Back in Singapore

Im sitting here at good ol' Book Cafe seeking solace from the humidity in air-conditioning and free wi-fi. Yes, Singapore is hot...very hot. It's particularly uncomfortable after a rain-shower on a hot day, as the increased humidity causes the air to become thick and muggy. As great as it is being back at my old place, the lack or air conditioning does get me a bit cranky from time to time. Nonetheless, my grandmother and Rei have been spoiling me silly - I'm getting Babi Asam, Hainanese Pork Chops and other Peranakan food cooked to order on the dining table, and my laundry miraculously gets done every day! Amazing!! I've even managed to persuade my grandmother to make some Pulut Kaya on Friday - Heh!

But its been great being back. This house is the only family home that I have known in recent times. I don't know why I never stayed back here whenever I returned to Singapore. I now have the entire 2nd floor to myself, since no one lives up here anymore - kind of like a temporary bachelor pad, except that the place is pretty spartan. Its wicked to see the bookshelves with all my late grandad's physics and chemistry books. Its also cool to see my old room again, even though its now completely empty and refurbished. I remember chilling out in the garden in the evenings, watching the rain come down, or popping to the nearby Caltex petrol station to buy milk. Nice! I've missed this house - I definitely need to come back here to stay more often...





Jetlag surprisingly hasnt been too much of an issue on this trip. I think the fact that I was out till 3am on my first night back probably helped adjust my body clock. It was Lizzie's 31st (I mean 25th) birthday - so how not to stay out??!! Besides, it was completely worth flying back and staying up just to see how funny she gets when she gets wasted! I almost completely forgot! Highlight of the night was definitely the ride home, where she complained to Alex that I was "a bad friend who was keeping her from her slumberrrrrrrrr". Heh! And then there was something about monkeys who stick thumbs up their bums? Or something like that? Heh!

Here is the birthday girl in the middle -



And what she looked like the next morning - Im sure there was a Confucian saying, which went along the lines of "Dont get hammered the night before you are due to take a boat ride!"





Bintan was brilliant! The beach was really nice, although not fantastic. I got lots of sleep in, both in the room and at the beach itself, which was swell. Endless drinks and snacks at the beach bar. I even managed to get a beach run in at 6am where I had the entire beach to myself with the sunrise as a backdrop. To be frank, there isnt very much to do at Bintan, so we kept on having to find ways to entertain ourselves. We ended up trying to do our best Bollywood dance routines around the coconut trees - I think the other guests were very amused....





We rounded up the weekend and celebrated Singapore's National Day by doing dinner at Banyan Tree on Sunday - it was actually really very good. There was even a Ricemaster who was a sort of sommelier for rice, if that makes any sense? Cynical me had to bite back a bit of a laugh when he told me that the Nasi Kunyit went really well with the Ginger and Tumeric Chicken. Sigh.. But nonetheless, the food was great and the resort itself was even nicer. Definitely a place to come back to in the future, I think...



I now only have 3 full days before I head back to London, so its going to be a case of maxing out all the breakfast, lunch, tea, dinner and drinks slots that I have before then. So many people to catch up with and so little time. To round this post off, I thought I would end with an awwww moment - a Lizzie and Alex (who are getting married in December) starfish shot, which turned out incredibly well I thought!

Slumdog Millionaire & Baptisms

Just watched Slumdog Millionaire. I must admit that I was slightly afraid of coming away disappointed after all the hype. But the film was absolutely brilliant!

I loved that the writers had added suitable amounts of brutality, which was paced evenly throughout the movie. I loved the intelligent way that they told Jamal's story of life in the slums. I loved the bright colours that were used to mute some of the more heavy sequences (like the different coloured saris that were on display as the Muslim Indians were slaughtered). I loved the serendipitous love story that was the main centrepiece of the movie.

But most of all, I loved that the writers made the lives of the 2 brothers diverge as the story progresses - with Jamal retaining his innocence and belief in love despite his ordeals; while Salim loses his innocence pretty early in the story to look after himself and his brother. There is an underlying love story here between the 2 brothers. While Salim's character appears to betray Jamal and Latika midway through the movie, the conclusion seems to show that Salim had, in fact, done everything to salvage his his younger brother's innocence. After all, his final sacrifice is what allows for the happy ending.

