About Yearend n Yuletide Cheers

postin durin e Christmas period proved impossible due to heavy involvment in church..for e 1st time in 2 years since enterin e army..unless one considers the minor role played last year slip-shodly..

Christmas came n went swiftly with all e rehersals for our church play n the worship but i felt dat i din get to enjoy it to e fullest as a result..but i did enjoy my time spent with the teens..well one can't hav his cake n eat it...

i din realli experience all dat much christmas cheer n mirth thruout e period as most of my closest frens were overseas n there was no major gift-exchangin or rowdy celebration...there is a place for some commercial celebration of Christmas even for a christian i must say...

christmas shoppin n present givin do hav christian values of kindness, tolerance n love dat christians embrace...its just overdone n over-emphasised to e neglect of wat Christmas realli means..sittin back n havin some attention given to our closest loved ones thru gift-buyin, cookin(or buyin) dat turkey for christmas dinner can be therapeutic n a getaway from our hectic daily lives..

for the christian, Christmas is not just spiritual..its also social..dats how balanced it should be..all too often we neglect one or the other...as Dietrich Bonhoeffer said, a christian should b a more complete individual than a non-christian...why do we often act as though we've forsaken everything earthly n practical for e spiritual?

i sincereli wish my next christmas is spent not just reachin out to so-called 'unsaved' loved ones but also spent WITH them doin some quality catchin up..n i would like to spend time takin stock of wats happened since e last christmas n how i've grown better or worse...n be able to exclaim 'there(somewhere bad) but for the grace of God i go'...Cheers..

Quaint or ANother Asia II

the 1st word comin to mind bout China for mi is quaint...interestin society that is realli at a crossroads of rural-ancient and urban-modern...so u see a mix of both old n new, current n archaic in today's China..esp e outlyin small towns n second-tier cities..

i onli went to my uncle's small township outside Guangzhou province, known as Zhongshan...prob due to e presence of a high central hill in e middle of the town that has had telecommunications towers n power grid lines added to it in e last 5 to 10 years...i must say dat the town is planned more orderly n not nearly as haphazard as Hong Kong..

travelled to Zhong shan by ferry which is actually a fast-craft not unlike those they hav bringin lost souls to the charmin lil' island of Pulau Tekong...onboard I saw this darn crude advertisment for Chinese Sausages..realli,man, Chinese Companies hav a long way to go in advertisin..lackin in taste n finese man..

then there were the Cultural Revolution Era slogans found on bright red banners at street corners n major junctions exhortin locals to study hard n contribute to civic society as well as live free of 'corrupt' morals...also the state production license certificates n quality 'Inspection' documentation found in all commercial stores n shops which are a throwback to another year or generation of 'state supervision'...

one can see images of a rural China seekin to live in transition with modernity again on the major highways n expressways..passin a roadside shack sellin honey from a bee-farm n seein trishaws, bicycles n farm tractors..tractors! goin on to e expressway carryin hay...u realli see dat other side of China not evident in economic reports n news telecasts..add to dat the image of a plantation 2 km from a major shoppin mall n adjacent to a main road..u get e picture of a China tryin to be inclusive but not wildly successful in doin so at e moment..

of course, there is great evidence of piracy n IP-infringement in China...for instance, i saw this CHi brand usin e same logo design n background as Dunhill but with e words 'Duobile' in place..n sellin e same type of shirts n clothes as Dunhill lor..but i must say, the quality of cut n material is as good as the original..like somebody stole the material from the Dunhill factory, sewed it with e same machines n sold it at just above e cost of e materials n workmanshp..no wonder e ang mohs hate us chinese haha..

finalli, stayin in e hotel at Zhongshan, i noticed a curious thing...in e middle of e nite, certain scantilly-clad n (i must say) attractive women with high-pitched voices come knockin at hotel room doors..their intent is obvious esp when they ask if u called for 'room service' when quite obviously, one did not..n it was a reputable 4-star 'govt approved' hotel i was stayin in lor...gives one room for tot rite...or fantasy...;-)

Another Asia I

its often amazing the differences to be had in a country with one supposed national identity..sometimes it seems as though a country can be so schizphrenic in charcter..

the 1st thing strikin mi bout Hong Kong was the close proximity(to use a chim word; juxtaposition) of clean, hygenic airport facilities to unhygenic, garbage-strewn five foot ways along the main roads..its like the locals could not care-less..

then there's the strange fact dat there are actualli bus-stops at the beginning of expressways..i'm serious, at the top of of a super-steep slope where the expressway began, the bus i was on actually stopped to pick up passengers at a make-shift bus-stop..huh..i tot to miself...people actualli live at the beginning of an expressway 3 storeys above ground? how else do they get to the top of such a steep slope?

then there's the CBD or zong wan which has ultra-modern sky-scrapers and where major financial institutions are located, such as Standard Chartered, Citibank, Bank of China and of course, the very Hong Kong HSBC...but in the Eastern part of the CBD, there are stalls upon stalls of dried seafood sellers and in another part, there is the last traditional Hong Kong Tea House or Cha Guan in HK which serves excellent food with horrible hygene and environmental standards...

on my final day, day 6, i saw Hong Kong Disneyland on my way to e airport..its probably the most mis-fit lookin structure in Hong Kong and prob anywhere in e world..while i support globalisation to open up borders and make frens..i think Disneyland is a sideshow attraction dat does neither..its like a big, sprawling, bloody ugly piece o' crap in e shape of mickey mouse's head fell onto HK from Outer Space..its so incredibly foreign and incongruous in HK's landscape and so oviously a mere money-makin gimmick...an insult to sacred land use laws and urban plannin man..

the final buildin i saw which left mi in some awe was the majestic Cathay Pacific HQ an d flagship Office...has all sorts of facilities i heard..even short overnite beddin and showers for pilots and senior aircrew...an intelligently designed buildin with solar panels for heatin and other well-planned components..imagine havin a mega-SIA hub in Changi area man..dat would realli do this lil' red dot proud...but i must say, Cathay Pacific has the most disgustin airline food i've ever tasted..even my army camp food tastes better lor...and i've tasted the food on all major airlines such as Qantas, SIA, BA except Emirates..well, in between days 2 to 6 I also made a short trip to China to visit my Uncle on ma Dad's side o e family..man, dats another story for another day...

Wallet-o-Phile

its my intention to blog bout my travels in Hong Kong n China like a mini travel blog but not todae or till late dis week...i will, howeva, do a lil' write-up on one of my purchases in Hong Kong n its deep significance for mi..

as Cheryl said in church today, 'woah, nice wallet..is dat a real Louis Vuitton?" to which i replied, "onli 10 sing dollars from Temple Street in Jordan area, u think leh?" i replaced my wallet in Hk yes..since Dec 2002, i've changed my wallet 4 times in total, inc this latest one..

u noe, wallets are very precious to a man n they reflect his character a great deal..a slim wallet reflects a man who's confident n sees dat his needs r met thru credit n debit cards n onli a few notes of large denominations..larger wallets reflect a desire to flaunt n to be prepared for all contingencies n as he carries more cash, it could be said dat he does not like to be bogged down by pay-later woes dat come with monthly credit bills..a self-made man so to speak..

i'm in between la..so u could say i'm balanced n hav my feet firmly grounded (sorry, i betta stop before my ego reaches Mars)..i changed my wallets due to wear n tear n its interestin to note e kinds of wallets i used to carry down e years..hand-mi-downs when i was in primary n early sec sch,sports canvas types later on in upper sec n JC..n longer, more sophisticated, elegant 'gentlemen' leather types in e army..its a growin up phase for us guys la..

i tell u some of e crazy, dumb stuff i used to do with my wallet..like e time i mistakenli took it out with mi to cross a swamp..after i'd made sergeant but was still wet behind e ears..ever seen 10 dollar bills drippin black water from e edges? needless to say, i threw dat poor wallet n everything in it away first thing i reached camp (save e 20 bucks..spent it up asap..sorry canteen auntie)..or e amount of brown dust i emptied out onto e dance floor of dat Australian club after trainin n durin R&R..must hav freaked e bouncers out with dat sea of sand..

i guess e whole point is dat wallets are dear to a guy n mark his emotional n mental progress in life...why? becos its a store of the money dat we men are more concerned with accumulatin (sometimes for its own sake) than u ladies..n where do men traditionalli carry their wallets since the Industrial Era began? in e breast pocket next to e heart..so u noe..its dear...to gauge e measure of a man, look at his wallet cut, shape, measurements n style i believe..so if u ladies ever seek a good birthdae gift to give a guy..find a good wallet..

