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Movie Review - Contraband

2012-01-12T10:08:00.010+08:00

First, I want to say a very big thank you to omy.sg for another opportunity to review the latest show in town – Contraband – on Tuesday night.

I got to review the movie in lushly renovated Shaw Lido theatre, fast becoming one of my favorite cinemas on the island. Synopsis of Contraband
Mark Wahlberg (Shooter) and Kate Beckinsale (Underworld) leads the cast of Contraband, a fast-paced thriller about a man trying to stay out of a world he worked so hard to leave behind and the family he’ll do anything to protect. Set in New Orleans, the film explores the cutthroat underground world of international smuggling—full of desperate criminals and corrupt officials, high-stakes and big payoffs—where loyalty rarely exists and death is one wrong turn away.

Chris Farraday (Wahlberg) long ago abandoned his life of crime, but after his brother-in-law, Andy (Caleb Landry Jones), botches a drug deal for his ruthless boss, Tim Briggs (Giovanni Ribisi), Chris is forced back into doing what he does best—running contraband—to settle Andy’s debt. Chris is a legendary smuggler and quickly assembles a crew with the help of his best friend, Sebastian (Ben Foster), to head to Panama and return with millions in counterfeit bills.

Things quickly fall apart and with only hours to reach the cash, Chris must use his rusty skills to successfully navigate a treacherous criminal network of brutal drug lords, cops and hit men before his wife, Kate (Kate Beckinsale), and sons become their target.

Movie Review
There are a few reasons why I really enjoyed and love this show:

Chris Farraday runs into his first problem in Panama

1) The pace of the movie – The wordings “fast-paced thriller” is totally apt. From the moment Chris’ brother-in-law got into trouble at the start of the show, the pace was relentless. There is no moment wasted as there was a lot going on.

Chris and his gang is unaware of the many potholes ahead of their adventure in Panama

2) Plot twists – There are numerous plot twists and new problems arising from almost every solution or plan well thought out by the main character Chris. Initially he did a lot of things which we, as laymen and as clueless and law-abiding Singapore citizens, would not know what for. But it would be revealed in due time. In other words, if you doze off for just a moment, you might very likely have missed an important clue to the end of the show.
3) The characters – Wahlberg’s character Chris, a “world-class smuggler” according to the show’s villain Tim Briggs, was a three-dimensional character. It is quite amazing to develop a character so much in a action-packed fast-paced movie, but they did. Chris was a man who had settled into a comfortable American life with a beautiful wife and two sons but secretly missed his law-breaking days as a contraband smuggler. But he is also fiercely protective of his family and at the same time, has the moral not to ship any drugs. The contraband in question was “super notes” fake currency. I especially like the way he lost his cool with Tim after he threatened to hurt his family, he ended up heavily bruising Tim and was caught doing so by Tim’s daughter. Instead of hurting Tim further, he pulled Tim up and told the girl that they were just horsing around – showing that he would never want to traumatize children, even if they were the children of a jerk.

Tim Briggs, played by Giovanni Ribisi, was the typical villain but he really gets on your nerves with his trash talking and ruthless ways to get his way. However, the viewers would soon know that this character isn’t as smart as portrayed earlier in the show, as there is another mastermind. Chris’ best friend Sebastian, plays a big part in all this as he still has contacts to contraband goods and is the link man back to the industry for Chris when Andy got into trouble with Tim. At the same time, he needs to help Chris take care of his family from Tim while he is away doing what he does best. As the show goes on, we soon learnt that Sebastian is also a recovering alcoholic, who would return to alcohol some part during the show. More havoc unravels! I shall not spoil the story for you by revealing more, just watch the show! Finally, Beckinsale’s character Kate (also her real-life first name) was perhaps the least developed character in the movie. I didn’t mind one bit because she was totally hot, even with blond hair! 4) The ending of the show – I mentioned earlier that Chris did a lot of preparatory work at the beginning of his return to the smuggling world, some of which would be immensely important to the ending of the show. Towards the end, Chris and his crew on the ship were almost caught but no one found any of the contraband money he brought to the ship, even at the very spot where they had initially stored it in. No one knew where it had gone until the end of the show. Also, as if that isn’t enough, they ended up with more than what they bargained for right at the end too – making them rich beyond their wildest dreams. Just how did that happen and what happened to the villains? Watch the show in the cinemas and find out, you won’t regret it!

Final rating: 4.5 stars out of 5 – a must watch!

Movie Review: Immortals

2011-11-18T02:23:00.005+08:00

Thanks to omy.sg, I went to the movie preview of Immortals two nights ago and I was blown away by the action sequences and special effects, which were enhanced by the 3D glasses.

Being a fan of 300, Troy, and all Greek mythology, I really looked forward to this show (which was produced by the same people who gave us the unforgettable 300).

The story behind the visually exciting Immortals are as follow:

When the world was still young, immortals walked the earth. There were peace until thees immortals realised that they can inflict great damages to one another and a war erupted. The winners call themselves Gods, and the vanquished were labelled Titans.

Eons after the this mythic battle between the Gods and the Titans, a new evil threatens the land. Bloodthirsty with power, King Hyperion (Mickey Rourke, above) has declared war against humanity. Amassing a fearsome army of soldiers, Hyperion has scorched Greece in search of the legendary Epirus Bow, a weapon of unimaginable power forged in the heavens by Ares, the Greek God of War. Along the way, his army unleashed fear and deaths throughout the land.

Anyone who found this mystical bow can unleash the Titans, who have been imprisoned deep within the walls of Mount Tartaros since the end of the war between immortals and were waiting for revenge. In Hyperion's hands, the bow would rain destruction upon mankind and annihilate the Gods. But ancient law dictates the Gods must not intervene in man’s conflict unless the Titans are released.

In the midst of all these, a peasant named Theseus (Henry Cavill above) comes forth as the hero. Chosen and trained by Zeus himself, Theseus soon caught the attention of his local army through his fighting skills. When Hyperion finally unleashed the Titans upon the people, Theseus must stop Hyperion and his army while the Gods attempt to stop the Titans once more.

As mentioned in my opening paragraph, I was truly blown away by the action and special effects, and the 3D effects came across as classy and with a lot of depth difference.

When the Gods (dressed in gold above) appeared in their true form, they look gorgeous (Ok I meant Athena, Goddess of Wisdom and Warfare played by Isabel Lucas - she is really hot - see picture below). I love the action sequences of the Gods against the Titans the most - gory, detailed and fantastical, really fantabulous!

However, the best parts of the movie remains the special 3D effects and the action sequences. The story is pretty flawed and that was a real pity, as it could have been a real classic epic. Being a geek in greek mythology, I realised that Ares was being defeated far too easily by Zeus. And Poisedon was seen as being below, or in this case, hinted to be just another child of Zeus - which is wrong as Poseidon and Zeus, together with Hades, are brothers and were actually children of Cronos/Kronos, a titan. They should be of equal standing with command over different realms (the earth and the sky by Zeus, the sea by Poseidon and hell by Hades). However, Hades was never mentioned here and Poseidon seem to fear Zeus. Zeus' weapon of a whip in the show also don't seem to be right.

Also, Theseus is the child of Poseidon, according to the mythology but it is certainly not protrayed as such in this show. But the did show Theseus slaying a Minotaur, which is what the mythical Theseus is famous for. Oh well, I'm just being too specific because I am a big fan of Greek mythology and a big fan of the game God of War.

The story also left many questions unanswered, such as the origins of the Oracles, why the Epirus Bow was forged, why Zeus only seemed to care about Athena and not the other Gods...

For me, if you are looking to enjoy a show with awesome special effects and just to have a ride of a time, then Immortals is certainly for you. It isn't a show for the intellectuals though, but that is why it is mainstream.

3 outta 5 stars for me. You need to watch this in 3D to fully enjoy the show. Don't wait for the DVD because the experience would be totally different.

The 3-D epic adventure Immortals is directed by revolutionary visualist Tarsem Singh (The Cell, The Fall) and produced by Gianni Nunnari and Mark Canton, the producers of 300, as well as Ryan Kavanaugh (Dear John, The Dark Fields).

No tips @ the Tower!

2011-11-03T23:10:00.007+08:00

Again thanks to omy.sg, I got to a chance to review the latest comedy to hit the cinemas - Tower Heist. With Ben Stiller and Eddie Murphy in a comedy, what can go wrong? Nothing much actually... I think it's actually one of the better comedies I've watched this year!

Arthur Shaw swimming in his private pool with a 100-dollar bill design at the top level penthouse

The show is about how a businessman tenant of the top floor penthouse of a luxury apartment building called the "Tower", named Arthur Shaw (played by Alan Alda, the guy from M*A*S*H) turned out to be a swindler who cheated the pension money of the Tower staff and was caught by the FBI. Stiller plays Josh, the building manager who had to break the news to his staff. The Tower's doorman Lester had told Josh he planned to retire at the end of the year but his plans had to be shelved. Lester attempted suicide soon after but was rescued. Josh later found out from Lester that he had given his whole life's savings to Shaw for investing, and had thus had nothing left for his twilight years.

Angered by this, Josh confronted Shaw, who was back at his penthouse under house arrest by the FBI. Josh smashed Shaw's Ferrari and lost his job together with his brother-in-law and the new elevator staff who were with him during the confrontation.

The motley crew in Tower Heist

Josh then came up with a way to get the money back from Shaw, by robbing his penthouse! He then began to round up a motley crew of his ex-colleagues and a childhood friend who grew up to be a criminal (played by Eddie Murphy).

Ben Stiller is at his natural funny-without-trying best while Eddie Murphy is in a character much different from the roles audience are used to, but funny nonetheless.

First Lesson: How to be a criminal

I love the part where Murphy's character Slide needed to be convinced of the motley crew's criminal ways before joining them in their quest. They were supposed to each steal something that is worth at least $50. The scenes that followed were hilarious! You must see it!

I shall not ruin the ending, but my title has some bearing as the rebuttal line at the end. Watch it to find out for yourself!

I enjoyed it. If you had to choose between Footloose or Tower Heist, hey it's an obvious choice.

Definitely worth 4 outta 5 stars for me.

Movie Review: Footloose

2011-10-26T21:55:00.011+08:00

I was invited to the movie preview of Footloose (2011) by omy.sg on Monday night, and I was fortunate enough to bring Val, who had watched the original Footloose starring Kevin Bacon (Strange how she managed to watch the original film in 1984 when she was only 4 years old).

I have never watched the original, and so I am able to offer a rather neutral view of the new show. But at the same time, I had the opportunity to ask Val how it compares to the original. Before the show, I had expected more dance scenes, which is what got me interested in the first place. What I can say for dance fans is, if you are looking for extensive dance sequences, then you won't be getting much.

The dance sequences were good, just not enough of them

There are some impressive dance moves from the main actor Kenny Wormald, who plays Ren McCormack. It turns out that Kenny is a prolific professional dancer which impressive credentials, having toured with Justin Timberlake and the Pussycat Dolls. The main actress Julienne Hough, who plays Ariel Moore, is also a professional ballroom dancer. But I don't feel there are enough dance sequences to exploit the talents of both actors.

The plot itself,;which according to Val is exactly the same as the original Footloose, with the same opening scene as well; was rather thin and gives a real retro feel. One won't have thought the movie to be set in modern times, at least I didn't, until Ren whips out his iPod playing music.

Julienne Hough (in green) looking hot as Ariel. The girl to the right is Rusty, played by Sarah Jessica Parker in the original Footloose. Great casting - they both look the same kind of ugly

The movie begins innocently enough, with the song Footloose being played and youngsters dancing. Then a group left and got into a nasty accident, and were killed on the spot. It turned out that the driver of the group was the brother of Ariel Moore, the daughter of the town's preacher Shaw Moore. The deaths of the 5 youngsters rocked the small town, and as a result, the town council, at the recommendation of Shaw, passed ridiculous laws such as a curfew on teenagers to be home before 10pm, the banning of public dancing for all teenagers and playing of certain songs (yeah, how believable was that?). It would have been more believable in the original movie because it was set in the 80s, but today? The only thing that probably saved them was the fact it was set in a small town, and I've heard of pretty strange laws in small communities in certain countries (I've heard how it is illegal to slam car doors in a certain country, can't remember where though).

Ren was a new orphan having lost his mum to leukemia, and moved to a small town called Bomont (fake town I suppose) with his uncle's family. Ren appeared aloof when he first appeared and looked like trouble. It turned out Ren was a pretty decent chap who is also a gymnast, thus his ability to move to the groove. Ren's nonchalant attitude as well as his crush on Ariel got him into some trouble at school and with Chuck, the good-for-nothing car racer air-head boyfriend of Ariel.

As the story unfolds with his tangling with Chuck and Ariel, Ren finds out from his friends at school that dancing was forbidden by law and was in disbelief for a while. He then decided to start a petition against this law to bring dance back to their high school prom. I shall not ruin the ending for you here but if you have seen the original movie, then you already know.

The best part of the movie for me was when Ren was so fed up with his school principal he went to an abandoned warehouse and started venting his frustrations with some rather violent dance moves, which were quite impressive. Oh, and of course Julienne Hough being so incredibly hot helps too.

I find Kenny really resembles a young Alan Tam - what do you think?

Overall: 3 out of 5 stars, watchable but you can wait for the DVD.

"Tell me everything's gonna be okay"

2011-04-20T12:10:00.005+08:00

Movie Review: The Source Code (4/5 stars rating)

"I'm going to shoot you because you have a more impressive beard than me."

I went for a movie review last night organised by omy.sg on The Source Code - a science fiction action thriller.

With a synopsis of a decorated military pilot on a mission inside a dead person's mind to gather clues of the possible terrorist who bombed a train, it got me intrigued.

The story goes like this:

Decorated military helicopter pilot Captain Colter Stevens (acted by Jake Gyllenhaal), woke up being another man, a man he do not know and he could not remember why he was even there in the first place. He was in a train and he has a lady companion and the train explodes 8 minutes after he woke.

After the explosion, Captain Stevens was brought back to reality. Here, he finds out that he is trapped in a chamber and someone is speaking to him through a screen monitor. He manages to gather information that he is part of a mission to gather clues of the possible terrorist in the train in the last 8 minutes of a victim's mind, a memory that still exists.

He gathers more information each time he is sent back and he edges towards finding the terrorist and he also finds out more about his present situation whenever he is out of the source code. (Movie spoiler coming up)

Captain Goodwin and the creator of Source Code - a bastard (watch the show to find out why)

He finds out he was pronounced dead by the military after his last failed mission in Afghanistan but he is not brain dead. Connecting his active brain to the scource code, a new military experiement, the military is able to send Captain Stevens back in the memory of this victim in the train, but only the last 8 minutes of his life as anything longer would not be captured as vividly.

Throughout the many times he was sent back, he realised that the people in the scource code, even though strictly speaking are just fragments of a memory and thus shouldn't exist, are in fact more real than people might think. They respond differently to different situations and Captain Stevens began to want to save these innocent people on the train, regardless if they were merely fragments.

And so after he manages to save all the people on the train in his last time back to the scource code, he was prepared to die as was promised by the military. And he kissed Christina passionately just before his 8 minutes were up. He then finds out that after the 8 minutes were up, he continued staying IN the source code - proving that the discovery of the source code is not just sending a person back into a memory, but creating an alternate universe altogether.

It gives us the audience the pleasure of a surprise pleasant ending when we are expecting the worst. I love it!

Everytime he dies, he asked his female companion Christina to tell him "Everything's gonna be okay". And this line sticks to become the very last line of the movie as well.

30th Birthday

2011-04-19T12:52:00.003+08:00

The dreaded big 3 - O.

It's finally here.

20 years ago, I've always wondered how I would be today at 30. Like any other dreamy-eyed child, I wanted to be a million things - soldier like my dad, teacher, doctor, vet (I have always loved animals), etc. Of course only a handful will end up being in an occupation known to a 10 year-old child. I always thought it was stereotypical to only teach children occupations such as doctors, teachers, soldiers, policemen, scientists. It's like other occupations don't matter or don't even exist. Anyhow, I thought I can be one of those wise characters in textbooks telling us all about what they do for a living.

Nothing, as we know, can be further away from the truth.

10 years ago, I had a diploma in business management and I thought I would be in business development or human resource. Most of all, I imagined myself to be a high-powered executive working in town. HA! Fact is I never worked in town in my 6 year career to-date.

And here we are, 3-O. My friend said 30 is the new 20 but I would like to think I'm much wiser and a better person.

Looking back at my 30 years of existence, what are the most interesting and proudest moments? Here I will list them down lest I forget 10 years down the road:

- Won 3rd prize in Chinese handwriting contest in Primary 5 (from entire school)
- Performed in a choir playing the recorder to Chirstmas carols in Primary school celebration in Primary 6
- Broke the school record for 1,500m in 5 min 35s for under-15s
- Came in 20th in the Secondary 3 cohort in cross country in 21 min 29 s
- Topped the cohort in English Literature in Secondary 3 (The River Between)
- Came in second in District B's Junior First Aid Competition
- Was Best Commander in District B's First Aid Competition
- Was youngest Captain in SJI's Inter-Unit Football Competition 1996 (was sent off in debut)
- Selected for inter-diploma debates for International Business and HR Management, semi-finalist
- Topped the cohort in presentation test
- Selected to represent NYP in 800m, 1,500m and 3,000m steeplechase for IVG
- Elected as Treasurer of the Student Ambassadorial Team in NYP
- Nominated Best Soldier of the Month (November 2003) during National Service
- Scored 9 goals in 4 games in inter-depot beach football to win the competition for HQ team

Career milestones:
- Created the Friend of IFFS loyalty programme that continued until today
- Created CordLife 2010 Calendar and new collaterals
- Created the first-ever electronic annual report within all PA divisions

Hmmmm, I must have missed out a few others. But here's to the next 30!

Paying respects

2011-04-11T09:31:00.003+08:00

I went with my family to pay respects to my paternal grandparents in Sin Ming and my aunt in Mandai yesterday. I was just having this conversation with Ezen that people of my generation and definitely our next generation would most likely not observe such ceremonies and traditions in future. My mother repeated this yesterday during our trip. To me, I think it's not a matter of whether we would observe the traditions or not, I think it is whether we know how to. There are a lot of things to adhere to, like buying certain paper gifts, the names must be written in a certain way, the steps to 'inviting' them and offering food and the time needed to be spent. It is not just observing, it is much more complicated than that. I am a Christian, a baptised Catholic, and I have no problems observing this tradition of paying respects and even holding joss sticks because the purpose is to pay respects to my ancestors and deceased loved ones and not worshipping. However, I am more attuned to the Church's traditions so it is very difficult for me to follow in future. But it is definitely not because of the lack of willingness to do so. That seem to be the problem of our generation. Even the taoists who are the biggest observers of this ancient tradition may not necessarily continue when it reaches the next generation. Is this a sad thing? Would we lose our heritage if we lose our traditions?

My dear Ezen

2011-03-03T12:12:00.004+08:00

A lot has happened since my last post. Yes, the moment I had wanted to freeze was with my current girlfriend - Ezen.

And indeed it all happened rather quickly. And I'm grateful for this. It has been more than 2 years since I felt this way about someone. I had a most memorable month. And of course, in this month we had Valentine's Day - how timely!

And I wrote this poem for Ezen to commemorate the special occasion (pay attention to the last words of every sentence, they rhyme!):

When I first met
A tall girl named Ezen
I know she's someone I won't forget
Rather, she gave me an urge to buy flowers by the dozen

I know she thinks I was too quiet
But I just love to hear her talking
I was just trying not to look to weird
As my heart was thunderously beating

As I left for the day
I felt somewhat elated
I wonder what she would say
The next time when we dated

We went out two more times
Before I gathered all my courage
Thinking of all the rhymes
To use as part of my confession language

Alas! She said I was too slow
I should have noticed she was interested earlier
But I thought that was a blow
As big as that of a glacier

And so I became a walking zombie
For the best part of a year
I wasn't interested in any Daisy, Denise or Debbie
But soon loneliness became a genuine fear

When her birthday came by
I decided to again make contact
When she replied "hey let's meet" without saying why
I became excited and hope it wasn't just an act

After a couple of re-scheduling
We finally caught up once again
She still looks as amazing
And I know whoever is with her will have much to gain

I followed that up with a few dates with her
It brought back fresh memories
I can't believe we've known each other for over a yaer
I just hope it continues, just like drama series

And so once I wanted to go Keppel Bay
But she preferred the Sentosa Beach
I thought "whatever she say"
And finally we've reached

She decided to try holding my hand
As we chatted under the stars
My heart pumped so hard it can hardly withstand
But I couldn't give an arse

It was the best feeling in the world
Just being there with her
Hand in hand, fingers curled
The memory of which will never blur

Do I now stand a chance?
I couldn't wait so I asked her out again
After which the chance wasn't enhanced
Instead it seemed to have waned

But Ezen wrote me a long email
Before she decides to write me off for good
She thinks I was acting like a snail
That was when I decided to stop being a piece of wood

So we went out once more for photography
I wondered how this was going to end
We chatted again and she hinted to me
I hope we won't just be friends!

As we were walking back towards my car
I decided to give up all manner of pretence
I took her hand in mine under the stars
And I realise I was no longer tensed!

