:: miss universe : aftermath::

as (bad)luck would have it, i fell ill today, and thus was able to watch the pageant 'live' from bangkok.

and i didn't know that i have been 'tomorrow'ed' for the last entry, all thanks to cowboy caleb.

so my 'predictions' were not correct, but pretty close enough.

miss usa did get into the semi-finals, but not miss thailand. and hey, guess what, they got miss norway instead to be in the semis, as she is half-thai. i reckon that will please the home crowd.

and to the delight of the home crowd (again!), miss thai walked away with the national costume award (altho' it was wrongly displayed as miss panama in the website).


:: now, that is what i call a national costume, uniquely thai::

and miss indonesia, got into the semis too. way to go, artika sari! it's 1st time lucky for indonesia, eh!


and our beautiful miss philippines won the deservedly miss photogenic award.

our asean neighbours did well in this pagent, and i hate to think it's because of the location of the competition (i won't! its not kelong, ok). and they got a tough and overly critical 'queen' (ie: Carson Kressley) judge to deal with, so the decision of this pagent, i respect man!

in the top 5, 4 of them are from latin america, that in itself speak of the stereotype trend in this pageant. but hey, who dares to dispute that? a sailor friend once told me that in latin america, 7 out of 10 women are a stunner, i wonder if he is telling the truth or not, as i am a dreamer, i like to fantasize it as the truth :).

and poor miss peru, she almost fell while doing her "over-the-top" catwalk in the swimwear during the semis, guess too much 'gelek' will get your hip and heel twisted.

but the eventual winner is indeed, a dark horse, as she is the only non-latin girl standing. my congrats to miss canada!


:: oh thank you...thank you all, i love you...world peace::

and miss singapore? she did well enough to represent us, but too bad, only on video clip and brief walk though.

maybe our next 'queen' will be one of the 'chio bus' in the blogsphere, i can provide you tips on how to ace that interview, if you want :) and no world peace in the sentences either...

:: chain, chain..chain...::

if you happened to drive pass PIE towards Jurong (near Stevens Road exit) during the mad evening rush hour, you will probably see 5 vehicles stranded on the road shoulder. and depending on your timing, you may come across an ambulance, towing vehicle and a traffic police car too.

well, yours truly agentX was one of those involved in that accident :) and you must thank me for asking all the other vehicles to move to the road shoulder in order to ease up the ever-building road congestion and stop 'ka-beh-cow-boo" in the middle of the road.

it became a traffic police case since one of the passengers in the taxi was a pregnant woman, and maybe due to shock, she felt that she needed an ambulance just to be doubly sure that everything is ok.

and i say, rightfully so (we all know how much efforts the government need to ask all of us to have babies!) well, the ambulance took her away to the hospital to make sure she's ok.

all 5 drivers (4 cars and 1 motorcycle) have to be questioned by the traffic police for their story and we were 'withheld' until the investigating officer is satisfied that all is in order before we are all allowed to be 'towed' away, (even though i could have driven off my car with all that dent in the rear bumper)

the cause of accident was simple. a motorcycle infront of me had put on an emergency brake, as the car in front of him did the same (but that car sped off anyhow afterwards). so, being a considerate drive, i was able to slow down and stop since i have reasonable distance between my car and his motorbike. the car behind me also did the same since he too had some distance to stop. alas, two taxis behind his car were unable to stop in time, thus causing the chain-collision.

fortunately, i was able to step on my brakes which have prevented me from knocking the already-shaken motorist. only his rear license plate was dented while my front bumper just had few scratches. we both decided not to put on any claims between us (since i guess he was lucky to be alive, while i really could not be bothered with few scratches on bumper).

i guess i am too immune with road accidents now, this is my 3rd within the past a year and a half. so, i am not panicked at all.

what really suprised me was the ever-efficiency of the towing vehicle company and car workshops who are willing to act on your behalf for the claims (they even arrive earlier than the traffic police). i had my car towed away nicely, put up a police report, get a replacement car...all within 45 minutes.

i guess my car could have sense it (as i had actually planned to scrap it and replace with another car by end of june), as this is our third accident together.

