Down the Rabbit Hole

This Land Mine Called Religion

2012-02-27T20:47:00.005-08:00

A lot of people I know, especially Chinese-Indonesians from Jakarta (or Java island, in general)...

Actually, just Chinese-Indonesians who hailed from Java, would be surprised to learn that I go to church whereas my family go to temples.
Well, generally people should be surprised, I suppose.
But only these people, and I mean only them, these Chinese-Indonesians, who would dropped my jaw with questions with the tone, "So you family are still Buddhists?"

What could they mean, 'still'?

I suspect that deep down inside, they think that Chinese are born Taoists/Buddhists/Confucians and then at some point of their lives, they will have a breakthrough and realizes that they are truthfully Christians. That they love Jesus and would like to accept Him as their personal savior.

Or it could be something else, I wouldn't know.

I knew a friend who is a Buddhist, albeit a rather relaxed one. She told me of her housemate who kept on asking her to go to church with her every week, after she agreed to go with her on one occasion. She went to a Christian school (as did I), so she was really nonchalant about going to church. But after that one church service, her housemate suddenly made it her mission to 'save' her soul.

Sure, Christians are taught to spread the Gospel to the world. It is the Great Commission, written at the end of Gospel of Matthew. We are supposed to go and make disciples of all nations, baptize them in the name of the Father and of the Son and the Holy Spirit, and teach them to obey everything He has commanded us.

It may work that time, from 33 A.D. up to, oh I don't know, several decades ago? To people who you are colonizing, evangelizing is probably a cakewalk. To people who had no religion, go ahead. Go to town. But now? Almost everyone believe in one thing or another. Telling them to convert? We have a word for that. It's called proselytizing. And in some countries, it's actually a crime punishable by law.

So no, I'm not amused.

Because even though you, and I, believed in Jesus, not everybody does. And those who don't, may be confused, may believed in other God(s) or other things, or may believed that there is no God. I think atheism is a religion in itself.
If you argue that one can't be so arrogant as to be one hundred percent sure that God does not exists, the same argument can be said that you can't be one hundred percent sure that He does. One of the many definitions of faith is "firm belief in something for which there is no proof".

Whatever it is, it's no one's place to push their beliefs to someone else. No matter how much you love (or say you love) them. It's downright annoying. And pompous. If they come to you and ask you about God, go ahead, tell them. Go shout it from the mountains.

If not?

Keep it to yourself, thank you.

What Goes Around Comes Around

2012-01-09T02:25:00.001-08:00

I'm crazy into this new TV series from ABC:

(Source)

The cast (Source)
You all can guess which one is the main character.
(Hint: The one standing out of the group)

Revenge is about Emily Thorne, previously Amanda Clarke. She changed her name because she wanted to take revenge on the people who framed her father several years ago. Her father, David Clarke, was convicted of being responsible for the crash of Flight 197. Her father was sentenced to prison, where he died several years later (I'm fuzzy on the years), and Amanda herself was institutionalized until her 18th birthday.

Now, as Emily Thorne, she's seeking revenge for her father. Her target includes Victoria Grayson, who had an affair with David. Her husband, Conrad Grayson. Their friend and her father's former secretary, Lydia Davis.
To achieve that, she rented a beach house in the Hamptons, where the Graysons live. This is the same beach house that she used to live in with her father when she was young.
And she also started dating Victoria and Conrad's son, Daniel Grayson.

Why I love this series:
1. I love stories about revenge. One of my favorite quotation is "Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned". I instantly liked the character for her scheming, brilliant mind. As in, she is super smart. She seems a little bit cold to me, which is another plus. :))
However, I don't see this going to the second season, because after her revenge is done, then what? The Graysons seek revenge back? Maybe the Grayson's youngest child, Charlotte, seek revenge? It's a vicious cycle.

2. The costumes are super great.
I mostly love Ashley's and Emily's costumes Shift dresses, peplum skirts, anchor-print shirt and full skirt. Also Victoria Grayson with her queen-ish air. Charlotte's style is flowerish and young, which I also like. :))

3. Awesome music.
I found Agnes Obel from this series. I love "Avenue" and "Riverside".

4. Madeleine Stowe, the actress who played Victoria Grayson.

Source

She recently received an Emmy nomination for best actress, so it's suffice to say that she is good. And also pretty for a woman (supposedly) in her 50's.
Also, it helps that her outfits are to die for.

5. This couple.

Source

Too bad he's supposed to die at the end of the season (shown in pilot). Hopefully it's just a trick and in the end they sailed together into the sunset or something.
So pretty...
(Guess which one of them I'm referring to.)

Happy New Year

2012-01-01T21:54:00.000-08:00

Happy 2012!

I spent New Year's Eve like an old lady. All I need is a cat and I would be a stereotype. My friends went to see the fireworks at Marina Bay Sands, but despite the fact that I've never actually see fireworks on Christmas, New Year nor Lunar New Year, I know that it would be hell.

Seriously. Supposedly you spent your lifetime doing awful things, then you go to hell for eternity, right. Fireworks are also like that. You spent ten minutes, half an hour tops, watching the firework, and you spent maybe an hour waiting for it, and several more hours trying to go home. Because everyone else would also be trying to get home, the train would be as packed as sardines in a can, you can't even walk without being pushed by strangers and if you can get a taxi, you might as well as for gold bars and straighter teeth (and larger eyes in my case) because apparently miracles do happen. The one possible good plan is to book a hotel room. But that would be expensive and also need preparation because in all probabilities they would be full booked as well.

