For some reason, i always check out the it fair which i think is held bi annually, even though i usually have no target item in mind to buy. lets see...
before the fair, me and a friend checked out marina square, and i saw this poster
what kind of a gimmick is that?!!
At the fair, i see price slashed and slashed and slashed
no, i didn't photoshop the new prices onto the pics
And as my friend pointed out to me... waste, waste, waste!!! And it wasn't just one isolated area like that littered with unwanted brochures, there were many such areas throughout the exhibit. How to save the Earth like that, when who knows how many trees are sacrificed for each it fair
me at 11:59 PM
Closing ceremony- Yet another masterpiece event, though not hitting the heights of the opening ceremony; this is the closing ceremony after all, and it is meant as a goodbye, less a showcase. The line-up events were visually impressive, especially when coupled with the colourful and dazzling light displays... And out of nowhere came a medal presentation ceremony; as the Kenyan athlete faced the flags and his national anthem boomed over the stadium, his face displayed raw emotion, and tears started to well up in his eyes. What a scene. I mean, come on, that has to be the defining moment of his life; receiving his gold medal in front of the spectators in the stadium, and not forgetting millions glued to their tv screens. And man, i also came close to tears. What a moment for him. The final set piece was great as well, the human pillar culminating no doubt from the intense training and planning. Song and dance items were aplenty, with the usual crowd-pleaser, the fireworks, rounding up the ceremony. And... finally the wrap-up: the dousing of the Olympic flame. On a sidenote, this is where we can see a sharp contrast between the presentations from the 2 nations; China opted for elaborate set-ups and grand events, while Britain went for a funky, trendy feel with their transforming bus and robot dances. David Beckham was on the bus, iconic British sportsman he is, though technically he can take part in the British soccer team as an overage player, he probably won't be involved as an athlete, since he will be 37 come his home games. As for now... luckily there's still the inaugural F1 night race to look forward to soon!
me at 8:43 PM
Hello, Beijing Olympics. (Flash) Goodbye, Beijing Olympics. Wow, time is really rocketing at breakneck speed. Just a little over 2 weeks ago, people worldwide were awed by the majestic opening ceremony. Today is the final day of the Olympics, no doubt to be accompanied by a stellar closing ceremony. Now feeling abit bittersweet that Olympics is finally coming to an end, and I won't be flicking on the tv and settling instantly into an Olympic event. Swimming and athletics were the highlights for me, with hammerings of multiple world records and intense photo finishes. Of course, i fervently followed and watched Singapore's progress in the table tennis matches, which culminated in a silver medal. Particularly memorable was the epic team semi final win, which guaranteed a medal. Venues such as the Water Cube and Bird's Nest brought out the best in athletes such as phenomenal swimmer Phelps and new sprint king Bolt. And we can see proud athletes as they stand on the medal podium, some driven to tears by the medal winning prospect. Basketball, gymnastics, handball, water polo, boxing, volleyball, i caught bits of Olympic action whenever i could, as athletes gave it their all in this mega sporting extravaganza. I mean, once is 4 years is really a prestigious event, and it was a thoroughly enjoyed must-watch event for me. In all, I watched up to 2 hours of Olympic action daily, which i could afford to do so because tutorials haven't started as yet. Oh. Tutorials. Just as the Olympics end, tutorials start. With the 2 major sporting events of the year down (Euro 08 being the first) there won't be spicing up to the mundane school life. Duh.
me at 1:12 PM
Olympic soccer final- played at noon, the scorching heat can almost be 'seen' during the live telecast. the referee even had to allow water breaks to ensure the players did not get dehydrated. And given the pitch looked, not conventional full green but with spaced out and thick white stripes over it, it wasn't exactly a match at the right place, at the right time.
Match wise, Nigeria could not carve out open spaces to score goals as they did in their semi-final mauling of Belgium (Belgium consequently lost 3-0 to Brazil in the Bronze match). Messi was a constant menace in the penalty area, culminating in an assist which allowed Angel di Maria (nice name!) to scored a chipped goal which proved to be the only goal in the match.
