L.P.P.L

Still on today's Today, mr brown has a very good article in Today and on his blog about the definition of LPPL. Boys and girls, if you're wondering what LPPL means:

1. Rated G definition: The distance from London to Paris is same as that from Paris to London.

2. Scientific definition: Liquified Petroleum is same as Petroleum that has been Liquified.

3. Rated R21 definition: Go ask your parents. You have been warned...

4. 1984-ville gahmen definition: Marina Bay is the same as Marina Bay (yes you need an urban planning degree + hiring of image consultants to figure this out)

(Countdown to post of the century: 6)

Pillars of strength

image from Todayonline website

Excerpts from article titled "Her feelings in a single word" by Ansley Ng, Today July 29, 2005

"...Despite allegations and the name-calling, and the fact that her husband Took Leng How visited prostitutes, his wife, known only as Madam Yuli, has attended every hearing of the case over the past couple of weeks..."

A sad tribute to all the women in the world who have stood by their men through thick and thin. I couldn't have done a lot of things without wifey.

(Countdown to post of the century: 7)

Top 10 Darth Vader hobbies...NOT!

I'm v bored & v demoralized.

Spoke to the sup yesterday about the state of my research. His comment was, "I think you should try doing more..."

ok, 'nuf said. That's a signal for me to start shaking legs pulling up my socks.

Surfed around and came across this comic strip. Well, to add on to that, here are 10 things you wouldn't expect Darth Vader to do:

1. Take out an ad to search for long lost sons.
2. Regular asthmatic medication.
3. Use the Jedi mind trick in a magic-stone scam.
4. Buy an iPod.
5. Get frustrated because nothing in the Men's Department goes with black.
6. Take MC.
7. Serve at the Jedi Academy's PTA so that his children get in.
8. Say, "Excuse me, you're blocking my way."
9. Get Edna Mode to design his outfit.
10. Renew his tie-fighter's COE.

(Countdown to post of the century: 8)

All your transport fare are belongs to us...

Headlines on today's ST:

"More CCTV cameras for housing estates"

They're toying with the idea of installing more CCTVs around housing estates and even onboard buses and trains. But that's not the interesting part. Noooo.

This last bit about who will pay for all those CCTVs got my attention instead:

"The problem, industry players say, is the cost of installing them... ComfortDelgro spokesman Tammy Tan said that who would bear the cost had yet to be determined... MP Ong Kian Min, who chairs the GPC for Transport, believes the cost should be shared by all, including the transport operators."
(excerpts from ST headline article, July 25, 2005)

Well, the transport companies aren't willing to foot the bill. The GPC doesn't want the government to pay for these CCTVs entirely. So guess who gets stiffed with the short end of the bargain...again.

I sense another round of fare increase realignment.

(Countdown to post of the century: 9)

of human dignity...

This post by Dr BL Og is a poignant reminder of the frailty of human life. We can soar to the heights of the grandest of dreams and sink into the darkness of a bottomless abyss. There is but a fine line that divides prince from pauper.

How do you define human dignity?

(Countdown to post of the century: 10)

I am not a net addict....

image courtesy of wurh.com

I am not a net addict
I am not a net addict
I am not a net addict
I am not a net addict
I am not a nt sdgfaddict
I am notfhj a net adsdgdict
I am not a fgjnet adsddict
fsganot a nefgt adddfhgictaeryd
I dfh am not a etyunet dfhjr6addictad
tykjtyi nadtheatu ety addghdict
lskdjfna/sdlkgj'asopig'moawv;dsfgg

gloomy day?

hmm, this has been quite a gloomy week for people I've known about through their blogs:

0. Amithyist's new PC refused to work.

1. Cassandra's modelling photos were used without her permission. (Link courtesy of harosingapore)

2. Xiaxue's blog got hacked.

3. Wonkytong's blog got hacked by a copycat of XX's hack.

4. Blinkymummy quit her job.

5. Cassandra's blog apparently got hacked too and she's stop blogging for good.

Have a nice day...

seriously funny...

why, oh why can't they make such brilliant ads in 1984-ville...

After the NKFAffair videos, another gem uncovered by nineaugust

Direct link to the ad here (note: Windows PCs need Quicktime software to view)

you guys rock!

dinner with keepsaker and family...

Had keepsaker & family over for dinner last night. It's nice to know that Jamie's coming along very fine and they're expecting a boy a few weeks after us. God bless this family.


