The Recycling Bin

Trip to the City of Angels --- Los Angeles, CA

2008-09-03T23:46:00.000-07:00

Well, ever since I got my Facebook account, I had stopped blogging... argh... so sinful it is to use Facebook... haaa anyway, now that I am bumming in L.A., I will try to re-light the fire of blogging.

The journey begins with my trip to the new T3 at the Changi International Airport. It was an eye-opener as it is really quite nicely done. The marathon of waiting begins... i waited for like 1.5hours at coffee bean just to see what gate i am boarding... then it was another hour of wait to board the plane.

Then it was a torturous 4 hours to Taipei. Gosh there was this pair of siblings who sat beside me.... one boy and one girl... the boy was not shy at all.. hahaha... think his name was Ryan... his Krisworld console din work so while i was sleeping, he switched on mine and was trying to play with it, and it was then that i woke up to his incessant complains about not being able to see the screen.... like DUH! If he had asked nicely, I would have change seats with him in the beginning.

But oh well, as the generous and magnanimous self as usual, I changed seat with him. The boy was delighted and it was nice to see his face lit up. Watching him gobble his food and his dripping cornetto cone was very entertaining...

Oh ok enough of that, then there was another 1.5 hours of wait at the Taipei airport....then comes the gruelling 16 hours of flight to LA.

When i finally reach LAX (LA International Airport), it was around 8.30pm. The security was tight... the guards were stern... questioning to the minor details of "your luggage looks small, is that all you brought?" Well i understand that it is required especially its is close to the 9-11 incident....

Well, after the whole security ordeal, i managed to come out of it unscathed.... then i spotted the tourist info counter... as i approached the guy at the counter, i can already sense his hostility... like i owed him money or something... i asked him how to go to my hotel and he just said take a cab. OOO how i wish i could just slam his head onto the counter-top!

Well, a cab i did take. While i was in the cab, i was busy reading all the slips of paper pasted on the plastic protective divider separating driver and passenger. Gosh it was alot of info to process... and i was busy calculating the cost when we already arrive at downtown LA.

To my horror, the fare was like US$55.00/- gosh.... ok never mind... everyone drives in the states so i suppose taxi fare is only for the tourists...

Ok so i checked in to my hotel and got another surprise... hmmm no water... no food... no notin in the room to eat or drink... well... fine... so i got out... and there i saw, a vacant city... like a scene from Resident Evil.... not a soul in sight... and most of the shops are closed.... gosh... it was scary... i walked and i walked... hoping to find the bright signage that says 24HOUR STORE... finally, there it was, my life saver... FAMIMA!!!

The next day, I woke up at around 5.30am... yes freaking early... well the sun here rises this early... anyway I had no pre-planned itinerary, so I slept again... hahahah... or did i? Hmmm cant really remember... i was feeling a bit under the weather... maybe jet-lagged or something.... had carl's junior... then watched tv... then slept more.... and so was the following day... it was horrible... nothing was opened... it was like something sucked the life out of the whole city.... I thought it was the weekend... so I hoped for the better on monday, I was wrong... hahahaha

Little did I know it was Labour Day on Sept 1st... ok so I decided to do my little tour of the Downtown area myself.... and it was quite fun... but tiring... and the sun was very strong... no clouds... so the heat was bad but the shadows were cool... for the whole 3 days, i saw mostly drifters... hispanics and some asians moving around... that's all...

Tuesday, ah... wonderful exciting tuesday, I couldnt wait to see the bustle of the city... and there it was, early in the morning, i see people going to work as early as 6.30am to Ernst and Young building next to my hotel...gosh and the traffic is starting to build up already... Finally, I can feel the pulse of the city... the kind of city that I had come from and also ha imagined LA to be...

Had a very very satisfying breakfast at this Italian cafe called Pannini... excellent food and the waiter was very friendly, his name was Manny I think. He was chatty, and told me his trip to Beijing to learn martial arts from Shaolin and then had a trip to Singapore to visit his ex-girlfren... ... ... yakkity yakkity yak

Ok so i was all set to go to Hollywood by metro... but was pushed back to the hotel by the searing heat... so i decided to take a nap till the sun was not overhead... and it was a bad idea....

Hahahaha, the next thing i know, it was already 6pm!!!!! I must be very exhausted from the walking from the previous day.... there... no more Hollywood for me.

Then came the Virtual World Exhibition... tingling with excitement, I was expecting real action this time... then came another disappointment... gosh... the scale of the exhibition was really small.... tiny.... very different from the ones that I had attended back home... i practically finished the whole thing in less than 15 minutes... :(

Maybe the cconvention was more for the conferences... which i did not attend... like because office wanted to save money...

There you have it... yes i am still stuck in my room in LA now as i type my boring trip into my blog... it's like 12.30am.... but 3.23pm in Singapore... ok huger strikes... and maybe i will finish my horrible dinner...spicy chix plate... yuck...

Photomontage

2008-04-09T09:01:00.000-07:00

Just to use this blogsite to link these images to another hahahah...

2008 HUAT AH!!!!

2008-01-02T06:19:00.000-08:00

2008 - the year of the Earth Rat.

This is my first blog entry for the new year and there are so many changes in my life that I can't wait to share with everyone!

Of cos the first thing is my first try in being my own boss, or at least half a boss... heh...

