If you get a chance to see a facsimile of the original manuscript of the United States Constitution, example the graceul curves of the letterings, written in longhand more than 200 years ago.
Close-up of the US Constitution
When the baby boomers (those who grew up in the 1970s) die out, there would probably be no one left who could hold a quill or manuscript pen to produce cursive script on paper. For that matter, there may not even be people who write stylishly using fountain pens. (Ballpoint pens with their ink smudges are unsuitable for producing pleasing handwriting.)
In Singapore, we place an absurd amount of emphasis on keyboard typing. Teachers and lecturers strongly encourage their students to print out their homework reports in Times New Roman 12 pt double-spacing (the default setting in Microsoft Word).
The end result of this is that barely anyone ever writes his report in longhand anymore.
The widespread use of computer-printed words is only a natural development when the Singapore government decided to plonk PCs in every school in Singapore. For teachers, it makes their marking much easier, since it is easier to read prints than handwriting.
In grading pupils’ homework, reading pages of illegible scribbles and scratchings day after day would make even the most dedicated teachers go batty after a few years.
Educational authorities around the world have since decided to stop emphasising script writing lessons for young schoolchildren. This decision has led to a generation of adults who are unable to handwrite proper scripts (myself included).
I don’t blame the authorities because the situation at that time could have either caused them to believe that kids were over-worked, and needed a break; or that they simply wanted to get kids to concentrate more on studying core subjects.
But the lack of students with handwriting skill is not just a loss in the academic world; we also risk losing our heritage. When the last generation of frilly cursive manuscript writers passes on, all we’re left with eventually are images of the gorgeous pieces of writings on our computers (remember, paper does degrade eventually), and our children may be left wondering if some alien race with cursive handwriting were the ones who first taught writing to humans.
I would certainly miss the expressive strokes of the individual hand letterings when text is no longer handwritten. During my secondary school days, I saw teachers who handwrote so neatly that the letters looked like printed text. I remember my Geography teacher would ink her comments on my assignment pages as if she were printing on it. That was a rare quality in itself, and I fell in love with these neat, round writings shortly after that. The only thing I wouldn’t miss are the chicken feet scratchings of mine writing (to quote my primary school teacher).
Posted by Roy on 07/30 at 04:49 PM
Tom Marvolo Riddle
The first time I grabbed hold of the book “Harry Potter & The Deathly Hallow” was on the actual day of release in 2007. Knowing that it was the series’ last book, i gave it a slow read (I couldn’t bare to finish it too soon). After that, I chucked the book in my cupboard and I never touched it again.
Two weeks ago, I picked up the book again, after watching the premier of Harry Potter & The Half Blood Prince at the cinema. Then I finally remembered why I never desired to even look at the book again after reading it in 2007. Because I didn’t want to run through the series of many deaths once more. That was the darkest book of all (even though to me it wasn’t dark enough), with deaths of characters whom i adored, including Severus Snape, the most misunderstood character of the entire series. I remembered the 1st time I cried while reading this book was during the death of dobby the house elf. I don’t know why. I didn’t even feel so sorry when Dumbledore or Mad-eye Moody passed on.
I am almost done with the re-reading, at the 2nd last chapter. Honestly, I do not remember a lot of events in this book since it was read 3 years ago. I feel that the last book was dedicated for Voldemort rather than Harry Potter. Of Voldemort’s dark arts in splitting his soul into 7 different horcruxes and killing many in the process of it. Of his hungry ambition to gain absolute power in the entire wizarding world and his twisted desire to kill all muggle-borns, despite the fact that he (Voldemort) was ironically a half-blood. Of the fear that he instilled in the Death Eaters and also the readers. This book could be darker if not for the fact that it afterall started as just a children’s story book.
I feel that it could have ended the rightful manner (my own selfish opinion) where Harry should die, with him being one of the Horcruxes that Voldemort hid a part of his split souls in. Instead the book ended in the most expected and “pleasing” way - the happily-ever-after cliche, feeding the fans’ thirst for peaceful endings.
After all, heroes don’t always survive in our real world, do they? Not even in the TV series, HEROES.
Some of the photos from the latest movie, Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince:
Luna Lovegood - one of my favorite characters because of her dreamy and charming nature
Dumbledore - Awkwardly standing at a modern underground train station. We won’t see him anymore in the next film!
The 3 bestfriends
Young Voldemort - Tom Marvolo Riddle. Dumbledore first met this strange little boy and did not know that he would grow up to be one of the most feared wizards of all time
One of the Horcrux that Voldemort split his soul into, to attain eternal life
Severus Snape and Narcissa Malfoy make an Unbreakable Vow with Bellatrix Lestrange as their Bonder.
Posted by Fion on 07/30 at 03:19 AM
PS. Cafe
I’ve never been a big fan of dessert. I’ve always felt that the main course should be...well...the main course and that the dessert should be a pleasant afterthought.
That said, though, I would never say no to visiting a dessert place, since I, like most of my peers, have an immensely sweet tooth (although sugar consumption has dropped considerably since those candy-filled adolescent days).
When I met up with my BMT buddies after our ORD, we felt the occasion was big enough to warrant an after-dinner visit to PS. Cafe at Palais Renaissance, long known for its desserts, to splurge on expensive cakes and fatten ourselves up after having endured two years of (supposed) slimming down.
