Well Ong Teng Cheong passed away. I knew his son, Tze Boon, vaguely while in Berkeley. I think most of the Singaporeans didn't like him much but I thought he was ok. All I can recall now is that he had this huge Swatch watch in his living room. RIP, President Ong.

Still waiting for my bro to pick me up so can sit in his car to JB, but bet the traffic jam is stupendous. Irritating because he changed the time from 7:45 to 8:15 to 9:30. Some consideration would have been nice...

Watched a bit of various tv programmes while waiting. Special Unit 2, which wasn't very good; First Touch which was so-so. I couldn't make out what Amy Cheng was saying. Channel 8 was showing this Japanese variety show where participants dress up and entertain in creative ways. There was this incredibly cute baby dressed in a turtle suit trying to reenact the story of the Turtle and the Hare with mom, and two guys in a volcano depicting lava by throwing off the layers of red t-shirts they were wearing. Bizarre but fun. I wonder if they had this programme in a Singapore context what they'd come up with.

Nikie the Ground Zero stress relief doggie.
What a dear!

Inspirational powerpoint suddenly becomes the big search phrase to my site. Weird.

Very Seldom
He's an old man. Used up and bent,
crippled by time and indulgence,
he slowly walks along the narrow street.
But when he goes inside his house to hide
the shambles of his old age, his mind turns
to the share in youth that still belongs to him.

His verse is now recited by young men.
His visions come before their lively eyes.
Their healthy sensual minds,
their shapely taut bodies
stir to his perception of the beautiful.
-- Cavafy, C.P

Sis returning today with her boyfriend, and going into JB tonight together with my bro. The causeway is going to be SO jammed. Haven't even started packing yet. Better bring some books to read as well. Happy Chinese New Year to everyone! :)

All that listening to Spanish rap-rock reminded me to keep in touch with Bernardo, ultra-cool intern from Mexico who worked for Asiacontent 2-3 years back. He just got back from Egypt, Jordan and Israel (lucky bugger) and is about to leave for the US to do his Masters in Film Making. Recommended some other Mexican Rap-rock acts. Cool.

Had hoped one day to visit him in Mexico but he's been travelling around. I've been to Mexico City before and it is mind-blowing. It's hard to walk around because the air is so heavy with lead and substance. On the bus coming into the city we passed by a bunch of refrigerator crates that served as homes. We arrived at night and took a VW Beetle taxi but the driver couldn't figure out where we wanted to go, and we drove around in circles. He seemed slightly drunk and had to take a pee against a tree even as we circled around the huge highways.We did eventually find a place to stay; we slept in a room with wall to wall bookshelves. I imagined it collapsing on us as we slept. Buried beneath books. What a way to die.

Mexico City stirred up a mixture of feelings. Everywhere we walked we were followed by gypsy children with sad eyes and callused hands begging for money or offering to shine our shoes. The poverty was dire and entrenched, in stark contrast to the signs of wealth in the richer parts of town. A house of blue tiles, houses with huge satellite dishes, literally on a different frequency from the rest of the city. We were there around Christmas and on the last day, we had a cake that had little figurines of the baby Jesus inside. Getting a piece of cake with him in it meant good luck. I don't really remember if I did pick up a piece with the figure.

Man do I miss travelling.

Get US$10k for introducing this guy to his future wife.

4 pm on a non-descript day. Not as insane as yesterday. Got a minor chewing out today but I also don't know why. We're obviously understaffed and everyone has to do their share. Too bad so much of mine is technical that I have to leave some of the other duties to colleagues. Not sure why my title is still Producer....

Thursday already. Looks like i'll be back in JB from Friday evening/Saturday to Tuesday/Wednesday. Madly hectic week. Actually I hate the reunion dinner because I meet relatives I'm not close to at all. I'd prefer to have dinner with immediate family but no such luck. Anyway this seems like the first year almost everyone is around. Normally my eldest brother is away somewhere since it's such a good time to travel. I'm not looking forward to it as I might be bored stiff. Better stock up on books to bring back...

"Do you know why we steal, brothers? We steal to keep the rest of the world honest," Luke said, smiling.