Launch of Artpod LLP

It was a tough decision and also very very tough to run it, especially for someone who has never done anything like this before... but it is indeed more gratifying then working for other people... after teaching a few kids, I felt an immense amount of satisfaction beyond description.

I was searching for something to fill the void inside when I was in my previous job, and now found it and got something even more than I imagined... a basic art course .. S$100.00 ... a smile on a child's face ... PRICELESS... ... and a heartfelt smile from a parent after seeing the joy in the child .... simply DIVINE!!!

Well it is indeed 24/7 now since it is my own biz... more tiring then when I was working in CrystalCG... but fell happier and more fulfilling... but pockets are not so full YET... hahaha.... wonder how long I can last... but whether I succeed or not, I can hold my head up high and say out loud, "I REALLY DID IT, and I TRIED MY VERY BEST!"

Ok, and so that was THE event for me in 2007... and now the countdown to 2008...... .....

Countdown at Esplanade into 2008 with fireworks!

Well, resolutions for the new year??? Nay, think that is crap... haaa... everyday every minute everyone should have higher and further aims and visions... not only wait till the end of the year... or the beginning... JUST DO IT!

Movies Movies Movies... Ever wonder what it would be like if your life IS a movie?

2007-07-22T10:00:00.000-07:00

2007 has been a fabulous year for blockbusters...well almost... so far till end July 2007, we have seen the well awaited Spidey-3, Fan4-Silver-surfer,Transformers,and most recently, Harry Porter- Order of Pheonix.

Today I caught DIE HARD 4.0 at GV Plaza Sing... wow... seems like it was ages since I saw John Mclane in action!!! It was surprisingly good!!! The action was really intense and there is of course my recent new hot action screen babe Maggie Q. The plot was a bit weak talking about how a super power like the US can be crippled by a mere attack on its IT infrastructure.

I was like suddenly thinking about what it will be like in real life... for a sec, I thought our little island will be plunged into havoc if it were to happen...and you know what, there will be no John Mclane to save us all... our societal structure ultimately became very fragile due to over reliance on the internet and digital media. It reminded me when the undersea cables in Taiwan was ruptured during the earthquake early this year and all comm was down for the asia pacific region and alot of companies including the one I was working for then was in panic because we could no longer access our email system which means we no longer are connected to the rest of the world ie not connected to our clients and competitors....

We all felt so helpless then... so vulnerable... but did we learn our lesson? Nope.
Once the cable was fixed, we continued our lives as usual... like it never happened... amazing creatures we are aren't we? Never learning from our mistakes. I believe those who will survive into the next millennium are those who took that incident as a warning and diversified their method of engaging in business deals and communication with people overseas.

Those that ignored that warning will soon phase out.

Sometimes people say film-makers are crazy people who have crazy ideas all the time, but I beg to differ as I feel they are the ones who see far into the future. Something not everyone can do, they are like the modern day fortune tellers, just that they package their little prediction with more what we call ACTION and ARTISTIC DIRECTION... and a personal touch.

Ok enuff with the big big deep deep thoughts... after the Harry Porter show, we had a good dinner for all as shown below... hahaha it has truly been a long time since we all sat down to have a meal together... not easy to get hold of everyone nowadays as we all have our busy schedules to meet. So it was fun while it lasted.

To Help or Not to Help

2007-04-19T07:16:00.000-07:00

Today is just like any other day. Sunny and rainy all in one day.
Went cycling at that same time everyday.
Managed to stop and rest only at the second checkpoint. A new personal record.
Was walking home pushing my bike with my right hand when a teenage boy approached me.
He was panting heavily and his speech was slurred.
He asked me:" Where is the nearest private clinic?"
I didnt really catch it the first time. I replied him after he repeatedly say private clinic.
He began to drag himself to the nearest park bench and told me he fell down and is feeling giddy now. He said he even vomited.
I was caught off guard and worry kicked in. I was like, is he going to die in front of me?
Sick thoughts filled my head.
I asked him, "Do you want me to call the ambulance?"
He did not reply.
I decided to look for passers-by who has a mobile phone on them.
I caught hold of a lady.
She gave me that look. I know she has been watching me talk with the "injured" boy all these while.
She must be on high alert now, "Why do you need my phone? What do you want to do with it?"
A simple question requesting for a simple object ended in an illogical rhetorical question from her.
I don't blame her at all.
I expected it.
Only when I clarified that I too was a passerby and that the young man needed help, then her wall high guard started to dissolve.
She asked me who to call, I had no idea. I asked the boy whether I should call his parents, the boy replied saying his mother has no legs so is impossible to get off the bed to answer. Furthermore, they have no phone at home.
I was very close to crying silently in my heart, very close.
The lady then said she should call the police as thats the best option. She did not wish to give him money to see a doctor. I did not have a single cent on me and so, informing the police would be the best thing to do.
So it seems at that time.
I asked the boy if that is what he wished for too. He stood up and started walking away.
We called him.
He kept walking saying, " Never mind, it's ok."
And there, we parted. Our lives became parallel again.
But something was deeply etched into my head. Into my conscience.
As I write this blog, I keep thinking to myself, could I have done something more?
Like walk him to the road to get a cab? At least see that he is safe before I leave him to fend for himself.
Then my rational side started to go mad.
"Don't you see it? It is a ploy to cheat your money!!! Can't you see that he is just feigning it all? If he is really sick, I am sure he would ask you to call for the ambulance? And the most revealing part is when he started to move away upon hearing the word police, it just shows he is a con artist!!"
But then again, would it kill me to give him the benefit of the doubt at that moment? Maybe he really has no money to pay for hospital and ambulance? Maybe he is really afraid of trouble. What if something happens to him?
I feel very ashamed of myself. But at that moment I really was on my guard all the time. Trying my best to make him reveal his true intentions. How evil and heartless can I be?
But this is not the first time I encounter such events. I find that I am really not mentally prepared to handle such situations.
Usually, I ignore beggars and people who ask for donations. I take it that they are but swindlers.
I believe in donating to organizations directly. I have become a zombie with a heart. Someone who feels the pain, has lots of empathy and sympathy but that warmth can never get through the layers of dead skin that has accumulated over the years of weathering this harsh society of ours.
But of course that is no excuse. But that is just who we have become. A living walking zombie.
Sad.
I truly and can only hope that that young man is ok, even if he is just faking it.
Oh yah, he is obviously very overweight. So I wish him best of health and hope all things turn out well, for that is what I can only do now.