And, while the desserts were pretty costly (we comforted ourselves in the knowledge that we were helping to lift the sagging economy), they were nonetheless delightful, if terribly filling, sinful indulgences.
I had the steamed banana pudding with vanilla ice cream and it’s every bit as lip-smacking as it sounds. The pudding was warm and soft but chewy, the gravy thick and aromatic while the vanilla ice cream was a surprisingly light dairy “topping” whose coolness complemented the heat of the pudding perfectly.
Another of my friends had the double chocolate blackout cake with vanilla ice cream, a monster-sized slice of intensely black chocolate that gave us a shock with its sheer size. The slice, which could easily be meant for an entire meal, was, while unbelievably tasty, so filling that it took all three of us a lot of effort to work through it.
My last friend had a ginger and lemon cheesecake. While the sweet lemon taste was cloying and the cheesecake was solid and delicious, the ginger was a tad too heavy for me. But then again, I’ve never liked ginger-anything so I probably wouldn’t be a good gauge of its true quality. It was decidedly tasty though, ignoring the ginger.
The cakes we all had were unbelievably filling and should be taken only after small dinners. For those who are seeking something sweet and good, and don’t mind the slightly frightening price (each slice cost about $15, although it could admittedly feed families), PS Cafe’s list of desserts are guaranteed satisfaction.
Just remember to brush your teeth afterwards!
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
ps. Apologies for the dark, grainy photos. The lighting at the cafe was really dim and all I had was my phone camera.
PS. Cafe is located at Level 2. Palais S.C, 390 Orchard Road Singapore
Hey, when I am old and retired, I want to be like this man in the picture (above) that I shot in Langkawi a few years back. I want to have enough savings to enjoy the sun, sea and the diamond sand.
But if you ask any adult in their twenties or thirties if they have been making plans for their retirement, they would probably say, “Huh?”
The reality is, no Singaporean can afford to ignore retirement planning. If you’re clueless, follow these simple strategies to take charge of your finances and pump up that piggy bank.
Start saving now
It’s not what you earn but what you save that will make you wealthy and wise.
Everyone should save at least 10 percent of their income. Savings should be as important as staple needs like rent and food.
If you have poor self-control, sign up for a savings insurance plan, also known as an endowment. Basically, you give a fixed amount – the premium – each year to the insurance company, for a predetermined number of years, usually 15. In return, you get insurance coverage for death and total permanent disability, and after the period is completed (maturity), you get back the money you’ve put in, plus interest and bonus.
The total sum is usually far higher than if you put the money in a bank saving account. The disadvantage is that to enjoy the full returns, you must continue the plan until maturity. So, if you are chronically short of cash, endowments are not suitable.
Don’t hang out with rich people
You can’t save if you hang out with rich people. You want to have lunch in the kopitiam but they want French dining. You sip tea only from the mug that you brewed with a 10-cent Lipton teabag, but they think nothing of spending $6 for a cup of hot water and Lipton teabag in a café.
So, how can you save money if you hang out with them? If you think rich people will pay for your meals and drinks, think again. They are rich because they don’t waste money on spongers.
Simplify your spending
Simplify your spending. Don’t feel hot or bothered if your office next cubicle colleague drives a flashy BMWs or lives in a $1,200 per sq foot condo apartment.
There’s no end to the number of friends, relatives and acquaintances who are richer, handsomer and smarter than you. You’re only wasting your time, effort and money if you try to keep up with them.
There are three secrets to achieving financial contentment – simplify, simplify, simplify.
Spend only on necessities
Buy only necessities, not luxuries. By all means, dress smartly if your job requires it. By all means drive a luxury car and entertain at the best dining spots – if your employer pays for them.
For the simple lifestyle, here’s where your money goes (in that order): savings, spending on necessities, giving to charities, and then indulging in small luxuries.
Settle your financial essentials
If you haven’t done so, set up an emergency fund right now. This is money for medical treatment and other emergencies (such as funerals) for you and your loved ones.
Eradicate all debts
It makes no sense to pay only the minimum required on your credit care and allowing your debts to “roll over” at 24 percent interest. If you do not get rid of your debt, it will be harder to grow your retirement nest egg.
Use your credit card only for emergency, and possess only one card. Don’t carry the card with you – it is dangerous to your financial health to be wandering in the mall with a credit card in your pocket!
Of course, sometimes you can save money by using a credit card. For instance, some petrol kiosks give you a much higher discount if you pay with your card. But make full payment before the due date.
Do not be greedy
If all the banks and insurance companies are offering less than 1 percent interest for your investment or saving, it is difficult to believe that another institution is able to offer you 5 percent or higher. Each time someone offers a scheme that is too-good-to-be-true, it really is, no matter how “respected” the institution is. Always remember venerable Lehman Brothers, and tremble.
Do not borrow to invest
There is no free lunch. Invest only money that you can afford to lose. Do not borrow money to invest.
Consult a financial planner
Buying stocks directly is not advisable unless you are a financial expert or are prepared to spend lots of time managing your portfolio.
For peace of mind, don’t buy shares, unless you are not going to touch that sum of money for 10 years. It’s no way to live, if after buying a stack of shares, you spend your waking hours worrying sick over their price going up and down.
