Am having a very restful Saturday at home since Sunday will be a rather packed day..the rainy cool weather has been extremely conducive to a lazy day as well....
Still haven't gotten my hands on that last Harry Potter book yet.....been rather envious of my colleague who bought lunch back into office to finish reading the book on Friday, of my brother who stayed up on Friday night to finish the book before passing it to my sister this morning at the airport so that she can read it on her 18 hour direct flight......haiz Need to be rather careful these days. With the increasing number of people around me who has finished reading the book, my worst fear is to overhear details of the story being discussed by people around me who has read the book...oops.
Thought I would share something rather fun with all of you :) Especially for those of you out there who blog. ;p Google Analytics! I stumbled upon it while browsing through the possible add-ons to my blog one fine day. As the name suggests, google analytics helps to track the number of visits, visitor profiles etc to any website that is under one's charge ;) I've promptly added it to my blog.
http://www.google.com/analytics
Yes. Dear readers. Your every visit to this humble blog of mine is noted. Hehz. I now know the number of visitors I get, the length of time, the number of pages you guys read etc ;p Lest you start getting uncomfortable with being "spied on", fret not. :) Smart as the analytical software may be, it is not able to identify the readers at all. It is only able to tell if you are a repeat visitor or not, probably based on your IP address I guess ;p Nonetheless, I've been getting quite a kick from reading all the analytical reports generated :) And of cos, being very encouraged by the number of visits that I get :)
Needless to say, nosey me is now brimming with curiosity over the identity of my readers ;p To satisfy myself a little, I've added this little poll to the right hand side of my blog. Please do help me by taking part in the poll! Thank you! Gracias :)
Saturday, July 28, 2007
Sunday, July 22, 2007
Pottermania
It's been exactly a week since my last posting...not that I have nothing to blog about. In fact, I constantly have ideas about what I could write about...even have a slew of ideas about how I would start off my blog etcetc... Alas, when it comes down to doing the deed, there's always this inertia in me...and as a result, nothing much gets produced. Hehz.
It's been a rather busy week for me. Lessons by day. Work by night. Equates to long days of 8.30am till 12 midnight daily. Almost a punishing routine. The only good thing was that I managed to catch up with many old friends during the week. Bought 2 pairs of shoes. Slipped in a 10km run and a 20laps swim :) So I guess you could say that the week was relatively eventful.
Just caught Harry Potter - Order of the Phoenix tonight. Enjoyed myself thoroughly. Though the movie did not capture the full essence of the book in its entirety, nonetheless, there was relative justice done in my opinion. Have always enjoyed the Harry Potter movies. Am very glad that they managed to retain the majority of the cast for the various movies. It's amazing to see how the characters have grown and matured from the little mites that they were in the Philosopher's stone, to the teenagers that they now are, exchanging kisses under the mistletoe ;p Just realised that there were no scenes of Quidditch in this movie. Curious me shall go check out the actual book to see if this part has been skipped ;p
The last book of the series, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows has just been released today. Yipee! I've been walking past the Harry Potter display in the bookshop in the shopping complex next to my office building countless time. Can't wait to lay my hands on the new book. Shall wait for a while, when the hype is all over, to buy the book :) At a better price ;p (if I can resist the temptation till then). Pity's my b'day is still almost 3 months away. If not, I could have hinted blatently for the book as a b'day present :) Alright. Guess I'll probably console myself by re-reading the 2nd last book Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince in the meanwhile. I recall that I bought it to entertain myself for my official trip to Sydney last year. Was reading it till late into the cold winter night in Sydney last August ;p Need to refresh my memory and to prep myself for the last book. Gosh. I couldn't even remember the part about R.A.B. .untill it was mentioned in the ST spoiler for Saturday. ;p Just who in the world can R.A.B. be? Who's the traitor? Oh boy, the suspense is really killing me...please don't tell me the answer, just get me the book ;p LOL
It's been a rather busy week for me. Lessons by day. Work by night. Equates to long days of 8.30am till 12 midnight daily. Almost a punishing routine. The only good thing was that I managed to catch up with many old friends during the week. Bought 2 pairs of shoes. Slipped in a 10km run and a 20laps swim :) So I guess you could say that the week was relatively eventful.