I saw her home and was unwilling to be dismissed
But I knew I have a lifetime to love her
And so I gave her our first kiss
Afterwards I wished I would always be her driver

This is when our relationship began
I will always look back on this fondly
Because this is when I gained
This tall, charismatic woman whom is so lovely.

If only life was...

2011-01-24T00:46:00.002+08:00

It's been a long time since I fell sick and went to the doctor's. I'm never known to take MCs; yes, I'm one of those 'market-spoilers' who will still go to work even when I'm ill just as long as I can still think straight.

But this time, I had to succumb to the flu that has been going around recently. And the worst thing is, it had to happen when I'm attending a conference and over a weekend. I spent most of this weekend in bed, and I feel drowsy most of the time since I've been on medication.

This is really sucky but I just had a wonderful time last night, doing something I have not done in a long long time. So long that I can't recall when it was. Anyhow, it was a sweet and memorable moment that I never wanted to end. I understood at that point what people meant when they say they want to freeze 'the moment'.

Alas, it had to end sometime. The question is, can it happen again? Can this continue?

If only life was that simple, without complications. It was a simple thing, a simple event, but I am contented and that's all that mattered to me at that point. And I can appreciate it even though I'm really sick.

I hope that this is a sign of things to come. Wish me luck :)

Oh, wish me a speedy recovery as well ok? :)

Legend of the Seas!

2010-11-22T21:13:00.104+08:00

"When you have had caviar, you would never want to eat sausages again." - Arsene Wenger, Arsenal Manager I have never been on a cruise ship before, and when I was offered the chance to tour and view the Legend of the Seas, one of the largest cruise ships in the Royal Carribean line (the largest being the Sovereign Class, one class above the Legend), I jumped at the opportunity. I wanted to see for myself, what the fuss is all about on one of Singaporeans' most popular holiday getaways.

And I finally experienced for myself the meaning of the opening sentence of this blog entry, by the football manager of my favourite team. Now that I have experienced Legend of the Seas, I'm not sure if I can be contented with a smaller cruise ship!

I couldn't believe my eyes when I finally boarded the ship this morning, it was like entering a mega mall not unlike the size of nearby VivoCity. My eyes just grew bigger and bigger as I ventured further. There were marble floorings, elevators large enough to fit 15 people, 2 swimming pools including one that is covered by glass (ensuring sunlight during a sunny day and shelter during a rainy one), bars, movie theatres and even an entertainment centre on top of the customary casino gave me the feeling I'm in a high end hotel in Las Vegas, not unlike the Venetian where I stayed in 2008. But all this in a cruise ship - WOW!

Ok, enough talk. As they say, pictures (I've included two video clips) speak a thousand words. Click on the pictures to enlarge them. Enjoy~

This is the sight that greeted us when we stepped into the main bar area where the Royal Carribean and Omy.sg crew gave us our briefing before the tour.

Two more pictures of the same area, showing just how big the place is. The picture on the right is a glass model of the Legend of the Seas - exquisite

The surprises began as soon as we started our tour - there is a cinema in here!

The stairs are adorned with thematic paintings like those above

Then we proceeded to the outdoor swimming pool deck through the in-built large elevators above (I wish my workplace has those!) and this is the sight that greeted us:

The outdoor swimming pool

An upper deck view of the outdoor pool

The bar area at the swimming pool

This is where they serve breakfast, by the pool as well. This outdoor pool area is so big, the pictures themselves don't do it justice. Therefore, I've shot a video showing one complete round of the place, to give you a better idea of how large it really is. Click on the below video to start.

Following that, we went on to Windjammer, where buffet lunch is served for guests.
Once we entered, there is this long fruit line with two melons being craved the words "Welcome Aboard" - See below

"Welcome Aboard"
The main food line - Yummy!

There are sculpted water melons placed throughout, let's see what patterns there are:

Fish

PhoenixLotusStar!The chef actually posing for me!

As you can see from the picture above, there are chefs manning a number of stations preparing food fresh from the wok! Mmmmmm...

Following that, we had to forget our hunger pangs and move on to... the discotheque!

This area will be turned into the dancefloor at night. Again, the picture is not enough to show just how majestic the place is, so the below is yet another round shot of the place (click on video to begin):

This is also part of the large disco deck, where guests can enjoy their drinks

There is even a piano on this deck! Here a fellow blogger Grace is displaying her dexsterity on the keyboard

A view from this deck, where we are directly under the cable car line to Sentosa

A view from one of the upper decks, in the central elevator area

A model of the Legend of the Seas, one of many in the ship

Then we proceeded to 'The Wall', an outdoor climbing area. The view at the top must be majestic especially when the ship is cruising. Check out the pictures below:

Of course there has to be a gym, except there is a celebrity trainer with proven credentials thre as well. Too bad I lost the picture of that somewhere...

After a long hard workout at the gym, it is only natural to go to the waiting area (above) for...

...spa!!!

After spa, for the ladies, there is also the beauty center!

Just when you thought you have relaxed and pampered yourself enough, there is still the......indoor swimming pool!

This is the glass roof that shelters rain from the pool and keeps it sunny during good weather so you can still sunbathe in the indoor pool, how cool is that!There is also two jacuzzis in the indoor pool area

When you get tired of lazing around (who would?), maybe you can play some table tennis (above) or...
...surf the internet at the internet kiosk (above).
Or perhaps retiring to your room may not be such a bad idea, not when there are rooms such as the Rembrandt:

And of course, there is the one-of-its-kind, biggest suite in the ship, called the Royal Suite:

It has got its own bar counter!

The living room area (the guests were so kind to let us take a quick peek!) And they even have their own piano! *faint*The toilet is connected to......the bathroom area where you can choose between taking a shower or soaking in the bathtub

And finally, the bedroom area

Now to explore the areas for night activity. First up, the Schooner Bar.
And we must not miss the opportunity to enter the Casino Royale!

After the casino, we move on to the Entertainment Center where selected performances are conducted every night. Let's take a peek inside...

Notice the seats are designed like waves, quite a suitable design in a cruise ship.

A closer look (above) at the seats show that it is separated individually, but they certainly look much more comfortable than cinema seats. Perhaps more so than your own home sofa!

And so, its finally lunch. I've forgotten how hungry I was during the tour because there was so much to see and experience. But stepping inside Romeo and Juliet reawakened my stomach.

Two different sculptures for the two entrances to the restaurant

The cover of the menu looks nice enough. Let's see what they have to offerWOW! I'm beginning to drool... So I chose......white wine...

...Shrimp Cocktail Royal (being a shrimp lover, this is absolutely fantastic!)...

...the Lamb Shank with Rosemary (generous portion and the meat is done just right for texture and taste!)...

...Ivory Chocolate Fondue(even though I'm not a chocolate lover, this is sinfully good!)

So there ends my half day tour, which I enjoyed very much. As in my opening line, now that I've experienced the best, I'm not sure I want to go on smaller cruises. Would I recommend anyone to go on Legend of the Seas? Hell yeah! If you're thinking of a holiday getaway but unsure of where to go, then give this one a serious consideration.

Once again, thank you omy.sg and Royal Carribean International for the experience!

Legend of the Seas

Movie Review: The Housemaid

2010-11-09T09:18:00.004+08:00

Last night, I watched the new Korean show "The Housemaid", thanks to omy.sg and here is the review:

"The Housemaid" is a remake of the 1960 show of the same name, which was then rated as one of the top Korean shows of all time. Although I've never watched the original, I would imagine it to be better than this 2010 remake version.

The synopsis of the movie is this - Eun-Yi is a housemaid employed by an apparently rich family, where the master of the house Hoon was someone born with a silver spoon in his mouth. Hoon's wife, Hae-Ra was pregnant with twins and thus the only maid in the family - Mdm Cho - was tasked in employing Eun-Yi for additional help.

Hoon began taking notice of Eun-Yi sexually when he accidentally stumbled on her washing the bathtub in the bathroom of the master bedroom, where she was wet and from all the washing, and her short maid dress gave her a dangerously seductive look. Hoon and Eun-yi then began an affair during a holiday outing with the family.

The affair was spotted by Mdm Cho, and she passed on the news of Eun-Yi being pregnant with Hoon's child as a result of the affair to Hae-Ra's mother (who looked really young). Hae-Ra's mother then attempted to stage an accident with the intent to hurt Eun-Yi so badly she would miscarry the illegitimate child. Failing which, Hae-Ra herself starting poisoning the herbal tea that Eun-Yi takes after she got hurt.

Eventually, the poison took effect and she was forced to abort the baby. At the hospital, Mdm Cho was overwhelmed with guilt and she confessed to Eun-Yi that she was the one who told Hae-Ra's mother of her affair with Hoon. Tramatised by all that has happened, she told Mdm Cho she wants 'revenge'.

However, her idea of revenge wasn't a very good one. And I was quite disappointed with the ending of the movie. For the full review on what happened, read the full review below.

Here are my ratings:
1) Direction: S T a r s - Above Average
2) Plot: s t a r s - Below Average
3) Acting: S T A r s - Very Good
4) Entertainment value: S t a r s - Average

Full review (contains spoilers, cease reading at this point if you intend to watch the show):
The movie began curiously enough, when a suicide took place in the city and near the restaurant where Eun-Yi and her friend/sister/room mate (it wasn't revealed during the entire movie) worked at. Eun-Yi went to the suicide scene after work and was disgusted by what she saw. The whole suicide scene seemed irrelevant and unimportant to the movie, until the very end.

Eun-Yi was then being interviewed by Mdm Cho, who at that point did not seem like a live-in maid herself. Soon-after, Eun-Yi was brought home to began work. Hae-Ra, the mistress of the house, was pregnant with twins and Eun-Yi's role is to help raise the twins as well as take care of Hae-Ra's daughter Nami.

Hoon returned later that night from work and casaully chatted with Eun-Yi but otherwise didn't take too much notice of her. Until one day, Eun-Yi was washing the bathtub in the master bedroom's bathroom, and she was drenched in her maid dress. Hoon stumbled into the bathroom and was immediately attracted to Eun-Yi. The affair finally began during a family holiday.

After discovering the affair, Mdm Cho revealed her suspicions of Eun-Yi being pregnant with Hoon to Hae-Ra's mother, who in turn took things into her own hands and staged an accident intending to cause miscarriage to Eun-Yi. After the accident, Hae-Ra was informed by her mother of the affair and why she had intended to hurt Eun-Yi.

Both Hae-Ra and her mother then told Eun-Yi to abort the baby and they forcefully kept her in the house in an attempt to force her to abortion. Failing which, Hae-Ra began poisoning the herbal tea Eun-Yi had been drinking. Soon enough, the effects kicked-in and she lost her baby as she told Hoon about her pregnancy. Although Hoon was furious with his mother-in-law for killing his unborn child, he did not pursue the matter further.

Stricken with guilt, Mdm Cho confessed to Eun-Yi that she was the whistle-blower. Although Eun-Yi was initially angry, Mdm Cho's remorse made Eun-Yi forgive her. However, as the days go by, Eun-Yi was slowly losing her mind. She then decided to take revenge.

Mdm Cho assisted Eun-Yi in entering the house where she went to carry the twins, scaring Hoon immensely. It is clear by now that Eun-Yi has lost her mind completely. Mdm Cho was then instructed by Hoon and Hae-Ra to get rid of Eun-Yi but Mdm Cho refused and quit on the spot.

As she was leaving, Eun-Yi appeared on the second storey of the house, looking down at the entire family (including Hae-Ra's mother). She tied a noose around her neck, and bid her farewell to Nami, the daughter who was the only one to remain true to her within the family. She then flung herself off, hanging herself from the living room's chandelier before burning herself. The family watched in horror but escaped as the sprinklers came on.

The last scene shows the family living happily and celebrating Nami's birthday, quite possibly overseas as they were speaking in English. Nami looked thoughtful during the whole time.

The significance of the whole suicide in the beginning was definitely linked to Eun-Yi's own suicide in the end. Although Eun-Yi looked disgusted by the suicide in the beginning, she got sucked into it herself in the end. It can happen to anyone. On that note, the ending is similar to the original.

Finally, would I recommend it to friends? Not really. There are better Korean shows around.

Thanks to omy.sg!

2010-11-07T23:32:00.002+08:00

Tomorrow I will be reviewing a show, thanks to omy.sg, a bilingual website maintained by the Singapore Press Holdings. I've been selected by them to review 'The Housemaid' tomorrow evening and I'm looking forward to it.

To refresh readers' memory of my moview reviews, this is how I rate movies on my blog:
S T A R S - Perfect rating, needs no explaination
S T A R s - Excellent
S T A r s - Very Good
S T a r s - Above Average
S t a r s - Average
s t a r s - Below Average
s t a r * - Falling asleep and not missing much
s t a * * - Rent a show instead
s t * * * - Someone should be paying you to watch this
s * * * * - Don't ever bother
* * * * * - Those just mean vulgarities too crude to be published on my family-friendly blog

And I usually rate on four main categories:
1) Direction
2) Plot
3) Acting
4) Entertainment value

Watch out for my movie review on 'The Housemaid' right here!

P.S. Happy birthday to my buddy Cindy Chua!

Happy birthday 火辣小红仔!

2010-11-04T20:45:00.003+08:00

Today my most beloved of possessions turns 3! My first and only car, the red Jazz (pictured left) enhanced with the official Honda Sports Edition body kit with sports seats and trimmings (yes I can go on and on) is my biggest pride and joy.

3 years ago to the day, I remembered seeing it on the third floor of the Honda showroom in Leng Kee Road when I stepped up to the third floor on my way to the office collecting the keys to the beauty. Even though I didn't check the number plate, I knew then that was my baby.

And true enough it was. I kept staring at it, and I can't wait to get into it as the salesman ran through the necessary paperwork before handling to me the keys. And when he finally brought me to the car, and showing me all the different functions, I simply wasn't paying any attention. I was just keen to drive it off and explore it for myself!

3 years on, my love for 火辣小红仔 only became stronger. Although I spent a princely sum on it, I never regretted getting it. I love the look, the interior and handling of the car. I'm so in love with it that I can really envision myself driving it for the entire duration of the COE. I have no plans to change even if I can afford it (the key word being 'if', so stop thinking I'm rich or something because I really am not).

I just want to say a very happy birthday to my lovely 火辣小红仔! Here's to many more years!

North West Dragons - King of the CDCs 2010!

2010-11-03T20:58:00.005+08:00

North West Dragons beat all the 4 other CDCs to clinch 2nd behind People's Association

Last Sunday, I took part in my very first dragonboat race and boy, was it memorable.

Dragonboating is a new experience for me, something I picked up only after I joined PA early this year. At first, I was very relunctant to join as I didn't think I had enough stamina for such a high-energy sport. But I was swayed and I joined without thinking I would eventually row in the final team.

But as I go for more trainings, the more I was hooked. The techniques involved, the teamwork needed and the mental strength required to succeed in dragonboating intrigued me and got me addicted. I began to enjoy the training sessions even though it was really physically torturing.

When I found out I was in the final rowing team, I was actually pretty thrilled, knowing that I will be entering the race for sure. I'm a new rower but I'm a committed one.

We were discussing race tactics when we mentioned what we think of our own chances, and really we were just hoping to get a medal, which was what the team did last year, albeit only just at 3rd.

Getting 3rd again was our initial target, when we heard things about how competitive the other teams are. Getting 2nd was the best result because we don't hold out any hope at all of defeating the PA team, who has won it every year.

But we breezed through, as our training paid off! We clocked the record timing for our CDC in 1 min 53 sec for 300m, only 4 seconds behind the PA team. We were at least 5 seconds ahead of the next best team. And so we became the King of the CDCs for the first time!

Next year, we have hopes to beating the PA team. It's time to really challenge them for the title. 2nd will not be enough for us.

I love this experience, and I'm already looking forward to starting training next year! Go North West Dragons!!

Define "crappy universities"

2010-09-27T19:33:00.003+08:00

Today I went for a course conducted at the Civil Service College and some of us were asked about our views on the difference in work environment in the modern era as compared to the previous generation.

One fellow said something which I thought made no sense, and my instinct then was to smack his empty head but of course I won't stoop to his neanderthal level. He said that his sister who is a decade his senior, has had a smooth career progression due to the fact she was a degree holder from NUS and that degree holders were rarer then. Nowadays, graduates are a dime a dozen. And he went on to say "furthermore, government recognises degrees from crappy universities these days."

Define "cappy universities" for me, please. Does being educated in a foreign university mean we are of a lower standard than that of the local universities?

While there is some truth in the first part of his answer, it doesn't matter what education you have that determines how far you go in life. Put it this way, the paper is there to assist you to get a good job, how it proceeds from there is entirely up to you.

The fact that government statutory boards are recognising qualifications from a wider range of universities means a fairer chance for all of us, who may not have gotten a chance to study in one of the three local universities. At the end of the day, you still need to prove your own quality at work, and you cannot do that by waving your qualification.

I'm managing a team of 9 officers, 7 of whom are degree holders, and more than half of these are from one of the three local universities. And I'm a graduate from RMIT University, does it make me crap? I don't think so.

So don't hide behind such a lame excuse if you don't succeed in your career. You only have yourself to blame.

Everyone's getting hitched!

2010-08-21T20:56:00.006+08:00

I've just completed 7 full months at my new workplace and I'm enjoying it much less than when I first joined. Middle management is much more difficult than one can imagine, if you have been there, you would know exactly what I mean.

I've been working crazy hours; you know something is wrong when your own mum said "You're home early" when you get home at 8pm. With the recent issuing of my remote access from home, I hope that is going to change. Also, I broke my record of leaving office early last Friday, leaving at 6.05pm, I was absolutely thrilled.

Anyway, it's been a long time since I blogged. So long, I've forgotten which email I used for this blog. Long enough for my last post to be swamped with spam comments.

It's time to clear some weed. This first recent post would not be as coherent as my previous posts, but who cares? It's my damn blog.

Over the past couple of months, two of my best friends became first-time parents. And just over a week ago, my own brother became a dad. I love the kids. It really feels different to see your close friends and siblings becoming parents. I've known these friends for more than a decade, I've known them since they were single, got attached, married and now with kids. It's one whole cycle and I can't help but feel old. But I love babies. I always have and I think Adele, Oscar and my nephew Ayrton are extremely cute. One of my friends asked me if the sight of Ayrton make me want one of my own. I told her I would rather not think about that. No girlfriend still want to think about having a kid?

The other day, an ex-colleague brought to my attention that at my age, I should be out there dating. I'm 29, and in the context of Singapore, I ought to be out there working my butt off trying to stablise my career, and strengthen my finances (which I am). Is it really so wrong to be doing that and neglecting the other side of my life?

I really don't know.

Recently, I know this gal from work, whom I'm interested in dating but I realise I don't have the energy anymore. I feel jaded. And my long work hours doesn't help matters. I'm beginning to worry it may never work out for me.

Most of my close buddies are attached and getting hitched. This morning alone, I received a wedding invitation (congrats Jeraldine!). It terrifies me to think I would always be asked when is my turn, a decade from now.

It's extremely ironic that when I couldn't afford to date, I did. And when I can afford it, I can't get a date.

Oh well... moving on.

I've succumbed to the lure of iPhone. Previously, I'm a strong advocate of using the traditional phone and have been using Sony Ericsson phones for a long time. Then came the iPhone 4. I did some research on it when it was announced that it would be launched this year. A case of itchy backside.

The more I knew about it the more I'm intrigued. I guess the final straw came when I was at an event where I met my Corporate Communications counterparts from the other districts, and they all whipped out their iPhones and began comparing applications. I felt really left out.

So finally, I placed a reservation for an iPhone 4 in July and it was a decision I never regretted. I love it completely! I love it so much that I spend more time on it than using my own laptop. Here are some applications I would like to recommend:

- Godfinger: Super cute game in which you play as the Almighty one. ("eeyur, you're a Catholic and you play this kinda game?" I hear you say - it's just a GAME. Chill dude.)
- iFootball: Extremely convenient way to get the latest football news, for football crazies like me.
- Office Heroes: Super funny game in which you can get credit and promotion for doing really useless tasks such as tweeting, blogging, brewing coffee etc. (A case of game imitating real life eh? LOL.)
- Paper toss: One of the best time-wasters, but extremely addictive.

Oh, by the way, if you have already gotten your iPhone 4, please go to the Apple website using your iPhone and download the iPhone 4 Case Program application in which you can get a cover from Apple for free! I've already placed my order :)

Ok, this must be the most incoherent post ever in my blog to-date. I'll be back soon, with a better post!

Up In The Air

2010-02-25T21:49:00.003+08:00

I watched the show last night "Up in the Air" starring the ageless George Clooney, when my company treated a group of volunteers to a movie screening.

Watching Clooney go through the motions in an airport brought a flow of memories back to me, from the time when I was a frequent flyer (although not to the extent of achieving 10 million miles like the main character). I began to feel nostalgic, and I realise that I have actually missed that part of my life.

In my first year of business travelling, I remembered being very green, not knowing the clearance protocol in an airport, not knowing where to find the best resting spot, getting lost here and there. Everytime I travelled then, I was both excited and apprenhensive. From the second year onwards, I became more acustomed to travelling. It became easier and I was soon enjoying being out of the country about once a month for one half of the year. It was a bit like an escape, an escape from my pathetic cubicle, from my ancient workstation (I mean it, I think I had the oldest computer in the ENTIRE office which needs to be cleared of stuff every two days for it to function normally), from my normal routine.