Provide enough in case you live too long
This sounds depressing but a long life can be a curse if you don’t have enough money for your dying years!
Plan to accumulate enough cash that you can spend until you’re 82 (yup, that’s the age when the “average” Ah Seng or Ah Lian like yourself, kicks the bucket).
If you’re in your late-40s or early 50s, buy an annuity product. This helps to guard against “living too long”. An annuity ensures a steady source of income through periodic payouts until the day you shut your eyes forever.
The recently introduced CPF Life Plan is a good example. This scheme guarantees CPF members monthly payouts from as early as age 65 for as long as they live. But take note of rising prices over the years. It means the fixed amount in your monthly payout is able to buy less and less goods.
Plan for your children
Consult your insurance agent on a scheme to save enough money to provide your children’s education until university level. Once you’ve given your kids a good education, tell them that they are on their own. Whatever balance you still have, spend and enjoy, and before you die, give all to charity.
Buy medical insurance
Your health is your fortune. But when you get old and, heaven forbids, your body becomes riddled with cancer cells or paralysed by a stroke, who’s gonna pay for your extremely expensive medical treatment?
Your strategy is never to pay hospital bills with your savings. You can’t afford it. So, while you’re still relatively healthy, buy a medical or hospitalisation plan with guaranteed renewal. This means that if you start making claims on your policy, it will still be renewed the following year.
Now that you’re on your way to financial happiness, go take a break in the pool.
Posted by Flightstick on 07/21 at 06:03 PM
Reflections
No matter how much you try to hide, no matter how much you try to deny it, it is always there. Not the proverbial skeleton in the closet, but the very fact that you served NS for two years. Sound familiar?
Of course not you say! But think again. When people are talking about their time spent in army, do you inwardly go: “My god, why is he talking about that? It’s already over for heaven’s sake. Does he really like the army that much? I hated it!”
Do you? Well, maybe you do.
I knew a guy once in the army who got along decently with everyone, as well as his superiors. Then on the day he ORDed, he went a bit crazy, deleting all his army contacts off msn, facebook, and his handphone. When a bunch of us organized a meet-up and sent him an invitation, he replied in vulgarities over email. I wouldn’t have expected it of him, considering his workplace was more welfare than mine. But then again, I digress.
I have a lot of SAF memorabilia in my room. The classic BX2 cap (one and only), the SAF shaver (it looks brand new, like it has only been purchased a week ago!), my self-inking stamp, my black beret…
My two years in the SAF is just another part of my life. Like primary school, secondary school, JC. It is nothing to be hidden away, nor shunned.
Like other parts, there are good times, and bad times. I find it ironic that while we focus on the good times in school or university, and forget about the bad, too often, it is the opposite with the SAF. We remember the bad times, but forget the good.
Ever since coming back to SG, I’ve met up with friends, including those from the army, teachers from my schools, including superiors from the very same army too, and they are no different. Everyone is human, interested in each other’s lives. There are no big, scary ogres waiting for you to make a mistake and eat you up.
Besides, I always thought my secondary school discipline master was scarier than my CSM. At least my CSM doesn’t do things like cane you, or make you hop about without a shoe (come to think of it, some newbie specs try to do that).
One more thought. As you grow older, everything gets harder. The material studied in school gets harder, the punishments you get become harsher, and the relationships with people are more complex. Yet we don’t give up. We struggle through: “Ah, this math problem just needs a bit of tweaking”. Why can’t we do the same? “Ah, this physical outfield training just needs a bit of endurance?”
I’ve met up with army personnel recently, and frankly, I don’t see why some of my peers don’t want to associate with them. Especially the one who reacted with vulgarities. Fair enough, I happen to be in a unit where we don’t get people abusing their rank. But I do not think all regulars are like that. You don’t have to like them, but you can respect them for doing their job well. And when out of the army, when you can look at things with a balanced viewpoint, things change.
Like how I disliked my PE teacher who made us participate in ACJC Mass PT, I now see it was just for us to toughen up in preparation for army, and I took a picture with him at Singapore Day in London. Similarly, I’m met up with my previous superiors, S4, S1, CSM, and shared stories of the past and present.
Cherish the friends you make in the army, and don’t discard them after ORDing. Because they are no different from everyone else.
Posted by Narev on 07/20 at 01:56 AM
I WANT! - Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX3
One of my friends came back last week from a 2 weeks trip to Australia. I saw some of the photos that his girlfriend and him took while they were in Melbourne, at The Great Ocean Road. The photos were stunningly colored, beautifully taken (especially those of skies and clouds). The saturation of the photos and wideness of the camera’s lens hooked my heart away. I asked, what camera did they use. She said, Panasonic Lumix LX3. Without taking another breath, I googled for this particular camera by Panasonic and found Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX3 instead. I was swept off the ground by the many brilliant photographs and videos taken by it!
The Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX3 is a 10.1 megapixel camera that produces dramatically great picture quality. One of the few special features that attracted me was its Ultra-Wide-Angle F2.0 LEICA DC VARIO-SUMMICRON lens. It is a bright lens that allows users to shoot at higher shutter speeds and capture images that are clear, sharp and blur-free in lower lighting environments. The 24mm ultra-wide-angle-lens allows a much wider composition range. The quality of videos taken with this Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX3 are superior, movie-like! It is like a pocket camera that possesses some of the DSLR qualities.
