Did You Know That...

Fun trivia and recognizing the people behind today's conveniences.

Aileron is what you call the flapping parts of an airplane's wing.

Modern instant noodles were invented in Japan by Taiwanese Japanese businessman Momofuku Andō (安藤百福), the founder of Nissin Foods.

The first modern electrical air conditioning was invented by Willis Haviland Carrier in 1902.

The stonefish is the most venomous fish known in the world.
More on stonefish at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stonefish

We have Dmitri Mendeleev to thank (or hate) for inventing the Periodic Table of Elements.

Lego is a Latin word that means to gather, choose and collect.

The ferris wheel was invented by George Ferris for the Chicago World Fair exhibition in 1893 to rival the Eiffel Tower built by Gustave Eiffel in 1889.

Blue Crush

Got my first surfing gear last Monday. Besos para ti, mi surfer rockstar Romain.

My First Movie

I'm not starring in it, and it's not amateur porn, but I was obsessed with Daft Punk's "Technologic" that I HAD to make a short video.

Enjoy.

Stuck

Took a picture of how some things in Manila never change.

Ranting At The Airport

I lack sleep, I'm tired, I'm PMS-ing and generally not having a good day. Ground crew inefficiencies had me standing in line for more than 30 minutes, which kept me from doing what could've been productive work, and Filipinos jumping the line just pushed my patience to its limits.

Seething...

This is the worst experience I've had with Philippine Airlines. I tried to be patriotic but if this is what I would have to deal with every single time, I'm jumping ship, er, planes, and will put my money where I can get a better return of investment.

Disorderly? Disorderly!

1UP and Shrooms

I haven't laid a finger on a Nintendo joystick for the past five years but when I played Mario Bros with Romain today, it was amazing that I still remembered which boxes contained the mushrooms and flowers, which pipes had access to gold coins and best of all - I can still do the hundred lives trick! Gloat, gloat, gloat. Now you know what kept me preoccupied during my younger years...

Galaxian, B-Wing or Bomber Man, anyone?

Simply Loving OK Go!

Exploring Malacca

I started writing about my trip to Malacca, Malaysia and managed to write four paragraphs, when I decided to delete everything and start from scratch like a frustrated writer ripping out a draft from his typewriter and crumpling it into a ball. I just thought that at the rate I was going, this post will forever sit as a draft and never get published.

So I decided to curtail my usually verbose story-telling and draw the "Top 5" highlights of my trip.

1. TWENTY - Located at 20 (snickers) Jonker Street in Chinatown, the hostel was clean, tastefully furnished, served free breakfast and had free wi-fi access. Not bad for S$20 per night!



2. BUILDINGS AND STREET ALLEYS - I was charmed by the cozy cafes, art galleries, antique shops and Dutch/Portuguese-influenced architecture.



3. JONKER WALK - Quiet and empty during the day, but alive and bustling at night! Street vendors would whip out their folding tables at exactly 6PM and put up odds and ends for sale. The entire road was closed off to vehicles to give way to an evening talent show. Dolled-up kids performed on stage and sang Chinese songs and danced to candy-pop songs like "Barbie Girl." I can't help but sing "C'mon Barbie let's go party. A-a-ahhh-yeah..." all the way back to the hostel.


4. PINEAPPLE TARTS, PINEAPPLE TARTS & MORE PINEAPPLE TARTS! Coming to the "Home of Pineapple Tarts" did very little to help me curb my addiction for these little biscuit saucers of pineapple jam.

And that's the way the cookie crumbles.


5. MUTANT SPECIES BY THE RIVER - I stared confounded at the fish that crawled on land (mudskippers) and the big lizards that swim in the river. Reinforces the fact that toxic waste is a hazard to our marine ecosystems. The inconvenient truth, folks.

Happy Deepavali!

My colleague brought punjabis for the team in the spirit of Diwali/Deepavali. The mountain of Indian clothing on the table had the feel of a bargain sale in Divisoria, with every girl from the team trying to grab the most elaborate and intricately designed kameez. I've managed to grab a pair of black salwar pants amidst that excited hullabaloo. It was the strangest pair of pants I've ever seen. The waist was around 40 inches in circumference and the leg holes were only 10! Pardon my cultural insensitivity, but the pants looked like they were fitted for Grimace.

