Shifting.

This has been a gruelling week. My whole family was literally shuttling to and fro the old place and the new, trying to bring all our stuff over. Its strange, I don't even know we have so much stuff, until we empty everything that we can empty. Now the old place is getting empty but the new place is filling up.lol. Even at this moment, I'm basically typing this amongst a pile of boxes, hoping the wireless will hold before i hit "Submit".

This week has also been the first time in a really long while that I had the chance to sit at the back of a lorry and make horrified faces at passing cars, while pointing at their tyres. Although that was the only fun part. We made about 6 trips with full loads on a Cabstar and we still have stuff left over. Even as I am typing this, my mum is still at the old place trying to figure out how many of her precious plates she can bear to throw away.

Due to the mountains of stuff we had, its obvious we had to throw some away. We're not gonna decorate the new place with 16 year old antique chairs. especially ones where sitting on them is a challenge in itself. We threw out so much stuff that the rubbish dump guy actually got fed up and told us we need Town Council clearance in order to proceed further. We nodded sheepishly, told them we'll get to it, and then on the same night, me and my brother began "Operation Covert". We waited till the dead of night and then stealthily bring our old furniture down to other blocks. Thats right. We threw our stuff at the rubbish areas of other blocks. And we managed to spread it out evenly. So by the end of the day, the whole estate looked like every block have someone who's moving out.lol.

Really dumb thing to do, right?

Well, our main aim was just to avoid the ire of the rubbish guys. though i guess with the overnight appearance of so much debris, they'll pretty much narrow it down to us anyway.=/
No big deal though, since we'll be out of there by Sunday. And by the time we got back, i think it wouldnt really matter anyway.

Anyway, its good to take a break after all that packing. After a week or so of moving stuff everyday, my back is starting to hurt a bit and i'm beginning to feel the drudgery of repetitive cleaning and clearing. I guess i'll just finish up this post, surf the net for a while, and then i guess its back to the much dreaded "Operation Clearup".

Me! Me! Me!

Have you ever been in a situation, whether its at work or at home, when you're facing a computer and there's nothing much to do? And you're kinda sick and tired of the games over at Popcap.com? Sure you have. For some people(like me), its really a daily occurrence. At times like these, www.youtube.com is your best friend.~snigger~ One very good way to waste time is to just get there, and search for "Banned TV Commercials". What comes up is basically enough to keep you entertained for quite a while. You get funny commercials, sexist commercials, racist commercials, and commercials that doesnt seem like commercials. While some of them(especially the racist and sexist ones) are understandably banned, some are so interesting and funny that i don't get how they can be offensive. I guess ad agencies and tv stations don't exactly get along huh?

Anyway, its really interesting how efficient and connected our country is. My vehicle insurance is due this month, and for the past 2 months, I've received no less than 3 different calls for insurance renewal. And I have no idea how these people got my contacts. My internet subscription contract is expiring soon and now i've got a call from some lady offering to renew my subscription with Starhub with some free gift. And even offered to change my plan to my new address, since i'm moving soon.

Are we having too much competition in Singapore? Its amazing the lengths sales people go to to secure that extra sale.  I had some acrylic done for some car stuff and when i wanted to make some amendments to the size, the guy just came down to where i am, took the piece back, and delivered it back to me the next day with my changes. With no extra charge. Apparently, I can make changes as many times as i like. The guy will just do it all with no extra charge. And to top it off, I'm not exactly your big-ticket customer.

I guess this is all very good if you're the customer. With everyone jumping around just so they can get your attention. But it will really suck if you're the one jumping. But i guess there's not much anyone can do about it, its really a natural progression of a highly competitive society. Though i guess if you're stuck doing the jumping, its just a matter of time before u get really good at clearing heights.

Irasshaimase! Irashai! Irasshaimase!

Don't you just love the Noel Hampers commercial? I thought it was simply brilliant. Although I have a lingering feeling that the version we see on prime time tv seems to be an abridged version. I just think the two secretaries behind the bosses have some role to play. Though i don't see them doing anything. They're the ones actually ordering the hampers right? Anyway, its one of the coolest local commericals I've seen in a while, right after the Double A series.