Just caught Harry Potter - Order of the Phoenix tonight. Enjoyed myself thoroughly. Though the movie did not capture the full essence of the book in its entirety, nonetheless, there was relative justice done in my opinion. Have always enjoyed the Harry Potter movies. Am very glad that they managed to retain the majority of the cast for the various movies. It's amazing to see how the characters have grown and matured from the little mites that they were in the Philosopher's stone, to the teenagers that they now are, exchanging kisses under the mistletoe ;p Just realised that there were no scenes of Quidditch in this movie. Curious me shall go check out the actual book to see if this part has been skipped ;p
The last book of the series, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows has just been released today. Yipee! I've been walking past the Harry Potter display in the bookshop in the shopping complex next to my office building countless time. Can't wait to lay my hands on the new book. Shall wait for a while, when the hype is all over, to buy the book :) At a better price ;p (if I can resist the temptation till then). Pity's my b'day is still almost 3 months away. If not, I could have hinted blatently for the book as a b'day present :) Alright. Guess I'll probably console myself by re-reading the 2nd last book Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince in the meanwhile. I recall that I bought it to entertain myself for my official trip to Sydney last year. Was reading it till late into the cold winter night in Sydney last August ;p Need to refresh my memory and to prep myself for the last book. Gosh. I couldn't even remember the part about R.A.B. .untill it was mentioned in the ST spoiler for Saturday. ;p Just who in the world can R.A.B. be? Who's the traitor? Oh boy, the suspense is really killing me...please don't tell me the answer, just get me the book ;p LOL
Sunday, July 15, 2007
About Me
Something rather sad happened this week. Reminded me of some of the musical stuff that I was doing for close to 8 years, in the years before I started to do my pounding on the tarmac.Was trying hard to explain to my colleagues the exact nature of the instrument that I played in the orchestra. Thought I'll blog a little about it, complete with illustrations. As the saying goes, a picture speaks a thousand words. There you have it, to your left. The instrument that I played - the Chinese mouth organ. Not very glam and rather unladylike I guess ;p
The one to the extreme left is the 中音笙 (zhong yin sheng). This is the instrument that I played in the orchestra. It's usually located right at the very back of the orchestra. This picture shows the side of the instrument that faces the audience. I would be seated right behind it. If you know me well enough, I guess it's not hard to imagine me behind the instrument. Yes. Once I have my music scores propped on the instrument, to be honest, you can hardly see me from the audience. But, I can be heard if you recognise the sound of the instrument well enough hehz. And yes. I don't deny that given my not too large and not too long frame, I do have to sit on double chairs to reach my instrument ;p And I'm very often reliant on the goodwill of my fellow orchestra mates to carry my instrument for me from one venue to another ;p To play this instrument, as the name describes it, I'll need to blow into a pipe and press the buttons on the panel of the instrument that relate to the relevant notes ;)
The other instrument to the right is also a sheng. It's the more traditional kind. It's also used when people perform solo. I mastered my basics on this version of the instrument. To me, I find it harder to play this instrument as it's not that light, and I'll really need to support the instrument with both hands, prop it up to blow it and at the same time figure out which notes to play. Over time, the weight of the instrument can get to me and when tired, it gets harder to blow. Not to mention when there are all the other techniques that we need to use to create different kind of effects and the complexity mounts when we tend to play chords as well ;p
'nuff said about my instrument ;p Come to think of it, it's probably been about 6 to 7 years since I last performed in the orchestra. Oh well, those were the days I guess. Making music in those days was fun and I'm sure it will always be fun if I get back to doing it. Many thanks to my family and friends who have turned up at the concerts to watch me perform over the years. Yeah. I guess it's tough being my friend, cos you'll be expected to turn up for my concerts ;p Especially miss the bouquet of flowers that my friends will generously shower on me at every public performance ;p
Saturday, July 7, 2007
Rest time
I thought I'll follow through with my current concept of posting pictures together with my blog :) Finally find a good use for the humble camera on my phone ;p The pictures were taken at the eatery from where I was seated at last night. Nice view of the river :) But I couldn't reach close enough to the window to take the picture to minimise the reflections, my appologies ;p This is quite a nice cosy eatery at Centrall Mall. Apparently it's a branch of a Japanese chain ;p Food is ok (by my standards), but the ambience is quite good and quaint. Service is good and it's a little interesting when it comes to settling the bill :) If you want to find out where it is, let me know ;)
Many thanks to the friends who have left comments on my blog. Keep them coming!! They are really my primary motivation to keep on writing (not that I have interesting stuff to write all the time)
Nice rainy and cool weather today. Didn't really feel like waking up. Don't we all just love cosying up in bed on days like that. Alas, duty calls, I've got no choice but to wake up to make a trip to the far West for some errands :) Road conditions were not too bad along the way. It's quite enjoyable to drive on a route that's finally long enough for me to listen to the 20+ songs on the CD that I burnt.
Was reminded of something that I learnt last night while driving. Heard about my friend's experience of "drifting" in an Altis. Was mighty impressed. I must have been watching too much of Initial D. Perhaps I should really find out more about "drifting" hehz.
