitting. What's more impressive is that you can get published for talking about bullshit basically. And that you can be tenured in philosophy to talk about bullshit. I want a job like that too.

Talking about Bullshit, i love this show on the discovery channel. Mike Rowe is fantastic. I mean he's willing to do all these jobs. I love the show. It's great.

Ok... that's the end of the randomness (ed: is there ever really an end?) Yeah Buddy!

The Gordian Knot

2006-01-31T22:26:00.000-05:00

So the past few weeks have been kind of interesting. I've gotten mail from all these places in Missouri that remind to renew this or that. The DMV sent me a reminder to renew my plates, and AAA Midwest reminded me to update my membership. Of course I have DC tags and an AAA Mid-Atlantic membership. Oh and I had to pay Missouri taxes for a 2005. Silly, ain't it?

I'm still getting mail form like my old address. Which probably belongs to some kid now. Heh... I wonder which kid it is. Most likely a Greek who stays in the Houses. I hope not one fo thsoe SGH or Millbrook kids (for those who do not understand what I said, it's ok, most people don't)(ed: not even you sometimes)

I miss stuff about Saint Louis. Like the places I used to go. Oh and I also miss the friends i've made, but we've all left St Louis (well most of us anyway).

DC is nice, but it's jsut not the same. Saint Louis is like my second home. It took me in and made me feel right at home. For all its flaws it is my home away from home. DC kinda just tolerates me. It probably can't wait to be rid of me. But old Saint Louis is like an old friend who waits expectantly for me. Just ready to welcome me and sit down for a couple of drinks.

And in another year and a half I'll be gone from the US. I don;t know for how long or if i'll ever be back again for a long stay. Hmmm... So strange... Having to do all the end of stay stuff. Closing accounts... Cancelling subscriptions... It will probably feel so strange...

Dog and Pony Show

2006-01-31T13:19:00.000-05:00

Ok. So it's still Chinese New Year (goddamn 15 days!) and for me CNY is a time for family [hi mom!]. Kind of like Christmas. You spend time with family (however that is defined)(Ed: you mean like you sitting downstairs and watching tv, and engaging in a whole 15 minutes of conversation with your mum and dad).

So I'm thinking about my past CNY and how there are certain things that are familiar.

(1) Reunion Dinner at home. Mom will cook curry. Last time (4 years ago) she made curry with lowfat milk (nastiest tasting thing ever). I recommend Lite Coconut Milk (available at your nearest Safeway or Whole Foods). It'll just be the family and the friends (family doctor's wife and sis). Then off to bed (or watching Porno for me =P)

(2) Go to maternal grandparents' home in Toa Payoh. Everyone will be there. EVERYONE (except me the past 4 years... and my cousin who's studying law in England). Several things will happen:

(a) My grandfather will insist on giving me an Ang Pow, no matter how I try to hide or run (it's hard in a small 3 room apartment)

(b) Then he will ask "Le chua bo ah?" (You married ah?) Erm... If i got married I'm sure you're invited ah kong. Of course I don't say that. He's hard of hearing. No point.

(c) My aunts will ask if I lost/gained weight.

(d) Then they will proceed to tease my mom (second eldest daughter, no 4 overall) about my non-existent ang mo girlfriend.

(e) I will watch TV and eat curry.

(f) My eldest uncle will tell my mum how proud he is of me. (wierd huh?)

(g) Then my aunt will say how pretty my sis is (make up is an illusion in my opinion)

(h) then my cousins, sis and me may plot to go out.

(i) dad and uncles will tell old jokes that i've heard since 10. But it's always new to someone and to those who didn't quite understand it at 10.

(j) 2nd Uncle will tease two cousins. The 2 he always teases.

(k) then he'll talk about cars with the other men. (i tend to keep quiet and watch tv)

(3) Go to second aunt's home (my dad's second sis). Here too several things will happen:

(a) will get drawn into watching a movie

(b) will have awkward moments when people my age or older call me uncle.

(c) will talk about where I am now and what I am doing.

(d) my mum will wander off to talk to aunts. My dad will wander off to gambling.

(e) eventually i'll get sucked into blackjack or mahjong (everytime I try to get out, THEY KEEP SUCKING ME IN!)

(f) My mum will get bored and want to leave, but my dad will want to stay. In the old days my dad will send my mum home. Nowadays with the advent of two kids who can drive, we'll send mom home. Dad will either call us when he's done, or we'll go back or he'll get someone to send him home (we all live in the East. that's where the good stuff is at)

(4) Eventually i will wander to a Church friend's home. There we will talk. And eventually I will get too drunk on wine and bailey's. That has not happened in 4 years now.

(5) I will meet my old Cat High friends and their SMU friends. Usually coffee. And talking about either Cat High days or Army days. I know no originality, but what else can you talk about? Oh... Well who's sleeping with whom in the group-cest column. It always makes gatherings wierd, but we're a little unconventional that way I suppose. (that's what happens when the entire group gets spread to the four corners of the earth)

Yeah... Just thinking 4 years back. My last CNY in Singapore. Since then while an undergrad CNY has always been with my brothers in the fraternity. They're the closest thing to family i've got here. This is the first CNY entirely alone. I haven't even gone to Chinatown here yet. I suppose I should. =P

Addicted to Mithril

2006-01-29T21:59:00.000-05:00

So I started playing World of Warcraft. I know I know... I caved in. It's actually not that bad. The addiction that is. I can actually tear myself away to watch tv (ed: Arguably bigger addicitons).

It's fun to play with friends who by the magic of undersea cables and cheap connections (thank you dotcom bust) are able to maintain our relationships. It's funny right. I bought the game to stay in contact with old friends. Yup. One servers (Horde) for my fraternity bothers and the other (Alliance) for my Singapore friends (we've been friends for a long time).

Seredipity is still stuck in my head. Heh... Funny ain't it. Now Serenity won't go away either. Which in turns makes me think of Firefly. Which in turn bring up Buffy the Vampire Slayer (no links here, go google it yourself).

So thinking about Serendipity brings up a hot girl. Funny ain't it. =P

Happy Chinese New Year

2006-01-28T12:05:00.000-05:00

Happy New Year from this non-Chinese place. =P

Hope the doggy year will treat you much better than the previous non-doggy year (lousy non-doggy year)

Here's a few words from my beloved Bubbles McDoggles (not my idea to name him that), thanks to wonderous technology of undersea cables:
Woof. Woof. Arf. Woof. Arf. Woof. Arf. Awwwwooooo!

Awwwwoooo indeed! Have a good year of the Dog (or at least enjoy the first few days).

Serendipitous

2006-01-27T12:53:00.000-05:00

serendipitous

adj : being lucky in making unexpected and furtunate discoveries

Seredipity
1. The faculty of making fortunate discoveries by accident.
2. The fact or occurrence of such discoveries.
3. An instance of making such a discovery.

That word is stuck in my head. It's a funny word too. Because in my mind it generates and image of a genie ala I Dream of Genie.

Just something about that word is magical you know. It's like the movie, with the same name. There's just something magical about the word.

It sounds funny too when you actually pronounce it. It also sounds calming. The other image is of serenity. Maybe that's where the word come from. They might share the same roots. Actually i just check... the answer is No. Serendipity come from Persian and Arabic roots, while Serene comes from Latin roots. Still I suppose the close spelling of both words creates an image in my mind of peacefulness.

Furthermore Seredipity comes from a story about 3 princesses. I mean that could be where the image of a genie comes from. (oh yeah... 3 princesses... mmmmm...)

Talking about the movie (Ed: way to go off topic)... That was a good movie. I love John Cusak. Like in High Fidelity (which was my first exposure to Jack Black). Mr Cusak seems to be typecast into such roles, but he does them very well.

The word itself talks about a series of fortunate incidents. I think my life has been a series of fortunate accidents. I have met some fo my best buds through fortunate accidents. I suppose those occurences are fortunate simply because I made good friends from them. Life has seldom thrown me lemons, and even when it has, it just opens up new avenues with which to make lemonade or lemon meringue pie. =P

Why am I blogging about the word? I dunno... It's just keeps popping up for some unexplained reason (ed: like alot of things in your life).

Well off to go get my new disks for World of Warcraft. I can hardly wait to go kick some Alliance butt and encounter Seredipity (what exactly that means is entirely up to your own imagination) (ed: oh behave) [hi mom!].

Hamburglar

2006-01-27T02:50:00.000-05:00

This is amazing. Totally amazing. I want to go there too and order just that. Who's with me?

Waiting for Peanuts

2006-01-27T02:14:00.000-05:00

Anticipation is an interesting feeling. It's one of those things. Where you just keep waiting for something to happen. It's really is a interesting feeling. No matter how much faster you want it to go, it just won't go any faster...

That's anticipation. You sit there and just wait. You know it's coming, but you want it to get here and be over with it. I mean people use that word so much. Like anticipated graduation date and do you anticipate any problems

Anticipation is such a strange place to be. It's like limbo. It's neither good nor is it bad. It's just there...

Well here's to anticipating that I'll wake up tomorrow and exchange the damnable WoW disks. (Ed: no he's not anticipating that)

Yeah Buddy!!

The Alligator

2006-01-26T19:58:00.000-05:00

One more thing... I have been watching the 70s show and I think Laura Prepon is hot. I've come to realise that I actually do like slightly more tom boyish kind of girls. I don't quite know why. I just do. Something so sexy about the hidden femininity.

And lets be honest she was a voice in Halo 2. I mean seriously... That's like bonus points (Ed: you don't even play Halo) (I know but any live girl who does video game voice overs when it's not her movie is hot). Also staring in a movie called the Pronographer is also hot. Ok it's not real porn... still...

Oh well off to be a Tauren. =P

Crafting War

2006-01-26T19:56:00.000-05:00

So I caved in and bought World of Warcraft today. I'm going to play it with two sets of friends. One set are my old college friends and I'll play Horde with them. Tauren Druid I think. On the other side I'll be playing Alliance with my Singapore friends. Night Elf Druid. (if you haven't figured this out yet, I'm partial to the druidic class)

So maybe I'll be totally sucked into this game until I get EVE ONLINE. Which will then continue to suck the life out of me. Heh... Ah... The World (of Warcraft) is a Vampire. =P

(1+i)^n

2006-01-26T02:12:00.000-05:00

You likee the title? You better biatch!!

Anyway class today was good. I really like political risk assessment. I figure if I had to sell my soul to corporate life it'd be as a risk analyst. Day in and day out telling everyone how much they should or should not invest in something. Heh... That's a life... Well half-life (mmmm... Counterstrike).

Laundry's piling up, but I really have no mood to wash clothes... Soon I'll have to do the flippy flippy. Heh... I kid (Ed: he is kidding). Oh yeah I've killed the {truth/lie} guy. The f**ker was jsut costing us too much money. So it's just me and Ed for a while... GET USED TO IT!

Man... It's late, but I'm having this great conversation with me, myself and I. It just is too good to end it, so here I am at 2.30am in the morning just blogging. Why you ask? Because I can. You can go suck on it if you disagree!

Ok off to continue my exciting conversation with myself (ed: actually he's talking to someone) (shut up you! you're ruining my rep)

Interesting

2006-01-25T14:35:00.000-05:00

So about a year ago I had some money in my mutual funds. And today I checked it up and I made US$700 in the last year. That's almost a 10% return on my investment. It's crazy. So much money made. And the market isn't even strong. I think I should put more money in there. =)

Maybe in 30 years I'll have enough for a decent retirement. =P

This is so cool

2006-01-25T11:57:00.000-05:00

I know this site has been plugged by some bigger names, but I seriously think this site is cool as hell. So go check it out.

Nothing else is new here... Back to getting work done.

Readings

2006-01-25T03:10:00.000-05:00

Man... It's 3AM in the morning and I still haven't got done with readings yet. And you know you should stop when your eyes get hazy and your head is a little dizzy. But I still have time to stop by here and leave a few words of how much my class sucks. Luckily I'm taking 2 math related classes, so I can still handle the reading load. Also i will not be travelling every weekend, so there'll be far more time to get those reading done.

So I think Spring Break will be in LA. Staying with my old pal Al. Pity he works in the day, but I think a few other guys are coming with me. We'll rent a car and enjoy the Cali sun. I'm sure we'll figure something out. I don't really know what exactly there is to do in LA. And no... I am not going to Hollywood. Although Disneyland sounds like an idea. Or driving to San Diego to the Zoo sounds like a plan again.

Ok night. My eyes are gone.

Broken Spring

2006-01-24T00:08:00.000-05:00

Trying to coordinate people and get a spring break trip going is not the easiest of things. Everyone has a different budget. Worst still everyone has to start getting fit for spring break. It's silly but people do it.

After going through the last two hours trying to find a place, we're still back at zero. Thinking cruises... Or going to the Bahamas. We're not too sure. Or maybe I'll just go down to the Ozarks. Sure it's cold but it's a nice lake. Or stay in DC and be cold.

Cancun sounds good, but some folks on the trip planning committee think that it's too touristy. At some point I just thought I'd go on holiday on my own. Makes it so much easier. Plus maybe I really need the alone time. I just want to get away. Maybe go visit friends around the country. I don't know. Few folks down in Atlanta. Or maybe LA. Who knows.

Class today was interesting to say the least. I thought my professor was more of a preacher than a professor. Heh... But he's good. I have never taken a stats class that's this fun. Never. (Ed: A sample size of two is not a good gauge) Plus I get to learn new software... Mmmmm... New Software.

Two math-related classes really means that i'll be doing tonnes of data collection. Heh... Just like my Army days and my Internship days.

Also in other news, I got elected to the Alumni Board of Directors of my chapter, as Educator Advisor. Heh... So I guess i have something to do for the next 2 years. Alumni... Man... I feel old...

Ok folks... Keep on chugging. And if you're planning spring break around the 9 March 2006 to the 18 march 2006, drop me a line. More people means lower prices. =)

I promise I won't bite.

R and M

2006-01-23T09:28:00.000-05:00

This weekend I made a mistake and I lost something that I love very much. It's too late for regrets and hindsight is always 20/20. So where exactly do I go from here?

I suppose you pick up your things, put away the old stuff and keep on moving. At once I am free but also tied down. Many decisions made can now be unmade. Plans can be more flexible. Yet there is also alot that is tied down. We're expected to move on, but sometimes it is hard to do that.

Still this is the road that is chosen. There is little else that I can do. I cannot go back to the way it is. We just carry on as best that we can.

I still love. That cannot change soon. I think it is a waste, but I also understand that it is my fault. Moving on, quitting and cutting loses are definetely a way to do it. I think I tried to hard to hold on. In the end it may still have ended up like this. I don't know, but deep down inside I still feel that there is hope. I cannot say why, but I still carry it in my heart of hearts.

So time to pick up things, and shake the dust off them. Off I go into the big wide world.

Return

2005-12-13T22:01:00.000-05:00

So I'm back here. How come? None of your freaking business. I'm still on a blog holiday, so this is just to let you know that from now on you need to come here to get your daily fix. =)

Jay and Silent Bob

2005-09-24T10:44:00.000-04:00

Kevin Smith

Your film will be 52% romantic, 42% comedy, 31% complex plot, and a $ 34 million budget.

Kevin will take your slacker life and turn it into the cult classic it
deserves to be --- like Mallrats (just kidding). If you can handle the
menacing presence of Jay and Silent Bob all throughout your film, then
Kevin is willing to oblige. Basically, he can take the lives of people
who don't have much of a life and make it entertaining, so you're in
good hands. Go watch your copy of Clerks, now.

My test tracked 4 variables How you compared to other people your age and gender:

You scored higher than 52% on action-romance
You scored higher than 80% on humor
You scored higher than 23% on complexity
You scored higher than 57% on budget

Link: The Director Who Films Your Life Test written by bingomosquito on OkCupid Free Online Dating

I am...

2005-09-22T12:41:00.000-04:00

I am the terror that flaps (farts) in the night

I am the fly in your oinment

I am the strawberry jam in your roti, kaya and gu you

I am the nut in your nutless chocolates

I am pain in your ass when you shit (a.k.a. piles) (ed: he actually take is seriously, his dad has piles)

I am the drool on your desk when you fall asleep in class (ed: happened to him before)

I am the guy that taller than you

I am the pimple that appears just before a big date

I am the corn in corny

I am the horn in horny (ed: ok stop! before it degenerates)

I am the sugar that causes your kids to become hyperactive at 11pm

I am the grain of sand that gets in your eye when you wear contact lenses

I am the hole in the condom of that girl you were going to dump but now couldn't

I am the bird that waits for you to wash your car before i shit on it

I am the fly in your soup

I am the 0.01% of alcohol that puts you over the legal limit and gets you arrested for drunk driving

I am the bad breath just before a big interview

I am the blackout in the middle of your porno download

I am the virus that kills your harddisk just when you're about to finish your 100page report with no backup

I am Darkwing Duck!

Cool stuff

2005-09-20T22:36:00.000-04:00

This is like the flickr of bookmarks. Bookmark your favourite pages, share with friends, tag them. It's great. Try try... I just started using it, but it's great.

