EarPumps

Comex 2008. Supposedly the biggest IT show/event since and I made my appearance today after yet another miserable encounter with SBS Transit.. =) So anyway, I got me a pair of earphones.. my previous one had a heart-attack 2-3 weeks ago. The left side just suddenly died.. one moment there was sound, the next, it was just quiet.. talk about heart-attacks.. I thot my ear popped or something..

And being the typical guy, I tried to fix it.. but gave up promptly since I didn’t really have to heart to fix it. So for the past 2 weeks I’ve been traversing to school and back daily singing songs in my head rather than really listening to them.. and if you’ve been an MRT person, you’d prob have notice the SonicGear Earpump advertisements.. I did and was contemplating buying them from the computer shop at school.. I needed a pair of ear phones after all, cos there’s no way I’m using the headphones for the Aviom system when playing for service.. utter discomfort.

Got a black one.. typical alvin choice. =) they have a whole range of colours tho, from metallic blue to pink to green and even red.. and of course, ipod-friendly white..

So anyways, thankfully I waited till Comex, cos they had some freebies.. well, just ONE actually.. extra pieces of silicon gel for the in-ear pieces.. not like I’ll really be changing them, but I guess the typical Singaporean in me rejoices at freebies.. =)

Freebie! Worth 5 bucks I think.. if you're reading this and you're one of those who use the Large-sized ones.. drop a comment k? I'm interested to meet ppl who actually use the Large ones.. can't imagine how big your ears have to be to fit them in.. =P

The verdict.. good sound for an exceptional price. I’m honestly surprised by the sound isolation and sound quality itself, I’d say it’s a miniaturized version of my Stanton headphones.. good stuff. =) For once, I can sit at the back of a bus and not have to adjust the volume cos the darn buses just make so much noise.. For only 30 bucks (29 to be exact), the standard pack comes with 3 sizes of ear pieces for the BIG to the small ear-ed friends.. and it even has a carry container which looks pretty stylish, so that means no more tangles.. *cheers*

Looking forward to using them.. especially at band prac this Wednesday! =) what is life without music.. hah!

Found!

Anyone who’s claimed to have gone to Taiwan before would be missing out totally if he didn’t try 3 things.. their 鸡扒, bubble tea and cup noodles. Yes.. you heard me right.. I said instant noodles.. well what so special about it? Allow me to try my best to account for the experience of my first bowl.. it was really quite something..

The scene takes place on a winter night.. not a snowy one, but one with a clear night sky.. I vaguely remember a full moon. Hmm.. that would be 4 years ago.. how time flies. A chilly winter wind was blowing, marking the start of a cold front making its approach toward the island archipelago. I’ve been walking for the past 12 hours with a load on my back that seemed to get heavier by the hour.. the combination of all that equipment with 72 hours of ration seem quite ridiculous.. but somehow we managed, as we always did.. Spirits were high.. we were on time and we weren’t lost. Sure.. there were some mistakes along the way but nothing too serious.. talk went from fun to serious, mimicking our superiors and getting really good at it, to personal subjects and then swaying back to fictitious characters and who’d we like to be.. we aptly nicknamed ourselves the “Special Elite Thunder Force”.. and kept cracking ourselves up (like how you’d prob be right now) each time we mentioned that name.. there were also colourful characters such as RadioMan and FrogMan.. and how each of us would be unique and special in that one way.. much like superheroes had their own special powers.. we too had our own ‘powers’ and specialty ..and so it was.. 4 ppl barely knowing each other well but yet pretty much in the same situation.. and wanting to make the best out of it..

It was getting late and we decided to find a place to settle in for the night.. this was when we chanced into a little town at the foot of a hill.. I’d never forget that place.. that little house which seemed to be vacant, illuminated a pale white by the moonlight.. that little street that was dead empty with white street lamps dotting the road every few hundred meters, so unlike the orange ones here which can be found every stone-throw away.. the temple with all the figurines and statues that glowed an eerie red in the dead of the night as we passed it.. And of course that car and that car porch where we hid in the dark as Staff and DemoMan trotted off to link up with a member from another group of four. Hiding in the shadows and elated to have finally taken that load off our backs, the remaining 2 of us sat on the curb, quietly waiting for their return..

