a lil a

TV-Junked: Who will it be?

2005-09-01T14:46:00.000+08:00

The time has come. The battle of the sexes. Who will it be? Kelly or Kelvin? Man, this is probably even more exciting than Singapore Idol. Maybe 'cause the winner is not obvious. I mean, I love Sly, but Taufik is better.
This time, I am putting my money on Kelvin. And that is after referring to various sources. I realized that his fanbase consists of aunties and uncles (even my mum loves him), and these people have the financial capability to vote. One family even said that they have no budget for voting. Ultimately, it's not a matter of the number of fans, but the amount of votes. Kelvin has already won in terms of single sales. I'm a fan of his so hopefully, the result will be the same for the votes. Anyway, ultimately it doesn't matter who wins, since the top 12 are winners already (even though this sounds kinda cliche).

Natsu Matsuri 2005

2005-08-24T14:02:00.000+08:00

Damn, Singaporeans are REALLY kiasu. I was at the Japanese Summer Festival, known as Natsu Matsuri, on the 20th and witnessed the ultimate definition of kiasuism. The event loans out yukata for people to wear every year and the girls always swarm the area. This year is no exception. Just that it got worse. People actually went to queue from 3pm, when the event starts at 6pm! At least I only went there at 4.30pm... Of course, I didn't manage to win the "professional queuers". But I swear, I will make a comeback next year! 2.30pm!
On the whole, I rather enjoyed the festival. It's almost the same every year. Eat, watch show, eat, dance a bit, go home. But there is just something about the matsuri that makes me wanna take part year after year, ever since my secondary years. Must be the Jap genes in me.
Too bad they didn't have the ice-kachang this time around. They sold nice accesories though. Even I, who is not really fond of such "ling ling long long", bought two necklaces. But tell me, who can resist the cute Playboy bunny?
The best thing about the festival must be the yukatas. And the cute Japanese. Man, how I wish I can just kidnap one of the Japanese kids home. Too bad they don't have fireworks. (And no, I don't mean the National Day kind.) The ones I saw in Japan were a mesmerizing sight.
Saw many old and new friends there. Chloe, Noshuu, Joyce, Limin, Jocelyn, Keat Wei, Jun Kit, Sulin... I realised today that many others were there too. It's really a small world huh.
Too bad the photos didn't turn out well. I'll have to dig hard for something nice to post.

(Woah, look at the people!)

Ps. Check out This Spartan Life. A talk show created, shot and filmed entirely from the scenes of Halo 2. Freaking funny.

TV-Junked: The ultimate superstar

2005-08-19T09:22:00.000+08:00

I got a pleasant surprise when my two favourite Superstar contestants won last night. Kelly's victory was no surprise, but I'm sure many fans of Junyang must be crying at his loss to Kelvin, the blind guy. I'm not about to complain, since I support him and even voted for him. But I am seriously wondering why he won. Junyang has been the hot favourite throughout the competition. Either the negative news disgusted some of the voters, or people pitied Kelvin. If not, he must have fans who are damn rich.
Some people may say that Kelvin does not have the superstar look. I kinda think he has successfully turned his flaw into an advantage. Besides, who can object that he is a good singer? He definitely sings better than many other Idol-rejects out there.
Now, it is the battle of the sexes. I don't really care who wins in the end, but given my 'luck', Kelly will win. Carrie won Bo. Ruben won Clay. Taufik won Sly. I am always supporting the runner-up.

40 years and counting...

2005-08-09T15:43:00.000+08:00

Singapore has gone through a lot to be what she is today. Many people have done a lot to help make Singapore what she is today. No matter how we complain about some of them (y'know who I'm talking about), we can't deny their efforts. Though I can't say that I am very patriotic, I am still happy to be a Singaporean. I don't even mind the annual National pop songs, like the Taufik and Rui'en one that is playing non-stop in Mac now. I like the melody, but please don't repeat it every five minutes! It won't make me more patriotic or anything. I think I will dream about the song tonight... But I shall forgive them since today is a day for all Singaporeans to rejoice. So, Happy National Day! (And pray the songs will be off the tv tomorrow.)