Alright, enough bragging about my new camera crush, let’s look at some of the photos and video that were taken by it (Grabbed from Flickr and Youtube):
Taken by mhicks3623 from flickr. Check out this breath taking shot!!
Taken by Buttha from flickr.
Taken by Swcimaging from flickr.
Taken by Billy from flickr.
And lastly, a video by astoria3011 from Youtube.
The Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX3 is selling at about S$790 now. Quite a steep price for a pocket camera.
Posted by Fion on 07/20 at 12:56 AM
Credit card fraud in Singapore
Credit card fraud, a shining example of human ingenuity abused for criminal purposes, has been with us for many years. Ever since criminals found out that a 10-digit number and expiry date was all it took to get a merchant to approve and finalise purchases, those flat plastic cards have been the top-most targets in the shady underworld.
I’m befuddled, because the primary mechanisms for how these cards are used have barely changed ever since rampant fraud hit merchants. Where before retailers scrubbed the card with an imprinter, now charge cards are swiped through magnetic card readers.
Between these two worlds, the birth of inter-connected computing systems allowed banks to put authentication mechanisms in place at the point of sales. Whereas before retailers had no way to 100% confirm that a card was legitimate, now they can have the peace of mind knowing that the bank could confirm the authencity of the card.
It is also an advantageous situation for banks: they can now check their database records to see if a particular user is going over their credit limit, and decline the transaction when that happens, ultimately saving them from crazy fly-by-nights who go on immense shopping sprees, and then disappear at the end of the month.
But while all that is sufficient protection for the banks and retailers, the consumer in Singapore has no such protection. If his card gets stolen, and he doesn’t notice it in time, the fly-by-night thieves can rack up large number of purchases without his knowledge. The bank would still pay the merchant for the charges, and then bill it to the victim; putting the burden of proof solely on the consumer.
He has to gather evidence that he did not make those purchases, and hope that the credit issuer accepts his explanation, and relieve him of the liability. The bank is the final judge on these issues, and if it decides to hold the consumer responsible, he would be on the hook for thousands of dollars worth of items that he didn’t purchase.
Now in the United States, credit card agreements limit cardholder liability for purchases made on stolen cards to a set amount, say US$50 or US$100. However, in Singapore, there is no such protection.
A recent case reported in the Straits Times has seen $17, 100 in fraudulent charges run up in the victim’s credit cards, and despite clear closed-circuit television footage proving that the card holder had never entered the shop, the credit card companies are still insisting that the victim pay up.
I’m of the opinion that the victim shouldn’t have to pay for the fraudulent transactions. In the first place, when a card is charged, the card holder needs to sign on the receipt agreeing to pay the amount of money stated in the receipt before the charge is considered to be valid. In the victim’s case, she didn’t physically sign for the transactions, and this alone should absolve her from having to pay for these transactions.
The onus should have been on the retailer to check the signature on the receipt against the sample signature on the back of the card to make sure it matches. I strongly suspect that this isn’t being done properly, because I’ve myself witnessed shop assistants and cashiers swipe my card, let me sign the receipt, and then return my card and a copy of the receipt without checking that my signature matches.
Why not? Exactly because of the protection offered by the electronic authorisation system, as well as the explicit promise from the credit issuer to pay them for the amount charged if it passes their database checks. There’s nothing for retailers to lose, and thus they can afford to be lax with their credit card checks. This phenomenon is also confirmed by Zug, an online prank site.
A couple of Straits Times readers wrote in to the forum pages asking the Monetary Authority of Singapore to limit consumer liability for fradulent credit card transactions, as well as to mandate the checking of photo identification before accepting credit cards. Consumers deserve at least that protection, given the credit card’s inherent security risk. Or else, the system is going to have to change to improve how credit cards work.
Right now, having a credit card in Singapore is akin to having their bank accounts accessible to anyone who can utter their 10-digit numbers. The banks can say all they want about having the industry regulate itself; the Mini-bonds scandal has proven that they are incapable of looking out for their customers’ interests. It’s time for the regulatory authority to do it for them.
Posted by Roy on 07/19 at 08:18 PM
Art Exhibition
Imagine you are the proud artist at your very own art exhibition as the guest of honour. You have been scrimping on food for a long period, dedicating the best years of your life to creating new masterpieces of art. You live for art’s sake alone, and wouldn’t mind going hungry for a day, if only to have more time to explore new avenues and techniques of your craft.
Your work pays off, an unknown guest to your even more unknown studio a month ago recognizes your talent, and turns out to be a generous philanthropist. He organizes an art exhibition, where all the paintings displayed come from your august hand, and where you are the guest of honour. He intends for you to be famous, to carve out a cascading new stream in the multitude of compositions floating down the river of art.
Today is that very day.
You mingle a bit, drinking wine and hobnobbing with the rich and wealthy. At least, you think they are rich and wealthy, for they have given you an offer to purchase your paintings at an exorbitant cost. You listen to them quibble about your art, some disparaging it, while others praising it to high heavens. You don’t care, and in fact smile as the disagreements get more intense. What matters is that your work is finally being recognized.