“Psst!” .. and then out of the corner, a silhouette comes into shape as Staff approaches and hands us a bowl and a bottle each.. Don’t ask how he got it, just eat.. those were the words that came along with it.. Sure. Any form of food now, would be a treat.. he then disappears and reappears shortly with DemoMan and we 4 huddle together in the dark with our food..

The first whiff of hot soup immediately invites the salivary glands to start working and as the warm steam from the bowl rises and brushes against ur cold, wind-beaten face, you sorta know it’s gonna be a good night and it’s only the beginning.. that first slurp of noodles is just pure ecstasy.. hah. I’d give anything to relive that experience.. so halfway through the second mouthful, you realise tiny chunks that got into ur mouth together with the noodles.. NO WAY.. but after chewing you know it’s gotta be. Beef.. chunks and chunks of beef found in the bowl of noodles.. it just keeps getting better.. and so the excitement gets passed around as we each realized that there were chunks of meat in this special bowl of cup noodles.. finishing it with my bottle of what tasted like Sarsi.. I then concluded that the Taiwanese really know how to enjoy food.. and that the best meals always taste even better, when eating in secret.. =P

Well, so much for that account.. what about it you ask? It has been 4 years since that first encounter and I have spent much time trying to find that similar bowl of noodles.. almost every leisure trip to the supermarket, will end up with me taking a peek and longingly trying to hope to catch a glimpse of that familiar looking packaging.. scrutinizing every suspicious looking brand, shaking and trying to feel its weight, wondering if there’s a happy pouch of meat contained within.. and quite obviously, this always results in me being disappointed.. hah. Did I mention that I’ve also tried various alternatives..? I’ve tried adding a can of pork cubes to a bowl of noodles.. but well, it didn’t quite capture the flavour very much.. one of those things which came close but just lacked that something.

And so, 4 years on, I’m glad to present to you what I've been looking for all these while. After what seemed like an arduous journey, it has been found and there’s another brand that carries it. Ok, so it’s not EXACTLY the same brand that I took that fateful night, but it’s one of them.. one of those night snacks we sort after at the nearest 7-11 (which were surprisingly dime-a-dozen there) after the training period.. slurping away happily while watching Mel Gibson in We Were Soldiers and being Mr. Critic at every non-tactical thing he did in the field..

I’m just glad that it has finally made its way into the Singapore market.. and I hope with all my heart and tummy that it’s here to stay.. =)

Bon Appétit!

Beef and Pork flavoured.. gonna stock pile this up as my midnight snack for a long time coming.. =)

The Commencement

School’s in. HRM’s a real chore. I’ve barely started on any presentations for this much talked-about nightmare module and I’m already feeling the heat and pressure of it.. Put that coupled with FYP and the recruitment/handover-takeover of the club and you pretty much get a recipe for sleepless nights, headaches and a flu. So I decided to mark the start of school with an entry here..

Anyways, last week the DIP guys decided to have a dinner together to mark the first day of school.. Orchard Hotel.. in celebration of Singapore’s birthday, wear red and you get 43% discount. Quite happening.

Singapore Garden Festival 08

Went to the Singapore Garden Fest the previous weekend.. another of those happy experiences that I get to click and be trigger happy with my camera.. also went down to the Singapore Orchid thingy.. the whole thing’s all orchids from the tiny to the huge.. didn’t bring my tripod tho, so quite regret it.. had to kick myself for it.. hah.

But managed to capture a decent amount of shots.. and it also led me to confirm that Yes, I want another camera.. might get that Olympus SP570uz that I’ve been eyeing.. but then again, it’ll have to depend on the fundings.. haha.. student = no budget. Heh.. would you like to donate to the save-the-yap fund? =P

managed to take some 'arty farty' shots.. the Seeking Shangri-La exhibit was really nice, it had this aura of calm around it and they guys behind it were the winners of the previous competition, a pity I didn't manage to capture it properly..

this cottage thing is one of my favourites.. the mood of the whole scene also changes as the lights dim and come on, changing the whole atmosphere.. I think I just have a thing with cottages.. haha, gotta get me one of those next time! =)

Left: The Most Colourful Exhibit of the Singapore Orchid show/exhibit, by Naval Base Sec School.. kudos to you guys..
Right: Another one of my favourites, they managed to fuse the instruments and blend it into the whole scene very well.. nice!

tried some macro shots

they also had a little corner where they let kids make and design their own Ginger-Bread Man.. then they'd bake it.. along with the other interesting and very nice looking cupcakes/cookies..