Ps. But it's kinda cute hearing the young kids sing along to the song. Sigh, the innocent younglings...

Irritating Bus Jingle

2005-08-04T14:04:00.000+08:00

Sometimes, change is really for the worse. I stepped onto a 196 bus this morning and got a surprise when a jingle was played. At first, I thought it was not bad, y'know, it gave a sense of welcome and stuff. But after listening to the same music continuously for a few stops, I started worrying for the poor bus driver. The jingle must be so distracting to him. What's the point of incorporating the jingle? It is a bus, for goodness' sake, not a shopping centre.

FoC! Free of Charge! (I hope...)

2005-07-18T10:05:00.000+08:00

It's finally here! After a year of mind-boggling planning and laborious effort, the most awaited event of the year is finally here. FOC! *dances around* It's gonna start in... 40 minutes time. I'm excited, but very tired as well. Though I am generally a slacker, I am feeling the sores and aches already. And the ever-present sore throat is back in full force. Hopefully, the freshies will appreciate our effort. And fellow FOC-GLs/programmers out there, just do it!

Back in Hall

2005-07-17T02:35:00.000+08:00

I'm finally back in hall after a semester's break. It's nice seeing everybody again and regaining my 24/7 net access, but after a year of staying in hall, I've decided that I still prefer my home. Even though daily commute from home to school is horrendous, nothing compares to the feeling of my own mattress. Ok... The TV is one big temptation too. And I realized how true the phrase "Distance makes the heart grows fonder" is.
Anyway, back in hall means a busy, busy life. Pre-camp is right on top of the list. Of course, it is not as hectic as freshman orientation camp last year, but it is a 'pre' camp. I expect less hours of sleep and a good throat for imitating A-Do for the coming days.
I just had the traditional 'hunted house' experience earlier in the night. This year, the ghosts has twisted themselves out of Sentosa and made me explore places of NTU that I never knew existed. I thought the Fright Night was not bad, considering that many props were still not in place, but a senior of mine felt that it was not as good as last year's. Indeed, last year's walk was held in a spooky deserted house. It IS scary even without deliberate decorations. So, you can't really compare the two. What I am more interested in, are the terrified (hopefully) looks on the freshies' faces. Bwahaha.

Aug 14 2003 - A proof of my useless brain

2005-07-17T01:58:00.000+08:00

I was mourning over my loss of my nick on IRC, when I realized that there is a difference between '-' and '_' there. Meaning: A name with a hyphen and an underscore is different.
I decided to try out this logic with blogger.com. And lord and behold, I actually applied for an account here on August 14, 2003! *faints* I'd completely forgotten about it. Ha, I probably was cursing myself when I re-applied for an account, thinking 'Who's the idiot who took my nick?!'

OtakuON: Cosfest 2005

2005-07-11T21:02:00.000+08:00

I didn't really expect so many people at Cosfest 2005. I have been to cosplay events before, but maybe because they were J-rock-centered and there are relatively fewer fans, and so the crowd is not as much.
However, I was rather amused by everything I saw on Sunday. The Bokuto no Ryu cosplayer was probably the funniest person that day. His moves, his facial expressions and his poses were just freaking hilarious! Bwahaha! Well done man. But you seriously reminded me of Elvis Presley trying to be funny.
Best cosplayer of the day: Predator. People followed him no matter where he went, and I was one of them. Wonderfully realistic, complete with sound and attitude. I love the way he terrorized people.
The Deathnote group was kinda cute too. I have to admit, I wasn't too supportive of them at first, but their skit was really funny. L whining when Wakari called to say there was no more cheesecakes, and then Raito beckoning L to join him in the Dark Side. Oh man... *rolls on floor laughing* Lame humour, very Singaporean.
Too bad I was only there after 3pm and missed out many of the performances. The winning group from Battle Royale the movie supposedly put up a people-killing fic, true to the movie.
Damn, after the event, I really have an urge to cosplay... Need to start going on a mad hunt for possible characters now.
Below are some selected photos of the event. Go to my Flickr account for those that I have uploaded. I have more, but I don't want to burst my account, so you will need to email me for them. Oh yes, cosplayers who don't want your photos to be posted, leave a message too.