to my baby...i'm sorry, but its time to move on. our 'incidents' together are forever cherished here and here...this has been a 3rd time unlucky.

now, i just wait for my baby to be restored, before giving her the befitting farewell at the junkyard soon....**teary eyes**



:: 4Ds are being banned here as aGentX is anti-gaming::

:: good luck, miss sinGAHpore::

tomorrow is miss universe day!, with live telecast from bangkok, thailand on the telly at 9.00 am (should i go to work late, i wonder?)

i have always been an 'old hand' from being a couch potato judge while watching this event. somehow, i could sense is that miss america will be in the semi-finals, at least, same with miss thailand. it is just the protocol, but perhaps, these 2 beauties are really worth the top 10 spot.

it is just the same old event, but somehow, it's addictive to me -- just like who the media-whore paris hilton who has the same effect on me :)

can miss singapore make it? i shall not comment on it, but i am totally embarassed by the 'national costume' that she is wearing for the pagent. it is sari-influenced all right, but to look like a peacock? since when being a cock is a national one, other than talking cock that is....


:: since when does a singaporean wear a national costume like that?::

as diplomatic as ever, my prediction is that among our asean neighbours, miss indonesia and miss thailand might secure a place in the semi-finals, at least.

miss singapore? again...no comment.

compare and contrast. and you will be your own judge :)


:: miss thailand - chananporn rosjan (23) , what a sexy name too :D::

:: miss indonesian - artika sari devi (25), considering this is their first time participating::

:: miss singapore - cheryl tay (24), but she's a vet ok! i love animals too::

somehow, i reckon that my future wife will look like miss indonesia somehow. it's like deja-vu when i was looking at her pics :)

ps: good luck, cheryl! and till i see you again, artika sari!

::a blogger's death - a wake up call::

ng sek man was a 18 year old freshman from queens college and a migrant from hongkong.

he was also a blogger.

sadly, both his sister, sharon and him were brutally murdered in their home in queens, ny, by an unknown assailant.

fortunately, the police were able to apprehend the suspect, based on his last entry in his blog.

it pains me when i had to write about him in past tense.

i do not know this young man, or have read his blog before. but upon his demise, many of our online community have expressed their condolences and pray for this soul.

there are too many faceless bloggers out there, but it will only take such a chilling event like this for us to realise that beneath every blog, there is a precious person and soul that will be greatly missed, especially if terrible circumstances are to happen to them.

as such, i will continue not to react to any 'blog-flame' and judge anyone based on what they blog about. even though their blog may imply that they are perhaps a real "a-hole' in real-life, until i have step into their shoes or at least get to know them better over a cuppa.

so i could understand xiaxue's or trisha ratna's frustrations because people do not know them at all, yet, they are writing nasty stuff towards them.

peace!

and rip, sek man...



photo credits: special/krystle fleming

thanks to kevin lim for the link

:: live it ::

woke up with a terrible dry throat, loose bowel and too tired to work.

visited my doctor, given one day's medical leave and sent mom to the dentist.

and was able to watch the american idol 'live' in the process.

this is life, this is the post.

there are some things money can't buy.
for everything else, you will only need a MC (medical certificate).


::gimme mc anytime :P::

:: down but not out::

i have been suffering from blog-lethargy over the last long weekend, simply because my state of mind was not good and it was no thanks to work issues.

i shall not dwell about it lest i should read about this entry once more and starting to feel shitty all over again.

but the last straw came when i received an sms at 1.32am on the wee hours on sunday- asking me to fix a certain work problem asap as it was all important....and that, as i was having my happy hours and feeling very happy on my night out in town! that alone has triggered my man-bitch alarm ringing and i returned the call to my 'project manager' co-worker only to yell and hurl my piss at him. of course, while trying to show to my boss that he has worked long hours over the weekend (because he was too unproductive and effective to begin with), he started a trigger of nasty emails. i had played it cooled and remained objective throughout as i am mentally drained with all these childish nonsense. and the work problem wasn't a problem at all, just because that stupid idiot has clicked the wrong button...dumb ass...

to cut the story short, today, i went to see the boss to give him the ultimatum - it's either him or me for this project as i do not wish to suffer any fools at all (a good hint to him). so, the boss decided for us to be divorced and never to work again in any other projects again...ever! so, i had to hold out my resume for a while and see how things go and will celebrate this joyous occassion this weekend with my 'thirsty buddies'.

but i have wished that my boss is donald trump so that he could say to the 'project manager', you are fired! because i am sure to have a strong case against that guy since my other colleague is also pissed with him big time as he has made her cry over the project....working life is a bitch!