Was at the doc's actually. Been told to rest (offered MCs - which I declined since it's the weekend), take lots of water and refrain from taking heaty stuff. Doc even looked me in the eye and told me firmly no exercises. To which I wondered. I've never told this doc of mine that I'm a regular runner who's training for various runs.....wonder how he knew....bet I look like a workoholic and a "runnoholic" if ever there's such a term! Oh well. Guess I'll be good. Not check office e-mails. But first, I'll need to "complete" my double appointments for this evening. I guess I"ll just take it easy tonight. By the end of today, I would have traversed Singapore from the far west to the far east. Hehz.
Wednesday, July 4, 2007
Seduced!
Sorry, I thought I'll start off with a sensational header just to prove my point about what I'm about to write. For those of you who are hoping for something more saucy, my appologies once more. I'm the last person you would expect to blog about racy stuff ;p
Well, I've indeed been seduced. By the gigantic poster(s) of a particular magazine that flanks the walls of cityhall MRT station on my way to work everyday. It's the coverpage of a magazine that caters primarily to female readers ;) One of the articles headlined on the coverpage caught my eye. Literally tugged at my heartstrings. After repeated days of being seduced by it, I bought the magazine. Ok. I gotta own up that I did attempt to sneak a look at the article at a major bookstore. However, to my disappointment, I could not find a copy for browsing. After struggling for a few minutes i.e. taking the magazine off the rack and putting it back and taking it off again, I finally decided to buy it. Not too bad a deal I guess. It actually comes with an astro-seduction guide. LOL ;p
Honestly, buying a women's magazine is really not a big deal. Tons of women get their weekly or monthly fix of the latest fashion updates, health info, gossips etc from such magazine. But not me. Hehz. As a general rule, I really don't spend on such magazines. Prefer to save the money for my next trip or for other uses ;p The only time when I buy such magazines will be when their subscription can be offset against my running registration fees (;p) or when I'm whiling my time away at the airport waiting to catch a plane :) Not that I do not like these magazines. Gosh, I love leafing through them when I go for my hairdressing appointments :) It's just that, somehow, it does not seem to make much sense for me to buy these magazines. Maybe it's just me ;)
Anyway, back to the magazine. Well, to be really honest, the article that caught my eye proved to be a disappointing read. I was expecting more from it. Thought it would answer some of the burning questions in my mind ;p Turned out to be just a series of social experiments conducted in different settings. Tugged at my heartstrings in a bittersweet sort of way. Yeah. That's one of my main grudge against these magazines. They come with sensational headlines, but often the written contents leaves much to be desired. It's the pictures that are really worth the read. Hence, my perennial resistance to buying them.
It's been exactly one week since I bought the magazine. Sad to say, I've yet to finish reading it with my usual fervour and rigour for books. Have finished leafing through the pictures. But am a little slow when it comes to text. Alright. shall attempt to read it again tonight since I'm rather under the weather today..could do with some easier entertainment on the mind. Adios.
Well, I've indeed been seduced. By the gigantic poster(s) of a particular magazine that flanks the walls of cityhall MRT station on my way to work everyday. It's the coverpage of a magazine that caters primarily to female readers ;) One of the articles headlined on the coverpage caught my eye. Literally tugged at my heartstrings. After repeated days of being seduced by it, I bought the magazine. Ok. I gotta own up that I did attempt to sneak a look at the article at a major bookstore. However, to my disappointment, I could not find a copy for browsing. After struggling for a few minutes i.e. taking the magazine off the rack and putting it back and taking it off again, I finally decided to buy it. Not too bad a deal I guess. It actually comes with an astro-seduction guide. LOL ;p
Honestly, buying a women's magazine is really not a big deal. Tons of women get their weekly or monthly fix of the latest fashion updates, health info, gossips etc from such magazine. But not me. Hehz. As a general rule, I really don't spend on such magazines. Prefer to save the money for my next trip or for other uses ;p The only time when I buy such magazines will be when their subscription can be offset against my running registration fees (;p) or when I'm whiling my time away at the airport waiting to catch a plane :) Not that I do not like these magazines. Gosh, I love leafing through them when I go for my hairdressing appointments :) It's just that, somehow, it does not seem to make much sense for me to buy these magazines. Maybe it's just me ;)
Anyway, back to the magazine. Well, to be really honest, the article that caught my eye proved to be a disappointing read. I was expecting more from it. Thought it would answer some of the burning questions in my mind ;p Turned out to be just a series of social experiments conducted in different settings. Tugged at my heartstrings in a bittersweet sort of way. Yeah. That's one of my main grudge against these magazines. They come with sensational headlines, but often the written contents leaves much to be desired. It's the pictures that are really worth the read. Hence, my perennial resistance to buying them.