Destination H

Flyin off to Hong Kong this mornin for a long-awaited holiday n break...its been quite a while since i've been on an airplane..dat John Denver song alwaez comes unbidden to mind..all my bags are packed and i'm ready to go..

let mi see, e last time i got on an airplane was November last year, comin back from Australia's Rockhampton airport..it was e conclusion of my overseas 'mechanised manoeuvres' with the army...wherein i received a fungal infection of the foot, several blood-sucking tick bites dat could hav caused paralysis for life had they not been removed early on..as well as sets of dust-blown, sand-filled 'combat fatigues'..

well, its been over a year since dat episode n goin on a civilian, commercial flight is a refreshin change from ground-life..my destination will be Hong Kong which could not be a more 'civilian' destination n further from the memories, sights n sounds of military life..its time to get a lil' shoppin done..can hardli believe i've not bought any new up-market clothes since prom nite 03..n time to do a little relative visitin...

probably e best thing to look forward to in HK would be the rows of Tai-pai-Tong or roadside food stalls which i hav not visited since last i went in '99...amazin food n comin to e second 'major attraction' ..amazingly clad women..mind u, while i personally feel dat Singapore has more beautiful women compared to Hong Kong, i must say dat HK women dress much better than their SIngaporean counterparts...n they're more friendly n approachable...but no, i'm not lookin for n will not hav a 'bohemian' experience..ie fall in love in a foreign country..dat onli happens in movies n with celebrities..

i'll be back by Sat e 10th at 7pm...yes, Matt Ng, i promised liquer...n yes Yuankai, i'll get u ur b'dae present over there..apologies for not bein able to attend ur b'dae on e 7th...so till e 10th, God bless my frens n all e best! wish mi Godspeed as i'll wish u laddies n lasses Au-voir...

Dashin Hungarian Horn-Tailed Dragon

Today, i finalli caught dat Potter movie i've been wantin to catch the past 2 weeks, n indeed, all this year..its like a yearly pilgrimmage for mi now...a pet peeve dat brings back good memories..how so? let mi explain..

i started seein e 1st installment of Harry Potter when i was 2001 when i was 18...i can still remember e feelin..i was all young n innocent..ready to take on e world n so sure of myself..not as sure as i was at 16 possibly, but surer than i am now of myself n my abilities..i felt e world was my oyster after finalli leavin e official s'pore education system..anyways, as things go, i wanted to compare Harry Potter to the Lord of the Rings cos both dealt with fantasy n magic, n both had old wizards n young, inexperienced main characters..

then i watched my 2nd installment of Potter..i remember feelin like a loser after failin my a-levels once n bein so many years behind my peers (esp e gals)..this was before my 2nd attempt results came out next march..my 3rd movie was when i had lost my freedom in e army n had learnt a lot of hard lessons in e army dat year, esp bout human nature n success..now for e 4th installment, i feel driven..driven to catch up with my peers n driven to prove somethin..dat i am neither a loser nor a failure..whether in life, faith or relationships..but also humbled to noe dat the Almighty has seen mi thru so much n taught mi so much i would not hav otherwise learnt..humbled oso to noe dat Man Proposes but God Disposes..

i once read this book on Star Wars Trivia..in e forward, e author said dat he first watched star wars iv when he was 16 n had just run away from home, directionless...he was in e queue for tickets to star wars v when he learnt dat his best fren had been murdered in cold blood by armed robbers n when he watched Star Wars vi he'd just had his 1st child born n was watchin it as the first show with his family..dats why he was so into Star Wars..it held so much memory n meanin for him...

well, it lives up to expectation with truly much darker issues bein addressed like death n betrayal as well as loyalty...incidentally, some of e stuff does truli has spiritual significance like e portal to e quidditch world-cup tournament n to Lord Voldemort's hideout...occultists do hav "spirit gates" to spiritual realms n these r often in very terrifyin or eerie places...only does who hav been in BMTC sch 2 n noe of e "third door" in Ulysees coy will relate to dis..

but not everythin la of course...i wonder why dun they hav a department of military magiks in Hogwarts..then they could make good use of dat nasty Hungarian Horn-Tailed Dragon instead of slayin it senselessly..Horned-Tail anyone?

On the Agin of A Guy (or how i noe i'm old)

Boobs sag n skin wrinkles..but how do i noe i'm truly beginnin e downward slide to old age? In a flash, i'm less than 2 months from my 22nd birthdae..onli now do i realise dat when i turned 21, i also stopped growin verticalli, physicalli n sexualli...i've begun a long slow slide to bein senile dat will pick up when i'm 30 n sprint when i'm 40..rite now i'm just agin at baby crawl pace..

why e bloody hell am i entertainin such morbid tots? because of a show on TV...wat most pple dun noe bout mi is dat i grew up watchin Chinese serials, not ang mo, English dramas..n when they showed e latest version of (sorry Kumu n my jia-kantang frens) She Diao Ying Siong Zuan (translated as Legend of e Condor Archers) on Ch 8, filmed with China Chinese actors..i realised dat i'm gettin old...i could tell my frens who've not watched it before wat the next scene was n wat had transpired till this point in time in de story...n F(expletive deleted)! i realise dat i hav seen e original 1980s first production of the serial..with Liu De Hua as Guo Jing n Barbara Yong as Huang Rong...back den Mei Chao Feng was dog-damn-ugly, not lao-chio like e current Chinese actress playin her role..

I've seen all e versions of dat show now and can say dat e Singaporean version is DER MOST PAtHETiC n WooDEn!! i've seen e sequel, Sheng Diao Xia Niu (Legend of the Condor Heroes) n other similar era shows like Tian Long Ba Bu (Sky Dragon Eight Steps? sorry, i singapore education system never teach mi translation one) n Yi Tian Tu Long Ji (or Annals of the Sky Sword n Dragon Sabre)..n now they want to show Shui Hu Zhuan (Water Margin)..i read dat book when i was in pri 6..before my command of Chinese failed in my years with der SA...it was my goal after my PSLE to read Hong Lou Meng (A Dream of Red Mansions) before i left primary sch..i failed..Thank God..


wat's e moral of e story? not dun read too many Chinese books..but its dat things change n wat was once new will one day become a memory..like F4 n Westlife now are (hallelujah)..n where Britney Spears will go (praise the Lord)..hmmm, where will dat stupid song "kan dao zhang lang, wo bu pa, bu pa le...ma li ah-hi" be next year? with e Titanic soundtrack?

In "The Five People u meet in Heaven" by Mitch Albom, Marguerite tells Eddie dat e improvements to e amusement park make it sound like "somebody else's summer"..e sad truth is dat, increasingly, as we all age, e young inevitably take over n it becomes somebody else's playground...i can onli hope dat by constantly adaptin n movin, i can retain my place in it...wat plans hav you?

Connection or A Guys' Take On Female Sexuality

I hav been emboldened of late to write a little more bout female issues from a guys' perspective cos i realise dat i hav a few female frens readin this blog who've given mi comments on wat i written bout female issues..its been refreshin seein things from their perspective so i guess if i wanna noe wat they think, i should write more bout such issues on dis blog...strange psychology huh?

