BB Family

This is the team that works hard every weekend to keep the BB parades in 2 schools running.

Thank you guys for your labour of love for the Boys.

swimming

I decided to make good my SAFRA membership.
I went swimming.
I dug out my trunks and goggles, squashed them in my bag and left.
Managed to find 1 available soul in james and we met at SAFRA.
It cost $2.10 to bring a guest, 40 cents to use the locker, 80 cents if you've locked up and are still holding on to your pants.
James and i managed 2 laps before lightning struck.
That's $1.05 per lap.

I went running after that. It's cheaper.

Thought of the Day

"Is it an alarm or a calling that gets you out of bed in the morning?"

Borrowed this question from the blog of a friend.

I'm still chewing on it.

I guess the first words uttered as one awakes answers this question.
I've been waking up to "Oh no-s!" quite a bit. They surface in different forms on different mornings. Sometimes, it's oh-no-groan. Sometimes, oh-no-sighs. On bad days, it's oh-no-panic-kan-cheong-spider-i'm-going-to-be-late.

I guess mornings are very telling. When i say i'm not a morning person, it means i'm not around at all in the mornings.
I'm not there.
I may be here and there but clearly unaware.

My mum noticed that i jumped out of my bed whenever my alarm goes some years back. I literally snap or pop up from my sleep, like a chinese vampire rising at full moon smelling fresh blood. The 2 years in NS was responsible for this trauma. When you close your eyes at 5am and are expected to fall in at 6am to draw weapons, such occurences tend to develop in your sleeping routines.

The stark difference was magnified by my 2 slothful sisters who would manja my mum as she tries to coax them out of bed. I suspect my mum enjoys waking them up. I give her no such pleasure though..sometimes, i scare her quite a bit when i pop up as she pops in to my room.

I don't pop up anymore. There's now more to weigh me down on the bed. Check out my SAF ID and you'll know what i'm talking about. That ID(11b) never fails to amaze anyone.

During NS days, i didn't pop up because of an alarm or calling. It was just plain fear that was devouring the entire dream concocted while the brain was at rest. And as that last reel of dreams runs out, the horrific realisation of reality, time, place and space crashes into the brain, sending millions of piercing neurons haywire.

Hence the pop.

I think it's the calling, but i usually only hear the alarm.

I need to start digging.

A few good classic lines

Watched A Few Good Men? Remember the court room scene?
Got this from one of those internet jokes forwarded by friends.


A Few Good Singhs (Re-make of a Few Good Men starring Tom Cruise)

T.T. Durai : You want answers?

Davinder Singh : I think all the NKF donors are entitled.

T.T. Durai : You want answers?!

Davinder Singh : I want the truth!

T.T. Durai : You can't handle the truth!

T.T. Durai : Singh, we live in a world that has charitable organisations and those charitable organisations need to be guarded by men with a passion for more fundings.
Who's gonna do it? You? You, Mr Khaw?
I have a greater responsibility than you can possibly fathom.
You weep for the NKF patients and donors and curse the board at NKF; you have that luxury.
You have the luxury of not knowing what I know: that my remuneration package, my first class flying, and my golden tap, while obscene, probably enhanced lives and that my luxurious existence, while grotesque and incomprehensible to you, saves lives.
You don't want the truth because deep down in places you don't talk about at parties you want me in that organisation, you need me on that board.
We use words like transparency, disclosure, corporategovernance.
We use them as the backbone of a life trying to defend something.
You use them as a punchline for SPH.
I have neither the time nor the inclination to explain myself to the public who went to my dialysis and sleeps under the blanket of the very service I provide and then questions the manner in which I provide it.
I would rather you just said "thank you," and went on your way.Otherwise, I suggest that you pick up the post and do some fundraising.
Either way, I don't give a damn what you think you are entitled to.
I am entitled to my golden tap and my $600,000 package!

Davinder Singh : Did you fly first class?

T.T. Durai : I did the job I had to do.

Davinder Singh : Did you fly first class?!

T.T. Durai : You're God damn right I did!

