Missing: A Song A Day

I find myself not getting enough music.

I need to get the following very soon.....

the new album by Portishead

the new album by REM.

With Speed & Might

Ah, what is Woman that you forsake her,
And the hearth-fire and the home-acre,
To go with the old grey widow-maker ?

Paper

Have I shared this with you yet?

Peter Callesen

Puma Steal Grip

And.....erm....besides the shoes mentioned previously......

I bought a manbag too....... *sheepish*

It's an inexpensive everyday carry-all. Unisex enough I think. And it's water-resistant because of the nylon/fake-leather exterior with a polyurethane lining. There is a separate inner pocket for smaller items.

It's doesn't look loud for a Puma bag, which some Puma or sports brands bag can look, mosttimes.

It's not exactly the saliva-inducing limited edition bag by Puma. But it looks "Head-porter-ish" which is nice. Which also mean that it looks like something the numerous fashion label perfume brands would give if you buy their coffret sets - usually called "stylish weekend hand luggage".

Puma Puma Everywhere!

Guys ......

I bought another pair of shoes.....

The "evil" twin, as I would like to call it, to my previous pair (also a Puma! Freaks!).

Previously it was a Tatau Mid L, which had undergone some Central Saint Martin modifications.

This is a Tatau Lo L Takedown. Tatau means tattoo in Samoan. The word tatau (tattoo) in Samoan has to do with being appropriate, balanced and fitting. On the footbed it's got the Samoan Rugby Union logo.

Redundant - Bordeaux & Ice Wine

What's been hiding under the living room seat compartments for the past few years.....

I don't have a wine cabinet with temperature and humidity control. But I try my best by keeping it tightly shut, away from (major) temperature/humidity fluctuations, no moth-balls to contaminate, dark conditions and practically horizontal all the time to prevent the cork from drying out...

But I think some are bound to spoil....which is why I no longer buy new wines to keep. I just drink them.....

Bordeaux
2000 Camus Chateau Capdet Haut-Medoc 500ml x 2 (France)
2003 Chateau Haut-Medoc 750ml x 2 (France)
2000 Camus Chateau Les Pinsas 500ml x 2 (France)
1997 Baron de Rothschild (Lafite) Bordeaux 750ml (France)
2000 Baron de Rothschild (Lafite) Medoc 750ml
1999 Chateau Gros Caillou Saint-Estephe 750ml (France)


Ice Wine
2004 South Crossing Marlborough Region Riesling 375ml (New Zealand)
2002 South Crossing Marlborough Region (Renwick Vineyard) Riesling 375ml (New Zealand)
2003 Inniskillin Niagara Peninsula Vidal 375ml (Canada)
1997 Inniskillin Ontario Vidal Select Late Harvest 375ml (Canada)
2003 Inniskillin Niagara Peninsula Vidal Gold Reserve 375ml (Canada)
2004 Inniskillin Niagara Peninsula Vidal Gold Reserve 375ml x 2 (Canada)

SLAP ME - if you are rich

Featuring t-shirts that reflect a social collective consciousness...



Featuring yet another lousy t-shirt design by littlefish....

Check out my threadless and other t-shirt designs...

The wife of a Singapore tycoon accused of slapping a Singapore Airlines stewardess was acquitted by the court on Thursday.

Punishment for voluntarily causing hurt.
323. Whoever, except in the case provided for by section 334, voluntarily causes hurt, shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to 2 years, or with fine which may extend to $5,000, or with both.

The incident between 61-year-old Tan Siew Hoon and 25-year-old Then Jiamin occurred on board an SIA flight to Tokyo last September. She had slapped the SIA stewardess for allegedly flirting with her husband.

"It's shocking... Although the Section 323 charge could be let off with a warning with the consent of the victim and the public prosecutor, but this is a case of a different nature. I think an SIA stewardess is an icon in Singapore. So, when that kind of person is assaulted, it is an outrage to Singapore," said lawyer R Kalamohan, Kalamohan & Co.

Madam Tan was given a warning, after the prosecution withdrew the charge against her.

************************

Oh, the power of money.

Let me state upfront I am not here to judge Tan Siew Hoon or Then Jiamin. But I shall include in here some quotes I found.....

Wealth is power. With wealth, many things are possible.

- George Clason

For those people who have money lots of money....

There is no class so pitiably wretched as that which possesses money
and nothing else.

- Andrew Carnegie

For those who have yet to earn their riches.....