My fren Kumu (of NWO fame; its like a political club) was e one who wanted to noe my opinions on dis interestin case..e background was dis discussion he was havin in the gender studies class he's takin at NUS FASS..he kept wonderin why women hav a higher tendency than guys to hav had a non-single-sex phase in their lives..dat is..were part of homo-sexual or bi-sexual relationships..

well, i was too tired at Dom's birthdae to tell him my views in detail but i promised to devote a blog space to dis so here goes nuttin...gals like each other cos they're gentler physicalli...gals like each other cos they're more emotional..so onli a gal can emotionalli connect with another gal in a way dat a guy who's by nature more rational n emotionalli awkward cannot..

but is it so simple? there r 3 categories here we hav to understand...1) e female who wants to take on e role of e guy..aka e butch, 2) e female who connects emotionalli n sexualli with someone exactli like her in emotion..aka e pure lesbian and 3) e female who is keen to experiment sexualli with guys first, then females next (esp if heart-broken by a cad)..aka e broken bi-sexual..

so how? its not so straight-forward..from my autopsies (just kiddin) i find dat such gals dun need anythin..at least dats wat they like to think...dey onli want a small world centred aroun their relationship..its like some sort of shelter they run to..mayb it has to do with wat women want in a relationship..security n fulfillment..which they find best in a relationship with someone who has e same outlook..(guys look for adoration n admiration..we need someones who needs us..male ego)

wateva it is, for most its a passin phase (but not for all)...like a sort of graduatin class in sexuality they must take to be in full control of their emotions n sex drive...den they can say, its nothin..been there n done dat..now i look for somethin more..if somethin more means (from my viewpoint) facin up to e differences between guys n gals n learnin to adapt n deal with differences because thats part of bein human..den congratulations...perhaps e lesson has served its purpose..but all things considered..i'm just a guy, wat do i noe, rite Cherl?

On the Do-good Reporting of the Local Media

this is old news by now but its been buggin mi for some time..it seems to mi dat the local media in Singapore can be incongruous n fantasticalli optimistic mani times..especialli when it comes to fawnin over all-things n issues government..they realli set new standards of balls-lickin n apple-polishin

a few weeks ago, i read this report in e Straits Times dat a recent survey conducted by some government department showed dat 6 in 10 Singaporeans felt secure in Singapore inspite of terrorism n felt dat Singapore's preparations against this threat were quite sufficient..

the papers went on to say dat this was a good sign especialli as similar surveys done in countries like Germany, France and e UK showed much higher percentages of dis-satisfaction with govt preparations n unease over security issues...

wat dis report convenientli neglected was firstly, than any basis of comparison must first take into consideration the size of the survey sample..dat is, how many people were surveyed..in Singapore, a survey reflectin our population would be smaller than one dat genuinely reflected the much larger German population for instance...n when survey sizes r smaller, they tend to be a less accurate gauge of people's views because of certain statistical principles..its true..survey 10 people versus 100 persons regardin whether they hav wet dreams n u could get totalli different answers..

second and more importantli, u're onli lookin at one side of der coin..when any country in der world has 4 in 10 surveyed say wat amounts to, "Yes, I'm afraid terrorists will blow mi up along Orchard Road and i dun think our govt is doin enuff to keep mi safe"..its a damnin condemnation dat can bring down a western democracy...40% of 3.5 million people (assumin dis survey is accurate n genuinely reflective of e population) is wat? 1.4 million people!!i dunno about u..but if i were a govt minister, i would be very worried about such a disturbin revelation...

and just to sour the optimism of the local media a little more, 1.4 million unhappy people out of a total population of 3.5 to 4 million spread out over an area less than 600 sq km means a lot more than in France n Germany, which have many provinces and cities dat serve to thin out the ranks of the discontented n uneasy..

oh well, its Singapore n we're special la..onli here does e media put such a natural spin on things n praise instead of criticise..after all, wat can der man on e street expect from newspapers dat consistently rank so low on der the international gauge of press freedom and censorship as to be inconsequential? at least they're consistent...give 'em an award for performin to international expectations!

Toilet Humour

Really, its funny wat a nuisance searchin for toilets can be sometimes...recountin an experience from last sunday i believe its ridiculous n perplexin how e search for a toilet can be when we most need it..

it so bluid-dy happened dat last sunday i knovked off duty as COS in camp n was headed for church service at 1030..now as it was still early when i got on e train, bein onli 0900..i decided to make a brief stop at Dhoby Ghaut to catch some breakfast n move out e poison in ma body(if u catch ma drift)

upon reachin e locale, e slight murmur in ma belly had become an inferno of pain ala chemotherapy..n so i made a beeline for dat John aka WC aka piss-station (army-speak)..onli to be confronted by a sweet, small, yellowish clapboard dat proclaimed with a loud voice,"i'm cleanin after u dumbos..get outta here b*tch!"

a so i did e nxt logical thing..went to find e toilet on e next storey..guess wat? by e same freak occurance dat makes men millionaires in a game of blackjack, it too was closed for cleanin..by e time i got to e 3rd floor toilet..i knew somethin was amiss...to guarantee banker always wins, e dice had been loaded..so to speak..all closed for cleanin by very-present studious cleanin aunties..

why? is there too much money to employ multiple toilet cleanin crews who can clean e loos at e same time? or simply dat management needed to conduct army-style stand-by-area inspections of all toilets before 1000 hrs? maybe the prime minister of timbuktu was comin to visit Plaza Sing n had a history of poor bladder control...n why clean all e toilets in e mornin before visitors came and not some e nite before n some e next mornin? wateva it is, e conclusion dat can be drawn best is dat toilet-cleanin in PS is neither scheduled very smartly nor scheduled very well, or dat it is followed so zealously n religiousli dat it can onli be done at a certain time, to e inconvenience of all others...

anyways, e end of e matter was dat i had to walk to Rendesvouz Hotel to use e bluid-dy toilet..in my weakened state due to e wrenchin spasms of tummy contractions (dat i swear would hav given mi a 6-pack set of abs if they persisted for a little longer)..dat was no small joke man...i guess e moral of e story is dat one should never assume SAF-style rhetorical stupidity is onli found in SAF camps..i found a neat parallel dat day...

der thing she does

Tuesdays with Morrie is a book i've come to treasure...Mitch says dat leavin sch, he left his dreams behind n became hard..dats not e best part..my fav part is dat someone came along who loved him enuff to wait for him n marry him..

i've alwaez been a stupid romantic in ma heart o' hearts n i wait for e right one to come, like Chelsea waitin for Jose Mourinho to arrive..therein lies e problem.."a riddle, hidden in a mystery, wrapped in an enigma" as Churchill put it..if we wait, wat if we never meet dat special one?u see, its my honest belief dat there's alwaez someone who fits a fella's preferences for members of e opposite sex (actualli its a few..) but we never meet 'em, or never get to noe them well coz our social circle is just a little smaller than them..

take for instance, a gal i got to meet thru frens; miss An lets call her..when i got added to her frenster list, i found dat i had so mani similar interests with her..n i liked e same songs, movies, books n authors i liked..hell we even had e same religion...i knew we would hav an instinctive chemistry if we onli got to noe one another better...

then i realised she had a boyfren she was deepli in love with and u noe wat its like with gals who r attached..can never get close enuff to 'em...n becos i onli had 1 fren with her in common, it was impossible to get any closer..n i am not e kinda jerk who becomes e 3rd party in a relationship...i noe wat dat feelin is like to be potong jalan'd so to speak...

so it was dat i never got to noe her well, go out with her or be given e opportunity to chase her...a case of not meetin someone e rite time n of not bein given sufficient opportunities or even proximity to develop into somethin more..

so then they say Fate makes sport of men...they hav a point u noe..n so wat else do u think i can do but wait..like Tom Hanks in The Terminal, sometimes we spend all our lives waitin for somethin to happen..e onli good i can see is dat, havin seen the ungiven opportunity, we learn to seize both e day n wat we are allowed when it finally comes..as well as to treasure it for it does not come by easily..dat in a nutshell, is e single greatest lesson we need to learn when we wait; n onli after dat can we move on..

