a lovely rainy morning...
the rain this morning was really nice - belle found her way into the t.v. room and so i didn't insist (seeing that finn was hiding in his box) that she got out, and we had a nice snuggley time on the couch. she slept on my right arm, and it was numb from that. but still, she *is* the sweetest thing. (apart from finn of course). she is The Jack Rascal.
so tomorrow i'll go and see how product shooting works. i will have to say goodnight and go to bed now because i didn't get much sleep last night. the 3 hrs spent in sleep was spent REM-ing, dreaming. and i have to be up at 7-ish, which should be ok because i got up the same time today. what a lack of logic.
(i watched a REALLY REALLY REALLY crap film today. its called "White skin" - don't watch it, whatever *anyone* tells you.
f*ck the New Paper
the most annoying thing i've seen today, is the cover page of the New Paper. it said, "Beware! Pirated cigarettes in S'pore can kill". i mean WTF?! how can anyone let such a badly written headline be published?! i am actually quite insulted that i have to be subjected to such idiocy. did the writer of this think that people are stupid and do not know that cigarettes - regardless of whether they are pirated or not - can kill? or is he naive enough to think that people will believe him when he tries to say that *only* pirated cigarettes can kill? and *only* in Singapore?!
er, where is the chicken, and where's the rice?
this is the nastiest army ration according to my cousin, as well as what i got in return for buying him a 6GB mini ipod. he wanted me to know how much he has suffered, having to eat this sort of SH*T in the army.
so after i opened the packet, there was this foul smell. i kid you not - it looks, smells and tastes like dog food. (ok - not that i have tried canned dog food, but you get the idea). after a little taste, i had to give the rest to the dogs. it really is not fit for human consumption.
new pub games +++
last night i learnt 2 new pub games. one involves money, the other, flesh.
the first is a "killer" pool game. you get 10 people (or however many you reckon would make it worth your $ playing) and each player puts in $10 (or however much the players agree on) and you get 3 "lives". you lose a "life" when you miss a shot, and the next player takes over. so you take turns this way, eliminating the players and the last one left with a "life" takes all the money. seems like a pretty easy way to me to make a couple of quick bucks if you don't have to nominate which ball to pocket, or which pocket to pocket it in.
what is more curious was the woman who told me about the game. thing is she came into the pub (she was sitting outside, i vaguely noticed) with her drink and plonked herself right next to me. well, she made a few heads turn and since i didn't think any of the boys who were looking at her were going to chat her up, i thought i'd be nice and start a conversation. she obviously dressed to kill, so in my head was going "SSPG!". i thought i might try to find out, in the few minutes that i was going to talk to her, if SSPG's had any interest in talking to other women, just for the heck of it. (in case any of you are wondering, NO, she didn't yank my chain.) then her accent threw me off a bit. it didn't sound local at all, and it was a bit weird, close to filipino, but not quite it. so then the SSPG suddenly became a working girl. (plus up *that* close, she did look a bit washed out.) what puzzled me further was that she had this fuck-off huge diamond ring on her wedding finger. *and* she was using her Platinum Amex Card to pay for a bottle of heineken that costs less than $10. and she tipped the bar the same amount.
doesn't bother me that she flashed her wealth in front of me. (personally, i wouldn't use a card to pay for a bill that small and then taking out a $10 note from her big fat wallet to tip the staff, that just made her look stupid.) i reckon i can beat her at "killer" pool any day. but a tai tai (i did ask her - she's local malay) dressed up looking like a whore (sorry if this sounds offensive) with an accent to match the look - this, i don't get.
so the 2nd game is pretty straight forward. you're supposed to play it with shots of whatever you fancy. "Do or drink" - you come up with 2 names of the nastiest people you know, and the other person has to choose who to "do" or drink. if you're too wimpy to drink, you'll just have to put up with your friends laughing at you all night. the best names of the night (of course i was the one who came up with them) - LKY & GCT (again, no offence intended). other names of politicians followed, but they just weren't as funny as the first ones. also, we didn't actually play the game with shots of drinks, (the other player being the person behind the bar - yes, the one who thinks that Aragorn is girly), which made it easier to say "drink!" but it was fun.
beach vacation desires
i so would like a beach vacation. but not one where there are tons of Singaporeans with bad manners and their screaming kids. just a quiet place, big sun, nice sand and cool waters. is there anywhere in Spain i can go for this sort of thing? sorry - obviously inpired by the song "holiday in spain", which is about this huge new year's day party. and the next day when you get up with this huge hangover, all the mess of the party is still there and how its just easier to leave it all behind than have to deal with it.