57th Emmy Awards

2005-09-19T14:52:00.000-04:00

I thought I'd just do all of you the favour and list the winners of the Emmy's down:

Drama Series: Lost, ABC
Comedy Series: Everybody Loves Raymond, CBS
Miniseries: The Lost Prince, PBS
Variety,Music or Comedy Series: The Daily Show with John Stewart, Comedy Central
Made-for-TV Movie: Warm Springs, HBO
Reality-Competition Program: The Amazing Race, CBS

Actor, Drama Series: James Spader, Boston Legal, CBS
Actor, Comedy Series: Tony Shalhoub, Monk, USA
Actor, Miniseries or Movie: Geoffrey Rush, The Life and Death of Peter Sellers, HBO
Actress, Drama Series: Patricia Arquette, Medium, NBC
Actress, Comedy Series: Felicity Huffman, Desperate Housewives, ABC
Actress, Miniseries or Movie: S. Epatha Merkerson, Lackawanna Blues, HBO

Supporting Actor, Drama Series: William Shatner, Boston Legal, CBS
Supporting Actor, Comedy Series: Brad Garrett, Everybody Loves Raymond, CBS
Supporting Actor, Miniseries or Movie: Paul Newman, Empire Falls, HBO
Supporting Actress, Drama Series: Blythe Danner, Huff, Showtime
Supporting Actress, Comedy Series: Doris Roberts, Everybody Loves Raymond, CBS
Supporting Actress, Miniseries or Movie: Jane Alexander, Warm Springs, HBO

Individual Performance in a Variety or Music Program: Hugh Jackman, The 58th Annual Tony Awards (2004), CBS

Directing, Drama Series: Lost:Pilot (Part 1 & 2), ABC
Directing, Comedy Series: Desperate Housewives: Pilot, ABC
Directing, Miniseries, Movie or Dramatic Special: The Life and Death of Peter Sellers, HBO
Directing, Variety, Music or Comedy Program: The Games of the XXVIII Olympiad - Opening Ceremony, NBC

Writing, Drama Series: House: Three Stories, Fox
Writing, Comedy Series: Arrested Development: The Righteous Brothers, Fox
Writing, Miniseries, Movie or Dramatic Special: The Life and Death of Peter Sellers, HBO
Writing, Variety, Music or Comedy Program: The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, Comedy Central

Yay! Jon Stewart! Yeah for Comedy Central! Keep up the good work. Also based on this ABC has good directing and Fox has good writing. CBS has good casting and NBC is the biggest loser this time round.

emmy

The Life and Times of a Single Celled Organism

2005-09-16T17:43:00.000-04:00

So I've just been wondering something... Do you ever wonder what characters do in between you showing up in RPG games? I suspect their lives are alot like ours...

Mama Ogre: Toikor don't play with your food. Just eat it.
Little Ogre: But Ma...
Mama Ogre: No buts...
Just then the neighbour Mrs. Goblin pops in
Mrs Goblin: Hello Mama Ogre. Can I borrow a cup of bat's wings?
Mama Ogre: Sure thing. Making Bat surprise again Mrs G?
Mrs Goblin: You know how Mr G enjoys it.
Elsewhere in the dungeon
Mr Goblin: I sure as hell wish the damn hero would get here.
Papa Ogre: Yeah. Did I tell you I'm considering moving into Level 65?
Mr Goblin: Nope. With the kid I can see why. I mean the lower levels have a much better education system, and I mean he'll have a higher chances of survival
Papa Ogre: You should consider moving down there too. I mean Level 10 is great and all, but it's no place to raise babies you know. This place is for the young kids, those monsters trying to get a start in life.
Mr Goblin: I hear you. Maybe I should consider moving somewhere around 45, you know how it is. I just don't have that much gold stashed away. What with all these adventurers coming in and taking money. Usually you bring a few gold pieces in your purse and that's it, but now they try to raid our lairs too.
Papa Ogre: Yeah. It's just not so safe nowadays. Shhhh... I think I smell human.
Mr Goblin: Oh it's just the Dungeon Master collecting rent.

You ever wonder what the hell they do before you show up? I mean we go in there in search of fame and fortune, but we really are just theives and brigands robbing them of their homes. I say stop this madness now! Say no to crimes against monsters!

(If you think I'm serious about this, you need to get some serious help with your sense of reality)

End of the World as we know it

2005-09-13T20:07:00.000-04:00

Did you know that the fate of our entire world will be decided in a couple of days? On the 19 September 2005 to the 30 September 2005, in Geneva, the fate of the entire world as we know it will be decided.

Think I'm talking shit and smoking way too much weed? [hi mom. i don't do drugs, unless they're legal and my doctor thinks I should do it] It's true. In less than a week, the governments of the world will come and try to figure out the fate of the internet. The whole issue boils down to where the DNS root servers are located and who makes the decisions about domain names.

In the early days of the internet when buffalo and antelopes used to roam the digital frontier and mr brown was nothing more than a simple website, the US Department of Commerce used to run the internet. Yup... They did. Then in 1999 they handed over control to the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) a consortium of interests, mostly businesses, to run the whole DNS and naming system. Of course straight off they hit snags with the Europeans refusing to pay receipts from ICANN, but ICANN has enought clout and power being that 50% of all root DNS servers sit in the US, and 1/3 of the ICANN board was American. The UN decided to butt in in 2005 and got the whole World Summit for the Information Society (WSIS) thing rolling.

So now governments like India, Brazil and China want control of the DNS. Which of course means moving the DNS to these countries?! Hello?!? I don't want the Chinese goverment deciding if I can name my site deathtorabbits.com. I mean seriously these governments expect companies to pay for moving the DNS to their countries? I trust Europe and the US to manage and maintain these servers, but China, India and Brazil (no offence, but seriously). China resricts the flow of information to their own citizens. Imagine if they had one of those. Next thing you know they won't let me look at sexwithchickens.org. Then of course you have these NGOs arguing that civil society (i.e. NGOs themselves) should have a bigger say, and governments should not have all the say.

A three way fight, with the US wanting to keep the status quo, the developing nations wanting one of their own (he has one, i also want one syndrome) and NGOs wanting a bigger say in how the internet is run (because no one cares about NGOs) (i kid we love NGOs).

Not a small thing if the Working Group on Internet Governance (WGIG) of the WSIS decides that the DNS must be more evenly distributed around the world and that individual governments can have a greater say in internet domain naming. Already China restricts information, along with several other countries ( I will not name them, too many), and they don't have a DNS to bully people, now with a DNS, they could just shut down sites without warning. I know I'm exaggerating, but i mean we actually have to be careful on which server we're put on. I don't trust governments too much when it comes to the internet, but there are some governments I trust over others, and China, India and Brazil are not on that list.

I'll be keeping watch and hoping that the US point of view generally prevails, and we keep the status quo in terms of infrastructure. If they change ICANN or create someother body above it, fine, but keep the infrastructure in the right place.

Check out the technorati tags for more in-depth analysis of what in the world is going on.

ICANN
WGIG
WSIS

911

2005-09-11T18:50:00.000-04:00

So it's September 11, 2005, 4 years ago some bad people decided to drive two planes into the World Trade Center towers 1 and 2. Everyone remembers those moments. I was up for breakfast getting ready to go to class. No one knew what was going on, everyone thought it was an accident. Horrible, but an accident. Then the second one hit and that was it. The world fundamentally changed. The world's only superpower found purpose again. It had a world to make safe after the failures of Somlia and Rawanda and the near mistake of the former Yugoslavia.

4 years have passed and not a day goes by where people critcise the US government for being overbearing and domineering. (Kind of like my criticism of my mum) [hi mom. I understand]
But being here in the US for four years now, and not being a US citizen, I've gained a greater appreciation for what the US is doing.

It's too easy for the first world Europeans, tucked safely away in their comfy homes with stereos and TVs to point fingers at the Americans and say they're stupid and evil. But who patrols the oceans to make it safe for international trade? So that you can sip your coffee in Vienna or wear your made-in-China designer colthings? Who upholds the international systems of commerce and capitalism? Who sacrifices the most men and women to keep Danone and BMW worldwide brands?

Invading Afghanistan and Iraq are seen as mistakes and aggressive acts, and of course frowned upon by international law. Yet, if the US had let those two nations fester, what would it do for regional security? Or even international security. I don't know if the world is safer now, but I do now that regional stability in Central Asia has increased. Iraq is still unstable so it leaves much to be told about regional stability in the Middle East.

It's too easy to just pound away at the US, calling them arrogant and bullies, but let's see the rest of the world put money where its mouth is. The Bretton-Woods system of the IMF and World Bank doled out alot of money to help various nations stay afloat. The US military is often used by the UN to enforce the rules of international behaviour. Take Somalia for example, when the US pulled out, UN forces collapsed. When the US was hesitant about Bosnia, the mission didn't go well. Take even WWI and WWII, without the US military, we'd be a very different world. Maybe WWII would not have started, or we'd all be Japanese or German subjects, who knows the course of history.

Today the US garrisons Germany and Japan to prevent an arms buildup in Europe and East Asia. Even in the cosy EU, a US pull out, would cause Germany to rearm itself and alot of nervousness around the table. Japan rearming itself could lead to an East Asian war.

I would also like to remember the good people at the Pentagon and those who downed a plane in Pennsylvania. Even more so than the people in the twin towers, these men and women were defending what they believed in. The soldiers in the Pentagon were defending the world, keeping it free so you and I could get our Sony playstation and our Renault cars. Those folks on the plane decided that they would stop the hijackers before they could crash the plane into anything. They lost their lives preventing more lives from being lost.

Is that the American spirit or the Human spirit? I don't know. The world has not known a superpower with this kind of global reach in forever. Not even the British Empire or the Roman Empire had such altruistic intentions.

The grouses against the US are but a handful. I bet you cannot name more than 10 incidents in the last 20 years where the US did not follow international norms and morales. Which means that most of the time the US plays by the rules and actually enforces the rules. No other nation puts in so much effort to making the system work. Not even the EU. For all its hyped up power, it remain militarily ineffective, poltically weak, and only has the economy going for it. And guess who props up the global system of trade and capitalism? Not the French or Spanish, they hardly have soldiers around the world.

So before you decide to bitch about the US, or not care at all about the people who suffer from Katrina, take a moment and wonder if the US wasn't here and it was a free-for-all if you'd even have an internet to bitch on.

My thoughts goes out to the folks who died on 9/11 and to the Katrina disaster victims.

No signal

2005-09-02T18:58:00.000-04:00

Yay I found one post on Katrina from a Singaporean blogger. And of course Wit and Spit, but we don't count we're in the US.

It's still very sad to see that no one cares about what's going on here. I mean this flood has caused a relocation greater than the Dust Bowl of the 1930s or the San Francisco earthquake of 1906. It's funny how everyone loves to blame bush for this. I mean seriously there's a whole list to blame. How about the city council of New Orleans who knew this would happen but decided to leave it to the feds? How about the State of Louisiana legislature that was also aware that NO was sinking by the year? How about the citizens of NO for not being more interested in their own safety by lobbying for more levees? How about the French for building a city that would sink and was below sea level? How about countless generations of NO folks who wasted the natural protection of the swamps to make way for "progress" and civilisation (same could be said about the tsunami)? How about the early Americans for continuing to build NO out and making it a hub of the South?

My point is that there is no use in pointing fingers. All those politicians who are blaming Bush are just f**king retarded. I love it how they link the US not being on Kyoto Protocol as the reason for Katrina. So I guess all developing nations are to blame as well since they Kyoto protocol does not fully cover them. Oh and the Australians since they sat out of Kyoto as well.

Instead of pointing fingers how about heading down there to help? Or raising money. I love how all these green activists start making noise but forget to get down to saving lives. As these so called "environmentalists" who claim to "love" all things from nature (humans are natural creatures too how about some love), it's the humanists who are mobilising. The Red Cross, the Jewish organisations, the Chrisitian charities and other aid agencies. I can so see it in downtown DC. Some smug green lobbyist telling every congressman he can find about how Bush screwed NO over, while some Red Cross volunteer is trying to raise money for relief. I wonder who really is the one who cares about nature.

So stop blaming everyone but yourself. Let's try to figure out how to help. I've tried emailing several relief agnecies to see if they need temps. You know to handle a larger volume of calls and paperwork. I can't go down to NO because that will just add to the burden down there. And I'm not a trained volunteer. So I doubt I'd be sent, but I can take over duties in the office for another trained volunteer to go.

I think this disaster shows humanity at its worst and best. So much looting, but also alot of loving. I see so many people taking in strangers from NO. Whole communities welcoming them into their cities. They're bringing people up to DC as well. I hope that the folks still stuck in NO will be able to get out asap.

So please my Singaporean bloggers. Blog and let people know. Raise money, tell others. This is disaster that is also a test of humanity.

Katrina

2005-09-01T21:27:00.000-04:00

Taken from the Washington Post (please don't sue me guys):

There are several relief agencies that could use money:

American Red Cross

America's Second Harvest

Adventist Community Services

Catholic Charities USA

Christian Reformed World Relief Committee

Church World Service

Convoy of Hope

ELCA's (Lutheran) Disaster Response

Presbyterian Disaster Assistance

Salvation Army USA

United Methodist Committee on Relief

Guide Star also has a list if you prefer non-Christian organisations

FEMA also has a better list

I'd just like to point out one more thing, how come when the US did not donate alot of money to the tsunami relief people kicked up a huge stink, but now that the US faced a disaster on a scale that isn't as bad but very devastating (New Orleans is flooded and in near riot) and equally sad, not a single nation has offered a single cent or volunteer? And Singaporean bloggers have not paid much attention to it. Everyone was ready to roast the US over its stinginess but now when it needs help, not a peep (crickets chirping). I personally have donated to Catholic Charities USA, because of my affliation and also the fact the New Orleans is a very Catholic city (New Orleans Saints as the NFL team for crying out loud).

So please if you have no money, at least tell it to those who do. This is a disaster on the scale the US had not seen in a while. The fact that other states' national gaurds have to go out to the affected states (Iraq war manpower shortages) and that shots had to be fired to calm the New Orleans crowd down (unsubstatiated CNN report, they're uncertain who fired the shots but they think it came from a helicopter) and the fact that 15000 people are living in the Superdome without water, power or sanitation (2 bottles of water a day per adult).

New updates from the 10pm news, people are dying on the streets from lack of any amenities. There's no way out, more people than evacuation vehicles... It's horrible...

I don't know if money will help at all... Interestingly enough the debate is not about outside aid, but about how come the relief effort cannot be excuted more military like (basically asking how come the civilian relief managers cannot be as efficient as their military and aid agnecies counterparts).

So help in anyway you can... This really is quite bad indeed.

Update: 20 countries/ organisations have pledge aid, the UN and Australia amongst them

katrina

In the Hood

2005-08-30T21:02:00.000-04:00

I'd like to address something very near and dear to my heart {hi honey} and it's got nothing to do with my love life (although that is indeed near and dear to my heart) (ed: Yeah. You better say that!)

Anyway I have observed that too many of my young fellow Singaporeans use ghetto slang. HELLO!!! You do not have the right do use ghetto slang. See VH1's new series on race. There's an episode called "Dude, Where's my ghetto pass?" You need a ghetto pass before you start calling everyone nigga. Don't go down that road my fellow chinks. Have you even been to the ghettoes? Most ghetto folk can't wait to get out of the ghetto.

I've been in ghettoes. Never alone mind you and never at dark. I had to go to Fedex which so happens to be in the ghetto in DC and it was dusk (evening for you dumb f**ks) (ed: Be nice now), and I was nervous as hell. I'm as chinky as it gets and I definetely do not have a ghetto pass. I mean most asians are seen as closer to the whites than blacks. Well I guess the bengs and their rice rockets here do sometimes qualify as ghetto positive. (yes surprisingly bengs here listen to hip hop and rap not techno, the geeks listen to techno here... funny). I swear I want to get out of the ghetto as fast as I can. It isn't my world.

I don't think HDB estates count as the projects or the hood. No way. You walk in Toa Payoh at night and you're like, "man it's hot, I need to go home"... You walk in the hood like East St Louis at night... and you're like, "f**k I sure as hell hope i don't see another shoot out or drug deal." We had to pay a crack dealer to stop pushing us crack and give us directions. It wasn't exactly the best time to be had.

So think carefully. Don't just use terms when you don't understand the significance of them. You have to earn you're right to be ghetto-licious. Eminem has it, Timberlake lost his. And trust me if you go to Harlem and start nigga this nigga that, you will end up DEAD!

So spare a thought. If you didn't have to worry about gunshots every day and crack pushers and gangs who would shoot on sight, then don't use those terms. You're not gangsta at all, you're just a wannabe no different that the people who think that because I speak with an accent I'm a poser too. Speak singlish if you must, or good english or whatever accent you have, use slangs that are yours, that you grew up with. Singlish has so many good terms. My black friend was amazed at our codes as well. And I kept it toned down around him.

So please no more nigga and stuff like that... It just ain't cool. Like the guy on the program said "once white people start using it, it just isn't cool anymore."

Conflict, Military Intervention and Nation Building

2005-08-30T11:07:00.000-04:00

Last night I went to class and dealt with the first class in that course. Interesting as always to see how modern nations deal with the issues of conflict, intervention and nation building.

Similiarly, I think many of the root causes of national conflict can be found in personal conflicts to. History, grudges, actions that to one seem pretty ok, but to another is insulting. Clash of values, opinions, characters. All sources of conflict between nations and peoples. But 85% of all conflicts are internal, and similiarly we face internal conflicts daily. Our conscience wrestles with our greed. Or differing voices jockey for the dominant say (ed: hello).