Completely worthy of its 8 Oscar awards! Plus Freida Pinto (who plays adult Latika) is absolutely stunning, to say the least.

Ive had a crap time over the past few months. This was a fantastic pick-me-up - am feeling more perky now... =)

Oh yea, Im now officially a godfather! Who would have thought, eh? There was a slightly uncomfortable moment at the altar (in front of the 30 or so guests in attendance) when the priest asked "Are all godparents Catholic?" - to which I replied "Umm, no?". 2nd question was "But you are Christian, right?" My brain went into overdrive trying to think of what I should say.

Thought processes went something along the lines of "I can't say no for the second time, because that would a) get me kicked out of the church; and b) embarrass Rach and Stephen for choosing a religous pleb as a godfather". I figured that since I do believe in the presence of God anyway that I should just say "Yes". It wasnt an outright lie - perhaps I just havent found my calling yet? Of course, Leonie (Sarah's godmum) didnt have that problem because she actually is Catholic - i.e. the bona fide godparent as opposed to me being the fake one... =)

In any case, the most important thing is that the kids and parents appeared to have fun. Check out the photos below:








I have now attested before God that I will support Sarah's faith throughout her life. I better dig out my bible - been meaning to do so for a while now, anyway... =)

Kicking Ass

The SSG stayed with us over the weekend. Of course, being such a Bond fan, she dragged Nik and I to go watch Quantum of Solace with her yesterday (it was her 3rd time watching the movie!).

The movie itself was entertaining, if only for the fact that it provided 2 hours worth of escapism. Olga Kurylenko was pretty cute, but then again, I still preferred Eva Green. But throughout, one pressing question kept on cropping up in my head:

Who would win in a straight kick ass fight - Jason Bourne or James Bond?

Let's look at the pros and cons of both (because I have nothing better to do at the moment and need to destress from CFA studying):

Jason Bourne

Pros:

1. The guy obviously has had some proper martial arts training.
2. He has a proven record of killing people with everyday objects - pens, magazines, newspapers, books, condoms, tampons (alright, I made the last 2 up).
3. The man is pretty f^cked up - I mean, he cant even remember who he is!
4. He speaks numerous languages (though I have no idea how this would help him in a slugfest)
5. The guy has proven himself to be able to leap over bridges and climb walls despite having multiple bullet holes in his body.

Cons:

1. The man is pretty f^cked up - I mean, what happens if he suddenly decides to stop fighting because he got depressed?
2. The guy has a personality of cardboard - make that recycled cardboard. You want a guy to not just win a fight, but win a fight with flair.
3. His girlfriends arent as good looking as Bond's (which means that he may not be as incentivised to stay alive and get the girl at the end).
4. Jason Bourne has morals - he doesnt seem like the type to take a cheap shot in the gonads, unlike Bond.
5. He operates on a lower budget than James Bond - while Bond has all sorts of gadgets to get him through the day, Bourne seems to end up wearing second hand clothes with holes in them. Plus he sleeps in horrible looking motels and drives a beaten up Mini through Paris.

James Bond

Pros

1. The guy has had no obvious training - the latest Daniel Craig incarnation seems to just thug his way through everything. Somehow that's a point in his favour?
2. Bond has more gadgets and resources than Bourne.
3. His chicks are hotter - nuff said.
4. Daniel Craig's Bond is also quite f^cked up - the edginess could give him a leg up in a fight.
5. He's cool...

Cons
1. Daniel Craig's Bond is basically a highly paid thug.
2. Is he too reliant on his gadgets?
3. Seems to be at the mercy of his women - e.g. his dead girlfriend and his lady boss.
4. Bond is an alcoholic - and probably addicted to sex too.
5. Daniel Craig's Bond is also quite f^cked up - what happens if he breaks down in the middle of a fight and starts crying?

4 weeks to go...