Yes, it was tiring and it was time-consuming (My trips to High Point in North Carolina always took me 32 hours travelling time). But it was an experience not everyone is privileged to have. I remembered once when I had to jet from Dubai back to Singapore and need to fly again to the US all within 4 days. My body clock was turned upside down.

One of the 'push' reasons of me leaving was that the number of trips was being cut for my then-position. The new boss favoured the sales team and did most of the flying himself (but none of the follow-up work) and thus it was time to go. Leaving was also a relief when I finally know that I need not be tired from flying too much any longer.

It didn't occur to me that I'll miss travelling for business, until last night.

Trivia: In my 3 years 7 months with the company, I clocked nearly 400,000km which works out to be about 248,500 miles. Ryan Bingham, the main character in the movie, clocked 350,000 miles in just a year.

What type of manager am I?

2010-01-12T21:34:00.003+08:00

I came across this article about the 7 types of managers and was intrigued to find out just which one I belong to.

I have just started at my new workplace, making my debut as a manager of one of the most important teams in the office. This is the first time I am a full-time manager at an organisation. I realise during the days when I was an executive, I always had visions of what type of manager I will become. I always think I can be very firm and will not bother about whether I am popular, as long as I achieve the organisation's objectives and complete my job.

Now that I'm part of management, I realise just how easy it is to say it, but difficult to implement. I think I will eventually be such a manager, but certainly not right at the beginning. After all, I'm the newbie in my team, regardless of my position. I need their help more at this time.

As of this moment, I'm leaning more towards being The Passive Manager (please refer to te above link). But I must move along fast to being The Proactive Manager as soon as I can in order to produce results.

Being here gives me a whole new perspective on things. It is a brand new challenge, from a brand new angle. The challenge is huge and the stress different but present nonetheless. And it is something that I'm looking forward to.

Wish me luck, and pray for me. Just as I will, for you.

Christmas time

2009-12-30T14:25:00.006+08:00

"It's the most wonderful time of the year"

I'm sure all of you would have heard the famous tune blaring out in shopping malls by now. Indeed, it is my favorite time of the year - Christmas.

This year, Christmas is more meaningful to me then the previous 27 editions of my life, bar one. It is my first Christmas as a baptised Roman Catholic. And I'm feeling the Christmas cheer much more than ever before.

I had Christmas midnight mass on the eve at the Church of the Holy Cross, where I got baptised. Following that, I had a celebration at a friend's place with my best buddies and I went to Our Lady of Perpetual Succour for a Christmas concert. All in all, eventful and memorable.

I've been listening to the radio with the deejays sharing their most meaningful or memorable Christmas and after some thought, I've decided to share mine here in my blog.

My auntie Belinda was smart, beautiful and immensely capable in her chosen field of work - architecture. She was single and thus, spent most of her hard earned cash on her nephews and niece (my brother and sis and myself). As she reached her late thirties, something terrible happened - she was diagnosed with cancer. At some point before that, our relations strained due to her obvious preference for my elder brother. She said something that hurt me real bad that I remember to this day. Being young, ignorant and rebellious, I decided then to give her the cold shoulder. I was being jealous of my brother.

But when I first received the news, my heart broke. Yes, she doted on my siblings more than me, but that does not mean she didn't like me. She just liked someone else more. I felt it wasn't fair for her to be down with this condition. She was still very young, and she was the biggest breadwinner in the family. And most of all, she doted on us.

Not long after, auntie Belinda became a Christian. But she was never baptised. I remember once during her emotional outbursts, my brother - whom she doted so much on and pinned so much hopes on - hurt her feelings by saying something I thought was most irresponsible. She was upset for days.

In the days leading up to Christmas 1999, I bought a few Christian books as a present for her. My brother didn't visit, and I decided to make my peace and to offer her the books to show her that we did care about her. Her smile was the best gift I received that Christmas. I understood then why when we do something right, we can see our Creator.

A few weeks later, right into the new millenium, auntie Belinda passed away. My whole family was devastated. But looking back, that was the most meaningful Christmas for me. I'm glad I managed to make peace and bring some joy to her while I still could.

When was your most meaningful Christmas, and why?

Blog revived

2009-12-22T20:58:00.002+08:00

It has been a long time since I last blogged, and I feel like doing so tonight. So here goes.

Since I last blogged, the following major events have happened:
- I was baptised as a Roman Catholic at Church of the Holy Cross, and my new Christian name is Lewis.
- I moved on in my career to join a biotech company as a Senior Marketing Executive in November. Quite a big change as I was at IFFS for most of my career to-date.

Notice I didn't mention my current company's name because I'm under contract not to blog or write anything about the company online. It won't matter anymore after next week because I'm leaving again! It's really difficult to imagine just 2 months ago that I would get any job offers. Since then I actually found two, which is really really lucky.

So here I am, serving notice for the second time in 2 months. I'll be joining the new place officially in January. Brand new year, brand new start. The offer was too good to turn down and honestly speaking, it was a real blessing to be joining there after quite a culture shock I've experienced in my current company.

My advice to my former colleagues who are looking to leave as well: Hold out for the ideal job, don't jump for the sake of jumping. January will be a better month, have faith!

Ok, enough about my job updates. Next is my religion.

Ever since I was baptised a month ago, I really feel God's presence in my life. There were quite a few difficult moments the past month, but just as te priest has said, even if our lives weren't any better, or maybe it might be worse, but one thing that will change is that God will be there by our side. And I'm feeling it more and more each day. Being baptised is the best thing that happened to me this year.

Today, I found out one of my closest buddies, Jackson, is engaged and will be getting married in February. I'm having mixed feelings. I mean I'm delighted for him. He's a good chap, an honest hardworking, resourceful dude. He deserved this break.

On the other hand, I'm wondering where I'm heading, relationship-wise. I'm losing faith about being attached by the day.

But I'm happy to see my friends going through some major events of their own. I take this chance to congratulate my pals Cindy and Marcus for expecting their first child, Jackson for getting engaged, and also my brother and sis-in-law, for expecting their first child as well (I just found that out 2 hours ago).

This is going to be one exciting Christmas! Merry Christmas to all!

Does Purgatory exist?

2009-07-23T23:09:00.002+08:00

First of all, there is a lot of talk and urban legend going on about Pope John Paul II declaring purgatory to be incorrect. That in itself is incorrect and indeed nothing more than an urban legend. His words got twisted out of context. In reality, Pope John Paul II said in 1999, that the term Purgatory does not indicate a place, rather, Purgatory is “a condition of existence”. He is trying to say Purgatory exists for the dead to be in, but not exactly particular location.

Now we cleared that up, let us take a look at why we should believe Purgatory exists, as Catholics.

Purgatory is the condition or process of purification in which the souls of those who die in a state of grace are made ready for Heaven. This is an idea that has ancient roots and is well-attested in early Christian literature. The Catholic Church gives the name Purgatory to the final purification of all who die in God's grace and friendship, but still imperfectly purified.

Though purgatory is often pictured as a place rather than a process of purification, this idea is not part of the Church's doctrine. As I mentioned in my very first paragraph, Pope John Paul II himself said it is a “condition” or process.

Secondly, the Catholic Church believe that prayers should still be made for the dead. If a person’s soul has already been decided to be entered into heaven, or hell, then prayers for the dead will not be necessary. So, to pray for the dead, there must be the existence of Purgatory.

In Hebrew, purgatory is referred to as Sheol. This has appeared a number of times in Deuteronomy, a book that was taken out by the “solar scriptura” Protestants to conveniently say Purgatory does not exist.

Now, let us look at some prominent quotes from the bible to support the above.

2 Timothy 1:16-18
“May the Lord grant mercy to the household of Onesiphorus, for he often refreshed me; he was not ashamed of my chains, but when he arrived in Rome he searched for me eagerly and found me - may the Lord grant him to find mercy from the Lord on that Day - and you well know all the service he rendered at Ephesus.”

Onesiphorus was dead at the time St. Paul writes this letter to Timothy. St Paul was praying for the dead.

1 Corinthians 5:5
“with the power of the Lord Jesus he is to be handed over to Satan, so that his sensual body may be destroyed, but his spirit saved on the day of the Lord.”

His sensual body was destroyed where? In Purgatory, not hell, as if one enters hell he cannot be saved.

Matthew 5:22
"But I say to you that every one who is angry with his brother shall be liable to judgment; whoever insults his brother shall be liable to the council, and whoever says, "You fool!" shall be liable to the fire of Hell. Make friends quickly with your accuser, while you are going with him to court, lest your accuser hand you over to the judge, and the judge to the guard, and you be put in prison; truly, I say to you, you will NEVER GET OUT TILL YOU HAVE PAID THE LAST PENNY"

Meaning upon cleansing in Purgatory and “paying the last penny”, one can then “get out” and be saved and accepted into heaven.

And now, perhaps the most convincing of all the quotes I’m providing here: our Lord Jesus the Christ Himself:-

John 20:17
"Do not hold on to me for I have not yet returned to the father"

John 24:25
"Did not Christ have to suffer these things and then enter his glory"

Jesus tells us that he will be in the underworld (sheol) for three days when he declares to the Pharisees.

Matt 12: 40
"For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of a huge fish, so the son of man will be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth”

I can go on and on but this will then take more than a day to write.

However, the above is a summary by which the Catholic Church stands its ground on Purgatory and we Catholics (I’m soon to be) should believe as well in our defence of our faith.

Hope the above helps. God Bless!

Appraisal

2009-07-13T21:04:00.002+08:00

I wonder why my company's annual appraisal gets later and later every year. To make things more mysterious, the HR's efficiency decreased with increased headcount. Overused utility?

Anyway, I had mine done today (finally) and it was probably the shortest I've had in my 3 years plus in the company. It was over in ten minutes. We went through every KPI and I got marked up instead of down so I have got to be happy. And finally, I asked about certain prospects and am glad to hear what I want to hear.

Overall, this has got to be the best appraisal ever. I haven't felt this good in a long time.

Thank God!

Now I just need the final approval by the top management and I can look forward to the rest of the year.

First step towards baptism

2009-06-29T21:46:00.002+08:00

I have been attending Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults (RCIA) since February, and thinking back I had really had a lot of chances to have began this much earlier in my life having been educated in Catholic schools since kindergarten. But I only really accepted the faith when I was 15 and I had been a protestant since, church hopping most of the time.

There really are a lot of things that had happened that when you look at it, cannot merely accept it as coincidence. For example, I only had this strong urge to go for RCIA one week before the class commenced and it came at a crucial time of my life in which I badly needed divine guidance. It turned out to be the best thing that had happened to me this year at least, and I'm enjoying every moment of being reconciled with the Catholic faith.

Yesterday, I took the first step towards baptism when I was officially accepted as a Catechumen through the rite of acceptantance of Chutechumenate. Although many would think this is a minor step, to me it marks a major milestone of my young Catholic life and I'm now looking forward to learning much more until the end of the year, as I prepare for baptism.

My Lord, I will always be grateful for your call to me to return to the church.

Segregating my Arsenal musings

2009-06-21T01:07:00.002+08:00

I have quite a number of postings on Arsenal in this blog over the last 4 years and I've decided to separate it to another blog focusing just on Arsenal. This will ensure that my personal stays personal, about my own thoughts on my own life outside of Arsenal.

The new Arsenal blog is called Son of a Gun, check it out at http://sonofagunner.wordpress.com/

抱著空氣

2009-06-20T01:00:00.002+08:00

談情時太美妙
但是已經告別了
痛愛每天困擾
是沒法可預料

愛上你太奧妙
為甚要開這玩笑
看痛苦的破曉
伴著我的合照

曾快樂曾相戀曾擁抱吻著你
曾吵架曾生氣如今一一記起
如果心仍不死容許我掛念你
明知道迷戀你
而可惜沒法擺脫別離
抱著空氣

說再見那暗示
現實要捨棄情意

但是我想你知
事實我很在意

曾快樂曾相戀曾擁抱吻著你
曾吵架曾生氣如今一一記起
如果心仍不死容許我掛念你
明知道迷戀你
而可惜沒法擺脫別離

...抱著空氣

The Endless

2009-06-18T22:26:00.006+08:00

Friends of mine should know that I'm a huge fan of Neil Gaiman's Sandman series. In it, Sandman or Dream, is one of the 7 Endless. Dream is the third one, preceded by Destiny and Death, followed by Destruction, Despair, Desire and Delirium. What interests me so much in this series is that all 7 elements are present in our daily lives and experienced by all. The next part I'm going to explain may require you to do some thinking, the Endless, are not Kings or Lords of their own name (eg Dream is not Lord of the Dreams, he IS Dream). They are what they are named. To understand this further, you can check on the Endless.

The reason as to why I'm explaining the above is so that you, the reader, can understand what I have been going through the past 6 months with the following poem I've written based on the Endless:

drawn into Despair,
consumed by Delirium,
driven by Desire,
abandoned by Dream,
courted by Death,
Destined for Destruction

For those who need further explanation, please read my earlier few posts. Since that unforgettable and unfortunate event in my life, I have been drawn unwillingly into a great state of despair (1st line), I'm delirious most of the time (2nd line), the desire for someone who is never meant to be haunts me (3rd line), I'm unable to sleep (4th line), and if this continues, suely nothing good can come out of it (5th and 6th lines).

I realise I'm at my poetic best when I'm in the worst kind of mood (see my previous breakup 2005), even if it is a really dark one.

This has been my MSN message for 6 months.

Tonight, I will put an end to the Endless.

I miss you

2009-01-05T00:47:00.003+08:00

Words cannot do justice in expressing how much I miss you.

Everywhere I turn, every song I listen to, everything I do, reminds me of you and the times we have spent together. Being with you has been the happiest time of my life. And I seriously doubt anything else can surpass that kind of elation.

After talking to two of my best pals, Weimin and Jackson, on separate occasions, I have realised my flaws.

I do not wish to give excuses. But I want to make clear certain things. Life is short, let's not let any misunderstandings get in the way of an happiness. Yes, it is true I have a temper. But as I always say, I didn't ever flare up at you nor lost my temper with you. However, my pals told me something that I realised. Something I couldn't have realised before anyone told me. The fact remains even though I didn't lose my temper with you, losing my temper at all with anyone or anything in your presence would have given you stress due to the tension that is existant in the air at the time. And I completely understand that now. You said before you were stressed to see me angry, and it doesn't matter that I wasn't angry with you. Now I fully understand. If ever I get a chance to relive my 4 months with you, I would definitely have done things differently.

Another thing that I have told you also, I know now that I tend to fight and debate my case too strongly. And at times, you may not be able to express yourself about the things you want. And for that, I have already changed.

I also realise that you are one independent lady. You know how to take care of yourself. I know I tend to want to take care of you and care for you in the most minute of things and at times, you will find that real bothersome. I didn't understand why before, but I do now because you are independent. And all independent persons will hate to have that taken away from them. I know that perfectly now because I would hate to have my independence taken away from me as well. And I love you for being so independent, which is so rare in ladies.

All I want to say is, all these would have been prevented if we have better communication. I want to change, to be a better man for you and ultimately also for myself.

I know I can do it. I have already done the things that I have told you I would do. You said you want to go home often and I have not prevented you nor create any fuss ever since. You wanted time alone, I gave you time alone and I didn't even want to bother you by contacting you. But I was concerned for your safety, which as mentioned above, I shouldn't have either.

I miss you terribly. I just wish for a chance to re-date you. For you to see for yourself that I can be the man you wish me to be. Give me the chance to give you the happiness you desire. I really don't think I can love another person. There may be prettier girls, there may be girls with stronger personalities, but there is no one else like you. And I can't love anyone else like I love you.

Please consider giving me the chance to date you again, that's all I hope for. No commitments, no demands, no expectations. Just starting afresh.

My name is Alvin Tham. May I date you?

I miss you so much, so much, soooo much.

Feels like family

2009-01-05T00:20:00.002+08:00

Recently, I'm facing the darkest days of my life. Something which I will elaborate in my later posts. But first, the 'feel-good' post first.

I went to a friend's place for a little steamboat gathering a few weeks ago and it was just the right timing for me, only days following the crap that happened.

Although I was extremely distracted, and I'm like always distracted these days, I still enjoyed the company of the gang - my closest group of friends. As we chat at the dinner table having steamboat, we relived some of the happiest and most memorable times when we were all still schooling together. It felt warm, it felt right at home. As Marcus said: It feels like family. And they are, my 'family out of family'.

It is times like this during this difficult time that gives me the will to carry on. To live on.

Too bad 2/3 of the gang are married, which means I have to find other means to distract myself. To feel good again.

I haven't found out what means yet.

Milan

2008-11-04T22:42:00.002+08:00

I went to Milan for a business trip alone earlier in September and it was a terrible trip.

Firstly, the place is world-renowned as the fashion city of Europe. Although I admit the locals dress really well, the place is nothing to shout about. It is, dare I say it, overrated.

Worse still, I almost got pickpocketed.

I was stepping out of the train station and on the escalator when a chap pretended to drop his ticket and stopped me from stepping out of the escalator. His crime partner rushed up behind me, and puhed me from behind as if he was stuck behind me while trying to reach for my back pocket. I noticed something amiss and indeed felt his hand sticking into my back pocket. I shouted and poked him with the bottle in my hand and they ran off within seconds. GOSH!

Then on the last day I nearly got mugged by a few Africans in Duomo, ironically the city's main tourist spot. They threatened me to 'donate' 5 euros to 'Great Africa' and blocked my path, in broad daylight.

I had to shout to get attention from the public around me to get away from them successfully.

Now I have experienced crime first-hand in 3 different continents - Asia (China), America (NC, USA) and now Europe. Now beat that!

What's going on?

2008-11-04T22:38:00.002+08:00

I haven't been posting although I've been meaning to.

Well, I guess it must always take a big issue to get me writing again, and so it is.

I have been troubled with various issues the past week, but everytime I spent time with my special someone I am able to avert the attention elsewhere. It is like she is my breath of fresh air.

A few personal issues outside of work is bothering me and it still isn't settled.

Arsenal is simply shit this season.

And now I have lost my breath of fresh air. At least for a few days. My greatest fear is that it will be permenant. This is indeed the year of disappointments for me (my career isn't exactly going the way I want t to as well)

I want this to end. I need my fresh air. Please return. Soon.

Please.

U-Turn

2008-08-16T00:28:00.002+08:00

I know it's a big u-turn from my previous post but there is a long story behind it.

Well, I'm absolutely delighted to be announcing on my blog that the special lady I have been talking about 2 posts earlier has accepted me :D

I'm going to work hard to ensure that this works, for I know for sure this is what I really want.

Wish me luck, guys ;)

Nope, it is NOT it

2008-08-04T20:11:00.002+08:00

Read title. Title is answer to previous post's title.

Enough said.

This is a different because things were going well, I know this for a fact because we actually had the talk.

Then as aruptly as it started, it ended. One year's wait and it has ended in 3 weeks.

I always wonder from time to time where the special one is and what she's doing, stupid thoughts like that. But I wonder no more, because she doesn't exist.

Could this be it?

2008-07-15T23:23:00.003+08:00

Recently I've been really downhearted with certain events in my company, events that had never had a whiff of a chance of happening before. And it is the first time I have seriously considered my immeidate future elsewhere since I joined.

It is so bad I even dreamt about it pretty often. I guess all this led to me being a little bit less paitent and shorter-tempered than usual.

Also, on the dating front I had been absolutely lacklustre as firstly I have no mood when my career needs sorting out, and secondly I figured something must be seriously wrong with my recent attitute in being single.

I thought long and hard a while back and realised the harsh reality is this: I've had crushes after my last real relationship 3 years ago but I've not experienced the same kind of 'rush' or 'true feeling' since. So I decided to just heck it all.

But, there's this special lady who has been hanging in the shadows for as long as I've known her. One I always thought was simple but special at the same time. And one I have never given myself a chance which is why it never took off. And to be honest, the last time I had this feeling (inclusive of not giving myself a chance), I ended up with my ex.

I've finally found the chance to get to know her better. And although it is still very very early days, I have never been so thrilled and happy in a long while. I have a similar feeling of that 'rush' I felt only twice in my life to-date. Could this be it?

Well, I won't know until I try. But for now at least, I'm happy.

Too shocked to react, so they took a footage instead

2008-07-06T20:20:00.004+08:00

I read in the papers today that 2 teens heroically rescued a 66-year-old amputee from drowning under the Esplanafe bridge. Firstly, let me say that those 3 youngsters (including the poor chap who held on to the canvas to prevent the 3 in the water from drowning) are real life, true heroes.

Now, they were being interviewed by the media and they complained that there were dozens of onlookers who refused to move an inch to help. None even bothered to help the poor small guy trying to hold the weight of 3 persons on land. What the hell is that about?

The media went on to interview a pychologist and he said that it is normal that people might be too shocked in such circumstances to react. Granted. But when I heard a few of them took out their camera phones to record the entire incident before uploading it onto Youtube, I find that ridiculous! They were too shocked to react, but they were not too shocked to record it for their own mere amusement and entertainment! Give me a damn break, doctor!

These people disgust me. Do a little soul-searching, you freaks.