117th IOC In Singapore

2005-07-11T20:34:00.000+08:00

I know, I know, the IOC has been over since Saturday. But poor me was not able to have net access till today.
I have to say that I wasn't too shocked that London won, since they are the hot favourite as well, but I pity Paris. Their presentation was the best to me. Comprehensive and entertaining. New York only focused on the emotional part, while Moscow obviously couldn't do much about the evaluation. Madrid... I was nearly asleep during their presentation... Paris and London are the clear front-runners, but my bet was on Paris. I was even thinking that I probably should start learning French for a 2012 trip there. But too bad.
I took a trip down to Raffles City on Tuesday, one day before the presentation, to see what merchandise I can buy. Well, and also partly to see if I can catch a glimpse of Beckham. Anyway, this is the result:

Not bad huh, this flimsy piece of paper cost me $8.90. However, I am still pissed at the people stamping the logos over the left portion of the letter.

Redefine Beauty

2005-07-05T13:50:00.000+08:00

Beauty needs to be redefined. And we Asian women can do play a part.
I was at the launch of Dove "Campaign for Real Beauty" this morning, which basically is a presentation of their survey results on the views of Asian women on beauty and a dialogue between several professionals. There was a plastic surgeon Dr. Goh, a NTU lecturer from the SCI, Selena Tan the actor, Tisa Ng from SCWO etc and of course, members of the media. It was a very enlightening session, I must say, and congratulate Dove for launching this campaign which put the attention back on Asian normal women.
Though I feel that Dove could have chosen more plain looking people for their ads, I am totally behind the campaign.
Indeed, the definition of beauty needs a new face in this modern society. It is no longer about big eyes, sharp noses, small lips, big breasts, slender waists and fair skin. An old woman with wrinkles can be as beautiful as the young blond model in a magazine. Tisa Ng is a beautiful woman even though she is old. And that's because she is confident in herself and brings laughter to the room. We need to be more confident of ourselves and such self-belief is a form of beauty in itself.
In fact, I think confidence is the most important aspect of all. You may not think that you are beautiful but you need to be happy about your looks. Normality can a form of beauty as well. I don't think I am beautiful, but I am happy about myself. I don't feel the need to chalk my face, spend precious money on facials and sacrifice my favourite Hersheys chocolate to slim myself down to a stick. Just be happy and healthy and beauty will come your way.
Check out the campaign website and be part of this long-overdued project. And humans of the male species, you should check it out too. (The site may not be ready yet.)

Deep Impact (not the movie)

2005-07-04T16:41:00.000+08:00

In celebration of USA's national day, NASA's spacecraft Deep Impact has successfully launched its impactor at the comet Tempel 1 yesterday at 2.07pm (Singapore time). The mission is to collect rock and particle samples from the imapct and hopefully figure out the evolution of space. BOOYA! I love destruction.
Check out NASA's website for more information. There was a live video of the impactor release but too bad. I missed it.

Go with the mouse: Autism test

2005-07-04T14:32:00.000+08:00

Try out this autism spectrum quotient test by baron-cohen. It tests the possibility of an adult being autistic. You are warned that it is a long test, with 50 questions, so make sure you have time to spare.
Anyway, I got a 16, which is considered average. Haha, I was actually expecting a higher score since I don't really like to be around people. I prefer cooping in my room, surfing the net, talking to people online... Wait a minute, does that mean I like to interact with people? Hmmm... I guess there are actually multi-personalities inside of me. I like spending time with friends, but I also need my alone time. And thanks to the Internet, it is actually possible to combine these two. Talking to friends through MSN, while having the luxury of being physically alone. Thank you, Mr. Internet, whom I can't remember the name.