Disappointed with Rasa Sentosa

2007-04-12T06:13:00.000-07:00

It has been a while since I sat down to blog. There has been many changes in my life and also the lives of the people around me... so much has happened for the 1st quarter of 2007.

The most eventful took place at my best friend's wedding. Derek and Grace were getting married on the 23rd of March at St Michael's Church and held a wedding banquet on the 24th.

All was well and smooth until the night of the banquet which was held in Rasa Sentosa Shangrila. It was a nightmare and I felt really sympathetic towards the couple.

Here are the complaints we had against the hotel:
1. The couple was greeted wrongly upon arrival at the hotel by the events manager. To think that such a mistake would occur when there are only 2 couples having their wedding banquet there, and worse off is the events manager did not respectfully apologize and simply brushed off the incident hurrying in the couple with the words: " Oh so your are the other couple ar? Ok never mind you can have this bouquet of flowers also.."
ARGH!! What kind of attitude is that?

2. Next we reached the front desk to check-in. The couple and the "sisters" got their rooms ready but the "brothers" have to wait as the room is still being cleaned. So I left my hp number with the frontdesk girl and she said she will call me once it is ready. 30 minutes have passed and no one called me. I went over to the frontdesk and looked for the same lady but to my horror, she said this to me : " Hi Sir, can I help you? Has anyone attended to you yet?"
Gee, either she has amnesia or she has a twin... didnt she just took down my hp number 30 minutes ago???
Never mind that, I had to get to a 3rd staff, yes THREE people, to get my keys which had been ready all this while but no one wanted to call me.... WTF!!

3. At the cocktail reception, all the waiters/waitresses were all crowded at one corner for whatever reason I don't know, hoping that no one will take all their drinks away from their tray so they wont have to walk in and out of the restaurant I suppose... I had to like wait for 20 minutes or so with my empty glass in my hand before I caught hold of a waiter coming out of the restaurant. Either the staff are not well trained or its the standard of the hotel... hahaha..

4. The dinner was worse.... the VIP table had no food and drinks...VIP to them is like just another table I suppose... the Groom had to go into the kitchen to ask for food!!! Imagine that!!! Worse of, the waitress told Derek to wait as they have to serve in sequence... hahahhaha what an answer!!! I suppose VIP stnads for last to be served!!!!

5. The Couple's nightmare also included a faulty door, non-operational DVD player, and a low-battery safety vault which had all the "ang pao" money and jewellery for the bride... the poor girl had to go to the restaurant with no bling blings....

6. After the dinner, the "sisters" were locked out of their room and had to sit and wait 45 minutes along the corridor for the help that never came... they had to go down and drag a staff up to their room to get it opened...

7. I ordered a bottle opener and 2 wine glasses and until today, the staff that was on his way is still missing in action.... I am very worried for that staff of theirs....

8. Revelation. We were having lunch at the restaurant Silver Shells I think, we ordered sandwiches and it took them ages to serve us... 2 orders were still missing but we saw that the other guests that came later were all being served their food...anrily, we asked for the manager, he explained the rest of them are having ala carte so they are a bit busy... hmmm aren't we having ala carte also? Then it dawned upon us... the OTHER guests are all caucasians and some japanese.... to think that WE, SINGAPOREANS are out ranked by them in our own turf... I am speechless.... now we all know why we are so "unlucky" the whole time, because we are not foreigners...

There are much more stuff... but these are good enough to lower Rasa Sentosa Shangrila to like 1-Star... Never would I go there again... And I hope they will do a better job serving the "foreigners" than they did to us.

Black Night @ Grand Copthorne

2006-10-22T23:38:00.000-07:00

Cameras clicking away with flashbulbs exploding into plastered faces with gold and silver adornments glitter away as the glam queens try to out pose each other. Old friends meet and handshakes with occasional hugs sporadically took place at almost every corner of the reception area. Yes, it was a star studded event. It was the wedding reception of my good friend Cheeli and her husband Phillip. An architect and a banker. Shabam!!! The guest list is already looking good and the cast that arrived was spectacular. Top earners and top architects. What a night this shall be. I was one of the closer archi-friends and tasked to help out. The gals took so much effort to doll themselves up and gosh, they look soo soo different with the glam factor in place... not to be outdone, the guys also came in their all black outfit with stylishly gelled hair, ties and cufflings.