NS links Singapore men in more ways than one

2008-05-19T20:48:00.003+08:00

When Winson, my friend from France was in town a week ago, I took him to Sentosa to suntan and we decided to ask a group of guys playing beach football for us to join in. It was then I realised that I knew one of them through my NS days. We spent a little time catching up and in the end we enjoyed playing with his group of friends for the rest of the day.

It struck me that NS truly does link Singaporean men in more ways than one. For example, when I went for my business trips with my former big boss who was a man, we easily erased any sort of awkwardness by chit chatting about football... and of course NS. It is such an easy topic to break the ice. Can I do the same with my new boss, a lady? Obviously not.

Widening our contacts in NS is also more beneficial than the national service itself. For example, I know different people with different talents and resources who can help me in different scenarios. And I believe it is the same with anyone who has served the nation. Yes, we can joke about it but how many ladies would be interested in any NS jokes?

Thinking back, maybe I shouldn't complain to much about it being a waste of time, it does has its perks.

With that, I would like to end this with a funny story from my time in NS:

During field camps in BMT, we were assigned different secret codes everyday if we were to enter or exit the campsite to do our 'business'. So one day during field camp, my dorm mate was doing sentry duty and the code of the day is "New Day". Upon entering our campsite, the guard is supposed to say the first word, and the person entering must complete it with the second word.

So in the middle of the night, one of the blur recruits amongst us went out to do his business and upon returning to the campsite, my drm mate uttered the word: New. Waiting for the blur recruit to say "Day", he was taken aback when he actually knelt down! My dorm mate pulled him up and said "let's try this again. New." And he knelt down AGAIN! He thought he said "kneel".

Who said NS tales ain't interesting?

Arsenal: all gloom?

2008-05-11T21:29:00.002+08:00

I know a lot of my football fanatic friends have been asking me from time to time about how I feel about Arsenal and their dramatic collapse in the second half of the season.

Well, I'm going to write everything I feel about here.

Firstly, the darmatic collapse. We will always go back to the Birmingham game. We will never know what would have happened if Eduardo wasn't almost murdered by a certain Martin Taylor in the game. The scene scared and scarred the players and it must have an effect on most of them. To think such a game has such devastating after-effects. Walcott had a brilliant game with 2 goals and I thought his second goal was awesome. But we dropped points with a non-penalty and that was hard to swallow. That began our string of draws that in any other season would have been victories. And I still stand that Eduardo's injury was the beginning of the end for us.

As for the shameful Gallas act at the end of that same game, I can ony say it is a huge mistake and unbecoming of an Arsenal captain. To be honest, we haven't got a worthy captain since Vieira left. And that includes Henry. I think Henry is a great player, perhaps the best player to have played for Arsenal, ever (I'm still biased towards my all-time fave Bergkamp though), but he is no captain material.

Gallas has done well and I will not put the blame solely on him but he should not be captain next season. He needs to just focus on his own game, because crucially, he is still a very good defender.

Also, I have never felt so unjust as a supporter seeing so many crucial decisions go against us this season. The cliche is that such decisions even itself out over the season but the bigcrucial decisions were against us, and that is not at all fair. Take the penalty decision against Liverpool in the Champions' League. Or Kuyt's foul on Hleb in the first leg. Those were crucial decisions, and I am totally disgusted. I was so disgusted I stopped following Arsenal for 2 weeks not because I no longer like Arsenal, but because I thought justice no longer exists in football. I even stopped playing Football Manager and Pro Evo Soccer and all my friends know how much I love those games.

And as for Flamini leaving Arsenal, I'm totally disappointed in him. Not that he joined a team with more pedigree and on a bigger contract, but the fact that he held us all up is disgraceful. Everyone can see what he was trying to do. Get a better offer from both sides and eventually choose the better one. He has done so well for us this season that I thought of putting his name on one of my jerseys but luckily I haven't got round to doing it. Unlike the other Gooners who think he won't fit into the Milan system, I think he can. In fact, he will make them a better team. I hope I'm wrong though!

As for the rumours about an Henry return, my view is this: Please don't. We have moved on and this Arsena team will not be able to fit an Henry. To Thierry Henry: Sorry sir, you have been briliant for us but the good days were gone the moment your head turned. And I'm not sorry that you've won nothing at Barca.

Is it all gloom and doom for Arsenal as all critics and certain stupid Gooners think? No, I think not. We will be in the transer market and as usual, we will be getting some really good Arsenal players. Hopefully more of the same of Sagna's mould. Whoever heard of Sagna last season? Look at him now, he's by far the best rightback in the league. To me, the best in Europe.

Finally, I think my pre-season forecast is back to haunt me.

For the past 4 seasons, I have correctly predicted the order of the top 5 positions before the season began. This season, I predicted Arsenal will not drop off 4th spot to Spurs (as was widely predicted when we sold Henry and Spurs bought the ever-prolific-ahem!-Darren Bent) and instead will improve of 4th spot to 3rd. I should have said 1st.

Who did I predict as champions? United. Damn I hate my mouth.

We will be champions next season. Now I hope my charm works one more time.

Updates

2008-05-11T21:04:00.002+08:00

A lot of things have happened since i last blogged prior to my trip to Europe. I shall list it in point form:

- My company's CEO has left us suddenly de to unforeseen circumstances, just when I was in Europe
- Needless to say, we have a new boss who just came in officially. But her title has been changed to General Manager. Talk about a demotion of authority. Or maybe I'm too sensitive (yeah right)
- My fair went on well. We acheived record visitor numbers from a record number of countries. That's what I'm paid to do, bring in the visitors and I've done my part. Will the company reward me accordingly? I can only hope so. Our new boss may not appreciate things that happened before her arrival.
- I had the most wonderful of birthday celebrations recently with the gang, and they surprised me with some of the best gifts I've ever got!
- I went and returned from Guangzhou, Dongguan and Shenzhen. I've now been to Guangzhou and Dongguan thrice. Met up with my friend, Vicky, who is a local in Guangzhou again and she brought me to try some more local delicacies, some of which may turn your stomach if I were to post it here, haha!
- I went on a 2-week break in mid-April when I used half of my time-off earned from my overseas business travelling last year. It was superb!
- I had my travelling schedule fixed for this year, and it will be hugely reduced from the number of trips I made last year. That means less allowance and less time-off. But less reports to do too. Should I be happy?
- Sad to know that I'm not making the trip to Vegas this year (where shopping for branded goods must be one of the cheapest in the world), but I will be making my first trip to Milan in September.
- Will be leaving for my first trip to Hong Kong and Macau in less than 2 weeks for my comapny's annual incentive trip. Woohoo!

I'm sure I missed out on qute a number of things, it had been almost 4 months after all!

I'm back!

2008-05-11T20:58:00.002+08:00

This is the first post from my new Toshiba notebook. Yes, I have finally got it configured (well, technically speaking, it was my brother who did it) to log on at home, yippee!

Now I can finally blog regularly at the comfort of my own bed in my nice, air-conditioned room. I'm just glad to be back writing because honestly, I missed it a great deal.

Actually, I missed doing a lot of things. I missed bowling, I missed reading (I'm still trying to finish reading Catch-22, and I must say it is extremely hilarious so far) while I'm waiting for and travelling on public transport and I missed playing my PSP. Now I can only catch up on my reading when I travel overseas.

Whatever the case, I'm back for sure now. For my friends with my links, please don't delete me yet! I'm back and here to stay!

Europe-bound

2008-01-11T15:21:00.000+08:00

Ok, this should be my final post before I leave for Europe this Sunday. I will be overseas for 13 days (almost 2 weeks) and so I have a good excuse of not updating during this time. However, if I have a long enough access time on the internet, I might post about the damn weather there.

If I'm not wrong, I have only posted one entry overseas, in High Point USA. So no prizes for guessing the chance I will do that this time around.

Although many would wonder why, but I am not keen on this trip although I should be used to travelling by now. I am, but the Europe trip was never enticing to me, other than my first time there of course, as a tourist!

Being there for business means a lot of things - Reports, loneliness, reports, work, reports, not enough allowance (damn Euros and Pounds make our dollars seem so so small...), reports etc etc. On a more positive note, it also means cheap beer - mmm mmmmm.

Ok, now I'm feeling better. See you guys in a fortnight!

Some idiots need to be put in their place

2008-01-11T14:59:00.000+08:00

Sometime last week, I flared up against one of the least popular figures in my office. I didn't really want to write about this but her attitute was really so bad I have to put it up here. Everytime I see her now, my blood veins still get pumped up.

What happened was this. I had always been helping her whenever she asked for it, even though most of the time, it has nothing to do with me. I was just being nice. Period. Being nice doesn't equate to an invitation to climb on top of my head and pee on me. Savvy?

Ok, onwards to the story.

I was busy looking for a document when this irritant (I shall call her fatcast, a portmanteau of the words 'fat' and 'outcast') came up to me and said "I need your help." It was short, curt and utterly disrespectful the way she asked. But it was just her. So I asked her what was it, and all this while any blind retart can tell I'm busy flipping through a thick file looking for something.

She wanted me to remove a stack of newletters that is under my care in the storeroom. An assistant asking an executive to do manual labour? I kept my cool, and asked her to look for my temp staff to help her remove it. Then she shouted: "What?"

I was trying my best to continue keeping cool. I turned to her and said:"I said get my temp staff to help you." Instead of aknowledging what I said, she looked at me with that haughty look (refer to my blog 2 posts earlier) and shook her head and rolled her eyes at me. What attitute was that???

The thing about her is this, she had always had attitute problems, but she is afraid of 3 persons in the company because they had all scolded her before. And she had yet to cross me the past 2 years I had been in the company. But I remember telling some of my colleagues that she better not offend me or I will let her have it. And I delivered what I said.

I stood there for a while with the thick file in my hand and trying to take in why she gave me such attitute despite me offering my temp staff to help her. The more I thought about it, the more peeved I was and I couldn't take it anymore so I went straight to the storeroom where she was.

I let go a series of verbal diarrhoea which goes something like "Why do you have to shout?" "You think you're the only one busy around here?" "Can't you see I'm busy too?" "What's your problem?" "I'm shouting now 'cause you were shouting earlier!" "And you don't have to shake your head and roll your eyes at me too!" I was almost to the extent of completely losing myself and if I did I probably would go on to say how inept she was in her work and that she should be ashamed that at her age she's still doing brainless work. That would have been personal and a bit too harsh. But it would have been 'delicious'. But I'm not that mean yet.

What I like most about it was the scared look on her face after that. And guess what? I don't feel any sense of guilt. The only thing I regret about it was I didn't scold enough.

In my entire time with the company I have only lost my cool twice. I really hate losing my cool because simply, I spent a long time creating this image that I am cool even under pressure in my bosses' eyes. Now because of two idiots ("coincidentally from the same department, the department that is coincidentally the least popular department in the entire office, hmmm I wonder why) people think I'm fierce and stuff which is, I maintain, not true.

Just don't be rude to me and think you can get away with it.

Keeping to my resolutions... so far

2008-01-11T14:52:00.001+08:00

Let's see, it has been 11 days into 2008 and I have so far kept to my first 2 resolutions at least, and now with this entry hoping to keep up with the third. Ahem.

I find that exercising really do help with my insomnia problems, at least for now. I better not jinx it by talking too much about it. But I urge everyone reading this to lead a healthier lifestyle, it does make a difference to your overall mood!

Haughty? Me?

2008-01-04T09:39:00.000+08:00

I was just going through my Facebook account yesterday and went into one of my favorite applications - Define Me - where your friends get to describe you in their own words, and in total anonymity. Although there is hardly any updates, but I do enjoy knowing what others genuinely thought of me.

And then it happened. I saw a new word. A new definition of me.

Haughty.

For those who are not sure what this word meant, in my own words it is a word describing someone as immensely proud to the point of being irritating.

Me? Haughty? Really?

I must say it's quite disappointing. Who could have defined me as that? I know I always appear to people who don't know me as aloof, or brusque (Dom, you remember that?) but anyone who really knows me know that I am certainly not like that. Of course I like to joke about financial stuff like "who can't afford this or that" but who doesn't know I was joking? Come on, if I'm that rich, I won't have to slog my way at work to earn my keep.

And this person is in my list of friends in Facebook. I know not a lot of people would use the word haughty on me, so I think I can make a pretty good guess who wrote that. Hmmmm...

Or do you want to own up and just explain why you thought that of me? I won't blame or judge you, I promise ;)

What do the rest of you think? Am I haughty?

2008... how time flies

2008-01-02T14:14:00.000+08:00

It's almost 8 months since I last blogged. 8 MONTHS!!!

But I have a perfectly legitimate excuse - my home PC is so immensely infected with virus that I can't ever log into blogger to post anything. And nope, I have yet to get my own PC.

Anyway, I have always wanted to get back into blogging as writing is one of my hobbies. There are so many topics I had wanted to cover in the past 8 months and let's see if I can remember all of them. I will be posting more regularly this year as I think I have found a place where I can blog in peace, and without any irritating virus preventing a log-in.

Anyway, let's do the resolution thingy:

1) Healthy lifestyle - exercising daily, with 2-3 days intensive and the rest of the days less intensive. I remember I have a similar one last year but needless to say it never got going. For this year, I have already had a headstart of 2 days hehehe!
2) Be more prudent in my spending - Save more, shop less, invest more.
3) Blog more often. Ahem.

Goals:
1) Promotion at work??? I don't know about this but I've heard about a freeze on promotion this year and I'm hoping like crazy that it isn't true. I have been working really hard for it and if it doesn't happen this year, I have to re-think about my future. I'm going to be 27 soon and at this age I cannot afford to work without a clear goal as to what I can achieve in the foreseeable future.
2) Date less, better if not at all. Nothing good ever came out of it anyway.

What about your hopes and wishes for the new year? Whatever they are, here's wishing you all the best!

Now let's see who's the first to notice I have started blogging again... hmmm....

Photo Blogs

2007-04-20T14:26:00.000+08:00

I have been meaning to do this for sometime, but never really had the chance to get down to it. I have 3 friends who are very into photography. I mean I like photography myself, but I don't have such in-depth knowledge as these three.

I would like all of you readers here to view the works of these 3, and introduce these sites to your friends as well. I feel all 3 are talented in their own ways and have their own style. I will give a brief background of the style of each photographer and you can decide for yourself who is good. Incidentally, all 3 are listed under my list of friends' links at this blog. They are Gavin, Max Nah and Steve.

Gavin, this is one helluva talent. Most of my friends who have seen his works on his blog are often awed by the quality of his pictures. I would say his picutures are both artistic and speaks volumes. Have you heard of the phrase a picture speaks a thousand words? His, I feel, speaks a million. I feel he could be a photographer for advertising agencies as well as for fashion magazines. Check out his brief write-ups too.

Max Nah, I like his works because they are different. He explores angles and light settings in an effective to project an artistic view of almost any picture he takes. The amazing thing is, he can use such techniques with a simple camera phone. You guys have got to check it out.

Steve, this is a photo enthusiast who takes life's pictures. As in candid life pictures that can be interpreted in so many ways. He is a well-travelled photographer, which means he brings home some of the best scenaries of the rest of the world. I personally like the candid pictures he takes of persons and animals, which is tough for anyone.

Please do view all three photo blogs (just click on their names above or you can find them under my list of friends on the sidebar) and feel free to post comments on my tagboard, my comments box or even comment on their blogs themselves. Whatever is being fed back to me, I will convey to them. Everyone deserves to know when they are being appreciated.

Have fun!

Departure of Dein

2007-04-20T13:33:00.000+08:00

I'm as surprised as anyone when I first learned of Mr David Dein's departure from Arsenal. This is a man who has served Arsenal for 24 loyal years, receiving all kinds of stick from opposition and even Gooners alike for some of his more controversial actions and involvements with certain organisations (like the FA and G14).

All I knew is that I was very angry when Marc Overmars and Emmanuel Petit both left for Barcelona and Mr Dein was the one who commissioned the sale. However, I feel that Mr Dein has done more good for Arsenal Football Club and harm. After all this while, I as a fan feel that Mr Dein deserves more credit than he is given. He is,after all, the man who was behind the arrival of whom I feel is the most important person in Arsenal's modern football history, Arsene Wenger himself.

A lot of rumours have come up following his departure, of which the chairman Mr Hill-Wood (who enjoys unprecedented support from fellow Gooners due to his family's commitment to the club) refused to disclose the actual reasons for Dein's enforced departure. But what I gathered is that Mr Dein is interested in bringing in the American billionnaire's as a more influential figure in the Arsenal board. I believe this is yet another controversial idea by Dein, but one can tell that he again has the interests for the club to have harboured this idea.

But as a fan, I must say that I would rather see the club continue to be owned by the fans, and its good to know we're the remaining club of the big 4 to still be locally owned. I would like to see that continue, besides Arsenal is never known as a club to spend big so why would we need such foreign investor?

That being said, I think as fans, we must still be grateful to Mr Dein's contribution to the club and introducing Wenger to us. Thereby, indirectly transforming Boring Arsenal to Swagging Arsenal.

I hate falling sick

2007-04-20T11:24:00.000+08:00

I cannot believe my first post as a 26-year-old is about me falling sick. I had intended to write about how I spent my birthday but before I could do that, I came down with a bad fever and a terrible sore throat.

My friend told me that I should see myself as lucky that I didn't fall sick on my actual birthday. Its true indeed, that would be disasterous considering the plans I made. I knew something was wrong the moment I woke up for work the following day. My throat was stabbing at my with every sound I make, and everytime I shallow something. But I went to work as usual.

Sometimes my office can be stuffy like a sauna. Sometimes it can be freezing cold like we're stuck in a freezer. And lucky me that it has to be the latter that was the case when I returned to work, on the verge of falling sick.

By afternoon, I was wrapped in my half-useful jacket and with my shirt buttoned up all the way with a tie on top of that too. But nothing is going to stop the virus from gaining temporary victory over my now-defeated immune system. By the time I got back home, I felt like I was dying.

It was also the first time that my family doctor insisted on me taking 2 days MC due to my condition. He said I don't look too good at all. I know people thinks 2 days resting at home must be 'shiok' but I tell you honestly, I would rather be at work in pristine condition. In that dreadful state, I couldn't do anything but rest and try to get better. I couldn't enjoy anything, couldn't laugh at comedies, couldn't eat, couldn't think in a clear state of mind. It was awful.

Luckily, I'm not one to fall sick easily. And I thank God for that. I was just telling my friend that sometimes sickness is nature's way of forcing you to rest. And this might be true for my case.

I'm so glad to be back at work, although I still need to complete my medication *cough cough*

I'm still 25!

2007-04-15T22:03:00.000+08:00

Ok, the title might be a little misleading, especially knowing the fact that when anyone reads this, I would have turned 26 already.

This is definitely my final post as a 25-year-old. Therefore, to commemorate the occasion, I will put a list of 25 things I have learned from my first quarter century of my life (which happens to be relevant to the title of my blog). Hopefully, this will act as some kinda advice for some of you.

1) People change, and will continue to change. Just accept the fact and get on with it.
2) We may meet new friends all the time, but friends who stick with you are the only ones that matter.
3) The emptiness feeling that we get when we're heartbroken will pass with time, no matter how bad it was at that moment in time.
4) When you start missing you ex, the best way to stop the feeling is to remember what didn't make it work in the first place.
5) Life is too short to be unhappy half the time. We have a right to be unhappy at certain times of our lives, but don't dwell on it too much and waste your life away.
6) Life can never be smooth sailing, or stay good for too long. The good must always go with the bad, and vice versa, that's when we know we have lived.
7) The best way not to worry about something is to keep your mind distracted from it.
8) Life is too short to keep your feelings a secret. If you like someone, go ahead and admit it, the person deserve to know it.
9) People who are tired, hungry and angry naturally loses half their usual rational.
10) Sometimes, giving in is winning the fight.
11) A bone fracture is the worst physical pain I experienced. I recommend daily intake of calcium.
12) No one is perfect, especially those who appear so.
13) It is near impossible to grow into the person you have always wanted to be when you're a kid.
14) Everyting must be taken in moderation, even the good things so we're not immune by it or take things for granted.
15) Something will still go wrong no matter how you thoroughly plan it to be.
16) It is harsh reality but people will always remember the wrongs you did rather than the rights.
17) Relationships are freaks of nature. If you're already in one, count your blessings and stop complaining.
18) Hell really hath no fury like a woman scorned.
19) Stereotyping is always wrong.
20) First impressions are almost always wrong.
21) Life is difficult enough as it is, don't take it too seriously. Make a joke, laugh at ourselves.
22) Living within your means is one of the best virues of life.
23) Some things are just not worth trying even once in your life... such as drugs and cigarettes, and thrill rides ;P
24) There is no such thing as the ideal partner, only a person you most love.
25) Just because a person doesn't love you the way you expect him/her to, doesn't mean he/she doesn't love you as much as you want him/her to.

Ok, enough of life's lessons for now. I'm gotta be 26 soon, next year I will probably add one more to the list or amend it.

Please don't add anymore misery to this world

2007-04-08T02:31:00.000+08:00

I'm actually very tired but I just feel that I should blog about this.

I returned from an outing with a couple of friends, and for the reasons of this post, I shall not name these two friends.

