Precious Moments

Just collected my fourth Precious Moments membership card on the last Sat nite. Its been four years running that i'm a member. I don't collect the figurines but i like giving them to friends for special times like their weddings, birthdays and christmas as each figurine has a unique quote that i find appropriate for the occasion. Here are some of those that i remembered, do you happened to recognise some of those? =)

Always Reach For The Stars

August Poppy Peaceful

Count Each Birthday With A Joyful Smile

Filled With Wonder And Joy On This Special Night

Friendship Is A Sweet Journey

God Bless This Baby Girl

Happily Ever After

It Only Takes A Moment To Show You Care

January Snowdrop Pure And Gentle

Let's Always Preserve Our Friendship

Love One Another

March Violet Modest

May Your Birthday Be A Blessing Figurine

May Your Every Wish Come True

May Your Holidays Be Warm and Fuzzy

November Crysanthemum Sassy Cheerful

Ringing In The Season

Say I Do

Sow Much To Do

The Fruit Of The Spirit Is Love, Joy, and Peace

The Path Of Friendship Is Not Measured In Miles But Moments Shared

The 'Purr-fect' Christmas Morning

Together Is The Nicest Place To Be

Wishing You The Sweetest Birthday

You Crafted A Place In My Heart

You Have A Certain Glow About You

You Have Touched So Many Hearts

十心语

时时要观心 事事才顺心

逆境要忍心 烦恼要清心

修学要恒心 帮人要耐心

说话要细心 做事要专心

做人要爱心 对人要宽心

those are the 十心语 that the cute little monk say to me everytime i turn my head slightly in the office =)

Back to NYK Shift

It's back to NYK Shift today and it will be so for the next 2 months. Sort of looking forward to it after working in Pacific hours where i usually worked about 12 to 15 hrs a day most of the time. Somehow in NYK shift, the hours are shorter and i get to wear causually to office. Meantime, i'm still trying to recover from my bad dose of sniffles.

Started on Amber and Blood (Volume 3 of The Dark Disicple) by Margaret Weis. Just a little background, she and Tracy Hickman started the all time bestselling series DragonLance Chroniclces which is one of my favourite reads.

Just before the story starts, there is usually a few pages for acknowledgements and dedications. To my pleasant surprise, there was a page dedicated to The Five Remembrances of Buddha:

1) I am of the nature to grow old. There is no way to escape growing old.

2) I am of nature to have ill health. There is no way to escape ill health.

3) I am of nature to die. There is no way to escape death.

4) All that is dear to me and everyone I love are of nature to change. There is no way to escape being separated from them.

5) My actions are my only true belongings. I cannot escape the consequences of my actions. My actions are the ground upon which I stand.

Sadhu, sadhu, sadhu. =)

Rolling Once Again

Its good to be skating once again, to feel the wheels rolling beneath me and a little breeze in my face. Skating demands focus, both mentally and physically but it provides enjoyment in its own way.

Skated only 24km on Fri nite by myself and realised that i was pretty much out of shape. Used to do 48km with no problem at all but now at only half that distance, i'm already pretty drained. Well, i did stop for several months, so i guess its gonna take me awhile to get toned up.

Earlier today, i met up with Mark, Tracy, David and Pearlyn for a leisure evening skate at East Coast. We did about 20km at a fairly leisure pace. Its been quite a while since i last seen these 2 couples and it felt good to be able to catch up with these good friends of mine.

Even while i was skating, my thoughts drifted to her every now and then, wishing her day was just as good as mine, if not better. Of course, not forgetting all of you guys out there who visits my blog site, i hope your day ended just as well as mine.

3rd Jan 2009 - 216 Pages

If there's a way that i can describe my feelings for the day, i can only say i'm all mixed up. In any case, it will pass eventually like all phenomena. Just gotta type it out, let it go and move for the next day.

Got messages from Qin last nite about 2 plus in the morning and from the tone of them, i didn't really feel comfortable esp when the last bit just broke off suddenly. I changed and took a cab down, i just had to be sure she wasn't wandering about in the middle of the nite. Walked around the neighbourhood, no sign of her. Tried calling, nobody answered. Told myself she's probably back at home and resting already. Nothing much i could do so i hung around for a while till about 4, left a message and prayed for her well being and i went home.

She replied today about 3 in the afternoon, i'm glad to get that sms but again it just stopped, no further replies from her. Tried a few more times in the evening until it was around 7 plus when i tried with a phone call. It just rang and rang and rang, nobody answered. The silence was stifling, i had to do something. No point in dwelling on negative thoughts and fretting about. I got out of the flat and took a bus to Junction 8. Had Mos Burger for my dinner and while i was at it, i started on The Redemption of Althalus. Another quality novel by David Eddings, this is probably the 4th or 5th time reading this. Oh ya, a good book is one excellent way to focus the mind instead of having it jumping around like a monkey. Did about 60plus pages of it while i was there.

Next stop, Dobhy Ghaut. Popped into Gramophone, and i purchased some CDs. Didn't really have any idea what else to do, i walked over to the National Museum to admire the structure. Admired it for abit before crossing SMU to reach the other side and settled down at Coffee Bean (btw, the full name is Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf if you haven't noticed) for a cup of coffee and a slice of Apple Tart. Do give the Apple Tart a try the next time you are in Coffee Bean, its pretty decent (in my opinion). Read some more and its nearly 11pm. The cafe's closing and its time for me to go. Strolled down to Suntec and took Bus 70 home but i didn't go home immediately. Instead, i went to Macs that was about 5 mins walk away from home. Had some of those Twister fries and a cup of orange juice. Sat there for about 1 hr and read some more. Its nearly 1am, time to go home and already at page 216.

So, here i am, all logged on to my MSN, Yahoo Mail, Facebook and Blogger.