Intervention... Now that's tricky. Usually when two people argue, close friends or those who would be affected by it intervene. Sometimes we choose not to intervene and let them "sort it out" It happens on the world stage too, like Sudan. Or we try to get them to talk to each other. Sometimes we enforce the peace, like when a mom has to be there to prevent her two kids from going to war. And sometimes we need to just use brute force to hold down both sides, like when we try to break up a fight by holding both parties back. Yeah sometimes we get punched up by it too, but it happens between nations as well. Or there's preemptive intervention, which under international law is ok, you know, like we think two friends may be heading for a confrontation and we head it off. Now preventive intervention... I dunno... it's iffy in international law and iffy in personal relationships. If we think they're heading for disaster in 10 years, we can't quite go in there and say, "you folks are going to get into big trouble in 15 years so we should step in now to solve it."

Building relationships or rebuilding them. Those are the hardest. Nations have a problem with that when they intervene and so do people. Where do we leave and let them sort it out? Do we send them to a relationship course to help them? Do we just tell them to let sleeping dogs lie? Hard to say... The most important part is also the touchy feely part... Hard to determine where to go and hard to figure out when we should stop interfering and let them deal with it themselves.

So much is the same and so much is different when we take macro ideas and bring them to the micro level. The complexities remain the same... Sigh...

Dot Dot Dot

2005-08-28T23:17:00.000-04:00

Did Kenny Sia get hacked into? OMG... I believe someone changed his page. Unless it's Kenny being silly, but I dunno... With all the hackings recently and all the EVIL people out there... Hmmmm...

Also I guess Miggie moved... Yes Mr Miyagi has decided to go sophisticated on us. I blame the people he hangs out with, all the techno-geeks out there... Influencing him... Now he has his own dedicated server... WHY?!? Why am I all alone? {hi honey!} Why am I talking to myself? Why am I asking so many why questions? When will this whole nonsensical question chain end? When?!?!

Living all alone in a sparsely furnished 1050 square foot apartment is kinda creepy at times... Plus my neighbours upstairs make alot of noise. They are either supremely heavy or drop shite alot. I mean I keep hearing thuds... Creepy...

Poor Kenny I hope your site wasn't hacked...

Onds Ef Ehe Tarth

2005-08-28T23:00:00.000-04:00

So I just watched Justice League on Cartoon Network. Here are a few things I think are kind of funny about American cable viewing.

As I was watching justice league at 10.30pm Eastern, there was a commerical for Life Insurance for people between the ages of 45 to 75. Here it doesn't make sense to me. At 10.30pm most kids are asleep getting ready for school the next day. So parents wouldn't be watching it with their kids. Teens may be watching it, but that usually means that parents aren't around. I suppose "young adults" my age watch it (ME! ME!) but we're still under 45... Very small audience really.

Also I think commercials here are funny. The Bacardi one is amusing. The Red Stripe commercial is so laid back, just as you would expect the Jamaicans would be. Sam Adams' commercial was by far better than Carlsberg's commercial (I've spoken about this biatch, go check it out) The commercial was that Sam Adams Light won some beer award in Germany... and there wasn't a light beer category. I mean that's like saying you're the best without coming out and saying it. Now that's good.

Talking about alcohol, people complain about the high alcohol tax, but it's still lower than Singpoopoo. So I'm drinking up. Heh... More beer all around...

Also Family Guy, Simpsons and all the more adult cartoons are great. I'm going to miss them all when I move back to Singapore for good. All so sanitised in Singapoop. Nothing funny there. It seems like even humor is toned down. So sad...

Looking forward to school. You know fun fun fun... Nice to know that you're in the 8th best school in the country. Heh... It was hard to tell, considering that until this year there wasn't a definitive list of good International Affairs graduate programs.

Well off to shower and bed. Nice to be back to a life that i'm used to. The heat is like Singapore, but the TV and News is way better. =P

Crossing the street with both eyes closed

2005-08-24T20:47:00.000-04:00

So I wandered unto campus today. Wow... Some getting used to. I mean it's so different from Wash U, but somehow AU is like Wash U.

You know you walk in and you've got these kids in the Quad (I think every school has one) playing Ultimate Frisbee. And they're getting everybody else involved in their game.

You've got the banking representatives creeping everywhere trying to get you to open student Checking with them.

You've got kids moving in with their parents. You know you can tell the upperclassmen from the frosh.

Yeah the kids with the maps and parents in tow... Those are the Frosh. Upperclassmen tend to move in with just themselves and friends.

You've got the I-think-i'm-hotstuff, east coast prep school kids with their popped up collars. You've got the jocks. You've got the beer guzzling fraternity guys. You've got the rich bitches. You've got the overly-sweet-but-secretly-evil sorority girls. The pretentious kids. The i-think-i'm-smarter-than-the-whole-world kids. And me. The graduate student.

Grad students kind of fall into their own little categories too. You've got the show-off law students, the artsy-fartsy drama and dance ones, the uber-nerdy science ones, and then you have all the rest who fall in the middle. Yeah... Being a grad student means you meld into this strange creature. You're equally lost, but not at all. All your undergrad experience from you old school comes in handy, but you're still new and lost. It's kinda like leaving your mama (Alma Mater, geddit? Plebs!) and going to live with your aunt. Same but not same.

I wonder what kind of aunt this is going to be. Books are still as expensive as always. Which is a bitch and a half. (yes. half a bitch... those are the worst kinds... They get you in the nuts, because they're so small),

Funny how you have to pick up all this new lingo. New codewords and new shite. The difference is that you're a grad student. So you don't go through the whole ra-ra (Residential Assistant/Advisor creepily is also RA-RA) phase. Nope... I jump straight into the program. Starting with having to read some crap about ICANN (which really can't but who cares). yup, they rule the internet (sort of, or so they hope). Actually they control the domain names. Yup! All the domain names are belong to them.

Tempted to go in Polo and shorts, but I think I should dress up just in case... And if need be I can dress down if I'm up as opposed to up if I'm down. (If anyone made sense of that send me and email, $5 and a self-addressed stamped envelope)

The bookstore is crappier than Wash U's one. But same prices (thank you efollett you evil evil empire of books) And all the services pale by comparison. Wash U really really takes care of you (or it could be that I'm a grad student). I wonder if my department has graduate happy hour like they do at Wash U (graduate that is, undergrads are underaged and hence cannot be happy for an hour).

Campus is much smaller and all my classes are confined to one building. That's cool. No more running around all over the freaking place. Just one class on Mondays and two on wednesdays... Are the slow stroll at night... Heh... Night classes, I need to TA or RA for a professor before I go nuts with nothing to do. =P

Alright off to shower and hit the sack... I have to be up at 7.30am tomorrow (crazy orientation, I mean what self-respecting grad student would be up before 10?!?)

My New Modern Burrow

2005-08-24T20:40:00.000-04:00

Yeah I know I've been putting this off, but I've been lazy. Not busy. Just lazy. (truth!)

So here's some pics of my place. Hope you like it. My new modern burrow. So much bigger than the old one. I'm moving on up...

Heh =P

Malaysian Kopitiam VS Penang

2005-08-18T23:48:00.000-04:00

Heh... For those not in the know there are two Malaysian restaurants in DC, as far as I know. One is Malaysian Kopitiam on M Street NW, between 18th and 19th, and the other is Penang on 18th Street (I think). They're around the corner of each other.

Penang is a chain of restaurants supposedly selling Malaysian food. Truth be told, having eaten there I doubt it's all that Malaysian (yes I know Singaporean and Malaysian food have differences). Penang's decor gives off a very yuppie feel. Chic "oriental" designs; very hoity toity orientalism. The staff is mostly white and the manager was also a caucasian (i have nothing against white meat, I'm just reviewing the place)(ed: let's hope you aren't a closet racist). I order the chicken curry and was sorely disappointed in the fact that it was nothing like how i remembered chicken curry to be. Tak sedap, tak shiok.

Malaysian Kopitiam sits next to a very old and venerable gentleman's club (i.e strip joint, something about Malaysians and strippers)(ed: he's just kidding). The decor is exactly like a cheap chinese place. You know, the lanterns and bamboos, with the gods of wealth, health and the one for lotsa babies (couldn't find a word to rhyme with the other two) around. In other words, crass orientalism. The wait staff is far more animated and absolutely bona fide Southeast Asian. They generally spoke Malay. The boss was also around and the boss family spoke Cantonese. They also joked with the staff. Plus they've been around for a long time. I ordered the chicken curry (I crave curry right now) and lo and behold I got a bowl full of chinese style chicken curry. Not bad, would've passed in Singapore. Also the wait staff kept trying to push the Satay. But I passed, had a bad experience with satay gravy in London once. (think peanut butter)

Oh there's also a Singapore Cafe somewhere near there, but it serves Thai and Japanese food. Which makes no sense. I want my Hainanese Chicken rice and my Roti Prata. Sigh... Now everyone will think Singaporeans are part thai, part jap and part robot (ed: where did that come from?)

Ok off to bed... Night night!

Neighbourhood

2005-08-17T07:11:00.000-04:00

You know you live in a good neighbourhood when...

1) The Malaysian Embassy is a block from your apartment and the Singaporean embassy is about 5 blocks down. Along with a ton of other embassies.

2) The liquor store in your neighbourhood doesn't have wrought iron grills to protect it's windows.

3) There are no crazy people, beggars or vagabonds in your neighbourhood.

4) Your security guard tells you it's perfectly safe to walk along the street at night.

5) There's a pier 1 import and office depot 2 blocks down, and a Besy Buy a street across.

6) There's a carwash, barber and 2 dry cleaners within a 5 minute walk.

7) On the next major street you have wonerful dining and shopping options.

8) One of the richest neighbourhoods in the city is a 5 minute drive North.

9) Very few police or ambulance sirens at night

10) All your neighbours are extremely polite and quiet (i.e. like HDB blocks, just a little friendlier)

Moving in...

2005-08-16T14:56:00.000-04:00

Ouch... My feet hurt and my hands are swollen.

Ikea maybe cheap but assembling an entire house is not fun at all. Plus I don't have internet so I'm using the apartment's free business center for now. So no pics yet. =P

Keep having this incessant urge to mop my floor. I don't know why...

DC is hot, but luckily it rained today. I remember on Sunday it was 110F. Or around 43C. Yes... It was burning hot. And although people here think 80% humidity is humid, my skin is getting dried out... Boo hoo... Need to unpack my body shop body butter (they should pay me for product placement, same with Ikea).

Missing my lady love like nuts... Sigh... Can't wait to be back in Singapore. She's one of the few good things to go back to (unlike the heat or the general populace). Miss my doggy too... Wish I was around to hear the pitter patter of his feet... Sigh

Alright, off to wait for the plumber to fix my sink... =P

A quick post in Japan

2005-08-12T02:49:00.000-04:00

I like Stewards. They seem more useful in a plane than stewardesses. Heh... Also they're way more friendly on UA. I remember talking to two of them about Atlanta. Heh...

In Japan. 2 hours to my flight... so bored. Going to get some sushi i suppose. Dunno if they will understand me. Lots of people waiting to use this S$1.50/ 10 minute terminal. SIngapore's is free... heh...

Can't wait to get to the US and call my baby. =)

Take care all

I bid thee farwell good gentle folk

2005-08-12T02:18:00.000-04:00

Going... Going... Gone...

How quickly the months have passed me by. I came home a fresh graduate, looking for some Singapore air and dreading the hot sun and crowds (little did this lil wabbit know that a heat wave in the mid 30s would engulf the US East Coast this August).

I entertained my fraternity brothers, all 10 of them, for a week and a half. It was the seniors' last hurrah before we rode into the brave new world of (un)employment.

I also met up with many great singapopo bloggers. Y'all know who you are so no need for me to elaborate and drop names. Heh. (ed: I think you've dropped enough names already)

I did not come home expecting to fall so deeply in love with anyone, but I guess Love conspired with Luck (or Love lost at mahjong against Luck, Love can never beat Luck at gambling) to upset the best laid plans of mice and men. (f**king mice, they're f**king everywhere)

So now I leave my new found friends to return to the US, to a new city and friends I have yet to meet. I also leave my lady love with a sad and heavy heart, but I know that my 2 year sojourn to the US will only prove to the world that my love for this wonderful woman is true.

Take care one and all. Sleep well in this land of lions, while this little bunny heads on to the land of the free. (no free gifts though... Sorry)

le eh ai si ong or how i grew to love second-hand smoke

2005-08-10T09:41:00.000-04:00

WARNING: Mushy Post Alert, read at your own risk. Pregnant mothers, people with heart condition and silly wabbits should consult your physician before consuming.

Parting is such sweet sorrow, or something like that. Who really knows what Billy Shakes-a-spear wrote. But indeed it is. As my time in Singapoop comes to a temporary end, I feel sweet sorrow in having to say fare thee well to my lady love.

The last time I was in a constant smoke filled environment was when my dad and his mahjong kakis used to play all saturday in the attic, where my toys were. That was 1990 I think. The last year they played. The good thing is that when they won big, I would get presents the next time round. =)

Similiarly now the benefits far outwieght the costs. I keep telling my lady love that she needs to take care, because odds are I'm going first. I mean statistically men die a few years earlier (we choose to die earlier to get time off from nagging) and since we're the same age the likelihood of her becoming a widow is higher. Heh... Not to worry I'll get life insurance... =P

It's not easy to find that someone who despite all your obvious flaws and their apparent shortcomings still fulfill each other. My lady love fills in the areas of my life that are lacking, and I hope I do the same for her.

She is my voice of practicality where my dreamy nature cannot comprehend. She is the yin to my yang. She is the reason to my anger, the patience to my haste. She knows how to handle me, as I do her.

The good part is experience I suppose, we both know the traps and pitfalls ahead, and we strive to avoid it. I'm sure this relationship will be an adventure and it's so hard to believe it's been one month. Hopefully I will get to be even mushier after a year. =P

The System is Down

2005-08-09T19:47:00.000-04:00

Well well my lady love decided that she had some questions that will inevitably come up. And for the record I do not have any backup pictures on my external hard disk. =P

Anyway as much as there are question that ineveitably come up when talking about ex-girlfriends, some questions inevitably come to mind when:

(1) Who is the best kisser?

Heh... We'd like to think that we're the best. The wrong answer would be to even hesitate or to look like your in ecstasy when trying to compare.

(2) Am I as good as he was (they were) in bed?

I mean come on, we all know this one will eventually come up. (disclaimer: this does not mean we have had sex) This is the same as the previous one. If you don't hesitate, it means you're just saying it to please us. And you can't just say "you." You have to look us in the eye with lust and say "you" before grabbing us and have a wild passionate make out session (ed: in your dreams)

(3) Do you still love him?

This one comes up especially after one of them calls or you learn that they're still in her life. (disclaimer: this does not refelct my current relationship, just drawing from past experience) I have learnt that women continue to be interested in their ex. Seriously, we always are told that we can't even think about our ex girlfriends, so how come they can continue to be connected to them. Unfair.

(4) How much do you love me?

This one usually comes up when an ex calls her up. Heh... Or as follow up from the previous quesiton when she reassures you that she has no feelings for him. (right... then why all the phone calls and stuff). "Very very much" is the only good answer and should be followed up with a wild passionate make out session. (ed: i think you need a cold shower).

Heh... There are more... As to whether my lady love answers them as I expect, that's for me to know and none of you prying readers to know. Ha ha... take that biatches! Yeah Buddy!

Hungry Hungry Ghosts

2005-08-05T12:12:00.000-04:00

The other day I was passing a ge tai on my way back with Mickie D's. And I overheard the strangest song ever. The folks on the ge tai were singing "Home." I'm sure all of you remember that National Day song. I mean it's one of the better ones.

My question is, do singapore ghosts only come back here? Do they go on holiday to Phuket? I suppose they go where the food is. What happens if they have no descendants? Are they all poor then? And won't singing "Home" offend the non-singaporean ghosts? Do ghosts import foreign talent as well? Do their cars need a COE? Is there an underworld PAP? Will they overthrow the Kings of Hell?

I suppose only Chinese ghosts come out? Do Christian ghosts have their own place? While Hindu ghosts do their own thing? Muslim ghosts do their own thing too? Hmmm... The afterlife is quite racist according to the Chinese view of it.

Factory Crashers

2005-08-05T11:57:00.000-04:00

Last night I did a two movie marathon with my lady love. It's only my second with cinemas. That last time was 1998 after Prelim exams at Cathay Cineleisure. We started with 4 people and by the 3rd movie there was 2. Heh...

Charlie and the Chocolate factory is amazing. The story deviates quite a bit, but not bad. The ending is a little sloppy and too happy happy joy joy, but Johnny Depp is once again amzing. I mean he stills the show even from the Oompa Loompas and the trained squirrels. No one beats Mr Depp when it comes to making flims. Charlies and the Glass Elevator next?

Wedding Crashers proved to be a rather silly movie in the beginning and then it just runs out in the middles. Especially when love come into it. I mean Anchorman was funny because it never stopped being silly. Or Harold and Kumar. They're funny because they kept sticking to the same theme. The one good thing about Wedding Crashers is that they reveal all the tricks which men use, and not only at weddings. These can be used when visiting another city, or for the more adventerous, in your own city. The key is not to get into a long term relationship. It's for one night stands.

