Is the world not crazy?

Darren played-twice-for England Bent actually cost more than the great Thierry world-cup-winners-with France Henry.

Tell me, what is wrong with this world?

Transformers is currently the movie of the year for me, even better than Spiderman 3 and Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End combined.

And Megan Fox is definitely hotter than Kirsten Dunst and Keira Knightley combined.

And What I've Done by Linkin Park is the title track (http://www.transformersalbum.com/).

It cannot get any better.

Spider Lilies- that’s my first R-21 film. Unfortunately, there isn’t much of a plot to go with what I felt was some tremendous acting by the two female leads. Personally, there is nothing in the film which deserves the R-21 rating- the lesbian kiss was at most only an M-18, as I can guarantee you can catch some same-sex lip action on the back of most double-decker buses in sunny Singapore. Trust me, I speak from experience (don’t ask). Anyway, Ayu was finding it a torture to sit through the whole 98 minutes weighed down by some bad directing and indifferent pacing. Only waiting for Rainie and Isabella to finally lip-lock kept him in his seat. Speaking of Ayu, the undercover police officer in the film (assigned to check on Rainie) is not very different from Ayu, is he? If you didn’t already know, Ayu fell in love with a girl he has never seen- just some pictures on Friendster and a few conversations on MSN were all it took to make he fall head over New Balance shoes for a certain Kate. For your information, in the film, the cop fell in love with a webcam-stripping Rainie, without ever see her face to face. I find it amazing (I know I am repeating myself, but…) that people can fall in love in the virtual world. I blame it on the digital camera and camera phones- without them, how on Earth can some PLT (pretty little things) change their Friendster display pictures every other day? In turn, how will innocent Ayu fall for their virtual kawaii-ness or cam-whore-ness (depending on if the girl in question is truly kawaii or simply a whore)?

Back to reality, my and Ayu went shopping after that. He was looking for some orientation gift, while I was looking for a birthday present for Pig (my sister). What do you get for a twenty-year-old girl whose life revolves around books and Maple Story? I was thinking, maybe a book on accountancy, or a Maple Story figurine. I manage to find neither, so I ended up giving her a Marks & Spencer bag of candy I bought for myself. I know, I am a bad brother. But she isn’t the best of sister either (we are from the same factory, you see, so we cannot be that different).

Anyway, I went to NUS to play soccer with Leslie just now. Took a twelve-dollar taxi ride there- I cannot believe there is a two dollar surcharge on a Saturday evening. I had a good game, though I was the only one out of the seven in my team not to have scored. Not scoring doesn’t equals a bad game (ask any Liverpool fan about a certain Javier Mascherano’s peformance in the Champions League final). I don’t know why, but I was especially bad-tempered today. I cannot keep my mouth shut. But then again, I was provoked. Having played soccer for so long, I can guess when someone who just kicked me did it out of malice or pure error in judgement. Anyway, we kicked their arses 8-1, so it didn’t matter.

Finally, as I am typing, Monsieur Thierry Henry has just signed for Football Club Barcelona. All good things must come to an end. Les announced he is going to support Manchester United Football Club from next season- if Les can actually give up Sunday Soccer to go to Church with a girl, anything is possible. Keep in mind- he will be the slowest Manchester United fan I know of (but at least he runs faster than Darren why-are-you-still-playing-for-us Fletcher).

We all know who's Narcissus, a man who sits by the lake everyday, looking at his reflection and contemplates about his own beauty.

One day, he was so fascinated by his own that he fell into the lake and got himself drowned.

At the spot, a flower was born, which was called the narcissus.

The goddesses of the forest appeared and found the lake, which had been fresh water

transformed into a lake of salty tears.

"Why do you weep?" the goddesses asked.

"I wept for Narcissus," the lake replied.

The goddesses felt that it's no surprise for the lake to weep for Narcissus, for though they always pursued him in the forest, and the lake could contemplate his beauty close at hand.

"But... was Narcissus beautiful?" the lake asked.

"Who better than you to know that?" the goddesses said in wonder.

"Afer all, it was by your banks that he knelt each day to contemplate himself!"

The lake was silent for a moment.

Finally it said, "I wept for Narcissus, but I never noticed that Narcissus was beautiful. I weep because, each time he knelt beside my banks, I could see, in the depths of his eyes, my own beauty reflected."

