went for 2 movies in the not too long ago past.. mission impossible 3 and over the hedge.. oh my gosh!!


well, yours truly had the privilege of catching this movie at the brand new cathay.. but what i missed more, was the picturehouse.. i can always remember my first art film there, which was a japanese film titled 'love letter'.. and how did i learn about this film? blame it all on the then-fm 933, which used to have some programme titled, under direct translation, 'vomit-central'.. but it was a good movie.. oh man, i loved that movie and still do... and oh, i digressed!! m:i:3 was hideous.. blamed it on the fact that i've not watched an action movie for a long long time.. so there was too much explosion, too much noise and the soundtrack was horrible.. even kelvin li thought so!! esp he's a rock/ metal fan!!!! and it's a joke hearing tom cruise speaks chinese, though his intonation is so close to perfect.. okay, but it's just another movie.. not much of an impression made.. but what really did made an impression was the following movie..


this really made an impression.. a really good animation since.. i can't remember when.. yupz, not exactly a really exciting plot but it was good.. good for silly laughters and just silly moments.. esp, when you get the free commentaries from the rest of the kids in the theatre as well.. well, one went 'i love you, you love me, we are happy family..' and there's definitely loads of 'mummy, how how?? look!!!'.. but cool.. i really liked this film though it was an impromptu decision.. but all's good when there's great company.. okay, enough said, go figure!!

next aim: relive the classics..

just finished a surprisingly good book, minus all the law details and all.. surprise will be the word.. and this one is much better than 'skipping christmas'.. skipping christmas is pretty stupid.. it was actually made into a movie a couple of years back.. but i can't remember the title offhand..


anyway, just as stated in the commentary, it really brought on the real moments of being on the field.. but well, we don't have american football here, so there's no way of understanding the euphoria and excitement of football.. well, it's back to relive the classics of john grisham, since i pretty much own much of his new books.. and the stories are just about the same as each other.. so off to national library for the classics..

man of letters.. an adaptation of cyrano de bergerac.. inspired by from a doctor's diary.. and it was indeed, resembling much of cyrano de bergerac.. all the poetry.. the confession in the shadows by the balcony.. the death of the loved one in a revolution.. the saying of the last words, at last by the poet himself.. the realisation of the secret love all these years.. but minus the nose..

a wonderful piece by dick lee.. and i saw the man himself!! oh yeah, he was seated 3 rows behind me.. i'm not a 'singapore idol' hopeful, but just that i've been that fascinated with the man since the days of snow.wolf.lake.. but during the opening piece, you can truly identify the styles of the man.. it's just so distinct.. and there's a bit of everything in this musical.. from the lights and sounds of beauty world, to the tone of seriousness in forbidden city, to the wonders and fantasies of love from snow.wolf.lake..

and what a team he has put together to produce this entire musical.. with iskandar ismail as the music conductor.. talk about long-time collaboration.. and yes, the wonderful cast as well.. hmm, i'm equally charmed by robin goh, though he's vertically challenged.. but man, he is a man of talent.. ranging from chang and eng, to army daze, and now to man of letters.. and there's r j rosales, whom i am even more charmed with.. otherwise known as the other half of the chang and eng.. it's just a pity that he's only a cameo role in this production.. and there are other prominent ones like the husband-and-wife partnership: lim kay siu & neo swee lin.. and emma yong as well, whom somehow i kind of mixed up with pamela oei.. that which is really surprising is that, my old-time friend is part of the orchestra and my og junior is part of the ensemble..

what's really special about this production is that, it does not have a programme.. instead it has a programme printed in the form of a newspaper titled 'the undergrad'.. a really refreshing change from the usuals of a book that cost 20 bucks and will only be read once before archiving occurs.. not to mention that it's in commemoration of nus's centennial celebrations.. but nope, i wasn't part of the lucky bunch with the free preview tickets.. i purchased mine way before the university sent out that loud email screaming 'freebie!!!!'

as you can see, i can go on for ages about this production.. giving a complete breakdown of the entire musical.. but time does not permit this doing.. if i get ard doing it, tune in for more in the very near future..

silly things one thinks about when there's too much time on hand [installment 3]

welcome to the third installment of my silly, nonsensical write-ups.. today's entry wasn't exactly thought up when i had nothing to do but rather, just a sudden urge to put something down on this blog space..

well, let's see, today's topic has to be written with much research.. but unfortunately, i have absolutely minimal interest towards doing this research.. perhaps in the very near future, if the day deems it fit to be done.. so let's talk about, what get the guys so excited about.. ie. cars!!