Ah well... I think I'd name my cat Sheldon Cooper.

Sorry, I meant Dr. Sheldon Cooper.

Although I'm more of a dog person.

I'm not even going to do resolutions anymore. They're just insulting. Insulting myself, of course, for my lack of self control and determination.
I went to a church service in the afternoon, and I resolved to eat better. By the time I went home to Clementi (from Dhoby Ghaut), that resolve was already forgotten and I bought KFC for dinner. Ack.

Though the year started with failed resolution(s), I'm excited for this year, because I would be having my qualifying exam this year (more 'scared shitless', rather than excited, but yeah, looking forward to it), there would be one or two weddings, there would be traveling, and hopefully more exciting stuff.

Happy New Year!

Extra Leg Room, Paranoid All the Way

2011-12-26T18:24:00.001-08:00

For this year's Christmas, I went to Kuala Lumpur (Right, again). I probably would write about that in February but set the posting date in December. That's right, I like to do that. There might be a lot of posts in September that you, my loyal readers, haven't read yet.

It wouldn't matter anyway, because you, my loyal readers, probably are imaginary.

One of the highlights of this trip is the flight back to Singapore. No, I did not meet Joseph Gordon-Levitt on Tiger Airways (that's right, I'm a budget flyer. It is threatening to be lifelong. Imagine, flying in an Airbus with minimum leg space for my longer-than-normal legs (for Asian standards, anyway). For as long as I shall live.). No, I did not got kick out for playing Words With Friends. I don't even installed Words With Friends...
(Mental note: Install Words With Friends on iPhone)

So...what happened was that...

*drumroll*

I got the emergency seat.

Now, during my 23 21 years on this planet, I have never, never, ever, sat on the emergency seat. I mean, sure, the chances are, what, only 1 in 30? But I frequently fly in these airbuses, yet I never got those seats. And good thing, too, because as it turned out, I became paranoid bordering on psychotic.

In that short, 45 minutes flight, I listened to the safety instructions for the first time in at least 4 years. After my first adult flight, I just ignored the safety instructions. But that day? That day I was super attentive. I looked at the emergency handle for 5 full minutes, trying to figure out how to open it fastest in case the plane fell down on the Malacca strait or something.

Which is, you know, unlikely.

Because if an accident is going to happen, probably the plane is going to blow up in the sky.

So paranoid, check.

Psychotic? I kept imagining things in my head. Yeah, it's not exactly psychotic unless you're hearing voices, but...it kinda seemed like I was.
I imagined the plane going down in the forest, and then I would open the emergency door and save everyone on board and then make the news and the write a book on my experience as a hero and then...

...

So, in short, crazy. Emergency seats bring out the crazy woman in me. At least I got extra leg room...

I better get back to work.

Nasi Padang

2011-12-23T05:57:00.000-08:00

I used to take nasi padang for granted, seeing as you can basically get it at any corner in Indonesia. Practically.

I used to live opposite one Padang restaurant. On the lazy days when I don't have class and am suddenly alergic to water that I don't shower the whole day (Don't judge. You've been there before, too), I had nasi padang for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Or rather, brunch and dinner. Seeing that I woke up at noon on those days.

In Indonesia, as far as I know, nasi padang consists of rice, steamed cassava leaves, stew with young jackfruit (Or something like that. What do I know, I don't cook.), and whatever meat or fish or egg of your choice.

The nasi padang available in Singapore is like a joke. They're like chinese cooked mix rice. With a little bit of curry on the side. I mean, disappointing. Super disappointing. They don't even have cassava leaves.

So is the nasi padang sold onboard of Air Asia. At least they are a bit more like the real thing than the nasi padangs in Singapore. I did got tempted when I saw the advertisement:

45,000 IDR for lousy plane food

However, my flight was delayed 50 minutes without so much of an explanation. I got on board on time, the safety show...thingy was shown, and the plane was ready to take off, right on time. Then the captain told the passengers through the speaker that we would be a bit late since we need to wait a bit for take off.

Turns out you need to queue anywhere in Singapore. Even in airport runways.

So I went to sleep. I was sitting alone in my row, which was rare and I am really happy about since I don't really like people.
Just kidding.

Um..not really.

Anyway, then I woke up, and the plane is not moving at all. I thought, is it possible that the plane arrived in Jakarta already? How long was I asleep? It doesn't seem that long, although it felt that it must have been more than 30 minutes. I look at my watch, and it was 50 minutes later than the take-off time. Nobody in the crew was offering any explanation, and nobody asked. Typical Singapore.
Like when you cannot board the bus because the passengers are clogging up the front, you would just wait until the bus captain told them to move inside. And if he didn't yell at them, you won't either. You'd just wait for the next bus.

After a 50-minutes delay, I was quite hungry. But I was pissed, and I would've sooner eat the polish of my nails, rather than spend money on their crappy food.