Saw some updates about her, Word Challenge shows she's the leader at 4 plus in the morning last nite and she also uploaded some fotos earlier about 7 plus this evening. Now, at the very least i know she's generally fine and i can at set my mind to ease.

First Fri Nite of 2009

Qin mentioned yesterday that a fren is bringing her out this evening for dinner, hope she will have an enjoyable dinner tonight. Its been really a long time since i last went for a couple hours of skate in the nite alone with a little sea breeze to my face and music in my ears. Maybe, i should head to East Coast tonight. The sky is looking a little dark and i just hope the weather will hold. Another thing, i gotta remember to charge my headphones, the batts are flat.

Keep Walking

That's how i spent most of my free time these days including today 1st Jan 2009. I go out for walks for up to 4 or 5 hours at a stretch with no particular destination in mind. Its just sort of wandering around type of walk.

It's good, helps to keep clear my mind from a lot of cluttering thoughts. In between the walk, i will take small break, have some coffee and read my novel for a little while. Once i'm rested, up and walking again till its time to go home.

Maybe just a quick update of my last few days in 2008, though not particularly interesting i must say:

24/12 & 25/12 - stayed home as my allergies acted up real bad, had a swollen face and rashes all over. To make matter worse, i had my first hyper ventilation experience on eve of Christmas. Had to trouble Pops to bring all the presents to the little ones. Was real glad when Pops told me Shana was delighted. Hope Shawn is just as delighted too.

26/12 - was a good day despite having to work for more than 12 hours. Met Qin for dinner and show. It was one of those rare days that we managed to meet up as arranged. Sometimes conditions does not present itself in such a manner that makes it easy for us to meet. Just have to keep trying. We caught Ip Man, a good flick with lots of actions and appropriate attempts at humour. Loved the part when the kiddo cycled out and said, "Pa, Ma said that you better start hitting back or else all the furniture will be broken."

27/12 - rested for most part of the day. Chatted with Qin online for awhile in the nite before going down to Win's place to pass Erinne her overdue Christmas present. Haha, as usual she likes to sulk when buddy makes her do her homework. But hey, i'm the funny guy and i got the little gal giggling soon. Later in the nite, buddy and me had a good catch up coffee session.

28/12 - wanted to catch Bolt but didn't manage to get a confirmation sms in time, so just left home around 6 in the evening for a stroll around town area. Took a train down to Orchard and went to Kino. Didn't' waste the trip, new graphic novels for Dragonlance and Demon Wars were out. Then i popped over to Gramophone at Cathay, finally decided to pick up the Band of Brothers DVDs. One of the best war series ever made. After that, i just kept walking, accompanied with the music that streamed steadily from my headset. Walked the length of Orchard till i reached Marina and over to Esplanade. Turned around and went back to Plaza Sing, then turn around again back to Suntec and took a bus home.

29/12 - was on leave for the day. Not much going on, wanted to meet up with Qin after work but it didn't work out again. Just strolled around City area again in the evening, waiting to see if there's a chance to meet up while searching for a present. Found a PM figurine at Plaza Sing. Always had a soft spot for these figurines, they have such nice qoutes. Esp their slogan, "Where memories are sweeter." Settled down at Gelare, had a slice of apple crumble and a nice cup of warm coffee while continuing my read of Tamuli by David Eddings. Can't remember how many times i have read this series, must be at least half a dozen times by now. By the time it was 9 plus, i just decided to pack it up and go home, figuratively speaking of course.

30/12 - back to work and after i knocked off ard 8, i popped over to Qin's place to pass her the gift to mark the passing of a year. Even though it was for only an hour or so, i was glad to be able to see her. Later back home, Hong got me online and asked me if i wanted to join him and the rest to catch fireworks at Marina area the next day. I declined, i had other ideas.

31/12 - wasn't so good a day but like all other days, it still passes on. Intitially, i planned to visit ACM (Asian Civilisation Museum) in the nite, have dinner and followed by a nite tour of the place. For that day, it was opened till 1 am and they had some sort of countdown event going about. Thought it would be a interesing way to move into a new year. For sure, it didn't go as i wish it would. Qin sms me in the morn that she wasn't feeling good and won't be able to meet up. To make matters worse, there was an issue at work that kept me working till 11.30pm without even time for dinner. Haha luckily, Ivy's husband, Ping (a good fren of mine from Poly days) came to pick her up abt midnite and we managed to grab some Macs at Queensway to fill our stomachs. Oh, he brought his new pair of pets along, nice enough puppies and i think Toufu got beautiful eyes.

01/01 - wished to catch Ponyo on the Cliff by the Sea today but didn't manage to. Instead, took a train ride to Clarke Quay in the evening and i just wandered there to Boat Quay and Raffles Place around the old shophouses and museums. I like colonial buildings, they have a certain charm about them. Then stopped by City Hall around 8 plus and had dinner at Pastamania. There, i rested and continued my read for a while before strolling back to Dohby Ghaut to take a train ride home. And the rest of the day, typing this log.

Btw, Happy New Year to all of you out there. May you always be well and happy. May the year ahead be filled with love, peace and joy for you and your loved ones.

Of Oceans and Waves

When we think of ourselves, do we think individually or do we think collectively? Although not all the time but most of the time, the answer is individually. "I" comes up more often than "We" during our thought proccesses.

Why is that so? It is simply how we are being conditioned over the years and generations. From a very young age, our education has included "I", "You", "He", "She", "We" and "They". Taught in such a way to differentiate individuals but the truth is, the effects are more than just differentiation. To a certain degree, it conditions our mind to separates ourselves from others. Is this good or bad?