i know exactly what you all out there are thinking about.. and yes, that could possibly be one of the many things that guys do get really excited about.. i mean, look at the many hypothesis and pictures drawn up of, what the possible sectional view of a guy's brain will look like.. but there are definitely the high cost, latest technological tools and gadgets that get these bunch of ppl excited too.. especially in the world of automation on the roads..

all the talks about.. 'oh, check out that car there.. man, just look at how high the fuel consumption will be and all..' or 'look at that baby there man, wonderful colour and model.. and man, there it goes at the traffic junction.. man, i wonder what's the horsepower of that baby man..' or 'man, check that exhaust out.. and hear the sounds of the engine..'

perhaps, these things which the species, supposedly from venus, will take a slightly longer time to understand or perhaps will express negative interest in it and rather focus more energy on sales of tangible items.. well, women do love cars but they just view it more as a convenience and necessity, than 'my other half'.. or the easy way out, is to get ppl to chauffeur them around.. convenience brought up to a greater level.. after all, the guys are always saying that, women are the worse drivers on the road, so might as well dudes, chauffeur the girls ard and save all the driving 'hazards' of meeting unfriendly female drivers and then go ard complaining your guts out about that driver you met, perhaps a mth ago..

after all the talks about the feel, the speed and the outlook of the car, the next item on the agenda will be the maintenance.. it's important to make sure that there's friendly after-sales services.. preferably with many warranties thrown in.. but do read the fine prints.. they ain't fine for no reason..

despite having absolutely no head knowledge about anything about the features of the different models available in the market, i already do know which car i will want as my first car.. well, but much has to depend on the million-dollar question: when in the world will i take my driving lessons.. and the billion-dollar question will be: how long will it take for me to attain the acceptable financial status, before splurging it all on a brand new baby..

so till that day comes, let me just start getting myself educated about the world of automation on the road.. lest there comes a day, when i do get to drive on a autobahn..

'bali - a land of mysteries, the last paradise on earth..'

hmm.. paradise is where you make of it.. it does not necessarily has to be a tourist attraction but rather, a place where one is happy and feels contented and all.. it can even be one's own backyard..

well, a direct translation of the title will be, the story of bali island.. but the really wonderful taiwanese went, what happened on bali island?? *stare*.. right.. hmm.. that's besides the point.. pretty interesting plot but what an ending.. i thought i've finally selected serials with pretty happy endings.. but nope, this just had to end in a negative sense.. go watch to see what happened.. i'm not letting the cat out of the bag.. but enjoyed this one much.. so what's next??

issac said...

aunty siew lee: issac, what do you want to write on this card for mummy?
issac: (after staring and thinking for a while) mummy has 3 boys and a girl..
aunty siew lee: issac, how can you write, 'mummy has 3 boys and a girl' on your mothers' day card to mummy?? you have to write something to wish mummy..

one quick post for the week before zooming off to watch more tv.. been having a great affinity for this song for a pretty long time, esp after that one time radiowaves on tv2.. here's jay chou - si mian chu ge.. it's talking all about paparazzi.. but the way he described them throughout the song that's pretty intelligent..

shall leave you all with this mtv.. i love especially the part whereby he does a waltz with zhou xun.. it's so perfect.. and the steps are so well-defined and just look at the setting of the scene!! it's in a perfect ballroom, with long floor-to-ceiling curtains.. or one would rather call it drapes.. well, the wonders of europe, whereby there's much of these buildings still left standing or refurnished.. whereas in asia, one will only get them in the rich folks' houses or some state buildings.. but anyway, it's pretty room.. and yes, the last part of the mtv, whereby he dumped the bag into a passing gondola.. just reminded me much of the movie, casanova.. the beauty of venice..

before i muse any further, here's the mtv for your viewing.. if you think it's irritating, shut it off then..

healthy food, traffic jam & elections..

had a really wonderful and healthy dinner yesterday evening... how about this? make your own pizza.. with fresh ingredients such as red & yellow paprika.. button mushrooms.. ham and crab sticks.. with great tomato sauce and cheese.. not to mention that the crust was home-made.. man, give it to cheepeng pls!!! *applause*.. great dinner.. and how healthy can it be?? the red & yellow paprika were actually organic food.. this just totally reminded me of the bio-tomaten, which i bought back in münchen, which were actually way too HUGE!!!! and man, they were HUGE!!!! oh, and there was yogurt and grapes for dessert.. cucumber and grapefruit for starter drinks.. erm, vegetables??

healthy food aside.. let's talk about pollution.. big, huge traffic jam on clementi road.. goodness know where did it start from.. there was even a jam in clementi ave 1!! goodness gracious.. and who says that the mrt can't experience jam too?? the train bounded for boon lay just stopped in its track for a good many minutes..

