Back At Last?

I know I know, I havent updated my blog in AGES sorry for that, been running really dry on possible content I could inject into the blog.

Perhaps just a short and snappy update on whats been going on most recently...

Just came back from hospital, had a simple operation at SGH yesterday, warded for one day, quite a bit of discomfort now. Thanks to everyone who had given me little words of encouragement and such, but most of all am most fortunate to have a lucky star shining over me and watching over me during these few days, and the days of recovery to come. :)

Over...?

There's a strange sense of finality coming over me today...
For some reason the AOH Duties are finally over, it feels really good to know that it has been a job well done despite all the grumblings, and my nerves being rankled when there is work to be done and the lazy bums refuse to work.
Ah well, thats life I guess...

I promised I'd do something to make things better...
But I've failed at that.
I'm sorry for giving empty promises

Woo~

Suffice to say, the past few days have been the most meaningful and wonderful weekend of my life.
Life may have thrown a few unexpected curveballs, but when life gives you lemons, make lemonade.
Things will work out somehow.

Back to AOH on Monday!

Tired and Worn Out

Really tired physically from the past few days...Army Open House...
I thought that it would definitely be tiring but it would be rewarding,
But after all the rudeness and snideness from the teachers (of all people, it has to be the moulders of our future generation), I'm starting to doubt if all the effort everyone put in is going to be worth it...
Well, 4 more days of AOH, here's wishing all the best for the remaining days!

And tired mentally too...it really sucks to the core to know that you are powerless to help someone, when that chance and ability to do or change something for the better is so rudely snatched away...

I'm doing my best.

I'm Back!!

Sorry peeps for not updating in the longest time...My computer conked out and I just couldn't add any new content when I wanted to. Rest assured there's lots of new posts to come very soon.
Next up on my agenda, Army Open House 2007!
August is coming to an end too :)

A Case Study in Greed and Hypocrisy - Odex

Pardon my perceived ignorance on this matter, I am not as big an Anime fan as the many who have been victimized by Odex.

My conclusion from the on-going PR suicide that Odex has gotten itself into is:-

1) Odex produces sub-standard products (sub-standard would be an understatement), forces it down the throat of consumers, and expects consumers to be content with such low quality products? Its no wonder that Odex claims to be losing business (where's the concrete proof on that anyway). But is it losing business to Anime downloaders? I doubt so. It's probably losing business to other distributors such as Blue Max, where products of superior quality and wider range can be found.

2) It is simply despicable that Odex is attempting to make up for its loss in revenue from claiming damages, not just from anyone, but from school children. It knows that its case probably appears flimsy in front of adults who have more worldly experience, and stands a higher chance of claiming damages from the younger generation who have less experience and are more easily intimidated.

3) I find it personally repulsive that Odex continues to claim the moral high ground yet continues to turn a blind eye to all its faults. Odex is not interested in promoting the Anime culture here in Singapore. After all, before this Odex was a virtual non-entity in Anime events. All it is hankering for is money, plain and simple.

Bottom line. Odex has sucessfully shown its avaricious and hypocritical face to the public. Congratulations. They've managed to start a PR nightmare that would probably be the bane of most businesses.

Blogger's Block?

I dunno but lately I just feel a bit jaded to update my blog.
Nothing that I really feel like sharing over my blog these few days...
Oh!
Army Open House is open to public on 1 September to 2 September!
I can't quite remember the dates, will update once I get them.
Seems pretty interesting this year, so come on down and have a look see!

Lag...

Been quite a while since I actually got onto Blogger to make a new post,
So much stuff to do these days...
And I had to stay in camp for the entire National Day for duty.
Yawns... ...
Work is piling up, noone really understands my situation though...
Oh well...no choice but to trudge on,
With my star shining over me.

The Way I Are

Great song!
(pity it'll soon be overplayed on the radio and the clubs...)

Phew!

I just logged on last night trying to update my blog,
And I got this lovely message telling me my blog was under review for possible violations of the Terms and Services Agreement, and that my blog was a possible spam blog...

"WTF???"

Thank goodness everything's resolved now.
Phew!

August!

Really excited about this month! Here're some reasons why:

(Let's start chronologically shall we?)

1) August 7: Daniel Poh is coming back from Thailand!

2) August 9: National Day Parade at Marina Bay! (too bad I'll be on duty...boo...)

3) August 10: Boss' promotion lunch treat at Rice Table!

4) August 13-14: Two days off! (looking forward to this)

5) August 30-31: Two days leave! (REALLY looking forward to this) + COMEX Expo!

I'm pretty sure there are a few other good reasons to be excited,

Just can't think them up right now...

Anyhow, hope you guys have a great month ahead too!

Delicious Weekend

What a phenomenal weekend...Lots of great stuff that happened really,
And one of them is the FOOD! Here's a really brief rundown of what I ate this weekend.

(forgot name of the restaurant... ...)

A pity I didn't take note of the name of this place, its at the basement of Orchard Cineleisure. It sells really interesting Crepes, both savoury and sweet. The berry crepe (left) had a crepe with a scoop of strawberry ice-cream, topped with a generous amount of chopped fresh strawberries, blueberries and raspberries. The chocolate crepe (right) came with crushed Oreos and chocolate shavings and Hershey's chocolate cream. Best part was that all crepes were sold for just $3.90! Affordable, presentable and delicious.