How An Arthouse Film Seizes the Senses

i hav a thing for French films these days..especialli after watchin Jean Luc Besson's Taxi trilogy...e French hav a thing for prctical jokes as much as e English hav a thing for dry, sacarstic humour..

i feel dat a good movie should always indulge e senses without overwhelming them, as well as incorporate a good high speed car chase n a love affair between 2 protagonists whom fate tries to keep apart..throw in a few laughs for comic relief n u hav it..Taxi 1, 2 and 3..

it may be slapstick n will probabli appeal onli to certain pple such as the male psyche...but Taxi is undoubtedli creative, tongue-in-cheek n defiant towards established authority as well as reflective of a dark undercurrent of rebellion by the youth of France...

as such, it is prophetic of the recent troubles in France..wat with e riotin, lootin n arson...French youth simpli dun respect e police, military or any form of authority these days...the latest addition to a long history of anti-authoritarian civil unrest which include the Paris Commune, Sans Culottes n the French Resistance against Marshal Petain's Vichy govt in WW2..as the British would say..the Frogs dun like social hierachies or Frog kings

oh dear, this isn't meant to insult e French or anything..i started out praisin French film n ended insultin French youth..no, no...i realli appreciate French culture, wine (YES!), women (oops) n French country..but i seem unable to understand the inability of the French to do wat the obvious n well-reasoned out step is to restore internal order..act against violence n crime while investigatin e source of the outbreaks thoroughly..

anyway, its not my place to tell e French wat to do..but i think more effective street policin, with a little more extreme car chases like in Taxi, might win some hearts n minds...

Sunshine Diwali

this is a nod n a thank goin out to Kumu for dat invitation to the Deepavali lunch at his place...

On Thurs, Kumu invited the NWo gang n miself to his place along Sunshine Terrace in Yio Chu Kang for a Deepavali lunch (belated it was actualli)nice ploy ma bro gettin us to dress niceli cos supposed 'guests' were comin in addition to us..u see, to us testosterone-fuelled guys, we naturalli made e assumption dat this meant der Ladies were comin as well..

so of course we dressed up (more than dictated by e bounds of smart casual) like Ents waitin to meet the Ent-wives (in Lord of e Rings parlance)...n Kumu fooled us all..but i guess he was right..dat was the onli way to get a nice formal clothin picture of all o'us for once...cheat!

the food was great i tell ya...Kumu's mum serves the best sambal prawn n curried quail egg this side of the hemisphere i dare say!n e mutton n chix was fabulous... not too spicy but a full range of flavours on e palatte...n the gravy was pasty n not too watery, which for Indian food is ideal i feel...n was dat vegetable curry sauce ladeled on my banana leaf, on top o' ma rice? (ate au naturale we did) makes e rice go smooth down da throat man...a bit like chinese soup with rice..sigh..e onli thing lackin was a good dry n citrus white wine to complement and even bring out the flavours..but then again..we strive for perfection right?

we had a great time..thanks Kumu! friendship refreshed by a good meal is always welcome with mi..its been attributed to Benjamin Franklin, "Praise the Lord, and pass the ammo!" let it be attributed to mi, "Praise the Lord, and pass the curry!"

I'll Shame the B*s*a*r**!!!

tonite is for mi blog nite and there's lotsa stuff i wanna blog about...to start e yarn-spinnin n tale bearin we hav ye ol' story of modern-day social colonialism n pharasaical racial superiority...

there's a fire in ma' belly as i'm writin this here song...
as movin roun' in li'l Orchard Ro
ma mouth turned a-tasty
ma tongue clapped n clung, a-Ho!

before mi lies a Mc-Cafe In Lidos' b'ttom,
i run to get a drink o' Kaffey-ne; wait!
not so hasty! a bum-drop we first must find
so high, low look till we gott 'em,
sweet as a corn'r in a lake...

ta buy ma' piped hot cuppa i do head
done in ten mikes with possession
heigh-ho! ma seat looks not like fish-bait
see wat fashion a big hairy crab took it
red n cooked in e tropical sun
with lil' oriental rose beside him..such fun!

piss off! in ma mind i hear,
i even left my magazine aroun
careless flip u've thrown on floor...
but miself; wat a dear! i frown,
n head out e door, my mag underarm found

now cappucino goes cold down ma throat,
but white-hot in da belly...

why is it dat Asians victimise themselves in their own country when we feel intimidated by certain pale-skinned folks who've not been very nice? y do we still grin n bear it? reverse colonialism i call it; asian women thinkin 'said-group' men are better n asians givin deference to them because WE think they r superior by right n birth, colour n skin..

stop colonisin ourselves i say...pschologically n socially..a final word to those who think otherwise...Frank Herbert's Dune series of sci-fi books has a group of slaves risin up against their racially 'superior' masters in der context of a wider war on humanity by machine intelligence..i quote the slaves to their human masters,"you r worse than the machines for u enslave ur own kind!"

Trouble on the Borders

recent events hav been a cause for some alarm in der region..wat with der New Delhi Terror attacks, birdflu penetration thruout e world n even the rise of China vis-a-vis the traditional role of the US as protector of Asia since WW2...

a scary place the world can be these days as alarmist sentiments arise and new n old diseases chase round the globe from pole to pole...it can be pretty overwhelmin for e average man-in-der-street..

i think we all ought to sit back n take a breath of fresh air n take stock of wats happenin n put everythin in perspective...the world's never been a nice place since God-knows-when; its just dat every generation faces its share of troubles we think is the worst..its not actualli..

wat can i say? mayb Singaporeans should not go at such a breakneck pace thru life..we just might be able to enjoy der finer things of life...mayb we should all not be so obsessed with material success n human recognition...it just might make possible a more satisfied n fulfilled existence..

as for disease n terror, bein on guard is great but lets not adopt a siege mentality where everyone's suspicious of their neighbour n narrow-minded about the outside world thru fear n bigotry..to engage n be open inspite of safeguards is the surest way of defeatin the ideology of Terror n the most effective way of sharin the resources that can beat the spread of disease

to combat the troubles of this age will take more than a day, feel good rallies or even military n medical action...but it starts by not takin ourselves too seriousli yet not givin in to complacency...also by re-evaluatin our prorities in life n becomin more open to people n change...so next time someone coughs in der lift, dun turn away...try offerin a tissue..

Return of da kinG

"Guess who's back? Back again? Guess who's back, guess who's back..." in e words of Eminem it sounds so right...n today, an icon of Singapore has returned after a brief respite...

Zouk...da king of the dance n music scene has returned...the white tree flowers again (in Lord of e Rings parlance)..it was a great scene at the re-openin last nite i tell ya...babes galore, Phuture with a larger dance area n the walkway linkin Zouk n Phuture lookin like a incandescent tunnel into the great unknown...hip-hop as only they noe how to play at Zouk made a comeback after a brief hiatus n the drinks flowed 1-for-1 till midnite once more...very cool n very refreshin even though the internal layout remained largely the same...i had been lookin forward to a new, bolder n differnet layout actualli..

why does a guy like mi, a practicin Christian who speaks in tongues n believes in da Bible go to such places, some may ask...after all it breeds lust, encourages drunkeness n promotes loose, irresponsible livin as well as substance abuse...

i seek not to defend myself or my actions, onli to give an account..first off, the music attracts mi..its great to jive to n great to listen..then there was a time when i was more confused n given to darker musings when i needed something light to contrast with..this was it..service in the army was n is hard..n i related to Zouk's music n end-day unwindin well..i would say it struck a cord in mi heart dat had become cold, hard n calloused..

furthermore, i admit, that i was lookin for love in such a place when first i went to Zouk...(some might call it sex)...it was a dark time in mi life, was dat stretch of ns..then later it became a sort of nostalgia..everytime i went there i felt again e feelins n confusion i had when first i went..as well as the relief at e music...i dun wanna be a disco-junkie man but i feel dat growin up, we all need our wild sides..its a learnin experience

like the fren i hav who kept paricipatin in sports or the frens who kept playn LAN games (not cos they were addicted but cos dat was somethin they related to)..i mean..its like some gals who pass thru dat lesbian phase of life who are explorin sexuality n emotion..there's a fine line between exploration n addiction/obsession but we all need to grow up thru these lessons i feel..growin up nobody truli understands how we feel n human beings need stuff they can relate to..i'm not talkin bout drugs or smokin or heavy drinkin...but stuff dat makes a person an individual..so he can say, dats so mi..its unique to mi n wat i relate to..it makes mi who i am n the way i tick..

its wat keeps us alive n chasin dreams, dreams that keep e dark nite of e soul away n keeps us sane...n finalli, i reason, won't it be better to do stuff we relate to (but not illegal, immoral nor harmful) when young, rather than when a guy's 50 n goin thru male menopause...i sure as hell dun wanna be goin to Zouk n dancin e nite away with some hot babe (ya rite) when i'm 50..."when you are young, do what pleases your heart with all your might"...Ecclesiastes

Bootleg Cigarettes and other Nights-Off Tales

Comin from a combat side unit based on the mainland of Singapore, i find that one of the few consolable pleasures to the long, hard nights on operations is the fact that nights off, when they are given, allow for a wider scope of 'operation'...in army parlance, so to speak..

