Yucky Yangtze

Here's an 8-dollar challenge: Comb every corner of our Singapore island and I dare you - no, I double dare you - to find a sleazier cinema than Yangtze @ Pearl Centre.
For the uninitiated, the whole setup's akin to a wolf in sheep's clothing. 'Cineplex' my ass. Leisure City Funworld? The place's long closed down, for Chrissakes!

(Above left): Take a look at this box office booth (yeah, they call it 'ticket booth'). I mean, just look at it. My gawd. But, hey, if them sex-starved ah pehs aren't kao peh-ing, who the fart are we to complain?

(Above right): Gaudy multi-colored neon lights. Geez. Is this joint stuck in the jin da ban seventies or what??

Chow Jerry

A-ha! Now I know why there are so many dirty paw prints on my new washing machine. The 'cat-prit' has finally been caught grey-handed. Stupid Jerry-san, you'd betta get off there before I whack your fatty & furry backside left right center. And QUIT SLOBBERING on my 'Good Wine Good Friends' mat, already! Ugh! >:-(

My Inspiration

In 2002, I penned a 66-page short script entitled BLUE DOLPHINS. That story was about four teenage girls (two sisters and two strangers) who spend 24 hours together in a series of misadventures and misdemeanors. The premise was inspired by the similarly themed 1997 Japanese movie BOUNCE KO GALS (see pic) and both celebrate friendship & female bonding.

Mama Mia!

An 'aerial' shot of high-end habitues dining and wining (not whining) at the upmarket Marmalade Pantry in the basement of Orchard Road's Palais Renaissance. Mind you, lunching at a restaurant like this is 'no joking matter': the menu, if it still applies, ranges from $5 bread board to $30 seared foie gras on apple prune brioche. (Of course, I'm only half-pretending to know what I'm reciting here :-P) Reservations, anyone?

Yet More Arcade Adventures

(Above left): Son manoeuvres his submarine through underwater trenches deep beneath the sea in Ocean Hunter while Daddy looks on with pride. "Go get 'em, tiger!"

(Above right): Who says a demure looking girl can't eliminate all competition and prevail as the undisputed King of Fighters? Not this blogger, for sure.

My [Mugshot]

>> This is what you do when the 'ratings' begin to wane. You upload a photo of yourself - an ugly one at that - and pray that business will pick up soon. LOL. (Note: this mugshot was taken 4 1/2 years ago when I lost my identity card and had to replace it for $100 at the Immigration & Checkpoints Authority. Grrr.) Please be kind with your comments! <<

Laundromat?

Honestly, what's the first thing that strikes you when you see these spin washers? For me, it's Mr. Bean (know why?). Haa! By the way, this place ain't no laundromat; it's actually a section of Tiong Bahru Plaza's Level 3 Courts electrical store :-)

Letz Drink 2 It!

Never knew a snapshot of cans and bottles of booze in a glass freezer could look so swell. Are you a heavy drinker? What's your favorite poison? I remember trying Tiger beer during my doggone army days. The occasion was CO Day, I think. I had one sip of the bloody beverage and nearly barfed. Sigh. There goes my chance, if any, with Jessica Alba :"(

Wild Wild Wet

The year-end school holidays are finally upon us! For a splashing good time, parents may wanna take their children to Wild Wild Wet @ Downtown East. One regular patron I know will be former KAP member Kelly Chua (featured heretofore on October 31, 2005) since her boyfriend (forgot his name) is working part-time at the place as a lifeguard :-)

THE PROMISE

Words alone cannot do justice to the elegance and majesty manifested in this poster of spiritual proportions.

How do you decipher a divine imagery like this? A waifish young girl standing on a half-submerged log in a misty lake, gazing up at an ethereal woman whose wind-blown locks appear to have taken on a life of its own.

The only letdown, perhaps, is the title itself.

Kopi Kulture

caffeine noun [U] a chemical found in coffee and tea that is a stimulant (= something that tends to make you more active)
(Source: Cambridge Dictionary of American English)

For non-caffeine addicts like me, I wouldn't understand how it's like to get through a day without my morning fix. My mom, for one, is hopelessly hooked on Nescafe 3-in-1 Regular. Does anyone know if traditional homemade coffee (see pic) tastes better than those brewed in baristas?

Tiong Bahru Park Series

Was traveling home from work one evening (took a lift from Mr. Aizan, our newly appointed Admin & Ops Manager) when I discovered an arcadia just across the road from the typically bustling Tiong Bahru Plaza.
Two days later (again after work), I decided to explore in detail this obscure paradise in the midst of a concrete jungle. Follow me :-)

5This bridge reminds me of a particular Stephen Chow period comedy (can't remember the title).