Suddenly, your great-aunt Hilda turns up at the exhibition, together with your great-uncle Cooper. They have always disapproved of your work, and had always wished you would have taken up a better career, like engineering. You had always squabbled with them, trying to bring your point across that art is your passion, but they always scolded you for being cheeky.
Perhaps they’ll eat their words today. They slowly walk up to you, and then great-aunt Hilda unleashes a multitude of verbiage.
“What nonsense are these paintings? My dog can paint better than this! You’ll soon go broke and have to resort to taking sandwiches from us!”
Great-uncle Cooper chips in by agreeing with his wife, and calls the entire exhibition a farce.
Suddenly, at that point in time, you feel utterly demoralized, although in your left hand, you hold a cheque for a million dollars for one of your paintings.
What gives?
They say: Everything is relative. And to an extent, it extends to them as well.
We don’t care what others say of us, if we don’t know them very well. They can be highly critical, judgmental, annoying, or even impossible to deal with. Everything just slides away like water off a duck’s back. Who cares if Mr Thomas from Hamilton says something critical about you? You don’t know who he is, his opinion doesn’t matter. And if you feel irritated, you can easily give him a piece of your mind.
*Not quite a large piece, because Mr Thomas isn’t worth that much of your time, yet.
But let there be someone you are close to, and more often than not, you’ll find yourself perturbed by their comments, criticisms, or otherwise. This is further intensified if they are being judgmental.
Which is why you’ll easily find yourself more affected when it is friends, relatives, and family being harsh, as compared to others. It’s normal. It rankles. But that’s the price you have to pay.
Fair tradeoff? You decide.
Posted by Narev on 07/18 at 02:18 AM
I’m back!
I’m back after a short hiatus of holidays in Singapore!
Posted by Narev on 07/18 at 02:16 AM
Beckham: “I don’t owe Galaxy fans an apology”
That is some alternate world thinking. Does this man remember that Sir Alex threw a shoe at him for giving less than his best? The breakdown in relationship led to his Real transfer. If Beckham had done what he is doing at the Galaxy, he would have had fans tear him another orifice. The European leagues are far more unforgiving.
What needs to fortify is an assumption that the Galaxy can probably work well without Beckham. They are already showing signs of doing just that. It might be the best course of action since his plans lie elsewhere.
He is pursuing another Milan spell and has not ruled out a Premiership return most likely Chelsea because of the Ancelotti connection. Fabio Capello has stated that match experience in the European leagues is a prerequisite for an England recall. There itself is the death knell of the MLS makeover promised by Alexi Lalas and Tim Leiwecke. It is a conundrum. On one hand you want to lure foreign superstars in their prime to the MLS; on the other hand the coaches of those national teams are saying that the experience is worthless when it comes time to choose the squad. The MLS has to do a better job refining its search.
More Beckham:
He said: “What I’ve done for the league so far has been very successful, I’ve had a successful effect on the game here.
“You know, there are eight new franchises coming into the league, new stadiums going up (and) attendances, wherever we’ve played as a team.”
“If you look at the attendances we have had throughout the seasons, there’s not many Premiership (teams) that get the average attendance that we’ve had, excluding Manchester United and Arsenal and teams like that.”
Those franchise expansions were already in the works before Beckham arrived. And yes, he did drive up attendances in the beginning with the 60,000 fans that showed up at Giants stadium to see the Galaxy play the Red Bulls two years ago as a watershed moment. But missing the playoffs three times in a row proved a drag on attendances. They declined quite markedly. I can bet you that Burnley, the smallest Premiership club will exceed that average figure by far. So if Beckham is talking about a revolution, it has happened on its own and not by him proving to be a transformational figure.
Shourin Roy
Posted by Shane S-picks on 07/16 at 10:00 PM
Curry Favor
I have to say that, despite my love of Japanese food, which I’ve crowed about here ad nauseam, I’ve never really been very fond of Japanese curry dishes.
Maybe it’s because I’ve grown up on a steady diet of the “localised” version of curry with dishes like curry fishhead, laksa, curry chicken etc., but I could never see the appeal of the thick, stew-like Nipponese curry style.
Surprisingly, though, when my friend recommended we try out this Japanese curry restaurant at Stanford House, Curry Favor (which is, admittedly, a cute wordplay pun of a shop name), I had a pretty good dining experience.
Ok, so I cheated and had a teriyaki chicken rice with scrambled eggs. But, I did try some of my other friends’ orders, which include the restaurant’s signature curry beef rice, so I can actually say that the curry was pretty delicious.
While (justifiably) different-tasting from the usual local curry fare, the curry was packed with flavour and, while thick (which is apparently how it’s supposed to be, due to the vegetables being used), the texture complemented both the soft rice and the chewy beef cubes. The ingredients used were pretty high standard and, while dishes like these tend to be on the heavy side, it didn’t leave any of us feeling bloated.
I have no idea what real authentic Japanese curry tastes like but, if this isn’t it, it’s at least much closer to it than any of the usual dawdry fare that the food court Japanese stalls or the conveyor-belt Jap restaurants serves up.
My teriyaki chicken rice was great too. While the eggs were a little tasteless and not the best complement to the meat, the teriyaki sauce was tasty without being overly salty and the rice was mouth-wateringly fluffy. While this dish was a little heavy on the stomach, it was nonetheless a satisfactory bite.