T.T. Durai : "I eat breakfast three metres away from the golden tap that is made to wash my ass. So don't think for one second that you can come to court, flash a badge, and make me nervous."

Bread Talk Rocks

Thought of the day

Why did Jesus not turn stone into bread?
This would have been really easy for him and even if He didn't want to eat the bread, He could have fed many hungry people.

Self-dignity, self-worth is in what you let go and not what you hold on to.
Don't be afraid to say No.
If God is not in it,don't do it.

IMM

which means, I Miss Mongolia

no, i didn't get involved in a beauty pageant

I was archiving my photos on friendster so i had to look at all my recent journeys
Mongolia was really memorable...

we're not really camping in Singapore, u know?
We're bunking in a class/sleeping on accumulated grass and fertilizer but we are NOT camping.
Check out the picture on top. THAT's a campsite! THAT's camping!

we were also stalked by a drunk theft syndicate, intending to rob us from the moment we were piling up groceries in a supermarket. I gripped my swiss knife in my sweaty palm, ready to use it for the first time in a robbery that played through my mind a zillion times as a kid.

Ever imagined wat you would do in a worst case scenerio? Like being robbed, mugged, attacked by scary things, like a shark/ german shepherd/alien/sister? Do u guys think about these things as u were growing up?
I'm glad i was adequately prepared.
mentally at least.
but the drunk men trailing us stopped after they figured we only bought mineral water. Who needs water when you have volka. Also helped that i hinted to my team to walk faster.
phew!
how's that for overseas adventure?

If you like bargain hunting, you'll like the black market there. It's twice size of the Pasir Panjang wholesalers. Eat your heart out queensway regulars! i bought my adidas tracksuit for S$11.

Talking about eating, i tried goat innards porridge, hot stone mutton(YUMMY!), fermented mare's milk, but nothing scared me more than eating tomatoes and zucinni with bread for dinner. I remember pulling ranks to insist on buying instant noodles.

Now i know why i remember Mongolia.

fruits (rambling ALERT!!)

I was thinking about fruits earlier.

why isn't the soursop sour?

Sour plum is sour
Sour cream is sour
Sour grapes is ...
ok.

so why don't we call it sweetsop instead?

Sweet potato is sweet
Sweet corn is sweet
Sweetheart is ...
never mind

sweetsop. sweetsop. sweetsop. hmmm..
sounds like a kid who can't articulate his fantasy outing.
"Dad? can we go the sweetsop prist?"

And if you happen to get near a fruit juice store anytime,
try oraleng and soursop.
It's nice!
you're like drinking orange juice and suddenly, the sweet creamy pulp of the "sop" seeps into it. so subtley you'll hardly notice.
when you do, you'll realise that sweetness has a range.
citrus sweet and err..sweetsop sweet!
it's nice.
even my british friend likes it.

Late Night Exercise

Last night, Kev asked me to go for a run at Sembawang.

Some of you already know how the night went. You can stop reading now.

We started at 1110pm and hit about 3 km. I was really bothered by a silly blister from my shoes. We did some chin-ups and sit-ups.We had hot milo after showering, chatted for a while then i went home.

=)

YA RITE!!

Owen's my man!! He's incredibly short but you should have seen his 2 headers that finally sank Holland. The first one was a sublime cross from Beckham from the right. A double tap classic and Owen latched on with a diving headers. No chance for Van Der Sar.
The second was identical to Owen's 1st goal for Newcastle. The nearpost header that he glanced down after Ashley Cole checked back on the flanks, double tapped with his back to goal, and Owen nailed Holland.

Kev has improved.
Take heed, regulars.

I'm Qin- fascinated

I'm totally into this Qin myth.
Jackie would be proud of me.
I watch the myth twice. 2 days back to back.
The hill Li Shan you see is the supposed tomb of Mr Qin Kruw Wer.
After The Myth, i'm not sure anymore.