5Believe it or not, I was looking for a frog (or toad) in the pond. Alas, couldn't spy any :-(

5Hey, there's a guidepost/watchtower thingy. Shall we climb up and have a look?

5View from the atop the guidepost/watchtower. There's a jogging-cum-cycling track below, but why's there no one in sight?

5Another view. Hmm...is this park haunted or what?

5A closer look at the, um, wooden structure found at the top of the guidepost/watchtower. What do you make of it?

Superman, Stuck

Pleasantly surprised to see such antique phone booths in this day and age, especially in Singapore - though I must say they look rather cramped inside (claustrophobes beware). I wonder if there would be enough room for Clark Kent to change into his Superman suit in times of emergency...

Undertaker

The Undertaker. WWE's most feared and durable (and arguably most popular) superstar. In the course of his illustrious 15-year career (the Dead Man made his pay-per-view entrance at the 1990 Survivor Series and shocked the entire wrestling world by burying the legend that was Hulk Hogan, then WWF Champion), the 6'11" titan from Death Valley has undergone multiple transmogrifications, including an inapt 'American Bad Ass' gimmick. His perfect (13-0) WrestleMania record intact, Taker has claimed countless victims with his deadly finisher, the Tombstone piledriver. + REST IN PEACE +

Barney

Barney's Musical Castle @ Downtown East opens today. Was there from 10 in the morning to 10 in the evening for an 'exhibition' since our company is the only co-sponsor of the month-long series of shows apart from prime promoter HSBC. Dammit. Tiring just sitting around doing squat!

P/S: Why's Barney not purple at all??

Akan Datang

They're coming back for thirds! Who, you ask? Well, look at this oversized poster/prop4 flaunted outside Lido Theater 1 @ Shaw House and the answer's staring you straight in the face. In the latest intallment of Fox 2000's lucrative mutant franchise, Kelsey Grammer of FRASIER fame takes on the formidable role of Beast. Bated breath!

Prezzies!

5So, what did my friend (and our morning student) Anees get me for my birthday? (Cute wrapping paper, eh?) Let's see...chocolates! :-D

5How about my MSN Messenger mate Sharon (who gave me this gift a month ago and instructed me not to open it until 24/11)? Ooh...Eau de Toilet~

Sweet Gestures

Mango-flavored mini-cake (mm...) Madie bought me this morning. So very sweet and thoughtful of her, I say. Blew out the candle, finished the cake and kept the plastic 'Happy Birthday' sign as a souvenir, of course :-)

Special thanks also to (colleagues): Leonie (my dear da jie, for her lovely present), Leslie (for her wonderful e-card and for getting the company cake for everyone hehe), Caroline (for 're-imbursing' my Time Out chocolate bar haha) and udders!

Miyazaki Movies 3 - MY NEIGHBOR TOTORO

THE definitive Studio Ghibli film. A decade before the debuts of Pokemon and Digimon, there lived a friendly forest spirit named Totoro. A curious hybrid of bear and cat, this elusive furry creature is endowed with magical powers (read: sprouting seeds into towering trees within seconds!) and the ability to fly. Children never fail to coo over his 'cuteness'. Adults know better how much precedence this landmark anime has set for Japan.

STOP

And you thought you would only see such goondu street signs in America. Define 'dead slow'. 15 kpm? 10 kpm?? Technically (and pathologically) speaking, the dead can't locomote; the term 'dead slow' is thus deemed both erroneous and - to a certain degree? - paradoxical. At any rate, I'll be sure to keep ma peepers peeled for more such signage in future *_^

Lunch & Dinner

Had chicken chop5for lunch and my favorite mee tai mak5for dinner. The former tasted fine (actually preferred the salted fries to the gravied meat), though I wish the long-haired uncle had given me coleslaw instead of Heinz beans. As for the latter, well, no major gripes except it made me thirsty after slurping all that spiced-up soup :-P~

P/S: The choppy chicken cost a standard $5.00 while the 'upsized' BTM went for $3.00.

BoA

Boa Kwan (yes, that's her surname). Korea's and Japan's equivalent of Britney Spears. (For my money, I think she looks tons more gorgeous.)

Barely 19 and already 15 best-selling albums (in addition to 25 red hot singles!) under her belt, this inimitable pop phenom is set to take Asia by storm - id est, if she hasn't already done so.

Fishy Business

Saw these two (salmon?) fish - mouths agape and all - 'garnishing' the storefront of a food vendor @ Tiong Bahru Plaza's Kopitiam. Poor things. I wish they didn't have to sacrifice themselves like that to make my sliced fish porridge more palatable...

Got Limbs?