Looking back, my flight back to Singapore was also delayed for an hour. I suspect it's some kind of a ploy from Air Asia, to extract as much money on the side as possible. First the 5 dollars for counter check in. Then they delay our flights, so you'd be hungry, and they didn't so much as give you a muffin and a glass of water (which I always got from Jetstar), hoping you'd buy their overpriced food and drink.

So...
Here's the nasi padang I had in Bandung. It's called Sederhana, and it's very good. :D
You eat whatever you want, and when you finished, a waiter comes and count how much you owe them.

Yummy

So Much Happened Before Dorothy Dropped In

2011-12-15T17:44:00.000-08:00

I went to see Wicked in the Sands Theatre tonight. Missed the opening due to traffic. :'(

I can only imagined how the original Broadway casts' performance would be like. I don't think they're still performing though. Kristin Chenoweth alone... Oh my...
And then Idina Menzel.

This play was based on Gregory Macguire's 1995 book, "Wicked", which tells the story of the Wicked Witch of the West. How she earned that title and how it turned out that she wasn't so wicked after all, just green and misunderstood. This is a long time before Dorothy and Toto and that house landed in Oz.

Elphaba

During intermission. There's a dragon on the stage that moves
its head looking all angry whenever Elphaba gets angry.

No loud Indonesians sitting at the back this time, but there's a couple of white girls, sitting quite restlessly behind. At one point, the one sitting behind me put her feet up on the back of my chair. Her shoes touched my dress and I turned and gave her what was hopefully a 'what the ef, bee?' look. She didn't apologized; in fact, she didn't even looked like she was sorry. Just remove her damned foot. What kind of person put her feet up people's chair anyway?

Those of you who watch Glee, probably know the songs 'Defying Gravity" and "For Good", those are from this musical. Coincidentally, both Idina Menzel and Kristin Chenoweth, who played Elphaba and Galinda in the original Broadway cast, also starred in Glee.

Definitely enjoyed the performance.
Wish that these musicals started giving student discounts, though. I'm gonna break my piggy bank if they keep having new shows. #sad

Obsessed

2011-12-14T22:37:00.000-08:00

When I first saw people wearing it, I was ambivalent. I don't really like it, but it kinda looks great on other people. But then, the more I see people with it, the more I grow to like it.

This is why I don't believe in love at the first sight.

I was talking about this necklace, originally from Nicole Richie's House of Harlow:

Source

Nicole Richie wore it, Paris Hilton wore it, Kim Kardashian wore it (a lot!), it was featured in an episode of 90210 (not that I watch 90210 though).
But mostly I saw people walking on the street or in the mall with it, and somehow I felt like I have to have it.

I'm a bit surprise that Nicole Richie is actually good at designing jewellery.

Of course, the original thing from House of Harlow costs like $219. I'm not going to spend that much money for a necklace made of resin. Even if it's gold plated.
But, of course, knock-offs are available. And I suspect that those necklaces I spotted on the street are not from House of Harlow either. I've been scouring through accessory stores like Diva, Helen, and some random stores which names I can't remember, but I cannot find it. Maybe those people just bought them all up.

I also found several on a number of online shops, but sadly they're all sold out.

Maybe I'll have better luck in Jakarta...

Christmas Old Man is Coming to Town*

2011-12-11T22:34:00.000-08:00

Greetings from the hot island known as Singapore. Although it was approximately a month before Christmas, Orchard Road is festively decorated. It's as if every shopping mall is competing to see who can come up with the best Christmas decor.

There're lots of Christmas trees. So much that when I was meeting my friend at Paragon the other day, my friend who is new to Singapore didn't really know how to get to Paragon.

So this conversation happened.
Friend: Hey, I'm at Orchard already. Where are you guys?
Me: We're in Paragon, go down to the basement.
Friend: Okay, where is Paragon?
Me: It's umm...next to Lucky Plaza.
Friend: I'm was at H&M, I crossed the road, now I'm in front of the building with a big Christmas tree.
Me: O...kay...
Friend: Ummm...actually every building here has a big Christmas tree. Oh! I see Paragon. Okay, see you.

Silver and blue tree decoration, brought to you by Hitachi

Man, where do all these people come from??

I felt a bit overwhelmed when I see this sea of people. Speaking of sea, I thought of Moses parting the red sea as I walked along Orchard. :))
Anyway, even though Orchard is usually quite crowded, I gotta say this is a bit too much.
Guess the Christmas shopping has begun. I should just avoid Orchard altogether until it's over, unless a life-or-death situation dictates that I must go to Orchard.
Either that or Taka is having a super big sale. :))

I cannot imagine what Christmas eve would be like. 'Suffocating' comes to mind.

Speaking of Christmas presents... Asians have really gotten into this Christmas thing, huh. At least Singaporeans do. I always feel like Asians always want to follow Westerners' lifestyle. It's not necessarily a bad thing, since we still hang on to our own traditions.
I also can't help thinking that Christmas is so way off its original meaning. Right now Christmas is oh so commercialized. It's supposed to be the day Jesus Christ was (allegedly) born. (There's lots of accounts that states that Christmas used to be a pagan holiday, and Jesus was not actually born that day. He was born more like on March or something. I'm fuzzy on that. Do correct me if I'm wrong.)
Now Christmas is more for family+friends gathering and gift giving.

And candy canes and eggnogs.

And new dresses.