Just yesterday, my fren and fellow spec Melvin, who drives and had parked his car in camp(another benefit) offered to give my mates n miself a lift to 'town'...which is a euphemism for the suburban neighbourhood of Choa Chu Kang ,which is linked by half hour on-the-road to the rest of S'pore (n thus not all dat far)

he's an impatient driver who swears when honked at and cuts lanes like a bandit's getaway vehicle..and he offered to give us a lift on the condition that he would first get a pack of cigarettes from the Kranji area, which could only be accessed by certain backroads from where we were...n another fello spec fren o'mine decided he wanted 1 as well...

so off we went down the backroads that made mi feel i was in my armoured vehicle drivin cross-country on an assault manoeuvre, wat with e grass, trees and narrow-gauge track we were on...towards the Kranji Beach WW2 Battle site, then past the BBC Far Eastern Relay Station(did u noe they had a physical presence on S'pore?) and then past the local S'porean Fisheries and Bird sanctuary(not an everyday sight huh) and down Sungei Kadut before exitin into the Yew Tee area where my fren pumped some petrol at a 70's style petrol kiosk with the cash register next to the petrol pumps where only cash was accepted...also where cigarettes were to be found in super-close proximity to petrol pumps..

and speakin o' cigarettes, melvin then turned into a junction where he bought his cigarettes...imported Marlborough Reds, Menthols and Dunhills from Indonesia...duty unpaid n without the (in)famous after-cancer-effect photos on e front from Indonesian workers (a reversal of roles;consumer and manufacturer)...a pack for 5 sing dollors...a real steal these days in a land where e govt (supposedly) intends to raise prices eventually to 20 dollars a pack..not for mi la...

and all this before the real Nights-off adventures at the shoppin mall we were bound for took place...like catchin that chic Corpse Bride movie just in time...n wastin ourselves at e video games arcade on Virtua Striker and Silent Scope after..these nights-off from camp can be such a voyage into e unknown sometimes...must tell of the time my good buddy signed up for life-long insurance at e mall just to get to noe this sweet insurance lady sometime...now that takes guts or testicular fortitude as radio DJ Glen Ong once called it..

Vote-Pulling?

While walkin past BreadTalk along e Orchard Underpass to Ngee Ann City, i was waylaid/ ambushed...

a salesgirl from BreadTalk asked for a moment of my time...n bein e hot-blooded gentleman who never turns down a young sweet thing with a simple request like, "excuse mi sir, do you like BreadTalk?" i let her ask mi a few questions..

oh please, its not something seedy like wat u're probabli thinkin now...just questions bout my gastronomic preferences regardin Bread...then it went to this S'pore Promisin Brands award BreadTalk's been nominated for..n i was asked if i would like to vote for BreadTalk via SMS...it would get mi a handphone keychain thingy...wat a way to get votes man! of all e coarse, obscene displays of a lack of finese that can be found...a mockery of fairplay it was..but then...i admit (rather sheepishly) dat i did vote...its dat Cute gal...all her fault...Eve gave mi the fruit of knowledge n i ate....

wats it with men and young, female sales promoters man? is it our tetesterone, our lust (yes, dat taboo word), or e male preference for attractive eye-candy dats perfectly symetrical n stirs e primordial desire for a large hip-waist ratio dats optimal for childbearin? wateva it is, i noe dat services n sales use sex (or at least sexual attraction) to sell products n services..n we men are suckers for e takin..

dats e edge women have over men...they are not as susceptible to eye-candy in sales as men are...yes...i noe the Calvin Klein ads are mighty popular with ladies...but its not such a 'sticking' factor like Guess models are to induce high sellin among men..so then, ladies have our weakness out in e open..can anyone please tell mi wat works to induce high sales volumes amongst women? i'd like to noe for interests' and compartisons' sake...

boy, do i hope parliamentary elections dun take a page from this n start fieldin Tiger Gals as candidates to garner votes in Potong Pasir...man..Chiam See Tong won't noe wat hit him...

der New Balance Real Run Photos..1 h15min...lookin ahead December's StanChart Runs' next up..any1 with mi?

of silly mistakes made

when stupid get a person, it does'nt let go till its done its damage in full..dats wat i've found out bout life..dats y people do stupid stuff like attempt suicide after a heartbreak or go drunken bingein at a waterin hole dat charges crazy cut-throat rates dat shame a pirate..all for frenship's sake..

it was the same with mi recently...stupid especialli strikes when u're in haste or wantin something real bad..like Desire makin fun of men in need (or heat) for sport..just read Neil Gaiman's Sandman series for an idea of where i'm goin...

but anyway, back to my yarn..there i was wantin to get my application for wat they call Tertiary education processed..all in a rush like the man unable to wait to make e 2-backed beast (catch my drift?)..and havin submitted an on-line application on e 21st, i was not in favour of a wait to submit my supportin documents..

compounded was e fact i had a deadline to meet before 30 sept to send in my documents else i pay a late fee...so i got my documents ready n copied n boy, these days i'm beginnin to think they call it e Paper Chase for a real, literal reason..so i had these documents in an envelope n i'm thinkin to miself how to get them to e Applications Office by 30 sept when today its alreadi e 27...by courier dats how...n it cost mi 24.50 Sing dollars man..i mean dats no small Shite amount for 45 grammes of black n white monochrome manuscripte...

n u all noe wat e stupid part is? i left out my application no. n candidate name on e envelope..every thing else was there all prim n proper..from address to Attn: Online Aplications right down to "If undelivered Please Return to...." except dat small 'lil name n application no. ...wat of it? e onli thing is to call e Tertiary Institution up n do a bit of damage control...n pray they dun just discard e documents...or next best choice...Singpost 24.50 services again...no small shite as i say...at these times i feel like a long drag on a nicotine fag accompanied by a glass of Red Smirnof-on-the-Rocks or Old Grouse with barmy water...but then again, Christ would nae agree...so its just down to good ol' prayer, trust n a wish for e best...

taste tested

here's dat post i promised i'd try to salvage yesterday...on a whim Richard my good camp bro n miself decided to do a little shoppin yesterday...incidentally i also wanted to do a little, shall i call it, litmus test, across the board of service in da various class clothes joints/boutiques in Singapore(by wat they call themselves u can tell how classy they style themselves)

first we started off in the upmarket stores with e 3 to 4 digit price tags (so u noe its REAL upmarket) like Armani Exchange, Polo Ralph Lauren, Barneys n Les Amis before movin on to e mass market brands like Topshop, Zara, G2000 n Nautica before headin to the Singaporean brands like Samuel n Kevin as well as Jean Pierre at Cine (not Jean Paul Gartier mind u, dun do beng reviews)...n since i've been to the underground, alternative, guerilla joints like Commes de Garcon, New World Order, DCP's A Slurpin Ape, Flesh Imp n de like last week, i had a pretty good idea wat service there was like..

i, for one feel that the service at upmarket boutiques is very quiet except for Les Amis which actually got mi to stop in my tracks when i was leavin e store to try lookin for somethin i liked..i found a nice striped shirt of fine cotton...made in France n costin 300 plus...ouch..

at the mainstream shops service can be even worse...i guess its probabli due to the brisk walkin in n out of half-hearted shoppers n e occasional shopper-from-hell..too jaded i guess..overall very consistent service (or lack thereoff)..none even bothered to greet, smile or thank...mayb u'll say dats bein artificial..but its my money n i'm not spendin it at such places..period..

at e singapore brands, i found service better overall, Samuel n Kevin was good n Jean Pierre was excellent...i managed to find a tee in a colour i was huntin for e whole nite with a simple design n bought it at an affordable price...i think dat when u're small, lean n hungry, u tend to perform better n keep the things dat count on top of priorities...u're also more respectful, grateful n humble...dat settles it..i'm throwin my lot behind small n medium enterprises..

a point of note: at e guerilla stores such as found at Far East, dun expect upmarket service...pick wat u like (its very much a wat-u-see-is-wat-u-get sales phiosophy), make ur purchase n F*** off (or be F***d off by the staff)...n only basic, specific n short questions are entertained like do u hav this in____ colour or in____ size?but i like e underground..its like i find a new, alternative voice when i wear their clothes...one dat says i'm outta da commercial, mainstream loop by choice...since i've alwaez been the Outsider, e Outcast, Reject n Rebel, i dun realli mind now, do i?

to end it all, i feel dat service cannot be applied across da board in all stores the same but it is true dat some of e more prominent brands should buck up their standards man..though i generalli like to be left alone to shop in peace, if i'm goin to be payin 3 or 4 digit sums for personal clothin, i think i deserve a little service dats value for my dollar rite? dats part of dollar diplomacy sales frenz...