god - my head hurts *so* much. its been hurting all day, and i have no idea why, except for the fact that i was down at SODS this afternoon and had 2 pints of kilkenny.
thoughts of the night
today has not been a good day. not for myself actually, but generally. (my poor female 15 yr old cousin who's got a learning disability got beaten up by her school-mates) i'm not very good at consoling people, so when people are upset about things, (and i know the world is fucked up and all), there isn't actually very much i can say to make them feel better.
i played quite nice pool today - played a brilliant shot on the black on my last game before i left the joint. i won 4/5 games. the opponent wanted to play some more, but it was time to go home. and its a damn good decision.
so the girl who works there (obviously very dyke) thinks that Aragorn is a wuss. she says he's "girley" and all and not "bonkable". excuse me?! Aragorn is not bonkable?! she'd rather bonk Sam. Aragorn is too "sensitive" for her. in her own words, if it was Aragorn, "i'd rather go for a girl." if that was her preference, she should just have said so in the first place, instead of engaging me in a conversation of why Aragorn is not "bonkable".
in any case, Aragorn is still a million times better than Legolas. so shoot me.
as i read YM's blog about how she has to get up at 6am, i am reminded of how lucky i am, to not have to do that anymore. how do you express eternal gratitude to your spouse?
anyway, here goes: thank you!
the pool tourney
ok - i think there are more people than boko and i who are feeling competitive. so shall we do a knock-out or shall we play team? if everyone agrees, can i organise this and make it a "proper" tournament? (why do i feel like i'm writing an email rather than blogging??)
in any case, boko and i will still have our race to 11. whether it happens later in the night or earlier it doesn't matter. i've had some practice tonight. (*evil laughter*)
Race to 11
oh - and i'm really looking forward to thursday's 9-ball challenge with B.
T - u umpiring and booking the place?
YM - u taking bets for who will win? :-)
time to go and practise.
ipod envy
today, i bought not one, but TWO mini ipods. yes, the spanking new 6GB, 18hrs batt life ones. one blue, one silver. sadly, neither of them are for me although i *paid* for them both. the happy (and grateful - i bloody hope!) recipients? my dad and my cousin. i got duped by my dad, and my cousin, as a reward for completing his "A" levels.
so i'm hopelessly jealous now... *sigh*
why must they come up with newer and better things all the time? and so quickly as well...
my 1st MoHAa game
oh god - the nausea that is experienced from playing computer games for too long. it all came back to me this night.
i remember the first time i played Halo, and when i first experienced the nausea. the feeling is frankly, not nice. but still, it was a nice evening spent, with 6 other guys, playing MoHAa (as they call it), esp. with Wes going "yes sir!" every once in a while. it feels a bit strange to be in a "combat" situation with all these guys who have been through NS. ok - except for G, who despite being only 13, held his own and kicked butt! still, i managed a few kills but got killed even more times.
time to go to bed as i plan to be up early to top up my tan tomorrow MORNING. think its turning a nice brown.
i've been trying to fight this cold for a few days now. it started on sunday, and i have been trying to ignore it in the hope that it will go away if i don't give it any attention. unfortunately, that doesn't always work. so today, i stayed at home all day, popping paracetamol tablets to try to ease the pain in my head and throat.
these tablets have a strange effect on me. they actually make me feel high, like cold tablets or cough syrup.
the other night i played pool with B and it was only at the 4th game we played that i beat him. (ok - 3rd game he put the cue ball down whilst he potted the black so it doesnt count.) and then he said it was a good shot but i didn't deserve to win. and the reason for that is that i seem like i don't care enough - if i win or not. its true - sometimes i don't care enough if i do or not. it gets tiring. and i'm lazy like that. but more so, i think that over the years, i have reduced the number of things that i actually care about, things that actually matter.
sometimes there is someone you really want to beat. sometimes it doesn't matter. its easier that way. less grief, less pain.
talipot palm
for those of you who have not seen it, here is the talipot palm. i think its starting to die already. wonder how long it stays in bloom for.
anyway, daylight was fading when i took the photo. it looks much better in the sun.
it really isn't easy trying to have a photoshop tutorial over a couple of drinks. but i think i get the general idea about how to do certain things...