Yeah, I made the last one up. :))

Not one, not two, but three Christmas threes in front of Ngee Ann City

So... What's your plan for Christmas?

*) Santa Claus is 圣诞老人 in Chinese. Translated verbatim means Christmas Old Man, or Old Man of Christmas. :D

Lunar Eclipse

2011-12-11T22:25:00.001-08:00

Anyone caught the lunar eclipse yesterday night?
I took a picture last night, but it's really...obscure.

Poor photographer-ship

I'm not exactly sure, though, if I can still see the moon, how is it an eclipse?
(Mental note: google lunar eclipse)

I took this picture in Scape, Orchard the other night. One of my high school best friends decided to join in the Singapore fun (?) and move into the country. She went to university in Taiwan, and Taiwanese pretty much don't let you work there. For a bachelor degree holder, you need a minimum of 2 years experience. So you either go work somewhere after you graduate and come back 2 years later (what for?) or you can get a master's degree.

Anyway, we went to dinner at Grandma's Restaurant at Paragon (That friend I mention here). Sort of a small reunion of high school friends, I guess. The food was...sub-par.

Mindy Gledhill

2011-12-07T16:26:00.000-08:00

If you were reading my blog using a normal browser (as opposed to using mobile phone or something), installed adobe flash player, and your speaker is on, then you'd hear Mindy Gledhill's "Anchor".

I first listened to this song in the 2nd episode of the 7th season of Bones (The Hot Dog in the Competition). So I googled her. I love her other songs as well, here's a playlist of her songs in Youtube.

Granted, most of the times I felt annoyed when I opened a website and suddenly, music. Especially if the music is something really obnoxiously upbeat and loud.
But sometimes I found new singers I like, whom I wouldn't have came across otherwise.

So by installing a music player in my blog, that starts playing upon page loading, I flatter myself that my choice of music is decent.

Agreed, agreed? :D

Here's Crazy Love by Mindy Gledhill.

On second thought, maybe I will add it to the music player. :D

Of Yoga

2011-12-02T00:58:00.001-08:00

For a month now I've started doing yoga. Very elementary, of course. My classes are on Saturday mornings, since the alternative is Thursday at 7 PM. I can never go from Buona Vista to Farrer Park in 30 minutes, so Saturday it is. Morning, I might add. Goodbye beauty sleep. *cries*

I paid for 8 classes which I can have at my convenience, which is exactly why I signed up for the class since every now and then I may be lucky enough to be away on weekends. Or maybe my friends come to visit. Or my parents.

My most active activity is running, which I rarely do now. Number two on the list would be shopping, which is, sadly, not so rarely endeavored. So needless to say, my joints are rusty, and I am as flexible as a polyethylene bag.

Plastic bag.

Because, you know, plastic bags can only be stretched so much before they reaches their fracture point and cannot return to their original shape.

Okay lame.

My yoga instructor is an Indonesian lady, who insists on speaking English the whole lesson, even though...the students are all Indonesian. Maybe the instructions sound odd in Indonesian?

Anyway, she said that since we have no prior experience, we should begin slowly, step by step. Cannot agree more.
Even when I used to stretch before running, I cannot bend and touch my toes. I don't even want to think about the numerous yoga position I saw. Like the one where you stood upside down? With your head on the mat? *shudder*
Or the one where you lie on your stomach, and then pull your legs to your neck?

Wait... that might have been a contortionist. That would make more sense.
Huh...

I've been to three classes so far, and they all begin with sitting cross-legged, eyes closed.

"Breeeeathe..."
*inhale*
"...be aware of your breathing..."
*exhale*
"...take deep breaths..."
*inhale*
"Now put your right hand over your chest, in the middle, where your heart is..."
wait, lady, heart is to the left
"...and your left hand over your abdomen."
"Feel your chest and abdomen rising as you inhale..."
*inhale* yeah, must be all the breathing that my abdomen is rising. no other reason whatsoever...
"...and feel them relaxed as you exhale..."
*exhale*
"...concentrate on your breathing..."
*snores*

After exhausting all the oxygen in the room, we were to sit on our heels, like the Japanese do (at least in the movies they do). Then some stretching. Standing up. Bend over and touch your ankles. It was more like touching knees for me.

For some reason, my joints like to make crackling sounds from time to time when I stretched. My instructor seems to think that this is a good sign.

"I hear some sounds... Good, good..."
You think?

I suspect it was more due to lack of sinovial fluid in my joints, which in turn is probably caused by lack of exercise, but whatever. I strive to be a good student.

View from Sky Park

2011-11-30T02:23:00.000-08:00

Those of you who haven't heard of Marina Bay Sands, where have you been, lying under a rock? :))

Alright, alright. Maybe it's not that special. Not as high as Taipei 101. Not featured in a movie staring the handsome-although-kinda-short Tom Cruise like Burj Khalifa. Well, maybe not yet.

It's basically a hotel, with three towers. In front of the hotel, separated by a busy road, is casino and shoppes. At this moment, it is the newest, and I think most popular hotel in town.
In the country.
You know.