Frustration

F***!! i just lost a post i was doin...it was on da service industry in singapore...shappin up to be somethin i realli liked...now its gone with my creative juices...*pause to swear all e vulgarities ever used on mi in e army n which i hav in turn used on those who've known mi in due time n with which i curse e SAF everday*...ok..i'm too tired to rewrite dat post...but here's an address regardin my last post..Yve, sweet lass, dat mention of females who've disappointed mi, hurt mi n pissed mi was nae includin ya...excluded u are from such a condemnation lass...n i WILL keep ya guys in e NWO updated...u are one of e things dat mattered enough to mi to warrant my stoppin long n hard to think before takin e plunge into e waters of da cool dark pond...so to speak..n to Shian..bro, u dinnae hav any idea wat God has in store for ya after e black days spent at e green gate, waitin for it to end...6 hours did Christ spend on e cross; can anyone say they've spent longer than Him, waitin literalli, for e curtain (in e temple) to fall? or longer than my Father waited to turn back His Face to His Son? n Gabriel? i'm callin ya today..we hav to talk before u go to Cambridege...ur decision to leave was a chief catalyst for my own decision though i knew it not at e time

in fact, many things catalysed my decision...i believe that e direction for some things in life is set by many forces...just like e course of history..historical epochs (big word with big purpose) like e outbreak of World War 1 or 2 cannot be reversed or changed...man is too small to do that...historical events like e assasination of Franz Ferdinand or Kennedy may hav been prevented, but e events arisin from them would hav occured nonetheless...one would be naive to think dat World War 1 or e US involvement in Vietnam would go away just by changin these historical events alone...historical direction at least is, usin a word anathema to my college History tutor, S Tay, inevitable...

darn..i overreach myself..dats my philosophy u might say..haiz..i'll try to reconstruct dat lost post (dats a nice one) tmrw when my mind's not doin mental gymnastics all over mi..would hav been real nice to see it published to nite..g'nite all

Where Sure Decisions are Unmade n Phantom Choices Solidify

I dun usualli talk of my experiences in the army in detail but some events are too momentous to leave out...like the time i literalli felt my entire world view deconstructin itself in my heart n mind post Support Weapon Live Firin in SISPEC BSLC..gradualli reformin into something else dat is the current incarnation of Jonathan Chua..or der time in my battalion where we had our Advanced Trainfire Programme (ATP) live firin n i just could not hit e targets to pass with der minimum of 21 shots on target..

dun bang ur head against e wall i learnt dat day...its futile n fruitless...i remeber askin myself on e 2nd day of firin if i wanted to do engineerin, which i alwaez struggled with, (it was not engineerin but Maths n Physics act) for e rest of my life..no was my honest confession...n i began searchin for alternatives to Engineerin at NTU dat day...

in e past year since, i realised i should hav done Design at Poly when i was 16...i loved design back then though Goh Boon Pin freaked mi out(till dis day, i sometimes still wake up in cold sweat in e middle of e nite wonderin bout wat he would say bout der slow progress on my imaginary portfolio work)..still i was loathe to admit it till this year...

as mentioned in my last post, certain situations n pple catalysed my choice...disappointment in love n certain frenships, the slow wastin decadence in e last few months of NS, the belief dat e Youth ministry can manage well with or without mi in constant involvement n e renewed belief in God's sovereignty even in e unknown led mi to make der decision to pursue Architecture at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Tech in Australia from Feb next year onwards..its a 5 year course n a welcome change i need la...

as i said, there's not much dat holds mi back now la...my best frens all settled in uni n i am assured they will not forget mi unlike some gals i noe, e foundation of e Charis Youth Ministry in place n in good hands...there's nothin n no one worth dat much to mi dat opposes my decision (my parents are in favour)...n for whom i might possibli change my mind so there u hav it, a seachange in myoutlook n educatinal interest...

come next feb, i'll be bloggin in der big oz..so dun worry..i promise there'll be consistency n continuity here (not dat i believe anyone realli reads though haha)

Rice Tableu anyone?

if anyone who reads this blog has a thing for food , i hav a nice place to recommend for wat its worth..The Rice Table at Cuppage which serves excellent Indonesian food Buffet style...translated from the Duch word Rijstaffel, its style is quite unique...they serve one a range of choices of Indonesian foods like Satay, Otah, sweet n sour fish, fried Tahu, Lontong, curry prawns, curry chicken n other Indonesian favourites in small plates on a heated metal platform at one's table...one chooses from these dishes as much as we want..these hav been pre-selected by the management n can be added on to..a unique buffet style..

costwise, its affordable...in der region of 30 bucks for 2..as buffets go, its low-priced..bring company u can talk to while eatin to ignore the spice in der dishes...i went with my fren Christine whom i've not met in more than a year n who is Indonesian Chinese (explains the culinary choice does'nt it?) but sadly, her appetite failed to live up to expectation...no fault of hers or der food though, i must stress, just a freak of health like Katrina strikin her stomach so to speak..

Good company she was, God bless ya heart Chris, on a borin Monday out of camp clearin leave n wonderin wat the Hell some of my other frens were gettin on in their uni studies n life...anyways, i guess i've found wat i want to do for my Tertiary education post-NS...its been formin up in my mind like a storm at sea since August last year n things hav come to a boil lately due to some input from circumstances n interactions with certain people in life...its somethin i've wanted to do but never had der courage to take up or the passion to defend pre-NS...its related to Design n my daes doin D&T way back in the SA commonality which i shared with e closest of my frens n brethren...will write bout it next blog in more detail but suffice it to say, there's nothin much keepin mi back anymore dat i feel would disapprove of my current choice...anywaez, try the Rice Table if u hav time..its worth the while..

My Kinda Girl

seen Lindsay Lohan lately? i did..on Herbie; Fully Loaded...the first thing any guy notices bout dat gal is der size of her mamaries..beautiful...and all e women will start accusin mi of bein shallow here..but she does have a good set of...lungs

i for one went straight for her legs...now those are elegant i must say..if i had to gauge the beauty of a woman, i'd give high weightage to her legs..on a primodial level i guess it cos we see a woman's legs n hips as part of the fertility equation..on today's FHM Testosterone-charged level, i'd say the length of the gal's legs plus the more well sculpted they are squared by the ratio of her hips to waist indicates how much sexual pleasure the male ego fantasises in der said act of imaginary couplin...

wats my point? other than der fact that i like leggy babes ;-) n i am like any other guy in bein attracted to ...chest-level theatrics, i like gals who are themselves aroun guys n who do not put on airs or pick n choose who's worthy to be their frens (like some pple i noe; yes its u i diss n show e middle finger to) as would most real guys who work hard for an honest day's livin n hav some nasty b****s to contend with in their lives who are the most farcial people to walk this planet...

i'm sorry..got a bit carried away there...look, i speak out for the odinary guys out there...the women of this generation are economically n sexualli liberated...i dun begrudge this (i am a political liberal after all) but ladies, please do not become the same obnoxious creatures that the women's liberation sought to dethrone...regardless of sex, sincerity n humility are virtues esteemed by humanity and humanitarianism (of which feminism is a branch)...give the odinary guy a chance even if he's not very bright, rich or handsome...dats love

unless of course, feminism does not believe in love, the family, marriage or reproduction any more..just workplace equality, 'free' sex n abortion...whereby it ceases to be feminism but rather callous egocentricity that is not part of our Liberal Humanitarian ideals...in short, stop categorisin guys accordin to wat u think e guy is like man...try gettin to noe him as a fren before formin an opinion..n no, lindsay lohan is not my kinda gal...prefer older women act..