Both are my close friends, and after one of them left, I continued a walk with the other who still seemed a little troubled from some recent unfortunate happenings in his life. I'm not a person to probe, I always feel that if a person is willing to share his woes with you, he will eventually do so regardless whether you ask or not.

But I started the conversation with an innocent question and it somehow led to something which I once thought was impossible to be coming out of this person's mouth. Basically he has plans in the near future that will prevent him from getting into a serious relationship for the long term. But he still wants to get into a relationship just to solve his loneliness feeling. I can fully understand this, that was the reason why I went into a rebound relationship which I regretted to this day. As I tried to conery the message that its alright to have such a feeling but he should consider the consequences of how the girl will feel if it all goes well in the beginning only to be disappointed because it is not long term.

Now comes something that truly disappointed me. He said he is still adamant in finding a girlfriend and that if she is hurt because it won't last, then too bad for her. And that his recent heartache was because it was too bad for him. I could not believe my ears. How can this be coming from a person who had went through heartaches of relationships not once, but twice?

Think about the pain that you have been through, would you want a fellow human being to go through the same thing? It is a case of too bad you're burnt, because you should expect to the very first day you get into a relationship? Please, I would like to think it is not the case!

I know for a fact that this friend of mine had been through a rough time recently, and I would not even attempt to pretend that I understand what he is going through. I would like to sugar coat whatever I said to him, but I could not bring myself to do that in this case. I don't want my friend, my buddy, to be accused and be seen as a relationship asshole by others. I really don't, coupled with the fact that I don't want to see anymore relationship misery in anyone. Just because one has seen too much failed cases, doesn't mean every case will end up the same way. Just because the girls who had been with us disappointed us, doesn't mean every girl in the world will be like that.

The starting point of getting into a relationship has to be a logical one, a humane one. I understand that there are definitely ladies out that who are not serious in relationships who will be more than willing to be part of my friend's temporary girlfriend (my friend's a good-looker), but if one really wants to do that then it must be stated out front that the relationship couldn't last because of blah blah blah, if she is ok then great for both parties. And not lull the lady into believing it can last only to disappoint. That is just plain cruel.

I know you might be reading this and you might probably find me naggy but I can assure you that only true friends will tell it like it is, for your own good. No worries, I assure you that your identity will be kept secret. But please, I believe deep down inside of you, you know what is right and what is wrong. Look inside of you, and although it's difficult for you now, start believing that not all is grim out there. You are a better man than that and you're only saying this because you're so troubled now.

Last but not least, I hate to bring myself into the picture. But I can fully empahtise what you're going through now because I have experienced for myself. Despite this, I did not start to stereotype all ladies to be the same. Also, I know for sure I would not be looking for a girlfriend if I'm not ready, you can take that from me.

All the best, you know who to look for if you need a listening ear. I wouldn't be telling you all this if I didn't feel strongly about it and I believe you know that.

In a perfectly happy place - almost

2007-03-15T00:05:00.000+08:00

I feel relatively settled in my life right now. I know what I want to achieve and I know what I want is obtainable and I can see my next 5 years as very important in building up my career.

I am happy to be me right now. I now realise what it means to be in a happy place. But there is something missing right now.

It is that final piece of jigsaw in my life, that special someone. I was chatting with a friend with a similar problem - in a happy place but searching for that missing life element - and she likened the reason one can only be perfectly happy when that special someone is found, just so there is this person to witness her life. Witness the happy and the sad and be genuinely concerned about everything in her life. And this will make living, really living. I liked that anology somehow. Although I'm not sure if you can get the meaning.

Ok, right here I can reveal something that could be startling to most who reads my blog (there are not many anyway), I have been on a healthy number of dates. But I don't seemed to be attracting the right kind of ladies and this is kind of frustrating. The worst thing is, the girls I am attracted never reciprocated my feelings. If only you can imagine how much of a ego destroyer that is.

It is so bad that recently, I keep asking a close gal friend about a lady's view of a particular girl's reactions to me because I really don't want to get my hopes too high. I have faced disappointments once too many. Isn't it funny that when I'm emotionally and financially ready to find a girlfriend, and I am facing so many problems but not in the past when I wasn't ready?

Also, people keep saying things like you don't cherish things when you have it, only when you lose it then you will realise how much it meant to you. To me, its bullcrap because I believe more than a few friends can vouch for me that I cherished my previous relationship so much it was painful. Sometimes I wonder how many more heartaches I had to go through before I find that special one. But have I given up? I did for almost a year, but now I'm willing to give it another go.

All I hope for now, is what is going smoothly for me right now can bear fruit sometime in the near future. But I'm really not hoping for much, especially not after what I have been through. So you see now, I'm not that picky, I've just been unlucky in this aspect.

My poor Arsenal

2007-03-14T23:54:00.000+08:00

I haven't been writing about my favorite team for some time. But just in case you think its because I'm too ashamed to write about it because we were knocked out of 3 straight cup competitions then you are wrong.

In fact, I have seldom been more proud of my team. Seeing a youthful Arsenal side putting Chelsea on the back pedal most of the first half in the Carling Cup final was encouraging. What made me even more hopeful of the future is that the faces of the side when they went up to collect the runners-up medals showed how much they wanted to win. And this desire will stand them in good stead in years to come.

Arsenal is emerging, Chelsea is in their peak with players mostly in their peak. Only a matter of time. Plus we don't spend nearly as much as Chelski.

Now, it's onward to automatic Champions League qualification! Onwards Gunners!

Blog reborn - almost

2007-03-14T23:23:00.000+08:00

I know I haven't been blogging for the longest time. I think even since I started my blog, this is the longest time I have not blogged. There are many reasons for this.

1) I was super busy prior to the fair upon my return from Europe
2) After the fair, my sis was hogging the comp like nobody's business
3) I am suffering from severe insomnia that made my mind blank in front of the computer at night

Just some updates since my Europe trip

I have had a relatively good Europe trip. Although most of the time spent there, I was alone, cold and bored, it felt kind of good. I was in another part of the world, away from friends and family and it prompted me to rethink about my dream in working overseas. London would be a great place to work in. If I ever had the chance, I think I might take it. Earn pounds, scrimp and save for 2 to 3 years, return and start a business or something. Also, meeting up with the Chai family in Paris was really good. Also, I made a lot of friends during this trip and one of them even came to our fair and treated me to drinks at the Expo.

I will be putting up pictures soon, I hope (fingers crossed)

I also thought this would be a good time to let people know this blog is not officially dead yet because I will be away for the weekend attending my poly classmate's wedding dinner in KL. They are part of the "animal gang", my bestest buddies in poly and really, I cannot wait to attend the second wedding of the group. So exciting! And we're going to club at zouk KL. Shiok! My first real holiday (the Taiwan one like not really counted) since I started working at my current company.

Ok, I think I might put up a couple of other posts I have been meaning to put before I log off.

That's all for now.

Europe here I come again

2007-01-16T22:40:00.000+08:00

Come tomorrow midnight, I will be on a flight to Europe. Coincidentally, almost exactly a year ago I went to Europe for the first time in my life.

I will be spending a total of 11 days over 3 cities, namely Cologne, Birmingham and Paris. I cannot wait to meet up with the Cai family who took me in a year ago when I was in Paris. Finally, I'm travelling again after 2 whole months in Singapore. I am both looking forward to the trip as well as being a bit apprehensive about it. After all, this will yet be another lonely trip for me. I will be meeting my colleagues a grand total of 3 days over the 11 days I will be in that part of the world, and the rest of the time, I will be left to my own devices.

In a way, I'm glad because there will no longer be late nights. At least for the duration of my business trip. I had been working late every day since the new year and this is a good way to break the rhythm. Also, I can control my own timing and do my favorite part of the job, marketing to people from different countries.

I know when I return, there will be a shitload of work awaiting for me. But at the meantime, I will focus on my tasks ahead. 4 exhibitions in a 2 week period over 3 countries, it is certainly not easy. But I feel up to the challenge.

So people, take care of yourself and wish me luck. I'll see you guys when I return end of the month.

Quite a shocker

2007-01-16T22:15:00.000+08:00

Today, one of my colleagues used MSN to ask to speak to me in private. I had a feeling that she was going to tell me something drastic at work, probably quitting or something.

Indeed, I was to be proven right. She told me she had resigned and will be leaving the company before the fair. I was kind of expecting her to leave this year due to various reasons, but to leave at this time, so close to the fair was a real shocker to me.

She had been the outstanding worker in her department, the department that the entire company dislikes, and the same department that I ranted about a couple of times at least on this blog. The worst thing is, she is the only person from there that I have no problems working with.

Indeed, we spent some time talking about the communication problems between our departments, and it is good to know that she understands what my manager and I had been going through. Like I said, she is the only person we can work with. The rest are all just bums.

We spent a long time talking, and it's then I realise that she had made the right choice. THe opportunity is there for her to make a natural progression up the corporate ladder. She had been expected to be promoted due to her excellent results in her sales the past two years but she had been left disappointed both times. I could perfecly understand where she's coming from.

Another shocker was that she told me she genuinely felt I had been the outstanding 'newbie' in the company. The names she mentioned when comparing with me had been people from her own department, and I felt that was a very nice gesture.

Now, my boss and I would just have to deal directly with the remaining bums there. We can only hope the replacement would be another hardworking performer. Good luck to us all.

Friends and Acquaintances

2007-01-10T00:05:00.000+08:00

How do one feel when you know you have been downgraded by friends?

Friends you used to hang out with so often you can't remember how your life was before them, suddenly stops hanging out with you.

The first time they reject your invitation, you can totally understand because you guys can always meet.

The second time, you understand because they have things to attend to.

The third time, you understand because let's face it, you're not their only friend.

Subsequent times, you begin to wonder.

But you forgive and give them the benefit of the doubt because you love them so much. Then you found out about outings and stuff from mutual friends instead of from the horses' mouth, then you wonder again. But again you forgive and forget and give them the benefit of the doubt.

Then comes the killer. They reject you once more after just joining other friends for a good long outing when you're only asking a few hours of their time.

You no longer wonder. But is the knowledge gained good for you?

Let's just say being downgraded is not a good feeling, especially when it comes to people like me who really treasure friendships.

And let's just say ignorance is bliss and I wish to stay ignorant but I couldn't.

New year resolutions

2007-01-01T22:26:00.000+08:00

I have decided to create a few resolutions for myself this year, although the last time I did was a decade ago.

1) To get myself a healthy lifestyle. I have put on 9 kg last year and my current ideal BMI tells me instead of losing the weight, I should turn the flab into fab instead. I must!

2) My temperament has improved over the years but I feel I can still do better. So more patience with the idiots I deal with daily so I can remain cheerful.

3) Work hard to get a fat bonus!

What's yours?

Happy new year!!!

2007-01-01T21:05:00.000+08:00

A very happy new year to all!

On this day, I would like to thank our Lord above for an excellent year 2006. For me, as many of my close friends would know, 2005 had been a super shitty year for me. In fact, I brand it as the crappiest year of my life. Here below I shall compare the two past years.

2005
1) I found my first real job with the help of Marcus. But I was getting a part-timer's pay for full-time executive work. Although I love the nature of the work (I was a publicist), the boss was a real bimbo and life was super tough. Made tougher with the peanuts I get from it (real peanuts, not gold-plated ones). I lasted about 3 months in it.

2) I found my second job by myself, still the only job I found by myself. Location was terrible, work was terrible, boss was terrible. Sigh, I wonder how I lasted more than 7 months in there. In fact, I cringed to think I could very well have still been there if they had approved my exam leave towards the end of my time at that sorry-ass company.

3) My academic results plunged in this year. I was getting distinctions without breaking too much of a sweat in the first year but various reasons has forced me to pay less attention to my studies. It had been a terrible year, enough said.

4) My former girlfriend was in Australia the whole year and although I had beeen emailing her daily, I only get the odd reply like once every few months. It affected my emotional well-being although I was apearing all happy and everything.

5) We broke up on boxing day upon her return.

2006
1) I went to Paris and London using up all my savings for the past year to fulfil a childhood dream. Visiting Highbury. I had a lot of other things that got thrown into the bargain as well as my family friends in Paris took me to almost all the famous tourists sights in Paris.

2) I graduated!

3) Thanks to Marcus' other half Cindy, I found a decent temp job at IFFS.

4) Due to the above attachment, I found myself a full-time job. Decent pay(of course it can be higher, should be higher actually), great perks, capable boss, convenient location, travelling opportunities. What more can I ask for?

5) I have been to 8 different cities across 3 continents this year, Paris, London, Shanghai, Taipei, Melbourne, Guangzhou, Dongguan and North Carolina for both work and leisure. I have never travelled nearly as mcuh in my life prior to this life and I really experienced different cultures and weather as well as made many international friends.

6) I cannot remember when was the last time I find life as fulfilling and rewarding than this year.

I am extrememly thankful for a wonderful 2006. Now I wish for a better 2007 for everyone!

Boxing day - One year to the day

2006-12-26T21:55:00.000+08:00

Exactly one year ago, I was released from my misery of hanging on to my former girlfriend. I remember posting on this blog how I felt so cheated and miserable but little did I know that it was a new beginning for me.

I realised recently that I had taken longer than expected in getting over her. But the fact remains, I did get over her. Time is indeed the best doctor.

After the breakup, I have been to Highbury, fulfilling my childhood dream of watching my favorite team in action at the 93 year-old stadium, found a great job that allows me to travel, made lots of new friends and widening my social circles immensely.

I am enjoying my singlehood, and really I had never felt better about myself in years.

My post today is dedicated to all singles out there, no matter who you are and where you are reading this from. Just remember that being single is not all that bad, life is really what you make of it.

There are just a lot of perks being single, you control your own time, your own finances, your own future. Your happiness is your own and no one can take it away from you other than yourself.

At the same time, I don't regret being in that relationship. It has made me the man I am today, a better man. Although I certainly wasn't feeling that way when it first happened. But if you're heartbroken, remember that time will be there to numb your disappointment. You may not see it now, but you will. Trust me.

Christmas weekend

2006-12-25T22:44:00.000+08:00

I was geared up for an uneventful weekend but it turned out really good. Earlier, I had turned down a couple of friends' offer of a Christmas countdown. I just didn't think I would enjoy myself out with the crowds and the spraying molestors around. I had a terrible time last year when I was out and those spraying idiots were all over the place.

Anyway, it all changed when I agreed to go to the Christmas service with JP and friends. Prior to that, we went on a temporary themed park at the Singapore Expo and even went on a ride. I was so afraid I would puke because of the spinning nature of the ride. I remember hating merry-go-rounds when I was young so I wasn't sure I could get out of there without my stomach churning.

In the end, it was kinda fun and not in the least bit naseating. I would love to get on it again haha!

Then on Christmas eve, JP was kind enough to invite me to her countdown gathering at a friend's place. It was just as well, because I didn't have any plans and I can escape the crazy crowds and still celebrate a countdown. On top of that, she has a really nice bunch of friends so it was good. We played the game made famous by a popular Taiwanese show where the loser had to be smacked by a fake hand by the banker. Really fun! Thanks again JP.

Today was a bit more subtle, I spent it with my family at my brother's place. But still, it was kinda nice. Subtle, but relaxing.

And I also found out today that my brother had a Christmas present from my parents. I knew about my sister's grand new gameboy game from them, but I was surprsied to see them giving my brother something in front of me. Yes, I got nothing from them although they were well aware of my watchless wrist from sometime. Oh well, it is kinda expected. That's the way it has been most of my life anyway.

But it's strange really, I don't feel anything this time. I don't feel sore or anything like that. I just think fine, I can get my own present. Besides, it's the season of giving and not expecting anything in return.

In any case, I wish you are having a great Christmas. Wherever you are reading this from.

Oh wow, life of a loner... how enticing!

2006-12-10T15:19:00.000+08:00

Woooh, I finally got through to my mum's mobile. And when I asked what happened to them, they were surprised that I was trying to get to them.

It is almost like a sheepish,"Oh yar... I have a son at home! I've kinda forgotten, though."

That hurts. Whatever I've written towards the end in the last paragraph in this post, I will take it back.

Why did I even bother.

I'm a loner, right? Right. But it's not as if I have a choice.

Fuck me for being the middle child, will ya???

terrible week

2006-12-10T14:39:00.000+08:00

I've had a sucky week. It started off with a terrible Monday in which I was terribly late for work due to this stupid SBS Service 97 coming in crazy time intervals. On a good day the intervals can be 15 minutes, on a bad day like that Monday, it was 30 mins.

And then I received stupid emails from dumb and lazy colleagues from one particular department. The most over-staffed department in the entire office, yet they are lazy. But then again, it could be their lack of brains so they don't know how to do a simple thing like replying emails. It seemed like they only have the option of Forwarding in their emails but not Replying unless your name happens to be the same as the bosses.

A classic example is visitor enquiry asking about our fair dates. A question that even the lowest of the low in the company can answer, unless the person spent too much time trying to watering her mouth in order to keep the saliva flowing while licking her bosses' boots. And this lowlife forward it to me to answer. And did I mention they are overstaffed??

One of them keep napping at a specific time of the day and then this lowlife I mentioned above was also caught napping on Monday. Best thing is, this lowlife has another lowlife working for her while there my immediate boss and I were slogging away trying to finish our heavy workload in order to get of work on time.

Anyway, this department completely ruined my work week and I was already in a foul mood all week due to heavy workloads and I cannot even depend on this person who is supposed to arrange my flight to Europe next month for me. She assured me it is being done, and when I finally got fed up and did it myself, I booked it in one day. No, in a couple of minutes on the phone was all I need.

Damn bums!!! What the hell are they being paid for, I wonder!

Then I was late for a second time in the week due to the same scenario as the above. This time I waited 37 minutes. And why should they raise the bus fares again? Because I cannot remember! ****!

Then I got 4 rejected invitations to go out throughout the week. Must have been THE week of rejections of my life.

Just when I think the week has ended on a good note with me hanging out at Wala on Friday and partying at dblO last night, my family has chosen to forget my presence today.

Oh yes, before we even got to dblO, the free tickets to MOS which I went to collect in town were rendered useless due to the ridiculously long queue. Sigh, another chance to go MOS is gone.

I digressed. Why am I at home writing this ranting post when I should have been out there with my family? I had asked them to go out out with me today for a little shopping and when I got up at 11, they are gone. Thinking they might have been out doing grocery shopping which they always do on Sunday mornings, I waited and waited and now its already 3.

No notes, and they cannot be contacted on their mobiles.

What a wonderful end to the week. Please let me be early tomorrow so my week won't be as sucky as this!

****!

Feeling old

2006-11-23T20:12:00.000+08:00

The other day during my brother's wedding, I heard this girl barely 6 years younger than me calling me "shu shu" (uncle) and I really couldn't recognise her. She is my niece, and I haven't seen her in more than 10 years.

And later on during the dinner, I saw her younger brother, who is also my favorite nephew and the one I wrote about in one of my earlier posts. I also haven't seen him in ages and I really couldn't recognise him. He sure looked like a lean mean football machine now, and sure look every bit a part of the age-group international that he is.

If I were to see them out in town, I would not have given them a second look. I'm horrified to think that we can no longer recognise our own relatives.

The other day, I chanced upon my sister's blog. She just turned 14 and I was curious to know what she write about and her writing style. What I saw came as a shock. No, its not her writing, it is more of the teenage angst she's undergoing curently that none of us, her family members, would have noticed if I hadn't read her blog.

Then just this week, I was chatting with a friend on MSN and she showed me the blog of her younger cousin (whom I also know). Again, it was filled with teenage angst, confusion and rebellion.

Did it bring back memories of my youth? Not really. All this made me think what I was going through when I was their age. I remember being rebellious, but I also remember I was proud to be myself and never once did I feel that life was bad enough for me to whine about it and to think of ending it.

I was rebellious because I thought I had my whole life in front of me. I could do what I want and I can achieve whatever I want to achieve. In other words, I was rebellious and unwilling to take advice because I was too proud, too full of myself. As what some of my friends would say, a true Arian.

But the thoughts of these youngsters are baffling me. Is the generation gap that big? I really have no idea that my sister is going through so much internal confusion and anger. Will ignoring it turn her into someone we would never want her to be?

I cringed to think of this.

Are people of our generation really different from the younger ones?

Now I'm really feeling old.

Down with food poisoning

2006-11-21T19:16:00.000+08:00

Last night I came home feeling feverish and after popping a couple of Panadol cold relief, I slept really early.

Throughout the night though, as I began to feel better, my stomach instead became really uncomfortable. Soon, it became really painful. I had to get out of bed a few times to go to the toilet but nothing came out. It was frustrating and miserable.

The dumb thing is that I got up still wanting to go to work as usual! Yeah, I know it's dumb but there are really a lot of things to complete at work and I don't want to end up clearing emails the whole day tomorrow. But I guess if you're sick, then it's an unwise ting to do.

As I was getting changed, my stomach hurt so much I had to bend over. I knew then I had to inform my manager that I cannot come in today. I haven't gotten sick for the longest time, and I really hate to be on MC!

Also, don't you people find it ironic that the clinic is always the coldest place to be especially when you're sick?

Anyway, I was diagnosed with food poisoning. I think having two seafood buffets on consecutive days aren't the brightest thing to do. Now I can't even look at food without feeling nauseated.

Hope I can get back to work tomorrow feeling fine and dandy again.