When we look deeper, we cannot say if such a thought process is truly good or bad. We can see that it is like a double edged sword, it can be used both ways. It depends on how we used it. We can used it to stop ourselves from destructive actions such as using "I" to separate ourselves from the rest who are dwelling in ways and dealings that do not better our lives or the lives of our loved ones. But when it comes to dwelling on our own misfortunes, the word "I" may not be as useful as it has a tendency to exaggerate the situation. Sometimes bad enough to start a whole chain of reactions that worsen the situation further. This is when the word "We" comes in very useful. It can help us to regain better clarity of the situation, to look beyond "I" and see the full picture with objectivity.

Just as the Buddha has taught, we can be liken to waves and oceans. A wave in its rise and fall is like us individually, the birth (rise) and death (fall) of a person. Some waves are big and strong while some are small and weak. While most of us will be the little waves, leading a most ordinary life but there are some who rises above the rest, seemingly a life that is not so ordinary, be it full of glitter or be it full of turbulence. But we need to look beyond the waves, not to lose sight of the ocean itself.

A wave is ocean. Although a wave itself is a distinct phenomenon it cannot be separated from ocean. When the conditions ripens enough to cause a wave, nothing is added to ocean. When the activity of wave ceases, nothing has been taken away from ocean as well. The ocean is still the ocean.

Maybe that is one of the reasons why people feel calmer when watching the sea. It tends to gives one a sense of belonging to something bigger than self. Oh, if you are the sort that gets sea sick easily, you look at a patch of grassland or a range of moutains or the clouds in the sky, it should work just as well. Sorry if it sounds a little cold.. my sense of warped humour tends to get the better of me =P

Breakdown

Last nite..

and it was the first time i experienced hyperventilation syndrome..

Today's Epilogue

11 Dec 2008 - a day where the atmosphere in the office was far from usual.

Eyes darted towards each slightly exaggerated movement in our visual corners. Ears perked up each time the doors opened and closed slightly louder than normal. You can almost literally feel your hair standing in the air and your nerves tingling beneath the skin.

Words and information exchanged quickly between men and women alike; something is not right. Everyone is wondering - Where is he? Why does he not return to his work station? Yes, the people involved in the exercise were notified today. Spirits were further dampened with the rain beating upon the window panes. Hmmph, as if it was not melodramatic enough. Attention turned inwards, almost everyone had the same thought, "Will i be next?" So immersed in their thoughts, some jumped even at the sound of their phones ringing.

Emotions were clearly etched on everyone's face. There's no hiding it, each one wearing a different facial expression. Seeing a familiar go, tears were threatening to flow for some while others simply relieved that they were not part of the exercise. For the rest, Resentment? Surprise? Shock? I cannot tell for sure but the feelings are definitely not positive. So were mine, it doesn't feel good to see someone leave without a closure. Especially when he has been one of the better new found friends since i joined.

Job Cuts..

As announced to the media, there's going to be a job reduction exercise in the firm due to Strategic Change.

A total of more than 5,300 jobs will be made redundant and that is more than 10% of our total workforce. From what is known, it appears that we in the Asia Pacific region will be hit hardest.

The namelist will be announced soon in the month itself and i believe it will be these couple of days. So, who is affected? Maybe me? Who knows? Let's wait for the announcement then.

Sweet Camomile

Since her first concert here in Singapore 4 years ago, Emi Fujita will be holding her second concert this Sat 13 Dec 2008 in Esplanade.

Because of my indecisiveness, I missed the first concert. I was left with choices of the most expensive seats by the time i made up my mind. It was too late. Back then, i simply do not have the budget to get a pair of tickets at 100 plus each.

Now, i'm 4 years older and with a little more spending power. So, i'm not going to miss it if i can possibly help it. Yup, i holding a pair of the Cat B passes. =)

I can still recall the time when i first heard her voice in Music Junction at Plaza Singapura 5 years back. They were playing the song "What a Wonderful World" from her second Camomile album, Camomile Blend.

It touched and i was so absolutely captivated by it. From that moment, i knew i was going to walk out from that music store with a copy of the album in my hands. The album surpassed my expectations and i keep recommending it to my colleagues. For those who heard her, they may not become a overnight fan like me but they definitely did agree that she was gifted with a most soothing voice. As for me since then, i've been looking out for her new works each time i pop into a music store.

Yes, i am so looking forward to this Sat! =)

Happiness of A Car Salesman

Just to share a little short story that was told by Venerable Mahinda during a Dhamma talk, a story about a car salesman and his index of happiness.

"There was a car salesman who measured his happiness in life each month using a very simple formula - no. of cars that was actually sold / no. of cars he expects to sell. So during months when car sales were good, the salesman was filled with happiness but when times were bad, so was his mood."

"Take for example, he expects to sell 100 cars each month. In one of the months, he sold 75 cars - based on the formula, he would be 75% happy. A good percentage since he was happy most of the time. But what if he sold a single car during the month, then he would only be 1% happy - isn't that sad?"

"So the salesman tries extremely hard each month to sell as many cars as he could. But little did he realise, there is a much easier way to happiness - to lower his expectations."

"Remember the earlier formlua? If the denominator is 1 and not 100, he will be a very happy man, at least 100% happy if he managed to sell just 1 car alone. But what if we learn not to have Zero expectations? Anything divided by zero is always infinite in a maths formula, then our happiness will be infinite."

In just a simple short story, Bhante has provided a quick insight how much unhappiness can be caused when one has too much expectations in life, no matter whether the expectations are for ourselves or others.

However, we must not confuse expectations with goals, we still need to have goals in life so that we have something to work for so that we do not become complacent or lazy. With goals in life, we can make plans and place our efforts in the right direction and not let our thoughts or actions wander about mindlessly.

We may think of a goal as a destination, a snow-capped mountain that is a thousand miles away. From far, we already have the mountain in sight. If we expect to reach mountain in the next 2 hours, we are likely to be disappointed since it is very unlikely we can do so. But if we forget about pushing time to reach the mountain and just simply walk towards it with no expectation on the time required to get there, we may even find ourselves enjoying the walk itself.