I suppose another good thing is it really highlights the power of a good wingman. I mean Vince Vaughn's character stays on to help Owen Wilson get the girl he wants, despite hating the situation. I mean that's what good wingmen do. We stick it out. We dance with the hideously deformed friend so our buddy can get to the really hot one. Some men are just too selfish, cockblocking their friends throughout the night. Seriously, work in teams. Nature intended it so. Ever notice how most mammals live in groups. And those that do tend to be highly intelligent. Just look out the window, humans work in groups. Even in mating. So give it a try.

As such I have decided to compile a list of Wingman Rules. I will post it someday, maybe... Or I will pass it on to my worthy disciples. You all know who you are... You've learnt at my feet. And now you are spread across the world, applying the things you've learnt.

Something about the fan and shit

2005-08-04T11:10:00.000-04:00

So this morning mum came down to bug me while I was vegging out watching TV. She asked me if I was spending my night in the arms of a girl... In my oh so casual fashion I said boy. I think my mum almost died of heart attack [hi mom. stop asking me random questions]. Heh...

This bodes well. I think I should keep playing this up. Wear pink shirts. Tight pants. Watch hunks with my sis. Talk about how my ass hurts all the time. (ed: in no way is the author implying that gays do any of these things) Heh... I think she'll really die if I told her that I was living in a gay district in DC. That would kill her. Which in my opinion fits in well with my plans. [hi mom. I really love you. Don't die anytime soon]

So eventually when I bring a certain girl home (we all know who that is right now), my mom will welcome her with open arms, hug her and kiss her. Heh... So that might be a good strategy. Especially for all you Cantonese boys out there. I know how bitchy your mothers can be. Such mummy's boys. (I have a distinct dislike for the Cantonese, especially the damnable hongkies).(P.S. If you just didn't like what I said, take it up with the Teochew Hui Guan, unless your from HK, then take it up with the Singapore Embassy, at least we're a country) =P

OK off to a nap... Rain is condusive for sleeping.

The truth is out there

2005-08-02T04:53:00.000-04:00

Heh... So my lady love has come clean. Yes. It is none other than Finicky Feline. Heh... No surprises... Although alot of you acted surprised the truth is many of you already knew the secret. =P So we never really intended on hiding it, but we never really wanted to blog about it. We're both very private people in that sense.

Yeah so long distance relationships are not easy. I've heard and I guess I've never really experienced one (a month or so doesn't quite count). 2 years is a long time... But I figure about $200 worth of IDD calling cards and skype along with a webcam, MSN messenger and lots of trips home, we'll make it through... We're not the first bloggers to be in love and we won't be the last...

On the flip side for all you readers out there in blogdom, i'll soon be back in the USA and with alot more stories to share. Also I suppose with a blog, my lady love gets to read all about my daily life alongside all of you. Heh... But I suppose she gets the news first. =P

Ok, so there, I guess we've stated the obvious... For those of you who didn't know... You're pretty thick, or you just don't read us both. =P Heh... So now I'm a Marc Anthony to J.Lo... Heh... which isn't too bad I suppose... =D (not complaining since I have one hot girlfriend) (ed: ahem... yes... that is true, but focus on her personality) (truth!)

Alright off to bed. =P

The life and times of Dorian Grey

2005-08-01T19:30:00.000-04:00

Heh... So I have been romatically linked to FF.

Seriously folks, i'm sure many of you, my loyal minions *ahem* readers, already know exactly who I'm dating. And Mr. Tabloid Times please use a better picture. I look so fat in that one. I also know who could've supplied the pictures... Oh just you wait... Couldn't send a more flattering one. =P Evil useless slaves *ahem* readers. Yes Mr. TT (T.T Durai's new job maybe?) use a better picture. C'mon... my site has so many good ones of me...

Also he missed the forest for the trees. Seriously. You should reveal that I am actually Godzilla's and Ultraman's love child. And I'm also a Zombie hunter who is a Vampire cum Free Mason. I also have alien contacts in both the Delta Quadrant and the Gamma Quadrant. You forgot my anti-unicorn bias and also that I eat baby trolls for breakfast (need the fibre) and I fly a 2005 Black Volongd Dragon. =P Also I am fifth Lord of the Imperial Seal. So there... Horrible reporting on your part.

Ok. So as most of you know I've just gotten back from Phuket. It was nice... So very nice, but I love Koh Samui more. Heh... Still not bad... Got dragged to go to a Go Go show. My lady love has a very curious nature, but curiousity killed the cat. heh... No different from a strip club really. Heh... So instead of telling you more about my trip, i'm just going to rub it in with pictures... yes indeedy... pictures...

View I had all of the time... Mmmmmm... Where's my pina colada?

Other view when vendors came by to bother me.... Mmmmmm... Where's my diaquari?

Sandals taking a break... from the daily grind and grime of singapore.

Visiting Phuket makes me want to go back to Cancun in Mexico. I promised my lady
love that i'd take her to Cancun some time. I love the place. Beautiful. I would argue more beautiful than Samui. Plus they bring in big names to play during spring break. Oh and MTV and Playboy are there. I remember spending the whole night talking to the Playboy sound man. He let me play with the mike too. Cool cool... Must learn spanish.

So there... Looking forward to more trips with my lady love. Not so looking forward to my trip back to the US to study.

Phuket

2005-07-28T07:29:00.000-04:00

Off to Phuket with my lady love.

Hope nothing bad happens.

IfI don't come back in 4 days, avenge my death!

Also everything I own goes to my dog bubbles. Except my 4runner, that must be buried with me. I lovcve you Stella...

Ok bye bye, off to catch my plane.

Gangsta

2005-07-27T13:15:00.000-04:00

Taken from Bohemia Bunny

I decided to gizzogle some of my posts.

Sum-m Sum-m Different fo` a change

(ed: he insisted on writ'n it this way today. So bear wit hizzle

He looked at hisscreen n before him lay words so deep n so touch'n, that he fiznelt tha hot tears cruisin' in his eyes. The mizzy he read, tha more those tears stood ready ta burst through they dams. Before he kizzle it, they had burst through andhe fizzle hot tears streak across mah face, like F1 nigga in a hurry ta tha checkered fizzy.

He looked bizzy on tha P-to-tha-izzast, n he knew assuredly that this was one of his firsts ridin' in mah double R. No woman had ever touched him tha way thiznat she had. He was a dawg of words; constantly clockin' his nose in books. She had touched him at his mizzy deepest, mizzost private killa. Wise men say that tha way ta man's heart is his stomach, not that this isn't true, it's jizzle tizzle she had found his heart through words . Snoop heffner mixed with a little bit of doggy flint.

He didn't need ta thizzay of how ta reply ta her soft gentle words. He didn't even need ta look at his killa as they typed whizzat his heart longed ta say dogg. As he stared at tha words messin' on his screen, behind those teary eyes, he saw tha sizzay frizzay his heart pizzy out into black symbols.

Did these symbols truly represent his deepest feel'n fo` tha woman he loved? He felt as if tizzle were inadequate cuz its a G thang. His heart promised ta love her fo` as long as it could musta strength ta bizzy. It knizzay not what came hustla death, but it knew if there was life drug deala it would continue ta sing out songs ta her

Heh... I couldn't understand half of it.

The Rules of Engagement

2005-07-27T12:50:00.000-04:00

Inspired by FF's post on farting-

Here is are the rules to doorknob (House Rules):

(1) When someone farts, he must say "safety" only at the end of the fart. "Safety" at the beginning and middle of a fart does nothing to protect you from a "doorknob"

(2) The fart victims (or anyone within earshot range for those loud farts) may yell "doorknob" if no "safety" is yelled at the end of a fart. "Doorknobs" in the beginning or a middle of the fart do not count towards the beatings.

(3) If a "doorknob" is successful the farter must make it to a doorknob (see next point for what qualifies as a doorknob). In the mean time, everyone else may proceed to beat the crap out of the farter as he scrambles to make for a doorknob.

(4) Doorknobs must swivel. Your round kinds and the handle kinds are fine. Any door that requires push/pull do not work. The knob must turn or swivel.

(5) The knob need not be attached to a door per se, but must be used for a door. i.e. if you are a serial farter, you may carry around your own doorknob. So knobs for windows and other such things do not count.

(6) Farts in outdoor situations do not count. The great outdoors can handle the smell. It's the not so great indoors where farts are deadly.

(7) A rumbling tummy does not count as a fart. Burps are not mouth farts either.

(8) Farting in a moving vehicle means a beatdown until you get to a doorknob. The driver of the car also has the power to eject you from the vehicle.

(9) In event of a dispute, assume that "doorknob" is in play. Just run for a door, mr.farter. In a car, the driver has the final say.

(10) You may not maim or kill the farter, just bruise him/her. Unless he's lactose intolerant and purposely ate lots of beans, eggs, cheese, yoghurt and chugged milk just to release the smelliest fart known to man. Then you may take drastic action, butt plugs will be allowed in this case.

2005-07-26T13:37:00.000-04:00

So I guess I should blog about my trip to Hardee's (Carl's Jr) in Singapore. I forgot about it until I visited the Hardee's webpage to check out their new commercials (check out the milkshake commercial). So I sent them an irrate letter to let them know what I think of their Singaporean franchise.

Seriously I waited 20 minutes for my take away. Dine in had to wait ten minutes, but then I saw them taking my burgers out of my bag to fill other orders. They even took one out from my bag to give to some guy who just ordered. How is that right? All this time, my lady love is starving her little tum tum off. This makes me real mad... But I didn't want to create a scene on a busy friday night. Instead I complained over their heads to Hardee's HQ. Heh... We'll see what kind of stock business reply letter I get.

The other thing that gets me is that they used the West Coast Carl's Jr instead of the much better Hardee's. I mean I don't know which is the 2/3lb burger and which is the 6-dollar burger. It sucks balls...

Heh... thanks to their infamous Paris Hilton commercial, they now have a site just for it. It doesn't surprise me, since most Hardee's commercials have nothing to do with their burgers. I remember one with college girls riding a mechanical bull and another of a guy working on his car while eating a hamburger.

Well off to go get some sushi I think. Been a while... Feel like eating nice sushi. =P

Yay! I'm a good guy

2005-07-26T02:13:00.000-04:00

Der Resistance
Achtung! You are 38% brainwashworthy, 27% antitolerant, and 52% blindly patriotic

Welcome to the Resistance (Der Widerstand)! You believe in freedom, justice, equality, and your country, and you can't be converted to the the dark side.

Breakdown: Your Blind Patriotism levels are borderline unhealthy, but
you show such a love of people from everywhere and a natural resistance
to brainwashing, you would probably focus your energy to fight Fuehrer with furor, so to speak.

Conclusion: Born and raised in Germany in the early
1930's, you would have taken up ARMS against the oppressors. Or even
your friends' oppressors. Congratulations!

Less than 5% of all test takers earn a spot in Der Resistance!

My test tracked 3 variables How you compared to other people your age and gender:

You scored higher than 50% on brainwashworthy
You scored higher than 37% on antitolerant
You scored higher than 72% on patriotic

Link: The Would You Have Been a Nazi Test written by jason_bateman on Ok Cupid

I'm Haram...

2005-07-26T02:03:00.000-04:00

the Ham
(26% dark, 52% spontaneous, 38% vulgar)

your humor style:
CLEAN | SPONTANEOUS | LIGHT

Your style's mostly goofy, innocent and feel-good. Perfect for parties
and for the dads who chaperone them. You can actually get away with
corny jokes, and I bet your sense of humor is a guilty pleasure for
your friends. People of your type are often the most approachable and
popular people in their circle. Your simple & silly
good-naturedness is immediately recognizable, and it sets you apart in
this sarcastic world.

PEOPLE LIKE YOU: Will Ferrell - Will Smith

My test tracked 3 variables How you compared to other people your age and gender:

You scored higher than 5% on dark
You scored higher than 68% on spontaneous
You scored higher than 66% on vulgar

Link: The 3 Variable Funny Test written by jason_bateman on Ok Cupid

Silly is as silly does

2005-07-25T09:55:00.000-04:00

Bumped into an old friend yesterday, Kway Png. We exchanged pleasantries and got some information. He works for the Singapore Tourism Promotion Board now. A fitting job for a man of his disposition. I think it takes alot to work for the STPB and to sell singapore. I mean three trips here and you've probably seen it all. Spend like a month here and it's all covered. So we need to constantly refresh ourselves (like how some of us keep refreshing out blogs to check out new comments every 5 minutes) and stay unique.

This brings me to the Uniquely Singapore campaign. It's a good idea, whoever thought it up should be paid ten times more than the durg-addled dimwit who came up with "Probably the best beer in the world." But here's the one thing I don't quite get. I was on the ECP this morning and I saw a cab with a "Come visit Singapore" ad on it. This of course is very strange to me. If I'm a tourist and already in Singapore, why do I need to be sold on coming to Singapore? On the off chance I am a transit passanger maybe, but few transit passangers leave our world class airport with free movies and loads of shopping. It's like having a huge signboard that says "Come visit New York" in the middle of Times Square. It would make no real sense.

I mean I can envisage banners that say uniquely singapore at our tourist traps *ahem* attractions, so the tourist will know that it is a place for them to visit. But I don't know about a huge ad campaign in your own country advertising for people to come visit... Unless... I know! It's also a "Stay in Singapore" campaign. You know to convince the migrants *ahem* quitters to stay in Singapore. And also for the leeches *ahem* foreign talent to consider becoming citizens. Yes! That must be it. So clever of them! A three-in-one solution. Team up between STPB, Ministry of Manpower (MOM) [hi mom. It is fitting isn't it. You make me clean up after myself, MOM makes bangladeshi workers clean up after us) and Minstry of Community Development, Youth and Sports.

MCDYS... You'd think they'd shorten it down. You know to Ministry of the Fluffy Stuff. Or Ministry of the Touchy-Feely stuff, or Ministry of Hugs and Kisses.

ok off to do my thang...

Something Different for a change

2005-07-22T15:06:00.000-04:00

(ed: he insisted on writing it this way today. So bear with him)

He looked at hisscreen and before him lay words so deep and so touching, that he felt the hot tears welling in his eyes. The more he read, the more those tears stood ready to burst through their dams. Before he knew it, they had burst through andhe felt hot tears streak across my face, like F1 drivers in a hurry to the checkered flag.

He looked back on the past, and he knew assuredly that this was one of his firsts. No woman had ever touched him the way that she had. He was a man of words; constantly burying his nose in books. She had touched him at his most deepest, most private corner. Wise men say that the way to man's heart is his stomach, not that this isn't true, it's just that she had found his heart through words.

He didn't need to think of how to reply to her soft gentle words. He didn't even need to look at his fingers as they typed what his heart longed to say. As he stared at the words forming on his screen, behind those teary eyes, he saw the song from his heart pour out into black symbols.

Did these symbols truly represent his deepest feelings for the woman he loved? He felt as if they were inadequate. His heart promised to love her for as long as it could muster strength to beat. It knew not what came after death, but it knew if there was life thereafter, it would continue to sing out songs to her. How was he ever going to express what he felt for her? Could he ever?

He clicked that faithful button that immortalised those half-formed expression of his true love for her. And still the tears kept welling up, like a torrential storm on a hot summer's day.

What will happen next? No one knows. The chapters have yet to be written, but he said a silent prayer to God above, and hoped that there would be many long and happy chapters to go.

Classes I will be taking next sem

2005-07-21T18:12:00.000-04:00

Because I'm so bored... Because I might forget... These are the classes I will be pretending to take next semester.

ECON-603-001	Intro to Economic Theory	M	05:30PM 08:00PM
SIS-683-001	Congress & US Foreign Policy	W	08:10PM 10:40PM
SIS-596-006	Conf, Interventn & Nation Bldg	M	08:10PM 10:40PM

I know doesn't sound like a lot. But I suspect it will be. I also know it's all night classes. I hope to use my CPT to get some internships. =) Alot of reading for sure. And alot of work too. No doubt... Sigh... I hope Intro to Economic Theory is like microeconomics. And the nation building one will be fun I hope... Not looking forward to leaving...

But on the plus side I'll be back latest December 23 ( last day of exam on Dec 21). And I only have to be back Jan 15 (Jan 17 start classes, but I'd like to recover from jet lag).

Probably the best

2005-07-21T17:23:00.000-04:00

Read Mr Sng's post on Carlsberg. The funny thing isn't the ad, but rather their motto: "Probably the best beer in the world." That's funny, they're not sure if they are the best, but they guess they are. Makes me want to think of other slogans companies can come up with... So here's my top ten list of how not to market yourself:

(1) Tiger Beer: Probably as good as gold around the world. Or are we Silver... Let me go check.
(2) SIA: Fly the sort of friendly skies...
(3) Nike: Just kinda do it...
(4) Goodyear: More kinda ok years ahead.
(5) Budweiser Beer: The Crown Prince of Beers?
(6) McDonald's: I'm sorta liking it.
(7) The Body Shop: Feel kinda ok - naturally.
(8) Burger King: Maybe have it your way.
(9) KFC: Possibly finger lickin' good.
(10) Firefox: Maybe rediscover the web

Heh... silly tagline. I wonder how much someone got paid to do that.

The Die is Cast

2005-07-21T13:51:00.000-04:00

Ok this is just plain mean. I mean I don't really like the Xiaxue, or really enjoy her posts, but hacking into her site. That's just mean man. Seriously... I may rib her every now and then, but please please please don't resort to such ungentlemanly tactics.