On top of the three hotel towers, is the Sky Park. It's a boat-shaped platform, 340 metres, with an infinity swimming pool. If one is not guests of the hotel, he/she need to pay 20 Singapore dollars to go up. Quite a sum considering you will not be able to swim. Just walk from one end to the other, then up the observation deck. That's it.
Well, yeah, you can view all over Singapore from the observation deck, I suppose. Much like the Empire State Building.

Makes me wonder. If you want to go to KU DÉ TA, would you need to pay the 20 dollars?

Anyways. I snapped some pictures with my iPhone the time I went there at night. Quite blurry, but my digital camera is even worse. I don't have and can't afford a DSLR, so I'm gonna have to be content with these pics.

The Singapore River, the Fullerton can be seen,
also the Merlion statue if you know where to look. :))

The new Art and Science Museum at the bottom,
and Esplanade Theatre (the two bluish buildings on top)

Singapore Flyer

The Helix Bridge (the small one, with lights, beside the highway)

Ng...tall buildings.

Not sure. I think it's the harbor, the one connected to Batam.

Reebonz

2011-11-21T22:21:00.000-08:00

I think I'm high the day I did this. Although high on what, I'm not so sure.
High on the fact that I'm one year older maybe.

I thought of this as a birthday present for myself.

I bought a bag.
And not just any bag.
A Coach.
Online.

It comes in a big box. By big, I mean big.

With a big bow (reebonz=ribbons?).

I put my phone on it for size comparison

At first I'm not sure if it's legit or not. It's from www.reebonz.com. It offers bags, shoes, accessories, sometimes household items, on reduced price. Most of the items are branded ones. I checked several blogs, I found people who have bought stuffs from this site, and they said it's pretty legit. So...

Tadaaa

Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to wallow in guilt.

Wild Wild East

2011-11-20T23:04:00.000-08:00

Around mid-August this year, there were several rape cases in Jakarta, one of the most notorious one happened to a university student. She was strangled and raped in a public minibus in the middle of the day.
Another one is a employee (of some kind) who took the minibus at night. She survived, but the police didn't do much to catch her rapists. That's right, multiple. In most cases, there were multiple rapists. She actually got around town herself (with some friend or family) and looked for the rapists herself.
You go girl.

But that's not the point. Not the declining moral of Indonesians. Nor their increasing boldness in committing crimes. Nor the lack of action from the police force. Nor the fact that the girl who died was only 21 and Chinese.

A lot of men were saying that girls who wear revealing clothes were asking to be raped. Even the mayor of Jakarta were recorded advising women to dress modestly.

Would a burqa do?

This is not Middle East. There they may not respect women. There they may rape any women who didn't wear a headscarf. It should not happen in South East Asia.

What do we have laws for if not protecting the citizens? What do policemen do besides sitting around puffing smoke and drinking coffee? Oh right, pulling cars over for "tickets".

So next time I hear someone say that we were asking for it, I may very well knee you in the groin. Because, hey, you balls are there and I have two healthy knees.

How You Met Who?

2011-11-15T22:20:00.000-08:00

(Source)

Anyone watched yesterday's episode of How I Met Your Mother? :'(

Poor Barney.
The ending scene where Barney cleaned up the rose petals from Robin's bed... :(

I still believed that Barney will marry Robin at the end, and the writers are just royally f*cking with us viewers.

At least I hope so.

Now, How I Met Your Mother is amongst my favorite TV series.
There's Pushing Daisies, but it got discontinued. Real shame.
Then The Big Bang Theory, which is still funny.
Grey's Anatomy, which probably should have end in the middle of season 7. In my opinion, at least. You can't outdo a crazy gunman in the hospital. Seriously.
Friends. But who doesn't love Friends. And even with 10 seasons they managed to make it entertaining until the end.
House. Still rocking.
Veronica Mars. Awesome, awesome series but got discontinued also. Shame.
Bones. Still awesome, especially with the recent romantic development.
Castle. Still waiting for the romantic development.

Wow. It suggest that I spend all my watching TV, but I don't. Really, I don't. :))

HIMYM was great. The first five seasons at least. The sixth season is still great. But then it was extended to season 7 and 8... Now the writers are just milking it.
Does the mother exists at all? Is it possible that your kids are adopted, Ted? Maybe you never met a girl who would marry you?
Or maybe...those were the kids of a woman that Ted later married, so it's not actually his kids.

Of course I would be sad when the series finally ended, but I think it's better to stop when you're ahead, if that makes any sense, rather than dragging it to a tenth season or something.

Happy Birthday to Me!

2011-11-08T22:54:00.000-08:00

Yay! It's my birthday!
It's good to be 21. Now I can legally drink. :))

Mango cheesecake (My birthday wish is world peace...and more cake)

It's weird, I don't feel older. I could swear I was 22 yesterday. Now I'm 21. Must be a case of Benjamin Button. :))

My parents came to Singapore, and we had dinner at Holland Village. It's some Japanese ramen restaurant... Yoshimaru ramen bar, I think, which receives good review online. People rave about their traditional hakata ramen and cold ramen. My mother was positively ecstatic about the individual bowl of sesame that came with the meal. We're supposed to grind it first? So naturally I tried for a minute and then decide I don't like sesame that much anyway.

Thankfully I haven't reached a point where birthdays serve only as a reminder of how old and unaccomplished one ia. Well, a lot of my friends are getting married. And seem to be having more fun, traveling to Europe and stuff. I am still in university.
But you know, can't complain.

