Being Special!

Since the beginning of time, my teachers, my schoolmates, and my friends, have always told me that i was a special kid. I was always..... different from others whenever they saw me in action, writing away furiously, be it an essay, a love-letter, TP appeals, etc.

Why special then?? Why why why? Well the answer is clear and simple... as seen below....


"I never could hold a straight face while presenting...."

Yes... i have handwriting that only a mother could love to read, and i have long recognised that fact ever since i've started writing. Not sure why but even from my Primary School days, i've always wondered why my letters just don't seem as nice and smooth as my classmates no matter how hard i tried!

My theory is that i was born to be a doctor but somewhere along the way, i went to SRJC and didn't follow my Calling... but Wen think's that it's because i was born with 2 LEFT hands. (actually i think his left handwriting is better than my right. Fug.) Whatever the case, it's not something i may be proud about, but it's not something i would like to hide either. Do take a closer look, and let me know what you think! :)


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And by the way, for all you Harry Potter fans who've gotten your hands on the new book, congrats!


"Hmm... Gandalf and Frodo??"

I've never been potty about Potter before though, but this website has been leaving me in raptures for the longest time! Check it out!!!

http://gprime.net/video.php/pottercrash

WARNING: For all you people who intend to read the book, please don't enter coz it contains a BIG BIG spoiler!!

Destination: Sin City

It's been a long time since i've reviewed a movie in my blog.... but after what i just caught, i think i have no choice but to spread the good news of.......... SIN CITY.


"Stop those sinful thoughts of yours!!!"

Synopsis:
Sin City is based on a comic book of the same name, and in fact, most of the scenes and ALL of the lines are actually taken from the comic book itself! The comic consists of 7 stories and the movie here takes 3 of the supposed best ones.... all of which are intertwined and overlapping in a "Pulp-Fiction-reverse-time" sort of way.

These 3 acts show 3 very different characters getting their way through the City with their own motives, be it revenge, love, selfishness, etc.... and the roads are coupled with blood, guns, nudity, sex, basically lots of violence.... in fact loads and loads of it, with all the 3 acts ending in their own different ways.


Tim's Movie Review: Sin City

->Thumbs-up
- Star-studded cast.
- Stylish directing with great special effects to boot.
- Captivating plots. (quite simple really, but you just can't keep your eyes off for a sec!)
- Colourful characters (some LITERALLY.....)
- Jessica Alba (altho she was like the worst actor in the film... forgiven though after that bartop dance.... :P)

->Thumbs-down
- Unbelievable scenes (ie. man jumping from buildings... but it's a comic after all)
- Overdose of violence and gore (which was integral to the film)

Tim's Thoughts:
A brilliant film in my book. From the way it paralleled Pulp Fiction (ie. last story first, first story last), the sensory overload with every stylish scene, the many different characters in the film with their own story to tell, this movie just about has it all for me. The 2 hours really went by in a flash as i was engrossed from the very first moment, always anticipating what was to happen next. It's been a long time since a movie of this hype has caught my full attention by actually LIVING up to it, and i strongly recommend you all go catch it ASAP!!


Movie Rating: 4.5/5

As promised....

Here is the link to my Shanghai photos... just click on my passport and airplane tix to take the journey with me! :)


"All set and ready to go?"

Impossible Is NOTHING!!!

Yes... it really is... i have have first-handedly proved that the even the most IMPOSSIBLE things can be made possible!! What can it be then?? Well i'm proud to say that... i have made it through 4 days in China alone by myself!!! YES 4 FRIGGIN' DAYS!!! Where i have to read, say and do everything in Chinese!! Ok ok i wasn't really alone per se, but judging from Stan's Mandarin (which was equivalent to my C5 in JC), i was still technically ALONE!

A scenario like this was almost as impossible as seeing Fiona Xie in town (hmmm...), but amazingly, i got this chance when my TIC volunteered me to go for a stock take there. Obviously she didn't know of my Potato (Kentang) reputation well enough seeing that she was ever so willing to pass me this opportunity... but still, i decided to grab this chance as i'd never seen Shanghai before!!!

Thus, i managed to squeeze 4 days out of Shanghai, especially since my stocktake only took an hour, but that's another story for another time... hehehe... Anyway for those of you who may want to go to Shanghai, here are some of the places i checked out:

Yuyuan / Cheng Huang Miao
Supposedly a place with the settings of Lao Shanghai with old buildings and stuff. It did look the part when i first went in but sadly, when the supposedly "old" signboards started showing McDonald's, Starbucks and even Dairy Queen, it was obvious that was badly lacking Authenticity. I must say though, this place has the BEST Xiao Long Baos!!


"A glimpse of Old Shanghai. Spot Macs if you can."