My friends and I also shared a cheese bites side dish, made of battered flour rings containing oozing cheese. While not the best fried dish ever, it was pretty tasty and the cheese wasn’t overpowering or overwhelming like it has a tendency to be.
While the prices there might be a tad more than people might be willing to fork out for Japanese curry during these financially-strapped times (each of us spent close to $20, including service charge and GST), but the good quality of the dishes make up for it.
Plus, the service was pretty good too. The staff were friendly and vigilant.
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Curry Favor can be found at 39 Stamford Road, #01-08/09 Stamford House (opening hours: Mon-Wed, Sat-Sun: 12pm-10pm, Thu-Fri: 12pm-11pm) or at #03-26/27 Velocity @ Novena Square (opening hours: 12pm - 10pm daily).
Posted by Gabriel on 07/13 at 01:28 AM
Michael Jackson memorial videos
Videos of Michael Jackson’s memorial can now be found on YouTube.
Update: (19 July 2009) The videos have been removed. I’ll post alternate links to the memorial service if I can find it.
To me, Michael Jackson made great music, and gave back to the world through the numerous charitable foundations that he supported. His eccentricities aside, the man himself is first and foremost a fellow human being, who faced the daunting prospect of fame at an early age.
I’ve read and watched articles and videos that are highly critical of Michael’s actions, as well as his reactions to the accusations. We may never know the answers now, but I’m sure that the truth was somewhere in between.
All that doesn’t matter now. A great legend has passed, leaving behind a legacy heavy of charity and musical talent. There may never be a greater musician in my lifetime, and I’m glad to have gotten to listen to, and enjoy Michael Jackson’s songs.
Posted by Roy on 07/12 at 03:16 AM
102 USA Soccer Players VS ONE Zidane… Video!
Former World and European Player of the Year Zinedine Zidane was at the United States giving a soccer clinic and a friendly training session courtesy of ADIDAS football.
The event is the 12th Annual Elite Soccer Program. 102 top best youth footballers in attended and played a match with the French legend.
This the clip showing the interview, and training, and one last final trick to fool the USA players at the end of the video.
Way to go Zidane!
Posted by Shane S-picks on 07/12 at 01:03 AM
CR9… the video
It has happened. Cristiano Ronaldo’s world record transfer from Manchester United to Real Madrid is finally completed.
After months of transfer talks, it seems that Florentino Perez’s magic has succeeded. And once again, the Spanish capital’s main football club won again. 80 million pounds! World Record! And I think it will stay that way for years to come! Zinedine Zidane’s transfer record of 42 million pounds lasted close to 6 years! This record will definitely last longer. In a week that broke many records(Roger Federer broke Pete Sampras’ record of 14 Grand Slam titles by winning his fifteen title in Wimbledon a couple of days back), 80,000 fans greet Cristiano Ronaldo at Real Madrid’s Bernabeu stadium. Reminds me of Maradona’s introduction to Napoli all those years ago…
Here’s the video. Enjoy! Manchester United made the profit!
In the background: Di Stefano and Eusebio.
Will CR9 live up to expectations? Stay tuned.
Posted by Shane S-picks on 07/09 at 03:03 AM
Online pitch-forking — overreactions on public transport… online
Why isn’t there a law making it compulsory for people to give up their seats on buses and trains to pregnant ladies, senior citizens or the handicapped?
People from a certain local forum have been getting their pitch-forks on about teenagers, working executives, and senior citizens misbehaving on MRT trains and buses. The daring ones hold their camera handphones in the other hand to snap pictures of the offender, and post it online, where similar people with their online pitch-forks spear the photo subjects over and over again, with nothing more than the photographer’s account as the sole basis for the online-lynching.
What amazes me even more is that the company behind that forum also runs most of the newspapers in the country, with broadsheets prominently promoting the power of “citizen journalism”, and even encourages the public shaming by posting these pictures prominently on the site.
I can understand the bottled-up anger that comes with commuting in Singapore. Trains come at absurd frequencies, people boarding the trains rush in without allowing the alighting passengers to leave first, inconsiderate douches who take up 4 to 5 seats during evening rush hour. All these make getting around Singapore an emotional draining experience.
Occasionally, I see perfectly reasonable people blow up, and tear into the offenders right on the spot. It might satisfy their pent-up feelings, but is it a reasonable act to do?
Firstly, the lines between an act of social obligation, and an act of consideration are blurred. You have been exposed to incessant campaigns to give up your seat to those people who need it, but what would you do if you see a well-built young man slumped in one of the few “Priority Seating” seats on a train, and an elderly man walking with the aid of a cane enters the train?
You would ask the young man to give up his seat, wouldn’t you? The pitch-forkers would discreetly take pictures of the young man, and then rant from behind the comfort of their Internet-connected PCs about how the sleeping youth was pretending not to see the senior citizen in the train car.
And what if the young man is not feeling well, or that he had a tiring day volunteering his time for the elderly? Would you classify the young man as being needy of a seat too? What happens then?
The pitch-forkers never get to this stage, because they would either wake the tired young man up, and then proceed to rip into him for being inconsiderate, and then take his picture to facilitate their online lynching; or they would simply skip the first part, and take his picture anyway.