The meal was marvelicious and the best part is the video made by Sanson. It was played right at the moment before the bride and groom marched in. The accompanying music was none other than my FAV Chasing Cars by Snow Patrol!!!! Very well done!!! I liked the morphing part best when you see Cheeli morph from baby face to adult phase.... way cool!!!

All the best to the couple and cant wait for little chilli padis to pop out... hahahaa...

PILOT's ROM

2006-08-24T20:13:00.000-07:00

Our dear friend the Pilot has finally signed his bachelor hood away on this fateful day, 18th August 2006 friday.... all his friends were there to witness and also to help...
It took place in Villa Bali, an outdoor dine n wine area.... nice place... but freaking humid and warm... all of us had to help decor the place.. and i was assigned as the Project Manager... damn... so much responsibilities..

But it turned out quite well... we practically transformed the place into a gem man... take a look for yerselves!

My KL TRIP Photos

2006-08-24T19:22:00.000-07:00

Haaa just needed to empty my handphone memory... so might as well upload all my photos that can be viewed publicly.. haha not that there are any who cannot see daylight...

Anyway, I went to KL like last in July 2006 and it was supposed to be a working trip but I brought along Derek and my colleague brought her mother n sis... it was fun... shop shop shop eat eat eat... hahaha sounds like HK...

Anyway here's the photos.. the hotel shots are Berjaya Times Square suite which I paid on my own... its bleddy expensive i tell ya... but it was huge...

THE BIG 40

2006-08-24T19:05:00.000-07:00

It was my colleague Den's 39th birthday yesterday... woohoo... so close to the big 40... it was fun..... and the thing is... he dun look 40.... not even close... look at the pix and you will know... i wonder if mentality really plays a part.... he is always so cheeky, playful and basically energetic.... well not really when he was stuck in the sales team, but now when he returned to being a fitness instructor. he kinda went back to his old self which is the bubbly Den...

so i suppose mentality DO play an impt part....

Well enjoy the pix!

One Serve Closer to Meeting Sharapova

2006-08-22T21:19:00.000-07:00

It has been a while since i blogged... pc at home spoilt... bummer...

Now using office pc to blog..hahaha...such audacity rite.. but i dun care... so bored at work now.....anyway..wats happened since my last blog is like just plain old plain old...
maybe the only thing worth mentioning is my Tennis Lessons! Yes, finally, i decided to get some real pointers from the pro...

OOOooo it was fun... learnt a lot of neat stuff.... 6 lessons in total for beginners.... so far been to 3 of them... learnt to use forehand, backhand and serve...wohoo on my way to te Wimbleton... watch out Federra... and here I come Sharapova...

Ok interrupted by the bitch accountant in my office... argh.... feel like slapping her...

gtg

Money, the Root of all Evil.. or is Greed for Money the Greater Evil?

2006-08-14T20:16:00.000-07:00

Recently, I was pretty perturbed by the thought of amassing huge amounts of money by doing various investments and also freelancing jobs. I am pretty bent on becoming my own Boss.

To add fuel to the fire I was already in, my fren Sean just said that we should create a company to "motivate" people.... a thought that came about when my other fren Benoit got cheated by this motivational company that charges like 1K plus for short sessions of motivational courses that doesnt have anything for the students to take back with them, its all about hypnotism and reaching into the people's sub-consciousness to awaken the Dragon in them...

To me, that is like a scam... a whole lot of crap... but then again its good money... just imagine in one night I can get around 80-100K.... that is like half a Durai peanut maybe?

Anyway, its strange that some part of me says its a golden goose but another part of me says its a terrible thing to do to cheat people...but then again, if we do in fact help them release their Dragon persona, then we did a good deed right?

Still, I think we are all slaves to Money, something that is created by ourselves to trap ourselves... Man can be so foolish... so maybe money is not Evil by itself... it is afterall an inanimate object... its the Greed for it that is Evil.... the unsatiable appetite for it that pushes us off our pedestal and over the fence to the "other side"...the point of no return...

Well, for now, I suppose I have to work 3 shifts to earn my half a nut...

The Snake The Wo-Man and The Apple - Chronicles of Garden Of Eden

2006-04-21T21:05:00.000-07:00

As told in the bible, in the Garden of Eden, Adam and Eve lived in eternal happiness until they stumble upon the fruit of knowledge and wisdom, the Apple offered by the Snake.

Why is it so BAD and EVIL about gaining knowledge and wisdom?

It is said that after eating the apple, they gained insight to their self-consciousness. They became aware of their own persona. They started to be ashamed to be walking about naked....they became "civilised" in a primitive way.... the beginning of Mankind's Self-Actualisation some say.

It is funny that just yesterday in my weekly meeting with my friends, The Pilot popped a very interesting question to all of us....he said "Would you rather be SMART n UGLY or DUMB n BEAUTIFUL ?"

Its a very intellectual question indeed.... requires at least 5 minutes of deep thought.... hehehe.... well many of us immediately put off the idea of being dumb n beautiful and was standing on the smart and ugly side, saying that as long as you have your brains, you can survive...i call this group the BASIC INSTINCT group...heheheh...

Then there was the Pilot's group...I call them NEO-RENNAISSANCE .... these people stand on the ground firmly believing that in today's superficial world, a beautiful face can never go wrong, not to say fail... even if he/she is to be dumb and get tricked a few times, they wont feel it cos they are essentially dumb and so ultimately, these are the survivors....interesting perspective...wont u say?

