七

Today: Last day of July on the English calendar
Tomorrow: First day of July on the Chinese calendar
Musings: Mom bought incense, but bovine to join communal midnight burn

extra

Hava Cuppa

...while watching LOVE BLOSSOMS, after eating fried hokkien prawn mee, before vacuum-cleaning the house.

Jim Ross

Often compared to the great Gordon Solie, WWE's play-by-play commentator Jim Ross (affectionately known as Good Ol' JR) was not only the voice of Raw (he's since been drafted to Smackdown!), but is also a successful restaurateur with his well-received Family Bar-B-Q in Norman, Oklahoma.

Kayaks?

Say, what're these kayaks - I always confuse them with canoes - doing at the deck of a HDB flat? In case of flooding? For decorative purposes? To infer that the peeps inside are a buncha lechers (geddit)?

Priority Seat

Forget rickety gramps, preggie Sue and Mini-Me. The only 'worthy' takers of this Priority Seat are colic fakers and conscious nappers. Hey, it's a kiasu-eat-kiasi world. And it's a long ride ahead!

BY2

If I have my facts correct, these barely legal 'tween' sisters - 16-year-old Yumi Bai and Miko Bai (= Yumiko Bai?) - had yet to complete their 'O' levels at Yio Chu Kang Secondary School when they were shipped off by Singapore's Ocean Butterflies International to Taiwan for intensive grooming and training.

原 因 只 有 一 个: 本 地 音 乐 制 作 人 许 环 良 想 把 这 两 位 爱 唱 爱 跳 的 小 女 生 打 造 成 明 日 有 如 Twins 及 S.H.E 般 人 气 與 驾 势 兼 备 的 超 炫 超 酷 组 合。

"一 种 口 味, 双 倍 滋 味"... Interesting!

Siew Mai

Food choices at Sakura's $22+ all-you-can-eat buffet range from Chinese cuisine (e.g. shark's fin soup) to Japanese delicacies (e.g. sushi/sashimi). There's also a Western salad bar, the tigresses' favorite shellfish tray and Hong Kong-style siew mai served in a traditional bamboo steam basket. Thank you, Stevie, for the treatie!

Gulp! (PG)

"Hmm...haven't seen Slurpee since 7/11; hope she's not fornicating with SpongeBob SquarePants."

PastaMania

Never been an aficionado of pasta - be it fusilli, lasagna, spaghetti or maccheroni. As such, I've never patronized a PastaMania diner despite their ongoing Banzai promotion seen here at Shaw House's Lido Cineplex outlet. You guys can be my guests, though.

It's Toasty in Here!

Been wanting to own a toaster for the longest freaking time. Today, I finally got myself to do it! Bought this set by appliance maker Philips at Great World City's new Best Denki superstore for an expectedly inexpensive dirty bugs (thirty bucks). Shall try hong-ing some mian baos tomorrow for breakfast. Look out, Ya Kun!

Find the Frog

See how guileless and gullible small children are? Tell this K2 boy to look for a baby frog hiding under one of these plastic lily pads in the lobby fountain and he really gets on with it! Good way to keep them occupied. LOL.

MERMAIDS

5Group hug: Lou Landsky gettin' cozy with the Flax ladies.

One of the pre-millennium movies that I recorded on VHS and frequently revisited in the past was the delightful family-centered drama MERMAIDS. Starring Academy Award winner Cher, British actor Bob Hoskins, a young Winona Ryder and an even younger Christina Ricci (in her feature debut), the film underscores such themes as love, redemption and familial ties.

Some memorable snippets include Ricci's near-drowning, Ryder's presumed pregnancy and - who could forget? - Cher's throaty rendition of The Shoop Shoop Song (It's in His Kiss).

Trend Spotter

Lee Han Kok has been the most ardent Will Smith admirer/supporter since SIX DEGREES OF SEPARATION.

Butterfly Effect

Meteorologist Philip Merilees once posed: "Does the flap of a butterfly's wings in Brazil set off a tornado in Texas?" Well, does it? The technical notion of 'sensitive dependence on initial conditions' expounded in Edward N. Lorenz's Chaos Theory seems to suggest so.

Without delving too deeply into the Mathematical aspects of things, let's just say an Applied Science major like myself does comprehend the consequence(s) of, say, sneezing in public: It may cause a bystander's document to fly into a drain. What if he's the star stockbroker for NASDAQ securities? Will the world economy crash? Will countries wage WWIII? Will it mark the end of mankind?
I'd better carry a hankerchief.

Homely Hogan

Of my JHM threesome, Old-gan is the homeliest. When not getting on our short nerves by sneaking/ scooting into my room unwelcome, the 'ragdoll' relishes proximity to humans (strangers notwithstanding) and intimacy to mom (read: 'lapping' on and sleeping next to her). What a sissy!