::musical baton::

alamak! (my official translation which means...oh! mother!)

[no] thanks to lancerlord, [who got it from cowboy, who in turn, got it from jim], i also 'kena-ed' musical baton...so i better pass the baton to 5 (un)lucky people below -- before being disqualified from holding the baton too long, since the baton changing distance is very short in relay events and dont slip the baton people :D


but i am not using iPod leh, but a sony and u know its music software is not that user-friendly and rigid...so i have to convert it to iTune format just to get these information...(which has caused me some valuable time of beauty sleep), so here goes:

Total volume of music files on my computer:
10.07 GB - 1211 songs, 6 days 12 hours 3 minutes and 35 seconds of music

The last CD I bought was:
Tokyo Cafe - Various Artiste (Japanese)

Song playing right now:
Aruarian Dance - Nujebe

Five songs I listen to a lot, or that mean a lot to me:

1. Let's Face the Music and Dance by Diana Krall
2. Will by Mika Nakashima
3. Aku Cinta Padamu (live) by Sheila Majid
4. You Are Free by Chage & Aska
5. You Don't Know Me by Ray Charles (featuring Diana Krall)

Five people to whom I’m passing the baton:
Ahmad
TrishaRatna
Echa
Soohk
Wabbit

:: clear your frown lines, laugh now ::

if you are like me and seriously needing a good laugh, you should go to RobPongi.com.



before i discovered singapore-based bloggers, i was very much into RobPongi.com simply because it is one of the most wickedly hillarious but not nonsensical way of humour, which i like!

Rob Pongi brings joy and happiness to thousands of people all over the world every day by showing a light-hearted and sometimes satirical view of the Japanese and other Asian cultures as they are seen through his eyes. And even though he may act silly and look funny, his vision is, indeed, very clear and his aim is true: to promote better international understanding, more cross cultural awareness and also to emphasize the need for better global communications overall.

among his many self-made videos about life in Japan, my favourite is definitely the one about 'japanese women looking for foreign friends'...watch it and i bet, you will have many good laughs.

"it hopes if shortly possible, it wants to meet a husband. i admire such a man, say, he has plane or ship or big gorgeous house plus alpha? if you are such my special man, please send me your self introduction and picture if you dont' mind. i thank you very much for your mail. thank you honey, email kuexx@tokyo.co.jp"

"hello, my name is nana, i'm looking for a new friend, any nationality or age is ok, i like movies, bicycling, traveling, nature and salad! will you tell me how to make salad dressing like your country, i like to taste the whole world of salad dressing with you......"

and you thought singlish was bad!

:: drained ::

- i am dead tired today - mentally and emotionally.

:: hit me baby one more time ::

my lazy sunday is jolted by cowboy caleb's "thou hast been tomorroweth".

this adds to the ever-mysterious person of caleb...but who knows, we might have crossed path during our secret agent missions. ;P

yes, yours truly have been 'tomorroweth', which means no sarong and tank top for today.



coincidentally, in sunday times today (i only buy the papers on weekends), there is an article for the re-education of bloggers aptly titled "blog no evil", sorry no online link as el-cheapo here didn't pay to that online paper....

and i better watch what i write, lest i 'kena' labelled as whinning singaporean men (read the printed copy of sunday times , since i don't wanna kena sued by just writing that person's name :D)


peace. out!