Let's say Eve did not sucuumb to the Snake's enticement... and Adam was smart enough not to eat the apple offered by Eve, then most probably the above discussion would never have taken place, cos it would be meaningless... and I can be 100% sure we are still strolling in the Garden not knowing what an apple would look like... interesting how the game of fate is ... isnt it?

For me, I would choose Dumb and Beautiful... haaa... as at this point of time, I feel being ignorant is a blessing and being beautiful is deifinitely a boost to everything you do in the business world.

Superficial some may say, I prefer to call it Practicality and it all boils down to Survival.

New Office New Pple New Lease of Life

2006-04-21T00:44:00.000-07:00

The end of my CrystalCG career marks the start of a new one.

I was apprehensive at the beginning of whether i should leave the company in the first place as it was a really comfortable place to be in....I was practically the General there.... come and go as i please.... but i was bored and it is scary when you dun see a future beyond those four walls of my office.

Over here at my new place, the environment is like totally different. The location itself is like so very industrial.... no buzz like the city.... no food like the heartlands.... no nothing.... the colleagues here are very old... and keep to themselves... most of the time I am on my own.... no one even knows what i am doind all the time.

ISometimes i regret my decision but then again, if i dun move on, i will never move on ever. Maybe it will get better... like it did in CrystalCG. Maybe it will take time... or maybe i will move on even before it starts to get better.

My goodness.... just look at the number of colors i am using... i must be very bored... ahahaha... blogging at work.... such privilege.... so much doubts... so much uncertainty..... life really is full of surprises... and is ever changing.

Ok. I shall finish this little rainbow by ending with a thought of mine to remind others and me that LIFE IS MORE THAN JUST WORK...LIFE BEGINS AFTER WORK AND ENDS WHEN WORK STARTS...hehehe... happy working zombies!!!

The Door

2005-09-20T09:02:00.000-07:00

Wow it has been a while since i have to time to BLOG....

well today i m to write on the progress made to my DOOR... haaa sounds weird... but u see, i have this bedroom door that has like 9 glass panels and so i decided to stain it with images.... and i invited my frens to do it so as to u know... like leave a part of them with me to remind me of the times we soent together ....

it was fun... i enjoyed it... but maybe not everyone thinks that it is meaningful... some may find it a waste of time... some feels tat i maybe using them to decorate my place for free.... i dunno ... but i m sincere and tats what i need to know....

well so far so good... i tot it is turning out to be better than wat i expect as we do not have professional training in staining glass..hohohoho

well i will be uploading some images along with this so as to commemorate this event.

another bookmarked page in my life.

The World we see

2005-07-22T02:31:00.000-07:00

Before i start yapping today, i should thank one of my readers "Strawberry Egg" who ever that maybe for writing in reply to my blog.... a very insightful excerpt though i dun really quite understand.... i will try to reply with sometin in the same line of thought....

A lot of times, we forget our place on this so called Earth.... we are but part of a bigger picture.... and we ought to know our place. but apart from that, what i am trying to say here is we have become so accustomed to the fact that we are but a mini-gear in this whole clockwork of things and that when we are not part of it, we are branded the MISFITS.... why??? I cannot understand.... mabe people take comfort in numbers... thats why.... but i feel differently, as i was walking back to office from a meeting last week, i spot a young man from afar who seems to have some problem with his leg... cos he was limping... he looked not more than 20 years old... but i can see he has very low self esteem as he kpet looking down at the ground.... only to peep up when crossing the road.... some call this feeling sympathy... to me I would have gone up to slap him in the face and wake him up if I had the guts....

Why wud i do tat? well, alot of times, people live for the world to see... but wat has this world gotta do with us??? will ou mourn for someone who died in Africa? I dun tink so.... you see, even if your neighbor died, most of us wouldnt attend the funeral or even walk by to say some words of comfort.... why??? Cos it dun matter right??? we feel sad for a moment but after like 5 minutes... its so what's on TV???

The World i believe is a world we create for our own.... around ourselves, something closer to heart and not so distant... something we can nuture, protect and keep building, something we are proud of and never ashamed to be in it.... I say all of us should have a World of our own..... i suppose that's why fantasy novels and virtual gaming and even movies have such an effect on us.... they take us to a world we long to have and something that is so personal yet can still bind people together... unlike the real world.

I am not saying we should dwell in such make-up worlds but as a comparison, we should create this World in our physical everyday lives.... something tangible...

Maybe my world starts from a small number of 5... the core being my family.... then starts to grow as i start adding nutrients to it like care and love and values.... then i can mould the growth in whichever i want...whenever i want but never forgetting the core..... I can choose to have lets say 3 closer buds...then from there i can either stop or have more flowering.... never would i have to answer to anyone.... never would i have to be measured by others.... only i am in control.... sounds virtual ??? i tink not.... most of us are doing it sub-consciously.... but it is just that no one actually stops to think about it.... most of the time we think of what others would think....

"if i dun go will they think that i m arrogant???.......what happens if i say this??? can i not say this????...... mabe i should just follow everyone's decision and be the goodie two shoes....why cant they listen to my opinions???"

Familiar lines of thought that sped through your head when you are out in this World??? Having the ability to choose and make decisions differentiate us from the lower beings like animals and plants.... but never were we able to exercise this power and gift wisely..... maybe we never did know how to utilise it... maybe we were never meant to use it....questions that can never be answered....