the bloody smog
ok - i couldn't help it. as i was going into the bedroom, i was coughing my lungs out. so i decided to take a photo from the window of the living room. i don't know if the photo shows just how much bloody smoke there is in the air, but my poor lungs definitely feel it.
p.s. i am beginning to appreciate the convenience of a digital camera... makes you bloody lazy though.
is it just me, or is the smog super bad today?
gosh - i'm on the 25th floor and i still can't breathe! (and this is without the burning of tobacco as well!)
i'm nearly choking, and i don't know if its better to close all the windows and possibly suffocate myself to death, or just let it all blow through.
new toy + belle
so when you are home and you've got a new camera, and you're not sure you can do nice self-portraits yet - what better subjects than your dogs!
so i took this photo of belle, with her beloved ball. (yes - the most precious possession that belle has got! the BALL! - all of you my friends, who especially have visited me during my "cast" time would know this.)
just thought i'd post this and hope you all like it.
p.s. and no - she didnt pose for it. she's way too disobedient for that!
getting better
i think i will be able to stop using crutches soon. been swimming and had a couple of games of pool. seems like life is getting back to normal for me slowly. i'm glad for it & i feel better already.
time to get out to take some photos!
(oh - btw, i didn't get into the objectifs course. but its ok)
it's done!
ok - so after much deliberation, i finally bought the Canon 20D. even though i have been lusting after the RD-1, i can't afford it and so i definitely can't have it. it just doesn't make any economic sense. its true. i even asked T & D to repeatedly remind me that its crazy to pay that sort of money for it. yes, it would have been the logical and ideal choice, but still, for USD 3000, its *a lot* of money. and the Canon didn't even cost SGD 3000.
even though i have about 8 lenses that i can use with the RD-1, i would never be able to justify spending that kind of money for it. the only advantage is that people who do have the M lenses can now stick to the system they love, and take their photos in digital format rather than film. ok - i know this is damn obvious, but really, the other benefits are not very different to the digital SLR's. and if you are going to edit the shots in photoshop anyway, you don't really need Leica lenses that cost thousands of dollars. of course i would LOVE to have the RD-1 for the fact that i love the rangefinder system. but honestly, for that kind of money, one might as well get another Leica or a couple of used Leica lenses.
so, i'm happy with my new purchase. (who wouldn't be?!) looking forward to getting used to a whole new system (that i previously so disliked) and taking great pictures. at the end of the day, to most people, its the shot that matters right? me, the experience of shooting with rangefinder cameras will always be an integral part of taking photos. luckily for me, i now get to enjoy both the convenience of the digital format and the fun of the rangefinders. :-)
more Vondelpark
thought i'll post this photo. was really lucky. there were some nice white lines made by planes across the blue afternoon sky, and then i saw this bird flying and snap - got it in the right spot.
tired!
i must be getting old. was out from 4ish to 9ish (just 5 hours), with a bit of walking and after dinner, whilst we were having a tea/coffee, i was seriously knackered. maybe its also the fact that we've just eaten a lot of food. or maybe its because i haven't actually walked a lot in a long time. and boy, my right calf hurts! this should be a good sign - muscle getting stronger i hope.
think i might actually be able to fall asleep early tonight!
Vondelpark #2
this, my friends, is Vondelpark that's next to our apartment in Amsterdam. it was a good day, bright and sunny. i remember when i arrived, there were a few grey days before the sun came out, which kind of depressed me a bit. but when the sun came out, you cannot imagine the amount of joy and hope it brought.
.....
i bought the 1GB ipod shuffle yesterday + the clear plastic case for it. another addition to the ipod family. :-) i think the next one might be the new mini, or possibly even the 60GB one. we'll see, but it won't be for quite a while.
also using just one side of the crutches now. i'm learning to walk again, and i hope it will be soon that i can walk like a normal person again.
the difference of 2 inches
when i got up today, i was amazed at how small my right foot had gotten. (well, the lady who removed that cast did mention it, but i wasn't paying as much attention to her as i was the blade!) with it elevated all night on a pillow, the swelling had gone down. i had to ice it the whole night basically, and the painkillers didn't really work. can't decide if its the bruising that caused the pain or whether the fracture itself was giving problems. guess i must remember not to forget that the doctor did say that there will still be pain. foolish of me to decline more painkillers.
i can feel the bone in my leg. strange feeling.