Later went to a friend's house for a bbq (yea, bbq in a house; his 2nd floor unit (block has only 4 floors), has a balcony, and a portable bbq pit was laid there. Hope there were no complaints of the smoke and the intense bbq smell. Nice atmosphere as we ate, talked, gathered around the tv for live athletics action, and enjoyed decent psp action as well.
me at 10:35 PM
oh man, both the heavily favoured US men and women 4x100 relay team dropped their baton in the heats to crash out of event, leaving the door open for the Jamaicans to grab the sprint titles yet again.
IOC chief Jacque Rogge criticized Usain Bolt for his showy antics and lack of acknowledgment for his competitors after his sprint wins. I suppose at a young ripe age of 22, that's the way of some youngsters. No matter what, 2 world records broken in 2 high profile sprint events is a monstrous achievement, and immense credit has to be given for that.
me at 11:27 PM
the bolt in yet another world record win, blazing way ahead of the field in his 200m sprint final.
me at 11:48 PM
1st time i've watched the National Day Rally in its entirety, and i'll say it was quite interesting and entertaining. Plenty of jokes (ERP at Pedra Blanca!), hot issues like ERP and rising costs of living, falling birth rates and social grace, and of course, the announcement of a 50% increase in growth dividends to be handed out in October. Graphs, videos and interesting slides were injected to spice up the rally. Perhaps due to my studies and interest in statistics, my favourite segment was arguably the fertility graph section. Just from that time series graph alone, he could show us major happenings and government policies, by accounting for all the peaks (government policy and Dragon year babies) to the troughs (financial and health crisis). To top it off, he whipped out a handphone, and proceeded to capture the audience on video, which was streamed live on his website. I mean, wow, i didn't even know such a thing can be done!
Looking forward to the rally next year!
me at 11:04 PM
Table tennis gold medal match- China were simply too strong, sweeping Singapore 3-0 in the process of dropping just 2 games. This one-sided match was certainly less exciting then the titanic semi final against Korea, though much credit has to be given to the Singapore paddlers for having come this far. Well, there's still the singles to go, and there certainly is hope for another medal.
Swimming-Phenomenal Phelps is indeed the man of the Olympics, claiming EIGHT gold medals, smashing 7 world records and one Olympic record along the way. Considering previous Olympics, he has a grand total of 14 golds in all, way clear of an elite group of athletes, who have garnered 9 golds each. Wow. Let's see what he can do at London 2012.
And that brings down the curtain on the swimming events at this Olympics. What an exciting discipline this has been, bringing many world records and close. heart stopping victories (0.01 second victories, man). Second half of Olympics beckons, and athletics will probably throw up more excitement.
me at 9:59 PM
1st EPL match of the season, and i caught it at the 'Euro 08 coffeeshop', Arsenal vs West Brom. Arsenal played good football, mainly down the left flank, while West Brom hardly carved out any decent chances. Though there was another match right after this, me and my friends went home, to catch the one of the biggest, yet shortest timed event of the Olympics, the 100m race.
100m sprint final- A world record by the bolt, as he breezed to the finish line way clear of the rest of the field in an astonishing, world record beating 9.69 seconds. And just as he did in the qualifying rounds, he could afford to spread his arms, and look at the audience as he cantered to the finish line. Next up, the 200m sprint final.
me at 11:23 PM
Table tennis semi-final match- What an epic match. Right down to the wire, a roller coaster ride as Singapore edged Korea 3-2 to secure our first Olympic medal in 48 years. I could hear the people in the blocks nearby COL (cheer out loud) each time Singapore came up tops in a grueling rally. What a long wait it has been. Yes, indeed, many netizens will undoubtedly cry foul as none of our three players were local born. But look at some other teams, such as the Dutch, where i think the team has 2 chinese nationals,or the US, where all four members are china born players. i believe that as long as the Singapore paddlers are fighting and striving to win a medal for Singapore in their hearts, it just doesn't matter where they hail from; they are just a members of Team Singapore.
me at 7:37 PM
Prerecorded footage of fireworks, the nine year old girl actually lip-synching to another singer's voice, well yes, indeed these are some fakes at the Olympics opening ceremony, revealed only a few days later, but these shouldn't take the gloss off what has truly been a eye opening ceremony . Lets just hope that after the closing ceremony, there won't be anymore revelations of fakings.
me at 6:53 PM
I'm still booking seats at the back row. I'm still grabbing seats by the walkway. I'm staring at a giant screen, and the temperature is cool.