Lovely Jamie. Photo from keepsaker's blog

oh, and, yeah, wifey's a fantastic cook...

herbal black chicken soup
prawn paste fried chicken wings
stir-fried vege with black bean paste
teochew-styled steamed golden pomfret

this is far better than the Melbourne pig-out we had...*burp*

sian 1/2

damn sian man, this thesis writing... went through it once for some dumb-ass grand-scaled cholesterol paper years ago.


Image taken from Google search

Can't believe that I'm now at it AGAIN. I need therapy for this stuff. Argh...wish I had stopped at high school, no thesis, just some nice 2-hour paper and verbal questions. Glamorous medical research my rear end...

narcissism...

Hot chocolate at Hudson's...


marshmellows are optional

backlash against bloggers?

First, Cassandra (see post below)

now, Xiaxue...

"I need your help, my smart blog readers. This hacker deleted all 3,000 emails of mine, as well as all my blog entries of 2 years. This is very serious. He could have copies of all my emails, which contain private and sometimes classified information about companies as well as individuals."

Xiaxue's site has been hacked and the hacker(s) did quite an amount of damage. I would think that her password was compromised during the bloggers' conference last weekend. Wireless access comes at a higher security risk. So for those who surf at Starbucks or McDonald's, please do so with caution. And the catchword for this IT-not-so-savvy generation is: BACKUP

Looks like bloggers in 1984-ville are not having a good day...

*update* - wonktong's site has been hit, too. It's up and running now. There's a very bored kid out there.

of decency and respect...

Just read the recent post of a very distressed Cassandra. It seems that she was dealt a very short hand by wolves people who do not have common courtesy.

Extracted from her post:

"...My friend sms me around noon.. he said i am the cover girl of Maxim.. and i thought he was kidding! How could they not sort (sic) my permission to put me as a cover girl? I remembered the agreement that i signed last nov during the photoshoot that the pictures would only be used for this government campaign. Yes.. this maxim magazine did write about the AIDS campaign inside(this i am not even sure if it's legal for them)... but they have no right to use me as their cover girl!! At least not without my permission.. not without permission from the advertising company and the photographer!..."

She was a model for a campaign to promote HIV/AIDS awareness in 1984-ville. However, it now seems that some see gin nah unknown party has used the photos for the cover of a local soft porn man's magazine, all without Cassandra's permission.

Now, I'm not a crusader for copyright but society would rue the day when the very people who champion copyright choose to disregard such rules if it's convenient for them. Let's hope decency and respect prevails for her and for the greater good of society.

She ended that post with:

"I can only pray that what goes around comes around."

I'm thinking, payback time for whoever did this IS going to be a bitch tough. And they better pray, indeed.

Watch her blog for the lastest development.

of white mice and summons aunty...

hmmm...this post by cutting_edge brought back some fond memories from all those trips I made to Australia. It would seem that, besides taxes and death, sa-man pors are truly universal. Absolutely no one escapes from their evil clutches. No, not even in a genteel city like Melbourne...


No, that's not a flyer for the next big sale



sian 1/2...

infernally yours...

These 2 clips posted by nineaugust are a bit trite but still funny...

First clip
Second Clip

wish it had real dialogue in Cantonese. I'd volunteer to dub Eric Tseng's lines...

a rainbow of hope...

Everyone, meet Faith...


with a cheeky grin!

or as my more Chinese-inclined wife puts it, everyone meet 希彤...


double rainbows along Great Ocean Road

what?!?!

Inspired by Erwin, so I went to take the test and found out that...

Your Career Type: Conventional

You are orderly and good at following a set plan. Your talents lie in working with written records and numbers in a systematic, orderly way. You would make an excellent: Bank Teller - Bookkeeper - Court Clerk Mail Carrier - Post Office Clerk - Secretary Timekeeper - Title Examiner - Typist The worst career options for your are artistic careers, like comedian or dancer.

What's Your Ideal Career?

WHAT DO YOU MEAN CONVENTIONAL?!?!?

hey! I spent half my life trying to be anti-establishment...sob sob...my worst fears are realized! I'm just a run-of-the-mill Shenton Way-suit type...bwaaaaaaahh...i want my teddy bear....

of pyjamas & winter...

hmmm, didn't think wifey would display my sexy pose for the world to see. anyways...it's really quite comfy in mom's house during winter, with the heater switched on of course...

Reflections on Melbourne 2005

Found this in St Paul's Cathedral...


We are one in Spirit, we are one in the Lord
And we pray that our unity will one day be restored
And they'll know we are Christians by our love
By our love

We will work with each other, we will work side by side
And we'll guard each man's dignity and save each man's pride
And they'll know we are Christians by our love
By our love

- Jars of Clay, Redemption Songs

back to work...