Am I seeing this thang correctly? (*Rubs eyes*) Does the van really say 'limbs & services'? Are they referring to prosthetic appendages (y'know, like those used for athletes)? If so, what is meant by 'home services'? Outcalls, I suppose? How much do they charge? So many burning questions. Only one way to find out :-P

Not My Block

...but the adjacent one. I love this perspective. It makes an old block of HDB flats look bright, clean and spanking new :-) Okay, National Education time: The Housing and Development Board was incepted in 1960. Today, some 85% of Singaporeans live in HDB flats (compared to a mere 9% when the statutory board was first established).

Jingyi

Jingyi (alias golefizh), my longtime 'net friend'. Actually, we've met up on more than a few occasions for chats and coffee.
This photograph was taken, presumably by her fiance, in Fremantle during the couple's recent jaunt to Down Under. (Say, zee Cappuccino looks inviting from here, no?)

Mickey Mouse

Question: When was the last time anyone saw ol' Mickey in a cartoon (other than re-runs, that is) or at the cinemas? With Pixar now a sovereign production company (thereby leaving Walt Disney's animation arm in the dust/dumpster), the Mouse House's most famous (and complacent) mascot may one day be reduced to flogging apparel and accessories for a living. Now, wouldn't that be sad?

Canine Discrimination

(Above left): As much of a cat lover as I am, I gotta ask MCST why there's this blatant discrimination against dogs. How about 'ARSEHOLES ARE PROHIBITED' for a change? Bleah!

(Above right): Again, I don't buy this baloney one bit. I know for a fact that stuff like skate-boarding and roller-blading are potentially dangerous and can pose a threat to pedestrians. But no pets?? WTF?!

Oishii?

A fine selection of Japanese cuisine (what's a puppy head doin' there?) so neatly displayed in the showcase outside Hoshigaoka, a Nippon eating house quite frankly Mr. Suaku here hasn't heard of before. I said 'showcase' since the entire sampling, however appetizing it may appear, is most likely a replica of the real thing. In any case, I have no craving for Jap food. Not now, not ever.

Ah Boy, Wave!

A young lad apparently holding on to his dear life as papi pushes his pram onto an ascending flight of stairs (now why couldn't I have just said 'escalator', instead?...) at Shaw Isetan. Parents(-to-be), please be reminded to take extra care of your precious little ones in public places. Their safety should and must always be your top priority, okay? :-)

Flowers

S o m e * b e a u t i f u l * b l o s s o m s * t o * b r i g h t e n * y o u r * d a y (^-^)

MGS Booth @ Suntec

In conjunction with the Clean and Green Week, delegates from Methodist Girls' School (not sure if it's primary or secondary) decorate their Suntec Convention Hall booth with streamers that're supposed to represent, I dunno, seaweed? How this whole CONGO-inspired 'jungle fever' concept has to do with the very theme itself is beyond me...

Beware the Butcher

Urban legend has it that Tony the Butcher, a former Mafioso who traveled from Sicily to Singapore in the late '80s, formulated his 'secret recipe' for the famous Meat-O-Mania, a tasty melange of meatballs and pasta, using fresh human meat from poor suckas who owed him money. Manbeef!

Fountain @ SRT

A (Romanesque?) fountain adorning the spacious courtyard outside the Singapore Repertory Theatre @ 20 Murbau Road, Robertson Quay. Was there with orangemilky yesterday afternoon to cover the Storytellers Showcase, which our company proudly sponsored. Am supposed to feature the function in the upcoming issue of our corporate newsletter, but we'll hafta see 'bout that ;-)

Reality Check

Although I've never sat through a single full episode of Channel 8's flagship drama series PORTRAIT OF HOME, I'm nonetheless aware of some 'strange going-ons' in that show. One of them is, of course, the highly improbable love triangle plotted between leading man Adrian Pang, Malaysian neophyte Jesseca Liu (pictured) and MediaCorp veteran Xiang Yun. Xiang Yun, I tell you. No offense, but if it wasn't for the telegenic Jesseca and her cute character name Ruan Mian (Mian)...

What Do T-Shirts Say?

Other (progressively) cockamamie T-shirt slogans I can conjure up:
ORANGE USED TO BE THE SECOND WORST DESIRE (AFTER APPLE)
PURPLE PEOPLE EATER PASSES MOTION POOT POOT POOT
MAGENTA ELECTRICAL ERASABLE PROGRAMMABLE READ ONLY MEMORY
TURQUOISE THIS!

Boy & Toys

An Eurasian boy browsing at Forum's fabulous TOYS "Я" US store. Ehh...can anyone actually ID that particular piece of STAR WARS merchandise he's holding up ('cos I sure-as-hell can't)? Is it bounty hunter Jango Fett? Or is it one of those robot clones? I feel inadequate, already :"(