Kung Fu Fighting!

Very few people know this but for a period of time, I was secretly training at a Shaolin Temple.
Yes, I was trained in the Crafty Crane Catching Codfish style...
Ah Ho (the short one), was trained in the Floppy Fist Style whilst Ms Big Head was trained in the Catty Claws style...
Unfortunately I had to defeat both of them to get the best trainee award.

Sweet Dreams

Had this really strange dream last night. I was walking down this path in the woods and I was surrounded by towering trees. Suddenly I emerged into this small little clearing and up ahead there was a fork in the road..... And i chose path less travelled... hohohoh jokes aside, I chose the one which looked more familiar. As i walked down that path I realised that it was the little walk along the river chess that i used to take when I was a little boy in Chorleywood. Well the last time I wandered down that path was about 2 years ago when I went back for a visit. Anyway the funny thing is that I distinctly remembered this bunch of flowers right before the pathway,which was probably the bit that I found familiar.
Well after scouring through my hard disk and photo albums i finally found this picture. Ok ok but the freaky thing is that as i was walking down this familiar path, I looked back and I saw that the other path (the one more travelled hahaha) was now dark and the trees looked like they were dying, the grass was brown and the flowers were all withering. In short, bloody gloomy. Yes, I know, you're probably thinking... how the fuck can that silly wanker look back and see the other path when he is already walking down the other path since its a fork... Well its a fucking dream! so stop being so rational.... Besides I clearly remember floating down the path rather than walking....Anyway this is probably the nicest dream I've had so far.... not counting the wet ones hehehehehe

Eye and the Sky

Mary HAD a lil lamb....

Mary had a little lamb.... Yup HAD... No Lamb anymore cos her lamb's in my pot of stew!
Due to part boredom and part necessity (upcoming overseas stint), decided to put my limited culinary skills to use.
Of course, with Master Chef Marc's fantastic lamb stew recipe and directions...
Lunch was Cod and Squid Pasta with Sundried Tomatoes and Tomato sauce, served with cheap grape-juice-quality-$13.00-Cab-Sav (which was meant for cooking but we had a bit to spare). Followed by a nice double espresso and chocolate cake
Dinner was Lamb Stew with red wine flavouring served with a side of mash potatoes.
Dessert was a choice of creme brulee with Strawberries or just plain creme brulee....
Bloody hell! I have got to get a cooking blow torch. Burned my fucking fingers trying to caramalise the sugar crust. !@#!&%!@#!@(!%$@!#!@!
Well so far so good, its been about 4 hours since dinner and I have not made a single trip to the loo....

Getting my Fix

Spent the whole day running family errands. Most of the errands consists of getting things fixed. I think all the Canon appliances at home are conspiring or planning a coup cos they all seem to be failing right about now... Video Camera, Scanner, Printer etc. My dad is a fervent advocate of allocative efficiency and he feels that his resources i.e. me are not being allocated efficiently. Therefore he has set me a list of errands to run for the family today. Mind you, it was a tiring day, ( think Hercules and his 12 tasks) but the good thing was that I manged to get my bloody scanner fixed. Anyway with my scanner back in active service, tadahhh!! a holga shot I took in ZhouZhuang. Old school camera on old school format in an old school town.

Scream

Drawing inspiration from Edvard Munch...
Apparently my scream is more like a 'guffaw' according to someone...
But I think i like it this way.

Virgin Experience

My first time on the NEL!!! Was surprised to find it so empty. Sent the car in for servicing today so I decided to take the train to town for lunch. I must say that the MRT system is a bit more complex than it was many years ago. For one I almost got lost in Doby Ghaut Station today and caused a tourist to go in the wrong direction too (long story, don't ask). Apart from being a virgin experience on the NEL, today was also the first time in a long long time since i've ran for a bus. Yes despite my humongous body mass, I am capable of moving beyond snail pace. Running for the bus today did bring back memories of my secondary and jc school days. When i would run for the bus in the mornings and hope that the bus drives off so I have a legitimate 'reason' not to go to school... Ahh.. such fond memories of innocent childhood days.... I feel old.