What we can do in this total mess is to create our own haven, our own little sanctuary..... never to be looked upon by other people's criticisms and at the same time never to criticise people ever again as we dun really care about that anymore do we ??? when we have our own little World to manage.... so it really boils down to the problem of realisation of our Inner World... do we have the guts to face it and to bring it out? Well we can only try ... and when we try, we give ourselves the chance ... at least there is hope for a new world order ... hahahahaha....

oh oh said too much liao..... save some for tomorrow... oh yeah.... this is also a World we build for a getaway.... why are we able to write so freely on the net??? why do we enjoy reading other people's blog??? have you thought about it??? I have... but I never did come close to the answer....

CIAO bloggers..... another day another time another BLOG....

You Fu (Got Luck)

2005-06-27T07:28:00.000-07:00

geez... another sob sob episode of "You Fu" came to an end tonite.... i felt there were many stuff that actually opened my mind apart from the constant reminder of the cancer is not incurable message that keeps being repeated by the actors....

today's episode touched on quite a few stuff....which come to think of it all the episodes so far have also subtly portrayed.....and they are:

1. to keep oneself optimistic and be happy (easier said than done and though easy to understand...this is the toughest to achieve but once successful...the reward is pure happiness)

2. giving without expecting anything in return is the noblest... i felt this actually works for me hahaha in a way ... i mean not tat i want to do for show or anything but it can actually feel very "warm" and sunny inside when one does a deed from the heart instead of expecting something in return....(well FYI the donations tingy where pple approach you on the streets... the other day a lady approach me with these coupons of discount and stuff like that and asked me to buy them for like 10 bucks for the elderly charity well i told her i din want the coupons and then i put 10 bucks in the donation tin and said i just want to donate.... hahahaha i surprise not only myself but also the lady... she was like oh no no take the coupons... i declined and she left smiling with lots of "god bless you" directed at me... small act but like i said i din need the coupons or anything so might as well leave them to her to sell to another person...)

3. the one you love and frens are not forever...the only people who will care for you all your life and theirs too are your family..... no matter how nad an argument is ... as long as it is with your family it will tide over.... afterall they are the ones we have been living together for so long....that is why i finally start to appreciate the Chinese way of promoting family and filial piety... it is how we stick together in bad times and how we can share our joy in good times... sounds like i m preaching hahaha but until you really count your blessings today, you wun be able to appreciate... so do those counting now!!!

.... well i was actually complaining so much recently about my work and wanting to quit and all that.... watching the show helped be think things throung more deeply... there is no end to achieving more and getting more pay.... a job is a job unless one feels that he or she should live like an ant in a colony.... i believe now that taking a job AS a job is more important, it already takes up like 9 to 10 hours of our time in a day and so why must we still think about it, do OT for it and worry about it for the rest of the 14 hours???? It is so silly right??? heheh.... nowadays i keep telling myself to take things in a more open manner.... as long as i tried my best i will stop and if the result is good its great... if not than too bad... i will not let other people push me to the extreme ... i will not be a slave to my job... LIBERATION!!!!!

ok... now to go play my PS2... more fun and enjoy life rahter than to wallow in despair....

The Feast at Tong Luk Seafood Gallery East Coast

2005-06-20T07:13:00.000-07:00

it was yesterday nite when my aunt invited all of us for a feasting session at tung lok seafood gallery at east coast. gosh it was a loooong wait before we started as the traffic jam at that area was horrific. well but the food was good especially the "dang-gui" prime ribs..... ooooh. simply mouth watering.

it was a gathering where everyone seems to have their own agenda.... something i was missing altogether.... i din know why everyone seem to be talking in codes... some seem annoyed ... all blackface and some simply give the nonchalant look.... well is suppose it is some age old vendetta... why cant pple be happy for the moment??

i din let that get to me and started talkn to pple whom i had never talked to before like me cousins hahahahaha.... yes... i use to loathe them but now, we are like newly met friends.... maybe we are all adults now and are all in the "marketing" area where it is only natural for us to idle-chatter and exchange pointers....

anyway the dinner was good....and tats tat.

the night went on as usual but watching the "cancer patients" on TCS 8 on "Te Xie" was another emotional high for me .... the patients were so brave... sob sob... guess we all either break down or march on in face of such circumstances..... but one thing this cancer-patient lady said struck a chord in me....

"........how many times must I be hit in the face before I really wake up and face reality? Are humans really that delusional? Or are so optimistic that we can ignore the warnings of imminent danger to out lives?..."

simply meaning that when we are struck by some misfortune for the first time we usually take it seriously for only a period of time and after that, we actually would revert back to our old ways and get hit again ..... many times bitten and never shy.... tch..

anyway after the show it started to pour and it was a horrific lightning storm.... i sensed that the storm is different from the usual downpour as the sound of the distant thunders are different this time.... and I was right .... it was a truly "shocking" storm..... the lighting struck many times onto our block of houses and actually tripped some of the houses including mine.... gosh it was very scary...

and yes.... lightning storm is one of the 2 things that I am very afraid of since a young age.... I dunno why but I get the shivers just picturing myself out in the open during a storm....maybe in my past life I was killed in a storm ... maybe... kekeke...

today was a very taxing day.... so many meetings and so many rush jobs and the pple in the office are not performing to standard... at least not to MY standards...so much angst in me now but so little i can do .... feel so tired already....

hope I can learn fast to take things in stride and not push myself and others too hard too fast....