For future references, I prefer good ol' tiramisu. ;)

The New Girl

2011-10-24T03:59:00.000-07:00

My boss just dropped by and shared his concern that the new girl was feeling homesick. He said probably she misses home, and she doesn't have lots of friends here.

I have no idea what she said to him nor how she acted, because I never got the impression that she is lacking friends in Singapore. In fact, she seems to have lots of friends.

Maybe it's just my imagination, but my boss sharing his concern was like a very very subtle hint to me, as the only female member in his group (well, there's that Japanese post-doc fellow, but she's a whole different story) that I needed to be more friendly to her.

This new girl has been here for around three months now. She's an American, blonde, from Chicago, if I'm not mistaken. She has a bachelor from an American university, and she's going to be working as a research engineer for my boss for a year. She's nice, actually, and from what I can tell my boss really likes her. At first he wanted her as a PhD student, but then she already secured a spot in a university in America, so he offered her a position as a research engineer for a year. He thought she was going to turn it down, but no. She deferred for a year, and came to Singapore.
Even though my boss don't actually have the funds for another research engineer. So in the end he terminated the contract with his other research engineer, who is a PhD.

He has hopes that she would find a boyfriend here and then she wouldn't want to leave Singapore and instead would get her PhD here. Ha.

So in August, when she arrived, me and my friend asked her to lunch, and she declined, saying she already had lunch date with a friend.

And then several days later we asked her again.
Again, declined.

I think we asked her for a third time, and again, lunch with friends.

Several days after that we asked her whether she wants to get some coffee.
"No, thanks, actually I'm going to have lunch in a minute."

That's when we decided that we can take a hint. Probably she is just busy, but there's a more probable scenario in which she just doesn't want to have lunch or coffee with us.

Well, if I were a new girl, and my new colleagues asked me to have a meal with them, probably I can reject them once, if I already have prior engagements. Twice would be kind of awkward. Again, if it were me, even if I don't drink coffee, I'll just go with them. I mean, how painful can it be?

That's why I thought she's just not interested in making friends. I mean, that's cool with me.
But then my boss came and said nonsense (I would believe the homesick part, though).

After that, my labmate suggested that next time I went to lunch with my friend, I could ask her too.

"I did. Several times. She didn't want to."

What am I supposed to do, stalk her until she agrees to have chicken rice together?
Oh brother.

Why I Needed a Hot Glue Gun

2011-10-21T03:49:00.000-07:00

I've been wanting a hot glue gun for some time now.

Why?
Well, you asked. I'm gonna tell you why.

One.
A hot glue gun fixes things.
Like cheap things you bought in Bali and broke the next week.

Yes, by the power of the hot glue gun

Two.
I can make cute things with a hot glue gun. A lot of cute things. Like crafts and stuff. Pretty little hair pins, scrapbooks, hairbands, a dress.

Oh I don't know, something like this. Totally possible. (Source)

Three.
Comes in handy when people talk too much.
You know what I mean?

Four.
So I can say, "I got a gun" and not be lying. How great is that?

Five.
I don't have a number five.

Mai Thai

2011-10-15T04:01:00.000-07:00

I went to a Mai Thai -as the name suggested-, a Thai restaurant in Holland Village last night.

A statue in the entrance

Indoor

Outdoor

(Images are from the restaurant's website.)

It's in the Chip Bee Gardens, and with the newly opened Holland Village MRT Station, it is easily accessible.

Map

See?

We ordered the prawn rolls which were good, the Chicken Panaeng (chicken curry) which was also good and quite popular, some green vegetables, and of course, Tom Yum soup.
The Tom Yum soup was super spicy, but I liked it because it was less sour than most Tom Yum served in Thai restaurants.

One thing about this restaurant is the staffs are really so friendly and accommodating. It was a little bit on the pricey side, I suppose, we ended spending $S30 each.

Buckyball Model

2011-10-06T04:24:00.000-07:00

Look what I did today!

For those of you not familiar with the molecule (or don't care, in which case, stop reading), it's Buckminsterfullerene, C60.

It was not found by some dude named Buckminster, Buckminsterfuller or Buckminster Fuller as the name would suggest, but rather by Kroto et al., at Rice University. They named it buckminsterfullerene after Richard Buckminster Fuller, an engineer who did several architectural designs, the most well-known being geodesic domes. The C60 molecule found resembles the dome. The founders of this 'buckyball' received the 1996 Nobel Prize in Chemistry.

That's it. Just wanted to show off my cute molecule. :))

Everything with Fries

2011-10-03T04:00:00.000-07:00

If you love french fries, then you gotta love Everything with Fries. The name of the place says it all. Everything they are serving, they serve it with fries. Of course the drinks and the desserts don't come with fries, thank you.

My friends and I went to the branch in Holland Village. There's another one at Orchard Road, and another one at Joo Chiat Road (website link here).

Picspam alert.

The Salmon looks so good I want to take it behind the middle school and get it pregnant.

Eh wait...
(30 Rock? Anyone?)

They have options of fries to choose from. You get to choose between straight, skinny cut or the thick crinkle cut. There's 5 flavors of fries to choose from, I only remember original, sour cream & onion, curry, and barbecue. I think.

