I'm back, though of course I wish I could have stayed even longer!
We took it easy on Thursday and explored the hotel area and neighbouring casino. When the rest of the clan arrived on Friday, we went to Victoria market to look at clothes and foodstuffs. We also went to suburban shopping malls like Chadstone. We had our CNY eve dinner in Chinatown, where there were firecrackers being set off, and met my aunt's relatives there! What a small world.
[If you haven't read the first part of my story, go here first. ]
I sent my car for servicing this morning. Then I crossed the overhead bridge above Bukit Timah road, wondering if I was still blessed with the knowledge of when the 174 bus would arrive. It's been over three years.
As I walked across the bridge, I had a feeling that bus was coming fairly soon, but not immediately. I could see two buses coming up, but neither of them were 174s. As I started to climb down the stairs, the 174 arrived and I hopped on.
I got off the same bus stop that I used to embark from, those special mornings when I would be prompted to "Run! Run!".
As I walked briskly towards my house, I suddenly recalled the instructions not to go so fast... to walk like I normally did, because someone would need my help again, before I reached home.
In my field of vision, all I could see was a Merc doing a three-point turn at my gate ... and a Falun Gong protestor sitting outside my neighbour's house, facing the embassy. She was an old lady who was meditating. I have nothing against peaceful protests although the presence of one, two or up to three protestors on some days, with the presence of police cars at times, makes the neighbourhood a little uneasy.
I thought there was nothing to my recollection of the instructions (besides, it was a variation from the original words). So I walked on.
As I passed by the old lady, she raised her hand and waved at me. She said something in Mandarin that I couldn't make out, due to the roar of the passing cars beside us. I thought she wanted to tell me about her religion, and I was thinking, 'No thanks, I already have my own faith.' So I shook my head and tried to walk on.
Then she pointed at her watch, and I realised she wanted me to tell her the time. She said her old watch wasn't keeping time properly. I told her in Mandarin that it was 12.30pm. She thanked me. Then I reached home and immediately went to the computer to type this out.
I just re-discovered an old blog game I used to play. It's called BlogShares, based on BBC's Celebdaq.
It all happened when I clicked on a random blog link which pointed to the Blogshares value of the Playboy.com site. It was B$10,379.76. Then I searched for the value of my blog and it was B$18,662.34.
Meaning that I outrank Playboy. *flex flex*
Woo-hoo!
[ps. I'm no big TV/movie fan, so would not be very good at Celebdaq. However, I do play Sportdaq. No guesses which sport I buy into.]
We're going to Melbourne tomorrow. Time to start packing. Here's my geek checklist of things to do.
Glance at a popular daily paper
While I'm at it, I might as well check out the official tourist guide
Watch the Australian Open (on TV). I hope Justine beats the shrieking Russian lass.
Make sure I've got the Melbourne subway map in my iPod. Just in case.
Ooh! A Food Festival.
This article is too important to plonk into my "Asides" column, so here it goes: Five Architectural Flaws in Windows Solved In Mac OS X. I'm not security expert so let me know if this makes sense.
I have nothing against Middlesborough but I like seeing the Gunners fire on all cylinders - though it should have been 8-0 as Pires was wrongly ruled offside. Oh well. Two 7-0 scores in two seasons, ain't too bad.
Congrats to Henry's record-breaking hat-trick, and to Hleb for finally scoring a goal, after giving all those great passes to his team-mates for so long! Poor Ljungberg looked like he wanted a goal but tried too hard, and didn't get any in the end.
Congrats also to Liverpool's Kewell and to Man City for winning the derby. Now, if only someone could beat Chelsea a few times ...
I read Kevin's post about the Weblog Awards 2005, and agree with that quality matters more than quantity.
This triggered off a thought - what are my personal guidelines for this blog? I've never written them down before as this is an ongoing thing, but these are probably the main points:
That being said, I'm still human and appreciate the kind words that some of you leave here. Of course I get a little excited when I'm interviewed by the press - but after a while you put things in perspective. We're living in a tiny dot on the world map, on a planet which is just a speck in this universe. Don't take ourselves too seriously. It makes the head swell.
Had lunch with DSD today and she asked me about my new year resolutions.
I had given up making resolutions for a few years already. But at the end of 2005 I did decide, after a culmination of incidents, that certain things would certainly improve my life and relationship with other people.
My first resolution this year is to develop the ability to say no. 'No' is a powerful word that could evoke strong feelings of guilt, especially if you are refusing someone close to you, or a worthy organisation.
However, a sincere 'no' allows the other party to look for other alternatives, as opposed to a half-baked 'erm, maybe' followed by a cancellation shortly before the deed is to be done.
The next resolution is to listen more to people, and talk less. I will try not to give a perfunctory 'hmmph' as if I was listening, when I actually want the person to go away and let me concentrate on my task at hand. (Of course, I should also be able to say 'no' if I am truly busy and don't wish to be interrupted in the first place)
I won't give myself another resolution to lose a certain amount of weight, but I will resolve to tone myself up better with the right exercise and diet. When you set a target with a specific outcome, it can be dangerous if the means of achieving that outcome are not specified as well (e.g. using slim 10 pills as opposed to healthier methods).
Also, I hope to further develop the ability to bounce back faster and discern - shutting out the unconstructive negatives, sifting out the criticism that is well-grounded, and building on the positives.
But this isn't all about resolutions - I would also like to thank God for putting me where I am right now. It's a special feeling when your contributions make a big difference and your thoughts are valued. It took me four years as a nomad to appreciate what I have now and I pray for continued good leadership and fellowship. May we all grow strong together. Amen.