A Week has passed ... ... Salsa Nite Again

2005-05-18T09:15:00.000-07:00

A week has passed since the last Salsa Nite at Union Square at Amara Hotel....
Gosh time flies when you are not noticing it ....
Tonite was ok.... din dance much cos got a bad sore throat.... cud hardly speak.... but got to know the guys better cos the gals din turn up ... only joyce and mingli went and later saulin and lifang showed up....first time gals in demand... haaaa

Hmm seems this will be my shortest blog..... but something Joe said tonite made a deep impression on me:

...."there is no finished product, improvements will keep piling ontop of each other... so there is no better time than now.... enjoy the process and not look fervently for the distant future where you may or may not even make the first step...."

Maybe its the way he said it ... well he is 41 this year but looks younger(ard 35-36).... the sincerity and the "layers of experience" inside that short statement can be felt by me .... i dunno about others but it struck a chord in me definitely.... sometimes...maybe alot of times for me... i m just waiting for the perfect time to do things....the deadly PROCRASTINATION disease seems to be invading my system now and then..... maybe Joe is right,.... there is no next time once precious time is lost....anything not done within the window of opportunity will never be completely done.... hmmm....food for thought...

another nite to ponder....

Salsa the nite away...

2005-05-11T08:51:00.000-07:00

SALSA....either u luv it or u dunt....

tonite was fantastic .... the dance floor at union square amara hotel was not too packed and it was a beginner's heaven... not to many "advance" dancers.... there were four gals to four guys.... equal numbers for the first time...

the gals: Ellen, Sharon, Joyce and Mingli (well Saulin came later but she never really say hi though.....)

the guys: Joe, Leonard, Sonny and Me ( of cos there is my Japan Group Tour fren Kenneth who later danced for a while and also Patric, Joyce's SIA-pilot to be boyfren who just came back from Australia)

Some might say we lack lustre and experience when we dance ... and not much patterns and styles but i think we did great today... i believe in 1st steps..... and we had alot of 1st steps so far.......

Joining Salsa class is a 1st
completing the class in another
getting together at the dance hall is another 1st
and dancing without guidance is definitely a 1st.....

i think we all enjoyed ourselves although the initial few minutes is awkward as we are thrown into an unfamiliar environment..... but as we adapt by taking the first steps, we sort of find ways to fit in .... maybe not as well but in our own special ways we did enjoy the whole ordeal... haaa ordeal seems pretty harsh....

Well at least i get to know more people and more about the people i got to know all at the same time.... and i also got to know myself more.... that i have actually moved or in the process of moving into another phase of my life.... something which i have been shelving constantly ... but no longer... i have grown up... mentally....IQ n hopefully EQ too...

Life is really short especially if you just sit around and procrastinate... the least we can do is to make it fruitful ... that is what i believe for now...

Well Salsa all the way!!!

Annual Pugilistic Meet 2005

2005-05-10T07:03:00.000-07:00

九华山庄聚会 (Meeting at JiuHua Mansion in the suburbs of Beijing, China)

Hmmm it has taken me so long to actually blog this since i came back from the meeting... haaa..just shows how busy i m .....

Day 00: 27th February 2005 Sunday 0930Hrs

........after my mum & my bro saw me off at the CIA T1, i met up with my Boss right after the Departure Gate and boarded flight CA958 to Beijing via Xiamen. The flight was loooong and arduous...luckily i did not sit beside my Boss...an escape from naggy boring discussions of work....it took about 4 hours to reach Xiamen...transit there for an hour and off again into the skies towards Beijing...
.........(kuik note: Seasoned travellers like my Boss would actually know the trick of wearing minimum in hot humid Singapore and start wearing winter wear only in Xiamen to prepare for the cold weather in Beijing....haaa but silly me wore everything right from the start...wrapped up like a rice dumpling.....almost cooked while i was waiting for the flight at CIA T1 ....)
..........upon landing, we were separated from the rest of the passengers on flight 958 to go directly to the luggage collection section as we have already gone through customs in Xiamen.... once again... not that i want to complain,,,, but hor .... they are really slow in their job.... it took 45 minutes for the luggage belt to start turning... yessss .... and another 15 minutes passed by before we get to see our luggages.....something that would never happen in our 1st Class CIA....yes i am proud of our airport service .... :)

...........woah.. seems like a pretty looong day right? well the best has yet to come....our mian office in Beijing sent a chauffeur to pick us up and to bring us directly to the meeting place....which is a SPA RESORT haaa yess a SPA cum HOTSPRING resort in the suburbs of Beijing....origiannly meant to attract only local customers but now it is mainly booked by big coporate firms to hold meetings and seminars... yesss unlike Singapore, the mainlanders know how to pamper themselves.....

............the journey from the airport to our destination is yet another looooooooong and tiring ordeal....15km in total...well at least the ride was an eye-popping experience for me....the scenery was absolutely breath-taking...the sun setting and the skies changing colors the birds flocking back home to their nests and in the distant a pale moon starts to reveal her shy yet shimmering face....emotions filled my head and heart almost at once....very conducive for writers and painters....not forgetting poets... now i know why in the olden days the scholars like to drink and recite poetry underneath the vast blue sky....