Isn't that a lot nicer? =)

Breathing Mindfully

Watching your breath? Have you ever done so? Is it fast and hard or is it slow and steady?

Breath mindfulness is a technique that has been taught for thousand of years. You may wonder, don't we all know how to breathe? Yes, we all know how to but over the years as we grow, we forget, we forget how to breathe without a care.

Remember when we are all still a child, all of us knew how to breathe, how to do so without a care, to breathe each breath and marvel in each and every moment as we fill our lungs with air. Why not take this moment, slow down, put away whatever you are doing and just watch your breathe for a few minutes or so?

It is a marvellous feeling when we settle into it, our breath becomes lighter and so does our heart and mind. Our mind may be filled with activities at first but as we practice it over time, it becomes easier to be more mindful of our breaths. Most of us as we start off, our breaths are hard and fast because of the tension that has been built up in our mind and body over the years. But just let our body and mind settle and our breaths will follow suit. It will start to slow down and we will find that each intake of breath becoming smoother.

Our breaths can be reflected to be a mirror of our lives. Like each moment in life, each breath is unique in its own rights, some long, some short, some hard, some smooth, reflecting impermanence. Our bodies rise and fall as we breathe in and out, just like our lives, birth (rise) and death (fall) with some days of our lives somewhat harder than the rest while some days are more pleasant. As we reflect on this while we watch our breaths, we will understand life a little better and with that understanding, we naturally become more lighthearted and just simply marvel in the simplictity of it all.

Now that we realise breathing is such a big event, will you spend a few minutes of your time with it everyday? =)

My Workstation @ ORL

It's been over 3 months since we moved from ORQ to ORL. Here's a little peek to how my corner looks like.. its a pity those partitions are metal, so not much space for me to pin up fotos. Other than that, its still pretty much cosy like my previous workstations. =)

Shingles Part 2

According to Wikipedia, the occurence of Shingles is 1.2 to 3.4 cases per 1,000 healthy individuals. That works out to be about 0.12% to 0.34% chances of contracting Shingles.

Sometimes when events like this happens to ourselves, we tend to ask the question, "Why me of all people?" and start lamenting about our situation. Doing so serves no wholesome purpose and will only worsen our mentality and slow down the recovery of our body since a body cannot be well without a healthy mind.

In turn, why not ask ourselves the question the other way round, "Why not?" What makes us so special that we are spared instead and not others? This will help us to take stock of the entire situation in a more holistic manner.

After all, we are all sentient beings subjected to the 4 conditions, Birth, Old Age, Sickness and Death and no one is spared from such.

Shingles

Think i got the shingles, in Chinese it is know as 生蛇..

The symptons started on saturday nite, its getting progressively worse. It starts from my chest area and it stretches all the way to my back spinal area.

It causing me no small amount of pain and discomfort.. not only that it is causing my social life too and i missed a very impt message on monday nite..

More information abt it can be found in the below link..

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shingles

Unthoughtfulness

I was pretty unthoughtful and i did not realise it till Qin hinted to me today, my bad.. it was something that i should have taken note of.. heehee, to make it worse, it was a lesson that i could learn from my 2 very good friends. so here i am, making this entry so that whenever i happen to revisit my blog, i can reflect again on how to be a little more thoughtful to those people whom i hold close to my mind =)

Test Feed to Facebook

Facebook has a function to import feed.. so here goes.. not sure if it works.. so i'm testing now

好久不見

好久不見 by Eason 陳奕迅 - a most heartwenching song that i find reflective of my mood over the last few months.

Club 123

Its a new "club" that we started in our department -

Some of us have been working more than 12 hours a day, even up to as much as 16, for most of our work days during the last 5 weeks or so.

Guessed the couple of us are feeling rather drained out and it was one of these days that the idea just came upon me.. you know.. just eureka! i said to EG (my korean colleague), " Hey 123! Dinner? We are going now." and she looked up with a perplexed face, "Ya, dinner ok. But what's 123?" "Haha, its 1 man, 2 shifts, 3 regions"

Hearing that EG and i broke into a hearty laughter with the rest of my colleagues. It sort of lighten up the mood in the office when everyone were so engrossed in their work staring into the LCD screen sitting in front of us.

Its important to work hard but its just as important to take a break when one is needed. And more importantly to work lightheartedly even though the tough is going. =)

向左走.向右走

向左走.向右走 by 梁咏琪 is one of my favourite movie theme songs and i love this line 两条平行线总有交汇的一天.



How can 2 parallel lines meet? Is it possible? I can think of 1 way. Maybe you can think of another?

Imagine these 2 lines on a piece of paper just like below.
____________________________________________
____________________________________________

Draw dotted a line between them at equal distance.
____________________________________________
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
____________________________________________

Fold the paper at the dotted line and the 2 lines will meet. Parallel lines do meet =)

Alternative Perspectives

Imagine looking at a stick flat, it will probably look like this
_____________________

Turn it around and look at one end, it will end up looking like this
.

Liken to a coin with 2 sides, there's always duality in all situations, there is no absolute.

Even time, although we can measure it in seconds, minutes, hours, days and years, it is still relative to our perspective. We can tell that from examples that occur in our daily lives - A sec is too long for a anxious husband whose wife is in the operating theatre but a day is too short when a newly wedded couple is on their wedding honeymoon.

Capsules

Some fun shots that i did sometime back with the miniature DragonBall characters that i got from capsules =)

这一秒你好不好

A song by 许志安 that was released way back in 2001 but a song that i still find light and soothing to the ears even today as i hear it.