Sorry to hear about your situation Xiaxue... Chin up and keep on posting.

Strikes, Guns and Balls

2005-07-21T11:47:00.000-04:00

Hello my beloved readers (if there are any). It's been a nice week so far for this little wabbit. Hanging out with the Lady Love's little brothers was fun. I also discovered something about my lady love. She likes to play games that this little bunny used to play when he was a wee lad. Yes my good friends... Bowling and Counter Strike.

I started bowling when I was 13. My dad was an avid bowler in his younger days, so we always went bowling. I remember taking classes for it too. So I picked up proper form and technique. My only problem was that I was too eager to get rid of the pall (12 pounds is heavy for a kid). Dad was always behind giving instructions like a good father and of course it's very pressurising. So if I ever become a pro bowler, dad is not going to be there. Heh... Oh and in the Army I was course mates with a national under-21 bowler, so he helped me pick out a ball and shoes, and this bunny became a serious amatuer bowler. (well as serious as this wabbit can ever be) And in the US I picked up another ball. So I have a 14 pound Beast, which is a straight ball and hook a little at the end. My 16 pound Bastard is a ball that I use to smash all the pins down. The two balls have never met, but when I come home, I hope they like each other.

We also played CS. I forgot that there's a rule about 16 and under playing on school days before 6.30pm. So the poor boys, who are not studying here anyway, could not play until late in the night. They're pretty good at it. Unlike me. I've always been bad at it. I also hate the sit around and wait kind of teams. Just chiong the hell out of them. People are so worried about money and stats that they forget even if we die chionging, we can actually take them. I should play new maps though. It was fun killing my lady love several times from the back. Heh... Wonder if it is a reflection of our relationship. Nah...

Heh... so now i have to hook her on bowling. At least there I have a much better head start on her. Plus she's uber competitive, so at least I can give her a run for her money. She always complains I offer no competition when we play games she picks. =P heh... Although I think we're evenly matched at pool. At least the one time we played she won by one ball. Heh... Must introduce her to cricket or something... Oh tennis, but she'll be much better than me for sure. I haven't played since 12.

I hope you like the picture of Bob. He sits on the car's dashboard and nods his head. It seems either he's always enjoying the music or he's agreeing with what I say. Bob is a really cool guy. He just sits there and chill. Nothing to it. No worries, no cares and he even has a little friend who sits there quietly and does absolutely nothing. Oh friends like that...

Have a good weekend my lovelies. =P

Curry Rain

2005-07-19T02:43:00.000-04:00

Met up with my Godpa today for food at Samy's Curry along Dempsey road. In the freaking rain. Got so wet trying to get from the car to the place. And then I had to pay 50 cents to get in. Not so bad really, until I found out this evening that I could have avoided the rain and the 50 cent charge if I had gone to Marina Square instead. Samy's opened up a branch there. Gosh darn it! I should've read Sunday Times yesterday and not tonight.

Talked alot with Godpa. I hope he's right about me. [hi mom. see someone thinks i'm doing alright] Otherwise I'm going to be poor and jobless. Heh... Mom asked how much i'll need a year. Worried that if i ask too much she'll balk, but if I ask too little I'll be broke. Sigh... Can't wait to start working so i don't need to depend on my parents for money. [hi mom. still need your love and care]

Dinner at CHIJmes with Boston Beuaty was uneventful. But we had mexican food. Not bad. Actually not too bad at all. Tex-Mex is usually oily, but this one was pretty good. So i guess i got my tex-mex fix.

Hung out with my lady love a little this evening. She was definetely grumpy, but I still love her. =P (take that all you anti-mush folks). She kept looking at cars that went by...

Congrats Sandra for becoming the chio-est (is that even a word) femblogger. I'm hurt the ST chikopek *ahem* reporter didn't even bother asking me anything. So hurt... If you get deals, don't forget me. You know how rappers who make it big look out for their posse. Sama sama, ok? Don't end up like G-unit and 50cent. Us having a shoot out is not a good idea.

Sounds like alot of folks had fun at the blog con. Heh... I guess I got a picture of the evil *ahem* ST reporter. And Ms Linda Chia stole my picture and never give credit. I am very hurt Ms Chia. You were definetely the belle of the ball. All the horny *ahem* nice male barflies were drooling all over *ahem* paying rapt attention to you. See take one sexy photo, and your blog becomes famous. So unfair. Fembloggers have a massive advantage. =P

Right-O. Time to catch up with my weekly reading. =) May the farce be with you.

Strange Tails

2005-07-18T11:12:00.000-04:00

I tried to take a photo of my dog, Bubbles, yesterday. But he's camera shy. No seriously I think he doesn't like to get his picture taken. He knows when I'm trying to take a picture and runs away. So all my shots of him are taken with him in a hurry to get away. But he is so cuuuuuuuttttteeeee...

Watched Sin City yesterday. Heh... Good I like. My lady love on the other hand, absolutely hated it. Heh... But I told her better I watch it with her than some other man watching it with her. {hi baby. I love you} Frank Miller was inspired by Film Noir when he wrote those stories and it is fitting that the movie should be Film Noir. I absolutely loved it. And I respect Mr Rodriguez for quitting the director's guild so he could have Mr Miller as his co-director.

Also met lady love's mum, sisters and youngest brother. They are quite a nice, happy family. The brother was cute. So young... My own childhood is so far away now... But I remember those days of exploring longkangs and picking durians. Running around and playing Sega and RTK2. Heh... So long ago... My West side days.

Ended the day with this... Life seems so perfect now. I hope it'll go on for a long time...

A pod of Dolphins

2005-07-17T02:04:00.000-04:00

Went to the blog con today, didn't spot any gah'men types outside of our good journalists around (aren't some SPH reporters former ISD folk? Do they count as gah'men?) Only MIW I saw was this guy...

This confirmed my suspicion that Mr M has always been a MIW. I mean think about it. Mr M... Creepy...

What further caused this paranoid bunny to worry was that all the organisers were having some sort of secret discussion in their "Not admittance unless authorised" Room. I mean mb had his back facing the glass walls at all times (ed: glass walls and secret meeting?!? erm...)

This little wabbit's suspicions were further driven by the fact that mb was taking pictures of the audience... Hmmmm... for future reference to use in counter-libel cases? Or as info to blackmail us?

Kenny wwas interrogated for coming to Singapore. He had to explain himself to the Inquisition panel.

This poor guy was either poisoned or is popeye. I couldn't quite figure it out. I suspect that poison was it. You know murder all the bloggers while you can.

This bunny had to skip out when he saw the tanks gathering outside the place... This was too scary. i hope all of you survived...

But not before I started taking pictures of the real reason why we were all there. At least for the Cowboy Barflies (that's why they're barflies). Talking about that, strangely enough DXO had fly zappers... I guess it was to kill the barflies as well.

Also there was this reporter who kept asking the cute fembloggers for interviews... Hmmm... That actually sounds like a good pick up line. Maybe I should use that... (ed: erm... I think the missus would not be happy) (I know... I know... Just saying...) Ok maybe you single malebloggers could use that as a pick up line.

My sweetheart showed up and that made all things good. We had to go to our respective family dinners. I got there at the appointed time of 7, but had to sit there all by my lonesome for another 15 minutes and stare at those things...

I don't even know what they are. It was funny to sit at a table for nine just by myself and the waiter handing you the menu. Like I'm going to order for all nine. When i'm not paying [hi mom. thanks for dinner] "Yes. I'll have the shark's fin soup, the abalone and the really really expensive dish whose name i cannot pronounce." Heh... I suspect everyone was late because this was a Chinese restaurant... You got to love dinner where you talk about all sorts of shit with family friends... Like politics, and learning about family friends who you never knew were friends of your family (ed: ok...)

On the drive home, there was an accident outside the Singapore Town Club. That wasn't a problem except I almost got into an accident. you see lane 3 was where the accident was and Lane 2 of course had to avoid the spillage. I was in Lane 1. Now Mr Rubber neck in lane 2 was so busy looking at the accident, that he didn't realise that there were cars in alne 1, namely mine. So the little biatch almost crashed into me, but luckily I horned the hell out of his tiny little brain. STOP STARING AT THE DAMN ACCIDENT!! I don't know why you have to stare. Keep driving and mind your own f**king business.

Went home and looked forward to a quiet night. but the neighbours were having a party and they took my usual spot. Luckily this bunny did good parking. So no problems. But just as i settled in to blog, mom told me we were going to my second aunt's birthday chalet. Heh... So off I go again.

You miss four Chinese New Year's celebrations and everything has changed. All my second cousins had grown up. My aunt looked so old too... Wow... Things do change alot in 4 years. Cousin had to go for op... Another passed away... Just too many things... And all my second cousins my age were scattered. Plus I am a grand uncle 3 times over now...

Mum kept talking on the way back, the usual stuff. Whining about this and that... Stuff I've heard since 1989... Seriously I could repeat it verbatim. There never is a silver lining for mum.

Ok off to bed... Big day tomorrow... Have to meet some folks. Take care and I hope most of you are not drunk out your f**king minds.

Pitter Potter

2005-07-16T12:33:00.000-04:00

Hello. Instead of talking about blog con (i haven't gone yet) I'll do harry potter instead.

QUICK QUIZ: What 1986 motion picture tells the story of a young character named Harry Potter who becomes involved in a world of good-versus-evil witchcraft?

Answer at end of post.

Facts:

The world of Harry Potter has grown so large, that even long-established institutions are beginning to take note. This past Sunday's edition (July 10) of The New York Times featured a Potter-themed crossword puzzle.

After having taught the "science" of Harry Potter as a physics professor at Maryland's Frostburg State University in 2003, George Plitnik is continuing the effort this fall when he teaches an after-school remedial class of eight-grade science students. He feels that kids' fascination with the stories will evolve into a desire to learn and perform better in their studies.

Box office watchers have decided that they won't judge the new film Charlie and the Chocolate Factory on its opening weekend. The movie, geared toward a nearly identical audience as those who will spend the weekend reading the new Harry Potter book, may suffer from low sales when it opens as a result. Whereas almost all films have their strongest ticket sales in the first week, Charlie may be an exception.

As with the previous book in the series, environmental organizations are requesting that "Harry Potter" fans purchase their copy of the new book from Raincoast Books, the company that prints the novels in Canada. The reason? The edition from the Great White North is printed on recycled paper, unlike the U.S. release.

QUICK QUIZ ANSWER:
Troll , written and directed by John Carl Buechler. The film focused on a kid named Harry Potter, years before J.K. Rowling used the same name in her book series.

A Fictional Tail

2005-07-15T12:40:00.000-04:00

Did it ever occur to you that in most quests, the hero has to go to some like castle in the deep dark corner of the world to save the world? How come the quest doesn't involve him going to some beautiful meadow with flowers and a babbling brook to pick up some buns? I mean think of it...

"Mealanus, you must complete this quest."
"Yes, Oracle. I will to the best of my ability."
"Mealanus, you must travel to the next neighbourhood and go to an open meadow. In the meadow there is a little babbling brook."
"Ok, meadow and brook in the next burgh. You sure I don't have to travel to {insert evil sounding name} and fight the evil dragon lords?"
"Nope. Just go to the little hut next to the brook."
"How about the Fire Kings of {insert fiery sounding name here}"
"NO! Just go to the hut, and pick up the buns on the table."
"Oh ok. You sure? I can head off to {insert silly sounding name here} and kill a few monsters. It's only another day from the next burgh."
"NO! Just do as your told."
"ok..."
"Oh and pick up a Decaf Low fat Latte from Starbucks while your there. Thanks."

That would be a real adventure. You could read all about the heroes trouble with traffic.

"Would you please move your cart?! I'm on a quest!"
"You and every other young adventurer here. So wait your turn!"
"Now listen here! I am a paladin of {insert silly sounding god's name here}"
"Yeah!?! I'm the King of Sheeba. Wait your turn."
"Move the damn cart!"

And then you can hear how he deals with the local law enforcement after he gets road rage.

"So you threaten to attack an unarmed baker?"
"Erm... He was not cooperating. I'm on a quest."
"Oh really? Can I see your riding liscense please?"
"Really. The Oracle sent me on a quest."
"Can I also see your questing liscence? And your sword liscence?"
"Here."
"Sir, I'm sorry but you'll have to come to the station with me. The baker is pressing charges."

Now that would be some adventure. Heh...

So the NKF issue is being resolved. I never donated money to them. I prefer to do what my family has always done since my great grandpa, and that is to donate to catholic charities. They usually aren't part of the community chest, and alot of the times, the people who run it are not well paid (trust me, priests get an allowance of like $200 a month). Yet they still keep on doing it because they love the work they do. Better my money goes to Boys' Town and the Missonaries of Charity. Don't stop giving to NKF though, they do good work. Or if you must give to the KDF. Same work, but maybe the other organisation is better.

Anyway... Off to munchies. Take care my loyal followers *ahem* readers.

Top 10 on 10

2005-07-14T09:38:00.000-04:00

Hello my lovely readers. I hope ed's post didn't get too many of you down. =P I'm back in the writing seat so no more sappy stuff. I was looking at the Google Zeitgeist and it's very interesting that most users come from the US. It almost seems like either the rest of the world versus the US is much smaller or each country's search isn't counted into the google zeitgeist. This week's top 10 searches are:

1.	hurricane dennis
2.	noaa
3.	elly monaco
4.	tour de france
5.	national hurricane center
6.	weather channel
7.	lil kim
8.	fantastic four
9.	london
10.	jessica alba

Their monthly lists have not been updated but it's good to know that the of the top 5 tv shows searches I watch 3 (no square pants or singers for me).

1.	american idol
2.	family guy
3.	simpsons
4.	south park
5.	spongebob squarepants

It's interesting to see what people are searching for. Yahoo Singapore used to have one for just Singapore, but no more. Alas... otherwise I get to poke fun at what my fellow citizens are doing.

Blog con is so close you can taste the anticipation in the air. So I guess I should do my bit and stick up the banner. I feel like some super star is coming and I'm holding a banner saying:"I'll always love you!"

How's that? Heh...

I hope there's good snacks at the convention. Every convention needs good snacks like curry puffs and snadwiches. Did you hear me organisers? This wabbit demands good snacks. He's only going to check hot women out (if any are there) (ed: no he won't) and eat food. Lots and lots of food. Muahahahahaha... I also want a t-shirt so maybe I should go line up at 12 noon or something. =P ONLY 150?!? Wish the organisers were richer. Heh... Should've set up a Paypal system and taken orders. But I understand though. Too much of a hassle and most of them are working.

I've also noticed that as we get closer the organisers have slowed down in their blogging. You guys put in so much work. So here's my challenge to all the little bloggers going. Let's bring them presents! Yay! Little presents. Big presents. Weird presents. Silly present. Scary presents. Naughty presents. Hand made presents. =P

Also lets go to google and keep typing singapore blog con and see if it makes next week's list. Off to go do that now. 100 clicks to go... =P

SG BlogCon

Culpa

2005-07-14T01:49:00.000-04:00

I originally wanted to post a mushy post with some artsy fartsy po mo kind of theme. But something happened tonight while I was with the woman I love... (in other words ed is taking over)

I think we hit our first snag. i guess i just wasn't thinking straight... and now I think she doubts we'll survive for too long. I really believe we can last. It takes time and adjustment... But I guess the doubting has begun and it really saddens me... It saddens me because there's doubt in everything we do... We second guess ourselves and allow cynicism into our lives...

This really isn't just about me and her... this is about my life. I read what she had to say to me, but she just didn't say it to me in person. I just want her to know that I love her with all that I've got. I love her to the best of my abilities. And I know that I fall short. I'm not that complex but I'm not simple either. We learn to adjust to one another, afterall we're not perfect.

I've realised that I have always had the utmost confidence in myself. Except when it comes to women. Then I keep second guessing myself and slipping up along the way. Like tonight... and today I suppose. Here's my reason why...

When you meet a woman who completely fills you up. Who covers the areas where you're weak and furnishes your soul with delight. How can you not doubt and worry that some better man will come take her away?A woman whose very sight causes your heart to leap for joy; who makes you feel like the luckiest man around. How can you not doubt yourself. Maybe deep down I am scared as hell of her leaving me... maybe that's why i'm not thinking straight... Maybe I'm imagining things...

Emotions are so complicated and they get more complicated when you fall so madly and deeply in love with someone. I wake up smelling her even when she isn't around. I simply adore this woman...

I feel that I made a mistake. I didn't quite put it right. And now the relationship has to readjust to the new reality that she no longer trusts the idea that we can survive a long distance relationship. It hurts quite deep, but I know this is my fault and I must start building the trust up.

I'll be honest and I say i really want this relationship to work out. I want this to be the last one. This woman is so wonderful... So absolutely amazing. Almost unearthly. She's the first woman who I can honestly say that I want to be with for the rest of my life. I know she hates to hear this but to me she is perfect, and I really do adore her and love her. She doesn't think people can be in love after such a short time. But like the first time I ate chocolates, i fell in love with them. So too when i first held her hand in mine, I fell in love.

Maybe I don't truly know what love is. What agape, eros or any other kind of love is. But I know this feeling of fulfilment, of completion. I also know the passion and obssession that attends to such love.

So forgive me my inequities my most dearest, and believe that I truly want this relationship to work. Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea maxima culpa.