It's easy to have principles when you're rich.
The important thing is to have principles when you're poor.

- Ray Kroc,

who incidentally took over the McDonald's Corporation franchise and went on to amassed a fortune of $500 million in his lifetime.

Shiva/God/Kwan Im/Buddha/Tua Pek Kong/ etc etc....give me strength if ever I am given a choice to choose between money and principles.......

nothing to blog about

the toilets in the Whitley Detention Centre are either very well-maintained or they are spanking new.

The following paragraphs are extracted from here:

11. However, we should not encourage a culture where officials and Ministers resign whenever something goes wrong on their watch, regardless of whether or not they are actually to blame. That would be the easy way out. It may temporarily appease an angry public, but it will not fundamentally solve the problem.

The temporarily appeasement will feel so nice though. Can we get them to donate their bonuses instead? Haha, that won't be so bad either.

12. The basic issue is whether the person is culpable. If so, we must act against him, however senior his position. But if he is not at fault, then we must have the moral courage to state so, and support him. This way, everybody within the organisation can be confident that when something goes wrong, they will not be sacrificed for political expediency.

That's right. Witch-hunts -An investigation carried out ostensibly to uncover subversive activities but actually used to harass and undermine those with differing views. Mass hysteria, moral panics and mob-mentalities. When you've got this government supporting you, you will not be culpable.

And it's time, time, time....

Tom Waits knew what he was on about when he sang those words. But this has got nothing to do with him.

I need to catch up on 2 issues of Forbes, 1 issue of Fundsupermart, 2 issues of Discovery and 2 issues of Time.

I have yet to send out the KL home loan application forms.

I have not washed my car. Last night there were 14 poop-hits all over the car. It was parked under a tree for 28 hours. As reasoned by poofie, it's easier to cool a car down (ie. do not park under trees) than to wash off a harden spot of sh^t. I should start agreeing with her soon.

I need to find some way to place the box of tissues in my car conveniently.

On a more positive note, was at Zouk's 17th Birthday Party with sis, fullscreamriot, poofie and kelly. The so-called Great Zouk Tee-Dance Party. Hmm.....Dunno about the "Great" factor. Not everyone was decked out in Tees as well. There was plenty of dance. And probably plenty of party. But, nope, something's missing from the dance scene these days. I wonder what.....

Conspiracies

See, I believe them.

Look at the local "number portability" hoopla. This is old technology. In my opinion, it's just to protect the interest of a single telco in order to secure capital for expansion globally.

Conspiracy works. And the ability to deny any conspiratorial intent is essential.

Why else do you think that all the major touristy cities in any country will have at least one of their famous tourist spot "under refurbishment"? It may be the facade of a building around St. Mark's Square in Venice, touching up the columns of the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin, closure of a section of a gallery within the Prado Museum in Madrid and closer home, something in Sentosa is constantly undergoing "Upgrading to Improve Your Island Life!" or "Renovating to Enhance Your Island Life!" (ok, I so made up those lines).

Thank goodness the local Haw Par Villa remains open. And the admission is free!

Techno

Alright.

The latest from xkcd is plain wrong.

On a number of levels.

ITUNES = wrong spelling. technical error. cause he uses caps for all captions. but this is probably intentional. so that the actual iTunes will not sue.

No self-respecting techno-head actually buys techno. Techno-heads love torrents.

15-second sample!?!? iTunes provide 30-second samples. but then again, it's ITUNES and not iTunes. what can a 15-second sample provide? to be crude, it's like sex with your underwear on. why do i feel that the previous sentence just don't seem appropriate.

20 x 15-seconds = 5 mins!! wah lau eh, techno not so short lor. should loop the sample 30 times at least. add filters, flange delay and reverb!

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Erm....I think this blog just sunk to a new low.

Driving dreading

Ride on my car has been fun so far.

Well, ok. Not exactly.

I'm not used to driving around. And I miss listening to music plugged into my ear.

I know getting from Vivocity to Everton Park is faster by MRT. Drats.

But at least I can go ECP at ungodly hours and to quieter stretches. And also, Night Safari is nice.

Hahaha...

No pics yet. Car pics aren't pretty anyways.....unless there's like a hot bombshell on it.

Pearl White is a !@#$%^& birdshit magnet. Stains show up very well....

Why?

Very mild irritation

What's been going on in my mind...