- The Alchemist, Paul Coelho

Seriously, Singaporeans are a funny bunch. You see, last night, I was on the bus back from work, and it was crowded. Monday night, what luck? Anyway, I find that Singaporeans have a fetish for the exit. They love sitting near there, which is not a problem. What I cannot understand is why passengers who are going to alight like fifteen stops later still insist on standing at the exit. And these passengers not only include the old and those who have difficulty moving about on the bus (which is understandable, given the drivers sometimes drive like they are having a race with Raikkonen and Alonso- speaking of which, I just finished watching Taxi 4, the French comedy, which was simply superb). Yesterday night, I witness first hand at first a pair of young Chinese girls (pretty little things, to quote myself); followed by this Indian lady wearing a NTUC uniform; and lastly to round it off, a Muslim woman in her tudung who stood at the exit for a good twenty minutes, blocking at least ten people who all alighted before her, all because she wanted to have a conversation with her good friend who was conveniently seated next to the exit. Maybe they should shift the exit to the back of the bus, like the trams in Hong Kong, but then again, knowing Singaporeans, it will only serve as an escape route for them after being caught red-handed using their child’s Ez-link card. Singaporeans. I am one of them. Are you not?

He that is not jealous is not in love.  ~St. Augustine

Some things have better just end. No point dragging it. For instance, the Matrix trilogy, the never-ending-and-twisting Prison Break, and to add one more to the list, Ocean’s Thirteen. I mean, Ocean’s Eleven was great because of the fact that it was a first of its kind, and the twist in the plot was good; Ocean’s Twelve was okay, since the expectations were much higher the second time round and the plot was twisted just to fit in two female leads; Ocean’s Thirteen was such a disappointment- no twist, peppered with too many meaningless sub-plots and changes in the pacing. I like Steven Soderbergh but this was a torture.

Looking on the bright side, I got Tigress and her sister for company (on second thought, it isn’t all that bright). They look like they share the same parents (which I think they should), but Tigress’s sister is apparently a bit tamer (or cautious, depend on how you see it). Tigress and I had dinner alone at Swensen first before meeting up, and the food was alright, but the crowd on a Tuesday night at a Swensen outlet in the heartland really surprised me. And there were so many kids there. Rich and spoilt kids- whatever happened to savouring Mum’s cooking?

Speaking of which, I went out with Mum and piggy earlier on in the day (that’s a first in years). We took the train all the way to Chinatown, and Mum was telling me she has been bugging Dad to bring her to try some Noodle stall at People’s Park Complex since the start of the year but to no avail. So much for the power of love. We bought some stuff, she did some shopping while I baby-sit my sister- she’s thirteen and she wanted a Barbie. I thought she would want a Puma bag or Addidas sweater. Damn. I cannot even understand a thirteen-year-old girl.

Anyway, I am going back to work tomorrow. Sick. And. Tired. I am already looking forward to my next off day. I will see you when I see you, Tigress.

This thing is just unbelievable. Straight out of Minority Report

You have to see it to believe it!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cog8b8ojji0

I really have a problem with keeping time. Whether it’s my friends, family or girlfriends, school or work, I am somewhat prone to being late. I attribute this to the ‘time flies’ effect. When you are late, time seems to fly. Anyway, I was late for forty-five minutes meeting Tigress today. And yes, I am lucky I am just a friend. Had I been anything more (or anything less), I was pretty sure I would be dead meat. Hell hath no fury, a woman scorned.

Lesson number one when going out on a date with Tigress: Never ever be late. Your cat can die, your car can crash, but you cannot be late.

Lesson number two: Nevertheless, if you happen to be late (unfortunately), be sure to bring some (some equals more, a lot more) cash along, not forgetting your credit card, which will come in useful too.

Lesson number three: Lastly, just brace yourself for her fury, and admit that today is just not your day, and every word that comes out of your mouth, is wrong.

Okay, that was a summary of what happened to me today. I will keep things brief- we shopped around Chinatown for some perfume (only she did actually, I was busy playing Snake outside the shop), then we went VivoCity to catch Pirates of the Caribbean (again, I am developing a fetish of watching the same movies twice with different people; I feel I am better off buying DVDs from JB), before embarking on some shopping (on her part again) and finally settling down for dinner at Bosses. I would have preferred Sushi, but you know me, I eat everything.