Mysterious driving

2005-07-14T00:30:00.000-04:00

Was driving in rush hour traffic this morning. You want to know why? Here are several possible reasons:

(1) I enjoy driving
(2) I like listening to morning talk radio and morning talk radio just isn't the same when you're in bed
(3) I want to rub it in that I can do the morning commute. It's a choice, not a necessity
(4) I now send a special someone to work occasionally.
(5) I just nuts

Whatever it is I heard FlyingDutchman on Class 95 stating for the record that he is against blogging. heh... Oh no... The media is turning against us. I kid... But quick let's flame FD. I kid as well... Heh...

mr brown is everywhere. Although the article today about Faith is sweet. Good to know mb is using his celebrity to push very important issues. Way to go old man. Happy Birthday by the way.

Planning to go on holiday. (well technically it's a holiday from a holiday) not sure where to go. Any suggestions out there? (wait for it... wait for it)(ed: what are we waiting for?)(echoes you idiot)(ed: oh ok)

Man I need headphones. No speakers in Singapore. Sob sob... Want to watch my DVD. Sob sob... Boo hoo hoo hoo... Must go buy later...

Lady love commented that I looked good in baseball caps. Honestly i only wear the cap because I love the St Louis Cardinals. Team with the best Percentage in the NL and overall second in the Major League. And you have to acknowledge that NL Central is one of the toughest divisions, alongside of AL East. World Series this season.

Looking forward to the blog con. I want to play guess the MIW. =P

Goo Goo Ga Ga

2005-07-12T15:08:00.000-04:00

Can't stop thinking about her.

Heh... Today dad showed me the things he had to study for the boating test. OMG! I thought driving was tough. The lights on boats. That is one hell of a test. I dread when it is my turn. My dad said the test in on computers and so he's kind of worried since he is not a computer person. Outside of Solitare that is.

Keep losing to her when it comes to playing games. But then again she chooses the games to play. So heh... I just suck at games when she plays. And she can be very competitive about it. Heh... It's ok Mr Ego, we can do other stuff to make you feel better (like erm... reading my thesis again).

Heh... Trying to set my friend up with her friend. So funny. Her friend is extremely shy about it and she thought I was joking. While he doesn't quite know what's going on. She asks all these random quesitons. Like if he's nice or cute or if he's good in bed. I don't think he's supremely cute, but then again different girls have different tastes. He's definetely super nice. As for his bed manners, i wouldn't know. We hang out alot, just not in bed. And I'm not going to call him and ask: "Hey, are you good in bed?" That'll end the friendship faster than squishing an ant.

My theory is if they don't hit it off, they can still be friends. Nice guys are generally friends with other nice guys and so eventually she'll meet a nice guy she likes who likes her back. Heh... Or so the theory goes anyway.

Ok off to get shit done. Catch you peeps later.

The Inquisition

2005-07-12T03:33:00.000-04:00

Heh... Spent the weekend away from home and mum decides to ask questions.

Mom:"Where were you?"
Me: "Friends place." (hand at door, looking tired)
Mom: "Your LOCAL friends, right?"
Me: "Yes." (Exit stage right)

Of course local friends. What other friends do I have in the vicinity but local friends. My mum is weird. She thinks I must consort with Albanians and Czechs (ed: he actually would like to visit the Czech Republic).

Funny how you spend so many months away from home and suddenly you go away for three days and they think you're consorting with Russians and Poles. Funny part is i already told my dad I'd be at a friend's place. Sigh...

I think I need to move out of the home when I return for good. I will miss the free laundry service and cooked meals. But I suppose I already live without that in the US, I can survive in Singapore without it. Plus that way I can bring my special someone back to my place without worrying about extra questions from parents. I also have to remember not to give mum house keys.

Dad is learning boating. I hope he gets his liscense. One more reason for him to prove that 71 is the new 21. Heh... or something like that. Also gives him a good excuse to flee from mom. I really pity him. How does he stand her? Especially when me and my sis are not around. We both might be abroad in 2006-2007. So that would be a miserable time for dad. Poor him. Get in the boat and stay at sea. Mum always gets seasick.

I realise if it was just dad in the house, I'd be cool about living in the house. But Mum can be quite a drag. Especially when you grow older and need more personal space. I mean I'm on holiday. And even if i'm not it really shouldn't bother her too much especially since I already notified a parent. It's not like I ran away from home or something. =P

Alright to bed. So tired.

The missing Scarlett Ting

2005-07-11T15:34:00.000-04:00

As most of you know Ms Gone with the Wind, has gone with the wind. There have been haters and there have been supporters, but seriously here's this wabbit's take on her sabbatical:

(1) She's actually gone to find Elvis and the Yeti who are currently in hiding. Sources have spotted her in a diner with Elvis having green eggs and ham. As well as off roading with the Yeti somewhere in the Himalayas.

(2) Ms Scarlett has actually gone off and married Mr Rhett Butler. So no more blogging.

(3) She has been abucted by aliens.

(4) Kenny Sia has chosen her and she's moved to Kuching, Malaysia to be with him. Sorry ladies...

(5) The organisers of this weekend's blog con have kidnapped her and intend to use her as a pinata.

(6) or a Microsoft pusher *ahem* promoter

(7) She's actually an alien, hence we can't take photos of her without the swirl, and has phoned home.

(8) She's a ghost, again with the photos, and so her time here is up.

(9) She's actually a Men-in-White spy, whose goal was to infiltrate Singapopo blogdom. And know she's briefing HQ about the upcoming Blog Con.

(10) I actually have her all tied up in my basement. Muahahahahaha... (ed: you don't have a basement and I think someone else might get mad).

Well have a good rest Ms Ting and I look forward to seeing your posts about how handsome and irresistable I am. (ed: erm... he really doesn't mean that. he's spoken for.)

Villages and Delays

2005-07-11T13:42:00.000-04:00

This morning pissed me off. It started off good. But I got home and discovered despite having two printers, we're entirely out of ink. And this throws my plan off. So I'm now not leaving until 12 August 2005. Heh... Alot more time to sit around in Singapore. Heh... Filling up the forms can be very tricky. Like countries I've been to in the past 10 years. I dunno. Can't remember. So I just had to think real hard and wrote them down.

i realise I go to Malaysia quite a bit. Never to Johor though. That's like going to Tijuana. Tioman is like Cancun, KL like Mexico City and Penang, well Penang is special. You go there for the food. I remember once I went there for a wedding. i was introduced to teh-peng. heh... Funny how the two folks getting married met in NUS Law, but were both from Penang. Best part was they lived two or three streets apart and didn't know until they first went up to Penang as a couple. heh... They probably passed each other a dozen times a week for years without knowing it. So strange. That was also when I coined the phrase "kor-cle" and "jie-ty" heh. I was 11. They weren't quite kor or uncle, jie or aunty, so I guess my genius of a mind (who is still on holiday in the Carribean) made this up (know you know why we had to let him go on "holiday").

Talking about holidays and beaches I remembered going to Tioman once and getting stuck in a 36 hour black out. It was actually fun. The local sundry shop became the hub with their generator. Went out to the beach after the rain had stopped. Relaxed and talked to friends. You could obviously tell the highly wound up folks from happy-go-lucky folks like me. Some people were complaining about the heat or yelling at management for power. I figured the power lines got cut and management confirmed my hypothesis. so we sat in the dark, under starlight and moonlight. Quite romantic until one of my female friends started hollering from her hut. We ran to her hut and she was yelling about a cockroach. So armed with cellphone lights (this was back in the old days of 2004, when phones weren't equipped with powerful lights){I love my new phone} we tried to kill a cockroach in the dark. Not very successful, and she refused to sleep in her hut for the night. heh... Silly cockroach.

Last time I went to Tioman before 2004 was when I was 8. Yes 1988. We went fishing. I remember seeing flying fishes hit the boat. I also remember showering outside in a little shower hut. Heh... and shitting in an outhouse with no flush. Those were good times. I think my appreciation for rural life comes from my youth. I remember living in my first maid's village somewhere in the Philippines. Feeding chickens and hanging out with her nephews and nieces. I'm glad my parents always made sure to expose me to kampung life. That's why i love the rural life quite a bit. The slow pace, the relaxing, the lazing about... Heh... It may also contribute to me being so lazy.

Talking about little villages. Been to Holland Village a few more times. Honestly I like Siglap more. More relaxed and so much more sea breeze. But I will say that Holland V is better to pretend that the street is your grandfather's road. At Siglap the buses will show you quickly whose road it is. Sad to learn that Joo Chiat has gone to the dogs... Oh well... I guess my traitor of a dog would like the place. I still cannot he'd betray me for a little girl time. Human girl too... Talking about Holland Road I think i read once that the road was named after a Mr Holland. This helped confirm my suspicions all along. Firstly Singapore never had a large Dutch population since the English would never have allowed too many Dutch (their rivals) into Singapore. And why would the British name the damn place after the very folks they were trying to run out of business.

Heh... Ok need to get stuff done. =P Must be done by 5.30pm.

To Build a Better Mousetrap

2005-07-11T01:51:00.000-04:00

So today I had the pleasure of going out with friend, who I will name hesitant shopper (HS). It's really funnyhow you really want something, but you're shy about buying it, or you keep thinking it's too expensive. I'm guilty of it too. But HS was really funny about it. We walked into the store twice, SMSed another mutual friend, who I will name SMS Friend (SF) about getting it, and eventually decided that she would get it with SF without me. Something about male company and not quite being the same. =P

Watched months old SNL tonight. Boring... I really pity TV watchers here (like my sis). Everything is old and local dramas can sometimes be so trite and similar. So sad indeed... One more reason to think about coming home. I need Adult Swim on Cartoon Network and Comedy Central. Oh and Sci-Fi Channel and Tech TV. I miss South Park and the all new Family Guy. Aaarrrrggggghhhh...

Oh well sticking to my books. Heh... Philosophy to dull the senses and befuddle the mind. Was talking to a friend today and tell her that having a BA means that now I'm a certified fool. My Masters would make me a Master Fool. Heh... It's just a piece of paper. I'm no smarter than you or anybody else. (well ok, it's arguable, there are zombies out there). I just like getting a PhD so when anybody asks: "Is there a Doctor in the house?" I can say:"Yes but I don't save lifes, I just confuse them."

Also talked to my goodsis about teaching. Heh... I realise I can be very sadistic, so those of you going to poly in about two years should keep a look out for the sadistic lecturer. Pop quizzes for the entire class if anyone sleeps, SMS, or talks in class. A D-grade will be like 170/300. Heh... And a C-grade would be 200/300, a B-grade would be 250/300 and an A-grade will be 270/300. Heh... Of course I am sure the head of department will ask me to revise my grade scheme.

Alright got to go now and pretend to grade some papers and build myself a better mousetrap for those poor kids.

Ah... July 10th... a day to remember.

Mushy posts

2005-07-09T13:18:00.000-04:00

Ok ok FF, no more mushy posts. Jeez... You put one up and everyone is up on your case. I think I'll need to claim the one free beer from you.

Heh... Well some interesting things I've observed this past few days. The staff at Rouge are really friendly. I've never seen such polite bouncers in my life. I mean a friend of mine did something and usually i would expect a gruff statement of how you couldn't do that, instead the bouncer politely told my friend he couldn't do it. With apologies for having to tell him off.

Also my dog, Bubbles, is a traitor. A regular Judas Iscaroit. My godsis came over and he just kept hanging out with her. When my guy friends come, he runs away. Little traitor. You're voted off the island, you're the weakest link, our pack doesn't want you anymore. Little horndog. =P

Spas are nice. Wraps are great. And the concept of a neighbourhood spa is wonderful. Balik Kampung. Nice...

Ok got to go, catch you slaves *ahem* readers later. =P

You know it's for you

2005-07-08T01:32:00.000-04:00

Her voice was like a Siren's call,
Like a moth to the flame I am drawn to her.
I try to pull away,
But each time I get sucked right back.

The sight of her face,
The smell of her hair.
Those doeful eyes,
That precious smile.

Every time I step away from the brink,
I'm brought right back to face the abyss.
Each time I tell myself no,
Another part of me screams yes.

This union cannot be,
Father Time would not favour Lady Luck.
Like Romeo and Juliet,
Just without the poison and fueding families.

And yet I dream of her,
Those alluring looks.
I think of her,
my Helen, my Aphrodite.

Luck picked my lot for me,
and Love handed me a lemon.
Yet I still go on,
pinning for my Siren.

A Sad Moment Indeed

2005-07-08T01:06:00.000-04:00

Dear Londoners and fellow human beings,

I am so sorry to hear that you have become the latest victims of terrorism. You have always had to endure IRA bombings in the past, but in the past few years you have known relative peace. Having won the Olympic 2012 bid, you were all ready to celebrate and enjoy the fact that you have been given the honour to host so prestigous an event. My congratulations to your fair city.

Whoever did this has been decried as inhuman, and I agree that terrorists have never been very humane. Even if we get rid of this lot, there will be others who will come after and cause similar trouble for us all. They peddle in terror and fear, and they seek to keep our spirits down and hope dead.

Here's what we should do to them. Go on and celebrate the fact that you won the bid. I know you cancelled the party for fear of security and it would be wrong to celebrate so near to death. Postpone the party but have it. You must. It is important that you celebrate. In fact, the leaders of the G8 should go home and organise celebrations for London's successful bid.

Am I crazy? No. Terrorists peddle in terror and fear, hence the name. Our best weapon is not to give in to the atmosphere they hope to create. Fear, and hopelessness only makes them gloat. Instead let us celebrate life, and hope. Our greatest weapon against these heartless men is hope. When Pandora's Box was opened, in the end Hope was last, but most important for our survival. I remember being in America on September 11th, I remember the feeling of dread and fear. Yet I also remember how some folks were complaining that too quickly life returned to normal. People were not going to let terrorists stop them from going on with their lives, from doing the things they always did. We put up with some inconveniences but we go on celebrating life.

So please my British friends, go on and celebrate the good things that have happened to you. Don't forget the bad things and don't forget the dead. But do not let the terrorists win the battle of our hearts. We will use hope and creation to crush their message of doom and destruction.

Once again my deepest condolences. I wish I could do more, but anything would be too little too late. You have my thoughts and my prayers.

With warmest regards and lots of prayers,

Me

Once a Cheater, Twice a Cheetah

2005-07-07T02:24:00.000-04:00

So I went back to my old school today to meet up with teachers. It was cool. Nice to know that former Colonels are being sent to schools now. So instead of going to GLCs and making wise decisions about investments, they can now make decisions affecting the youth. Only problem is they don't get runner in schools. Think of it, a new movie Dude where's my PA? It can be directed by Jack Neo. My Chinese teacher actually thinks my chinese has improved (thank you. thank you very much). Oh yeah my old teach gave me a book with nice sentimental words in it. She and many other teachers in my life are the reasons why I want to mold young minds.

Dad was nice today. He asked if I needed to buy stuff before I went back to the US. I do need to get my visa done though. But a Visa would be nice too. *wink wink*

So met up with some friends. One of them actually danced on the table for S$60. Sponsored by the rest of us. Heh, she got paid more for less work than a hooker in Geylang. She spent less than 15 seconds up there (although it is arguable that some men take less than 15 seconds). I wish I get paid $60 for 15 seconds of work. It means I get paid $240 for a minute and $14400/hour. Wow. I can work like 4 hours a day and be rich.

So I'm completely bowled over by one of my friends. Like totally infatuated. You know the early signs. Sweaty palms, "steady my beating heart" sort of jazz. Actually not that bad (here's look at you kid), but something like that. Everytime I see her I feel like just holding her hand and giving her a soft peck on the cheek (if you are her ignore this). I barely know her, but what I see I like and I want to know more. Unfrotunately like the evil wizards of lore there's a massive barrier called practicality and reality. So we live in this sick sad world. Heh... Just gonna keep wishing and hoping. =P And so we live out our humdrum lives.

Hokay, need my beauty sleep for beach time tomorrow. Maybe I might swim. Big if. Salt water and me are not the best friends. =)

New Phone. Yipppeeee!

2005-07-06T19:14:00.000-04:00

Feel better now. New phone. Nothing like retail therapy to make you feel better.

Yay! So now I get to take more pics. With my 1 gig memory stick. =P

One for the Road

2005-07-06T12:26:00.000-04:00

Quick post for now. About to run off soon. Just talked to sis. Wow! Cramps are bad for her, so bad she can't drive. Heh... She works for a theatre company. Well as an intern. Go sis go! Lucky they're a theatre group. Their conception of work and time is not very good. As long as you put in 8 hours a day they're ok with you coming in at noon. Heh... I think both me and my sis abhor 9 to 5 (8 to 6) jobs. Hence we're both aiming to teach at some level. She's got a good head. Can't make money off of theatre alone, so might as well teach at the University. You get a steady income, prestige of people calling you doctor at least (usually professor) and you can still be active in the theatre scene.

Excited about visiting my alma mater. Wonder how it has changed from the last time. I heard alot of changes. Sigh... getting old when your former classmates are teaching there now. Heh... Ooooo... teacher fantasies may actually come true. Yay! (ed: erm... ok... sigh)

Alright I'm off my duckies. If all goes well i may also get the Sony Ericcsson k750i. Yay! New phone with camera. i can take loads of pictures and post it here and bore you with my entirely boring life (ed: like right now?)(shut up you!)

dieses ist das Ende mein Freund

2005-07-06T02:30:00.000-04:00

Ok firstly via a friend who does not want to be revealed. Xanga makes a good point why the East is cool. Honestly nothing good comes out of the West. So take that all you West side people. East is best. We've got culture, we've got beaches and we've got cool people. Plus I live in the East. 1000 points for the East. I must warn you a little brutal and honest. So if you're the Politically Correct type or the supremely left wing bleeding heart type, STAY AWAY from the post.