想你风就停了
刚好不迟不早
想你会在做什么呢
会不会也孤单呢

这一秒你好不好
希望你会微笑
有你我觉得我重要
我会努力成为你的骄傲

如果这一秒钟你想起我的笑容
那是同一秒钟你浮现我脑海中
如果当寂寞穿透思念是一种痛
亲爱的没有人比我懂

世界这一秒钟多少爱都已落空
庆幸这一秒钟我们仍心意互通
言语虽无法形容却真实的可以触碰
我的世界只为你转动

Especially the words highlighted in yellow, that's how i hope you are each time i think of you.

The Leap Years

Just watched The Leap Years on DVD - its not too bad a film.

Nothing to really rave about but nonetheless it is one of the better local films that appeared on the big screen this year. Btw, i do feel that Singapore was portrayed rather beautifully throughout the show.

If you wish to learn more about the film, you can visit the official website - http://www.mediacorpraintree.com/TLY/

What really caught my attention was the quotes used at each junction of the movie. Two of them especially.

William Shakespeare: It is not in the stars to hold our destiny but in ourselves.

Robert Frost: In three words I can sum up everything I've learned about life: it goes on.

I find it very Zen like, very much in the spirit of buddhism. Just like what Buddha has once said, "You are the child of your past, parent of your future, the captain of your own ship."

These quotes remind us how we are the ones who really determine how we live and how impermanent all conditioned things are.

Things and events are always in a constant flux and though we may not have complete control on how these events will turn out but we definitely can influence them and even more so, to decide on our own mindset about them.

It goes on, does it not?

In Remembrance of My Godfather, Ho

My paternal uncle, also my godpa, Ho who passed away on 16th July.

What can be said of him? I'm sure there's alot to him that i have never known and will never know. What ever in the future i can learn of him will be through his legacy, his children and grandchildren - my cousins and their babies. How they live and how they remember him will be the best testament to his efforts in living his life fully.

There is one thing i know for sure - he had great passion in social work and spent a great deal of time serving the community. His lifelong efforts were recognised when he was awarded the public service medal years back. But that is not important as the fact that his passion and involvement in social work had benefitted individuals and the community.

I hope that the merits he generated in his living years will continue to flow strong like his name, Ho - translate as river in the years ahead. May it gather more strength as time goes by, just like how a trickle becomes a stream, a stream joins many to form into a river with the flow gaining strength each moment it flows downstream. With metta.

Along the Dotted Lines..

Ya, it's official... Mark and Tracy just signed on those very binding lines this very morning =) Congrats Mr and Mrs Plunkett! Glad to be a part of this important chapter of your lives. Truly honored to be able to put down my prints as one of your witnesses and leave my mark on one of the most important papers that the two of you can ever share...

Hmm.. so do i get to be Gan Die once again in the future say 2 or 3 years down the road? Me sort of looking forward to it.. heehee

28KM

That's the distance i cycled from home to workplace and back. Not much of a distance but its a nice enough ride on my trusted GT Ava. Furthermore, its the first time i cycled to work. I should be doing this every now and then on fri nites if i happen to be working the late nite shift =)

Afterall, the amenities are there to make it convenient for cyclist like me - we got a bicycle park area within the carpark and a shower room in the office (heater included haha).

42KM

No more no less, all done this morning on my trusted Salomon skates that took a 3 month break due to studies.

It feels good to skating in East Coast again with the sun in my eyes and music in my ears. Sure missed these skating times alot. When skating, time simply rolled by and i just enjoyed the sights that presents themselves as i passed by them.

Oh.. i almost rolled over a snake this morning during the stretch of park connector along Changi Coastal Road. Its really a tiny one - by my estimate, just abt the 50 to 60 cm in total length. Could have easily missed it with the track littered with leaves. Luckily for both of us, we both jumped when we came near each other and a good thing we jumped in opposite directions!

Scottie

Just got my bike helmet today from Chapter2Cycle with a little discount, courtesy of Mark =) Haha, always nice to know someone who knows the boss - discounts are likely esp when you can get your friend to come along and show "face".


Went for a ride tonite about 1.30am from home to East Coast and back (couldnt ride ard the park cos some marathon was going on). Must say the helmet is definitely worth the price - its really light; i could hardly feel the weight and absolutely not felt the slightest pressure point after 2 hours. Sweet!

Little Buddha

In many ways Little Buddha is a companion piece to Bernardo Bertolucci's The Last Emperor. A beautiful travelogue and history lesson unfolds in the two parts of this film: a historical text of Siddhartha (Keanu Reeves) and the contemporary quest of Lama Norbu (Ying Ruocheng), who believes he has found the reincarnation of his former teacher in a Seattle child. The ancient, magical tales sweep away the blasé contemporary action. Ruocheng's presence drives the story of discovery as the child learns about the teachings of Buddhism. A visual feast that will dazzle both young and old. In fact, were it not a religious icon, the youngsters might want Siddhartha dolls after viewing his magical on-screen adventures. Beautiful cinematography by Vittorio Storaro. --Doug Thomas

Finally, i managed to lay my hands on a copy of this film! It was a number of years ago when i first read about this picture. Since then, i have been asking around the local shops if they have a copy of this dvd. Apparently being a pretty old film, released in 1993 and coupled with the fact that this is not a mainstream film, i couldn't find it despite trying numerous places. Even so, i kept a lookout for the film whenever i go into a dvd shop.

Sunday was my lucky day - on the way home, i dropped into Gramophone (Cathay) after my classes. Didn't really have anything in mind but just ahead to browse around for awhile (since its on the way) and see if i might chance on a lucky find and boy did i get lucky!

What should i say about this film? Stunning, beautiful, breathtaking, emotions and thoughts provoking, magical, simplistic? Apologies for the limited vocab but i have really no idea how best to describe this film except that it really connects. All i can say, its really in a class of its own. =) Haha, on a note, Keanu Reeves sounds really trying with that indian accent, dubbing might have been a better option.