:: skin deep with aGentX ::

:: harajuku girls, tokyo april 2001::

like it or not, people are judging us every single day (even without us knowing it).

and the first thing of that judging criteria will be based on your looks, perhaps followed by (not in any order), gender, race, marital status, sexual orientation, smell and perhaps taste...hahah.

anita roddick, the founder of the body shop, was disguised as an obese, a frail elderly and a homeless for a discovery uk documentary series called "skin deep" in this series, it explores society's prejudices to people who do not 'fit' into the so-called mainstream beings (if there is such a thing). anita also shares with us about her experience of being judged here, and in one series, even a plastic surgery did not believe her when she told him who she was really, despite her fact of handing out her name card and her credit card to proof that she is indeed a big-shot entrepreneur.

anyhow, arts central is now showing it every wednesday - watch it if you can to see what i mean.

i am somewhat guilty of judging people from the way their appearance, even though i have always reminded myself never to judge others as you have never been in their shoes. i have been lucky so far, because i am someone who has been described as a 'pleasant' bloke. once, in a seminar about self-image and grooming, i have been singled out by the trainer to illustrate the concept of harmony in colour scheme and good fashion sense (well, i was in boring executive wear at that time, not in some sharp suit and chic jeans combo :P). being pleasant and smiley most of the time has made breaking the ice tad easier for me, asking for directions quicker and being indecently proposed (very rare occasion though)

i have to agree that having good appearance could open doors to other people or perhaps even opportunities. just recently, a customer has requested that they would rather deal with me as a point of contact rather than my co-worker as they claimed that with my co-worker, they have numerous miscommunication and have difficulty to understand what my co-worker was saying for most of the time. however, the real reason that i found out was that they did not like my co-worker's accent as well as his unpleasant body odour and rather obnoxious sense of humour, and it did not help that he is not pleasant-looking at all....so, being ugly, smelly and rubbing people in the wrong way is definitely a lose-lose pair of shoes to be in.

when i was a hr practitioner who had interview many people before, some of my business managers have specifically requested that only good looking people are deservedly to be interviewed for the position of account managers and the like...you know, the sales people kinda of job.

being a trained hr professional who insisted on job and profile matching and competencies, i had vetoed some of their demands. i have interviewed former cabin crew people (note, non-gender specifics) who are no doubt, good looking/beautiful, but really could not even speak well enough without any prepared scripts, and have not done enough research to apply for the job that they were seeking, while some not-so-beautiful/handsome candidates are remarkable impressive in their credentials, experience and should be deservingly be offered the position.

sad to say, sometimes, no matter how 'scientific' and transparent the selection process came about, at the end of the day, the candidate with the best look do get the job, not all the time of course....as the simpleton rationale that those managers gave was that, we need them to 'open doors' to get the sales/accounts...blah blah.

of course there are other prejudices regarding to gender, race, marital status, sexual orientation...etc etc, which i am not going to write about it as it may lead to a boring academic self-gratifying post.

what i am trying to say is, yes, there are always be prejudices against or for you, but as long as you are contented with who you are, nothing else matters. last night after midnight, i had my 'nasi lemak' at fong seng clementi road wearing my sarong and v-neck sleeveless shirt and my leather sandals, i knew that many roving undergrads eyes were judging me (either as a ethnic freak or some artsy-fartsy weirdo or whatever other name-calling). but i will never be bothered because hey, sarong is comfortable (but i had to put on a belt to be doubly sure that it will not drop and exposed myself as my sarong-wrap skills are very lousy..haha) and it's part of our identity as asians.

i am lucky that it has been easier for me to say that, considering that i am a 'pleasant' bloke, but i have also been judged to be a male slut many a times, simply because i am too sexy for my shirt...as if.

:: 2 major events today!!::

any partipants??

Masturbate-A-Thon, or Orgy for World Peace..

Masturbation Month Fun Facts

• Number of Masturbate-A-Thon pledge forms distributed since 1998: 67,000

• Number of people who participated (those who returned pledge forms with money): 1620

• Number of countries with Masturbate-A-Thon participants: 6

• Largest amount raised by an individual: $1000.00

• Longest time recorded by a participant in the Masturbate-A-Thon: 6 hours, 15 minutes

• Total amount of money collected since 1998 through the Masturbate-A-Thon: $26,000

• Number of television, print, and radio interviews conducted regarding Masturbation Month : 395

• Number of Masturbate-A-Thon winners who have conducted interviews about their experience: 4

via Kissui.net

: liar, liar - pants of fire ::

learn how to detect lies here



very useful information, indeed!

via J-Walk blog

:: bra for support and push...::

Triumph International Japan Ltd model Yu Misaki shows off the "Post Privatization Total Surprise Bra!" in Tokyo on Tuesday. The lingerie maker said it designed the bra to express support for Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi and his push to privatize Japan Post.