Fleur-de-lis

"The treasured fluer-de-lis he claims
To wreath his shield, since royal James"
-Sir Walter Scott, The Lay of the Last Minstrel.
The Lilly... A simple flower, A profound symbol.

a flower a day...

A flower a day keeps the grumbles at bay... Its amazing how a simple flower can save you from a torrent of grumbling and whinning. Flowers have this amazing ability to turn ones angst and frustration into candy floss skies and marshmellow clouds. Definately highly therapeutic. Oh by the way, did I mention that the flower was for me?

Night in Day, Day in Night

Sometimes things aren't really what they appear to be. Life is all about perspectives... Is the lamp really as big as the building? Is it night or is it day? It all depends on how you look at things. Perhaps the best gift would be the ability to see things from both sides, both sides now.
We all say that there are two sides to the coin. Acknowledging that there are two sides is not the same as seeing things from both sides.

Side by Side 

Civic Duty

I never realised how lovely the civic district can be at sunset. Old v. New. I think this photo really brings out the contrast, or rather the gradual shift. I'm a sucker for old buildings, even art decco ones are highly rated in my books. Of course the best would be conservation buildings (quote: Ms Ding, architect extraordinaire, best in SGP and JB and some say Batam) like those that incorporate lotsa modern building materials like glass, exposed steel/iron beams etc etc with the existing structure whilst maintaining the original facade.

Red Handed, Red Face

Another interesting set of photos that I found over the weekend.
Hohoho now you know what army boys do in their free time during overseas training.
Yes, most of them (NOT ME!) indulge in visually artistic literature....
hmm but if its just art why that caught-in-the-act face? hahahaha Anyway this was the fastest I've ever seen Mr S move. From reclined-and-shiok-shiok to alert-and-@attention in less than 1 sec! ( I'm sure a similar transition albeit in a reversed manner took place within that 1 sec too *winks*) I really believe that must have set a land speed record or something.
I think this post really ruins Mr S**A's chance of running for any public office in the future...

Fruits of my Labour

The only good thing about cleaning up the room is that I've dug up so many old photos that I took many moons ago... They will come in handy for blackmailing purposes or for a rainy day... hahahahaa
Example 1: Miss Ding's reaction after seeing the above photo.
buzz.. la dee da.. da da.. says:
OMG
buzz.. la dee da.. da da.. says:
damn ugly la!
-prometheus- In Hoc Signo Vinces says:
so funny rite
-prometheus- In Hoc Signo Vinces says:
should put on my blog
buzz.. la dee da.. da da.. says:
huh! and i'll personally murder you!
buzz.. la dee da.. da da.. says:
o my god..
buzz.. la dee da.. da da.. says:
and to think that, at that time, i actually thogut that i was quite chio.. hahahha!
buzz.. la dee da.. da da.. says:
ahhhhhhh!
buzz.. la dee da.. da da.. says:
pui ah! so disgusting..
buzz.. la dee da.. da da.. says:
eee.. think i'm gonna puke out my lunch.

Well now you have witness first hand the nausea inducing power of my photos... those of you who think that i have compromising photos of you should contact me now. To avoid such embarrassment, simply prepare $10,000 in unmarked bills and place them in a brown envelope. The drop off location will be arranged at a later date. You know who you are *winks*

Gardening

Spent the whole fucking weekend clearing up my room. I swear it was like operation Desert Storm in here, dust everywhere, debris strewn all over the place. Well in the end, to quote a Bush , Good triumphed over the axis of evil (sniggers) and the room ended up looking more like a room and less like a sty... FOR NOW.
Sighs going on exchange can be quite painful, clearing up the room, arranging visa, arranging accomodation, arranging plane tickets, connecting flight, transfer from airport to town etc etc
Well looking on the bright side, at least if I don't make it through law school, I think i'll have a wide range of alternative career options open to me such as, travel agent, porter, cleaner. Not bad I say. Who said that our education system does not prepare you for the real world.
Anyway amidst the Chaos, confusion and fog of war, I manage to upload the garden photos that I've been doodling with. Yup, they're mostly of gardens in Hang Zhou and Su Zhou. Yes, Su Zhou of Su Zhou industrial park fame, yup the one that Singaporeans are oh so so proud of.

http://www.imagestation.com/album/pictures.html?id=2125362634&code=16543895&mode=invite&DCMP=isc-email-AlbumInvite

Any colours will do, as long as its black & white.