on a more than a sidenote: the elections are coming.. call it 'singapore votes 2006'.. and great, almost the whole of the entire west side experiences a walkover.. jimmy is so excited that he gets to vote for the first time.. florence was disappointed that our area had a walkover.. so the moral of the story is?? if one wanna vote, it's time to shift to the north or the northeast side of the island..


and this picture is titled: the day God spilled paint..

and i say..

arpan said, what a semester it has been..
and i say, what a year it has been..

did i kill a snail by accident??

after a really sudden downpour, many snails usually would come out of their 'homes' to take a little walk along the pedestrain pathways.. but unfortunately, with my overwhelming haste to get to the bus-stop, i might have applied a tat too much pressure and the next thing i knew, i heard, CRACK!!! i looked back and saw a pile of gathers on the pathway.. so did i kill the snail?? wait, is it even a snail to begin with?? goodness knows..

hmm.. when i need to de-thaw myself, i would and will usually walk over to the windows facing the tank farm.. coz that's where the sun is as well.. but then, upon looking at the thick layer of ice that has formed over the pipe carrying liquid nitrogen, i will, unfortunately, get excited and wanna run over to just look at it upclose..

call me insane, if you must.. =P

fragmented

just feel like blogging.. not another silly installment but nonsensical stuff..

the cleaning aunty left for genting highlands yesterday evening.. i told her not to contribute too much to the casino industry.. and suggested that she passes me the money so that i can buy more 'bird nest' and 'buddha jumps over the wall'.. and she went, if i win money, i'll buy you all anything you all wanna eat.. hmm.. aunty won't be back till wednesday..

hmm.. and what am i doing, looking through their blogs and all.. what am i trying to learn? am i trying to keep myself updated about their lives and wanna be sure that there's something to talk about? what am i doing it for??

ouch, i ate too much.. my brain hurts.. i need my sleep..

silly things one thinks about when there's too much time on hand [installment 2]

welcome to yet another installment of 'silly things one thinks about when there's too much time on hand'.. today's topic is on another silly, nonsensical one.. round of applause please!! let's hear it for 'VALVES'..

right, that's what you all are gonna say.. but unfortunately i'm the one calling the shots here so you have to listen to me..

well, so much for high-flow valves or low-flow valves.. whatever those valves are.. eventually we still have to crack our brains to fix them up and bring about the correct flow rate required.. but let's look at the most wonderful valve system in the whole world, whereby the flow rates have all been calculated and there's no need for after-sales to be done and all, unless one develops atherosclerosis.. so let's hear it for our blood circulatory system..

don't you think that it's so wonderfully made? think about this, although the pressure of the blood flood upon the point of leaving the aorta is so high, it is sufficient to pump the blood throughout the whole body once through.. my gosh, just think of the distance covered.. think of all the little capillaries, where the pressure is low enough not to burst the vessel, yet high enough to allow the continual flow of blood still.. think of all the head losses.. goodness, i bet hydraulic calculations still can't beat this man.. and look at the valves at the veins, which are so wonderfully designed to prevent the backflow of blood.. yet having sufficient muscles around the walls to contract and force the blood forward back to the heart..

does it just make you marvel at Him? man takes years to figure all these out but at the beginning, He has already known it all.. and He puts the 'system' in us, such that we can figure it out as technology advances.. He has such great wisdom, no wonder solomon asked for wisdom as well.. i'm just quite thankful that we are so wonderfully made, even the little details have all been taken care of... well, although most of our systems within bear much resemblance, but externally, we really do differ.. and that's what makes us special.. despite the difference, we are still created in His image..

formed from dust, yet we are still 'precious in His eyes.. because of His great love, He gave His only Son.. everything was done, so You would come..'

some crazy zhang fei taiwanese variety programme on tv at the moment.. with lousy singing from this singer, who's name is better not mentioned.. but that's not the point of this post.. i'm here to talk about a movie, which may bear some resemblance with that of moulin rouge.. but at least there was good singing in there..



okay, i'm biased again.. coz there's my favourite actors in there and all.. perhaps love.. well, it's pretty much of an arty-farty film.. so there's some reading between the lines required.. but otherwise, i pretty much enjoyed this movie.. not a tragic love story.. nor a simple, sweet love story.. but rather, it's pretty complex.. go watch to understand my point..



and there's initial d too.. a movie, which has been in my checklist since last year.. and finally, it's checked.. just reminded me of all the crazy jokes made over this movie amongst my colleagues in uob.. hmm.. i just love the movie.. enough said..