I spent about a good five minutes tugging at the pant bottom, trying to get it past my foot and believe it or not, I couldn't! It wouldn't even budge past the sole. Had it been a situation of getting my generous bottom squeeze into a nice pair of jeans, it would've been okay, but my foot? I am highly insulted! Should I start working out my foot too to make it slimmer?!

Salwar Pajama Pants

The Randomness of Shuffle

Swiped this from Toots' Multiply blog, which was nicked from leena22's journal. It's a whole network of stealing.

How it goes...
1) Put your iPod on shuffle.
2) Read the questions aloud.
3) Press 'Play'.
4) Use the song title as the answer to the question.

How does the world see me?
Video Killed The Radio Star - The Presidents of the USA
"Oh, oh!" is right.

Will I have a happy life?
I Walk Alone - Oleander
So I guess the answer is no.

What do my friends really think of me?
Dig - Incubus
(Blank look)

Do people secretly lust after me?
Makes Me Wonder - Maroon 5
Anyone out there who'd care to give me a straight answer? Be nice.

How can I make myself happy?
I Don't Feel Like Dancing - Scissor Sisters
Ha! This is my 'happy song' because it's so gay! Wait a second, my iPod is starting to freak me out...could it possibly read my mind? Gasp! Earplugged its way through my cerebral cortex, the sneaky bastard.

What should I do with my life?
Five Candles - Jars of Clay
Arsonist, it is.

Will I ever have children?
There You Go - Pink
"There you go, looking pitiful..."
Not a good sign, not a good sign.

What is some good advice for me?
Seven Nation Army - The White Stripes
I knew it! I'm building my imperial army. My battlecry: Singapore today. Tomorrow...THE WORLD!(evil laugh)

How will I be remembered?
When I Come Around - Greenday
Always coming or always around?

What song will play at my funeral?
This Aint A Scene, It's An Arms Race - Fall Out Boy
Rock my funeral, Fall Out Boy.

What type of men do I like?
Alfie - Lily Allen
Alfie is a bum who won't get up his lazy ass, stay in his room all day, play games and smoke weed. If that's my kind of man, I'm truly fucked.

230 Grains and Going...

THE PREMISE: For each word you get right, www.freerice.com will donate 10 grains of rice through the United Nations to help end world hunger. 1 word = 10 grains.

WARNING: This game may make you smarter. It may improve your speaking, writing, thinking, grades, job performance...

SUMMARY: Save the world while fulfilling your selfish and conceited desire to be proven a language master. Go check it out. It's addictive.

Screw that 9AM training tomorrow. I have a cup to fill...

Silicone Valley

Acknowledgment: Thanks for that ingenious title, Nick.

Nick couldn't believe that after 8 months of living in Singapore, I've never been to Orchard Towers, much less knew where it was. With its local rep of being the four floors full of whores, he decided to take me there so I can satiate my voyeuristic curiosity.

We went to a pub called Ipanema which appeared dowdy and sleazy from the outside, and even more so in the inside. Nick told me every girl in there was a 'working girl'. The place was full of Asian girls in skimpy and provocative outfits which barely concealed their ridiculously large breasts and tiny protruding asses. There were a handful of them whom I assume purposely forgot to put on a shirt and were running around in their bras, wishing such brazen tactic would catch the fancy of potential clients. Everywhere I turned I saw cleavage. I was overwhelmed with having to visually digest such inordinate amounts of silicone my head started to ache.

I noticed that all the girls made the first move by either tapping the guy's shoulder to get his attention or merely walking up to him to chat. It didn't even come as a surprise that most of the guys were old, balding, and fat.

After consuming a considerable amount of alcohol, going to the ladies room was inevitable. As with all ladies restroom, it was packed with women touching up their make-up and powdering their noses. Some half-accusingly stared at my modest chest, probably wondering why I didn't get a boob job.

We didn't stay long enough at Ipanema for me to find out how these seemingly innocuous chats turn into business transactions. We moved to another bar called Crazy Horse (or Whores) which was obviously the lady boys' territory. We took a peek and I was surprised to see a good number of customers canoodling with these lady boys. Nick told me I looked dazed...and I was! I've never been caught in the midst of such colorful perversions of the flesh trade! I was in a rabbit hole of debauchery, vulgar fetishes and profligacy. It was crazy and surreal.