Spent too much for lunch again. Maybe I should avoid going to lunch with my colleagues. $20 is just too much for lunch. We went to Brewerkz and the food wasn't very good. I'd rather a plate of chicken rice and a teh peng anytime.

Too young to get it right? The Starter Marriage; yet another phenom for this new age.

At the Convention of Thieves, the participants were told to overturn their pockets if they wanted entry. They did so reluctantly. At the end of the day there was a stack of wallets, watches, mobile phones, spectacles, rings and necklaces. But besides these items was a pacifier and a musical box that the offending thief had left open, seemingly in protest. It filled the hall with tinny music, though it was drowned out by the Shoplifter's Orchestra. Amongst these items was a bottle of paper stars which the burglar had chosen over an old bottle of wine. He stole those things that were most valuable to the owner, not to himself.

Last minute changes, changes and changes. Major ones too. Got to try to nail down the specs or else it's going to be like this always and always and always...

The amount of spam I'm getting is just sick. It's just getting increasingly ridiculous. I hope someone passes legislation to stop them soon. I'm thoroughly sick of it.

Uploaded Si Senor to my briefcase. Massively cool.

Had a good game of pool with Jo at Poolitix. Cindy was around so the music they played was better -- Radiohead instead of boyband crap that they've been pumping out of their stereos lately. I think Poolitix is probably the busiest place on that stretch most nights.

When storms do battle:



Explanation: Two of the largest storm systems on Jupiter are colliding, and nobody is sure what will result. The larger storm is the famous Great Red Spot, while the smaller is a large white oval. Both are swirling cloud systems that circulate on Jupiter. The white oval is part of a belt of clouds that circles Jupiter faster than the Great Red Spot. The oval started being slowed by the Great Red Spot two weeks ago and the collision could last another month. The oval will likely survive but could possibly be disrupted or absorbed. The two storm systems went at it at least once before in 1975 causing the Spot's red color to fade for several years. The passing Voyager 2 robot spacecraft took the above picture of Jupiter's Great Red Spot in 1979. A different white oval was then visible below the Spot.

From Astronomy Picture Of The Day.

Was on the phone with a friend yesterday and she was talking pretty softly. Then she was mentioned about the theurepatic stuff she would do and I thought she said she would dig her nose. Turned out she said paint her nails. I thought it was pretty hilarious and was choking with laughter. Ok... I think I need to clean my ears. :)

Boy am I bored or what... just that there's SO much freaking work to do. Looks like I'll be taking Monday off so I get 5 days off but I also think I'll be dead bored in JB. No internet access, no gym... argh!

Latest piece banging in my head: Si Senor by Control Machete. They're a Mexican rap band which I think Bernardo, an intern from Mexico and ultra cool guy, introduced to me eons ago. They're really ultra cool.

Want to learn from home? Try these courses from Columbia University. There's a DV course that looks intriguing.

My Best of Smashing Pumpkins DVD is here! So I'm a happy camper! Can't wait to get hold of it. The Pumpkins videos are really cool.

Levis commercials shown during the Super Bowl. I prefer the third one for obvious reasons... ;)

Thaipusam pictures didn't turn out THAT well. I definitely need more practise.

One of the best things about the Super Bowl was the excellent half time show put up by U2. I used to love them but after Zooropa they didn't speak to me like they did. But it was good that they evolved rather than staying stagnant. Anyway, even if you're not a fan, you have to go to a concert if they're in town playing. I went to one of the Zoo TV concerts in Oakland and it was mind blowing, with a lot of acoustic sets and a heartfelt sincerity. They're superstars and know it, but they transcend the stardom they've been given. God Bless 'em.

Great Superbowl. Well worth the 6 am wakeup to head over to Dan Ryan's. Place was totally packed. Think it'll be an annual ritual from now on. The trivia contests and giveaways got slightly annoying though, but couldn't cloud what was a totally great game.

Quite a sad riches to rags tale. Hopefully he gets back on his feet again some day. Life can be truly fickle. Or another lesson; make sure you don't invest in the wrong things. I still recall someone telling me that properties were a can't miss option some years back. Hasn't turned out to be the case at all.

Watched The Shining again, and still as gripping. There's a very detailed FAQ here...