When work consumes you

2006-11-19T21:26:00.000+08:00

When does work consume you and how would you know when it does?

I had been dreaming my self at work pretty often these days but what happened last week made me wonder if I have been too indulged in my work.

I dreamt myself at work as usual, and I was looking at our company's website. Then an idea struck me as to how I can raise the appeal of this lucky draw I had been organising with just a few adjustments to the banners on the homepage.

I woke up and realised the idea I thought of can really work. I proposed the idea to my manager the very day itself and the ideas were carried out.

Now, has my work consumed me so much so that I even 'work' in my dreams?

Has this kind of thing ever happened to you before? Tag me if it did.

Friends

2006-11-19T21:09:00.000+08:00

I have been meeting up with friends I know from almost everywhere for the past month, and I'm enjoying every minute of it.

Firstly, my friend Terence had returned from Australia after completing his engineering degree. He is a buddy I know since primary school and we had been classmates for 6 consecutive years from primary 5 through to secondary 4. We used to hang out pretty often with my best buddy Weimin and my cousin who was also our classmate, Bobby Solomon.

Since Terence's return, the trio of us (minus Bobby) had met up quite a few times, for a show and also over drinks, and I really enjoyed it. I mean before we left SJI, we were so close, doing almost all kinds of things together, and hanging out together. Then we went our seperate ways after 'O' Levels, got attached and stuff and from sharing problems at school to sharing BGR problems, here we are back together once more without any more BGR problems or issues. But we are still such good friends and we still enjoy one another's company.

I also met up with another friend that I haven't met in ages and he was surprised that I was no longer with my ex. That was how long we haven't met. I was telling him I didn't contact him during my most difficult months after the breakup because I knew he was happil attached and I don't want to go to him only when I had problems. But he scolded me for not going through the bad times with him as well. I guess this is what a real buddy will say.

And I went out with this friend I know through an online protal a year ago who wanted to convince me to join the network marketing line. I was afraid she might try to convince me to join her which she did quite often in the past but it is no longer the case this time round. We had a good time just chit chatting, and it is a real surprise that we have known each other for almost a year already.

I also know a number of new friends recently. And quite a number of them boasts of huge numbers of friends in their friendster but upon closer inspection, I think I might have more 'closer' friends than they do. Sometimes, its not the quantity, the secret of being happy really lies in the quality of your friends.

I also had a great time last night celebrating Cindy's birthday with the gang, my usual poly gang. It has been a long while since we did and it was so fun really. It never fails when you are in the company of friends. They and your family are really all you need.

The other half and getting hitched? I am in no hurry, really. Especially if you have a family and friends like mine.

I'm not ugly

2006-11-19T21:05:00.000+08:00

Continuing from my previous post, I know I haven't been regarded as a good looker by friends especially from my own generation.

But, seriously, I know how I look and although I'm not good-looking, I know for a fact that I'm not ugly.

And, I want to say this for the longest time, you making fun of my face and saying stuff like I'm ugly or somewhere along those lines are unappreciated. I take no amusement from that not only because I know it is not true, it is also very hurting whether you mean it hurt or not.

I may put on a smiling face when I rebuke you on it, but I am certainly not smiling inside.

I know how I look, and if you have nothing nice to say about it, and shut your gap in front of me.

The people I'm referring to in this post should know who they are.

My brother's wedding

2006-11-19T20:51:00.000+08:00

My brother held his wedding dinner about 3 weeks ago at River Vale Hotel. They had registered their marriage early last year, when I was still in my first job as a publicist. But the dinner and the traditional rituals held place only 3 weeks ago.

I accompanied my brother as one his 'brothers' to fetch my sister-in-law back to their new love nest. The tests that my brother had to go through was really nothing compared to the one Marcus had to go through. However, he had to shout out 10 reasons why he wants to marry my sister-in-law so she can hear it in her room. Hearing how much my brother loves her was definitely a first for me, and it was kind of a pleasant surprise. For a moment there, I envied him having found his other half. But of course, I was happy for him as well.

I was appointed as the chief usher for the dinner as I know most of my brother's friends and both sets of relatives. It was a real mess but I managed to use whatever I had learnt as an amabassador when I was schooling to good use. Ushering comes naturally to me I feel and we managed to close off 2 tables before the dinner started and I also got an additional seat for the best man as there was a miscalculation by my brother in the VIP tables. Everything ran smoothly and I was happy to have contributed to the success of my brother's wedding.

As usual, one can expect lots of questioning by long-never-kept-in-touch relatives and family friends as his younger brother, being single and of the 'right age'. Questions like "When is your turn?", and remarks like "Don't keep me waiting too long for your one" and "I'm looking forward to yours" are all expected and I received them as if I have been accepting and fielding such questions my whole life.

But what I didn't expect was quite a few of them actually told me almost the same thing and asked the same question when they heard I'm single. "Actually you are very eligible, what are you waiting for? Are you picky or fussy?"

Seriously, I was caught in that one, and often it came after they asked me what I'm doing for a living. I really have no idea as whether I should laugh about it or frown over it. I'm not fussy, that's just the way it is.

In any case, I am quite convinced now that I am born in the wrong generation. It wasn't the first time I received remarks from relatives and friends of an older generation telling my parents that I was stealing the thunder from my brother. Although I can also safely say I never received such comments from people of my own generation. My face must have belonged to a bygone era! Sad!

Which brings me to the next update, something I had wanted to say for the longest time.

Updates updates updates

2006-11-17T23:15:00.000+08:00

I have been meaning to update my blog as I really have many things in mind to write about but I am just too lazy and ill disciplined to do it. Everytime I switch on the pc at home, I will just play Football Manager. Simply hooked on to the game.

Well, since I'm into the subject of FM, I think I should just put my two cents worth about what players to buy in the game. The game as in FM 2006, I have yet to get my hands on the latest one. I heard that one's a real winner.

Anyway, here are some names of players one should look out for.

-Hossam Ghali, a dynamic defensive midfielder who costs little and can be quite prolific in front of goal. He has never missed a penalty for me.
-Armand Traore, the left wingback who can play as leftback and winger as well will eventually become the best leftback in the game. He simply developed as I left him in the reserves and I only realised what a good player he has become when clubs started asking me for a price on him. He will become better than Ashley Cole, so get him early in the game.
-Nicklas Bendtner, the young striker will have perfect strength, finishing, technique, heading and dribbling. What else can I say? Get him early.
-Marco Tiberti, a very young goalkeeper who will become a goalkeeping legend.
-Michael Mancienne, a teenage defender at Chelsea's reserves who will become the best defender in England. Chelsea will let him go pretty easily but will be desperate to get him back in a few years.
-Porcellis, the Brazilian striker will be the next Brazilian superstar with perfect heading, dribbling, first touch, technique, finishing and crossing. Get him before another big club does.

Anyway, I will put in a few posts as usual to update whatever I have been meaning to write. Seriously, I didn't think anyone pops by here anymore until Max did.

So here goes.

Eventful week

2006-10-22T21:19:00.000+08:00

I had just returned from North Carolina in the wee hours of this morning after travelling for a hectic 28 hours on the trot. And this has been the most eventful business trip I have experienced yet, with more lousy happenings than good ones.

When I arrived at the hotel, I was really tired. I really hate the long flight and the double transits I had to make to and fro USA.

I was beginning to get used to the 12-hour difference from the second day and then in the early hours that very day, there was an earthquake that shook Winston-Salem where my hotel is located and it is measured at 2.7 on the Richter scale. Luckily though, I slept through it so technically, I didn't experience it although the hotel staff said it affected the place.

Thinking that it is highly unlikely lightning won't strike the same place twice, I was surprised that it happened again the following evening. And this time, I felt it rock the entire hotel. Although it must have lasted barely minutes, it felt terribly long. Man, the entire Greensboro region is so big, but we had to be staying in Winston-Salem where it was affected twice by the quake! Darn.

That was really nothing though. The following day, I fell sick. It must be a combination of jet-lag and lack of sleep since I got there. I felt so terrible I had to get some medication. So I went to see the doctor which the market provided free for all participants of the market. Then the 'highlight' of the week followed closely that evening.

My big boss wanted to go to the nearby Oak Hollow Mall to get some gifts for his children, so I decided to tag along to get something as well, even though I was in terrible shape. I was thinking I only had one more day at the market so I might as well buy something so I can spend the next day packing.

I didn't get anything although I was really interested in the Levi's jeans which was surprisingly cheap. But the fitting room was filled with patrons so I thought I would return the next day. We then went to take our dinner at the food court. After I had finished, I went to the gents and on my way out, I saw two teenagers looking at me suspiously. I gave them the usual "What the heck are you looking at" look I always dish out generously whenever people look at me the way they do. Anyway, I didn't expect anything that was about to happen.

My boss went in after I came out, as one of us need to watch over his laptop bag at any one time. Then it happened. There are some shouts going on, and I was wondering what the heck was happening. I then asked a nearby cleaner to radio the security as something was amiss. People who were eating at the food court were also looking in the direction of the toilet. I never thought something terrible was going on with my boss as he is a big guy.

However, moments after the security gurads came, I saw a little boy running out of the toilet in tears and into his mother's arms and was speechless when his mum asked him what happened. I knew something must be wrong, so I stood up and walked towards the toilet. Then I saw my boss walking out and he was panting heavily.

"They robbed me!" My mind took moments to register that. It was really like a scene out of a movie. I asked him who they were and which direction did they go. Then he said it was two young punks, one black and one white. The very same guys thet gave me the suspicious look when I was walking out of the toilet! Damn, it could have easily been me! SHIT NO!

So I went towards where the robbers should have ran to but they were no where to be seen. By the time the police arrived, it was impossible to track them down.

And when the police asked the security to hand over videos of the CCTVs outside the toilet, the security personnel told them they had none installed! Even the police officers shook their heads when they heard that. What kind of lousy security is that? It was a family shopping centre, with families and little children running around and they don't have CCTVs around? We were lulled into a false sense of security with sights of so many parents and children around. But, seriously, the sercurity needs to be improved. It is a small town that relies totally on the market to survive, so if the security of the international delegates like us is not guaranteed, then how good is it for the townsfolk?

Sigh... And so this is the story of my week.

On the good front, I have finally seen a glimpse of USA and the lifestyle there. Such as the predestrian-unfriendly environement forcing people to drive everywhere even to the damn post box down the street, the friendliness of the Americans, the perfect atummn weather, the picture-perfect skies, etc.

Also, I know you are probably reading this. I want thank you for what you have done for me, I am really touched and I will never forget those emails you sent. I am so happy to return, if you know what I mean!

Man, I am so happy to be back home. I miss Singapore!

I'm confirmed finally

2006-10-14T21:16:00.000+08:00

I've completed 6 months at work and so I decided to hold 'showdaown talks' with my manager about several grievances I had at work on the eve of my confirmation. I told her several examples of why I thought the company had been taking away my rights and giving me less in everything as compared to my colleagues simply because I enjoy working there.

Basically I told her that I felt unsettled and my morale in the company eas at an all-time low, and that it is high time the company showed me that it wants me to stay as much as I want to stay under employment here. I told her that although I had no idea what she thought of my work performance to date, I am confident that I don't give crap work. She then went on to appraise me and although I was expecting she would agree with me that I don't give crap work, I didn't expect the glowing appraisal she gave me.

Words like "fantastic", "better than I expected", and "much better than (my predecessor)" were used generously and she told me that she doen't want me to feel unsettled and she would do her best to see to whatever I requested for. Although she did warn me that the amount of pay adjustment I was seeking is unprecedented in the history of the ompany and it might be difficult to give more than what the maximum of the range that has been set.

The next day my big boss called me into his office to congratulate me on my confirmation. He then went on to say I will be getting slightly less than what I requested for but it is still a record pay adjustment given to a confirmed employee, and on top of that, I will be getting a corporate line as well. Finally, I can see the effort put in to try to keep me happy working here. As I went to thank him, he said I deserved it through my work performance and I need not thank him. He then went on to comment that he likes to put pressure on newbies (which was why I described him to be fickle-minded and ego-centric as a boss in my earlier posts) and that I was composed and still produce results despite the pressure he put on me.

Man, was I on a real high that day.

Oh, I would also like to make use of this chance to tell everyone who is reading this that although I keep emphasizing how much I enjoy working in my job, it doesn't mean it is easy. I cannot stand the impression people has on people like me who enjoys my work. Just because I like to work here, doesn't mean the job is for lazy pea-brains.

I will be travelling again early tomorrow morning, this time to North Carolina, United States. And on all 4 overseas assignments so far, I have been the one to handle all logistics, flight and accomodation arrangements, booth set-up arrangements on all assignements regardless of whether I travelled alone or not.

I was never shown the ropes in organising all this, which was why I madea mistake the first time I did it, but I learnt from it. And I would like to think I am getting better at this which is why the management has been confident in sending me alone for assignments. The post show reports and follow-up is also tedious work, and that only adds on to my daily job scope of replying to visitor enquiries (you would be surprised at the number of enquiries we get) and database management. Once, a colleague told me my predecessor never seemed to stayed back as late as I do. My answer is a simply that is the reason why I am here and not her.

However, I know this is the job for me, no complains. Just please don't think I have it easy, yeah?

And oh, please wish me luck for this trip. It is the first time I am travelling this far away from home, and I am running a scratchcard promotion all by my lonesome self. I need all the fortune I can get.

Office rant: Cry wolf

2006-09-16T20:07:00.000+08:00

I mentioned in one post couple of months back that my confirmation depended on my performance of my business trip to Melbourne.

I have been to 3 business trips thus far during my 5 months in the company - Shanghai, Melbourne and Guangzhou. My next trip will be to North Carolina in October.

I have been given good reviews with my trip reports to Melbourne and Guangzhou. In fact, the big boss praised me and copied the email to everyone about my impressive report and work. But guess what? My confirmation is nowhere to be seen.

Ok, fine. If they wanted to go back on their word, so be it. I am not bothered by it anymore. But the story does not end here. I have recieved news 2 weeks ago that my confirmation now rests on my next trip.

Now, isn't that crying wolf??? How many times must I impress before they confirm me? Just stop fooling around with me, I am no longer motivated to do much better or more than I should with this constant threats. I am fulfilling my part of the deal, but they aren't. And the most frustrating thing is, my official confirmation date is 10 October, while my next trip is 15 Oct. So, if it really depends on my next trip, then doesn't that mean they will now give me a late confirmation? If that is the case, then seriously it is no longer viable to stay.

If I had been giving crap work, then let me know so I know where to improve on. But this isn't the case! Just because I like my job doesn't mean the company can use my interest in the job to abuse my rights.

I have a limit, and the limit is 10 October 2006.

Crazed?

2006-09-16T19:42:00.000+08:00

It has been a long while since I last flared up. In fact, I couldn't even remember when was the last time I actually let my anger control me. I firmly believe my temper has been kept pretty much in check, regardless of what people think. Yes, I am still argumentative, but being argumentative does not equate to bad temper. I just feel if you need to speak up, then you must let your opinion be known, that's all to it.

Anyway, I shall not digress. I was returning from from work on Friday when something happened that had not happened in ages.

I was awaiting to board my bus at Harbourfront and the bus entrance was exactly in front of me when its doors opened. Just as I was about to step onto the bus, I was brushed aside crudely with a luggage bag! This barbaric moron was carrying his monstrous luggage bag with two hands and used it to hit me aside so he can board the bus. I was initially shocked and unhappy with his crude manner. But thinking it was an accident, I went up the other aisle and at that moment, that moron's son (who is a young adult) tried to push me back to the other side. At this point, I was becoming incensed. I used my elbow to brush him off the bus and boarded. Then, the moron began to use the luggage to hit me from behind.

At this point, I was crazed with anger. And it is this anger that I wanted to talk about. I turned and stared at him and he continued to hit me with his luggage bag and shouting gibberish. At that point I wanted to do something that would land me in jail.

He then quickly climbed up to the second deck and all the while I remained staring at him. Once the moron reached the second deck, he looked down at me and tried to stare me away. Needless to say, at the time being crazed with undescrib-able anger, I shouted at him:'Why, not happy is it? Come on down here you F***!"

I was spoiling for a fight and I challenged him to come down and meet his doom. Seeing my reaction, the moron was somehow smart enough to quickly disappear into the top deck. Everyone was looking at me now, I could feel it. I had wanted to follow him up and thrash him. That was how mad I was. The son was there beside me and he too dared not move. Next, I stared at him and I had wanted to kick his ass when he ran up the stairs.

Now, let me tell you what I had wanted to do. Playing football since young and being a lightweight on the field, I had learnt a lot of tricks and the use of physics to overpower and outwit bigger-sized opponents. And one of the most valuable things I learnt was the headbutt. I know exactly which part of my head to use that won't hurt me one bit. I had wanted to turn, headbutt him right between his eyes and give him a broken nose. He would have no time to react with both his hands on that huge luggage bag.

Next, when he drop his bag, and cover his nose, I would and taken his head with both my hands and smash it against the pole leading up to the second deck of the bus. Yes, I would probably have made the moron a vegetable.

However, the circumstances have prevented such an incident happening and I must thank God that it did not take place at all. In fact, I am not angry now at all. I am just afraid of myself right now. Just why was I so fueled with rage that I wanted to hurt someone so badly? This is worrisome as I could not remember when was the last time I felt this way. And I don't want this monster in me to emerge again. I thought it's gone forever. I mean, it is obviously not my fault to begin with. I was provoked unnecessarily, but my reaction to it was a bit extreme. Or is it? Hmm, what do you people think?

I'm glad I did not run and and pursue the matter. My shouting at him probably helped to eased some of my incensed rage away.

Boy, am I glad to be able to blog about this and not having to record it in a statement with the police.

Matadors alive and kicking!

2006-09-16T19:35:00.000+08:00

I was worried about the seemingly impending demise of my football team, Matadors FC, which I posted about recently. But last Saturday, we came back.

One of our players, who is currently playing for his company, arranged a street socer session in which he invited our teammates to play with his company mates. Our key players were back once more and although we haven't been playing for months, it seemed like we were never away.

Although we took a while to get our stride back when we conceded two early goals to our opponents, when we did get our touch back, we were really enjoying our football and scoring by the bucket-loads.

Indeed, this may be just one small session, but our impressive display as well as the team's enthusiasm made me believe in my team once more. I feel as long as this group of players are kept together, we can always recruit and replace those who have abandoned us and keep the team going strong.

The Matadors are back, woo hoo!

Officially graduated

2006-09-02T11:40:00.000+08:00

I attended my degree conferment ceremony on Thursday and it was an enjoyable experience. Although I keep thinking SIM should have held the ceremony somewhere more prestigious like the Esplanade, it was still grand enough to leave a lasting impression at the SIM campus. Besides, it was a chance to show my parents where I have been attending my classes for the past 2 years.

As I was standing on the stage waiting for my name to be called, I got a little emotional thinking back on how difficult it had been for me during the whole duration of my university days. I had to work (and in a place located far away from school for 2 semesters) and study at the same time, and had to handle a broken relationship during this period of time. But despite all that, I had managed to complete what is notoriously known as the most difficult business course in RMIT. Also, I saw a fellow graduate who seemed to be suffering from cerebral palsy and everyone gave their loudest applause for her. It must have been so difficult for someone like her to complete any form of studies, let alone a degree course.

I remember fondly when I was a child, I had always dreamt of wearing the 'square hat' (it is actually known as the mortarboard, but being a kid then, I didn't know any better). And now, some two decades later I had managed to fulfil my dream.

Here are some pictures comemorating the occasion.

That was me right in the centre of the picture, queuing up for my 10 seconds of glory

Receiving my testamur holder from the Chancellor of RMIT University, Professor R Dennis Gibson

Proceeding to collect my testamur from the administrators

Posing with my testamur for the first time

A family shot with sis, mum and dad

Left: A shot with my buddy Weimin, so glad he could make it.
Right: With my mum

I had to take a picture in front of the library in which I had so many toturous hours of cramming for my examinations!

One had to be at their best table manners when wearing the gown, I was so afraid of dirtying the gown when eating, before I even had a chance to take pictures!

End of an era?

2006-08-28T22:31:00.000+08:00

Ever since my latest football team, Matadors FC, was created during my NS days, we have never gone on so many weekends without a single playing session.

I am growing frustrated at the on-going poor attendance of my team. I am thinking of just ending it. It would not be an easy decision, because I love this team the most from all the teams I've had in the past. And I set it up all by myself, I arrange everything from recruitment, training, organising matches and looking for places to play. It is my sweat and blood.

I have had 5 football teams in my life, all of which I had set up and managed. My first team was when I was in primary school, and the team was named after my favorite team just like my brother's who had a team called Liverpool. My first team was the worst, as a smart alec classmate stole my idea and began recruiting my best players away using his dad's money (yes, he actually bought them jerseys and boots - I would have joined them!) and set up a match between his team and mine. My then-depleted team crashed 10-1 to them. I still remember fondly how my sweeper, one of the better players in the school at the time who chose to stay loyal to my team purely because of friendship, stole the ball from defence and dribbled all the way up to score our sole consolation. It was such an embarrassment that I didn't think of creating another team until I was in SJI.

My second team was made up of prima donnas. Most of them thought of themselves as the best player and there was hardly any teamwork. It was simply a gathering of individuals and not a real team. However I like our jersey then, it was blue and white much like the Italian national jersey. We were known as 'Deleter FC', and we even had our own logo. Our only real match ended 3-3. It didn't last long, it died a natural death in less than a year.