It's not the size of a grave, it's like a mountain in a nature reserve.
The smiling terracottas were found but not the Mr Qin's tomb.
No one knows. Those who did were buried with the secrets. They have this mock up museum based on historical writings. But no one knows...
Historians say it floats on rivers of mercury and candles inside are still burning, made from special animal fats. Archaeological surveys found abnormal quantities of mercury in the soil tulmus.
Jackie says more terracottas and all Mr Qin's furniture are levitating in mid-air, held by a meteroid from space.

I wished i was more attentative during the museum tour.
I wished my brain could process Mainland Mandarin faster.
But you should have been there.

Need someone to beat your Blues Away?

Go Get Them!!

birthday

thanks guys.

I hate SKYPE

It cannot be true
It can't be so clear and undistorted
It can't be so cheap
It can't be so easily downloaded and available
I hate SKYPE

cutie

This is jeffrey. He's a cutie and check out his range of expressions.

There's this helpless feeling a guy gets when we come in contact with babies. you think they're helpless? wait till they cry.you're not in control man, they are.

Talking about control, this poor boy's not gonna have much of it i'm sure. I know his dad's gonna deck him in blue soon.And i'm not talking about the away kit.

The golden question will be answered with a quote from the Gloved One."The kid is not my son."

I'm a Red!!!

This is Winston and Jo's son.

Who mee?

ever made a mistake in ordering food?
I got stuck a few time between Hokkien Mee and "Hay"(Prawn) Mee.
You see, they both have prawns, both have thick egg noodles and both taste pretty good. At my canteen at least.
For those who need help, Hokkien Mee is the semi wet version cooked with sotong, prawn, white noodles and served with sambal chilli and lime. My favourite store is at Whampoa market. It was my compulsory main course during my frequent supper outings with my dad back then.I must stay focus. I was about to start raving about BKT. Tell you about it another time if you dunno, you deprived soul.
"Hay" Mee is at its best, eaten with soup.It's all about the soup. Simple egg noodles chucked into the heavenly prawn soup laced with thin pork slices and even thinner prawn strips. Try eating it on a cold morning(rare lah) or when faced(pardon the pun) with a stuffy nose. My fav store is at Yishun Blk 925. Interestingly, i eat it dry there. Cos the soup is power!! Good enough to be served on its own.
Ok. the mistake.
There were some cold mornings and after pacing up and down the stores for ages, i finally decided on Hay Mee Wet. But at the store, the aunty continues to entice me with her other specialities like Lor Mee or porridge(for sick pple only).Hence by the time i make my order, I forget my two mees and then it's too late!

joke time

Squirrels and Church Membership

Squirrels had overrun 3 small churches in a town.
After much prayer, the pastor of the first church determined that the animals were predestined to be there. Who was he to interfere with God's will? he reasoned. Soon the squirrels multipled.
The pastor of second church decided that could not harm the squirrels, so that humanely trapped them and set them free outside of town. Three days later, they were back.
The third church succeeded in keeping the pest away. The pastor baptised the squirrels and registered them as members of the church. Now they only see them at Christmas and Easter.

Cough medicine

A chemist walks into his shop to find a customer leaning heavily against the wall. "What's wrong with that man?" he asked his assistant.
"Well, he came in the morning to get something for his cough. I couldn't find the cough syrup so i gave him an entire bottle of laxative."
"You can't treat a cough with laxative!" splutters the chemist.
"Yes, you can. Now he's afraid to cough."

Chicken

A man was about to order his breakfast when he asked the waitress," What's the Unique Breakfast Special?"
"Baked chicken tongue." He was told.
"That's disgusting!," the man said."I 'll never eat anything that came out of a chicken's mouth."
"What would you like then?"the waitress asked.
"Just bring me some scrambled eggs."

How long i wonder?

This is not going to sustain.

But i can't help it.
Reading other pple's blog is so fun that i feel i must have my own.
I have so much to say at time. and jokes...man!
Worst case scenerio, this becames a dumping ground for jokes.
I wish i had taken up cindy's suggestion 15 yrs ago to publish. I might be rich today.
So i will try to entertain myself and others and try to put words to my flickering mind, fast enough before it switches off.

This is not going to last...watch this space