What would I do in this situation? There are so many other seats on the train; what’s to stop me from asking somebody else to give up their seat for the senior gentleman? The reason for priority seats is because the seats are nearest to the train doors, and is most convenient for senior citizens and pregnant women. It doesn’t have to be an all-or-nothing situation where only the “Priority Seats” should be given up. Once again, the pitch-forkers do not understand this, so blinded they are by their rage at the young man.
In addition, by posting the pictures of people up on an online forum, the uploaders may be engaging in a civil wrong — the pitch-forkers act as the witness, judge, and executioner in proclaiming the guilt of the person inside the picture. But what if they’re wrong? It is easy to bring a defamation lawsuit to bear on the service provider, wrangle the names associated with the poster (anonymity be damned) from the company, and then sue the pants off the accuser. I’m sure that the service provider would pretty much give in, because unlike its newspaper business, where reporters take years to cultivate relationships to extricate insider scoops, the posters on its online community are just as faceless as any other person on the street. It makes a lot of business sense to protect the journalist, but if anybody thinks that the company would struggle as much to protect an anonymous person’s identity, they are going to be sorely disappointed when the lawsuit comes.
Face it, no matter how much the marketing people positions the site as a shining example of “citizen journalism”, it is pretty much everything but “citizen journalism”. The website is simply a souped-up virtual forum where people come together to complain, often irrationally, about life in Singapore. A coffee shop might well be an upgraded substitute, looking at the ridiculous irrationality the site has engendered.
Posted by Roy on 07/08 at 09:02 PM
Lomo Fisheye 2 - Multiple Exposure
Believe it or not, I’m truly a klutz. I own my Lomo Fisheye 2 camera for close to 4 years already, but I never knew that it could perform multiple exposure until recently! I found out about the function last month and decided to fiddle with the multiple exposure feature. These are some of the photos that are freshly developed this morning (give me your comments!):
It was a friend’s birthday and we were having a mini celebration in a chic restaurant (The Queen and Mangosteen) @ Vivo City. I did a double exposure on 2 of my friends…
the rest of who were at the birthday celebration. I did many exposures here as well on the same frame and with the help of a color flash, the psychedelic effect was created.
This was taken at my cousin’s bedroom. Her room’s entrance is dreamily draped with strings of beads
I was bored while waiting for the bus.
In the lift.
these bicycles belong to a Malay family that lives on the ground floor
The difference between Lomo Fisheye 1 and 2:
Fisheye 2 is of course the improved version. They both have the same lens, thus produces the same type of photos. However, Fisheye 2 has a B setting on shutter which allow longer exposures. It also have a horse shoe for external flash mounting. There is an additional switch on Fisheye 2 for multiple exposures on the same frame. A true fisheye view finder is included as well.
Posted by Fion on 07/07 at 04:48 PM
K Box Safra Jurong West
I don’t know about you but I find that, at times, there’s nothing more fun than heading to a karaoke joint with friends, stuffing yourselves into a room and then proceeding to sing your heart out, safe with the knowledge that all that happens within the room stays within the room and no one outside the place will ever hear your heart-wrenched caterwauling.
Well, there’s a chance that the little safety bubble won’t be there anymore in the K Box at the newly opened Safra Jurong West but it just makes it even more fun.
Located a stone throw away from the Boon Lay bus interchange and MRT station, the K Box (which, in Singapore, is ubiquitous with karaoke) at Safra is a clean, relatively unvisited little treasure of a karaoke treat. This outlet, furbished to reflect the retro, old-school look of the 1940s Chinatown (I assume), has some of the niftiest features I’ve ever seen in any karaoke outlet.
The rooms here are much more spacious (not to mention cleaner) than the usual claustrophobic booths and, maybe due to the fact that my friend and I were there on a weekday afternoon, the room we got could easily have fit six to eight people.
Other than the by-now-prerequisite dual screens that most of the higher end K Boxes have, the rooms also come equipped with a wall-mounted song controller (which lets you modulate the pitch of the song and, rather cutely, lets you insert cheers and applause into your performances) and a touch screen song selector.
The touch screen song selector is quite remarkable. Not only is the screen large and bright, the touch feature is sensitive and comes with the ability to save your favourite songs for easy access next time around on a dedicated playlist.
The screen even has Chinese handwriting recognition software, for those who’d rather write out the names of the artistes they’re looking for.
The most exciting feature, though, to me, is the ability to save your performances and then send them over to your phone or laptop through bluetooth. The system lays down the actual karaoke backing track, overlays your vocals through the microphone onto it and combines the two into an actual mp3.
This definitely gives a kick to those who want a souvenir of their adventure with the microphone or for those who just want to hear how they actually sound like, since most know that what we hear through our own ears is never actually what others hear.
The prices at this K Box are the same as at any other outlets (a five hour marathon on a weekday afternoon, together with two free drinks and a bowl of snacks, cost me about S$20 after including all additional surcharges) but I’ve heard that anyone who has both a K Box membership card and Safra membership can enjoy a price of S$10 for a session.
Lisa’s attraction to a successful and charming man at work turns into a full-blown, uncontrolled obsession as the days pass and the harmless flirting evolves into a love affair. An affair that is sizzling, passionate and really, really hot – a relationship that would make any woman melt. Except that it’s not real. It’s all in her own mind.