I'm trying with great determination not to fall asleep while studying revenue recognition methods. It's Saturday night, and I have 2 thick CFA manuals as company for the weekend.

I'm sitting here in my Study watching the River Thames as the rain comes chucking down. The numerous lights from the apartments across the water have merged into a random scattergram of multi-coloured dots.

My one comfort is that the torrential rain reminds me of the tropical weather we get at home. Strangely enough, I have always taken comfort in the rain. To me, one of the worst things that one can experience in life is the sense of the pending storm that is to come. The rain symbolises the fact that the storm has already arrived, and the pressure that has been built up from all the pensiveness can dissapate. The presence of rain usually means that the weather will only get better from here...

Today is Saturday, the 8th of November. On this day in 1960, JFK defeated Richard Nixon for the American presidency. But more importantly, my CFA exam is in 4 weeks time. Despite my best efforts to concentrate, I can't seem to build up a momentum. I have tried looking for appropriate background noise by playing tracks from Bargrooves compilations to the Gladiator soundtrack - nothing seems to be able to settle me down.

I think I am going to write tonight off as an unproductive study night. I'm now going to sleep - will try again tomorrow.

Oh, and it has just stopped raining...

Godfather...Me?

My oldest friend in the world Rachel (who has known me since I was a fat, bald-headed monk in boarding school) asked me to be Godfather to little 3-month old Sarah last week!

My immediate reaction was "Are you drunk, babe?". You seriously want me - and my sheer cynicism of religion - to be your daughter's spiritual guide through life? To make sure that your child is brought up in a Christian manner? Are you mad?!!

But there was a method to the madness! In true organised Rachel style, my old friend had arranged for Sarah to have 4 godparents! 2 of which fulfilled the Roman Catholic requirement, and hence would be the "true" sponsors of the baptism. The other godparent was Chyi, another one of my old friends from school. Of course, Chyi, being a cosmetics magnate (see her company here), would provide the girl with a lifetime's supply of Dainty Doll Lip Cushion cosmetics (endorsed by Fergie, no less!).

So what was my role in all of this, I wondered? Rach said that I just needed to remember birthdays and Christmases and to be there for Sarah when both parents couldn't be around. I think I could do that - I'll also throw in some finger paint when Sarah gets old enough so that she can do some interior decorating on the walls at home. Maybe also bring her out for Mcdonalds and sweeties and return her to her parents when she is on a sugar high and hyper-stimulated?

But in all seriousness, I am really excited about this. I think that this is the greatest complement that a parent can pay a friend - and for this, I am truly very flattered. I will endeavour to play the role with all earnestness and sincerity. Perhaps not necessarily from a deeply religious perspective, but certainly from a common-sensical view of the world.

I most definitely will be trying my best to steer clear of changing diapers though! Here is a picture of the little tyke - she is soooo cute!

Celebration!

Maya and Aaron got married last Sunday! The religous ceremony was fantastic for the fact that it was so personal and jovial! As soon as the marriage ceremony was completed, Aaron stamped on glass, the Rabbi exclaimed "Mazal Tov!", and the band started playing. What a fantastic way to break the tension and start your married life together.

On a side note, Nik has developed a crush for a blonde hunk. He is scattered about the photos below. Hint: Look out for the long blonde locks! I give up - I know I can't compete with someone who looks that cute...

Diet of a Champion

Michael Phelps won his 8th gold medal of the 2008 Beijing Olympics this morning. Absolutely incredible!

What I found more amazing was his diet - According to the BBC, this is what fuels the most succesful Olympian of all time:

Breakfast: Three fried egg sandwiches; cheese; tomatoes; lettuce; fried onions; mayonnaise; three chocolate-chip pancakes; five-egg omelette; three sugar-coated slices of French toast; bowl of grits; two cups of coffee

Lunch: Half-kilogram (one pound) of enriched pasta; two large ham and cheese sandwiches with mayonnaise on white bread; energy drinks

Dinner: Half-kilogram of pasta, with carbonara sauce; large pizza; energy drinks

This is the reason why I'm not an olympic swimmer - I just don't eat enough junkfood!

(The link to the BBC article is here)