Go with the mouse: Toy Story

2005-07-04T11:48:00.000+08:00

OMG, this is f**king hilarious! I found it on tomorrow.sg. Very amusing toy story that is completely pointless, but will surely make your mouth twitch. Especially if you know which anime/game the toys come from. Evil Pikachu and Kero... Oh man...

Federer the Unbeatable

2005-07-04T10:24:00.000+08:00

The Swiss has done it again. Roger Federer has beaten Andy Roddick to be the Wimbleton male champion three times in a row. Simply amazing.
Honestly speaking, I only started liking tennis after watching the anime, Prince of Tennis. Before that, I was like "Huh? Tennis? The racket so heavy, how to play? Somemore the ball so hard, later kenna hit by it how?" But after watching some matches and learning the rules, I am truly impressed by the professionals.
Tennis is a beautiful game. The way the players dance around the court, executing unbelievable shots and comebacks. There was a shot by Federer last night that really wowed me. His body was twisted as he flew through the air to return a shot and finally gained the point; it looked even better in slow motion.
However, the most important of all, tennis is a game of endurance. Rally after rally, sets to games to matches, one match can go on to two hours. Or like the womens' finals, a record-breaking 2 hours 45 minutes.
Many times, I wonder if I can last that long in a match. A 15min basketball match is already horrendously long to me when I am on the court, let along two hours. It's not only physical, but mental power. I salute.
The victory is sweetest if you fought hard for it. Congrats to Venus Williams also for taking home the aptly named "Venus Rosewater Dish" though I was seriously amused when she hopped around like an idiot after she won.

In the mind of a journalist: An interview with Penny Dai

2005-06-30T16:42:00.000+08:00

Seems like I really do have an affinity with Penny Dai, the Malaysian singer.
I was asked last minute to carry out an joint interview with her just now, and needless to say, I wasn't too happy. Sure, I want to be part of the entertainment desk for a long time, but I was also very open about my dislike for Penny after an interview with her last year. But lord and behold, the editor asked me to interview her. Sigh.
Actually, Penny has nice songs and I admit she is a wonderful songwriter. What I dislike about her is the way she answer questions, almost as if she has practiced answering beforehand. This is probably only my opinion, as my friend thought that Penny was just being logical in her answers. So ok, I am just being biased. I just hope that she tone down on her make-up next time though.

TV-Junked: John Stallings, Chip & Reichen, Richard Hatch

2005-06-30T15:06:00.000+08:00

I always seem to fall in love with gay guys on reality tv shows. It's not my fault, who ask them to be so hot?! (Look, that rhymes.) (My nonsensical babbling below, venture if you dare.)
I was watching reality tv show "Manhunt: The search for American Most Gorgeous Male Model" (or something) yesterday night and drooled hopelessly at the silver-blue eyes of John Stallings. He seemed calm and collected, and looked like he really want to win. Serious is good. And the moment he said "whatever", I went into my crazy fangirl mood and started pointing at the screen, shouting "Squall! Squall!" Aww, my Squall... But too bad, the judges are obviously blind and decided to eliminate him in the second round. Darn. Two episodes are not enough. And at that point in time, this little being in my brain started bouncing and thinking 'Wait, this guy looks gay.'
So I decided to check up on his bio, and surprise surprise, he is gay! *faint* And he acts and giggles like a school girl! Lucky he is in the States, otherwise I will pounce on him for his cuteness.
Like I said, it's not my fault that they are all gay and I just happen to like them. Hopefully, this won't happen in real life. Or at least the infamous "all the cute guys are either married, attached or gay" isn't 100% true.

An Unexpected Death

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

My hamster died on Tuesday.
Needless to say, I was shocked. There were no signs. Sure, she was less active when I looked at her that morning, but hamsters are suppoed to be nocturnal. They are supposed to be sleeping in the afternoon. She ate the food I gave so I didn't think that anything was wrong with her.
But when I went home that night after a long day, I found her cold and dead. With ants crawling about her mouth. I was shocked but strangely not too upset. I only had her for six months, and so I am still not that emotionally bonded to it. In fact, I was more puzzled then sad. What did I do wrongly in my caring of her? The only thing I could think of was the hot atmosphere in my room which is probably not too conducive for hamsters.
My sister and I buried her in this garden near our block immediately. My sis even went to illegally pluck some red flowers and put it on top of the small mound of soil.
It was a short time since we met, but she will always have a place in my mind.