silly things one thinks about when there's too much time on hand [installment 1]

welcome to the first installment of 'silly things one thinks about when there's too much time on hand'.. been wanting to file this entry since friday.. but haven't gotten around doing it.. though there's much time on hand..

well, for the first installment, inspired by the latest article in time magazine, which did a review of the 1906 earthquake in san francisco.. so the topic for this installment is about the methods and probability of dying..

well, the article compared statistics from the earthquake with that of the 9/11 attacks.. and man, the probability of dying in either incident was actually the same.. even better, the number of deaths resulted was the same.. so.. be shocked!! dying in an earthquake or from terrorist attacks has equal chances of happening..

it's just funny how death can come in so many ways.. i'm not talking about the dumb movie 'final destination', which has a never-ending number of sequels, which just keep getting worse.. look, one can die from taking part in the olympic games.. just take a look at LOST.. it makes taking planes look so dangerous.. and who can rule out the possibility of some meteoroids hitting our lovely planet, after all that years of speculations, which our dearest scientists have done.. and note, the probability of a meteoroid colliding with earth is the same as that of a plane-crash.. of course, there are still many other possible ways.. let's just not go into those which are widely discussed and personified by hollywood's psychotic movies.. if you must, there's one worthy of mention: dying while being buried beneath cement.. check out the french movie: jeux d'enfants..

it can also be due to one's health, which occurs from inside out.. medical thrillers never fail to present both the medical causes but also interesting, but gruesome description of how person x dies or whatever sorts.. one classic example is robin cook.. check out fatal cure: dying due to excessive exposure to radiation, whereby the source was actually placed under hospital beds.. or from being buried behind a slab of cement.. but do read his books for just the text, they are actually good thrillers.. john grisham's books do not have that much of gruesome murders and all.. but another good writer.. but then again, i'm biased.. they are my favourite authors!! *bleah*

okay, enough of my first installment, lest i launch into even more crappy stuff.. disclaimer: i'm not depressed!! it's a must to state my disclaimer.. but just silly stuff that just popped up since i've got so much free time.. =P

pregnant cats and flying moths..

i saw a pregnant cat this evening, which was trying to climb up the tree, but it was a failed attempt.. pregnant cats: something that were once mentioned long ago.. flying moths: hmm.. really interesting and memorable to be worth the mention.. a moth that had too high an affinity for devin's shorts back in nias.. well, it literally just sat there for a photo shoot.. another reason? it's the 3rd month of the lunar calendar.. what the chinese calls 'qing ming'.. well, they believe that moths are the souls of their loved ones, who have made a slightly-too-early departure from this earth..

oh, i just realised, learnt and am totally convinced that.. i'm absolutely CROWD-PHOBIC!!! i was so closed to dropping dead at the bus stop yesterday evening.. it was absolutely and totally horrible, spelt in capital letters!!!

on a bimbotic sidenote: i finally bought my pair of heels.. totally expensive and the heels have a plastiky-feel but who cares!!?? great shopping spree this afternoon though.. and my birkinstock look-a-like from kappa has no sizes left and unfortunately all catering for men.. so i had to settle for something else.. hmm.. once in a while, i really do envy the guys.. their wardrobe will never go out of style and though it's the same old boring cut, it always looks so good.. beat the ladies!! fashion never last for more than half a year.. and before one knows it, the whole wardrobe is bursting with clothes and threatening to explode.. i just want more jeans/ pants.. now?? waiting for more sales..

just wait till i *bleah* back at you..

what a start to the day.. woke up a tat too late and then of course, was late for work.. and what a hostile lady at the bus-stop.. sorry that i was really sleepy and there's just too many ppl at the bus-stop and you are the one whom i said 'excuse me' to.. and maybe i sounded a little too loud.. but does not mean that i'm following you on the queue to the bus, when my aim was to cut through the crowd and get through.. and how the world am i to walk, if you and the rest of the crowd are still blocking the way.. #2&*(sGkg&#*


oh, i broke my own record!! i completed the entire drama serial within 3 days!! full house.. a great recommendation from nolly.. my dad's threatening to ban me from watching any more drama serials.. and *round of applause*.. i found the theme song too!!! woohoo!! i just love this show.. too sweet and ain't that draggy, which is a good thing.. draggy stuffs tend to get too boring after like 4 episodes.. looking forward to more serials..

alcohol + food + me

a bad combination.. tested and proven 3 times..

wait, does that mean i can no longer drink anymore?? what will happen to my tequila sunrise?? glühwein?? i want my tequila sunrise!! *humph*