Notice the pun?

via MDN: News on Japan as it happens..

:: mum is the word::

mother's day has become valentine's day-like kinda of affairs.

the media, retail, restaurants have all ganged up for mother's day lunches/tea/dinners/shopping/tribute/ etc etc...

so, to all mothers and mother-to-be and mother-wannabe, "Happy Mother's Day".

as usual, i do not 'celebrate' mother's day with my mom. she has been feeling unwell since last friday, a day after her first theraphy of zometa, to manage her condition of insolent myloma which is cancer of the plasma cells. i have taken a day off from work to send her for her continuous blood tests, consultation and treatments, which have to be repeated every 6 weeks.

when i returned from work on saturday (yeah, no thanks to stupid co-worker's incompetency and idiotic attitude), my mom has fever, aches and headache. i have taken her temperature , gave her medication and told her to rest as food will still be available even if she is not cooking.

fortunately, her body temperature has subsided and improved by the time i had to leave the house for my weekly chill-out sessions with my pals. yes, i should not have even left the house, but knowing my mom, she would not let me fuss too much about her. but i had taken every precaution to make sure that she is well-rested, her medication taken, her bed is cozy, room temperature is maintained, drinks, lights and emergency contacts all at hand. fortunately, by the time i am home at 4 am, she is well rested and her body temperature has returned to almost normal.

so, today, on mother's day, my mom is still a little heavy-headed, so i guess dinner will be sumptuous again, thanks to reliable 'makan places crew' who have to work to feed lazy folks like us.

as for me, i will spend my time doing some house-work like cleaning the aircon filters, the fans and watching dvd and 'serve dinner' later... my cat, sumoki, has strangely been on his best behaviour somehow when my mom is not feeling too well for the past few days. that is perhaps, his way of celebrating mother's day....


photo credits : david dean

:: what i like in a podcast::

i am inspired to write this after listening to cowboy caleb's pre-podcast teaser...which i must say the guitar riffs were pretty impressive, and it has bring back some rock genes back to me...

i've already said it, that i think paris hilton's podcast is among my favourite ones right now. hers is what i would have categorised as 'reality podcast', you can hear the paparazzis and fans screaming her name, her publists and friends chirping in the conversations as she 'narrates' her experiences while promoting her latest movie, "house of wax"

it is so, like, cool, and like hot and like awesome and fun, y'know!" i think she is a very intelligent woman, and her diamonds to her movie premiere is only 2million bucks with 5 bodyguards - which other podcast can tell you that? paris remains my hottest podcast now - i don't care what u may think ;)

on another note, i have snored to other podcasts as i think the concept of "jerry seinfeld comedy' will not work so easily on audio format...slap-sticky or conversations about nothing are pretty difficult to convey, i think...as i have not been able to smile myself silly when i listened to such podcasts.

it's rather difficult for me to laugh at such jokes from learned folks who tried to act silly by telling nonsensical jokes, or maybe, their podcasts were not even meant to be jokes, but some subtle intellectual depth, in it.

damn, i'm so like, missing the point....and now back to paris hilton's podcast! ;)

:: kennysia's sad news::

kennysia, my blog entertainer, the guy who could make me laugh in the middle of the night like a crazy idiot by his sheer wit and sharp sense of humour, has some unfortunate news.

to kenny and his family, "my heartfelt condolences and may your find your strength again in this trying moment."

amen.