Hip Diner by Billy Bombers - Orhard Cineleisure Lvl 1

Ironic that this restaurant is supposedly an offshoot of Billy Bombers but the food here is far better than Billy Bombers. The dish pictured is the American Meatloaf, the beef was well seasoned and the mushroom sauce was not overly salty with lots of mushrooms to boot. Other dishes I tried before were equally good, large servings with great presentation and prices ranging around $16. The huge plus was the service - pleasant, polite, efficient and attentive.

Joo Siah Bak Koot Teh - Hawker Centre near Jurong East Sports Complex
Simple fare that tasted great. The bak kutteh soup was just right - other stalls I've ever tried had soup that was either too salty or too peppery. The pork was tender and fleshy, and the braised peanuts remained nicely firm and not all soft and mushy. Simply put, everything was just right. Best of all, you could ask the stallholder for more soups and they would willingly oblige! Costs bout $4 a person for a meal like that.

Deli Snacks - next to Joo Siah Bak Koot Teh
The yew char kway at this stall was great! Not too oily, and each stick was light and fluffy! Quite amazing really have not tried any other yew char kway quite like this! And might I add it goes really well with the bak kut teh soup from above! This stall also sells other fried snacks, but I didn't go close enough to take note of what other snacks they were offering. Great stuff!

Unit Anniversary

Today was 3 Signal Battalion's 34th Unit Anniversary at Roland Restaurant,
For those of you who don't quite know where it is, well you're not alone.
I got lost trying to find that place!
It's behind Parkway Parade, and apparently it sits at the top of a six-storey carpark.
Company was OK, entertainement was OK, Food was...not that OK.
Don't quite feel attached to the unit, but let's leave that aside,
And let the pictures speak for themselves!

Kar Yee and I! (I look stupid in that shirt... ...)

(Lady Bosses)

(Hmm...what was she laughing at?)

(Si Da looking very hostile with that chopstick...)

(Norman's Sushi Man vs Santhi's Bollywood Goddess)

(Front Desk: Karthik, Mr Kasiman, Santhi)

(JCAC Dudes...somehow managed to fit in Norman's head)

(Looking bored? Hang on for the food!)

5 Random Facts

So, today was a rather interesting day to say the least,
Wee bit tired to run you through it, but anyhow,
Here's 5 entirely random nuggets of info I found out today..

1. Four hours of sleep is enough to keep you going. (Yawns...or maybe not...)
2. I get really crabby if I don't get my morning fix of Milo. (Makcik!! I miss your Milo!!)
3. You really forget about being hungry when you're caught up with work. (And once you finish that work, hunger hits you like a truck...)
4. Cold showers when its raining can be refreshing. (Sadistic yes, but true)
5. Absence REALLY makes the heart grow fonder. (Sigh...)

Cold, cold week

Has anyone noticed that the weather here in Singapore can be really fickle?
I vaguely remember it was blazing hot slightly over a week ago...
And now its raining every day. So cold...
Don't get me wrong though, I'd rather have the weather nice and chilly than warm and humid any day.
Hmm...am I cold blooded?

Back is aching again...my old injury is acting up.
No thanks to Sunday's glorious fall down the flight of steps on the double-decker bus service 74. Was more embarassed than anything at that time, but now, back's acting up again.
I sound old and arthritic hee...oh well, pain should go off soon...I hope!

Simpsons - Re-living my childhood

Amazing how many posts I can put up in a day if I actually have the time to do so...

Anyhow, the Simpsons Movie is coming out really soon! 26 July to be exact, and that's a lovely Thursday. Definitely going to catch this movie. Been living out all my childhood cartoons lately, first it was Transformers, and now its the Simpsons! Who knows, Captain Planet might even make it to the big screen one fine day!

Remember the opening intro that plays before every episode of the Simpsons?
(yup, that crazy ditty: *cue angelic voices* "The Simpsons... ...")
There was once they actually replaced that intro with real-life actors, never quite got around to seeing it 'til now.
Real hilarious stuff! Here it is for those who want to catch it:-

...I give up!

M.H. Tim has officially given up on customised Blogskins.
(unless anyone has any good recommendations)

What a sham!

So as you already know, today's my much-awaited day off, and apparently I can find no better way to spend it than to plonk myself on a sofa to watch whatever is showing on TV.

It just so happened that Channel 5 was showing Martha Stewart's programmes, and there was this segment where this supposedly up-and-coming young chef from New York was introducing some uniquely Malaysian dishes that were being offered at his chic restaurant in downtown New York.

Now I'm perfectly fine with his introducing of Malaysian dishes, if that was what he had set out to do, but what I found repulsive was that the dish he introduced was none other than orh luak (oyster omelette for those of you who don't quite know what that is), and that he labelled it as a dish that was exclusive to Malaysia and now, his own restaurant! Come on! Its bad enough that he doesn't have the cultural exposure to know that the dish is widely available in Singapore and other SEA countries, but to claim it as an exclusive offering in his own restaurant, that's just too much to take in. I would have to be insane before if I chose to go to New York and pay ridiculously inflated prices just to have a meal that would be easily available 24/7 at the Kopitiam near my house. Cheap and authentic Singaporean food at that.

23 July 2007 - Day Off!

Feels good to finally have one day off, a nice break from work.
Especially since the previous week was one crazy week in camp, one surprise after another.
Hopefully this week would be relatively peaceful.

Even the weekends turned out to be rather crazy. But I'm glad about what happened over the weekends though. I guess it was something that just needed to happen, sooner or later. I'd rather it happen now, than say a few months down the road. A load of my chest, I have nothing to hide anymore. :)

The First Scribble

My first scribble on my new blog, once again.
A place for me to pen down whatever runs through my mind.
I'll keep this going this time, for sure.
Stay tuned!