"Organic" products sold in the heartlands of Singapore. Scam! My mum thinks organic = better for health. Yes and no I guess. It's like saying selvage better than non-selvage. Many will argue in the long run it's better that everything is organic. But unless in the short run we can curb the current world-wide food shortage..... bio-fuels don't seem so revolutionary now ain't it?
See definition of food that is "Organic" (from wikipedia):

Organic foods are produced according to a certain production standards, it means they were grown without the use of conventional pesticides, artificial fertilizers, human waste, or sewage sludge, and that they were processed without ionizing radiation or food additives. For animals, it means they were reared without the routine use of antibiotics and without the use of growth hormones. In most countries, organic produce must not be genetically modified.

The MSK "incident". I don't think anybody expected anybody in the upper echelons to resign or jump off from a building. Nobody will be pressured to do the extremes. Unless it's corruption. But it seems as if the entire nation's at fault now. The line of argument goes like this. MSK ran away because of complacency. Nobody is W(r)ong here, as in, not just a single person. So his bonus is intact. Who is complacent? The ENTIRE population. Yes. Including your 78 year old grandma who is spending her time at home watching TVB soap operas. Not forgetting the next door ah-boy who spent too much time on his PSP. You too! Why? Because long long ago, when TOTAL DEFENCE came to being, THERE'S A PART FOR EVERYONE.

The Beijing Games have not started but already human-right activists and pro-independent Tibet activists have hijacked this year's summer Olympics. I think it's a shame, this lack of restrain. The lack of respect is appalling. It's as if the activists just want to push everybody to the limits and beyond. Politicising the Olympics is a disgrace. Worse is when the situation turns into a security threat that rivals those caused by terror groups. Olympics is about sporting excellence, the indomitable human spirit and all the stuff that will make you feel warm and fuzzy. But it's now been overtaken by chaos and ridicule. Abused as a platform by various groups operating under a multitude of agenda.

Duh...

Cartunes!!!

"Welcome to the real world", she said to me.

Condescendingly.

For those interested......

The first track from my CD (of which there were two) to be played - the player randomly "sorted" the tracks - was No Such Thing by John Mayer. I loved the bit where he sang "I am invincible. As long as I'm alive." How true.

But really the first track that was playing as I was driving mum and pop out from the carpark was from Class 95. I know, I know. I was a wee bit excited when I was driving out. Didn't really have time to slip the disc in until later....anyhow, the track was absolutely fantastic and eerily, it was also in my disc.

It's was Pure by Lightning Seeds.

Where feelings not reasons, can make you decide.

Cartunes XX

It's super difficult and I think I've given up.....

I was tempted to use Depeche Mode - Behind The Wheel, The Beatles - Here Comes The Sun, Audioslave - I Am The Highway, Echo And The Bunnymen - Get In The Car, U2 - Even Better Than The Real Thing and REM - Near Wild Heaven.

And I still can't decide.

Decommissioning

While the new frigates get all the media attention, the 1st Generation Navy missile gunboats are getting ready to be decommissioned.

Grave men, near death, who see with blinding sight
Blind eyes could blaze like meteors and be gay,
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

I borrowed the passage below from wikipedia that describes how Dylan Thomas tries to use this poem to motivate his father who was a former militant man. The passage is especially relevant.

Thomas watched his father, formerly in the Army, grow weak and frail with old age. Thus, the speaker in his poem tries to convince his father not to give up to death without a fight. The speaker addresses his father by using wise men, good men, wild men, and grave, or serious, somber men as examples to illustrate the same message: that no matter how they have lived their lives or what they feel at the end they should go out fighting. However, we are subtly reminded throughout that their rage will be ineffectual in the face of death. It is one of his most popular, most easily accessible poems, and implies that one shouldn't die without giving death a battle or fighting for one's life

Busy.

Dad

Was asking mum why she mentioned that Everton Park, Spottiswoode Park and the surrounding area used to be her playground. I have been to Dragon Mansion too. Passed by.

Won't repeat.


Anyway.....I think I know why my mum thought dad was hawt.


Guess which is my dad? (damn, how come I didn't get any of his good genes?)

When people sell out

I have nothing against selling out. Neither am I saying any of the names mentioned below sold out.

Everyone have certainties in their lives. Death and taxes being a rather common denominator.

But I have my reservations about watching The Forbidden Kingdom which stars Jackie Chan, Jet Li and Collin Chou.

And it is not because it is in English. Nor is it because it is directed by the same director who gave us Stuart Little and the sequel. As well as Haunted Mansion.