Sightings: A garden in the middle of a building

2005-06-28T15:31:00.000+08:00

Update: I just realised that the garden may be accessible from the inside of building. Seems like there is a door.

I was walking along Clarke Quay on Saturday, when I spotted this building which made me very puzzled. It was a blue tower with glass windows, nice design, but what is strange is the garden in the middle of nowhere. There is a cave-in region where pots of plants are placed. For what reason, I do not know. Maybe to let the birds have a place to rest? The first thought that came to my mind was 'Man, the cleaners must have a hard time cleaning the garden'. Really strange architecture. Anyone knows which building I am talking about?

In the mind of a journalist: We view things differently

2005-06-27T14:33:00.000+08:00

I am amused by how journalists, either permanent or interns, see things differently from the public. Me and my colleagues were walking back to our desks after lunch when one of them suddenly got called out to check out on a fire scene. And she very excitedly bounced around before leaving. No doubt I was excited too.
To people working in the media, accidents, crimes, natural and man-made disasters are good news. They mean that we have something to write on, instead of writing on stupid stuff like falling trees, irritating beehives and loansharks expressing their creative talent on people's doors. It's not that we are happy that something bad happen; we are just happy that we can finally write something of a better read. Ok, and probably something that is more action-packed.
Maybe this is simply the mindset of an intern but I can't help getting excited over such bad stuff. So make me happy and inform me if you see any fire. A falling tree is okay too once in a while.

OtakuON: Falling in love with Ren

2005-06-25T13:25:00.000+08:00

How can those Japanese artists draw Ren until he is so cute?! I'm so anvious, how I wish I can draw as good as them.
Nya, I'm supposed to love Horohoro most, but I am so falling in love with Ren. *pouncing on frowning Ren* Shaman King proves to be a very entertaining series. So far, I am not bored yet. Check out the wonderful art by Shin if you are a Shaman King fan (especially one of Hororen). I can't post any art here due to the artist's copyright warning.

Blogging=Loss of Privacy?

2005-06-25T03:35:00.000+08:00

Update: The article is not out today so we shall see.

Does blogging deprives you from privacy?
I have been at SPH for quite a while now, but this is one of the few times that I am truly unsupportive of the editors' decision. A girl posted pictures of her slashed wrist on her blog, including many of her personal information. From the newspaper's point, this is newsworthy. And thus, it is gonna be reported. On today's newspaper if I am not wrong. Personally, I do not think the article should be published as it is invading the poor girl's privacy. Furthermore, her permission was not obtained. Even if the pictures are on her blog, it is different from it being published on the national papers. Websites are not that easily accessible if you don't know where to find. And she is a fellow cosplayer, so I somehow feel a sense of closeness to her.
But what can I do? It is a fact that she willingly posted stuff online. So she must bear the consequences of potential privacy loss. It is just like the SPG issue. But being a fellow netizen, I wouldn't want the press to just take things from my site to publish. I feel like a knife is piercing through my conscience now. But this is just life.

Me becoming a vegetarian? Nah.

2005-06-25T01:36:00.000+08:00

I don't think I can ever be a vegetarian. I went out for dinner with my fellow hallmates from Block 50 yesterday and after waiting VERY long for those latecomers, we went to this vegetarian restaurant "Magenta" at Raffles Place. I have to say the food is not bad, especially the tofu. But I just can't get over the fact that the meat are all made of soya. I can taste the fakeness in them. The fake chicken, fake fish, fake char siew... It's probably only me though because the others obviously enjoyed the food. Seems like I can never ever chase away the carnivore in me. Luckily, I had a Taiwanese sausage before the meal. Not too yummy but at least it's meat.
Check out the dinner photos below and at my flickr account. I made sure my new camera was fully utilized. But damn, I am nearing my monthly upload space at flickr. 80%! *faints* Oh yes, James took a short random video which the first seven people can get it from here.