I had another team created in my upper secondary school. There were a lot of players in the squad but attendance was somehow never good. We had a pretty talented squad but we never had enough stamina to last a full game. Our most significant victory was against a RI team younger by a year in which we scored a 10-4 victory. It lasted throughout secondary 2 to 4, with a lot of change of personnel. After our 'O's, it also died.

Next I had a team in poly, and I didn't create this team. Initially, a coursemate from another class began choosing players from around my cohort to play in the inter diploma 7-a-side tournament. As freshmen, he didn't know who to pick from so he just based purely on looks and created this football team made up of 12 players. One of them happened to be my classmate, so when I heard they were having a kick-about session after school, I decided to join in because I felt kinda insulted that I wasn't invited.

They were playing against a team from the engineering school who were also preparing for the tournament, and I joined in that team to play against my diploma team. After the friendly, my classmate got booted out of the team and I got invited in. And I made the first team too. We were known as 'Kelong United', and we narrowly lost to the eventual inter-school champions 1-2 in the semi-final, despite taking the lead. And my corsemate who created this team abandoned us and joined the losing finalists instead. I took over this team and called ourselves Matadors. This is the most talented team I had been a part of. We were well-balanced in every area, confident and united. Basically, we did not have any average player, all were exceptionally good in their own position. If I had held this team together, I think we would have achieved a lot. But again, this team were let down by poor referreeing in the tournament and it was amazing how 5 of our players got injured with wild challenges from the eventual champions but none of them even got a caution, and neither did we get any free-kicks!

Anyway, this current team of mine is created through NS friends, and friends' friends. We are also know as Matadors but this team only has two original members of the first Matadors remaining and I am one of them. What I like most and why I like this team the most is the passion all of us share in the game. We all just want to play and want to improve as a team. Although not as talented as my previous squad, the passion of the team made this squad of players worth hanging on to. Unfortuantely, ever since one of us got heavily influenced by a Christian book he read recently, and fearing Armageddon is near, decided to forsake football and do more church activities. His absence prompted absence from his group of friends which in turn takes away a big part of the team. Now, it does look like its ending. I am angry and frustrated because after all the effort I've put in, is this what I deserve from these guys? No sense of appreciation.

Even though I am well-settled into SJIOBA team now, I would still rather stick with my team. But if my team is so torn, then why should I bother?

Why can't any of these teams last? Is my leadership not strong enough to be lasting?

I'm so frustrated. If this team really breaks up, I will forget about creating another team. Just can't be bothered anymore!!!

Next stop: Guangzhou

2006-08-15T23:19:00.000+08:00

Man, I keep telling myself after I returned from my Melbourne trip 3 weeks ago that I will post up pictures of my first two business trips but I have yet to even post up one of them! And tomorrow I'm leaving for my third trip already, damn time passes so fast!

Too busy lar, realised when I finally get a chance to blog (that is my either my sis is sleeping or off to tuition) I am too tired to do so. In any case, I just feel like blogging before I leave for my 'roots'.

I don't think I've mentioned this in my blog before but I have this colleague who is eccentric to say the least. We nicknamed her Panda and I seriously think it is a very apt nick. Yes, you can probably picture her appearance in your head by now. She likes to kiss her bosses' asses and despite her minor role, she likes to think highly of herself and put the newcomers down. I, for one, seemed to be her public enemy number 1 despite me not having anything to do with her at all. Anyway, I was told this morning by another department's manager that the driver sent to pick me at the GZ airport couldn't understand Mandarin and can only speak Cantonese. She asked if I knew how to speak Cantonese as it is essential that I do. Then this 'panda' came running into the manager's cubicle and starting raving in half-baked Cantonese that she knows how to speak the dialect. *slap my forehead* What's up with that man?

Alright, time for me to get some sleep as I need to get up real early tomorrow for the flight. And I really should start posting the pictures of my trips before it becomes too old to blog about. Darn, even the Taipei trip is left unfinished. Ain't I the champion procrastinator!!!

See you all next week.

Singapore turns 41!

2006-08-09T11:34:00.000+08:00

Happy National Day to all fellow Singaporeans! I went for my first NDP preview as a visitor two weekends ago and took some pictures. I think it's a good time to upload the pictures to share with everyone what is to come later in the evening.

The choppers carrying our national flag into the stadium, a tradition of NDP

Let the fireworks begin!

This one looks like a palm tree

This looks like an explosion of candies

The mixture of colours used this year really raised the bar for future fireworks show

This series of firewoks was spread across the entire West stand - Impressive!

Wooo... a fitting colour for our National Day!

The finale is always special, this year's lasted quite a bit!

Needs no caption for this pic...

Reaching the end of the show, when thousands of ballons were released

really needed this weekend

2006-08-06T02:06:00.000+08:00

I have just finished a rough week at work. I think I have mentioned about how happy I am in my current job, but as we all know, things can never be perfect. I have been experiencing the first signs of what is not good about working there.

In any case, I have no wish to elaborate as I feel I can still handle it. It's just that I feel frustrated at times at not being able to express my views freely. If you express your views, you are being seen as difficult and argumentative. Worse, if you managed to come off stronger in reasoning because that leaves a bad taste in the other party's mouth. Keep quiet and you will feel like you're still serving the nation and under the mercy of the darned warrant officers.

Lose-lose situation isn't it? I really needed this weekend to recharge myself. In less than 2 weeks, I will be off to my 'roots' in Guangzhou. Both sets of my grandparents were from Guangzhou, which means I am only 2 generations away from the place. I should have no problem with the dialect or the language, but I'm still feeling a little bit edgy about the trip. It has nothing to do with travelling alone as I will be, because I have travelled alone to London earlier this year. It's just that I have heard of horror stories of the place from my boss. Apparantly, my predecessor lost her laptop in her hotel room in Guangzhou, while she was asleep! Can you imagine what else the thief could have done? Luckily the thief didn't do anything else! Man, that really gives me the chills. Wish me luck when I leave ok?

Anyway, I disgressed. I was feeling moody when my week ended and didn't joined a couple of my colleagues to the Festival of Praise at the indoor stadium as I don't want to bring my 'sian-ness' to such a place. I wanted to just go home and not think about anything and just relax. In the end, I went out to meet a couple of old poly mates for a drink at Wala. It was great fun as we caught up and reminise on the 'good ol' days'. We were talking about how much friends around us has changed, all for the better, and that we should arrange for a gathering soon. It has been 5 years since we left the school in any case! It really took my mind off whatever I was moody about and a great start to the weekend.

And today I did what I had promised to do but haven't had the chance to - bring my family to town to shop for my sis' clothes to my brother's wedding dinner. And he's moving out after the dinner! Can't wait so I can occupy his room (which is bigger than mine currently) hahahaha...!!! Evil evil me!

Tomorrow, I will be going for my weekly relaxing swim before meeting my usual gang, with a member who just returned from Sydney. Really looking forward to that! That would really complete a great weekend.

My Taipei trip

2006-08-02T21:27:00.000+08:00

I know I have taken forever to post this up, so I better post it before I get labeled as SLOW again.

Anyway, the company incentive trip to Taiwan was a bit over-rated, or maybe I expected more out of it. I guess for me, a good holiday is one with more sight-seeing and relaxing, less hurrying and shopping. Well, you got to have shopping but a balance have to be met I guess. And this trip was imbalanced in that aspect, too much shopping!

When I arrived, I got stopped by the authorities for having a higher temperature than the average person. I was measured at 37.8 degrees and they suspected me of having bird flu. Well, my temperature is usually a bit on the high side, now you know how I managed to get those MCs when I was wearing green heehee!

We reached Yilan after a long and weary ride in which the damn tour guide can't stop introducing us to his entire family and telling us his life story. We stay at Shangri-la farm hotel, which is shown in this picture on the right.

The rooms are nice and comfy, as what Marcus said, one can roll on the bed many times without falling off hahaha!

Then at night, we went for this silly cultural event in which we made tang yuans and play with big spinning tops. There were a couple of other tour groups there with us, and I got sabotaged by the hosts to take part in the top spnning event representing Singapore.

When they asked what is good about Singapore, I cheekily replied everything is good and fun, and all girls are pretty and all guys are hunky. In the end, I got teased throughout - damn it!

Here in the picture on the left I was about to spin the top, estimated weight of 3kg. I finished as runners-up with a time of 19 seconds.

I was presented with a certificate and a mini-top as a prize. What a pleasant surprise! To be honest, I was just happy not to embarrass myself spinning the top as I have never done it before!

For some reason I could not comprehend, I could not add any more pictures into this post, so let me do it in parts. This will be day 1.

To be continued...

Latest scope at work

2006-07-19T20:39:00.000+08:00

Don't think I mentioned anything about work since I started working at my company in April (It has been 3 months and counting!). So here I shall write something brief as an update.

The latest news is of course our HR meeting conducted on Monday. This annual meeting is to inform all confirmed staff of their performance bonus, increment and promotions if there are any. Although it doesn't concern me as I am still on probation, it was still interesting to attend the meeting. I feel most happy for the promotions of my immediate boss to assistant manager, and of course for my lunch kakis JN and ZJ.

Of the many bosses I have worked under before, my current boss is most capable and her good work is obvious for all who worked with her. So I really am happy that she is finally recognised for her good work and got the promotion.

As for myself, as I was saying earlier, I'm still on probation as my probation period is 6 months. And as I have been working for 3 months since last week, I have been considered for early confirmation by my boss and she has told me that my big boss has told her that whether or not I get that early confirmation now lies on my first overseas trip as the overall organiser. At first I felt a bit unfair as I thought I have done enough through the many good reviews I have received from both my boss and the big boss, but now it all lies on my performance on this overseas trip to Melbourne. But after talking to Cindy, I realised she has a point. My past efforts has not exactly been forgotten, it's exactly precise of that that I am even considered for early confirmation.

Tonight, I will be leaving for this Melbourne trip. I hope I am able to produce my best work to stand a chance. In any case, I cannot expect too much since there have been so many cases of late confirmations in my company. Anyway, wish me luck!

I'll be back next week.

It never rains but it pours

2006-07-16T22:45:00.000+08:00

My Saturdays has always been a quiet relaxing day of the week since the beginning of the year when I would go swimming, get a tan, soak in the jacuzzi and then enjoy a quiet evening reading or playing my PS2.

Ever so rarely, I would get an invitation out by friends in which I almost never reject because I have nothing much to do anyway. Other times I would spend the evening with my family out at a nice dinner place.

Then it 'pours'. This weekend, there are just too many activities lumped together I had to give a few a miss altogether. I wish activities like these would fill up my weekends but it is just the way it is, just like the title of this post.

First, I registered to join a salsa dancing crash course on Saturday. 3 and a half hours of learning the basic foundations plus the eventual basic full sequence of salsa dance. Since it's in the afternoon at 5pm, I decided to have my haircut before that, which means I had to forgo my weekly swimming session. Then, after the class I had to rush to the cinema to watch Pirates 2 with the gang. At about the same time, my drinking kakis Eric and Jeremy asked me to join them at Wala. And that means I had to forgo Wala. But still it was a fun-filled Saturday. I just wish it had been more spread out so I need not rush from here to another place and spend such a short time with my friends. And yes, I miss Wala. Especially now they have the smoking ban.

Then, as I was registered into a 7-a-side tournament in SJI playing for my alumni U40s, I had to give my brother's wedding food-testing a miss. I really wanted to go for the food-testing because I have never been to one, but I cannot because I was already registered for the tournament before my family told me. So sad! And oh, because the tournament was held in the early afternoon, I had to give my morning football session a miss.

(For the record, we finished runners-up after losing to a much fitter ACS under 20s in the final)

Man, I wish I have each of these activities in one weekend each, so I can be part of everything. Now, it's back to swimming and relaxing.

Dreams

2006-07-08T19:36:00.000+08:00

I think I have managed to hide this pretty well from everyone who comes into contact with me daily. But I have been troubled recently by a dream I had.

While I wouldn't go all out to describe what this dream is all about, I would admit this much. It has got to do with someone who had been a major part of my life some time back. Somehow, it brought a strange, almost unfamiliar sadness back to me again.

Strange, because I haven't been affected by it for the longest time. Unfamiliar because I haven't been thinking about it for the longest time.

To be honest, I am happy with my life right now. But I feel something is mising, although somehow I cannot pin point what it is. In fact, I couldn't have asked for more with what I have right now. But somehow I am not as happy as when I was probably in my teens.

Once I was awaken from this dream, the sadness stopped. But it got me wondering, why did I dream of something that was so far in the past? Why did I feel affected with it in my dream and not when I'm awake? Are such feelings but an illusion after all?

I'm not exactly sad after I had this dream. But I would sit and wonder and think about a lot of things when I'm alone. And I have a lot of time alone, which means I did a lot of thinking.

Recently, I begun attending Church service again(thanks to JP). Although I'm not sure I'm used to the way JP's church service is being conducted, I must say I am intrigued by it. And the messages were good and useful to me, especially now.

Then it struck me. When I had everything going for me back when I was 15, I had just received God. I was attending morning mass everyday before school. Everything then seemed to be so right for me. I was very happy then. I performed both academically and in other activities.

Are all these a mere coincidence? Well, I cannot be sure but I'm willing to try returning to such a lifestyle again. Is this the something that have been missing?

Hmmm, I really don't know. But let me sit down and think some more.

I'm back

2006-07-08T19:28:00.000+08:00

I know I haven't been updating my blog even though I had wanted to many times. There are many reasons for this.

1) My sis is forever hogging the family computer, which is my only source of internet at home, whenever I'm home. She returns home earlier than me everyday and she claims she had to use the internet on weekends to do her homework. Which means, I have no chance to surf my friends' blogs, surf my Arsenal's website, check my email and so and so forth.

2) I have been extremely busy in recent weeks at work. And when there is the odd opportunity when my sis was actually not using the computer when I got home, I was almost always to tired to do so myself.

3) I have been troubled with something in recent weeks. And I had thought about putting it in my blog but I just don't know how to. I didn't know how to start and how to describe it. So I decided to wait and wait until I can actually come out of my writer's block about it.

Finally, now I have a chance to update my company's incentive trip to Taiwan, my maiden business trip to Shanghai on my blog. I also think I have the answer on how to go about describing what has been troubling me.

Most of all, this post is to let anyone (if there is anyone at all that is) who comes to my blog know that I haven't decided to quit blogging. Not yet anyway.

SJI Old Boys 4 - 2 ACS Old Boys

2006-06-25T22:15:00.000+08:00

I just want to make a quick note here so that I would one day look back on my archives and reminisce on a wonderful game. I am back playing for my alumni's football team despite having a forgettable experience the first time round. I scored 5 minutes into my debut against SJI above 40s before being strangely taken off by the captain after only 20 minutes. In the end, after they conceded an equaliser in the last ten minutes of the game, they put me back on to try to win it.

Frustrated, I thought of quitting after just one game. But the captain managed to convince me that I have an important role to play in the team so I decided to give it another try. I was given a jersey this time round (I was number 27) and again I scored within 10 minutes of the game against ACS Old Boys. This time round, I sealed my place in the first team. The best thing about this win is that everyone was pessmistic about the game as the ACS Old Boys looked much fitter and younger than most of my team mates.

There was a weak link in their defence and as the lone striker (we deployed a 4-5-1 formation with me up front) I made full use of my pace to out run their oldest player playing as sweeper at the back. He made a mistake and let the ball bounced past him and I ran onto the ball, trapped it and curled it past the keeper who rushed out pretty fast to close down the angle. Fortunately, I was that little bit faster and I found the far corner of the goal. The really took the wind out of them as they pushed forward and soon we got our second when I pulled the defence out and left my team mate free in the box to score. The rest, is history.

Finally, I have cemented my place in the team, and now I look forward to further games espceially against RI Old Boys next year. I just wanted to put this down so I won't forget this nice memory of a game 20-30 years down the road.

What a day!

Finally, I can get my degree!

2006-06-07T13:42:00.000+08:00

I got the results for my final module yesterday afternoon in the office after a school reminded me through phone that the results are already out. And boy, I was so nervous about finding out if I passed as this would mean whether or not I can graduate in August or wait an entire year as this module is not offered in the following semester!

And yes, I passed! Although I didn't get a good result, the main point is that I can graduate with my cohort! I am officially a double major degree holder! I'm more estatic about this than the time when I passed my driving.

The past 2 years had been really tough and trying. It really wasn't easy to work and study at the same time. One had to go through it to understand how lucky we are to be just working. Now I can finally concentrate on building up my career and saving before going for my MBA in 5 years' time.

Supposed to blog about this yesterday but as usual, my sis was hogging the PC. But I was too happy to ask her to step aside hehehe... I'm over the moon!

Para para is still alive!

2006-06-05T21:49:00.000+08:00

On my way home today, I witnessed a most unbelievable sight.

It has something to do with those stupid arcade machines that requires players to dance to s certain beat complete with hand movements, yes those stupid Para Para Sakura dancing games. I will never forget the silly sight of those ah lians and ah bengs dancing at the side of the machines while they watch their friends going at it.

Anyway, I was seated opposite 2 ah lians in my bus home today. I was looking at the front checking out the traffic (a habit of mine) paying no attention to the young girls with poor fashion sense when I realised they were making huge hand gestures from the corner of my eye.

Their hand gestures were so wild that even though I wasn't looking at them, I could feel them gesturing wildly. As I was listening to my radio, I couldn't hear if they were talking. Therefore I thought they were deaf and dumb and communicating through sign language or something. Until I realised the dude sitting next to me staring at them with a bewildered look.

Then it happened, their legs starting moving in step as well, while they were seated! Soon, I realised they were talking pretty loudly, and they are bloody practising Para Para dancing movements while sitting in the bus! Unbelievable!

What are teenagers these days thinking?! Goodness gracious me!

Back in cyber world

2006-06-04T01:27:00.000+08:00

Finally, my home desktop has returned and the best news is, everything I thought I've lost since it crashed 2 weekends ago is still intact. And that includes my game in Football Manager! YES!!!

I can't wait to update my blog and catch up on my personal stuff at home, having had to sneak a few moments here and there during work to check email and stuff for the past 2 weeks. And of course, to catch up on my game as well!

So glad to see my desktop back home! But first, a good round of FM before bed. Besides, my football session is cancelled tomorrow. But that's great news for once hahaha!

Coke celebrities - part 2

2006-05-30T10:50:00.000+08:00

I just found out from the website that the picture in my previous entry will be appearing on Coke Lime coke cans. Please follow the link to the news report and Dom's winning entry statement.

The picture on the left is how it will look like. Keep a lookout for it!

I'm a coke lime fan for a week!

Coke Celebrities!!!

2006-05-29T09:18:00.000+08:00

During my chilling out with Dom last night, I found out from him that we're both going to appear on coca-cola cans in a limited World Cup edition collection!

He has submitted a picture of us celebrating the Tiger Cup win early last year with a group of fellow Singaporean fans lifting a pseudo Tiger Cup that Marcus and myself created. It was a great picture except that I don't look good in it! That's why it's stacked so lowly in my list of pictures in my Friendster profile haha... Well, I guess we can't get everything we wanted.

The above is the picture that will be appearing in the limited edition coke cans. That's me on the left and Dom on the right holding on to the pseudo cup. I'm still keeping a lookout for it, both Dom and I have no idea when it will be out. Please help me to keep a lookout for it, and if you saw one, help me to get a can!

We're gonna be celebrities hehehe!!!

Updates

2006-05-25T15:37:00.000+08:00

I just realised I haven't updated my blog for a week. Well, I haven't retired from writing (did I just hear a groan?), it's just that my home desktop crashed and I have not been able to go online and check out a lot of stuff since.

I'm just going to group some updates since that fateful day since Arsenal lost the biggest match of its proud history.

Arsenal:
I guess the most appropriate way to start would be my feelings towards the latest news surrounding my favorite club. Thierry Henry's decision to stay was the best news I got since that disappointing loss. I am absolutely thrilled when Marcus sms-ed me the news while I was on my way to Dbl-O.

Tomas Rosicky signing for Arsenal was also a great piece of news. Thanks to Steve, I was kept up-to-date regarding the transfer as I couldn't access the internet at home (grrr...). I always thought he is an excellent talent and a fantastic playmaker when i first saw him in action against Arsenal.

And if you have been reading The New Paper, you should have caught notice of this World Cup babe contest thingy going on. All I can say is this, whoever you choose to vote for, DO NOT VOTE FOR charlene. That b***h called Arsenal's holy ground as scum-bury and wants to burn it to the f\ground just because she is passionate about Spurs. Well, stupid bimbo! That is just scant respect for such a great ground. No matter how red-hot a Gooner I am, I have never said anything to that effect about White Hart Lane. And no, Ivan, no self-respecting Arsenal fan will ever convert to Spurs the eternal losers of North London due to this toothy bimbo's influence!

Holiday:
I have been successfully convinced by a couple of my colleagues/buddies to join the rest of my colleagues on their incentive trip to Taiwan, effectively making me a grand poorer! But I guess it's going to be lots of fun to hang out for a holiday with this crazy group of jovial people! I am really looking forward to it, and as I'm writing this, I'm formalising my maiden working trip to Shanghai a week after the Taiwan trip. Busy busy! :P

Blogs:
Let me officially welcome Eric to the wold of blogsphere! This crazy colleague of mine is my drinking buddy to wala wala, and we're both fans of the live band - the UnXpected!