Anyway, we were out celebrating Jiajie's birthday(Happy Birthday!) yesterday. Now, I don't normally go restaurants that much so i could be misguided. But i think Kuriya's at Raffles City has one of the most efficient staff I've ever seen. I have waitresses peering at my teacup every nanosecound and retreating disappointed every time they see that I still have tea in mine. Two waitresses clamoured to wipe our table almost as soon as some drip manifested itself and the one who succeeded seemed genuinely glad she got to do it.-_-"
Anyway, the food wasn't too bad and pricing was quite reasonable for a penny-pincher like me. Though i personally don't like going to either Japanese or American-styled restaurants. The former has nicer food but always seemed to end with me feeling half-full at the end of the meal while the latter makes me feel like I'm filled up to my throat. I personally think the Carl Jr's meal is a set meal for two. Attempting to polish off one SuperStar burger by yourself is tentative to a self-invitation to stomach explodititis.

We adjourned to a neat little place at Punggol Park after that, although due to some slight misadventure, we took quite a bit of time getting there. Quaint little place, sorta like a bistro/cafe that overlooks a body of water. looks quite picturesque at night, due to the hazy reflection of the HDB blocks in the water, sorta looks like an urban Taj Mahal. Food wasn't too bad(i heard) and it presented an ideal location for the cake cutting. I can't remember where i got the cake but its a mocha marble cheesecake. And i thought it was the tastiest thing i've had all evening.^^

Anyway theres this local motorshow going on now, and in the past, i will be there in an instant, checking out the rides and the babes. But in the recent few years, i really can't be bothered. It seems the show is becoming more and more akin to a mega car showroom rather than a showcase of each company's tour de force. As for the babes, from pictures I've seen online, it seems half of them are the same ol' people you see at almost any other event. I guess we're still a long way off from attaining a status even remotely near the levels of events like the Tokyo Autosalon or the Osaka Automesse.

Sing your way home. Please.

Been a while since my last entry. Didn't have nothing much interesting happening, been busy preparing for interviews and with the looming house moving. But most importantly, i didn't really feel the urge to write anything. Oh well.~shrugs~

Anyway, i remember this time last year, its Project Superstar again. Time for more self-deprecating narcissistic people who all seem to think they have perfect pitch.(read my entry last year to know how i REALLY feel about the contestants;) I don't know but it seems that this year seems to have a better crop of wannabes compared to the previous one. We still have the kiddo/uncle variants who think they sound like JJ but in actuality sounds like Mickey Mouse(can't avoid 'em);  but somehow, i feel the overall quality seems to have been raised up a notch. Though i think the judges seem to favour candidates who possess one common trait. The full baritone voice types. you know, the "warm" sound, rich and deep, with an ability to raise it up an extra octave when needed. While i do admit most of the contestants sings very nicely, I can't help but feel everyone sounds the same. They're all gunning for more or less the same image, singing more or less the same type of songs. Most of them even look more or less the same.>_<.
Seems after the first contest, aspiring idols have figured out the knack of picking songs that the judges like. It would be refreshing to see someone who got through using a Theresa Teng or Cai Qin song though.

Now its time for a gripe. I have a sister and she's quite a few years younger than me. As always, when that happens, some communication problems are inevitable. On the flip side, i guess its also good to know the opinions of the younger generation. Anyway, I've realised one thing as she gets out of her teenage years and enters the realm of adulthood, and I can only say young people nowadays expect more respect than they give. And sometimes, its hard to justify this expectation that they have. Now, I know I'm not the best guy to say this. I'm not exactly a yesman at home, and sometimes i disagree with my elders for all the wrong reasons. But even someone like me knows she needs to work on her attitude. Pity she doesnt think so.

Now i am aware this is not reflective of the behavioural patterns of this particular demographic, but i think its not that far off from the truth. I see this in my neighour's kid too. Its not the disregard of authority that jerks my chain. that i can take. we all have that phase.  I just don't like it when they seemed to do the inflated ego thingy. Maybe its not as bad as i made it out to be, maybe this is all just the constipated ramblings of someone whos more than halfway approaching the big three O. Well, in any case I've said my piece and i guess thats all that matters to me.

Anyway, never written for so long and suddenly it seems like i've got loads to write. its sort of like going on for a few days without taking a crap and then suddenly unleashing the fury(Malmsteen anyone?). lol .