Step inside...
My Black and White shots from Shanghai. Somehow I feel that these photos are not as good as the ones I took in Vietnam or Scotland.
I think travelling alone really helps (or at least with like minded people). You get time to frame the shot, make adjustments, soak up the environment/atmosphere and you're not rushed by parents who either want to eat or go shopping.
Parents! Such a hassle. I'm never bringing them on holiday again kekekeke

http://www.imagestation.com/album/pictures.html?id=2125527547&code=16483759&mode=invite&DCMP=isc-email-AlbumInvite

POT OF CHOC

Scene 1 Act 1 (WJ & J walking along Wheelock underpass from Lido to Marks & Spencers)

WJ: I want to get the Chocolate exfoliator ('exfoliator' was mumbled, we cannot confirm nor deny whether it was deliberate). Tried looking for it this afternoon at Plaza Sing but they didn't carry it there.

J: Ok ok sure (Swings open heavy glass doors and heads straight for food section)

WJ: (puzzled look on face) I don't think it is here, it should be upstairs with all the body lotions

J: Huh not here meh, this is where all the chocolates and stuff are what?!! (Shocked). Wait wait what is it you want to get again?

WJ: (fighting the urge to burst out laughing) I want the Chocolate EXFOLIATOR, not chocolate. (drags J up the escalator to the Body lotion & such section)

Sighs the concept of a Chocolate Exfoliator (to most guys) is as mind boggling as the ability to walk on water. I think I speak for most guys when I say that Chocolate is a kind of food not a cosmetic or lotion or exfoliator. Same goes for Peach, which is a fruit not a colour.

HOLGA Shanghai

I think this picture really sums up my view on Shanghai.
The faceless model, represents Shanghai. And her dressing, traditional qi pao with a modern twist, is reflective of Shanghai as a developing city, modernising rapidly but still clinging on to its all so important heritage.
Shanghai, the face of China on the spotlit global stage. The audience eagerly awaits China's next move.
http://www.imagestation.com/album/pictures.html?id=2125676157&code=16425442&mode=invite&DCMP=isc-email-AlbumInvite

Perfection

A perfect Chinese Garden must have 4 elements, Water, Rocks, Plants and Pavilion.
This was taken at the Humble Administrator Graden in Suzhou.
Chinese gardens differ from the western gardens as they strive to be as natural as possible without appearing manicured or man made. Irony?
Man-made-natural garden.
Striving for perfection by creating naturalesque imperfections.

Zhou Zhuang

Ironically, my blog gets updated more regularly during the exams then during the holidays.
Been rather busy the past week, trying to tweak the photos that I took in Shanghai, trying to give my take on what the photo means. The end result, I've realised, is that the photos don't end up looking like photos. Oh well... This was taken in Zhou Zhuang, China's equivalent of venice.

Looking Out...

The Bund, Shanghai. Looking out across the Huangpu river to Pudong.
Hard to imagine that just 15 years ago, Pudong was nothing more than marshland.
Shanghai is suppose to be the showpiece of China.
But I doubt it is a true reflection of China. Or maybe it is.
Shanghai tries to pass itself off as an ultra modern city with towering skyscrappers and
a neon lit skylight. But all this cannot mask the glaring rich-poor divide that is present on
every street corner.
Considering this, maybe Shanghai is after all an accurate window into China. A country with one foot in the future, whilst trying to drag the other out of the past.