Drool over Apple's first Intel-powered MacBook Pro. With dual processors.
[Update: Kevin Lim took a video of a MacBook Pro demonstration. Get as close as you can, to the real thing!]
This morning, the Tan clan went for a canopy walk at Kent Ridge Park, followed by a visit to 'Reflections at Bukit Chandu' war memorial.
I liked the dog poo sign:
Just outside the museum, I decided to salute our brave troops.
From the title of the museum, you'd think the its displays would be pretty mild, until you see the pictures, videos and sounds of Japanese troops killing defence troops and civilians. I wonder how Japanese tourists would feel if they went to any war memorials in south-east Asia.
We learnt that this area, Bukit Chandu, was defended by a small number of Malay troops, who fought bravely against ten times as many Japanese soldiers. You can guess the inevitable outcome. I was fairly moved and feel that every young man should visit these war memorials before going for National Service!
Inside the museum was a guest book which had a mix of messages. Some thanked the troops and the museum for providing the information. One Irish lady had written that her father had fought in the army, and she had come here to honour the memory of the troops. However, I heard there were other comments saying this place was boring. That's sad to hear. This is part of our heritage and certainly something we should be proud of.
I am quoted on page 14 of Digital Life magazine today. Thanks to DSD for referring me to the journalist. The specific quote involving me is extracted below, from the article:
...RSS and podcasting have changed the way people consume media, giving them more say in what they want to see and hear.RSS constantly scans the contents of your favourite websites or blogs and then broadcasts those updates to you through a feed.
Through this method, frequently updated websites can easily syndicate their content, and web users can also get updated information from their favourite sites or blogs automatically served up on their desktops.
Internet executive Vanessa Tan, 27, explained: 'It's a very convenient tool for those people who like information overload.'
'Instead of having to plough through a long list of webpages, I get updated by the tons of news feeds by just logging onto Bloglines.'
Yes, I like 'information overload' sometimes, although I am seriously considering cutting down on quantity and focusing on content. In fact, I had just cancelled my long-standing account with Audible.com because of the availability of free podcasts now.
Also, even if only several percent of online users do read blogs, use RSS and podcasts, they are also part of a very important, and growing, online community (that's you!). Every trend has its 'early adopters'. So I'm not too sure about the 'cautious' tone, as reported, by the professor:
Assistant professor Lim Sun Sun from the National University of Singapore's Communications and New Media Programme cautioned that while RSS and podcasting have caught on with bloggers and blogging enthusiasts, most web users are still unaware of the technology.According to a survey by Forrester Research, only six per cent of online users read blogs and two per cent use RSS.
Dr Lim explained that many users are deterred by the effort needed to set-up their computers to receive such a service.
She said: 'Over time, the popularity of RSS and podcasting will grow. But for now, they don't ease themselves into existing user patterns, so there are high barriers to entry.'
It misses the point. There will always be a segment of the population who haven't 'done something' yet, or may not do it at all. Some may not drive a car. But we still cater to the needs of drivers, as well as non-drivers. It's not that non-users are being forced to adopt the technology, but that existing users get to benefit with added feeds.
On that note, I was glad to learn a few months ago that the Gahmen mothership site, www.gov.sg, has started its own news feed already - isn't that a positive step?
In fact, the Poynter Institute has a recent article on RSS for journalists - who probably take on the biggest information overload as they look for newsworthy stories. The writer uses - what else but - Bloglines as an example of managing feeds.
Yet more problems with this site - this time, there are Internal Server Errors for my most recent posts' individual pages (where you can post comments). Please bear with me while my web host fixes this. Thanks.
As if I didn't have enough Macs at home already - I want to get an Apple Powerbook with Intel Inside. Check out the rumours. And hmm, possibilities of a new OS 10.5 Leopard as well!
Come Jan 9, we'll just have to wait and see. Link to Macworld Expo site and Macworld Magazine's coverage of the event.
I've been a little out of action since yesterday night after suffering a relapse (?) of my spine 'injury'. I certainly hope it's only a pinched nerve and not a slipped disc or tumour. If the pain persists, I will need to go for an X-ray.
Anyway, that hasn't stopped the puns and corn from rolling, even though it hurts when I laugh now. (ie, "Ha ha ha ha... ouch."
Many readers who haven't met me before, may not know that I like to pun people (family, colleagues, friends) to death. An uncle of mine told my cousins to start a new website, "whatmycousinsaid.com" to record my quotes. It hasn't been done yet. Anyway, here's a sample from today:
- We were in a Japanese restaurant having Teppanyaki. I told one of my cousins, imagine if a waiter suddenly appears and shouts, "Samurai?" and we go, "huh?", thinking we're about to get our heads lopped off. The waiter repeats, "Samurai?" and we start to wonder if he's referring to a sauce used in a former McDonald's burger concoction. Finally, we'd realise he's asking if we want 'some more rice'. Evil!
- While still at lunch, my cousin decides to give up his only piece of oyster, to my grandfather. I told my cousin, "That's really unshellfish of you." (Hey, that's really a hum-less comment!)
- Back home, I caught up on world news. For one, I find it sadly ironic that Turkey has been hit by bird flu. I'm not laughing at all about this - the affected area is near the City of Van!
In other news, I am valiantly attempting to finish reading several books which I started since a few months ago - all non-fiction. And another delivery from Acmabooks.com is coming soon.