...and what a 3-week this has been. First thing that hit me from the news was the NKF affair. I'm sure everyone's had their fill of related news and thoroughly sick of it and hearing about it. Let's hope the only people that really matter in this case, the kidney patients, would escape from this storm-in-the-teacup unscathed. After all, we can argue about expensive toilet fittings & 1st class air travel perks until the cows come home while kidney patients can only sit there and hope no one pulls their lifelines from the machines...

Landing at work wasn't as bumpy as I'd expected. Had to do some legwork but seems most things didn't derail as much while I was away. Mailbox didn't hit the roof. Lab's quiet. Everyone (almost) is smiling. Was running around town with wifey yesterday the thing that struck me was how much Melbourne CBD has become Singapore. Crowded, full of Asians, people smoking at every outdoor area. Perhaps the only difference, and this aspect will remain different, is that nobody minds who or what you are in Melbourne while everyone's a busybody trying to run our lives back in Singapore. The incessant barrage of propaganda from the media hit us straight after walking into Changi's arrival area, via TV mobile, CNA, etc from plasma screens spaced every 10 metres. Very 1984-esque lah...

Had my first commute on the bus this morning and understood why I bought that MP3 player in the first place. TV mobile trying to squeeze itself between my ears again. What a change from the Melbourne subway & trams where the only sound you hear are the engines' (no, not even loud & obnoxious ringtones).

Oh, and how could I forget, the clean toilets in Melbourne...

blah...

re-adapting...

still trying to get use to local conditions after 3 weeks of coldest winter Melbourne ever had since the 60s. headache, fever, neck stiffness.

oh and, yeah, IT'S A GIRL!!!

Melbourne IV

Fun on the public commute...






followed by a long drive along the Great Ocean Road...




Fern forest at Mait's Rest, Cape Otway



will be back home in 4 days' time.

Condolences to Londoners.

Melbourne III

Daytime high: 16
Conditon: partially cloudy

It's good to know that my CF card wasn't corrupted beyond repair. Managed to extract the photos, reformat and everything's up and running again, including photos of the pig-out with wifey and mom...


Fresh steaming siew mai

And it seems that gun control does not extend to the sale of gunpowder, look what I found in a provision shop in the Little Vietnam area of Richmond...


smoking during tea time is a hazard

...either that or they've got really strong stomachs. If they labelled tea leaves as "Special Gunpowder", I shudder to think what the real McCoy really does...no wonder the US lost the Vietnam War. Never mess with anyone who drinks gunpowder.

Anyway, mom was really on a roll during a trip to Queen Victoria Market. Buying things left, right and centre, with aplomb.


mom in action

QVM is a must-see for any visitor, especially for 1984-ville denizens who grew up after the era of the wet market. It's large, varied and mostly cheaper than what you'll get in other parts of town. Especially the fresh meat prices near closing time. As wifey puts it ever so elegantly, peenge ga lau sai (literal: cheap until diarrhoea)


AUD$10 per tray, no bull prices here...


No marketing experience is complete without a Mexican Band

Might even find a gem or two, like Denis the sweet store owner, who's about the only person who can sweet-talk his way into mom's heart even when she's at her calculative best...


Mom parting with 50 bucks for a bag of sweets.


Denis the smooth talker.

Well, do pay him and his store a visit when you're in town. It's quite a sight and the stuff's a bit cheaper than what others have elsewhere.


Colours run riot in this store.


unearthing gems in the market

And it would seem that wifey decided to get into the act of buying sweets too. At Myer, which is about the largest shopping store in Melbourne (kinda like Robinson in Singapore), they have this moving conveyor belt of sweets, like sushi except that it's got nothing else but sweets. Cute idea...


Wifey making her grab.


Trying to keep a happy face, at $33 a kilo it's tough...

One thing about Myer is that it's big. I mean BIG as in, spanning 3 buildings and 2 streets. It has it's own 7-storey building, plus 2 others which it partially occupies, 2 levels of linkway between them and it's own mobile phone relay station. No kidding...



You see, in Melbourne your Nokia mobile phone displays operator logo, profile and the area you're in. So in the above photo, the 1st line shows I'm roaming with phone company Telstra, the 2nd shows the phone in Discreet mode (silent) and the third shows I'm currently in the Richmond area. In Melbourne city, the 3rd line normally shows either "Melbourne" or "Melb CBD" and while at mom's home, it shows "Brighton"

Guess what it showed while I was in Myer shopping...



Myer's big, 'nuf said.


suitably impressed

Well, let's hope I don't go back to 1984-ville with a similarly-sized belly...