Studies

"The purpose of studying Buddhismis not to study Buddhism,but to study ourselves."
Quote from Shunryu Suzuki

I believe it's the same across any religion that teaches us to do self-reflection. It is a simply a way to reach deeper within, to know who we truly are and in relation to our surroundings.

Do we truly know ourselves? If we do, then how can doubt, fear, anger and anxiety continue to arise in our mind? We are all interdependent, we cannot exist without one another and all the conditions being the way it is right now.

Each one of us is just like a wave in the ocean. If you know one, you know all. Once we understand ourselves, our mind will open to others and we will also know them. Understand and know that we are all seeking happiness. At this point, all delusions will be dispel and wisdom naturally arise.

So, let's just take a moment from our ever busy scheule to look into ourselves to touch and release the inner peace, although buried deep down, that has always been present.

Beautiful Image

What is the most beautiful image that ever came across your mind? It differs from people to people but most of them have one thing in common; these images include the ones we loved most.
What's mine? It's a little imaginary but it's quite alright to be a little creative; i'm doing the creativity afterall and you probably say the same thing if you are in my shoes now =P

A huge green grassland lying in front of me that stretches on for miles and miles, going way beyond the sight of my eyes. A gentle breeze blows through, caressing my face and creating waves across the emerald sea. Taking a deep breath, i smell the freshness of countless droplets of morning dew that sparkles on the grass blades they reside upon.

There she is amongst the waves, holding her hands wide open across, causing the tiny droplets of dew to sprinkle about as she twirls and turns in her joyful little dance of happiness. She wears a long white dress, the colour so pure that it is not unlike the petals of a fresh blooming lily. Just below the hemline of her dress, her petite ankles are tinted with the green from the grass that she gently lands upon with her every step.

She turns around to gaze upon me and the sparkle in her pair of deep brown eyes conveys thousands of unsaid words, feelings and stories that i will take a lifetime to understand. Decidedly, she bestow me a smile with her perfectly formed lips, one that warms the very inner soul of me. A little sigh of contentment escapes my lips and i smile back to her. She waves back and with a giggle, continues her dance of joy among the greenery.

I turn my head to the right and there is a huge ancient tree upon a small hilltop, providing a cooling shade to everyone that rests beneath it. My parents are there, standing beneath the shade, looking so calm and peaceful with their hands joined together. Nodding their heads gracefully towards me, they affirm my thoughts that they are always watching over us, their children.

Not too far away, i sight my siblings, each standing tall and blessed at the start of their own path that leads away from the huge tree. Though travelling in different directions, seeking their own future, there is no doubt our paths are closely intertwined since the day we are born and will continue to be so for this very lifetime.

As i look around me, i see others as well and there they are, all of them, those that entered my life and those that i will meet and cross paths in a later stage. Some will be my closest friends while some will be no more than a passing moment. All decided by our past, present and future actions. No more and no less, be it big or small, these are the people that will be a part of my journey this life.

At this exact precise moment, i do not know how but i simply know this moment to be the exact moment, it it just right. Nothing more, nothing less; exactly the way it always is. My beautiful image. =)

愛我

A very special song.. keeps growing on me everyday.. =)
found its MV on the web - 愛我

Going 50?

Going 50? I'm looking forward to it... oh no.. not my age but to skate 50km - from Fort Road to Changi Village and back.. ya, that's what i'm thinking of right now =P

I did approx. 30km just about a week ago after work, East Coast Mac->Fort Road->Changi Village but had to stop right there as it was getting late, ard 1.30pm.. had to hit the bed, otherwise i won't have enuff energy when i start my shift at 11pm...

haha, so who wants to join me for a full course?? mark/trace/dylan/david - who
wants in?

Due to the nature of my work and some other commitments, i hardly get to meet these skating khakis of mine especially now that i'm on new york hours... Think you guys are slacking without me around.. hahaha.. esp trace, dylan & david.. dun just eat the goodies, rememeber to work out.. at least mark does biking on his off days..

Btw, I do hit the road with my bike every now and then. My ride -a drop dead gorgeous GT Avalanche 2.0 (2006). Click the link below to have an idea of how she looks like..










And i'm looking forward to get the alluring one below.. hope there will be stock coming in this late feb or early march.. its out of stock for now...

蔡健雅 Goodbye & Hello

In my opinion, one of the best album she has to date.. maybe its just me but i really like the overall style and presentation of this album =) much better than her previous albums.

Not that her previous albums were no good; they are actually some of the best albums that our local artists produced to date.. but she seem to be in her element for this..

How should i put it? It was as if she found a deeper sense of inner self, opening a new chapter in her life and this sense of being can be felt through the way she performed the songs. She seemed more at ease with herself, more relaxed, somewhat with the flow..

My recommendations (or rather my favourites):
1) Track 03 当你离开的时候
2) Track 05 越来越不懂
3) Track 06 如果你爱我
4) Track 08 It's True
5) Track 09 晨间新闻
6) Track 10 走过的路

Merlion in AMK

Went cycling ard 3 am and a little surprise from Ang Mo Kio Estate - 2 miniature merlion statues..

 

Guess, Merlion Park near Esplanade isn't the only place to see merlions =P

Goes to show little treasures are just ard corner if we know where to look =)

Nice Quotes from Recent Shows

Some interesting (and quite applicable to life) quotes from recent shows that i watched. =)

Heroes - Hiro Nakamura: "You don''t need super powers to be a hero"

Rocky Balboa - Rocky Balboa: "The world ain't all sunshine and rainbows. It is a very mean and nasty place. It will beat you to your knees and keep you there permanently if you let it. You, me or nobody is going to hit as hard as life. But it ain't about how hard you hit, it is about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward, how much can you take and keep moving forward. That's how winning is done!"

Bridge to Terabithia - Leslise Burke: "Just close your eyes and keep your mind wide open."