This scenario may be the plot in movie Obsessed, but in reality, there are many Lisas around. Lisa Sheridan (Ali Carter) is so obsessed with Derek Charles (Idris Elba) that she resolves to intrude into his family and take everything that belongs to him and his beautiful wife, Sharon Charles (Beyoncé Knowles).
It’s not hard to guess women like Lisa probably has a psychological problem. Researchers call it Delusional Stalking.
Jealous that she wasn’t her boyfriend’s first love, Samantha went to great lengths snooping around to lay hands on her boyfriend’s exes’ information, including their Facebook accounts, MySpace etc. She continuously compared herself with each of these “ghosts of her boyfriend’s past”, mostly to see who is more beautiful, who has a better figure and if they are dating someone else. Her boyfriend eventually found out about this and asked her to stop.
She did, only momentarily. The straw that broke the camel’s back came when her boyfriend discovered she found out the address of an ex and went to her house.
When it comes to obsession, women may not be the fairer sex. Men who are insecure about themselves, usually over a beautiful and sexy partner, may even attempt to occupy her time using money. Sending them flowers all the time, bringing them on vacations and doing what they can to isolate their girl from the world. They want her to belong to only him, and him alone.
Men whose partners initiated a break up may find it hard to get over their past relationship and end up stalking their ex-girlfriends. Every moment of their waking time was spent on wondering which guy their ex is dating, what they are doing. Scenes of their intimacy play up surreal images in their minds, heightening up their anxiety and pushing them towards the edge of a nervous breakdown.
For some guys, they even dated people of the same names, or sharing similar characteristics and look-a-likes.
We all know that such obsessions are unhealthy – both to the person and to the relationship. How can we deal with such obsessions then?
When you notice yourself having this urge to want to have someone wrapped around your finger, or if you are spending more time imagining a wonderful life you would be spending with a person than you do, say, talking to that person, then I’d advise you to go for counselling.
Extreme jealousy, getting obsessed over someone, fantasising are usually signs of underlying issues like the inability to trust someone and a deep sense of insecurity. Perhaps there has been an unfaithful member in your family, or you have experienced something traumatic in your childhood like abandonment, but you wouldn’t be able to help yourself if you don’t even know what the source of the issue is.
Getting rid of anything and everything that reminds you of the person helps. What is out of sight is easier out of mind. Engage yourself with activities that bring you out of the house. Surround yourself with positive people – their energy can be the most exhilarating uplift you need.
Posted by Kloudiia on 07/03 at 06:20 PM
Manchester United signs Michael Owen
Guess what I heard this morning… Michael Owen, England’s most prolific goal scorer, is going to Manchester United on a free transfer! This is what I got from timesonline.co.uk.... absolutely gave me a shock.
Michael Owen will sign for Manchester United on a free transfer today provided that he passes a stringent medical at Old Trafford.
The move would represent an astonishing turnaround in fortunes for the striker, who was relegated with Newcastle United only six weeks ago. On top of the prospect of winning medals with the Barclays Premier League champions, the chance to pair up with Wayne Rooney will give Owen hope that he can revive his England career.
He has been exiled by Fabio Capello, but England are short of proven strikers with the World Cup finals less than 12 months away and Owen could force his way back into the reckoning if he succeeds at United.
Owen, 29, joined the ranks of the unemployed on Wednesday, when his contract at Newcastle expired, and his agents had been so concerned about a lack of interest that they sent a brochure to Premier League managers setting out his strengths.
Liverpool, his former club, were among those who showed no desire to sign him, and only 48 hours ago Sam Allardyce said that a deal would be too risky for Blackburn Rovers because of Owen’s injury record.
But Sir Alex Ferguson has decided that with Owen a free agent, it is a gamble worth taking. The United manager is hopeful that his big-match temperament will yield a glut of goals, while Owen will be thrilled after four nightmare years at St James’ Park.
The deal will require Owen to accept a huge drop in salary from the £120,000 a week he was earning on Tyneside. Everton, who made an offer this week, had been willing to pay a basic salary of about £50,000 a week.
The scale of the United deal is not yet clear in terms of length of contract or salary, but United are understood to have included incentives depending on games played, goals scored and trophies won.
Ferguson’s interest in Owen is longstanding. He considered buying him when he left Real Madrid for Newcastle in 2005, but he already had Rooney and Ruud van Nistelrooy and was not willing to match Newcastle’s £16.5 million offer. United were considering a £12 million bid the next summer before Owen suffered the injury to his right knee in Germany.
United need attacking options. Cristiano Ronaldo has been sold to Real Madrid for £80 million, Carlos Tévez has departed, seemingly for Manchester City, and Ferguson lost out this week on Karim Benzema, who is bound for the Bernabéu from Lyons.
The intriguing question for United fans is whether Dimitar Berbatov, such a disappointment last season, would lose his place to a Rooney-Owen partnership. Capello, too, will watch with interest. Owen has played only once for the Italian, in a friendly against France in March last year, and the England manager has been sparing in his praise.
Posted by Shane S-picks on 07/03 at 03:05 PM
Yummy! If they add some ice kachang, it would be perfect!