That Name Game

there are 2 christian faiths aroun in der protestant world today...the true sufferin kind that the secular world loves to sling mud at and wat i call the 'pop christianity phenemenon' one has at places like, dare i say it, City Harvest and New Creation aka the Rock...

i saw a wonderful demonstration of a assembly line Baptismal service yesterday incorporatin the best of Henry Ford's mass production efforts with der Model T..there might as well have been a discman or mp3 playin "i baptise u in the name of the Father and The Son and the Holy Spirit" as many times as there were baptismal candidates...look i'm not sayin all this is bad..God's Kingdom can do with more than one kinda ministry style so u work ur side of the street while i work mine...that Christ may have mercy on us all and save our souls right?

before any of the members of these places do a Salmon Rushdie (noe who he is?) wanted list for mi, i want to ask a few questions...have you heard of John of the Cross? Theresa Avila? Thomas Kempis? Shusaku Endo? Leo Tolstoy and Fyodor Dostoevsky? Thomas Merton's The Seven Story Mountain? Dietrich Bon Hoeffer's The Cost of Discipleship? no? then u noe nothin of the other Christianity i mentioned earlier...and maybe u should find out what it means to be a Christian under the Nazis first by readin The Cost of Discipleship...then again, in this day and age when Christians read their Bibles durin Sunday(or Sat) service only, that would be askin too much of you right?

please dun get mi wrong...i love the Christians from City harvest whom i met...and i enjoyed the worship and to an extent, the preachin...but the execution lacks a certain, shall i say, finesse and ever so slightly offends my Christian tastes..its always been my sincere belief that Christ may have come to save sinners and prostitutes but He strangely never saw the need to adopt a prostitute's garb or a Tax-collector's speech..i wonder if we could be smarter than Him or we are simply bein 'too clever by half' as someone famous once said...

the Long Road home

sometimes i wonder if anyone even bothers to read this blog...then a fren like yvonne drops a comment to say, hey, u're bloggin...good to see that...so thanks all my comment droppers and frens who read this stuff...

i had a bit of a week here man..was a taxi driver to quite a few old uncles in their 30s to 40s..even had the dubious honour of bein screwed verbally by not a few...another feather in my cap you must be thinkin..i never thought i would rough it out after my ATEC trial but there i was supportin some officers in their higher level trainin...in the field 24/7 for half a week..

i was made to think of all the various times i went out into the 'field' in the damn national service and all the stress as well as to some extent, pleasant memories i've had..i learnt all the hardest lessons of life out there from bein too sure of myself to the value of standin up for myself when only God is on your side... along with some of the terrible habits that will eventually kill if i continue them...i had my first cigarette out there (and a jolly good stick it felt back then) but i've given that up since..

the point of all this mish-mash bein that i've learnt some nasty lessons out there in the wide open world of the army and done some pretty nasty things totally out of keepin with my character...now i guess i'm on the mend and comin back home to God and sanity..its a Long Road home for mi and i just want to say sorry to those i've hurt durin those dark days...and to those who have hurt mi, i forgive u dudes (but not without consequence man..thats comin ur way)

i've learnt the lessons from this stage of life well enough la...and i will say that i hope never to have to go down such a dark path again or relearn these lessons...lessons such as havin a backbone to stand for what u believe in...thank God i'm on my way back from the edge of the precipice..

Run Forest! Run!

i'm not dat great a runner realli..but i enjoy runnin..its fantastic when you have fresh blood pumpin up ur arteries while air rushes down ur lungs and aroun ur body, and the inner fires of the metabolism are stoked that drive the legs up and down, in and out, forward and back...it makes a man feel..so alive...more excitin than sex i feel it is and infinitely more scenery as well, not to mention no risk of catchin stds..

when u have a bad day as Daniel Powter sings, its great to run..it clears the mind and opens new perspectives to our horizon..it forces us to discard the dross n keep onli the essence of our problems that we then face n focus on solvin...and it takes our mind off the pain of our hearts n minds that we sometimes may be undergoin...

so it was when i ran for the New Blaance Real Run last weekend on Sentosa...the sand trail i tell u was more than i expected..truly gruellin and teeth-grindin..i was forced to take my mind of my temporary melancholy and focus on the run at hand...i had been wonderin bout friendship n the transcience of life on this little mud-ball called Earth..when would i be able to start a new term at university and i felt sad that all my closest frens had moved on while i was still stuck where i was...because of where we are in life, i felt that people stereotype us and choose our worthiness to be their frens...not my closest frens but others i noe..

well i guess the run helped mi break out of dat melancholy...a paradigmn shift happened in my mind...my turn will come as will all of us..n i will enjoy employin the skills i hav acquired as a wordsmith where i've been all this while on certain kinds of people in der university...like Darthsidious, the Revenge of the Sith is at hand..and also i noe that we learn who our true frens are in times of need n difficulty...havin had some of my frenships sifted in the my 2 odd years where i am, i noe who to keep n who to discard into the 'rubbish heap of history'..thank u Trotsky for that phrase...

About Karukku

i like stories bout underdogs, the oppressed n how life alwaez has a maddenin tendency to screw us all every now n then...

imagine my reaction when i read that Indian writer Bama was comin to Singapore for the SWF recently...my interest was piqued i tell ya...i cannot wait to get my hands on the English tranlsation of her book, Karukku, on the fate of the Dalit class of outcastes in Indian society...

people like myself who've always seen ourselves as 'the Outsider' in life, relationships and even the Kingdom of God will take to this book i believe sincerely...the bigotry of Indian social relations serves as an amazing counter-point to the emergence of India on the World stage as a potential political actor of some repute..no love, no education and no hope of becomin somethin better..how can a society which produced great moralists like Gandhi ever clear its conscience about or discharge its responsibility to these people?

in her own words i finally understand wat Paul meant when he talks about the 'wall of separation' that Christ tore down between us and God...Bama says,"despite all my books, a Dalit is a Dalit. I will be a Dalit even after i die, because there is a wall between the upper caste crematorium and the Dalit crematorium" (italics mine) this absolution is removed through One and by One Alone i believe...the hope of all social, political systems, governments, peoples and individuals..and i will point others like the Children of the Broken Earth to that Person till my dyin breath...

Lets Talk about Sex

sex...amazin 3 letters we all, regardless of age and frankly, gender, would like to have more of...right guys? a chorus of agreement...

lets face it la..there's a lot of sexuality and desire in our modern society..not all good but all reflecting a deep inner need of humanity...and it is true that many of us Asians are averse to talkin about our sexual needs, fetishes and wants..watevea e newspapers have been sayin lately, i still dun see sex as a topic u'd discuss at the dinner table with mom n pops..which is der gold standard of openess to mi..

when a guy has a sexual experience for der 1st time i believe its very often in a moment of folly...like my fren tells mi...its not alwaez fun becos u dunno wats goin on..it can be a traumatisin n shameful experience as he says; my fren..painful for both der guy n gal...n later when u reallli do it with ur wife or the truth is, for most, their 'galfrens', the thought, "hey, i've done this before" comes to mind...n dat is a secret i hope dat ur wife never finds out unless u're both open enuff for u to tell her..

wat we need in singapore is not a liberal attitude toward sex la...like spg puts it ;-> n wat would dat accomplish? absolutely nuts but for a single muders, unwanted babes n der rise of a new class of have-nots..no father...n contraception? nice but for one caveat...sex is dehumanised n wat dehumanises also desensitizes ...no more fun, joy n a dull throb(or thrust) dat passes off for wat was once pleasure...pathetic

wat singapore needs is open discussion of sex n sexual cravin...sex should humanise n talk of sex should always whet the appetite like a delicate appetizer before a meal...lets be more human n discuss our sexual desires more candidly without blushin but also with respect n dignity...its not a sleaze fest but a love fest baby...