Check out the movie tagline:

The path is unsafe. The place is unknown. The journey is unbelievable.

Makes me wonder..........this movie should have made waves in the wuxia or wuda circles.

A song a day 81

Who's gonna taste your salt water kisses?
Who's gonna take the place of me?



Who's gonna ride your wild horses?

Who's gonna tame the heart of thee?

I can still remember the coach ride to KL way back in 1994

Third

I was at Times last night and saw the advert at the back of this month's Q.

IMMEDIATELY sms pin the following:

"Portishead third studio album - THIRD. Out 28.04.08"

Lead off single Machine Gun can be heard on their myspace. You can check out bootlegs off youtube (search words: portishead, atp festival)

Tracklisting:

01 Silence
02 Hunter
03 Nylon Smile
04 The Rip
05 Plastic
06 We Carry On
07 Deep Water
08 Machine Gun
09 Small
10 Magic Doors
11 Threads

First Track

I know it's awfully silly. But that's just me.

See, I bought a car recently. And I should be collecting it soon.

Like next week.

I want an OFFICIAL first track for my drive. This will be the track of my car's life.

Like I said.

I am weird.

Should I be sentimental - while pressing my ironic tongue firmly in my cheek, choosing We've Only Just Begun by The Carpenters?

Or should I just be wicked and have The Cure blast through with Prayers For Rain while looking at the motorcyclists? Or maybe I'm Only Happy When It Rains by Garbage?

Or play my funeral song?

SUGGESTIONS?!!?!?!!
ANYONE?!!?!?!!
Please!!!

Some things hurt more much more than cars and girls

- Prefab Sprout

Random: Found a website that lists all the first tracks played by some of the radio stations in UK. Here.

Wa..wait a minute!

I thought the ICJ ruling is expected to be out only later this year?

You take say the dispute over Pedra Branca, or what Malaysia calls Pulau Batu Putih. Both sides have agreed that we put the case to the ICJ (International Court of Justice). Both sides have tried their best and in a few months time, the decision will be made and both sides agreed that whatever the decision taken, we will abide by it. We will not be happy but we will maintain good relations. Syed Hamid said that recently, I should echo his sentiments that on this issue, we have no difference that we will abide by the decision of the ICJ. This is a very civilised way of handling a bilateral dispute, which will not be resolved in any other way. I believe this should be an example of how relations in ASEAN should be ordered, and the new Charter which has very good built-in dispute settlement mechanisms, should help us bring about a better future for all of us.

Q: Actually you are quite right there. When I spoke to Syed Hamid about Pedra Branca, he said those exact words. He said regardless of who wins, it should not tarnish the mirror, because the relationship will have to flow in a positive manner regardless of what happens to Pedra Branca.

But look at this map published by the Singapore Land Authority:

There is an inset at the bottom right.

So weird huh? can or not huh?

Bucket List

You measure yourself by the people who measure themselves by you.

auntie surprised me with a movie last night. We decided to finally have a proper dinner + movie date. Asked her to choose a movie, buy the tickets and not tell me the title until we got to the cinema.
and she chose the only one I wanted to watch amongst the others that came out recently.

a bucket list is a list (duh!) of things you would like to do/accomplish before you "kick the bucket".

was wondering if my bucket list will get easier and shorter the closer i get to my deathbed. and also, my list will undergo the greatest change at the moment when i know for sure when i will die. then it made me think about the list(s) i will have made before the moment i knew for sure when i will die. does it render the other list(s) pointless?

i cannot remember watching morgan freeman and jack nicholson sharing the same screen ever. after watching it, i cannot understand why weren't they paired before.

i can imagine jack nicholson as a psycho/warped criminal tauting the police while morgan freeman is the rational, cool, calm, collected police detective out to nab him.

i probably remember them best for Batman and Se7en.

go watch folks. and don't be surprised by the superb performances. simple plot but well executed.

DD + 1 *Here!*

finally reached the shores of singapore!

the dirty dozen + 1

Horrorscope - Perfect 10!

The gentle winds of change are blowing through your life at the moment, dear Pisces. You have a feeling of newness and an open attitude toward the world. Some outside events will be coming up in your life that give you the impression you are advancing in a concrete manner toward a new life. You can expect to have some pleasant surprises.

How nice! To have surprises that are pleasant. Should I really expect them?
As in, to expect to have "surprises" and that they would be "pleasant"?

What a refreshing change. Oh, to attribute them to the "gentle winds"?

Hahaha....are all navy men are superstitious?