I tomorrow-ed a blog I came across last week. You may follow the link here. I thought it is a very interesting read, and you should really check out the comments the blog received. It gives us an insight to such people living in our homeland. Now I feel I can understand their struggles a little bit better.

Ok, that's about it for now. I actually have a number of topics to blog about but I have to see when I will get the chance to do it again. I wish I have my own desktop!

My heart is D E A D

2006-05-18T13:16:00.000+08:00

Yes, and so we lost. But before any critics out there can say "I told you so!", I urge everyone to look deep into the context of the game itself.

Did we deserve to lose in normal time? I firmly believe NOT. Yes, Barcelona had more possession during the game, but that was because of their numerical superiority since Lehmann's sending off. Before that, Arsenal is the side that did most of the probing and seriously, we should have scored early.

We deserve an early goal the way we played in the first 10 minutes. As for Lehmann's sending off, well I have the following to say. Lehmann did foul Eto'o outside the box and if the referee had stopped play at that precise moment, then the sending-off and the disallowed goal is the correct decision by the referee. However, I did not hear the whistle. Therefore there is a big question mark as to whether this is a correct decision.

Frankly speaking, the referee was totally disappointing. I do not understand how the Barca players can get away with so many fouls without a caution but he can book Henry for a good legal tackle! Ok, I must control before I start to spew vulgarities. Anyway, I feel if Lehmann had stayed on, we would have equalised and the game would be totally different. I feel if on the night, the way Arsenal played, we would have given Barca no end of problems. Ronaldinho was kept quiet most of the game and this looked like a game Arsenal should have won. I believe if we had 11 against 11, Reyes and van Persie coming off the bench in the second half would have given Puyol and Marquez a lot of problems.

It is difficult and hard to take to see your favorite team lose in the biggest final of their history. But to lose in such a manner simply made matters worse.

My heart is shattered, it is dead.

I cannot look to the next season, for I am still pondering the many questions and the many different outcomes of the game should Lehmann had stayed on. So many questions, no answers.

Champions League Final

2006-05-17T08:49:00.000+08:00

There have been a lot of talk on the Champions League final from fans, pundits, media and professionals alike during the past week. And the majority all thinks Barcelona are going to steamroll past Arsenal for the trophy in style. This stirred up a lot of emotions in me as an Arsenal fan. It seems like the only person to have predicted an Arsenal win apart from the Arsenal camp is Mark Richmond the former deejay.

However, I don't blame them. To be honest, if I am a neutral fan, I would have put my money on Barcelona also. But I am not! And I can tell you why, from a biased point of view, why we can win tonight.

Firstly, people are talking about the obvious strengths of Barcelona. Everyone in the world can see how good they are, so it is simply too easy to talk up their offensive power and famous world-class players. However, most simply forgot to talk about Barcelona's opponents. That is just disrespect!

No matter what, we have earned our right to be in the final, and it had not been an easy path. So why did everyone forgot that Arsenal is a force in itself? I prefer to look at our own strengths and I see quality everywhere in our team as well. Why should we be so worried about them when we have something for them to worry about?

This reminded me of the Cup Winners Cup final in the 1993/1994 season when Arsenal played Parma. Everyone were talking about how great the Parma side was, filled with world-class stars such as Tomas Brolin (he was still slim then), Faustino Asprilla, Gianfranco Zola and Roberto Sensini. All predicted a thrashing for a hapless Arsenal side with no bite and a 'Donkey' (Tony Adams) in defence. As a young fan then, I had feared the worst with all those reports coming out in the press. It wasn't easy, that week leading up to the final, as I must have been the only Goon (pardon the pun) in the entire school! I was laughed at the entire time by fans of other clubs. In the face of adversity, I stood up for my team (as I've done my whole life) and boldly predicted Kevin Campbell to score in the absence of Ian Wright, who was suspended for the final. "1-0 to the Arsenal!!!" I cried, but at the same time I could feel a egg falling from the sky and my face slowly tilting towards it.

What happened? It is 1-0 to the Arsenal, although it is Alan Smith who scored. And what a sweet volley! The 'Donkey' has kept Zola, Asprilla and Brolin at bay. I remember boasting about this victory to the same critical fans for the rest of that year!

The situation is pretty similar now. Barcelona is being hyped up too much, and sometimes the players will begin to believe this themselves. When that happens, they will have a tendency not to be at their best, and then they will find Arsenal a really different proposition than they had imagined. Yes, you may argue that English clubs tend to struggle against Spanish opposition, but we have come this far beating 2 Spanish teams highly regarded by Barcelona. So why not a 3rd on our way to be the best in Europe?

As you can see, I'm standing up for my team, regardless of what people say. I am a fan, so expect no less from me.

Whatever happens, no one (not even the Chelsea fans) can deny that we deserve to be in this season's final and I will savour every moment of it as this is the BIGGEST night in Arsenal's history.

My Highbury tribute

2006-05-07T15:15:00.000+08:00

I should have done this a long time ago but I have yet to complete my online European journal so I'm just going to jump right into the part where I visited Highbury, as tonight is the last day of its existence.

Upon knowing that the 93-year-old stadium would be pulled down this year, I knew I had to go there at least once. I had promised myself to be there at least once in my life but the timing of the tearing down simply speeded up my trip. I saved one whole year working at two crap companies just for this one trip. And I can tell you, it is all worth it. At least now I can say I am a baptised Arsenal fan. I experienced the atmosphere and I was part of it. I was part of the Highbury legend.

I shall pay my tribute to the stadium with some pictures I took while I was there.

The mural at the Arsenal station leading up to the exit was actually competed barely a week before my arrival. A kind fellow fan took this picture for me.

I went to the famous old stadium through the London Underground. This is the Arsenal station formerly known as the Gillespie Road Station.

A day time, clearer picture of the station.

The stadium is well hidden within other houses. Just as WEnger described it, if it was the first time you are going there, you would be wondering where the stadium is and before you know it, there it is right in front of you.

It is so true. Luckily, I was travelling with a huge group of Gooners who had arrived at the Arsenal station together with me. So I just followed where the corwd were heading. The atmosphere was alrteady fantastic inside the train where almost everyone was an Arsenal fan and everyone were talking about the big match. I felt right at home!

As I came out of the station, I turned left where the crowd were heading and I saw rows and rows of roadside stalls selling either Arsenal memorabilia or selling food and drinks. I settled of an Arsenal scarf at 7 pounds as I left my two other Arsenal scarfs at the hotel. I had actually intended to return to the hotel to collect my scarf as it was supremely cold but decided against it when I was in the train as I felt so pumped up seeing all the Arsenal fans along with me. Plus the train was packed so I thought I might as well arrive at the stadium earlier and buy a scarf there. I also bought a cheese burger and a hot chocolate like most fans and began to soak in the atmosphere. But I couldn't wait to finish up and be at the stadium, espcially knowing I was already so close!

I continued walking along the path where most fans were headed and kept wondering when I would finally see the entrance to the stadium. Then before I know it, I realised I was standing right at the entrance to the North Stand. "Welcome to Highbury" the banner read. I was estatic! I videotaped the scene and I couldn't stop saying Oh my oh my oh my!!! Its Highbury!!!" One of my childhood dreams is finally realised.

This is the my very first picture with the stadium and that scarf on my neck was the one I bought at one of the roadside stalls. I got a steward to take for me. I also bought my match programme at the counter behind me. It was really cold at -4 degress Celcius, I was wearing at least 6 layers of clothes!

The stadium sight at night. Isn't it awesome? I collected my ticket from the ticketing counter barely 10 metres away from this picture.

This is the entrance to the private carpark for the Arsenal staff. It is heavily guarded with stewards and policemen and quite a number were waiting to catch a glimpse of any football star arriving.

The Arsenal merchandise shop. It is packed with people and there is a queue forming outside the entrance. Luckily I bought my scarf at the roadside stall, which is licensed anyway! Notice the countdown clock dated only 102 days left before today. I made it, thank goodness!

My first picture inside the stadium! The first team players were warming up on the field already! It was just so surreal to be witnessing my Arsenal heroes in action in person! As you can see, I had a prime view of the match. The ticket cost me 30 pounds after all!

Dennis Bergakamp, my favorite Arsenal player, warming up. He will be retiring come the end of the season, and it would be so sad for me knowing we will be losing a legend forever.

Thierry Henry! He look so tall, much taller than on television, in person. I bought the ticket not knowing if the big guns like Henry would be playing, but luckily he did play and he even scored on the night. Lucky lucky me.

This was my view from where I was seated. Fantasic right? Just like on television, except it's 'live'!

Gunnersauras, our club mascot! He was playing one-two passing with the players. He had a surprisingly good touch!

Although the match did not end happily for us, it was still a win on the night and I witnessed goals from Henry and Robin Van Persie. I also learnt a lot of Arsenal songs and sang along with the crowd. It is really just so different to be there in person. My only regret is not being able to watch another match at this stadium. Although it is very old and you can feel the ancient colonial style of the stadium, there is just a certain beauty and charm about the place.

Standing outside the East stand, where the entrance to the famous marble halls is.

And so then, we hate to see Highbury demolished. But few Gunners fans will disagree that moving is the most logical step forward. So it is down to us and the team to make the new stadium a place of wonderful memories as well.

Goodbye, Arsenal Stadium aka Highbury.

A glimpse of Arsenal's future home - the Emirates Stadium

Disappointed

2006-05-07T15:09:00.000+08:00

An incident happened yesterday evening that got me thinking, and made me a very disappointed young member of the family.

I was deeply affected by the incident, and it got me thinking, does dysfunctional families have to be incomplete for it to be dysfunctional?

I simply couldn't understand the actions of these two particular persons, who ironically are persons that I share the same blood with. I am very disappointed and I just wish things can and will get better. But I'm not too hopeful. Right now, it's not about anger, it's about this deep sense of sadness that is residing in me.

The worse thing is, I am totally helpless against it.

There is nothing I can do right now except to accept my fate and do my part.

I miss work!

2006-05-05T16:29:00.000+08:00

I know this may be difficult to believe for most people, but I genuinely miss returning to the office!

Throughout this week, I have been studying at home. And it has been a real bore. I grow restless easily and couldn't concentrate for long periods. I seriously miss the daily hurstle of working life!

At least at work, I know I am definitely doing something constructive, I'm learning something new everyday and I miss interacting with my jovial colleagues. And I need not worry about results daily.

This week has been a real torture. As I studied, I pondered on the circumstances of whatever results I might get, and it distracted me greatly. I couldn't sleep enough and I feel that time passes too fast.

Finally, my body fell to the mental torture yesterday and i felt really unwell. Had to take medicine a few times and still I couldn't get enough sleep. Sigh, still I need to hang on over the weekend and give it my all come Monday.

Wish me luck, people. Boy, I miss work!

Happy birthday, mum!

2006-05-04T22:37:00.000+08:00

Today my mum turned 56, and I could see the delight in her eyes when I gave her a big fat ang pao (because I couldn't decide what to get for her) and it completely made my day.

But waking up with a terrible sore throat was bad news for me. I knew then that I might be falling sick. True enough I felt very unwell as the day wore on with me studying hard in my room. I was feeling too sick to study.

Yet, I had to make sure I look alright in front of my mum so we could take her out for dinner. I'm just so glad to know that she enjoyed the day very much with flowers from my sis, a nice comfy chair from my dad and a red paclet from me.

Perhaps I have never said this before, but since its her birthday, I feel it's only right that I express my gratitute to her throughout some of my more difficult moments of my life. She had been my emotional support in so many ways and best of all, she is (to the whole family) the best cook. Yes, I love my mum(who doesn't ought to get a slap on the head)! Too bad her birthday is always so close to Mothers' Day, so I'm almost always broke the month after my birthday month!

Man... But I'm really feeling terrible now. I think I have to take more medicine before I go to sleep. Might have to miss the Arsenal game tonight. I couldn't even join my pubbing kaki Eric tonight at Wala Wala to listen to our favorite local band the UnXpected.

Lord, please let me recover quickly so I can focus on my exam!

Oh, last but not least, Happy Birthday Mum!

Arsenal going to Paris!

2006-04-26T09:42:00.000+08:00

Finally, my favorite team Arsenal is going to the Champions League final this season following our 0-0 second leg draw at El Madridgal this morning!

Ever since I started supporting Arsenal, it has been a dream for me to see them in the final of the European Cup (it was still the old format when I became a Gooner). And after recent heartbreaks by Valencia and Chelsea, I was really holding my breath until my face turned purple throughout the game.

I have been singling Jens Lehmann and Gilberto particularly for praise in my previous tributes to the team's incredible Champions League journey this season. And again both were massive figures this morning, especially Lehmann. The last minute penalty earned by Jose 'el Diver' Mari was disgusting. He knew he dived and I really wanted to slap that girly face when he still had the cheek to celebrate!

I still cannot believe how the referee bought that. I was cursing our luck when I saw the referee was Ivanov, as I witnessed how incompetent he was in previous matches. Anyway, all of that simply made Lehmann's save taste all the better.

I lost count of the number of times I shouted 'YES!' after that sensational moment. I'm still trying to take in the fact we are in the Champions League final! Yes!!! Finally!!!

I was asking myself if it was an omen after the first leg at HIghbury for us to get into the final, as I had visited Stade de France before going to my first and only game at Highbury. I touched the ground and marvelled at the amazing structure of the stadium. And now, my Arsenal heroes will be there in a few weeks' time to battle for the right to be crowned European Champions.

Go you Gunners!!!

I'm 25 today

2006-04-16T23:08:00.000+08:00

I celebrated my 25th birthday yesterday with the gang, my best friends from poly and currently with a trip to a very special Russian restaurant. The food, especially the steaks and the soups. The steaks are so tender and is not bloody, just a nice red within. Remember to ask for medium-rare!

That's the restaurant we went to: Shashlik Restaurant

Before: We put the soups we ordered together and shared them. Among the soups we ordered are a Russian soup, cream of sweet corn, onion soup and mussel soup. Strangely, the onion soup Marcus ordered came in the smallest bowl!

After: Everything was gone in a matter of minutes! They were all great!

Satisfied customers: Marc and myself!

Can you see that the cake was aflame? Its quite special, they poured rum all over it and flamed it up, melting the cream around it, making it a strangely delicious alcoholic dessert.

We ordered another dessert: a creme and Russian coffee. The Russian coffe was also lighted in rum before black coffee was poured into the glass. All the desserts were alcohol-based, and we think that is because Russia is usually cold, that's why the emphasis to drink more. The Russian coffee was fabulous!

At the end of a wonderful meal... Blurp!

After the meal, we went to Harry's at Holland Village. They treated me to mango margarita, which was pretty nice. Actually we had wanted to check out the live band at Wala-Wala but it was too crowded. Nonetheless, Harry's was quite cosy and I got to witness an Arsenal win on Dennis Bergkamp day!

My first pair of Adidas sneakers! For the longest time, I had wanted a pair of classic Adidas sneakers and finally the Animal Gang had bought me the above! Classy right? Thank you guys, I love you all!

Today is the actual date of my birth 25 years ago, and I ended the weekend with a nice touch, a nice cosy meal with my family in a Jap restaurant. My sis presented me with a nice hand-made card and she promised me a testimonial in my Friendster. She also bought me a Magnum with her own pocket money. Although it was nothing much in monetary value, it really touched my heart. I haven't been spoiling you for nothing, sis! :)

It had been such a wonderful Easter weekend, and I will remember it for life. Definitely the best weekend in years for me! Thank you once again to all who had been a part of it!

What a Good Friday

2006-04-15T02:13:00.000+08:00

I just returned from the most memorable BBQ of my life. It was organised by Cindy and the entire ID team and the company was made complete with the 4 of us former-temps.

The food was great, and the fire stared by Eric was great, and most of all the company was awesome. I can't remember the last time I had so much fun in a BBQ!

I've heard warnings from the guys that I might get major sabotage during the course of the event as my birthday is on this Easter Sunday, but I never expected any birthday cake (which was used against me anyway) so I must say my heart melted! They actually cared (at least I had a cake!)!

Anway, I got severely sabotaged, and according to Cindy, I was sabotaged by Eric the master 6 times alone. That's not counting the rest!

Anyway, a picture is definitely more descriptive than words. So please enjoy the following pictures!

Joey P and Eric

"Buay song see bo? Au beh gong lah!"

The ladies pretending to cook! Haha, no lah, they really did, and they did a very good job too!

Look at all the food!!!

All the 'Do-nots" - Drink and smoke!

Zhijia, Eric and Joey P having fun cooking

Left two: Busy cooking. Right two: Busy eating!

My birthday cake! Posing with the guys

Ain't I a lucky guy? Nope, look at their violent gestures toards me!

Yam Seng! I knew something was fishy when everyone seemed so excited to do the cheers thingy and all got behind me so I got in line with the rest...

...wasn't much use anyway, they still got me! Look at the people's evil grins!

I was then dragged into the jacuzzi...

...and this is the end result. The culprit with the victim. It was freaking cold!

I wasn't even spared when I was eating my cake!

Can't believe I can still smile for the camera! Haha...

It then sparked a free for all and almost no one was spared from the food fight. Cindy, this is your work. Now I know you're a marksman with food throwing! Thank you ah...

This time I jumped into the pool myself! After my ass got invaded twice, first with ice and then with coke! The coke really steamed up my ass boy! I had to jump in to wash it away! And yes, I'm still feeling a bit numb down there at the point of writing this! I feel raped...

Oh no, not the jacuzzi again!

I was totally wet, smell like mango, coke, beer all combined. Thanks Eric, I am SOOOO looking forward to your birthday...

Thank you guys(especially Cindy the organiser... sob sob I'm so touched haha), I really had fun in spite of being thrown into the water, face meshed with cake, and my butt invaded twice! It is the most unforgettable birthday bash ever, and I wasn't even expecting it! Cool...

More pictures at My Fotopage.

My nephew

2006-04-08T11:19:00.000+08:00

For those who haven't heard, my nephew was recently invited to join in the football national U-17 squad for training after his impressive performances at this year's combined schools' tournament. I first heard he was more interested in joining a club side from my mum.

I always thought that was being silly as being a budding young talent, the wise choice would be to accept any national call-up at any level to gain maximum exposure and to improve oneself. Being in a club side means additional work had to be put in and you are usually out of sight from the national selectors.

I finally had the chance to find out from him what he chose and why. He had initially joined up with the national squad but has since quit to join Woodlands Wellington, his hometown team. He told me that was because most of his friends were already part of Woodlands COE (Centre Of Excellence) and he wanted to be part of them rather than not knowing anyone in the national U-17 squad. He also admitted the allowance he gets from Woodlands is an added incentive that he won't be getting at the U-17 squad.

Oh well, I guess one shouldn't kill the fun factor during these youngsters' developing years. Perhaps by enjoying the game more with his friends, he can improve better. I just wish him all the best and hopefully, he would become a professional one day.

And for those who are surprised I'm already an uncle, well, actually I have about 8 nephews and nieces ever since I was just a primary school kid. My mum was the youngest in a family of 12 siblings so one can guess its easy to be an uncle for me. My sis was born an aunt!

Arsenal are through!

2006-04-06T14:06:00.000+08:00

YES YES YES...!!!

The week has just got better for me as my beloved Arsenal got through to the Semi-finals of the Champions League for the first time in our history! Also the 8th clean sheet in a row making the Gunners the record holders for the most number of consecutive clean sheets in the tournament! And I'm so glad to have witnessed it.

To be honest, I was scarred by the Chelsea knock-out in 2004 and I was biting my nails throughout the game. I was really afraid something bad would happen like if Juventus were to score early, I think I would have watched the entire game standing up.

Although the end statistics showed that we created more chances, and forced more corners, as a worried fan the Juve chances are what stuck in my head. Like that Zambrotta shot that flew just inches wide of the post, my heart really skipped a beat. I was like "gasp!" and lied down for a while to get my composure back hahaha!

One thing I have to say though, I really found it disgusting how unsporting the Juventus players are. They fall at every opportunity, whenever a Gunner is nearby, they WILL fall. And frustratingly, the ref almost always fall for it (pardon the pun). Adrian Mutu and Pavel Nedved stood out as the worst of the lot with their over-the-top tackles and blatant cheating and diving. Therefore when Nedved got sent off, I applauded. The tackle that got him the second yellow was really bad, it was vicious. The worst thing is, he knew immediately that he was getting into trouble and he fell dramatically and rolled on the floor to buy time and pity from the ref. Its quite gross behavior.

Anyway, I'm delighted with Jens Lehmann, who is my man-of-the-match. I seriously think he is better than Khan now and should be Germany's number 1 at this year's World Cup. He made a number of outstanding saves and the best has to be the stinger from Nedved, which I really thought was going in.

In the end, after the sending off, it was a stroll for my team. I got 3 out of 4 right about my predictions for the semi-finalists, the only exception being Lyon. I thought before the games Lyon might go through but Milan proved me wrong.

Anyway, I'm really excited that I'm going to witness the first Champions League semi-finals Arsenal are in. It really made my day and week!