Saw Neil Gaiman. So many hot female fans. Wow. Makes me want to write deep philosophical and also mythical stuff. Gosh darn it! He got to it first. Also got interviewed. Unfortunately I had 5 seconds to prep and so I think I sounded like an idiot. Could have come up with a better answer. Bought tons of books from Kino. Heh... And I got YOU what YOU wanted. Here's a reading list (in no particular order):

1. The Economist July 2nd - 8th
2. Foreign Policy July/August 2005 (must renew subscription in the US)
3. The Social Contract by J.J. Rousseau (ISBN 0-141-01888-7)
4. Lucifer trade paperback 8 (I love my comics)
5. Either/Or by Soren Kierkegaard (ISBN 0-140-44577-3)
6. A Treatise of Human Nature by David Hume (ISBN 0-14-043244-2)
7. The Future of Freedom by Fareed Zakaria (ISBN 0-393-32487-7)
8. Freakonomics by Steven Levitt and Stephen Dubner (ISBN 0-06-073132-X)

Plenty of things to keep me occupied for now.

Talking about books, here is a list of books you should read in college and a list of most dangerous books in the past two centuries. (via Imprezzions)

For those with short attention spans I have taken the liberty to summarize.

10 books you should read in college are (drumroll)...

1. The Bible (read that one)
2. The Federalist Papers by Alexander Hamilton, John Jay, and James Madison (ditto)
3. Democracy in America by Alexis de Tocqueville (read snippets)
4. The Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri (not yet)
5. The Republic by Plato (snippets)
6. The Politics by Aristotle (nope)
7a. Nicomachaean Ethics by Aristotle (nope)
7b. City of God by St. Augustine of Hippo (read this one, 7 is tied by the way)
9. Confessions by St. Augustine of Hippo (read this too)
10. Reflections on the Revolution in France by Edmund Burke (nope)

My score: 4/10 plus snippets from 2. Hmmm... Maybe I should go back to college again. Oh wait I am. (ed: ha ha, very funny)

10 most dangerous books in the past two centuries:

1. The Communist Manifesto by Karl Marx and Freidrich Engels (read that)
2. Mein Kampf by Adolf Hitler (i refuse to read this)
3. Quotations from Chairman Mao by Mao Zedong (snippets)
4. The Kinsey Report by Alfred Kinsey (nope, but someday I will)
5. Democracy and Education by John Dewey (nope, don't intend to)
6. Das Kapital by Karl Marx (started, but gave up halfway)
7. The Feminine Mystique by Betty Friedan (nope)
8. The Course of Positive Philosophy by Auguste Comte (nope)
9. Beyond Good and Evil by Freidrich Nietzsche (nope, won't really read it)
10. General Theory of Employment, Interest and Money by John Maynard Keynes (maybe someday)

Score: 1/10 with snippets from 1. So I guess I'm not dangerous. =P So come on down and arrange for a date ladies. [hi mom. I try]

Note: These lists were compiled by a conservative newsletter.

This just in: sis is taking car tomorrow. No car for me. Aaaaarrrggghhhh... I'm so spoilt. (ed: yes you are)

Ms Molly Meek (I love the girl, someday she will be mine, all mine *cue evil laughter*) has a very funny post. i love it. She is so funny. I'm in love i think (ed: don't bandy such words around unless you mean it) Fine. Not in love. She's just so funny though. I had to "tomorrow" her.

Sob sob... Scarlett Ting has gone on a sabbatical. Come back soon my dear. I miss you already.

Went out with Boston Beauty to Dempsey road. Roy was on duty as manager tonight. I like the guy. Mild mannered and soft spoken. I think Boston Beauty was hitting on me, but then again it could just be my desperate-ness (is that even a word?). [hi mom. see what your nagging has done, you've driven me to desperation] (so that's the word. not desperate-ness) I need a "hit-o-meter" so i know when I'm being hit on and when women are just being friendly (ed: go invent one). I think women complain alot about that and I completely understand. I am clueless with these sort of things. So hard to tell sometimes. =P

Off to go visit my alma mater tomorrow. It should be good. But no car... so I guess it's the taxi companies then. Unless i try to drive manual. Not that I don't know how. Just that I haven't done so in 6 years and it's a mercedes too. Big and chunky. Aaaahhhh... Taxi it is. (this means I can also drink like a mofo and not worry about sobriety checks)

Hope your cramps get better sis. I'm glad I'm a guy and i don't have to go through that hassle. Also i get to pee standing up. but i can only orgasm 3 times in a night (on average anyway, and not that I had to... ask me how many times i did it one night if you ever meet me) =(

Decided not to shave my moustache today. Just shaved the bottom. Wonder how it'll turn out. I do look like my dad when he was my age, only fatter. (yes i have many chins my 3 sexy sirens)

The bed awaits. Time to snooze. Must be up in 7 1/2 hours. Correction 8 1/2 hours. (one benefit of not going to school/work is i get to determine what time i wake up) =P

Unholy Gambit

2005-07-04T22:08:00.000-04:00

I feel like shit. Under the weather. (ever wonder where in the world that term came from, under the influence of the weather maybe??)

I had to say no to a gorgeous babes for evening outings. HOT BABE!! I hate this place. I've never felt so sick so often as when I am home here. Must be the water. (i mean drinking other people's piss may not be quite right)

I'd like to apologise to hot babe, ms f**k, for having to turn down your company. I really wanted to. But it is getting late and I feel like crap. Also i guess i should sleep early. If I want to be anywhere near healthy to see neil gaiman tomorrow at kino. =(

I hate my life. Off to my bed.

An unexamined life

2005-07-04T04:11:00.000-04:00

Well everytime I meet a new blogger I get a question about if I'm the only person blogging and who ed and ture/lie are. I know I explained it as a literary device but it's more than that. (ed: indeed) I'm not schizo. It's more like a dissection of me, as a person.

Ed here is the voice of reason. The reasonable part. Caution. Safety. Security. Absolutely dull but absolutely trustworthy (ed: not sure if I should feel praised or insulted) That's a side of me. The side that puts calculated in calculated risk. Dour, sedated and very normal.

true/lie is conscience I suppose. Sometimes I say things and it may be a lie (true!). Human relations requires that we lie to maintain certain illusions. We all do it all the time. true/lie is the part of me that is sick of such lies. My conscience. The thing that pricks you when you know you are not doing what is right. (look i don't care if you have a moral compass, I do)

You know Plato indicated that an unexamined life is not worth living and I do examine my life daily. I always take some time out to take a look at it. I see it and I like what I see. I see areas that need to be fixed and areas that I should keep in the face of the world. I'm an idealist in the end. But I can be a pragmatic idealist. There are somethings I will give up but there are others that I won't (ed: that's telling them) (true!)

It's nice that this little pink blog has fans and haters. You don't have to like me and you don't have to hate me either. This is who I am. Deep down inside this is me. Why pink? Because I dislike the colour intensely. So why not. All that pink is, is a colour.

Today a friend, who I was having dinner and drinks with, was telling me that a guy, whom she had gotten to know recently, told her he loved her. Despite the fact that he had no intention of leaving his girlfriend. Jeez... Men do suck indeed. I will admit it. Sometimes I catch myself doing shit like that too but ed is there to rein me in (ed: yay! final credit!). How much more dishonourable can this world be. Hedging your bets, sir? Puh-leeeese...

Here's my two cents, any man who tells a woman he loves her, must act upon those words. He cannot hope to be fishing for a favourable reply. It's all or nothing. Either we put our money where our mouth is, or we not bother trying. This smells of bullshit. Why am I so angry? I don't quite know. Maybe it's because there are some very ugly parts of humanity that I hate with a vengence. And i mean hate.

This leads to the perennial question of is man born good or bad? Confucius thought Man was born good and Mencius thought Man was born bad. I'm not a philosopher and I cannot come to an answer for that. I believe Man is born good, with a conscience. But over time we can overcome that inherent goodness. In time bad acts can become habit. An old friend once told me that our sense of morality is like a triangle in our heart. It pokes us everytime we do something that is ethically wrong. But we can ignore it and over time the poor triangle will wear out its sides and in the end it'll become smooth all around, a circle. And so it will poke no more. What state is your triangle in?

I lie. I will not deny that (true!). But my life is not one built on lies. I cannot live a life built upon lies. In my life I value honour above all else. A man is only as good as his word. If my word carries no weight, then I am worthless. I'm glad that my promises still have currency amongst friends.

So this is my examined life. At least so far. I like what I see. I know the places i must fix and I must come face to face with the things i refuse to see. I also see areas which I must preserve, upkeep and make new again. Life the never ending project...

Onions and Me

2005-07-03T03:41:00.000-04:00

I'm sad. Why? I won't really say, but allow me to carry on... (ed: hmmmm...)

I've come to realise that no one quite knows who I am. Everyone wears masks and what not, and yes we've all heard the cliche. Yet there is a holistic me. A whole me. It's just that people refuse or do not see the whole me. We always choose to see in a person what we want. It's not that a person presents merely one facet of him/her self, but rather we pick and choose the parts we want to see. From this blog people will assume I am schizo, yet on my other blog (whose name will not be revealed) you would think I was a bleeding leftist. Too often people look at me and see only a son, my father's son, a smart student, a witty conversationalist, a quiet boy, a rich man's son, an arrogant bastard, a poor man's son, an obedient child, a thinker, a socialist, a brother, a wise friend, a silly friend, someone to sponge off, an ex-boyfriend, a lazy person, and any other face they want to see. Not even my parents really see the whole me.

I am judged in so many ways simply by the clothes I wear, the car I drive, the friends I hang out with, my parents, what I say, the way I act. I walked into Gucci today with my first love and no one paid attention to me because I was in shorts, t-shirt and a baseball cap. My friend's mum doesn't bother talking to me, because she's a social climber and she doesn't know who my parents are. Waiters treat me well because I have a non-singaporean accent. Some people think I'm a poser because I have a non-singaporean accent. Even people who've had longer conversations with me have come to judgement quickly. I have seldom judged someone quickly It usually takes a long while to form a concrete opinion of someone. I am weary of how people assume I must be a certain kind of person just because.

If you think I'm sad because of this, I am not. I am sad over an entirely different reason. Ever feel like quitting? A very good friend once said I was the kind of person who would throw everything into something I loved, but I could also throw everything away, give up and just walk away. I think I've sort of reached that point in my life. I'm ready to just throw my hands in the air and walk away from it all. Sick and tired of it all. It's all fake, all artificial, all unreal. What am I talking about? I'm talking about eros love (see earlier post you lazy f**ks). The silly games we play. The silly angles. The silly tricks. The silly moves. I'm quite ready to quit. Is it really worth my time? Should I even bother? Another good friend warned me that local women are materialistic and I agree. But which woman isn't? In the final picture it is about security to ensure the survival of offspring. Love? We make it up to justify security.

Now I am free and without pressures of adulthood. When the responsibility of being a grown up catches up will i even have the time to partake in the masquerade? Will I have the energy to care about the silly games? Will I even want to dance that never ending tango? Because it doesn't end until the day you draw your last breath. On and on we go. Will I be able to handle it all?

Then again, can i spend an entire lifetime alone? Can I override my natural inclination to perpetuate the species? Who will be my foil? Who will I confide in? Can I truly be alone?

A wise man once told me that we cannot plan for all things and some of the most important things in life just happen. Indeed. But right at this point I really feel like throwing my hands up and quitting on life. (No i won't kill myself, that's just silly) Is life really that dismal and bleak?

(ed: but aren't there also the good times? remember all the times when you enjoyed the sun on your back, working on the lot. remember the joy that filled your heart when you recieved compliments. remember the first touch of lovers. remember those quiet moments when shit is just happening all around you. remember those sunsets. remember little babies. remember those tears when a love affair ended. remember the warmth of human relations.)

There really is no conclusion to this. (ed: rightly so. Life is a book that has been written, is being written and will be written) But maybe someday my Zen moment will come. When all things become clear. Or perhaps they are clear, I just refuse to see it. Who knows...

el soltero

2005-07-02T13:43:00.000-04:00

You know that cole potter song? What is this thing called love?

What Is This Thing Called Love?

I was a humdrum person
Leading a life apart
When love flew in through my window wide
And quickened my humdrum heart

Love flew in through my window
I was so happy then
But after love had stayed a little while
Love flew out again

What is this thing called Love?
This funny thing called Love?
Just who can solve its mystery?
Why should it make a fool of me?

I saw you there one wonderful day
You took my heart and threw it away
That’s why I ask the Lord in Heaven above
What is this thing called Love?

What is this thing called Love?
This funny thing called Love?
Just who can solve its mystery?
Why should it make a fool of me?

I saw you there one wonderful day
You took my heart and threw it away
That’s why I ask the Lord in Heaven above
What is this thing called Love?

Love is a very strange creature isn't it. I remember the first time I ever went out seriously with a girl. I wouldn't call her my first love since I was still on training wheels. I just jumped on the opportunity to have a girlfriend (I blame my all boys school education). Looking back the pairing was not the best or brightest. And so I ended it. But I suppose I ended it in guilt when I started considering other women. We lasted about 1 year. I realised then that my understanding of love was evolving...

My next girl friend was a very sweet girl, but then again I was a very sweet guy. I guess we ended that relationship because we were both quite practical. She was off to university and I was in the Army. It wouldn't have worked. My best friend pointed it out that there are more eligible bachelors in the university. And true enough she's totally attached to this engineer, who by the way she complains is unromantic. That's what you get babe for dating a man with no soul. (ed: a little bitter are we?) I began to realise that love was a word often bandied seldom understood. What is it?

I don't think I want to bore you too much with the evolution of my conception of love. I have reached this place where I begin to understand that love is a feeling, but love is also an act. We can act out of love without having a feeling of love. On some days we just hate our loved ones [hi mom. you know you get on my nerves sometimes], but we continue to be patient, kind, caring and generous even on their most unloveable days and on our worst days.

The Greeks had several words for love. Eros is what we'd call romantic love or desire. This love is of course obsessive, lustful and very very blinding. Too often we confuse the two, or are not honest enough to admit that we lust after someone and not love them in any other way. Philia is love between two people who have no familial bonds. Friendship. Platonic love. Where there is not sexual component to it. Like me and FA. We have a very platonic love. We enjoy each other, but do not lust for each other. Storge is natural love. Love that subsists between sons of the same mother and between parents and children. The love of family. We also have Agape love this is unconditional love. As a Catholic I believe that God loves us unconditionally (you can argue if you want, but I'm sticking to the theology). I try my best to emulate that, but it is indeed difficult. Everything we do is lined with agenda, it may be good or bad. But remember the road to Hell is paved with good intentions.

Why do I mention the Greek conception of love? Well I guess because I am a Greek (fraternity man) but also because alot of modern western culture is rooted in the Greeks (no I haven't abandon my Chinese culture, they just don't talk about alot of love). In my life I have known all four kinds of love. Right now I am experiencing all four right now. Sometimes I can experience several of them in one person (ok not storge and eros, you sick f**ks).

I have been thinking about romantic love, I know it makes the heart beat so fast. It gives me butterflies in my tummy and it just drives me crazy with desire. But I always remember the flip side of desire is despair. Twins (thank you neil gaiman). Same emotions. Just different conclusions i suppose. Sigh... Desire and Despair... so similiar. So cruel both...

Alright... off to bed again. Need more sleep. Hope I've bored all you people to death. =P

I have never...

2005-07-02T06:43:00.000-04:00

Went to dinner with the three sexy sirens, Finicky Feline, Scarlett Ting and Sassyjan. How can man choose between three such beautiful women? So diffcult a choice. Also met up with William again. Luckily he was there to deal with the women involved. And so once again this little bunny managed to escape the all important question of who to choose.

Came home to my sis watching TV at 4am and telling me my parents were quarreling. Which would explain the phonecall at 2am from home. heh... My mum loves to drag me into their quarrels, despite me always telling her i don't want to be involved. [hi mom. seriously your relationship problems are not my problems, don't drag me into this hoping to make me take sides] Mum always does that. And I always try to explain to her that she can choose to stick it out or quit and leave. Either way me and my sis will still be her kids, just as we will be my dad's kids. Oh well... That silly thing called marriage.

I'm considering what exactly love is... And to be honest, it's hard to describe it. It's extremely liberating, yet wholly confining. It's supremely wonderful, yet entirely horrid. I can definetely feel the beginnings of these feelings right now. Heh... Not getting into anything in this last month that I am here. Not worth the hassle and the trouble. Well that's what I say anyway. (ed: and we all know what you say usually doesn't hold true).

FF asked me about my accent today. Like I said before it's like new me and old me. You really wouldn't like the old me. the singlish speaking me. So very un-inspiring or funny. Plus it feels quite alien now. Heh... But if you like I can switch... or try anyway... I promise I'll end up back with my new accent.

Ok off to bed. Need the sleep. I'll dream the dreams that Morpheus will allow.