And of course, she was in a bad mood, so, apologies once again. She has not changed one bit since we last met, still the same old Tigress, as the pictures can testify. Anyway, I was late because I was at the Post Office to post some stuff to Bali, and there was an unbelievably long queue, and incredibly, the Visa/MasterCard reader broke down (what can I do?). And it broke down when I was next in line to be served, and the woman before me did not have enough cash to pay her postage. What she had was three different cards, so the cashier proceeded to try all three cards. Told you it was unbelievable. And incredible. Whichever you choose.

My conversations with Tigress are always peppered with disagreements. To quote a certain Captain Jack Sparrow (the plot is clearer the second time round, and the lines more memorable), “it is all a matter of perspective”. I am pretty damn sure, Tigress and me do not share any perspective of the tiniest similarity, and if our perspectives were two separate lines, then the lines would run parallel, until the day we die. Story of our friendship. But the good thing is, she does not bear grudges. She may not agree with you, but she definitely will not hate you for it. That is why I do not mind telling her sensitive stuff. But I know I will never get her to give me some helpful advice. So, it’s a Catch-22 kind of thing.

Going back to work later in the day. My next off will be 15^th. Whereby I will be having my first lesson with Will.i.am. Till then, in the famous words of Captain Jack Sparrow, “Close your eyes and pretend it’s all a bad dream. That’s how I get by” (trust me, there will be a fourth instalment of Pirates).

Today marks the one month we have been apart. The same old phrase- time flies. As long as you keep yourself occupied enough, time can really pass you by unnoticed, I tell you. And I promise myself, I will remain true to her. So far so smooth, unless a lips of an angel shit befalls me-

Honey why you calling me so late?
It's kinda hard to talk right now.
Honey why are you crying? Is everything okay?
I gotta whisper 'cause I can't be too loud

Well, my girl's in the next room
Sometimes I wish she was you
I guess we never really moved on
It's really good to hear your voice saying my name
It sounds so sweet
Coming from the lips of an angel
Hearing those words it makes me weak

And I never wanna say goodbye
But girl you make it hard to be faithful
With the lips of an angel

It's funny that you're calling me tonight
And, yes, I've dreamt of you too
And does he know you're talking to me
Will it start a fight
No I don't think she has a clue

Well my girl's in the next room
Sometimes I wish she was you
I guess we never really moved on
It's really good to hear your voice saying my name
It sounds so sweet
Coming from the lips of an angel
Hearing those words it makes me weak

And I never wanna say goodbye
But girl you make it hard to be faithful
With the lips of an angel

And no, I have learnt from my past mistake, and I will not repeat it. It was an expensive lesson anyway, and I will make that lesson worthwhile.

Anyway, I have been working and working and working this week. Got to settle my university next week- SIM is my destination. I really feel I will be better off studying what I like, rather than listen to what other has to say. I know my parent’s wallet will hurt a little more, but I am determined to make every cent count. Going back to school scares the shit out of me- how will I fit in? These few years out of school, I have picked up smoking and a couple of tattoos along the way. But what the hell, I will be there to study, not socialise, so I just study hard, and I am sure nothing will go wrong. Murphy’s Law- anything that can go wrong, will go wrong. So, I’m bracing myself.

Let’s now talk about girls. On the way back from work just now, I noticed a couple of sweet young things on the bus. You know young girls, great figure, sweet face, terrific dress sense and all, makes for marvellous eye candy. Sweet little things, I term them. But eventually, like everything, it will grow old after a while, grow fat after the second child, start to dress their age, and their daughters will soon take over their places. That is why, for me, I don’t like looking at girls. How long can they sustain their looks? Looking at them is no different from flipping through a magazine. It’s not like PLT are a rare sight, they are everywhere. That is why when those guys on the bus keep staring at them (Ayu will not look out of place with them by his side), I was wondering what’s the big deal? Come on, somebody, anybody, enlighten me please.

Thursday and Friday nights were spent drinking with my pals from my work place. All of them were from Malaysia, and very soon, we will be parting ways for good. It’s so sad, leaving memories behind. Sad because I know we will never see them again after they return to Malaysia to start their family. Maybe in another place, in another time, my son will befriend their sons. You never know, you never know. You never know what tomorrow holds- that’s the magic of life, no?