BUT this is not the movie theater, but lecture theaters in school. Duh.
me at 11:24 PM
the time of messing around has ended. Back to school tomorrow. Out of the past 40 or so days, i've been out 29 days (7 of which was at the theaters, gosh), with a total spending of around $320, which makes it roughly $10+ per outing. Hmmz. Just a few days after the exams of last semester ended, i stepped into this 6 day week job. Which meant meeting up with friends for dinner on days with morning shifts, or on off days. Back home, just watch anime/play games/read books without a care in the world. Not having to worry about studies, and most importantly... having money to spend really felt good. I was getting accustomed to this working pattern until... came the absolutely slack, just eat-sleep-watch anime-play games days. And tomorrow presents another change in direction, the school days. Frankly speaking though, the working days were tops for me; somewhat i liked the working life. But well, for now, its back to school...
me at 5:15 PM
Olympics opening ceremony- truly a dazzling spectacle. China's culture and great inventions were showcased to the world in awe inspiring fashion. Exquisite set pieces, absolutely original ideas, beautiful voices to tune our ears to, everything was done in a slick manner, right up to the final torch bearer, who probably stunned all by doing a horizontal in-the-air run as the final lap to the lighting of the Olympic flame. Wow. The bar has certainly been set very, very high for future opening ceremonies.
NDP- yes, it cannot be compared to the monstrously budgeted and high profile Olympics, but it was certainly great in its own way. A new addition, an air performance by the Black Knights, certainly lit up the skies. Song and dance items were infused with local flavour, accompanied by the usual medley of National Day songs and the customary fireworks sign-off. Man, what a blockbuster double extravaganza, so glad i stayed home to watch both.
me at 11:50 PM
Yes its here, 080808. A really auspicious figure for Chinese. Olympics opens today, National day is tomorrow, school starts in 3 days' time, and major football leagues kick off next weekend... And it feels like i'm gonna have quite a significant lifestyle change; from the slack-work-slack-work-slack days(yes, during the semester break, i roughly rested a week, worked 6 weeks, rested 3 weeks, worked 3 days, then rested 2 weeks) to the typical schooling life. 080808 also gives me food for thought; would i still be studying in 090909 (now in a dilemma whether to pursue honours year of study)? what job will i be holding in 101010? will i finally get a girlfriend by 111111? And how will things work out in 121212. Yea, will be looking forward to these 3 days!
me at 7:54 PM
my mum opened 3 eggs into a cup; not only were the egg yolks seemingly the wrong number, it all arranged into a beautiful casade:
me at 5:32 PM
the mummy 3... surprisingly turned out to be quite good... that is, for a popcorn movie, not dark knight calibre masterpieces.
opened very promisingly, making it seem like a Chinese period movie, before delving into the familiar Hollywood style blast-all-over-the-place mayhem. Jet Li and Michelle Yeoh lend their prowess to the English cast, with some of the English even sprouting lines in Chinese... not quite correctly pronounced in most instances though. In all, a watchable, friendly film which is the seventh movie i've watched since the start of July... Making an average of > 1 movie per week! Guess i'm really a movie junkie.
me at 4:48 PM
quite happening today... many people, police brought in to manage human traffic at city hall mrt... must be the singfest 08 and the NDP preview... (nah, i'm not gooing for either)
anyway saw this McLaren Mercedes F1 car right here in bugis junction.. seemed to be the real, authentic one
me at 9:22 PM
Saw these 2 prices within striking distance of each other… What’s so special about a boxed set of Harry Potter collection, (overly) priced at $315.65? A copy of the seventh and final book cost only $19.90.
me at 5:30 PM