Poiché non sono voi

2005-07-01T17:23:00.000-04:00

Via Lancerlord

geen favorieten

2005-07-01T12:10:00.000-04:00

For the record, FF, I have no favourites. Don't give up yet! I am a little hurt you didn't write about me. Sob sob... How about you and I go some place quiet and get to know each other? =P (ed: ahem... do you think that is wise with the "no favorites," you might want to invite all 3)

On that note, so Romancing Singapore is still around. Which means tonnes of free or cheap shit for couples. As well as loads of ideas for all you un-romantic men out there. ( i think, i never go to that site until Tomorrow featured it, i mean seriously romance is quite natural, unless they've managed to breed it out of us) They even have a jingle. Yeah silly sounding jingle too. OMG! Go make babies, it's your National Duty. Serving National Service is not enough. GO MAKE BABIES you useless plebs! =P [hi mom. i would do my national duty but i have to be married right?]

Nothing much to do today (hint hint) except maybe meet puppet for lunch and decide to go to a birthday party. I really don't feel like it since it will largely end up as a drunk fest and too much group cest goes around that group anyway. I cannot stand that, plus puppet will be there late. Why do I keep mentioning him? Because he doesn't drink as much and we're cool that way. So we don't get f**king drunk and do silly things. So we can always sneak off to Siglap and get coffee. Because I have no woman to fill my month here. (hint hint) [hi mom. look, it's not like i'm not trying, just no one is biting]

Off to grab lunch and play with poochy. He's so cute. And so handsome too.

Sie hörten es hier zuerst

2005-07-01T01:55:00.000-04:00

Well tonight I plucked up what courage I had and went down to Holland Village to hang out with Finicky Feline, Scarlett Ting and friends. I also met Vamp Jie and Jane Doe. Along with Mandrake. And my old sci fi pal Aberwyn. It was such a big gathering. it was much fun. (ed: glad you had fun)

I must say Holland Village has changed alot since I last went (about 5 to 6 years ago). I'm not much of a Holland V type of person. I am an Eastern boy at heart. I hang out at Siglap and Joo Chiat, Pasir Ris Park and Changi Village. Tampines and Bedok are my stomping grounds. Heh... So of course Holland V had changed to the point I don't recognise it.

Ok before you hear it from FF, Janice, or ST, I do not have a favourite yet. All three of you are equal. I just got Ting the flowers because she was upset about other girls having bouqets. I seriously do not have favourites. (at this point I'd like to keep my options open) (ed: Should you even be saying that in public) (quiet you) [hi mom. what can I say]

I am very surprised that guys don't buy any of you flowers. You'd think folks would be lining up trying to dump flowers on you three. Well i guess the men you hang out with are no fun. I love flowers. I used to keep a vase with carnations in my room. By the window sill. Just so I had something beautiful and natural to look at everyday as I read or typed. Tsk tsk... bad singaporean men... BBBBBBAAAADDDD!!!

Yes Lancerlord... I am desperate for groupies to adore me. Know of any? I could use the recommendations. (ed: ahem... groupies? What next? Sex drugs rock and roll?)

Ok off to bed. To the gym tomorrow. FF said I had a belly. =( Must work out.

Creature Comforts

2005-06-30T14:08:00.000-04:00

So last night I saw War of the Worlds with Puppet. It was pretty good. I mean it was good if you're a sci fi fan. If you enjoy reading books that me and Puppet read. We're cool that way. =P But if you were an ordinary movie goer (also known as a pleb) (ed: he's not a classist. he's actually quite left) you might not like the ending. It feels like a Dues Ex Machina. But of course it isn't. That's how H.G. Wells wrote it.

Went down to the Wine Company on Dempsey Road. I must say that I wasn't too impressed with the wait staff (waiters and waitresses to all you people who don't speak bunny). Except for Roy, who was amazing. We talked a good 5 to 10 minute on Port, and how it is dying here in Singapore and Australia. Also how Port is not good for warm humid weather (which by the way is one reason to not come home) and how tawny port is a rare find in Singapore (you'd think they'd bring in tawny since it's lighter). Then Puppet gained his wine education from me, and I'm not very good at wines either. My big grouse with the place is that their food is not well paired with the wines. Plus most of the food seems geared towards the heavy reds. I really think most Singaporeans drink reds because those are the famous names and veritals. Whites seem to be stuck on Chardonny, because it's famous. Although I am pleased that Muscato and Rieslings have some currency here (otherwise I definetely am not coming home). So sad indeed that most places only carry one muscato, one port and two to three Rieslings. I remember the Wine Merchant in Saint Louis... walking down two rows of good German wines... yummy... And the staff knew what they were talking about and how to pair wine with cheese and meats. i mean seriously the Wine Company only had chicken and bratwurst. Jeez... What about prosciutto or salame/i. And please pair the cheeses well... I was a little upset, but Puppet was there and he recommeded the place and I didn't want to seem like a bad host. Anyway enough of my wine snobbery.

After that we bought a bottle of S.A. Chenin Blanc (because I never had it and Roy recommended it) and took it to Indon darling's, FH's, place. Her bro and sis were there, that's why we got the wine. But then i realised we had to chill it, so I didn't get to drink it. =( Then half-arab princess, FA, showed up after Batman Begins. We talked about nonsense while FH took FA's music off her external HD. Puppet just played around with the laptop while FH's siblings tried to sleep above our din.

FA and I are very comfortable with each other. We both realise that. Not in a physical way. She's physical with some douche bag who I will not name. We talk tonnes of shit. And I enjoy talking to her about what I think about eveything. As in, I'm f**king honest about everything including our relationship. Heh... We're so comfortable that my american best bud, MF, asked if there was anything between me and FA. Well ladies... the answer is NO. (so I'm still on the shelves, come and get me ladies).

I told her that I can still do the Singapore accent, but I realise that's like me as Clark Kent, the old me. While my unknown (or sexy according to FF) accent is the new me, Superman. Heh... They are like two seperate people. I like the me I have become. FA asked if it was fully formed or growing, and I believe it's fully formed, but it will continue to grow. I know what kind of man I am and where I want to go... The old me was the young me and it has evolved and grown on foreign soil and I think it's time to leave that cocoon behind and head on out into the real world. I still use Singapore tone on mum and dad and old family friends...although I slip into new me if I hold long conversations... like with my Godpa... sigh sigh...

Puppet changes his accent to match my new one when I was out with him... I feel bad... makes me want to go back to old me, but that isn't me... It's like being Bruce Wayne when I really want to be Batman. =P

So tough. So hard. Am I a poser? Am I real? I don't quite know... heh...

Tagged by Choc Galore

2005-06-30T13:51:00.000-04:00

Thank you jaschocolate for occupying my time.

3 screen names you have had - gavjosh, gavin, postmaster-general

3 things You like about yourself - wit, sense of humour, my ability to fly (ed: erm... ok, by plane right?)

3 things you dislike about yourself - flabby, easily distracted by women (my kryptonite), lazy (like a donkey)

3 things that scare you - the long lonely nights, growing up, having little postmasters running around

3 of your everyday essentials - money, credit cards, car

3 things you are wearing now - t-shirt, boxers, nothing else (keep dreaming ladies)

3 of your favourite songs - Can't Take my Eyes off of you, Let's Do it, Foggy Day in London Town

3 new things you want to try in the next 12 months - Masters program, getting a white house internship, buying furniture for my new apartment

3 things you want in a relationship - love, fun and lots of cuddling

3 things You can't do without - Oxygen, Food and Water (ha ha... of course)

3 places you want to go on vacation - South Africa (Johannesburg in particular), Eygpt (Cairo in particular), Turkey (Istanbul or bust)

3 things you just can't do - be a woman (although some days I wish), not think about women (sorry my mind is always on women), sing any song (can't hold a tune)

3 kid's names - Andrew, Edward and Georgina (Actually i don't care)

3 things you want to do before you die - Spend a few years in Eygpt/Lebanon/Turkey, Get my PhD, marry (i'm the marrying kind I think)

3 celebrity crushes - Nicole Kidman (still waiting for the call), Andy Lau (he's so dreamy) and I dunno... Audrey Hepburn (i know she's dead, but she was classy)

3 people I want to nominate to complete this tedious exercise -
Finicky Feline (because you know I love you)
Scarlett Ting (because you hurt my feelings)
Mr Miyagi (because I want to know if you read my shit you cute little man you)

GO straight to Jail

2005-06-29T16:07:00.000-04:00

Yah this is a cry for help... Man I am bored... I need a woman... (nudge nudge wink wink) [hi mom. I do try really]

Signs that the end times are near

2005-06-29T16:01:00.000-04:00

via mr brown

I think would work for this site

This one is good yah.

You take the high road

2005-06-29T15:53:00.000-04:00

Looking at mr b's site today and his most latest post on the CTE sign board. It got me thinking about something I saw the other day and something I experienced last night.

Last night the PIE was closed from 12MN to 5AM, which isn't such a wierd thing really. I mean I say a police escort follow a huge truck taking a massive looking cement cylinder up the road. Now that seems ok, you know road construction, refurbishing old bridges and what not. Anyway the PIE was only closed between the Eunos to Tampines stretch. So no biggie. I take Upper Changi Road home. But... A few days ago the CTE was also closed for a similiar duration of time. 12MN to 5AM... Now that got me thinking... I wonder if the AYE, ECP, BKE, TPE or SLE will be closed anytime soon. Whatever it is, the two main highways of Singapore have been closed for about 5 hours each and a large cement block was being transported on one of them. Get's you thinking...

Any theories out there on the highway closures?

Just gas

2005-06-29T03:47:00.000-04:00

Man this song has been stuck in my head since I heard it in 1999. No one else in the US seems to have heard of it... heh...

Private Number
by 911
album: The Greatest Hits & A Little Bit More,
There It Is (1999)

Since I’ve been gone
You’ve had your number changed, ooh yeah
But my love for you, girl
Still remains the same, mmm
Now, I’ve been loving you and
You’ve been loving me so long
Baby, what’s wrong
So I’m asking

Baby, baby, baby
Please let me have your number, yeah
Baby, baby, baby
Please let me have your number, ooh

I’m sorry you couldn’t call me when you were gone
Well I tried to call you, baby haah haah, baby
But other fellows kept on calling while you are gone, hmm yeah
So I had my number changed
But I’m not acting strange
Welcome home
Baby, nothing’s wrong
So I’m saying

Baby, baby, baby
You can have my private number
Baby, baby, baby
You can have my private number, oh

Oooh, so if I called ye
Will you be home
Oh, I will be waiting
There by the phone
Now I know your number
Though it’s been changed
Tell me now, baby
Love’s still remains
I've, I've been loving you I’ve been loving you
You've been loving me You’ve been loving me so long, oh, so long baby
Nothing’s wrong
So I’m asking

Baby, baby, baby
You can have my private number
Baby, baby, baby
You’ve given me your private number

You know I want, you know I want
You know I need, you know I need
You baby
Baby, baby, baby, baby

You know I want, you know I want
You know I need, you know I need
You baby

Hoooh...
You know I want
You know I need
You baby

Just one more thing, wasn't Fann Wong in it? What ever happened to her? So I checked the internet movie database and came up with this. Interesting...

Also my question about the other lead actor in cocktail has been answered.

Ok. That's it.

The places we will go

2005-06-29T02:27:00.000-04:00

Heh... I hope to make this map better...

create your own visited country map

Thanks Mandrake... Don't need to sharpen knives. We'll just deal with it like men, Pistols at Dawn? (for those not in the know, I guess Mandrake and I might have to fight each other for the lovely Finicky Feline's hand) =P (or maybe we'll ditch her and just go for a beer and check other women out) *double =P*

ainsi alésé, entretien à moi

2005-06-29T01:57:00.000-04:00

Just got back from Batman Begins. Good movie. I liked the complexity of character. This is why I read Batman comics folks, because he is absolutely nuts. Well something like that. Superman is cool and keeps everyone levelheaded and the Martian Manhunter is the intellectual, while Superwoman is the feminist, Green Lantern is the alternate powerhouse and Flash is the comic relief, but Batman... Batman is the ultimate chess player, a hero after my own heart. For all you lovely female worshippers *ahem* readers out there, let me make all of you jealous by letting you know I was out with Boston Beauty. =P (ed: he's still available ladies) [hi mom. I try]

So far I have 3 interested parties to join my gang *ahem* society. Strangely enough it's all female. Which leads me to several conclusions:
(1) Most of my readers are female
(2) I am actually a good writer for women only
(3) I am a woman writer (imagine the implications of all this)
(4) I'm actually charming, but only to women
(5) I should set up a harem

Thinking about point 3 (see above), what if I really was a woman and so far I've used my older brother as bait for all of you. And you think I'm a guy, but really i'm sneaky and i'm a woman. Ah ha... Conspiracy...

To be honest it's kind of been an ego stroking few days for me... I won't really say why, but I think my ego is growing out of proportion (ed: it's true, i'm running out of space in here) (truth!). Sigh... am I turning into an egotistical man? (or is it woman? *suspenseful music*)

Got an invite to a private movie night, but alas I had my own movie night. Thanks for the invite though YOU. Talking about movies, hung out with Puppet today and we're going to watch War of the Worlds tomorrow. Yeeessssss! Tom Cruise *ahem* H.G. Wells. Yes!

Also picked godma up from the airport with godpa... Pretty cool. I got to see the new book that the local Harvard Club is hoping to publish. heh... no I am not a Harvard man and I doubt I'll ever be a Harvard man. Once I had dreamt of it, but I don't think where I'm going will take me down that path. Oh well... I'll give Boston a miss for now. =P (the clues women, the clues)

Ok off to bed... I've been awake since 9.30am... Yawn (here's looking at all you working people).

Observations of a couch potato

2005-06-27T21:56:00.000-04:00

So I watched Joy Luck Club and Maid in Manhattan back to back tonight (thank you cable, thank you very much... you spared me from Spy Kids).

We all know the reason why I watched Maid in Manhattan. For J Lo. I mean that's a chica right there. Yummy. Heh... Joy Luck Club I stumbled upon, but I really liked it. It serves as a constant reminder that our parents usually mean the best for us. We just don't get it until we're way older and even then the relationship is never quite so settled. I suppose now that I AM getting OLDER, I begin to understand my parents better. My mum still gets on my nerves but I've learnt to put it down to just her being who she is [hi mom. you do a good job]. My dad's always been cool, so no worries there. He's a great dad to have. Like a buddy. I cried watching the movie (truth!), I realise I actually cry quite a bit, when reading good stories or watching sappy movies. I know it isn't manly, but remember my brain is 2/3 female. =P (refer to earlier posts you lazy bums).

Moving on to newly made friends... Finicky Feline has bad luck with men... or is it just her and the men she hangs out with? Poor you... But don't blame all Singaporean men, we're generally good (come on guys back me up on this one). Ok ok... So maybe I'm the only good one out there, but others are still ok. =P (ed: actually he's quite a cad. I wouldn't trust him with my only child, especially if it is a girl)

Just in case all you women want to rip on me (i've got my cricket bat ready), squarebrain.net has a good cartoon just to make all of us men feel a little better about ourselves. So I'll file this under my women sucks category (which I don't have since I adore women, well some of them anyway).

Vamp jie's friend had an interesting incident. Yes... I can see where exactly this could have happened. Again let me roll my eyes *roll my eyes* (don't you love the interenet? I can't roll my eyes in real life, not very well anyway). Oh well, what can you do? Firstly someone is getting fired and secondly the press just loves to talk about nonsense. Seriously, can we just have more mature news for once? Oh well... What can you do.

Jaschoc is pregnant?!?! I kid... Well who knows... Seeing as how I've never met her in real life. =P

There's also some sort of diesease going around where people have to talk about their fav movies. I'm going to try and avoid that illness. Otherwise I'd have to pick and choose. And I really don't want to choose between Godfather, Scarface, Animal House, Tombstone, Fight Club and Gone with the Wind. Too diffcult... I love you all... I can't pick a favourite. =P

Okay, off to sit down with mum and go through my graduation pictures. You know of me being all so handsome and being a certified educated fool. not just any fool mind you... a fool that can join the SDU (which sounds more and more appealing with each passing day).

The Society of Postmasters

2005-06-27T13:44:00.000-04:00

Since my semi-secret identity has been exposed and the secret organisation of postmasters has been revealed, the exectuive committe of postmasters have decided to begin recruitment of new postmasters into the secret organisation. We're not masons and we're not a social or service fraternity. Our organisation focuses solely on posting witty comments on blogs, and shamelssly flirting with fembloggers when the opportunity arises. To rush (apply to join for non-greeks) us you must have the following criteria:

1. You need not possess a blog, but you must read blogs on a daily basis.
2. You have a consistent track record of posting
3. You must be witty (the selection committee will make that decision)
4. You can be male or female or undecided
5. You acutally have to get along with the Postmaster-General

Interested applicants should send a email to the Postmaster-General at modernburrow@gmail.com. Rush events will be emailed to you. (they generally involve drinking)

Yeah Buddy!

PM-G recommends...

2005-06-27T13:08:00.000-04:00

Two things I want to recommend to you my loyal reader(s):

1. Engrish.com: Funny site. i love it and the fact is we also see this in singapore quite a bit.

2. Woot.com: Read the descriptions of the offer du jour. Updated 1pm Singapore time. Good deals on all sort of shit. A must visit everyday. I used to stay up past midnight to check shit up when I was in Saint Louis. (ed: he actually doesn't sleep until 2 every night anyway)

Yeah I thought I'd recommend these two site. =P