We all agree that the thick cut is better, and the curry flavored is not to be tried again.

I love the dessert best:
I do think it's a bit sweet, so maybe it's best to order one and share it.

Pictures taken from their website.

I Can't Remember Why nor How I Got Here

2011-09-18T23:59:00.000-07:00

This is Robertson Quay. For some reason, which I'm not clear on, my friends decided that it would be a good idea to take a stroll here. I love how my friends are as random as I am.

Two of them are architects, so I guess they would be really into this place, because the buildings and bridges are very decent. Quite awesome, in fact.

Oh I remember now. We were thinking about having dinner here, but it's a bit expensive and almost everyone of us is broke, so we decided to go to some Kopitiam instead. LOL

Nice apartments which I probably would never be able to afford.

Singapore river. Good place for a cheap date
(i.e. looking at sunset, and... well, that's pretty much it).

Nice, elegant bridge.

Colorful bridge.

Creative bridge. There's painting all over it. Like child's work. *snort*

Nice, right?

Err.. warehouses?

Bar Bar Black Sheep.

Early evening. Many people are out walking their dogs.

So this ends my really random post, with pictures taken with iPhone.

Don Quixote

2011-09-17T18:32:00.000-07:00

The program

After the musical, the play, then concert, I am an unstoppable force of ticket buying. :))
But seriously, I have never seen a ballet in life, and I'm quite curious and excited when I bought the tickets for Don Quixote.

Everyone knows the story of Don Quixote, right? It is originally a novel, fully titled The Ingenious Gentleman Don Quixote of La Mancha, written in Spannish by Miquel de Cervantes. It is published in two volumes a decade apart (1605 and 1615).

In my opinion it's basically about an old man with an overactive imagination, and a very very chivalrous spirit. Don Quixote, the protagonist, is a retired country gentleman. He is about fifty years old and lives in La Mancha with a niece and a housekeeper. He read too much romance and books of chivalry, and those books has a profound effect on Don Quixote, who was otherwise a rational man of sound reason. He came to believe that those books are true. Other than being excessively chivalrous, his wits are still fine.

His real name is Alonso Quijano. After he became convinced that he is a knight and he wants adventure, so he dons a suit of armor and renamed himself Don Quixote.

If he had lived in our era, he would've been confined in a psychiatric ward.

Now I'm not going to pretend that I understand ballet. I enjoyed the performance, though. The costumes are great, although I (as always) got crappy seats, so I can't actually see the details. And there are a few funny bits, especially from Sancho, Don Quixote's squire.

Before the show

They are...dancing

Zoomed in

As I said, I enjoyed it and I'm coming back to see Giselle on January. The tickets are $S60, but I got a 50% discount since I'm a poor, struggling, instant-noodle-eating student. :))

Some Indonesians sat behind me, again. They were loud, of course they are. They are the only one doing the "Woo..Wooooo..Woohooooo" scream. Which was cute at first. Then it got annoying. Then it got super annoying. I think they didn't realized that this is not a concert. The Caucasian lady sitting next to me is definitely distressed. It took every bit of decency in me not to turn to her and said, condescendingly, "Indonesians. Blah."

I need to talk to someone about me sitting near loud Indonesians during shows. Or loud people in general. God, are you there?

How I ASOS-ed My Savings Away

2011-09-16T19:51:00.000-07:00

Just kidding. I only bought one item.

Around April, I saw this post about ASOS, an online shopping site that offers free shipping. And sale.

I made the mistake of opening the website (www.asos.com)*.

*Browsing this website can cause bankruptcy, shopping addiction, marital problems, financial problems, your parents cutting you off, and a myriad of problems associated with excessive shopping. Ask Rebecca Bloomwood. You have been warned.

I blame you, Steffi. :))

There are lots and lots of stuff that I like and would've bought. (Did I mention the shipping's free? That's like, super awesome.) Except that I'm basically poor and need to keep some amount of money in my bank account in case I need an appendectomy.

Or to pay rent in case my scholarship was suspended.

So I got one thing and one thing only:

(Source)

Which arrived after two weeks or so. Looks like this:
Great, huh?
Up close:
One thing I didn't expect is that the dress is made of linen. Yeah, it did say "ASOS Linen Pencil Dress with Cowl Front" on the website, and linen is listed as the main material. But I was only focused on the picture, and the dress doesn't look like it's made from bedsheets there. It looked kind of smooth. I'd expect cotton, not the cloth my Mom like to use to wipe the kitchen counter.

But anyway, it's great even if it's made of linen.

Job Options

2011-09-12T22:03:00.000-07:00

Ehem.
*clears throat*

My friend, a post-doctoral fellow in my lab, is going to end her contract this month. Apparently, job opportunities are still quite bleak, especially for theoretical scientists. Unless you're Einstein, that is.

Unless you are Einstein and alive, that is.

Anyway, I thought about jobs that I can do, if I fail to find one in industry. I realize it’s still some time before I have to get a real job, and hopefully by that time job market will be less bleak.

So, without further ado..

1. Teacher
Description: I was thinking primary/middle school teacher in Singapore. Or a lecturer in my old university. If they’ll hire me.
Requirement: Ability to teach (I have = none). Patience (I have = limited). Good intentions (I have = moderate on the better days, not so much when I think about all the other things I could do besides teach).
Comments: I might strangle some (or all) of my students when I lost patience.
In conclusion: Only if I am that desperate.