A World United

"Hand in hand we stand, all across the land /... / Breaking down the walls that come between us for all time / Arirang."

Geez laweez, this is *so* Koreana!

Chef Ramsay

Can you stand the heat with this man when HELL'S KITCHEN goes BEYOND BOILING POINT?

The ConsTruction

Fairly soon, I may no longer be able to label such posts under 'Nature', for there'll be less and less chlorophyll and more and more chlorofluoro-carbon as The DeVastation continues. Remaining reference point is this evergreen 'raintree'5 as laborers begin to populate the site like tiny ants (can you see?).

THE DARK KNIGHT Sets New U.S. Box Office Records

• Theater count: 4,366
• Preview (Thursday): $18.5 million
• Opening day (Friday): $67.9 million
• Opening weekend (Friday - Sunday): $158.4 million

Gila Garfield

'Lois Lane' being her loopy self again last evening at class (during break time). Must be adverse side effects arising from the printing exercises and poster paint effluvium. (Betcha neva expected this photo to be up so speedily!)

griller

If you think griller is a place where you can find an unreasonably gimongous amount of prepared meats (venison!), then you're in for a rude awakening; griller is, in actual fact, your supervisor's private office where insignificant oversights are amplified exponentially until you get spit on your face. Gah!

Lord Ganesha

One of the best-known and most worshipped deities in the Hindu pantheon is Ganesha, widely revered as the Remover of Obstacles and more generally as the Lord of Beginnings. Dr. TC would know.

2000th Blog Post!

DUE TO BUDGETARY (AND DIETARY) CONSTRAINTS, THERE WILL BE NO CELEBRATION THIS TIME ROUND. BUT, WE DO HAVE A SMALL CARROM SESSION TAKING PLACE IN THE BACK ROOM.
ANYONE GAME?

Stree

Hello! It's our Chinese-looking Stree Eerie-Yani again. Oops! Am not supposed to make anymore "silly comments" (actually under direct orders), or risk never to post another entry of this enviable ayu in future. (As a matter-of-fact, it was after much persuasion and assurance that she finally agreed to send me this pic.) Ah wells.

Gypsy Cat?

Could this stray catnapping on the outskirts of Chin Swee (near Cheenatown) be a property of the Sea Gypsies (going by that beaded 'collar'), or could it be a manifestation of the Monkey King Sun Wukong in another one of his 72 transformations?

ALLY MCBEAL

Before he started backpedaling and scripted that sui generis if middling gator movie LAKE PLACID (which I thankfully saw for free), lawyer-turned-TV writer David E. Kelley (AKA Mr. Michelle Pfeiffer) was responsible for masterminding several high-profile and high-caliber network series such as CHICAGO HOPE, THE PRACTICE and, of course, ALLY MCBEAL.

The last had me hooked week in week out with its whimsical situations (mostly involving nose-whistling Senior Partner John Cage), stellar performances (from the entire no-slackers ensemble cast) and compelling stories (like the one where they help a terminally ill boy sue God).

Popular Studio

When some place tells you they're 'popular', Rule Number Satu is to not take their word for it. This obiang signboard somehow doesn't inspire a hell lot of confidence; one even gets the sneaky feeling they'll be whisked away to Perak for their honeymoon...

RP Comix

With soaring stress and BP levels among Raffles Place workaholics (remember the almost-taken-for-real 'ghost video' hoax?), it's no surprise/wonder that many regular clockwatchers choose to seek respite in nugatory comic paintings like this set done on the walls of I-dunno-what-building (they all look the same to me).

Swensen's - Creative Dad

The dad ain't the only creative one, I fink. This ad itself's pretty ingenious, too!

Sky's the Limit

if chris gardner could do it, what's stopping you?

SEP Submission

Did some legwork yesterday for the MM who's vacationing in H.K. with his family (good for him/them!). Submitted four (though one was temporarily rejected) SEP (Surrogate Employer Program) funding applications at the NTUC Centre @ One Marina Boulevard.

Served by this comely and polite CSO named Hidaya (it was on the acknowledgment slip) who had these mesmerizing grey/green eyes (I forgot which). Will be dropping by there again tomorrow for two more submissions. Hurray! Hope she doesn't take leave or something :-D

Sued!

Was this man only shedding crocodile tears when he pleaded for donations on behalf of his 444 patients from statewide TV viewers?

Tikes Town Fire House

Having trouble taming those tsky tykes? Wanting to ground their stinky asses but afraid they would gobble up the whole jar of peanut butter? Well, now you can lock 'em outdoors in the new MCYS-approved TTFH ('Ta-ta for Him/Her') sold at less than $830.00 (including delivery). This is HOT!