It's been exactly one week since I bought the magazine. Sad to say, I've yet to finish reading it with my usual fervour and rigour for books. Have finished leafing through the pictures. But am a little slow when it comes to text. Alright. shall attempt to read it again tonight since I'm rather under the weather today..could do with some easier entertainment on the mind. Adios.
Sunday, July 1, 2007
Kestrel speaks - part 2
Well, got lotsa stuff to say ;) But decided that I should break up my blog into different parts. If not, it will look really really wordy.
Let’s talk about the weekend.
Saturday-woke up feeling rather screwed. don't ask me why. But got increasingly inspired as the day moved on. Think I’m probably going to go back to dabbling in some stuff that I used to do. WAX members who are reading this. X is getting back into the fray. If I can sustain this spark of inspiration. Will share my work with you guys if there’s any. May go into collaboration with one of my old friends (the one that I did some recordings with for ZH. He was on the guitar, while myself and HX were the vocals ;p can’t remember if I shared those tracks with you guys ;p) Am reviving my one time dreams of doing pop piano and going for proper vocal training again ;) so guys, send me ur lyrics or tunes. I'm game once again. *time to unleash the creative me hehz*
Saturday-woke up feeling rather screwed. don't ask me why. But got increasingly inspired as the day moved on. Think I’m probably going to go back to dabbling in some stuff that I used to do. WAX members who are reading this. X is getting back into the fray. If I can sustain this spark of inspiration. Will share my work with you guys if there’s any. May go into collaboration with one of my old friends (the one that I did some recordings with for ZH. He was on the guitar, while myself and HX were the vocals ;p can’t remember if I shared those tracks with you guys ;p) Am reviving my one time dreams of doing pop piano and going for proper vocal training again ;) so guys, send me ur lyrics or tunes. I'm game once again. *time to unleash the creative me hehz*
Sunday - went to watch fantastic 4 today. Loved the show :) Rediscovered my passion for all these cartoons with the sci-fic slant. Used to like Mask and transformers and a couple of others that I can't quite recall offhand. Looks like Transformers may be the next show for me. ;p I wonder if they will ever make a movie for Mask. I would really love that! Made an interesting observation today. Kinda thought that Jessica Alba in Fantastic 4 looks a lot like Jolin Tsai or vice versa. No offense to all the Jessica Alba fans out there ;p I stand to be corrected :) Parts of Fantastic 4 was in NYC...the streets, Chrysller Building...Staten Island..Love the city for its vibrance. Perhaps I could make a trip back there one of these days.....
Went to quite a nice place for dinner. Glad to say that Singapore still has some nice corners that are surreal, quiet and with nice ambience. I know just the people to bring to these places and I know they will appreciate it ;)
just a slight "shout-out" here. Anyone interested in going anywhere in September? Pls let me know :) I'm in need of plans for my annual pilgrimage to the rest of the world ex Singapore and M'sia ;p
Thought I'll end off with a pic again. Dedicated to Namsteroy and Yogz. Let me try to explain the pic a little ;p It was taken just recently on Friday evening. Post work, pre-weekend ;p when things get crazier in office ;p In the foreground, the flower and red doggy are mine. The beer monster and little brown bear are Yogz. In the background, the tables are mine and Yogz ;p If u've been a colleague of mine before, u'll know how bad my desk can get ;p I'm pretty much the same wherever I go, whatever the size of my cubicle ;p 'nuff said.
Kestrel speaks - part 1
Hehz. gotta thank Sharon for leaving behind so many comments to my blogs :) Thanks for reading! Ok. to answer your questions.
Why kestrel? Firstly, let's go to the meaning of kestrel first...If I may lift its definition from wikipedia...
The name kestrel is given to several different members of the falcon genus, Falco. Kestrels are most easily distinguished by their typical hunting behaviour which is to hover at a height of around 10–20 m over open country and swoop down on prey, usually small mammals, lizards or large insects. Other falcons are more adapted to active hunting on the wing.
Came across the bird kestrel when I was in Kalbarri National Park, Western Australia. Liked the look of the bird, how free it looks soaring over the cliffs of the gorge and the sound of its name :) I've always been a big fan of mountains, canyons and gorges and other natural landforms ;p So I decided to go by the name Kestrel for the purpose of my blog :) Just that :)
One of my friends commented that I write too much! I should post more pics to spice up my blog. Since I don't think that I'm photogenic, shall post pics of other stuff instead ;p Namsteroy, this is for you. Picture of kestrel, courtesy of wikipedia ;)
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