Bridge to Terabithia - Leslise Burke: "You are who you are - not your parents."

Ghost Whisperer - Melinda Gordon: "What happens to these people in their last moments, it really matters."

Tales from EarthSea - ゲド戦記

ゲド戦記 (loosely translated as Ged's War Chronicles) is produced by the Studio Ghibli, the studio who brought us the much acclaimed films such as Spirited Away, Howl's Moving Castle, Grave of the Firefiles and My Neighbor Totoro.

However, the film was directed by first-timer Gorō Miyazaki, son of Hayao Miyazaki and the difference in style is quite noticeable. It is somewhat lacking in warm sentimentality that was present in some of Ghibli's earlier film.

The film was loosely based on the 3rd and 4th book of Ursula K. Le Guin's Earthsea series. If you read the book prior to watching the film, you will find that some characters and some scenes were followed closely (including the dialog) but that was where all the similarities ended. The plot on the whole was pretty much on its own. The author's response sums it all up - Response by Le Guin

Even so, as a film itself, i must say it was quite enchanting and enjoyable. Spirited Away was the sort of anime that deserves 5 full ticks and i would rate this film about 4 & 1/2 ticks. =)

思念是一種病

这次只唱情歌 - 張震嶽。

Overall album's good, some of the tracks are still a little too rap or rock for my liking. But when he goes slow rock, his act just came together beautifully. Music is strong with a solid bass and the lyrics are subtle and meaningful.

Some of tracks i pretty much enjoyed -
Track 03 路口
Track 04 很難 (esp this number)
Track 06 孤獨的夜哨
Track 07 再見
Track 08 小宇
Track 11 再見 ~ 真情版

Lyrics for 很難 =)

又一天的一个晴天
阳光印在这张旧沙发
躺下来闭上眼
恍然不知寂寞枕着蔓延
昨天的激情今天的空虚
还有一张惨白的脸慢慢改变

一杯水和一支香烟
混合安静孤独的气味
是纯情是谎言
星期天的早晨别太绝对
疯狂的世界不想这些
锁在门之外

有时候想把自己关起来
还是学着把心门拉开
人与人之间的关系变得不理不睬
习惯无关紧要的冷淡

又一天的一个晴天
阳光印在这张旧沙发
躺下来闭上眼
恍然不知寂寞枕着蔓延
昨天的激情今天的空虚
还有一张惨白的脸慢慢改变

一杯水和一支香烟
混合安静孤独的气味
是纯情是谎言
星期天的早晨别太绝对
疯狂的世界不想这些
锁在门之外

有时候想把自己关起来
还是学着把心门拉开
人与人之间的关系变得不理不睬
习惯无关紧要的冷淡
有时候莫名其妙哭起来
难道这就是自愿自挨
谁不希望像飞鸟一样自由自在
谁不希望啊
谁不希望只是很难

有时候想把自己关起来
还是学着把心门拉开
人与人之间的关系变得不理不睬
习惯无关紧要的冷淡
有时候莫名其妙哭起来
难道这就是自愿自挨
谁不希望像飞鸟一样自由自在
谁不希望啊
谁不希望只是很难

Rat-a-too-ee

Yes, it's a rat film but in many ways the film is more humane than most of the shows we see nowadays. Lots of values and moral teachings are embedded within the film but one stands out as the main.

The one qoute - Anyone can cook - is repeated throughout the film. The true meaning of this qoute by the great chef Gusteau is finally revealed by the ultimate food critic Ego at the end of the film. Wanna know? Watch the film and take my word for it, its worth it. It's a ratty film but i'm not gonna rat on it. =)

Official Website - Ratatouille

My first Holga

Just bought my first Holga camera 2 days back, hopefully i will be able to try it out this weekend. Oh.. in case, you have no idea what a Holga is - you can click here to find out more.

A brief intro -

It's a little toy plastic camera with plastic lens, very poorly built and you have almost no control on how the picture will turn out to be when you sent it for developing. Sometimes you might get nothing out of the whole roll of film or every shot is a masterpiece.

Simply said, its a camera where one simply have fun at taking pics without having to give a further thot about the usual guides and rules that binds conventional photography and learn to expect the unexpected, that is to say, don't expect at all!

Bridge to Terabithia

The Bridge to Terabithia - a truly heart-wrenching experience to a magical land that can only be built with the power of imagination and love.

Jess, the son of a small time farmer, was mostly by himself in school as he dwells in his own world surrounded by drawings of imagination. Things change when a new classmate, Leslie transferred to the school. Leslie was not too unlike Jess, she often lived in her own world of imagination created and relayed through her flair with words.

Both were neighbours separated by a road, living on their own plot of land near the woods. Although the friendship started off on an uneasy note but it grew as time goes and they became each other's best friend. Tired of being bullied in school and neglected at home, they escaped into the woods, to a place that belongs only to them and no one else.

Leslie, a very beautiful girl as she is both outwardly and inwardly, opened up Jess's mind to a magical kingdom, the kingdom of Terabithia. A secret land that belongs to them truly and where all became possible. Their love for each other, powered with imagination took them to places and experiences that they can proudly say its theirs and no one else.

When everything was going so wonderfully for them, Jess lost Leslie to an unfortunate accident while Jess was out with his teacher on a school trip. Jess went into a state of shock and denial as he couldn't bring himself to believe the fact that Leslie was gone. But the love of Leslie was strong in him, along with the love of his family and advice from his father, he learnt that despite all, Leslie still live in his heart.

With that, he rebuilt Terabithia, the way he knew best to remember Leslie - through a world they built that belongs to them and all who believe in the magic of love and imagination.

This is the link to the Official Website.

I'm not too sure why but somehow i felt a kindred to the film. It brought laughters and smiles to see such love and bond between the two of them. And it brought tears to my eyes when Jess learnt that Leslie was no longer around and it still does now when i think of the scence again.