Mighty Nine! But why is the organizer KS not here?

A few of the dishes among the eleven in total. Not bad, but they are all fake meat!

A Blogger Manifesto

2005-06-24T07:45:00.000+08:00

Check out this article from Andrew Sullivan. A wonderful piece about how blogging may just take over the role of journalism and how it is actually profitable.
I actually did a project for university on the future of journalism and its relation to technological advances. Despite the lack of restrictions and editors in the blogosphere (which I am suffering from now in the real life), there is a serious problem of credibility if it is ever to be taken as a substitute for actual newspapers. Bias is obviously there and who knows whether you can trust the blogger? I know you can't trust many local papers as well, sadly, but at least the papers are from an established organization. The many restrictions actually reduce the mistakes and bias. However, on the Web where one can be annonymous and even create a false image for himself, credibility is a definite problem.
So probably, everything should be taken with a pinch of salt, including the papers and the blogs, unless it is spoken directly from the person about himself. Oh wait, there is this thing called 'lying' as well.

Be careful! I now have a camera to record your every move.

2005-06-24T02:08:00.000+08:00

I finally decided to part with my hard-earned money in exchange for a Sony camera. Why Sony? Beside the good recommendations from my friends, I have a strange devotion for Japanese goods that forbids me to buy other products. I was even discussing with Majyo two days ago that if Japan ever invades Singapore, I will most probably be on their side. You are now listening to the thoughts of a traitor. Bwahahaha~
Anyway, the proof of my loyalty went home with me on Tuesday and I tested it on my stuck-to-the-computer-screen sister, my hamster Santiao and myself. See here the big-head-shot (da tou zhao) of Santiao and her beautiful drinking water pose. When she is drinking water, nothing distracts her. Not even a hamster ball which I tried to tempt her with this morning.

Go to my flickr account to see the other picture of Santiao I took.

Zhong Sheng You Yang Xian Ge Feng Song...

2005-06-22T08:39:00.000+08:00

And that is the starting sentence of my secondary school song.
I was reading an post by kyntheman about the 'richly poetic lyrics' of his secondary school song which happens to be in Chinese as well. It sure brings back memories. After being forced to sing it for years under the relentless sun every Monday assembly, and having the song being tested as dictation, I can't help but to remember the lyrics. At least part of it. And that is considered very impressive, since my memory span is as wonderful as Nemo's.
However, I really enjoyed those days. The school songs, the family dances, the cheesy mass dances, and horrors, the "Amigos Para Sempres" dance for school anniversary... I complained about them before, but I am glad for the common memories now. It bonded our batch of school girls together. From what I heard, the current batch does not have such 'fortune' and the school may even cancel the family dance. Where is the school spirit? It may seem superficial, but at least the memories bring about something to smile about.

Alright! New background!

2005-06-21T03:20:00.000+08:00

Yippee Yay! A new look, though minimal, to my blog. Sigh, the boys are adorable. Downloaded and edited from uei-shiang's website. See, I credited my source, don't come suing me.

Aww, look at those "cute" lil girls...

2005-06-20T04:00:00.000+08:00

Sometimes, I wonder why parents want to send their little girls to beauty contests. I just don't understand the logic of it all, don't they feel that the kids lose their innocence after taking part? Childhood should be spent playing in the sand, crashing bugs on the computer, or fighting with the poor older sibling, and not spent learning catwalks. Yes, the girls are cute, yet I feel disgusted. And I can't believe I gonna have to go report on such a beauty contest later. Two days in a row. Please, cry for me.

Attempt Initial

2005-06-19T02:22:00.000+08:00

Ah, damn. I hate blogger.com. It is just so darn hard to use, I never had problems with my webby before. *grumbles* Which is why I'm complaining on my very first post. Look at the page, it just sux. I probably need to go study the physics of how this program actually works. Well, at least the Ryoma icon is cute. That's one consolation.