Der Company I Keep

By a man's frens n der company he keeps can his character be judged..it is said...but how can u tell so when he is forced to keep company with different types of pple he would not in everyday life get to meet, much less know?

well, how we interact in such a settin betrays our charcter even more i say..if one treats der jerks in life just so they noe they're jerks yet works well with em on e basis o' mutual respect, then dat says a lot bout der guy's charcter...

anywaez, der backdrop to all dis pseudo-philosophical bull crap is dis...dat i went for my 46 SAR Sp coy cohesion evenin today...n i pay tribute to these men, those in command (not all of whom i like or respect) n those who hav stuck thru it with mi

it was good to noe these frens n good to hav gone thru all der screw-ups n excellent hardships with them..it is great dat tho we all do not alwaes get along, i trust them with my back(well,most of em at least)..wallaby's over, Atec's over, NDP's over..onli Ops B left..then to der winds we all will scatter

we take care of our own(or at least dats wat i'd like to believe) n i thank all of em for der memories, n der shit, n der pain, n der misery, n der bonds of combat, n for all those i do not like who hav helped mi become more mature, patient n acceptin (of shitheads like der current charlie sierra mike)

its been a long nite for all of us...n its still a few hours to der dawn..but in der pre-dawn wind, i have finally felt e beauty n purpose of der night...n now i understand der sayin,"night is a hole in yesterday, and a tunnel into tomorrow"...sweet dreamin..

whoa! who's there rose amongst e thorns? Fuzz transformed by der Fairy God mudder? ;-) 

a coupl'a dudes frm Chua's 'year-of-the-raccon' which became one of my best years of life 

strange man...wonder who dis dick is many times myself 

wats dat at e door? not armagedeon yet i hope.. 

when u're bald,young n dumb,trust frens n family to be there 

Long Time Ago

Phuture wed 100805. easy entry, few drinks capped by a lychee martini n, lo n behold, as der crowd packs in whom do i see? my ol' classmate Vignesh Louis Naidu with 2 cute Chinese Chicks...sweet..s'been along time since der ol' SA daes indeed..hot rod la my man...haha

very long since last i went to Mambo on a wed nite...since i swore off der meaninglessness of drunken bingein (tho i never actualli got knocked out sare), woman lustin n spiritual uncleanliness..i'm not makin a comeback by e way..i also missed der break beats, der phunk, hip-hop n yes, der retro songs..electric dream,love in der 1st degree, square rooms, i should be so lucky etc..also missed der fine house of DJ Andrew Chow n Tony Tay n der amazin dance floor..not makin any comeback wateva it is

a nite of fun with der guys it was la..its kinda sad dat they're closin Zouk soon for a major revamp to compete with MOS year end (1 other main reason i went down)..i realli hope der grand ol' lady can remain on top, remain innovative n play good musik..i never saw Zouk as der place to pick up chix like some other places i noe which hav dat rep...alwaes was e pioneer in dance, music, decor n good, clean, after-dark enjoyment..'cept for dat short fiasco in der mid 90s with ecstasy..which every1 just wants to forget (not e lessons tho)

well, here's to dat grand ol' lady of e local club n dance scene...mani more mambos may she hav...may no one tryin to Sound her out be able to rub her face Black or Thump her down in der dirt; instead let her shine brighter than Onyx n not be beDevil'd by e competition...

Pay it Forward

while at the Festival of Praise '05 last sat i can say dat i never spent more time under a blazin sun in der civilian world waitin than i did dat day. Call no man happy until he is dead, Herodotus wrote. i realli felt dat way on sat, wat with der barmy weather and infinite queue size..i felt dat i should be dead becos i was most unhappy n dissatisfied..

just when all hope seemed lost and satan appeared to be winnin..my dear Aunt Margaret brought up a cone of delectable magnum for myself n another 2 for der 2 lasses on my right n left. t'was heaven in a small cone i tell ya..n i am truli grateful to her..when there are people aroun u who love n care for u, the universe can seem a much less forbiddin place.Its God's way of makin things a little more comfortin for those of us stuck in dis damn existence called life..

and today, on my way home from a nice lil' movie, i caught sight of a poster on der bus stop wall callin attention to a certain missin old lass in her 70s...my first reaction was to exclaim up urs! who cares?! but something came to my mind..this kinda event used to draw a community together in der past n in lesser developed countries..not any more...why? apathy? self-occupation? urban mistrust in der class of e NKF debacle? u decide...

one thing i noe...a decent human being would call der no. if dat old lady happened to be standin next to dat sign...mayb like my Aunt Margaret, individuals in society should try doin good without benefit or even for dat feel-good emotional high once in a while...it benefits all in der long run cos wat goes aroun invariably comes aroun..n if bad can go aroun, why can't good?

but realli, try doin good for good's sake cos u won't often be happy doin good...once again, call no man happy until he is dead...n please my dear City Harvest Organiser frens..just a friendli reminder..better crowd control would make Christians (and by extension, Jesus) happier and less like a mass orgy in progress when the gates open...

e lightin sucked n features are blurred; i noe, i noe...n der study was taken at a bad(aka untidy) time but dat sucker's mi alright
der guy on der left's mi...apologies for der grainy photo...dats not my sugar daddy by e way...lest u get e wrong idea

The Great Turkey Shoot

very strange i find us Singaporeans sometimes...people from all sorts of backgrounds with absolutely zero political experience seek to be elected as president...we might as well pin pictures of anybody on a dartboard n throw a few darts to see who gets chosen as president..

seriousli....do u have any idea who these other candidates are orwat their former track record is? with e exception of e ex-JTC guy, none have any real administrative or bureacartic experience man...anyway, none has any real political experience or has ever served as an MP before...

can we please have more politically savvy presidential candidates?...i would personally like to see Chiam See Tong as a candidate man...or Tony Tan...oh well, the onli good thing dat comes out of this is dat Aug 27 will now be a holiday...notwithstandin its a sat n all..so i guess, why should i complain dat every four? years, some blokes come out ready to be shot down as well...turkeys in the Great Turkey Shoot that produces a presidential winner...man...wat's next? a Round-Robin contest for next Prime Minister?

Love n Faith

"Love one another or perish"...from Tuesdays with Morrie..dats the basis of our Christian faith incidentally...'For God so loved the world...' n all that..i'm commanded to love others precisely because God loved mi...

i hav loved before n i do love some now...but i think its human nature dat we take for granted those who love us...in relationships, the romantic in mi just hates it when people these days put themselves before the other party in der relationship..dats not love lor...its selfish shit man...i believe a man should put der interests of der lady before his own...

in faith, sometimes when u ask God for guidance, He hits u so hard in der face with an obvious answer dat u can't run away man..i learnt a little more bout faith in my situation this week...I am here by divine appointment n here in divine keepin...God gives love n life to all of us...even love in a genuine relationship...

apologies for der ramblin...not in der most lucid frame of mind at dis point..but in summary, love God n love those who love u..especialli if u're in a relationship...

On Rudeness In S'pore

been said it has dat wat goes aroun comes aroun...now i'm not a particularly karmic believin person n not even Buddhist but sometimes i wish things would happen to rude people in this here land with small land n big fines...

does not 1 find e state of rudeness in singapore appalin? n i'm not talkin bout sales persons but even those on e street who shove u aside when there's a crowd to get ahead...if dats symptomatic of my society, i pray for Singapore man...

a fine case would be some of e people frm the Singapore Cricket Club...i'm involved with national day parade this year u see...n when e road's closed for military vehicles..pple strangely decide dats e best time to saunter into e club...n when sentries stop them for safety reasons n because its obstructive to e progress of e parade...well, suffice it to say, hell breaks loose

hav never seen a bunch of more rude n ill-mannered persons than members of said club...lousy image n lousy impressions they give...then again...i realise this is Asia u're talkin bout...its just not e norm la...when i see better i'll noe we've matured as a people....till then...to e members of e cricket club..please smile for the cameras, sir/mam...ur rudeness is part of our sngaporean identity...u've done my country a big favour by displayin it... :-)