............Rows of naked trees baring their skeletal limbs, braving the cold dry winds of the night, with only the deep indigo cloudless sky as their blanket, and occasional puffs of white fluffy smoke meandering from the chimneys of the rustic brick houses, created a masterpiece beyond the brush........

.............though not a single person sould be seen, the liveliness of the rural areas seem to be resonating in the dimlit dilapitated houses standing smartly in the vast open fields of harvested sorghum, waiting to burst back to life in springtime....
.............somehow deep inside of me, i felt home...as if i used to live here many many years ago.....an uncanny feeling of dejavu.....maybe its in our deepest consciousness that we are all one big family in the not so distant past.....maybe.....

.............oh oh getting all mushed up.... ok back to reality......after the 15km of emotionally charged ride, we reached the resort....greeted almost immediately by the organising committee, we were ushered into the dining hall where people from all the various branch offices were seen munching away....oh yes i was once again tucked into the corner table with a bunch of heavy smokers...could hardly see their faces with all the pollution...but as a marketing personnel, i must endure the hazards of the job....
.............the meal was not fantastic but was filling....then the head of the committee, a sickly looking wiry man croaked out loud that he has set up a surprise for all of us outside in the courtyard area.......the thought of going back out into the cold was very daunting but as this is a group thing i had to give face.....oh but it was worth it i tell you !!!! the reward?? hahaha i get to set off firewirks!!!!!!!!! yesssss firecrackers as well.......things i have never seen nor touched not to say light up and shoot into the sky!!!!!

..............for the first time i truly immerse my self in the joy of the New Year celebrations.......little things like this that we were robbed of are actually stuff that can light up our lives... a pity i cannot share this moment with my Singaporean family and frens......i know it wud be great fun for all of us..........
..............the excitement, the eagerness and the fear before lighting up the fireworks combined with sheer eye-candy of brilliant displays of colour and sparks with deafening explosions and pungeant smell of burnt gunpowder is simply overwhelming for the senses..... Oooooohh sooo good....

..............Though i was numb from the cold night air, i was all warmed up by the joy and excitement of an age-old tradition that was taken away from us.....sad isnt it......

............ok ok almost done for the first day.... ugh..my hurting fingers....oh yeah yeah the steamy finale........literally....after the spectacular fireworkz, in come another breath-taking scene.....while i was walking together with my roommates back to our rooms, we realised our chalet blocks were encircling a huge bubbling hot spring!!!!! what a sight i tell you.....

..............the dark harsh jagged outlines of stone boulders contrasted well with the swaying withering willows over a steamy almost frothing pool of spring water ever emitting a veil of misty clouds over the surface of the water which occasionally was rippled by the hot rising air bubbles from the bottom of the pool........

it was simply amazing...like i was in the land of the immortals as depicted in many novels and fairytales.....haaa as if that was not enuff, upon entering our rooms, we saw that we have our own little spa pool at the back of our unit overlooking the huge pool outside and is separated only by a bamboo-chic screen...Ooooohhh Ooooh again so ooo oo good....my clothes flew off one by one onto the bed and i jumped in immediately haaaa then the resort attendant start letting in the water and yeowch!!!! it was HOT!!!!!!!! then he slowly let the bamboo blinds down and the space immediately became private.....sooo gooood....immersing in the hot steamy water and the soft zither music in the background is what i call INDULGENCE of the senses.....
........ok that wraps up the first day and so ends my blog......more to come as the saga continues........awaiting the sun to rise again in the EAST.........

2005-05-10T06:50:00.000-07:00

Aerial View of the Cityscape in Tokyo (while I am alone on the Ferris wheel which is 35m high i think .... scary but fun!!!)

2005-05-10T06:48:00.000-07:00

Ferris Wheel at Toyota City Showcase at Odaiho

2005-05-10T06:45:00.000-07:00

Asakusa Shopping Street (if only Singapore is like this .....)

2005-05-10T06:44:00.000-07:00

Sakura at Asakusa (whole street is lined by these lovely flowers)

2005-05-10T06:43:00.000-07:00

Tokyo Disneyland (...simply amazing ...)

2005-05-10T06:42:00.000-07:00

Fujiyama (photo taken from my hotel room...yes very good view rite!)

2005-05-10T06:41:00.000-07:00

Shinsai-Bashi-Suji (Inside the street...so much color and vibrance!!)

2005-05-10T06:40:00.000-07:00

Shinsai-Bashi-Suji (Shopping Street)

2005-05-10T06:38:00.000-07:00

Nikko-Bayside Hotel Main Lobby Staircase (very cool rite!)

2005-05-10T06:37:00.000-07:00

Osaka Castle

2005-05-10T06:29:00.000-07:00

PlasticBag@Japan

PlasticBag is Born

2005-05-09T10:07:00.000-07:00

At last, the PlasticBag is seen in the Recycling Bin!!! What joy it is to be able to type freely and not waste paper although technically I am wasting more energy by using the PC....but oh well at least I took the first step to caring for our environment.... :)

Hmmmm while setting up the Blogger thingy, many stuff flashed across my mind....All those words seem to want to spill out but now... B.L.A.N.K. ..... must be what they call a writer's block...

Anyway 3 paragraphs is a good start .... sheesh think I am starting to talk nonsense already.....
ok I suppose its enough for the day ... for a start .... ok ... trying hard to stop.... ok ....