Cheats Flies

This may be an earth shattering divulgement to some (*shrugs*), but I'd never tasted cheese fries before in my entire life - not until lately, that is, at Kay Eff See. I know, I'm utterly deprived. It's like someone who's never sipped water before, huh? Okay, stop giving me that look. I said stop it!

Marsha Thomason

CUTIE • HOTTIE • LOSTIE

MOM Building

Whenever I take a photo like this, I'm torn between playing it straight (i.e. do a serious write-up on foreign workers protesting outside the Ministry of Manpower Building against boxed lunches) and hurling sanity out the window (i.e. dream up a moronic father-son dialogue about how a career-minded mother abandons her family to set up her own apartment). Never mind. It's lame enough -_-"

Val & Roos

More like a perfect stranger now. And how long ago were that desultory 'drinking' session with Jingyi and the latter's chalet shindig? Send my regards to Mark/Steve/ whatever-his-name...

A Bigger Spread

Indeed, 'fabulous' F&B tenants of the newly rejuvenated Tiong Bahru Plaza will be feeling a tad turf-hungry when they start eating into each other's customer pie - BreadTalk vs Four Leaves, Coffee Bean vs Coffee Club, Toast Box vs Ya Kun, just to name a few. Survival of the fittest?

The Wheel

The Singapore Flyer is the world's largest observation wheel, outsizing China's The Star of Nanchang and the U.K.'s London Eye. But can you believe that, even with all the surrounding hype (and a recent malfunction incident), I haven't had an opportunity to cruise on it - yet? Bah!

The Coven

Every 49th full moon of the century, the High Priestess and her Wiccan witches will gather at the Circle of Occult to celebrate the Sabbats. Sometimes they bring along Schweppes and sewing sets.

Kiwilicious!

"Kaiwen, ask your kawaii kawan Kewei to come eat some kiwis". How would that sound? These kiwifruits marketed at Jason's (and imported from Italy or New Zealand, I presume?) are quite the luxury food item. Given a choice, I'd rather spend a few dimes on a 'revitalizing' packet of kiam sng tee (sharable with colleagues like Latifah) :-D

FLY ME TO POLARIS

5Love after time: Richie Ren finds his 'heart too soft' for Nicholas Tse's real-life spouse.

It’s GHOST-meets-CITY OF ANGELS in Jingle Ma’s FLY ME TO POLARIS, a sappy romantic narrative that begins as lightweight fluff, but progressively becomes a heavy-handed tearjerker. Regardless of that, I still found myself crying buckets at the first seating @ GV Plaza (circa 1999). Maybe the mood was right. Maybe the music was right. Maybe debutante Cecilia Cheung, who plays a nurse, was close-to-perfect in her part.

Ambiguity 2

As if fearful of copyright infringement (or perhaps supplying a new spin on an old phrase?), the coiners of this catchword wind up having the cake but not knowing what flavor it is. “There to be Different”? Where? Helsinki? And shouldn’t the auxiliary verb ‘be’ be capitalized?

Miss Elizabeth

In an epoch of non-customary chaperoning, when interfering wrestling managers were a more permanent fixture than dispensable valet accompaniment, the late Miss Elizabeth graced the scene and stood toe-to-toe against the legendary likes of Jimmy Hart, Bobby Heenan and Mr. Fuji.

Amongst the various superstars she flanked then were Randy Savage, Hulk Hogan and Lex Luger - all heavyweights in their own right!

Scallion Pancakes / 葱 油 饼

More like scallion fritters (not alien critters), I say. In fact, it's not really scallions (i.e. green onions) that the bossy blue-eyelinered baroness uses; I believe it's long beans, instead? Ah, never mind. As long as AA and AT both enjoy and order them with their meals on Thursdays (hey, that's tomorrow!), it's all good!

The Wrath of Zeus

"WHERE ARE MY DAMN DENCHES?!"

Enard @ NDP (Rehearsal)

Before the organizers and NDP EXCO invite us back to the fireworks and floating platform, here’s a sneak peek at one of this year’s marching contingents – ERA Singapore and the diminutive Sia Mio Hoon (spot her?).

Albeit claiming to be awake, this clandestine eBuddyer - complete with luminous cap, loose gloves (wahaha!) and invisible 'shield' - is clearly stealing some shut-eye. Busted!

Sleepy Sandy

Repercussions of last December's year-end account summary and all those irreconcilable sums have taken a serious toll on receivables drone, single Malaysian PR Sandy Buay Sng Lui, causing the 28-year-old to constantly lapse into an endless cycle of sleeping spells. Poor dear.

Sit & Shit

Or do some of us prefer to hunker over our 'hotcakes'?