*screams*... the spread of h & m to asia.. it's traumatising enough that i saw them literally every 2 doors away in stockholm.. and there's 3 stores along the stretch from mönckebergstraße, thru jungfernstieg till gänsemarkt..

actually, the store chain ain't coming to singapore.. hopefully.. just that i stumbled upon this top which is actually produced for sale in H & M.. and i got it for only 2 bucks.. *laughs*.. for something that will cost about 7 euros.. *doo dee doo*..

part of my reintegration plan.. but no worries, not as serious as it sounds to be.. watched army daze @ the drama centre located at the new national library.. well, yours truly was a tat late so didn't have sufficient time to walk ard the new library..

standard storyline.. not deviating much from that of the movie itself.. but it's really cool on how they play pun and insult the government.. honestly, the only way to do the latter is through all these local plays.. so much hokkien and so much singlish.. man, it just feels totally singaporean.. and my gosh, the play was sold to a full house.. and loads of ppl from saf and mds from there too..

haven't laughed that much for a really long time to come.. reminded me of the crazy days back in year 1, when we will laugh so crazily and for prolonged periods, that we almost cried.. miss you rag comm..


and this was what i've been up to for the whole of last week.. returned back to my obsession of the korean drama serials.. man, now that i'm done with this one, i need a new serial.. recommendations anyone??

sep 05/06 - hamburg, deutschland

i promised that i will do a write-up of all my trips.. but then again, laziness got the better of me.. so here's summary of all the key events that took place during the entire sep period.. so here goes..

30th sept 2005

here's eufo and me at changi airport.. the start of an adventure..

1st oct 2005

transiting with lufthansa.. above the skies of germany..

15th oct 2005

self-declared tour of hamburg city with my friends.. here's the hamburg rathaus..

23rd oct 2005

blankenese.. beach along the elbe..

29th oct 2005

schönes wochenende nach bremen..

4th - 6th nov 2005

great friends, great company.. in front of brandenburger tor, here in berlin..

18th - 20th nov 2005

gathering of all the singlish speakers.. missing loads of ppl, who were busy sleeping back in djh.. here's the hardworking bunch that climbed the kölner dom.. no prizes for guessing correctly where we were..

2nd - 5th dec 2005

all the way to lübeck.. just to catch my ryanair plane..


here's isabel's sister with me at gamla stan.. hopefully i got the location right.. oh yes, i'm in stockholm!!!

16th - 19th dec 2005

shengrong & keve came down from münchen to hamburg for a visit.. here's them at the weihnachtsmarkt am rathausplatz.. this was the stall, where they bought a coconut, which went back with them to münchen but they forgot all about it and the poor coconut rotted..

22nd - 29th dec 2005

the tower bridge down in london..


visit to the leeds castle at kent on christmas eve with the guys..


what a sense of suspense and mystery.. here at the roman baths with eufo.. and so of course, we're at bath.. with the pool water, which requires much of an acquired taste..

30th dec 2005 - 4th jan 2006

another great moment of fun and great company.. in the romantic city of france.. man!! and i visited this tourist attraction 4 times!!! *faint*..

4th - 6th jan 2006
yusen came down to visit.. before flying back to newcastle to mug hard for his exams.. and he went.. things are so cheap in germany!! as compared to back in newcastle.. hahaha.. jealous?? *bleah*..

21st - 22nd jan 2006
han came down from stockholm.. but what a terrible host i was.. stuck in the world of studienarbeit and lab reports.. crap, that cost another precious weekend in hamburg.. but what's cool?? we saw a car got towed away at reeperbahn.. and the cold draft hit germany.. and temperatures dropped till -10 degrees on a bright sunny sunday morning at the fischmarkt..

26th - 27th jan 2006

here in my living room.. here's nitya and me.. on her last leg of the trip to germany.. before returning back to nottingham for her last semester.. man, time flies..

10th - 12th feb 2006

hans christian anderson's little mermaid.. and my favourite disney cartoon and children's story too.. of course, not the one whereby she actually became bubbles.. so we walked a long long way before we finally found her.. by the river side.. on the outskirts of copenhagen..

13th - 18th feb 2006

here in münchen.. with the frauenkirche and the münchener rathaus..


up on the forbidden marienbrücke.. getting a really good shot of the neuschwanstein schloss..

18th - 20th feb 2006

if münchen has all her lions.. then hamburg has all these statues of hummel.. here's noelle and weeyang with one of the many hummels... well, the godiva hot chocolate made a guest appearance too..

23rd feb 2006

departure in the early morning.. auf wiedersehen..