Couple of Quick Updates

Just finished laying out Ling & Lawrence's coffeetable book for their wedding day and sent it for prints. 1st time doing such layout, so hopefully the prints turn out as good as they looked on screen. =)

It's the second week with my new colleagues and so far, been learning lots of new stuff from them. Work's really fast-paced there and learning curve is really steep especially for the people in London shift due to the high volume of work.

ICT in September has been cancelled as our unit performed very well in the recent overnite exercise during end June. Good news for me - i can concentrate on work without taking time off for ICT especially now that i'm on probation.

Ling's Gettin Married! =)

Ling, one of my closest friend, is getting married in a couple of hours! Yup, a whole day event, traditional, ROM and dinner all in one day, 07/07/07. Blessings to you Ling if you happen to read this. =)

Anycase, just got back from my London shift abt an hour ago, and now its already abt 2 plus in the mornin. Haha, i'm still charging my batts for Ling's big day. Dun think i have time to charge the batts for my F828 which i usually bring as a backup cam in case my Alpha fails.

Just gotta trust my Alpha =) and its not really gonna matter if i bring backup cam or not since i'm not the main photographer. Will be there just to back the main up in case of some unplanned incidents, but more than likely, i will be having fun capturin all the candids for the day! =)

Me poppin the bed soon, gotta wake up in less than 5 hrs time. Gonna be a busy day! =)

First Shift

Officially started with the bank this monday but like most of the staff in Credit Suisse, i have to go thru an induction program. Mine was a 3 day program which happens to be over today, so i will be meeting my team members officially tmr, thursday. =)

Will be starting on the London shift, meaning my official work hours for the next few months will be from 3pm to 12am. Didn't really expect to start so quickly on shift work but since my buddy (the one who referred me into the bank) happens to be on London shift, it will be easier for me to tag with someone i know rather than someone i don't.

Guess i might be able to meet up with some of you for lunch one of these days before i hit work =)

Search for Happiness

The search for happiness, everyone's looking for it but have you ever wonder where it can be found as we constantly pursue it? and more importantly is the happiness that we pursue now truly worth the efforts we have expounded?

Disagree with me? You may argue that not everyone is looking for happiness since if everyone is really looking for happiness, then self-mortification, suicides will not happen. Look deeply, when people do such extreme acts, they are essentially looking for happiness even though it may be a deluded type of happiness they are going after. It's only simply a matter of their mind deluding them that they can be better or happier off dead or by committing acts to hurt themselves.

It is the same for people who take intoxicants such as drugs, alcohol, smokes; people who party through out the nite till the dawn; people who food binge. They just simply think that they are happier that way. But the fact remains - are they truly happy and will they have a sense of fulfillment when all these are over?

I seriously think not. Most of the time, they just end up feeling more empty innerly and crave for more to fill up this ever growing sense of emptiness. Most of us forget that this sense of emptiness can never be filled in such a manner. Emptiness as such can only be filled with a sense of harmonious inner self.

How do we attain such harmonious state of mind? We all know the answer - be more at peace with your surrounding and you will naturally be peace with yourself. How can we do so? For a start, we can always look at the five silas (precepts) that the historical buddha laid down more than 2500 years ago for the lay disciples or anyone (regardless of religion) who has a sincere wish to be happier. =)

1) Do not kill or injure deliberately - when we refrain from such acts for even the smallest insects, we naturally develop metta (loving kindness), a great healing force.

2) Do not steal or obtain property or the rights of others through unskillful means - when we do not take what is not ours (including the credit of others and learning to give credit where it is truly due), we learn to respect the rights of one another.

3) Do not speak falsely and maliciously - doing so we learn to be mindful of our speech and conduct and to be firm in what is the truth in a loving manner without being overly aggressive.

4) Do not engage in unhealthy relationships - keeping this in mind, we become faithful to our partners, treasure the ones that we have currently and will not cause unnecessary suffering.

5) Do not intake intoxicants or partake in mind dulling activities - refrain from such will keep the mind sharp and firm and thus helping to lessen or even remove any doubts about ourselves and others.

So, this is my path, is this yours too? I hope it is and may you always be well and may you always be happy.

Dukkha muccantu, Yattha-laddha-sampattito, Mavigacchantu kammassaka - May all be free from suffering, May all that is gained not be lost, All are owners of their own kamma.=)

Changi Naval Base Open House 2007

RSS celebrates its 40th year and opens up Changi Naval Base to the public on 26th May, showcasing some of its naval fleet.

Although an open house as such did not come by frequently but to me the stars of the day was not the ships or boats. It was the little ones, my god-daughter and her baby brother. It was a good day spent with my god-daughter and her family.

Haha, i almost got into her bad books cos i reminded her a few times to take a cue from her little bro and eat more as she looks a little undersized for a 6 year old. But she forgave me quickly cos i made her feel like a little princess, by giving in to her request and carrying her in my arms the whole day. =)

Will let my fotos say the rest of the story.

The fotos can be found here Navy Open House

Iwo Jima

Recently purchased 2 dvds from Gramphone - Flags of Our Fathers and Letters from Iwo Jima.

Both films were directed by Clint Eastwood and were meant to be complementary films as they both revolve around the 35 days battle of Iwo Jima during WWII, one from the perception of americans and the other from the japanese.
It shows how different reality can be when it is viewed thru different people of differing mindsets. Even within the americans and japanese themselves, their views can differ greatly.

More importantly, the 2 films presented the frontline soldiers in most down to earth manner; they did not think of themselves as heroes. Both the americans and japanese alike, most of what they wanted was to stay alive, to make it home to their families if ever possible.

Nothing heoric about the main cast of both films and this is what made it truly compelling and moving, more real life than reel life. =)