2. Housewife
Description: Four words. Bree van de Kamp. Or..Bree Hodge? That would be two words. I haven't been following Desperate Housewives. You get the idea.
Requirement: ~~Ability to cook (None).~~ Ability to ~~keep a house~~ hire a good maid.
Comments: Seems quite easy. I think I’m forgetting something. Wait… Let me think. Ah! A husband is required. Not sure how to get one of those.
In conclusion: Meh.

3. Waitress
Description: Take orders. Smile. Be nice. Collect tips.
Requirement: People skills (limited). The patience to endure annoying patrons, i.e. resisting the urge to throw their seafood pasta to their face when they kept complaining about the lousy service as you refill their water glasses (hmm…).
Comments: Actually not a bad idea.
In conclusion: If anyone will hire me.

4. Model
Description: Pose. Look great while walking. Look great while crying. Look great while mad. Look great while eating. Look great while sleeping. Look great while taking a dump.
Requirement: At least 5’7”, 5’8”. Size 2 0.
Comments: Do not have the requirement.
In conclusion: I wish.

5. Flight attendant
Description: Showing people how to fasten a safety belt. You’d thought that’s a no-brainer. Serving meals. Cleaning airplane toilets. Look pretty and hospitable the whole flight.
Requirement: Tall (Check). Good people skills (Bah).
Comments: There is a teeny tiny risk of dying.
In conclusion: Not sure whether airlines would be interested, but I sure am.

6. Porn star
Description: …
Requirement: Hot body. Think Pamela Anderson, I guess? Pretty face will probably help. Low (to zero) moral. Absolutely no shame.
Comments: I might go to hell. My father will surely disown me. After having a heart attack.
In conclusion: Let's ~~face the truth; at the end of the day, I don’t have the body anyway.~~
6. Stripper
Description: Dance on a pole, take off clothing one item at a time (think Miley Cyrus).
Requirement: Hot body. Low (to zero) moral.
Comments: I still might go to hell. My father is still going to have a heart attack. And then disown me.
In conclusion: Meh.

7. Actress
Description: Ability to act if you’re thinking Hollywood. Willingness to appear in skimpy clothes and say some badly written lines if you’re thinking Indonesian movie.
Requirement: Acting skills and/or pretty face.
Comments: No acting skills. No pretty face.
In conclusion: Meh.

8. Writer
Description: Write?
Requirement: Know a language (Check). Be interesting (Hmm…).
Comments: Probably. Though I think I lack the work ethics required. When you suspend every work until the last minute, it gets kinda hard to finish writing even a research progress report. Speaking of which.. Oops..
In conclusion: Probably procrastinators won’t do very well as writers.

9. Bus driver
Description: Drive. Bus.
Requirement: Be able to..drive.
Comments: Cannot even ride a bike.
In conclusion: Pass.

10. Assassin
Description: Ninja. Elektra Natchios. Cool.
Requirement: Cold-blooded (Check.). Be able to use a weapon (Check.) ... without injuring one self (Well…).
Comments: No comment.
In conclusion: Worth considering.

The end.

Thoughts?

H&M Sets Shop in Singapore

2011-09-10T22:53:00.000-07:00

Last week H&M opened its first branch in Singapore. It's the first one in South East Asia, and it seems everyone was very hyped about it. It's in Orchard, beside Somerset 313, near Somerset Station.

I happened to be in the neighborhood in the opening weekend, and of course there's a queue.

Week 1

Of course I'm not going to queue. I'm not that Singaporean. I saw all those red tapes and figured that the queue was way to the end of the block, so I went home.

I was quite excited to browse the store, of course, so I went back a week after that.

Week 2

"Start of Queue"?

What is it? The Swedish-ness? Ikea is also always packed with shoppers.
I'm beginning to wonder, what do they sell over there at H&M, invisibility cloak?

Cutest Café in the City

2011-08-27T20:12:00.000-07:00

Possibly.

Now a couple years ago, I didn't know anyone who liked Snoopy. Most of my friends usually like Disney characters. For some reason they seem to like Winnie the Pooh a lot.

I had a friend from primary school who collects everything Hello Kitty. Hello Kitty stationery, Hello Kitty hair pins, Hello Kitty ceramic dolls, Hello Kitty plates, Hello Kitty mugs, Hello Kitty eating utensils. You get the idea.

I suspect Hello Kitty underwears, but even as a kid I sensed it's not appropriate to inquire after someone's delicates.

Anyway, there was Winnie the Pooh, Hello Kitty. Well, most of the people I knew grew up and just forget about cartoon characters. :))

Then in university, I met two girls who were obsessed with Snoopy. With different levels of obsessiveness. One was in the declining phase of her Snoopy years. The other, was still much in love.

So when she came to Singapore, it is natural that we visit a Snoopy-themed café.

Welcome to Charlie Brown Café.

The wallpaper

We had to write our own orders

Ceiling (fascinating, huh? LOL)

Breakfast set, available even at 9 PM :)

I love the chocolate powder Snoopy.

Overall, I think it's great for kids. :))
It's in Somerset, just outside of 313 (Orchard Rd).