Good:
- Oldish Buildings
- Xiao Long Bao at Nanxiang Restaurant
- Local craftsmen (made a Seal with my Chinese name which i might use for future signatures)

Bad:
- Western Flavour in Oldish Buildings (Oxymoronic.)
- Touristy area... (ie jacked up prices for most stuff)
- Bad-mannered, dirty and uncouth locals.


Nan Jing Lu
The Orchard Road of Shanghai, where you see many of the big department stores selling original branded stuff. Lots of people walking along the road especially foreigners, who probably didn't have the slightest idea that similar items (i.e. PIRATED goods) were available close by at ridiculously lower prices.


"Nanjing Lu. A classier Orchard perhaps?"

Good:
- City-area feel to the place. (most other parts of Shanghai just look plain boring)
- Haven for shopping fanatics (rich ones who dun believe in piracy. Bleah.)

Bad:
- Expensive stuff. (either same price or higher than in S'pore)
- The road stretches 5km. Most people give up halfway. (heng i did the tree top walk!)
- Bad-mannered, dirty and uncouth locals.


Xiang Yang Market
Ok this place is never seen in official tourist brochures. Why? Because this is PIRATE heaven man... hahaha. This place has one of the widest collections of pirated branded stuff i've ever seen!! With all brands you can think of (LV, CD, Prada, etc), and all items you can imagine (watches, wallets, bags, shoes, etc), i can safely say that anyone who walks in will DEFINITELY come out with a purchase. However, i must stress that the people here are really bargain professionals, and you really have to be at the top of your game to get a very good price. Stan and I are naturally nice people and thus, we kenna KAH (chopped) both times we were there. Fug.


"This should read Xiang Yang Pirate Market instead. Seriously."

Good:
- Everything under the sun in this market!
- Cheapest stuff around (Mont Blanc pens and DVDs for SGD$1, Tag Heuers at $50, LV wallets at $5 and the list goes on)
- Easily accessible from the Metro (sorta like our MRT)

Bad:
- Lots of fugging conmen around.
- Agents will bring you to dark alleys to show you stuff and intimidate you to buy. We ARE victims.
- Years of experience give the sellers the upper hand in bargaining. Haiz.
- Bad-mannered, dirty and uncouth locals.


The Bund (Shanghai Tan)
The world famous bund... with Huangpu River separating the 2 riverbanks in the heart of the city. Many people taking photos there but in all honesty, Stan and I didn't really find the scenery that amazing, especially with the perpetually misty air. Did manage to go for a River Cruise and even go to the other bank to have a look at the UFO-like Pearl TV Tower and Jinmao Building (3rd tallest in the world).


"I did tell you the air was smoky didn't I?"

Good:
- Probably the only place in Shanghai with truly fresh air.
- Nice view of the river and the tall buildings on the other riverbank.

Bad:
- Tourist sightseeing tunnel was a waste of money.
- Huangpu River cruise didn't really have much to see... even fell asleep for a few minutes.
- Nice view blocked by dirty air
- Bad-mannered, dirty and uncouth locals.

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Well, these are just some of the places of interest that we went to... ironic as they weren't really THAT interesting if you ask me. All i can say is that Shanghai isn't really a nice place unless you like shopping. Only things that really appealed to me there were the cheap DVDs and food. Mostly it was the weather and the people that were pissing me off... with the temperature higher than that in Singapore, and rude people that talk loudly, spit everywhere, push and shove in MRTs, practically making us Singaporeans look like angels.


Will be posting my pics on Imagestation soon so do check it out when it's done. You'll have a clearer picture of how Shanghai is through my eyes man... :)

Bomb blasts in London

For those of you who do not know, there were 6 bomb blasts all around London during their morning when everyone was going about their usual morning routine and making their way to work. The bastards that did this targeted the public transportation systems, with a few of the subways affected by the blasts and even a crowded double-decker bus (crowded coz the subway was closed after an initial clast) being blown to bits.

Up till now 33 are confirmed dead and this doesn't include those who were in the ill-fated bus. No doubt this is an act of terror and i urge everyone to keep the people of London in our hearts and prayers... especially those of us who know people working / holidaying there.

Latest news is that all our PwC London CA friends are alright, with myself already chatting with William and Hsin Hui online... good to know that they're safe and please keep them in your prayers too....






Why terror? Why? Why??

I finally DID IT.

5th July 2005 - a day that i will ALWAYS remember.

It all started with an innocent lunch at Clifford Centre Food Court with the rest of the PwC Asses... most notably Gin Wee, Yee Chung, Wen, Weixing, etc... (yea i seem to be naming the fatter ones...). The Chicken Bryani there wasn't too bad but i though it could've been better.