:: my private tribute::

it has been a shitty day at work, i almost bull-dozed into my boss' office to tell him that i've had enough of a foul-smelling and rotten EQ "colleague" of mine, and that, i will quit.

but of course, that didn't happen (after extra long lunch break and telling off my co-worker that his behaviour is not acceptable and idiotic)...instead, he went to the boss, to complain and bust my balls. i don't think that he has the courage to quit, because he is a friggin' deadwood who will be dead should he work somewhere else.

besides, i don't care if my boss wants to see me, as i have been wanting to give him a piece of my mind, and what could be the worst thing that could have happen? 'kena' fired lah...i don't suffer fools anyway.

sorry as i digress....as usual.

i was about to leave the office when my brother called for a ride home, since my place is along his anyway. just less than 5 minutes of driving, i blurted, "wanna go to the istana?" and he said, "yes, let's pay our respects"...

and with that, we had to endure, well, not really, just some time waiting in the queue for about 45 minutes as there are hundreds of those before us...and few more behind it. it was the last throng of those who would like to pay their last respect to our ex-president, dr wee khim wee, as the queue will stop in about 10 minutes when we arrived.

being a sombre affair, we behave ourselves, no pushing and shoving. conversations were muted and the security clearance was efficient and quick. it was the 1st time ever, i had seen a metal detector being set in a middle of a tropical lush greenery.

there wereshuttle buses to pick us up and send us back from the istana to the main gate. it was more efficient than our public transporation.

then, it was the moment of truth for me, when it was our turn to finally reach the istana. in the condolence book, i wrote "thanks for the autographed invitation card for tea during pre u seminar 1990 @ the istana..., you will be missed but remembered to many of your fellow citizens, rest in peace" but my hand shivered and my handwriting was illegible. i was almost overcome with emotion at that point. i

soon, we were inside the istana and the late dr wee's family was there by the side of the casket which was draped with our national flag. it must have been hard for them, since i believe they have been there since morning (judging from the news on tv which showed them wearing the same clothes since morning).

after offering some prayers, i lowered my head and look at the late dr wee's peaceful and dignified face before turning to his family and bowed and said to his daughter, 'we are sorry for your lost, he has always been a great man.'

with that, it was back to the efficiency of the istana security and we boarded the shuttle bus and alighted at the main gate. there, we saw the late dr wee's eldest son, thanking all the uniformed men and women who has helped with the crowd control, security and logistics at the main gate area. in such trying times, he has emulated his late father's excellent people skills. those men and women were clearing up the logistics as the event has closed.

my brother and i did not speak much on our way home, but somehow, deep inside we are glad to be able to pay our final respect to a great man who has somewhat touched our hearts and who has chosen to be remembered as a common man, not as a former President of Singapore.

tomorrow, there will be a private ceremony for the family and on friday, it will be the funeral at mandai crematorium, not at kranji memorial park, at the request of the late dr wee khim wee.

as a malay saying goes, "harimau mati meninggalkan belang, manusia mati meninggalkan nama" which literally means, ' when a tiger dies, it will leave its stripes, a man dies , he will leave his name (legacy)".

this is the best way to meet our creator, i hope mine will be this way too....



:: the grand istana - with no state flag for this sombre event:

:: RIP: wee khim wee - 1915-2005::

an accidental channel surfing which stopped at channel 6 (ie: channelnewsasia), that which showed a somewhat 'long footage' of wee khim wee's career span from a newspaper clerk to the former president of singapore, which has resulted in somewhat uncomforting feeling inside.

that it was meant as a tribute footage, and not just some documentary of our former president.

unfortunately, it was true.

Singapore's former President, Wee Kim Wee, has died at the age of 89.

Dr Wee, the country's president from 1985 to 1993, is best remembered for being a People's President and for his common touch.

...more

i remembered him way back in 1990's pre-u seminar, which we had a chance to interact and speak with him for tea at the istana. i did not take much photos back then, especially with him, but being a great man he was, he had autographed each and every one of our invitation card and had sent it to our schools few weeks after that event.

now, i do not know where that autographed invitation card is, but that lasting memory will be cherished forever.

rest in peace...

:: paris hilton's podcast!::

ala cheer-leader style hor...

"call me dense, thick and dumb
coz i ain't giving up paris...yeah...!!"

you know what, my favourite celeb now, paris hilton, has her own podcast too... :)

check it out, y'all... it also comes with cute background sound bites..


oh goodness, i am so like, you know, like, awe, and awesome, you know..like, gawking at miss hilton, like, so surreal, so, like cool.

i really dig paris hilton!

she's everywhere and now, even on your headphones!