Anyway after lunch, we wanted to look for a place for coffee so we stepped out to the open area in front of Clifford.... noticed that there was a crowd and suddenly i heard the words... "F.X.!!!!!!!"


My knees went weak, my stomach felt like a butterfly nest, and i turned... and spotted the ONE... the ONLY..... F.X.


OK... what should i do? Twice i've seen her outside and twice i've chickened out.... will i really pass up on my 3rd chance as Fate would have had it? With my marbles seemingly lost, i turned to Wen and asked... "Tissue? Tissue? You have tissue???" Jeff and Ais heard and thought i was going crazy... wasn't really sure why i did it but i think it was to clean my mouth before i spoke to FX... or maybe to stop my nose from bleeding? Anyway Ais did pass it to me.... i wiped my mouth.. and off i went on my Journey....


As i walked toward her... closer.. closer... i prepared myself. Who cares if a camera was following her around?? Who cares if there was like a thousand people all looking at her?? In a flash, we met. She saw me.. noticeably stunned as i stood in her tracks.


"Err.... F.... can i take a picture with you???" I think those were the words that came out of my mouth. Unbelievably, she replied in mandarin with a heartwarming smile... "Later, i'm filming now!" Ok her voice was as TEH as u always hear on TV... but once again... WHO CARES!!!?!?


And so i waited... while she moved from girl to girl, talking about their fashion sense on TV. By now my PwC ass frens were sitting at the corner waiting for my big show.... this went on for about 5 minutes and i thought caringly, maybe she's too busty.... i mean, BUSY..... so maybe i shouldn't be disturbing her. After all she's working right??


And so, i told the rest to go... i'm going for coffee already coz she's busy..... of course Gin Wee and co were understandably disappointed with me.... but oh well... 3 strikes and i deserve to be out. Weixing, Ais and Huili stayed with me and we went down to Raffles Exchange for coffee.... haiz...




THE END.....



or was it??


Now here we are at a coffee place downstairs and till now i STILL don't know the name of the place. It's a friggin' long queue, i'm feeling ultra disappointed (just like the last 2 occasions) and suddenly i received a message from Gin Wee... "Eh. Don't regret it leh. Go for it." Hmm... positive words from Gin.. now THAT's a first from him. Huili too, saw that i was kinda disappointed and said... "The queue still so long!! You wanna go up and take or not?? You still have a chance!"


Hmm... another person with a good point. Now... why should i give up so easily when i've been waiting to take a pic with FX for like the longest time?!?!? Maybe i would never ever see her in person again for the rest of my life???? And off i ran.. up the stairs....


Amazingly i went up at the right time. FX had finished filming and was talking to someone else.. a member of the filming crew i would think. And there it was.. my chance.... i went up to her... tapped her on the shoulder and said... "Hi F! Can i err... take a photo with you??" To my astonishment, she spoke in the TEH mandarin again and said, "Ok ok! Sorry about just now coz i was busy!!" Or something to that effect coz i couldn't really hear anything else after her OK.


She then stood next to me just like a friend would.... and i coolly took out my Samsung D500C (i could've sworn i bought the damn phone for this one moment). I stretched out my right hand as far as i could and realised i was trembling and having trouble fiddling with my phone. I think FX realised that coz what she did next almost made me pass out.


FX actually stretched her hand too, to hold my skinny wrist and stabilise the phone camera and said with a smile again... "Is this ok??"


Obviously i said yes... and thanks... or something like dat and i went.. "SMILE!!" before finally taking it. Of course she checked out the photo with me and this is what we saw.





Again, i thanked her and shook her hand... before walking off into the sunset, with a smile on my face for the rest of the day. As Gin Wee put it, a little boy, finally had his wish fulfilled... on this one fateful day.





Credits:
F. X. - For being so nice and friendly to take this pic with what must have seemed like a teenage crazed fan to her.

Sharon - For being the only girlfriend in the entire world who would actually support her boyfriend in fulfilling a dream like this. One of the many many reasons why i love you.. ahmuah!

Huili - For telling me not to give up.. after seeing me suffer at Orchard the last time i met FX. If you didn't say what you did this pic wouldn't have been possible.

PwC - For allowing me to be on a job that amazingly created this opportunity for me to see her. My 2 yrs work experience was definitely NOT in vain after this!

Gin Wee - For posting this damn pic to almost the rest of the world (LITERALLY!!!), and letting everyone know how charming i looked next to FX.

Jo - Forlan. Forlan. Forlan. :P

What the FOG?!?

Brand new foggies for the Lancer. STILL cannot disclose the price coz Sharon is waiting to pounce on me and scold me....


"The new 4-eyed Lancer: twice as bright, twice as clear!"